Life at a "Swell's" pace

Road trip: Larwood Historic Covered Bridge (summer swimming)

It's been pretty warm here the last few days and a nice water deep is such a treat this time of year here in the Valley. In the process of downsizing we ended up donating our backyard swimming pool we have used to cool off with the few summers before. The Bean misses his pool, but overall we are glad that the maintenance of it is over. So in the process of finding a new watering hole we have ventured around looking at different places to take a deep.

Being in the Willamette Valley of Oregon we are right in the heart of the covered bridge capital of the area. One great historic covered bridge is the Larwood Bridge near a small community called, Scio. The history of this bridge is pretty interesting with its waterfront being right on Crabtree Creek. It's one of the number one covered bridges in Linn County that offer fishing and evening a nice area for picnicking in the area. And the best part, it has some of the best swimming in the county.

Five simple things

Hello.

Happy Friday the Thirteenth. Wow! This week got hot! Not just slightly sweat-worthy, but pretty toasty on Wednesday and Thursday. We crested well over 100 degrees on both days, according to the NOAA temperature gauge The Mr. has. I was watering our garden morning and evening just to stay ahead of the game. The Bean enjoyed the warmth after his school work was done to slip down his "homemade" slip-n-slide. As far as the school work goes, remember we homeschool here, there is no summer break, per se, but often time in the summer there are breaks in weeks. But I digress, the temperature spike almost reminded me of being down south in Arkansas. We loved it! We did have to look into getting another air conditioner for the upstairs loft, though. We ended up purchasing another small one so that The Bean didn't melt into his bed at night. We will have to come up with clever ways in storing it in the off months. This week we also went on a little shoe adventure to purchase some new Birkenstocks for all three of us. That ship is still sailing, so stay tuned. As far as everything else around here it's been pretty calm, hot, and collected. Nothing too exciting, so here are the five things that did make this week great!

1. This lavender...

Because it was time to harvest and give them a nice summer haircut.

2. This key...

Because it looks similar to my 17-year-old Persian/Siamese, Meia. I'm using it as a bookmark right now in one of my bedside books.

3. This sweet swimmer...

Even when Happy's pool is being cleaned out she find a way to just keep swimming. I had ducks growing up and so did The Mr.-Being a duck family just makes sense.

4. This bell...

We've had a lot of Geocachers come by since the summer started. We love when people come by to ring the bell and it gives us such a delight to be able to meet the Geocachers that favorite our little space of the Geocache world. If you're a Geocacher and looking for adventures in the Willamette Valley, check out our Geocache, "For Whom the Bell Tolls."

5. July's book selections...

These are the book selections I've given thought over for this month. Great reads and ones that will definitely keep you occupied and able to take you away for a moment. You can check these and other month's selections out here.

A few more things:

• No more SNAP benefits at Farmers' Markets.

• High On Life, a Canadian adventure collective, lost three of their members at Shannon Falls. The group believes that "living in the moment" and staying high on life with travel are life's priorities.

• "Stop looking for reasons why you can’t and look for reasons why you can."

• Being a conscious carnivore; Is it possible?

• Oregon Lottery has given over $685mil to habitat restoration.

• Grow some perennials in your garden.

• Train now for green jobs of the future.

• Making plans for the Grand Floral Parade next year?

• Yoga meditation cushions by Samadhi.

• A bookstore with 18 miles of books.

Have a nice weekend!

Five simple things

Hello.

Happy summer to you. Hope your summer days are shaping up nicely. We are enjoying these hotter days and sunny weather here in the Valley. Those that say they don't like summer just aren't living it right, right? I soak in as much summertime as I can each year so that the winters aren't so hard to bare here in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. The Mr. and I dream of days where we complain more about the heat than we do the cold. The Valley doesn't go through regular seasons like it should. We end up with summer and winter and a short in between with both. Arkansas had regular season changes and Arkansas has one of the most beautiful autumn season that you'll ever see. Oregon's spring is a close competitor, but the autumn season here is next to nonexistent. Speaking of summer in Oregon, our garden is looking lovely. We have so many plants bringing about their glory this year and our layout and planting plans seem to come together more and more with each summer. Looking forward now to all of the blooms turning into juicy vegetables for us to enjoy. With that, here are five simple things that made my week.

1. This garden duck...

Even on an overcast day she enjoys walking around and cleaning up the garden.

2. This bike ride...

Always a great ride in Corvallis. The trail system makes for a great ride. We always end our rides with a stop at First Alternative Co-op, too. Their selection helps us stay on track for better long term health and the best part, we're part co-op owners! Find out more here.

3. The girls...

Because ducks are great!

...And are a lot of fun!

4. Our garden...

We are starting to pick blueberries from our blueberry bushes and our tomatoes are green-ish pink in color right now. We are also growing nasturtium and loads of lettuce. Our garden is one for the books this year already.

5. These summer moments...

We are definitely enjoying the summer so far!

A few more things:

• A summer fan.

• Plastic-free July in the making.

• Aloe Vera harvesting and tips.

• Planning a birthday party? Try a monkey theme with Paper Culture.

• Understand that you are different and that's okay.

• Homemade Mukhwas.

• Natural insect pest control.

• Under U.S. customs regulations, a tomato should be classified as a vegetable rather than a fruit.

• Green up your kitchen for better health and your family's safety.

• Pick natural wood toys over plastic.

Have a nice weekend!

Five simple things (June 29)

Hello.

What a great week of weather here in the Valley. We had a small bout of rain on Wednesday and after that it's been sunny and in the 70s the rest of the week. Before Wednesday we had some warmer temperatures, but overall it's been a good week. We attended a wonderful celebration of life on Tuesday at Willamette National Cemetery for a woman that has been a great aspect in our lives and countless others. Our friend in Washington said goodbye to her mother along side her dad, brother, and many other family members and friends. We love them so much and we were glad of the chance to say goodbye to Laura Leggett and tell her how much she changed our lives and The Bean's life. She will be put to rest at one of the state's most beautiful places. Our friend, MacKenzie, had a gathering at Fort Vancouver in the Red Cross building to celebrate her mom's legacy and how much she changed everyone just by her presence. She was a wonderful person and the world has lost one of the good ones. She will be extremely missed by us and many other people that had the luck of meeting such an incredible woman. We were the lucky ones! (You can make a donation to the "Memorial and Honor Giving" through the American Cancer Society in her honor here, or anyone else's honor that has lost their battle to cancer.)

Here are five simple things that made my week.

1. This stainless steel mug...

In our shift to move away from plastics we have given these stainless steel mugs a shot and they are perfect for what we use them for. A small coffee, or a hot tea, they are perfect.

2. This soap...

Again, not too crazy about the plastic packaging, but this coconut derived soap has been a game-changer for us here.

3. This impromptu State Capital view...

Driving through Salem last week we drove right in front of the State Capital building. Always a lovely sight.

4. These canning jars...

Looking forward to canning up some of our summer harvest and these will be just perfect for that endeavor.

5. This Might Nest Fix for June...

Perfect timing because we actually broke our longtime-used silicone spatula a few days prior. Haven't tried Might Nest yet? What are you waiting for, sign up here.

Have a nice weekend!

Five simple things

Hello.

This week as been a week, that's for sure. All week we've been selling off a lot of our belongings to downsize and get rid of things we don't use. It's amazing how many things we purchased thinking that we need these things. So much money spent on things that weren't even worth the purchase in the end. Good news is, that we are able to get some of the money back on a lot of it, but not what we paid for them, which is unfortunate. We've spent close to $12,000 on these items and so far have made about $400 on them. At least we can say that we have changed the way we spend now.

Along with selling a lot of items this week we also spent last weekend and this week looking at four different school buses for our conversion. We looked first at a flat nose shorty in Eugene. The man selling it had done some modifications to the inside with a wood stove, two beds, and a sink. The man took us for a test drive and it was great! Unfortunately, this shorty wasn't large enough for all three of us. The man selling the bus gave us a lot of useful information, too. We moved on from Eugene and headed up to Clackmas and checked out another flat nose Blue Bird that was perfect, but needed a few dents removed and a few other flaws here and there. We all loved the flat nose Blue Bird, but there was a few red flags that did concern us in the end-personal preferences-nothing major. There was also a dog nose in Roseburg that we were interested in and another dog nose in Spray, Oregon. All in all what we came to the conclusion that we haven't found "the one" yet. So our search continues, but after taking this time to look at these buses it gave us a definite starting place and what we actually want and don't want, so that's a plus! With that here are "Five simple things" that made this week good.

1. These dental floss...

It's silk dental floss and comes in a reusable glass container. We've been looking for a more sustainable floss and one that helps with our goal of going more zero waste.

2. This golf moment...

Last Sunday on Father's Day we headed out with The Mr. to the golf course to smack a few golf balls around. Needless to say, The Mr. and The Bean got pretty competitive and were really giving it their all. The Mr. had a great time and he said it was a Father's Day well spent!

3. This last box...

I tried out the Fab Fit Fun box for a year and this box was the last of my year subscription. I have to say, if we weren't on the uphill climb to being more minimal this is definitely a subscription box worth keeping. All of their products are amazing!

4. These lip scrubs...

Not too crazy about the plastic packaging, but these lip scrubs are amazing and make my lips feel great each time I use them. Best part is, they are certified organic from the Oregon Tilth and Fair Trade, which makes them even better! They are from Eco Lips and you can view all of their products here.

5. This compost bin...

We were in need of something more practical for keeping our compost in check in the kitchen. The paper bag filled and stuffed into our freezer wasn't working, mainly because we have a small refrigerator with limited freezer space. This compost bin is metal and the lid seals on top to keep everything secure inside without leaking any juice or smell out before we can dispose of it in our compost bin outside. The wooden handle makes it easy to carry in and out of the house, too. We keep it near our sink and it reminds us to toss in compostable items before tossing them in the trash. The one here is sold out, but here is one similar.