Farewell

For a while now I've been pondering a question...

to whom am I writing when I post to my blog?

It seems that mostly local friends and family are reading this blog and that is wonderful. But since I either talk to or visit with you all on a (some-what!) regular basis, it just seems redundant to put the time and energy into writing about what you may already well know about from visits and phone calls.

If we were living a great distance from the majority of friends and family, keeping a blog would be practical. But that is not the case for me.

And so, after a little over a year writing on Homegrown Life, I think I will call it quits.

I have so enjoyed keeping this blog as a creative outlet and a way to put into words some of the amazing and tender experiences our family has shared together.

But mostly I feel like the writing mainly benefited me, the mother of this amazing family. Perhaps a year ago, I needed an outlet for all of the thoughts running around my head; a place to speak and believe I was being heard.

My needs have changed and I feel like I have accomplished what I set out to do.

So I will leave this little bog behind and set out to focus my energy, attention and creativity on the hundreds of other little things in my life that could really use it!!

our dirty, dirty earth day

It is Earth Day today. And our family celebrated the day by getting dirty.

My darling husband took the initiative to construct the beginnings of a very modest raised-bed, square-foot garden. What we are unable to grow out back, we will be heading to the farmer's markets for (this, like tag-saling, is one of my most-favorite Saturday morning trips to make).

If eating dirt counts as both recycling and reusing, then Elias is the ultimate environmentalist. He ate his fair share of dirt both at home and at the park this afternoon.

I first remember hearing about Earth Day during my freshman year of college at the University of New Hampshire. My first experience observing this day consisted mostly of sitting in a grassy field with my friends, listening to various advocates speak about the dangers facing the environment, recycling and how we each should to our part to "save the earth".

There was a huge disconnect back then between all that Earth Day was meant to motivate people towards and what I felt my part in taking "care of the earth" was. Until college, I don't even think I recycled or for that matter, thought about being a good steward of God's good earth.

So, fast forward more than a decade and here I am- a wife, a mother of three children, a homeschooler, a lover of nature/the ocean/human body, a beginner at bird watching, a nutritionist and birth doula, a woman drawn to sewing, nurturing and preparing my family's meals from fresh and healthful foods, and an amazing (after ten years!) recycler.

This woman is surely a different person than the girl sitting in the field feeling clueless.

Whether or not you are someone who strongly believes in or conversely, one who debates, the issues of global warming and environmentalism and "going green", one thing is certain... we are to be good stewards of what we have been given.

Whether it be our bodies, our children or our small patch of backyard land (surrounded by dozens of other small patches of land), we are to do our best to care for and work at maintaining (if not improving) the quality of what we have been entrusted with.

My March/April issue of The New Harvest Homestead newsletter focused on what "going green" looks like for the homesteading family. Author, Lisa Vitello, says

"homestead women have always been green"

Being eco-friendly is not the novel idea that many people think it is

My Nana was born in 1920 and had to leave school in eighth grade to work in a dress shop in order to help supplement her family's income.

Evidence of her survival during the Great Depression is evident to this day.Nana doesn't call it "recycling". She simply instinctively reuses and saves mostly everything...

an old ricotta cheese container makes a perfect crayon bin for the children's visits. That velcro strip that holds her head of romaine together in the market makes a darling little tieback for her curtains. And although she is currently reusing that yellow styrofoam tray that her chicken thighs were packaged in for a new purpose that I'd rather not mention on the blog (let's just say that she is probably immune to E.Coli at this point in her life) she is still finding a way to reuse and cutdown on her trash output!!!!

This is a foreign concept to our throw-away generation. I am the first to admit that I do not have that same sense that Nana has to do whatever it takes to salvage, save, trim the budget and make new again, but I am learning.

Having children has spurred me on towards a desire to be a better caretaker of my possessions and resources. I just think of the world that their children will be growing up in and feel a tug at my conscience to do what it takes to live a more frugal, waste-less and able-to-do-without life.

I recently entered a blog poll about the most practical way that my family was "going green". I write a quick blurb about our water consumption. This is what I submitted...

All three children share a bath or at least the bathwater (just like in Little House on the Prairie).

We adults take QUICK showers to save on water- I like to pretend that I am showering in an outdoor beach house-type shower with cold running water (what in incentive to hurry things along!).

An advocate, I am not. An extremist, out of the question. For me, it's a matter of ethics and faith and my responsibility to the Creator of the universe. Afterall, we will have to give an account someday of every aspect of our life lived her on earth.

Another quote from my latest New Harvest Homestead newsletter that has hit a moral chord in me was hearing a new definition of good stewardship-

"good stewardship is returning something in better condition than when it was given to you"

To me, this is inspiration for finding creative ways to reuse items, for being motivated to not take the "easy road" of just tossing the empty jar of mayonnaise into the garbage (who in their right mind actually has a desire to rinse the insides of this jar?) or to carve time out of my day to sew and make gifts, cards or household items by hand (how expensive are store-bought cards??).

I am a work-in-progress, but my desire to tread more lightly on the earth is growing stronger day by day.

What are you doing to be a good steward of all that God has entrusted you with?

acting out

The theme of my afternoon yesterday was laughter. I had the chance to meet up with an old friend. I first met my friend Jessica in freshman English class nearly 17 years ago. We instantly connected on a level unknown to most friends- a level of pure comedic relief. We're talking one continuous SNL skit after another. We started inventing characters, using voice-overs, practicing impersonations and dishing out impromptu skits in high school and needless to say, we are still acting out to this day.

When trying to choose a place to meet, we knew that no proper establishment would be the right setting for us to have lunch and "reconnect". After all, it had been one year since our last get together and we knew that there was a year's worth of happenings to talk/laugh about.

We knew that the laughter would soon turn to tears and that one's tears would only edge the other to even further hysteria. After a somewhat composed lunch, we quickly headed to a grassy hill where we knew we could laugh away the afternoon.

It was all so nostalgic- sitting on the grass, soaking up the sun, laughing and drinking iced tea. This is how most, if not all, of our spring afternoons were spent in high school.

Thank you Jess for a spectacular break from the norm and a chance to laugh until it hurt.

Some Comedic Relief

There’s nothing like a little comedic relief to brighten up an already sunny Friday morning. A friend of ours introduced us to Tim Hawkins recently and now Mike and I just can't get enough of him!

Putting a comedic clip up on your blog is always if-fy, since we all have different senses of humor. This just got Mike and I! I can also think of several of my friends who read this blog and will end up needing massive amounts of Kleenex after viewing this (okay, Nathalie, you come to mind first).

So, here is a little twist on the song by Carrie Underwood, "Jesus Take the Wheel”…

Loftier Thoughts Than Toilet Training

We have been reading from The Oxford Book of Children's Verse (the version complied by Ionaand Peter Opie- don't you just love those names?) this week and are already feeling very inspired by the poems we've chosen.

I also borrowed another book chosen and edited by this couple called A Nursery Companion. This is a spectacular book filled with “three metrical alphabets with the ‘fat black letters’ that Dickens admired”, “a pictorial grammar lesson” that is “strewed with flowers”, “a rhyming history of the kings and queens of England” and is a book that was written during a time when “gaiety and color were admitted to the nursery”. If you love the early years of 19th-century England, than this book is for you (oh, and for your children).

Yesterday, Sophia and I read Caterpillar by Christina Rossetti...

Brown and furry
Caterpillar in a hurry,
Take your walk
To the shady leaf, or stalk,
Or what not,
Which may be the chosen spot.
No toad spy you,
Hovering bird of prey pass by you:
Spin and die,
To live again a butterfly.

And today we read Laughing Song by William Blake which ends with...

When the painted birds laugh in the shade,
When our table with cherries and nuts is spread:
Come live, and be merry, and join with me
To sing the sweet chorus of 'Ha, ha, he!'

No matter what your circumstances are- mine being the beginning of potty training my toddler (we've got an assembly line of pails and wipes in our downstairs bathroom right now) and attempting to squeeze some academic time into the lives of two children who are sick with spring fever this week- one's mind and spirit can always be elevated to the (more) beautiful (than toilet training) aspects of creation and nature and humanity simply by reading a poem or two.

two

We spent our weekend celebrating Elias' 2nd birthday and loving every minute of it.

Words cannot describe how quickly the last two years have gone by. I blinked and then my baby was two.
Elias is such an amazing addition to our family. Sophia calls him the "king" because she thinks that his every request is granted (usually it is her happily doing the granting) and Nicolas expresses his simple, child-like gratitude by saying, "Mom, aren't you so glad that God gave him to us?".

We love you Elias- and all of the energy, commotion and dinner-time antics that you bring to our family!

on the lighter side

All of this mild, sunny weather has me thinking spring. Duh, right?

For me, thoughts about gardens and picnics and bird feeders and doormats and lighter clothing (these are my spring thoughts) race through my mind faster than my feet and wallet can keep up.

But I take what I can get. So I was extra thrilled tonight when I had an hour and a half to sneak out (by myself) to my most favorite store ever and browse the beautiful housewares, clothing and jewelry that this store has to offer. In my dreams I live in Anthropologie. Yes, actually in the store.

I managed to leave the store (after prying my fists open and letting go of so many other pretty things) with some steals (in my opinion, but not exactly my father's idea of a steal).

First, I found an adorable pair of sun glasses. My old pair broke over the winter and I really needed a new pair. When I tried them on for Sophia and Nicolas, they told me that I looked like a rock star. I will take this as a compliment.

Next, I found the most gorgeous jacket (which I am calling a "sweater" so that I can wear it indoors as well). It is citrus-colored and fits like a glove. With a description like this, who can resist...

Flight Patterns Jacket

-a ruched yoke soars above the bell-shaped bodice of this cozy Sparrow coat, with a fold-over collar and tiny bows at the sleeves.

Not I.

So here I am feeling slightly more ready to take on spring. Now for the important things...

wide open spaces

If I could choose one word to describe the mood of this week it would be inspired.

With the feeling of inspiration comes also the promise of hope; the accompaniment of an "I can do this" attitude, will and mindset. By “this” of course, I mean motherhood and more specifically, homeschooling.

What is it that makes us meet the same daily tasks with a different drive each time? I believe it has a lot to do with
p e r s p e c t i v e.

My perspective is certainly in the right place right this week. It's one of those seasons of life where I feel like I can take on whatever life has to offer me. Or, at least what my kids feel like sending my way.

One of the events that continually spurs me on toward this right sort of mindset is our weekly Monday Homeschooling Classes. It's a co-op for local homeschoolers and we meet each Monday here in our town at the Lutz Children’s Museum. The museum is closed on Mondays and allows us to use their space. To say that the children have “free run” of the place is one drastic understatement!

It is here that I have the benefit and blessing of being surrounded by like-minded people who value the benefits that children receive when they are educated and nurtured at home.

It is here, in this accepting and encouraging space, that I never care what my kids are wearing or how my hair looks or if my son is wielding a stick wildly in an open field (totally not politically correct!). There is such an absence of judgment amongst the families in our group. It is a community of families who are immune to the messages that the world is loudly blasting in their direction. Messages about what our families

should look like, or

be able to do at a certain age or

should or shouldn’t be acting like.

Messages that tell us that our children should be in a "structured" and "socialized" environment.

Whether it's attending a class, exploring the museum or watching the children run about with freedom and reckless abandon in that wide open field, I feel that my children are in good hands. The feeling of community here is like no other. It is a place where each mother is not only responsible and mindful of what their own children are up to, but also tuned in to what the other children are doing. This, of course, brings peace of mind and security. A security in knowing that if someone says they will sit and watch your child while you attend a class with a younger sibling/need a bathroom break/need to help monitor the museum hallways you always know that they mean what they say.

I came home yesterday from a refreshing nearly-three hour bout of time spent with this group and felt like I could take on the world. My kids were well exercised and had experience massive amounts of fresh air, free play and time spent connecting with other children. They were happy and worry-free; they seemed to have more child-like innocence after leaving than when we arrived.

I am truly thankful for this group and for all of the encouragement, inspiration and confirmation that it lends to our family. It just confirms every time that that this is the right place for our children to be spending the better part of their day- at home.

Excuses

So there's been some pretty dry spells lately in between my blog posts. I wish that I could report that the downtime was due to something terribly exciting- like that I've been out of the country on an exotic trip with my husband or that I have been working on a secret project that I am about to reveal or that I was in the middle of an amazing book that I just couldn't justify putting down to blog.

But, there is no such excuse.

Really, it's just been a little of this and a little of that which has been keeping me from sitting down and writing

Little things like…

I've been getting caught up on the latest issue of one of my favorite newsletters that I receive electronically every other month. This is the prairie muffin in me who dreams of raising a flock of chickens.

I've been speaking at a couple Childbirth Education Classes sponsored by a local hospital about what the value of doula services. I was out twice this week, at night (prime blogging time) to "plug doulas". This is of course a worthwhile venture and perfectly justifies why I haven't written anything new.

Or maybe it's the fact that I've started a new quilt and have spent countless hours cutting squares or obsessing about the colors in this quilt. I tend to get a little carried away with all of the amazing fabric that's out there. And of course the perfectionist in me wants to make sure that I am making the perfect decision about which fabrics I choose. Surely, this is vital work

I've also been helping Mike a bit with his job search. I have contacted a couple of very talented artist friends of ours who are currently helping him in the creative category of a possibly very exciting business opportunity that he is working towards. I'm not ready to reveal this yet, but think lots of color and eco-friendly (okay, it's eco-friendly interior paints). Certainly any good help-meet to her husband would be doing the same sort of thing, right?

But really what it boils down to is that I have not been all that motivated to write. My friend Amanda posted about blogs and comparisons and reading posts that resonate with you. It really struck a chord and this is what sometimes leaves me paralyzed at my little keyboard

"Surely what I have to say is not nearly as intriguing as what ____ has to say.”

"My menial efforts at sewing pale in comparison to what ____ has created."

"Everyone is probably sick and tired of me saying how much I love being home with and homeschooling my children.”

These are those little lies that play over and over in my head when I think about something that I have to say

I know, I know. They are lies and everyone has something worthwhile to share. Someone, somewhere may read some little measly little blog post about how I like to watch birds with my children in the morning while we’re still in our pajamas out our front window and that all the neighbors probably thing we’re trying to spy on them and they may be able to relate and want to know more (terrible example, I know).

But the point it this... sometimes it's just important to put something out there (into the blogosphere that is) even if no one else is reading it and you are the only one who knows what's been said.