I am subbing in the junior high at my daughter’s school this week. In math and science. Oh boy. Thank goodness for this marvelous snow day! It’s allowing my English-major self some time to brush up on endotherms, greatest common factor and transversal lines 🙂
Join me on Friday for my “Kairos” moment from this week. I hope you are all safe and warm wherever you find yourself on this early March day!
Local watermelon. As strange as that may sound, yes, for dinner last night we feasted on local watermelon we put by way back in early September, and let me tell you…It was delicious!
After reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle several years ago, I longed for the days of “looking at all [those] jars in the pantry [giving] me a happy, connected feeling, as if I had roots growing right through the soles of my shoes into the dirt” that Barbara Kingsolver so eloquently describes in her amazing piece of writing. And today, many years later, I truly believe I can confidently make that statement with my head held high. We have established food security for our family.
Our dinner last night was a reminder of this. With a lovely beef roast from a local grass-fed cow that was processed in October; green beans hand-picked by two adorable Fagan gals, bread and butter pickles made with cucumbers from one of my favorite farmers, pickled beets featuring the dazzling brilliancy of the Chioggia beets pulled from our very own dirt in the backyard, and who could forget that locally grown watermelon frozen in a bit of water and local honey. Every element on our plate last night came from a place I know and from people whom I trust.
All of those hours spent hovering over the hot stove, in the sweltering heat of this past summer, seemed worth it when all I had to do was head to my basement last night, grab some meat and veggies from our freezer and a few jars off the pantry shelf. Since beginning our journey toward sustainability, I am filled with an extreme sense of gratitude that I never thought possible. It seeps into every one of my pores and I can feel it in every fiber of my being. The Earth has provided us with so much, and by harnessing these gifts in a conscientious manner, we have been able to provide food for our family, even in the dead of winter. God is good.
It seems like quite some time since I’ve taken you on a pictorial journey through the Fagan abode. So, here is a bit of what is happening around our house at this moment…
I hope all of you have a lovely week!
With Weather rearing her ugly head the past few days, the girls and I have been scrounging for indoor projects to keep our hands and minds busy. The girls wanted to sew, so sew we did. I had a few pieces of burlap left from a previous project (Here is the other embroidery project we completed), so the girls used those to create the front panel for these pillows.
We then used a bit of left over fabric, sewed a couple of pillows, stuffed them…
and we were done. It turned out to be a nice quick project to showcase their little creative selves.
This weekend our family headed for the Northwoods of Wisconsin for a winter adventure. (Take a look at our most recent trips to the Northwoods here and here.) My husband had not graced the winter Northwoods with his presence in twenty-five years, and it was a first for the girls of our family. Although there were absolutely frigid temperatures (let’s just say we woke up to a few mornings where the temperature was -15 degrees), we didn’t let that stop us from getting out there for some outdoor winter fun.
At this moment I am…
~glancing out my kitchen window, as the snow blows sideways across our yard.
~snacking on a bit of left over pumpkin tiramisu. The recipe for this fabulous dessert can be found in A Year of Pies. Yum!
~organizing volunteers for our church’s Friday Lenten Fish Fry. Join us if you are able…It is always such fun!
~enjoying warm coffee roasted by JavaMania Gourmet Coffee Roastery…one of my favorite local coffee roasters.
~supervising another burlap project, repurposing coffee bags from the lovely people at JavaMania. More on this activity in a few days.
~crafting a few new woolens to bring along on a winter hiking trip we plan to take in the very near future.
~beginning a new book, The Nature Principle by Richard Louv. I have already enjoyed another of his works, The Last Child In The Woods, and hope to be enthralled with this read as well.
~wishing you a wonderful week!
Whew. It has been one of those weeks. I know you all understand what I’m talking about…One of those weeks where all of a sudden you look at the calendar and realize multiple days have gone by without your noticing. Yes. That has been my week.
I think one reason for the craziness is I seem to have had my hand in a bit of everything this week. So, with that said, here is what I’m into this week…
Just a bit of what we have been up to this week…
I hope all of you find a sense of calm as this week draws to a close.
At this moment I am…
~looking out my kitchen window at our puddle-ladden yard from all of our rain last night.
~glad I made the decision to attend daily Mass this morning. This is something I need to start doing more often. It was such an uplifting way to start out my day.
~reveling in the fact that we were recipients of one of the Annie’s Homegrown Grants for Gardens.
~amazed and very thankful for the outpouring of support we have received in regard to our school garden project.
~preparing to make some more homemade granola.
~scouring the internet for cute Valentine ideas. If any of you crafting people out there have come upon any great ideas, please share them in the comment section.
~scanning the mess that has accumulated in each and every room of my house, and wondering whether or not I want to pick it up, or snuggle in and read a story with my youngest baby. I’m thinking the later sounds so much better 🙂
~wishing you all a fabulous Monday!
As I mentioned on Tuesday, my three year-old received a sewing machine for Christmas this year. Now, many of you may be wondering, “Why on earth did this crazy mom buy her three year old a real sewing machine?” Well, when researching the kids-type sewing machines and speaking with the lovely gals at my local sewing shop, they informed me that many of the machines geared towards kids will fall apart over just a short period of time. They told me that by spending just about $40 more, I could get a nice, quality machine that can grow with her.
Obviously, this real sewing machine (as my daughter refers to it), involves a lot of assistance from mama at this time, but I have no doubt that in a few years this little lady will be sewing away all by herself. But for now, I run the pedal, and she feeds the fabric through the machine, with mommy’s hand gently atop hers to insure it doesn’t get too close to the needle.
The week my daughter returned to pre-school after the holiday break, they were suppose to bring in a toy they received for Christmas for show-and-tell. So, my tiny seamstress wanted to make a quilt, and bring that quilt in to show her class because “Mommy, my real sewing machine is too heavy to bring into my classroom and I don’t think it will fit in my school bag.”
So we worked and worked on a cold afternoon, while Big Sissy was at school, and we created this tiny little quilt. She is so very proud of this crafted bit. She has been taking it everywhere, and showing it to anyone who will look.
I just had to add this picture here at the end. My daughter told me she had to iron her seams with her iron to make sure they were flat. Quite the professional little seamstress she is. I’m such a proud mama.
Making of a Home 