Corn. it grows so quickly. it will be over our heads next visit. oh the fun we’ll have.

“Inch by inch, row by row, gonna watch this garden grow. All it takes is a rake and a hoe and a piece of fertile ground. Inch by inch, row by row, someone bless these seeds i sow, someone warm them from below till the rains come tumblin’ down.”

“Pulling weeds and picking stones. we are made of dreams and bones, feel the need to grow my own ’cause the time is close at hand. Grain for grain, sun and rain, find my way in nature’s chain, tune my body and my brain to the music from the land.”

“Plant your rows straight and long, temper them with prayer and song, Mother Earth will make you stong if you give her love and care.”

“Old crow watching hungrily from his perch in yonder tree, in my garden i’m as free as that feathered thief up there.”

a favorite summertime book;

Always when it’s time to return home after a short Summer visit i begin to wish that i had done more, absorbed more, when really it’s the slowing down that i’m after. i just want more of it. i hold fast to the lazy days and mellow moods. There are treasures here; golden plums and other rich fruits, sunny folk & farmers, friends & neighbors. sigh. Another Summer adventure to reminisce. The cherries i can bring home but i’ll miss the tree, it’s shade and it’s view.

there will be parts 2 or more. i’m slow to organize after this trip.

In the middle of the night i’m trying to write a goodbye. i’m only away for a short while but i didn’t want to skip town like last time. So, i’m off to a sunny land where to pick fruits and catch up with some good people.

i leave you with less words and more color;

Our living room is pretty much Little A’s room since he hasn’t got a bedroom of his own and so in this smallish space an element of order and beauty helps to keep the peace. Right now i’m appreciating the nature corners. Not only does it inspire his “projects” but it helps keep my focus off the color block carpet and stash of rubber balls under the couch.

There’s a lot of interest and activity in the nature table these days. Ever since the introduction to the advent calendar and the winter wonderland project, Little A often wonders if those elves will leave surprises on other days. He was pretty delighted to find a special birthday table just for him earlier this month. He immediately took the candles to the breakfast table to light. We spent the morning reading through his baby journal full of photos, cards, blurbs - the good ones. He was not at all interested in opening his gift. In fact he repeated to me for the ??? time that he did not want any gifts. i only bought him one that i was sure he would love but still he did not open it until the following evening just before bedtime along with all the other fantastic gifts given to him. The birthday table remained for several days after which we set up the July table which the little monkey continues to add to and change. The accumulation of sticks in the yard don’t quite fit here though he would like them to.

me oh my the sun did shine all weekend. We hit 2 farmer’s markets. Just because. i’m sad to say that the strawberries came and went all too quickly this year and the peas are soon to follow though we do have some of our own growing in the yard. i hold a sweet childhood memory of my mama sending us off to the garden to pick lunch into our skirts. Peas were my absolute favorite garden delight. The fields are ripening now with raspberries & blueberries. Okanagan cherries seem abundant despite odd Spring frosts…Alistair found some sweet wee zucchinis and well, the market is just getting exciting now. Petunia and the Loons put a big fat smile on my face . i’d like to hire them to play at my porch party (tba-ha!).

Though i usually save ocean adventures for week days when other beach combers are at a minimum (i am a super beach hog. i want it all for myself) we wanted to go on some sort of exploration with out committing to a big drive out of the city so we hit trail #3 out at UBC with our good friend S. The stairs to and from are as exciting as the rocks we long to bring home.

Hope you all had a swell weekend.

Yipee!! My buttons have arrived from Kat, Waltz Matilda. She used a vintage fabric for the buttons and change purse, hand painted some sweet extras and included a handmade all natural hand salve that smells delicious. i love it. Thank you! i sent off a linen clutch and pin cushion (each inspired by 2 lovely friends who gifted items to me of which i use daily) along with some fun favorite buttons.

Thank you again to all participants in the fabric covered button swap. Everyone seemed to really get into it and put together some sweet and generous packages. Some of my faves;

from das kaninchen. such attention to detail;

more sweet details as well as her swap partner, Pippijoe’s gifts;

ok so i am digging the house and aviary themes. You guys rock!

Mi, Artist Girl Friday, It’s What i Do, Little Seedlings;

i’d like to post more favorites but just head on over to the group pool and pick out your own favorites.

The next swap? oh i don’t know… i had a thought to organize a sort of “not going back to school swap” for home learning/unschooling families. Now that i’ve said it i’ll see what the feedback is before working out any details. This will be a Fall event anyhow. Now get outside and enjoy summer.

It seems his wonder is abundant and the questions are spilling out. Last night he wondered how our hair was attached to our heads. i replied that it grows from the inside out. “Do we have things inside our head?” to which i first reply “our brain” and quickly follow up with the more interesting “our imagination, our ideas, thoughts, figuring, words. everything.” Laughing, he starts throwing words out there but a mouse is the funniest for him to imagine inside our brains. He goes off on a tangent. i’m laughing but inside i’m thinking “geez i better prepare myself to creatively answer or further intrigue his wonder.” Once again he’s grown up overnight.

There are some moments and some words that i just want to keep forever. Of course the 4 year old accent and the tone will only truly be captured in my own memory and so i hold fast.

“i’m 4 now papa but i still can’t reach the basketball hoops. i can just do tricks.”

Sometimes i attend births - as a friend, a doula, photographer, acupuncturist…i love it. As a SAHM i am mostly unable to commit to attending the unpredictable hours of a birth but sometimes baby time and my own childcare possibilities and schedules co-ordinate and i get to bliss out in that birthing energy which seems to put life into perspective so perfectly. it is the most real experience to observe and support the space of a beautiful natural birth.

This gal inspired me long before conceiving my own babe. i attended the birth of her first son. i’m not sure how much i helped her but she was so amazing and inspiring and from then on i was an advocate of natural birth. i arrived 1 day late for the birth of her daughter who she birthed unassisted at home - just herself, her 2 year old son and her mother were there to welcome the new babe.

A year later i was sticking needles in my sister to augment a slow 1st stage of labor. Again i’m not sure how much i helped but it was pretty incredible to be present for the birth of my nephew. My sister completely surprised herself with her ability and strength. She was amazing and her husband a proud papa.

i attended other births here and there when i could, was invited, hired… i met this woman in prenatal yoga and attended the home birth of her daughter when i was 5 months pregnant myself. i swear she could have birthed completely on her own and she nearly did with me at her back and the midwife barely in the door. it was so cool to see, for my first time, the membranes still in tact at birth. Look at her perfectly round head because of it. beautiful!

i wish i had photos to show of other beautiful births i’ve attended but i wasn’t shooting digital then and the idea of scanning negs seems completely time consuming and unappealing so this it for now - a little glimpse of a work i love that is deeply inspired.

Congratulations! again and again. i felt so much confidence that this would be a beautiful and natural birth. I’m sure it was a long and challenging experience for Anna, and Randy too, but to me, spending the night curled up on their couch in and out of sleep with the constant wave of birth toning, waxing and waning, i felt more calm and relaxed than i have in a long while. She was so strong and patient, he was completely supportive and present. Glo, who also attended Arlo’s birth is the ultimate holder of sacred space and Kirstin, another mama expecting her 3rd was very generous in sharing the couch and a sleeve of her sweater while we waited and slept through the night until early morning when i (lucky lucky me) got to see this gorgeous boy born right into his papa’s bare hands. How beautiful is that? Thank you guys for inviting me to photograph this most special birthing day. Happy Big Brother Day to Bodhi. i’m so excited for all of you. Happy nesting.

gush. this moment stirred much emotion for me. it was so very special. Little B meeting his littler baby brother;

These past few days have been busy and full. My little bean sprout turned 4. We celebrated over the weekend with family and friends and chocolate cake. I think for Little A that the cake and seal squirter fight were the highlights. For me it was the quiet moments before sleep leading up to his birthday when we talked about his actual birthing day. He’s been asking a lot of questions inspired by our friend Anna’s pregnancy and this book. He’s an inquisitive one, urging me to leave out no detail and so he quietly listened to me explain his lotus birth. i brought out his dried umbilical cord which he has been examining, playing and sleeping with for over a week now. He wonders which end was attached to his belly button. i love his curiosity. Each year i gather thoughts and details and write him a big long birthday letter intended for him to read in years to come as well as a shortened version for the present. This year he actually listened to me read his card and requests it be read daily. That makes me feel like a rock star mom! He’s really a gentle young soul, perhaps more snuggly than ever. Eager to play, imagine, create and make music he can easily get the party started. It was indeed a happy birthday. Thank you for all those wishes.

he wishes there could be cake every day;

immediate effect of ganache;

mellower moods;