sour dough {edited}

Right now I'm in the kitchen trying to convince my sour dough starter to grow, grow, grow.  I have yet to be successful in my sour dough ventures, but I have feeling that maybe my patience has been the problem and not my starter.  This notion was brought about after I spent a little time on the Cultures for Health site and watched some of their wonderfully informative videos.  Did you know that when the brown liquid rises to the top of the starter, that means your starter is hungry?  I didn't!  What helpful information!

impromptu backyard picnic

So while I'm in here growing bubbles and bacteria, my loves are in the backyard welcoming the sunset.  I love to peek out the window and see what they are up to.  On my last check, Moonpie was walking around the backyard trying to balance a bucket of water on her head while singing a song.  Always a song on that girl's lips.  I love her creativity.  I could see it in her face that she was somewhere far, far away.  I kept my peeking to a minimum in fear of ruining her moment.  Her private moment wrapped up in her wonderful mind.  I walked away from the window so grateful that I get the chance to share this life with these two precious people.

edit:
This morning I got up ready to feed the starter and make sour dough pancakes.  There were bubbles, but only on the surface.  And the starter had a distinct odor.  The kids were grossing out, but I pushed on.  Sure, it smelled like baby poop, but I've never had a successful starter, what do I know?  Maybe it's supposed to smell really awful and then miraculously turn into pure delciousness.  Let's just say that was bad thinking on my part.
After more research on the Cultures for Health site, I've realized that I'm not supposed to start a culture with freshly ground flour.  Can anyone give me any pointers on this?

(I should add that the culture I'm using is not from Cultures for Health.  This particular brand did not note if I was to use white flour or whole wheat.  I'm assuming at this point that it was probably intended for white flour.)

letter #1

Dear Summer,

You know how they say that the earth smiles in flowers?

I think that you, dear summer,

must giggle in blueberries.

Love,

mandi

summer nostalgia

This summer I have been finding myself turning back to some summer staples of my own childhood.



My kids have been loving their updated version of the original Slip and Slide. As a child my siblings and I had The Wet Banana. Do you remember this knock-off? The sprinkler was shaped like a banana! Oh man, we loved that thing! Now I can hardly watch as my children hurl themselves at the slide. Ouch.

I have always been an avid reader. Summer days for me meant endless books. I remember going with my dad to work at our church. We had a library at the end of the hallway where his office was. This library was like a dream for me! It was full of old, dusty books. And it was empty. What more could a girl want? I would sit in that dark library, finding a spot where the sunlight was streaming in, and read. All day. My favorite was Heidi, but I always enjoyed good biographies. We picked up this book at the library yesterday. However, our copy is not this newly revised one. It is close to 60 years old! Can you believe our library still has it? We are reading this to prepare our imaginations for our upcoming road trip in August. More on that later!
Ahh, nothing is better on these hot days than a popsicle. Now, our pops never looked this cool when I was a child, but we always had the store bought kind on hand. And when we didn't, the ice-cream man always provided!

I bought this mold last summer and we use it daily. Sometimes more than once, if you know what I mean!

Yesterday Moonpie requested that we put up "one of those old rope swings" on our live oak in the backyard. Isn't this one beautiful? It is made of reclaimed wood, and the rope is untreated. Nothing says summer nostalgia to me more than a good old rope swing.

some summer inspiration

Man, it has been really hot here the past couple of days! So much so that we are back to our summer routine of outside early morning, inside most of the afternoon, back outside after 7:00. Which is pushing our bedtime way later than I would prefer. But that's not the point here. I have been dreaming up some ideas for things to do this summer, and have found some great ones on blogs.


Our To Do list for the summer reads like this:

1. Pudding skate
2. Flour swim
3. Ice cream fight
4. Tempra paint water balloon toss
5. Soapy trampoline
6. Kool-aid water gun

Now, this is not a definitive list, other things like "teach Moonpie to braid" are not on this list. This is more of a I-am-so-bored-what-on-earth-can-we-do-to-make-it-through-the-day (without dying of heatstroke) kind of list. When I'm feeling uninspired I look to this list for some crazy idea to get us out of our slump. And it works!

I have found some other great ideas in blog-land that you have to see!

• Check out Ashley's waterpark! We are FOR SURE doing this! If you've never visited Ashley's blog, you must.
• And then there was this from Heather. I've mentioned here before how I like to keep journals for each of my children, but I love this idea of them journaling their long summer days! Yep, this goes on the list!
• Nicola always has great, do-able ideas! I love this one for nature journaling!

What brings you inspiration on these hot summer days? Please share!

great weekend

We had a wonderful weekend full of old friends. A young man that we worked with in our former church was married Saturday. I couldn't get over that this kid we had known since he was 13 was getting married. John officiated the ceremony so we got to spend Friday and Saturday with the family. The group of friends that came up for the ceremony were kids we have known for about 10 years. Now they are all big and starting their adult lives. It was crazy. I had this moment when I was watching the bride and groom dance their first with my Moonpie and Buddy in foreground blowing bubbles at them. I was watching Buddy reaching as far as little toes would lift him all the way up to a tiny bubble floating overheard. And it hit me. One day, he was going to be that handsome groom, dancing with his new bride. Whoa.

Most days it is hard to see past the smooshed banana on the floor, the legos spread here and there, and all those sweet hugs and belly giggles. It is difficult to remember that his daddy and I are to be preparing him for man-hood. To one day be a leader, in his community and his family. Again, whoa.

For me, it has been so helpful to actually sit and pray over these things. To look past the work of the everyday to see what is to come. I'm one of those mamas that tears up at the thought of my kids being all grown-up, but I must. That's my job, after all.

tough guys wear pink

buddy has a new favorite color...betcha can't guess what it is.

i have been fine with his new found love of pink. honestly, it hasn't even caused me to pause and think. a color is a color. no big deal. but then, when we went fabric shopping yesterday to choose fabric for some new soft pants** for him, he wanted pink. i'm a cool mom, i'm down with the idea of boys liking pink. i mean, pink ice cream? sure! a new pink hot wheel? fantastic! but, pink pants?!? i am ashamed to say that i tried to talk him out of it. the conversation went back and forth like this:

"how about green!"

"no mama, pink."

"ooh- what about gold!"

"no mama, pink."

so we left. with a yard of raspberry hued fabric. and one shameful mama. i would never have tried to talk moonpie out of a color, no matter how 'boyish' it seemed. i whole-heartedly supported her thomas the tank engine phase when she wanted to only wear blue and red thomas t-shirts and underwear. i even thought it was cute. so why the discrimination? why can't my buddy love pink? he tells me "pink is the most perfect color in the world, mama". who am i to say he's wrong? i'm just glad i came to my senses. because look how cute he is in his pink pants (with the requested giant pockets for lizard catching).

***soft pants are buddy's newest quirk. i can't get him into a pair of pants that are not

(a) of a soft material

(b) button-less
(c) zipper-less

it's been easy with the cooler weather to just have him throw on a pair of sweat pants, but with the days warming up i wanted a cooler material- hence the linen.

thankful

Thanksgiving

Thank You

for all my hands can hold-

apples red

and melons gold,

yellow corn

both ripe and sweet,

peas and beans

so good to eat!

Thank You

for all my eyes can see-

lovely sunlight,

field and tree,

white cloud-boats

in sea-deep sky,

soaring bird

and butterfly.

Thank You

for all my ears can hear-

bird's song echoing

far and near,

songs of little

stream, big sea,

cricket, bullfrog,

duck and bee!

- Ivy O. Eastwick

i like...

...that when i ask my buddy "what's going on?" he answers "fine"

...or when i ask "how are you?" he replies "three"

...dire straits on pandora

...sunshiney fall days

...buddy's dirty jeans, delivered via plyers

...soup on the stove, bread in the oven

...that moonpie has been inspired by our reading this week and has fashioned herself a tutu out of chicken feathers, twine and tape (native american princess)

...that i am home to witness all of this- these conversations, sunlight on wood floors, nourishment, and creativity

our weekend

along with a little a welding, a little dirt turning, and a little rain barrel construction, we went to a little autumn festival.

with little horses! have i ever shared here my love of all things tiny? big horses are a bit formidable to me. but miniatures! oh my, i could have a whole herd of these in my backyard. there is plenty of room in the chicken run!

this annual festival is at st. clare's monastery and miniature horse farm. this was our first year to attend, and we had such a good time.

moonpie and this man were fast friends. he let her hang out by the fence while he was watering the horses in between rides. they chatted away about horses, her kitty, and more! when it was her turn to ride, they talked the whole way around the ring. he even went one extra round. i like to think that he just couldn't get enough of the delightful company!

the games were sweet and old fashioned. here's buddy rolling the pumpkin! (this is the point he wondered aloud if the nun was in her halloween costume...ahem.)

after each game the kids were awarded a ticket- whether they won or not! some games were not even manned. you tossed a bean bag, and then got your own ticket. and then, in the middle of the grounds were a couple of buckets filled with prizes. you exchanged your tickets, on your own, for a prize. there was no one there to check for honesty-

just an expectation, that everyone would do the right thing.

i loved that.

beautiful moments

i love those first moments when you discover there is a rainbow in the sky. perfectly arched overhead. and you just stand there, transfixed by it's beauty and it's mystery. the fun part comes in trying to find all of it, but often times, part of it is hidden. maybe behind a big old barn, or a bill board. i think of this sometimes with my children. here i have before me these two beautiful rainbows. full of utter delight and mysterious possibility. sometimes, the beauty of who they are can get obstructed- maybe behind a cranky disposition, or a snide remark. but it is so important for me to remember, that they are still rainbows- full of beauty and light. and if i just walk around that 'big old barn' of a hard moment, i can see it all there- all of the glory that is wrapped up in their little selves.

photos taken by my extremely talented friend, lynsey.

what's going on in the backyard?

well, first off, it's pouring rain. wait, let me re-phrase that- "it's pouring rain!!!". this is good news. and since we never let good news spoil plans already made, here is what we're up to today:

i have cropped out the nudey moments. let's just say my husband is in the back, laying sod in his swim suit and the kids are nakey on the trampoline. we know how to celebrate a good rain, no?

and i'm busy preparing for my muddy friends. once they are pruned up beyond recognition, they are going to want to get cuddly warm.

not a bad place to be...

we're in this together

my mind is swirling right now (in a good way- really!). this is our first official week of homeschooling, and i have to say, we're not loving it. and what that tells me is that what we are doing simply isn't working for us. i have found these past two days that the priorities i have set for my every day living with my family are not being met. my daily priorities are this:

1. to love and grow closer to jesus

2. live at peace with each other

3. to love and serve each other and those outside of our home

4. read really good books

5. go outside and observe, touch, think, play

6. inspire a love for learning and create the opportunities for it

so far our 'homeschooling' time has looked a bit like this but the peace is lacking. buddy is screaming, moonpie is pouting...and my heart is hurting (as is my head!). i have found that what we are doing is not inspiring a love for learning in our home- and that's just not ok. because the bottom line is that my children are young. very young. and if they stop wanting to learn as 3 or 5 year olds, then i've done something really wrong.

so we're ditching the plan and going back to just doing life together. i am wired to live intentionally, so maybe, for now, this is the best plan for us. for me to be near finding small moments to share and discuss. lots of discussion, lots of books, all on a quilt under a tree. so happy together.

***thanks to study in brown (which i found through another helpful blog) for the inspiration to set priorities!

body love

moonpie loves to talk about the systems of the body. when she was 3 we were at one of those restaurants where you can draw on the table cloth and she was scribbling away. when she pulled back from her work she asked 'you know what that is?' we replied 'a snake, a worm, etc'. nope, that girl was drawing her intestines.

for the past couple of days she has been wanting to make a big body diagram. we finally traced out the bodies this morning and she set to work. while i was pulling body books from the shelf she was working on body parts. guess what she drew first?

her uterus and ovaries.

man, i love this kid.

sharing classic films with children

i have to admit it, as a kid, and even as a teenager, i really did not like classic movies. i dreaded the annual december viewing of 'it's a wonderful life' and 'white christmas'. color was my friend, black and white- not so much. funny how being a parent beckons you to see things from different lenses. we are now drawn to classic movies with their simple themes and slower pace.

if you are interested in sharing classic movies with your children, but not sure where to start, here is a list of our favorite classic films. save them for family movie night and enjoy them with your children!

1. the circus

this charlie chaplin film is the best! yes, it is silent, but the slap-stick keeps the kids cracking up through the whole thing. and it's lots of fun to create dialogue as you go! definitely one worth seeing. sidenote: you also feel pretty cool when your kids are talking about that 'charlie chaplin film' to strangers at the store. reason enough! : )

2. rebecca of sunnybrook farm

is there anything cuter than shirley temple? i mean really, this girl was a marvel! this is our favorite shirley temple film of late. we have seen others that have fallen flat, but the kids really enjoy this one. and you can choose color or black and white. last week we watched it in color, this week they want it in black and white. the music is great and the dancing is so fun! i can just see the wheels in moonpie's head turning...wondering when it will be her turn to be a star!

3. the absent minded professor

i think, overall, this is my kid's all time favorite movie. we kept this thing from netflix for 2 months, watching it every week for movie night! that is some fred mcmurray love! it inspired my daughter to try to attach springs from pens to her shoes and try to jump to the ceiling. see this film. it is hilarious!

4. son of flubber

yes- this is the sequel to the absent minded professor. and i must say, it is not nearly as good as the first, but my kids would disagree. they love this movie!

5. singin' in the rain

this is our 'sick' movie of choice. the dancing is fantastic and the music is catchy. there are some scenes some may find 'racey', but very easy to skip onto the next scene. warning: this may inspire your preschooler to hunt down a pair of tap shoes at the nearest thrift store and scuff up your wooden floors. but by all means, let them...

and for some classic television, we have been loving the andy griffith show here lately. it is so funny to hear the kids ask to watch 'barney' and realize they are talking about this show and not the big purple dinosaur. yeah, we um, bought the whole series. geesh.

this is just to say...

i have a bowl of plums pre-washed, sitting in the fridge. they are beautifully red and begging to be eaten. but around here, they don't have to beg for long. my kids love plums! they are in and out of the refrigerator all day, snacking on plums. today i picked up two half eaten plums off of the floor. one was stashed under a stack of art work in the living room and the other under a pile of dirty clothes in the bathroom. when i found the first one i was annoyed. but when i found the second one, i turned sentimental, thinking of the day that will come much too soon when i will no longer find half eaten plums. remnants of a busy day, much too busy to stop and finish the snacking. there will be a 'talking to' tomorrow about food waste, of course, but i wish i could hold on to these sweet preschool days longer than time will truly allow.

this is just to say

i have eaten

the plums

that were in

the icebox

and which

you were probably

saving

for breakfast

forgive me

they were delicious

so sweet

and so cold

william carlos williams

beat the heat

buddy helps wash the car...

did i mention it's been over well over 100 degrees every day this week?

beautiful chef

moonpie has always been my kitchen helper.  the first meal she had an actual hand in was when she was around 18 months old- she helped me break fresh green beans.  i remember that meal.  we had a friend over with a child about 6 weeks younger.  she told me how she just couldn't see herself letting her child help out in the kitchen.  it would be too messy.  the meal would take too long to prepare.  i guess this meal was momentous for two reasons:  moonpie's first, and my first inclination that i just might be doing this parenting thing a little different than others that i knew.

buddy has been in the kitchen since day one.  or two, to be exact.  he was tied to me the day after he was born, helping me make dinner.  my kids love to help, and they are of an age where they actually are  helping now.

last year i taught moonpie how to peel and cut veggies and fruit.  this has been a major time saver for me!  she's even using real knives now (disclaimer:  i am very near to her during this time, reminding her to hold the knife or the food correctly).  buddy is now helping out with cutting, using his 'safe knife' (that's a butter knife to you and me).  

yesterday, after quiet time, moonpie requested that we make something.  her exact words were 'i really just want to work with dough'.  i asked which recipe she wanted me to get down and she replied 'none.  i just want to do it my way'.  ok.  she told me the ingredients she wanted (oats, whole wheat flour, evaporated cane juice, butter, peanut butter and daddy's secret stash of chocolate chips.  no secret, apparently) and that she needed one of my 'granola pans'.  i got out a variety of measuring cups and she went to work.  after the kids ate most of the dough, they rolled the rest into little balls.  we pressed them flat and i stuck them in the oven.  when they smelled done, we pulled them out.  and, much to my amazement, they looked like real cookies.  after they cooled, we each ate one.  i couldn't believe it.  they were good!  i mean, really good!  and oh so sweet.  i asked her how much evap. cane juice she used and her response was 'umm...quite a bit'.  uh, yeah, that sounds right.  when john got home, he was presented a plate of cookies.  he, being the good daddy he is, picked one up to sample.  he whispered over to me 'you really made these, right?'.  nope.  he called her a phenom for the rest of the night.  he couldn't believe that she could figure out the ratio of each ingredient.  

thinking back to moonpie's first attempt in the kitchen, and then the many after that, i can agree with my friend.  cooking with children is  messy.  it's time consuming and never error proof.  sometimes there are carrots that are cut thicker than others, and sometimes flour ends up on the floor, but we're cooking up more than wednesday night pizza.  you know what i mean?  doing life with my kids is way more important to me than speedy meals and a spotless kitchen.  and look at the fruit- a five year old who knows her way around the kitchen.  one that is not afraid to create something out of nothing.  and that to me is worth every late dinner and every stain on my counter top.

looking back

a talk with a friend today made me think back to when little buddy was born.  going from one kid to two was a rough transition for us.  having moonpie was really smooth.  she was born and our life changed for the better.   it was pretty easy for us.  i relished the late night feedings and constant nursing.  as she grew, we were best buddies.  she was always with me.  when were expecting buddy, i assumed it would be the same.  easy.  natural.  but it wasn't.  i wanted to lay around and swoon, but i had a 2 1/2 year old.  i couldn't figure out how to do it all.  it was a very hard time for me.  john had a job change 6 weeks after buddy was born and began commuting- so i was home alone.

a lot.

we then moved into the town he had been commuting to when buddy was about 5 months old.  but during this time there was a house to restore and the stress that came along with that.  i look back at that time with some regrets.  i wanted to post about this for you mamas who are maybe expecting your 2nd.  this is what i wish i knew:

- the laundry will eventually get done

-it's ok to just lay around for a week or so after the baby is born and stare

- encourage the toddler to do it with you!

- don't expect your toddler to be up to par behaviorally with where she was before the birth.  she needs to transition too.

- go easy on yourself

- go easy on your toddler

i wish i could take back all the exasperated sighs, or the times i expected moonpie to act like anything else but a two year old.  i wish i would have sat longer gazing at my buddy instead of rushing to get dinner done. i wish i would have asked for help more.

i look forward to our next pregnancy.  i know it will be rough adding a third, but i think i've gained some wisdom about not sacrificing the feelings of the older on behalf of the younger.  not expecting more out of myself or the kids than i should.  relaxing more.  expecting my friends to clean my bathtub and make me dinner (you know who you are!).  and just living gentler.  

homestead update

life around here has been pretty wet lately. i've been kicking myself over not having our rain water collection system in place. our summers are very dry...argh!!! because of our backyard chickens our backyard has been plucked of all grass and has created a giant mud pit. which has been lots of fun for the kids. they have been out there daily taking mud baths and loving life! our shower is never going to be the same!

our dry days have been lovely and full of outdoor work. john has built our raised beds. we made them extra long and skinny this time, but we are still able to practice the square foot method (the beds are 2 ft x 10 ft). i have planted tomatoes (6 seedlings from the farm and 4 varieties from seed), 4 varieties of eggplant, 2 varieties of bush beans (elvie and ozark razorback) with carrots around the perimeters. we have scheduled to build our bean pole teepee soon for the kids out of some bamboo we harvested from a nearby lot. that was an adventure- 1 mama, 2 kids, 5 poles of bamboo = a recipe for success!


in this pic you can see our 2 raised beds, the bed on the outside of the fence is planted in texas natives. we are adding as we find good deals on plants, or find plants we can take cuttings from to root. these will extend to the mailbox. on the opposite side of the fence i'm putting in an annuals flower bed to attract pollinators. up under the tree i have my herb bed planted with oregano, basil, calendula, bee balm, poppies, chamomile and across the path, lavender. in front of the house we have some low water flowering bushes and nasturtium coming up on screens. the large bed on the right is our strawberry patch. i think we've done 'ok' for our first year. i hear they're better every year, so we're keeping our fingers crossed.

here is the amazing living area john built for us a few weekends ago out of reclaimed deck wood! i love it! he built the screen to grow my cucumbers up. buddy is crazy about pickles so we are planting 2 varieties of pickling cucumbers this year. this will also cover the attractive phone box in the front yard. when we moved here this whole area was covered in giant bushes. not pretty...

the chickens are as ridiculous as ever. they are roosting in the tree, in obvious need of a wing clipping.

however they are laying lovely, colorful eggs, about 6 a day.

there is also lots of baby wearing going on around here.

baby wearing...

and baby licking...