Bob the Builder!

On Halloween, Jonah and I dressed up as Bob the Builder and Wendy, his sidekick.. Jonah is a big fan of Bob the Builder (dresses like him regularly) and he giggled hysterically as i laid out our matching carhardts, button up shirts, tool belts and hats (unfortunately my hard hat was complete with flip up earmuffs and a huge visor as it was for chainsawing. i felt as though I had grown antlers). we missed the parade but joined the trick or treating throng of children, jellyfish, animals, leashed alligators, superheros, muppets, ghouls, blue avatars, you name it. it was overwhelming for both of us and confusing to jonah that the storekeepers would hand you candy if you stood in front of them long enough. finally he realized that everything in the toolbox was edible. amazingly, he only had 2 maybe 3 pieces of chocolate and then promptly forgot about the rest of it. i ate every single mini candy bar and threw the rest away. good times!

Fall is Now

the leaves are changing, the wind has begun to blow and its getting chilly. we've carved a pumpkin, dressed as claymation builders, and are craving soup and bread and sausage. this is such a gorgeous and energized time of year with all the colors and sensations...

the 3 sisters guild wasn't amazingly productive but still left me with 30 spaghetti squash, a few lonely little ears of corn, and loads of delicious scarlet red runner beans. the potato hugelkulture was a great learning experience, not to mention the temporary home to a wasp clan. it needs a season of rain to ripen and then i think it will be (and always will be) a very very productive garden bed.

the cob yoga studio/rental cottage has been given a temporary hat of pallets and tarps to keep the rain off and still allow more work to be done. the cottage is getting a facelift and will be reborn as my thai massage temple. we have heat in the house! jason is working on a rockin' rocket stove to provide some much appreciated heat as temperatures drop. I've dug out all our woolens, rubber boots and jonah is sporting some puddle pants, the very latest in rain fashion.

speaking of changing seasons, I have started teaching yoga again and its been like finding an old friend. I'm loving the yoga and i'm loving the Thai Massage practice too. How lucky am I? Jason has started his own business, Temple Natural Building and is building a masonry stove in a home in uptown. He's loving it too. Yay for good work.

the rains have begun and so the garlic has gone into the ground. what was the 3 sisters guild is now a huge garden patch, half planted in garlic, half in clover and bordered by a huge long compost windrow. its a garden of leaf and straw, soil and sawdust at the moment and i think its quite beautiful.

jonah now has his own room (former kitchen) and loves sleeping in his own boy bed. He's been weaned for 3 months now. suddenly, sleep and nutrition are mine alone after having shared both for 3 1/2 years if you count pregnancy (and i do). its glorious.

life is good. life is a never ending cycle of up and down, planting and harvest, building and changing. my lesson at the moment is to give thanks and praises for all of it.

Jonah hearts Unca Adam

Uncle Adam left this last weekend after a nice long stay with us. We had such a great time and it was so easy having him be a part of our family rhythm. He and jonah get on like a house on fire. They played in the sand pit together, and read books aloud. they actually hung laundry on the clothesline. we often did the ice cream/ playground combo. adam came to parties with us and charmed everyone he met. we went blackberry picking, he pushed the stroller on our noon time walks, and the cart at the grocery store. adam visited the gathering place doing art, cooking and making dog biscuits 3 times a week. we went fishing at north beach. jonah whacked adam with a wooden lawnmower and then tried to administer first aide by himself. they sat side by side at the dinner table alternately feeding themselves, each other and fela. adam drank coffee with us every morning. what? coffee? adam and jonah were thick as thieves. they have a genuine sweetness together, a friendly camaraderie with just a touch of bossy at times. its all sweet and rosy, of course, until jonah starts saying some of adam's famous swear words. thanks adam. fortunately, use of those words was short lived. all in all, it was a marvelous visit and i hope adam comes to visit us more often.

strawberry fields forever

The Pacific Northwest is a veritable wonderland of berries (would that be a berritable wonderland?) and since the first day of autumn is upon us, many people including myself are dashing into the fields, farmlands, forests and highway medians to get our hands on the last of the season's finest. This day found us at Red Dog Farm, one of several truly fabulous and local organic farms run by young and dynamic people (Karyn Williams - note the spelling of her name!) and we picked strawberries til our hands (and faces. and clothes) were stained red. Jonah also test drove most of the tractors on the property. I made a strawberry sauce from our harvest and am trying hard not to drink it straight. Next on the list... Blackberries.