Earthy Crunchy

corner view :: evening

I love the light of early evening!  Here Solomon is playing with his airplane while the rest of the gang is taking a break from decking the halls.

 

corner view :: corners of my home

The bookshelf behind my bedroom door is where you can find knitting, notecards, jars of foreign change and some reading. 

Oh, yes, this is the before picture...before I straightened up.  And a better view of my most favorite painting ever.  It's something my Grandma painted in 1924 when she was only 12 years old.

A couple of years ago, Jon's aunt sent us this nativity scene.  I absolutely love it.  She made it out of 2x4's cut in different lengths and felt figures glued on.  It's sits in our entryway. 

 
 
This little space is above our tub.  It's like a little meditation spot.  I love the light coming in.

I guess what makes these spaces special to me are the things in them but I do love the things because they mean so much to me.

You can find a list of all the other participants in this corner view project at Spain Daily where Jane whips up a dose of Spanish culture for you. 

If you would like to enter my give-away for beeswax ornaments I have made, see here.  I will close comments this Friday at noon! 

corner view :: cell phone madness

Corner View, I apologize, I just can't get it together this week again.  Sigh...  Honestly, sometimes I don't even know where my cell phone is and if I did, I don't take pictures with it.  Every two years I get my new cell phone and the conversation always tends to go something like this..."Just show me where the free phone is."  Needless to say, I don't take many pictures with my cell phone.

So, today, I am going to have another break from corner view.  My kids will thank me.

I can show you a gift we have been working on for the holidays..

 
I first saw this at my in-laws.  Before I knew where they got it, I was impressed by how pretty it was.  This trivet (or star decoration if you choose) is made from clothespins with the metal spring removed.  The ones my in-laws have are exactly the same as this one except theirs were made by my husband over thirty years ago.  Jonathan's trivets are weathered and dark but still functional and beautiful after many years of use. 

One of the fun parts for my kids is removing the metal springs.  

I first lay out the design on a piece of wax paper.

I then glue together two pieces at a time.  This makes it stronger in the end.

Usually my younger kids have a different agenda..which is also great fun.

 
And then some of us just like peeling dried glue of our hands. 

 
Once I have glued the first pieces together and let them dry, I arrange the trivet again and glue together those pieces.  It works better to do this because it fits together better in the end and it's stronger.  Voila!  A fun, inexpensive handmade gift for the holidays.

corner view :: favorite dish

See Jane at Spain Daily for links to more favorite dishes!

corner view :: love

I love seasonal veggies and fruits.

In the fall, I love eating brussels sprouts, halved and sauteed with olive oil and salt.

Persimmons.  I love the Fuyu (eaten like an apple) but I prefer the Hachiya persimmon because I can put it on the counter and wait for it to become super soft and luscious.  I just love the word persimmon.

 
What fruit or vegetable do you look forward to seeing in the fall?

See Jane at Spain Daily for more "LOVE". 

corner view :: souvenir

Even when my Dad comes from Florida to visit Reno, he has to go up to "the lake" (Lake Tahoe) to get a glimpse of this alpine gem and breathe in the forest smell.  Maybe walk the beach and collect rocks at Carnelian Bay...It's hard to resist the beauty of Lake Tahoe.  It brings back a lot of memories for our family.  My son is the fifth generation of our family to be born here.

 
If you're not into "the lake", you can always pick up a quickie divorce, or a fortune gambling or a sexually transmitted disease (oh gosh, to be fair, I'm sure they are very safe at the brothels).  I don't go to casinos as a general rule.  I don't go to the legal brothels in the next county either.  No divorce in my future, thank goodness.  But I know that many people are drawn to this area for these sorts of things. 

corner view :: white

You may already know that I have a fondness for clouds...There were some nice ones in the sky yesterday.

See the list of other corner views at Spain Daily.

corner view :: september

September means cool nights and warm foods.

  

corner view "best kept secret"

I'm kind of at a loss this week for the corner view.  Nothing really popped out at me..

But I do have this completely un-original idea for a fast and easy gluten-free, vegetarian dinner/lunch/breakfast!  There are a lot of ideas out there that may not be completely original to me.  But, it feels new because I haven't thought about doing it in a while.

Introducing oyster mushroom/cheese omelettes..

Why oyster mushrooms you ask?  I don't know.  But when we go to visit Jonathan's parents in San Francisco, we go to the amazing farmer's market on Alemany.  They have a vendor who only sells mushrooms.  All kinds.  We just got hooked on these delicate, cartoonish mushrooms.

We chop them and sautee them in butter (of course!) and whip up our omelettes.

Sometimes we eat mushroom omelettes for dinner with a side of sliced cucumbers marinated in seasoned rice vinegar.  Or maybe some avocado slices.

They're pretty yummy.  The best part is, our kids love making them on their own, with only minimum involvement from Mom or Dad.

For other best kept secrets visit these lovely blogs!

jane, ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie, esti, sophie, cele, modsquad,

caitlin, joyce, ani, kim, a day that is dessert, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch, c.t., jeannette, outi, ritva, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana, denise, cabrizette, bohemia girl, dianna, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari, jgy, skymring, elizabeth, audrey, allison, lise, cate, victoria, crescent moon, erin, otli, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa, britta, april, b, kyndale samantha, karen, kristina, dorit, goldensunfamily, sophie, janet, mcgillicutty, desiree, di, travelingmama, aimee, sunnymama, amanda, ali, jenell, guusje, britta, juanita, pamela, inna, daan, myrtille, cris, ibb, susi, jodi, lily, gillian,

athena, pienduzz, latisha, clairette, kelleyn, iris, demara, mus, ninja   

corner view "weekend evenings"

Listening to a story....Friday night.

Horsing around....Saturday night.

Weeding..pull one and five come to the funeral....Sunday night.

See what other corner viewers did over the weekend.

jane, ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie, esti, sophie, cele, modsquad,

caitlin, joyce, ani, kim, a day that is dessert, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch, c.t., jeannette, outi, schanett, ritva, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana, denise, cabrizette, bohemia girl, dianna, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari, jgy, skymring, elizabeth, audrey, allison, lise, cate, mon, victoria, crescent moon, erin, otli, amy, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa, britta, virgina, april, b, kyndale samantha, karen, kristina, dorit, goldensunfamily, sophie, janet, mcgillicutty, desiree, di, travelingmama, aimee, sunnymama, amanda, ali, jenell, guusje, britta, juanita, pamela, inna, daan, myrtille, cris, ibb, susi, jodi, lily, gillian, thena, pienduzz, latisha, clairette, kelleyn, iris, demara