Our Duluth Trip

We decided that it was high time that we took a trip. The destination was an easy choice: Duluth is only about an hour from where my sister and her hubby live.

We toured the rose gardens, stopped by Whole Foods (a major disappointment, IMO), ate at Culver's (so so yummy), got in some shopping (I drooled over the makeup in Ulta), and went down to the lift bridge (see THIS Vine). For supper we ate at a Japanese restaurant. 

It was a fun trip, but it was pretty stressful with Helen. She decided to go on sleep strike. She wasn't particularly grumpy (until we went to the Japanese restaurant), but just having a kid along makes a trip twice as tiring.

Hopefully we'll be able to go on another adventure sometime...when we forget how much work it is. :P

All photos taken with my iPhone 5S.

Have you been doing any traveling this summer?

Winter Walk

Last weekend, my brother-in-law told about some awesome frost that he had seen on his cross-country ski run. Of course I wanted to photograph it. 

So I convinced Reuben to trek out with me. It was a lovely day and the frosty trees were beautiful. 

Reuben got sick of waiting around while I snapped pictures from a million different angles, so he and Helen headed home. But as I walked back, I heard someone quietly say "boo." And there they were, hiding behind a tree, waiting to scare me. Silly-heads.

By the way, most of these photos were taken with my newly acquired iPhone 5S. I love love love its camera capabilities.

You can always see more of my iPhone photos on Instagram.

December Photo-a-Day 2013: Days 30 + 31

Day 30: Out cross-country skiing with Mom & Dad! Helen really enjoyed herself, even though it was very cold.

Day 31: The magic of a little makeup. I used concealer, mascara, blush, lip stain, and filled in my eyebrows a bit. These photos were taken using the same settings on my camera and adjusted for contrast, exposure and color.

And that ends my photo-a-day project! It was really fun. But now I will resume my regular, sporadic posting. :)

Happy New Year!

Awkward and Awesome

I’ve seen a few bloggers do a series called “Awkward and Awesome” where they highlight some of their funny/happy moments from recent weeks. I thought it would be fun to write about some of the things that have happened to us lately.

Almost all of the awkward things involve Helen. :P

Awkward:

• As seen in the photo above, Helen managed to open a bag of coconut sugar and spill some of it on the floor. She licked some of it off of her fingers before I had a chance to stop her.
• While I was shopping at Claire’s for some small hoop earrings the other day Helen managed to get her hands on a piece of paper that had fallen out of my pocket. She soon had a piece ripped off and was gagging on it. I reached my finger into her mouth and pulled it out, but that made her gag even more. So of course she puked on her shirt. I didn’t have a spit-rag with me, so I used my glove to scoop up the vomit, wad it up and shove it into my pocket. Ew.
• On the same shopping trip, this time in a thrift store, a little baby started crying. Helen responded by cooing and laughing. No sympathy!

Awesome:

• I have been enjoying lots of cocoa lately. Whipped cream is a must in my book.
• I figured out how to give my hair lots of body for an updo: braid your hair while it’s still a bit damp and leave in all day and night. The next day, brush it out, bump it up and twist into a bun. Voila! See an example of it here.
• New yarn in the mail! I’m knitting a hat for my sister as a belated birthday present, and I’m planning on knitting a hat for Helen.
• Another new thing in the mail: this tulip shirt. I likey.
• I finally got around to editing some more of the photos I took of Katelyn. I might have to share them here sometime. Here’s a sample photo.

What sorts of funny/interesting/awesome things have been happening to you lately?

2 Responses to Awkward and Awesome

1. Heather 
   November 9th, 2013 at 5:55 pm
   I can’t think much of an awkward/awesome moment. But, I do have a gross moment you reminded me of when you mentioned Helen was gagging on some paper. When my daughter was about 9 months old I gave her a magazine to distract her, not thinking about how everything goes in to the mouth. I caught her when she started to choke on the paper she ripped out. I swooped her up, telling her to ’spit it out, spit it out, Nicole. Open, Nicole, open your mouth, spit it….’ and that was all that came out. While my mouth was open and forming the rest of the sentence, Nicole finally dislodged the wad of paper, along with all of her recently eaten meal. I’ll give you three guesses where it all went…
   Ewwww.
2. Erica Lea 
   November 9th, 2013 at 11:40 pm
   Heather: Oh, wow, I thought my experience was gross! Yeah, I’ve let Helen play with magazines only to have her start to eat them. It’s really too bad because it would keep her entertained for quite some time otherwise! :)

My Year in Photos 2012 Part 1

And so 2012 has come and gone. It all seems a bit of a blur in my mind. Every year I’m so glad that I took the time to document little parts of our days with photographs. They help me to remember moments that would otherwise be completely lost.

Here are some of my favorites from 2012:

January

New haircut! That was the shortest I’d had it for quite a while. It was fun for a change, but I’m growing it back out now.

We took several ski trips. This is Reuben, being awesome. The norm.

You can watch a short video of us skiing here and here.

February

I hosted a tea party at our house. So. much. pretty. hair.

Since our uncle was traveling to Indonesia, we decided to have a Rijstaffel (Rice Table) for him, a traditional Dutch/Indonesia feast.

Grandpa’s lilies. Frosty tree. Handsome husband. My Valentines Day orchids. American flag. Pretty sister.

Various captures.

March

I can’t believe how much younger Reuben looks without his “affectation” (what we call his beard).

We did some rustic camping. You can see more photos and read the story here.

I did a mini session for my pretty sister, Amanda.

My adorable niece and nephew, Judah & Elinor.

New skirt.

April

Snow in April!

First sign that spring is truly here: the hepaticas, or Mayflowers as we used to call them.

With the warmer weather comes volleyball!

May

I love fixing little Elinor’s hair.

New addition to the family: baby Susan. Watch a film and read more about it here.

I got very sick. Kind of a scary time of my life.

Springtime. See more photos and a short film here.

My kitchen garden. See more photos here.

June

Corn coming up.

Enjoying the warm weather by traipsing around the yard barefoot.

For our first anniversary we took a trip to the cities. I got to try out some new lenses and settled on a 28mm.

For supper one night we ate at Black Sheep Coal Fired Pizza. It was delicious and different from anything you can get at a chain, but the service was (much) less than spectacular.

Tuesday, June 19: I learned that I was pregnant!

STAY TUNED FOR THE SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR…

4 Responses to My Year in Photos 2012 Part 1

1. Caitlyn 
   January 1st, 2013 at 2:07 pm
   Gorgeous pictures, Erica!
2. Elizabeth 
   January 2nd, 2013 at 12:16 pm
   I have been in love with your blog since I found it a couple years ago. What a lovely life you have. Thank you for sharing. Happy New Year. Feel Good!!!!!
3. Kathryn Grace 
   January 5th, 2013 at 4:02 pm
   I really enjoy your captures of your everyday life! Those purple flowers are just too pretty… I remember you posting that picture the first time.
4. Abbie 
   January 7th, 2013 at 5:18 am
   So lovely to see these glimpses of your year – look forward to seeing the rest of them too! :)

My Favorite Kind of Day

Saturday was one of my favorite kind of days. A bit gloomy. Chilly. Relaxed.

Reuben took a walk in the woods to hunt down some deer. When he came in from the wet and cold we had homemade chicken noodle soup for lunch.

After lunch we went to town and Reuben helped me pick out some yarn for a hat I’m planning on knitting.

When we got home we decided to take another walk to see if we could sneak up on any deer. The conditions were perfect: a fine, constant mist of rain kept everything moist and there seemed to be a hush all around.

Carefully walking through the woods, trying to make as little noise as possible, we came upon two does. A buck was what we were looking for, so they got away.

What’s your favorite kind of day?

11 Responses to My Favorite Kind of Day

1. Rebecca in NC 
   November 12th, 2012 at 4:59 pm Moderate
   That sounds like a perfect day :) And that soup looks delicious!
2. Nela 
   November 12th, 2012 at 6:22 pm Moderate
   The same day that you just described. ;) Gotta love ‘em!
   Also, I like your husband’s t-shirt. I have one just like that when I attended a shooting event last year.
   Anyway, great pics!
3. Abbie 
   November 13th, 2012 at 5:14 am Moderate
   Beautiful photos of what looks like a lovely day! One of my favourite kind of days would have to be the cool, wet, cosy days – we receive so many warm ones that cold weather is very pleasant! :)
4. Homeschool on the Croft 
   November 13th, 2012 at 8:51 am Moderate
   I’m not so sure about the t-shirt myself …. me being a Brit an’ all that ;)
   Your day sounds like a perfect day to me. Deer hunting, knitting and making and having soup … yep, it about sums up perfection to me :)
5. Erica Lea 
   November 13th, 2012 at 9:29 am Moderate
   Anne: Haha, yes, the instructors were a bit too “American-can-do-no-wrong-the-British-were-evil” for our tastes. :)
6. Elizabeth 
   November 13th, 2012 at 9:31 am Moderate
   I could use one of your perfect days…except for the hunting part. That’s too out of my comfort zone. But everything else sounded and looked so lovely.
   For me, any day I get to spend with my 7 year old daughter is a perfect day for me.
7. bonnie 
   November 14th, 2012 at 10:38 pm Moderate
   just add a few moments with a good book and a big mug of something hot to drinkto your day and that would be mine. . .
8. Carissa @ Pretty/Hungry 
   November 15th, 2012 at 12:05 am Moderate
   My favorite day is a gray one as well! I think it makes being inside that much cozier. :) Hope you’re feeling well as that little one continues to grow!
9. FRAN 
   November 17th, 2012 at 9:08 am Moderate
   What the —- do you need to hunt for? Heartless —–.
10. FRAN 
    November 17th, 2012 at 5:34 pm Moderate
    You left out ---- and -----
11. Rebecca 
    November 27th, 2012 at 5:08 pm Moderate
    Just wanted to say – good for you! Wild meat is by far better for you and better for the animal. Death is fast and they are scared for a few seconds. People like Fran should be forced to visit a slaughter house. I have few issues with either method of procuring healthy foods but animal harvesting is hardly as wonderful for the animal as is the life of a wild animal.
    Erica – I greatly enjoy your posts but never comment. I am happy for you that your husband thinks highly enough of you and your child to provide you with fresh and healthy food options. :-)