corner view:: white

The corner view this week is "white". Honestly, with two small boys my world doesn't involve much white. Except maybe the back of the wrapping paper taped to my dining table right now which the boys drew a city and roads on. Or maybe my white streak in my hair. ;) But then as I thought for a moment, I found that there are a few things...




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jane, ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie, esti, sophie, cele, modsquad,caitlin, joyce, ani, kim, a day that is dessert, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch, c.t., jeannette, outi, ritva, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana, denise, cabrizette, bohemia girl, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari, jgy, skymring, elizabeth, allison, lise, cate, crescent moon, erin, otli, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa, britta, april, b, kyndale samantha, karen, kristina, goldensunfamily, sophie, janet, mcgillicutty, aimee, sunnymama, jenell, britta, juanita, pamela, inna, daan, myrtille, cris, ibb, susi, jodi, lily, gillian, athena, pienduzz, latisha, clairette, kelleyn, iris, demara, mus, ninja, guusje, di, sammi, theresa, cherry b, victoria, kathryn , lisa, liza, juliette, braja, mulot, anne, lucy, leonor, elizabeth, helene, dominique, shokoofeh, cole, jenna, podane

Promoted!

Brown-White!

Fall...

Fall weekends always seem to be the busiest. This is the time of year for hayrides, farm tours, apple picking and soon pumpkin picking. We stopped by a farm to pickup apples and cider to make apple butter, apple syrup and other fall goodies. We visit a few farms a week for regularly scheduled pickups, so the boys were ho-hum at first, until they remembered that there is something extra special this time of year...hay rides!


And they remembered the great climbing tree...just over beyond the pumpkins.


With all kinds of little nooks and footholds to sit up there.


And while they were not too interested in picking the apples (too busy climbing tree, mom) they of course loved cranking our peeler/corer when we made apple butter. Fall is here!

corner view:: out the car window

corner view:: out the car window

I am excited to see the corner view resume for the fall! This week the theme is out the car window. I must admit that I take a lot of photos out the car window...


To visit great views from around the world visit the other corner views::

jane, ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie, esti, sophie, cele, modsquad, caitlin, joyce, ani, kim, a day that is dessert, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch, c.t., jeannette, outi, ritva, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana, denise, cabrizette, bohemia girl, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari, jgy, skymring, elizabeth, allison, lise, cate, crescent moon, erin, otli, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa, britta, april, b, kyndale samantha, karen, kristina, goldensunfamily, sophie, janet, mcgillicutty, aimee, sunnymama, jenell, britta, juanita, pamela, inna, daan, myrtille, cris, ibb, susi, jodi, lily, gillian, athena, pienduzz, latisha, clairette, kelleyn, iris, demara, mus, ninja, guusje, di, sammi, theresa, cherry b, victoria, kathryn , lisa, liza, juliette, braja, mulot, anne

bonfires & rainy sundays.

Sunday we were lucky to attend a fall equinox party at a beautiful farm. The evening was filled with good food, beautiful scenery, frisbee throwing, horse (above, ahem) riding, live music, games, lots of homeschoolers...

...and unexpected rain (it hadn't rained in almost a month)!


Headlamps, bonfire, marshmallows = happy boys.


The boys were soaked, chilly, dirty, and smelling of a campfire by the time we headed home last night - meaning of course they were very happy and had a GREAT time! :)

sheep & birthdays.

Last weekend we headed to the Sheep & Wool Festival. The boys were so excited to see the animals! We first wandered the animal buildings, checking out the amazing diverse breeds of sheep. So much variety. When we sat down for the sheep shearing demonstration we got lucky and sat next to a little boy (above) whose family owned most of the sheep being shorn. He chatted with my boys for a long time, telling them about his farm, his animals, lambing, and of course shearing. The shearer doing the demonstration shears pretty much all of the sheep for that farm. The man was a whiz - lightning fast - and the boys watched in awe as he gently and expertly removed their wool one after the other.


The boy then took A & G over to the other side of the building to show them the lambs. He climbed the fence and expertly grabbed one lamb at a time - holding it up for everyone to see (he had drawn quite a crowd by then), telling the boys all about them.


After a stop for a snow-cone (hot day!) we wandered the vendor buildings together - with a looooong stop by the angora rabbits. The boys pet them, asked questions and looked them over. From there we split up so I could wander and shop while the guys had lunch. While I am allergic to the lanolin in sheep wool, I am just fine with alpaca and angora, and I found so many yummy yarns that I couldn't even choose. I ended up with a little of this, a little of that.


I think there is a theme with this fall and winter, though. I managed to pick all warm browns. Raw alpaca, alpaca roving, alpaca yarn, and a few ounces of angora fur to see how I do spinning it into yarn. And of course a lighter spindle for the more delicate fur.

At the end I accidentally found out that A & G had bought me a *very* special birthday gift while I was off shopping. An angora rabbit (yep, the rabbit!)!


She is a gorgeous and fluffy girl and will come home with us in a few weeks when we have her home setup. We plan to use her lovely fur to spin yarn, and of course the boys are super excited to take care of her. What a great birthday gift! And a fun day. :)

beaches & waterfalls.

Another week, another State Park! We have our favorite places to hike, but decided that this fall & winter we are going to explore parks we haven't been to before. My boys don't like long car rides so we usually stay fairly close to home - but there are many new places to explore within an hour or so of us, so we are on a mission!


A few days ago we visited a popular park - but since it is mid-September we had the whole place practically to ourselves. We started at the beach...while September is usually pretty cool, we have been having hot dry weather all month which is perfect for playing in the lakes. The boys both love digging and splashing - they play for hours!


After heating up at the beach, we cleaned up and headed into the forest. We heard about a cool trail leading to a waterfall. The boys were VERRRRRRY excited to see it. As we hiked down steep stone steps the temperatures dropped...suddenly we were in a moss covered wonderland full of rushing waters, a big cave, and pools of crystal clear water.


The massive rock is split, so some of the water falls in front, and some behind, leaving a little nook behind the waterfall. We stayed there a very long time - both A & G were really interested in exploring all of the interesting rocks and caves and landscape. Such a cool place.

From there we hiked a beautiful trail called the Lost Canyon. The whole trail followed along the creek from the waterfall, weaving through massive rock crevices. We saw birds, frogs, tadpoles, water insects, and animal tracks.


Even though it has been hot it is mid-September so the leaves have already started changing and falling. As we hiked the trail went from mossy dark mysterious woods to a glowing golden wonderland of falling leaves and bubbling brook. A said he wanted to build a little cottage and live right there in the woods by the creek. I think that sounds like a great idea.


We love getting outside together - to play at a lake, hike, wander and just look for things. We also love exploring the different programs offered by our State Parks. One is a free "Wisconsin Explorers" program for kids - we picked up booklets at the ranger station and as we visit a few parks the boys can work on the projects in the booklet - once completed, we just mail it in and they receive a patch (they have been really into collecting patches lately)! Many parks also offer ParkPacks - backpacks for families to check out which are filled with interesting items to explore the trails and lakes and learn more about relevant topics such as water, forests, and prairie. Most states have programs with the State Parks Systems, so even if you are not from Wisconsin, check out your state DNR website to see what they have.

While summer is a popular time for camping and getting out to parks, we really love fall and winter. Cooler temperatures, no crowds, and gorgeous changing scenery excite us - and we love spending all of those hours as a family outside together exploring. I can't wait for the temperature to drop and see what the next season brings.

Beachy Fun.

While I understand why our state parks are packed with people from out of state all summer, I must also say we LOVE it when school starts again and we can get out without the big crowds and enjoy the parks, beaches and trails. One of our favorite places is Devil's Lake State Park. It is less than an hour drive from home, and has a nice big lake with amazing views of woods and rocky cliffs.

The boys love splashing and swimming in the spring fed lake, hanging out on the beach, and eating way too many popsicles from the concessions. This trip we spent a few hours at the north shore in the water, and then after cleaning up and changing into dry clothes, we headed to the south shore for some more fun.


The boys played at the playground, had lunch, ate more popsicles (!), and went back into the water...finding rocks to pile and skip and toss is just too much fun. Having pretty much the entire beach to ourselves was pretty cool too.


After yet another change of clothing, we wandered the boardwalk - looking at funky fungus, driftwood, dense green forests and enjoying a beautiful pastel hued evening sky.


The trip home was quick, and even though we cleaned ourselves up several times we still had sand stuck in every corner. We can't wait to go back up again as the leaves begin to change - definitely a great spot for fall hikes and leaf watching!

Photo of the Day.

Argon is doing great...we are so lucky to have found such a sweet, affectionate, kid loving cat. Although he has been with us for just over a month, he & G are inseparable. Can't imagine our house without him!