Kaleidescope

Our camera lense has been sent in for repairs, so I don't have any new pictures to share. In going through my old ones, though, I realized that there is a lot I haven't written about. So, here is a kaleidescope of our life recently.

* I have more time to write today because Mr. Blueberry Eyes is sick. He was up most of the night with a stomach bug. Of course, that means I was up, too. So, we are having a pajama day. Music and ice skating lessons have been cancelled. Laughing Water is faithfully doing her schoolwork in the LazyBoy chair. Mr. Blueberry Eyes is still complaining of stomach pain and has a little fever. A Clifford video is playing.

*I heard from the publisher I had submitted my manuscript to. It was a denial because his company doesn't do books like that. However, he took a lot of time to give me suggestions of how to go about getting it published. He was very kind and said that, in his opinion, I'd pulled off a good thing. He liked it! That really encouraged me!

*A few Sundays ago, we went to a cider-making party. These pictures are from that. It was great fun and SO pretty! We came home with a few quarts of fabulous cider to keep in our freezer for winter.

*I'm enjoying our homeschooling very much. Laughing Water is so fun to teach because she is extremely goal oriented. We added the study of logic to her curriculum this year and she is enjoying it! Mr. Blueberry Eyes is stretching me a little. He is a wild card, but is doing well, for the most part. He has suddenly taken a leap forward in reading music!

*I repotted some of my house plants yesterday and freshened up the decor on my cabinet tops. I am committing to taking better care of my plants. I may enjoy gardening, but I am really pathetic at keeping house plants. Our friend, The Wanderer, has entrusted his plants to me to keep while he is on his frequent and extended travels. I'm afraid I'm still learning how not to kill his plants!

*My garden is being neglected right now. I desparately need to go pull up dead plants and plant garlic. It probably isn't going to happen this fall. I was thankful that my father-in-law dug the carrots.

*Still waiting for the sauerkraut to finish fermenting. The pickles we made this summer, though, are yummy! Still making goat cheese. I think my favorite was the lemon-dill cheese, or maybe the garlic-basil.

*I'm spending the month of November trying to take better care of myself on several different levels. I'm trying to take more quiet moments to enjoy relaxation. That is easier said than done, being a homeschooling mom with a business! But, I'm trying! (I'm also trying not to freak about what isn't getting done! :)

TTFN - Nanette

Porky

My cousin recently posted this picture to my Facebook page. I had seen it long ago, but it was such a treat to reconnect with it! I am sitting on the back, with my cousin in front. We are perched on Porky, my cowboy-grandfather's faithful horse. Behind us are the wide open spaces of the North Dakota prairie, near the birthplace of Sacajawea (North Dakotans spell it Sacagawea).

Porky was so gentle that we grandchildren often sat on his back with no fear. He became a treasured family pet and a large photograph of him hung in my grandparents' kitchen for a long time.

One day when I was very young (about 3 or 4), my aunt hoisted me up onto Porky's back in the farmhouse yard. She was called away for a moment and Porky started to wander down the road with me perched fearfully on his back. I had no idea how to steer him home again. He gently clip-clopped for about 1/4 a mile down the long driveway. My grandfather was returning from town at that moment with my uncle. They stopped when they spotted the tiny, lone rider headed for the highway. My uncle hopped on Porky with me and steared us back toward the house.

Just a little memory I thought I'd share. - Nanette

Head Over Heals For Tuma

My brother has recently acquired the cutest red healer pup. She is in that adorable puppy stage of soft and cuddly, yet adventurous. She is cream colored with rusty accents. So have I fallen for her? In more ways than one.

Ike and I decided to take a bike ride last Sabbath. We were going along having a great time, when we noticed that Tuma was having trouble keeping up. Her little puppy legs were going as fast as they could, but she just couldn't keep up with our bikes. Since my coat had a draw string on the bottom, I tucked her in to give her a lift. We had ridden only a few yards when Tuma decided she didn't prefer that method of transportation.

I felt her struggle and started to break, thinking, "Right brake should be harder....right brake, right brake." Unfortunately, Tuma decided to make a move before I had stopped. In a desparate atttempt to save her, my right hand flew to grab her. Of course, that left only the left hand breaking.....

Flying over the handlebars of a bicycle was not on my particular bucket list. It is not graceful. It does not feel nice. It is not creative, educational, or sustainable.

I was certain that my arm was broken, but after about 1 1/2 hours, I was able to determine that it was merely bruised. I have bruises all over my legs and my shoulders are stiff and sore. But, it could've been so much worse!

Oh, yes, I landed on Tuma, but she is just fine. - Nanette

Seattle Trip

Life has been a blur lately. Homeschooling the kiddos is absorbing a lot of attention. They started ice skating lessons a couple of weeks ago.

Last weekend I went on a trip with three of my girlfriends. We go on an annual trip to celebrate our birthdays around October/November. This year, we decided to be adventurous and headed for Seattle. We had an amazing amount of fun! We dined at the top of the Space Needle, took a Ferry to Bainbridge Island, and had wayyyy too much fun at Pike's Place Market. I bought a sweat shirt cardigan at a Tibetan shop. We ate Indian, Greek, and Thai. So much fun! I'll post some pics when I get the c.d. from one of the girls. TTFN- Nanette

Update Coming Soon

I apologize for taking so long to post. I don't have time now, but will be posting pics and story of my girls' weekend in Seattle! Great stuff! - Nanette

Making Sauerkraut

This was a busy weekend. The Wood Artist's parents and sister and niece came last Wednesday in time for the kids' guitar/violin recital and stayed until Sunday afternoon. They helped out a great deal by getting in our carrots and cabbage.

The cabbage was already starting to turn, so I decided that it was time to try making sauerkraut for the first time. I've wanted to try making it for years, but have just never gotton around to it. A few months ago, my mother gave me a lovely German-made crock. So, lastnight, while The Wood Artist took the kids out to our root cellar to store carrots and potatoes, I got out my shredder. It was not as hard as I had envisioned. But it will be several weeks before we can try it out.

Today is blustery. It is dark and makes a person want to curl up on a sofa with a good book. It has come to my attention lately that I need to take more relaxation time and "me" time. I don't know how I'm going to pull that off, but I need to try. There comes a point when you burn out and I'm at that point.

I'm looking forward to going to Seattle with my girlfriends this next weekend. It is our birthday celebration weekend and we are going to have fun!

Life in Mosaic

Laughing Water and Mr. Blueberry Eyes love mosaic art. I first noticed it when Laughing Water was four years old and in a group music class. She was given a coloring assignment and insisted on taking her time creating patches of color in a space that everyone else would have used only one color.

A few years later, I chanced upon some mosaic coloring books in a toy store. Over time, I purchased all of them. I knew they would be gobbled up, so I made copies of them. It didn't take Mr. Blueberry Eyes long at all to catch the spirit. It is fun to watch the careful planning and detail work each of them puts into a page.

Our life is a mosaic. Our family can't seem to do anything the normal way. Each person is complex and delightful. Mr. Blueberry Eyes, for example, is a daring wild child, hence the frightening picture I took a while back of him in this tree. (The hight is NOT distorted by the camera.) But he is so tenderhearted, he will sob hysterically in a mildly sad movie.

Laughing Water is gregarious one minute and shy the next. She can be spotted in a gazzillion different "looks" around the house. Once day she'll look like a nun and the next day she is a medieval princess. I can't quite place the era in this picture!

But then, I guess the children are not completely unlike their parents. I received a call from a pollster the other day. By the time she hung up, I think she regretted dialing my number. It went something like this: "Do you consider yourself a Republican, Democrat, or Independent?"

"Uuummm. Well, I usually vote Republican, but I really like our governor and he's a Democrat and I am really conservative, but I'm frustrated with conservatives for not paying more attention to our environment. I guess maybe I'm and Independent."

"Do you consider yourself an environmentalist?"

"Oh, no! I like to make fun of environmentalists! But I'm really into organic gardening. And I'm a vegetarian! Oh, dear. Maybe I AM and environmentalist!

And so the interview went until the polster was giggling so hard she could hardly go on!

Are we tortured individuals? Oh yeah! But boy, do we have fun! So here's to all of you mosaic peeps out there! Be yourself, however many colors that is! -Nanette