How Not to Lose Five Children in an Airport

Here We Go...

Dear All,

It is a beautiful morning here in the Midwest, sunny and almost 60, and I took time to meditate and have a cuppa this morning around six, so I am in a great place. "Peace and Calming" has been burning in my diffuser since sunrise, but the rest of them!

Five crazy kids, one hell-bent husband, and too many suitcases. It feels like we are moving house, but it's just a little trip to see the in-laws...for three months, in France. The extra suitcase is for emergency situations which may arise with the new luggage rules. The weight limits are so strict that we have visions of tossing things out like so many sand bags out of a balloon, losing along the way what we were sure we could not live without. This way, we may have a little room to stick things somewhere else. I'd hate to have to leave behind the 155 disposable diapers I got at a bargain price.

I thought I would have a leisurely moment to write, and promise frequent entries from abroad, before packing up my charger, slipping my computer into my carry-on and touring the house one more time for oopses and things, but it appears there are fires to be put out all over the place; "here's my head-gear," "my favorite blanket won't fit in my carry-on," "but I WANT the fluoride rinse," "Where are my Lego 'torm-troopers?" "Hey, Mom, did you see the song I sang is on a website?" "Can I exchange $10 for some French money?"

It is time, good-bye for now, I'm going to miss you, Mom, Dad, sister, brothers, nephews, friends and niece-to-be, see you in three months. You'll hear from us on the other side of the Atlantic.

Good-bye, see you in three months

Blanket for my New Niece

The family is having a new baby, I can't wait! Here is a little blanket I made for her, my sister is expecting sometime in June. I am heartbroken that I will be in France, but I will be thinking of her and knitting tiny pink things...

Play Silks

Three Days to Go

Why have I not been blogging about the upcoming trip to France? Too much to do! We leave in three days for three months. We are all excited beyond anything you could imagine. And trying hard not to communicate our stress to the kids.

There are four or five suitcases, one carry-on and sundry backpacks, knitting bags and others waiting for approval, filling or rejection from the authorities (us). So what did I do today? I went to church, finished a doll sweater for Puck's doll and dyed silks to take with us. I think I did some serious cleaning and packing too along the way, but don't the silks look nice drying on the line?

Easter Morning

Easter Morning

Here is the branch found on a cut-down tree, just as it was beginning to bud, here are the eggs, blown out and dyed by all of us, and our little gnomes, celebrating the springtime, new life and new directions. Happy Easter!

Spinning, Yarn and Animals

It has been a week of discovery. A local college is hosting a fiber arts festival and the library is hosting some cool classes. Nuno felting is beautiful, something to aspire to someday, (see earlier post), but the spinning lessons have spoken to my spirit and imagination. Spinning is an art and necessity. While spinning one begets a connection with women (and men) from time immemorial. I have notions of falling into a trance of visions as well as the domestic industriousness of Almanzo's mother in "Farmer Boy" and the independent spirit of Ghandi as he sat spinning his own homespun and conversing with international figures.

I met Jeanette, an angora bunny/sheep/alpaca farmer and owner of a yarn shop, Fae Ridge Farms, on her farm at the first event of the week. Her engaging presence, her spinning lessons and the fact that everything she had brought to sell was from Peace Fleece endeared her to me right away. The friends with me that night felt the same way, so we car-pooled, kids and all, to her farm/shop an hour away last Saturday morning. We spent the most enchanted day! The children came into the tiny shop with us, but Jeanette encouraged them to go out and meet the animals with a bucket of feed. It was cold, but we rarely saw them the rest of the time we were there. I think they were busy climbing trees, petting bunnies and feeding chickens.

I was inside with friends, old and new, watching everyone spin, and keeping an eye on my little guy, contemplating how much I had loved my first spinning lesson, but hesitant to take up something new. There were beautiful knitting books everywhere, as well as the yarn, roving in all shades of beauty. She had needles from Peace Fleece, fresh farm produce and fresh-that-morning eggs. Puck and I spent a lovely quarter of an hour gazing at the pictures in Fairy Tale Knits when he announced that I should knit him a purple hat. Now, purple and I have been best friends for many years, and though I don't wear it as much, how could I resist knitting my baby the hat he wanted in that particular shade? Add to that the fact that Arthur, five, had decided before we even left that we should return home with a spinning wheel and was really decidedly interested in learning to spin, and so was I, there was only one option. I purchased the only spindle I had ever tried; a Turkish model from Peace Fleece; "A yarn company committed to helping historic enemies cooperate and prosper through trade. " It is also the neatest spindle ever; it has a fantastic spin to it and it comes apart into pieces, so that when you have spun a length of wool, it is a center-pull ball and can ply from both ends. How cool is that? I also got a big bag of purple swirled with green roving for my Puck's hat. And four dozen eggs, of course.

Of felting and fiber art

Take a look at this shop and blog for beautiful, inspired needle-felting and poetry too:

http://softearthart.felt.co.nz/

http://softearthart.blogspot.com/

A feast for the eyes and a goal for the fingers.

Nuno Felting Artist; Gisela

I attended a class and demonstration of different techniques in felting and needle felting; this is the work of a local nuno felting artist (who says she has a "workshop" not a "studio"). She makes fantastic wraps, bags, scarves, hats and more. I can't wait to learn more from her.


Here's Lily, joining me after the class to admire Gisela's work.

Scarf for my brother

St.Pat's Day Towel for Mom's Birthday

Aragorn's Skull Hat

Knitting and Cleansing

This is what the last three months have been about. I've been on elimination diets, cleanses and gone gluten and dairy-free, trying to eliminate an itchy skin condition. Much of my energy has gone into this and it has been an excellent learning experience. We have all discovered a much healthier path in life, and that while gluten-free bread, pumpkin scones and pizza crust are all delicious (thank you, Glutenfreegoddess.com!), chocolate chip cookies are just better with wheat flour! Our fruit and vegetable consumption has increased greatly, sugar consumption is way down and we are all feeling better.

On to the knitting; here are pics of the latest projects. Having busy needles makes everything better!