Category — gardening

It was one of those clear, sharp, mustless days
That summer and man delight in.
Never had Heaven seemed quite so high,
Never had earth seemed quite so green,
Never had the world seemed quite so clean
Or sky so nigh.
And I heard the Deity’s voice in

The sun’s warm rays,
And the white cloud’s intricate maze,
And the blue sky’s beautiful sheen.

-e.e.cummings, “The Eagle”

{simple pleasures}

a weekend Mama Seasons series about finding pleasure in something inexpensive or free in search of :The Good Life:

Thrifted:
$10 Hand-crank ice cream maker (and a hand-held juicer — all for making orange-mint-coconut ice cream!) — (we are currently seeking anything manual for our inevitable move to the country in our off-grid cob home P.S. We are going cobbing next weekend to learn how!)

$1 Doll PJ’s for Ethan’s mama-made waldorf doll, Colby

Gifted:
Basket full of ripe apricots from a neighbor (apricot preserves, anyone???)

Bartered:
Knitted finger puppets in exchange for a rustic lemonade sale stand (for Ethan to earn some Summer income )

Created:
Silk/cotten blend sun hat for Verity (almost done) to match her cardigan

Mud pies

Grown:
Pumpkins vining up their a-frame cage

First sunflower bloom

Enjoyed:
Butterflies comin’ round

Finding another “our song” with my love:
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I’ve been hoping to find time to blog again soon, but even when time was found I was unsure where to begin. A lot has happened in such a short amount of time and I’m still processing much of it. Some things are just so all consuming that the rest of life must very stubbornly seep through, eventually.

And that is one of the things I so admire about life. You can try to dam it back, close your eyes and pretend your floating in a lazy river, but we all know that nothing stops the current. It is defiant it its attempts to keep us moving. Thank God.

One of the markers of passing time in life’s great current is the seasons change. This Father’s Day weekend we’ll kiss Spring goodbye (is it REALLY still Spring?) and embrace full fledged Summer. Currently, the mosquitoes surrounding my home are holding us hostage indoors (and if you know us, that means WE ARE GOING PLUMB MAD!) and has me dreaming of Portland bug-free sunny months of bliss. But a few things make up for it, gently reaffirming that we ARE where we need to be (in no particular order):

For one, the fire flies. Oh, what I would give to be able to capture in photographs these creatures dance outside my window at night. I can hardly close my eyes when I lay in bed waiting for the next one to surprise me with its electrical body outside my window and drift this way and that. There are dozens of them floating outside at any given moment, lighting up the darkness like evening fairies worshiping the moon. Last night I even dreamed I went outside and scouted some glow worms. I’m downright enchanted with them!

For another, the community. The network of family and friends we have been welcomed into in just 4 short months (is that ALL?) is everything I hoped it would be and more. When breaking bread with loved ones, it often feels as if we have never NOT been here. I am so grateful for such a vibrant, loving, healthy community of adults and children to bring up my own in. The more I plug into the good people I have come to know here, the more impressed I am with their hearts and lives – all so very, very different from one another. What a colorful tapestry of folks!

Allow me to paint you a picture of my neighborhood alone: I have been befriended by a neighbor on one side, a nursery worker, single mom to two young boys – the kinda lady who will talk your ear off about Irises and give you the shirt off your back if you asked her (or even if you don’t!). Our lives collide with theirs in ways only nature could orchestrate: rescuing a young tortoise from the street, climbing trees together, or exchanging plants and seeds.

Across the street I am greeted by three friendly neighbors in a row, all of whom I see and speak with pretty much daily. One is a warm, funky grandma with a major green thumb whose home features a set of prayer flags (as does ours). She walks and rides her bike passed our home frequently, often with her two young grandchildren and dog accompanying her.

Next to her is the areas Rabbi with his family of adopted toddlers. He pulls up to his on-street parking several times a day blasting talk radio, mows his lawn shirtless (my, what a healthy sense of self you have!), and is another brilliant botanist. He can name you just about any plant you have and tell you more about it than you really needed to know. We made a greater connection recently, as he prepares to head out of town he showed us an area where he wants us to remove and keep LOTS of yellow lillies off his property, which just so happen to be underneath an apricot tree spilling ripe fruit that we are also welcome to collect. Yippee!

And of course, our sweet friends next to him are a writer and her partner, the kinda gals so genuine that they welcome being knocked to their feet by my 4 year old’s hugs when we run into each other at the Farmer’s Market. We’ve found deeper support from these neighbors than the rest and I have a feeling as I get the courage to join their writing group that we will become closer as time goes on.

Down the way are more families speckling the neighborhood with color and charm, some we know by name and others we don’t. Many who, like us, seem to strive to make their front yard their “Third Place” where community happens.

As I type, Ethan wakes up and without even asking for breakfast declares, “I’m going to the front yard!” His tree swing turns him into a super hero for awhile, and when that loses its novelty there are endless bugs to search for under rocks. I have to coax him back inside for eating, eventually. This morning might be harder than others, however: he has found himself a tortoise.

One of the nice things about living in the city is the walks through neighborhoods like mine. But then, the country walks – spotting bugs, flowers, and deer, presents a networking community as well. Yes, we dream of our little plot of land. A lot.

But more on that later.

In the meantime, some pictures of our in-town life this Summer:

Ver in the garden…

Pole beans reaching up!

Swiss chard, a colorful and tasty addition to our backyard veg bed

A new Summertime tradition: a Marigold Bath!

Ants rummage a strawberry blossom

Peek-a-booing amongst the trees…

Sticky (almost) Summer
is the odor of tea tree oil
– noble attempts to keep mosquitoes and ticks at bay,
and
fingernails dipped in
distinctly tomato branch aroma
– pinching off aphids and spraying with soapy castile water.

Two hundred (and some odd) birds
putting on a Shakespearian tragedy in the trees
and
the steady spinning of the house fan.

Chilled Sauvignon Blanc
swishing down chicken salad and strawberries
– cooling internal temps on a blanket
in the shade of a Red Bud.