Friday, September 19, 2014

making time








impromptu tea party.

pretty dresses... messy hair... five minute set up.

a scrap of fabric on the table. a quick brew of some peppermint tea. a search for crackers... and a flower for the table. "this was the only one i could find mama." using the little tea cups and the special honey. smiling as i watched them enjoy each others company for possibly the first time that morning (it had been a grumpy morning). 

reminding myself to make more time for moments like this.
these ages are such a special, and important, time for connection.

... and it only took fifteen minutes.

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

surrounded in apples


this tree in the front yard is completely loaded... it is holding onto it's apples quite well... so i plan to pick it last... it is called a winter banana




the king tree, down by the old white barn... this is it's day to be picked. it probably has five boxes of apples on it... maybe more


when i turn around i can see an orchard of apples and plums (i have picked all of these trees except one now)


just to the left of the orchard across the road is where the forest begins


looking over to the right is my home... complete with kids in the yard... and beyond that is the river



i can also see a wonderful husband doing the dirty work... seriously... he is up on that ladder presser washing the house... presser washing hundreds of spiders and their nests off of our house (this awful job needs to be done every summer out here... sometimes twice a year)


and here i am... in this gorgeous golden field... picking these ripe red apples... with the king.
the king tree is one of my favorites to pick.
it always seems to invite me to sit and appreciate my surroundings. i think part of the reason for that is it has the perfect sitting place at the bottom of that slanted trunk... and another part of it is the way it is far enough out to get a perfect view of the river. 


many years ago it was propped up with this giant log, and the tree has slowly grown around it... this tree has so much character... and the way it sits off by itself like this really helps to display that character.




i had picked about three boxes of apples... sweating... stiff neck from spending so much time looking straight up into the tree... arms tired form holding that long pole out with the little basket at the end hooking and catching apple, after apple, after apple. then... suddenly... it hit me (like it always does) that although it felt as if i was alone out there originally... i was actually surrounded by life. there was an overwhelming cricket chorus completely surrounding me. with a second (a bit more thoughtful) scan of the field and water i realized there were birds, many birds, everywhere... in the field... in the water... and in the trees. that is when the tree beckoned me to sit, rest, and take it all in.

thank you king... it was a pleasure picking apples with you.
shall we do it again next year?

Sunday, September 14, 2014

more of the same...












my life right now...


  • preserving... one last batch of albacore... and then... tomatoes, tomatoes, and more tomatoes
  • picking lots of apples... three giant trees down... four giant trees to go... and then it will be on to apple juice and hard cider
  • painting... a little inside... but mostly outside... and mostly finished now... just a few fresh coats on a few doors to go
  • changing our summer rhythm slowly to school rhythm... early to rise.... and bedtimes along with dinners are coming a little bit earlier each night (and next week the rhythm will change even more with the last two starting in their school routine)
  • the addition of sports is not helping with said changes to early dinners and bedtimes... but... is so much more fun than i thought it would be... their excitement is very contagious
  • thankful that the month of september is always warm and dry here because it is also when we finally get it together and tackle the long list of outdoor work
... and then there are two little girls who are ready for snow

i'm curious... what is the late summer shift like in your home?

Sunday, September 7, 2014

swap gift : : recieved








early on in the swap i was notified that my "sender" had an urgent family matter and would be away from home for some time, and there was a request for a late package... of course that was fine by me... family trumps a swap every time. 
as the time went by though... i forgot all about the swap actually... forgot i had something special coming. and then... on a day when i was feeling a bit overwhelmed by my ever growing "need to do" list and feeling a bit under the weather on top of it... i walked into a quiet house and this package was waiting for me on the table.
at first i thought... i'm not expecting a package... but then it hit it me... why, yes i am!!
as i opened the package, read the card, and poured over the special contents, read the sweet little notes on everything... i started to cry. 
not only is this package from someone i feel like i know and admire (i have been reading and loving her blog for some time now), but it felt as thought she knew me. i realize that the reality is probably that we are similar people with a fondness for the same things... but still. that would not take away from the fact that i love it all SO MUCH!
here's a run down of what was inside...  some lovely tea and the most beautifully colored yarn (color based on "the copper river delta" in alaska) chosen from her favorite shops in alaska while she was there, some lovely fabric for me (in some of my favorite colors), hand dyed play silks for my children. photo cards with her lovely photography, a sweet little gourd from her garden, some blueberry honey lemon sauce (absolutely amazing!!!), and honey from their very first year of beekeeping!! the honey is actually the best i have ever tasted (and so beautifully clear)... i feel so special to get some. you can actually see the process of the honey extraction on her blog here.
thank you so much stephinie! 
and if you haven't been to stephinie's blog yet... you really should visit... i go there often for inspiration... here is a link... http://www.gypsyforest.com/.
also... i would like to give a big thanks to amanda at http://sweetpotatoclaire.blogspot.com/ for organizing this entire thing... and as always... being such a wonderful hostess. amanda's blog is another that i check into often for inspiration... and make sure to stay tuned over there if you are interested in joining a blog swap!