A State Park to Ourselves

Where was everybody? Our beautiful state park was oddly empty in this unbelievably cool weather.


So cool that Giles built a fire for the girls to keep warm around.




Bella had made us a pot of sloppy joe filling. Heating it up at our picnic site was just the right amount of cooking for a picnic.


Dessert we cooked at home, right before we came. Rich flourless chocolate cookies from this month's Everyday Foods. Ingredients: sugar, cocoa, chocolate, egg whites, salt. Pretty easy!


Yes, the park was empty of people, but we were visited by a bold skunk.


No doubt he was stepping out to watch the sunset. It was worth coming out of your burrow for.


Lights blooming in the deep blue valley.

Sweater Salvation

My mother knit a sweater for my birthday out of this beautiful pale green silk. She handed it to be with many apologies, because the neckline was about three feet across. I let it sit for a couple of months, just knowing there was a save for it, but having no idea what that might be.


Out of the blue it came to me yesterday--it should have come sooner because it was so obvious! A ribbon drawstring run around the neck opening!


I picked up the closest narrow ribbon and did it with a safety pin, no eyelets needed, and no measuring. The color choice was random, but I really like this black. Wearable!

Frederick at the Card Table

Grandparents took us out to lunch, then came back and played an hour of rummy with the kids. And the bird.

Felix Totes in the Shop

Three of these beauties are in the shop tonight!

More on a Course for Clara

Thank you all for your recommendations. It looks like I will definitely be adding Barbara Kingsolver's book to our list!

How will we use the books/are there lesson plans/how do I turn this into a curriculum?

My main philosophies of homeschooling are: Keep it simple. And less is more. We'll read the books, discuss them, follow up any ideas we want to with further research or reading. Clara will keep some notes with quick summaries of main ideas. I really don't see any need to fuss with the books any more than that. She reads, she understands, she recalls, she applies. If we can get to that point without any extra busy work, great!

If I could deliver one idea to homeschooling parents, it would be to relax. And have confidence! Well, that's two. Your way is probably the best way. Don't make it harder than it has to be.

A Course for Clara

After a too-strenuous year of ninth grade (if she kept on at that rate she'd be done with high school at fifteen), Clara and I decided against her doing a traditional history or science course this year. We kicked around some ideas of things she might want to study, but nothing really sparked her, until this.

A course on Eating.

We're both fascinated. Starting with a history of food preparation and other housework, moving on to a history of why and how food started to become processed, then a couple of books that take on typical eating in modern America.


We're also looking at how to do it right.


So that's our history, our science, our home ec, and our common sense for the year.

A list of resources:
•More Work for Mother (Cowan)
•Fast Food Nation (Schlosser)
•The Omnivore's Dilemma (Pollan)
•The End of Overeating (Kessler)
•The Hidden Art of Homemaking (Schaeffer)
•Under the Tuscan Sun (Mayes)

Thrifty Pompoms

Easy pompoms from a thrift store staple--packaged rug yarn! My finds here are a cream acrylic yarn, and a mostly-wool pale blue. Each package will yield 3-5 pompoms.


The only other things you need are scissors, and a source of basically matching yarn or heavy thread. I had knitting yarn to match the cream, and used regular embroidery floss to match the pale blue.


To get started, pick up a section of yarn pieces that measure about an inch across when squished. The acrylic is much loftier and smushier than the wool, which has more crisp definition. Try to keep the ends even when handling.


Cut a ten-inch length of matching yarn, and lay the bundle down on it.


Bring the ends of the yarn up and tie a regular old knot. An extra hand is very useful here to put a finger down on the knot while you're tying.


Cinch it up as rightly as possible while you're tying. Then trim the ends of your ties to match the ends of the pompom.


You might need to twist and tweak slightly to get it to fluff out. Also, if anything weaseled its way out a little, it can be trimmed to fit. But don't get carried away (it's fun!).


If you're using embroidery floss, cut your thread twice as long, about twenty inches. Double your thread loosely before laying the bundle of yarn down on it.


To tie, pass the two loose ends through the loop that's formed on the other side. You can then cinch tightly and tie the knot there.




Trim as before.


I think I'll use these to trim a gift.

Felix Settles in Away

Hard to believe that Felix is finishing his second week of boarding school. He apologizes for not being homesick--the truth is, he's so excited about taking zoology, environmental science, and marine biology all in one year that nothing can dampen his spirits.

We are so proud of him! Managing such a big transition, adjusting to a roommate, doing his own laundry, everything that comes with striking out on his own, he has handled with aplomb and great cheer.

He is such a sweet boy. So glad he's just a few hours away. I'm getting him this weekend!

Nothing Hard

"Five is when people go to school. But I won't go to school. I'll homeschool. But nothing hard."


So we're keeping it all soft. Just that little bit of reading practice, writing a few letters every day, and Daisy's favorite, "plussing." We usually set up a pencil store and I buy colored pencils from her. A delicious shopkeeper and pupil.

Canisters in the Sewing Room

Not only do my new cabinets hold lots of fabric, they provide me with clear surfaces for new sets of vintage canisters. Fortunately I live not too far from the ground zero of vintage storage containers, and was able to pick these beauties up for very little.


Not everything has to match. It's a set because I say it is!


Actually these are just perfect for storing all the sewing notions that come on cards--bias binding, rickrack, seam tape. Because if you put enough of them in, they stay vertical and every color is visible at once. So practical.

A Stone Soup Shower

You know the children's book where the con artist wanders into town hungry, gets someone to provide a big soup pot, and by the end of the story has tricked the village into making him a big pot of delicious soup? That's how I host a wedding shower.


I lay a pretty cloth on the table, snap some crepe myrtle off the trees in the garden, hang up the thrifted tissue wedding bells (this is about a third of my collection!), and make a punch bowl with white grape and peach juice and ginger ale.


Then, by the time Connie has made little sandwiches, Mary Ellen has brought cheese and crackers, Kristen's made platters of Mexican dip, and Carol's made a darling cake, there's a beautiful shower.


Oh yes, I did contribute the sour gummy worms. Their bright colors inspired my choice of table covering--a length of striped fabric I bought last week to make into a forties dress. It will still happen, but it served me well on the table first.


You know how not every bride is quiet and elegant? Some are wacky and lots of fun. They're the ones who get the little thrift-store figurines for decoration.

Childcraft

Daisy and I are loving these together--they are the very volumes from my own childhood, an edition from the mid-Seventies. I love all the illustrations--the original artwork, the photography, the graphic design. And Daisy loves passing on the interesting factual tidbits to the rest of the family.

Bella Makes Pizza

One of our best family friends heads off to college this weekend. She has been a part of my sewing circle, a very patient paper doll buddy to Daisy, an enthusiastic swimmer with Clara and Bella, and a card shark with the boys.

Bella said goodbye with homemade pizza. I hope that's part of Aimee's love language.

A Fresh Infusion of Orchids

. . . because only one of my old ones is in bloom right now, and it isn't pink . . . and I'm hosting a bridal shower this weekend . . . and they're only $10 at Kroger this week . . . . .

Cabinets on the Wall

While this picture hardly does justice to their splendor, it does offer proof that my new cabinet units are painted and mounted on the walls and filled with fabric. Sigh of pleasure. I love their sliding glass doors. And the fact that they are hung so securely that the Composer has instructed us to take cover under them in case of a tornado.

A Wrap Skirt for Clara: McCall's 5430

This is really a fun skirt to sew. The sizing has been just right for my two girls also, without that bothersome gapping at the waist that plagues so many designs that sport waistbands.

Unlike my attempt with Bella's skirt, this time I managed to place the waist ties in the right place, so it ties at the hip the way it's supposed to. I used a chocolate denim with a little bit of stretch for the main skirt, and lined it with some leftover polka dot fabric.

An Update in the Shop

New goodies in the shop!

Last Call for Peaches

Now or never on freezing peaches for winter cobblers. I picked up my box this morning. It's a good life when your peach grower knows your name!

Frederick Kicks Back

This sweet bird is endlessly fascinating to all of us. Unlike a dog or a cat, his take on things is constantly changing and evolving. New words, new behaviors, new experiments: he's always surprising us.


Last week I thought I would try to train him to lay down in my hand. Believe me when I say that having an African gray nestle on his back in your palm is a *good* feeling! It only took three or four sessions before he was consistently obeying my command. "Grab on." (He's hanging from my finger by one claw). "Lie down." (He's kicking back in my other hand). "Have a nut." (Self-explanatory).


Have you seen anything sillier?

A Cotton Dress: Vintage Butterick 4575

Sweet reader Linda T. sent me a box of totally charming vintage patterns. This beauty was the first one of many I'll make up. Love the kimono sleeves which make the bodice so easy to put together! And the unpressed pleats in the skirt hide a darling little snap placket that runs up the side of the bodice.


I've always used belting for these matching belts but couldn't get any this week, so I used cotton webbing strap (sold as bag handles) and covered that with fabric. Used one of my last silly rhinestone buckles--that sparkle is just the thing when I'm doing laundry!

A Knitting Day for Clara

Clara started a new knitting project today, these daisy stitch hand-warmers from Purl Bee. She's working hers in a wool/mohair blend and is just about to make a hole for her thumb. Beyond what her mama can do!

"Going Away to College"

" 'Heavens, I never thought that going away to college involved so much matching of ribbons!'"

--Maud Hart Lovelace, Betsy and Joe

A Last Dinner for Felix

Bella took it upon herself to plan the menus this week. She used a tiny piece of paper and her handwriting's not that clear anyway, so the meals have been surprises to us. Pleasant surprises.

She didn't actually do all of tonight's cooking, though. We've gotten into a rhythm of cooking together every evening, every one who's home. Each person takes on one of the dishes--Giles does the salad, prepping the lettuce and making the balsamic dressing. Clara and Felix often prepare the other vegetables, although I don't like entrusting Felix with any delicate steaming--he's so apt to become absent-minded and wander off leaving the asparagus to turn to mush.

Bella does everything, and sets the table. So cooking dinner from start to finish rarely takes more than forty minutes of prep, and we all think it's worth it.


For Felix's last evening at home for a while Bella marinated flank steaks in an Asian vinaigrette this morning, then Giles grilled them. A spicy grated carrot salad, steamed asparagus, and then that most Southern of all delicacies, fried okra, finished the plate.


And Clara made this beautiful fruit salad. How about that giant footed milk glass thrift store find? I think yes!

Sorting Out Felix

The day's been creeping up on my all summer. But, like the fearful pregnant woman who won't buy baby supplies for fear she'll put herself in labor, I hadn't done any shopping for Felix until tonight. Now he has just one more day at home before he leaves for his fall semester.

One day which we won't have to spend shopping, since we bought out Target tonight. The boy's ready. Some shiny shoes, new towels, a friendly little lamp, and forty pounds of snacks.

And just because I *must* sew in every situation, I cut the embroidered sections from his old worn-through pillowcases, turned under the edges, and machine-stitched the patches down on his new pillowcases for decoration. Ready? I think so.

Housedresses from the Twenties

I had never looked to the twenties for sewing inspiration, until this week when I saw these pages from
Everyday Fashions of the Twenties As Pictured in Sears and Other Catalogs. As usual, it's not the fancy stuff I'm drawn to, but the things that women actually wore in their homes. These are amazing!

This first picture is from 1920. Look how comfortable these dresses appear! The waistlines are just about at the natural waist, and not too tight or too loose. I love the detailing--that second dress has a bias-cut center panel, sash, and pockets. Several of them have decorative buttons.


Then from 1921, this collection. These are even better. Love the emphasis on the center panel in almost every dress. In each one, the plaid or gingham is used to great effect by being turned on the bias for cuffs, pocket trim, or sash. The left-hand dress has a lace-trimmed collar finished with a black velveteen bow and a pearl buckle! Love the third from the left, with the graceful spread square collar. and look at the fourth from the left. It's described as a "kitchen dress"--clearly as plain as it gets--but it's still trimmed generously with rickrack and I love the neckline inserts. The dress on the right? Double collar and cuffs are organdy trimmed with bias fabric! Please let me order one!


In 1922 the waist starts to drop but the dresses are still so cheery and comfortable. I love the plays of gingham against solid in the upper left dress and the lower right. Look at the fantastic braid trim on the lower left dress! And the scalloped sash of the fourth from the left on top!


Dresses from 1923. Love the wide sashes passing through contrasting beltloops. The sleeves are all practical and elbow-length (great for porch or morning!). Dress in the bottom row has a built-in scalloped apron panel both front and back, how great is that?


I love these with affection unspeakable and will be hunting out patterns to see if I can't create some of this charm in my sewing room.