Eating our dragons

Lately the air has turned chill, and the last few days the wind has been blowing a bit wild.  There is a definite bite to it.

The cats picked up on the seasonal change immediately.  They've been running wildly through the garden and bushes, up and down the trees, and throughout the house in the middle of the night.  They've been climbing up the bookshelves, knocking things off, and chasing each other across our beds while we sleep.  When they woke me that first night, I wondered what had gotten into them.  But the next day it was obvious to everyone.

The wind has gotten inside them.

This same wind, the one that takes gentle cats and turns them into demons possessed, seems to have also gotten into my children.  Not one of them could sit still the last few days.  They were looking for reasons to argue with each other, with me, even with themselves.  I was bewildered by their change in behavior until I looked at the calendar and realized that it was the end of September already.

The wind, the sudden bite in the air, Michaelmas... it all adds up.


After much dragon-like ado this week, Friday we settled back down to our normal routines.  Then in the afternoon I told them a story, and we made dragon bread.  Everyone worked with such care and creativity on their breads, shaping their dragons just so.  I think these are the loveliest dragons yet-- so different from each other.

And that's how it should be.  We each have our own dragons, our own short-comings, our own temperaments.  And when they get the best of us, we have to slay them.  Only then can our true selves, our golden goodness shine through.

The first picture below shows all five dragons, while the second picture shows just the kids' dragons.  The last picture is after baking.

The main lesson work this week was perfect for Michaelmas.  I wish I could say I planned it that way, but it was all sheer coincidence.  Sunburst learned about the reformation and how Martin Luther stood up to the wicked pope Leo X.  Moonshine finished the tale of the Ramayana and Rama's fight against Ravana and his league of demon warriors-- very much like dragons themselves.  Kitty Bill's story was much more mild.  He heard the story of Mother Holle, a perfect example of two types of behavior.  I love that the second sister started out with good intentions-- I will work hard!  But even by the second day those intentions were overcome by her own laziness.  Who can't relate to that?!

Kitty Bill helped me make the golden rice, a regular tradition for Michaelmas-- rice cooked with turmeric. With Einstein's help in the kitchen, Moonshine treated us to a mesmerizing Indian-themed meal of Chana Masala and a variation of Korma that she called Hanuman's Delight.  One taste and we could all see that it was aptly named; it was so delicious!

Now that the weather has had a few days to work within our spirits, the cats seem to be quieting down.  I hope the children aren't too far behind.

Spring on my doorstep

 

I found a little bit of love on our doorstep yesterday, just in time for the first day of spring!

This sweet bunny traveled all the way from Canada to grace our nature table.  From one mama's hands to another's.  Just the idea of that warms my heart.  He brought some lovely pictures, a rose quartz, and shell fossil along with him.

The kids were very surprised and delighted.  They made space on the nature table right away.  He looks right at home, don't you think?

Happy first day of spring!

Spring crafting

One of my goals for the year is to craft more, so earlier this year I joined a seasonal swap group.  I struggle to find enough time in the day as it is, but crafting brings me such joy, I knew I had to make time for it somehow.  A swap was the perfect answer.  There is nothing that motivates like a deadline.

For Candlemas I made a little child candle-bearer inspired by a Sulamith Wülfing image.  I even whittled a stick from the garden to make the candle.  My kids were so taken with it that they couldn't bear the thought of me sending it out into the world.  They hounded me until I made a second one to grace our own nature table.

With the candle-bearer, I sent a little postcard of the Wülfing print, some walnut candles, and a knit snowdrop to help urge spring along.  They arrived safely in Germany, and the following day I discovered the most delightful package on my doorstep:

It's a willow catkin child!  The kids and I were a bit breathless that someone would send us something so incredibly lovely.  And I love that she sent us a poem in German to go along with it.

For our Spring Swap I crafted this little gnome-- sort of a guardian of the birds.  He has already arrived at his new home in Canada.  He brought a spring painting, herbal tea, and a song along with him.

 

 Any day now there will be a package on my doorstep... and I can't even begin to imagine what will be inside.  The anticipation is almost as exciting as the crafting.

Hungering for Spring

We've been trying to adapt to the weather changes in our new environment.  It's not always easy.  Each time we move to a new site on the globe we find ourselves in a strange predicament.  Getting used to a new climate takes time.  A whole year in fact!  I find that once we make it through a complete cycle of the seasons, I can better predict what to expect.

No one expected the harsh, icy blast that came in early February for Candlemas.  Back on the farm in Switzerland we hear it got down to -23 C / -9 F.  It wasn't quite so bad here, but it was cold enough.  The kids were thrilled with the snowfall, but I ended up with chilblains on my chilblains.  My feet haven't been warm since October, and I found myself hungering for Spring much more than usual.

Here are the kids enjoying the February snowfall:

 

The snow has since melted, but despite the continual grey skies, spring appears to be coming.  Here are some signs of spring that have been popping up in our garden since the end of February.  What a difference a few weeks make!

 

 

 

Holiday cheer and a recipe!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

 

We've been busy little elves-- rolling beeswax candles, making Christmas cards, opening windows on our Advent calendar, and hanging up decorations.  Mary and Joseph have made their appearance along with our nightly reading materials that take us through Advent: The Light in the Lantern and Mary's Little Donkey.  I can't imagine advent without these books, they really lend so much heart to our home, and the children still light up with every telling.

Another long-standing tradition for us, our felt Advent stockings.  Each one holds a different holiday carol.  We sing our nightly song before we light the Advent candles and read our story.  Singing with my grandmother is one of my favorite memories from childhood, and it touches my heart to see what joyous little singers I have.  There is no sound more precious than the sound of little voices rising up in song!  And we are discovering that at five, Kitty Bill has quite a good memory for song lyrics!

And as always, the girl elves have been busy knitting away.  There are projects going in every corner of the house and lots of whispering going on.

Not all the projects have been started yet, nor the baking, but there is time yet, still plenty of time... or at least that's what I keep telling myself.

It's cold outside, blustery and snowy with lots of ice!  We're trying our best to stay warm and toasty, and when the winter winds blow, our thoughts turn towards food.  The kids have made an unusual request for Christmas dinner-- soup!

I made the mistake of playing around with our pumpkin soup recipe the other day.  Around here folks serve it with cream.  We've always made it with coconut milk.  This time I decided to forgo the milkiness altogether and add in my soup protein standby, ground nuts, and top it with a heavy hand of nutmeg.  Now, my kids are generally very enthusiastic eaters.  And they love pumpkin anything... but this soup?  They went crazy for it.

We finished off the leftovers for lunch today, and there was a general echo of sadness until one of them piped up with the idea of soup for Christmas Eve dinner.  When I acquiesced, they actually cheered.

Best Pumpkin Soup Ever

one medium winter squash (pumpkin, kuri, butternut, etc.) cubed
2 Tbs olive oil
1 large onion
2 cloves fresh garlic
2-3 cups vegetable broth (depends on size of your squash)
1/2 cup ground almonds
sea salt, to taste
ground nutmeg

Saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil.  Toss in the squash, add enough broth so that it reaches the top of the squash, but doesn't cover it completely.  Bring to a boil and simmer until tender (or alternately cook in a pressure cooker for 7-10 minutes).  Puree this, stir in the ground almonds and add sea salt to taste.  Serve with a heavy sprinkling of nutmeg.

It's dairy-free, animal-free, gluten-free goodness... unless of course you serve it with fresh, homemade bread.  But I know you clever folks have got the homemade, gluten-free bread down pat already.

Summer table

I almost never remember to post these before the season is over, but this is what things look like over here. There's actually not a lot of nature on this table. The little yellow flowers are from our mustard greens in the garden. The rocks are ones we collected when we went swimming in the river with friends. We carried them back through the forest to their old farmhouse and spent hours polishing them by hand. And the tiny blue eggshells the kids discovered somewhere around here.



The kids helped me pick this lovely bouquet from the little Blumen field down the street. We have many self-serve flower gardens here. They come equipped with knives and/or scissors, a price list, and a metal box for paying. It warms my heart that people here still rely (and CAN rely) on the honor system. We often buy our produce from local farmers by the honor system as well.

Of course this would never go down well in the States. First of all, and sadly, someone would take advantage. Second, knives and scissors... just sitting out there on a table in the middle of a field? Our laws wouldn't permit it. Such a liability!! I wonder if Switzerland is able to do it this way because of the mandated health insurance? They have forest kindergartens, and in grade school kids often have field trips to the forest where they are allowed to bring pocket knives for cutting branches. Imagine the uproar in the states if we had that!?!

Why are things so different here? And does the honor system still exist in the States? The only time I ever encountered it was at a tiny pottery and salve shop in Utah-- they had the loveliest wood-fired pottery. I remember hearing that they also sold hand salve to the Dalai Lama. :) I bet they have some interesting karmic tales to tell.

A bit of Spring cheer!

Just a little brightness inside to help us truly feel Spring. Despite the chilly air outside, the daffodils are gloriously blooming! They really are fearless in the face of the icy wind and rain we've been getting this past week.

We received our new European nature table stand a few days ago, and I'm completely smitten with it. After so many years creating our nature table on a flat surface, this was just what we needed to change things up. On a whim, I took one of our white playsilks and dyed it pink with food coloring and vinegar. It worked very nicely. I heated up a pot of water with about a cup of vinegar and several (maybe 10-12) drops of red food coloring. I just submerged the damp silk into this and let it simmer in the color for about 15-20 minutes. Then I rinsed it out until the water ran clear. -- The cheery color makes me happy!

Knitted eggs, from last year's egg pattern, also made it onto the table to help celebrate Easter. The root children are waiting just a day or two longer to change over though... these little guys are several years old. I have no idea what happened to our flower children, so I'm making new ones this year... fun!! Hopefully they will show their shining little faces in the next few days.

I'm hoping the same for Mr. Sun, the big tease.

Wishing you an Easter morning that's clear and bright!!

Snow!

It snowed last night.

Not like this though. But it snowed. I'm realizing just how ambiguous the whole "goes out like a lamb" saying really is. The interpretive door is blown wide open...

Compared to lions, lambs are assumed to be these quiet, calm, fluffy little things. The lambs on the hill behind my house are pretty loud, actually. Not quite as loud as the wind yesterday, but loud enough that I can hear their bleats and clanking bells when the kids are quiet. It's not so much noise that it would shake the shutters throughout the night and keep us awake, like the wind did, but I think you know what I'm saying.

It's supposed to snow again this weekend. Not like this.



But white, I suppose, like the lambs behind our house.

We walked up the hill and visited with them a few days ago when the weather was lovely. Some of the lambs aren't white at all, and some are a bit mottled. They look more like my garden soil after it had been pelted with hail. The sun was actually shining when I uncovered the garden yesterday. As soon as I went inside the house it started hailing. I went back outside, it stopped. One last trick of the weather... I finally gave up and encouraged the sky to destroy my garden. It's early yet, after all.

And then this morning we woke up to snow. Though not like this.




The snow is just on the hillsides that surround our house. It's dusting the trees and settled in tight between them. The birds don't seem to notice it. Right now they are singing outside my window. Their song sounds something like "Come out and play! What a glorious day! It's Spring!" If anyone should know, it's them, right? But it's not... it's barely above freezing!

Is it possible that they have a sense of humor? After all, it is April Fools.

So, I welcome the snow this weekend. Do you hear that sky? Get it over with, so we can get on with things. Shake out your last wintery white pillow and let it snow.

Just please, not like this...



It really did snow like this in February.

Happy St. Patties Day!

Look! It got warm! We spent most of the day outside enjoying the warm sunshine and all the crocus in the yard.

I happily toiled for hours digging nettle roots out of the garden bed I hope to plant in very soon. The nettle was six feet high when we moved in, so the roots are everywhere and deep. Such a lot of work for the smallest space, but nothing makes me happier than digging in the garden.

Not much school was done today... a little painting... can you tell we're excited about Spring?!




A green, semi-Irish dinner... potatoes with almond-arugula pesto and a green salad.




The leprechauns made an overnight visit and played the usual tricks-- moving furniture, turning things upside-down, and making things green. The kids were delighted, as always. However, this year something was extra fishy. In addition to the chocolates for the kids, the leprechauns left a couple presents for Einstein and me. This has never happened before... but I have to admit, one of those leprechauns is a fine little knitter.



Wishing you all a beautiful, warm St. Patrick's Day!

Is Winter over yet??

Moonshine, watching the snow come down in droves last week, said:

"On my calendar it says there is going to be a 'Good Friday' soon. I don't understand that. How can it snow for so long and be a good Friday?"

When even the children are sick of the snow, surely it must be time for Spring to finally come. Today Sunburst found some crocus in the yard, drowning in snow melt and rain. It's supposed to be 13 C on Weds and sunny to boot. I'm crossing my fingers.

Seasonal Lovelies

I recently ventured into the world of Waldorf voodoo books in German. There are so many fantastic Waldorfy craft books that haven't been translated into English yet. Yet? Surely, they'll come eventually. This one needs little translation anyway. It's simple enough to understand by looking at the pictures.



Mit farbegin Transparenten durch das Jahr

And the pictures are Lovely. I can't wait to make these for every season! Each one has an accompanying pattern for cutting out all the pieces. I suppose you would xerox the pattern page, but I just eyeballed it with a pencil, scissors and a paring knife. It's supposed to be made with transparency paper -- I don't know if they even carry this in the States, but as you can see, I made mine with colored tissue paper-- the kind you would use to make Rose Windows. It also calls for colored card-stock. I have looked high and low for card-stock in Switzerland to no avail. I finally found a small package (in white) at a Staples in England. We treat it like it's on the brink of extinction... this is sort of true. Anyway, I colored mine purple with oil pastels.

Here's what the pattern original looks like, plus a couple more samples from the book. I'm planning to bring at least one of the plant ones into Sunburst's botany lessons this spring.

A Full Michaelmas

Today we spent a lot of time cultivating our will forces. In other words, we did a lot. From collecting horse chestnuts (really, what will we do with them all?) to making conker dragons. From kneading dough to forming our own individual dragon breads. From harvesting apples to slicing and drying, cooking and saucing. From collecting hazelnuts to... well, we had to leave something for tomorrow!

Many hands make light work, and we had a lot of fun. It was a full Michaelmas, spent manifesting, transforming, and playing together. And with Moonshine's help, I managed to take pictures.