Hunting Season

For the first time in years (read: since we've been together) Matt and I are both home and able to commit to hunting! If it wasn't deployment, it was military training or school but this year we're here and excited! 

Today we went out to finalize our commitment to a hunt club a couple hours from home.

1,000 acres of this:

Our binds are set up on 115 acres that haven't been hunted in years. If we don't get our limits I'm going to be a little bitter! 

As we were out there, I was making a list of things we need before opening day. I'm so relieved to say that our list is pretty short since we've been restocking our supplies steadily. 

Another reason I'm thankful for this recon: 

We realized that Matt needs to get his work boots resoled because of dry-rot! He's clearly been spending too much time in boat shoes and loafers and not enough in his work boots ;) 

Jokes aside, I am so excited to have this backwoods hide-away. Growing up in the Pacific Northwest and Georgia and not the hill country of central Texas it's like a piece of home for both of us. 

Until September 27th rolls around we'll occupy ourselves by target practice

And tailoring my youth size (but still too big) pants! 

I'm sure we'll even get out and do some hog hunting to get a feel for the land. Look out for some update posts in the fall; friends, once we get a deer I'm sure we'll have a BBQ! 

A garden in bloom!

Well it's the beginning of June and our garden is starting to produce the goods! 

As you can see, our star veggie right now is the squash. We've already picked about 8 big ones and there are plenty still growing. 

The plants themselves are huge as well! They took up all the space I gave them, and a good portion of the space I gave the cucumbers!

The next big producer is the beans:

The plants that survived my dog trampling them have been so heavy with beans that they fall over! 

And the beans that survive my kids eating them fresh have been cooked or frozen and they are quite delicious. We'll definitely be doing beans again next year. 

So far the corn has been all show. It's tall and wonderful looking but none of the corn is big enough to eat yet. I'll brag about how delish they are in a couple of weeks though, don't worry.

Speaking of having promise- look at these tomato plants! Wyatt is 4' and they're catching him fast. Just this morning we discovered our first green baby tomatoes too. 

We also saw our first flowers on two of our pepper plants. 

Although now that I see the plants. I won't be giving them nearly as much space in the future. Hopefully the three big plants we have deliver enough peppers for Matt to enjoy (I'm not really a pepper person). 

Finally, we now have a couple pickle-sized cucumbers! 

Once we get a few more, we're going to venture into the world of pickling and canning. 

I'll let you know how that goes! 

All in all my garden is doing great! There are too many weeds, not enough time to weed, and a few squished plants from the dog and the kids but it's growing wonderfully and we love picking our dinner and teaching the kids about nature.

Spring in the South

Summer is so close I can taste it. It tastes like an icy cold brew on a scorching hot day; like perfectly done steak and fresh-off-the-grill corn. While summer has always been my favorite season, spring definitely deserves an honorable mention. Spring in Texas (and the vast majority of the south) is the equivalent to summer in the rest of the world. I have spent nearly every weekend boating, swimming, fishing or trail running  for the last month and a half. It's only May 10th, y'all! It's still in the mid-sixties and raining in the Pacific Northwest! 

Last week we discovered our new favorite swim-spot.

Can you tell why?! If the awesome cliff-jumping wasn't enough, it's very kid and pet friendly with bathrooms and grills for a perfect day on the river. Is it just me, or does Matt look a bit skeptical as we plummet towards the water? 

On that trip we introduced Winny to the water and she loved it! 

Matt and I have also been scoping out some fishing spots- we're on the lookout for a good kid friendly one. 

This one had gorgeous scenery but the drought has made fish scarce.

Right after this picture I decided to doff the boots and wade to a different rock. I put my socks, boots and phone on the big rock behind me and successfully made it out without falling. Then two casts later I heard a splash. No, it wasn't a fish jumping or biting my line. It was my boot, falling in the water. So I spent the next five minutes fishing for my boot! Thank goodness it floated and I got it back. That would have been a VERY uncomfortable walk back to the car, not to mention another $250 at Cavenders for a new pair of Ariats! 

Aside from my boot mishap it was a fun trip. It was also about a 1.5 mile hike, so we'll have to save this one until a year when it rains more and the kiddos are a bit older! 

It was awfully pretty though. 

Check out that Indian Blanket! For those of you searching for a blanket... That's the name of those pretty orange/yellow flowers. Don't worry, Matt didn't know either ;) 

Fishing spot number two was much easier to access; we went to the lake proper. However we'll have to check out the fishing forecast and try again because we didn't catch squat. 

Although with the picnic tables and the view it's an enjoyable day by the lake even when your labor bears no fruit. 

That Texas-spring view though. Seriously, guys. 

Tomorrow is a new day and we plan on checking out a local rope course and potential fishing spots. Until then I get to nurse my awkwardly burnt extremities.

Yeah, next time Matt's applying my SPF! 

Difficulties of a beach themed room

Boy is it great to be home. While soaking up the sun and 85° weather on my back patio (it's ok to be jealous; not everyone can live in Texas) I have been thinking about how I've spent my time and money during the last month. 

I've definitely used my downtime to search for some cute additions to our home decor and after spending way more money than I'd care to admit, I'm happy to announce that we're all set decorationally in our Master bedroom and the kids' rooms! 

The hardest part of the entire search was finding beach or nautical artwork for the master bedroom. Is it really that hard to paint a picture of the sea instead of snapping corny computer-desktop style pictures and printing them in bulk?! 

We never found any decent large pieces so we opted for 3 smaller pieces framed next to each other. We also found a couple more small ones for the master bath. Then we ran into problem number two. Frames. I love all of the detailed dark-wood frames in the stores, I do. I have purchased many of them for the maps and artwork in our home. That being said, they just don't match a beach theme! After stalking, then stomping down aisle after aisle of frames I complained, 'This is ridiculous! I know exactly what I want- I could MAKE a better beach frame than these stores offer!' 

To which Matt replied, 'well then why are we still here? Just make them.'

I hate it when he calls my bluff...! 

But I did have an idea of what I wanted so we bought some plain, unfinished frames and I set out with my white paint and a plan. 

I mean how hard is it to make a frame look like beach-wood? A little paint, a little distressing and it should be perfect! Worst case scenario I have 5 ugly frames that I can sand the paint off of and store them for a future home/holiday craft. 

Thankfully it was even easier than I anticipated and a thin coat of paint made the wood look beachier than any distressing I could have done! 

Hooray for something actually being simpler and cheaper than I envisioned! 

The artwork along with my new Tommy Bahama sheet set have renewed my hope for creating a good beach themed master bedroom. Thank goodness because I was beginning to think that I would have to go to the beach and break-in to some cottages to achieve the look!  

Moral of the story? Don't settle for something you don't like if you can try to make something better. If your attempt turns out horrible, laugh about it and feel free to settle :) 

Until next time, I'll be out here enjoying the sun with this oddball.

Weirdest. Dog. Ever.

God Blessed Texas

 While my relatives in the Pacific Northwest were dealing with rainy, awful spring weather I was reminded yet again how lucky I am to be in Texas. 

Yep, that's us. Out on the boat enjoying a day in the 70s and wakeboarding in the 70° water! 

For any of you that haven't been out to my state- I highly recommend you visit; if you like sunny days, nice people and water sports, it's the place to be! 

Family- I expect y'all to be jealous which will hopefully inspire you to plan a trip out here! We have spare rooms!