Merry Mia

For Christmas the boys bought each other a snake. A lovely, long, big, burly, friendly, soon to be hungry ball python. So sweet. Her name is Mia and she's looking forward to meeting you. Merry Christmas everyone!

{this moment}

a friday ritual: one single moment to savor and share.

inspired by soulemama.com

{this moment}

a friday ritual: a single special moment to savor and share.

inspired by soulemama.com

The Perfect Tree

This past weekend the boys, Kitty and I drove into the Santa Cruz Mountains to find and cut down our Christmas tree. It was a lovely day, crisp and wintry and there were some truly lovely trees to choose from. The boys wanted to make sure it was big enough, the thought being the scale of the tree may have something to do with the number or size of the packages beneath it. We chose a lovely tree, the boys cut it themselves and we carted it home with us. It now sits proudly (and largely) in our living room. We have been enjoying the lights each night and it brings some of the magic of the season into our home and hearts. We learned that if you cut the tree down leaving a number of branches at the base it will sprout a new tree from the trunk of the old one. We thought that was pretty neat!

We all agree this is the way to get a tree, if you're going to get a cut tree. I could convince no one in the family to make a tree using fallen branches. Maybe next year, if I have more energy to go against the tide of normal or to get the guys psyched to create a new tradition we will make a funky tree out of found objects and branches. It seems like such potential for fun to me. Alas, this was not the year of spare energy. Tell me what your tree selection was like this year? Have you put one up yet?

Magic Ocean

Life can be challenging sometimes. Even when things are going well, there can be bumps that seem insurmountable. I have nothing to complain about, mind you. Life for me with all its imperfections is actually pretty good. Still, it requires moments of rest and healing. I can think of one consistent, healing element throughout my life. The Ocean. When we lived on the east coast it was the Atlantic Ocean. Now, here in our little part of the world it is the Pacific Ocean. Walking along the beach in the evening (or any time, really) with my family brings us peace, together and individually.

The sound of the ocean is bigger than that of my children - when the loudest thing in the room is not one of my offspring I feel peace. The open sand invites children, dogs and parents alike to run and jump and stretch and look far into the distance - when moving bodies do not collide and I can see beyond the immediate I feel peace. The misty cool air encourages deep breaths - when these deep breaths slow into an even rhythm and restful thoughts plant themselves within me I feel peace. I feel peace just looking at the pictures from our latest walk on the beach, I hope you enjoy these images, too. Peace to you.

Go Kitty! Go!

{this moment}

a friday ritual: a single special moment to savor and share.

inspired by soulemama.com

Repair Work

Power tools. How can a boy refuse? Coleman's bed was broken a few weeks ago, and Chris had already fixed it once before. It was Coleman's turn to make some repairs. (Coleman's bed is at the bottom of the loft ladder, so many leapers land on that bed - snap!) We used what we had on hand to make the repairs and I think it should hold up a few more (unsanctioned) leapers.

Fire Soup

Coleman and I are easing back into homeschool after our trip back east. We've been back about a week and a half and not a lot of official work has been accomplished. While we were in Massachusetts I found my thoughts on our homeschooling days shifted a bit. I think we're almost completely de-schooled. Which puts me in a new place mentally, a place that feels more sure than before about his ability to step up to the plate and get some work done. This week we have revisited Khan Academy and have begun working again more seriously at math, but I get ahead of myself. Here's how I knew Coleman was ready to get more serious: He made soup. Fire Soup. Lead to the kitchen by the inviting aroma of onions, garlic and ginger sautéing away on the stove. Add to that chopped carrots and sweet potatoes and he was eager to partake. (It was surely very helpful that he was hungry.) What got him cooking up his own pot of soup? I was adding lentils and chicken stock to my stew. He didn't want either of those two things and for sure didn't want stew. Soup was a much more appealing menu item. And so he began digging through all the food and spices we had and built himself a most delicious soup for dinner, all by himself, without even a little prompting. I mean really, really delicious. Step aside Jamie Oliver!

Fire Soup Recipe (makes enough for one big bowl of soup!)

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp olive oil 
1/4 of a Large onion, chopped
1 large clove crushed garlic
1/2 tsp crushed ginger
1 medium carrot, peeled and diced
1/2 sweet potato, diced
1 small white potato, diced
5 thinly sliced apricots
1 Tbs raisins
10 grinds sea salt
7 grinds black pepper
1 tsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp apple cider vinegar
a dash of each: cinnamon, paprika, cayenne pepper, turmeric
1 1/2 cups vegetable stock

Directions:

1. Using a medium sized pot, on medium-low flame, sauté the onion until translucent, add garlic and ginger and stir for 3 minutes.
2. Add: carrot and both types of potato and a small amount of stock to pot. Cook for 5-10 minutes on low heat.
3. Add: salt, pepper, sugar, cinnamon, paprika, cayenne & turmeric, stir to coat vegetables.
4. Add vegetable stock and vinegar, cook on low/medium for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Add apricots and raisins, cook for 5 minutes more.

Serve with croutons and water with lemon slices for a beverage.

If you try this recipe please write to me so I can let Coleman know how you enjoyed it, or how you might change it! Thanks.

{this moment}

a friday ritual: a single, special moment to savor and share.

inspired by soulemama.com

Home Again, Home Again, Hippity Hop!

We arrived home Wednesday morning just past midnight. We had a few interesting turns in the road before we got there. Our flight into San Jose was actually canceled because of fog - so we caught a flight into SFO. In the end we actually arrived a little earlier than anticipated. Then it was back to the usual routine. Coleman had his nature class up in Davenport so Kitty and I went to Bean Hollow beach today. It was a windy day, but the sun was out and it felt just wonderful to be at the beach with Kitty! We collected a few interesting rocks which may find their way into Christmas gifts. Somehow. 

As hard as it is to leave Nana and The Gang, we are all so delighted to see Chris and Kitty and sleep in our familiar beds. We especially missed Chris and Kitty - it was a long time to be away. There is a lot of catching up to accomplish as far as Holiday prep and school work. Come to think of it, maybe our schoolwork will have to be holiday prep and making and reading and everything. It will fill us up with happy thoughts and gratitude and generosity and family...

Lots of calves in the fields today. So dear.

Check out the crane in the lower right corner.

The wind made for some interesting driving today.

Grateful For Family & Friends

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. It's a food holiday, a family and friends holiday. And if you are lucky, you get to have some of Nana's apple pie. We were lucky this year to make it back to Massachusetts, Coleman, Max and I. We had a lovely visit. I'm just a little too jet-lagged to tell you all about it right now. But I do have some pictures, of course. Some of the highlights: We celebrated Eva's fifth birthday (coming up in December), Chuck and Jude hosted the Thanksgiving Feast (thank you very much!), we went to The Big Apple Farm with Nana, we went to visit cousin Ann and family at their horse farm, and I got to attend (just by chance) my 25th high school reunion, and I spent some time with friends I miss very much over the course of the visit; Natasha, Jean, Mark, I danced up a storm with Angela, we saw the Dewsnap clan - it was all very, very wonderful.