Live Free

Glory Days of Spring

 

While Beatrix was outside playing this afternoon, I thought I'd take the time to upload photos to flickr and maybe find enough patience to sit at the computer long enough to chime into this place. Hello!! 

Well, it's spring time in Texas. My favorite time in Texas. Wildflowers are my thing in case you haven't noticed. I love the fields of flowers, the gorgeous light, the evolution of the blooms as the season warms. Mmm..everything is beginning and lovely and inspiring to me at this time of the year. 

My yard, oh my gosh, is kind of (almost) what my dreams are made of right now.  There are areas where I'd like the blooms to be mixed up more but instead they clustered in bundles of individual types. And maybe my backyard is donning just a little too much red and blue right now. A little more yellow, pink, and white sure would be perfection. But otherwise, it's somewhere between a wild meadow and overgrown cottage garden out there and I couldn't be more pleased considering what we started with a few years ago when we moved here. 

Today was 90 degrees. Ouch. It's suppose to cool off for the remainder of the week, but still, as a clicked the AC on this afternoon, I was reminded of the inevitable. Summer will be here soon. I'm hoping we can squeeze out six more weeks or so of spring-like weather.  In the front yard, we brewed sun tea and I'm started a solar calendula infusion as I am beginning to make soap and balms again. Actually, my blog name references a little soap company I had years ago, before Bea was born. Our brand was called Democracie Goods and our motto was Live Free,  Die Clean.  Once we adopted Bea, I stopped making soap and opened up a preschool instead. Now that a window has opened, Bea is older and she's beyond the scary combination of young child + lye, I'm dipping my toes back into that world. I lost all of my recipes, so I'm basically starting from scratch. I've even had a couple of botched batches.

There's a new tiny farmer's market just starting up a few blocks from our house. It happens on Thursdays from 3:00-6:00. Bea and I are thinking it might be fun to set up shop there once we get some inventory built up.  Maybe we could sell mini wildflower bouquets, or hand dyed silks, or soap, or whatever veggies we have growing, postcards, or balms and salves. You know, just to add a little extra purpose to our days. It's fun to dream! 

Also, before I close, I thought I'd list a few of some much enjoyed reads that she and I have had over the last couple of months. 

Beatrix's interests:

The Big Katie Morag Storybook

Katie Morag, Of Course

Rabbit Hill

The Pony Scouts (series)

Benny and Penny (series)

Album of Horses

Heidi

Nichole's Interest:

How To Be A Wildflower

To Kill A Mockingbird

Go Set a Watchman

Our Endless Numbered Days

Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature

The Edible Garden

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

pocket prairie

I have a crush on this company. Their mission to preserve and rehabilate the great plains of our country is pretty remarkable.  The prairies of the midwest and south were devastated almost entirely at the turn of the last century due to cultivation and over grazing of cattle.  Native grasses and wildflowers,  have an unbelievable root structure! Many native species have roots that grow as much as 15 feet deep! Check out this link to a beautiful visual.   Sadly, an overwhelming majority of the native species in the plains states were replaced with invasive and non-native species which has completely altered the landscape.  Not to mention the mess that is industrial farming of corn and soybean and cotton.  The story of the stark transformation of such an intricate, beautiful, perfect ecosystem is so brutal and heartbreaking.  Did you know that the prairies were naturally designed to catch fire?  That frequent prairie burns were actually beneficial and promoted species diversity? That native prairies were extremely drought resistent? In fact, it just so happens that  the last 75 years have been wetter than usual. And we've gotten use to said precipation and so have our ill-adapted man-made landscapes.  The recent ongoing drought is actually pretty normal weather in the grand scheme of long term weather patterns.  

So, now we find ourselves  in a pickle because drought resistent we ain't no more. 

Enter native species. Seek them out. Plant them. Use them. They work for us. And they are stunning. 

On Friday, Bea and I rode our bikes up to the animal shelter and played with the sweetest dog named Autumn. Then we stopped next door to our local nursery. I was so happy to see  packets of Native American Seeds  on their shelves.  We chose a few wildflower varieties that are suitable for sowing in the spring and pedaled on home. On Saturday, we cleared up a little area around the chicken coop and planted the seeds (like scattering feed to  chickens -- I can do that) just as the instructions indicated.  If we can keep close tabs on the girls, the seeds will germinate and we will have the beginnings of a pocket prairie. 

If you haven't noticed, women like Ladybird and Miss Rumphius REALLY inspire me. I won't lie, I have a thing for scattering seeds. Especially good ones. 

Little by little, we continue our efforts to turn this little plot of desperate and scraggly land into something that resembles what our good earth offered to us so long ago.  It's a slow project, involves a lot of trial and error, but I'm hopeful of the changes to come as the seasons march on. 

Are your thoughts turning to seeds and life outdoors? Spring is in the air in our parts! 

Backyard Sparkles

Last week, my little, humble school had the honor of hosting a pretty incredibly inspiring storyteller in our backyard. To say my family likes what David represents is putting it mildly. For nearly a year now, we've subscribed to Sparkle Stories and they've meant so much to our family. Story subscriptions like At Home with Martin and Sylvie put a voice into the type of life my family intends to lead.

Of course, Beatrix loves the gentle adventures of the sibling duo, I think in part, because they are a bit older than she and they partake in all sorts of homeschooly learning fun. I love the stories simply because their family is so dear and focused on leading a life of mindfulness. There's always a lesson or two to be learned from the story's children and their parents. In fact, many days when I teeter on the edge of speaking or reacting in a way that I shouldn't, I think about Martin and Sylvie's parents and try to channel their never-ending appropriateness as parents and adult role models. This channeling doesn't always come through, but when it does, I'm extra grateful. 

There's more photos of the evening here. 

all it takes

Sometimes all it takes to turn an ordinary day into a miraculous one is the fleeting moment of when a bright, bouncy three year old meets a new, fresh, butterfly for the very first time. And the real magic happens when that said little one takes it upon herself to send this fluttering friend out into the world so that she may see all that she can see. 

One of our monarch butterflies emerged from the chrysallis today. We've been watching it grow since it was a teeny, teeny caterpillar, (about two weeks or so). 

Witnessing the metamorphis of a butterfly is such an incredible experinece, especially for young children. What can be more captivating than the miracle of life?

How does it do it? How does that huge, frompy caterpillar turn into something so delicate and serene all within the confines of its chrysallis? It's so amazing and reassuring. No matter what challenges, both big and small, are thrown to us each and every day, in the end, we all have to make peace with where we are, here and now. And somehow enjoy this great performance that life is, from wherever our seats happen to be. 

This is the first time Bea remembers watching the process. She's so wonderful. Her enthusiasm, curiosity, and joy melt my heart into a huge puddle, once again. I'm sitting here getting teary-eyed just thinking about her reaction to meeting the monarch. 

Goodbye monarch! Safe travels to Mexico!

My only regret is that the other three children from the preschool didn't get to meet the butterfly. Boo! 

here we are.

When I was a girl, I dreamed of lands which were not as hot and muggy as my Louisiana. I longed to escape. And I did. To the east for awhile which I liked very much. And then back south - to be closer to home.  Here I am, not in my childhood home, but in some place hotter than it, and DRY. Where plant life is nearly all but decimated. 

Let's not talk about gardens today. Okay. 

But what can I do? Except grin and laugh with the universe. Despite our toasty temps of 105 degrees, Bea and I had an awesome day.  I'm not even being sarcastic. 

My little one loves trains so much. So we got up early this morning and decided to hit the rails. I've wanted to take her for a ride on the newish commuter rail for awhile now and today was the perfect day for it. The train was so sleek and cool. Bea was in her element. "Mommy there's trees everywhere," she noticed. When she spots the tall buildings of downtown, she points and says, "That's Austin, Texas."

I got to tell her about how her daddy and I use to travel everywhere by train. We love trains too. I love that she is beginning to be at an age where she acts like she understands and is interested in my little stories - sometimes.

 

Our destination was the children's museum. It was our first time visiting it. Busy scenes can be a bit overwhelming for my girl, but I think she had a good time overall. She was excited to get back on the train though.  

Our afternoon was full of sunshine, giggles, and splashes. What more could a two year old ask for? Or a 30 something year old for that matter? 

 

These are the days.

Isn't it interesting how the definition of 'fun' evolves (or comes full circle) as we grow older. 

I couldn't of wished for anything more during these afternoon hours on this lovely spring day with my sweet, little one. 

These days, there's not a whole lot needed to bring contentment to both my two year old and myself, so it seems.