I Am Writing :: Finally!

After two weeks of being thrown off my writing schedule, I was so happy to have a full day in my home office yesterday, 100 percent dedicated to writing (without babe on lap).

It was a success! I finally completed the bulk of an article I've been working on, A Mothers' Circle: Uniting Ancient Magic with Modern Motherhood. It's just about ready to be sent off to Mothering magazine in hopes of a sale. This would be my first published magazine piece since having babies. It's all starting to come back to me now...

Leading By Example

I believe the best way to teach my children the values I want them to have is to demonstrate them myself. It never fails to amaze me how they really do hear what you say and see what you do, day after day. Especially when you think they aren't paying attention.

Unprompted my me, Selby recently asked her cousin Ethan if he wanted to make some prayer flags (hopefully I haven't burned you out on prayer flag posts - 'cause there's still one more coming along with my finished flags). Having seen me work on and talk about my flags, Selby explained precisely what prayer flags are to her cousin, then began work on creating her own set.

The blessings she chose are precious and perfect: Dream, Happy, Love and Jewels (I love this one - straight from the sparkly mind of a 4-year-old girl!). Her images are equally fitting: a kitty cat, a rainbow, a sun, a flower.

Selby's prayer flags are hanging from rainbow ric rac on our back porch, blowing sweet blessings out to all. My heart is full of joy that she chose to follow my example, becoming a true apprentice of mindful crafting.

Prayer Flags - Part I, The Process

It was a special New Moon Circle last Friday night as my sisters and I gathered at the home of one of our soon-expecting mamas to welcome the Taurus moon. After the smudging and candle lighting rituals, we opened our circle and shared our intentions for the new lunar cycle. As a group, we called for JOY.

After the ceremony closed, we remained in circle and began work on our prayer flags. Like women have done for generations before us, we fell into a rhythm, creating our handiwork side by side, while sharing stories and offering each other support.

It was so fun to watch each woman's creative process take form; each set of flags is sure to be truly unique. Kenji braided hemp to string her hand painted, multi-colored flags upon:

The Snail hand-carved her own block print (see her finished flags here):

And a whole lot of fabric cutting, design layout and truly mindful crafting was underway.

Check back later in the week to see some of the finished flags blowing in the wind.

Breakfast for Dinner

We had breakfast for dinner last night. My gang was slightly less enthusiastic about it than I would have hoped; but I thought it was both beautiful & yummy.

Kale & Smoked Bacon Quiche, Cinnamon-Oat Pancakes, homemade strawberry jam... really, what else is a mama to do? I thought perhaps you might enjoy it, so here are the recipes:

Kale & Smoked Bacon Quiche
(Serves 4)

A bunch of green kale, roughly chopped
4-5 strips smoked bacon
1 medium white onion, diced
1 T olive oil
3/4 cup grated Parmesan
5 large eggs
3/4 cup of lo-fat milk
1/2 cup of fat-free half & half
1 t sea salt
1/2 t freshly ground black pepper
1-2 frozen pie shells (see note)

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Set pie shells out to thaw. Heat the olive oil in a fry pan over medium heat and saute the onions until they are slightly browned. Add the kale and fry for about 3 minutes or until it has wilted slightly. Remove from heat and set aside. Fry the bacon strips until they a little crispy. Remove and drain on paper towels. Next, spread the bacon, kale and onion over the base of the pie shell.

Beat the eggs and mix in the milk, half & half, Parmesan, salt and pepper. Blend well and pour into pie shell. Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven at 450 degrees. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake for another 10-15 minutes or until the center of the quiche is almost firm. Remove the quiche from the oven and let it stand for about 10 minutes before serving.

Note: This recipe made 2 quiches for me, using regular frozen pie shells. A deep dish shell, or homemade pastry in a pie tin, would probably yield one quiche.

Cinnamon-Oat Pancakes (Everyday Food, May 2009 )
Makes 20 very hearty pancakes

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 T baking powder
1 t salt
1/2 t ground cinnamon
2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
2 cups milk
2 large eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil

In a food processor, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and 1 cup of oats and pulse a few times to coarsely grind oats. In a large bowl, whisk together milk, eggs and oil. Add dry ingredients and 1 cup oats and whisk just until moistened.

Heat a large skillet or griddle over medium heat. Lightly oil. Using 2-3 tablespoons for each pancake, drop batter in skillet and cook until a few bubbles have burst, 1-2 minutes. Flip pancakes and cook until browned on undersides, 1-2 minutes more. Repeat with more oil & batter.

Note: You can freeze leftovers by cooling them on a wire rack, freezing about 30 minutes on a baking sheet and then transferring to a resealable plastic bag. To reheat, pop them in the toaster or heat them in foil in a 350 degree oven.

May your weekend be full of nourishing, comforting treats. Happy Friday!

Pink & Green

My oldest chick Selby was home from preschool with pink eye yesterday. So to honor Earth Day, we sneaked off to the mall for the premiere of the first film in the DisneyNature series, Earth.

The movie followed a year in the life of three animal families. We both really enjoyed it! I especially appreciated the way the film focused on how the mama elephant, whale and polar bear nurtured, protected and guided their little ones. What a beautiful reminder of how united we are with everything on our planet.

Before the movie, we grabbed a bite to eat at Chick-Fil-A and in her kid's meal, Selby received a Ranger Rick Outdoor Family Fun Guide full of easy, creative ideas to help families celebrate and care for the Earth.

Back at home, Selby crafted her own Earth from a paper lantern and stickers.
It was the perfect touch for the girls' al fresco dinner in our front courtyard.

I'm looking forward to many more "green" days this Spring, full of gardening and outdoor play. And with any luck, no more "pink" (eye, that is).

Creative Intentions or Mindful Crafting

At our last New Moon Circle, my sisters and I initiated a new element to our gathering - a craft. Born out of the desire to create Treasure Maps for the Aries new moon, we pooled art supplies, delved into our creations and enjoyed the gab time that accompanied our handiwork.

(Here are my family's finished maps - a personal one for both me and DaddyBird, and a family one we created together. Visit my new moon sister's blog to see a whole different take on the treasure map.)

We're going to try another craft at our circle for the New Moon in Taurus: handmade prayer flags. Each of us is bringing materials to create flags that will convey - through words, images, symbols and art - our prayers and wishes for ourselves and the world. I'll share the process and results here after we've tried it out. Meanwhile, a sneak peek at the beautiful fabric I'll be using for my flags:

Moda Wonderland: Tea Time.

I noticed the craft project we chose for this Friday's circle, like the treasure maps, helps create and support our positive intentions (the whole purpose of a new moon gathering). I like this - and I think I shall call it "mindful crafting." It's crafting with a purpose; the setting of creative intentions and the release of good energy for ourselves, our families, our communities and our universe.

Do you have any mindful crafting ideas? I'd love to hear them.

The Formula - Part II

So about that formula I posted last Friday... As part of an ongoing effort to balance endless responsibilities and desires with limited time, I recently set up a few systems to try and get organized. I posted these not-so-pretty-to-look-at signs in places where I would see them lots - the laundry room and kitchen.

They are simple chore lists, divvied up by day of the week. I also filled out all our weekly activities on the family calendar posted in our breakfast nook and used the chalkboard next to it to make a list of top-priority tasks and errands for the week. (I warned you it was a very Virgo system.)

This organization of tasks, plus the commitment to do them on certain days resulted in...

...productivity! Laundry got done and put away in manageable loads, household responsibilities were knocked out in stolen moments and all my weekly goals were actually accomplished! This productivity, without stress resulted in a surge of...

...creativity! I had more time and mental/emotional space to write (my Mother's Circles article is finally almost done!), finish my treasure maps before the next new moon (look for a post on these this week) and finally, to shop for fabric and begin my creative plan for the prayer flag project planned for this Friday's New Moon Circle (watch for a post on this as well).

So, to complete the formula: Productivity + Creativity = Peace, Love & Happiness.

Of course!

The Formula - Part I

This totally proves I'm a Virgo through and through. A very complex and scientific formula came into my mind yesterday...

Organization + Commitment = Productivity

Productivity - Stress = Creativity

Productivity + Creativity = Peace, Joy & Happiness

Ponder this for a few days. I'll be back to tell you how this stroke of genius occurred to me on Monday. Have a happy weekend.

I Can't Get Enough of This...

* The purple blossoms of our Jacaranda tree above and below.
* Selby's new found quite time activity...such concentration and care.
* Researching & writing about women's circles, rituals and sacred objects.
* Finding contentment and creativity all around me.

What about you? What are you soaking in?

Riding the Beast

I watched with pride as Selby was recently given the opportunity to face a fear and emerge triumphant. Remember that chapter in the Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood where Sidda is afraid to climb upon the back of Lawanda The Magnificent, a huge elephant? Then, after she returns home and changes her mind, her mother, Vivi, agrees to take Sidda back for a ride. They climb upon the elephant's flat, grey back and pretend to be a queen and a princess riding through the jungle. Vivi tells her young daughter: "There is nothing, anywhere, to be afraid of! Lawanda loves us, and we are not afraid!"

This scene came back to me as I watched Selby flounder over whether or not to ride Molly, a huge, white horse, at a classmate's horseback riding birthday party. After watching every other child ride, Selby took the leap of faith and climbed upon Molly's back. She loved it! Like Sidda, when that ride was over, she was a different little girl. One who can do anything she sets her mind to.

This confidence has spilled over to swim classes she recently started - another opportunity for her to face some personal fears.

This is one of the beautiful things about being a parent - our children give us the opportunity to re-experience life's lessons through their eyes. I welcome this sweet reminder to face my fears. From climbing on a horse or putting your face underwater...to writing a novel...without taking that leap of faith, without believing we can do it and then doing it, we'd miss out on the real fun!

"It's life Sidda. You just climb on the beast and ride."
- Vivi Abbot, Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood.

Natural Nester Easter Baskets

I had so much fun putting Easter baskets together for my little chicks this year. There were two main themes - birds & crafts.

Each girl is receiving a plush Audubon bird that makes a real bird call. The Scissor-Tailed Flycatcher is a beautifully-colored fancy flier, capable of mid-air somersaults and zigzag flight - perfect for Selby. And my duck lover, Sage gets the green-headed Mallard.
Inspired by SouleMama's section on embroidering with children in her book The Creative Family, Selby's basket includes an embroidery hoop, plastic children's sewing needles, burlap and some pastel embroidery floss. Sage's basket includes some egg-shaped Crayola Beginnings markers and Easter-egg hued craft yarn.
Other goodies tucked among the fat quarters of pretty green fabric I used as filler in each basket include small wooden bird house wind chimes, fabric eggs, pinwheels, toothbrushes and, of course, a few chocolate treats. I have a feeling I'll wake to the sound of birds in the morning!

Happy Easter!

I Am Writing :: Spring Break Style

I wrote a bit about our favorite sandy hangout, Shell Beach, while on location today!

The view.

The kids.

The mamas.

The writer.

It was short lived - but well appreciated. Really, what job could be better than this?

Natural Nester Eggs

As the "Natural Nester" it seemed only appropriate to try out some natural Easter egg dyes this year. So at an egg-decorating party for the kids yesterday, hosted by our community crafter The Snail, I brought along four bell jars of tints made from all-natural ingredients. There was cranberry juice (red), boiled lemon peels (yellow), brewed black tea (brown) and boiled spinach leaves (green).

After soaking in the concoctions for about 15 minutes, our eggs began to show a faint hint of color. (Most directions say to soak them overnight for best results...but being at a party, we did not have this option.) Soon, our efforts to go all-natural gave way to the need for pretty colors, fast! Luckily, there was a wide selection of other materials, ranging from traditional Paas egg decorating kits to acrylic paint.

Selby dug right in (literally - look at her hands). She used a toothbrush to flick paint on some eggs for a natural, speckled appearance. On others, she created a batik-like finish using a combination of dye and paint.

I'm pleased to report we returned to our nest with a gorgeous selection of eggs that are nature-inspired, if not naturally-colored!

Amish Friendship Bread

Last week, my neighbor gave me a starter of Amish Friendship Bread. I had to nurture and "feed" it for 10 days (this means add flour, sugar and milk on days 6 & 10 and mush it around in it's Ziploc bag every day). On the 10th day you make the bread. But first, you are to divide up the batter, creating 4 starters to share with friends, who are to repeat this process. It's like a baking chain letter! While I really dislike chain letters, I thought this was a neat idea.

Yesterday was day 10, falling ideally on our first real day of Spring Break. My nephew Ethan was with us for the day, and helped Selby & I make the bread. This was a fun (and educational) project for them. Ethan, who is now in the first grade, read all the directions out loud and wrote the date on each of the starter bags.

Selby helped measure and mix the ingredients, then divide the batter equally into two loaf pans.

Both helped sprinkle the tops with cinnamon-sugar and, of course, both were there to sample the final product. Which is, by the way, quite delicious. I'm holding on to one of the starters to bake a different variation (there are many on the web) again in 10 days. I'm thinking chocolate...

What a sweet way to reaffirm friendships!