big sister knitting for baby!

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Do you see that adorable little baby bootie? Knit by big sister, who a couple days ago felt that she simply must knit something for baby right that moment. (I know how she feels!) Chloe has been knitting since first grade (and she is in 6th now, oh my goodness!) but she has never followed a pattern or gone much beyond knitting and purling. (Hens and roosters are her specialty, along with doll clothes and accessories...) So we spent some time sitting together and worked our way through this pattern. (Unfortunately the pattern had quite a few mistakes, I am gad we were able to figure it out.) So now Chloe has learned how to read a knitting pattern, how to increase with knitting front and back, how to make an eyelet row, and how to do short rows! She is going to start the next one today, and Chessa is going to braid little ties for them. Sweet big sisters, sweet little baby knits.

As far as reading goes, the stacks of books around our house sometimes seem to be taking over. I pulled this one off the shelf a while ago, The Incarnating Child by Joan Salter. I had this book when Chessa was very little, but not before she was born or when she was a baby, I am happy to be able to read it again at this time. Some people may find parts to be a little out there (anthroposophically speaking) but it really resonates with me. Such an important task we as parents have given to help these little souls gently incarnate on earth.

Thanks to Ginny for hosting these fun Yarn Alongs.
(And thank you Ginny for so much more!)

Happy knitting and reading to all!


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moments from the weeks

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These pictures have been sitting here for days, collected over the weeks. I have not been so good at taking pictures lately. I enjoy having this blog to collect our moments, our days, through the seasons... I need to try to be better at it...


Days have a soft glow to them, colors the pale yellows and greens of August. And some even brighter colors have been spotted higher up on the mountains! Not rushing to autumn yet though.

I have been out of the house more often, finally feeling a little stronger and better every day. We have our family outings to town, library, midwife, horses, farm.

I do my kitchen chores and am so grateful for the energy to do so. I cook, bake our bread, sweep the floor.

I knit. I think about sewing. I read and plan for our homeschool year, which we will start the first week of September.
 I'm almost done with Chloe's cardigan, kind of. I am winding some soft yellow yarn for baby. And lovely green yarn from sweet friend.

The girls and I organized some tiny newborn baby clothes!

We garden a little bit. I think about our gardens last year, all the food that we grew that fed us all through the winter. We do not have that this year. It make me sad, some. But mostly I'm okay with it. Been kinda busy growing a baby instead. And our potatoes are looking really good.

It has been such a rainy summer. I know that most people are not saying that. Even over at the farm on the other side of town it rarely rains. We are more up in the mountains. We feel blessed, and the cooling afternoon showers have been so enjoyed and appreciated. 

One day I put on a sweater. There has already been occasions for layers. And sometimes still it gets very hot.

The other night Chessa told me a bedtime story, of a little fairy living in the forest, in an mushroom house, with moss for a bed, wild strawberries and nettles for food.

I am obsessed with nettles lately. Me and baby need them. We made a yummy soup last week full of good veggies and lots of nettles. The girls say that is funny that nettles are not always nice to us (stinging!) yet they are so so good for us and we love them so much. 


It is late now. I get in bed early these nights. I have no book to read tonight though. The library does not have the last Anne of Green Gables book, oh no, what will I do. The girls and I together have started the first book. I had been saving it, they have never heard it before. They love Anne, of course. When I can find nothing to read I sometimes pick up one of Chloe's library books. I just finished one about a family traveling to Oregon, bringing along with them a wagon full of grafted fruit trees. I don't know if Chloe's wagon train picture above is from that story or not. She told me though that the picture is from a story she read, the book did not have pictures, but that was how she saw it.


Oh! And the bear! They sure have been coming around a lot this summer. This one had been visiting the night before, and the next day was right out in front of the house. Bear, you should go back into the forest.


I was supposed to get in bed. Okay. Goodbye!


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in the forest, along the river, by the lake

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To celebrate this middle of summer season and the month of august, and just because we really really needed to, we set out last week to one of our favorite nearby lakes. Past the back of the lake, up the river, deeper into the forest.

For a while it rained, it poured, it hailed.  Then it cleared up and we had a few of hours of sunniness by the river.

We stopped at the back of the lake where the river is flowing in (the lake is very very low right now) on our way home so the girls could could have a little extra running around time. Jason and I watched from a distance. I am so happy for all the days like this that they get to have.

Earlier when we were sitting beside the river I said how nice it was that we got to enjoy the sun and the storm too on this day. And then I hoped that maybe we would even have some fog later. And then we did. It was wet, rainy, and grey all the way home. It was all wonderful.

It feels so good to be in this later part of the season. I hope you have all been enjoying beautiful August days too!


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