The Last Beach Day

I now know why every single person I meet that has grown children feels the need to impart something like, "it goes so fast," or "you'll blink and they'll be gone." I've always believed that must be true, but now I am living it. We are becoming acclimated to these days of missing our Big B, then quickly seeing him through homework-dinner-bath-books-bed routine, only to wake up and do it all again. I am realizing that time is literally flying past me.

Tomorrow is supposed to be a real autumnal day, complete with a chilly morning. This is the beginning of so many wonderful opportunities for our family's outdoor living, but it also signals the end of the year's beach days. In a spontaneous effort to slow time down this afternoon, we put the now familiar post-school routine on hold, and headed to the sea.
The spontaneity of the day continued as we met our sweet neighbors in the driveway, and spent the rest of the early evening playing at their house and dining at their table. And somehow, at 8:00, the homework was finished, the children were bathed and in bed, and we will still do it all again tomorrow. But we'll have the memory of a salty, sandy, sweet afternoon, one that I hope to conjure up after I blink, and they're gone.

Project Update: The Safe Motherhood Quilt

My dear friend Erin made this quilt square for The Safe Motherhood Quilt Project and dropped it off at my house yesterday morning. On that cool, blue, first day of fall, the juxtaposition of these colors and prints touched me immediately and I felt like I missed someone I had never known. This is all the information I could find on Rosario Bermeo:

Rosario Bermeo, age 30, died following an abortion at Prospect Hospital in New York on June 14, 1983. Dr. Joseph B. Shapse contended he had no responsibility for actions of the certified nurse anesthetist, and no responsibility to monitor and evaluate Rosario's condition during and immediately after the abortion. Therefore, he said, he was not to blame for her death from respiratory and cardiac arrest.
Thank you, Erin, for creating this beautiful tribute. Erin also has a new etsy site called Willoughby Jade where her handmade knits, gorgeous henna work and appliqued clothing are available.

Autumnal Equinox: Return to Balance

Today was the Autumnal Equinox, the first day of fall, the day that east and west and day and night are in perfect balance. I was overjoyed to welcome this day with a healthy family. I saw Papa off to work and Big B off to school, and little b and I looked at each other and each saw the same giddy feeling. After a month of healing in our snug little nest, we felt the need to spread our wings and just be outside together, soaking up the light. We decided to visit our favorite treasured hideaway, our Children's Garden, a secret fairy land we just can't get enough of. Being with my healthy little b in this place and watching him play, I could feel our family's equilibrium, our sense of normalcy, returning. The worry and the chaos of the last few weeks was balanced by a calm sense of assurance as I watched him climbing, running, squealing. Even the colors of the day reinforced this balance: autumn, usually typecast in rusts and oranges and browns, today showed us cool, calm blues.
Mama Bird brought her littlest chick--and a perfectly sweet picnic--and joined us for the fresh air. The four of us had the secret garden to ourselves, and enjoyed the simple pleasures of almost-uninterrupted sentences, almost-two-year-olds, and an almost-fall morning. I am grateful. Grateful for the health of my family, grateful for the warm summer sun and the cool autumn breeze, grateful for the light held in a blue flower, grateful for this life I live that allows me to take my baby to play with a friend on a Tuesday morning in a whimsical world.

Letter Walk :: G

There was actually a touch of fall in the air this morning. Big B chose the letter G to hunt for as we ventured out for our first healthy Sunday since August. What a glorious way to start the day!

Healing Energy: It Takes a Village

We've been off the grid for a week. Big B just went back to school today and the rest of us continue to lay low through the weekend. Little b has fought a month-long battle, beginning with pneumonia and ending with the flu, and the rest of us thought we would join him in this last discomfort. So we've all snuggled into our nest, healing, together.

It is very difficult for me to watch my children through illness that I can't control. After a month of pneumonia, ear infections and flu, I have amassed a bucket-o'-remedies that span the globe, from Eastern medicine to Western medicine, from homeopathic to antibiotic, from elderberry syrup to cough syrup, from herbs and tinctures to acetaminophen and ibuprofen.

But I think what finally did the trick was the love, care, and kindness of our community. In the past week, we have graciously accepted offers of herbs, homemade chicken soup, and two trips to the grocery store. And yesterday, on my doorstep, was this collection of healing stones from a dear friend. It sits as an altar in the center of our home, attracting healing energy and reminding all of us that we are well taken care of, and held high in the hearts of those who love us. (Clockwise from the large purple one: Brazilian River Rock, Tourmalinated Quartz, Chrysoprase, Citrine, Flame Agate)

Finding Treasure in Georgia

We sought and found much treasure during our Labor Day visit to Great Grandma's south Georgia homestead. Most of our treasure came from Mother Nature herself, hiding sweet little gifts for us to find along the trails we wandered, from sun-up to moon-rise.
The find of the weekend happened on one of many four-wheeler rides, when we looked into the woods and spied this beautiful turtle shell.We decided it should be displayed prominently in The Vagabond, where Papa, Mama, Big B and little b comfortably and happily lived for the weekend. Much of our time was spent siting, parking, lifting, securing, cleaning, stocking, sealing, electrifying and plumbing this 1989 beauty. We are so grateful to Grammy and Papu for letting us take part in this vintage treasure, and we look forward to our Thanksgiving trip, when we will refurbish The Vagabond even more. But as always, the treasure we sought above all others was the time we spent together, riding the trails along the Altamaha River, through the pine forests, between rows and rows of cotton and tobacco, with the September wind in our faces and pure love for each other in our hearts.

"Ordinary riches can be stolen, real riches cannot.
In your soul are infinitely precious things
that cannot be taken from you.”
--Oscar Wilde

Color Walk (on location) :: Purple

We have been waiting patiently for the right time and place to explore the majestic world of PURPLE. We found these royal little surprises throughout Great-Grandma's Georgia homestead.

Color Walk (on location) :: Tan

Big B chose the perfect time to go hunting for TAN: our annual Labor Day vacation to Southeast Georgia, where the clay and pine straw seem to dust everything in the under-appreciated hue.

A Day of Firsts

It was a day of new beginnings in our cozy neck of the woods. Little b had his first ever without-Big-B-playdate with his own little peeps. Big B beautifully and enthusiastically completed his first ever homework assignment. Mama, watching all of this unfold, now needs her first ever pause button. More than ever.