Spring Cleaning

Yesterday was a throw the windows open sorta day. It was sunny and warm. A little guy in our home spent most of the day outside building gnome homes, playing in the mud and aspiring to make progress with his scooter on the still soggy ground. At one point he had short sleeves on. His cheeks revealed a bit of pink left over from all that sunshine.

Mark started his day by hanging up a new clothesline for me. The old one fell victim to snow fallen off our roof this past winter. He then hung up the two loads of laundry. How great is it to have your laundry dry so quickly, in a day; instead of over several days , as it is done in the winter? Pretty awesome.

The sap was running yesterday. We may get another run today. It was pretty crispy last night on this little hill we have here. This has saved us. Because of the warm weather we have had this past month or so the sap has been slow to run. So far we have put up just over a gallon. Last year we put up 4 gallons. Mark and Tristan spent a better part of the day boiling sap down. We got over 30 gallons collected late yesterday so hopefully we'll get close to 3 gallons when all is said and done.

What did I do? Spring cleaning. Seems a bit contrary to clean house when it is mud season. I am not usually one to do spring cleaning. I save the big cleaning for winter but we have been painting Evan's room and the house has been discombobulated. After we put Evan's room back in order there was a leftover piece of furniture that I had planned to put in the cold room. Isn't it always the way ? Like dominoes one project leads to another until all all the pieces lay down in a nice neat line. Anyway, the cold room got a really good clean out. There were boxes and boxes of canning jars. They have been rinsed out and put on the shelves in the empty spaces. All ready for canning season. Mark brews his own beer. He had too many beer bottles stashed away for the eventual day when he might fill them all up. We negotiated an amount that would work for both of us without being left on the floor. There were a couple of science experiments in there that have met the compost pile. Lets just say this was my room of shame. Now it is efficient, spacious and shameless. Nothing like a clean conscience.

Meanwhile, there is still that piece of furniture still looking for a home. It might just have to find a home in someone else's home. Today I plan to tackle the upstairs entryway. It is where all the winter gear is kept. With all the mud I do not think we will be using the snowshoes and cross country skis again this year. Our home is small and cozy and anything that is not being used can not sit around.

For now I will take this sunny warm weather and work indoors. Soon enough the garden will beckon me and any cleaning indoors will be simple; with a broom and mop. I have until the snow melts off the garden. Better get crackin'.

Dilemma

So I have a bit of a dilemma, that I thought you wise folks could help me out with.

We are in the midst of a redo on some parts of our home right now. I am painting Evan's room this week. It is a nice bright color. It is great to see a room change and also fulfill the vision you had for it. When it is done I will share some photos. But I am daydreaming about other rooms in the house right now.

So back to the dilemma.

My grandmother past away in 2004. My grandmother was a solid presence in my life as a child. My parents divorced when I was very young. My mom became bittered and hardened by the divorce. My grandmother was nurturing and a constant when I was growing up. My mom worked weekends and my brother and I would spend weekends with my grandparents. It was at her house that I learned to eat carrots out of the garden, pick the dead heads of the small row of marigolds that grew outside her door. I learned to push a push mower. She taught me to embroider, quilt, sew and crochet. She tried to teach me knitting but this skill wouldn't come to me until later in life. I remember standing at the counter as she made biscuits. I remember the smell of spaghetti sauce slow cooking on the stove for a Saturday night pasta feast.

She made me dolls. Raggedy Ann, Mary Poppins, and small sock dolls that still come out at Christmastime. She made me sweaters and mittens and hats. My home is graced with her essence; teacups, doilies crocheted by her, her teapot, pot holders, she is part of my home. I have a beautifully embroidered table cloth that she made that covers my table at the holidays. I have her cedar chest that she left to me; a nice piece of furniture. She told me that when I was young I would trace the lines in the wood with my fingers. I also have her dishes. A delicate china.

And thus my dilemma. In the process of my redo I am excited to brighten my kitchen with some paint. It is tongue and groove knotty pine. Some of it is water stained. I plan to paint it a very pale yellow with white trim. We have long term plans for the kitchen but for now this is what we plan to do.

My everyday dishes area a very sad assortment of mismatched bowls and plates. Their number has dwindled considerably since we've lived here. We have concrete floors and a slate sink and they are not kind to any thing that should fall on their surface. Can I tell you how many canning jars have met their demise to the sink? Many. Oh and I live with three people of the male persuasions who do not place the same value or care to the odd piece of pottery.

So my grandmother's dishes are brought out for special occasions, like the holidays, or entertaining. So this is what I am wondering...should I bring my grandmother's dishes out for every day or should I piece together a funky assortment of "vintage" dishes?

It is the nature of glass to break, this I know...So I could use your help...

Sad news

Many members of my family have enjoyed the summer. Evan has enjoyed learning how to fish, Tristan has enjoyed working on a local organic farm and the many blacksmithing opportunities he has been presented with. Mark has had plenty of opportunities to perform music this summer. I have enjoyed quiet mornings in the garden and busy days with the canners. Cheddar dog has enjoyed having all the members of his family around. The sheep have enjoyed grazing in the orchard. And Scruffer cat, my most beloved feline friend, has enoyed some limited and chaperoned time outside.

The other morning we woke to find our front door opened. Scruffer had pried it opened and wandered off. He has not returned. A neighbor has reported that they too have lost a cat 5 days ago. They also saw a fisher cat (a very wild animal) in their yard. We can only hope that his death was swift and that he was not in much pain. His loss is hard for our family. He had the softest fur, a personality that was fickle yet loving.

Our computer is still in the shop with luck it should be up soon.

Peace, Karin

Independence Days Challenge: Everything is coming up green.

Life has settled into a nice summer pace. Mark is home from school. He is tackling several projects. Most noteworthy is he is replacing the transmission in our VW micro bus. At this point all major systems will have been replaced. So, fingers crossed, it will not be just a lawn ornament but a vehicle that transports people and hay:)

Tristan has started a new job this week. He is 18 and would like to work so he can save money for blacksmithing school. The job search has not been easy. Many of the jobs that kids his age used to get are now going to adults who need any job they can find. So he has started a farm job. Each morning he rides his bike to the farm. It is just a few hours every day but it fits in with his GED class. If he has no other commitments then he can head to a local smithy a friend has to pound metal for a few hours. He really wants to enter the adult world and slowly he is getting there.

Evan and I spend plenty of time in the garden. Evan has signed up for his first summer reading venture. There are plans for a small day camp that focuses on bugs at the end of the summer.

And I do the work of summer; weeding, harvesting, putting food by.

Plant: transplanted elecampane and some volunteer mullein. Most of the garden is planted. There are shelling peas pods that should be ready to harvest soon...and broccoli too!

Harvest: comfrey, kale, swiss chard, red clover flowers, yarrow, borage, green onions, cilantro, dill, lettuce, garlic scapes, oregano

Preserve: lacto-fermented garlic scapes, garlic scape pesto, comfrey in olive oil for a sore muscle rub, yarrow tinctured in vodka for a antiseptic, dried red clover for tea, dried oregano, dried kale. Dried borage for tea.

Local Foods: Local meat, local eggs

Eat the food: lots of greens sauteed, lots of garlic scapes in anything we can put them in. Borage tea for ...ugh..nightsweats.

Waste not: We added another bay to our compost bin and I gave the compost a good turning. Soon after we got a heavy rain so the heat is up in that pile. Mark has been cutting down some small pine trees to help me put posts in the ground for a fence around the garden so critters do not eat from our bounty. However we did see a mother turkey hen and her clutch of chicks near the garden the other day. The fence will be up VERY soon.

Want not: I did a big stock up on staples this past week. Oils and flour. I had my yearly physical. I had my tetanus shot updated. My blood work was "boring". My cholesterol is excellent!

Right Work

The last day of Mark's school year was yesterday. This was a tough school year for us. Our family was in transition as we adjusted to our recent move and new community. The demands of his job are more than any other school district that he has worked for and it has been difficult to manage the balance between home and work. Now we move into summer mode.

The last two years our summers have been very busy; getting ready to sell our old house, moving to our new house. It has propelled us into a habit of always having too many irons in the fire. We have resolved that this summer will be different. We originally had grand plans for this summer. We were going to mill up some wood on our property to build a barn. Those plans have been scaled back so that we will be milling less wood and building a 3 and 1/2 walled shed for the sheep and a wicked decent chicken coop:) We have a few other small home improvement projects on our to-do list. For the most part our summer plans include getting together with old friends, canoeing, fishing and plenty of weeding therapy for the "mama". It is nice to have the luxury to give the garden the full attention that the garden of the last few years have not had.

Mark will still be teaching music lessons this summer. I will be developing a curriculum to teach knitting at Adult Ed and to the 4th, 5th and 6th graders at Mark's school. I have a couple of other small knitting ventures I am working on that will generate a small amount of income. Some of these I hope to share soon. Mark will also be gigging.

Some of these performances have already occurred. Last night he performed at a local restaurant, today he performed at the local farmer's market. Both performances were fun for him. It is a way for him to share his talent, connect with the community and it brings in a little extra money. The farmer's market gig was a gig of a different sort.

Mark was able to put out his tip jar and it was generously filled. But in lieu of payment for playing at the farmer's market, he was given a sampling of all the participating farmer's had to offer. He was given 3 large bags filled with local cheese, duck eggs, local eggs, locally produced bread from local wheat, beet greens, mustard greens, salad greens and cookies. We both commented that there was a richer sense of connectedness and satisfaction from his job well done than from receiving simply a paycheck. A good barter, indeed.

Time, Time, Time.....

Our life, family life, couple life has been busy. But not in a good way. I think there is a "good busy" and a "bad busy". A "good busy" is filled with things you want to do. It is filled with time in the garden, time together as a family, time completing long dreamed of projects. A "good busy" moves your life forward, brings your family together, invests in projects or activities that make your life easier in some way.

A "bad busy" just leaves you feeling like you are on a treadmill; lots of action but not going anywhere. A "bad busy" leaves you feeling exhausted before you even begin the day. A "bad busy" makes those activities that you consider "good busy" overwhelming and not worth the time. A "bad busy" leaves you feeling stressed, impatient. A "bad busy" takes a toll on your relationships.

I think we found ourselves at this point recently. We moved to the new house this past summer without much time to settle before Mark had to start school. Tristan's life became busy too as he finishes his last year of homeschooling and prepares to embark on the next step of his life. Evan was just going along for the ride for a while but he also needed to connect with other kids in his new community. And me? I was busy just getting everyone where they needed to go and making sure they had something to eat.

This would be busy enough, but Mark's job has many more requirements of his time, outside of the regular school day. Mud Season and our road made life hard just getting in and out of the house; adding 20 minute or so to every trip we took. One car was out of commission for most of the winter; so we were a one car family. In order to make this work, I was in the car even more than I was before.

I would say we were burned out. Burned out on work, burned out on homesteading, burned out on each other. We were in a bad space. No doubt. This burn out began to really take a toll on our marriage and family life. We were all so busy that we stopped paying attention to the reasons why we decided on this lifestyle. We were so busy that we stopped being kind to each other. We were so busy that we could not see how each other were struggling with all the busy-ness. We were so busy that we weren't able to really take care of ourselves, individually; so how could we see support each other in their busy-ness.

This busy-ness is far from the simple life I hoped for. But its tough. Many of the things that made Mark's life busy were required of him for his job. Tristan has to do what he needs to do right now, so he can do what he wants to do in the future. Evan needs friends and time with kids. And Momma is the one with the flexibility in her schedule to help everyone else meet their needs.

There are no easy solutions to some of this. We had talked of getting rid of the sheep. But they are really old ewes whose fleece is not desirable, at their age, for anyone seeking a fiber flock. And we love the sheep. They provide good compost for the garden, mow the lawn for us and I do use their fiber. We could down-scale the garden but we already spent the money on the seed and it really does save a lot of money. Time=Money. So if we did not spend the time in the garden we would have to spend more time earning money to buy the food we would have grown. And besides these are the "good busy" things that we do.

Summer vacation starts soon. We have decided not to build a big barn but a smaller sheep shed and a chicken coop. We have decided to take time to things together as a family. There will be camping trips, time to visit with friends from away, bike rides and swimming. We will chop wood and grow a garden. We will take days where we will not, under any circumstance, get in a car.

For now, while the busy-ness remains a part of our lives we will try to be kind to one another.

Mucking About

I woke this morning to a small body snuggled up to me. His small hands search for warmth under my arms. From the the other room I hear Mark start his bath, I hear the dog's tags jingle as he wanders around the house trying to find a sunny spot on the floor to settle. Evan rouses a bit more, leaves the bed and returns with a book for me to read. I fumble for my glasses as I begin reading a story about John Henry. " he was a hard driving man".

Once my feet touch the floor the day begins. Just like that, I am thinking about what time we should leave the house, what items should come with us. How will I arrange the driving back and forth that has come to define these days in town. I try to think about what chores I can ask Tristan to do before he is gone for the day; try to convince a small person that he should leave the comfort of his pajamas; try to fit in that second cup of tea I know I will need to just get through this morning.

In the background of this scene is a pan of syrup on the stove "finishing". There are seedlings on the windowsill. Cat nip, feverfew, horehound have sprouted. A fresh crop of spider webs have sprouted in the far reaches. A collection of lady bugs, recent inhabitants of Evan's bug box, beetle around the interior surface. They look so busy, like they have important places to go. But really they are just wandering around in circles....

Breakfast is served, mud boots are donned, we take to the path that leads to our car. Evan grumpily adjusting to the fact that he will not be towed in the sled along the mud path up to the car.

We are still waiting for Spring. By the calendar spring began a while ago. The build up to this season is built on dashed expectations. Snow had so much romance when winter promised quiet snow bound days. At this time of year it is a cursed element. When I see water falling from the sky, I want it to be wet. I want it to wash away. I want it to cleanse the dirty crust-snow away. I want it to make mud. I want it to reveal grass and soil. Alas, I do not make the rain, I only shovel the snow.

These are my thoughts as I drive the long two miles down our dirt road to the pavement. Mud season takes on a whole new meaning when you live on a dirt road. It is not only something that resides on rubber boots, gets painted on your clean going-to-town pants; it is the last challenging remnant of winter.

I am nearly to the pavement. Along the edges of the road there are small avian bodies flitting from mud to bramble. For one moment I catch a glimpse of red breast. Spring may be a fickle temptress but she does give us signs of hope.

Are we there yet?

This is a question I have been asking myself this week. Life has been busy. Sometimes too busy. So when I log on to this blog and I see my little tag up above "in pursuit of a simple life" I really have to ask myself ...are we there yet? If pursuing a simple life is an active exercise, have I reached it yet?

This week did not feel very true to those words. Last week was busy but in a home bound way. Seeds were started. I started sewing a new pair of pj's for the little guy. Sap was running. We spent a good three days sharing shifts feeding the fire to boil down the sap. Last weekend we spent some time improving our system so that it was more efficient. More sap storage containers, better fire pit. The weather was supposed to be bad on Monday so I thought I would take a "day off". Ha! When I realized that I was going to have a busy week I decided to put the house in order, knowing full well that it would soon be disordered by our hectic schedule. Tuesday, I had to run into Augusta to the Registry of Motor Vehicles. Wednesday was a usual day in town for Tristan's Class and Evan's homeschooling gym time. Later in the day we met up with Mark to go to a school concert in the evening. Thursday I went to Mark's school to teach knitting and grocery shopping. Friday is Tristan's class, Evan's story time and laundry at the laundry mat. Today I am at the library writing this because I brought Tristan in for a metalsmithing lesson he has with a jeweler. This afternoon I will take my shift with the sugaring fire.

This is only half of the story.

The other half, my other half, worked all five days. He teaches guitar lessons on Tuesday and Wednesday. Wednesday he does not get home for dinner. Wednesday night he had a concert. Thursday there was another concert but usually he has a rehearsal for a men's chorus he has started at the highschool. He is not home for dinner on Thursdays either. Friday afternoon we began boiling sap down.

This just does not sound all that simple to me.

Some of this will become easier soon. Tristan is going for his drivers license and should have it by summer. The road will be dry soon and we will not have to give ourselves extra time to leave the house. Mark is working on hooking up the washing machine soon so I will no longer have to go the laundry mat. Mark found out this week that our other car; which we thought had met it's demise, may still have some life left in her. So we will have two cars again which will save me from driving Mark back and forth to work when I need a car.

But in the meanwhile this is what I have noticed. It seems uncomfortable to say. But when life gets this busy, those things that make up our homesteading life, begin to feel like burdens. Sugaring is one example. This year we put in 25 taps. More than in the past but not much more. We have so much more sap than we have had in years past; partly, because we tapped much more mature trees. There are days when we have exceeded our storage for the sap and I can see sap overflowing the buckets, literally. But I notice this overflow as I am walking past the trees on the way to the car to get somewhere. I think about all the waste. I begin to feel pressured to get a fire started, on a windy day, because this is the spare time we have to do this and there is about 80 gallons of sap sitting in reserve and the buckets on the trees need to be emptied again. But...I also think, gosh, if we can get 4 or more gallons of sap this year we will be saving ourselves almost 250 dollars. Maple syrup goes for about 65.00 a gallon. This is not chump change. It is truly a local sweetener. If money gets tighter then the syrup will truly be something we will be glad we did. We could realistically be self-sufficient for sweeteners this year. And isn't this the point of this lifestyle?

This is a wake up call to me, I think. I don't think, as a family, we have had a reckoning of what is really important to us. At least not for a while. The hamster wheel is getting a little squeaky these days. I think that maybe we need to sit down as a family and figure out how to streamline some things, restore some balance to some areas and learn to let somethings go.

When I began on this journey I was inspired to do so because my life had become insanely busy. I was a single mother working two jobs, taking college classes. Life put me squarely in a sitting position with a diagnosis of MS. At that time I was not necessarily thinking of homesteading but of simplifying life. I learned at that time to slow down and find pleasure in the small things: buds appearing in spring, the feel of a small body snuggled next to you as you read a picture book, the sound of sap dripping into a metal bucket. It is so easy to let the flow of life divert you from the course you want to take.

Perhaps the first step to take begins with a good deep breath. It is time to breathe.

Slow Living

Life has put the brakes on our family. My recent injury is just one of the few things that has had us rearrange schedules. Mark, who never admits to being sick enough to stay home from work. came home early last Thursday with a nasty bug. I was next inline to share this wonder of biology. Tristan seems to be a little under the weather today. More than likely Evan's immune system will benefit from the virtues of this virus as well.

Speaking of weather, Mark has another snow day this Monday. It is the second Monday in a row.

It would be easy to grouse about all this; you know, places to go, people to see. But really, I am sorta reveling in it. Oh sure a little pain is not pleasant and no one wants to feel sick. But today, for now, at least, everyone is okay and we are enjoying a quiet day at home.

It has been nice to just lay about and read. I am reading the Fellowship of the Ring by Tolkein again.The copy of this book has been read many times by Mark, Tristan and myself and is beginning to show its wear. But a good tale of the hero's journey. Evan and I are enjoying a little Matilda by Roald Dahl. We have read most of his books that have been illustrated by Quentin Blake. Evan and Mark are enjoying Roverandom by Tolkein and Tristan has been studying for his driver's permit.

I do not have a knitting project right now. When I find myself in between projects I pick up a garter stitch scrap blanket. I love to play with the color. Each row brings back a memory of the initial project the yarn belonged to. It is an easy no thinking kinda project. It is meditation. Mark has learned how to knit and I have seen him working on his "ice fishing scarf". A garter stitch scarf knit from a few odd balls of yarn I had around. It is his first project.

Meals have been simple and we have all taken our turns at making sure that we are fed. A favorite snack, popcorn with nutritional yeast, has been a staple during these past few days. And our cups are never empty of herbal teas.

Mark and I joked that a snow day means that we are not using gas; which last I knew was 3.51 when I was in town on Saturday; it is probably higher today. Sure he will have to make up the day at the end of the school year. But he is planning to ride his bike to school once Spring arrives and the roads are in better shape.

Evan, my almost 5 year old, really needs a day outside. But today it rains so he has played with playdough we made yesterday. A box and some of his smaller baby blankets have become a "house". He patiently waits for the paint to dry on an oatmeal box that he plans to make into a "truck".

Life is going to get busy again. Tristan starts his welding class again. Mark's concert season begins soon. Sugaring season is slow to start but we will be busy with it soon. And the garden will have to planted soon enough. Adaptations to our schedule; because we have one car and gas is getting expensive, means that we will spend a little more time away from home to minimize the trips we make in and out of town.

So for today, I sit with a cuppa tea enjoying the rhythm of my home and celebrate the small sprout of swiss chard that has poked through the soil.

Tristan turns 18 today. 18! How does something like this happen?

Today he is spending the first of what he hopes to be many weekends at the New England School of Metal work. He is taking a blacksmithing class to make some of the tools he will need to use while smithing. He has been busy writing an essay and filling out scholarship applications to the school so he can perfect his skills. He is looking at some community colleges so he can get welding certified. He is in the process of getting his GED so he can fulfill the welding goal. He also wants to take a metal sculpture class at the Maine College of Art.

When he gets back we will go downtown to get him registered to vote and get him registered for selective service. We waited for him to get his license until he was 18. So this week he also needs to take his permit test.

This boy is going places. I could not be prouder.

There were times during our homeschool adventure that I was not sure if it would all fall into place. He is a quiet kid. His math skills could be stronger. On the other hand when he seizes upon something he wants to learn he tries to learn everything there is to know about it. To see him when he is at work at the forge and to see how his skill has grown over the last year, I am confident that he will do okay with whatever he wants to do.

Having said all this I have to share a story...

This weekend away from home is the first weekend where he is responsible for himself for the complete 4 days. He has gone away to camp and stuff but that was with adult supervision. The school has a dorm with a kitchen so he can prepare his own meals. So he had to write a grocery list for himself and go shopping for what he needed. I paid for it but I thought I would leave it up to him. I did offer guidance in terms of thinking about what he should have on his list. Stuff like oh, I don't know ...vegetables, easy to prepare meals, since it would probably just have a small kitchen and he would be sharing it with his classmates. So the other day we head to the grocery store. He picks up a small basket and starts wandering around the store. I catch glimpses of him reading labels, putting things in his basket. We meet in the dairy section where I find that his basket has a fair assortment of healthy food. But when I asked what sort of green vegetable he got he showed me some celery;) When I pointed out that although it is green I was not sure if I was sufficiently green enough to constitute a green vegetable.

His response, " Green is green"

Okay, so, now I know that in future care packages that I send him he will require some kale:)

Resolutions, goals and other miscellany...

Today is my birthday. I am now officially 44...says so on my drivers license. Sure would be easy to stand in front of the mirror today and count the gray hairs and weep over the new saggy bits and pieces. But no, time waits for no middle aged woman.

Over the last few years I have set myself some new years resolutions, birthday goals. Some were wildly overly ambitious and fell far short and others were accomplished. The lesson derived from both approaches is that I do what I can. But if I don't set the goal then, well then I never know if I can.

This is the year that we try to get as self-sufficient as possible. The primary areas I would like to focus on is food, fodder and cooking.

• Food. We are finally in a spot where we have incredible soil. BIG garden. I would like to get the orchard in good shape this coming year with proper management. Grow a pig. Get chickens again. Provide all our own maple syrup this year. I will be taking some wild food classes this year.
• Fodder. Will be growing Mangle-Wurzle Beets for our sheep, chickens, pig and beer. I would like to have our sheep eating on pasture all summer this year. I would also like to find a small field that we could scythe a couple of times this summer so we could at least provide some of our own hay for the winter. We plan to build a few more cold frames for season extenders.
• Cooking. This is the exciting bit for me. We cook with propane gas. We live at the very end of a dirt road. The part of the dirt road that we live on is not maintained by the town. So large trucks are unwilling and unable to drive down to our home during mud season. This means that the propane delivery guy will not be down for at least 5 more months. We need to conserve the gas we do have. Ideally, it would be great to get to a degree of independence with cooking fuels that we do not need to use propane ,except maybe during canning season. We plan to do this by first using our woodstove more for slow cooking. We do this already but we could do it a bit more. The other thing we plan to do this year is build a solar cooker. Tristan is taking a welding class this coming spring so we have asked him to make the reflective box for the top of the oven. In the meanwhile I have been experimenting with a small, homemade fireless cooker. I'll have more on this later this week and maybe even a tutorial on how I made mine.

These are my homestead goals. But I have a few personal goals as well. For my age, I am in pretty good shape. Good Cholesterol, good weight, good bone density for someone who is occasionally on steroids. But man, I can not get my butt in gear for any sort of regular exercise. This time of year I like to sit on my butt and knit. So, I really need to just think about doing some kind of moving everyday. I don't want to commit to so many miles walked everyday, or a certain numbers of sit ups (ugh!). Unless the I feel inspired. When I lived in the city my exercise came easily as a result of living in a city. I walked everywhere. So I need to think about what I can do in my everyday life that will help me to move. I like the idea of chopping wood, hauling wood, heavy gardening work. But this time of year there is not enough to keep me going.

And finally, I want to build up the knitting business. I want to get back to doing some craft fairs. I also think I want to explore some free-lance writing. My ideal goal is to be able to earn income for my family without having to leave my home to do it. So guess I gotta get to work:)

The Snowman

Mum and Tad were busy getting ready for the storm. Wood needed to be brought in, extra water put up if the power should go out, a soup pulled together to simmer on the woodstove, a few loads of laundry. Tad was busy digging out snowshoes, cross country skis and shovels from the crawl space. Evan would tag along, carry wood, give hay to the sheep, hand laundry to Mum as she hung it up to dry. This may be the work of snow but tomorrow there will be play. This was going to be the first big snow of the season and Evan could not wait to make a snowman.

It was a windy snow storm. All night the howl of the wind conversed with the creaking of the trees. In the morning little swirls of powdery snow danced across the yard. The thick layer of snow was enough for skis, enough for snowshoes, enough to pull firewood in a sled to the house.And now begins the long slow ritual of donning snowpants,layers of wool, winding carves, wool socks making feet more snug in winter boots.

But the snow was not snowman snow. It was too dry, too powdery to hold together.

For several days there were thin tracks made in the snow as ski trails were broken. There were trips in the sled as Tad tried to get Leroy Brown Goat to pull Evan around the yard. Mum made hot chocolate and the last of the Christmas cookies were eaten. There were quiet moments by the woodstove as Tad read new books from Christmas to Evan. There were music making moments as the new Ukelele played along to Tad's maritime songs.

And still the snow was not snowman snow...not even snowball snow.

The weather man predicted warmth and rain. Mum and Tad are busy getting ready for the storm. There is firewood to be brought in.Hay and feed to put away. And finally, a snow man to be made. Mum begins with a small snow ball and rolls it in a large but firm foundation. Evan follows her example and makes the middle. Together they roll the head. Evan finds two sticks for arm. Mum goes inside and finds two black buttons from her button drawer and a small carrot. A curved stick is found to make a fine smile. Bunches of pine needles are placed on top of its head to give the snowman a full head of hair. He seemed a happy fellow.

And then it rained...

The next day the sun shone down on a diminished figure standing just outside the door. On the ground is a stick arm, some button eyes and a carrot nose. Evan puts on his snowpants, winter jacket, mittens, socks boots...such a labor. He helps Tad feed the sheep, helps to bring in some firewood. After the chores he has his own chore to attend to.

From the kitchen window Mum watches as Evan returns the button eyes to their proper place. A nose is centered. An arm is put back at an angle that makes the snow man seem to wave to Mum as she washes the dishes. Once the snow man is restored to a hint of his former self, Evan gives him a hug. A gentle pat on the back. A small comfort for the iceman as the sun beats down on his back.

oh Christmas....

Such a fickle time of year...it is a struggle between the Currier and Ives version of the holidays and the reality that we are able to create. Over the years, I have learned that one does not equate to the other but that does not mean that I don't try. And even though over the last few years I have had moment of brilliance; last year was a homemade Christmas for those near and dear and those more far afield. This year I have fallen far short. The mail will be late...

There are reasons. We have had a difficult year. Life became far busier. Money is short. We've been hit with some big bills at a most inopportune time and then..the dog ate the Christmas zucchini bread and the little vintage skier from my childhood. Okay, maybe the bread eating thing is not the end of the world and yes the skier is just a thing, from my childhood, that my estranged mother gave me...If I was buddhist I could let it go...but I am not..but I digress...

What seems to be missing from this year is not the STUFF of the holidays but the community of the holidays. In our old home, we would get together with some friends for Solstice. Regardless of the weather we would trek into their off-grid home, share wassail and a fine potluck and bonfire. On Christmas eve we would join our congregation for a potluck and service. With both missing from this year we are trying to make new traditions.

Tomorrow, I will start a lamb roast on the woodstove.My hope is that we will be able to get a cross country ski in before dinner and then enjoy a good meal. We will be having a pierogi making party in the kitchen. Pierogi are a breakfast tradition from Mark's family. In years past we have bought store made but last year we made them for the first time and ...yum..so good. And if all hands are able to help then we can have them for several meals while Mark is home on vacation. We like to make homemade Icecream for Christmas. For Christmas day we will slow cook ribs on the woodstove. I hope that we can get a good long walk or ski in the woods in. Maybe some games later in the afternoon. A nap would be nice...

We have been so busy just getting from one day to the next lately. Mark has been gone a lot, I have been busy getting Tristan where he needs to be. I think this school vacation will be nice to spend some time at home, share some soup with new friends and maybe one day trip somewhere like the mountains or the sea ( ahhh Maine)...

So, yes, this year is different and trying to find the a new ways to manage the different can be a challenge but maybe in the process we'll find new traditions....

Maybe a soup feast at my house next year??

In the meantime, Merry Christmas to you all! Please watch this space next week for a giveaway and the announcement for my Etsy Shop opening.

This morning...

I woke this morning to the song of Evan's voice as he sought the warmth of my bed. A quick, blurred check of the sky out the window informs me that it will be a cold, gray day. I lovely day to be at home. Mark left for work early this morning and I have no place to be....

Already, my mind goes to that forever to-do list. This may a good day to finish preserving those apples. I should probably work on someone's Halloween costume. After living here for two months, I am still trying to find a place for everything in this small house. There are couple of more corners I could organize...

I fumble for my glasses as I share a conversation with Evan about his plan for his day. We head downstairs. I read two chapters of Stuart Little to him. We make a plan to finish reading it today.

It is chilly. So I decided to start a small fire. I will close off the upstairs room. There is a door at the top of the stairs and a vent in the ceiling over the stove. If I close these then the downstairs will get warmer, quicker. I am learning how to use this passive solar berm house. I will open the vent and the door this late afternoon so it is warmed for our bedtime.

I put the kettle on for tea, slice some sourdough bread for our toast and ponder this weeks grocery list. I would like to get some pie pumpkins to preserve some puree for quick soups and breads. Our days have been busy and our regular evening dinners have been interrupted with Mark's and Tristan's schedules. So I need to have ingredients that are easy to use so some quick meals could be easily pulled together but still wholesome. The farmer's market is nearly done for the regular season. So I try to think of any other crops I might want to get for preserving for the winter. Maybe some more carrots for pickling or maybe some beets.

Tristan joins us around the breakfast table where boy banter gets around to plans for playing with legos. But first Tristan will tend to the animals and take care of some studying.

After breakfast I find Evan some clothes to put on and I begin morning chores. I fold some laundry that has been hanging on the rack. My regular housekeeping routine falls apart on the weekends and I play catch-up on Mondays. Sweep the floors, tidy, make beds. Evan shares his desire for Blueberry Muffins and I agree if he will help me. He is a willing assistant both in the preparing and the eating.

I throw another log on the fire when the eternal question of," What is for dinner?" is answered in this regular chore of tending the fire. I will bake beans on the woodstove and make a pot of corn chowder later in the day. Maybe a small green salad with the arugula and spinach I found at the farmer's market the other day. The beans will be made with local maple syrup and applesauce, local leftover pork. The corn will come out of the freezer. Our local dinner.

While the muffins bake and I prepare the beans for the stove, Evan plays with playdough. My kitchen table becomes a major construction site. Until...the muffins are out of the oven. The boys enjoy their share and I save a few for Mark to take with him with his lunch tomorrow.

As I write this post I realize that what was going to be a record of our morning is a study in home economics. Sometimes I find that I take what I do at home for granted. As a stay-at-home mom I do not always give my work the same credit as Mark's work outside the home. But it is the work I do at home that saves us money; feeds us real, wholesome foods; keeps order in our home and takes care of my family.

The muffins are eaten and I am going to turn an audio book on for Evan while I tidy the kitchen from our morning. It is almost lunch time...

Catching Up

So finally we are moved. Our long travel from last fall to this coming school year is complete...nearly. There is still some flotsam at the old house, strings that need to be tied up with the old house, boxes to be unpacked,but, in time, it will all be settled. In the meanwhile we are discovering our new community, making plans for the new home, settling the kids with classes, playtime and swimming lessons. We are reaching for new healthier routines. We are enjoying our time together without the concern that when school starts we will not be together at dinner time.

It would be easy to take the calm that has descended over our life for granted at this point. No longer do we have to worry about the politics of private road maintenance, the worry of what games really bad neighbors will play, the angst of family separation, the rush to get things done in the limited time before Mark heads off to work. Everyone in our home seems relaxed, at ease...finally.

So our tale..

So, 2 weeks ago the finally haul of stuff was crammed into a U-Haul truck. The week before we had moved the sheep. The week before that, we dismantled and salvaged the wood from the old tilting pole barn that was on the property, to make sheep sheds for the winter. Mark made 2 trips with sheep in the back of our farm vehicle...a 96 Subaru legacy. The car still smells of their earthy, wooly goodness (a euphemism for sheep poo and hay). Reports from the driver and a friend who witnessed a hatchback full of sheep suggest that it was a comfortable ride. All the ovine arrived to enjoy a good munch in their new pasture. The chickens were donated to a kind neighbor at our old home. We hope to build a fancy chicken coop and start a new flock by the time we go to the fair. The cats, in true dramatic fashion, had a rougher ride but are settling in well and have cornered a mouse of two. Our prior rodent problem is no longer a problem:)

Our new home has needed several improvements in order to make it comfortable. We have installed the claw foot tub. We need to connect a shower head eventually but for now we enjoy deep warm bathes. We bought a new-to-us cookstove for the kitchen but waited to hook up the propane line until yesterday. This as been a great lesson in adaptation. We have used a small alcohol stove for heating up water. We have cooked many meals on the grill and we have a small electric griddle that has been my trusty kitchen companion for quick meals. But I am finally enjoying the luxury of the cookstove. We made homemade pizza last night. I was able to can some roasted tomatoes and tonight I will be able to bake bread and biscuits. Our diet has been heavy on foods that although easier to cook has been neither from scratch nor as local as we have been accustomed to. I can now get back to putting food by for the winter.

I have been transplanting perennials from the old garden to a new sheet-mulched bed for the winter. Yesterday we staked out where the new veggie garden will go. Mark mowed it down to a pretty close shave and was going to use the tiller to till it up a bit before I pulled out all the roots from the sod and planned where the permanent garden beds would be put. That was the plan until he tilled up a hornets nest. For now we are pondering our options. There really is no other really good space for the garden at this point. But eradication of the nest might take a while until the weather is cold enough. We also need to explore options for non-toxic to soil pesticides...ahhh a learning experience. Meanwhile I have to think of another way to get my fall spinach in the ground.

So this is where we are. Here, not there. We are embracing the work of the season, canning, putting wood up and getting ready for the school year. We are unpacking, cooking, knitting and writing. I have missed writing in this space and look forward to sharing with you all that we are discovering about our new home and community. I don't have internet service at home yet and when I do it will only be dial up. But I do have pictures to share..of course the cord for the camera is there, not here..such is moving:)

on and on...

Please pay no attention to the messy room;)

We are returning to the balance in our home. The "Tad" settles into his routine. The "mama" is back at her work. Our lines of territory are falling back into place. Not that we are hard fast about who does what, where;but, rather, we return to our strengths and allow the other to return to their's. For me that is the kitchen and my work of putting food by. For Mark, this means tinkering on engines and finding the tools and materials we need for several projects.

When I returned to my jobs I realize that many things have changed.It used to be that I read stories at nap time. I would read three stories and sing some "Baby Beluga", occasionally, I would sing some "Waltzing with Bears". Tad was in charge of bedtime which entailed 2 books and some songs played on the guitar. In the time that I have been at work, "Tad" has read the stories at naptime and I have read stories at bedtime. But I have not had many occasions to sing my standard songs. Today, I found my voice for singing. Still slightly off key but my audience is forgiving as long as I provide snuggles:)

I have also noticed that the busy-ness of our summer has stolen those quiet moments of awe. Bodies have changed. I notice this in the face of the teen that has lost any vestige of baby softness; as his chiseled out features define his face as he enters manhood. Muscles are firmed and his stride has more swagger than I have noticed before, the intervals between shavings are shorter. Evan, too, has grown. Tonight, I was in charge of tub time. The boy enjoys his summer and wears it on his bruised and dirty legs. Those legs are longer. I wonder how pants will fit when it become a cooler season again. In the meantime, I have noticed that he no longer has a body of a toddler. He is longer and leaner. He runs with the confidence of a boy in command of his body, there is not hint of uncertain toddler gait. It is what these critters do, they grow. He is my last baby and he is no longer a wee one but a boy. He wonders at bugs and snakes, rocks and dirt. He negotiates over cucumbers and he has a mind of his own.

The weeks are flying by. Each day is filled with the work of our season. Each year I promise self that the next summer will not be a crazy-busy as the current year. I have visions of quietly and regularly working in the garden, slow days on sandy shores, meals shared with friends and family camping trips. Some summer I am sure we will realize this vision. But for now, it is now. After seeing the changes that happened before my busy unaware eyes this summer, I realized that this is the moment I should be paying attention to. So hard to do and so easy to forget in the flow of tide that this life is these days.

And so it goes....

Yesterday, it turns out, was my last day at work. The big push for picking peas, beans and berries has past. Since Tristan and I were the last ones hired, we were the first ones fired.

It's okay.

But I have sorta mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, we are in the process of moving and every day off from work has been filled with the work of moving. I have not had a sit-on-my-butt day off in about a month and I am plain tuckered out. I have piles and piles of food to preserve. No kidding. I have a pile of onions, a pile of garlic, a 5 gallon bucket of beans, 2 oversized zukes. Local corn is starting to come in and tomatoes too. So, soon the canner is going to be very busy. I still have carrots in the ground here that I would like to harvest before we move. I have a garden abandoned to weeds at the old house and a garden at the new house still to be planted for the fall.

Piles.

I have piles of boxes and a stacks of paper with all the stuff I need to take care of in order to move.

And yet when the farmer said that her payroll was getting too big and she would only need a few of her more experienced farm helpers, I felt let down. I knew, by my own agenda, that the job could not last more than another month. I knew that I was getting tired of waking before my alarm clock at 5:30. I knew that I was lying awake at night wondering how I was going to juggle my work schedule with moving in August. I knew that I was missing my role as homemaker. I knew that my hands craved knitting. I have 2 new babies and a birthday in my family and I have not made anything yet. I knew that I missed posting on the blog on a regular basis as I had to prioritize what I could do with what I wanted to do. I knew that I was daydreaming about January. Remember January? January is when I write about snow, hand crafts and the soup de jour from food stores? Ahhh it is a glorious month...

But I loved that job. Hard work and all. I loved feeling like I was part of a greater process. I know more about how local food gets to the table. I have an enormous amount of respect for the farmers that grow our food. The folks I worked for were right there in the field with us weeding and harvesting and they have been doing it for 30+ years. I loved the fringe benefits of surplus produce and gleaning. My freezer is nearly full. I loved the quiet of the work and the intermittent chatter I could have with kids half my age. I loved the paycheck. It wasn't much in the grand scheme of our finances but it felt nice to contribute, in a different way, to our family's goals.

Today was my first full day off. We woke early and headed out the door to glean 10 gallons of beans from the farm, a parting gift from the farmer. We came home and put 5 gallons in the freezer. I filled one dehydrator with onions. I baked bread, made a quiche from our own eggs for dinner, I started to consolidate the piles into piles to be moved. I swept and vacuumed and added an inch to a sock that had been abandoned in my knitting basket. This is my work now, my noble pursuit....

Independence Days Challenge, In the thick of it all.

Well, Friends, I would like to share that we are at the moment in our move where something that we needed in one house was at the other house. I would like to say that this marks the half way point of our move but alas we are slowly moving our belongings into the new home. My work schedule fills 4, sometimes 5 days a week. On very warm days we only work half days. We are trying to get out to the new house every weekend and one or two days during the middle of the week. To say that we are busy seems like a quaint idea I ponder sometime in January when cabin fever sets in. This life we are leading now is some other thing.

This is not to say that we are not accomplishing what we need to do. Mark is rebuilding a bathroom wall before we install the bathtub. Tristan is dismantling an old shed so we can re- use the wood to construct small temporary shelter for the sheepfor the winter while we ponder the design of the barn we will build next spring.. I am cleaning many years worth of spider's webs and mouse poop.

I am unpacking many boxes that were packed over a year ago. Feels like Christmas as we unwrap ceramic crafts from Tristan's early school years, unpack boxes of books I have missed dearly, reconnect with some teacups that were my grandmother's. All these things were packed away when we put our house on the market a year ago, in order to make our home as generic as possible for potential buyers. While sorting and unpacking, I am also finding that I have the chance to really get rid of stuff I no longer need. Our old home was small, our new home is small too but is designed in a way that the space can be used more efficiently if I can keep the clutter to a minimum. Tristan has captured the spirit and has decided to pack those things from a younger age away into storage.

Evan, on the other hand, is struggling a little with the pace. Everyone is busy, there is confusion over which house is home. Mark is going to take him to the library story hour tomorrow and then visit the beach at Sebec Lake. He needs a day off...Come to think of it..we all do.

Onto the update...

Plant: nope, not yet

Harvest: swiss chard, basil, garlic, raspberries, eggs

Preserve: 5 quarts of raspberries, 5 quarts of peas frozen

Local food systems: Well, I would like to say that I am supporting my local food systems but really it is supporting me right now. The farm I work shares excess. So one week I was given a large quantity of broccoli, another week I stayed late and picked 4 quarts of raspberries for the farm and four quarts of raspberries for my freezer. It is nearing the end of the season for early peas and I was given a large paper bag of peas for free. I am so grateful for this bounty as my own garden is woefully neglected. I have nearly reached a financial goal so that I can buy a csa share at a local organic farm at the new town.

Eat the food: Most of our meals consist of sauteed veggies and pasta these days. It is quick filling, does not heat up the house too much. Given the lack of cooking zeal I am experiencing I have not had any troops revolt at the dinner table yet. I would also like to add that because of the heat we are cooking many foods on the grill. Last week Mark made meatballs for spaghetti on the grill. Adds a nice flavor.

Waste not: Big de-clutter effort. I am using the boxes from moving to kill the sod and sheet mulch new garden beds at the new house.

Want not: Mark is scything the area for the new veggie garden patch. I am sheet mulching where we will have a perennial and herb garden. We are saving the wood from the old shed and the bathroom redo for temporary animal housing. I am researching plant guilds for fruit trees as a method to reduce the work and chemicals needed in orchard care.

Independence Days Challenge..forward HOE:)

Well, phew! Life is getting busy, busy, busy! Mark finishes school this week. We are moving stuff to the new house and working on things there. Tristan and I start our new farming job this week. And I am filling in at the bookstore for a couple of days.

And Tristan is finishing his blacksmithing class. He hopes to take advantage of the open forge day they will have there every week this summer. This is a skill and art he is really excited about. This fall he plans to attend the local tech school to get some welding experience. He wants to work as well so he can save his money for this very COOL school that he is interested in attending. As a homeschooler who is not really thinking of college, it is exciting for him to find an avenue of study that fits his learning style; which will provide him a skill. I will confess to moments of concern this past year when it seemed he was drifting and did not really have any focus on anything. This is not to say that he does not enjoy many hobbies but, in terms of transitioning to adulthood and some of the responsibilities that come with it, he did not seem to be following any path that would lead him in this direction. But I should remember the lesson of homeschooling that I am taught repeatedly during this venture: when he is ready he will learn it. Thank goodness:)

Meanwhile, the Independence Days Challenge is keeping me on track with the work of the season. It would be so easy to get waylaid with everything we have going right now.

Plant: pole beans in the old garden. We are putting in a small raised bed at the new house. My intention at first was to duplicate plant veggies that would be coming into season at both places at the same time so I could have beans, zukes. I went to the farmer's market in Farmington and met our very local organic farmer. She had seedlings; buy 4 get one free, so I found tomatoes, basil, leeks and kale. I was so grateful for the leeks and kale because we did not plant those this year and we really enjoy these. So we will have some at the new house. I did not think we would have basil either. I was planning to buy crates of tomatoes for canning but now we will have some fresh toms for our plate. I planted at these seedlings at the new place and also planted some acorn squash. I planted pole beans at the old place.

Harvest: spinach, scallions, yarrow, irises chive blossoms

Preserved: chive blossom vinegar, tincture of yarrow,frozen spinach. Still have a bit of spinach left to pick.

Support local food systems: Went to the farmer's market. I also found out that our local farmer attends a market in our new town on Saturday mornings. I bought garlic scapes from her as well. She has a CSA where we can buy shares in small increments throughout the season which will work well for us while we are moving. Dropped teen off at work for his first day of work at local farm. I begin on Wednesday.

Eat the food: Meat loaf from local beef. Salads.

Waste not: the usual composting, recycling, dropping stuff off at the thriftstore

Want not: A local thrift store is closing in Farmington. They were having a 25% off sale the other day. I found a couple of yards of cotton fabric and a skirt pattern. Canning jars and an old milk crate. I use the milk crates for storing canning jars. During canning season the jars have a way of multiplying and spreading over every surface of the kitchen. So, at least during the season there is one container that is easy to get to when something is ready to be canned or is easy to put away when not in use.

Independence Days Challenge ...summer already?

Phew it is HOT! Tomorrow is supposed to be hotter, low 90's. We had rain here last Wednesday but we could really use more. It has been a very dry spring. The forest fire danger was high this past weekend, statewide. Time to begin rain dances....

But there is still plenty of bare soil in the garden that needs to be filled. Tis time to get the rest of the garden in for the year. I am trying to get out early in the morning to work in the garden and spend the afternoon either crafting, taking care of chores or preserving produce from the garden. It is really a balance this time of year to get all things I have to do and still fit in a few of the things I want to do. We have a tendency to get lost in the work and forget to take time for family and quiet time.

Plant: bush beans, dill, potatoes

Harvested: spinach, lettuce, scallions, oregano, comfrey, rhubarb, eggs

Preserved: 2 quarts of frozen spinach, 6 pints of rhubarb salsa, 1 pint dehydrated scallions

Eat the food: salads, eating last years rhubarb salsa on homemade tacos

Want not: we made homemade playdough, mended pants, scraps to the chickens, sheared sheep and skirted wool.

Waste not: mulched paths of garden with grass clippings from lawn, mowed lawn after letting the ladies to eat it down for us.

Support local food sytsems: Moo Milk, local beef