Clean.

Northbound 2.

(Photos courtesy of my sister Leah. See more of her work here.)

Northbound 1.

We're off on a family adventure to the Cabin.

We'll be bringing:

: : Snowshoes

: : Puzzles

: : Knitting

: : Dollmaking supplies

: : Kid's Craft Supplies

: : S'mores

: : My camera (and its manual to learn a bit more about how to use it)

: : Great food

: : Our favorite books (Sage's newest obsession is the adventures of Tintin)

We rarely get Up North in the winter and are looking forward to a few days by the fire, hiking along the river, crafting endlessly, and playing in the snow.

The photos above and for the coming days are all courtesy of my sister Leah. You can see more of her beautiful photos here. (Thanks, Leah!)

I will continue to post through the magic of Typepad while I am away, unplugged, and computerless. Cool.

Enjoy the view and have a great weekend!

Glitter Child is my teacher.

Be present.

Dwell in your bliss.

Life is fun.

Worry is overrated.

Get dirty.

Clean up later.

It's simple, isn't it? Kids understand it from the moment they arrive in this body. But some of us, as we grew up forgot this simple truth.

It works something like this:

: : Find what brings you joy in this moment.

: : Then pry the caps off that keep the good stuff from flowing freely.

: : Dig in. Roll in it, rub it on your belly.

: : Laugh, smile, make merry.

: : Believe in the abundance.

: : Be one with your sparkles (whatever they may be.)

  

Thank you wise master for this simple life lesson.

The sparkles dancing all over our house will help me remember for a very long time.

Waldorf Doll Making: I am a bit obsessed.

"Lavender" is the latest baby in our home. After I made this baby for Craft Hope Sage was determined to talk me into one for him.

It didn't take much talking into. He was sleeping with her unfinished head that very night and head plus body the next. 

He wanted her to be small ("sleeping-with size") with reddish brown hair and hazel eyes. I made her with jointed arms and a traditional Waldorf doll body. (This will be my go-to body form from now own. So sweet.) Sage helped me with the head and the nose and sewed on the mouth himself. Her neck is a little wrinkly for my liking but whatever. We love her.

She is stuffed her with a combination of wool and organic lavender. She smells delicious. (Which at our house borders on the absurd. We are surrounded by gallons upon gallons of essential oils here, living at LuSa Organics headquarters. The bank ladies fight for who gets to enter our deposits because we "have the best smelling checks".)

 

Tomorrow? We're making clothes.

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I've added an Etsy toolbar at right for my brand-new-almost-still-empty Etsy shop. Some babies like the one above will find their way there soon. Not to be pushy or anything. But just so you know.

Meal Wheel

(Please excuse and/or enjoy the spring photos in this post. It is mid-January. I know. And I need to look at asparagus and tulips to help my toes warm up today.)

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When Lupine was born three years ago we were strangers to nearly everyone in this town. We had lived here for just six weeks, and knew only a handful of people. And then the phone rang. It was an acquaintance/friend from before our move. A woman who had moved here less than a year before us. "Is anyone doing your meal wheel yet?" she asked.

Our what?

"Your meal wheel. I'll organize it for you," she offered. 

While we didn't really know what it was all about, we got the gist: people would be bringing us dinner every evening after our baby arrived. Never mind the fact that we really didn't know anyone here yet. That didn't seem to matter.

And it didn't.

Night after night strangers arrived at our door, carrying meals. Not just main-dish entrees. Meals. Amazing. Magical. Delicious. Meals. Baked salmon. Salads. Pasta with bacon, spinach, and cream sauce (Anne, we need that recipe!). Wine and beer. Dessert. And notes with phone numbers and welcome notes bringing us into this new community.

Seriously. We hit the jackpot with this town. They just kept coming, night after night. More than three weeks later we were ready to start cooking for ourselves and our meal wheel had run its course. It was the most amazing welcome I have ever experienced.

If we were having a baby today, most of those same people would be on our meal wheel again. Next week we are bringing a meal to a neighbor who just welcomed their new little one into their arms. And recently a meal wheel organized for an older woman in town who was navigating some health issues.

Just today I received an email from a friend-of-a-friend who participated in a meal wheel I organized a month ago and now has started one of her own to help an injured loved one.

Below is an email I recently sent out as I organized a Meal Wheel in a community where it is not a familiar concept. I made a few edits to make it more universal. Feel free to copy and paste this into your own email:

What is a Meal Wheel?
A meal wheel is a rotation of friends and family delivering a complete dinner, hot and ready to eat to a family who needs a little extra help. When a new baby comes, the Meal Wheel really allows the family to foucs on the important work of getting to know their new little one, get into the nursing and napping groove, and relax. As a longtime friend of <my friend's name> I wanted to share this priceless gift with her and her growing family. It was the most valuable gift we received when or last child was born.

How it Works
Participants sign up for a specific night. You arrive with a complete, hot meal (dessert and all if you can pull it off!) at their door around 5:30, stealth into their kitchen, and leave it on the table. <This is one way to do it. Other families will not be comfortable with this and will prefer a traditional ring-the-doorbell approach.>This is not your "meet the baby" visit unless the new parents are inspired. It is really just a quick, quiet delivery and fast exit. This is their time to snuggle in and meet their new little one rather than socialize. That will come later!

Who Can Do It
Friends, neighbors, family, coworkers, colleagues, acquaintances, friends-of-friends... anyone. You get the idea (tell everyone!). Please pass this email onto others who you think would consider participating. We'd love to fill up three to four weeks of dinners for them.

Sign Up!
Please email your date preferences to me at <your email address>. I am scheduling from <enter dates here>. Please send me three date options, beginning on the early end of the schedule (IE: this week). You can also call me at <phone number>.

The Meal
Deliver your dinner between <family's preference times, ex: 5:15 and 5:30 pm> ready to eat at <address here>. Enter the house quietly and leave the meal on the kitchen table. Especially in the first few days, Mama and baby will likely be resting. Label your dishes with your name and phone number to make returns easier.

That's it! Many thanks for participating and passing this invitation along. Thanks so much!
<Your Name>

A Small Waldorf Doll

Although LuSa is our livelihood, crafting just for the passion of crafting is key to my sanity. Last night I got a bug about figuring out how to add a nose to a Waldorf doll.

And I figured it out! I used this tutorial for just the nose portion, fixing it with Tacky Glue on the layer beneath the skin so that it will hold well even if she gets wet.

This is the first doll I have made with a nose and I love the sweetness it adds to her face.

I sewed her with doll skin leftover from another doll ("Gaia Baby", seen here), stretch velour left from another doll ("Irie Baby", seen occasionally as well), and wool batting purchased locally at Paper Scissors Stone. The basic instructions I use are varied, though I have a copy of the Magic Cabin Dolls instructions and I reference Kinder Dolls for hair, clothing, and body details.

Really, I could make dolls all day. This baby is going up on the Etsy Craft Hope site for funds for Haiti. (The other items we listed from LuSa Organics sold out quickly. Thanks everyone who made a purchase.)

Have a wonderful weekend everyone! See you on Monday.

Note: If you are interested in hearing when this doll goes live in the Etsy store just let me know and I will be sure to post.

Edit: She is live in the store at www.crafthope.etsy.com!

Edit 2: Nevermind. She sold within minutes. (Awesome!) If anyone else wants one let me know and I'll put some in my personal Etsy Shop.