This moment
a friday ritual
a single photograph from my week
x
Right now. Play dough fun with cedar. Playing an imprint memory game. Taking turns to make prints or guess what made the print.
I make play dough by the recipe on the cream of tartar jar but just found this no cook recipe for the future. I usually add some essential oils. This time it’s lavender.
Also making Swedish saffron buns for st lucia dec 13th and birthday cakes. The gnomes sing along for Cedar. Lily and I made them for him last year. A really fun craft. Supplies from winterwood crafts. Wool felt and wooden finger puppets.
Four candles, four crystals. Practicing for July!
A favoured birthday song
Now on this day we celebrate your day of birth and we wish you a good and happy life on earth.
Our other birthday song we love is
Four years ago today today
Cedar came down from the heavens to stay
He came to bring gladness and joy to the earth
Kind people and angels attended his birth
So let us all join in the singing
Four birthday bells they are ringing
Happy birthday dear cedar
Happy birthday dear cedar
Interchange age and names. I’m not sure of the original authors sorry.
Xx
We {read I} have been making regular batches of buckwheat pancakes. mm mmm
i’ve written about the origin of my recipe from lovely gluten free blog what baby{and boy} ate; here…
and other pancakey berry adventures here…
for my non measure recipe; I use about 1 and a 1/2 cups of raw organic buckwheat and soak it in the blender overnight
in the morning add 2 eggs and some extra water and whizz it up smooth
cook in coconut oil
I have better success if I heat the cast iron pan very well first and keep it well oiled. they take a little longer than wheat flour pancakes to cook. be patient, it’s worth it!!
Buckwheat is one of my favorite gluten free seeds for porridge {soak overnight with almonds, currants, quinoa and nuts, simmer about 15 minutes in the morning} and pancakes. I have done some sprouting of them but find the slimy tendency in this humid climate off putting!
a good protein source apparently and easily digestible for most tummies.
a nice buckwheat quote…
“The properties of buckwheat are: Neutral thermal nature; sweet flavor; cleans and strengthens the intestines and improves appetite..” According to Paul Pitchford in Healing with Whole Foods (1993)
notice the jar of rapadura sugar? this has lately replaced the maple syrup bottle while stocks are out. it’s been a good experiment to see that Lily can now self moderate a teaspoon sprinkle of sugar on her pancakes. Yay! it has paid off, all that strict mama monitoring of sugar … now i can relax abit about it and know she knows i know she knows; how to self regulate sugar intake and feel good in her body! luckily Cedar copies her…
what do you do with buckwheat?
oh my!! berries are sooo delightful! i sure am looking forward to another summer in Tasmania….
The following Book list is comprised of chapter books which we have enjoyed as read alouds and autonomous reads since Lily was 7, and some for the future. They are presented in no particular order so don’t worry if you can’t decode my book list progression. Enjoy, share with your kids and everyone’s children. Reading is a lifetime enjoyment and a precious skill.
Please mail me your favorites if they don’t appear here!
Little House on the Prairie series (particularly Little House in the Big Woods) Laura Ingalls
Farmer Boy also by Laura Ingalls
Enid Blyton Books
the children of cherry tree farm
Astrid Lindgren books
Ronia the robbers daughter (older children)
Australian authors {I would love more Australian books if you know any}
Kingdom of silk series-glenda millard(i have read first only so far, older kids10+)
the secret world of Wombats-jackie French
a cat called penguin -Holly Webb
Isabel Wyatt books
The seven year old wonder book-Isabel Wyatt
the eight year old legend book -Isabel Wyatt
the book of fairy princes-Isabel Wyatt
King Beetle tamer-Isabel Wyatt
other Waldorf type stories
The last little cat-Meindert DeJong
The tales of Tiptoes Lightle-Reg Down
The Voices of Nature-Anne Spotts
The secret Pet-Shelley Davidow
a mixed bag…
The worst witch series-Jill Murphy
Cloudberry castle series {grounded ballet adventures in an old castle}
mr Popper’s penguins {book immensely more fantastic than the film} i have my mama’s worn beautiful loved copy of this to cherish.
the secret garden-Frances Hodgson Burnett oh my what a delightful tale. though i still skip the early dramatic part of everyone dying of cholera in India and begin as she is travelling to her new home.
The Little Princess-Frances Hodgson Burnett
anne of green gables {older children}
Little women-Louisa May Alcott {older readers]
Unlikely friendships -Jennifer S Holland
Roald Dahl books
Charlie and the Chocolate factory
Little Fur series-Isobelle Carmody {older readers}
The Growly books -Phillip and Erin Ulrich brilliant first book (begin) (favorite! awaiting release of book two!)
Some titles I’ve been recommended or want to check out next are
Mrs Pepperpot series
Milly Molly Mandy ( my childhood but can’t clearly remember)
The owl who was afraid of the dark
Elsa Beskow books {lovely illustrations and good for pre-chapter book readers}
well did you click on any links? i painstakingly made a lot!! so much spare time obviously!! (LOL)
I confess I don’t mind abridged versions of some of the classics. It can make them more appealing and digestible for newer readers who may then later want to read the originals. I also unashamedly occasionally edit as I read aloud. sometimes to keep it appropriate or sometimes to make it easier to understand for the listener.
when i say older readers i am thinking 12+ but you should discern for your own children. Lily is still sensitive so we still avoid more suspenseful books. nurturing that precious childhood bubble by carefully editing the books she reads; while I still can. that is why you will not see a lot of mainstream popular books on my list currently.
I buy books from good bookstores when i can find one. Many Waldorf Steiner supply stores have books also, or natural toy stores. I also buy online from The Book Depository, Floris books or Amazon.
The more that you read
the more you will know
the more that you learn
the more places you’ll go
Dr Seuss
ps you wouldn’t believe how long this blog has taken me! I told myself I couldnt post it without lots of beautiful photographs with all those lovely moments of bed, couch, outside, toilet, haircutting, garden, bus, hammock glimpses of reading nooks,but here it is.
simple and packed with ideas just in time for Christmas!!
peace and reading
This one is dedicated to my dear friend M
who has patiently waited a year for me to complete this request on how to felt a playmat!
you may already have just You Tubed a wet felt tutorial or taken a lesson elsewhere
but dear one, as this unfolded i thought of you and so
enjoy
xx
Lily felted this piece as a backing for a giant granny square cushion for her chair at school.
Tutorial to Wet Felt a Play mat
materials
a pile of roving (fluffy wool)
warm water in a bowl or bottle
detergent/soap
curtain netting
if it’s large a bamboo roll blind to roll the piece in
work in a water safe zone and have a towel on hand to mop up excess water
begin by making three even layers of roving, alternating the direction of each layer.
to do this, grasp lightly a section of roving with your hands about 20cm apart, pull and you will release an even section of wool. too close and the wool fibres will not seperate easily
fluff up and lay these sections working one side to another in rows
once you’ve done the three layers {backing, filling, top layer} pat all over and patch any thin places
then
place your fluffed out decorations on the top layer {Lily put her name}
these decorations can shift during the process so dont begin with anything complex
for a playmat place on appropriate colours for fields, water and maybe a road…
place your netting over the top and sprinkle with water until all is evenly wet and then squirt with soap
initially you are simply patting lightly to get the water through and the soap to begin penetrating
soon you can gently rub, light hands make beautiful feltwork at this stage,
the aim is to get the wool fibres to begin binding together and all the layers in cohesion, including your decorations
lift off you net carefully and check it’s all laying in place, adjust as neccessary
you can begin more vigorous rubbing, it should be wet all through and bubbly at this point
three keys to good felt
keep rubbing until you reach pre felt stage, tested by pinching and lifting a small section. if it lifts together it’s pre felt if the fibres lift off or seperate keep on rubbing {see photo below}
at pre felt i like to flip the work and make sure the back is pre felted. at this point no unbound fibres will join in.
to create neat edges, rub your hand in a wave motion along the edge of the piece, gathering in the edges tidily
after pre felt you can handle it more vigorously as everything is in place. rub rub away and then if you want to shrink and final felt it in a fun way, squeeze out excess water, thrash the piece around and scrunch it and toss it down on the table. {therapeutic also}
Lily did’nt care for an even edge as you can see below, but do notice there are no stringy bits hanging off the border.
when the wool has reached a good thickness, sturdiness and strength, you will notice small ridges/wrinkles forming, i usually stop at this point but some like to continue pounding it until this is really formed and the piece will become a bit thicker and smaller. as you feel
stretch it slightly to create flatness and a good shapeLily’s complete piece ready to lay flat and dry.
you may see glimpses of the production of two other playmats of mine here
nearly complete, Cedar is impatient to playworking on my niece’s playmat with my sister
i have attempted mayonnaisse once before, it was a terrible gloppety glop which seperated in the first hour and no-one would eat. boo. condiment disaster.
and then one day recently, like a home cooking queen, my dear friend Dalee {Owl and Snail blog} casually offers to whip up some mayo to accompany lunch as the rice is not cooked yet. WHAT? squawks I
what can’t this woman do?
whip up mayonnaisse? i thought it was a half hour hand whisking ordeal for secondary results?
not anymore ladies and gentleman.
mayonnaisse, fresh, lemony, creamy mayo is within your grasp {if you have a power source/sauce and a blender}
no more sad sandwiches gasping for some moisture, no more shop tainted slaw,
read on and then
quick get your apron on and blender out…
Dalee’s deelicious home made whip it up casually MAYONNAISE
disclaimer~recipe is just a guideline, adjust ingredients as you see fit…
pop into your blender jug
whizz til smooth then with motor running slOWly pour in oil in a steady drizzle until mixture thickens to your liking… ta da!!
approximately more than 1 cup of good oil but possibly less than 2 {depends on the weather}
Dalee recommended a blend of olive and a lighter oil like sunflower, i agree after tonights recipe trial. i also added a sprig of parsley to dye it an appealing shade of rolling meadows green
then good people, dollop, slather, spread, dip, splat, lick, enjoy!
Keep it in the fridge. I can’t legally recommend an exact UBD but perhaps up to 7 days?? do not leave out of the fridge for extended periods as it contains raw eggs, food poisoning is a concern.
try with roast potatoes, fish and salad {my dinner above. mm not bad… in another life i am a food shooter for culinary prints}
try it with….
vegie sticks
in coleslaw
in nori rolls
in chicken salad
egg sandwitches
in salad dressings
on frittata
on pancakes…?
well go on, make some soon and tell me what you enjoyed it with {as long as it’s food now}
looks good, tastes great and has raw eggs in it!
and what about Miss Dalee, artist, mama, musician, crafter, pioneer, yurt dwelling, homeschooling, mayonnaise queen. did you go look at her blog? or her skilled husband Jesse, who handcrafts beautiful Shakahachi flutes.
some more moments from my visit
rainbows
peace
and mayonnaise
xx
there is another good mayo recipe and scientific examination of the sauce here
thankyou Ridge friends, you where the last stop on the way to Bellingen. i enjoyed my three fun days of inspiration with different friends and i left you feeling full and motivated and, well, inspired!
Right now..
After walking lily to the bus we stop at the p ground. Could become a ritual.
Playing grocers with cedar an endless exchange of bark fruit and vegetables for bark payment.
Feeling present
Enjoying springish air and birds and flowers
Aiming to stay relaxed and engaged
Witnessing number counting naturally occur
Giggling over cheeky grins
Impulse to share a simple moment between games.
Joy to stop the rush and play
Life can be small and childish
What are you doing?
Do you take time to play each day with your littles? I want to.
Now back to play another game
R
Later we spend a looooong time sweeping the deck and tip trucking the leaves into the box for the garden.
Boy happy garden jobs helpful working focus together purpose noise fun busy