Barbour Pockets

Barbour Pockets

uyguguygu   14.50   Comment  

It's no surprise from my last few blog posts that I'm slightly obsessed with my Barbour jacket. I wear it just about everywhere - to work, the mountains, on hikes, while traveling. 

I can't remember how or why I knew I wanted one - people don't wear them much here in Colorado since technical fabric seems to be the preferred water resistant fabric, but I knew that I wanted to be both stylish and functional in the back country and mountains, especially when weight isn't an issue (like during long backcountry adventures when every ounce matters). I was also attracted to the idea that people who have Barbour coats wear them forever. If there's one mantra I live by it's buy once and use forever. A Barbour coat was just the ticket - warm, waterproof, sturdy, stylish, with lots of options like a hood or a liner for different adventures. 

I saved up my clothing money, purchased a jacket directly from the UK via Skype, and as it turned out we've had an usually wet spring so I've worn my Barbour coat more than I had anticipated. In addition to that it's been a layer under my sleeping bag in the Utah desert, it's protected me from the spring showers while shuttling my students to their cars after school, it's gone on numerous adventures to the Colorado Rocky Mountains, and it's huge pockets have been purse, tote, and hand warmers based on what I've needed that day. 

So...what's floating around in the giant pockets of my classic Beadnell? It looks almost like an homage to the southwest and to-do list made out of objects all rolled into one:

- A tiny book of poetry published by Centennial Press. I had intended to share a poem with a friend. 

- Several pens and neon sharpies used to write thank you notes for my parent volunteers. 

- A vintage silver and turquoise Native American bracelet picked up on my last trip to Moab, taken off so I could take notes on something. 

- A letter with an overdue reply owed to a dear friend.

- A rock picked up on my last hike with my family in Rocky Mountain National Park. Yes, that one where I fell through the snowpack into the meltwater below! Brr!

- My wallet and keys

Grey Gardens

Grey Gardens

uyguguygu   21.36   Comment  

The roses in the garden are dying, they are frail pink, petals hanging their heavy heads. It's crisper now, and it's dark when I get up in the morning and most nights it's dark by the time I make it home around seven or eight. I can see my breath, even as the sun comes up to warm up denver.

It rained today, a steady drizzle that started as we were riding our bikes home from a ride we had decided to go on this morning. I'm thankful we left early enough to get two dozen miles in before the rain really came in. 

But I don't mind the rain - it was cozy today, wrapped up in this sweater, folding laundry, cleaning the house, organizing and re-organizing the scattered pieces of my home, restoring order to my domain. 

I've also been watching the second season of Sherlock and plotting things for a big summer trip and the holidays that are coming up (In order: Halloween, Mom's Birthday, Thanksgiving, Christmas). Have you seen it at all? It's a great show - I love figuring out the puzzles and the humor is spot on. Cumberbatch's Sherlock Holmes is an insufferable man. I think I like John Watson best of all the characters. The show pairs well with tea. 

Sweater: H&M
Snowdrop Pin: Thrifted

Skirt: Urban Outfitters

Leggings: I can't remember

Boots: I can't remember

You Should Know: How to Avoid Getting Sick - 5 Tips From a Teacher

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You Should Know: How to Avoid Getting Sick - 5 Tips From a Teacher

uyguguygu   10.21   Comment  

(My breakfast - designed to help me avoid getting sick - a smoothie with veggie based protein powder, mixed greens, almond milk, and frozen berries)

My lovely husband is sick today - sneezing, sniffling, dripping everywhere. I’m working really hard to avoid getting sick from him. Also, cold and flu season is just around the corner. I’m a teacher and I’m around sick kids a lot. I really try hard to stay healthy through diet and lifestyle but sometimes you have to go a bit further, especially when parents send their kids to school sick or someone is sick around you. Here are the top five things I’ve found that help!  

1. Avoid sick people. Yup. Avoid them. This one sounds harsh but it’s totally the number one thing you can do to keep yourself from getting sick. Try to stay away from the air they are breathing, the things they are touching. Don’t sleep next to them. I always kick my husband onto the couch when I’m sick and when he’s sick I go for an air mattress. When a student is sick I try to help them from a distance, without putting my face to near to their hands or face. This is still totally effective teaching and helps keep me from having to get a sub a few days later…which is generally not effective teaching.  

2. Don’t touch your face, nose, or mouth! This advice was given to me by a doctor when I was really sick during student teaching. There’s only a few ways for germs to enter your body and your hand connecting with one of them is a sure fire way to get sick. If my eyes itch I’ll scratch them while holding a tissue or use part of my sleeve in a pinch. I wash my hands before food prep and try to use utensils instead of my fingers to eat. When I put my moisturizer on my face I make sure that my hands are clean both to avoid bacteria in my pores and also to avoid germs that could make me sick!

3. Wash your hands! This was alluded to in the previous point, but washing your hands and washing them frequently is such an important thing! Hopefully I’m preaching to the choir with this one but it’s important to get rid of those germs. You can really make handwashing as fun or as boring as you want to. At work it’s whatever soap they provide but at home I go for the Method soaps in the fun containers and of course minty smelling soap! I generally do liquid over bar soap because it makes my sink less messy! Wash all the time, especially before food prep and eating and…do I even need to say it…after you use the restroom!

4. Rest and hydrate! If you find yourself feeling like you’re coming down with something…rest! I try to get as much off my schedule, I stop training cold turkey for a day or two, and I just hydrate and rest. I try to nap, and give my body the space to use the energy I’d generally be putting in at the gym to repair the damage before it gets too intense.

5. Eat Right. I hope that this is one thing that you already do! Eating lots of great living foods, healthy grains, lower amounts of sugars…I believe that would be called eating clean…is the best thing you can do! Having good food will give you a good immune system and having enough vitamins and minerals help with that, too. I personally take a high quality multivitamin purchased through my natropath with a healthy dose of Vitamin C to help with absorption. I also strive for 9 servings of fruits and veggies a day and try to stay away from refined sugars. Eating healthy is a little less easy to do when you are on your way to getting sick because your energy is drained but it’s the number one thing you can do to help keep yourself healthy. When I’m getting sick I get Zicam (I’ve found it’s the best of the cold remedies out there for my physiology) and take a few zinc supplements on top of it. I completely cut all sugars (including fruit sugars) out of my diet because I know bacteria loves sugar and uses sugars to multiply, and really, really go crazy with the veggies and hot soups. I make a huge kettle of Veggie Soup and just eat that for a few days as needed and the heat and liquid helps you stay hydrated and clear out those sinuses. I put Cayenne pepper in it, tons of garlic, organic veggie broth, rosemary, and any veggie that looks appealing into it. I snack on carrots and bell peppers and Kale chips. 

Closet Change Up

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Closet Change Up

uyguguygu   22.07   Comment  

We have two clothes closets in our house. One is a walk in and the other is a regular sized closet. JR has always held the walk in closet, using it to store all of our gear, kayak paddles, backpacking backpacks, and all of those things that we need for our outdoors adventures. We were able to re-organize and switch closets giving me an extra four feet of closet rod space. I was even able to get him to hang the closet rod six and a half feet off the ground so my floor length and trained gowns don't drag on the floor.

 

Before I had quite a few things double and tripple hung on hangers, tule gowns from the 1950's were getting squished in between cotton things, and my wool dresses were going positively flat. I think my dresses are enjoying the extra breathing room and are starting to fluff out again.

My little dress parade makes me happy! I have to be the luckiest girl in the world to own so many beautiful clothes. 

(A profile shot of some 1950's through Current confections in my closet...spot the new ballgown on the right next to the upside down crinoline?)

Three Days of Summer

Three Days of Summer

uyguguygu   15.18   Comment  

One of the gifts of summer is that we seem to have more time. People move slower. Things seem less imperative. Housekeeping and cleaning is only done in the cool hours of the morning and evening and the middle of the day is given to rest. We measure our time less - it stays light so late that I often forget if it's 6:00pm or 8:00pm

We've had time to look at book stalls with friends...

...time to enjoy teeny tiny little kittens...

...time to chase friends into dream blue houses in old neighborhoods...

...time to sit on creaky old porches in the shade...

...time to spend in magical overgrown gardens...

... and time to cultivate my home. 

What have you been doing with your summer time?

...

Dress: Thrifted (Gap)

Pinnifore: Self Made

Boots: Ariat

Socks: Target

Sunday

Sunday

uyguguygu   19.41   Comment  

This Sunday was a good one. It wasn't busy at all. I had a bike race that I was going to do on Saturday and one for today as well. It poured on Saturday making the trails completely impassable and making it utterly rude to even think of holding a marathon mountain bike race on these beautiful trails. As one person said it best, "[You get] five hours of racing and years to repair the damage." Didn't seem worth it, right? 

In lieu of racing this weekend I had a perfect morning spent sleeping in, experimenting with the milk frother my friend lent me in an attempt to make the perfect chai latte, and going on a bike ride up to a little alpine lake tucked away in the mountains. 

I also like to tell the stories of my family to anyone who will listen and lucky for me I have a husband who delights in listening to my stories. Today, in the middle of the prattling, I told him the story of Dexter and Prince, my grandfather's two Percherons that worked on the Dairy Farm in Wisconsin his grandparents owned. They were good, steady, faithful horses, giant and black, I can't remember how many hands they were but that was one of the details he would tell me. 

"They were so big," he would smile. "I could barely get on top of them when I wanted to. I would hitch them up to the plow, or a wagon. Most of the time I was behind, driving them, them but sometimes I could get on top of them even though I wasn't supposed to."

That's my grandpa in the picture above, in training for WWII. He looks like my dad, I think. 

Here are some things I've stumbled upon on the internet this week that I've appreciated: 

- This was our soundtrack this morning.

- When Michelle Obama Came to Lunch. A short and thoughtful essay.

- Funny and sometimes beautiful pictures of victorian husband and wives.

-I am not an Alabama Channin devotee but I love these cocktails she posted. Perfect for summer. 

- Stunning photos of Bardot at Cannes. Work it, girl! 

- I'm in love with these french patterns for children's clothing and wish some of the things came in my size, too!