This Moment: Painting and Coffee

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. 

--Amanda Soule

Can you resist this face?

Really, can you?

We took a walk this weekend, just the two of us before the rest of the world woke up because this is when Truman's internal clock alarms. Early morning. Cool mornings. The first day this season that we dug out our hats and added an extra sweatshirt for warmth.

I'm glad he convinced me to go out.

The bakery stop was a good idea too.

Yarn Along

 

As promised, I'm am knitting again. I made a pair of baby booties, but they turned out spherical once sewn together, so unless these little babies have feet shaped like a cabbage patch kid, I think I'll just give them to Isabel's cabbage patch... 

But! Last night I did finish this cowl-- it's so warm and cozy. The wool is just from the big blue box store and the buttons belonged to some coat at one time. I snapped this photo to send to Kerry, but I guess I can share it with you too!

  

Now, on to books. Last week, I finished The House on Mango Street, My Life in France and Fly Away Home (audio). This week, I've got Children the Challenge and Operating Instructions in queue. 

My favorite from last week was My Life in France. Julia Child has this amazing way of making her extrordinary life seem attainable, building it with one footstep in the right direction after another. She was passionate about food, so she sought out cooking, when she was realized her potential in cooking she sought to be the best and impart her passion. One little step after the other. 

She makes me believe that we too can accomplish great things, one tiny step at a time. Plus, this book is all about food and wine. Really, who doesn't love reading about food and wine...?!?

What are you reading? Knitting? 

*Visit Ginny to see what she's up to!

Head in the Clouds

It's the time of year that I just want to injest the light, swallow up spoonful after spoonful of the clouds.

And when I've had my fill of clouds I will lay on my back, curled up in a old love-worn quilt and watch the clouds go by--imagining unicorns, apple trees and faces into their puffy-whiteness.

Can you see the froggy face in this photo that we saw?

weekending

Today: The air has changed, there is the crispness in the morning that soared in with the falling leaves and the changing light.
We spent our weekend recuperating from a blistering week and we've so far met the day refreshed. A pot of tea, crepes in the sizzling in the pan.
Two round cheeked babes, still fuzzy from sleep are sitting at the table.

This weekend: 
Friday: Dinner with my best. Lattes + Watercolors.

Saturday: Early morning walk. Four littles, more water colors, paper and crayons. Soup and English muffins. Lamenting green tomatoes, but making green tomato sauce anyway. Menu planning and budgeting-- three meals a day all week long. Pizza and a movie night.

Sunday: Breakfast together. Church together. Lunch together. Friends together. An amazing dose of togetherness, just what my heart ordered.

How was your weekend?

Joining Amanda.

*The green tomatoes were mealy and bland, so I charged forward with sauce. 

Yarn Along:: Sort of...

I've been knitting-- well if you consider moving my knitting basket to vacuum last night and then thinking very hard about what to knit next, then of course, I'm knitting.

But, as I looked at Kerry's Honey Cowl and at this. I thought, hmmm I've never made a baby sweater and there are lots of friend's babies on the way. I should knit something. So I'm going to, perhaps that tiny sweater will end up in the next Yarn Along addtion.

But, I am reading.

I finished a beautiful book last night (after vacuuming, laundry, dishes, paperwork... you know the usual), called Plain Wisdom: An Invitation into an Amish Home and the Hearts of Two Women. 

It was indeed just that, an invitation into a life of these women to share a table, to share their joy and heart ache-- learning how they lived their lives so differently and yet so similarly. The back of the book calls it a 'soul-comforting read.' And it was, it read quickly almost as if it was written as a letter.

I'm glad that these women didn't try to cast stones at the weaknesses of the 'English' or the Amish-- there was admiration on both sides, for both traditions.

If your heart needs some soul-comforting, a few recipes and some heartening verses/poems, this would be the book I'd reach for.

It's going to be a girls end to the week, starting with Girl Scouts tonight, a girl date tonight and a girls craft weekend too(love my girl friends)! I'm spoiled (and excited)!

K-i-s-s-i-n-g...

Two of my favorite little people, doing what they do best... mainly, loving each other.

Finding Fall, Chasing Wonder

A few years ago my father-in-law bought us the movie, Bridge to Terabithia. I remembered being in fourth grade, reading that book. And I loved it. But honestly, I haven't thought much of it since.

Isabel found the DVD and wanted to watch it. So I let her. And she's been living in the magical land of Terabithia ever since, she writes stories about it, she fills her sketchbook with pictures about it and she dresses up as the Queen of Terabithia. And lately, she's even take her brother on her adventures.

On Sunday, we took a drive to enjoy the fall colors and we ended up at a little pond a few minutes from our house. The leaves were breath taking.

When she exited the car and got down towards the water, I heard her breathlessly exclaim full of wonder, "Truman, I think we're actually in Terabithia."