Quote of the day

"Earth's crammed with heaven,

And every common bush afire with God:

But only he who sees takes off his shoes." (Elizabeth Barrett Browning)

I couldn't agree more.

Happy weekend.

The side roll

Last year we acquired a side roll sprinkler to water the rye we planted on land for future vineyard use. This is virgin land. It was covered in shin oak and sand dune before we disced it, leveled it and planted rye.

Shin oak can actually poison grapevines so there's a two-year lead time between eradicating it and planting new vines. The clock is ticking.

While we're waiting out the two years, we'll be planting our chili peppers here--safely ensconced inside the deer fence.

Nathan's been working this week on repairs to the sprinkler: a harbinger that chili planting is nigh.

Nathan's pick

So glad

With our impending house move, I was concerned about Aslan, our ten-year-old indoor dog, being without a soft surface to lay his head and sensitive joints. (The new house only has wood floors.)

So I purchased a pet bed and felt a whole lot better.

Yes, just truly delighted with my purchase. Aslan won't sleep on it, but Salty will.

Tractor fixin'

High on home construction

I'm high on home construction right now so I thought I'd upload some detail shots of the house progress. I know, I know: y'all are just thrilled.

Master bath shower. The whale tile was created by an artisan out of the Pacific Northwest. Whales are a symbol of destiny which we find entirely appropriate for our lives out here in the wild, wild west.

Antique corbels. I heart them.

Freshly laid flooring. Seriously ecstatic it's laid, and seriously tickled by the aesthetic. Thank you, thank you Nathan, Pape and Mamasan!

Guest bathroom. This will be baby girl's bathroom as well, so we commissioned the same artisan to do a second whale tile for the shower surround here.

Baby girl "seeing" the new floor for the first time. For what it's worth, I would not recommend flip flops for construction sights.

And last but not least, my favorite shot of the week. Makes me giggle all over.