oh hello! A month has slipped away somehow. I've been finding it hard to get here these days, and have started several posts and not gotten to writing much of anything. And this is about all I can manage- this time of year is so full, I can just snap a few shots and post them now and then. But we are good. Very good. Enjoying these gingerbread-scented, wood-stove-warmed, snowy, festive days.

Happy Yule to you all!

It seems winter has arrived. Up here in the mountains we have snow that seems to be staying. Down in the valley is comes and goes. The boys are thrilled. They could live out there in the white stuff, at least in November they could. They must have slid down the tiny hill behind our house a thousand times over the last week. Little northern boys.

 We've been out walking in the woods in the snow and it is lovely. Willa loves to gaze up at the trees and take it all in. The boys play long elaborate games in the woods. One day they were tigers. Today Ari was an arctic explorer and Dori was a pet monkey who liked to carry a giant (heavy) magic snowball around with him. We've been visiting our little creek, loving its beautiful burbling voice under the thin skin of ice. The littlest boy feels very brave to step over the rocks and cross it on his own.

 and inside, there has been lots of good stuff too-
art making,

 book reading (and Movember- oh my!)

  sweet sweet sweetness-

 learning,

 knitting!

 and creating. I'm in love with this homemade laptop (there are 9 other screen/ keyboard combos in his journal including a page of Mama, Papa and Willa on Skype!) This is e-mail. I love how kids that don't actually use the computers on their own yet, still pick up so much. Both boys spent so much time making and then playing with their computers.

 a finished quilt,

 
 and a really cute model,

 who took me totally surprise when I placed her on the quilt on her back facing the other direction and then turned around to make myself a cup of tea and put some dishes away and turned back around to find her here! Things are really going to have to change around here fast! Note the scissors and small bits of chokey paper everywhere. Not pictured- marbles in every corner, playmobile bits scattered hither and thither, glass jars on low shelves, crayons and pebble collections and treasured projects in every corner of the house. But look at her. Isn't she awesome?

 For Ari's grade two homeschool we have started a new Sage/trickster humanities unit and cultural block and are loving it. We are working with Harriet Tubman's story, and cultural studies around it- listening to African American music and learning dances in circle time, making a shadow puppet plays of the Brer rabbit stories, and really sinking into the story of Harriet's life over a few weeks. This has been both wonderful and difficult for me- her story is so heavy, but so inspiring, and it is not easy for me to bring the reality of such injustice as slavery to my little boy. Yet, I can feel it really touching him on a deep level and I trust the wisdom of the Enki philosophy. This is a good thing. Just for the joy of watching my boy make connections for himself- that verse we started in circle is actually about Harriet herself, and that song we heard Mavis Staples sing on our Cd is the same one Harriet herself sang, and she too ate food like we are cooking, and heard the same Brer Rabbit tales we heard- he is just thrilled to tie it all together. Walking this journey together is such a gift.

 

And Dori joins us for the parts that work for a 5 year old- the dances, the crafts- and I read the stories to Ari when Dori is listening to his quiet time story. He has his kindy stories that we read together that he loves. And Willa- she loves the dances most of all. We put her in the highchair and bop around the living room and she waves her arms and grins at us. Fun for all.

:: halloween decorating

:: paper shoes made by Dori,

:: Mama loves it when superheros use their powers to mop the floor.

:: pumpkins and spiders and witches abound.

There is lots of loveliness to report on here- a wonderful mellow Halloween with friends, a new grade 2 cultural/humanities block we are enjoying greatly, Dorian's wonderful creations of paper shoes and homemade books and endless wild stories, a baby who is rolling and cooing and charming us every day, celebrating my best friend's baby girl's first birthday, new projects on the go- but we had a real Halloween terror that makes it hard for me to write about anything else here in this space. Perry drove to work on Halloween morning and rolled the car down into a deep ditch. He is okay. Totally unscathed, amazingly. The car is a write off and I still can't talk about it, or hear the story about how it happened without breaking into a cold sweat. The road was icy. Our appointment to get the winter tires on had been delayed to the next day because we were waiting for some other parts to come in. He was running a little late. He is so very lucky. We are all so very lucky. I have been keeping my brain from going to all the scary places it wants to go- the what ifs that make me shiver with fright. We are all okay, but holding each other a little tighter. Oh this fragile, fragile life. How precious it is. How lucky we are to have each other.

feeling thankful:

 for the morning light,

 for little moments like these,

 for our bedroom closet being taken over by tiny hand-me-down baby dresses,

 for tinkertoy rock bands,

 for our homeschooling days and how very well they are going,

 for the abundance of good food we have to eat,

 for this smile,

for a few moments of peace while a baby napped and little boys were at lessons to knit in front of the fire and breathe deep.
It is good.

My three little loves~

 

Ari- still wearing that apron I made for him when he was a toddler,

 

Dorian- making up games on our walks. He is a robber, trying to steal my (willow leaf) money.

Willa Rose- rolling over and and just generally wowing us all with her sweetness.

Oh how I love them so.

 

Some random pictures from around here. Not picking the camera up much these days, and never remembering to grab it when we head outside. There has been lots of book reading and school work and messes made, and pictures drawn (I'm in love with this wizard by Dori!) and baby goodness and a little bit of knitting. There has been jam made and laundry washed and dirtied again, and diapers changed and washed and changed and washed. There have been meals cooked and band aids carefully placed, and baby fingernails carefully cut and guitar and fiddle practices attended to and baths and board games and kisses and sibling squabbles. There have been lullabies and cuddles on the couch and long morning walks in the crisp autumn air. There have been voices raised, and little heart shaped cards for mama cut from paper and illustrated with care. There is a big boy who likes to jump and run and leap and bound and carry his sister around all day long. There is a littler boy who likes to play and draw and play and draw all day, and likes to have things just right.  And there is a wee baby girl who has found her voice and likes to coo and chat to us all and who sometimes would prefer a few less kisses on her face and a few less laps around the house in her brother's arms. And there is love. So very much love in this busy life. This wonderfully, crazily, joyously full up life.