cachet

putting this blog to bed.

2011-09-08T10:28:00.000-04:00

my posting here has slowed way, way down on this ol' craft blog. i will always be making things--mostly now it's hoops. And much of what i do--writing, hooping and pole--is my craft that i don't feel compelled to blog at all.

and to be perfectly honest, i don't follow many blogs anymore. to be super duper honest, i get annoyed when i see the posses of bloggers and twitter-ers (one and the same) that seem to think exactly alike. if i've read one, i've read a thousand. i can't pick out their unique voices, because there doesn't seem to BE a unique voice.

i'm not interested in sponsorships, giveaways, book deals, getting listed on babble (not sure what that is) or getting paid to review products.

i don't want to blog daily. i don't want to tweet multiple times daily. so much of it feels all the same to me.

i want to go deeper. as much as i love the 'net (too much really), the time that i invest here takes time away from the things i really want to do. i don't want to feel that guilt. when i first started blogging my goal was to learn to knit. i tried really hard, and i gave up on it. it's not my thing.

i realize that when i started this i was trying to emulate an ideal. some of it's authentically me, some of it was not.

much of what i discovered is authentically me doesn't fit into the narrow description of 'craft blog' that i labelled this.

i have many opportunities converging on me at this very moment. letting this go opens me up even more, to so much!

i love my life. here's to creativity in ALL its incarnations, and to lives authentically lived.

the end.

Hooping for a Cure at Forest Park Sat. Aug. 13 and Festivale Sat. Aug. 20

2011-08-04T08:24:00.000-04:00

See details on my writing blog. If you're in or around Noblesville, I hope you can come!

From lips to landfill 364 days a year. One day isn't enough, Starbucks

2011-04-22T10:00:00.002-04:00

(so I got fired up this morning. this will be a column.)

The night before Earth Day I learned that Starbucks has a yearly campaign to give a free fill-up of coffee or tea to anyone who brings in their own reusable mug on Earth Day.

In the words of Shania Twain: that don’t impress me much.

It sounds good, at first. But a closer look and some critical thinking makes it obvious that Bucks isn’t as green as they claim, and in fact this is a great example of greenwashing, when a company tries to appear more eco-friendly than they really are.

Let’s start with the paper cups, which are bleached. Not good. Why doesn’t Bucks use unbleached cups? And if you think the paper cup is recyclable? Think again. Well, technically it is, since everything is recyclable, but right now? Nope.

The cup goes from your lips to the landfill. It’s got a plastic coating, making the recycling process much harder (and nixes its compostability.) Supply creates demand though, and if Starbucks collected the cups—numbering around three billion a YEAR—recycling centers would respond.

And? There are compostable paper cups in green coffee shops RIGHT NOW…but not in Starbucks.

Coffee shops truly trying to be green will—first and foremost—promote reusable mugs and cups. Do Starbucks employees ever ask ‘for here or to go?’ and serve ‘for here’ customers drinks in ceramic mugs?

I’ve never seen that happen.

Bucks also touts on their website that they give 10 cents off customers drinks when they bring their own mug. Even though ten cents is lame, how many people know about the ten cents off? If Bucks really wants to make an environmental change, where are the signs reminding customers to bring their reusable mug or to get their drink in a ‘for here’ mug?

Admittedly, I rarely step inside a Starbucks, but I’ve never seen such a sign.

Clearly, paper throwaway cups are the standard, which is totally backwards. And if you do bring your own mug, baristas often forget that you did and put your drink in a paper cup anyway. Or, they measure your Cinnamon Dolce in a paper cup before pouring into your reusable cup. Both defeat the purpose. Palm to forehead.

Back to Earth Day and the Starbucks free drink promo. Seems like a way to get all warm and fuzzy, like you’re actually helping the Earth by driving to Bucks for a free cup of Joe. It’s a good gimmick, but little more than that.

earth day giveaway: bling, string and spring

2011-04-19T07:40:00.000-04:00

I love this divine twine! For an Earth day giveaway that includes these ten colors, a necklace, and a cute reusable bag, The Green Bag Lady is giving away ten of these sets. Check it out here.

yet MORE hoop silliness

2011-04-13T10:02:00.000-04:00

what can i say? i'm obsessed with hoops, and think these comments are pretty funny. and i've been a lame blogger lately, so this is from awhile ago.

so i've ventured into the realm of skinny jeans. wow--what took me so long? i love them!

Ernie: we used to call those "peg leg jeans" way way way back when. this generation didn't invent them. they renamed them. anyway...i'm sure i speak for everyone when i say "can't wait to see the skinny jean lady hoopin' while grillin video'".

Krista: Ernie, ok, i tried hooping at the stove. i think i could grill, except there isn't enough space on the sides--i keep hitting the fridge on the left & the counter on the right...

Ernie: see krista...it's efforts like that one that will have you mayor of noblesville in no time. keep workin' on those great goals. rob can we roll vid next time this happens? youtube crowd always waiting for the next big clip to go viral :)

Krista: well, i'll let rob know. he just got a new video camera and i'm sure he'll go for it. i suppose soon there'll be a clip up on youtube. my efforts will pay off, we both know it!

Ernie: i see a book deal. a reality show for sure. get with jane on an agent. sounds like your hooping revolution is kicking into high gear. or should i say "hooping" into high gear.

And Then, A Hoop Party:
Ernie: you'll be hooping krista? it looks like in that picture that someone's hooping thru flame balls. will there be monkey's riding bareback on those little mini horses?

Krista: Dontcha know that I'll be doing a fire hooping demo, Ernie?! (well, ok, maybe not Sat. night but it's a goal. i always did want to be part of a circus....)

Ernie: the circus and circus lifestyle is who we are krista. nothing wrong with embracing our gypsy souls. in fact....i find that hooping seems to bring out the circus in all of us. perhaps we should come up with a "hooper" coffee table photo book. pictures of people hooping.

Krista: yes, i am nothing if not a gypsy soul. a hooper book sounds so lovely. perhaps you'd like to take pics sat. night (unless you'll be riding the bull at the 8 second saloon or something)

Ernie: i'll be there. we'll get some pics of the master at work. display the images up on FB for all to see. great idea!

Ernie: you know...a pic of someone riding that bull while hooping would be ubber cool.

Krista: i'll be one of the amateurs there for sure.
yes, it would, that'd be a great shot for the book.

Ernie: krista you're a stealth hooper. i know you'll show up the big money making pro hoopers saturday. i want to see everybody out there cheering for our next mayor, and master hooper hippie chick K.B.!! (you throw initials out there and that really gets the crowd going

Ernie: rob...can you work on lighting? jane...i'll need video at all corners of the gym. who's the MC of the event K.B.?

Ernie: I forgot about the fog machine...ROB...can you handle that. we'll need the laser lights and fog sync'd up for krista's performance. who needs a job?

Rob: There will be a haze rollin baby but that ain't fog! Haha! (not really).

Ernie: are there refreshments at this deal saturday night krista? is it byob or byow? rob i think that fog machine is busted from the last time we used it with the ass monkeys.

Krista: No booze at boys & girls club unfortunately...

Rob: Those posers ate all the mini muffins & pizza rolls, too.

Ernie: that's exactly what i was thinking. whiplash wannabees.

hoop silliness part 3

2011-03-11T15:21:00.000-04:00

more facebook hoopy stuff. i just think this is humorous. doesn't really have much to do with anything, but i have funny friends. and i can't cook, which makes for funny facebook status updates, too...

status update: Two years ago this month, having never touched a 'real' hoop, I bought my first 100 foot coil of irrigation tubing and made my first one (of about a hundred now). I've been addicted ever since. Happy hoopiversary to me.
Ernie: nobody question the lady with the hoop. just do what she says. and we'll all live hoopily ever after. i hope all of your hoopin' friends are happy with the little hoopaverse they've helped you create. new sign going up as you enter into noblesville "welcome to the hooping capitol of the world". krista you should sell that as a reality show..."hoopville u.s.a." run with it. or should i say "hoop with it". you're taking notes i hope?

Krista: hell yeah, ernie. hanging on to your every word! seriously. lynn and i have talked about the ville being the next hooping mecca, you know...

Ernie: ‎"hippie hoopers have more hoopin' fun". run with it :)

status update: so last week i messed up the grilled cheese, this week it's pancakes (b-fast for dinner). i just.can't.get.it. what a mess!

Ernie: you didn't hoop today did you?

Krista: No...how did you know?!

Ernie: haven't you heard? your brain works better when you hoop at least 20 minutes a day. at least that's what i heard :)

Krista: Oh I get it. You're a closet hooper. You are!! So hooping will make me able to cook?

Ernie: sure. it fixes everything. it's magical. there's this hippie-chick in town who hoops all the time. i hear she's running for mayor. it's what i heard.

Brandon: You aren't hooping while cooking are you?

Ernie: exactly. who would do that. hoop and cook. that's like driving and texting. dangerous.

Krista: Sweet. I'll hoop before I cook next & it'll work out! Sage advice. Wait. We had this combo last week. If I hoop and cook I'll get on Ellen!

Krista : Gee ern. You'd never txt and drive:)

Ernie: i heard if everyone in china were to hoop at the same time...there would be so much force...we'd be pushed straight towards the sun. it's what i heard.

Krista: Omg. Lol.
Ernie: i know. it's what i heard.

Krista: I gotta know your sources.

Ernie: i was hooping the other day...and i was on the internet...cooking a grilled cheese....then i slipped and fell down the stairs...

Krista: While cooking?! So hooping didn't help you?

Ernie: they tasted pretty good to me. i wasn't cooking the hoop krista...i was cooking the grilled cheese. geesh.

Krista: Umm ok. Lol. That's a funny mental image. K, time to eat the pancakes. Mmm

Jane: I like to cook salmon patties while wearing my new socks knitted from locally grown alpaca fibers while hooping. Btw, only the socks. It's a good thing ...
Rob: I knew I wasn't the only one.

Jane: We should all get together!

Krista: Omg. That's so awesomely funny. I feel outdone. I haven't done that either. Did you knit them yourself ??

Jane: My sister-in-law in Maine is responsible for the socks. (Matching scarf and fingerless gloves rule too!)

Krista:That's great. Did I tell you I went thru a knitting phase? That didn't go well either!

Brenda: Nearly 40 years of cooking and I can't make a pancake. chuck gave me a lesson on flipping. I was a changed woman.

my new 'office'

2011-03-09T17:40:00.001-04:00

Last week, in a week of heavy writing deadlines and other such things, i got this wild and crazy idea that i needed an office. right now. let me back up--we've never had the space to dedicate to an offic or anything, so a desk has always been in our bedroom (didn't like) or in our dining room (didn't like that, either).

i decided that i would move the desk into what was Lily's room, and then Calvin's room (though it was still pink and purple) and that Calvin would be happy sleeping upstairs 'with the big kids.' then we'd all be happy, right? oh, i tried it almost a year ago! Fail!

i bought the paint the next day--picking colors that surprised me even (hello--brown??), and started painting.

in the midst of this i'm still working like crazy on writing deadlines and did i mention, we're switching from a pc to a mac? i guess i know that i work better under pressure, so i was on fire.

today i got the finishing touch, a rug, so it's pretty much done aside from some finishing quarter round that may or may not get done this year. here we go....

Before:

one end of the room

the other end. what a mess!

getting prepped to paint

computer desk in the dining room

After:

the 'office' side

the playroom side

my music and files and some books, etc.

one of my favorite quotes, "here's to the crazy ones"

Yay, I feel like a pro now!

hoop silliness part 2

2011-02-21T09:13:00.001-04:00

another installment:
from Stacy : I feel like my friend @Krista Bocko . First, I used my hoola hoop this morning and just now, I went to take the recycling out. The recycling bin is packed full and my trash can is almost empty! Can I be an honorary hippie, Krista?

Krista: yes, Stacy, I grant you honorary hoopy hippie-ness! thanks for the smile. mother earth thanks you, too. :)

Ernie: look at this would you? everybody following in behind krista. don't you see...she's using the "hippie-chick" status as a front for her "hooping cult". i just hope everybody wakes up and see's what 's really happening here before she molds a golden hoop for the commune. can't say i didn't warn you :) you're good krista. crafty.

Stacy : Where's my kool-aid?

Krista: ernie--you're making my sides and cheeks hurt from laughing. these posts of yours...classic and hilarious. golden hoop for the commune! (can you picture me with tears rolling down my cheeks from laughing?) what's j gotta say?

Jill : what's wrong with Birks?

Jill : I'm trying to muster up the energy to take my christmas tree to the recycling place

Krista: nothing wrong w/ birks...just not my style. :) (i do like my leather boots you know)

you can do it jill! this is what i say--if you mustered the energy to go GET the tree, you can surely muster the energy to return it to the earth. :)

Jill : I had helpers to get the tree, now I have to drag little kids around with me and do it myself. I'm grumbling, but I'll do it for you.

Krista: ha ha! you'll feel so much better knowing your tree will live on in the form of mulch, i know it! you have time--put it in your yard for now. that's what we'll do probably!

Ernie: krista judging from your" hoop it up" culture and "save the planet" following...you could probably run a "conservation for a better noblesville" platform to become the next mayor. great...who gave her that idea? go ahead hoop heads...keep feeding her ego. next thing you know she'll be hooping on the front lawn of the white house.

Krista: IF i'm not mistaken, ern, we've talked politics, yeah? maybe YOU gave me that idea! ok, so now my sights are set on the white house. i hear michelle obama is a hooper. she's drunk the koolaid. we can hoop together.

Ernie : well if your drinking kool-aid why not hoop to boot. hoop with your boots. hoop bootn mama. i'm thinking out loud of catch phrases for your campaign for mayor.

Krista: is there still time to run in the primaries against ditslear & white? i'll need a campaign manager. and a spokesperson.

Stacy : I have your campaign slogan: "Hoopers shoot from the hip!"

Ernie : how about "hoopers work harder to spin circles around your sorry a**". lol

Sarah : Our recycling is always overflowing, and we usually have one little bag of "real trash" in the trash can. And if I lived in Noblesville, I would totally vote for you for mayor!

Krista : wow...this is so fun. love both the slogans. i may have to go with the second one though, as i tend to gravitate toward 'bad' words. and isn't it SO true? Lol

Krista: heck ya, sarah! see--that's what i've written about. we have these gigantic trash bins almost twice the size of recycling. wth?

Jill : I did it!! Mayor Krista, they were very nice at Greencycle and even gave me popcorn for the kids in the car. :)

Jane : You could have billboards with you hooping while making grilled cheese. Oh and recycling.

Stacy : And making homemade health & beauty aids!

Krista: LOLOL. I can see it now!! (really. i can)

my seaglass ring

2011-02-18T16:04:00.000-04:00

Custom made by Buffalo Lucy from this beautiful piece of sea glass I found on the Maine seacoast once upon a time. I've wanted a seaglass ring for years and I am so thrilled!

I open the box and my immediate thought is: "I hope this bubblewrap has been recycled."

...then I see this note and it makes me smile. Let's hear it for the eco-freaks!

cute box!

and there it is, isn't it lovely?

See more pics from Buffalo Lucy here, you can also see the lettering on the glass in one of the photos.

cachet makes a hoop

2011-02-17T22:56:00.000-04:00

I have made probably close to a hundred hoops now, i figured it was time to document it...

First, I picked up a lovely, compact coil of 100' 160 psi 3/4" irrigation pipe (in aisle 12 of my) Lowe's, along with a pack of 3/4" connectors.

You cut the tape and all hell breaks loose--it springs in all directions.

The custom hoop request is for a 40" hoop, so tape measure is handy.

I locate one end of the pipe and feel my way around to the spot I need to cut (which ends up being somewhere in the middle of the coil--there's no rhyme or reason). I measure what I think (hope) is a 40" circle.

This tool is awesome--ratcheting cutters. Cut through the pipe.

Oh, and i've boiled water and poured into the sink, because now I need to soften the ends to put it together.

This hooper wants a half of a cup of water in her hoop, so I pour that in...

Put the connector in

And push it together. Voila! As it cools, it tightens up and won't come apart or leak.

I measure--whew--40"

Tape the connected seam for extra security.

And the fun part--picking colors. I'll use a sparkly tape, electrical tape, and gaffer's tape (for stick).

This will be awesome I think.

I forgot to take a picture of this part--argh--but I put the sparkle tape on first, angling it just right so that I can then lay down the electrical and last, the gaffe tape. It's a little tricky, this part, to get it smooth and even and pretty.

And here she is--pretty!

I hooped a bit with it, the water makes for an interesting hoop. You can feel it swishing and shifting and it definitely adds a bit of weight. I hope this hooper loves it!

refashioning a dress into a tunic

2011-02-16T17:46:00.001-04:00

These aren't great pics, but you do what you can!

2 things inspired this sewing project--one--I've been wanting a tunic top to wear with my skinny jeans, and two--I kind of went on a new clothes shopping spree lately and so I didn't want to purchase anything else 'new'--I wanted to either find one used or make one out of something I already had. I found a black jersey knit dress in my closet that I've had for 2.5 years and worn maybe once. Why did I buy it? I have no idea, I don't wear dresses.

After I started cutting into it, I thought I should have taken a 'before' pic. Oh well.

Basically I cut the bodice off, recontructed parts of the dress into a kind of flowy top, and used an old black sweater belt I found in my closet to cinch it up at the waist. I sewed panels in the sides of the previously fitted bodice top, sewed rectangles (cut out of the skirt) at the bottom of the bodice part front and back as sort of 'panels', and cut off the three quarters sleeves and made a little cut in the tops of them.

I think it turned out pretty cute.

crosspost from my other blog--heirloom garden seeds

2011-02-15T12:47:00.000-04:00

I posted this Current column last March, and since it's already time again to plan gardens, now's the time to revisit the seed issue. Heirloom seeds are important to me, as is supporting local businesses, so I plan to buy my Botanical Interest seeds again from Allisonville Nursery. Almost time to rig up the grow-light in the basement again and coax the seeds into seedlings!

reusable bag WINNERS!

2011-02-14T10:07:00.000-04:00

We drew names and here are the two winners!

Alright-we have two winners! Congrats, Eva (black cotton bag) and ecclaire (lemongrass bamboo bag)! Eva, I don't have your email address, please get in touch with me in the next few days.

I'm sure you all were waiting with bated breath--hee!--but I got sucked in to the Grammy's last night, for about 45 minutes tops, before I fell asleep. Interesting, is all I have to say.

I will mail these out this week!

new haircut & facebook hoop silliness installment 1

2011-02-13T14:48:00.001-04:00

I've always had what I guess I'd describe as 'problem' hair. Too much of it, too curly in an unruly sort of way to look good without straightening, too hard to deal with. I never went to the same stylist twice, always hoping for a miracle when I went in and walking out disappointed. As it turns out, I needed to find both a cut and a stylist that worked for me. I've been getting some variation of this haircut for a few years now (and going to the same stylist) and am pretty happy with it. I'd been waffling on trying to grow my hair out but, as evidenced above decided to go with the short stacked layers in the back again. I just love how it looks, and I love keeping some longer layers around my face.

I've been having some hilarious facebook convos with my friends--specifically with Ernie. Let's start at the beginning, because, make no mistake, I definitely saved these convos as blog fodder. They are too good to be forgotten! I'll be posting them in installments.

Early January:
Status: ohhh yeah! what we've been waiting for! hoopers (any level)--check it out--classes in the 'ville with the fabulous Lynn! Starting tues. 1/11--4 week sessions.
Ernie: oh sure it's just a fun little hoop craze. people gather in masses to hoop with each other. until one day they've got grape kool-aid for everyone to drink. i'm not buying it :)

Krista: Ernie, we were thinking cherry koolaid, but grape will work! ha!

Audrey: Since I have never hooped, I'm a little with Ernie on this one! Ha!

Krista: C'mon Audrey-ya don't know what you're missing :) oh, there will be a party sat. night, anyone 'on the fence' can come see and try if they want.

Krista: er..i'm getting events mixed up...the party is sat. 1/22

Ernie: Y'all are falling for it. Charles manson's a hooper I hear.

Ernie: Classic pied piper move. Stay strong audrey

Krista : ernie-shh! hoopers are gonna rule the world. hell yeah. hoopin revolution!

Heather: All I needed to hear was Kool-Aid....... I might be in!

Ernie: they start talking about a fund raiser to Guyana and that's your cue to bail. that or they bring in a golden hoop and ask for donations. ask questions and stay thirsty my friend,

Krista: omg Ernie--you're cracking me up! golden hoop....! LOLOL

A few days later--

Status: Just burned the hell out of the grilled cheese. Why can't I get this timing thing down?!

Katie: Damn woman, where did u learn to cook? ;-)

Krista: Katie--I'm sure my sister Katie could chime in here on my cooking disasters! I don't remember if you were privy to any of them.

Stacy: some of us just aren't cut out to be gourmet chefs.

Katie: No sorry sweety, the only thing you made for me was a bag of doritos and our morning cereal! Lol best doggone cereal I ever ate!

Ernie: maybe you should try hooping while grilling.

Krista: Katie--omg, i really fixed you cereal? the doritos...yeah, i remember those. good lord, we ate so many of those! xoxo

Krista: Ernie--that's a good one. yes, i should try it! how will i get close enough to the stove though?

Ernie: I don't know. But if you do that...hoop and grill...have rob shoot a video. It'll go viral on youtube

Krista: Next thing ya know, I'll be on Ellen!

Ernie: You make the video and let the hoopn FB friends do the rest. Who here wants to see the queen of hooping on ellen? Bet we get u in L.A. by end of next week.

Krista: Lol! I want to go to LA! grilled cheese and hoopn will take me there! Can any radio dj's promote?!? :)

Ernie: U don't need any jackass dj to help. All you need is the video on youtube and your Fb friends. You need me to shoot the video? My research team will get with u and rob tomorrow

Krista: Geez-I'm laughing so hard. Yeah - have your people get with mine, k?

So, I don't know if this translates well, or if only we think it's funny...but anyway, I love it. There is more to come, fo' sho. :)

reusable bag GIVEAWAY!

2011-02-06T09:18:00.001-04:00

This week I read an article on this IN House Bill that would charge 10 cents per plastic bag. I'm thinking 10 cents isn't enough but it's way better than FREE and UNLIMITED and WASTEFUL bag usage, and it's about time to start charging, or better yet, ban them all together like SF has done. To the outcries of 'how will I carry my STUFF?' (probably not from readers of this blog, but I know we all know people who would say that), you do what people did before plastic bags--bring your own. Hello. Our local library stopped offering plastic bags over a year ago, people seem to have adapted. You go into Aldi's, you pay for your bags or bring your own. You go into Costco? No free bags there, either.

I just ordered some awesome bags from reuseit, a great online store for all things reusable. I'm giving away two bags--
This recycled cotton bag that's AWESOME for groceries,

and this bamboo tote bag--great for the library!

If you want a chance to win one of these bags, just enter in the comments section. I'll close the comments and pick a winner (edit--TWO winners!) next Sunday 2/13 at 7pm. Good Luck!

ps--be sure y'all give me your emails when you comment (or check back) so that i can get in touch w/ you if you win!

okay, okay....comin' back around

2011-02-02T14:53:00.000-04:00

Hello, February! Hello, neglected blog! Hello, a few minutes of peace and quiet, because we're digging out of 'icepocalypse' or whatever and have been stuck at home for nearly 2 days. But the roads are pretty decent now, so I took the kids over to my friends for a few hours so I can start to catch up on some writing deadlines (gosh, I don't know, writing just does NOT happen well here with kids around...).

So, I'm taking just a few minutes to center and then will dig in to writing, but I wanted to post my friend Mindi's blog, because she's one helluva crafter and a cool hippie chick (btw Mindi, I made my last batch of deodorant and put it in an old Tom's of Maine stick and loooove it). Mindi and I met via the Current, and so did most of the 'wolves' (our Women Who Run With the Wolves bookclub) which is all sorts of awesome.

So, I'm gonna be planning this year's (I'm not a) dirty hippie parties this weekend, please comment with any sort of body care/home care item you'd like to make, even if you're not local!

I'll be posting some hooping pics here soon, too, because I just attended an awesome HoopPath workshop and friends Ernie and Aaron were there and took some photos at the party. (LED hoops are mesmerizing, btw, I want one!)

Spring is around the corner, too, I love February. Almost time for sowing seeds inside!

the realm of skinny jeans, and the boot saga ends...for now

2011-01-13T09:03:00.001-04:00

last night i did it. i bought some skinny jeans (my teenage daughter rolls her eyes a little, i think. it's HER territory after all!). wow, how did i go so long without them? they're so comfortable and look so good with my new black boots. the boot saga is over. but i'll back up--a bunch of years ago (7 I think) i picked up an awesome pair of (vinyl) black heeled boots, i don't even remember where, for probably around $30. i loved them. they fit like a dream, looked awesome, had a square toe and chunky heel, and were 'clicky' when i walked. i love clicky's.

then this year the vinyl started splitting and peelin around the zipper. i've still worn them, it's pretty hidden under my regular boot cut jeans, but i started looking for replacement boots.

i was in for a long haul. i couldn't find any like THAT. i wanted leather, but would be ok with vinyl, i just wanted something like those. i searched stores. i searched online. i searched ebay. i ended up buying THREE pairs of boots on ebay that i thought would work. none did (and now i have three pairs to re-sell). i bought a pair of as-close-as-i-can-come-to-what-i-want boots at DSW....BUT no clicky heels. that bugged me.

then i searched zappos again and found these. I got them yesterday and pretty much love them. they're as close as i'm gonna get to my old boots. if the heel was a little chunkier and they had zippers (i didn't realize they were stretch pull-ons) i'd be ecstatic. but i'm at least very, very happy! so then i was thinking--skinny jeans! why have i never? took the daughter to old navy and found some clearanced for 8.99 each. we each got 2 pairs. sweet!

writing

2011-01-01T20:02:00.000-04:00

Although not in the January print issue, the Parenting 101 features I wrote for Indy's Child and Cincinnati Parent are online (same article, but different quotes for each market). This is my official debut for another writing venue and I look forward to other writing opportunities for 2011.

I have a couple of blog posts from december to blog about, coming soon. I have some writing deadlines that I should do first!

Just Delicate Needles

2010-12-21T08:46:00.002-04:00

Just Delicate Needles

It's so delicate, the light.

And there's so little of it. The dark

is huge.

Just delicate needles, the light,

in an endless night.

And it has such a long way to go

through such desolate space.

So let's be gentle with it.

Cherish it.

So it will come again in the morning.

We hope.

--by Rolf Jacobsen

Translated by Robert Hedin

Happy Winter Solstice! Tonight will find me drinking Swedish Glogg and singing carols and reading books like The Longest Night to the children. I'm not really sure how that will go, with the glogg and all, but we'll see. We are VERY excited. We'll also be decorating a Solstice Tree outside with bagels dipped in peanut butter and birdseed, and exchanging homemade presents. And then the children will crash, and the moms will too. I just love my homebirthin' hippie friends that I can share these things with. Makes me VERY happy. We get so damn giddy about it. And there is snow on the ground, making it even more special.

Oh, and in case I remember to look back next December, let this be a reminder to maybe get the Christmas Tree sooner than six days before Christmas?

vintage krista and 'i'm just a dork with a camera'

2010-12-18T18:29:00.001-04:00

So i picked up a handful of vintage photos of me when I was down in the basement supposed to be getting out christmas decorations. it's high time these surface on the 'net, isn't it?! Lily wears the nightgown that I have on in the photo just above. Wild.

I just got back from a 3 mile run. It's 23, 15 windchill. I felt like cursing the whole way, i'm sure i muttered several curse words, but in the end i'm always glad i went. very grateful for my little ipod that helps get me through it.

so, this is me, pre-run. no idea why i took these.

One of the most beautiful songs ever

2010-12-11T20:43:00.002-04:00

I recently found out about this song, Snow on the Sahara, by Anggun. I heard the french version first, then when I searched youtube to see who Anggun is, I saw the english version. What's amazing is, even though Anggun is huge in Europe, this song came out in 1998. I could have had this song in my life for 12 years now, and i've only just heard it.

Every time I have a new song obsession, I think, wow! I've heard it all now. how can it get any better than this? And yet it does. We'll never come to the end of great and inspiring and gorgeous music. Wow.

Snow on the Sahara lyrics
Only tell me that you still want me here
When you wander off out there
To those hills of dust and hard winds that blow
In that dry white ocean alone
Lost out in the desert
You are lost out in the desert
But to stand with you in a ring of fire
I'll forget the days gone by
I'll protect your body and guard your soul
From mirages in your sight
Lost out in the desert

If your hopes scatter like the dust across your track
I'll be the moon that shines on your path
The sun may blind our eyes, I'll pray the skies above
For snow to fall on the Sahara
If that's the only place where you can leave your doubts
I'll hold you up and be your way out
And if we burn away,
I'll pray the skies above for snow to fall on the Sahara

Just a wish and I will cover your shoulders
With veils of silk and gold
When the shadows come and darken your heart
Leaving you with regrets so cold
Lost out in the desert

If your hopes scatter like the dust across your track
I'll be the moon that shines on your path
The sun may blind our eyes, I'll pray the skies above
For snow to fall on the Sahara
If that's the only place where you can leave your doubts
I'll hold you up and be your way out
And if we burn away,
I'll pray the skies above for snow to fall on the Sahara

messing around w/ my camera

2010-11-26T22:06:00.000-04:00

I spent some time reflecting (ha ha) with my camera today. Gee, this is just like the post I made 6 months ago! I hate to say I am no farther along. I haven't put in the time, honestly, and I'm still intimidated and I have this mental block. It's like me + math I guess...I feel like I just can't 'get it.' Luckily I have a couple of photographer friends that have offered me some tutorials. So...I hope to make some major progress in the coming year.

Night Air

2010-11-25T08:24:00.002-04:00

I was introduced to an amazing song this week: Night Air by Jamie Woon. I was so captivated by it that of COURSE I had to hoop to it. A lyric search turned up these lyrics (posted on someone's blog, the song is pretty new).

Night Air

Night air has the strangest flavor

Space to breathe and time to savor

All that night air has to lend me

Till the morning makes me angry

In the night air

The night air

I've acquired a kind of madness

Daylight fills my heart with sadness

Only silent skies can soothe me

Feel that night air flowing through me

In the night air

The night air

I don't need those car crash colors

I control the skies above us

Close my eyes to make the night fall

Comfort of a world revolving

I can hear the earth in orbit

In the night air

The night air

I've acquired a taste for silence

Darkness fills my heart with calmness

And each thought like a thief is driven

To steal the night air from the heavens

In the night air

The night air

Here is the hooping video I made to this song

the yellow leaves stretch out like a canopy.

2010-11-10T16:14:00.000-04:00

I love this tree. These leaves. This time of year. Gorgeous.

This is my song obsession du jour: Dog Days Are Over, Florence + the Machines

hoops up in my etsy shop, for the locals...

2010-10-30T20:56:00.000-04:00

If you live in the greater Indy area, I put some pretty and shiny new hoops up for sale:

Check them out here.

Be an Aunt Edna

2010-10-13T07:48:00.002-04:00

Saw on facebook this morning a lovely quote from the page of one of my favorite authors, Clarissa Pinkola Estes.

"Dear Brave Souls: The world is yours. Be, if you like, the one who stands out. The one who goes where others do not. The one in the picture to be circled in red as "not likely to be found here." Like any Aunt Edna. Anywhere. Any time."
--CPE

This is what I aspire to.

Autumn Equinox and Harvest Moon Celebration

2010-09-25T09:48:00.000-04:00

My friend Michelle took most of these photos, though I took the ones of her and Joni hooping. I need to work on my camera skills. We had a glorious evening--truly. We ate autumn foods (the edible gifts of the Three Sisters)--beans, corn, and squash, hooped under the rising harvest moon, had music and wine...the kids played and played, and we made corn husk dolls. Beautiful.

Happy Autumn Equinox and Harvest Moon...and hoops

2010-09-23T15:02:00.000-04:00

I've been makin' and tapin' hoops for the Potter's Bridge Festival coming up Oct. 2nd. Tonight we're celebrating the equinox and harvest moon with friends. We'll definitely hoop! I wrote a column about it here.

my tomatoes...

2010-09-17T19:40:00.000-04:00

so here are some pics of the tomatoes I so lovingly grew from seed this year. They did so, so well, especially in this drought (and I haven't watered them, either. I'm a lazy gardener!). I love my little garden.

reusable bag giveaway!!

2010-09-16T21:29:00.000-04:00

Psst--all you treehuggers out there. My latest column is about avoiding those ubiquitous plastic bags, and I'm giving away a cute little reusable bag . Enter to win here.

more hoopsession!

2010-09-07T13:35:00.002-04:00

right now it's hooping...

2010-08-31T20:24:00.000-04:00

I've found that I can only go in so many directions at once. I might be on a sewing kick, or (once upon a time) a knitting kick, or a house project kick, or this or that...right now it's hooping. In a big way. I'm making hoops too, for a fall festival where Cachet Hoops will be a vendor! Lots of exciting hoop stuff going on, more to come...

harvest.

2010-08-23T11:44:00.000-04:00

We went out this morning and picked and dug in the earth. We came up with tomatoes, almost all are heirloom and of course organic, potatoes, carrots, and beets. There are four beautiful pumpkins on the vine turning orange. Today I'm going to be freezing some of these tomatoes, and next year I want to have it together enough to can. Nothing better than eating homegrown produce in the wintertime.

And now I need to eat a toasted tomato sandwich.

helping fellow humans in need

2010-08-20T08:09:00.001-04:00

I’m a huge champion of local foods, supporting small, local farmers, and of community and helping each other out. If you are too, here’s a chance to make a difference in the lives of some local farmers who are in need of help.
Slow Food Indy is the central Indiana chapter of Slow Food International (an organization that counteracts our fast food nation) and is raising funds to help local farmers Kelly Funk and John Ferree of Seldom Seen Farms, a vegetable, herb and flower farm located east of Danville. Kelly was working in the fields on July 8 and was tragically struck by lightening. She survived, and is now in a long term acute care facility in Indianapolis. Her recovery will be long and slow, and so much isn’t known yet about the extent of her injuries. She and her husband have a one year old daughter, Laila.

Now the community is coming together to raise funds for the long and expensive road ahead, as well as to volunteer to work on their farm. Slow Food Indy is hosting a benefit dinner for the family on August 22nd at Apple Farm in McCordsville. To find out more information on the dinner and how to purchase tickets, as well as how to donate online to Kelly Funk’s recovery fund, visit http://www.slowfoodindy.com/ or http://www.seldomseenfarm.com/. There you can also find links to the blog with updates on her recovery, as well a link to their facebook page. While you’re at it, http://www.goinglocal-info.com/ is another resource to be connected with local food producers and artisans to find fresh, local and in-season foods, as well as information on CSA’s (Community Supported Agriculture). There’s a whole world of community revolving around food, and it’s worth seeking out. Many prayers for Kelly’s recovery.

i sew capri suns, and, in the garden, verbena bonariensis

2010-08-13T09:28:00.001-04:00

I ventured out into the world of sewing capri suns this week--easy and fun! We've been hanging on to these and cut the tops off just enough to open and rinse them. Then I got 9 in. zippers and we made pencil pouches.

First I sewed 2 capri suns together with the tops facing each other, repeated, and then sewed the zipper in the middle. Perfect!

Then I folded in half and sewed the 3 sides closed. This all took maybe 5 minutes.

Voila!

I made 2--one for Grace and one for Eric. They LOVE them. I'm sure I'll make more. They're nice and crinkly too. I plan to sew some larger bags at some point, and am working on a lunch bag for Grace. Grace wove a pop can tab belt and it's a hit. Her friends and classmates think it's pretty cool. Love recycling, especially making something funky and fun.

So this is not a great pic, but I have this awesome verbena bonariensis growing in my front flower beds. I love it so much. I must have planted one at some point (I can hardly remember year to year) and now it's reseeding. It's so light and airy. My flower beds are going crazy, and it's been so hot I don't like working out there. But I need to suck it up, because the weeds are taking over.

a sweet couple

2010-08-07T06:16:00.001-04:00

Last evening I took the kids for a walk downtown--it was First Friday/Jazz on the Square, and we hit Alexander's for ice cream cones, then walked down to Seminary Park for Shakespeare in the Park. While we were there, who else but Mr. Arbuckle of Arbuckle's Railroad Place, and his wife ride up on their bikes. I discovered Arbuckle's RR Place shortly after we moved to this town when my (then) neighbor Sarah told me about it. It's billed as 'the greatest fabric show on earth'. Mr. Arbuckle fixes sewing machines (and vacuums). I've taken my girl in there to be fixed, and wondered what I will do when Mr. Arbuckle isn't there anymore. And what will happen to the place? It's a very cool old RR station, I hope something wonderful is done with it in the future.

Anyway, when they rode up, I asked to take their picture. I only had my camera phone (SO bizarre, a 'camera phone') so the quality isn't great, but I'm glad I had it. So here is the couple, watching Shakespeare in the park.

wednesday rewind

2010-08-04T07:51:00.000-04:00

It's fun to occassionally re-read posts I made last year in the month we're in. I just happened to blog exactly one year ago today about dining al fresco. We ate outside twice yesterday--it's one of the best things about summer. I have visions, when the kids are a little older, of walking downtown to Matteo's with Rob and dining outside there, they have wonderful seating on the sidewalk. Rob is going to Matteo's today actually for a lunch meeting. Mmmm.

Here's to more al fresco dining this summer!

Land's End Hooping

2010-07-29T15:04:00.001-04:00

Land's End Hooping

This photo of me hooping on the Maine Seacoast was published on hooping.org today! And, my hoopin' friend is moving right near me! She teaches hoop classes and I can't wait to partner with her to bring more hoopin' love to Noblesville (plus I can pick her brain about tricks...)

blissful summer days

2010-07-28T08:42:00.000-04:00

It's been a great summer and we'll continue to celebrate it for as long as possible. i'm writing about our trip to the Jack Johnson concert, it will publish in the paper and on my writing blog next Tuesday, then the following week about our Summer Soiree.

Here's some of what we've been up to:

We made homemade playdough, which is the BEST. We our batch with natural dyes--one with beet juice, one with blueberry juice. Cool!

On a lazy Sunday we walked downtown and had a treat at Alexanders Ice Cream...

And stood on the vent eating it. In the pink leotard and tutu!

The kids picked flowers and let them go fly over the vent.

We also saw Jack Johnson Friday, and had our Summer Soiree Saturday. A beautiful weekend!

the 'hippies cook with herbs' party

2010-07-22T09:48:00.000-04:00

As a change from our 'I'm not a dirty hippie' monthly parties, my friend Cortney offered to do a cooking demo with fresh herbs and lots of fresh garden produce. It was so very good, and very fun.

OK, I love this. Cortney brought her own Compost container. This is the mark of a kindred spirit! I love how she wrote 'compost' on both sides--to prevent children (and adults I suppose!) from snacking out of it.

Also, the next evening I had my bookclub meeting and we met at my new friend Linda's, who only lives a few blocks from me (so nice to be able to walk to friend's houses). I was amazed by Linda's house and yard--which in 2 years she's changed into a beautiful, beautiful garden. And then...in her house as you go through the kitchen into the dining room, there is a small room that you walk through. It could be used as a little office or similar, it's a small cozy space, and Linda has made it her yoga room. And as if THAT'S not enough, she has written quotes all over the walls in silver paint pen. Hey! I said, Me too! She is another kindred spirit. I love it.

calvin is TWO!

2010-07-20T15:40:00.000-04:00

I woke up this morning at 2:30 and thought of Calvin. He officially turned two at 1:30-ish this morning. Two years ago he was born here, right here just feet away from where I sit. I still feel so amazed and grateful for another homebirth and it was oh, so beautiful. I tear up just thinking about it. My first post to this blog here was his birth story!

I wore Calvin today in the Ergo. He asks to wear his bike helmet...just like the big kids (who are, of course, riding their bikes, not riding on my back). He's also got his doll I made him, little Calvie. I love this boy SO much!!

rummage sale finds and bricks

2010-07-16T15:44:00.002-04:00

I love thrifting, and I've found the BEST place to find a lot of bargains in a little bit of time (cuz driving around to what often amounts to piddly garage sales and often leaving empty handed is not something I do much anymore) are church rummage sales. There are five annual ones within a few miles that I try to hit every year, and one of them ended today so it was fill-a-bag-for-$3 day.

Here are some glasses we got (perfect for our party!) and some stick things. I don't think they're chopsticks, but they're wood and Calvin had a good time sticking them in the glasses. I got a metal bowl and the milk glass vase (can't.resist!) and the two toned pink vase, all shown above.

2 prs. of jeans for me, a homemade felt lion headdress, a green 'dress up' shirt, a towel...

a woven bag, a visor, tops, pants and dance outfit for Lily, 2 shirts, socks, and pants for Eric, and books...

...shorts, 2 shirts and jammie top for Grace...

A wood red barn and farm animals for Calvin

And I got these vintage books--all from the 50's. LOVE. Noticeably absent of the word 'Disney', too...

and all of this for the grand total of....are you ready??

9 bucks. Heck yeah.

And then, Eric and I wondered how many bricks are in our sidewalks? We did some counting. Well, lots of counting.

And some multiplying, and determined that there are approximately 4, 418 bricks in our sidewalks, plus the approx. 500 bricks in our backyard for a grand total of 4, 918!

Yeah, it's only July, but think Green for Halloween!

2010-07-08T08:05:00.000-04:00

I'm excited to announce that I'm a volunteer coordinator for the grassroots initiative Green Halloween! I spoke to the founder, Corey Colwell Lipson, last week and I just love what she's doing here. I remember last Halloween, again going through the dilemma of what to give out for trick or treat, because I loathe doing the normal candy thing. We got silly at dinner with options like chunks of cheese, toothbrushes (actually a really good idea!!), fresh fruit, hard boiled eggs? to the way wacky idea of diabetic testing strips (from Rob).

Besides all the candy given out and ingested, there's all the trash generated, not to mention the cheapo trinkets that end up in the landfill almost immediately, and the cheap costumes that aren't meant to last, and the face paints that have lead and other harmful toxins in them. I always say I would rather have one thing of quality over a bunch of inferior junk. I know children feel the same!

So, of course, I'm excited to do this--it's right up my alley. Be sure to check out Green Halloween on facebook too (and 'like' it), as well as Celebrate Green, which is a book Corey and her mom co-wrote. When I talked to Corey I mentioned that I'd recently been flipping through last year's December/January issue of Mothering and saw the article on eco friendly decor she and her mom had written. Her mom has written many, many articles for Mothering, so Corey grew up with that magazine. How cool! (I'm on pins and needles waiting to hear from Mothering if my article will go from being on retainer to publication. I won't hear until the last moment before it goes to print (and if not in the next issue, they'll hold it...up to six issues). Oh, the suspense!!)

And here are some videos they've made, which are great.

summer birthdays & projects

2010-07-04T17:28:00.000-04:00

Coolness--we found a 'toy' typewriter in a shop downtown--the kids are loving composing notes and stories and musings. they are...interesting!

On Lily's birthday, which had identical weather to the day she was born--sunny, warm but not hot, low humidity--perfect--we walked over to our old house, where she was born. I lingered and remembered the getting down on all fours once I was gripped by the realization that this was IT, the calmness Rob exhibited while arranging care for Eric, who was 2, and getting us all home, how my friend Kristin came and got on the phone with my midwife, while she and Grace got the birth supplies, how everything unfolded just as it should and the midwife arrived approx. 45 min. after Lily. Now here she is, as beautiful and strong willed as ever, Lily Jane.

I had some presents in my cache that I could have given Lily, but Grace and Mamie had gone downtown earlier in the day and bought her a present--a poofy pink and purple wand--perfect for Lils. She was delighted. So, that was her present. It was just right.

Here we are browsing baby pics.

And the projects--Rob made me this table out of scrap wood years ago--till now it's been unfinished. I had a gallon of paint I was itching to use, so I cleaned it up (it was the laundry table in the basement) and painted it, I put it on the porch and discovered it's a perfect table for the stools out there.

And I painted this free buffet/cabinet I got from a friend--I added knobs and handles that I already had, along with some little wood flower details I glued on.

Here's my vintage cooler!

And the patio is done! And it looks amazing. I love it. Thanks, Rob!

and half the year is gone...

2010-06-30T14:38:00.000-04:00

just like that!

Yesterday was my birthday. In a nutshell, it was freaking awesome. Rob gave me my present before he left for word--a record player and some old albums. We've been wanting a portable record player for awhile. These albums (plus one he got new--White Stripes) are now in a stack with old albums we'd also collected.

So we had a low key day. Eric had been sick but was thankfully feeling much better, so we went out and I got some paint for the Dining Room and furniture, plus I made a shelf for the bathroom.

Then we came home and the kids played on the porch.

Grace made 'four fruit sherbet'. Thank you, Martha.

Eric played with his 'new' ski boots (from Goodwill).

Dinner on the porch...then Mmmm-here's the sherbet--easy to serve from an ice cube tray. It was soooo good, I thought I didn't like sherbet. As it turns out, I don't like store bought sherbet, this was so easy and delicious.

My simple and delicious cake, made by Grace and Rob.

I forgot to take pictures of the bonfire in the backyard. I hooped and we listened to the record player Rob set up in the breakfast nook. It was perfect and lovely. Oh, and I also 'got' a tattoo--well, not yet, but just as soon as I get down there.

Oh, and while I'm on the subject of presents, Rob got me a hand carved wooden spoon (to replace the one I loved and lost at a picnic), some milk glass bowls, and a vintage cooler for our anniversary. Plus, ferns and lavendar and native plants from my favorite garden place. I love that guy. And I always feel kinda lame, because he comes up with the BEST surprises, and I'm never so well prepared!

So, as a friend told me yesterday, another year older and another year better!

rhubarb soda & pop can tab belt

2010-06-28T16:30:00.000-04:00

Last week we made a special summer treat--rhubarb soda. I really want our own rhubarb plant!

And over vacation I made my pop can tab belt--wow, I sure love it! I need more tabs to make more--Grace and Mamie each want one. It would be fun to do this with elastic for bracelets, too. Tutorial here. I had a lot of trouble finding a tutorial--many had wordy directions and fuzzy pictures...this one was about the best I found. Once I got the hang of it, it was pretty easy. Using a crochet hook helped immensely.

oasis

2010-06-26T11:36:00.000-04:00

We have spent many, many hours 'in the garden', aka the backyard, making it into what I think of as an oasis. I love our backyard now...pretty much.

These are the 'befores'--of the back door and adjacent patio. I had always despised these great big jagged hunks of concrete randomly placed all around. The patio pavers were 'ok' but didn't go with the house. I wanted brick. Old brick. Old brick that was affordable. A tall order!

This concrete is all gone now! Well, it's still in the driveway. These are now flowerbeds.

And here's the new back stoop, looking like it's been there forever. The brick cost me $25 (very, very lucky. I salvaged it from a woman about to throw it away). The biggest cost was the sand. Later I found out our neighbor has sand, so that could have been free. We used their sand for the patio though.

Now here's Rob knocking out the patio. Woo hoo! These bricks AND the sand was free, so all it cost us was time.

We took up the brick pavers shown at the top of this post and put in thin brick paver walkways here between the raised beds (got them free, too).

A friend gave us several limestone pieces, which I used along with various other leftover whole and broken bricks.

I worked on this brick patchwork when pregnant with Calvin. Now it's looking sufficiently aged!

Rob brought me some ferns for our anniversary this year and I planted them by the lilac on the side of the house.

It's like a secret garden, shady and full of wonderful things.

When we moved here, there were flowerbeds with potential along the privacy fence side, above. They were so overgrown with weeds that we didn't know until we started working in them that they were lined with field stones. Lots of field stones--117 to be exact. I have moved almost every one of them, expanding the gardens and moving the path. This picture above is the 'before'. I haven't gotten an 'after' yet...because the grill and patio stuff is in the way, since we're still working on the patio.

more fun in the garden

2010-06-18T11:24:00.002-04:00

IMG_1064, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

I saw these colored stakes on roswellsgirl's flickr and mmmm, I'm in love! I hope to find these and the colored tomato cages locally (fingers crossed).

Greenpiece Indy

2010-06-15T17:03:00.000-04:00

Greenpiece Indy is a local (to me) blog newsletter offering eco-conscious tips to other crunchies, or greenies, or whatever you call yourself. Help spread the word! By signing up for their email newsletter to get green tips twice a week, you'll be entered in a drawing to win some green prizes.

As they say, piece out!

Loving these moments, and growing sprouts

2010-06-11T14:51:00.000-04:00

I took this picture yesterday, a beautiful sunny morning. As I pegged each diaper on the line (oh, I love my clothesline), and looked at the ragged edges (how many times have they been washed? 200? 300? More?) I thought how fleeting this time is. Calvin will be out of diapers soon, and then this baby time is gone forever. We're on the cusp of having a teenager in the house too, and a fiesty kindergartner and a second grader. Yeah, time could slow down just a wee bit.

And recently I found my beautiful little 25 cent copy of Wild Oats stores bulk foods guide. In it is a page on how to sprout nuts and seeds. I remember my Grandma had a little clipping of how to sprout mung beans inside her cupboard, but I never saw her or anyone do it. I forayed into it way back then, years ago, and then somehow got out of the groove (how and why?!) So I started again, right now we're sprouting lentils and plan to do many more. Black beans and kidney beans next maybe? I told Grace 'We're sprout farmers!'. It's ridiculously easy and fun. I joked with Rob that I could turn our counters into a sprout farm. He said that would change my farm classification (because for SOME reason I'm listed in farm directories as owning a farm. For real. My main crop? Agave.) We could make a million dollars.

And I miss my Wild Oats store (yes, i know Whole Foods bought W.O. i liked W.O. better...). We used to live within walking distance of a Wild Oats for a short time. But even better would be a locally owned bulk and local foods store right on the courthouse square. Yes indeed. If only I had that million dollars...

re-entry

2010-06-10T09:02:00.000-04:00

I'm back. We took a trip out to New England, specifically Vermont and Maine. It was lovely and everyone traveled well, considering. We (mostly Rob) took scores of pictures. Rather than try to decide what to upload here, I put a set up on flickr here. I still need to add descriptions. Rob also took a set of me hooping on the Maine seacoast, which are here.

So we're almost fully back into the swing of things here. Friends are coming over this afternoon and we're making a rhubarb crisp. Weeding is well underway (only gone a little over a week and it is nuts), yesterday Grace baked strawberry bread with a friend.

June/July's goal is to do my brick patio which I'm looking forward to. The 'stoop' part is done and looks AWESOME. Need to get it done in time for our summer soiree which we're resuming (we took a 5-6 year hiatus from it due to summer babies and selling and moving).

Also, I got exciting news Tuesday that an article I submitted for Mothering magazine is being retained for possible publication. I would be so happy to be published in a magazine I love so much.

Welcome, Summer!

kitchen sink, skinny dippin' and twine

2010-05-27T13:18:00.001-04:00

I scrubbed out my kitchen sink today--it always feels so good to have a clean and shiny sink, doesn't it?

I couldn't resist taking these pics of Calvin in the wading pool. Won't he love seeing these when he's older? He was walking around the yard picking up random things and throwing them in. In the top pic are my (dirty) gardening gloves and Lily's flip flops. Nice!

And I blogged about Whisker Graphics in this post about halfway down here. I just love her divine twine and am thrilled to see it in the latest issue of Martha Stewart Living here.

a new passion--making tinctures and salves and potions and lotions

2010-05-20T07:49:00.001-04:00

So I've been venturing into the world of DIY healing and body care. I've long made my own cleaners for homekeeping and such, but this is all new to me. My monthly '(I'm not a) dirty hippie' parties where we make our own body and home products are fun and informative. I reference this book often, which tells how to make infusions, tinctures, salves, body care. I highly recommend it--it's easy to understand and really accessible to the novice. One of the recipes talks about using lemon balm in an infusion, which makes me long for my lemon balm that I grew from seed at my old house and had loads of. I should have brought it here! Along with my lavender and russian sage, which was all taken out by the new owners. No, I'm not bitter.

Anyway, yesterday Lily and I attempted to make homemade rose water (top photo). She gathered petals from our rose bushes and we poured boiling water over them and screwed on the lid, which happened to seal. So now what? I don't know. Ha.

And these containers are my straight up almond oil which I use to moisturizer after a shower, my facial oil which is very fun to use from the glass bottle with a dropper, and my newly made (at the last hippie party) rose and honey face wash. Love it. These are both from the Make Your Place book.

Facial Oil

2 oz. carrier oil (I used almond)

15 drops essential oil (I used lavender and peppermint...I think)

Combine 2-3 drops oil with a few drops warm water to use. Rub palms together to emulsify and pat on face. You can change the ratio, depending on how dry your skin is.

Rose and honey face wash

1/2 c. Rose water, homemade is best (but we had some purchased already)

2 T. liquid castile soap

1 t. honey

Combine rose water and honey and stir til honey is dissolved. And soap and mix well. I put mine in a small bottle with a pop top type lid--easy to squirt some out.

So this is a new embarkment (is that a word??) and I have visions of a whole dedicated shelf of ingredients to make these things as well as already made salves and tinctures. To think about it makes me happy. This is a goal for this summer--to make some of these things with my little ones. I should get going on my herb garden!

And...if anyone reading this is in my area and wants to be added to the party invite list, let me know. :)

fairy house and the many faces of Lily

2010-05-13T21:27:00.000-04:00

This week during Calvin's nap, Lils and I had some fun together. I made 'Fort Squirrel' into a fairy house, and Lily Faerie worked her magic.

reflections in a dirty mirror

2010-05-11T10:09:00.000-04:00

I'm learning to use my camera. Very, verrrry slowly. I haven't played with it as much as I'd like and it confuses me...but I'm sure it will click (ha, ha) someday. So here I am, gazing in a dirty bathroom mirror...reflecting on who I am, who I want to be, what I what to do better at, what I can let go of (like clean mirrors).

knackered

2010-05-05T14:55:00.000-04:00

lots of playing on the screen porch and in the yard again this week. It's so good to be outside! I have a zillion projects I want to do. One of which involves bricks. Lots of bricks. I'm getting loads of partial bricks for free from a historic home here in town, free street bricks from another local town, and also getting free limestone slabs from a friend. Projects are getting underway--pics to come.

anyway, back to the kids (oh yeah, they enjoy loading and unloading bricks too. especially when it involves a trip to the ice cream store!)

this little man is knackered. I love that word--love all the english and aussie slang. I would totally say 'nappies' if people would understand that I mean diapers and not a nap. I love this--fell asleep on my back in the ergo and I oh so gently laid him on the bed. love.

gratitude

2010-05-01T14:59:00.000-04:00

(I can't change the orientation of this pic for some reason. Because I'm not going to spend any more time on it, just pretend it's horizontal instead)

I've been soaking up my children. Loving being around them, missing them when they're gone. Amazed at what they can do and how fast they're growing up. I've been nostalgic and teary eyed.

What I love about them right now:

Grace--her wit and sarcasm makes me laugh. We banter back and forth and she can dish it out!

Eric--his enthusiasm about ants and digging in the dirt and the atmosphere (did you know that the thermosphere is the top layer of the atmosphere before space?). His happy-go-lucky-ness.

Lily--how she's way into tree climbing and it's for favorite thing to do in our yard. She discovered a bird (a pigeon Rob says) on her nest and we've been watching her.

Calvin--how every vehicle with four wheels is a 'tractor'. The boy loves tractors (and the way he says it is so cute). He loves riding on my back in the ergo.

Other things I'm grateful for:
--I got my three favorite mags all in one day. Maine--yes! Cloth diapering--yes! Raising backyard chickens--yes!
--walking down to the courthouse square yesterday for the arbor day tree giveaway. It was such a perfect day, walking with my 2 littles. We saw friends at the arbor day booth, and also a neighbor that I'd spoken with on the phone but not met yet.
--seeing another friend and neighbor with her 2 children, I had brought them a meal when their little one was born this year. She asked about my ergo.
--walking home and stopping by some alley sales on the way, seeing yet more friends and stopping to chat.
--getting a box of vintage scarves and hankies for 50 cents.
--going for a walk in the evening and seeing yet another historic home that was brought back from the brink of falling apart and lovingly restored. Talking with this couple about vaxing and babywearing. Stopping by the park on the way home and seeing more people that we knew. Talking with more neighbors on the way home and soaking up every bit of the day.
--our strawberry patch is doing well (the week that we've had it!). I have a wonderful husband that rolls with it and doesn't mind me digging up the yard and that makes me happy. We agree that we do need to keep SOME grass, the rest can go (eventually).
--the completely amazing April weather we had
--I got to be part of an amazing writing workshop in April. I loved it. I'm going to keep writing, too.
--speaking of writing, it's a little funny to put my writing out there and then have people comment on it in person to me. I know on the one hand that it's going out (in the current) but am always surprised when people actually read it and tell me that they read it. Like last night, at the house we got to check out, Mark said not to look in the pantry because of the plastic bags in there (I did a column about not using paper or plastic bags in stores). I went to the eye doctor this week too and she reads my columns. It's a funny thing I suppose! I'm grateful to be able to express my thoughts and to hear back from people. Pretty cool.

--I got to take a dinner to more neighbors that just had a baby. They liked my Food Revolution column and eat the same way. They also belong to a food co-op. Yeah! We also got onto the topic of my (I'm not a) dirty hippie parties and she wants to be in. I love the enthusiasm of these women that want to make their own deodorant, shampoo, face wash and cleanser...it's really awesome. There are all kinds of revolutions all around. We're ripe for it.

rainy sunday morning

2010-04-25T07:44:00.001-04:00

I love waking up before everyone else, when the house is quiet and the day stretches out ahead. I went out this morning in the rain and took some pictures. It was so peaceful.

The gardens are ready to be planted! Not today, though.

I'm writing a column on this old schoolhouse and Kim Porter of Garden Thyme. The above photo was taken in 1898 at the school's dedication. From 1930 until 1998, when Kim bought it, it was left to ruin. You can see the detail that has been lost--the belfry, the spires on the chimneys, the wonderful porches. She is restoring the schoolhouse as she can afford it. And the plants! A wonderful variety of all sorts of herbs, perennials, annuals. Scented geraniums, lavendar, maiden pinks...those are all on my list to buy. Yesterday we got monarda and an aloe vera plant.

lilacs

2010-04-16T21:06:00.000-04:00

What more is there to say? Except I would like for them to bloom all spring and summer. They're so fleeting and lovely. I want to 'drink them in', as Anne of Green Gables would say.

weekend review

2010-04-14T07:22:00.001-04:00

So I had hopes of blogging on Monday, and now here's it's the middle of the week already! Wow.

I look around outside and am amazed. When does it happen? I'm outside every day, trying to watch the changes. I walk around the yard and exclaim 'whoa! when did THIS come up? Or this...and when did this bloom?'

This spring has been unbelievably gorgeous. So many warm days. Lilacs and tulips blooming in April! Unreal.

I got my clothesline up and love it. I can't resist smelling all the clothes and sheets as I take them off the line. All we need to do is have a stake in the ground to prop up the line in the middle. I wish I had put up my line a looong time ago, knowing that. But now it's up and I intend to use it lots. My neighbor with the pristine lawn (while mine is all organic--aka has weeds) will be thrilled.

We also did more puttering around the yard, just soaking in being outside. I went to a Vinyasa yoga class (outside!) and got a couple runs in. Yesterday Lils and I planted some baby trees.

I started digging up some of the yard at 7:30 on Sunday night, because I got inspired about a project we want to do this summer. Rob didn't 'dig' that too much. Ha. I hope he doesn't mind TOO much the holes in the ground till we get it done.

sandpaper letters and racing cars

2010-04-07T15:39:00.000-04:00

So a long time ago I wanted to buy the children some sandpaper letters. I searched online but only found very expensive sets. I thought, well, I can make those can't I?! So several trips to the craft store later (to find the wood I wanted in stock), I had strips of wood to cut in half, paint (to paint the vowel boards one color and the consonant boards another color) and adhesive felt (so I wouldn't have to do brown sandpaper). I couldn't get motivated though. The materials sat and taunted me (well, not really) but I just didn't want to start. I realized I'd need to print and cut all the letters backwards and it seemed like a hella work (it would be). BUT! Then I found these on etsy! I could even customize the font! And they were SO reasonable. I got the alphabet and numbers for under $50, including shipping. YES! See the shop here.

Now below--Eric wanted to race cars in the upstairs hall. I took some pictures. Lily even graced us with her dressed-up self. I love these kids.

earth hour & gardening update, and Sweet Papery

2010-04-01T18:35:00.001-04:00

We celebrated Earth Hour last Saturday from 8:30-9:30 pm. I thought it was/is a great way to consider the environment, and a tangible and uniting way for humans to show their desire to conserve our limited resources. So while looking for candles to light, I got this basket of tealights down from my cupboard and looked at it lovingly. It's special to me, as my friend Kristen gave it to me when she gave me a blessingway when I was pregnant with Lily. So those candles were first lit then, almost 5 yrs. ago. They were lit again when I was in labor and about to have Lily (I think?? Or there might not have been time. *I* sure didn't light them). Then they were lit again when I was laboring with Calvin. These candles provided the only light (except for the flashlight) when he was born at 1:30 am. Nostalgia!

So anyway, we lit candles and ate popcorn and read stories. We talked about how when this house was built, there was no electricity, only candles and lamps. How different the world was then! And hard to imagine, but fun to try to by candlelight.

Our seeds are sprouting! We're 12 days post planting. Not all are up yet, so I'm anxiously awaiting that. Outside the lilacs are leafing out like crazy, daffodils and hyacinths are blooming, peonies and hostas are coming up, too. And I can hardly believe today is April 1st! I thought it was still March for part of the day, disbelieving it can really be April.

We met some friends at the Children's Museum today for the first time and had a great time. We (my internet friends and I) laugh about meeting our 'imaginary' internet friends. I feel so grateful to know so many great women, near and far.

Just got an email from Sweet Papery :

Happy April Fool's Day!

We love a good joke, but we love a good sale even more. Starting Friday and ending on Sunday we are offering our favorite customers (that's you!) 25% off your entire order. Just go to our website: www.sweetpapery.com and enter the following coupon code when checking out: tomfoolery

I love their stamps! I have this one:

sunday afternoon bookclub

2010-03-28T14:31:00.002-04:00

I was in the kitchen fixing lunch and dinner ahead, Calvin was sleeping, Grace was upstairs with her friend Mamie, and the other 2 children were being very quiet. I went to see what they were up to and found them on the couch....

I peeked under the blanket, where I was informed this was their bookclub.

Can I join?, I asked. Yes, but I couldn't join unless I got a book.

So I did.

re-arranging

2010-03-27T18:24:00.001-04:00

The other night it was just me and the little 2, and I got the urge to move our computer desk from the dining room into Lily's room, which is right off the dining room, and have a little craft/computer room.

I envisioned putting it here where the dresser is, and moving the dresser up to Grace's room. Grace's room has 2 twins, one of which will be Lily's eventually. Right now, though, Lily is sleeping in Eric's bottom bunk.

I also thought I'd move this craft cabinet into Lil's room and make a space for doing art projects that don't involve the dining room table...

So the fun began. I found that I couldn't fit the desk through the doorway, no matter how I turned it. I ended up removing the door, which was tremendously HEAVY, being solid wood and 7 feet tall.

I got the desk into 'the spot.' It looked awful there. Funny how a good idea in my head can look soooo bad in real life. I thought 'I have done all.that.work for nothing.' But then, how would I have known had I not tried? I did get a lot of dusting done. Organizing, too, so that was very good.

And Lil and Calvin had the best time playing in/around the desk, when I wasn't moving it around.

I got the craft cabinet moved in. It looks pretty good there, I think.

THEN, I decided to move Calvin's crib out from our room into the space where I had wanted to put the desk. It fits! And here's a quandary...I think I'll leave the lilac and white stripe on the walls, but I want to paint over the pink. All I can come up with is some variation of green, but then I have a green bedroom, green kitchen, green garage, green bedroom (well, half green) for Grace, and I want to paint the dining room some shade of green potentially. I think that's Too Much Green. Maybe I'll do this room green and the dining room something else. Something funky. Hmmm. Any thoughts are welcome!

I really like this area here.

And here's our coffee table turned art table (which WILL be painted I'm sure). It wasn't as long as I hoped (craigslist buy) but I liked the bottom shelf and the drawer.

So now this is Calvin's room/craft room. We'll see how this works out!

garden 2010 & happy Spring!

2010-03-22T09:52:00.000-04:00

The gardens are multiplying this year! Grace decided she wanted to do a flower garden of her very own, so the beautiful Saturday (oh, how glad I am that this cold, rainy day is happening on a Monday, and not over the weekend) we dug out a 5 by 6 patch in the side yard. This turned out to be quite funny. When I told her where to stake it, I said to stake it out 'around the dogwood tree' and she literally did--the dogwood was right in the middle! So I said 'no, I meant near the tree...here, move it closer to the porch, with the tree being the center point and mark off a few feet on each side', which somehow was again misinterpreted, ala Amelia Bedelia. We were laughing.

Rob also built me a real compost bin! Which I'm so excited about. And 2 more 4x8 raised beds. That plus the edges all around that I'm going to also plant in means I'm more than doubling the vegetable gardens.

Yesterday we tucked tiny seeds into their little dirt beds and whispered 'grow, grow' and watered and set them up in the basement with their grow light. We'll be anxiously awaiting them to come poking up.

This is what we planted indoors:

herbs:
basil
lime basil
sweet basil
english thyme

tomatoes:
green zebra
black krim
yellow pear
ace
paul robeson
green sausage

various:
brussels sprouts
mexican sour gherkin cucumbers
jelly melon kiwano

flowers:
love in a mist
verbena
snapdragons
celosia

This is what we'll sow outside:

flowers:
zinnia
sweet peas
cosmos

vegs:
spinach
scallions
beets
sugar snap peas
parsnips
carrots--muscade, tonda di parigi, royal chantenay, danvers

...will we have enough garden space???

outside awesomeness...and more pillows

2010-03-20T12:09:00.000-04:00

Happy First Day of Spring! We played out on the porch--lots--this week.

I'm so glad we re-did this porch last fall, it is soooo nice to be out here now.

So I sewed more pillow covers for the couch pillows. I used only fabric I had in my stash, so I didn't have to buy anything but 3 zippers. Now it's a hodge podge of fabrics, but a cozy hodge podge I think! I definitely prefer this to the previous look.

Scenes from our nature shelf-the springtime birdies and eggs and butterflies are out!

floodpuddles

2010-03-19T06:21:00.000-04:00

Eric made some 'floodpuddles' in the garden. Calvin had to check it out.

Tentatively, at first.

The water was COLD.

But he liked it. Here he's signing 'more'.

He really liked it.

Lily joins in.

Trying to step in it. This is where I drew the line.

Really into it. Great sensorial experience! Which reminds me, I need to have Rob build a sand table...

Grace decided she wanted a mud foot soak.

Ooh, it's cold!

Everybody likes some mud, right? I even got some on me. So after getting Calvin in the tub and taking laundry downstairs and scrubbing mud off walls and shoes (actually, I threw the shoes in the wash), I changed my jeans.

glimpses of my garden

2010-03-18T07:58:00.001-04:00

Pictures taken around our backyard this week. Tulips. daffodils, peonies, lilacs! We have 2 baby lilacs, the smallest of which is only 4" tall. Lils and I checked on it yesterday and it's budding too. We danced around and sang 'it's alive, it's alive, it's alive!'

This weekend we'll be planting seeds. Welcome, spring!

more on pillows (and some photos)

2010-03-15T12:11:00.000-04:00

These couch throw pillow covers were pretty much shot and I was ready for a change anyway, so I ripped out the old zippers to re-use and got some fabric out of my stash. I finished one pillow Saturday and was ready to finish the second pillow when I couldn't find the second zipper. I looked everywhere and nada. Then this morning as I was emptying the laundry hamper, there it was (Calvin!). So I finished the second pillow. Aside from the zipper ripping-out and the missing zipper for 2 days, these were quick and easy.

Now I'm thinking about re-covering the larger pillows that came with the couch, they're pretty blah.

Rob took some pics last week--mostly black and white--see the set here.

the winds of change

2010-03-10T15:49:00.000-04:00

...can you feel it? It's coming. I'm feeling it this week.

The world is waking up, though it still looks mostly dead.

But it's not.

We're using this warm weather inspiration to work in the garden. I took up the bricks that I had put all the way to the edges between these 2 raised beds and am using them as a walkway on the ends here. We'll be more than doubling our garden this year (yeah!) and I'll use that space to plant carrots or similar.

So there will be lots of grass diggin' up, lots of raised bed building, and lots of planting coming up here.

'Grandma and Grandpa in the Garden'

taken last May during the building of these 2 raised beds. 2 more to come!

Vintage pillowcases, I love you

2010-03-07T22:26:00.000-04:00

So I've got a 'thing' for vintage linens. Napkins, tablecloths, dishtowels, sheets, you get the idea. Not the least of which is pillowcases. I'm already twitchy for garage sale season and hope I can find more lovely ones. I saw my crafty cousin, Casey, today who asked me if I had ever made a pillowcase dress. No, I haven't, but I know I have seen tutorials and it's on my 'to make list'. So I found my links I have saved--one for the dress, and one for adorable pj pants. See here and here. Oh, and I found a cute top here.

morning sky & easy pillow slipcover

2010-03-06T14:29:00.001-04:00

This was my view out of my front door this morning. So peaceful and beautiful. Makes me want to freeze time and live in this light for always.

Last night I sewed a super easy square pillow slipcover for Grace's other twin bed. Long ago I had sewn her an exact same one (back when she only had one twin bed in her room). So here we go. I used 2 cotton hankerchiefs, though any fabric will work. A 20" zipper fits perfectly on it. Sew one side of the zipper on.

Then the other side (sorry for the inconsistent lighting. Yeah, haven't got this camera thing down yet).

Now you've got a big rectangle with a zipper in the middle. Fold fabric in half, right sides together. Be sure to open the zipper halfway. Very important.

Sew up all 3 sides and turn rightside out.

That's it! Slip over your pillow and zip. Throw on the bed, couch, floor. Easy to remove & toss in the wash. Note that you don't really need to buy a pillow form at the craft store, either. Goodwill has lots of throw pillows that could be easily recovered with this method. Just adjust for the size. Oh, and I picked up some bamboo fiber stuffing at Joann's yesterday. I have gotten wool before (online) and loved it, I always prefer the natural fibers over the polyfill. It costs more (twice as much) but with a 40% off coupon at Joann's, it was only $1 more.

Happy Weekend!

a little of the mundane (which is exciting in its own way) & more about hoopn

2010-03-02T22:55:00.000-04:00

Tonight I cut up some of these containers into little food containers with flaps to fold down. I always hate to throw them away, can they be recycled?? There is nothing on them to indicate that they can, so I thought it'd be better to at least let them get a little more mileage this way. The little pint ones are GREAT for packing in lunches, and not a big deal if they get lost/damaged.

You could put little velcro self adhesive tabs on, like above, but those aren't too cheap. It works as well to just fold the flaps in, as shown in the top picture.

In other news, I had a really, really great time last night hoopin' at a Lite-Hearted meeting. I did a demo and let everyone try and wow, they did great. They were so enthusiastic. I loved seeing all the hoops spinning around...and I wished I had my camera! It was so awesome. I loved spreading the hooping love! I also sold nine hoops, bringing my total hoops sold count to 18! That plus my other hoops in stock and the ones I own means I have made something like 40 hoops. I hope to make many more. I am just thrilled to get others introduced to the wonderful world of hooping!

I had an article published today about safe seed companies/avoiding GM seeds. You can see it here.

i love old buildings & other stuff

2010-02-28T09:16:00.002-04:00

I had such a lovely day yesterday! Hooped it up in the morning, then Rob and I went on a date downtown, taking pictures of this old school and this building on the circle. See more at my flickr photo set here.

Then I went to the NPA dinner at Matteo's and it was so nice. I got to see my dear friend Lynell (read about her halfway down). She lost her husband Pat a month ago. The last memory I have of Pat was at the home tour when their home was on and I went to tour it. He was pointing out the work they'd had done on the exterior of their beautiful home.

She told me they took every day as fresh and new and lived it up. They really did. Not that they never had rough times, they certainly did and sometimes wanted to throttle each other, but they lived to have no regrets. And they didn't. That kind of energy is contagious. That is how I want to live, yes. Yes, yes, yes.

NPA auctioned off a women's work crew and I am on it. Lynell won it. I am so excited to go digging in the earth with a very special woman. And I and another member bid on the men's work crew and won it! We're splitting the time, making it much more financially feasible for us. I want to re-do the sidewalks in the backyard in brick. I need to find a ton of brick now. Perhaps tons.

I am writing a special feature for the Current and am so excited. I think I'm finding my calling. I also have a pack of women to run with, thanks to this article, and we're meeting in March. Yeah! Oh, and I have an awesome husband. He went to the library last week and looked up a book by Clarissa Pinkola Estes that I have never read and he thought I'd like. That he would do that really touched me. He gets me.

i love this shirt.

2010-02-26T09:56:00.001-04:00

I got this ruffly shirt at goodwill recently. totally seredipitous--I was walking by the dressing room reject rack and there it was...along with the black and white wool sweater I recently shrunk. So I grabbed it and love it. At my recent 'I'm not a dirty hippy' party, several of my friends asked if I had made it. I have totally considered it (copying it I mean), since I love it so much. It's this nice crinkly cotton. I fear wearing it too much, what if something happens to it? When I put it on today, I noticed the tag and looked it up--Cino. Holy cow. Spendy! See a similar shirt here.

Speaking of thrifting, all my jeans are wearing out at once. I just got 2 pairs for ten bucks. Woot!

a few of my favorite things

2010-02-23T17:48:00.000-04:00

I got this 'favorite things' idea after bringing this freakin' adorable coffee tin home Sunday from the Noblesville Antique Mall. $7! Then yesterday I got this YUMMY hot cocoa from TJ's. They asked for my zip at the register. I begged them to open a store in Noblesville.

Love this rick rack sewn onto this apron.

This phone from Rob's house growing up. It still works, we just have to wire it in.

Love this carving detail on this old clock that belonged to my maternal great-grandparents.

My incense and behind it, a beautiful box belonging to my Great Aunt Esther. She kept gloves in it.

Lils at a few days old. love.

Vintage chalkboard picked up at a rummage sale.

My bookshelf (thrifted, of course.) Ten bucks.

The picture Rob took at Pemaquid Point, Maine. I had it blown up and printed onto canvas.

In other news, I've got a sweet four year old girl that needs to have a molar extracted next week. :( I'm really feeling sad and horrible about it. She's had a rough dental life so far and wow, I just can't believe she will be going for years without this tooth. On the other hand, I am very grateful for medicine and dental care! I can't imagine not having access to either, yet that is the reality for so many people and it breaks my heart.

another one bites the dust, and a copycat pillow

2010-02-19T16:17:00.001-04:00

I forget about wool sweaters + warm/hot water washes. This is the third sweater I have accidentally felted. Oops. Thankfully it was a $3.99 Goodwill buy and I will sew it up into something (maybe a bag).

I bought this cat pillow (possibly vintage, on the right) for $1 at a farmers market linens booth and tried to 'copycat' it (on the left). It turned out 'ok', though aside from the ears which don't look like cat ears--a bit too narrow-- I think it looks like a bunny (though the ears don't look bunny-ish either). The other side of each of these is a print fabric. Fun to make! I want to make dog ones, too.

This weekend my goal is to make and tape FIVE hoops. Maybe six. I have sold three in a week and am having a fabulous time with my hoop group pals. Then in 2 weeks I have a demo at a weight loss group and will be selling bunches I hope. Hooping is so fun and addictive, I want to spread the hoopin' love to the whole wide world!!!! Wheeeee-- I love my life!

it's not all perfect

2010-02-16T12:50:00.000-04:00

Sometimes I wonder if I present a 'too perfect' view of my life. As though there are no messes, no problems, no bills waiting to be paid, no children that ever fuss or fight. Oh no. Oh hell no.

Yes, there are all of those things, and more. But I don't show them here. I'm no superwoman, nor do I try to be. I just try to figure out who I am and be true to her. I blog about things that move me and are important to me and things that I want to capture and remember. The unsightly messes and the daily grind fit none of those things, so I don't mention them.

I want this to be a special, uplifting space. There's a quote I love that goes something like this: "People wonder why movies can't be more like real life. I wonder why real life can't be more like the movies."

I want to capture that wonder and that magic and make my real life 'more like the movies.' More grand, more amazing. Those dirty dishes in the periphery, stacked beside the cookies I just baked? Nope, not showing it. Except for now (below), to show that it's real too, but I want the good stuff, the creating for the people I love to be the focus of what I write here. And that's what I want my children to remember. And what I want to remember, too.

coats piled on the table

compost patiently waiting to be tossed in the garden

pizza pans...from 2 days ago

toys all over

open dresser drawers, too

clean laundry...waiting

various items on other table

Calvin loves to try on shoes and clomp through the house. love.

february happenings

2010-02-14T08:48:00.001-04:00

Having a great weekend here. Friday we went to Conner Prairie--they have a wonderful play area for children which is REALLY nice when you want to get out and spend an hour or 2. They love it. We're looking forward to the rest of it opening up in the spring.

Rob and Grace baked this yummy heart cake. Gone now...I need to get to the kitchen and bake some banana muffins for my loves.

I made these felt fortune cookies from Martha Stewart. Seriously easy! All you need is felt, craft wire, ribbon and glue. And fortunes. They were a hit. Totally doing these for valentines for friends and classmates next year.

on how to draw

2010-02-12T11:03:00.002-04:00

Yesterday we set up drawing time. Lily loves princesses and pink and she has this fairy and princess drawing book. It's cute, it breaks down 'how to draw' into simple steps. I drew the carriage at her request, she added detail.

::be intent::

::be focused::

::make a funny face::

::add lots of detail::

::be contemplative::

::furrow your brow::

::be at peace::

Who reads this ol' blog anyway? Leave me a comment, I love to read comments. Happy weekend! I hope you can find lots of ways to show love to yourself and other loved ones!

a month of making

2010-02-09T13:39:00.001-04:00

February seems to be a month of making. Making valentines. Making cookies. Making snow people. Making hot chocolate. Making gardening plans.

Here's a little of what we've been making:

snow, playsilks & 'I'm not a dirty hippie' party

2010-02-06T21:38:00.004-04:00

Rob took these shots on his way home from work yesterday--we had a beautiful snow and it was so heavy and wet that it stuck to everything like crazy.

We dyed these lovely playsilks with my friend Joni and her children yesterday. They did yellow, red and orange and they all turned out beautifully. Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures of the process.

Below--I had an awesome 'I'm not a dirty hippie' party tonight with 10 other women. It was so fun. Really, really fun. Fun to share food, talk and laugh, and make something earthy and useful. Recipe from here. Every single one of the women I have things in common with--different things perhaps--but I love that we all share some common ground. Tonight what brought us together was homemade deodorant. And laundry soap.

this jar (by Casey) says 'Krista's Hippy Pits Mix'. Ha!

Oh yeah...Vermont Woodchuck and a seed catalog that will not sell genetically engineered seeds--sweet!

in love

2010-02-01T11:16:00.000-04:00

february 2007

february 2006

It's February! I love the month of February--it seems so close to spring. I do hope we'll get more snow though. The light seems warm and the days are noticeably longer. Next month we will be sowing seeds inside--it isn't so far away.

Yesterday was a pretty perfect day. Somehow I got four, four! hoops taped which is awesome. Usually I feel lucky to get one done. I don't know how it happened. I was totally in a zone. I didn't do them all at once, but I kept coming back and doing more and boom, four gorgeous hoops! I love it when that happens (and that synergy where it just all comes together is so rare). So I'm excited for my hoop group to start, plus I'm doing a demo at a weight loss group next month.

Rob took Grace out for a bit yesterday for some one on one time and they brought me back a sweet vintage Pyrex refrigerator dish with lid from a downtown shop. Aw! Then I was going to take Eric out to Goodwill for some one on one but he didn't want to go! Said he's tired of Goodwill, he just went last week (true, we did, but tired of secondhand shopping? what?!) So I took Grace and we were there 2 minutes before they announced it was closing time. But I did get a cute sweater, half price. Then we got a couple groceries and had a good time talking. She's so funny, smart, sweet, and real and down to earth. I'm thankful she's who she is and I really enjoy her.

We had a great evening together, all of us, and everything just rolled smoothly. Lily ate supper as 'Fifi' in her pink poodle costume. Love it and I'm so in love with my amazing family.

Seed love

2010-01-29T23:21:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I stopped by this nursery to pick up a couple of packets of seeds in anticipation of spring (still a ways off, I know) and somehow ended up with 17 packets. Yes, 17. Oh my.

Pros:

*purchased from a small independent business which is so incredibly important.

*they are heirlooms, which fits my ethics and desire to grow unusual (nowadays) things, plus I am really ~~annoyed~~ angered by GMO's and Monsanto.

*they are so awesome--I mean, who can resist tomatoes called 'Black Krim'?

*my children will LOVE growing these together.

*we will LOVE eating these together (well, not the flowers)

Cons:

*where on earth (ha, ha) will I be planting 17 packets worth of seeds? I see much garden work ahead, many more gardens to be made, somehow, some way. Poor Rob.

And I had to post this today as my fb status update, since I read it last night and went 'WOW.'

To live as closely as possible to the numinous wild a woman must do more head tossing, more brimming, have more sniffling intuition, more creative life, more 'get down dirty,' more solitude, more women's company, more natural life, more fire, more spirit, more cooking of words and ideas. She must do more recognition of sorority, more seeding, more root stock-keeping, more kindness to men, more neighborhood revolution, more poetry, more painting of fables and facts, longer reaches into the wild feminine.

~Clarissa Pinkola Estes, from Women Who Run with the Wolves

Earth Cycle Calendar & the coolest market in town (longest name, too)

2010-01-25T16:30:00.001-04:00

I got this beautiful Earth Cycle Calendar and love it, so do my children. It's so lovely to look at and so educational too. We're watching the moon cycles which is fun. If you order one from Lacey, tell her I sent you. She's great!

Lils and I made this sign for our market, inspired by the Mudsock Market at Conner Prairie. She came up with the name for the market and we started out hand drawing a sign wherein I did block letters and she was coloring them in. We were also drawing pictures. Then the phone rang and as I answered it, Lils decided to help more by coloring (scribbling) in large sections, making it unreadable. So with naptime for Calvin running short, I printed the words but the printer is nearly out of ink. Therefore the sign doesn't meet my aesthetic standards, but oh well. It's only a matter of time before it gets torn down by Calvin, I'm afraid. It says 'The Cow jumped over the Moon and the Chicken went into the Barn Market.'

I think here she's directing my next move. Hm!

Aprons

2010-01-22T09:22:00.000-04:00

A friend asked me to sew these aprons for her and her son to wear together when they cook. So sweet. Then I started thinking about my own apron collection and itching to find more when thrifting this spring and summer. One can't have too many aprons, can they?

Here are 2 of my aprons. I can't remember where I found this lilac gingham one. I love the embroidery. This might be my favorite apron ever. I'm sure I paid around $1 for it.

And this one was my mother's. I love the skinny rick-rack!

Play and a Study in Photography

2010-01-19T14:31:00.000-04:00

I took these pictures of Eric and Lily playing the other night and Calvin and Lily playing today. I love their little dollhouse still lifes and how absorbed they get in play.

I still don't know how to really use this new camera. It's VERY intimidating to me, yet I know that when I understand it I will be able to do so much with it. I need to learn how to shoot in manual. Our friend who is a photographer took these pictures with it at a coffee shop.

These five shots of Rob are so different. I have no idea how this was done!

Couldn't I just capture what he knows and put it in my brain? That would be sooo much easier.

want. to. make.

2010-01-12T10:00:00.001-04:00

this belt. from here. we don't drink soda though, so acquiring the needed tabs (about 150) is a problem. can you help? if so, i would love to recycle your tabs!

grandma's quilt

2010-01-08T00:07:00.001-04:00

We went to visit my other grandma earlier this week, and as we were going there I was feeling guilty that I didn't have anything to give her. I wanted to make her something but was coming up with nothing. In the course of our visit though, she mentioned her she didn't have a blanket for when she's in her easy chair and bingo! I decided to come home and get to work on a lap quilt for her (after a brief not-so-serious thought of picking up a snuggie for her at CVS or something. Ha! and no way).

I pulled out fabrics I thought she would like from my stash, they all kinda go together and I had just enough of each to arrange them so they fit to make a nice size quilt. Sweet! I used part of a yellow sheet I had in my stash for the backing, and flannel for the 'batting' part.

Once I got it 'pieced' I had the kids draw some pictures on it, which I then embroidered on it. As it was coming together so well, I got the thought 'hey! I'm going to set a goal to finish this by midnight!' (I crave the instant gratification of quick sewing projects. I'd started around 4 pm, and in between doing this and that was working on it, it was definitely achievable. especially once the kids went to bed.) Right?

Wrong. I struggled to stay awake as I sat on the couch embroidering a clown fish. I fell asleep by 10:30. Lame.

I started in again on Tuesday, sure I could get it in the mail by evening, she would have it Wednesday! Yay! I got close to finishing the 'binding' (the lazy Krista way of binding that is) and my sewing machine revolted. Would.not.sew the last few inches. Argh! I pleaded and cajoled. Begged. Nope, she wouldn't do it.

I tried again last night, and still no go. But tonight (Thursday), I got it done. Sewing machine went fine. And nothing else had changed. What the heck? I think my machine is temperamental, it's so wierd.

Anyway, so excited to get this in the mail tomorrow, I hope she loves it!

Sunday--family things

2010-01-05T09:00:00.000-04:00

We went back to our hometown Sunday for a belated Christmas visit and were delighted to receive these snowmen ornaments above, made by my Grandma (who will be 90 this year). She also made the cute snowman below, the chenille is from my Great Grandma Daisy's bedspread. I adore these, it's so special to me to have family handiwork. Lily has claimed the snowman with the pink hat.

Mom also asked me to go through the bookcases for any books I might want and I gathered a stack. I love this Little Farmer one by Margaret Wise Brown!

And, I was looking at Mom's coverlets and they are so amazing. The ones she has date within a few decades of the 1850's. Mom never paid more than $20 for any of them, she scoured auctions to find them (that's our family thrifting spirit!). I love that. I hope to find a quilt or coverlet that I can afford that way, too. So anyway, I was saying how I would love to find some wool blankets and wondered if I would have better luck in New England, it would seem so. So she pulled out these 2 family wool blankets and gave them to me! Whee! She'd forgotten she even had them, didn't know what to do with them, and was happy I wanted them. She often comments how alike we are. About certain things, yes. I'm sure she will never understand my nose piercing though!

eating, sewing, and an animal picnic

2010-01-02T21:33:00.000-04:00

We have been doing lots of eating around here! Rob snapped this picture of me last night scooping up a handful of pumpkin bread crumbs.

And more eating! Yes, that is a napkin on her head.

I had to get pictures of this little man eating with gusto!

I got some sewing time in today--yay!

And I reorganized my fabric stash--it's now in the buffet drawer for much easier access (it had been on the top shelf of the coat closet, usually causing an avalanche of fabric).

The stuffed animal friends enjoyed a lovely felt food picnic on the living room floor today.

these are a few of my favorite quotes

2010-01-01T22:29:00.003-04:00

"There was a star danced, and under that was I born."
--Shakespeare

I love and collect quotes. I had pages of them typed out of ones I had collected over the years up through living in our previous house...but now I can't find them. I wonder if they are on our old computer, I need to check.

Not a week goes by it seems that I don't read a quote that I add to my 'new' quote list. Here are a few that I love:

"Whatever we possess becomes of double value when we have the opportunity of sharing it with others."
--Jean-Nicolas Bouilly

"Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.”
--William Morris
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
With your one wild and precious life?
--Mary Oliver, The Summer Day

Giving Birth and Being Born
Brings us into the Essence of Creation
Where the human spirit
is Courageous and Bold
And the Body,
A Miracle
of Wisdom.
--Harriet Hartigan

Life isn’t about finding yourself, it’s about creating yourself.
--unknown

We came spinning out of nothingness,
Scattering stars…
The stars form a circle,
And in the center we dance.
--Rumi

We cannot depend on a market-informed cultural consciousness to enlighten us--we have to do it ourselves. --Raleigh Briggs

I have more quotes (many more!) but will stop! I do believe I will also craft a post about a book I'm seriously loving, Women Who Run With the Wolves. Can't say enough good about it--I'm going through it with a highlighter. I would love to discuss it with other women who've read it and am hopeful that will happen in this new year.

Any other quote collectors?