TED

This two part series speaks to my heart about education and how it must be transformed to maintain and encourage creative souls!

where do the children play....

My computer, that I upload my photos to, has been giving me trouble! I finally got it to work today and spent a lot of time uploading ;).

Where we have been playing recently:

Here we are in Winston having a celebration 

with our cousins and our Grammylu.

We always have an awesome time when we get together.

(last,last saturday)

 cute fooky, couldn't resist

 French Broad River Park

(thursday)

 a tribute to Michael Simon.. 

one of my all time favorite potter's

who I found out can't pot anymore.

(this week+ bowls and plates)

my good friend, Sayo in a dragon(lion?) dance

at the Montford Street Festival

She and her daughter were awesome.

(Saturday after our community garden yard sale and

Rohan's acting performance. Busy and fun day)

Rohan, celebrating his quirkiness. I love it.

(Sunday excursion with friends and scooters)

Science club meets diet coke and mentos.

(Monday: our last science club for the year.

 It was fun.)

The Biltmore Estate adventure with some of

our bestest friends.

(Tuesday)

We only have two more weeks with our friends

and we will miss them to the core. But

we are looking forward to many play-dates.

Life seems deliciously busy.

Sleep comes more quickly.

Coffee tastes better.

Energy is stirring.

Creativity is abound.

I will cherish this 

and ride on it 

as long as it 

will take

me.

Rohan - "In Your Eyes"

Today Rohan performed his first monologue. He has begun a class for kids who are serious about acting. His class is for children 10-12. The teacher made an exception for Rohan. Boy, are we glad he did. What a great experience it was for Rohan. 

Here is my little man. He sure does make me proud. 
(The monologue is about a younger brother's feelings
about being ignored as they enter high school together for the first time)

transforming.?

There are times in our lives when we just feel alive. The world seems to be on our side. It is easier to be motivated, to take that to do list and make it a tah dah list!

I am having one of those weeks.

I am doing things that make me feel whole, excited and vibrant.

I have been making pots.

Everyday.

Sometimes I am alone and sometimes I have my boys there and

the experience does not change.

I continue, every morning, to look forward to what is possible

in the studio, the basement.

I feel a little giddy, nervous, silly, and spastic.

I seriously can't remember the last time I got this pumped up

about clay. I missed that part of me. The soul enriching part of creating because I have to.

I am looking forward to replacing my element on my kiln (which I am a bit nervous about as I have not done this is 9 or 10 years).

I am connecting with old pots. Looking at them in a different way and thinking of those potters who inspired me to get dirty in the first place.

Life's journey is truly mysterious to me. I often just go along for the ride.

What I know and forget is that we can choose our mode of transportation!

That is easier said then done, for me, but when I remember and it all comes together. Life is brilliant.

I have been dreading Max going to school this fall. I was imagining how empty the house was going to feel and especially my soul.

Clay is reminding me that I can find solace and excitement.

That I will fill this space with form and function.

This fall I will care for a newborn part time and care for my soul the other days.

I am one fortunate woman.

There is absolutely no room for complaint.

None.

Just thanksgiving.

thanks.

in the mud and other tales

I will begin with my fortune:

Your efforts are budding-

results will appear soon

I received that fortune on Sunday but ended up not eating the cookie and reading it until yesterday. Why is that interesting?

Well, maybe it isn't, but I just happen to think it is very significant.

You see this week is a spring board. I have put my suit on, stretched a little, and gone to the end of the board to do a dive. I am not sure what the dive will look like but sometimes it takes the desire first and then the dives will improve with time.

I guess what I am trying to say it that this week I have actually been getting my hands dirty again. I have been wedging clay, weighing balls of clay, throwing pots, pulling handles, ordering elements for the kiln, decorating the pots and sincerely getting excited about the possibilities.

I am posting these not out of pride but as an acknowledgement that I am diving, it may not be pretty but it is where I am starting now.... in this moment.

One of my favorite and most inspirational quotes of all time! 

~ Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

my wheel with two boys working hard... 

max on a coil pot and rohan on "heads"

well, they make me laugh...sometimes thats all we need.

slipped but not decorated yet

The fortune does not lie:

~results will appear soon

On to other stories of the week. 

We took a mother's day hike to the pig farm at Warren Wilson College. 

Here are a few friends we met.

On Monday Max and one of our friends headed to Bent Creek to hike and play at the lake! It was a chilly day and very windy but to small spirits and the loads of energy that comes with it, they did not care as they trudged into the lake with an eventual sit down fully clothed. I mention Bent Creek a lot, 

because I treasure it.

water break and a little gargle

sand building and imagining 

before we got braver we waded ;o)

Rohan continues to sneak the camera.

He's got a great eye for composition.

Here are a couple I enjoyed.

This last photo is of our awesome dog, Fooky.

He is a friend, protector and a family member.

I discovered something yesterday at the dog park, 

(we have not been there for a while)

I was with him in the park and he was fine doing dog things...

then the boys joined us and he stood in front of them and growled at other dogs when they approached. It was kind of sweet, like him.

 So, Here's to doing something you have been wanting to do. For finally letting the fear be fear and allowing it to join in the adventure. I have been making pots for over twenty years and this "break" feels as if it is finally over.

“Every accomplishment starts with the decision to try.” ~anonymous

spirit

Many years ago, almost half my life ago, I imagined this saying

~the spirit runs silently on

It has become a sentence, a feeling, a matter of fact, that I rely on.

When I have no more to give, when night falls and my energy with it...

 I know that my spirit has soared.

My spirit is preparing for another day 

for more then what it held today.

a visual journey of the week

I began this post many days ago and just have not finished it.

As most of you know I work part-time, well normally I do.

This week we have had so much fun having friends here

every day to play..including right now. (Mother's Day)

They are hiding from Dragon's right now so I was taking 

a moment.
That moment was quickly swept up and here I am two hours later with
Pumpkin bread finished and apple bread in the oven with the laundry folded and waiting to find it's rightful place. (I have a little helper here!)


It feels like so long since I have posted so here it goes... 
a week plus a day of what we were and are up to:

Max's second tooth is out 

and he is working on another!

Monday, Mom's squamous cell removed

 and stitches removed too 

from the previous week

Now for the Monday cooking bonanza:

Grilled veggies+potato's+spices=samosa filling

One of my favorite resources for cooking

Pizza dough batter w/ recipe 

(I always use 1/3 whole wheat and add ground flax seed)

what kids live for: popsicles

What I use in my bread recipes (all of them)

lemon bread and lemon with dried cherries 

and the staple in our house......Humus!

(I also made sushi for the boys later that day.

 An unusually productive cooking day! 

But needed for the week ahead!)

Mother's Day Projects

my friends who visit every week made this 

fingerprint pendant for their mommy, 

with my help.

 (my boys and I made some too;), thank you 

CraftyCrow for this one!)

The next series is inspired by laughpaintcreate

We took the idea and adjusted it to make these awesome 

Mother's Day Cards!

(I cut out the letters 

and we gathered leaves and flowers from the yard,

they put all the objects where they wanted them 

and then sprayed with watercolors!)

(Max made this one for his mommy)

 Inspired by our new found friend, polymer clay,
Rohan took off making these awesome face necklaces.

 The boys and friends hiding from Dragons
 (they have headlight lamps in there and are telling stories ;))

Rohan and Max and their second cousin at
their Gigi's 86th Birthday Celebration

These last two were inspired by the Echo project.
 This months theme is abstract.. not sure I am going to use them yet.
I got a new camera for Mother's Day so I might just have to play before I decide!

I have been thinking a lot about my mothers today,

 all four of them. 

I have learned so much from each of them. 

Patience

Determination

Drive

Peace

Intuition

Creativity

Love of Music

Spirituality

Unconditional Love

Conviction

Acceptance

Silliness

I Realize Now, what they sacrificed (and sacrifice)

 to make my life extraordinary.

They all taught me how to be a Mom. 

A purposeful, creative, demanding,

nature loving, intentional Mom.

I love each of you down to the bottom of my tickley toes.

“Making a decision to have a child–it’s momentous.

 It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.”

Sometimes we need the thoughts of others

How To Really Love A Child ~ By Sark

Be there. Say yes as often as possible. Let them make lots of noise. If they’re crabby, put them in water. If they’re unlovable, love yourself. Realize how important it is to be a child. Go to a movie theater in your pajamas. Read books out loud with joy. Invent pleasures together. Remember how really small they are. Giggle a lot. Surprise them. Say no when necessary. Teach feelings. Heal your own inner child. Learn about parenting. Hug trees together. Make loving safe. Bake a cake and eat it with no hands. Go find elephants and kiss them. Plan to build a rocketship. Imagine yourself magic. Make lots of forts with blankets. Reveal your own dreams. Search out the positive. Keep the gleam in your eye. Encourage silly. Plant licorice in your garden. Open up. Stop yelling. Express your love. A lot.

Speak kindly. Paint their tennis shoes. Handle with caring. Children are miraculous.

(thanks to Twig and Toadstool)