taming

Just an ordinary summer week going on here. Swim lessons are in full swing for the older pair. And while they are learning and listening in the water, I am lathering up quite a sweat trying to tame their little tiger-of-a-brother.

I'm not going to lie. These mornings at the pool have been exhausting while I try to keep Elias still and safe while the others have their lessons. I thought that a snack eaten poolside would buy me ten minutes of stillness, but they've since banned food in the pool area. Mind you they actually changed their rule mid-lesson Monday morning once they saw WHO would be the one doing the snacking!

Elias has even attempted to get into the pool while the lessons are in session. Teasingly dipping one little Keen-clad foot into the pool and looking slyly at me while I, one again, make a quick dash towards the pool to pull him to safety.

Today he found a few rocks. I thought it was my lucky day and that he would sit with them and play a bit. No. Instead he tried to throw the rocks into the pool and then proceeded to stuff the dirt on his fingers that was leftover from the pebbles up his nostrils. The swim class liked this, so he continued the antics and added a few snorting, huffing-style sound effects to the stand up routine. I wasn't laughing.

After wiping his face and hands, I sat down in defeat to talk to a friend. When I looked up 30 seconds later, I realized that he had found his way into the sunscreen bottle and was dutifully applying gobs of sunblock to his face. He looked a bit like this. But thankfully he only had time to cover half his face. Really a good thing because mimes creep me out.

He found a baby today to admire so that held his curiosity for a bit. I felt terrible letting him even near the baby considering he was covered in dirt and Blue Lizard, but the kind mother assured me that it was just fine. Ah, a few minutes to catch my breath.

I never thought that that two thirty-five minute swim lessons could cause me such anguish and anxiety, but I assure, they have. I have to believe that it will all be worth it in the end and that in addition to Sophia and Nicolas learning to become stronger swimmers, that I am becoming a better mother. A more patient and resourceful mother, with way less sunscreen in her bag.

free-play

With so much in limbo around here lately, I've had to find a way to stay grounded and focused. Trying to find a rythym and routine when so many changes are underway is quite the challenge.

As my blog headline states: "the adventures of a family living a simple, creative, home-centered life", I really try to keep these goals in mind when going about the day-to-day activities and happenings.

It seems that whenever I start to stray from these aims of mine, things just start to go south. Pretty fast.

When I try to add too much, do too much or produce too much and lose the simplicity I long for, I end up expending all of my patience, resourcefulness and energy on things that aren't really that important to me and have nothing left to give my family, the people that matter most to me.

When I try to focus solely on the needs and go into survival mode like some sort of homemaking robot I end up sacrificing my need to create/be creative (in some measly way!) and miss out on the amazing satisfaction and calm that I feel after expressing a bit of myself into something I've created, sewn, cooked or written (with or without my kids).

When I start to venture out of the house too much and begin frittering my time away with unnecessary errands, outings and visits, then I start to feel like a stranger in my own home when I return. How overwhelming it can be to be gone most of the day and return home to a day's worth of chores and cares that would have otherwise been worked at bit by bit had I spent the better part of my day at home. What this creates in me is a sense of not wanting to return home and the temptation of using my home simply as a launching pad to stop in quickly to restock before I'm out and about again. Being home-centered is not only a want that I posses, but also a need.

So, it's in moments like this when I see my children playing simply, using their imaginations, using supplies at hand, free-playing outdoors and spending time together in a peaceful way that my heart just soars and all of these long and energetic summer days seem worthwhile.

buckets + water from the hose = contentment

a simple fort made from wood scraps, sheets and blankets

a firepit containing (what I overheard them say was) dried deer meat and lettuce soup

Sophia washing the the "lettuce soup"

I took this photo last week, but thought that it really captured the closeness of this brother-sister pair and wanted to share the love with all of you!

old friends

A few words to describe my weekend...

reuniting with four amazing friends
sleeping on a boat in Boston Harbor
seafood dinners late at night
walking around Quincy Market
staying up until nearly sunrise

laughter followed by tears

memories

switch

We pulled a switch-a-roo with our children's bedrooms this past weekend. When we moved into this house almost three years ago, we didn't know that we had a third child on the way. But a few weeks after moving in, there we were waiting to welcome a new little baby into our family.

So, Sophia got the larger of the two rooms and because there is only one of her and two of them (the boys that is) it is only right that they get the larger space. So, a switch was needed.

We actually booked this day weeks in advance and sent our three over to my parents for the day. After painting walls, disassembling, painting, reassembling and adding bedding to all of their furniture and moving clothing, toys and wall storage we called it a day and sat back to admire our handiwork (well, really Mike's. I just shifted things around and did nothing even closely resembling creative work).

I've always believed that Mike has a good eye for color and after this experience, my suspicions were confirmed. He suggested this amazing charcoal/slate color for the boys furniture and then took hours to painstakingly paint headboards, footboards and dressers to make his vision a reality. The results are stunning. It is evident that there are boys residing in this room.

I've been hiding away an amazing tag sale find for over a month now and I was so pleased to finally place it out into plain sight. I found an iron and brass bed dating from the 1860s last month at a local tag sale and just knew that it would be a great fit for Sophia's bedroom. And although it was not purchased form here, this bed looks really similar to the one sitting in her room right now. It is big and sturdy and will last forever. I envision this being something that she will have for a long, long time.

Of course this project has been unofficially categorized as unfinished. And I am alright with this. I am mellowing out in my old age and am completely at peace with my kids being left without proper bed coverings and curtains for the time being. For goodness sake, it's summertime and they're sleeping with barely anything on, so who needs quilts? I want to get it right and want to take my time in either purchasing or making something special for them. In the past, I would have frantically pieced it all together just to be able to check it off of my to-do list. I am changing.

Although I am LOVING these two colors paired together and am thinking of using this idea for Sophia's room.

The best part of this is that everyone has been playing so nicely in their rooms this week. Sophia has been up on her new bed reading, playing dolls and doodling. The boys have been doing some serious role playing up there- we've got villains and ninjas and heroes and I think even a forest animal or two. Not to mention the large amount of floor space that is now strewn with figures, blocks and wooden food toys.

All of this means peace and pleasantries for at least 30-minute blocks of time in our house. This is a good final product if you ask me.

** For anyone looking for some decorating inspiration, look no further**

Flickr: "Go To Your Room"
Flickr: "Corners of My Home"
Hop Skip Jump: "Smitten Again"
Hop Skip Jump: "Nesting"

lemon-lime

This week I've been bit by a sewing bug. A bug that is forcing me to stay up way too late at night to make the visions of children's clothing that are dancing in my head into realities.

I've been so inspired recently by all of the adorable and unique pieces of children's clothing that are popping up all over most of my favorite blogs, that I just had to attempt one little piece myself.

I think it's been almost exactly one year since I started sewing. That is, one year since I learned how to use a sewing machine, thread it's needle, cut fabric and attempt different stitches. I am a beginner with a whole-lotta potential ( I think!) and passion for sewing. Hey, I'm only 31, right?

I decided to start small, really small, like size 18 months small and make a little summer peasant-style dress for my little niece.

{alright, I'm not going to lie. It was intended to be a shirt for Sophia, but I got overly-confident and decided to scrap the measurements from my online tutorial and simply CUT the bodice where I thought I should. When life hands you lemons, make lemonade- or a dress for your niece!}

So here is the finished product. I made the dress out of a vintage pillowcase that I had just lying around in my linen closet. I knew I would thank myself someday for taking that out of my Nana's bin of old sheets. The pillowcase was just so summery- really like lemons and limes.

And here is it's proud owner- my adorable little niece Liv.

Despite the tears, scowl and tugging of the ears, she really was delighted to put the dress on earlier today at my house. I swear. In fact she wouldn't take it off and just kept it on for the day. I don't think that one year olds know how to fake gratitude when given an undesirable gift yet. I'll keep telling myself this to keep my ego in tact.

This will not be the last of my new obsession to make some clothing for my family, I promise. I think I'll stick to the measurements next time.

my blog banner

So, here's the story that goes with my new blog banner. I was browsing through the thousands of lovely and lively photos that flickr has to offer in search of a photo that would just strike me as the one for my banner. And I found this photo.

I went out on a limb and asked the artist (ever-so meekly and politely) if I could use her photo for my measly little blog and she said YES. I was thrilled to say the least.

It turns out that this woman is a mixed media artist and full-time mother of two living in the UK. I just love stumbling upon pretty things like this and love them even more when I know that they were created by a mother with young children. It's a fascination of mine I guess you could say.
If you're interested in seeing more that this artist has to offer then visit her etsy shop- lusummers and browse her pretty little things.

So now I have a lovely blog banner and yet another craft blog that I enjoy visiting. This is fine by me.

candid shots

Last week our family had an opportunity to be a part of an outdoor photo shoot at sunset. Who would turn such an offer away? Not us.

I first met this amazing photographer through networking in the birth community in Connecticut. She is a birth photographer and I am a birth doula. Our roles outside of motherhood are certainly related in that we both get called out in the middle of the night to attend other families births.

It is such an amazing opportunity and honor to be a part of these events. And although we are both participating in the birth experience in different ways (she snapping photos and me squeezing hips), we both get to share in the joy of a new life entering the world.

In short, I am thrilled to have met her. Oh, and the neatest part of all is that it turns out that we are neighbors!

I wanted to share a few of our favorite photos. We L O V E these very candid shots of the different dynamics and relationships within our little family. We hope that you love them too.