Lu-ly Lu-la

That woe is me,

Poor child for thee!

And ever morn and day,

For thy parting

Neither say nor sing

By by lul-ly lulay!

That is from the Coventry Carol.  I sing it to my children every year at Christmas.  Then I tell them the story of how Herod was so jealous that he ordered all young boys under three to be killed.  And I tell David that I would never allow Herod's soldiers to have killed him.  Or Elsa.  Or Sam.  Which is clearly bullshit.  It is a hard and terrifying fact that we can't always protect our children from madmen.  A madman came into an elementary school and shot 20 first graders, while teachers and the principal died trying to save them.  By by lu-ly lulay, babies.  We are heartsick.

Kids are wicked funny (at least, mine are)

Sammy is sleeping, all by himself, and Elsa is off to Adlebert Farm with David riding along, so here I am.  Also, Tara, are fabulous house cleaner is here.  I don't know how mamas do it without her, in particular.  Anyway, I have a rare moment to sit down-I can read when I nurse, but what to do with hands free...I think I might work on David's sweater--I got these adorable fireman buttons and all I have left are the button bands--but first, I wanted to pop in here.

So, I wanted to announce that, in addition to a doll named Titty (named for a character from the book Swallows and Amazons--apparently it's a nickname for Christina--perhaps out of favor these days), there is a stick named the Vaginator.  This morning, David came charging  in with it, announcing that the Vaginator could cook food for me, nurse the baby, AND reduce bad policemen to dust.  Only bad policemen, of course.  I am thinking that the Vaginator is actually related to a veginator or something like that, also, we are not anti-policeman here, although it may have come up with regard to a discussion about Civil Rights.

Let's see, what else--we had a nice Thanksgiving with our lovely neighbor Amanda and her little girl.  She took some beautiful pictures-she is quite a photographer--that I would like to post here when I am not worried that Sammy is going to wake up. 

Also, our house is covered with duct tape signs, identifying all of the rooms:  there is the the bach room, the lo dree room, the kichen.  I find it totally thrilling that she is venturing into writing without asking for the correct spelling.  She is getting a real sense of how the written word works. 

We also found a new violin teacher for Elsa.  It turns out that I am not at all a Tiger Mother, and Suzuki did not work for me.  I was not interested in a complicated rewards chart to make Elsa practice, and sometimes I was not able to be the one to take Elsa to her lesson, or to do that without a child or two.  So, this is more low key, but I am feeling successful because hey, at least I did it. 

That's all folks.  Hopefully I will get it together to post some Thanksgiving pictures.

And now we are five

Look who's here!  Samuel Thornton Quam was born on October 23rd at 9:45 in the morning.  He was ten pounds even and I can't remember exactly how long--21 inches I think.  I grow them big.  He is sweet and my milk is coming in better than it did with the previous two, which is a relief.   I am definitely attached to nursing.  We are having a lovely baby moon with my wonderful parents here to take care of us--all I am doing is nursing the baby and directing (there are, it seems, a lot of things I am attached to).  As you can see, Elsa loves her baby brother...and thus far, David does too. 

Not only am I loving Samuel's tininess....I am loving how sturdy and big Elsa and David are.  I keep grabbing their arms and shoulders and hands and they are so strong and delicious.  There is plenty of love for all, indeed.

Pulling the Plug

Oh, am I conflicted.  And nervous.  But I did it.  I pulled Elsa out of her school today.  There is a farm/homeschool program twice a week in Fairview, and she went there today and loved it, and we decided that she is going to be homeschooled.  With the caveat that if it isn't working in January, she can go to the Montessorri school in Asheville.   Tomorrow we are going to work on reading word families and form drawing and making a calendar.  I am excited.  I am terrified.  I wish I had the kind of unwavering self confidence that I was on the right path...either way.  But I don't.  I can see both sides of this (and many) issues.  Although at this point in the political game I am pretty confident in my choice of president...but that isn't going against the grain.  Most people I know prefer Obama.

Anyway, I did it...and actually, I am coming back to this a week and a half later, and I am already feeling calmer about this decision.  Elsa is doing great.  We get a lot done.  She is learning to read, and we are hiking and being outside regularly.  I am imagining that after I have had the baby (and gotten through the first few exhausting months) I will have even more energy and we will be able to do more.  I do like it-it is pretty brilliant to see her figuring out how to read, and I do think it is a lot more efficient to do it at home--Elsa's memory and verbal skills had the teacher completely fooled in terms of her reading ability, and I think she was not getting much out of school.  Probably the teacher would have figured it out after a while, but as her mama, I know exactly where she is at as a reader--wonderful comprehension and understanding of story structure, not a whole lot of  decoding skills...which is what we can work on together. 

Okay, so this is even later....October, two weeks before little man is arriving.  Homeschooling seems to be working great...I wish I had more energy.  Anyway, I don't want to completely abandon this blog, but I also don't want to actually write in it, or download pictures or anything, so here it is.

David and Putt-Putt

We are at the beach right now.  When you live in the mountains of North Carolina (or possibly any mountains), this takes on a whole different meaning than it did when I was growing up, and you went to the beach for the afternoon.  What it means is that we are on vacation on Cherry Grove, in North Myrtle Beach.   Usually we go in October, but we figured that we might be a little occupied then, what with having a baby, and so we came in October.  Anyway, it is a lot of fun, and I will have pictures to post after we get back.

Although I would be perfectly content to stay at the beach house (the reason we go to North Myrtle Beach is that we can afford a cottage that is on the beach) the whole time, the other members of my family might get tired of that much beach...so we went to play mini-golf.  I didn't go last time because I was pregnant, but I am so happy that I went today, if only to observe the hilarity of a slightly overstimulated little boy at the mini-golf course where there were dinosaur statues and a multi-story pretend ship that we could actually go on.  David did actually occasionally use his golf club to get his golf ball, field hockey style, into the hole.  (Both kids definitely use the  hockey model, rather than the golf model, kind of dribbling the ball with the golf club until it goes into the hole). 

The minute we entered the course, David was off, dumping his ball down the final, permanent hole, so Jesse had to get him a new one.  Then, off he ran, ducking under rope barrier, to run to the top of the ship.  Jesse told me to follow him, which I did, but would have been wiser to follow him more quickly, as I found him attempting to climb over the "ship's" gate, which was thirty feet up, and climb into a cage with a decorative dinosaur.   He was just so totally thrilled with the whole thing, running, playing on the ship, occasionally putting his ball down randomly on the course to dribble it into the hole.  Sometimes Jesse takes one of the kids to play golf with him, and I am now dying to go, just to watch.

Hickory Nut Gap Farm

We went to this great farm, Hickory Nut Gap Farm in Fairview on Labor Day.  We go every fall, multiple times.  It's a wonderful place, they have chickens, goats, cows, pigs and horses.  All of their animals are grass finished, healthy and, well, delicious.  In the fall, the farm is open to visitors.  They have lots of low spray apples, a corn maze (this year, the corn didn't sprout--not because we were in drought because we weren't--so it was a hay bale maze), animals to look at, a big barn with a rope swing on the hay (this is generally the biggest hit), a trike run in a barn, and a creek to play in.  It was fun, and I am glad we went.  I am still deciding whether to keep Elsa in school or not...if I don't, I anticipate many more visits,  If I do, it may be more difficult.  This whole baby thing is making things challenging.  But great, little unnamed as of yet man.  Complications and chaos are fine.  We love you and want you.

I don't have a lot else to say, but I will put some pictures up.  I don't have any of me, of course, but let me tell you that I am huge and there is no fear, despite my advanced maternal age, that this baby isn't growing.

Elsa and her friend decided that the best way to do the hay bale maze was to leap around on top of them.  They were correct.  David thought it was fun as well, even when he made gross errors about how far he could jump and basically did a belly flop onto the hay and then slid down.

So, I included this picture, complete with chewing hair (as well as adorable gap toothed grin on Elsa's sweet friend) because the thing is that we live here.  It has been hot and humid lately, but my goodness, we live here, and see that stuff every dang day.  And I mean, imagine if I were actually a good photographer.

Yes.  It was a good day.

A Day Off

I have been having a rough time lately.  I have been feeling blue and sick and tired and frustrated and uncreative (aside from the life that I am sort of creating or at least holding for now.)  I told Jesse that I needed a day off...a total day off.  And he agreed--yesterday, Jesse took care of breakfast, then we all went to the Tailgate Market...I wasn't supposed to mind children, but David wasn't feeling great so it was too much to ask Jesse to take him, since he was following me around, occasionally weeping...but then, I was done.  Elsa had a play date, and Jesse took David on various errands, and I literally lay down all day.  Of course I had organizing, gardening and preserving plans for the day, but none of that happened.  I may have done a little laundry, but nothing else productive.  I hung out on Facebook for way too long, read some books and got caught up on reading the New Yorker.  I felt kind of yucky, and was glad when Elsa, back from her day out with her friend and Daddy, proposed an after dinner walk.  We walked down to the Greenway barefoot, heard some neighbors playing music, and just barely arrived back before dark.  At the end of the day, I did feel fairly gross, having been lying around all day.

But the thing is, today, I was better.  The unshakable cold finally seems to be receding.  I am not contemplating anti-depressants (I actually talked to my doctor about how blue I was feeling.)  I worked in the garden while the kids played in the kiddie pool, cleaned the chicken coop, did more laundry (laundry seems to be an incredible issue...I am a bit worried about what is going to happen with the addition of one more probably spitty and poopy little one do the mix...maybe when summer is over my children won't become gigantic dirt balls by the end of the day...), planted a butterfly bush in our "rose" (leafless thorn) garden, made a pie with the kids, froze the last quart of tomato sauce, and, most importantly, did not yell at Jesse all day (I think...I hope).  David and I had a conversation about the Civil War and why Native Americans didn't like it when the White settlers came on their land.   I am feeling more sanguine about Elsa's schooling...either I will homeschool her, or I will make an effort to take on, in diplomatic fashion of course, what I think are the problems with the public school.  Elsa is not the only one who deserves to get outside more and not to get pushed to read before she is ready.  At any rate, my worries do not feel like they are going to prevent me from actually enjoying my time with my family.   It's amazing what a little rest can do.

Oh Dear

Well, we spent two weeks up north, one at a Lake Sunapee in New Hampshire and one in Hingham, MA, the town where I grew up and where my parents still live.  It was a perfect climax to summer, swimming every day, going to the beach or pool, lots of ice cream, lots of playing, lots of reading.  Elsa really and truly learned how to swim, jumping off the diving board at my parents' neighbors' pool, and swimming all the way to the shallow end unassisted.  David was able to paddle around in his life preserver, then he actually figured out how to kind of dog paddle without it. 

Then we came back, and slam, Elsa is now a first grader at Black Mountain Primary.  She likes it, I am heartbroken.  It's a combination of not being ready for this lovely summer to be over, not liking the school, and not wanting to send her off for most of her waking life.  I have lots of complaints about the school--not enough recess, a discipline system that focuses on plastic toy rewards, too may sugary snacks, drizzle causing indoor recess where the kids watched a television program (that one is the worst)...I am going to look at the Montessori school tomorrow, which is in Asheville, and not a perfect option, and Elsa is very much against it. 

I am not too into it either, really.   It feels like all this neat stuff that we did is basically over.  School starts at 8:00, and is over at 2:30, but we are not out of there until at 3:00 (signing her out as a walker is ridiculously time consuming).  Then we walk back to the car, which I park near a church with a big field, and the kids run around for a while, and we don't get back until 4:00.  (Owing to the very short recess, I feel like this running around time is completely critical.)  Elsa and David play outside a little, and take care of the rabbits, but before we know it it is time for dinner and the race for bedtime.  I want to have plenty of time to read to them, so we try to start early...but that is it.

No time to take nature walks and set up the Nature Table.  No time to take her with me to the library.  No time to collect poke berries and attempt to make dyes and paints with them.  No time to go apple picking.  No time for her chores, really.  No time to have her help me put up the harvest (such as it is this year), and activity she loves.  No time to do all the Christmas crafting that we have done before.  Not enough time for her to run and use her body the way she has been accustomed. 

And I know, I am going to have a baby.  I know that school is what kids do.  I know that Jesse and I went to public school (I would argue both that it is different now and that I was affected somewhat negatively by it).   I know that people who love me don't think homeschooling is a good option.

Sigh

I have some pictures to post.  I have some nice, summery things to write about.  I have some peaches that I need to preserve.  I have pesto that I need to freeze.  I have children who I just told to take a bath, in the bath all by themselves, while I am sitting on the couch on a lovely summer night.  I have a garden that needs to be tended.  Right now, although I am so happy about this third baby, I am feeling so happy that I will not be pregnant in the summer ever again.  I just can't make it until the end of the day without collapsing, whether or not I lie down in the middle of the day or not.   Remember future baby craving self, it is hard work to be pregnant.  Your children are sufficient.

Internet time

I have read several posts about how mamas worry about time spent on the Internet.  I have the same worry...I feel like I spend too much time here, cruising around, reading other people's blogs, working on this one, and just being on Facebook.  And I do think I could be more productive if I spent less time here.  On the other hand, I think it is somewhat symptomatic of the fact that the way our culture is now, raising small children at home is wonderful, fulfilling, important, and a bit lonely.  I have been reading Radical Homemakers by Shannon Hayes.  Well, sort of...I have been skimming it.  It is good, but maybe trying to be more scholarly than I appreciate at this juncture in my life.  There is a bit too much review of different feminist theories, of which I grow tired.  But anyway, she does talk about how pre-industrialized families were all at home, doing the work to keep food on the table together.  Although the men and women had their own discrete tasks, they were all home-centered, and also, we were not so spread apart.  Here I am, in WNC, with my wonderful parents in Boston.  (And I am lucky because they make such an effort to visit us.)  And I live in a wonderful, friendly neighborhood.  Still, much of my time with my children is me, alone, doing the tasks of the household, doing stuff with the kids, alone.  And getting on Facebook or reading someone's blog for ten minutes when I am feeling tired feels like a way to connect.  I don't necessarily think it's the best way to connect, but sometimes that is all there is.  And I find that the best ways for me to recharge are not about going out and having a break, but hanging out somewhere, preferably pretty, with my children and other mamas.  Occasionally (very occasionally) we have gotten together and made food for supper while the kids play...but that is hard to organize.  I keep wanting to have a preserving party...but anyway, the fact of the matter is that the culture is slightly isolating, and although the Internet is a poor substitute for face to face interaction, sometimes that is what is available, and has to be what does it for us. 

Homeschool or School....

We made volcanoes and oobleck the other day.  It was lots of fun.  And can you see the broken tree swing in the background?  Elsa can climb halfway up on the rope, and they spend lots of time pretending that it is a ship or a spaceship.

I am being incredibly indecisive about how to school Elsa--I was about to say next year when I realized that actually it's more like in a month.  Yes, school here starts ridiculously and heartbreakingly early, on August 16th.  I am so not ready to send her off to school, all day (I know, it's only until 2:30, but apparently they get homework, and the child is only awake for 13 hours at most, so that is half of her waking life.)  I signed her up for school on Tuesday.  Everybody I talk to says it is an absolutely lovely little school.  Many of my friends have children who go there, and are very happy with it.  And Elsa is so curious about what big, all day school is like, and really wants to go, and I am going to have a baby, via c-section, and probably have trouble getting my milk in, and be unwilling to supplement with formula, and it may be a little rough in the beginning.  I have only one friend, who is a new friend, who I reached out to because she homeschools, homeschools, and I feel bad about the amount of agonizing I am doing when my friends all send their kids to the public school.   But I am seriously balking.  It is four o'clock in the morning, now, and I can't sleep because I am so anxious about the whole thing.  I am definitely spoiling the present with worries about the future.  I think I am just resisting change.  I like having my children home.   I am not at all ready to send them back.  I want to have a hand in her education--I want to watch her learn.  Also, I am feeling resentful about how many restrictions there are (not exactly resentful--I do understand that schools must have rules--I just don't want to have to follow them--really, I am not a sociopath, though).  We are planning a trip to the beach in the fall, which is the only time when Jesse can get off, and that will take care of half of the absences Elsa will be allowed.  I don't want to do homework with her, and I do think it is stupid for kindergarteners and first graders to have homework. 

I also love how great my kids are at entertaining themselves.  We have a lot of down time at the Quam household, and the kids are really good at playing by themselves.  They come up with  their own ideas and do stuff.  I sometimes worry that the structure and stimulation of school will make them need that in their down time.  I don't want them to lose that ability to entertain...to just play outside by themselves on our broken swing.  I wish that school wasn't so all or nothing...that we could send her somewhere three times a week, and take care of the rest ourselves.  I think that might be the case with the co-ops.  I am just not sure.

People seem to be beginning to read this.  Does anyone homeschool?  How did you get up your courage to do it?  Or how did you decide not to? 

This Moment

My parents were here.  It was great.  They love music and my children love music. 

Kerplink, kerplank, kerplunk...

Really, not a very original title, but we went blueberry picking today, thank goodness.  It feels very important that we get that in each summer....I am also hoping to pick up another bushel of peaches to can...and that our green beans come in enought to freeze some.  I tried to be uncommitted to putting a bunch of stuff up this summer, but I failed. 

It was lots of fun.  We actually carpooled with another family (and the other mama drove, which was fabulous) so the drive was fun, although the last part of it was on windy mountain roads, and David puked when we got there.  We were very proud that he managed to wait until he was out of the car, poor little boy.  It took him a little bit to feel better, and he wasn't interested in picking this time, but I think he had fun anyway.  It was super hot...and I had to remind myself to stop picking when I didn't feel good, being, you know, pregnant.  Luckily, Elsa is a champion picker, so we got almost a gallon of blueberries. 

We went to Long Branch Environmental Education Center, which is kind of located in Sandy Mush...I don't actually know what Sandy Mush is--a town, an area?  It is pretty much a hippie place, with a composting toilet, encouragement to pee outside, lots of compost and lots of blueberries.  Last year, people reported that there were copperheads there, so we didn't go, which was foolish, as there are apparently copperheads everywhere here.  This is hard for me to get used to, coming from the north.  I did make my children where closed toed shoes.  Elsa chose her rainboots.  David chose his "hiking boots" (snow boots).  Their feet got hot, and we saw no copperheads.  I never want to make my children feel too paranoid about the world, but I did try to remind them to look where they were stepping, and tried to remember it myself.  They did not seem too frightened, so I think I was just teaching them skills for living in the South. 

After picking (we got more than what we had in the above picture, my competitive ego wants everyone to know), we played in the creek.

But, the real hit of the day was this play structure.  David asked if we could come back tomorrow, because he really wanted to play some more on it.  (Even though it was an hour drive which made him throw up.)

Adventures in Chicken Wrangling...

The chickens were out again today.  This time it was because I realized there was a wasps' nest in one of their nesting boxes in the coop/ark.  I realized it because I got stung while attempting to move the ark.  So, we needed to get rid of the wasps' nest right away, by, yes, spraying poison...I don't know how else to do it.  So, anyway, we let the chickens out.  Luckily, my mom was still here, and did spraying duty.  I am not afraid to get stung, but I feel pretty certain that poison exposure would not be the best thing for me or baby at 26 weeks pregnant.  (Incidentally, I thought that maybe being pregnant would sort of slow time down for me again, like it did for the two previous pregnancies, but that is not at all the case...how am I almost done with my second trimester?  I can feel little man wiggling around in there like crazy, which is a feeling I will miss, I know.)  So, out they went, and had another very, very fun day, hanging out under our ornamental kiwi tree, making various attempts at my garden (I am going to have to figure that one out).  At one point they all began clucking so loud that I thought maybe someone had laid an egg (that's how the neighbors' chickens sound when they lay eggs).  But it is too early for that.  I think maybe they saw an enormous beetle, which was intriguing but frightening for them.  Anyway, although we did not leave for any long expeditions, we did do a few errands--to the Primary School to get Elsa signed up for first grade (I am still kind of balking--I also signed her up for a homeschool program at a farm in Fairview), a few groceries, and ice cream.  So, I am adjusting to the fact that my little baby chickens are going to have to roam the yard, and will be fine.  Seems like there is a metaphor there, as I am also totally freaked out about all day school for my little girl.
But come dusk, it was pretty crazy around here.  Chickens are fun to watch, full of personality, great pets, and, umm, dumb.  They wanted in the ark, but could not figure out how the hell to get in there.  They kept racing around, and pecking at the chicken wire, ignoring the two open doors.  I tried picking up the whole thing to let them in, but that  freaked them out and away they would run.  Finally, Elsa, who should have been in bed, but instead was catching fireflies as I didn't want it to get too dark and have the chickens out in the yard, managed to pick three of them up, handed them to me, and I shoved them in.  Goneril figured it out on her own this time.  I am hoping this issue will also work itself out, because I am not sure that I will be up for chasing them around the yard for the rest of my chicken keeping existence.  Also, how awesome is it that my six year old is a better chicken wrangler than I am?

A homemade tooth pillow of sorts...

Elsa lost another tooth.  This time there is actually a gap, as the grown up tooth is not more than halfway in.  She really wanted a tooth pillow, and again, I hadn't gotten around to making one.  She suggested that we go down to the toy store to buy one.  Umm, no.  Then we thought about needle felting one, and she decided to pull out one of the little figures I made for our Snow Children winter nature table and needle felt a pocket onto it.  So she did (with a little help from me) and she is very satisfied.  I just went in and put five quarters in it.  Although I feel like I shouldn't give so much, frankly, her sweet little baby tooth is worth even more than that to me.

The Chickens Got Out

At least three of them did.  They had a fabulous time, running around the yard, scratching for bugs, eating random things, freaking out and running.  They are so hilariously social...they never wanted to be more than a few feet apart.  Sometimes, one would get so involved in scratching compost or some other activity she was pursuing that she wouldn't notice that the other two had moved on for a minute, would look up and discover that she was "alone," and rush, flapping, clucking and leaping over to where the other ones were.  Poor Farizad, or, as David sadly now wants to call her, Buff Orpington (I guess it is good that he knows the breed, but I was fairly attached to the literary name Farizad), couldn't quite figure out how to get out and spent the day wandering bereft, clucking disconsolately,  around the chicken arc.  We tried several times to assist her to get out, but nothing doing.  Elsa and David had fun chasing them around as well, and Elsa even got to cuddle Rhoda, our Rhode Island Red a little bit.

Chicken heaven.

They spent a lot of time over by Jerry's bunny hutch and run.  Jerry was excited about the whole thing.

Poor, lonely Farizad (or Babizara, or Buff Orpington...)  We tried very hard to let her out.

My parents are in town, which has been great.  They do tons of yard work, especially the cosmetic kind that I don't usually get to, but really appreciate when it gets done, and also entertain the children.  Anyway, today I announced that I did not wish to leave the property, because I wanted to hover anxiously around the chickens and make sure that nothing got them (and that they didn't completely destroy my garden, which they were certainly interested in doing), but they took the kids out to lunch and to a playground while I puttered around in the garden and guarded the chickens and my garden with my life. 

And I did, and it was fun to putter around and have a little time to myself.  I brushed the bunnies, gardened, cleaned up a very little, attempted to turn the compost--it's so heavy...I thought it would be a good opportunity to make bread, but I didn't do that.  Then I made a dinner almost completely from the garden--pesto, with my basil and garlic one of my sweet neighbors grew and gave me for my birthday, my squash, salad and cucumbers.  It was very satisfying, and I even got to freeze some.

Then it was time for chicken (and children) bed, which is tricky, because they occur at pretty much the same time.  I let David listen to Little House on the Prairie on CD (which I shouldn't, because he is understanding it only somewhat...should I even admit this?  He suddenly announced the other day that the only good Indian was a dead Indian.  Just so we are clear, he did NOT hear that from us...and lots and lots of explanation of how actually, Native Americans were here first and that the Europeans were actually pretty bad.   So, next time, that is one for a read aloud, not listen to alone kind of CD) while I went out to coax Goneril back into the coop.  I was able to put one of the chickens in, and another had followed her.  Goneril definitely wanted in the coop, but could not for the life of her figure out how to get in, and was certainly not interested in my assistance.  My dad and I chased her around--I am not moving terribly fast these days as my belly has sprouted, until we finally realized we could lift the whole dang thing, and under she went, and they are all tucked in for the night.

It was a really fun day.  The chickens are so pretty, and it made me so happy to watch them running around the yard.  We really have chickens...it's just so, thrilling, somehow.

Lavender Bath Bombs

I have a few lavender plants scattered around the yard.  I really love lavender.  I read about making lavender bath bombs in Living Craft magazine, and we have been having a week of rain, so the kids and I decided to make them.  It was fun--we took the dried blossoms of the stems, and kind of mushed them, and mixed them with a cup and a half of baking soda, a half cup citric acid, a tablespoon of water, fifteen drops of lavender essential oil,  a few tablespoons of olive oil--I added that last a little bit at a time until they could hold together pretty well, and some food coloring.  My idea with the food coloring was to put in the tiniest amount of blue and red, so it would be sort of lavender.  The kids' idea was to add a ton of food coloring, because food coloring is really fun, and so the lavender bath bombs turned a sort of smurf-like bright blue.  They particularly enjoyed making the shapes.  Again, I was picturing lovely little balls, but we ended up with pancake like creations.  Luckily, I am not a perfectionist, and even if we were going to give them away, I wouldn't really care.  They work, after all.   It was fun--the citric acid and baking soda react when they get wet, so the pancakes expanded a little and became very light before they dried.  And when you put them in the bath, they fizz, which is so exciting and makes bath time a little easier.  Although apparently we did not crush the lavender flowers enough because they make a little bit of a mess in the tub.  I didn't take a picture of that particular mess, however--you can just see them bubble.  I would say that it was great science, and it might be for older or more precocious kids--how the citric acid and the baking soda react and fizz.  I am actually not sure why, although I get a kick out of it.  But it was fun.

We also have a bunch of dried lavender in the van, which was Elsa or David's idea, and it is very pleasant.  I have another plant that I want to put in somewhere, but I am not sure where.  I will figure it out though.

Organization (or lack thereof) and some canning

I love having my kids home.  I love hanging out with them, I love doing things with them, I love having them figure out their own damn things to do when I am puttering around at home.  The only thing is that I don't like taking them out on stupid errands because I forgot to buy dish soap or sugar yesterday at the store.  It's not like it is super hard or anything--they can both buckle themselves in and everything--but still.  Getting them loaded up and then going out into the absolutely huge (for our small town) supermarket to get sugar and dish soap is quite exhausting.  And for some reason, they start to act like maniacs in the store, and I become one of those grouchy moms grousing at them to just stay in the cart.  I often end up going to the Natural Food Store or the Farmers' Market (a very cool little shop that smells like must and mold but stocks exclusively local produce and can provide you with a bushel of local peaches to make jam out of for pennies) but I can't quite bring myself to spend six dollars on dish soap.  And sometimes those places don't have sugar.

David has been wearing his new helmet pretty much non-stop.  This is not the greatest picture of either child, but it is the only one that David was willing to be in. 

The reason this came up is that we made peach jam yesterday.  After swimming lessons, and the obligatory hour and fifteen minutes after at the pool, which I find completely exhausting, we went to the grocery store to buy supplies (more mason jars, pectin) for canning.  But, as usual, I didn't have a list, and forgot that we needed dish soap and sugar, which I didn't realize until I had peeled the peaches and gotten the big water bath canner started.  The very thought of loading up the kids once again to go to the store was extremely overwhelming, and actually, Jesse had taken the van out to a work dinner, so I actually couldn't.  Luckily, I have awesome neighbors, who were willing to lend me five cups of sugar.  Not one cup, five (the pectin won't work unless you have enough sugar, unless you buy a certain kind of pectin, which I didn't buy, obviously, which is too bad--not because I am against sugar in jam--it's not like we eat it by the spoonful--but because it actually tastes more peachy and good with less sugar).  So they saved the day, and we made peach jam, and canning is enormously satisfying, and the kids both helped, and David put his hand on the hot stove before I could stop him, but was okay, and we went to the store today to get dish soap and sugar.  The other problem with going to the grocery store is that it is so freaking cold in there.

I probably shouldn't even post this picture.  Remember how we were out of dish soap?  Well, the vinegar sort of did it...but not totally.  Also, things get messy at my house.

I would say that the solution would be to make a list, but I have known that for the like fifteen years that I have been responsible for buying my groceries, and particularly for the six years that I have been a mother, but I can only sporadically make it happen.  For the most part, although I have pretty serious organizational failings (I took adderal until I began to have children) I do have a fairly organized mind, and can generally do it....but not completely, clearly.

But, we made jam, kicking off the summer canning process.  Elsa has loved it for the past two years, and David is happily getting into it too.

Garden Notes



Quite frankly, this post is mostly for me, as I tend to lose or not to keep up with every garden journal that I begin.  I would like to work on that, as I think keeping a beautiful, organized garden notebook every year would be a nice record to have.  Also, I think it would be a really good example for the kiddoes, for them to be able to see and hold a summer long writing project that I have done.  But, for now, this blog, which I am finding to be a satisfying project, just about right for my organizational and attentional capabilities.



I keep trying to get the whole thing, although it makes it look kind of small, which it sort of is and sort of isn't.  My parents call it my truck farm, but it is pretty average around here.  It certainly doesn't feed us throughout the year...and actually, it hasn't really started to totally feed us for the summer--I got it in pretty late.  We are getting some cucumbers, some summer squash, but not that many, and some baby greens for salad.  Our bush beans are blossoming, and I have stuck some more  zucchini and bean seeds in at random.  I need to pull up one of my two baby greens patches and re-sow it. 

David wanted to dig when he watched me gardening.  He was naked, as it was hot and he had been playing in the kiddie pool.  I have a better shot, but it was less modest.  While we are pretty casual around here, I don't care to post naked pictures of my children on the Internet.  Also, do you see all the plastic stuff around?  They were all given to us, and they have all (except the purple bike, which is officially David's now) been given to someone else.

This is my somewhat pitiful attempt to get a shot of Elsa's garden, which is looking totally glorious right now...I am not a good enough photographer to really get the colors right.  The one sunflower is a volunteer--usually, we get more.  Maybe it was the late frost.  We did seed a few kind of late in the game, but I am looking forward to having them in September.  This is the first year I have been really excited about flowers.  I am now dreaming of a flower and berry garden along our new fence.  I actually just checked out a book from the library called Lasagna Gardening, which looked really good, so maybe this fall I will try making a flower bed over there.  Of course, I may have some other things on my mind come fall.....Also, you can see many of my tomato plants, which seem to be doing well.  They are beautiful and green, but don't seem to be as totally huge as they have been in previous years, which I think may be good in terms of fruit production.  They are certainly laden with lots and lots of fruit, which looks like it will probably ripen just in time for us to go North for our annual family reunion.  I have been trying to spray them with Serenade, which is the organic control for blight, even though thus far we haven't been having trouble with it.  It's early in the season though, and I would like to avoid leaving for vacation and coming home to a bunch of leafless tomato plants.  I do love my tomato plants.  And you can kind of see David's giant pumpkin plants--they are not giant yet, but we are hoping.  We have not had the bug problem this year that we have in the past.  I am hoping it is because with Elsa's garden, we have attracted more beneficials, but it might also be that it is too hot for me to spend a whole lot of time out there.

This is just another shot for me to see how much it has grown.  The Brussels Sprouts are growing tiny little sprouts--it's pretty cool.  Our watermelon plants are finally beginning to vine.  There are lots of little butternut squash coming--they are so much fun to grow.  I also planted a few pie pumpkins and acorn squash where the peas were--right in the nick, I think July first.  I have some huge basil plants--when my parents are here, I should make some pesto.  And we have been harvesting lavender--the kids brought some out to the van, which is making it smell awfully nice.  There are some cool craft ideas for it too in Living Craft magazine--hopefully we will get to it this week.   So, that's where we are this week.   It's going to cool off, and I have procured a hoe, so I am looking forward to spending a little more time there this week.  

Creek Days

This is one of our favorite spots, about a five minute car ride from our house.  It would probably be walkable, if it weren't straight uphill the whole way.  We live in the mountains.  There is a creek, but I can't really get pictures of the kids when they are in the water, because the rocks are slippery, and they tend to want to jump and climb, and, well, I also want to be in the water too.  The rhododendrons are crazy this year.  They don't always bloom much, but this year we return home we and our towels are covered with the sticky blooms. 

It's been hot here, too hot for the shadeless pool, so this is where we come.  It's so shady I don't even have to put sunblock on them.  We meet friends, and creek walk, and hike around--there's a trail near by.  One of my friends brought clay for the kids to play with while we were there--they used the creek to get it wet, and made stuff.  The kids played camping, and fairies, and explorers...David and his little girlfriend (that's what he calls her--I don't know if her really gets the significance of the word) went off on a long hike with the little girl's mother, while I stayed and creek walked with the bigger girls.  Then we all hiked, and got wet again, and finally had to go home.  It was a perfect and exhausting day.

And, apropos of nothing, I found this list while surfing around on the Internet, waiting for Elsa to fall asleep (she likes me to stay, and that is often when I do this....) and it fills me with excitement and joy.  Both kids are a little young for most of the books on this list, but soon, very soon, they won't be.  I can't wait to read them to them, I can't wait to have them read them while I read them...it is just terribly thrilling.

Yoga

Don't you do yoga in your pirate/super-hero costume?  Well, you might consider it.   (I don't do yoga at all, actually, but maybe I would like it more in costume.)

But seriously, I do love the costume phase.  Elsa entered it at just about this time, and is still somewhat in it.  I hope David can last in it a while--it is a little harder, as he has Elsa's big kid friends to contend with, who aren't always as gentle as I would like them to be.  (Is the world ever gentle enough for our children?)  They want him to be accurate, a certain character....totally developmentally appropriate but it makes me want to snarl and defend.  Thankfully, Elsa as a costume lover herself, totally gets it and supports it. 

Weaned...

I think David may be done nursing.  It's been a few days.  I have been, frankly, dying for this to happen.  I have no more milk, and it is uncomfortable, and tiring, and I am just not up for tandem nursing. The boobs could certainly use a short break.  But it is also sort of sad.  We had a good go of it, despite a rocky start, for which I am grateful.  And I am glad he got to nurse for so long.  And I am glad he is done.

Stuff we are doing...

I love summer.  It's awesome.  We have been falling into a fairly nice rhythm.  My children rock the world and don't usually get up until about eight o'clock.  I mean, this rocks the world in summer....we have breakfast, which of late I have not been cooking, and  we do "chores".  Elsa cleans out the girl bunnies' cage, feeds and waters them, I feed, water and move the chickens, and David is supposed to change Jerry's water, which frankly only sometimes happens.  Then, a little clean up and we sit down to work on reading--I read some summer stories from a Waldorf book (I think, but am not sure, that you are supposed to read just one, over and over again for the week, acting it out and stuff, but I don't do that part--we read a bunch), then Elsa works on her easy readers and David listens.  Sometimes we have been playing Go Fish with this set of alphabet cards--I am realizing that Elsa does not necessarily know all of her letter sounds, but both of us are too bored by the Hooked on Phonics drill approach.  I am still conflicted about homeschooling--I really want to, but I am nervous about my organizational skills and also she does not necessarily want to do it.  She is curious about what it would be like to be in school all day.  She also does love to play with other kids.   I think she is torn.  I think I am going to sign her up for the Primary School in town...and if she doesn't like it, I will pull her out.  Or, if I suddenly get up my courage, I will just do it. 

Anyway, we have done a little of this and a little of that.  We spend a lot of time at the creeks.  We haven't been going to the pool that much, but we are signed up for lessons next week, so we will go then.  I only feel like it is safe right when it opens, or at around 4 in the afternoon, because there is no shade and it is incredibly crowded.  We had fun picking some Queen Anne's Lace and putting them in food coloring and water and watching them change colors.  It is an old standard, but lots of fun.  David got really, really, really got into mixing the colors for the various Queen Anne's Lace...and he is quite pleased that it actually worked, pointing it out to Daddy every night at supper.  He is really becoming a little boy, and I think some of his intensity comes from me forgetting that.  He wants to do things himself.  He has also been on this amazing drawing kick, drawing "maps" and other things that are vaguely representational.  It's pretty amazing, although I do find markers all over the house, sometimes with their caps on.  We are working on it.

We go to the library once a week--I basically told the lovely children's librarian that I could never keep up with summer reading programs, and really, my children don't need a reward for reading (or being read to, really), but she just hung onto the program and did it for me, so they got a free book last week. 

David has been wearing a lot of costumes lately.  Generally, in the morning, after he gets his underpants on, he wants me to tie on a play silk like a cape.  Sometimes he wears his sword in his underpants as well.  And then he sometimes falls asleep like that.  I have a picture of him that I haven't put on the computer (what is the difference between downloading and uploading anyway?) yet at yoga class, wearing a cape, pirate hat and sword.  It's awesome.

Our neighbor brought this turtle over to us the other day.  He found it in the street, and thought the kids might like to look at it and keep it.  They did want to look at it, and probably would have wanted to keep it, but I was not interested, so we are  "keeping" it in our yard.  It's somewhere out there I am sure.  I actually took this picture so that when we went to the library, we could look up what kind of turtle it was, because that sounds kind of educational, but I forgot.  We did get a couple of books on owls though, and are reading another Burgess book, Whitefoot the Mouse.  So, that is sort of educational, right?  I do wonder what kind of turtle that is, though...



Elsa's Birthday

Elsa's birthday is July 4th.  I love to tell people that Jesse could see the fireworks as she was being born--I could not, as I was laid up on the operating table, completely freaking out about the spinal that left me unable to move my whole body as they prepared to cut me open and get her out of me.  I was quite sick.  I did a lot of grieving about that birth--I was sure that I was going to have a totally natural birth-but I surely wish I hadn't bothered about the grief.  I got to take home a baby, who has been the joy (along with her brother, of course) of my life for six years, and I don't care how she got here.  I had David via c-section as well, and grieved that as well, although he is also my delight and joy.  This baby is going to be a c-section, and there will be no grief.  It's just the way it is, baby, and that's the way my babies have to come out.  Thank God c-sections exist, or probably Elsa and I would have died, and there would be no David or little womblet.

Anyway, back to Elsa's birthday.  It has become our tradition to go blueberry picking on the morning of her birthday.  Last year, we met her best friend, a little boy and his mama, who I met in natural (ha) childbirth class while we were pregnant with Elsa and Ben.  This year, we took the boy, because his mama was busy giving birth to Ben's sister, after a long struggle getting pregnant.  I have to say, I was pretty touched that Elsa and this little girl will share a birthday, albeit six years apart.  So, we went blueberry picking--the pickings were somewhat slim, but not too bad considering many farmers completely lost their crops, owing to a late frost.  We got a little less than a gallon, and we are planning to make jam.  Elsa and I are the dedicated pickers--David got a few, pretty good for a three year old, and Jesse was content to supervise, but Elsa LOVES it.  She did not want to stop, even though we had to go back and bring Ben to see his new baby sister.

Elsa requested hot dogs, and potatoes, squash and cucumbers from the garden for her birthday supper.  So, we harvested some--unfortunately using up most of the pitiful potato crop we had for the year, and picking very small squash.  The fact is, the garden is not doing all that great this year.  I have high hopes for the tomatoes and butternut squash, but not much else is doing that great.  (I am pretending not to care, but I really, really do...just not enough to really get out there in the heat.)  Anyway, I love it that that was her request, and was most eager to comply.  We made cup cakes, which we decorated with raspberries and blueberries and arranged like an American flag (I wonder if she will grow tired of that at some point?) and then I insisted that they take a "rest."  The plan was that to go to Black Mountain's little Fourth of July street carnival and then watch the fireworks, which go on late because it is not completely dark here until after nine o'clock.  It all went as planned, and both children (and Mama) went fast asleep. 

So we had her birthday supper, ate cupcakes, and got ready to go.  Just as we were leaving, there was a tremendous thundershower, which caused great upset.  Thank goodness for Jesse, who turned it into an adventure, and that it cleared and we went.  The carnival was tame and sweet--there was a bounce house, which is always exciting, some balloon animal makers, face painters and a band.  Oh, and lots and lots of junk food for sale, which luckily seemed to go completely over the kids' heads.  We just happened to meet up with some friends, which was great, as Elsa had been hoping to bring Ben with us, but his mama gives birth so fast that he was with her.  Then we went to the kids' Montessorri school, lit up some sparklers, and watched the fireworks.  This was the first time we stayed for the whole thing--last year it was too overwhelming, and both kids wanted to go home after the first few.  It was pretty overwhelming, and David did end up with his ears covered, head in my lap as I shouted to Elsa to COVER YOUR EARS.  Next year, some kind of ear protection will be necessary, although I most likely will be home with the baby while Jesse takes them.  Or maybe he will be some kind of miracle sleeper...I am not holding out for that though.

Also, throughout the day, neighbors stopped by with presents for Elsa--a delphinium (do they know my girl or what), a rose ring, and some sweet handmade cards from the neighborhood children.  I do love how the children in this neighborhood are loved and appreciated.  It was a beautiful day, and have I mentioned that I am so very happy that Elsa was born? 

My Birthday

I am now 38 years old.  My birthday was on Friday, and we celebrated on Saturday.  We have been having a heat wave here in WNC--it was up to 96 degrees, which never happens. And, although I do love it here, I really, really do, I am a water girl.  I grew up near the beach in Massachussetts, and swimming is part of the summer to me.  We go to the pool sometimes, but the chlorine, the crowds, and well, my paranoia that my children will drown prevents us from going a lot.  I go into hyper-vigilant mode, and also suit both children up in life jackets and can't have a conversation with anyone.  Anyway, we go to creeks a lot, and the kids can get pretty wet, but they are not quite deep enough for me to completely submerge myself, and some of the mountain streams are so cold that I feel like I am having a contraction, so I proposed some natural water, and Jesse took us to the perfect spot.  Not only was there a perfect swimming hole, there were wineberries just growing wild. 

I could completely submerge myself, which made me incredibly happy.

Happy Birthday to me!

Solstice

Well, solstice was a while ago, but we celebrated it a day late owing to a stomach bug that I had that left me completely prostrated.  We have definitely gotten into the habit of celebrating the solstices and the equinoxes, generally with a fire, for which marshmellows are de rigeur.  There is no way that we could get away with fires without marshmellows.  Anyway, the day before, when both children were away at friends' houses, I looked around on the internet for some ideas of something to make.  Suns seemed good, but I definitely couldn't get it together to do a weaving project with natural materials and fabric scraps, because I don't have any.  So, we got some big foamy posterboard, and attempted to cut it out kind of like a circle with our dull scissors, and the kids painted them with red, orange and yellow paint.  Then we added streamers.  I have to admit that it is kind of embarassing to post pictures because our yard is littered with stuff...I collected bamboo poles all last year, thinking I would make some kind of awesome bean teepee, but instead, David just chases Elsa with it like it is a spear.

We added some orange, yellow and red streamers, and they were kind of like sun kites,  which they played with for a long while, and now I have no idea what to do with them.  But they were pretty.

We also made a sun cake, which Elsa decorated with the wild black raspberries that we have growing in the azalea beds.  We didn't get that many this year, but it seems to go every other year.

I have several things to say about it.  First, isn't it cute, despite the imperfections?  Elsa and I worked on it together--the problem was that the second round cake fell apart, and so the sun rays were hard.  Second,  I am just not a perfectionist. Third, I read that you could use turmeric to dye the frosting yellow.  I tried, but it tasted really, really weird, so I went ahead and broke out the food coloring.  It felt very celebretory to make a cake, and was worth the begging from the three year old to eat it right now.

And we had a fire, although we could not stay up until it got dark.  David has given up his nap, which is great, but it doesn't get dark around here until past nine, and he is done by seven thirty.  Also, at one point in my life I had mad fire making skills.  I could bust out a coal on a bow drill, blow it into flames, and have a great fire burning.  Of course, that was in Utah, where everything was dry.  Jesse was late getting home, and I was in a hurry to get the fire going, get the marshmellows roasted and cake eaten and sugar high run off and children into baths and bed, and the fire did not exactly take off.  But it was a good time anyway.  I love summer, even pregnant and really hot.

Fairy House Workshop

If you are wondering why there are no pictures of David, it is because sometimes he wants to be in pictures, and sometimes he decidedly does not.   This is a picture of Elsa at the Fairy House Workshop I ran this past week.  (And, I made 75 dollars, how about that?)  I took pictures of the other kids too, but, although I know very little about internet etiquette, am pretty sure it would be inappropriate to post pictures of other people's children on my blog without their permission.  So, I didn't.  Once I got over my intense nervousness, it was fun.  I read a Robert Louis Stevenson poem, called "Flowers," which described the garden as a fairy forest, and tried to get the kids to imagine what it would be like to be so little in a garden.  They got into it...they had lots to say.  Then we gathered a bunch of materials from around the community gardens.  We did not, of course, pick anything from anyone's plot...

David has been getting into it too.  He wants me to come outside with him and work on building his, which is basically a big pile of grass under the oak tree.  I added some sticks and other things, but he really gets into ripping up grass, putting it into his bucket, and dumping it onto the pile.  The four and under crowd appears to be less into the arranging than the older kids.  

Unfortunately, right now I am sick with hopefully just a 24 hour bug, but I have successfully farmed out my children, David to a woman who had a baby three weeks ago (she does have her husband home, but still.) Anyway, I am feeling very grateful for this great community as I sit here, sipping water and dreaming about crackers....

Also, today is the Solstice, I know.  We have plans to celebrate it.  Elsa and I even bought marshmellows at the natural grocery store in Asheville, so we could have a fire and a celebration.  But, like I said, I have a bug which is pretty much prostrating me.  So, I guess we will pretend that the Solstice is tomorrow.  That feels scientifically wrong, but mama energy wise right.  (I could tell the kids that today is actually the longest day, but that we will celebrate tomorrow, but that would be greeted with horror and a desire for marshmellows immediately, which, in general, sounds like a good lesson for them, however, again, after a day of being able to keep nothing down, I am not up for that battle.)

Pink background

Umm...I like pink and all, and always have, but I have no idea how I managed to turn the background pink.  I see other folks talking about how blogger has gone crazy, however, I very much doubt that in this case.  Oh well.  It's pink.

Tough Week and the Garden

Wow, this week has been a doozy.  I have been feeling frazzled, exhausted and out of patience.  I realized yesterday (should I confess this?) that neither of us had actually fed the little man lunch.  We had very little food in the house that didn't need cooking, and the kitchen was a mess because I have collapsed at the end of the day and then hit the ground running (albeit late--but what can one do when one is still extremely nauseous, and yes, throwing up in the morning, despite being well into my second trimester) and never fully completed the dishes.  We did feed him snacks and stuff, but because he wasn't demanding it, he never sat down at the table with a decent lunch.  Then, around 5:00, when he was completely freaking out from having eaten nothing but watermelon and crackers and peas, we frantically ordered a pizza, and I threw it in front of him without a plate and he ate.  And was better.

Really, that's not how things usually roll around here.  I am pretty good at, you know, feeding my children.  But for this very disorganized mama, it does take a lot of planning and time and energy.  I am not going to have the energy to drag two children to the grocery store at 4:00 in the afternoon.  So, what I learned from this week from hell was that I need a lot of time at home.  I need to have time to cook stuff and wash the dishes.  I need to have time to sit down and make  a grocery list, so I don't end up having to go to the store several times a week.  I need time to read to the kids and work in the garden and take care of the animals and just be home.   Some people thrive on a busier pace, but I do not.  I know Elsa is dying to spend the next few days at HOME.  Painting, fussing around, holding bunnies, organizing her own space...it will be good.

This is Elsa's garden.  Gladiolas are coming up, her cone flowers and poppies are blooming, one volunteer sunflower is growing.  Elsa says, "I don't have to take care of my garden, it takes care of itself."  Well, sort of.  It is infested with weeds, and there is a very small amount of Mama attention going on.  (And, Grammy attention when Grammy is here.)

And, I took some pictures of the gardens and berry bushes planted around.  The garden isn't doing great this year, but it is big.  Actually, it is kind of comforting that it is not totally thriving, in a way.  I am very lucky to have a full sun plot, and I always wondered if that was why it did so well.  Well, it was part of it, but not all of it--I had a lot more time to work in it, and I applied a lot more compost, and just generally was able to put a lot more time into it.  But, although the animals aren't a ton of work, they do require some chores, particularly the bunnies, who need to be brushed every day.  (I am amassing quite a pile of bunny wool.)

Squash beds--I have summer squash, which are producing fruit but not growing all that big, and butternut squash.  I am going to put some pie pumpkins in where I have my disastrous peas.  Also, there are very tiny baby bush beans coming up, and Brussels sprouts.  Behind it is my herb garden, which is completely covered by weeds.  Many of our garden tools were stolen out of our shed, including my hoe.  I need to replace that.

(Some) tomatoes.  I really should have stepped back and taken the whole thing, because, well, it doesn't look that great and isn't very interesting, but if I step back, I also get the two kiddie pools, the tub, the trucks and probably some discarded children's clothing.  I feel comfortable writing that, but not actually posting it.  Next to the tomatoes are the strawberries, and a bit of David's garden, where we planted the enormous pumpkins.  We need to re-seed a few hills, because they all didn't come up, but some did.

Let's see, here there are sweet potatoes, potatoes (which are not doing very well at all...I probably should just harvest them and put something else in there, but I have no idea what...), watermelon, lettuce, brussels sprouts, three onions....cucumbers which I finally tried to stake up today...we will see how that goes.  I didn't take pictures of my peas, which I completely failed to adequately stake, and feel so ashamed.  Well...not really.  I love peas, but I never have a lot of success with them.  The kids really like them though, especially the picking part--and the watching the pod form out of the flower.

Here is a wine berry bush and a volunteer sunflower along the fence.  Right now we have five blueberry bushes, which had some berries on them, but it appears that they have been eaten by the birds.  Next year, bird netting...they like them a little less ripe than we do, and three wineberry bushes, and a whole lot of weeds growing along our fence.  I don't like how it looks, but I do not at all want to try to fix it right now.  Mom, do you want to start working on that?

Elsa holding Snowflake.  Jesse took the picture.  He is a better photographer than I am.

So, I guess this post was really for me, to remember later my garden in this year of the Last Baby.  The pictures aren't great, but it is good to look at what I have accomplished.   I definitely tend to focus on the fact that toys and clothes are often strewn throughout the lawn, my tools aren't put away, and my garden and other places are not adequately weeded, so it is good for me to see what has been done.