Hart Adventures: June 2011

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Playing Dress Up

My friend, Vicki LeBrun, owns the Logan Mansion here in Shreveport. She and her husband bought the Victorian house and painstakingly restored it to its original beauty. Not only do they live there, she also offers tours (with ghost stories included) and birthday parties. For the girls, there are tea parties. For the boys, there are mystery parties. Dressing up is a part of both kinds of parties. The girls get to choose dresses, hats, jewelry, purses, and scarves. The boys get to dress up like Sherlock Holmes and even get a moustache painted on their face. A couple weeks ago, I helped her with a tea party. I was trying to learn the ins and outs so that I could fill in for her when she she needs me to. It was a lot of fun! After the party, Adam brought SB over to the Logan Mansion to visit with Mrs. Vicki. She even got in on some of the dress up fun! Check out the Logan Mansion here: http://www.theloganmansion.com/

The Farmer's Market. . . One Year Later

Last summer, Sara Beth was just a few weeks old when she made her debut at the Shreveport Farmer's Market. We did our produce shopping there every weekend. I carried her in the Snugli carrier and later the Baby Bjorn (which is much nicer). We got to know the regular venders and they looked forward to seeing her grow week by week. Here we are on opening day, June 2010.

Here we are one year later, June 2011, on opening day of the market. One of the produce vendors recognized me from last year and commented on how much SB had grown. When I told him that I used his produce to make her first baby food, he was so proud. The market is huge this year! So far, in addition to my normal purchases, I've also bought compost and carrots. I love buying local!

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

Since I'm awake after midnight coughing my head off, I thought I'd do something productive. So, here I am blogging away. I have been on a winning streak lately with blog giveaways. I won three things in 2 weeks. Crazy! I love the idea of giveaways. I mean, all I had to do was leave a comment on their blog to enter the contest. They use a random number generator to choose the winner. Easy peasy, right! Here were my prizes.
1. The Joy Bag Pattern by Melissa Stramel- I won this on a Sew Mama Sew giveaway. This bag is so cute! The pattern says it's for "advanced beginners". Hmmm. This may be over my head.

2. A fabric bag from the Green Bag Lady to use for groceries or anything else really. This lady and her friends sew bags from donated fabric and then give the bags away so that you will stop using plastic bags. Each bag has a tag inside that is numbered. I received bag number 15,734. They also sent me a kit to make another bag to give to a friend. The fabric was already cut and ironed. All I have to do is sew it and give it away.

3. A Quilt Kit from Stitch Simple
I've always wanted to make a quilt, but the task seems daunting. Adam's Grandmaw, Muril Hart, makes beautiful quilts! We have two of her creations, our wedding quilt and Sara Beth's baby quilt, that we will treasure forever. This kit comes with all the fabric already cut and ironed for you. You just have to follow the pattern and sew it together. I think that is a great way to get started!

It's fun to win! It's even better to give away! Maybe one day, when I find something great, I'll have to do a giveaway on my blog too.

Monday, June 13, 2011

Camping Weekend

     I am way behind on my blog posts, I know. I'll have to go back and post about some of our other summer fun, but for now, here is a little about our first camping trip with the little girl. It was a short trip, only about 24 hours total, but one night in a tent with a 13 month old is plenty for now. We headed over to Lake Claiborne State Park, about an hour's drive from our house, Saturday afternoon. When we got there, Adam set up camp while SB and I watched. It was more work than Adam expected since we hadn't touched our tent in a while. Apparently, we loaned it out and the poles got broken. There were replacement parts, but they were too long. So poor Adam was sitting on the ground, shaving down tent poles with his pocket knife for a long time. Eventually the tent was up, but then we realized that all the waterproof tape was peeling up. Um. . . I think we need a new tent! Thankfully, no rain was in the forecast.

     Later on that evening, we took the kayaks out on the lake. SB rode in Adam's lap and "helped" him paddle. She did great for the first 5 minutes, but then she started trying to get out and worked up quite a loud cry/scream. So, SB's first kayak ride lasted a total of 15 minutes, but it was fun while it lasted


     Next, we walked over to the swim area where they had a beach. SB loved the water and called it a pool. Yep, it's just like a pool, only bigger and dirtier and full of fish and shells and bugs. Can you tell I'm not a huge fan of lake water? The sand wasn't as big of a hit, though. I guess Sara Beth isn't used to getting dirty (my fault, I'm sure). At first, she cried. Then, she started to get comfortable. She kept saying "dirty" and wiping her hands on her swimsuit. It was fun watching her figure it all out!

     Back at camp, we had dinner and then got ready for bed. Two hours later, SB was still running around the tent, climbing on top of my face, and having all kinds of fun. Adam and I were pretending to be asleep, thinking maybe she would get a clue. Needless to say, it was a very rough night! On top of that, I've been sick for a week and I woke up with pink eye on Sunday morning. Fun times.

     The next morning started with breakfast, breaking down camp, and then meeting up with some of Adam's mountain biking friends for a get-together at the pavilion. Adam rode a lap on the bike trail while SB and I went on a hike. It was pretty short, only about 30 minutes, but in this Louisiana heat, that was plenty for me! The state park is really beautiful! The last time we visited was for my 30th birthday when I was pregnant with SB. That was in the fall so we didn't get to explore the lake much. We really enjoyed it this time! Here are a few pictures of our family camping trip: