Where We Are

Sometimes I get behind on coming here and then it becomes very hard to return.  There are so many posts to catch up on (Grace's play!  Field trips!  The retreat Grace and I just went on!  The garden!) and it all just seems to overwhelming.  In times like that it's easier if I just forget about all of that for now and start where we are.  So where we are...

~ The flowers are starting to bloom here.  This might be my favorite time of year on our farm.  After what seems like almost two weeks of blooming the magnolia tree is just starting to drop it's velvety petals.  Nora has repeatedly brought me excitedly to some new patch of color to show me her discovery.

~ A week ago, just before we were going to be heading out to the laundry mat with a load of towels and rugs (can't seem to get them to not feel like sandpaper after being on the line) I decided to just give our dryer another test.  Magically it started working again.  I was both ecstatic and depressed.  Ecstatic because I didn't even realize how much I missed it.  I mean I hate to say it because I really want to be someone who always hangs their laundry on the line but once it was working again I really just wanted to snuggle up with it, maybe even write it a love letter or two.  But I was also depressed because I worried I'd never go back to my laundry line, it had just finally became a part of my everyday routine.  But surprisingly after a week of using my dryer again I started really missing the laundry line.  So now I'm back to it.  Except for the towels.  Not sure I can ever get use to that one.

~ This weekend Nora was helping me with the laundry and as she peeked through some hanging shirts it suddenly reminded me of this day with Grace five years ago.  Awwww... so cute.

~  We've gotten the barn almost all cleaned up for the season and are starting to eat dinner out there whenever the weather permits.

~  Dinner in the barn is usually followed up with some sort of barn "show".

~  We did some clay work last week for school.  Forgot how much we all love that.

~ The garden... we planted some kale and lettuce three weeks ago and it is finally starting to sprout.  But today was the first day we've really had a chance to spend a big chunk of time working in there.  Can't wait to get back out there tomorrow.

Easter

Spring Returns

Time for a picnic.

Winter Returns

We didn't mind.  Well they didn't.  I didn't mind spending another day by the fire.

Weekend Highlights

~ Boiling (40 gallons) of sap
~ Friends over to play
~ Seeing Grace's performance twice this weekend
~ Sewing
~ Having a relatively clean house tonight to start our week with
~ Time to plan and dream
~ Eating microgreens with everything
~ Looking forward to day tomorrow with nowhere we have to go

Microgreens + Eggs

= Yum.

Opening Night

{Grace is 5 over from the left}
            Snow White

Yes

Today Jackson woke up with a smile on his face for the first time in a long time.  I felt hopeful in that moment but, I was still holding my breath.  A few hours later when he was still sitting up I felt even more hopeful. Several hours later when I looked out the window and saw him wildly riding bikes and scooters outside with Grace and Nora I finally let out a cheer.  He was better.

The conclusion was that he initially had some sort of virus, but then the virus went away and was replaced by a spinal tap headache (which is incredibly painful and can in of itself be something quite serious).  But because he was acting the same in both cases (laying down and complaining of a horrible headache) the doctors were concerned it may have all been one underlying mystery illness.  But thankfully not, and now we know.



I do not handle these sorts of situations well and my parenting over the last few days has reflected that immensely.  Yesterday in a pure state of fear and exhaustion I found myself angrily yelling at the one person I was most concerned about...  But you haven't brushed your teeth in three days, you haaaave to brush your teeth!!  



So aside from practicing self-forgiveness, I (we) are also growing micro-greens.  One day last week Jackson arose from the couch and pointed to the bag of seeds that had been sitting untouched on our kitchen cabinet for the past 5 months (because they were suppose to supply us with fresh greens all winter because of course I would plant them every week starting last November) and asked "Can we plant these?"  Oh my gosh yes!!  I can't fix your headache or figure out what is wrong with you but by golly YES we can plant these!



So... we did.  And now Jackson is better AND we have micro-greens.

Weekend

Barefeet. 70 degrees.  Blue skies.  Digging in the garden.  Boiling sap.  An Irish concert.  Mud pies.  The return of Frankie and Frieda.

Jackson still isn't feeling better.  Thank goodness we had these things to momentarily distract us (Jackson included).  Every so often he would pop up off the couch and resume his cheery nature and run outside to play.  At which point Ryan and I would conclude that this time he must finally be on the mend.  But inevitably a few hours later he would end up right back where he started.

I think one of the hardest things about being a parent is knowing something is wrong and not knowing what it is.  We are going to the doctor again later today so perhaps we will figure it out then.

Sun and Fevers and Laundry

It has been in the 50's and 60's here for the past several days.  The kids have been running outside directly after breakfast to play in the mud and explore the temporary "stream" that appears here every spring.  Yesterday we had school outside.  For the second day in a row I woke up and hung the laundry on the line in the early morning sun.

Aside from our happy spring fever, we had a little scare with Jackson last night having to do with a fever of a different sort.  He had been complaining of a headache and then last night he spiked a temperature of 103.2.  Then he said his neck hurt and of course all we could think of was meningitis.  So he and I spent 3 and 1/2 hours in the ER and several tests later we found out thankfully that all is well.  Today his fever is gone but he is in a lot of pain from the tests and there is a small part of me that wishes I just would have waited until morning to make a decision.  Hindsight I guess.  But in any case he is okay and of course we are so grateful for that.

Our dryer has been broken for a month or so and Ryan and I thinking very seriously about not ever fixing it.  While it does add one more thing to my to do list, I love the idea of being freed of one more appliance and moving just a tiny step closer to our 10 year plan (someday I'll write about that here).  Plus about 50% of the time I really like hanging the laundry up.  I think if I work at it I could increase that percentage.

Everyday when I walk out to let the chickens out I gently tap my boot on one of the garden beds to see how much it has thawed.  I think a few more days of this weather and I'll be planting peas and lettuce.

Outside Art

Alone...

at one of my favorite places.

I found myself with five and a half hours all to myself today while I waited for Grace to finish up at rehearsal.  I started out my morning in my coffee shop drinking tea, determined to spend the day writing.  An hour and half later all I'd accomplished was a short nap (not that that is anything to complain about).  But the sun was shinning and the awakened lady bugs circling the warm windows were insisting that spring had arrived.  I finally listened to them and packed up my things and headed to the park.  Not surprisingly, five minutes of being immersed in warm sun on my face and the sound of snow melting and I couldn't put my pen down.  Next time I need to remember that.

Snow Lion

Out

{snowy wonderland}


{Their tepee from last fall}


{All of the burrs were wearing snow "hats"}


{While it appears otherwise I swear she asked me to take this picture- it's of her "tiny igloo"}

What We've Been Up To Lately...

~ Today my three monkeys rediscovered a favorite tree in our woods.  I have a feeling this is going to become a new special place for them.

~ Jackson has also rediscovered the camouflage poncho that Grace made him for Christmas.  He is in love with how well it hides him (at first I did't even notice him in the picture).

~ Grace was cast in this year's play "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" as one of the dwarfs named Jasper (it's the Grimm's version).  She has been busy practicing her lines and rehearsing.

~ To Ryan's delight Jackson has fell completely in love with ice fishing and the two of them have spent quite a bit of time out at the fish house over the last month.

~ We had a real run in with sickness for the last month.  I was the last one to get sick with sinus infection that took forever to go away.  I think we are finally all better.

~ Grace and I have started fiddle lessons.  I am in love but also it is really hard.  So far the enjoyment is outweighing the hard part though so I hope that continues.

~ We recently read the Birchbark House and have now moved on to the second book in the series the Game of Silence.  Grace says these are the best books she has ever read.

~ I have completely ran out of all motivation for cooking and I am finding myself with zero desire to make dinner (hot dogs anyone??).  I have pulled out all of my cookbooks in hopes of inspiring something in myself and have yet to find anything that excites me.  It's going to be a long couple months if I can't figure anything out (I'm assuming my love of being in the kitchen will return once garden season has started. It has too.) .

~ We have no obligations or plans for Saturday and I am really looking forward to just being home, and the first day in a long time that I haven't had to drive anyone anywhere.