Today was a blur. With one week remaining until Whole Food Kitchen gets underway, I'm busy with details, loose ends, and final edits. I love this place. It feels exactly like the thirty minutes I try to give myself before company comes - a little time to light the candles, put on some music, and take a breath for all the hard work and care put into the preparations.

I hope to still visit here this week, but I'm not sure that's realistic. Company's coming... it's time for quiet centering and focused heart opening.  

Hope is the thing with feathers 
That perches in the soul, 
And sings the tune--without the words, 
And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard; 
And sore must be the storm 
That could abash the little bird 
That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land, 
And on the strangest sea; 
Yet, never, in extremity, 
It asked a crumb of me.

- Emily Dickinson

This poem has been on my mind lately, then Melissa made some pretty tumblers and trays. Now one of them lives here and I haven't had a drink from anything else since it arrived. Hope.

May this weekend be good to all of us. xo

She was up early, buzzing around the house fluffing and straightening as she does - in her snowman jammies. Her preference for all things tidy often has me thinking she'd do well living with our family in Northern Maine. I'm sure not a cleaner house can be found than those in Northern Maine.

Playing around with a beautiful new lens. I hear it can do dreamy things, especially in low light. For now we are just getting acquainted. Funny thing about using a lens that you need to manually focus... you need decent vision to accomplish the task. I can't pretend anymore, me who has nearly maxed out the magnification offered by over the counter cheater glasses. I do think Dr. Goldstein and I will be seeing each other soon. He tells good jokes.

 I feel super organized when his lunch is prepared the night before. 

Sukha ate the very last chocolate chip cookie, something she's never had before (of course). Emily left it on the coffee table - perfectly placed at Sukha's nose level - while she talked on the phone to Pepere. Now there is a great debate going on between she and Adam over the injustice of it all... I don't think Sukha sees their point.

Another day to be grateful for. It wasn't too eventful, and not all perfect. There was worry mixed with laughter and so much more support than I could possibly have asked for. He's like that. It's cold again, a raw kind of cold. Layers of wool and down make it so much better. No real dinner tonight, just a little raw milk cheddar, sliced pear, and cabernet. A feast in most corners of the world. Listened to this beautiful tune many times. Can you imagine just sitting in the back of a car and making that kind of music? There I go with those short Hemingway sentences again... 

Well, such is life in New England. Here today, gone tomorrow. This morning birds were singing and the air smelled of Spring. Damp, warm, muddy earth is one of the finest scents in the world. 

A little thrifting adventure between classes/lessons today. I've been trying to pull together a random collage of old paintings and illustrations for a while now, seeing these all in one spot, just as I had envisioned... perfect.

I did a good amount of writing while Emily was in classes - both being at places that do not have wifi so it was truly just writing. 

I skipped grocery shopping and came home early. He was making dinner for us which was so good - some type of pasta saute with mushrooms, onion, tomato, garlic, and something that I couldn't put my finger on which drove me nutty because I usually have a knack for identifying secret ingredients.

Now, they are playing basketball in the basement (!!), later we'll stream an episode of The Cosby Show, which Emily recently discovered.

The key ingredient to a successful day (for me) is a proper bedtime the night before. 

Now, if only I could remember this day in and day out. 

I've been drawn to the idea of hand sewing lately. A patchwork hot pad, pictured above, was made this weekend... a second to match is almost complete. They are each lined with two layers of cast aside bath towels and that seems to be the right thickness. Truly I'd like to make hand sewn clothing but thought starting small would be best. Nonetheless, I ordered a skirt, dress, apron, and two blouse patterns last night - none of which look like they should be worn in this century. I suppose the style will be quite fitting for a little hand sewing. I love to sew, but I do not love the noise of the machine and how it sets me apart from the activity of my family. I'm not the knitter I dream of someday being, but I imagine hand sewing a blouse will have the same heart investment and meditative quality that knitting a sweater does. And it can be done while we're all together, for the most part. 

Laundry folding, homeschool planning (and doing), new closet shelf organizing... makes me happy. All of it.

I should probably wash the wall near that light switch. Maybe tomorrow.

I'm quickly entering that place of having so many food photos from my day, but very few recipes to share here... mostly they are over there. 

 A rain filled evening with new music, a good conversation, a proper bedtime. 

(We've been enjoying this song a lot too. Prettiest tune ever.)

blueberry buttermilk pancakes :: a little hand sewing :: her first time behind the 'wheel' :: snow falling all day :: The 1940s House :: homeschool closet shelf building :: frozen brook crossing :: a simple dinner :: chocolate buttermilk zucchini cake ::  

Enjoying the weekend... hoping you are as well. xo

The arrival of snow this week has been just what I needed. Twice we woke to freshly fallen powder, and tomorrow's weather predicts snow falling all day. We are stocked, supplied, and ready. 

Last night Lisa shared with me the most intriguing website. I think I'll take some time to read more of it this weekend. (I'd also like to devote and hour or two to my inbox, so far behind on that - sorry!)

I found a brief video about Innermost House which left me inspired. 

Seems like a good day for a little garden planning and seed ordering. Our neighbors already created a pumpkin patch for us before we moved in. In one of the property's garden areas they piled six huge mounds of compost (thank you Dallas) and inside of each placed one of last year's pumpkins. This coming Spring... a pumpkin patch will be born! They've done this for themselves with great success in the past. 

We joined Project FeederWatch through The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, they even have a page for homeschoolers. What a fun framework for our new found hobby - and to help provide field data for researchers to use on a larger scale, very cool. 

I used to have this Friday afternoon rhythm, usually between the hours of 3-5pm, where I'd sink into a little homeschool planning/researching/grading, etc. Cruising homeschool blogs and websites that I don't get a chance to visit much during the week, seeing what people are doing, reading learning... I loved that time. I'd mentally and physically organize our own materials for the coming week, and find a sense of closure  for the week we left behind. This was such an inspiring window of time in my week, chosen because of how quiet our home feels at this time, on this day. The house is usually (fairly) clean, the fridge stocked, maybe even a weekend meal or two prepared. Anyway, I was much better at holding this space for myself last year... I'd like to try and return to this next week.

Stanley had a bath and a haircut, he's such a good sport about both. Now we're about to watch The Grapes of Wrath and wait patiently for the weekend snow to roll in.  

We talked for a few minutes this morning. I should call him more in the morning, later in the day we are all tired, I realized this today. It makes sense really, he and I are both morning people, always have been. My mom and sister the opposite.

A new semester of piano has started. I never have to ask her to practice, this must be a good sign. Making music everyday, just for the joy of it.

Birds have become such a big part of our life here. We never had much success with feeders at our old home. The city squirrels are fierce and were known to steal entire feeders. Here we just count and identify the species (one after the next, so many!), take note in our journal what they eat (if we can tell) and dream about saving up for a 300mm lens. Those Blue Jays sure are bossy by the way... 

I had a little trouble sitting down to menu plan this week, so much is going on. But eating well (especially when so much is going on) matters. More stress? More veggies! I'm very grateful to be working my way through the recipes submitted by my workshop contributors. What a perfect solution, thank you ladies!

Snow is coming down outside, we're all tucked in and enjoying the view. 

I've passed over this book a few times at the library. No reason. Before the holidays a friend was over and commented that she had to "get home soon, she was reading a really good book." Being the fantastic guy that he is, Adam took note and Brooklyn appeared under the Christmas tree. I'm almost ready to read it, hoping it's as good as I imagine it to be. 

And just like that, the snow is almost gone. More soon, please. We'd love to take our snowshoes out back one afternoon (or many). 

Everyone is home now, they were gone for hours. I spent almost the whole time on various phone calls, something I'm not used to doing. As I type these last sentences they're mashing potatoes, carving roasted chicken, tossing salad, warming applesauce... wine is poured. Another day. I appreciate their help so much.