growing urban wildflowers~

in which we visit the Winter Carnival, and freeze our toes.

2012-01-30T09:27:00.000-06:00

we made a spur-of-the-moment-last-minute decision, inspired by sunny weather and a touch of cabin fever, to go to the St. Paul Winter Carnival Saturday afternoon::

there we:
: saw sparkling ice sculptures (newly carved for the morning's competition)
: bought lunch from the food trucks
: but ate inside
: went out to wait for the parade
: decided the biggest parade fun was: hot air balloon fires (there were at least 3 different floats of them), bouncing girls, and unicycles
: left the parade before it was finished, bought hot mini-doughnuts, and spent a while (bouncing, sometimes) in the science museum warming our toes

(...laundry and bread baking waited until today just fine.)

one photo, one thought

2012-01-27T09:03:00.000-06:00

(sat in the warm sun one last time.)

in which I do a lot of math and eventually get a vest

2012-01-25T11:07:00.001-06:00

so I have a little problem with this thing called gauge.

gauge is really pretty simple: to get a garment the size in the pattern, be sure your stitches are the same size as in the pattern (given by stitches per inch).

I spend a lot of time frogging.

(really, it's a good thing I like to knit for the sake of knitting.)

even if I start with a swatch, on needles 2 sizes too big, with yarn to match the needles instead of the pattern, and the gauge comes out right, it still seems to be up in the air if I'm going to get anything resembling the size in the pattern for my finished project (mine's always still too small).

so, when I found this blue sky alpaca on clearance at the sidewalk sale at our LYS, I did a quick and dirty yardage calculation, then took all the yarn home to swatch and crunch numbers.

I've admired the shalom cardigan for a long time; it looked simple, easy, and relatively quick. now I found myself with enough yarn, but the wrong size. by carefully swatching, carefully counting, using the pattern schematic, throwing in a bit of fudging, and writing every step down, I managed to make do.

here is the shalom cardigan in a super bulky:
(please disregard my apparent inability to stand up straight.)

pattern: Shalom Cardigan
yarn: blue sky alpaca bulky 50% alpaca/50% wool
needles: sz 13 (9mm), circular

rough notes::
I cast on 57 sts., and shortened the sections of the yoke to get the count to the right length, eventually getting to 143 sts. the bind off of the arm holes ended up being k 16, bo 39, k 33, bo 39, k 16. I cast back on 13 under the arms.

if anyone very much cares, I could work up more detailed notes on using a thicker yarn for this pattern, but it'd have to be a line-by-line as that's how I worked out the changes.

beautiful easy pattern and a fun knit! I'd love to try it again with the "right" yarn... and carefully make a swatch for gauge first!

in which the weather was warm and the water cool

2012-01-23T09:48:00.000-06:00

Jeff is blessed to work for a small company that's a firm believer in the power of "team building through sunshine." they've taken employees and their spouses to Mexico every few years as long as Jeff has worked there (going on 14 years), and we've enjoyed every visit we've been able to attend (missing one year having a 3-week-old Greta).

spending 3 days in the sunshine was glorious.

today I'm watching the snow fall outside our quiet house, and listening to the first rustlings of movement from waking children.

(exactly 24 hours ago, we were swimming in that ocean, following a sea turtle swimming 10' below us, and avoiding a sting ray....)

time to make coffee, and settle back in to winter.

one photo, one thought

2012-01-20T08:33:00.000-06:00

photo by kaatje

(it's fun to see them caring about the tiniest things in life.)

in which she bakes, and I expound.

2012-01-18T08:49:00.001-06:00

so something happened somewhere and I turned around and Kaatje can make cookies all by herself. it's not like I never taught her, it's not like I wouldn't let her until now. she just wanted to and decided she would and then we had cookies. I didn't even need to deal with the oven for her.
huzzah! = competent children!

(they were good!)

Kaatje's Tasty Peanut Butter Cookies
(from the back of the brown sugar bag...)

1 C dark brown sugar
1/2 C butter, softened
3/4 C peanut butter
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 C white flour (next time we're trying some whole wheat)
1 tsp baking soda

Heat oven to 375 deg. F.

Beat sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla and egg on medium speed until creamy. Blend in baking soda and flour.

Shape dough into 1" balls, place 2" apart on ungreased sheets. Flatten with fork dipped in sugar. Bake 6-9 minutes, cool 2 minutes on pan, move to wire rack.

~~~
a word here about our family's food philosophy...I've run across such silly things lately in the hows and whys of eating, and am reminded of Jeff's grandfather who just passed away over 90 years old - and was healthy almost to the end (and loved peanut butter spooned on his ice cream...) God numbers our days, and all the expensive or complicated fad food in the world won't change that. all we can do is eat our best to feel our best to do our daily work for Him.

I think our way of eating would best be described by Michael Pollan's quote, "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." pretty much sums it up. then not long ago, I ran across a specifically named "diet" that also encompasses the way we eat: the Feingold diet, and I was a bit floored. an actual named diet describing people who don't eat artificial colors/flavors/sweeteners/preservatives? (people like labels on everything!)

we try to eat as simply and wholesomely as possible, while enjoying the food we've been blessed to have, through thoughtfully choosing what we're going to eat. we're blessed to not have food allergies, we're blessed with healthy bodies and active lifestyles, we're blessed with resources to purchase what we need when we need it, and try to buy no more than that.

healthy food = healthy bodies! (and we enjoy our peanut butter cookies once in a while, too!)

and now we are six.

2012-01-16T12:29:00.000-06:00

here is our big newly-six-year-old.

sweet and kind and silly and smart.

stubborn and an extreme perfectionist (to our and her exasperation).
we have no idea where she gets this (we say completely sarcastically).

caught between being too little and too big, six is a tough, exciting year. we are still exploring the constantly changing boundaries of where she's ready to go and what she's ready to do. sometimes we take steps backwards, sometimes bounding leaps forward, trying to help her move forward in God's world with grace and hope. happy birthday dear little one!

one photo, one thought

2012-01-13T08:21:00.001-06:00

getting out the door wasn't easy. we're so glad we did.
(it was worth every rushing minute beforehand.)

for the record

2012-01-11T09:14:00.001-06:00

so that I remember this next winter (or, more probably, later this winter), yesterday was the January 10 that the girls spent 3 1/2 hours outside, straight.

without coats. (or shoes apparently)

they ate lunch in the tent, their "play" tent they found in the garage and built themselves without help, in the record high 50 degree F temperature.

last year, on this date, we had over 45 inches of snow already, more was coming, and the high for the day was a (not even very cold for us) 22 degrees.

snow and cold is coming today, and we're so happy to have had yesterday!

in which we wrap yarn

2012-01-09T08:34:00.000-06:00

Now isn't this an interesting... stick?

I received this lovely carved dowel from my husband for Christmas. kinda hefty for a wand (I have girls. sticks today are wands, not bats or guns), too short for a walking stick.

this... is a Nostepinne. yeah, I hadn't a clue either. (apparently, neither had the gals at the local yarn store, which makes us smile. leave it to the engineer to find a yarn accessory that no one's heard of.) but what a fun, simple, tool this is!

I was never interested in a ball winder, though I love my swift, and I'm fairly adept in hand-winding center pull balls. however, they often are too tight in the middle no matter how loose I attempt to wind, and the first few yards are kind of sticky. this tool fixes that, since one wraps yarn around the wood, and not fingers.

for real instructions, you'll want to direct your browser to some sort of Famous On-line Video Website and type "nostepinne," but for the simple idea, here's how it works:

~ find a ball of yarn a 9 year old used on a 24 hour car trip and stored in a backpack with lego kits, pencils, and library books; or a hank of yarn, or an otherwise needing-to-be-re-wound pile of yarn.

~secure one end to the nostepinne near where you hold it. they say you can hold the end of the yarn with your thumb, but I like the rubber band method.

~ start by winding along the dowel, keeping the winding flat. then you'll start to criss-cross and turn (not shown; this is where the videos are helpful), eventually starting to wind like one does when winding a center-pull ball by hand... just like doing it by hand it starts awkwardly, then gets easier and easier.

~ when finished, tuck the end into the ball, release the tail from the rubber band, then slide ball off the nostepinne. the tail should pull easily from the center of the ball!

Jeff found this nostepinne on etsy, where there are lots of beautiful ones from which to choose. a neat, portable, gift idea to impress that yarn geek in your life! (this yarn geek was certainly impressed!)

do you have any yarn you'd like me to wind? I'm kind of addicted...

one photo, one thought

2012-01-06T09:18:00.000-06:00

I opened the windows.
later, the dog and I sat on the front steps... while the girls played.
unseasonable and I get along well.

in which the year ends, and we can't help but muse.

2012-01-03T21:29:00.002-06:00

december...

~ a special night out with a fun group, with and thanks to mom and dad
~ a special day out, with my 2 special girls
~ being silly in iowa
~ that especially exciting morning (stockings were before church, gifts between services... it was quite a day!)
~ the posters in the background are completely unintentional in their suggestion of the smoking bishop. and the smoking bishop was excellent, even though not drunk from a bowl.
~ my sweet baby and their sweet baby seemed to love each other very much
~ those two loved each other very much, too (a bit...too much... at times. pippin fortunately does still have hair on his ears.)
~ learning a new game, then days later
~ playing it ourselves...
~ before (and after) waking eldest for her first ball drop.

it's a new year now, and like many,
we've spent some time looking at life and
thinking about what's important.

we've been stressed out from the hand-holding we've had to do (both literally and figuratively, both with children and adults). we've been disillusioned and disappointed. we've been frustrated and sad. and angry. haven't we all?

but... we've also welcomed new babies and hung out with old friends. we've started things and finished things and tried things. we've grown. we've had so much fun and learned so much. we've had the honor of celebrating the life of one of God's saints He has called home, freeing him from pain, after a long and good and serving life (dear grandfather A, we are so thankful for his daily prayers for us). we've traveled and explored and wandered.

we've worshiped and been blessed.

but we still feel the tug of needed change, those tweaks here and there that could move us forward in how we want our family to be. we feel more need for focus. in life, especially in homeschooling life, but more because of the kind of person I am, I see the world rushing by and think about all we're missing.

(that's not the heart-throb pop-singer/reality show/smart phone "world" we're missing... I don't miss that in the very least. but the "what's truly important that I'm not doing" world. the world where we take more time to be with the kids and try to figure them out and help them and be faithful Godly parents for them in this weird weird world kind of world.)

so we'll see how this year goes... we're going to try to add a few little things to the routine. to tweak and improve. to rest. to grow.

we have hope and God's promise of watch-care in faithfulness.

what more do we need?

one photo, one thought

2011-12-30T08:58:00.001-06:00

in this quiet in-between week,

thinking and planning for this promising new year.

hope you had a lovely happy Christmas,

and have as an exciting New Year as you wish!

(in our case, not especially exciting at all,

which will be wonderful:

maybe finish a pair of gloves,

...and hopefully beat Jeff in Agricola!)

happy new year!

merry and bright

2011-12-23T22:13:00.002-06:00

"God bless Us, Every One."

many blessings to you and yours, this Christmas season and in the New Year.

one photo, one thought

2011-12-16T09:32:00.000-06:00

after that, we still went out for lunch, then had cake.

("tres leches means 'three milks' " I told her.)

in which we needle felt, and one thing leads to another.

2011-12-14T10:52:00.003-06:00

One evening last week I put aside all the other things I should have been working on for Christmas, and pulled out some roving and the Kaatje's felting needles. I had found the idea for these toadstools and needed to make them for the girls, to put in their wooden shoes with the chocolate coins for Sinterklaas. I managed to get both of them made during a single episode of dr. who (Jeff's and my recent addiction), but the girls and I really finished them the next morning after the they got them.

Which was just as much of the fun, since I did the harder work of starting, and Kaatje got to finish hers, making it just right. The tutorial, and some seriously cute examples, are here at the Living Crafts blog.

Do you see that little guy peeking out from the plants behind the toadstools? Kaatje just kept going with the needle pointing that morning...

and made this little guy for the season.

...though these days we're having unseasonable weather really more particular to ducks. (which is fine by me, thank you very much!)

one photo, one thought

2011-12-09T09:01:00.001-06:00

I heard an eagle by the river this morning. Even if I would have had the camera, my hands don't work well at 6 degrees (let alone the camera).

in which we use many saved corks.

2011-12-06T08:46:00.001-06:00

Here is an easy little gift-giving craft for this gift-giving season!

I must admit, however, this project will go the most smoothly if you:

1) have someone with a table saw who's willing to take a few minutes for you

(or, you know how to run a table saw yourself. Personally, I'm scared to death of the table saw, which is how Jeff likes it. Might have something to do with his removal of all guarding on all his tools. hmm.)

2) you, or someone who's willing to share, have a lot of corks. The bigger the "corkboard" you'd like to make, the more corks you'll need. (well, obviously.)

Here's what we did:

Jeff and Greta cut a piece of plywood to fit in the space I wanted to pin things up. He sanded the edges (or let Gret do that). They laid out corks to estimate how many they'd need, then Jeff made a template to help him cut each cork the same size. Each cork made 2 usable parts, with the center part to throw away: he basically cut off the ends by the same amount and threw away the leftover center part. NOTE: you cannot use those lovely (weird) plastic corks for this project!

Next, I warmed up the hot glue gun. Starting at one side, I'd lay a row of hot glue and the girls would quickly place the cut corks in a row. I'd lay the next row of glue, and the girls would fit the corks in, not side by side, but fit next to them. As corks are slightly different diameters, we'd shuffle them around a bit to make them fit.

We just worked our way across the plywood, laying row after row of corks, some with the cork end out, some with the cut side, which went quickly. After a few minutes of letting it dry, Jeff used a little finishing nail to hang it on the cabinet side where I wanted it, to hold the bits and pieces that usually are clipped to the calendar.

You could also do this in a frame and glue the corks right to the board backing (removing the glass) and hang it on the wall or even prop it using the frame stand. Wouldn't that be cute?! There's lots of ways to play with this basic idea.
(We'd better have another glass of wine!...) Cheers!

one photo, one thought

2011-12-02T08:42:00.000-06:00

finally finished, after months. I'm so proud of her.

in which the countdown soon begins!

2011-11-30T09:17:00.001-06:00

Inspired by the internet, and thinking that some organization would help our holiday planning this month, I sat down with the girls to create some "countdown to Christmas" envelopes.

We've done little things every year in the past (putting a little wooden ornament on the little wooden tree, etc), but I liked the idea of sorting out activities to do throughout the month. Of course, we have way more activities than will fit in our already busy month, but "Going to the Nutcracker, then going out for lunch" is something we're already doing, and a wonderful thing to be able to write on a tiny paper and tuck in a tiny envelope the girls made. ...and not tell the girls about ahead of time.

We first made the envelopes using plastic templates I picked up somewhere along the way years ago. They stamped dates on circles punched with a paper punch, and we taped them to the cards (this project was done using tape for everything - I wanted it to be easy). You could easily use plain white envelopes and decorate them with the numbers, I don't claim to have invented this idea!

Here are some ideas I've gathered from all over, some of them will make it into our envelopes this year. (don't tell the girls!)

Decorate house
Make Christmas cards
Learn about Sinterklaas, put shoes out
String popcorn garland for the tree
Gift of new pajamas
Pick out Christmas tree
Decorate tree
Make new ornament for tree
Go out for drinks at Avant Garden and walk around town
Pop popcorn and watch a movie
Get together with family friends
Make gingerbread house (we buy a kit now, but someday I hope to make from scratch)
Make snow angles
Make a snowman
Go sledding
Go skiing/snoeshoeing
Make gifts for teachers
Make gifts for family
Make paper snowflakes
Buy gifts for Toys for Tots
Family game night
Bake cookies, give to friends and neighbors
Drive around and look at Christmas lights in pj's w. snacks
Make gifts for teachers
Go to a museum
Holidazzle parade and supper at Pizza Luce
Read the Nutcracker
Go to the Nutcracker ballet
Read A Christmas Carol +/or watch movie
Church Christmas program
Girls' group Christmas party

All these things, along with the many things already scheduled, and probably some that I'll think up at the last minute, will fill our December. I hope yours is filled with fun, too!

being thankful

2011-11-28T08:34:00.001-06:00

It can't really be too late to be thankful, can it? because we've had so much to be thankful for this year...

visiting babies (and excited to see this one much bigger very soon!)

warm dogs in the sun

when the green comes

staying up late to watch fireworks from the front steps

releasing butterflies grown from our yard

and bugs found on the tent

making home on the road

another new cousin to love

first snow

(especially thankful that it's melted,

and the weather has been unseasonably warm!)

We've had much to be grateful for this year! We hope you had a lovely Thanksgiving, and can start this season refreshed.

before it snowed

2011-11-21T09:02:00.001-06:00

before it snowed, it was decently warm, and so dry we could walk all the way past the boat launch on the shore (normally underwater).

we found animal tracks and trash from long ago: chunks of the city, in the mud for a hundred years, to be poked at and examined, until it's soon covered with snow and ice, then water in the spring.

they put muddy shells in their pockets, and with cold hands, we made our way along with our day.

one photo, one thought.

2011-11-18T10:34:00.001-06:00

it's light I miss the most.

in which I chat about things here and there.

2011-11-15T08:19:00.000-06:00

So, despite what it seems like around here, I don't just dump my girls off in pseudo-educational places then sit around in coffee shops reading and knitting every day. Of course, a very high percentage of my waking day is spent with these girls, and many of our days are spent simply being at home and going out here and there.

~~
We've started back up with some Science Museum homeschool afternoons (that's when I get to go out on my own!), but on our way there last time we stopped by an orchard to grab more bushels of apples (3, but only 2 for us). The girls love to climb the hill in this funny tiny orchard in the 'burbs, even if we don't have much time. They carefully choose their "children's apple" which they hold in their laps for the rest of the drive downtown.

(Back at the museum. Upon picking up the girls, I learn that, apparently, in the future, our buildings will be make more earthquake-proof by constructing them with toothpicks -or straws- and marshmallows.)

~~
At home much time is spent drawing and painting by Greta, and reading by Kaatje. Piano practice is urged (encouraged, cajoled, forced, depending on the day or time), and all things yarn, fabric, lego, book, and crafty are supported.

~~
By accident, I end up at the Mall of America. I don't recommend it from about October to January, and never on the weekend. I will also never again buy from a store I can't exchange-due-to-manufacturer-defect via mail. Greta gets to play at Legoland, because I cannot bear the thought of going out in traffic again so soon. (Quite readily, however, I cannot bear the shoulder-to-shoulder crowds and look forward to the sanity of gridlock traffic.)

~~
We go to the library regularly, exchanging our bulging bags of books ("can we get fewer this time, girls?" as if I'm not just as much to blame) for equally bulging bags of new books.

(then we bring the books to the coffee shop, and while away the afternoon. rarely, but hopefully more as winter sets in. truly, sometimes a few dollars a month from the budget are best spent on frivolity...)

two photos, one thought

2011-11-11T09:12:00.001-06:00

I picked a book. read for an hour.
(the man sleeping across the table from me wasn't a bother.)

then I found a chair with a view.

I knew they were having fun, too.

a new little nephew and cousin

2011-11-08T08:48:00.003-06:00

Six days ago, after an exciting midnight phone call the evening before, we made our way to the hospital to visit the newest addition to our extended family.

We had such a nice peaceful time meeting this little guy, in the few minutes we had to spare running from here to there. (and nice that "there" was literally within sight of the hospital!) My girls enjoyed watching the pediatrician go through the new-baby exam, which happened to occur during our visit, and we had a lovely time chatting and coo-ing.

The admirably small fingers and toes got special recognition by Greta, who was enamored by this little being. When you're the smallest one of the family, it's fun to meet the truly little ones.

we wish many blessings,

and a cozy, calm, and content winter,

for this, our dear family.

one photo, one thought

2011-11-04T08:47:00.000-05:00

life felt off track all week. (I'm not sure we knew where the track was sometimes.)

then, suddenly, the dog got his shave, the cornstalks were out of the garage, and

a miracle happened. (every single one is.)

and we were reminded again Whose track it is. in all our lives.

(congratulations and many blessings to the new little nephew and his beautiful family.)

a different kind of learning.

2011-10-31T12:29:00.001-05:00

They've been happily (and elaborately) playing since just after breakfast, it's past noon now. I suppose if I was a Real Homeschooler I'd have stopped them and sat them down at the table, with the waiting pencils.

The books aren't going anywhere, and the girls are out on the porch traveling the world in their imaginations: making journals, taking care of their dogs (always), sewing and writing and acting and talking and dancing and making-believe. I've made bread and started the wash, picked up and put away, checked in on-line and also left the computer and made a second cup of coffee and read another chapter. I'll probably knit soon.

Unless the tears that inevitably will come, come sooner than later. Then will be lunch and a little work and even more play.

Time to make a pie for the birthday boy, and enjoy the chatter.

I didn't think this much would happen today, or this little.
happy slow monday afternoon...

one photo, one thought

2011-10-28T08:38:00.000-05:00

we wonder if things were different... would things be different? that's where knowing that we are where we're supposed to be is the biggest comfort of all.

in which there is a parade at night.

2011-10-26T08:57:00.000-05:00

They started closing the street down and re-routing traffic at 6:00.

Eventually, after watching people walk past our house for an hour, we wander down the block and find a little open place on near the corner, exactly 5 kids wide, and a kid, a dog, and a handful of adults deep.

For an hour or so, the kids are enthralled.

one photo, one thought

2011-10-21T08:53:00.000-05:00

my nose always starts to run the same place on our (the dog's and my) walk every single morning. I never have a hanky.

(I feel there's a life lesson to be learned here; I'm positive that if I'd just learn to carry a handkerchief, everything else in life would just fall in line. ...or maybe if I learned to make a meal list and grocery shop accordingly, I'd start remembering to carrying one...)

in which people are little.

2011-10-20T11:59:00.001-05:00

I decided a while ago that father's day gifts would be something that the girls and Jeff could do together (giant bucket of tinker toys were a hit a few years back), so the Geek Dad books have been a great thing the past few years. (That guy knows he has a good thing going: I see there's a new book up!) These are fun books with some easy and some interesting (and some both) projects; we ran across them through WIRED magazine.

Some of the projects Kaatje can do herself, some would require specifically dad's help (being that my days with a breadboard are very faint by this time), but once in a while we have sat down with the books to see what we can do ourselves for fun.

This was a project the girls enjoyed, and I didn't need to do a lot of research to do and could teach Kaatje a bit about photo manipulation in the process.... also leading to a discussion of how one can't always trust a picture!

The project is pretty straightforward if you are familiar with some sort of photo software (our software of choice being the GIMP, powerful and free!). You need a set of pictures first:

preferably taken at the same angle in the same light. Easiest way to do this is to take them in the same room from the same place!

Then, with some careful cutting, pasting, and hand-waving (more specific instructions are in the book, or trial and error always works well), you too can put small children (or large adults) in smaller vehicles of their choice!

By the end of the project Kaatje could successfully cut pictures out of pictures. I suppose next is teaching her shading and fading and shadows to really get the whole 21st century digital jackalope thing going.

Amusements on a rainy (or soon to be snowy!) day - there's lots of potential for fun and mischief in a project like this... and hey, Christmas cards need to be made soon... hmmmm...

in which the porch is finished (a long time ago)

2011-10-17T09:15:00.000-05:00

You may remember, or not, that last year we were working on our downstairs back porch. It's been quite a while, so here's a refresher:

This is what it looked June, 2010 (and, for that matter, when we bought the house):

(will someone please feed that skinny skinny puppy?!)

Then came mid-July, 2010.

The rollaway dumpster has come and gone, and Jeff and I have reduced the porch to this:

(why yes, that is dirt. no basement under the porches.)

Leveling and making the floor took so much time.

Here is the porch in September 2010:

(for the record, I hate lag-bolts. those suckers are hard. to. turn.

...even with a socket wrench modified to be 2 feet long.

Make Leverage your Friend.)

A month later, the insulation guy has come, we've installed the subfloor and the ceiling and the extra structural supports (don't even ask) and things are starting to look put together:

November = windows!!

(and snow, apparently. not ready for that again.)

In One Weekend in December,

Jeff and I both attended a Christmas party and installed a floor. It was big fun.

(and though we threatened to do both in one night, that didn't happen.)

Oh, yeah, it looks like the sheetrock guy came, too. Jeff, although he can do it just fine, hates sheetrocking - and is totally willing to pay someone to do in a day what would take him a month.
(I wholeheartedly agree...)

Then followed lots of other installations: we lugged in the freshly sandblasted and repainted radiator and hooked that up to the piping Jeff plumbed through the basement wall, installed wall racks, finished wooden sills, baseboard and trim, lightening, etc. phew.

~~~

This Very Weekend, I finished hemming the second IKEA curtain for the South window, and we're finally calling things finished.

Actually, we've been calling it finished for some 8 months now or so, but the porch is now settled in and well and happily used.

I have to say, this is one of my favorite places in the house just for its user-friendliness and order and SPACE, and the fact we use it more than once, every single day. We went from using the 4x4' vestibule between the door and the kitchen for shoes/boots/coats in the winter, to now having a full room, and it's spectacular.

Someday soon I'll show you the Last Place Left to remodel... you'll see why it's last, but I'm just as excited to do it as any other place we've done.

one picture, one thought.

2011-10-14T08:57:00.004-05:00

it will be hard.

(really hard.)

but it has to be done.

that's how things work sometimes.

doing.

2011-10-12T11:38:00.002-05:00

so, it seems life gets in the way of being here on-line.

...and that's a good thing.

we've been:
~reading~building~enjoying~practicing~organizing~planning~knitting~running
~playing~hoping~cleaning~crying~raking~chipping and shredding~biking~
changing~baking and cooking~creating~visiting~loving~

hoping to get Jeff on here soon to talk about the rocket launches he and the girls went to recently: big fun coming up!

one photo, one thought

2011-10-07T09:02:00.001-05:00

'tis fleeting,

but spectacular.

(to think the weather could easily be 50 degrees colder,

we're counting these extra blessings every single day.)

saturday.

2011-10-04T08:09:00.000-05:00

~ morning walk with the dog
~ first batch of sauce (only 13 freezer containers so far)
~ around the house (kaatje and gret do their own thing)
~ late afternoon family bike ride/run at elm creek
~ a late night puzzle solve FTW

hope you had a beautiful weekend!

one photo, one thought

2011-09-30T08:51:00.001-05:00

I touched with one finger, too.

(get your hands wet,

it's totally worth it.)

in which fairies have houses.

2011-09-27T10:32:00.000-05:00

This is Sally.

Sally and Charlie live down the street; their house and yard is filled with cats and a big dog and plants and tiny squished glass marbles to discover.

Sally is an artist who makes garden art, and teaches classes to do the same - she works with a kind of concrete-based medium that can be in the elements. I've made a mushroom at her house, and bought for our yard a bird bath she made...

When the girls found out she does fairy house classes, they were enthralled, and I knew I'd never hear the end of it until we took a class ourselves.

So one Tuesday evening in the summer, we walked down the street and into Sally's even more fun backyard and giant "shed" for an evening of creating...

This was a fairy house at the end of the first crafting time, Greta's I think. These had to dry, then Jeff took the girls back a while later to paint them, then that had to dry.

The paint was pretty, um, bright!

but the girls love them, and loved carefully placing them in just the right spots in the garden. (which means mostly hidden away in the foliage.)

Soon they'll be covered in snow, and will be re-discovered in the spring! which will be almost as fun as placing them in the garden the first time.

The girls go down to Sally's almost every day, just to see if she's there and say hello.. and to search for bits of glass, and pet the cats. I do know where to look first if I can't find them outside!

one photo, and a thought

2011-09-23T08:51:00.000-05:00

could we wait a little bit longer?

please?

only one more 85 degree day?

how 'bout just 80?

75?

okay, okay.

66 and sunny. I'll take what I can get.

(but it's under protest.)

happy autumn, all.

in which there are sweeping vistas.

2011-09-20T09:22:00.000-05:00

(Grand Teton National Park, WY)

(open pit coal mining overlook in Gillette, WY)

(...this is what happens when one travels with an engineer)

(Devils Tower NM, WY)

(Badlands NP, SD)

500 digital pictures (only)
2 rolls of 36 exposure 35mm slides (for 3D pictures)
4 rolls of 120mm

(let it never be said our lives are without adequate documentation.)

TRNP - YNP - GTNP - DTNM - BNP

2011-09-19T10:20:00.000-05:00

or:

in which we drive 3083 miles, visit five (or 6, depending how you look at it) National Parks, and manage to eventually have a lovely time.

(all of the above are in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, ND)

(Billings, MT)

(Yellowstone National Park, WY)

in the past two weeks we learned:

- where to buy The Only Bottle of childrens' ibuprofen in Medora, ND
- where to get windshield replaced in Billings, MT
- where to buy a new camera in Billings, MT
- where the best food co-op is in Billings, MT (we saw a lot of Billings that day.)
- consistent below freezing overnight temps while tent camping are not conducive to healing a fever. (two fevers.)
- puking is the last straw.
- where the only rooms for let in Grand Teton NP are, when you need a room that night and it's 4 pm. and you don't want to pay $900 (a night).
- it's windy in South Dakota. (we already knew that.)

but we also learned:

- to roll with the punches
- the girls can (easily) do 9 hours in the car. more than once.
- healing happens.
- fun is everywhere
- ...and so is God's beauty

(this is only part one of the pictures, I'll post the last tomorrow.)

We're already planning our next (two) trips.

...and we were totally ready to stay out another 2 weeks this time, but figured the budget probably couldn't handle it... (especially if this camera was dropped...!)

one photo, one thought

2011-09-09T06:27:00.000-05:00

must must remember this in February, when we've been eating frozen (both me and the food) for months.

one photo, one thought

2011-09-02T06:42:00.000-05:00

for some reason, when they're together, I see teenagers.

(later than sooner, please.)

new hat.

2011-08-29T09:18:00.000-05:00

I was hoping to make her a sun-hat. but this is what she wanted. She picked the fabric and the pattern... and yes, I confirmed in the book and on-line that the top is supposed to be inside out, inexplicably.

she hardly ever takes it off. (except when made to at dinner.)

It was worth the hassle, and the tossing of brim #1, but I still think knitting's easier. fortunately, Gret didn't want one, too (at least not enough that I couldn't talk her out of it for now).

I remember wearing a (baseball) cap much of my late childhood/pre-teen years, too. Hers is much cuter than the Cubs (and later, hockey) hats I'm sure I was wearing, so there's always that.

one photo, some thoughts

2011-08-26T09:15:00.000-05:00

finished a project that'd been waiting for almost 2 years to be worked on. it was easy.

we all bought (much needed) shoes.

some (many?) ideas are better than the actuality.

she fussed, and cried, a lot. it was okay.

older has certainly meant more patience, and maybe a little more peace. ...still waiting on that wiser part.

in which hair is cut (hardly)

2011-08-23T09:15:00.000-05:00

When Kaatje was a baby, she hardly had hair.

Here she is a few months over 2 years old (petting old Toffee, the puppy my parents bought while I was in college), her hair's barely touching her shoulders. Suddenly, around age 6 or so, Kaatje's fine thin short baby hair quickly turned poker-straight and incredibly thick. She's never had hair much past her shoulders, I had it cut to even out all the strange scraggly patches, then it was so cute short around her face we kind of just keep doing that every 6 months to a year!

But I'm a Lazy Mother when it comes to hair (me, the girl who had her first haircut at a "real" salon after Kaatje was born - you read that right - my first "real" haircut was when I was over age 25), and Gret's hair just sort of grew and grew right off. Here she is at age 2, like the first pic of Kaatje:

Yes, a ponytail. It was so easy just to put her hair up, I never considered cutting it.

But I finally got sick of braiding down to that uneven end and decided it was time for Greta's First Haircut. You know, 'cause she's 5 and 1/2.

Yeah, maybe 1" on the very longest middle section came off. Whooeee! ... I told her to go run ask Dad what looked different about her; she was so excited that he noticed her hair was cut! (good thing he knew that's what we were doing.)

Huh, I didn't even save it for her baby book. (*grin*)

And now it's documented for posterity. first haircut: check.

one photo, one thought

2011-08-19T09:16:00.000-05:00

happiness is the ease that some things come to this small girl: my finding the bike on the side of my running route ("free" the sign said! hooray!), some tinkering by dad, to her riding like she's done it her whole life - 24 hours.

happiness is working hard and figuring it out, even if it doesn't come easy: listening to her giggle as she (slowly and carefully and ploddingly) reads Go Dog Go to herself during breakfast.

God balances our lives so well for us, doesn't He?
...take a break from that frustrating reading by going on a bike ride. or maybe, take a break from that frustrating bike ride, and go read a book! you'll feel better.

happy weekend!

then we went to the State Fair

2011-08-17T14:16:00.000-05:00

the Iowa State Fair, that is.

The animal barns were first, horses being the favorite.

(we pet three. at least.)

(why yes, I did feed the girls ice cream for lunch.)

Iowa makes a cow out of butter. This year, for the Butter Cow Centennial, there were two. I wasn't willing to stand in line, since, to me, seeing a butter cow close up is much the same as seeing a butter cow from 10 feet away. (Midwesterners: give 'em a chance to queue, they'll make one snake around a building for 1/2 a mile! to see a butter cow!!)

picking out their $5 handmade glass bead quickly has become a fair tradition for the girls.

Kaatje has one more year 'til the age cutoff for "little farm hands"... she already doesn't fit on the pedal tractor...

and the highlight of the afternoon:

my Mom took us on a sky ride back to the bus stop,

then the bus back to the car, and then to a lovely, relaxing evening, meeting Dad (grandpa) and having dinner at the brewpub, along with my Aunt Alice and Uncle John (who were with us at the fair, too)...

(the girls loved their blue sodas.)

(we loved the sitting. and the um, more adult drinks.)

in which we visit 3 farms and a town (in the 1800's).

2011-08-15T12:35:00.000-05:00

The girls absolutely loved Living History Farms, as we knew they would.

At the Pioneer Village:

helping at the millinery:

being weighed at the feed and farm implement barn:

helping to sweep at the broom-maker's:

(had to take pictures at the pharmacy for Uncle Steve):

at the Native American Village Farm:

at the Pioneer Farm:

If you're in central Iowa for any period of time, I'd highly recommend a day at this living museum. It was one of my favorite places growing up; I would never have imagined in 5th grade that I'd be bringing my own girls here someday!

one photo, one thought

2011-08-12T10:19:00.000-05:00

a very nice week.

in which many people use the camera...

2011-08-08T14:36:00.000-05:00

We had a fun time camping this weekend and hanging out with family; pictures were taken by all, all around:

(this stick bug was as long as my hand)

(Wiffle Ball, played to our own rules.
My team was resoundingly trounced, though all enjoyed the game, as no-one could remember an accurate score and the young children got to go to a base every time at bat.)

(cousins - yes, all girls!)

(probably should have washed my hair after swimming in the lake.)

A leaf insect of some sort. These bugs we found on different days on my parents' tent, under the rain fly.

We don't often see large insects like this and the stick insect in our area, the girls just loved them. Kaatje said he had prickly feet (unfortunately he only had 5 of them, perhaps a bird had gotten to him) and he hopped as a grasshopper does. We released him in the field across from the tents. The stick bug wandered off on his own.

After another noisy-neighbors-until-2am night, we happily confirmed with my parents (who've been camping for Many Years) that it was just a coincidence the two places we've camped recently have had rude and inconsiderate (not to mention, ahem, foul-mouthed) fellow campers, who don't seem to realize conversing inside a tent does not mean the tenters 20 feet away can't hear you, and just because you have a group you don't have a right to loudly tell stories until past midnight, or play music the whole night long. After talking with the DNR people the next morning (the nice DNR gal commented that she got a lot of complaints about the previous night), we had a calm and quiet Saturday night - even the thunderstorm passed us to the south... I never counted less than 20 seconds between the lightening and thunder, meaning the storm stayed at least 4 miles away (seconds between lightening and thunder, divided by 5 = approximate miles away).

Another nice weekend camping, this time in Iowa. What a lovely summer this is!

one photo, one thought

2011-08-05T09:52:00.000-05:00

love. summer.

in which we put raspberries in scones.

2011-08-04T09:04:00.000-05:00

We sometimes need a little extra to get going on Saturday mornings. I don't often cook or bake breakfast, since we have a dry cereal addiction in this family, but Saturday mornings, when I've come back from a long run, something sweet with a cup of coffee is exactly right.

How can one not put chocolate in raspberry scones?

This recipe: whole wheat raspberry ricotta scones

With these changes: 3/4 C sour cream instead of ricotta (yogurt would work, too?), a bit less than 1/3 C of 2% organic milk instead of heavy cream (less than 1/3 C because the sour cream or yogurt has more liquid than the ricotta), and added a handful of chocolate chips. Because, you know, I had to. Sprinkled some turbinado sugar on top before baking.

These were excellent, enjoyed by all. Much better the first day than later, but still so good there were no complaints about eating them Monday.

~
Right now we're between batches of raspberries from the garden; the old branches from last year produced in the spring (which is why we leave them, right? not because we're too lazy to cut them down?) and have now stopped, and now the new growth is setting the flowers for fall berries, with the bumble bees busily working out there as we speak.

It's hard to believe it's August already. I'm all about concentrating on living in the day, but I'm so sad autumn is in view already. We've been loving this summer!

what eees it?

2011-08-03T12:50:00.000-05:00

(you have to say that title in your best "Ren and Stimpy" voice.)

(and yes, I was a teen in the 90's, why do you ask?)

So I didn't know what to do with the kale in the CSA, ran across an intriguing recipe, used up all the kale, and took some blurry photos for you... in that order. They were salty and oily and crispy and... kale-y. And addicting and good. And no, I don't really care for kale, either.

Tonight we're having this (but a kale/chard mix). ..continuing in our CSA-finding-new-recipes theme.

So if unusual leafy things find their way into your kitchen, I recommend cheese sauce, oil, and salt. Not necessarily together, but that probably works too.

Hey, I never claimed doing a CSA would equal low-calorie meals, but we're certainly eating a wider variety of organic fresh veggies! Now, off to grate zucchini to freeze for chocolate chip zucchini bread come winter... (is there any other way to eat zucchini?! wait... don't answer that, 'cause I won't listen...)

"let nature be your teacher" ... at Eloise Butler

2011-08-01T09:56:00.000-05:00

(a very small part of the quaking bog at Theodore Worth Park)

We had set out to go to the new giant playground. We'd been there once before, on a cool dismal day, and basically had the place to ourselves. On a sunny Friday, I packed a lunch, set up Jeff to feed and let out the dog at noon, and we headed for a day at the playground again.

We lasted about 20 minutes.

The girls quickly tired of waiting in lines to play with equipment, watching out for kids running through the crowds, the adults hovering to be sure everyone got an equal turn, and all the screaming and shouting. Soon, they were wandering on a dirt trail while I called Jeff and told him we had a change of plans.

Half an hour in the car, a few quarters for the meter, and we got out to wander and explore in peace and wonder.

First we went to the Quaking Bog. Since there'd been a big storm recently (not sure if it was a tornado touchdown, or just very strong winds) we had a bit of trouble finding the right way to go through the fallen trees, but eventually we hit upon the right place.

The bog has floating dock paths through what appears to be solid ground, but if you bounce a little on the dock, you see the whole area shift with the moving water. Parts you are walking on solid ground, and parts on the dock, but if there was no dock you'd never know where you could step without sinking to your ankles (or deeper!) in the water of the bog.

These are sundews, carnivorous plants native to Minnesota (and many other places in the world).

See their dewy spikes?

They are tiny tiny, about the size of a fingernail. Areas were just blanketed with them.

So many plants here I've heard of but never seen outside of a botanical garden greenhouse. We had to look a moment to realize what this plant is, especially since I'd never seen one in flower! (and aren't those flowers incredible?! They stand about to my waist!)

This is a pitcher plant! In the back of my mind I knew some species are native here, but one doesn't think of these outside of jungles.

Isn't that fun? (well, not fun for bugs I guess, but, you know, a plant's gotta eat.)

After finding a picnic table to eat lunch, we re-parked the car down a bit and across the street from the bog, and visited the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden.

We mostly walked up and down and around on the paths here, just wandering however we felt. You don't see many wildflowers in these pictures, but they are there abundantly. I'd never been here in the summer, only early spring, and the plants are amazing... up to my waist in the prairie area. (just like in our yard!)

The garden has open prairie, woodland, swamp, and all in between, filled with flowers and plants that Eloise Butler collected from all over Minnesota at the turn of the last century, to preserve and protect them in this park.

This is the Minnesota State Flower, the Showy Lady's Slipper. The only state flower in the U.S. that is an Orchid. I've never seen one outside of pictures..mostly the pictures on our license plates!

We had such a lovely time; we'll have to be sure to come back in the fall and share more pictures of the change in seasons.

(and be sure to bring lots of quarters for the meters!)

two photos, a thought

2011-07-29T09:03:00.000-05:00

another summer, another season of swimming lessons.

and fun was had,

with lots of gong-ringing (passing of levels) all around.

a little knitting

2011-07-27T12:02:00.000-05:00

knitting has been happening around here.
I wish you could feel the yarn of this hat - it was in a grab bag I picked up a few years ago from the LYS; must have some angora in it, it's so squishy soft.

the hat is too nice for me. I'm giving it to a friend who shares in my feelings toward the long cold MN winters, and who liked Gret's hat in the same pattern. (happy 1/2 birthday, Amy!)

I also knit a sweater, my very first. Finished it in Two Days.

Yes I did!

isn't that just the cutest thing ever?! I'm pretty proud.

Yes, my First Knit Sweater could fit an elf, but I did learn some simple garment construction and SSK decreases, of which I'm quite happy. I have a plan for more of these!

also, made my first Large Purchase of yarn, ever, with plans for a knit cardigan for myself. I could have bought a cardigan for less than half the price of the yarn (which was 1/2 off itself when I bought it), but it's the principle, isn't it? I can't wait to cast on. Plans for an Elizabeth Zimmermann sweater are in the works, too, for a fall project, perhaps a vacation bring-along. We'll see.

~~
on a side note, I discovered Khan Academy through WIRED magazine, and as I type (and avoid laundry and baking that need to be done), Kaatje is having fun doing math on the computer. I'll repeat that: "having fun doing math." Greta and I are looking up screech owls and elk for coloring, and listening to their sounds.

...love home-learning...

one photo, one thought

2011-07-22T09:11:00.000-05:00

small creatures will always find a place to rest in our yard,

thanks to the girls.

(they would like to think faeries, of course)

now, if dad would only mow around these houses,

which are scattered randomly

and hidden throughout the grass...

{summer}

2011-07-20T08:58:00.000-05:00

if these photos seem unusually specifically themed, you're not imaging things. I thought I'd share with you some pictures I shot for an upcoming newsletter for our local natural foods co-op.

(full disclosure: this is the co-op on whose board I serve; when they were looking for photographers for stock pics and themes for the newsletters, and I couldn't believe the rates some pros charge. So I told them I'd do it for 1/3 of the price, if they wanted me. It's working nicely, and I'm not contracted or anything, so they're free to find another photographer if things don't work out at some point.)

The summer yard is hitting that peak season where I wander through and shrug at the weeds, pulling out the big ones and ignoring the little ones. They'll be dead with the frost in a couple months anyway. The home show is over, the humidity is up, and we're spending our time relaxing in the cool house and thinking and planning and drawing and reading.

~~
(p.s. the popsicles? you know that juice in which canned peaches are packed? - we buy the no-sugar-added/juice-packed ones - I can't bear to throw it out, and it's kinda thick to drink. ...makes great popsicles!)

in which we (finally) take the first camping trip of the season.

2011-07-18T12:16:00.000-05:00

~ the struggle with the ancient camp stove is all part of the fun

~ now that we've had 'smores with homemade marshmallows, there's no going back

~ canoing with dad was more fun than riding with all of us

~ questionable slides also add to the excitement

~ yes, those are that child's only pair of jeans. at least we're only camping.

~ we also remembered why we only camp at state and national parks: less than half the price, considerate campers, and sites that let you put your tent up more than 10' from the next tent. I'd give up hot water and showers any day of the week for a big tent site and peace and quiet at night.

ah, but fun was had by all, and now we have our list of new purchases to make and things to change before the next holiday out! ...about which all of us are already excited!

one photo, one thought

2011-07-15T08:27:00.002-05:00

so. many. blessings.

Kaatje's turn.

2011-07-14T08:14:00.004-05:00

(she always has a dog in her arms, whether real or stuffed.)

(and she has no idea who that baby-faced fringe-haired boy singer is, nor any sort of "musical" pop movies.. I'll take stuffed dogs any day, for as long as possible, thank you.) Love you, Kaatje.

in which the barber's children get a haircut.

2011-07-13T08:50:00.000-05:00

What do they say about the cobbler's children not having shoes, or the barber's, haircuts?

All my photographer friends go out and take such wonderful beautiful pictures of their children, all the time.

I paint stairwells.

and take pictures of flowers.

Conveniently, while I was out taking pictures of flowers, the girls were also out in the quiet dusk, making fairy houses of grass. My last purposeful pictures of them were from 2 autumns ago.

Today you get lovely silly Greta:

(tomorrow will be Kaatje, with a constant companion, of course.)

Our dusk is very long here. The sun sets around 9:00pm or so, but the sky still holds light for maybe an hour longer. This means later bedtimes, we're finding.

Which is just fine, while we enjoy mid-summer.

in which we visit the garden, with a short lens.

2011-07-12T09:29:00.000-05:00

butterfly weed

raspberries

blanket flower

coneflower

fragrant giant hyssop

wild bergamont

common milkweed

(the only plant monarch butterfly caterpillars use)

Took my 50mm lens out last night, while the girls played in the dusk and Jeff chatted with our neighbor. My good zoom lens seems to have developed a problem, so for now my forced photography project for the summer will be seeing what fun I can do with my low-aperture 50. (these photos are a bit off because it was breezy out, and though the shutter speed was fine, shooting below f2 makes the focus so tight things way too easily move out of focus. They're all SOOC.)

The garden is looking quite nice right now - a happy time of things growing in and full, but not the overgrowth of the late summer and fall. We had a lot of nice comments on the home tour, but I realize that people think we spend tons of time working on the garden. I try to explain that we have the garden to spend less time on the yard, but they look at me skeptically... we don't water, we don't mow, we rarely pull weeds (there aren't that many), we let everything self-seed, we only clean away the brush in the spring, so the plants are protected in the winter from all the salt and sludge plowed off the 4 lane road in front of us.

Probably 75% of our plants, and all those in the above pictures, are native Minnesota prairie plants. We have sandy soil and sun, so they love it here. (which is also why we don't have to water) I do have a ginko tree, because I love them, and a section of lilies and some hostas because they're easy and we got them from friends and family.

The most we usually do is throw new woodchips down on the paths.

Oh! Our new bench! The metal legs were the base of the ancient concrete washing tub in the basement, which Jeff had removed when we moved in but kept the legs. He refinished them, then put a simple treated-wood top on it. The girls and I sat on it and read last night...

Now that we're finished with all this work, we are determined to make ourselves enjoy it the rest of the summer!

in which the weather is hot and Many People visit.

2011-07-11T10:21:00.000-05:00

We had a lovely time during the home and garden show yesterday afternoon. Although quite hot outside, the house stayed comfortable with fans running and the window air going upstairs. ...lots of nice complements on the house and all the work we've done; we even talked with a couple people who had been in the house many many years ago. This event, our home with 9 others and 5 businesses, was put on by the Anoka County Historical Society. Ticket sales benefit the society.

The girls had a lovely time at different friends' houses, for which we are very grateful (grateful to the families who watched them!).

And now it's all over, and we can try to remember what life was before we spent all our time getting ready to open our doors to the public.

Would you like to visit, too?

The gardens were on the tour, too, but I didn't go through yet to take pictures outside... then with the storm that went through late last night, I'll have to pick up branches first!

Phew and Sigh. Now, what's next?!

some pictures, and some thoughts.

2011-07-08T08:32:00.000-05:00

gratuitous flower shots.

...
the house is clean.

(not picked up, but clean, and picking up will be easy after cleaning 27 windows (not exaggerating, and that's not all of them in this old house), a kitchen and a bath from top down, and a house of hardwood floors.)

a lovely sis-in-law birthday dinner out was well enjoyed by all, with our blessed husbands watching our precious (read: "left-em-sobbing-while-I-walked-away") children.

soon, a couple hundred people will wander through our house and yard.

yes. we do know we're crazy (and this isn't the least of it, I'm sure).

10:50 pm

2011-07-02T23:01:00.000-05:00

I'm just happy I'm not holding a paint brush.

(just helping to hold a newel post, when needed.

and those suckers are heavy.)

...and having way too much fun sorting books. again.)

We've been having long long days of what feels like treading water, but all is moving forward, truly. For the first time in about 12 years, we'll soon have a upstairs that matches our lovely main floor! (okay, 3/4 of the upstairs will be lovely - that lead-paint flaked back porch will eventually be lovely if we're still here 12 years from now!)

note: the above is not the paint color, this is compact fluorescent lighting on our new paint.

and now it's time to go mark my curtain rods... and I suppose go to bed at some point, too...

for the next 9 days

2011-06-27T09:31:00.000-05:00

we kept busy the past 3 days...

instead of staying at the crazy busy playground (really?! lines to go up the stairs and down the slides?) we drove a bit farther and spent the day, just the 3 of us (and a few others) at a completely different and completely lovely park...

then we rented this:

this to dig 5 of these:

(pictures by Kaatje)

and put up fence posts, while Greta spent the day at our lovely neighbors' place.

(more pics by K)

the evening, we convinced the kids to go to the local Catholic church's Summerfest instead of our regular Saturday evening at the pool

where we watched beautiful dancing and (Jeff and I) ate awesome food.

This next week-and-a-half we're taking a "working holiday"

while we prep our "home and garden" and finish lots of little (and big) projects, to get ready to invite a few hundred people (not all at once) into our home.

Writing here will be sporadic for the next while, but I can't wait to share all we have been doing and will be doing around here! Have a lovely week!

one photo, one thought

2011-06-24T08:52:00.000-05:00

When praying for guidance,

we were never promised answers

in black and white.

(something to teach the children, too.)

(but I didn't eat the flowers, though I'm sure I could have.)

2011-06-22T21:49:00.001-05:00

I love CSA salad night.

(the night we get the share, we eat the biggest salad we can for supper... so good.. This is the first of my 2 helpings.)

During dinner, while Dad was at consistory, we had lovely discussions about the weeds I was eating. Yes, literally: very tasty dandelion greens were in this week - yum! Little gret tried them, Kaatje, of course, not.

I've heard Americans don't have a taste for bitter like other countries develop in their cooking. I've heard we automatically think "bitter = yuck", because everything here is so over-sweetened. ...but I'm developing a love for the spicy-bitter taste, arugula (rocket, for the Brits) and the other sharp leaves are just so good! (in small quantities!)

It might be rainy and 50 outside, and I might be so tired of wearing long pants and long sleeves I could scream, but we're all So Excited for that ever-changing weekly box the next 3 or more months! I'm sure you'll see much more as the weeks go by.

in which we go to the river, and a snail walks across my hand.

2011-06-21T09:01:00.001-05:00

my goal is to do a lot of this this summer... dropping everything and going somewhere unexpected and last second with the girls. note to self: start making list of unexpected places. and maybe things.

(Right Now: a spiral notebook and I are best buddies. all about lists right now, keeping my brain in line.)

Jonah out of the belly of the fish...

2011-06-20T09:17:00.000-05:00

With a whirlwind Friday, VBS week finished peacefully last week. The kids loved the crafts, and I loved that everything continued smoothly and without crisis!

Day four craft we took the sun-print hand-prints the children made, and glued them on to a tote bag which we had first decorated with markers. They seemed to like this a lot, and I was happy good old white school glue did the trick. (Sewing would have been more up my alley, for affixing the fabric, but this was plenty.)

Gems from making crowns a few years ago were a big hit. (and I was happy to be rid of them.)

The 5th (and last) day of crafts was my favorite. I try to make a different kind of book every year for crafts, just for fun and for the price (basically free!). The kids for the most part enjoy these, and I love teaching them something they can use over again - they can make a book in the same technique any time.

This year we made secret or surprise books, based on a Jacob's ladder style. Hard to describe unless you have one in front of you, but we'll try:

the outside of the card (when folded, the flower is on the front "cover").

the inside of the card, spread out.

and finally:

the "secret" inside of the card, where the center is split open.

The kids were duly amazed.

(okay, those who "got it" were amazed, but still. I'm not going for glory here. Though one sweet boy made my morning; he says, "WOW!! YOU COULD MAKE A MILLION DOLLARS WITH THIS!!" Yes, he spoke all in caps. It was pretty funny.)

I would very very much like to make a PDF and tutorial for this cute secret book, but that's a little beyond me at the moment, so for now, it will have to wait. I will say, I loved Esther K. Smith's book Magic Books and Paper Toys. I could totally get into this bookmaking stuff more...

... if there wasn't more wallpaper to steam and scrape and clean, and laundry to fold, and gardens to weed, and eensy tails of weaving yarn to pick up from EVERYWHERE. Life goes on and on! much more catching up soon...

there once was a man named Jonah.

2011-06-15T23:21:00.000-05:00

As a Vacation Bible School coordinator and teacher, this past while has been a building, all-consuming project in management and delegation, coming to a head this week. We're on day 3 now of the 5 day program - and counting!

Being an organizer is a job, but I love choosing and leading the crafts. Here's the first three days:

day one: weaving (like cloth making in Jonah's days)

day two: sun printing cloth, handprints and leaves (or, you know, an octopus.) We'll be using these later for another craft.

day three: sail boats, to remind them of Jonah's journey and God's plan
(yes, I explained the sailors did not throw Jonah off a sail boat.)

days 4 and 5 are yet to come... I can't wait to make the special books with them on Friday.

There is so much more to update with us, and so much more to do around here..but...

These days it's late nights and early mornings, weird suppers (but yay CSA starting!) and the lack of lunches, but we're hanging in here and looking forward to the real start of our summer... swimming and camping and travel! soon, soon.

But first, 50 kids need to glue more and draw more and paint more, for 2 more days.

(projects are from discountschoolsupply.com, with whom I was quite happy)

one picture, one thought

2011-06-10T08:34:00.000-05:00

"The Lord has done great things for us,

And we are glad."

Psalm 126:3

(and when we're not, we should be.)

(and that's really for me. not them.)

in which it is warm.

2011-06-08T08:27:00.000-05:00

Why yes, funny you should mention, we were the hottest place in the country yesterday, the hottest it's been in MN in June since good ol' '88.

(please note the thermometer is reading in the shade:)

and yes, it seems that it was above 90 degrees in the house. hmm.

very Very Special Thanks to dear Cary and Steve, who opened their home and AC and pantry and "pool" to us! (the chili was great!)

The weather broke early this morning after a hot hot night, and the house is filling with cool air. Every time I open a cabinet or closet, the heat falls out. Or rises out, I suppose, if the physics in our home is correct. The walls are still warm to the touch.

Now it's back to reality. Please note Friday's high:

I might be tarred and feathered for saying this around here...

but...forgive me...

I wouldn't really mind more hot (!!)

in which there could be fairies.

2011-06-07T08:23:00.003-05:00

I have wanted to take a fairie garden class with Kaatje for years now. I've seen them, expensive kits or complicated multi-day classes, but life has never worked out that we could make one... though the girls make fairie gardens all over our own garden at home, including in the (always needing to be cut) lawn.

~
We were so sad when Wonderment closed. Forty minutes wasn't too far to drive! Where would we go now for our lovely crafting and waldorf toy fix? Best gift-giving ever from that store.

But obviously there was still something bubbling, because I soon found an e-mail from "Heartfelt" in my inbox. One owner of Wonderment opened the space again.

And there was a class.

And Jeff told us to go.

So we did:

And we both loved it.

(the garden was quite easy to make, the most fun was all the supplies from which to choose to make the decorations. you could easily make one yourself, but choose what decorations you'd like at a store or florist before you make a purchase (of wire and string and shells, etc) and you'd save a lot of money making a single garden.)

best wishes on a healthy future for Heartfelt!

one picture, one thought

2011-06-03T08:33:00.000-05:00

but seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

matthew 6:33-34 (nkjv)

pictures of home learning...

2011-06-02T09:24:00.000-05:00

While Jeff and I wait to get off the crazy ride that life's giving us right now, here are the girls, who don't seem to be affected by the chaos:

a new friend paints the girls nails

final homeschool co-op science projects
(Kaatje didn't have any problems with the structured environment
and loved the classes..)

Greta embroiders because Kaatje is

Kaatje creates a pouch, on her own, for a friend's birthday

meeting a very large dog...

and painting faces at the children's museum

plenty of fodder for dandelion chains

and both girls are loving their new dog friends this week

(small dog is running around somewhere else.

this is Kenya on the left and our Pippin on the right,

playing tug with each other - see those tails wag?

the put out a lovely "grrrr" during this game, too)

~ So while Jeff and I look at each other every morning and assure ourselves (perhaps naively) we'll have more time soon, the girls have their own time to themselves, and keep on going and growing. despite us.

inside and out, work around the house

2011-05-31T11:25:00.000-05:00

A long weekend, and our only plan was to see how much we could work on around the house. The poor girls - it's a good thing we have 3 dogs right now for them to play with, and that their friends down the street and next door were also in town, because they were sorely neglected (she said tongue-in-cheek). We hardly saw them at all, except for them checking in for hugs and food. (mostly food.) They'd help us rake, or shovel, or water, or plant for a little while, then run off again!

Saturday was supposed to rain, so we planned inside work, but woke that morning to gorgeous sun... so to the garden we went!

First, we removed a section of garden on the south-east side, and I replanted the removed hostas and some purple iris on the north side (the iris in a sunny spot), while Jeff pulled out all those and some perennial geranium. After all the re-planting, we re-sloped the dirt away from the house, Jeff using a 10' board, level, and tape measure to figure the slope.

Above you see the finished sloped dirt! Yay - dirt! We'll be filling this area with more native perennial plugs - 6-packs of little plants that will fill in thickly just like the rest of the south side plants.

Next for these areas is creating a wide grass path through the raspberry/day lily/blue flag mess, planting a blueberry patch (the pots in the above pic), and making a fence and gate to the path to the front yard. We do love our fences around here.

Sunday after church, while our lovely bro and sis-in-law and family watched the girls, Jeff and I took care of a friend's hobby-farm-at-a-duplex, then took care of the 3 dogs, before heading over for a nice chat before evening church.

Back to work Monday! Waking to a downpour and thunder, we decided to make the day an indoor work day (though the weather cleared by noon, it was a muddy mess out). Last week Jeff (and Gret, to a much lesser extent ;) started removing the painted-over wallpaper in the stairwell:

For the amount of time she spent scraping, she had a lot of fun uncovering the old wallpaper from under the paint. Jeff got this far with dry-scraping:

then yesterday before lunch we removed the rest of the painted-over wallpaper:

We're going through all this trouble because the steamer won't remove the wallpaper through the paint... so first the paint and the layers it's stuck to come down, then we steam and scrape, then wash with water and baking powder, lastly come back and wash with TSP and rinse (Jeff does that, I won't touch TSP).

It doesn't seem like much, and it didn't feel like us for all the work it was, but by the end of the day yesterday we got this far:

All the paint down, and the start of white bare plaster - our goal. To get to this point is seeming to take forever, but we're thinking and hoping the rest of the stairwell steaming and cleaning should only take another full day of work. ...so we know what we're doing the next rainy Saturday! (all the while shaking our proverbial - and sometimes literal - fists at those who stick 5 layers of wallpaper to ceilings of stairwells then paint over it...)

Slowly slowly things around this almost 100-yr-old house are coming together!

one picture, one thought

2011-05-27T08:35:00.000-05:00

after this week, we will feel like the Yiddish man

who was told to put the farm animals in his house...

it will seem so calm without them!

(but oh, they love to play together -

at least they wear each other out!)

thoughts, and 16 month-old-pictures

2011-05-26T14:18:00.000-05:00

january 2010

Why is it, when we feel so on the brink of being able to accomplish what we need to do right now, we want to add more? (it classically happens, when we finish a big home project, we need a couple days of telling ourselves "stop, you don't need to be working on something," as we edge toward the wallpaper steamer.)

This weekend we'll be getting out that wallpaper steamer, since, once again there's Saturday rain, but we're both home and ready to clean up and out that stairwell. So it's time to start new projects, right?

I've finished reading "The Happiness Project" by Gretchen Rubin. I have mixed feelings regarding a book about how to be happy written by an admitted agnostic. How can you separate happiness from God? Or even talk about it outside God's working in your life? (aside: I entered a random on-line give-a-way for this book, and, um, providentially was the winner..?)

However, just like reading anything through the lens of Scripture, some practical advice is found in this book that really is useful to me and made me see things in a new way. I don't spend out, and I underbuy. Those $5 pants from Goodwill, that fit so awesome? They're too nice to wear regularly. The bit of beautiful ribbon Kaatje wants to use in some little sewing project? I might need that (for some yet-to-be-determined project)! So I'm learning. Use that ribbon, wear those pants. (Dad thought it was hilarious that I wouldn't spend $2 on hair elastics because I had forgotten them on a trip. Too expensive! I have lots at home! That's underbuying.)

january 2010

Another part of this Rubin talks about is indulging in modest splurges that support resolutions you have for your family. Her example of this is exactly something I have been meaning to do: make digital photo books. How many digital pics are in my computer files? Phew.

"But it's so much trouble to upload all those pictures and figure out all those layouts!" my brain whines like a tired 5-yr-old. Um, instead I'm wasting my time clicking on random links while reading random blogs I truly have no sincere interest in, while waiting for little Gret to go to sleep? Shoot, I could have had whole photo books created! The expense? Yes, it costs money to make these books. But I can create them first, then print them when I want.

february 2010

The idea of making resolutions, or purposes, and basing your actions around them is also found in a book I love and want to buy, Tsh Oxenreider's "Organized Simplicity." Tsh actually is a professing Christian, though her book isn't a "Christian book" (and that's fine by me). It's much more about organizing your life and house, which ties in quite firmly with the whole Happiness thing. There's some great ideas in it regarding thinking about what your goals are for your family and centering your living around those goals. Some great ideas that we probably wouldn't follow by the letter, but certainly could put into practice in general.

In the weeks to come we're going to be doing some major home reorganizing, and I'm totally psyched. Truly - I'll have so much fun. Jeff has some vacation to burn before the end of June (we didn't take a long family trip last year, though we'll make up for it this year), and we're doing a top to bottom clean and reorganize. Jeff thinks we're having a garage sale at the end of it. (yeah, we'll see.)

In the mean time, in my "spare" time, I'll be plugging pictures from last year into a big old online album, and maybe even sometime print it. So much a better use of my time than looking at another blog about knitting. Or following some random Facebook link from a high school friend.

and now it's time to get out in the yard and the sun, and keep an eye on the 3 poodle-mixes in our backyard...

yes, I know, we're terrible.

2011-05-24T09:45:00.000-05:00

Hello. My name is Christy and I have home-learning confession.

I force my 5-year-old to play piano.

Phew, there, I've said it. Feels good to get it out there and off my chest.

First of all, forcing the girls to do certain things is against our philosophy. Yes, they have to brush their teeth, contribute to household management (put their dirty clothes in the basket, keep things tidy), go to church, act nicely to others, etc, etc. We aren't radical unschoolers: we have rules about TV and eating and bedtimes and computer use. We believe in sinful nature.

But making my little one sit down and do something that she literally says she doesn't like and that is not a moral or family issue, is something I never thought I'd do. Yet, Greta (and Kaatje, but she loves piano) just had her first recital with her first year of lessons. And I must say, little Gret is excellent for her young age, we do humbly believe.

Last fall, when we started piano, I decided that since we had the money, I wasn't going to drive all the way to lessons (given by a wonderful Christian teacher with grown homeschooled children) for only one girl. Suzuki can start very young, and I had always been planning on starting both girls at the same time.

This year has been a bit of a struggle with Gret's practicing. Kaatje willingly and on her own practices at least 5x a week, I was fortunate to get Gret to practice 3 times without nagging and cajoling.

But, a couple weeks ago, little Gret had a turn around (coinciding with the introduction of a simple tiny brilliant reward system) and now will much more willingly practice more often. And we're glad.

And I'm happy we're "forcing" her to do this. She's learned so much, and we do think saying she doesn't like it is just something she has in her head (like saying she can't read, although we sat down yesterday and she read 36 pages of Dick and Jane to me).

I do have to explain: if she was terrible at piano (as in, we could see we were starting her too early for her physical and mental skills), if she actually HATED it, if she never played any other time than our forced practices (she sits down and plays tunes from he head all the time), we would have stopped.

Part of lessons this year was a few sessions of a dance class that Jeff took the girls to on a weekend afternoon. Greta hated it... it was way above her ability level and she couldn't seem to have fun just trying it and going with the flow and just having fun with it (like the other 5-yr-old was doing). So we stopped having her go, and Jeff just went with Kaatje. We asked little Gret every time if she'd like to try again, and she was very adamant she just wanted to stay home. So she and I stayed home.

We can tell she really truly does like piano, deep down. But she's decided, in her 5-year-old way, that she's not supposed to like it. Or something.

We'll be taking the summer "off" of piano, meaning the girls will play all the time but I won't have to fill out their piano practice charts, and we'll start up again in the fall. Maybe by next recital, Greta won't answer "No, I don't like piano," when strangers at our table at the piano recital reception ask her how she likes playing.

Trying to keep the balance of urging to try and succeed at new things and not forcing things they truly dislike or have no interest in is a delicate thing, but fulfilling for all of us!

two photos, two thoughts

2011-05-20T08:58:00.000-05:00

As I was walking home, I realized that just because others (probably) weren't praying about it, that didn't mean I couldn't. So I did, and will continue.

Maybe (hopefully) second time's the charm.

waiting on buttons.

2011-05-18T10:32:00.000-05:00

Some sweet baby out there needed a vest. Or maybe I just needed to knit one.

In our life, one doesn't have to wait too long for a baby-gift-giving opportunity. In fact, there's a couple babies out there who need gifts, and, dare I mention, one dear friend's on the way.

So, the final question is: pink buttons or blue?

(next to figure out is how to make this Greta-size. or maybe Momma size. hmmm. so many patterns, so little time.)

we're pretty sure we won.

2011-05-16T09:10:00.000-05:00

Doesn't seem like it's been 15 years of this.

But we are crazy that way.

Dad and I:

15 years in a row of Spring half-marathons.

(mmm... that coffee tasted good after 13.1 miles of chill and bluster and hills!)

in which ladies go for a walk in woods.

2011-05-11T10:55:00.002-05:00

One evening, in the rain, a group of ladies had a lovely, albeit short, walk in one of the neatest places in the twin cities, the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden.

I only brought the little point and shoot camera, but it was enough to get the idea of the beauty there.

(and these were the clouds outside while we waited out the storm at a coffee shop down the road)

A lovely time was had by all!

Now, I really do hope I keep my mental promise this year to take the girls here soon. There's even a bog at the park that we have yet to see, with carnivorous plants! Too much fun in the area, too little summer.

in which a child is brought to work.

2011-05-09T08:59:00.000-05:00

I was sitting down to check e-mail while getting ready to head to Bible Study one morning a bit ago, and Jeff had forwarded a company-wide e-mail home. It said that there were cookies and juice in the common area for all the kids who had been brought in that day for "take your child to work day."

"Huh, would've been nice to know!" forwarded Jeff.

A few minutes on the phone with Jeff, and a conversation with Kaatje later, Kaatje had her own day at work with Dad lined up that afternoon. (Working out that Jeff had a slow day that day!)

So I packed her a lunch, then dropped her off with Jeff on our way home from Bible Study, where she spent the rest of the day with dad and the engineers.

Now, to be honest, I fully expected to get a call in about 1.5 hours from Jeff saying that Kaatje was bored, and I could come get her now. He has one of those typical engineering jobs that's interesting to explain what the he and the company does, but the actuality of his daily work is fairly mundane work with CAD.

Surprisingly, or not, Kaatje stayed until the end of Jeff's work day, and they really enjoyed their time. He took her on a tour of the building, which includes the engineers area, the sales and staff area, and the machine shop where techs and engineers actually build the machines and fabricate some parts.

Kaatje's favorite part of her visit was creating a drawing and a "movie" of a demo machine part that Jeff was sent from a vendor a long time ago (the girls love playing with this little "toy" when they visit dad at work). She and Jeff sat down with his caliper and measured and computer drafted the part, then set it to motion.

Jeff said Kaatje did all the measuring herself. (Personally, I love the disclaimer stamped on the drawing.)

And here's what this little part does:

Except, of course, when the girls (okay, or me) play with it, they shake it as fast as they can so the little red metal slider whacks against each rubber end cap of the shaft to make a fast rat-a-tat-a-tat sound.

Now you can go make one at home! (Except maybe don't, since I'm sure it's patented, and we don't want to get in trouble.)

...and yes, Kaatje enjoyed her juice and cookies, too.

one photo, one thought

2011-05-06T09:17:00.000-05:00

some times, blessedly,

we get tiny glimpses of what

preciousness God has planned for us.

(the thought of God hiding Moses in the crack of the rock

makes me feel comforted, for some reason.)

in which twigs have been planted.

2011-05-05T09:02:00.000-05:00

I can't believe what we accomplished in 48 hours.

(the dwindling ibuprofen in the bottle shows it.)

...and you can't see in this picture that the fence has no screws holding the sections in. That will be our little secret. (until Jeff gets out there with the drill.) Also, there will be edging - reclaimed from other parts of the garden - all along the woodchip/grass edge, too. Putting in that edging is such a nice feeling of accomplishment, something about wielding a rubber hammer and making it all straight and clean and level and finished.

Fortunately, today it is raining, and there is a slight chance laundry and dishes will be completed.

Jeff said Kaatje sounded a little worried about all the sod removal the past couple days; he thinks she was concerned about having any grass left! Oh, she needn't worry. Aside from perhaps taking out corners or edges, the back yard garden will be all dog and girls and grass. We might even (organic) fertilize and actually work on the grass back there!

Wait. You've been looking at that top picture and think the only thing we did was take out grass and dump down woodchips?!

Okay, here, does this help?

See 'em? SEE them?!

I had to be careful not to mix up the roots we were pulling out of the ground with the hazelnut sticks we were planting (especially those hazelnuts without buds on them, of which there were a few).

Planting a root sticking out of the ground would be amusing, however.

~~ There's still quite a bit to finish with this project. The dog will certainly think these twigs were planted for him to pull out and chew up, so we need a protective fence along the edging for now. Also, there's grading and grass-path-making to complete.

Just to throw out there: We'll be taking out red raspberries, tiger lilies, hosta (on which our neighbor has claim), perennial geranium, some old lilies which may or may not bloom, and a few other plants... if you're local and interested in any of this (free!), let me know and we'll save it for you when we remove it. We're zone, oh, like 4 or so.

Time to get some of these dirty clothes in the laundry... maybe I'll even sit down with some knitting (*content sigh*).

in which we have a pretend saturday

2011-05-04T11:40:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was pretend Saturday, since real Saturday, this past weekend, was filled with rain and prior obligations. (band name of the day: "rain and prior obligations")

So Jeff cleared up some things at work Monday, and Tuesday dawned bright and cold and full of yard-work potential.

(First I ran 13 miles. Yes, I'm like that.)

Jeff removed the fence before I got a before picture, but you get the idea. Here's the south side of our back yard:

We are putting a row of hazelnut sticks (eventually they'll be bushes) along the fence line, then we're putting a(nother) fence separating the front garden from the back, to keep the dog out of the front.

We found he literally ate a maple sapling, without our knowledge. And he likes to lie in the strawberry patch. This will end.

There will be a grass path through where the edge of the raspberries is now, and plants up to it on either side. We'll have a gate with an arbor.

The sod cutter was rented. Sod was cut. Lots of it.

then played with, on its way to the trailer for travel to the compost site.

(picture from Kaatje)

(*sniff*... we love snow so much, we pretend everything is snow! ... or maybe we're just crazy.)

We had to dig out along the fence-line walk, so that when we plant and put down mulch, it won't be above the ground line and wash away.

At the end of the day, stick planting was put on hold in favor of showers and usage of a local-mexican-restaurant gift card (kids eat free tuesdays!) for a 7:30 pm supper, all of us tired from being outside all day. That was a good pomegranate margarita Jeff and I shared.

Waiting for Jeff to rent the sod cutter, I also transplanted a bunch of prairie smoke, separating 4 plants into all this along our front walk:

Yes, debris-clearing still needs to take place in the front.

But there's hazelnut sticks to be planted and a giant trailer of wood chips to be spread this afternoon. First things first!

two photos, one thought

2011-04-29T09:17:00.000-05:00

they're all changing so quickly, and it's not very often we're all together.

we'll take every minute!

in which I talk a lot about others talking about home learning.

2011-04-28T08:53:00.001-05:00

(lift bridge, just a few houses from our B and B)

Jeff and I attended the MACHE conference two weeks ago in Duluth. We've been to MACHE once before, and were not especially impressed, but I needed a vacation (with winter moving into its 5th month) and the pictures of the B and B's were beautiful. So we dropped the girls with Grandma and Grandpa, and the dog to his "Aunt and Uncle's," and we were on our way up north.

(pizza luce Duluth)

The post will be long, but I'd like to talk about some of the wonderful session we attended at the conference. We made some providentially good decisions on speakers; having attended these in the past we knew what we wanted to focus on this time.

(the view from the Solglimt breakfast room, looking over Lake Superior)

Whether it's just the "in thing" in homeschooling, or whether we specifically sought these speakers out, most of the sessions we listened to were on character and worldview building in our children. Not this being added to school-at-home, but how character is more important than rote education because your children's character is what they take with them through their whole life, even when they've forgotten what the Sinking of the Maine was all about (thx Dad!).

I'd like to give some quote from my notes that I found I especially want to remember myself.

(one view in our bedroom)

From Debbie Strayer:

"Teachers should ask questions, not give answers."

We need to teach our children to be self-directed, not followers. Supporting them in their learning instead of spoon-feeding them what we think they need to know will make them more successful. (my paraphrase)

(Solglimt B and B breakfast room and common area)

"Don't exchange what your kids have (gifts/skills/learning preferences) for being like everyone else."

"Don't make your child 'most kids'."

"Bing Gifted mean using gifts and skills for helpfulness in God's world." (as opposed to using gifts to only become "smarter")

(the entrance to the B and B)

"Children's brains are not governed by man's wishes."

"If we believe God has equipped us, then the child will believe that He has equipped them."

(awesome dinner at Thai Krathong ...

when they heard us pronounce "Panang", they asked if we wanted more spice)

Zan Tyler:

"Go through life asking questions about the world-views behind motives and actions of the people and culture we see around us."

(on the way home to the B&B, waiting for a ship to go through the lift bridge)

"The Holy Spirit guides our children, we do not."
We can give them the tool of Scripture and help them to know how to think - critical thinking vs. regurgitation.

(our view the 2nd morning - glad I ran the 1st)

Sonya Shafer (Simply Charlotte Mason):

"Character is built from habits." Habits children develop now will be with them the rest of their lives.

Habits are inevitable - children will form them all the time whether we are helping them or not.

"Teach the child, not the curriculum."

"Give your children expectant encouragement: cheer your children on and be their support."

We had a refreshing and wonderful time being together a whole weekend; thanks to everyone who made it possible!

Now we have so much to think about and work on. Especially as the girls get older, we're seeing how important it is for them to not get into bad "habits"...and the little "annoying" things we let them get away with are not be something we want to continue to allow to develop.

Thankfully, all and only with God's help. God's helping hand for them, and just as much, if not more, for us!

little yellow dress

2011-04-26T09:08:00.002-05:00

These cousins had a lot of fun this past weekend.

(and yes, the baby really does smile - but she's also wary of these small noisy unpredictable people who make lots of faces at her and like to hold her)

Just for fun, here is another picture of this yellow dress, 5 years ago:

That's K and little g... K is a year younger than little g in the cousin pictures, and baby g with sister is 5 weeks younger than baby C above with cousins.

We had a lovely weekend, a pleasant day returning home yesterday... it's back to keeping home today, but we made some fun decisions and we'll have some little goals to keep us going through the Spring!

two photos, two thoughts

2011-04-22T08:48:00.000-05:00

two weeks ago.

it will come again.

wild and beautiful.

but unless someone made me 3-course breakfasts

and offered 24/7 snacks everyday,

I wouldn't want to live there.

(yes, extremely cost-prohibitive that would be.)

in which I hold my hands over my ears and close my eyes.

2011-04-20T08:42:00.000-05:00

this morning's walk (yes, it really is that grey):

There's raging wildfires in 90-degree Texas.

Six months of winter doesn't really compare to outright danger. We truly don't have much to complain about.

Doesn't make me like it, though.

at least, there isn't right now.

2011-04-19T13:49:00.000-05:00

It may be only 46 degrees, but there's no snow on the ground.

And that's good enough when you've discovered a (4-sizes-too-big) pair of unused skates in the basement.

She hasn't fallen once yet; and spends every extra minute out there.

(I'm not going to tell her there's snow in the forecast ...it'll be gone before we know it anyway)

Please note tiny plants coming up.

The pile of sticks near the plants was a fairy house the girls built on top of where I'd like to see plants coming up. We had a discussion about growth inhibition.

Please ignore the fact that if you look closely, you will notice that little g is not, in fact, wearing socks with her sandals. Then again, K's in short sleeves, so what can I say. After all, the temperature is all in what you compare it to!

(I'll be back soon to talk a bit about the homeschool conference Jeff and I went to this past weekend, we had such a lovely time.)

two photos, two thoughts

2011-04-15T23:53:00.000-05:00

First I was here. The weather was cold. There was lots of water.

Then we were here. The weather was colder (much).

There was even more water.

and the above was the view out of out our window, the one in the ceiling.

so, so very much fun.

just the two of us.

all day long.

2011-04-13T08:27:00.000-05:00

I'm sure you've seen this by now, but if you haven't, now you can see it from me!

Here's a link to the Eagle Camera in Decorah, Iowa; this awesomeness is on 24/7, and any time of the day (or night) you can check out what the eagles are doing. The pair had 3 eggs, and now all 3 eaglets are hatched. They're so much fun to watch, whenever someone in the house is bored they walk by my computer and move the mouse (to end the screen saver) and see what the eagles are up to now. My girls just love it.

Decorah Eagles

Helpful hint from my mom to turn the sound off if you leave the eagles loaded up, or else others in the house may wonder what all the cawing and cheeping and wind noise is!

(note: I ad-block the mostly-idiotic chat box on the right-hand side, but you can also hit the little pointing-up-and-right arrow in the top right corner of the video and it will make the eagle cam a pop-up box and you can close the browser. Or, you can just watch the eagles full screen by clicking the black rectangle on the lower right side of the video feed.)

happy eagle-watching!

a bit of sharing.

2011-04-12T08:43:00.029-05:00

Although I signed up months ago, I wasn't sure I was going to make it. (Influenza has that effect.)

But Thursday, I was just starting to feel like myself, a little, and Jeff says: "Just go." And he assured me to not feel guilty about leaving him alone with the girls (again).

So I did! And I'm so glad I did.

This past weekend I and 10 other gals from our church attended the RCUS-sponsered Womens' Retreat in lovely (cow-scented, the days we were there) Sioux Falls, SD. First off, the drive had to have been the fastest 4+ hours I've been in a car in ages. Driving with kids everywhere, I'd forgotten just how pleasant 4 hours of chatting with ladies (and knitting and sitting by cutie-pie happy baby Charles) can be!

The retreat itself was lovely also. Having everything all in one hotel was very nice, we could go to and from our room when we needed to, and the morning was getting out of bed and walking downstairs to breakfast and the first session of the day, without fussing with driving and figuring out where to go and when.

But the thing I wanted to talk about a bit was how much I loved Susan Hunt as a speaker. I'd never heard of her before, but she was so good to listen to and such an inspirational Reformed speaker. Can I just say how nice it was to listen to a speaker like this, and not have to constantly filter what they're saying through a "okay, how can I apply this to my life as a Reformed Christian" lens. She spoke both Biblically and helpfully, without fluff and feel-good emotionalism (though, when the speaker is good, there will still be emotion!).

Her talk was about, very basically, today's feminism and the world's view that equality = same-ness with men in all things vs. the Bible's view that, although we are all equal in God's eyes, we as women have our own roles in His world (like the different parts of the Trinity have their own roles but are equal).

One thing I loved about her talk, that was so refreshing, was she specifically talked about how our position as helpers don't by any means mean that we shouldn't raise our girls to be self-sufficient. She specifically condemned the idea of raising homemakers (raising girls specifically to be homemakers) and encourages girls to be fully educated and fully pursue life and work, because we have no idea what God has in store for them. (Of course, part of this is knowing how to run a house - this isn't an excuse for not knowing how to cook or clean!)

So often I feel like, in some homeschool circles, raising strong self-sufficient girls is somehow frowned-upon, and it was so wonderful to hear a strong self-sufficient (yet giving and helping) 70-year-old woman talk about how we can serve in our church and community and mentor other women, in a Godly way, without giving into the "me first, how I feel matters most, working for my own glory" society.

Her talk was based on the helper attributes of God found in the Bible, and how we as women can take these, and with God's help, apply them to our lives in helping others.

I learned so much, and there was so much I had never thought about before (have you ever thought about being a helper to others or your children, just like the Holy Spirit is a helper to us?). And I'm so excited to continue in this and start looking at Susan's books, and perhaps even start some small groups in our own area.

Well, anyway. I don't usually do this in this blog space, but I had to share because I truly did enjoy this so much. I'm sure you're just as good at researching something on-line as I am, so if you're interested in learning more about Susan Hunt, just google her name (remembering she's a Reformed speaker and author, not a lawyer or what-not). A friend who was also at the conference loaned me one of Susan's books, so I'm excited to be taking a look at that.

Back to life, and on to more conferences this weekend!
(this April might make my brain hurt... but in a good way.)

(another friend and I escaped during the lunch break and took a speed walk down to Falls Park. Yes, I wanted a cheesy picture of me taken. ...I mean, Jeff and I were engaged here!)

Hope you get a good brain-hurting (in a good way) experience this spring, too.

growing urban wildflowers~

in which we visit the Winter Carnival, and freeze our toes.

one photo, one thought

in which I do a lot of math and eventually get a vest

in which the weather was warm and the water cool

one photo, one thought

in which she bakes, and I expound.

and now we are six.

one photo, one thought

for the record

in which we wrap yarn

one photo, one thought

in which the year ends, and we can't help but muse.

one photo, one thought

merry and bright

one photo, one thought

in which we needle felt, and one thing leads to another.

one photo, one thought

in which we use many saved corks.

one photo, one thought

in which the countdown soon begins!

being thankful

before it snowed

one photo, one thought.

in which I chat about things here and there.

two photos, one thought

a new little nephew and cousin

one photo, one thought

a different kind of learning.

one photo, one thought

in which there is a parade at night.

one photo, one thought

in which people are little.

in which the porch is finished (a long time ago)

one picture, one thought.

doing.

one photo, one thought

saturday.

one photo, one thought

in which fairies have houses.

one photo, and a thought

in which there are sweeping vistas.

TRNP - YNP - GTNP - DTNM - BNP

one photo, one thought

one photo, one thought

new hat.

one photo, some thoughts

in which hair is cut (hardly)

one photo, one thought

then we went to the State Fair

in which we visit 3 farms and a town (in the 1800's).

one photo, one thought

in which many people use the camera...

one photo, one thought

in which we put raspberries in scones.

what *eees* it?

"let nature be your teacher" ... at Eloise Butler

two photos, a thought

a *little* knitting

one photo, one thought

{summer}

in which we (finally) take the first camping trip of the season.

one photo, one thought

Kaatje's turn.

in which the barber's children get a haircut.

in which we visit the garden, with a short lens.

in which the weather is hot and Many People visit.

some pictures, and some thoughts.

10:50 pm

for the next 9 days

one photo, one thought

(but I didn't eat the flowers, though I'm sure I could have.)

in which we go to the river, and a snail walks across my hand.

Jonah out of the belly of the fish...

there once was a man named Jonah.

one picture, one thought

in which it is warm.

in which there could be fairies.

one picture, one thought

pictures of home learning...

what eees it?

a little knitting

at least, there isn't right now.