A Milestone!

This photo was just emailed to me down here in Williamsburg.
Hels has a new chore!

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Digging about in history

We've had a busy few days. I'm trying to finish up a web site about how to find historical materials. Hels has been my able assistant/model. Here she is looking at 18th century town meeting records.


Here we are learning about inventories at the court house. It was fun to "peek" inside someone's house and see what furnishing they had.


And here we are at the historical society looking at old photographs.


I'm now off to Colonial Williamsburg to lead a teacher institute.

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Solstice Berries

Lou and I got a batch of strawberry jam made yesterday. I hope it's the first of many such projects this summer. She loved transforming the fruit into one of her favorite foods--it was like magic to her!







We also got the solstice berries ready for the freezer. We'll eat these on December 21st with a dark chocolate cake. We won't be remembering a hot summer field this December, but instead a thundery, blustery day of jam-making.

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Summer is a comin' today!

Unite and unite
Now let us unite
For summer is a comin' today!

While last year's summer solstice was an evening of fireflies, fairies, and quiet magic in a long sun-lit evening, this year's solstice was a feast of song, dance, and fire. The Revels Summer Solstice festival was actually on the solstice this year.


It began with a parade led by Hels' Morris Dancing team. She joined this team in April and has been enjoying both the dancing and the hanging out with teens. She's on the left behind the man with the hat.










A favorite part of the parade are these butterfly and firefly puppets. At the end of the evening, they reappear, with blinking neon colors, flying in the night.










Fire was a major element at this festival.

Juggling fire sticks while on a balance beam.
















Forging necklaces for children.















Baking bread.











Making pierced-tin lanterns.

At the end of the night, the green was surrounded by glowing tin lanterns.









At around 8:00 conch shells and rams horns called us back together for the final performance of singing and dancing.



The evening ended with fire, dance, and singing. Imagine over 200 people in three giant circles around a fire--teens in the center, men next, women and children in the outer ring. We sang a round and danced to beloved song:

Oh how lovely is the evening, is the evening
When the bells are sweetly ringing, sweetly ringing
Ding, Dong, Ding, Dong, Ding

It was dark, the giant fireflies glowed above us, fire circled about from the juggler-man, and we all shouted a "hurrah" for summer.

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Take Peace

Chasing a pumpkin moonshine down a hill and through a barnyard.

Watching a birthday cake float down a stream in the dusk.

Creating a creche inside the fireplace bake oven.

These are all images and dreams I had as a child as I poured through Tasha Tudor's books again and again. I connected with the simple, yet magical ways she celebrated life, the turning seasons, and the past. I was lucky. My Grandmother also knew Mrs. Tudor and connected with her in many ways. I got to spend summers in Grandmother's old New England farmhouse with no electricity or running water having barn dances using the old Victrola, eating bread fresh from the cook stove, and exploring the wildflowers.

I hope, in my little way, I can bring some of Tasha Tudor's deep understandings of the traditional rural way of life to our children. It's so important especially in this day of peak oil and change. May we all embrace our world. Take Peace. Take Joy.

The portrait above is of me, drawn by Tasha Tudor, when I was a young girl.

Tasha Tudor's memorial

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Standing Tall

Hels and Lou have been learning to walk on stilts this week through a workshop run by our town's recreation department. Every day they've been going to the school playground to learn how to fall, dance, and play freeze-tag while on stilts.




Yesterday we went to my Mom's for a visit. She made them stilt pants and they got to demonstrate their new skill. I left Lou in the back yard with Grandpa and came back to discover this!


She had decided to sit down on her own and landed in a pine tree instead. The chair just flipped over backward. I think we got her out without crushing the plants.




Meanwhile, Hels was out front putting on her stilts. She quickly graduated to 3' stilts after only 1 day at the workshop. The only way to get them on and stand up is to sit on the top of the car.








Doesn't Grandpa look a little nervous? They went for a walk and nearly caused some accidents as people leaned out of their cars to look up.

Both girls will be in the town's 4th of July parade with the stilting crew. Their only worry? Who will pick up candy for them??

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Inspiring each other

It is a cool, cloudy day today. This afternoon we settled onto the porch to listen to Harry Potter and do some journaling. Lou chose to copy some poems from her flower fairies book using gel pens which provide a satisfying array of color. She's just discovering poetry and loving it.



Hels chose to devote one section of her journal to photos of her friends. She's using scissors, glue, and gel pens.










I chose to sketch a couple of the birds that have been enjoying our bird feeder. I have never considered myself an artist and, in fact, am pretty insecure about it. My joining in inspires the children. They have no idea that they are inspiring me and stretching me to do something I would not have tried otherwise. It's one of those perks of parenthood that I love--trying new things with no judgement!


I use watercolor pencils and gel pens. I like the rich colors of Lyra's Aquarell pencils.


I love how my little sketch can turn into something that looks painted by using these pencils. My favorite journaling toy is the Niji Waterbrush. This is a little tube of water with a fine brush on the end. It lets out just enough water to turn the penciling into watercolor without having paint dribble everywhere. It's as fun as those old paint by water books we could get back when we were kids.


So, we sat on the porch today, inspiring each other. It's now chilly enough for wool socks, the birds are getting quiet, and the wind is picking up. Me thinks it's time for a bit more rain!

About the green man...Lou chose the number 4--which is Dawn! Please send me your address and we'll send him to you this week.

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A day in my life

It's June 14th. I find it hard to believe that it has been a month since I last posted A day in my life. Time certainly has flown by.

I woke today at 5:45--a little later than normal. Went out on the porch with my coffee to enjoy the quiet morning. It is balloon festival weekend, so I watched for balloons rising in the hills--only saw one. Balloons, coffee, a gentle breeze, the birds = beginning of a nice day.

8:00 a.m.--drove Hels over to the school to meet her friends. They were all heading to the seacoast for a day at the beach and a celebration of her friend's 13th birthday.

9:00--after helping arrange kids and gear (9 in three cars!), I headed off to the grocery store. I got waylaid by yard sales which I just can't resist. Today I hit a good one and scored a fish tank (for tadpoles and monarchs), a Scrabble game, and an Audubon guide to the eastern woodlands. Total cost? $3.50. I was just giddy after that. I LOVE YARD SALES!!



10:00--got to our grocery store and managed to remember my various tote bags which is a great feat. So far? Perfect day.

11:00--as I came out of the grocery store I ran into my co-worker and a friend who gave me some good news about work. Long story--the national director of my grant program popped a surprise visit this week. Being the small world that Vermont is, he went into a used book store....owned by the wife of my co-worker....and was overheard raving about the work we've been doing. So far? An even more perfect day.

Lunchtime--played a long game of Scrabble on the porch with Lou and Nels.

2:00--headed into town to buy dog food (oops). Nels, Lou, and I stopped by the book store for a long browse of books and iced coffee drinks. I needed a day of no chores--it's been a rough week even if we did get to spend a day making books.

5:30--walked down to the neighbors to feed their chickens, baby chicks, cats, and rats (why a child would want big rats in her bedroom is beyond me).

6:00--back on the porch. Lou is coloring, Nels is reading, I'm blogging. There's a gentle thunderstorm rumbling about and rain falling all around. Wine in hand. A beautiful end to a day that just unfolded in a really nice way.

ps: I realize I haven't chosen the winner for the green man yet. I'll do it tomorrow!

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Summer Journals

On Tuesday the girls and I visited my friend's bookbinding studio to make summer journals. She is an amazing book artist and has become quite an inspiration to the girls. I really like giving my girls the chance to work with artists and crafters in their studios.




We created big, bound journals that took just about all day to make. Here is Lou binding her book. It was a difficult project for her, but she did a great job and needed very little help.






Here they are doing the last part--decorating the cover. We used marbelized paper that Hels had made last year.





Here's my journal. You can see the binding where we used beautiful waxed thread and beads to make a pattern. My intention is to use our journals this summer as we explore wild flowers, the birds in our yard and other bits of nature.


My mother gave Hels this lovely wild flower book, written in 1893. I love book designs from around the turn-of-the century, and this cover is one of the loveliest I have seen. Each flower entry includes a detailed line-drawing and description along with quotes from poetry, indian lore, or other anecdotes.


In this entry she says that the Meadow Lily's blossoms look a bit like "fairy-caps" which "would make dainty head gear for any of the dim inhabitants of the wonder-land." I love it!

I VOW I will get the kids out drawing in these journals this summer. They've already begun. Lou has fallen in love with birds and has begun to explore just a bit.

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Summer Reading

It has been a hot, breezy weekend and it seems like we moved out onto the porch overnight. The living room is looking forlorn and bare as the books, magazines, and games have drifted outside. Along with porch living comes another favorite summer activity--reading out loud.

I've begun my yearly list of books I want to try. In doing so, I stumbled on Amazon's "Summer Reads for Kids and Teens" and was appalled at the quality of the books they had chosen--especially for young adults.

Here are some of our recommendations based on successful summer reads over the past few years. Of course, the books are mainly suited to girls and to Lou's (and my) old fashioned taste.

From Lou's shelf (which has completely shifted from picture books to chapter books):


The summer between 1st/2nd grade we read every single Betsy book that Carolyn Haywood ever wrote. Lou and Helen both loved them. B is for Betsy is the first in the series. It's a sweet story about a young girl's adventures in first grade.

Last summer, between 2nd/3rd grade, three books that both girls really enjoyed are:

The Secret Language This story is about two friends learning about friendship while off at boarding school. I think the girls are around 8 or 9 years old.

No Flying in the House Both girls LOVED this story of a little girl (who turns out to be a fairy) and her guardian--a teeny tiny dog who speaks.

Miss Hickory This is a lovely story about a woman who is made out of an apple twig and her adventures finding a home in the forest.

Hels, of course, also has stacks of books. She has read a few winners this year, most set in Medieval times.


Every Tamora Pierce book (her favorite author)
The Outlaws of Sherwood
Crispin

Crispin might be good read to out loud. The others she just recommends as good summer reads.

On the list for this summer:

Betsy-Tacy I've tried these with Lou before without a lot of success, but I'm going to try again.

Famous Five books by Enid Blyton

Five Little Peppers and How they Grew Hels listened to this book on tape years ago. She absolutely loved it so I'm going to pull it out again. This poor, dear family goes through many trials and tribulations.


Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. This is my beloved copy, illustrated by Tasha Tudor. I loved Alcott's books when I was about Hels' age. I thought we'd give it a try and then go to Concord to see her childhood home, Orchard House. In the meantime, I'm going to try March again (I couldn't get into it the first time I tried it).




Of course there are many other books that the girls at this age have loved including:

the Little House Books
Ramona (which I LOVE on tape --read by Stockard Channing)
All-of-a Kind Family series
Mrs. Piggle Wiggle
Pippi Longstocking

I mention these because I think it is hard to find chapter books for 8 or 9 year olds that feature young characters. So many of the "middle reader" books in the bookstores these days are either fantasy or feature children in their early adolescence. I want stories of children having good old-fashioned fun!

Happy Reading! I'm always looking for good books!

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Tree House!

It's 5 a.m. on the last day of school. I'm up baking THE LAST BATCH of treats for class parties this year :) It's been a full week with a French play, graduation, and a treehouse-warming party. There's an ice cream social this afternoon.

Every year the 3rd grade builds something pretty major at the school as part of the shelter block. The playground is speckled with garden sheds, playhouses, a cool tower, a stone house, and this latest project. Of course the children have lots of help, but feel like it's their project.

For the housewarming, they gathered in a circle around the tree house, said a verse, sang a beautiful song in a round, and then ate many treats (I clearly didn't have to bake, although apparently Lou raised her hand in class and announced that I WANTED to bake lemon squares!).

There are fun little details throughout. Here's the hammer they broke:

They all signed it. I searched for Lou's initials, but couldn't find them. It turns out that she has decided that she doesn't like her middle name, so changed it to Isabelle. Thus there is an "I" for her middle initial. No wonder I couldn't find it :)


As you can imagine, this is a very popular spot on the playground right now. It's requiring a bit of work on the 8th graders' part (our playground mentors) to keep the young ones taking turns.


Well, only 6 more hours of work-time left for me. Hmm. Can I finish the text for two web-sites by 3 p.m.?

If you haven't done so already, leave a comment in the post below for a blogaversary giveaway!

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A Little More Crafting

What to do when panicking over work? Craft of course. We've all been busy preparing year-end gifts for the teachers. Lou made this sweet card for her teacher.











Hels made this jester for her teacher as a thank you for the wonderful Medieval Studies block they had this year.











The parents of the 3rd grade each donated money toward the making of this music stand which Nels made in the evenings last week. I can't wait to give it to her!








And me? Well, I let my blogiversary (is that really a word?) slip by a couple of weeks ago. I can't believe it has been over a year now since I began this little blog. The blog has impacted our family life in so many ways. Nels and I both feel like the blog has made us just a bit more conscious of the "whys" of what we do. We talk more about our parenting and the philosophy behind it. I feel like I seek the fun and good in our days a bit more (which is good being the melancholic that I am). I'm really happy to have a chronicle of our days and I know my family does as well.

And last but not least, coming into communication with so many of you bloggers has been fun and heartwarming. I have enjoyed the conversations, the sharing of ideas, and exchanges of books and crafts around the world. I have been inspired by you all in so many ways.


So, in great thanks, I leave a gift. This little fern-like man is waiting for a new home. He is made from Simmy's plant-dyed Cotswold fleece. I confess I've been nervous about sharing him. I haven't done a lot of needle-felting in the past few months and I feel like I've lost a bit of my needle-felting know-how. Leave a comment by Friday and we'll pick one person randomly over the weekend.

Now I'm off to today's school event--a house-warming party for the tree house Lou's class just finished as part of their "Shelter" block.

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3 1/2 More Days...

...until summer vacation. This fills me both with excitement for projects and trips as well as shear panic. June is one of my busy months for work. All my finances close down and I have a summer institute for teachers to lead. The prospect of the kids being home right when I need to be glued to my computer always feels daunting.


What are they going to do all day?
How am I going to get my work done?
How am I going to keep them active and not media sloths?

My friend and I have a last day of school tradition. She, too, works at home so we half-jokingly email each other all day--"only 5 hours to work left!" "only 2 hours left!"

A slightly different perspective from Cadi!

I realize that part of my sense of unease is that the end of school brings a huge change of rhythm to the family. It is up to me to set a new rhythm that works for us all. It will come, and slowly we will sink into the long days of summer in a good way. First, though, we have a bit of transition to go through!

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