Basil infused watermelon cocktails

Remember that basil infused vodka I made? I turned it into a refreshing, lightly sweet summer cocktail with a bit of fresh watermelon, basil leaves, lemon juice, triple sec and ice.

And Then There Was One

I love his sweet little baby-bird face. I think all robins, sort of like all human babies, look a bit like Winston Churchill.

The other baby birds in the robin's nest I have been observing for the last few weeks have left the nest.
They are probably out learning how to fly, find food, and survive all the dangers of being a wild bird in a big city. This little guy hatched later than the rest, and stayed smaller, never quite catching up. His mom still comes to check on him and bring him food though, but it seems pretty lonely to still be in the nest once your brothers and sisters have left, doesn't it?

The living room...Some more.

In my last post I mentioned that I got this new chair for in my bedroom:

Well, buying that inspired me to see if my old reading chair which had been in that spot  (a white slipcovered ikea tullsta that I had used to sit and read on exactly once in two years) might work out in that one problem area in the living room that I keep talking about. So I brought it over.

Desk re-do

Last month I started the project of refinishing a desk for my bedroom. I was lucky enough to grab this off the curb last fall on my street, and was excited to discover that while the finish was worn, the piece itself was high quality and sturdy. A stamp inside let me know that this desk is made by Vermont Tubbs, and a quick google search leads me to believe that what I got was their Woodstock line computer table, which retails for about $1500 with its matching desk chair.

The chair of course was not on the curb with the table, so either the previous owners bought this and kept the chair, or it was not sold as a set at the time.  There was minimal damage on the table, some cup rings and wear in the top of the table, and in the poly had yellowed quite a bit, so I was just not crazy about the finish.

This desk comes in handy for me both as a spot to put on my make-up in the morning (hence the mirrors) and a crafting/reading/studying area. But there were a few issues I wanted to address. 

1. Refinishing the desk to be more my taste

2. finding a better permanent (hidden!) home for my sewing machine

3. eliminating those storage boxes piled below the desk.

Nesting

Earlier this month a Robin decided that the the window ledge outside our kitchen pantry was the perfect place to make her nest. I have to say I agree, the vines that cover our building protect her family there from harsh weather and make them nearly invisible to predators. It has been really fun and fascinating to watch the baby birds hatch and grow, though I don't think Mama Robin is so happy about us always peeking at her and her babies through the window.

Look at how much these birds have grown and changed in about 10 days:

photo taken by my roommate Brianna 

They don't all fit in the nest anymore! 

Edit  6/18

and one more two days later, they are changing so quickly! my first thought when I saw them this time was "wow, they're real birds now!"

And one last update about this robin family can be seen here.