why not?

because it’s been a while… and i wanted to put something out there that would make everyone smile, even if it’s putting myself out there in a seemingly embarrassing way.  really, it’s just a little tidbit, but i hope you enjoy.

blooms and butterflies

a little family outing to the franklin park conservatory for blooms and butterflies.  the girls loved it.  we even have a caterpillar of our very own at home growing and changing in his little box.  and every morning adelaide is eager to see what great changes he has made.  as of now, he’s at least doubled in size.  he’s no longer completely black.  a new bright green striping has appeared, and his little home is covered with what looks like webbing.  he is getting ready to spin his chrysalis and become a painted lady butterfly.  a new book about butterflies is arriving soon so that we can continue to discuss all that we’ve observed.  this outing to the conservatory to watch the butterflies has happened once a year for a few years and we are starting to really enjoy the process.  the girls are beginning to understand more about what they see.  should we move from our fair city, it is something i will miss dearly. after all, my first mother’s day was spent with a butterfly on adelaide’s shoulder.

screen-free week

 

today starts screen-free week.  our family will be taking the challenge.  fortunately, our children are already screen free.  the challenge will be mostly for d and i.  certainly, after the kids go to bed, there is a lot of internet time, and tv time, and tablet absorption.  i am hoping that we can spend more time together, without the screen, and really get to delve deeper in to our relationship.  it is so incredibly important to us both.

i have a few books lined up, and i am attempting to read some fiction after a several year hiatus.  i also have all the pieces cut for a special big girl quilt for adelaide, and i am looking forward to sharing updates on that project with you at the end of the week.

we have some game ideas in mind, and some work outdoors to do.  i think we’ll be surprised by how quickly the week passes.

we are allowing ourselves one time a day to check our email, as email is so important these days.  but, we will not be using screens for visual entertainment.  we are ‘unplugging’ life.  and so, i won’t be able to post here regularly.  but, i do have one post prepared ahead of time, which will come out later this week.  and next monday, we’ll update you on how are week went.

i invite you to take this challenge with us, especially those of you with children.  there are so many studies now that show how time in front of the TV or computer negatively affects development in children.  and let’s not even mention how kids are exposed to unnecessary violence and the sexualization of girls, and shameless commercialism and marketing.  if your child is under the age of two, the american academy of pediatrics recommends NO screen time.

i am not here to preach, by any means. but i would like to say that i believe childhood is beyond precious, so precious.  it is something to savor and cherish.  and i believe it is to our benefit to allow children to be children as long as possible.  exposing children to unnecessary media early on stifles imaginative play, which is a precursor for analytical thinking and problem-solving.  too many young girls think their self-worth is tied up in appearance.  and more and more, kids and parents are spending less quality time together.  i want my girls to grow up in a world of magic, and i want them to relish in their childhood, and i aim to protect it for as long as i possibly can.  is it hard sometimes without an electronic babysitter? sure.  but, i think it’s worth it.  it allows creativity to soar, and i believe it will help my girls to form healthy relationships with each other, with me, and with the world around them.  without the influence of media, they will know truly what their place in this great world is.

join me, i know you won’t be sorry.

night time rhythm

rhythm is so important to the young child.  it comes in many forms.  daily, weekly and yearly rhythms are all incredibly vital in the young child’s life.  with yearly rhythms, we can recognize the changing of the seasons and the holidays/festivals which mark these moments.  yearly, we can look at the greater rhythm of nature and how we fit into that.  weekly rhythm can set predictability and boundary for children, which offers a sense of security and warmth.  it gives them context in which their world is structured.  and daily rhythm becomes the bread and butter of our lives.  it allows children to relax into the day and experience it fully, knowing that the structure of the day provides a perfect opportunity for life to fill in between the lines.  they no longer need to worry about what might be coming next.  instead, they can invest fully in the moment and the imaginative play, or task that might be at hand.

i admit that i am a rather unstructured person, and so i struggle with rhythm.  our family is young and we are just beginning to pencil in the outlines of rhythm.  our holiday and seasonal recognition is blossoming this year.  and in some ways, our daily rhythm has always been strong.  i recognize that we lack weekly rhythm, and i have started this by simply creating a breakfast plan for each day of the week.  our weekly breakfasts include pancakes, french toast, quinoa/rice cereal, creamy wheat farina, creamy oats and oatmeal.  all are accompanied with fruit and warm herbal tea.  i save the more complicated meals for when d is home, usually during the middle of the week.  he enjoys preparing breakfast for the girls.  and as cooking has never been one of my greatest joys, i glad to share the task with him.

on the other hand, our daily rhythm has been quite strong ever since the girls were newly born.  we let them be themselves.  we never set a schedule for them.  but, when they, in their own tiny ways, told us they were ready, we began simply with the night time routine.  where some might see rigidity, i see opportunity to flourish.  and, so they have.

today, i’d like to share our night time rhythm with you.  it gives me an excuse to show you my new shower curtain!  please remember that this is what works for us, and what works right now.  the routine has changed greatly over the years.  as the children change and grow, so our routine does too.

we believe in naps and early bed times.  our girls are usually in bed before 7:30.  they spend all day playing vigorously.  no sitting in front of the tube for us!  and so, they need all the rest they can get. 

after dinner follows, almost immediately, bath time.  some days we just play in the tub.  sometimes we get a full scrub down.  and sometimes we focus just on the essential parts.  we only use castile soap from dr. bronner’s and calendula products from weleda.  some days adelaide washes herself with her own special bar of soap.  other days, i help when i can.

 

after we’re all dry, it’s time to brush our teeth.  night time ‘underwear’ goes on, and i signal tooth brushing time with a little song:

brush, brush, brush your teeth

brush them twice a day

brush, brush, brush your teeth

to avoid tooth decay

(to the tune of ‘row row row your boat’ – can you tell d helped with the lyrics?)

we like to brush our teeth with our children.  it helps model the correct way to brush.  we also like to help with the brushing since our girls are a little young to do it all on their own and oral health is so important.  we use the calendula tooth gel from weleda, always sure to steer clear of fluoride. 

then, when it’s time to put the toothbrushes away, and go to bed, we sing another song:

toothbrush, goodnight

toothbrush, goodnight

you may no longer stay

bedtime is on its way

toothbrush goodnight, goodnight

toothbrush goodnight

(to the tune of  ‘autumn goodbye’, a german folksong featured on ‘come follow me’ volume 2)

with everything in its proper place, it’s time to put on pajamas and read a story.  we gather in the bedroom and pick one book to read.  we only pick one story to keep things clear in our girls’ heads as they drift off to sleep.  sometimes we read the same story several times, and look at the pictures in depth if they want to hear more.  lately, adelaide has been asking for ‘the three little pigs‘ every night.  the pictures are so full of detail.  it’s hard not to look more.

when the story is done, and it’s time for bed, we say a little verse from ‘seven times the sun‘ and it includes hand motions.  i will have to get a video of us doing this to share with you.  our version of the verse goes as follows:

the dark comes like a blanket

protecting us at night

and the moon shines like the heart of the universe

providing gentle light

the stars call forth our sparkling dreams

like waves upon the shore

to greet the night time pilgrims

as we journey through sleep’s door

then, it’s kisses all around and lights out.  we keep the fan on all year and change its direction with the seasons.  it provides a soothing rhythmic background noise.  sometimes i sit in the rocking chair and rock and hum until they drift off.  other times, they’re already asleep as i tiptoe out of the door.  often, someone escapes out their bedroom door and must be returned to their proper bed.  and every now and then, they like to sleep together.  but, it’s all okay.

that shower curtain, by the way, i couldn’t be more excited about!  i sewed it together from a collection of fabric by lida enche.  in the depths of january, i was searching for color everywhere.  and then, i found this lovely collection and just knew i had to have it.  what to do with it?  well, i decided to actually make use of some of those pinterest pins.  and a new shower curtain it was!  although, i have so much leftover fabric, i could make two twin quilts.  so… there will be plenty more where that came from.  i sewed up 9 x9 blocks of fabric in a color gradient and used grommets at the top for the shower curtain rings.  all in all, i really like it.  it’s just the right bit of color for a rather dull spot.  (sorry, for the toilet in so many photos. the bathroom is what it is…)

royal

sometimes spring weather can be unpredictable and it’s best to have a bit of fun ready ahead of time in case of a rainy day.  be prepared, i always say.

the girls recently got new waterbottles, which i will post about later, and i thought it fitting to knit a few waterbottle covers.  there was plenty of yarn leftover from that project.  what to do?  goodness knows i couldn’t just sit idly by.  so, i took the rather regal yellow (cadmium malabrigo worsted) and knit a couple crowns.  and then, i fulled or felted them.  adelaide was fairly excited about the crowns, even though she’s not a big fan of wearing things on her head.

the crowns couldn’t be more perfect for indoor imaginative play.  they can be queens and princesses and all manner of other royalty.  Or, they could use them as necklaces, fancy party hats, or even, as you’ll see, rags to wash the windows. humph.

and sometimes you get so excited that you can hardly sit still and then mama gets zero quality photos to share.  oh well.  as always, my notes can be found on my ravelry account.

sometimes the rain cooperates (barely)

but the kids don’t.  ah, such is life.  such is a life lived among nature.  and such are the various moods of children.

i am thankful we experienced our local wetland prairie together, in spite of the wind and fury.  it’s these moments that make up the core of being.

rainy days

the weather report kept hinting at rain.  and finally, after many days, it began to sprinkle on leaf and seed.  the skies rolled with dark moody clouds.

Pitter, patter raindrops,
falling on the treetops,
falling down on garden beds,
wetting all the children’s heads.
Pitter, patter raindrops,
falling on the treetops.

we are dealing with storms of our own.  it may be that the flu has found its way to our home.  the rain invites us to cuddle in bed, to pile on the blankets and settle into good books while we nurse ourselves back to health.

there’s something so sweet about sleeping beauties, even if it’s illness that’s got them down.  still so loveable.

easter felted eggs

we are working on a belated easter project.  i had wanted to fill the house with piles of wet-felted easter eggs.  i even ordered little mini roving braids that were hand dyed so we could play with color.  but, it was an international shipment and i didn’t estimate the time it would take to get through customs.  the wool arrived after easter.  still, i thought the celebrating could continue if we stretched out the holiday activities.  so, the other morning, we set about felting some eggs.  the actual process of creating the eggs was more than either of the girls could handle on their own.  we gave them bits of roving to felt into balls.  and after we had given the eggs a good head start, we let adelaide take the reins on some of them.

the combinations and textures are surprising.  i really love how they are turning out.  because we did this as a family project, we didn’t pay super attention to detail and i think they could take a spin around the washing machine to firm up a bit.

have you felted easter eggs?  it’s enormously satisfying.  we used two pans of water: one filled with hot water and soap and one filled with very cold water.  we wrapped the plastic eggs in the wool roving (length-wise and then width-wise), squirted a little soap on them, and dunked them in the hot water.  we rubbed, rubbed, rubbed.  we squeezed, squeezed, squeezed.  every now and then, we would shock the fibers in the cold water. when they were properly felted and the fibers were locking together, we gave them a good rinse in clean cold water and set them aside.  i do think they need a bit more finessing.  i’ll probably wrap them very tightly in nylons and send them through the washing machine.  but once they are set and dry, i’ll cut a slit in the felt, pop out the plastic egg and give the raw cut edge a decorative stitch.  next year, we’ll be able to slip treats and little wooden figures in these eggs, and we’ll make more, for sure.

i can just see piles of little felt eggs in different colors scattered all over the house, some perhaps hidden by the bunny himself.  how thrilling to see these holidays anew, through the eyes of child! and how fun to create special seasonal moments together.  can you imagine if we create eggs each year how many beautiful memories we’ll have? or how many lovely mementos the kids will have from the childhood?  or how strong the idea of tradition and of seasonality will be?

 

the wool roving is from moss creek wool works. 

you can see d working with the wool here.  the only advice i would offer is to take the advice i didn’t.  someone somewhere very cleverly thought to add squiggles of glue to the outside of the plastic eggs in prep.  let the glue dry and they provide non-slip ridges to help keep the wool from slipping and sliding once  the felting process has started. i would definitely do that next time.

this is adelaide’s own special egg she is working on.  the plastic egg, unfortunately, collapsed inside and so it ended up looking more like a ball than a egg.  another word of advice: check the plastic eggs first to make sure they don’t come apart easily.  and if they do, seal them together.

spring nature scene

it is important that our children be in constant contact and rhythm with nature.  this is why celebrations that make the seasons are so important.  it is also just as important to keep a little spot in your home where we can bring the outside in, a little spot that reflects those special outdoor rhythms of the season.  a nature table is just the thing.

i admit i’ve been struggling with this.  i’m not generally a festive person.  but i’ve been working hard over the winter to source things that might evoke certain seasons.  i started meagerly with winter.  but, spring has flourished.  in prep for easter, i made sure we had some special touches.

 

unframed print to the far left is from phoebe wahl, available through taproot.  the wool felt lamps are custom work from margot at filzarts.  they are meant to fit the grono lamp from ikea.

the wood picture frames are from the rudolf steiner college bookstore.  the postcards in the frame are by marjan van zeyl.  the tiny pitcher and enamelware cups are from ‘for small hands’.

custom wool art picture by marcela of magicwool.

easter morning

the other morning, we celebrated easter.  the bunny did come to visit.  i was hoping we could move in the direction of the root children, in celebration of the beginning of spring.  but, the bunny won.  somehow, without any fanfare from us, adelaide was already asking when the bunny was going to visit.  and this is coming from the girl who has never watched tv.  who could she have been influenced by?  for me, this was a lesson in trying your best, in spite of the world.  i wanted to stay away from the commercialism and make easter a moment of renewal.  i wanted to celebrate the changing of seasons and the idea of new life and rebirth.  the root children are perfect for that.  mother earth wakes them up, they put on their colorful dresses and parade their beautiful flowers up to the surface of the earth.  but, the bunny won.

it was a lovely morning.  a little trail of watercolor painted egg confetti led the way to the basket.  inside were mama made things, and books and a few simple ostheimer figures.  i’ve never been big on candy, but a few out of the ordinary treats couldn’t hurt.

we had wanted to create our own wet felted easter eggs, but the hand dyed roving didn’t arrive in time.  it was held up at customs as it was an international shipment.  and so, i opted for plastic baggies at the last minute.  a little undesirable, but there will always be next year.

this week, in celebration of the arrival of easter and spring, we’ll whip up those wet felted eggs any way, and save them for the seasons to come.

hand made mama doll

bolga basket from baskets of africa

ostheimer wooden figures from the wooden wagon

adelaide is reading ‘spring’s sprung’ by lynn plourde

marshmallow kisses by linda crotta brennan

mama made squishy waldorf dolls with hoods.  supplies from weir dolls.

pattern is girl’s cap sleeve spring shirt by shellee floyd

yarn is twisted from blue moon fiber arts.  this colorway is lucky.

adelaide’s cap sleeve shirt is knit in malabrigo rios, colorway english rose.

all knitting notes can be found on my ravelry account.  joining nicole this week for kcco.