Raucous weekends with your college buddies, family get-togethers, quiet weekends with another couple—there is nothing better than a good cabin weekend. To the unfamiliar it sounds a bit strange: load up your car and drive 2-4 hours on Friday evening. Spend the weekend in the middle of nowhere in a cabin with limited amenities. Haul […]
Archives for April 2012
How to sew easy quilted fabric cards
April 25, 2012 by
I’m not much of a sewist. As mentioned before, I’m most comfortable with straight lines and no patterns. But I do have a sewing machine and I love fabric. So when I stumbled on this tutorial by Dana at MADE for how to sew fabric cards using little bits of cute fabric, I was all […]
The Minneapolis park you’ve never heard of — Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden
April 21, 2012 by
It’s hard to believe, but one of my favorite Minneapolis parks actually bans running. No tiny shorts here. No huffing puffing runners thundering behind you, no sweaty elbows pushing you aside. Also: no bikers, with their startling cries of “On your left!” And even though I love them: no dogs, either. Instead, the place is […]
Urban Vegetable Gardening: Plant, ready, plan . . .
April 20, 2012 by
So much for plans. A few weeks ago I posted that I had grand plans for vegetable gardening this year. I had researched container and small-space gardening and pinned a bunch of cool-looking ideas. I meant to research what the perfect (probably heirloom) varietals of beans or peas or kale that would look awesome among […]
I can relate: Tiger Mothers and Les Bebes
April 17, 2012 by
When I go on vacation I typically read one or more books per day. I ignore my family and stay up all night and just consume them — some literature, some Oprah picks, some beach fluff — but always all fiction. It’s really out of hand. So this year I decided to actually interact with […]
A clean conscience: Why I hire out housecleaning
April 16, 2012 by
Yesterday I spent eight hours cleaning my house and I didn’t even get to the third floor (the finished attic of a 125-year-old foursquare). It’s just as well, though, that’s my older son’s room and at the moment it is carpeted with Legos. I don’t really want to follow through on my threat to vacuum […]
Roughing it: Traveling to the Bahamas with a one-year-old
April 12, 2012 by
So if Jen’s pooh-poohed her Anna Maria Island trip as unadventurous, wait until you hear about my spring trip. On the one hand, yes: we traveled with a one-year-old on four, two-hour flights (two each way). We subjected her to nightly two-hour dinners at fancy restaurants. We let her run around in the pool (and […]
No strings attached
April 9, 2012 by
A gracious friend who received some devastating news recently did me the favor of accepting my help. When I am the one having a hard time, I forget that allowing someone to help is a great gift to them. I also forget that a sincere, simple thank you is all the repayment the giver needs. […]