sunshine.

Ahhh, the sun returned today, if only for a bit before the big snow tomorrow. This week we have happily eased back into our rhythm and routine after the boys had their dad home (but constantly working) last week. We have started many ongoing projects this week ... paint, clay, plant, food, books, 'experiments' ... Here are a few!

The boys started grass gardens using the local wheat berries we get for our bread making. We started on Tuesday and have been spritzing with water and tracking the progress for a few days now. We should have long green wheat grass soon!


We made some hollow 'mountains' (in progress above) of clay and are drying them to paint and use for our baking soda/vinegar lava eruptions the boys love doing so much. That goes with this book that A has been reading - he is loving Hawaii lately, and so is interested in volcanoes, history, and culture. Besides, words like Kilauea, Halema‘uma‘u, and Puʻu ʻŌʻō are just cool!


We started a tray of micro greens. We are comparing our previous batch where we grew in cells before transplanting to open trays with very dense seeding - to see which method has the best results. The boys love watching the progress, I like eating fresh greens in January! ; )


We had a bowling 'field trip' with a friend today. Three spirited boys competing at bumper bowling! What a fun time. It is so nice when school is back in session after the holidays and we can get out to places without worrying so much about G (little asthma guy) getting sick.

Tomorrow the snow will come. We are all excited to see some fresh snow and get outside again after the ice storm last weekend left everything dirty brown and rock hard and crazy slippery all week - fresh powdery white snow is very welcome!

adventure checklist.

What does a four year old need for an indoor exploration adventure trek?


One tent, a rechargeable LED flashlight, night vision goggles, binoculars, a bug net, two head lamps, a lunchbox of toys, safety goggles, a compass and a big comfy cushion. Oh and a snack.


Check!

icy sunday.

Ahhhh. A Sunday at home. We were going to leave and do some things, really, but when we woke up the world was covered in ice, and we decided to have a nice day at home.


It wasn't a little bit of ice either, it was quite a bit. Yes, that is my husband ice skating down the sidewalk this morning...before the sand went down. Thick ice.


The boys had a fun day. They jumped on the trampoline.


A lot.


We baked YUMMY whole wheat strawberry muffins.


We played many board games, read books, made things, snuggled, cracked geodes.


We watched the birds skid, slide, and freak out on the deck. Made more things, jumped more on the trampoline, played more, read more books, did many puzzles, and played more board games. I even finished cleaning/organizing the dining room and craft supplies. A perfect Sunday! Hope you had a nice weekend~

squeaky.

I love re-arranging things. I always have. Since I hurt my back in August, though, I can't do it by myself, and must rely on my husband being home to help move the big couches. Yesterday we took a few hours together as a family to move furniture, put away all the holiday decor, vacuum and wipe behind and under everything, and re-arrange the living and dining rooms. I love that fresh peaceful feeling after finishing.


Every time we re-arrange furniture I find that the boys have a nice long period of renewed interest in games, puzzles or toys they haven't played with much recently. They sit and focus on things longer. They don't seem to bug each other as much. I love it!


This time we also moved and re-organized their 'cozy corner' areas. Different things close at hand, drawing and writing supplies organized and in baskets, books nearby, things sorted so they can find everything (again!). They love having 'special' spots where they can sit and hang out and have their favorite projects of the moment at hand...once we finished they played and played and played.


I also managed to go through all of our photo boxes in the dining room that I use to organize our art & craft supplies. After all of the holiday hoopla I can find everything again! And I have a few projects we have had sitting around ready now to complete -- like a try at basket making and some leather work. Should be fun!

I feel like we are back to calm and organized and can get into the groove for the next few months of deep freeze! Now, about the kitchen...

indoor garden and the big plan.

As this winter goes on, we are enjoying our indoor 'garden' we started in November. The tomato plants are slowly getting bigger in the window, the parsley, fennel and cabbage are still going strong and being used very often, the cilantro is yummy, and the greens...


We harvested the first large tray of greens including different lettuce, swiss chard, micro chives, mustard greens, and cilantro. This was the treat::


Soooo good! We are starting a new tray of greens and we will also be starting some small containers for micro greens (more on that soon). The boys don't eat salads (yet), but they like the planting and growing process, and of course, the watering. It is so wonderful to cut fresh greens while the snow is piled high outside!

All of the gardening books are starting to arrive from the library as we shift into our post-holiday garden planning mode. The boys always help every year. They have grid paper, we draw the house and yard, what is in ground, and what we want. They pore through the catalogs with me, reading descriptions and looking for unique and unusual veggies, herbs and fruit to expand our garden. They learn about zones and soil and heirloom seeds and open pollination and companion planting as we read and sketch and chat through the dark of winter. Fun for the whole family, really.

Usually the moment the holidays pass I start to think of the garden and can't wait for seed starting time - but this year, with the greens and all of the herbs I think I'm happy snipping and eating my way through to March!