What Robin Told | What Mother Saw

I had a moment of homeschooling bliss the other day, a moment of such beauty.

We were in the garden planting onions. (Yes! The fellas planted onions this year.) (All 800-900 of them.)  I hoed the furrow while Diego and Truen placed the pine needle-like seedlings along the row, then covered and tamped with loose dirt.

We heard a woodpecker pecking out a new hole on an old, dead spruce.  We heard a catbird mewing in the trees nearby.  We began to talk about woodpecker nests, which we have never seen, which led us to robins' nests, which we have seen in plenty.

Jamie started reciting a poem recently memorized --

What Robin Told
by George Cooper

How do robins build their nests?
Robin Redbreast told me
First a wisp of yellow hay
In a pretty round they lay;
Then some shreds of downy floss,
Feather, too, and bits of moss,
Woven with a sweet, sweet song,
This way, that way, and across;
   That’s what Robin told me.

Where do robins hide their nests?
Robin Redbreast told me
Up among the leaves so deep,
Where the sunbeams rarely creep,
Long before the winds are cold,
Long before the leaves are gold,
Bright-eyed stars will peep and see
Baby robins–one, two, three;
   That’s what Robin told me.

Eliah was off playing in the grass. Jamie hopped through the dirt as he recited the poem. Diego and Truen were industriously planting onions and thinking about bird life and lore. And my heart was full.

I thought, "This is what I'm doing." My life right now. Planting beautiful thoughts. Cultivating an awareness of life in the world around my children. Teaching them to work. Depositing a bank of poetry and bird lore. Noble stories and ideas.

In essence, giving them a mental landscape to draw from as they get older.

Little glimmers shine through now and then, the elusive and intangible "results" that every homeschooling mother pines to see, and it has nurtured me along the journey.

Blow-out nature post

This is a strange re-entry from a week without posting, but it can't be helped.  I've been meaning to post on all this for more than a month, detailing some of the excitement at our house.  But, you know.  Life gets in the way.  We've been up to all kinds of things.

And so, while the baby is taking a much-needed "mega nap" and the boys are playing peacefully after nap/quiet time . . . the inspiration hits.

(Nevermind the house, which looks like a hurricane hit it.)

Both Blaine and I are intrigued by the intricacies of the natural world, both flora and fauna, and enjoy introducing its varied pleasures to our boys.  So with that in mind, here are some of the highlights from the last couple of months:

Last August Diego found an enormous green caterpillar with a brown face,
crawling in the grass under the basswood in our front yard.

We put it in a jar with a twig and basswood leaves and

after a few days it curled itself up into a cocoon, wrapped in leaves.

We kept it in the root cellar over the winter,

brought it out this spring,

and THIS is what it hatched into: 

 A polyphemus moth

It was HUGE, close to the size of my hand.
It was in the cocoon from August 2012 until June 2013.

It came out of its cocoon a few days after Eliah was born --

We had no idea what exactly it was until that point.

That night we put it on a rotted log alongside the garage.

It sat there for a good hour before it finally up-and-fluttered-away.

I actually got to see it happen --
It buzzed its wings a couple of times before it took off.

The boys were out and about on the acreage with Blaine,

but I was still sticking close to the house at that point in time

during my postpartum recovery period.  So lucky.

 The #2 amazing thing: morel mushrooms in our grove!

What the??  We were amazed.

This was the second week after Eliah was born.

Blaine went mushroom hunting on the first warm day after significant rainfall,

and bada-bing-bada-boom, there they were.
Tons of them.

 They were beautiful, just gorgeous --

I felt strong enough that I went out into the trees to see them.
(Still recovering from childbirth at the time, you'll remember.)

We had no idea that we could find morels in SW Minnesota.

My parents were here that week and since

I was obviously not up to kitchen work, we dried them --

They needed to be used/stored within 24 hours for peak flavor.

Un-un-un-un.  So exciting.

 Then there was our "pond life" aquarium 
and garter snake terrerium.

We had 2 varieties of snails, 2 crayfish, 2 fish, 

all kinds of water bugs, a leech, and 8-10 tadpoles in the aquarium.

Blaine and the boys dug up mud in the shallows of a nearby creek.

We had so much fun observing all the activity in the morning sun,

particularly the cranky crayfish tending their burrows.

We also realized this year that we have a garter snake den on our property,

under a cement slab near our quonset.  It was wild --

The boys were catching 7-10 snakes a day,

feeding them worms and even "basking" with them in the sun.

Finally . . . a baby praying mantis.

Truen got a bit obsessed with mantises this June,

and we indulged him by ordering mantis egg sacs off ebay.
We released them into the garden after they hatched by the hundreds.

(They are a tropical variety that dies with the cold weather hits.)

This particular little fella is living in the chard,
hopefully wreaking havoc with this year's grasshopper explosion.

We are hoping to catch a mantis and keep it as a pet this winter.

Weekend recap

Romanced by tomatoes

Squeeze took Friday off, so I had a full three days to focus on food preservation.

This list blows my mind:

• 7 quarts applesauce
• 1 apple leather
• 4 pints, 8 jelly jars melon preserves
• 2 tomato paste leathers
• 6.5 pints BBQ sauce
• 1.5 jelly jars crab apple jelly
• 8 quarts tomato puree
• 8 quarts sauerkraut

But I did do it, all of it.  The apple leather came from a quart of applesauce that didn't seal.  The one-point-five jelly jars of crab apple jelly is just outrageous; the amount of work that went into those tiny little jars is off the charts.  But goodness . . . is it beautiful (and delicious).  The tomato puree turned out to be a lovely orange from the combination of yellow and red-pink tomatoes.

Diego is obsessed with "chesst" again, so Squeeze spent much of his weekend playing one game of chess after another.  He was also able to get various tasks around the house done and took 95% of the responsibility for the little guys.  Aside from breakfast each day, he made the food, wiped the butts, changed the diapers, broke up the fights, wiped the hands, etc.  They went on a melon hunt Sunday and made an excursion to the rock pile that left the place so quiet I wondered if they had been abducted by aliens.

All this allowed me time to focus on the strategy of what needed tending first and the resulting sequence of events.  Honestly, I am in such a groove this season that it wasn't a taxing experience at all.  I had on my "game face" and was still going strong at 10:00 PM on Sunday night (though I was definitely tired this morning).  Jamie had a tummy ache and needed me particularly on Friday and Saturday, so I did take a number of deep-nuzzle snuggle breaks to refill his tank (which I loved).

Up next weekend: tomatillo salsa and apple products galore.

Amazing

August 12, 2011

:: from our driveway ::

I don't know what is more amazing, the fact that I've been meaning to post this picture since last Sunday, or the sky itself.  Yuuuust kidding.  Drama.  But seriously.  It has been on my mind for almost an entire week, but life just gets in the way. 

Want to know what else is amazing?  Diego playing Super Mario Brothers 3 on the Nintendo NES right now, such a familiar tune, whimpering, "Mama, can you please help me...?  It's just so hard!"  He can't get beyond the first fire-breathing flower-thingy.

And, really, isn't this just the most stunning skyscape? It has everything -- storm, sunset, clear blue.  The layers, the depth!  I could gush for hours.

White Thunderhead

The view from our driveway last night

Skyscape

The sky in this part of the country is glorious, something I finally realized last summer.  (We have been here for four years next month, how can it be??) 

These beautiful skies are such a sight for sore eyes and soul.  In a part of the country where very little, if any, natural landscape exists, it is such a blessing to have such a breathtaking view above us.  It leaves me astounded.

On Monday night, as I was returning from my Friends of the Library meeting, where I saw a double rainbow (double rainbow!) I might add, I found Squeeze outside, camera in hand, running for the west-side.  How I love that about him. ♥ 

The sky was un-un-un-un.  Truly inspiring. 

June and July must be the season for tearfully happy, maddeningly gorgeous skies.

Behold ---

Facing west

Southeast

Northwest

West/Northwest

Southwest

(my favorite)

Southwest

If you build it, they might come

Squeeze dug a little "pond" in our front garden this past spring. I say "pond" because it is really just an old plastic salt bucket for our former . . . water softener? Something like that.

It is approximately 3 feet deep and maybe 1.5 feet across. But a pond it is. With his usual finishing touches, my thoughtful Squeeze put in a goldfish, water lily, blue flag (an iris native to MN/WI) and a sprinkling of duck weed.

It is so cute.

While he was digging the hole and putting it in, Truen begged and begged for a frog to come and live in it. All Squeeze could say was the just maybe a frog might come. Just maybe it could.

And sure enough -- it has come. A nice, big leopard frog came and now lives in our mini aquatic ecosystem. He likes to sit in the water or surrounding rocks and ducks under lily pads when startled. Little Truby is so thrilled.

In the first picture, you can see both the frog and the fish; they were very excited about the swarms of flying ants that were falling in the water.

Our little ecosystem

This was the first time we saw the frog --

you should have seen Truen sneaking up to it, so carefully.

And yes, we do parade around in our undies

and mud boots, outside, all summer long.

That must be what Country Boys do?

(: Or maybe just Shawna's boys :)

The glorious sky

Southwestern Minnesota doesn't have mountains or beautiful trees, both components of landscapes that I hold dear and esteem highly. Sights that soothe me.

In fact, it doesn't have much in the way of natural landscapes at all, in the present age of commodity crops. This has bothered me a lot since we've moved here.

It did have beautiful grasslands, filled with an ever-changing array of prairie flowers; but those are gone, caged to small preserves that are scattered and obscure. Ultimately, that is what bothers me most about this area of the country -- true, native landscape is minimal. Shoot, even grass in the form of pastureland is minimal.

But what this area does have, and has grandly, is the most exquisite skyscapes. Magnificent summer storms whirl clouds into color, texture, and form that is nothing short of awe-inspiring.

An example from this weekend:

Un-un-un-un.

The land is seemingly flat because the rolling hills melt together: and because of that, one can see great distances. Storms almost always roll in from the west -- so it is entirely possible to see the gale coming a half-hour or more before it arrives, with billowing clouds of various shape and color that often look like enormous ships rolling in.

It is glorious.

I am so glad I am finding beauty I can appreciate here (aside from our small parcel of 15 acres, which I love). It is so refreshing. Call me dramatic, but the endless monoculture crops and scrubby trees have been hard on my soul these past few years.

Understatement of the year: the most amazing sky ever

These pictures were taken well over a month ago; but, in spite of their age, are well-worth posting. The sky was the most spectacular shades of blue and purple and red. The texture of the clouds made it seem as if you could eat them, and all the earth was tinted red. (Baby Truen, playing in a puddle in the driveway, was an orangey-pink, both hair and skin.)

Every part of the upper atmosphere - north, south, east, west, and every combination of direction - was different, and wonderous. It was an incredible sight; all we could do was stare upwards and try to take it all in.

♥ the innocence mission ♥

The Lakes of Canada

One of my all-time favorite songs, ever. (With a couple of minutes of cheesy water sound effects at the end: beware.)

Sufjan does Lakes of Canada, too

Quite a find

On our way to friends' house for dinner last weekend, we were driving by Wildlife Management Land and happened upon this beauty: a wild Cypripedium. It is the brown and yellow "Lady Slipper" orchid, closely related to Minnesota's state flower, Cypripedium reginae. It was our first sighting of a Cypripedium occurring in its natural habitat, which was quite a thrill.

I was watching the landscape very closely as we drove (and we were going very slowly because of the gravel road), as I am interested in, and becoming more familiar with, prairie flowers. We were running late and had already just stopped to look at some tent caterpillars; but when I saw those beautiful, round, yellow flowers, I squealed "Cypripedium!"; Squeeze slammed on the brakes and we all piled out to admire it.

Cypripedium (species unknown)

So very lovely...
(Diego examining it in the background)

A Wooded Room

We found a very special place this past week: the inner sanctuary of an old barn at some friends' place. They are an older couple, and had partially torn the roof off of it years ago in hopes of dismantling the poor thing for scrap lumber, but didn't get very far. Meanwhile, Mother Nature and all the little wood-fairies have been hard at work reclaiming it for themselves. I felt completely transported to another realm in this room; my eyes must have been shining the entire time.

I have always been attracted to the inner sanctum - alternate realities - hidden realms - secret places. Some of my favorite books, or parts of books, from childhood involved hidden spaces: Hester Gray's garden in Anne of Avonlea, The Secret Garden, Sarah Crewe's attic room at the girls' boarding school, or the Alden children's home in the boxcar with their pineneedle beds.

Being in this room, with its enormously high vaulted ceiling, the sun streaming in, trees growing up from the dirt floor, the sunlight dappled with green leaves - oh my, it transported me. I want to go back. I want to live there. I want my children to feel the tug of intrigue and have their senses filled with the ethereal atmosphere.

And yet...I also felt mournful there. I imagined its history: all the people and cows and hay who have been inside that place. How the farmer who built it would slap his forehead in disbelief if he could see it now. How the children who played on the thick rope swing in the haymow would feel teary to see their magical playland a mere shadow of its former self. And how even the trees from which the lumber was milled would see themselves, astonished: still strong, but leaning, leaning, and slowly on their way back to mildewy dust.

This place . . . affected me.

Song for the day

Au fond du temple saint with David Byrne and Rufus Wainwright

Untitled

I was so mesmerized by this cabbage:

I cut it open for soup this weekend

and felt sorry that I couldn't stare

at it forever

Bountiful Harvest

Squeeze and I have an old joke from years back about bountiful harvests: before kids, when we had time, we enjoyed setting up postcard-like shots of autumn scenes in our Minneapolis backyard and title them, "Bountiful Harvest". It always made us laugh (and was lovely and always made me feel very cozy).

But really, this IS a bountiful harvest! We've been eating high off the hog recently: chard egg bake [from Simply in Season], roasts accompanied by buttery beets, salads galore, turnip and beet greens in soup, spinach with butter and salt, and dynamite omelets with basil or spinach. It has been absolutely delicious.

Now, feast your eyes:

5 Color Silver-beet Chard

Chamomile

Gorgeous and delicious:
golden beets, lettuce, peas, red beets, turnips, garlic scapes

Golden beets in butter:
We've been fighting over them!!

Enjoying the Green

Squeeze emailed last night and said that there was a snow and ice storm in the Rolling Prairies of Minnesota last night. Gak!! As my time draws near to go home, I don't know how I am going to go back to that. It is so BLAH to me, after a month of cool breezes - drizzling rain - sunny days - daffodils - tulips - budding trees - and all the glorious greenery. No wonder why every single April comes, and I continue to think: Shouldn't it be spring yet?

I mean, really: a snow and ice storm in April? Beautiful, yes...but so old by this point. Squeeze also said that I have missed the two biggest snow storms we have had since we've been there. In April. I need to continue reminding myself to be thankful for added moisture for our gardens. And who am I kidding?? I've just spent a month away from it. It has been lovely.

Looking out the window, I see a lacy-leafed maple soft-green with its new baby leaves and my parents' plum trees, dappled with light pink blooms and their darker pink leaves. It is so beautiful that I could just stare off in a haze for hours. [It actually took some time to complete that sentence, for all the staring...now I feel glazed-over and dreamy.]

Tiddly-winks and toodles to everyone, everywhere. I have some out-of-doors to soak in!

Like fairy teacups

One of our favorite (and newest) Hoyas is currently in bloom: Hoya archboldiana. We spotted it at our friends' greenhouse a couple of years ago and he just gave us a cutting last fall.

It had several spurs on it [where the plant blooms from, year after year] and lo and behold! It's blooming. Not only is it lovely, but it is fairly unusual for a Hoya because of its enormous blooms: they are about the size of a quarter, maybe a little bigger. Additionally, they are fragrant at night only - the entire room fills with a wafting flowery-sweet smell. Beautiful! It is so fun to be in the room and catch a whiff now and then. It seems that night-fragrant flowers are usually white; but the pink of the bloom is, as they say, a real eye-catcher!

Hoya archboldiana

Gorgy [as in, gorgeous]

My MIL volunteers at a thrift store; her job is sorting through and pricing the jewelry that comes in. She really enjoys it and has stumbled upon some real beauties (though sometimes hidden).

Example A: She fashioned this necklace, one for each of my 4 neices, from a broken bracelet. Isn't it lovely?

Butt plant blooms!

My sister calls Lithops "butt plants" because they have a little crack down the center. They are succulents and exist amongst my favorite indoor flora; native to South Africa, if I remember correctly. We don't have the tag for this one any more, so I don't know the exact name, and this is the first time it has bloomed (others have gone before it). Intensely interesting plants with beautiful flowers: what more could a girl want?

Lithop [unknown species]