Sisters in the City

I took a weekend in San Francisco with my sister, Amy, to celebrate her birthday. What a beautiful gift. It gave me the chance to dive deeply into my own self, enjoy the natural rhythm and pace of our own making. We walked all day long, ate well, and crashed happily in our hotel in the evening. It felt wonderful to fill my senses with a world apart from my own,  knowing that the this small increment is enough to nourish my creativity. I felt so content with three nights away, and so very happy to come home again. Alas, I am not a big city girl! I love to feel relaxed and low key in my little green haven of western NC. What an affirming and joyful realization that was.

Some favorite things about my stay in San Francisco:

Chinatown- vibrant, colorful, fun!

Filbert Steps - such a beautiful stroll down from Coit tower to the bay, where the beautiful wild parrots of Telegraph Hill can be seen (We spotted them at Washington Square Park)

Golden Gate Hotel - great location, wonderful personnel, fresh croissants and coffee every morning (tea and cookies in the afternoon) dogs and cat to greet us

Greens Restaurant - best meal I've had all year. Delicious, beautiful, savored every bite!

Fort Mason communtity garden - beautiful, charming haven with a view of the city

Cable cars - yes, a cliché, but really such a fun way to see the city

House of Nanking - great food, the chef ordered for us and it was superb

Strolling Haight Ashbury - coco-luxe chocolates, (pine-nut and sage chocolate brittle, raw honey dipped chocolate, elderflower truffles) colorlful Nepalese shops
Walking the Labyrinth at Grace Cathedral (based on Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres)

Our days were entirely unplanned until we got together, looked at our maps and decided which direction to head for the day. Laughing and celebrating with my amazing sister all weekend long was the best of all!

~Special thanks to Daddy-o and Grandma for holding down the fort while I was gone~

Family Time

Long Weekend. Sunshine. Seashells. Carousels. Swimming pools. Fiddler Crabs. Ice Cream. Sand Castles. Zoo. Choo-choo Train. Sweet family time... and so happy to be home again.

And here is a link to one of our favorite songs, Ziggy Marley's Family Time.

A Welcome Home

After a beach hiatus with friends, Daddy is home! The kids were so happy to see his return, that they planned a party in his honor. They made paper crowns, cards and decorated the table with fancy plates. They made a fruit salad, picked flowers and wrapped his seat in silks. Jasper wrapped countless tiny gifts of stones, coins and other treasures. They even put on their surfer wear, complete with sunglasses to greet him. Shouldn't every person upon return from a week's vacation be so lucky as he? Welcome home!

I am so happy to see my azaleas and bleeding hearts in blossom right now. And because I find this so funny, here is a photo of Señor Jasper with his fresh mint and blueberry smoothie mustache.

Spring Tidings!

Making dolls

Dollmaking is an art form that I have limited experience with, but have always loved. My first doll made in the waldorf tradition was for Mia. A sweet, somewhat lop-headed baby doll for her toddler arms to embrace. I also made several Joy'sWaldorf Doll kits, with the velour bodies and have such fun that I made a few as gifts. Eight years later, I am drawn to doll making once again. Trying my hand at a small nature table doll kit, I am humbly reminded of the challenges of such a task. I figure that at my hand sewing rate, my dolls should value at the equivalent of pure gold! Vivienne also got inspired to make a doll, unbeknownst to me, she went upstairs and pulled out the lovely doll kit from Gabi at Fairy Wool Dolls. I am inspired to keep working on my dollmaking, most especially getting the head shape right! This little strawberry girl came from a wonderful kit by Atelier Pippilotta. The Canadian online shop, Bear Dance Crafts, has an amazing selection of  doll making kits. My strawberry girl came out quite different than intended, I changed the scale a bit and added long braids... overall, I am very happy for the results and the practice. As usual, as I learn to make something myself, I am filled with appreciation for the handmade products of others, and the true value of creative efforts.

Vivienne's doll

Happy Spring!

Purple Hues

Rich, regal, elegant, mystical, sublime, abundant, spiritual, radiant... These are words that come to mind when I see the color purple. Today, Vivienne picked a basket full of violets in our yard to make into crystallized blossoms. Such an abundance of goodness in our typical back yard! Some other purple delights: a silk blouse from India, a mexican papel picado , little balls of leftover wool, Mia's pretty origami egg Easter greeting. Just noticing, and appreciating...

Is there a color that brings a certain quality to your day?

Celebrating Life

Oh, the joys of colored eggs, newly blossomed flowers, life springing forth and Mother Nature awakening from her deep winter slumber. The days are growing longer, and seedlings are emerging in my garden patch.

Spring is the season to fall in love with all of nature, time to rejoice in it's beauty and harmony.

I remade the egg crown of my family's tradition. Working with metal wire and delicate blown egg shells is challenging to say the least! I am still searching for the right gauge of wire and will probably be tinkering with it again. I love to see the egg crown hanging in my dining room, as it reminds of many special years of my childhood spent at my German grandmother's house for Easter.

~ Spring has returned. The Earth is like a child that knows poems. ~ Rainer Maria Rilke

Wishing my Mom a beautiful Birthday! Love you!

Preparations for Spring

Such a beautiful time of year. All of a sudden, the sun is bursting with energy and warmth! My kids and I noticed that yesterday the daffodils completely opened and the weeping cherry tree went from closed buds to fully opened glory, and in such a short time. I wish I had sat and watched all afternoon to fully witness it!

Our little Easter table is blooming. Today we tried the silk-dye technique from Martha Stewart's site. It was quite fun and interesting to see how the eggs turned out. As busy as life is, I am always so grateful when I make the time to do something special to celebrate the season at hand.

Seeds have been planted. Many seeds are years old, and so I am curious what will come up. Being one of the first warm days of the season, the kids insisted on eating frozen raspberries with cream and running under the sprinkler! Ahhh, I can already feel summer on its way.

Our puppy Sydney is growing big!

Happy Spring!