I took these pictures a few months ago, when we still lived in our last apartment. Holly is such a beautiful girl! I love when I get to take a few focused photos of my children.

Visiting Big Basin State Parks has fluttered in my mind for about 2 years. Every now and then, I'd look at a map and think about going, so when some friends planned a one-night camping trip there and invited us, I jumped at the opportunity. Yes please! I can't believe we haven't gone sooner. It was easy to get to - no traffic, and didn't take too long at all. Best of all, Big Basin did not disapoint me in the least. It exceeded my expectations. It was lush and beautiful. A coniferous jungle that literally put a spring in my step as I walked through it. Seriously. Take me back there! The weather was a pleasant temperature the entire time we were there, although we were blessed with rain through the night, drizzles in the morning and then a downpour to pack our tent up in. I say blessed because the rain brought out the banana slugs, a creature I had never heard of before this past weekend. The kids loved going on hunts for the fruity slugs as well as salamanders. Greta surprised us by being willing to hold a salamander. It was totally outside her comfort zone, but she did it! 

We had another interesting experience with a different type of animal - a racoon. We had been told they're spirited but found out first hand when one of the little beggers stole a grocery bag of smore supplies from the table we were eating our dinner at (in the dark), only a few feet away from a human being! Talk about courage and a good eye for the good stuff. Greta has repeatedly told us the story of the monster, named racoon, stealing our marshmallows and taking them home. 

I love, love, loved being in the redwoods! Camping on that hard ground with very little sleep was so worth it!

September is no different from August, July and June in terms of how hot it can get during the day. We had a really hot week in the beginning of the month. One of the days, we went to Quarry Lake in Fremont with some friends to play. It felt so good to get in some cool water! Unfortunately, Greta's going through another tough phase (being two is hard!), so it's been a bit difficult to get out and do stuff. Lucky me, I still have some happy memories from this little trip. Holly loves to paddle around with her life jacket on and has gotten so brave! It's so exciting and I hope she feels empowered. 

This is the second Rollerskate dress I made for Holly. The fabric felt so perfect for preschool! And Holly's sock choice is awesome. The color of the week was orange - a happy coincidence!

And this is another rollerskate dress I made for one of Holly's friend's birthdays. The fabric worked perfectly!

I made Holly's first day of school dress back in June or something! I used the rollerskate dress pattern from Oliver + S. It's a super easy pattern to sew up and hardly takes any time but I love the details. The cap sleeve, shift-like look and the gathered waist. It feels easy to wear and and I think the simplicity fits childhood perfectly. I found that using 3/8" elastic rather than 1/2" elastic for the waist was much easier to thread through. I have a couple more of these dresses to share, and it's likely that I'll make more!