Project 31: Day 9

Journal~Day 9:

 

A) Began the tedious task of sewing the heart and star ornaments.


B) I've been receiving "Read the Catechism in A Year" emails (shhh... more often than not, I don't read them and just delete them unopened). This one caught my attention though and has been the center of much meditation for me:   (holistic, contemplation)

 

 

338 Nothing exists that does not owe its existence to God the Creator. The world began when God's word drew it out of nothingness; all existent beings, all of nature, and all human history are rooted in this primordial event, the very genesis by which the world was constituted and time begun.

339 Each creature possesses its own particular goodness and perfection. For each one of the works of the "six days" it is said: "and God saw that it was good." "By the very nature of creation, material being is endowed with its own stability, truth and excellence, its own order and laws." Each of the various creatures, willed in its own being, reflects in its own way a ray of God's infinite wisdom and goodness. Man must therefore respect the particular goodness of every creature, to avoid any disordered use of things which would be in contempt of the Creator and would bring disastrous consequences for human beings and their environment.

340 God wills the interdependence of creatures. The sun and the moon, the cedar and the little flower, the eagle and the sparrow: the spectacle of their countless diversities and inequalities tells us that no creature is self-sufficient. Creatures exist only in dependence on each other, to complete each other, in the service of each other.

341 The beauty of the universe: the order and harmony of the created world results from the diversity of beings and from the relationships which exist among them. Man discovers them progressively as the laws of nature. They call forth the admiration of scholars. the beauty of creation reflects the infinite beauty of the Creator and ought to inspire the respect and submission of man's intellect and will.

344 There is a solidarity among all creatures arising from the fact that all have the same Creator and are all ordered to his glory: May you be praised, O Lord, in all your creatures, especially brother sun, by whom you give us light for the day; he is beautiful, radiating great splendour, and offering us a symbol of you, the Most High. . .

May you be praised, my Lord, for sister water, who is very useful and humble, precious and chaste.
May you be praised, my Lord, for sister earth, our mother, who bears and feeds us, and produces the variety of fruits and dappled flowers and grasses. . .
Praise and bless my Lord, give thanks and serve him in all humility.

 

~~~~BROTHER SUN~SISTER WATER~SISTER EARTH~~~~
I like that....



 



Project 31: Journal Day 8

Journal~Day 8:

A) Esther responded back by email with raw milk link:  (buy local, whole foods)

• www.realmilk.com -contains directory of local cowshare farms
• Also highly recommended this site for healthy eating/living www.westonaprice.org

Note: At our last Waldorf Meetup group, the other moms and I

were discussing unpasteurized milk and where to get it.

After our hike in the woods, we've been going back to Esther's farm house

and enjoying a cup of hot chocolate made with the raw milk she gets. Delicious!

 

B) Facebooked Mary about where she used to get her fresh milk, wanting a farm that came recommended and trusted.

• They got theirs from Hedgebrook Farm- www.hedgebrook.com ; group share instead of private share, so would need to rotate pickup amongst 6 families :(  would prefer to responsible for my own milk. Celeste's milk pickup is the same way and I wasn't really interested in that model.
• 1 gallon of milk a week
• One time fee of $60 for share; one time fee of $20 for jars & lids; monthly boarding fee of $28. Money collected quarterly
• Works out to be about $5.25/gallon (after the one time fees of course)

C) Made grilled ham and cheese sandwiches for lunch with the homemade bread I made on Day 6. There's a sense of pride in using/eating something you made yourself. I tell you, I was walking a little taller and feeling all puffed up, lol :) (healthy, homemade)

 

Note: Our day 6 bread making.

The 2 loaves on the left were made by scratch by my 9 year old daughter, Anna,

without ANY assistance. They're a honey wheat. Pretty awesome, huh?!

She's got more skills than I did at her age, that's for sure.

 The one on the one right was mine~ a simple wheat bread recipe

from Laural's Kitchen cookbook. Attempt one in making this bread.

***I felt so proud using MY homemade that I made myself. I was all puffed up**

D) Began making heart and star Christmas ornaments from old fabric. (sewing, handmade, resourceful)

Note: Fabric from my baby quilt and Kittens in a Basket.
 It's the fabric that keeps on giving :)
 
E) Continued worked on Christy's wool felt baby booties, began embroidery designs.
 
F) Husband brought home the beeswax and honey! (local, small business, organic)
Note: One of the ladies at my husband's work has a little side business beekeeping:
Lunsford Bee Farm. At our Waldrolf Group on Monday we will be making
 hand dipped beeswax candles!!




 

Project 31: Day 7

So I explained yesterday what Project 31 was. My year of reinventing my life towards a healthy, more conscious, self-sustaining, and holistic lifestyle. Working towards that end little by little, day by day, piece by piece. I not only want to learn the "how" of these things but also to know the "why". So it's a year of hands and head--and as with everything I strive for heart~contemplation, being present to God and to the moment. Out of all my endevours for this coming 31st year of life that will be the hardest, yet the one I most aspire and hope to attain.

Here's the page from my journal~ Day 7:

A) Continued work on Christy's wool felt Christmas booties. (objective: sewing skills, made by hand, resourceful)

 

Side Note: Started these on Day 5.

The wool was felt left over from an unfinished puppet my daughter was

making for one of our Waldorf Group activity days.

I am using Simplicty Pattern 2867 from my old stash of patterns.

 

 



B) Researched freezing vegetables such as potatoes so I can start reducing the amount of frozen veggies I buy in the frozen food section of the grocery store. (Unprocessed, healthy, whole foods)

•  Site I visited: here

C) Learned about blanching vegetables, from the same site above, and the importance to the preserving process. (Learning to can/preserve foods)

• Blanching (scalding vegetables in boiling water or steam for a short time) is a must for almost all vegetables to be frozen. It stops enzyme actions which can cause loss of flavor, color and texture. Blanching cleanses the surface of dirt and organisms, brightens the color and helps retard loss of vitamins. It also wilts or softens vegetables and makes them easier to pack.  Blanching time is crucial and varies with the vegetable and size. Underblanching stimulates the activity of enzymes and is worse than no blanching. Overblanching causes loss of flavor, color, vitamins and minerals. Use one gallon water per pound of prepared vegetables. Put the vegetable in a blanching basket and lower into vigorously boiling water. Place a lid on the blancher. The water should return to boiling within 1 minute, or you are using too much vegetable for the amount of boiling water. Start counting blanching time as soon as the water returns to a boil. Keep heat high for the time given in the directions for the vegetable you are freezing.

Spirit of Poverty: Birthday Crown FINALLY

Last year I began making a Waldorf-style birthday crown for my daughter, Julia-Ann, for her first birthday. I designed it, bought all the materials, sewed on the designs. . . pretty much the only thing left to do was to sew on the elastic portion of it.

. . .and then I got pregnant.

When I am pregnant, in the "morning sickness" phase of the pregnancy, I get some really strange quirks I'd suppose you'd call them. Instead of getting physically sick I get a very 'gross' feeling. The best way I've been able to describe it is as being green under the gills, but even that doesn't do the feeling I get during early pregnancy justice. It's not like a 'I'm going to get sick' or 'I'm nauseous' feeling, just a very icky, gross feeling. And it's not so much foods or smells, per se, that make me sick as it is visual and tactile stimuli. Pretty much I develop an aversion to anything I  was doing or interested in at the on set of my pregnancy.

For example, sweaters. It was winter when I became pregnant with my 5th daughter. I was out shopping, looking in the clothing department and there were sweaters EVERYWHERE. I felt so nasty I had to leave that part of the store! At home, I had to pack away all my sweaters so I could no longer see them or touch them. . . .or really even think about them. It's silly, I know! I'm not sure where that came from or why I get like that. Warm, thick blankets have set off the same response. And with this last baby I had what I term "pregnancy induced hair highlights". My natural hair color has gotten rather dark over the years. Never bothered me before, in fact, I kind of liked it. Oh no. While pregnant, looking in the mirror and seeing my dark hair made me sick. So sick, I went and got some highlights put in to lighten it up! Yeah, God left a screw loose in the "pregnancy department" when He made me.

So as I was saying this time last year I was making this really great Birthday Crown. I had found some natural wool felt at the craft store. I loved the stuff! I thought I was so lucky to stumble upon it. And I was making progress in the sewing department, only a little to go. No doubt in my mind, I was going to have the crown finished in time for her very special first birthday.

Well after getting pregnant and entering that morning sickness phase I could no longer stand to touch the wool felt. Or look at it. I tried to pick it back up and finish it--push past the ickiness--but I couldn't stomach the feeling. I had to resign myself to the notion it wasn't going to get done, despite what little I had left to do. It was tucked away.

Now that her 2nd birthday is rolling up on August 16th, it was time to complete it. I hate an unfinished craft. It makes me leery of starting another one. It' sits in the back of my mind, haunting me. Well, I'm happy to say I can scratch this one off my list!


So finally, at last, the year long Birthday Crown~~

The instructions for the Wool Felt Birthday Crown can be found on the blog Frontier Dreams by clicking here.

Sunflowers and butterflies symbolizing her bithday season, summer, with her intials.

Her Guardian Angel.

Fireflies, again, a summer symbol.

Homemade Holidays: Kittens in a Basket

I was so excited about this Christmas season and all the homemade gifts I planned to make. I had a number of projects lined up, just itching to get to them. Sadly, plans changed and most of them had to be put on the back burner. Out of everything I had planned, I managed to complete one gift! They’re called A Litter of Kittens in a Basket, or as I like to call them --"Coraline Kittens", after the movie with the characters with button eyes. I started them good and early back in November. I made them with my signature Mama-made love ~in other words they're not made with perfection only lots of love~ for O(3) this Christmas. These little fellas are so ugly they're cute in my opinion. I got the idea from the blog Doing Without. You can get the instructions and template here.

 

I followed the bulk of the directions but changed it up just a tad with a few variations. I used left over fabric from the baby quilt and apron. The embroidery floss I borrowed from my daughter’s bracelet making stash.  The stuffing is reused from a small, old, unplayed with, cheap teddy bear. And the basket and little buttons I scored from my mother’s craft closet. So, when all was said and done it cost me $0 to make my kittens!!

My basket was a little bigger than I would of liked. I tried keeping an eye out for a slightly smaller one while I was out doing my Christmas shopping, but didn't see anything. To remedy that I made a quick little pillow to go on the bottom of the basket and a blanket. They fill the basket but will also give O a bed to play with for her kitties as well.





To finish it off, my mother bought some of that clear window shrink wrap for the windows in her drafty office. She had a bunch left over she passed on to me. Not only does it work for windows, you can use it for shrink wrapping gifts. To give my kittens that official gift look I will shrink wrap the basket to give O something to tear into for an extra excitement factor~

An Apron of My Own

I finished sewing my first apron! Does the fabric look familiar? It's the leftovers from my baby quilt. Making that money I spent on the fabric stretch even farther! It won't be the last time you see it either. I have another project in the works that I used the scraps on as well. But that's for another post :)

This apron is to fulfill my MaryJane Aprons Beginner Level badge. Aprons are a must in the sisterhood. At the present moment I have none of my own. My daughter, A, has one that I borrow from time to time when I need one in the kitchen. This will be just the first of many in my one-day-to-be apron collection.

For the badge I needed to:


Sew a half apron of your choice from a pattern or a kit. There is a two-hour minimum time investment required. Wear an apron whenever you are in the kitchen.


I got this apron design out of the Mary Jane's Idea Book, Cook Book, Life Book that I speak of frequently. I like this one. The brown patterned fabric is not only for aesthetics, it doubles as a large pocket! That will come in very handy with my little ones. I am forever picking up nick-knacks or carrying things around that I either need or just need to put away. Now I have a nifty, little, pocketed apron to assist me in my mommy duties. However, as far as the kitchen goes, I'm a mess! I might eventually add a simple fabric piece with a neck strap to the top of the apron to protect my shirts--and my growing big belly, that is forever getting in the way--while cooking. Or that just gives me reason to add a second apron to my collection for cooking purposes in the future. And that will earn me the Intermediate Level Apron badge!