I wrote a poem

1. Every morning star is
white curtains hung with hope
pain, light-filled, warm windowsills
Tassels sigh at ends of ropes

2. Every noon a full blown turning
Breaking points on spinning plates
Sweep up the mess, get yourself dressed
Secret, sacred, shadows debate

3. Every evening sky is
Another reckless painting hung
Crooked hymns to the left and dimmed
the songs desired, unsung.

Lists

I've been making lots of lists lately, so I decided to make a list of lists:
-my personal cultural values I want to cultivate in my children and family
-things to mail
-stuff to photograph and place on Craig's List
-soul qualities I want to cultivate
-things to blog about
-things to plant
-knitting patterns to write down
-what to make for fairs and market this summer
-craft projects to finish

that's a lot of lists! I do have a couple of other lists around here somewhere...I wonder what our lists say about us at any given time? what if I saved my lists as snapshots of what I am thinking about, of capturing my inner planner??
My friend, when asked where she would be without her lists, replied, "I don't know, listless?"
Brilliant!

A pictorial tour of the back yard

The rabbit cages on the garden bed-in-development. Rabbit droppings=garden gold. 

Newly dug. The garden beds are edged with bricks and tree trunks- all salvaged from neighbors.

Bliss! I am glad he likes to dig as much as I do. Digging=therapy.

People often ask me about my compost pile. This is it! We do turn it every so often, but mostly just try to make sure we are layering straw and leaves in between the food and wetter stuff. I am sure we could get a lot more conscious and scientific and make it look better, but we don't really have the time for that right now, and this sunny spot makes some nice compost for the garden. We will dig and turn it completely, very soon.

Bee homes waiting for me to make a decision on what kind of home they will have on the inside. And if I want to start up bees again this year. I had two seasons of success with bees, and three seasons not so. The first season I chalk up to ignorance, and that was one "not so" year. But the other years, I got wax moths, and unexplainable absence of bees.

A project in progress. I am building a PVC rabbit hutch. It will be portable, lightweight, rot resistant, and hopefully help prevent disease. My plan is to put worm bins underneath the rabbit cages, and to eventually have a regular rabbitry. If I could find a way to have them pay for themselves in fiber and droppings, along with the worms, I'd like to work up to 10 rabbits. A giant angora would be nice!

Today, after all that digging in the sun, we planted spinach, kale, arugula, black seeded simpson lettuce, some kind of kale, and peas. In the next couple of weeks, carrots and beets will go in.Then I'll buy some seedlings of various things and watch our garden grow!

Worms never lose their ability to fascinate. Wonder!

Look at those hard working children. They were joyful and willing slaves! This will be our basil bed when the peas are gone. Last year we had 8 basil plants here. I was lazy in the harvest, although I did harvest, I still had to supplement with basil from the farmer's market and we still ran out of pesto in November. We practically drink pesto. I can't wait!

That's the garden report! What a glorious day.

Homefront Journalism

Isn't that what blogging is? Tales from the Homefront? Well, for me, it is. I believe in Home. And Home right now is in a cleansing. Davis has been sick, and I have been home with him. He has a double ear infection, and a trip to the doctor yielded a homeopathic remedy, some echinacea and goldenseal, rosehip tea, vitamin A, and a prescription for antibiotics. So we are using everything we know to heal, including healthy foods.

In the meantime, I thought it would be fun to photodocument my knitting projects in progress, even though that's why Ravelry is there. 

Project number one:

.

 Still working on Milo. I had it mostly done and then had to rip back because it was too big, and because moths got to it

 A design of my own!!! Mmmmmmmohair.

 Having recently finished Serena's Tea Leaves, this one is mine, in plant dyed Henry's Attic. Another project that turned out to big and I just had to rip back.

 Cable Weave Pullover, for Chance. Putting it together slowly. Its progress has coincided with the progress of our marriage...fits and starts, and great swaths of disconnected time. A gaping hole and a long story.

 Not knitting, but if you read the Living Crafts blog, you will know that this is a symbol of my intention for the  year...to slow down, to breathe through, to take time. Living Crafts has been a nice surprise for me, for they keep liking my work and I have become a regular contributor. I love being a part of such a wonderful magazine!

 Ishbel in pink flake cotton. I like the nubby texture!

 Socks for my mom...almost done...organic cotton. They were supposed to be for Christmas.

Greenfield Cardigan in a yummy Malabrigo. However, I do not like the colorway so much so when I block it, I will add a step of overdyeing it in a more suitable color. I am thinking of a burnt yellow, something that moves toward orange, so that the greens will be browned up a bit. It's comforting to know that you can just throw something into the dyepot if you don't fully appreciate the color you chose to begin with!

And finally, the paperwhites are still in bloom. I planted bulbs yesterday and immediately wished I had kept them in the freezer since we are not being treated to a proper winter around here.

Looking at all those knitting projects, I realize it might seem a bit mad to the non-knitter, or people who are a lot more organized than me. I am convinced that to be a knitter in this day and age, one must be willing to go to certain extremes...complicated lace patterns, only wearing handmade things, a huge yarn or fabric stash, or whatever your extreme belief is. It's vital to creativity, is it not?

The key to realizing a dream is to focus not on success but on significance; and then even the small steps and little victories along your path will take on greater meaning... Oprah Winfrey

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!
may you blossom

and find delight

It's Advent Time!

Every year, I wonder what exactly to put  in our Advent calendar. There have been the normal candies, small  toys, stones, and once I found a tiny colored pencil set that actually fit inside the boxes.
This year, I am especially engaged. Having two children in the house who are of age enough to enjoy it is a tremendous motivation. The older girls? They will receive their advent gifts in the mail.
Here is my list of ideas:
-seeds
-pine cones
-walnut babies*
-small treasure pouches
-tickets to the Nutcracker
-small handmade animals or felt dolls*
-clues to search for objects that won't fit into the advent box
-candies
-recipes (I want to make pasta with them to give as gifts)
-buttons and small sewing kit
-wooden beads and string
-yarn balls and felt balls
-paper stars (here are good instructions, also this book)
-paper trees
-small note cards
-beeswax
-homemade quilted and painted ornaments*
-love letter
The starred items are things I hope to show you in the coming days. I should not put Walnut Babies on that list. I really can't give those to my kids because they know I make them! But I can show YOU :)
What goes in your Advent Calendar?

old news

Well, I've been away from here for awhile. I wish I could say it was because I was taking a spiritual respite, centering myself, becoming more aware and present, but that is not why. The truth is, I have been swept up in the life of a working mother, which feels fuller and busier than I would like most days. All those metaphors of juggling, irons in the fire, burning the candle at both ends, are incredibly apt.I imagined at various points in time that I would do a catching-up post, but that time was so long ago that the only thing to do now is forge ahead.
So perhaps it is time for me to come back to this space, not to add to my already-full plate, but to feel a sense of being present and grounded. I listened to this podcast awhile back and was really motivated to think in terms of what I cultivate in myself. Even in the craziness of my days, I can cultivate a sense of calm and joy, rather than be saddled with overwhelm and overstimulation and unanswered emails and unreturned phone calls and staying one step behind all the time. Maybe blogging again can help me focus on what I want to cultivate. No pressure, right? I feel rusty. I do want to connect with all the people who have been buying my yarn, who come to me through local galleries,or who otherwise offer their generous support of my art. It means so much to me. thank you!
In other news, BIG news, my son is on the cover of the current issue of Living Crafts. Can I just jump up and down and squeal for joy? Yes, my son, my dragon, my photograph. Go over there and have a peek.

And now, most evenings will find me taking a few minutes to dust off my piano-playing and reunite with beloved holiday songs. Of course, the children will join in and hopefully when the older girls are home we can work up some harmonies. Nothing enlivens a space, a mood, or a day more than real music...the fly-by-the-seat of your pants, amateur variety. Where you ignore the music and arpeggiate your way through.  Then there are the lists, made with love and anticipation of  making and giving. At school, we prepare for Santa Lucia, St.Nicholas Day, and our Winter spiral.  I love this time of year!