Ensoul Arts

abundant love

As I type, Indigo is in his element working hard to finish the last of his magical "fortune cards" for his classmates. Wow, do I love reading the good fortunes he comes up with all on his own! The first photograph above is his lovebird print. His very own design. He and his classmates carved the stamps for the Hearts and Crafts festival at our Waldorf School. Littler ones made Valentine prints of these as a fun craft. 

Finn sends his love from behind the scenes, where he is plugged in and playing the soundrack for our Valentine's celebrations. Doilies and hearts are something he enjoys from a bit of distance these days. Understood!

Enjoy your celebrations!!

how this one turned out

Using the book card technique I shared in my last post, I created this image rich collage. I chose images relevant to the story I wished to share by looking through old National Geographic magazines.

book card valentine

Just a few more days to get those love letters ready to go. Here's a little photo tutorial for making an eight page book card. If you begin with standard 8.5 by 11 cardstock, it will fit into an invitation size envelope for giving. You can write a letter, create a story, build a collage, or whatever strikes your fancy. Happy Valentine making!

 

island sky

I glanced out of my studio window upstairs to see this sunset. I remembered. Very early this morning, as I was hitting the snooze button for the third time, Indigo was standing at the studio window telling me to come and look. It was "pink and bright and really cool" he said. I didn't rise in time to see much, but I do remember opening my eyes wide enough to see the light on his face as he looked out. I'm now here at the same window with evening computer work ahead of me. I'm thinking of the hours in the day, the moments that slip by, and how much I adore my little lover of all things magic. He teaches me to slow it down and take notice of what's most important, especially if I'm looking at a screen instead of the sky.

I also remembered the last image above, from a winter morning two years ago. He was sitting in the large window of our artist loft in Minnesota, looking at the very urban winterscape, and missing Seattle. He would sigh, "I miss the rain." Well, here we are. Back where he wanted to be, with the rain and so much more.

warm :: soft :: snug

Living on an island certainly makes it easier to resist any temptation that may creep in to join the shopping mobs. When I do head down to our little mainstreet, it's simple and enjoyable, even when the ferry "crowds" are in. In this small town you can see the main bakery from wherever you are on the main drag. Most everyone running errands lands there for treats, and there is plenty of chatting going on in the long line (and gossip, yes). There's time for it. 

Plenty of time is such a very good and rare thing. There's been plenty of time for us to be home near the twinkles and the fire this season. There will be a bit of travel in our plans, but we'll land right back here for the best parts. My work and business will creep in early next year, but for now...it's all about the warmth, the softness, and the snug.

Happy twinkles.

eve of 11.11.11

The moon was full.

Lanterns glimmered and shimmered.

Little voices sang sweetly into the night.  

Happy (auspicious) Martinmas to all~

eggs (and a ham)

Happy Easter :: Ostara!

It was a very special day for us today, as it may be our last Easter with my mother. The boys and I took in a church service filled with music, theater, and warmth early this morning. We then headed to our home for some Easter basket goodness before driving a short road trip to spend time with my mom. We were relieved and very happy to see her illness take a back seat to living and celebrating! She was up and visiting the entire time we were there. I've been blowing out and dyeing her these botanical eggs as a gift, and we got to talking about eggs. This eventually led me to a sacred little treasure box in the darkest corner of her living room hutch...

My mother was a nurse at a care home for elders while I was growing up. When I was very little, one sweet woman in her care wanted to make the eggs you see below for my mother to give us kids still living at home. At the time there were four of us, and she made one for each of us. I'm interested now in looking up the significance of the patterns in egg writing because I noticed some interesting parallels between the egg designs and the nature of their owners. I wonder about the conversations between my mother and the woman she wheeled to the Activity Room so many times. These amazing eggs have survived for over 30 years in our family home, and I don't even know the name of the woman who created them. I remember many faces of once upon a time, and I try to reach for which special smile might have been hers. My mother cared for so many elderly over the years she can't quite remember her name either. Wherever she is, I send my gratitude. I'm quite smitten with these eggs.

The adorable decorative fairy and woodsman eggs above were made by another woman my mother cared for. I remember them clearly. I mean, really... a delicate sparkly egg with a little door to a magical world inside? Pure wonderment.

After all these years...

So good to share the memories with my boys. We hope your day was special, too!

another one

What a special day. I have oh so much gratitude in my heart for my friends and family. My birthday. The boys and I brought spring into our home with great success, wouldn't you say? No doubt it's coming! After seeing all the poms pop up in the blogosphere recently, I thought I'd have a hand at these festive decorations before the party. After one puff, I had visions of a daffodil, then a poppy, then another, then green grass, green fluff, and more! I think I'm just getting started... 

 

 

Groovy Homeschool

"If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need."  

~Marcus Tullius Cicero 

We are really enjoying our groove with homeschool life these days. Not too shabby, especially considering we started out as "accidental" homeschoolers. I took a leave from my decade long career in Waldorf education shortly before beginning this slowly emerging blog. What's been an unexpected discovery is this "connection" garden that can be grown in the family with homeschooling. It isn't likely to take root on any campus anywhere, not even in the richness of Waldorf. 

Our home lessons started out very structured with Oak Meadow middle school curriculum for Finn, and traditional Waldorf methods for Indigo. Both styles are incorporated into learning at home now, but our greatest support is simply the library. A somewhat eclectic, library centered, style of doing things has emerged as right for us. There's just nothing quite like showing up at the library with our curiosity, wisdom, and cards at the ready.

Here's one middle school stack of our own books mixed with library resources. The traditional block rotation of the Waldorf early grades (focusing on a single subject for weeks at a time) wasn't really working for Finn, an 8th grader this year. He prefers to do a little math, a little language arts, and a lot of literature every day. Other subjects alternate in and out throughout the week. I choose assignments for him based on what he already knows and what he seems to be ready to add on to it. I value his opinions and remain open to his choices at all times. When something doesn't work for him, we pitch it. There's no need or reason to follow a crowd.

Though I've lightened up, things are still fairly structured at home. So, when the boys have free time at the library they indulge in comic books. Yep. A typical interest for boys, but I don't personally value many styles of comic books. The way I roll with it is to choose to let go a bit while we're at the library. ehem. This gives the boys some freedom to indulge their own interests while allowing me to keep my finger on the pulse of maintaining what I hold sacred in our home. After all, I'm the mom.

The library can be a gold mine! I don't really buy as many books and curriculum resources these days because I remember to always check the library first. If the book is so good I don't want to give it back, then I think about buying it. It can be tricky to keep my priorities straight and really carve out that time for myself, but let's get real. I'm a single homeschooling mama. I just do it. There is no doubt my life would be thrown out of balance quickly if I didn't make time for my own work, my  own learning and creativity, and my whole health. It's not simple to balance it all, but I love this old saying that came from some good wisdom somewhere: If mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy. This time for mama is a must. One great thing about sweet little boys growing up is that mama can step out a bit more. Say it with me:  "aaauuummmmm..."

If the boys were in any school, they wouldn't likely be engaged in things like wilderness survival lessons at a nature center, drawing and observing plants at the greenhouse conservatory, two or three hour recesses, weekly field trips that pop up when there's something new happening, abundant free time for instruments, or immersion in new ways to interpret the alphabet. There's a lot to be grateful for in this time we have together. 

I'm also enjoying the risks we can take. For example, I wasn't sure how the writing lesson was going to go this morning. I even had some last minute doubt about my choice to take this new alphabet on. I wondered, "Is this really necessary, or is this really just too much?"  I was a bit concerned one or both boys would think it was a chore, or another thing on the list. Not so! So far so good! Conversation buzzed around the table about the alphabet, the evolution of human consciousness through writing, temperaments, personality, and Vimala's unique perspective. At one point during quiet writing someone even said, "This is cool mom!" 

This is cool. All of it.

getting close! {the handmade parade}

I see some late nights in my near future as the handmade clock ticks on. Here are a few snapshots of the simple handmade gift creating at our home. I have quite a few more to go. Good thing I'm in the spirit!

The new gnomes on our "elf shelf" were sewn by Indigo. My, how he still loves his elves and gnomes. He was planning to give these two as gifts, but he's pretty smitten with them himself. We'll see how that goes. 

Just a week after the blizzard that left us with twenty some inches, it's predicted that we'll be getting another ten very soon. A white Christmas is most certain this year, so the dreaming now is really about driving conditions. I'm dreaming of a plowed, sanded, and salted highway...just like the ones I used to know.

Cheers to an excess of the magical fluff, and to cherishing the sweetest moments of the season. If you're in a handmade time crunch, remember it's all a work in progress!