I love... a few good links

This was snapped on our trip up North in the fall. 

On Membership and Belonging: a Conversation with Wendell Berry

How to Raise our Girls and Ourselves with Self Esteem (via DesignMom)

How to Raise Women without the Mommy Wars as a Backdrop

This Studio Space

Robert from Sweet Wood on The Asceticism of Marriage

Holly's practical ideas to cut your grocery bill in half.

What are you reading around the web?

Kerry for I love

**My comments are not working well on the first post on the homepage. If you would like to comment, please open up the post by clicking the header (I love... Knitting and Reading) above then you should be able to comment easier. I haven't made it a priority to fix that. So at least there seems to be a work around for now.

I love... time to be together

The kids and I have been creating in 3D. Homemade play-dough, puppets, modeling clay! I love the time we sit around the table and take time for the creative process.

Joining Kerry for I love.

weekending

This weekend was so beautiful.

Early on Saturday morning, I heard Eric wake up with the dogs. Help the kids find something to do and then he started a gourmet breakfast and did dishes. I can't help but love him so much.

A few of our favorite friends stopped by for lattes, homemade biscuits and pear sauce. Then walked we all down the alley and found more friends upstairs at the Old Factory Coffee Shop. Conversations, laughter and the best coffee in Iowa.

In the evening, after bible study and prayer group-- we played Four on the Couch. Best. Game. Ever. I haven't laughed that hard in years.

Eric made our old gas grill into a charcoal smoker. He used some dry applewood boughs to cold smoke a pork butt. Then he slow roasted it overnight. We had the most delicious pulled pork for our potluck at church today and the super bowl party attended.

Now I'm sitting knitting a simple scarf for Truman (blue please! soft! not fancy!). Bulky yarn on large needles means it's going fast!

I'm thinking about next week, menu planning and declaring a family week. All of our evenings focusing on each other. Good food, good sleep, lots of reading, playing together and getting outside.

How was your weekend? What does your week look like?

I'm joining the habit of being for weekending and Kerry for I love.
And Gratitude Sunday.

I love:: A Quiet Snowy Morning

Knitting and reading while the kids painted and glitter glued. Cinnamon rolls, coffee for me. A needed time together.

I love:: My Family....

I ran across these pictures from a few months ago. Yikes I love my family (:

I love...

I love snuggling with Trubey before the sun comes up and feeling his warm little body and sweet breath in my ear.

I love Isabel's care for her dolls, all are dressed and redressed. They even 'cleaned up their wardrobe' together last night. That made me smile.

My husband who loves to take food challenges.

Friends who warm my heart.

I am full up.

What is making you feel full today?

For Today: I love...

Outside: Cold and sunshine. Sparkling Ice, light catching snow.

Inside: Warm and grey. Tea and honey.

Listening: An interview.

Learning:  Today is a choice, worry is a choice. I am not choosing worry.

Thinking: About her. And how much I miss her. And movie nights.

Doing: Watercolor.

Reading: Parts or all of these.

Seeing: Beauty.

I love: coffee in the morning

This morning was a coffee morning. Truman's been up since 5 a.m. and Eric is sick (but he never gets ill)-- really sick, all fever and chills, body aches and atomic sore throat. So it made for a ruckus morning.

I totally lost my cool about socks. Yep. Socks. It took 25 minutes for two un-named little people to put their socks on.

Well, we're all better now.

I have my coffee and I'm heading to a quiet office. That's something to be grateful for.

Photo

I love: Making Valentines

Last night Isabel stayed up too late stamping and writing the names of every-one-of-her-friends on her homemade Valentines.

It is so amazing to watch her start sounding out words to put them to paper. 

Ahh growing up! 

If you want to see more I love stories... click the button to the right!

I love: Packing a Weekend Picnic

Hello Loves, I've been a bit absent this week but, I did want to stop in to show you a bit about last weekend. Yes, I'm aware it's Friday. But perhaps you might use this idea on your weekend adventures!

Every Saturday we head out for somewhere. Being from Los Angeles and now living in small-town Midwest, my husband needs to get out of town sometimes. And since we are smack dab between two good sized cities, we take the opportunity to make a day trip wherever we go.

Usually, we go somewhere and pick up something for lunch. But I have been against this idea not only for it's cost, but because I don't really like the food choices the kids think we should make (golden arches sound familiar?).  This week, I packed a lunch of things I know they love. Turkey sandwiches on seven grain bread, hard boiled (but still warm!) eggs, tangerines, something-out-of-nothing soup and lime-aid.

They ate and raved in the car on the way to our adventure... And there was no paper waste. Win-win for everyone.

Something Out of Nothing Soup: 
2 tblsp butter
2 tblsp olive oil
1/2 a medium onion chopped fine
3 potatoes peeled and cubed
1 large carrot chopped
1 clove garlic minced
6-8 cups of chicken stock
Generously peppered
Salt to taste

In a large stock pot on medium melt butter and olive oil together add onions, garlic and carrots stir until onions are translucent add potatoes and chicken stock. Boil together until carrots and potatoes are soft. Then blend in small batches in the blender (please don't burn yourself... hold a towel over the lid to the blender so it doesn't explode the heat will make the blender lid expand and it won't hold tight). Or if you have an immersion blender, blend everything to bits until it's creamy.

Store in a thermos for your travels! 

What are your plans for the weekend?

I love:: Washing Dishes

I have this reminder at my kitchen window so I stare at it while washing dishes. It reminds me to not begrudgingly wash dishes, my internal dialogue isn't so fierce "WHY WILL NO ONE HELP ME???" and WHO MADE THIS BIG MESS??"

These questions have been replaced (most of the time with) little prayers for the person whose dish I'm washing, thankfulness for enough food to eat or just feeling the warm water, smelling the soapy-smell, appreciating this is my little bit of time alone. It helps make this mundane task, a stepping stone on my life towards gratitude.

I Love:: Snow Days

Ok so we don't officially have a snow day. But I am home with the kids today, so we get to have breakfast together, ride to school, have a play date!

And Truman will continue to color and sticker on the front window... sounds like a  good day to me!

Do you want to join I love for the month of February? Click the button to the right!

i Love:: Weekend Breakfast

 

On Sunday, Eric greeted me with a latte and breakfast in bed, for no apparent reason. Geez, I'm in love.

Breakfast included my favorite weekend fare (much like the breakfast from a few weeks ago, pictured above), eggs over easy with spinach and whole grain bread. 

What is your favorite weekend breakfast? 

i love:: family time

Hello friends, this weekend was chocked full of activity. But we took sometime to be together, if just in the little things. Celebrating the everyday.

Like washing dishes or the bathtub rubber duckie, Truman's toy car, a screwdriver.

She wanted to take a warm bath afterwards, she felt 'freezing' from being all wet!

Walking to the grocery store. We were in dire need of some outside time so we got bundled up and ventured out. Stopping to crunch ice under our feet, listen for the tweeting birds, chase the end of the sunshine and get our hands cold, cold with the snow on the way home. 

And what is Saturday morning without that hair?

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The new rhythm of the home is up today! Check out my contribution to this amazing magazine, here.

i love:: bartering with eggs (26)

Bribery. For the last two nights. It's worked. And it's not for candy, extra time out of bed, a new train or book. Eggs. Yes, eggs. Here's the story.

For about 3 weeks, Isabel has woken in the middle of the night. Padded her little jammied self across the floor to our room. Around the bed to my side and climbed in because she wanted to snuggle. I'm a sucker for snuggling but then it got to be at two a.m. then one a.m. then midnight. Sometimes she'd wake up Truman in the process and he takes HOURS to get back to sleep if at all.

We transitioned her to her big girl bed a while ago. And I'm all for co-sleeping but when no one is getting sleep. It's time to rethink our bedtime plan, again. 

On Wednesday night, Eric said. "If you stay in bed all night, I'll make eggs in the morning."
Isabel: "Oooo ok. I'll stay in bed!!!"

And she did. Plus she did last night too. And that means two mornings of breakfast together. A cheery bi-product.

That means two nights of good sleep for the big people in the house. And that is a very good thing.

I love:: athena fiber's (25)

This weekend I had the oportunity to spend a little time at Athena Fiber's in Sioux Falls.

It is a little gem of a place, the store is housed in an old victorian house just off one of the main roads.

I loved the cozy feel, the amount of beautiful fiber's and the knowledge of part owner, Laurie. Who entertained my questions and even wound yarn for me.

I picked up two skeins of Malabrigo and a few others.

Stop by if you have a chance!

I love:: sunsets and more (23)

I love Iowa sunsets, they make the winter's worth enduring. I love sleeping babes snuggled tightly next to me. A pot of coffee already made in the morning, sunshine in my windows. Waking up to a clean house. Quiet time with my husband in the evening. Endless knitting. Sunny smiles in the morning from my youngest. And meowing from my oldest, who likes to daily-pretend she's a kitty.

I love:: Continuing the Conversation (22)

Thank you all who commented-- giving amazing and personal answers to our conversation on Lent.  You can read Emily's response in a blog post here. 

To continue the conversation, I'm including here what I gave up. And what I'm bringing on. I tend to go into Lent like it's a new year's resolution. What were mine this year anyway? So I decided to make a life changing group of choices that I will carry the principles out way past Easter.

For lent, I gave up time wasters and I’m bringing on time enrichers.
 

My time wasters:
Facebook, hands down. I love social media, connecting with others and talking with my sisters (and sister-friends). However, it’s a time suck, no?
Internet time. What do I like to do in the evenings, check blogs, write blog post, update fb, find new music... there is so much good out there.
Extra TV, I didn’t give up the Olympics or TV all together but I’m mindful of the time that is wasted while sitting on the couch.

Mindfully Choosing
So now, I mindfully choose something else to occupy that time. Facebook— yep not on it at all during lent. If on the internet, I set a short time limit. TV, I ask myself— is there something else I could be doing that would enrich my time OR is this the place I’m supposed to be? Sitting with my husband unwinding from our day?

Some choices that I now have time for: A good conversation (with voices!) on the old fashioned phone, or in real life. Dinner with friends, sharing the table, sharing experiences— carrying life together.  Knitting like crazy, an extra game of dress Mr. Potato Head or threading beads. Tea parties with Truman— where we eat real food. Tea parties with Izzo— where we eat pretend food from pink cups and plates.

I’m reading a lot more too starting with Simpler Living, Compassionate Life and Freedom of Simplicity.

I am acutely aware that we create most of the stress and busyness in our own lives. Or we sponge it up from other people’s self-made drama-- and I am a terrible "sponger". I am trying to break that cycle in my own life. To be ever present in my community with helping hands, food for the belly and conversations with more listening than talking.  It’s a road that is taking some time to integrate in my everyday, and I am convinced to make it a daily practice.

Another way to practice this in my area is this Thursday. Zestos, Inc is having our end of the month banquet, we eat together, have conversations and make relationships with new people. It's the thing I look forward to every month. Are you in the Orange City area? You should come too. For more information, visit here. 

*You know I never post without a photo-- this is from Eric's valentine pancakes (:  

I love:: Nerdy-ness (19)

Happy 20th Birthday, Photoshop!

In honor of our most used software product in the Marketing Services department, the Mac users planned a little Photoshop themed food day.
Here's what we brought...

I love:: tradition (16)

Dear friends,
Today is Ash Wednesday it marks 40 days until Easter (not including Sundays). Traditionally, there is an emphasis in giving up something to enhance your spiritual life. So there has been much discussion on what to give up for lent or what to bring on-- what does it mean, how do we focus on it, is it really important?

So the day is here, and I'm sure that me spending less time focusing on me and spending more time serving people-- friends and those in our community will give me the purpose I've been lacking lately.  I'm hoping to learn something or at least sit with some deep questions within my own soul in these next forty days.

Yesterday I listened to this report from Barbara Kingsolver who wrote, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. It document's her families journey from the deserts of Arizona to a small farm in Appalachia. Their experiment included eating mostly local and sustainable foods for a year. It's a great book, and if you have time check it out.

But, what really struck me in the interview was that she said something to the effect of-- her journey began with a large proclamation, "I'm going to give up... " and ended with just a new way of life. An adaptation to the things that they had chosen. She equated her journey to a marriage-- a good one, where you make a proclamation and then the marriage becomes a way of life.

I'm hoping that some of the small changes we decide to make will not be a begrudging process, but that we look to it as a re-framing of circumstance, or a view of opportunity for growth. I'll share with you some of our little steps as it goes along. 

Do you participate in Lent? What kinds of things are you giving up, or have you given up?

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I found yesterday a 2008 Lenten Experiment to read about it from beginning to end visit her blog. Two people try to survive on a food stamps budget for the length of lent. Very interesting, with observations and recipes...