This Moment

Inspired by Amanda Soule

Our internet is very slow because we are having tropical rain storms so I'm posting a single photo of my precious little Sania

Leaf fairies, Ellie the Elephant and Salad Planting

My first impression of a real autumn was just a few weeks ago as we passed through Colorado and Northern California.

The beautiful trees ornamented in nuances of red, orange, gold, brown and yellow.

The leaves looking like little golden sovereigns as they slowly drifted down with a gentle breeze.

A splendid blanket awaiting the arrival of King Winter.

Twig and Toadstool had made some lovely little leaf spirits so I was inspired to bring a little autumn feel into our homes to balance with the outside of our farm, always lush and green.

Sasha helped make this little blue peg fairy to be sent to a very special little friend for his birthday.

These wonderful little animal books with whimsical adventures written by Thornton W. Burgess have been a favorite during our travels and now at home on the farm.  These fun, sweet little stories bring Peter Rabbit, Reddy Fox, Chatter the Squirrel, Johnny Chuck, Grandfather Frog and other little creatures alive! They are always up to mischief in the green forest and the green meadows.  The book also portrays gentle lessons in nature and the children look forward to their reading time, always insisting I read more chapters. These books open up the children's vivid imagination for endless creative play, Chatterer has had his store house in our home for a while and Reddy Fox is always on the look out for Peter Rabbit.

Our compost has been fermenting for quite some time now and has turned into a beautiful rich dark compost.

I spent a very hot afternoon in the greenhouse preparing these beds and planting my little seedlings.  Our meals are never complete without a fresh salad from the garden.

Whilst I was planting these little seedlings Fabien and the boys did some woodwork and made Ellie the Elephant from a piece of beautiful Caoba (Mahogony - Listed Endangered) wood that drifted down our stream. Sania enjoyed the soft, smooth texture of beeswax as he rubbed it into the wood bringing forth its alluring color.

Felt Case for Block Crayons

Stockmar crayons are wonderful for young children.  They are made from the wax of our beloved friends, the bees. Beeswax crayons come in a variety of colors that blend beautifully together.  They are fragrant, smooth and long lasting.

It was time to keep our vibrant block crayons from marking and rubbing against one another.  The only color of felt I had big enough for this project was red and since its Sasha's favorite color it was a perfect choice.  I cut out some peach/pink stripes to lay across the red felt and sewed some small little pockets to hold the crayons snugly.

I then felted a little flower onto the front of the red felt for decoration.

and sewed on some little green ribbons so that it can be neatly folded.

This wonderful "Coloring with block crayons" book is a favorite of mine designed by Sieglinde de Francesca.  It has wonderful illustrations and techniques on how to color with block crayons.  You can find it at this link Coloring with block Crayons, along with her helpful DVD.

I was never able to draw and with the help of a few books I've been practicing.  These are a few of them.  I can only hope to inspire those that are intimidated by drawing as I once was.







and the boys wanted me to draw a tractor.

A Sweet gift from Marie at Softearthart

Marie from Softearthart is an incredibly gifted needle felt artist.  She lives in the beautiful countryside of New Zealand - the sheep mecca of the world.  Inspired by nature, her wooly friends and a wholesome organic living, she is able to capture the mood of fairy tales in her wonderful creations, bringing them alive to the delight of every child and adult alike.  Marie displays her magical felt work on her Etsy online store.

We flew back to Miami today and was delighted to receive this sweetly wrapped little package from Marie.

I opened the little Toadstool Gnome illustrated card and there was a kind message from her...

Along with some of her own little toadstool gnomes - Marie kindly included instructions and some soft colored wool to show me how to make my own.

These are the little Toadstool Gnomes Marie sent to me.  So perfectly made! Soft, yet firm to hold together through gentle child play.  How lovely they will look on the children's nature table and to be enjoyed in their creative play.

Do visit Marie's lovely blog for her October Giveaway. It is a beautifully felted topped plywood treasure box for someone to enjoy.

Casa de Fruita and the Arizona Desert

Our initial thoughts of storing our Airstream RV in San Francisco turned out to be a little complicated so we decided to travel to Arizona.  During one of our rest stops we came across a little farm village called Casa de Fruita.  The children were delighted to see all the pumpkins, old steam engines and farm trucks on display.  They explored the corn maize. A small little steam engine train took them for a ride around the property showing their vast collection of antique cars, trucks, machinery, farm equipment and some animals.

The children then filled some sifting crates with sand and sifted their way through the water for some treasured gems at the gold mining wheel.  We all had a lovely time and enjoyed the break from driving.

The boys slept through most of the trip and we arrived at a desert park about an hour outside Phoenix around midnight. The gates were locked!  There was no way to get in so our only option was to boondock. We parked our airstream on the side of the street in the bushes to rest. The gates of the park opened at 6am. We drove in and found a nice place where we enjoyed some peaceful desert camping.

Walking out of the airstream rather sleepy we were astonished at the arid beauty which surrounded us. The myriad of towering cacti which silhouetted against the splendid golden skyline as father sun rolled out of bed.

We found a secluded hideaway just behind the mountains to settle and set up camp amidst the dry brush.

Later that evening we snuggled before the campfire to warm ourselves from the desert chill.  Watching the many stars shimmering down on the desert floor, leaving a soft glow upon the silvery shrubs.

The next day we cycled a few miles along dirt trails to the waterfall.  There hasn't been rain for a while so the waterfall didn't flow.  The rugged rocks were spectacular and were enjoyed by my two little climbers that seemed quite comfortable to ease their way up and around the gigantic rocks.

The boys insisted I climb to where they sat. It was a wonderful spot to enjoy our picnic of apples, carrots and granola bars that I had baked fresh that morning.  We are enjoying our last moments of this Airstream Adventure as we fly back to Miami on Tuesday.  We are longing for our animals so can't wait to be back on the farm.

Michaelmas

I haven't had good reception for uploading photos, so I'm a bit late for this post.

I would like to have created a little more for the children for Michaelmas but moving around and living out of our little airstream doesn't leave much time nor space for this.

I needle felted this little green dragon and arranged it on a lovely brown silk, along with some driftwood and dried pods we gathered from the beach in N. California.

We were invited to the Michaelmas festival at a Waldorf school in Ashland.  It was the first time my children had been amongst such a large group of children. Sania said he had never seen so many children before.

Each grade performed something special for the crowd.



The theme play for Michaelmas, taming of the dragon was beautifully played out by the children in grade Two.

An old photo from last year of my little knights flying their dragon kites we made.

I asked Sasha if he would like to go to school and he said he would never go anywhere without Sania or his mama.  A couple of weeks ago I was chatting with a young girl, Sasha's age at a camp site.  She was turning 8 in a couple of months and was already in grade 3.  She was sweet, confident and well spoken but she didn't seem to have that spark or play in her as young children her age should have.  All her days are spent at school, doing homework or participating in extra classes.  Her family only goes on vacation once a year and this is the only time she gets to really spend time with her little brother and play. It was hard for me to digest what this little girl told me.  How grateful I am that our family are able to enjoy our lives playfully together as one.

The Enchanted Redwood Forest

Driving along the coast of N. California we entered into the enchanting Redwood Forest. Delighted by this beautiful little tree house alongside a small winding road.



The winding road took us deep into the darkness of the woods.  It was hard to capture the essence of the forest because it was so dark. The little dappled light which sparkled through left the few fern and plants on the forest floor highlighted, illuminating their beauty.



Our little silver cabin, nestled deep in the woods.  It looks so small compared to these giants.



And so did the children has they wondered through the enchanted forest, their sweet voices echoing in delight.  Finding  caves inside the trees, once used by settlers to store their poultry in harsh weather.



They wondered from tree to tree, discovering the magic in each as mother earth has provided this magnificent playground for them.  The falling leaves cushion the surface into a earthy rich compost.



This forest in Northern California is the only home to the world's tallest trees, reaching about 370ft tall.  The Redwoods have been around for about 20 million years. A Redwood tree can live for about 2000 years.  They did exist in Europe, Asia, Greenland and Japan but change in climatic conditions caused their disappearance. A large tree can use up to 1500 gallons of water in a week. Only four percent of the Redwoods were saved from logging.



Many rivers and streams have dried up, only leaving decorative pebbles behind.



The magical forest has been awe-inspiring for the children.  Sweet musings of imaginative play unfold as they meander through it collecting treasures to decorate their little fairy garden.





A little wee-folk fairy that I made for a special little girl's birthday.