~ holiday magic ~

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Goodness, have I ever been slacking 

in the blogging department! 

I'm definitely feeling inspired to get back in the game, 

with the beautiful holiday that we had.

~carrie~

~ november intention ~

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I promise that I have been absent from blogging for a good (though deeply personal) reason.  It ties in with my November intention, which I'll get to in a moment.

My October intention was to smile.  However, a few days later I severely injured my back.  Despite being in pain and fear that I was going to need surgery (it was that bad), it was probably one of the best things that has ever happened to me.  It was a catalyst for some personal growth that has been fermenting in me for months, even years.  I don't know if I'll be sharing that here, but suffice it to say that these days.....I feel better than I have in my entire life.

At the beginning of November, I decided on my new intention: to be more selfish.  On the surface, that doesn't sound very peaceful at all.  But right now it is the best thing that I can do for myself and my family, and by extension, the world around me.  I could not offer anything (genuine) to others when I didn't care for or about myself.  

I hope to be back to sharing our lives on this blog soon, as well as reading about others' journey towards peace. But if you don't see me or hear from me, it's because I'm being selfish.  I'm cooking myself and my family delicious, wholesome meals, playing with my girls in the leaves, singing in the shower, picking on the guitar, waving at my neighbors and creating a more beautiful home for us.

~carrie~

~ waldorf co-op ~

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The Autumn woods were so lovely on Friday for our weekly co-op!

We have been tweaking our rhythm and circle in the past few weeks,

to meet the needs of children who have whirled around the Sun another year,

as well as the needs of mommas whose infants have become toddlers!

Leading off with Rinka Ranka, then Circle Round,

we settle onto the blankets for our communal snack of muffins.

Each week someone brings mini-muffins for the group.

If there is a birthday, we sing and give small gifts now.

When muffins are finished, it's time for yoga.

We finish with some a few "ohms" then light our centerpiece candles.

This week was our third and final week of The Musicians of Bremen.

One of our mommas told the story, complete with needle felted figures,

created by another co-op family last year.

It was a truly magical telling - the children AND adults were captivated!

After the story, we sing sing SING

finishing with "The Little Light of Mine"

and the candle is extinguished and it is time for lunch.

We often have a basin of warm water for handwashing,

and the children all say a blessing before they eat.

After lunch, the children have a little bit of free time

while the mommas clean up from lunch and set up craft.

Please enjoy these pictures from our craft this week.

It is difficult to get pictures during yoga and circle and singing.

One momma went OVER THE TOP dehydrating apples

to make these amazing apple wreaths.

Lela had fun working AND snacking on her wreath!

One of the five babies/toddlers of our group.

I cannot believe that last year all five of them were tiny little nurslings in slings!

When their craft was finished, the children all romped into the woods for free play.

I went with them to a nearby spot where a large grapevine

had become a rope swing across a little stream.

Even the littlest of the children were able to swing across!

It was so exhilarating for them and me!

~carrie~

~ the raccoons ~

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We have been having problems with raccoons lately.

Here are some pictures of their latest antics.

There really is no way to raccoon-proof your life.

Initially I barked at them,

but then smiled and even laughed.

We worked together to pick it all up,

and all was well.

What are your raccoons getting into these days?

~carrie~

~ introducing...... ~

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After living with us for 4 1/2 months, 

it is about time that I introduce 

our sweet new pup.....

ZELDA!  

We adopted Zelda from Save Just One, 

a rescue based in Charlotte, NC.

You can find them on Facebook

and also look for them on Petfinder.

When I saw her on Petfinder,

then named Kylie,

I immediately felt drawn to her 

and knew that I had to meet her.

Save Just One arranged a home visit 

after our application was approved.

She was just what we were looking for,

small (33 pounds) and full grown (2 years old) and short hair!

Kylie was listed as a 'pit mix'.  

Our adoption is finalized promptly.

We were a little 'shocked' when Save Just One's Brooke

just got up and left - we have a dog!

We had felt that 'Luna' was a good name for a dog,

but this girl didn't seem like a Luna at all.

She was 33 pounds when we adopted her. 

She had actually gained weight in foster care, too!

The first week.....so scared and confused and overwhelmed!

Come on skinny little girl, let's put on some weight!

Her first trip the the river.

In hindsight, we should have not gone 

since she'd only been with us for two weeks.

She was barking at people constantly,

and horrible at walking on a leash.

It was there we first began wondering 

if maybe Kylie/Luna was not 2 years old.

We had several comments like....

"How old is your pit bull puppy?"

After about a month, her facial structure began to change.

And with a raw diet, she finally started to gain weight (read: muscle).

For more information on a raw diet, you can start where I did:

Ravelry group: Advocates of Raw Diets for Pets

Our suspicions began to be confirmed as we watched her grow.

She got more muscles and became stronger.

Instead of a full grown pit mix, we had an older pit bull puppy.

Somewhere after the first couple weeks,

my husband said we had to settle on a name for the dog.

I wasn't fond of Kylie, and Luna just didn't work for such a young, active pup.

So one day, I walked past her in the kitchen and said,

"Dog, could you just tell me what your name is?"

And a few hours later as I walked past her again,

the name "Zelda" popped into my head.

It just came out of nowhere, and I was completely shocked.

It wasn't a name we would every have consciously chosen. 

(And no, we don't play video games now and I never did as a kid.)

I walked out of the room and she followed me.

When I turned around, she sat down in front of me and looked up.

I said, "Zelda?  So is that your name?"

And her tail began to swish across the floor.

Finally, after about two months,

Zelda is settled into the house.

Here she's at attention, working for a treat.

Can you see the confidence in the picture above?

Compare it to this one again, from her first week:

To me, that is a striking difference in mood, 

not to mention look at how her face and chest have filled out.

Remember how I said she was gaining weight?

Here you can see again the changes to her face.

And also notice how happy she is here!

As it turns out, when we adopted Zelda, she was not two years old,

she was approximately 8-9 months.

She went from 33 pounds to 45 pounds in 4 months.

And I think she may have a little more growing to do.

Her first camping trip!

She was a bit of a wreck, barking at people.

We started to notice that even though she loves people and dogs,

she is definitely watching out for our family at all times.  

I love this goofy shot of her at my parents!

She looks like a body-builder here, 

and even though she's getting really strong,

she not quite that hulking. 

From a fearful dog who would air-snap at children...

....to a happy dog who we can trust around anyone.

Zelda's favorite place to be is wherever humans are, especially me.

She stays close to us and doesn't wander far.

On a couple occasions, when the gate was left open,

we found her sitting on the front steps, waiting to be let inside again.

As you can see in the above picture,

Zelda is not actually black.

She is a very, very, very, VERY dark brown

and has some lovely coppery brindle highlights when the Sun is right.

Here she shows off the 'terrier' in 'pit bull terrier'

while we were camping at the beach.

Zelda loves all dogs and people, and gets along great with our cat, Lucas. We frequent our local small dog park, and Zelda is a great playmate and knows her manners.  Zelda is great with the girls now, and they love to feed her treats and have her sleep with them.

She has a couple bad habits, like barking at people walking and jumping on humans for affection.  Her barks are strictly alarm-bells and the jumping is improving.  We do positive reinforcement with Zelda through clicker training.  It is AMAZING and helped with bonding.  We are reinforcing that good things happen when you are around humans.  We also ignore her attention-seeking bad behaviors.  And one more....she is fixated on wool. Yes, you read that right....wool!  There have been a couple chewed Waldorf items.  I'm sure that wool smells lovely to a doggie nose....

We're working with her daily and are proud that she's a 'breed ambassador'.  I'm happy to report that the vast majority of people we encounter are not only comfortable around such a maligned breed, but are true pit bull lovers!  We haven't had a single negative reaction, and Zelda has certainly won over the few people who initially thought we were crazy to adopt a pit bull.  

But in Zelda's reality, she's just a dog.  She loves us, wants to please us and wants to be in our presence most of the time.  The rest of the time she wants to relax on a soft bed or couch.  

If you made it this far, thanks for reading.  Zelda has been a real blessing to us and we all love her a lot.  

~carrie~

~ waldorf co-op ~

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The weather on Friday was perfect for our Waldorf co-op.

We're just getting back into this new rhythm,

after enjoying a busy summer.

We celebrated the birthday 

of a sweet and special little girl.

The kids always enjoy yoga before Circle.

We practiced being volcanoes,

rubbing out hands together to create heat before erupting!

All my girls loved this - Liv's face is priceless!  

After our story (Musicians of Bremen) 

and some songs (I am playing the guitar this year)

we had lunch and the afternoon to explore.

We took some of the kids up into the forest 

to build some forts and had a lot of fun playing there.

This is such a beautiful time of the year,

and amazing to see how much the children have grown since last year.

~carrie~

~ october intention: smile ~

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Today, I can smile.

Tomorrow, I can smile.

It is my intention to smile often and generously,

each and every day, a real, genuine, happy smile.

When I smile, 

I will laugh.

When I laugh,

I will feel happy.

When I feel happy,

I will be happy.

Simple words, simple act.

There are complexities

behind my choosing this intention, 

but for now...

....I will just smile and feel my heart loosen a bit.

~carrie~

~ up on two wheels ~

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My little Liv is getting so big!

She's not even 4 years old yet

but on Thursday.....

.....she decided that she was ready.

 No more balance bike for her.

By the weekend she was getting herself going,

and today she rode all over the park.

These moments are flying by so quickly!

Just 3 years and 10 months ago 

she weighed less than a bag of flour.

Happy Tears,

~carrie~

~ our gnome fire ring craft ~

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Today marks our 8th anniversary of marriage!

I'm grateful to have a wonderful partner to share this life.

One of our favorite activities

has always been sitting around a fire.

Warm feet, cold backs, 

we sit there for hours,

watching and listening and talking.

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Thinking about that today, 

my mind wandered  to our little gnomes*, 

made at our Waldorf co-op,

and decided they needed a fire ring too!

My girls are finally at an age where

we can have a little nature display, 

so it felt like the perfect time to nurture 

their newfound love of scene-play.

I started by cutting out a small circle from corrugated cardboard 

(using the lid from a yeast jar as a guide)

and we all collected tiny rocks and twigs.

Then using flatter pebbles and hot glue, 

we pushed the rocks just inside the layers of cardboard.

This helped to keep them in place.

Notice how the girls saw fit to color with pokeberries?

They are abundant around the yard now, 

and the mockingbirds love us for it.  

Once the outer ring was complete, 

we started putting dots of hot glue for a second layer.

I let the glue dry slightly for the inevitable burned fingertips.

"Suck your fingers like Laura and Mary did," chided Lela.

When the second layer was finished,

we filled in the gaps with even tinier pebbles.

With the basics of the ring made,

we started working on the fire.

I took little bits of wool roving in oranges and yellows.

Liv took her turn needle felting the wool

into the shape of a blazing fire.

With a big blob of hot glue, 

we smushed in our fire.

The gnomes quickly crowded around!

Using some Tacky Glue and my pinky finger,

I made a thin spread around the fire,

and the girls sprinkled dirt to cover the cardboard

as well as gaps around the rocks.

We tapped out the excess, taking care to keep dirt out of the fire.

More Tacky Glue around the fire provided a place for arranging our twigs.  

Glue (versus hot glue) let us take more time to arrange the fire

and could be easily covered by more dirt.

The glue strings were fun to pick off with tweezers.

And once more the gnomes could gather!

What stories do you think the are telling?

We moved to our nature table, 

the top of a small bookshelf that holds other nature goodies.

We all enjoyed setting up a little scene 

with the gnomes and their new fire ring.

 I think this is the start of some wonderful scene-play for us!

And the beginnings of a sweet little nature table.

~carrie~

*p.s.  These gnomes are from the tutorial by Wee Folk Art!