Happy St. Patricks Day

Finished!

Finally I've finished N's button pillow, I started it when I was pregnant, three hearts- one for each family member. I don't know why it took me so long to finish- it sat for a long time mostly done- I suppose until recently I couldn't trust N not to jam every button in her mouth while I was sewing it on, but now she just looks at it- and carries it around, and points to her favorites.

So sweet playing with the buttons in a sunbeam. - she was engrossed in it long enough not to notice me taking photos of her- and that never happens- she's very in tune to the sound of a camera clicking.

40 bags in 40 days- week 2

No pictures this week- they would be boring anyways- just folded white towels- which while they thrill me because they're all stacked neatly, are not super exciting. Okay, I did my 7 bags this week- the shoe cupboard, the linen closet, and N's room. the linen closet was a big one- I've cleaned it lots- but I guess I had so many towels and sheets that it doesn't stay clean for long, or the stuff that's in the wash while I'm cleaning doesn't fit after it's all done- I hope I don't run into that now. That's part of what I'm loving about this- If I only keep stuff that I have room for -then It should always have a place to go right? in theory this seems to make sense, we'll see how it goes though.

On the agenda this week is my front hall closet- which should come with an avalanche warning, the furnace room- which is scary even when clean- and the freezers... which shouldn't be too bad- but have the potential to be frightening. I might even tackle the bathroom cabinet if I get on a roll.

Winter Wildlife

I think these guys are probably just as ready as I am for spring- or perhaps they're more ready. It's been a hard winter in these parts, and I'm slightly obsessed with the idea that it will be spring again, soon I hope. For now I'll just enjoy the view I guess, once things are growing we're not likely to see these guys so close to the house- they'll move off to eat tastier things than pine trees and bird seed.

Around the corner...

She tells her love while half asleep,
In the dark hours,
With half-words whispered low:
As Earth stirs in her winter sleep
And puts out grass and flowers
Despite the snow,
Despite the falling snow.

Robert Graves

The sun has changed a bit in the last week or so- it feels stronger, and despite the blizzard we're waiting for this evening, I can feel the change in the air that signals spring.

40 Bags in 40 Days- week 1

I've decided to join Sarah Jane over at Beautiful Dawn for a little house purge this lent. The idea is to rid your house of 40 bags of stuff- one for each day of lent. I was a little nervous about it at first- thinking that it's a lot of stuff to get rid of- but after dividing the house it does seem more manageable, and I'm starting with smaller bags- the plan was to use grocery bags- but they were overflowing after I did the first area this morning- the front hall shoe cupboard. so it'll be more like some days a big bag and some days small, most days in between I think.

I really like this idea for lent- I'm not really religious, I just don't feel at home in organized religion, though I was raised catholic, and the Easter season is one that I really miss. I love the idea of starting fresh in the spring- of preparing yourself for this re-birth with a period of sacrifice or with drawl or active change. I think that purging the house of excess stuff is a great way to make space for new things- a simpler life- more focused on what is essential, or what you really want.

I'm more and more attracted to the idea of living simply, though it seems hard to do as both K and I have the 'collector gene'. But slowly I'm coming around to the idea that you don't need a lot of stuff, and that living simply doesn't mean you have to get rid of everything, it could just be that you focus your attention on things that have meaning for you, that you don't own anything 'just because'. Plus it seems like a great way to get the spring cleaning done, and there's nothing wrong with that.

Busy Busy Busy

The girl is sick today, but that hasn't stopped her from carrying and stashing pumpkins all through the house. I don't know what her reasons for doing this are, but I do know that pumpkins strewn about the house gives a whole new appearance of untidiness to this place. Really, nothing says "Unkempt" like vegetables on the office floor.