Wine Country

Last weekend we had the pleasure of friends visiting us from Seattle, and we took them to our favorite place here in the Bay Area...Wine Country. Guys, my favorite country is Wine Country. The air smells woodsy and fresh, the breeze blows slightly, and there is more wine than I could ever drink. I admit it, I am a wino. A red wino to be specific.

On this particular trip up into wine country we went to a winery we have visited once before outside of Petaluma. It is called Scoggins Wines, owned and operated by PW Scoggins. Our first visit there was so fun we have been itching to go back for about a month. After sitting in traffic for almost 3 HOURS we got there and dove right into glasses of Zinfandel and our picnic.

As the afternoon wore on our conversation ebbed and flowed with friends new and old. My husband was in heaven with his old buddy visiting, and his new buddy PW. Finally the night drew to a close and we headed home (I was the sober driver, don't worry!). It was a day spent with good friends, lots of laughs, and of course good wine :)

Until next time,
Kerri

So, what about a blog?

My poor little blog, I had such dreams for you in 2013, and they have been completely squashed due to a myriad of life events. Quick synopsis: got engaged, married, moved states, total career change (or no career at the moment?).

As life keeps changing, morphing, evolving, my career dreams are doing the same. What do I do? Where do I go from here? I need to try to branch out on my own. My goal here on this blog is to cover what things matter to me at this stage of my life. I spend my free time nowadays spending time exploring my new state, cooking, exercising, practicing being an adult with my time and money, and pursuing other musings that come my way.

Currently I work as a barista at a local coffee chain and actually really enjoy it. My schedule works, my customers are fabulous, and my days fly by. Every time I blink it is Monday, and the next time I blink it is Friday.

So here we go, I hope I can keep track of myself here!

Kerri

Engagement!

For anyone who doesn't already know, Daniel and I got engaged in September, it was such a surprise and exactly what I wanted. We had been to look at rings once and discussed options regarding his grandmothers engagement ring and that was as far as I thought we had gotten. Little did I know sneaky guy went and did what we had talked about, bought a ring and was ready to ask the question! Of course I said yes! Now I will tell you the story...

In September for Labor Day weekend we went to the rodeo in Ellensburg, Washington and had a complete blast. We camped with his family and friends, saw our friends, watched the rodeo and got really into it, enjoyed the sun and drank lots of beer. We came home Monday afternoon and went to work the next day. That Tuesday morning he mentioned he wanted to go to see the new Ferris wheel that overlooks the water here in Seattle, and I thought sure okay maybe this weekend or whatever. I was not that concerned, but he had other plans. He got weirdly adamant that we go, TODAY, to ride the Ferris wheel after work. I am thinking now, well I guess he really likes Ferris wheels, this is a new thing...hmm. I get home from work and we immediately go downtown to the wheel. He was fidgety and his driving was making me crazy (what else is new). We park and get in line, Daniel had already bought the tickets before online. He was so fidgety and walking around in place, staring at everything and just could not relax. I had no idea what the big deal was. There was a family ahead of us in line and he mentioned how he hoped we didn't have to ride with them.

We get in our little gondola and start going towards the top, but very slowly because people were still being loaded into the cars. I took my phone out to take a picture of the view, which was beautiful and he suggests we take a picture together...um what? Is this the same guy I have been dating for 1.5 years who HATES when I try to take his picture? I have so many pictures of the back of his head you would not believe! I sort of thought then that something might be up. As soon as I was done snapping a picture he got down on one knee, and I thought he was kidding like he had so many times before! I rolled my eyes!! And he started telling me how much he loved me and wanted to be with me for the rest of his life, I forget the rest because I was so excited, and then he pulled out the ring box (which he had been keeping in his sock so I didn't see it in his pocket) and opened it. Inside was the setting I had said I loved at the engagement ring store with the diamond from his grandmothers ring. It was perfect. He put the ring on my finger and I started crying, by this time the Ferris wheel was done loading and we were going around. We started calling our families to tell them, it was just a blur of excitement and emotion.

This the ring, which I love so much. It catches the light and sparkles. I have gotten used to the feeling of wearing a ring on my ring finger and ditched the rings I was wearing on my middle finger (note the tan line ha!). The ring Daniel's grandmother gave him to give to me was really not my style, so with her permission he had the diamond put into a different setting more to my liking. The ring and diamond carry a lot of sentiment, and if you know Daniel he LOVES sentimental things so it is just really special to have something so close to his heart already have new meaning for us. 

After the Ferris wheel ride went to Daniel's Broiler for dinner and had a fantastic time, they even brought us champagne! Here we are almost 2 1/2 months later and a whole bunch of trips. We are moving into a new town home which is about half way between both of our offices to start our next phase of life, which is newly engaged soon to be newly weds! We set a date for the wedding, August 17, 2013 in Gig Harbor. We are planning a big party with good food, lots of dancing, and whole bunch of love! But between now and the wedding there is a lot of work to be done! Planning! Shopping! Parties (fun, but work)! Thank you cards! The works! Also the wedding has been a kick in the butt for both of us to get in better shape. We go running and are making long term changes to our diets and are both losing weight and feeling great.

It feels really great to be growing up and knowing I am going to marry the man I loved since I first met him at 14 is pretty crazy. Life is good.

Major Catch Up! And Birthright!

Long time, long long long long long time and no blog. This is not how I intended my blog to be, but life really got in the way! A short synopsis before I dive into catching up, since I last blogged I have gotten engaged, been in a wedding, been on 2 international trips and nearly lost my mind with being so busy. Projects have all been put on hold until we move (2 weeks) and then I will have a whole long list of things to do.

So without further ado I will dive in...


In July I went on a trip to Israel through the Taglit Birthright organization. The organization offers a free trip to Israel, hitting all the hot spots, for Jewish youth 18-26. Last winter I had this very vivid dream about going to Israel, applied a few days after (and asking my boss) and was accepted. My trip departed and returned to LAX and all I had to fund was my ticket from SeaTac to LAX, and spending money. The birthright trips take you to all the Jewish/Israeli places to see. We went to the Western Wall, swam in Dead Sea, stayed on a few kitbbutzim, rode camels in the desert, and had a great time doing it. Every day was jam packed with activities and better than the day before. I truly loved it. I was expecting to me more religious than it was and was a little let down that it was not a more spiritually focused trip, but I traveled with a reform Judaism group called URJ Kesher, so it was exactly how they had described it would be. We did shabbat together and some people on the trip had never done shabbat before and had no idea or the prayers or songs, so it was special to be there when they experience it for the first time.

Here is a quick overview. I made wonderful friends, had a wonderful time, and enjoyed every second. If you are thinking about going on  birthright, do it! Do not listen to the propaganda out there about how it is so dangerous, how it is a zionist religious brainwash trip, any of that nonsense. Go, experience, enjoy and take it at face value, after you leave what is important will sink in and the rest won't matter. If you want to see the trip as a politically pushed cattle shoot, then see it that way. If you want to see the trip as a fun, guided trip where you just go with the flow and not worry about making decisions you will LOVE it. I am serious. Birth right was incredible and I wish I could go back. The friends and memories I made are truly some that are very near and dear to my heart.

I was in archaeological heaven in Israel. EVERYWHERE we went was something important, old, and part of my religious history, it was so cool to see things I learned about growing up at Sunday school in real life with my own eyes. 

This is at the Bedouin camp, the second hottest I have ever been in my life. It was well over 100 degrees F and everyone was soaked in sweat. Literally soaked. The next day we went hiking and that was the first hottest.

Riding camels in the desert, sweating uncontrollably

Camels were not amused by tourists. 

Dead sea mud, it was very grainy and the water tingled. 

More mud

This is the Ein Gedi nature reserve. This place looked like it was out of a movie, a gorgeous oasis in the middle of the desert. There were so many people there all cooling off in the many pools and waterfalls. 

Some of the group at the Sea of Galilee, also known as the Kinneret

I ate a lot of delicious food. Falafel, shawarma, hummus, salads., soda made with real sugar, pastries, chocolate milk, the dairy products were so incredible. Just yum, and I am still losing weight I gained in Israel haha

Group before river rafting

A pool felt so good on Shabbat, our kibbutz pool became PACKED by lunch time with everyone getting out of the heat

Cute juice stand

Typical market fare

Top of Masada (note the nose ring instead of my typical stud, I was trying out being a gypsy...it didn't last)

More masada..

Masada at sunrise

River rafting, pretty sure we were all laughing the entire time, we were splashing and singing and cracking jokes, waving at the locals on the bank and calling out to them.

More lunch, this is our medic that traveled with us named Sharon.  He was good at giving out bandaids.

Dark, but sunrise at Masada. 

Jaffa port

Water break. We would drink immense amounts of water and sweat it all out, the heat was so intense.  Want to know hot weather? Go to the middle east in the middle of July during a heat wave. 

Waterfalling

Western Wall. Here it was important to be covered up and modest. I had clothes to put on over my outfit, but women who do not have proper attire are given things to wrap around their body and cover up. 

There were so many notes here. Being in a place where so many people pour their heart out to God was amazing. I left a handful of notes for the people in my life, if there is a place God can really here you, it is here. 

Some girls at the Western Wall. Men and women are separated here which is custom with orthodoxy in many religions. The men had 3/4 of the wall to use and women had 1/4 of the wall to use.



That is a summation of my trip, I have SO many more photos and stories and memories, but this is just one blog post. If there is an opportunity to take a trip there, do it. Whether Jewish or not I think going somewhere that is the rock of so many religions is incredible. The mix of Jewish, Christian, and Islam there was not at all how I expected it to be and was refreshing. What we see on the news and what is actually going on there are different as day and night. 

My Review of Veganese

Originally submitted at LUSH USA

If you've got hair so fine you fear conditioning will flatten any chance you've got at body, never fear. Veganese is so light it's meant for those with fine hair. A herbal balance of lavender, rosemary and lemon keep your hair shiny and your scalp toned, while agar infusion (seaweed) mo...

Veganese

Not my favorite

By Seattle Lady from Seattle, WA on 6/22/2012

 

2out of 5

When you survey your stash, you label this product: None of the above

Pros: Great Smell, Adds Shine

Cons: Too Light

Best Uses: Fine Hair, Daily Use

Hair Type: Straight Hair

Describe Yourself: Product Junkie

I bought the small size of this and am glad I did. I have regular hair, that can go a few days between washings, or be washed every day and react just fine. My hair is not exceptionally thick, but it is not thin by any means. This conditioner was just too light for me. Once it was dry it held a lot of static and got tangled really easily. This would be a great product for people fine hair that isn't oily. The smells is wonderful, but the bottle sits half way used in my shower and guests use it instead of me.

(legalese)

CSA Box!

Today was the first day of the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) season! Dan and I went in on a small share to split. It costs $27.75 a week for 18 weeks at Helsing Junction Farm, I think they still have shares available if you are interested!. We prepaid because I signed us up in March, so it is smooth sailing from here! The pickup location is about a mile from my house so I can just swing by after work and pick up the box. The instructions say to bring a bag to put your share of the produce in and leave your box to be refilled next week. The share we got also includes bouquets of flowers most weeks too :)

This week our box included

A bunch of Tokyo Cross turnips, 1 bunch of  Pink Beauty  radishes

1 bunch of arugula, 1 bunch of rapini

1 bunch of cilantro, 1 bunch of mint

1 bunch of chives, 1 bunch of garlic scapes

4 pints of strawberries

I  meant to take a picture of everything in the box before I packed it and brought it home, but I was just too excited, maybe next week I will remember. Now, out of this selection I have never tried rapini and garlic scapes, so naturally I used these tonight for dinner. I read online to treat the rapini like swiss chard, kale or other leafy green that can be blanched and then sauteed. I blanched the rapini and then put in ice water, dried it off and then sauteed it with fresh bacon pieces. It was delicious. As for garlic scapes, where have they been my whole life?! I am going to look for them at a farmers market this weekend and get some more! YUM! I turned it into pesto using some olive oil, pine nuts, and finely grated parmesan in the blender. The garlic scape pesto is amazing, a little hot and lots of flavor. Dan grilled some steaks and we put the pesto on top. I know I already like cilantro pesto too, so I might be starting a pesto obsessed summer.

Pesto, it was so good I was eating it plain before the meat was ready

Blanched rapini and cooked bacon ready to go into the  skillet with red pepper flakes and  S&P

Completed meal, this picture was snapped right before we ate. 

I am so excited for the next 17 boxes and to see what creative meals we come up with. Dan is a great cook too, but he is more of a griller so we will see where that goes.

On a separate note I got my itinerary for my trip to Israel next month and I cannot wait! It is going to be so fun, more on that in the coming month. 

Until next time, 

Tufted Headboard

Hi Everyone,

Today I am going to go over how I made my own tufted headboard. I have wanted one of these forever, and drool over the beds from Ballard Designs and the price tag was just too much for me! I looked around the web for a long time looking at tutorials and inspiration and finally turned to guidance from Jenny at Little Green Notebook for a process to follow. My take was slightly different, I had help from both my parents (thank you!) and was able to make it start to finish in a few hours. Great project and I am very excited to get into bed and go to sleep at night now.

The fabric I used was one I purchased at Pacific Fabrics in the SODO district. I chose a mushroom brown velvet type of fabric. I wanted something that looked rich and would match whatever decor comes my way in the future, like in a guest room or something. I purchased 2.5 yards of the material to cover a headboard that is 64 x 30 inches.

The next step was acquiring the foam for the inside and batting to wrap it in. Foam is not cheap people. I got the foam for the headboard from Jo-Ann Fabrics and had a 40% off coupon and the price still made me choke a little. It was by far the most expensive part of this project. I bought 64 x 60 inches of foam, which was more than I needed, but now I have left over foam to play around with on something I will dream up soon. The batting was on sale for $3 a yard, I got 2 yards of that too.

Jo-Ann fabrics uses an electric turkey knife to cut the foam, it was  a clean cut too! 

The next stop was at Lowe's for a piece of pegboard. I had the guy cut the pegboard into a piece that was 64 inches long by 30 inches wide. At this point my mom and I were pretty giddy with the smell of sawdust, doing projects are totally addicting, and I get it from her haha. 

Measure twice, cut once!

We were excited about the giant saw


 

After this we headed home to get started. The first step was to measure the board and figure out how to make the curve on the top corners. My mom helped me use the trash can lid to draw a half circle on the corners and then I cut it out using a jig saw, it was really quick and easy and adds a lot of character. 

Here is the line to follow with the saw, I went for the larger of the 2 options. 

Quick cutting on both corners

Here is the board ready for the next step.

After the corners were cut I laid the foam pieces on top and traced the curve and then cut the foam to be same size. Unfortunately for me my parents do not own an electric turkey knife so I used a regular knife instead. The cut was not quite as clean, but it did the job without a problem. 

Then I mapped out where I wanted to space the holes. The pegboard make this pretty easy because you can just count the holes and follow a pattern, no drilling required which is nice and less math that way. 

Mapped out on the board

Mapped out the foam

After I drew the dots on the foam I used a knife to cut holes through the foam on the holes so it could be accessed through the back of the pegboard easily.

After I had cut holes in the foam I used a spray adhesive to stick it to the pegboard, I did this step because the tutorial I read recommended this, and it could probably be skipped if you are careful and keep the holes lined up. Mine were not all lined up very well despite trying. Once the foam was attached to the board I wrapped it in batting and stapled it to the back of the board. 

 

This is where things got much more exciting but also a lot more stressful. Doing the tufting was not hard, but it was long and took patience. Luckily I had both my parents helping and we were able to get it done pretty quickly (I think, how long does it take other people to tuft things?). The technique we used was pretty unique and made it go a lot faster. 

My dad was on the backside of the headboard and I was on the front. We started at the top and in the middle. He would thread the upholstery need through to me and slide a straw from a WD-40 can along side the needle. I would thread the button on the front and arrange the fabric and then would pinch the WD-40 straw between my thumb and forefinger, and stick the needle into the straw and it would go right back out the same hole it came through. He would then take the ends of the thread and knot it around a button on the backside and would pull it tight. 

View of threading the needle and straw (red thing) through  the backside. 

Threading the button and arranging the fabric before sending the needle back  through

Pinch the straw in between thumb and forefinger

Put needle into the straw and push it back through the same peghole  in the back

Now, repeat this step around 36 times and you're done! Good thing my parents really like me to help me, it got done pretty quickly. But I did fix a tuft before I hung it on the wall by myself and used the straw technique and it took me about a minute to do it by myself, it really goes much faster that way. Maybe other people are just pro at sending the needle through the foam, I am not so a little guidance really helped. 

My assistants who helped even when they thought my creative vision was fuzzy

Luckily my mom has a HUGE collection of buttons and I was able to find enough that were the same, the right size and was able to spray paint them to match the fabric. I considered making my own buttons for about 10 seconds, but at ~$1 a button that thought was fleeting. If my mom didn't have a large collection I would have shelled out for it though. 

After all the tufts were done we put the headboard down face first and pulled the extra fabric tight and stapled it to the back. Pretty basic on this step, just watch out for the holes in the pegboard and staple around those. The extra material was cut off and then I ran a strip of brown packing tape over the edge of the fabric just to help it lay very flat. 

To hang the headboard I used D-Hooks and wire and then 2 screws in the wall. The headboard is not very heavy, just an awkward shape. I screwed the D-hooks into the pegboard (easy to measure thanks to the holes in the back). I ran a piece of wire through the D part and tied it off.  I quick measuring on the wall and used a level to  make the marks even and then put screws in the wall. And voila! 

View of tufts

Now I have a bald wall above my bed, I took down my beloved mirror, it was too much bulk on the wall. Don't worry, I have some ideas for the wall.

I think that is all on this project that is important. I would absolutely do this project again for another bed in the future, it worked beautifully and was pretty fun too. Sweet dreams :)

Until next time,

Kerri