It’s been a busy summer for me. I’m trying to juggle lots of freelance work (which is great) with teaching/working at Yarnivore (which I love) and you know…having a life? Unfortunately the third thing on the list falls to the wayside sometimes when numbers 1 and 2 ramp up. I feel like I’ve been glued to my computer and the couch for the last couple weeks, working like a fiend, for what I like to call “Christmas in July.”  You see, with publishers needing to work in advance, it often turns out that I work on holiday projects during the summer. And of course even publishers who don’t regularly do things want to do holiday projects. All of which means that in prime vacation time, I’m freaking busy! I haven’t even had time to get my hair cut, it’s almost at pony tail length, and if you know me, you know I do not do long hair!

But, I have been having some fun too. Yes, some crafty fun which I’ll have to get back to you on (I finished my first knitted sweater! But have not taken pictures yet!). But also just summer fun. Last week we took a couple days off to spend with my family at the Stonewall Valley Ranch outside of Fredericksburg, TX. We had a lot of fun just sitting on the porch, seeing the animals, and being worn down by a two year old. I am really enjoying being closer to my family, and I can’t believe it’s been almost a year since we moved back to Texas. It feels like home. It always has, so I’m glad to be back.

I also got to finally meet one of my fellow Texas crochet designers + yarn shop owner extraordinaire, Sheryl Means. Sheryl and I have been chatting online for a while now, and she was in town anyway so she stopped in the store. I was so excited, it’s great to meet someone as enthusiastic about crochet as I am. Now I need to swing by her shop sometime! Check out her blog and while you’re there, tell her she should publish the pattern for the tank she’s wearing!

In other news, I took a breather today to make some good food. I really suck at cooking when our schedules conflict (um, all the time), but I love homemade meals. This morning I whipped up a beer/orange/onion marinade from the latest issue of Sunset, and our steak is soaking in it so that Paul can grill it tonight. I never really knew about Sunset magazine until my friend Susan turned me on to it. I recently subscribed, and I’m really digging it as a lifestyle mag. They have a little bit of everything- travel/outdoors, cooking, gardening,  living green, etc. If you’re into that, check it out.

The other thing I just finished was making some pickles using this recipe. Our cucumber plants are doing great (so much so that I think they killed the beans…sign) so I wanted to try making pickles. I started with 8 cucumbers–I pick them when they are smallish so the plants keep producing, but it only took me a few days to get that many.

I ended up with two and a half quart-size jars full of pickles. These aren’t the typical labor-intensive preserve-forever pickles, but they will stay good for a few weeks to a couple of months in the fridge. Plus, you can make them in small batches as you go.  If they are any good, I’ll be making them again soon.

That’s what’s going on around here. I guess I should get back to work now….or go drink the beer left over from the marinade.