So much did not get accomplished today. As for staring at the snow, there was plenty of that. And now, sweet potato pie is about to come out of the oven. The seeds will be planted some other time, and the teapot will be washed one day soon... but today... today was for snow gazing. Tomorrow may be too.

I've been ever so slowly working on a new project. A place of healing, wellness, and simplicity. It is here on the web... it won't be a big deal (pressure-wise, on me that is), updated only 2-4 times per month. A place to share whole food recipes, holistic thoughts on living well, and essays about nutrition and yoga. I'll share a proper invitation when I'm ready for company.

This space here, in it's daily journal sort of style has become so comforting to me - gentle, easy, sustainable. Blogging this way has provided the head and heart space needed to create a compliment to what I 'do' here, a sister-site. Less journal, more content - a simple and easy place for down to earth wellness.

Getting ready to head out for the day. One basket for the market, one for my work. Yogurt, granola, and berries for my belly. Ready for anything.

There's something about rustic country decor that I love. Not too country... no geese or teddy bears please, but a little plaid and some barn wood. Perhaps a mason jar turned candle holder. Oh, yes. 

Lately I'm noticing abandoned buildings when we're out and about. More than ever before. This particular one has stood empty for years and years, but there are plenty of places we've frequented in the recent past, and now they stand empty. I wonder if others are noticing this too, where they live. It's sad, and seems to say so many things. 

Our birding materials arrived! We are excited to get busy recording and reporting all the happenings in our back yard to the good folks at Cornell. My favorite bird so far, which has only made an appearance twice, is the Eastern Bluebird. How sweet and shy they are. 

Emily took this photo last Friday on her morning walk. Today and into tomorrow more snow is expected to arrive. Finally, a little taste of winter. I've got some work to do, new country plaid curtains to hang, and a fresh canvas to think about covering with the just unpacked paints and brushes. 

{I'm also over at Simple Homeschool today, hope to see you there!}

The journey of a thousand stitches begins with a single skein... or something like that. I'm ready to become a proper knitter, I can feel it. Acquiring beautiful supplies, rather than whatever is around supplies, is step one. 

I love being home. I'm afraid much of my home time lately has been work related, which is just perfect, but it's not something I write about in these pages too much. So I feel a little without words some days, which is okay. But I'm here, and we're busy in the best of ways. 

There has been a little thrifting.

 In the fancy town's Goodwill. Always worth the trip. 

I'm an unapologetic pottery rescuer. It's true, I can't pass up any pottery that I find at thrift stores. I wish there was a way for Esther to know her things will be loved always. 

 The home settling continues, spaces evolve, and one more room feels like ours. 

The state of our front yard at the moment. Pretty lovely, yes? My uncle, he lives down the street from us and has a truly magical sugaring operation. He produces so much (award winning) syrup, in the most incredibly down to earth, traditional way. There is a piece about his place in the paper which is really worth checking out, be sure to click through the photo gallery to see it all. So much beauty to be found (and the most perfectly stacked wood piles you've ever seen). Zen and the art of stacking wood.

My favorite room at the music school, though her lesson does not take place in here. There's something about this space. Shortly after I took this, an elderly man walked in for his lesson. He played so beautifully I wondered why he was taking lessons at all. Didn't he know all there was to know? Oh, it sure sounded like it. But no, of course he didn't... we are never done with such things. What a sweet reminder he gave me today.

If the rugs are forgotten on the porch railing overnight, and you wake up to rain, it's okay to call it an extra washing. My new housekeeping rule.

Still trying to make these rooms our own. It takes me so long, but it is coming along. Slow but sure. The bedroom in this house is huge (by my standards, not by American "master suite" standards), I've yet to figure out what to do with it. The attached bath I've been playing around with though. Having a master bath is a brand new experience for me, one that I'm so happy about even if it means I'll spend the rest of my days figuring out how a girl is supposed to shave her legs in a tiny shower stall. Who designs these things?

(I'll see this bathroom's 1990s lavender and teal splishy-splashy wallpaper and raise it one pretty vintage tray, two wooden crates, and a teacup garden!)

Feeling ready to move on from this non-winter. The days are longer, the front porch has seen a little sitting, and the screen porch is almost ready to host dinner for the warmer months. Almost. 

Just a bit more of this non-winter to go...

Starting the day with Simple Abundance has been really lovely. I've had this book for years, but haven't always made it such a practice. It's nice, a simple way to center the day. 

Turning the radio on for the early news was a little, um, de-centering. I was reminded of why I usually save the day's news listening for the dinner prep hour. 

They say rain is coming, but for now the sun still hangs low and golden in the sky. 

The new print magazine, taproot was born today! So happy for good friends. (Amanda told me I was the very first person in the world to subscribe. Um, somebody was a little excited to place an order it seems?) 

Amanda's words:

"At taproot, we believe in place. That in this modern world with technology and noise coming at us from every and all directions, that we need even more real and tangible skills and connection in this world. Which is why you won't find taproot as an online magazine. You won't find us on Facebook or Twitter. We won't be one more place online you need to 'keep up with.' And you won't find our pages full of the noise of traditional print advertising, either. 

taproot is, instead, intented to encourage a slower, more mindful presence as it comes into your home four times a year. We hope that the art, stories, crafts, food, and poetry in the pages of taproot will serve as entertainment, education, and inspiration on your journey."

How about that? Oh, taproot... I can't wait to spend an afternoon (or two) with you.

There is an inescapable element of planning ahead to eating well. I'm sure there are exceptions to the rule, but it's something I'm reminded of daily. Like this moment today, green smoothie for now, prepping kale chips for an afternoon snack, cooking chickpeas for tomorrow's lunch. And so it goes. 

I'm home during the day, I can make these things happen with relative ease among the many work and homeschool tasks I do each day. It's other people that I feel for, those that are not at home as much during the day. Then I recall my own time working outside of the house; Sunday afternoons were spent in the kitchen, prepping and cooking for the week. 

It came to be time I looked forward to, a couple of podcasts or albums later my fridge and pantry were well on their way to bringing us wholesome meals for days to come. But it never happens magically, without effort. A little time needs to be invested, but it's worth it. 

At 6:00 tonight I found myself washing the kitchen floor. I should have been cooking dinner but it was bothering me so there you go. Adam is home late most Thursdays so dinner is simpler (and later).

I've been reading more on the Simplicity Parenting site, still don't have the book. Kathy has me inspired though (more on Kathy and her beautiful new book next week!). Specifically, I've been digging around for some good teen parenting discussion which I came across a little of. These are big years, for sure. In some ways it feels like the work is just getting started! Presence, love, patience and non-judgement are needed in abundance, dare I say like never before... 

I love a dimly lit, sparkly house in the evening, overhead lighting feels deflating somehow. I need to re-string some twinkly lights. 

I think this view gets photographed every morning. It changes daily, today it looked just like Spring, damp and misty. Birds singing.  I'm missing the lovely blue hour though, my routine's been off, would love to get to bed early tonight to rise well before the sun. 

I walked into the kitchen in the late afternoon to find every single dish we own dirty. Or so it seemed. How on earth? Washed the dishes... then, I went outside and the horizon took my breath away. A stunning fire in the sky. 

This weekend I'll spend some time with a group of yoga teachers in training to talk about food and nutrition from a yogic perspective. My very favorite way to talk about food. I'm excited to meet the class... time to get materials ready for them. Let go of the mind, keep it simple.  

There is only one journey, going inside yourself. 

-Rainer Maria Rilke

He was gone all day, some lawyer-type conference.

This was waiting for me in the morning... 

All beaten up and tattered, just as I like them. Oh, I've had my eye on this for quite a while now at a nearby vintage shop. An early 20th century lithograph of what I believe to be the homestead of my dreams. How perfect for my every growing collection of old and shabby, pretty things. 

It will tuck into here quite nicely, yes?

Tuesday has us going in so many directions, the car becomes my office for a few hours each week. For this reason alone I am grateful for the ever so mild winter we've seen, as strange as it is. Fifty degrees this Friday...!?

To further my hand-sewing craze (well, just two completed potholders and a stack of clothing patterns is not yet a craze) I acquired this beautiful quilt top, not a tear in sight, not a hand-sewn stitch out of place. The squares are so tiny, less than two inches a piece. So, in solidarity with the woman (or women) who began this project ages ago, I'll finish the task... I hope this is what they would have wanted for their work in progress. 

At the end of the day, there was a little Valentine celebration for him as well. Many people don't like this holiday (and I get that), but for some reason it's always kind of stuck for us. And who doesn't love a couple new pairs of alpaca socks and some favorite mags? (Okay, so it's not a table saw... but they're warm and soft!)

This is not lost on me, this out the back door and home again. Two hours, no pavement or car were touched. I still marvel every time I look at the curvy stone walls along the brook, built with his own hands. That is the work of a patient man. 

The expected snowstorm was a bust, a slight dusting melted by noon. The day though, the day was just what we needed. 

Hope your weekend is just what you need it to be.