This moment
A friday ritual
Something simple and creative which spoke volumes to me this week…
Xxx
Monthly Archives: November 2012
Paper pentagon star lantern
A traveling craft lesson
Some coming in time
Some quiet respite from windy seaside
Some beautiful adornment
For our housebus
A wish fulfilled
I’ve wanted to make one of these pentagon star lanterns for a long time.
Today it came about easily
Already we had been making little paper stars
So our hands where warmed and the star theme moved us.
Most lanterns I’ve seen are made with watercolor paper
We improvised with what we had
As we often do for these spontaneous craftings
(when we get home we will paint thick watercolor paper and make some for candles)
Today it was
One colored side origami papers
A rough pentagon template
Scissors and glue
An Online tutorial
Children sharing scissors and paper hooray!
Cedar chopped minuscule pieces which went everywhere, then he was happy to sweep it all up, hooray again!
It was a bit awkward gluing the last pentagons in place.
Easier next time for sure.
Lily hung the delicate lantern over a down light and even though it was not yet dusk we enjoyed the colorful cheering glow during our evening meal.
These small moments of creation and togetherness hearten me immensely.
This lantern shining spurred the first talks of the coming advent and queries of would we make our advent candles again? And where is the candle windmill? And where is baby Jesus? Can we fill star lanterns with advent biscuits to give our friends…
It was beautiful to realize how the ritual of advent has become a part of our family life and memories and is anticipated by L.
Blessings on our home and hands
Blessings upon yours too
Have you made these lanterns before?
Are you going to now?
Do you celebrate advent?
Did your family of origin have traditions for advent?
May each of our beautiful inner lights shine brightly
X
Loren Kate could play at your house…
once upon a time while travelling in the Northern Territory
with a little baby Lily
i was in need of a friend
and within moments into my life popped Loren Kate
divine songstress, loyal and hilarious friend, exceptional crafter and cook and loving mama
and more and more
she needs some help from the world to make a fantastic project come to life in the new year
and in return will bless your life in one of many ways including coming to serenade you and make you dessert…
so please take a moment to support a unique, independant Australian musician and
get in on the fun and check this out
;
;
;
if you are in the Byron shire you can see Loren at the mullumbimby music festival!
Lucky us…
Waking up to…
A little sewing because today we are going to visit with a very special little friend…
this moment…
this moment
{a friday ritual}
a special moment from my week
i want to savour it and cherish it and paste it in the pages of my memory
a simple sweet moment to share with you
gardening with a paper bag
a weekend holiday
some happy hours in the northbank community gardens
children wandering and gathering
mama weeding and dreaming of how her seedlings bought today will grow
{and realising i won’t be here to see them grow}
but enjoying my gardening all the same…
flavoursome leaves and a few asparagus stalks
chicken friends and chicken squawks
blossoms and seeds
ladybirds and weeds
chickens want holding
and a little paper bag folding
peace, rhymes, being together outside on a tired day
this garden is an amazing resource for the community
abounding gratitude to the committed crew who keep it growing well
and accessible to us all*
make a paper bag…
on a cold and rainy day
we had school at home
after songs and circle games
for morning tea some nuts where cracked to accompany our fruit
our morning craft lesson was making origami paper bags from an old phone book
then a ‘shop’ game evolved between the children
go get yourself a piece of paper, any size will do, try newspaper or an old telephone bill…
here comes the method to make a handy paper container to use for a multitude of purposes
including gift wrapping, games, shopping, seed saving, storage, envelopes and and and…
{hover your mouse over the images and the written instructions will magically appear}
i just think that’s a great re-use of our waste paper!
Lily made a bunch of little sacks to package little craft items in for the school stall.
today i feel like making a big sack to put over my head…
with giggles
R
ps let me know what you use your paper bags for
a little mending…
how to love mending as much as the making
i’ve been working on this and in the last weeks
gathered in the holey things and begun
wow! i’ve let them go a long time and some holes have grown noticeably
but here i go with my needle and thread and a little stillness
and a lot of enjoyment of handling these beautiful things again
and knowing i am giving them a new burst of life
Lily is not feeling well
as i wrapped her in her baby blanket {with big girl extensions}
i noticed those holes
so with children at one end and me at the other
i got to my task
feeling the texture and weight of this beautiful crotcheted blanket
how quickly it warmed my legs and memory
i was pregnant with my first big belly
traveling in a beautiful old yellow kombi van
Jesse and I on our first adventure together
i gathered yarn from my family and friends
along the way i gathered more
and as we drove often i had my basket of yarn at my feet and
this growing blanket on my growing belly
i wove into it all my wondering of who and when and how
all those pre mama feelings
who would i be bundling in this wool one day soon?
thousands of stitches thousands of kilometres and thousands of blessings.
from my reverie i glance up
and here is my daughter
bigger than ever
as i mended we talked about her birth
she and Cedar chatted and played
and i cherished this gift i made
once upon a time for a wee babe
easy beet dip
this recipe is adapted from a recipe from S
delicious delights are always to be had in her kitchen
thankyou for being such a dear and inspiring friend
xx
Easy Beet Dip
you will need
at least 3 beetroots
2 cloves garlic
dab of butter
ground cummin
ground coriander
salt
pepper
a stick blender or food processsor
an oven
preheat your oven
peel and cut your beets into 2cm cubes
pop into an oven dish with a lid {or improvise with a foil package}
add in the peeled garlic and the butter
seal and bake for about an hour on 180c or until a fork can easily go through the beet
let cool
place all into blender and pulse until smooth
season with spices and s&p
drizzle with a good olive oil
we will be having this dip with vegi sticks, fresh sourdough bread and corn chips this afternoon when the grandparents arrive
and Lily is back from school…
dear bunny…
our honored guest has been with us nearly two weeks
he/she hovers, drapes, naps, meditates by the bunny cage
{a friendly python so don’t worry about us}
bunny naps on the other side and carries on its inconsequential activities
is bunny aware that death is about?
does it remember being saved from snakes embrace before?
is it longing for release from this world?
would it return for another round of the karmic wheel?
is it comfortable and accepting with that which is inevitable?
are you?
am i?
tonight in the boom crash and heavy tinkle of the storm
i let myself see some great fear and panic regarding death
stay away from me and mine!
impossible, but thats what i cry for
i feel it in my chest like the impact of a fist
in these moments
i am clinging to this life and the tangible forms of my beloved ones
and all that is perceived by my senses
i am cultivating dreams and ideas and cherishing hope for the future
i am nurturing relationships and gardens and love
i am struggling through the quagmire of some days and challenges
i am pursuing myself in the interest of growth and understanding
i want to be here and sit and knit and contemplate
i am afraid of the unknown yet
i do have faith in a greater force
but i simply don’t know what comes after
i haven’t been there yet or i don’t remember
and as Lily said to me on wondering what it is like to die
“…then i won’t know, because i’ll be gone and it won’t matter”
how about me?
how about you?
**
{later on this day i passed two severe car accidents on my trip to town
and i was given a worldly reflection of my thoughts}
blessings to those who are grieving right now
**
RosaLindenTree 
