Kansas Trip

We had a wild trip! We are back from our two week trip to Kansas. While Daddy started a new job and worked on his big car audio job we had to split town. I had no idea when Nick would be sleeping let alone making time for us and I figured it would be easier for the kids and I to take a long road trip instead. Grandma Lee and Papa have a wonderful home that they were willing to share, awesome meals (all GF) to eat, and a beautiful land to explore. Grandpa Don and Mary live nearby to visit, and we got to see Great Aunt DeeDee. Of course the highlight for Teilee and Landis is always getting to see their cousins! (Thanks to Aunt Kati and Uncle Joe for making them available to us!;)) I love being in Kansas, my mind is less muddled there. I could attribute that to avoiding all other responsibilities except for childcare (no taxes, no finances, no grocery shopping, no organizing, etc...). However, I decided to chalk it up to the clean air, helping hands, beautiful country, down to earth people, and great family!

Previous Posts

I was reminiscing and found a couple of posts that I just had to post a second time.
I have not been feeling as creative these days, but it is still in there! Enjoy a few oldies!

Dec. 21st, 2007

I used to always be a chronic night owl, now I am a fall asleep standing up kinda gal. Today I found myself wiping furiously at the apparent mascara rings under my eyes. Being frustratingly unsuccessful I realized that I had not worn mascara and those were indeed the dark non-sleeping circles that I have earned as a mother. These bruise colored crescents, that no amount of makeup can 'freshen up', scream "Tired Mom Here!". Although, they are not out of place on this tousled uncut hair, unbrushed teeth, unwashed clothes of a person that I am. They only add to the ensemble that declares my latest station in life. Once discovered though I only admire them with a perverse since of accomplishment. Like my stretchmarks, and my stretching breasts, I have earned these. My progress as a woman can be traced across my body like counting the rings of a tree. My still protruding belly indicating the rude way in which my son was taken from my being. My uneven breasts a symbol of my dedication to the nutrition of my offspring. These are my battle scars, my road map, my mark of motherhood of which I am proud to declare. In all its beauty this is me now.



Katelin reminded me of this one- I had completely forgotten, which is one reason why I have a blog......to remember!

October 12, 2007

Rubber Ducky

Little rubber ducky on the bathtub floor,

have you made permanent residence on the drain?

Nestled near the metal hair trap

it works hard to grasp every stray strand that could pass,

A veritable fortress collecting stray objects, resting near your yellow squeak,

How is it that you are now a daily friend of my shower?

How odd to consider that you are not a stranger to my day,

you are the comfort that smiles at me from the sudsy water remains of my wash,

The instant reminder of my station in life,

with fondness I gently set you upright to float on the small puddle of water,

I guess the drain can not prevent you from having your lake,

As I could never remove you, my fond friend, from the company of my feet.

Little yellow rubber ducky on the bathtub drain.

The Age of Innocence

Just had to share this little tidbit that happened recently. We don't watch a lot of TV although lately with all the illness we have had we have let our standards slip. We don't watch the news, we try to never allow the kids to see commercials, and we monitor what they do watch closely. One of the reasons I absolutely HATE commercials is because of the blatant sexism and racism exhibited. Rarely do commercials show interracial families, rarely are toys presented as gender neutral despite their themes or colors.

Teilee has recently started listening to The Magic Tree House series on CD's that we checked out from the library. I love this! It is a media that has her entranced without all the nasty effects of TV. The basic premise is that this brother and sister have a magic tree house that transports them back in time. They go on missions to learn, find clues, and recover ancient objects. Seems pretty innocent and safe, so I left the room while she was listening. Teilee came crying to me in the other room that she didn't want to listen to the story anymore. One of the chapters in one of the books dealt with, by Teilee's description, Roman times. Upon probing she explained that back in Roman times girls couldn't do everything that boys could. She was horrified that the little girl in the story had to dress up as a male soldier so she could go with her brother and do everything he did. Teilee was in tears! She had yet to experience that kind of blatant sexism.

I know that we often become complacent in the sexism that we see, hear, and experience. How far we have come, and yet how far we have yet to go.

Also heard from the mouth of my 6 year old. "If I were a bear (brown bear), I would have been mated by now." Try holding it together when you hear that!!!

Creative Blue and Christmas

I am thinking Creative Blue as my new blog title. I am gonna chew on it a bit before transitioning.

Now on to Christmas!
For several years now we have had a Flying Spaghetti Monster as our tree topper. A simple Mop head (colored with coffee) and some painted styrofoam balls form the figure. We love this, it is original, it is symbolic, and it is a lot of fun.



Twas the night before Christmas and all through then house,
not a creature was stiring, not even our lazy, non-mouse easting cat.......

The stocking were hung by the chimney with care...........

My wonderful friend Kara made these for us. When we had Landis she had to pull a rabbit out of her hat and make another! Every year I get so sentimental when we hang these, remembering all of our traditions we had with her and her family. The extra stocking happens to be for the cats.
This year we were talking to Teilee and Landis in November about what they would want Santa to bring them this year. Teilee asked if the Solstice Fairies could come instead of Santa. This was not an option that I had presented and I had to instantly cover my reaction. Was this okay? I love the tradition of Santa, the spirit of the holidays. Does it matter if the spirit is represented by the Solstice fairies instead. I think Teilee thought the Halloween fairy had brought her such a fabulous gift (a dinosaur) that the Solstice fairies would do the same. And Santa? Apparently you never know what he will bring! Okay I said, so be it! We told the moon (that's how you tell the fairies) and we sent a letter to Santa to communicate with the fairies so they would know that they were in charge of the gift giving this year.
Of course Solstice Fairies enjoy cookies, but really really small cookies and a bowl of milk with acorn caps as scoops.
The fairies left Teilee and Landis a note.

Our tree complete with gifts, and the FSM on top.
This was the year of abundance. We were so amazingly fortunate to be able to buy some of the gifts. We still made gifts, but we were able to make what we wanted and not rely on what we could make with what we had. The stress relief was amazing, the joy was pure. This is our abundance. Not to much, not extravagant, just right.

Daddy slept well..... (of course)


The kids waited until mid morning to open gifts. Here they are donning hats made by Ani (which she gave to us back in October) and the scarves that I knitted to coordinate. My gift to them. Yup, I knitted!!! When I lamented to Teilee a few days before x-mas that, "if only you had a scarf to match that hat", she replied, "but I don't like things that match, I like mismatched things." I almost let out a burst of laughter, knowing my daughter, that is exactly what I had made her. I call it a patchwork, scrappy scarf, she just calls it perfect!

The kids wanted to make Daddy Superman underwear and a superman shirt. I was not going to spend a ton load of money searching for that, so I bought some iron on printable paper. Found some images, fixed them, drew them, printed them off, and then ironed them onto some underwear. Then I thought, "Why not let the kids draw something personal?" Landis drew figures of him and Daddy and since they were so small I made a lot of them and ironed them all over one gray pair. Then Teilee drew a brachiasaurus and that went onto a matching shirt. Daddy first open the superman get up and the extra shirts and underwear, then he got to the kids gifts. I have NEVER seen Nick cry over a gift. The kids were so happy to see how excited Daddy was.
Then the kids got to Daddy's gift for them.
A new dryer with a ironing board on the side (of course they didn't know what an ironing board was). It will turn, it was turning (it broke Christmas eve as we were bringing it inside). Daddy can and will fix it.

One gift the kids got this year was a ride on horse. Teilee has enjoyed dressing it in all my old homecoming dresses, and all of their dress up. Landis is too short to ride on it, but he is absolutely in love with their new pony.

That Night Teilee fell asleep reading the book GrandmaLee and Papa gave her. The coolest ever dinosaur pop-up book!


This year of all years we were counting our blessings. In years past we have had holidays of extreme abundance of things and haven't understood the need for or been able to find an abundance of spirit. The last few years we have been working on our gratitude, and spiritual journey, primarily because we had so little of the green stuff. This year we had a balance and it was beautiful. We are not quite able to do everything (I still missed giving gifts to our extended families and friends), but this huge weight was lifted from our shoulders this winter and we were able to have the holiday season that was fulfilling, peaceful, easy, and lovely!

December Adventures

A visit from Nutty the squirrel. Nutty joins us almost every breakfast and has become quite tame.


The kids graduated their Kindergarten Co-op in December. We shared a final story and thanked our friends for the amazing experience that we were blessed to be a part of. Many tears were shed (by mom) to leave what we have worked hard to build for well over a year. We knew Teilee was ready for the next stage, and it was time to find a way to provide that for her. To celebrate the occasion (and bring a smile to moms face) we had a night out on the town, beginning with a surprise carriage ride.
Teilee got to help guide the lovely Juliet who neighed throughout downtown to Teilee's delight.

Of course we then had to eat out at our favorite dinning spot, La Luz. Lots of gluten free options, kid friendly menu, not bad prices, and well.... it is just plain delicious.
We finished off the night with some ice cream and then some ice skating. Teilee is a blast to watch, such zeal and fearlessness on the ice. Landis is cautions but well balanced and it will be no time at all before he refuses to hold our hands.

Impromptu math lesson given by Teilee. You never know when a teaching moment will strike.

Our winter table.
Honoring the Advent: Each week we lit a new candle and added a new element (ex: The first week shells and bones, the second week evergreen boughs, the third week animal figures, etc...). On Christmas we lit the final center candle.

We added a new verse each Sunday to be spoken while lighting a candle.

The first light of Advent is the light of stones.
Stones that live in crystals, seashells, and bones.

The second light of Advent is the light of plants.
Roots, stem, leaf, flower and fruit by whom we live and grow.

The third light of Advent is the light of beasts.
Animals of the farm, field, forest, air, and sea.
All await the birth in greatest and in least.

The fourth light of Advent is the light of humankind.
The light of love, the light of thought, to give and to understand.

Throughout the rest of the week we shared this verse.

Spirit of the East, spirit of air, of morning and springtime: Be with us as the sun rises, in times of beginning, times of planting. Inspire us with the fresh breath of courage as we go forth into new adventures.

Spirit of the South, spirit of fire, of noontime and summer: Be with us through the heat of the day and help us to be ever growing. Warm us with strength and energy for the work that awaits us.
Spirit of the West, spirit of water, of evening and autumn: Be with us as the sun sets and help us to enjoy a rich harvest.

Spirit of the North, spirit of earth, of nighttime and winter: Be with us in the darkness, in the time of gestation. Ground us in the wisdom of the changing seasons as we celebrate the spiraling journey of our lives.
Our kindergarten co-op put together an advent spiral. Each family contributed something for the occasion and helped to make it a beautiful experience. Each child and parent took a reflective walk through the spiral. I did not get a great picture of the event but is was spectacular. It was dark and quiet, we all sang while each person took a turn and walked a huge spiral of evergreen boughs to the center and back out. Each person carried an apple candle into the center and lit it, then randomly selected an angel card to have, and finally made the journey back through the spiral placing the lit apple candle around the edge to light the next person's way. It is amazing how accurate each angel card was for each person and truly remarkable how reflective and soulful the whole experience was.
Lighting a Candle
Deep in the ground of the human soul,
Of victory assured,
The Spirit-Sun is living,
All through the winter of the inner life
The faithful heart divines it.
-Rudolf Steiner


Making cinnamon ornaments.
Enjoying the frozen stream in our Cottonwood Creek.

St. Nicholas Day.

The kids were both awake early and were very very quiet. I caught the kids hand in hand walking into the living room, softly and sneakily peering around the corner at their shoes near the door. Wondering if leaving them out the night before had paid off.
It did!


Making snowflakes. We learned a new messy trick this year. If you glue on salt, the snowflakes glitter in the sun. We hung these above our nature table and will enjoy them throughout the winter.
No ice skates necessary on our frozen river.

We don't always have the most current equipment. We wait patiently for the day when we can own a nice sled, snowshoes, skies, ice skates, snowboards, snow boots for mom and dad, another pair of snowpants for mom and dad (we do get tired of picking who gets to be dry each trip out), etc.... However, we are so incredibly grateful for everything we have and everything we have access too. We are warm with coats and hats and gloves, we are gifted with the ability to buy a few experiences this year, we are blessed with a beautiful place to live where we have fun out our back door. We were able to do so much more this year and we have enjoyed every single moment!

On the Solstice we sang songs, played outside, and honored our feathered friends. We made our traditional bird seed ornaments to hang on our tree outside. This will be an activity that we will continue in January.

Of course a few trees needed to be climbed as well.


We took the kids to a dance performance downtown. We got to watch our favorite 15 year old in her first ballet performance and were spell bound by the experience. I am hoping to expose the kids to more and more and more arts in 2010. See, another blessing!!
Teilee became very ill a few weeks before Christmas and well into January. She ruptured two ear drums and we have worked hard to heal her. To help her immune system we limited her intake of sugar (no candy canes) and limited the amount and vigor of physical activity that she took part in. After Christmas we took some time to sled with friends. Our park has great kid appropriate hills, and she was feeling well enough to go out. So.........
Go Teilee Go!!
Teilee and her friend Morgan took off on their own over and over and over again. What a fearless twosome.
That's all, and that's enough. I still have Christmas to post!!
Hope your December was as wonderful as ours.

Learning the Letter P

Need name ideas

Calling all Imaginations!!! I need your creative juices. I am not only in need of a new blog name but also a business name. I would like the two of them to be intertwined somehow. They don't have to be the same name but I am looking at finding a way to at least link them.

Here is the business: Natural solid wood kids toys such as: Waldorf Kitchens, shoe racks (to dry boots on), fridges, small figures, dryers, etc......
We are wanting anyone interested in natural kids toys, waldorf education, hand crafted products, local products, family business (everyone is involved) etc......to be able to find us and be interested in what we are offering! Nick is incredibly skilled and these items are also marketable as heirloom and art pieces.

My new blog I intend to focus on our homeschooling Waldorf experience and the things we do at home with the children.

Here are a few name ideas we have come up with so far:

Imagination Playground
Crabby Lion Toys (From our Horoscopes: Landis is a Leo, and the rest of us are Cancers)
Rainbow Bridge Woodworking
Willow Woodworking
BW Woodworking


Clearly we are struggling. I just can't find anything suitable. My primary goal is to find a business name first. I am sure something can be created for the blog from that.
I would love to hear any ideas you might have!