second and edgemont

creating space for beauty & simplicity

Archives for February 2013

2/28/13




our good friend rich hoffmann is an amazing film maker.
we were lucky enough to be subjects of his award winning film fridays at the farm, about his personal experience as a member of the farm chris and i started and ran for nearly 8 years.

having this film has been such a gift to promote CSA (community supported agriculture). i use it often as a an outreach tool for the farm i work at now. i can’t tell you how many times i have watched it and each and every time without fail, i cry.
you will see i am very pregnant and don’t look much like myself in this film but i love having this snippet of our lives to hold on to. hannah is so young and sweet and norah just a few days old.

rich is on to a bigger (literally, an IMAX!) and even more beautiful film called watermelon magic, shot entirely on the farm where i work and which chris also stars in!

check out rich’s story and be sure to scroll down to watch the movie trailer.

Hannah

9/52
hannah
you are such a quiet thing. always thinking and observing and are quite a creature of habit. even though you don’t go to catholic school, or any school for that matter you have a uniform of sorts. your favorite is your jeans, your fuchsia turtleneck sweater and your bog boots. you are a lot like your mama in that way.
on sunday you were sick in bed with a fever and listened to the entire penderwicks book.
when we walked to jane’s house on monday you kept asking me if i needed help carrying anything. even though i told you i was fine you kept insisting on carrying a bag. sometimes i can’t believe you are only 11 and other times i can’t believe 11 years have gone by.

Norah


inspired by this lovely lady i think i’ll give a go at a “portrait a week” of my girls.
i am a bit late in the game but here goes.

8/52
norah
you wanted to invite a friend over for dinner this week and you had me help you put together a winter picnic on sunday for you and a neighbor friend. you get so much joy from cooking, eating and sharing meals with people. i am almost certain that one day you will own a restaurant.

A Few Tricks up my sleeve


so i have been on a little spending freeze over the last month.
in fact just for fun i actually handed over my debit card to chris just to see what might happen.
now i wouldn’t call myself a shopoholic. but i do like finding that very special thing. etsy, my favorite blogs and pinterest have all exposed me to many beautiful and unique things. and thrift stores, well don’t get me started… i LOVE to thrift. the thrill, the score, having things that no one else has. yes maybe it is a bit of an addiction i admit.

over the last year i have had many opportunities to just stop in to my local thrift shops.
hannah’s ballet class is just around the corner from goodwill and my favorite thrift is in walking distance from the farm where i work three days a week.
sure i have found some amazing things and yes most of it is second hand so that feels good to give something a second or third life but really how many things do i need?

believe me i have no plans of never thrifting or spending again.
goodness no!
but it feels so good to be giving focus to other things when i might have a free moment.
now when hannah is at ballet class i sit at the library and read, write letters or knit.

because i am such a nester (and a aquarian) i tend to feed my soul by switching things up a bit. thrifting in a way helps me with this as i bring in something new to add to the old mix. that feeling of ahhh as i find a new piece of pottery or basket or bowl and come home to replace it with something i was just a little tired of.
oh it’s a good feeling.

so what i have i been doing without any money to fulfill my inner nester?
don’t worry i have my tricks.
not only has giving up the urge to spend saved us a bit of money but it has also allowed me to be a bit more inventive and creative.

just like i used to do with my girl’s toys when they were younger i put my own things away for a little rest to then pull them out and revisit them.
it feels like i have all new toys!
i recently pulled out some artwork that i was needing a little break of a few years back that was stashed away in a closet. when i unearthed it i remembered how much i absolutely loved it when i first found it and how much i still do love it. i hung it up and bam! a whole new look.

the other night i was over visiting with my mom who has many beautiful antiques and unique pieces and who is always looking to de-clutter.
she sent me home with a cobalt blue lamp, a beautiful clay pitcher from ireland and an oil painting by my great great uncle paul.
i felt like i had hit the jackpot. and best of all i didn’t spend any money!!

not spending has even fulfilled my creative self in the kitchen. instead of looking in the fridge or pantry and thinking “oh i better go shopping” when things start to get a bit low, i now am using up everything i have and making more things from scratch. (don’t worry though i have gone food shopping in the last month:)

and same goes for my wardrobe. i have recently brought out some pieces from the back of the closet and bottom of the drawer who were feeling a bit neglected and paired them with pieces i normally wouldn’t.
my sister and i were just talking about hosting a clothing swap. invite some friends over for wine and cheese and leave with a whole new wardrobe!

taking a little spending break has definitely served me well in many ways and when i do decide to go thrifting or shopping again it will be such a treat!

Happy Birthday Hannah


11 years ago today i became a mama.
it was the one thing i was certain i wanted to be ever since i was a little girl.
and when your papa and i started dating at 19 years old we began talking about being parents almost immediately.
i think we even picked our boy and girl names on our 3rd or 4th date.
hannah would be our girl.
and here you are.
hannah margaret.
the most beautiful creature both inside and out.
loving,caring and kind.
all smiles. big bright infectious smiles.
all long and lean and leggy.
a born leader.
responsible, dependable and on time (you even came on your due date).
growing like a weed (ever since you came out as your 10 pound two ounce self!)
into a lovely young lady who i just can’t seem to get enough of.
thank you from the bottom of my heart for choosing me as your mama.
you bring me so much joy each and every day.
happy birthday.
i love you.
mama xo

A Birthday Brunch



and the celebrating continues.
this morning we had friends and family over for a birthday brunch for hannah.
we made a very large dutch baby (a recipe from a bed and breakfast on our honeymoon to alaska), potato hash with spinach and eggs, fresh fruit, cream scones and salty dogs made with fresh squeezed ruby red grapefruit. (from 3191Q).
the conversation and company lingered well on into late afternoon making for the perfect sunday.

i just washed the last dish and there is a game of back gammon waiting for me.
it’s 5 o’clock and we can still play by daylight!
spring is coming.

A Cozy Weekend




well it seems as if we are all wearing our stay at home weekend well.
everyone is on the mend and feeling like their old selves again.
the last few days have been full of playing games, hot baths, making music, watching, finishing up knitting projects, reading library books and lots of baking including homemade pita bread and a birthday carrot cake for hannah (both from 3191).

and there are still 2 more days left of the weekend!

A Few Good Things About Staying Home


we had plans of a trip to the lake over the holiday weekend but the flu has hit.
we were all a bit disappointed this morning as we made the final decision to not go but soon began to feel much better as we started shouting out some good things about staying home.

:: it’s so much better to be in your own bed when you’re not feeling well.
:: mama can bake us all sorts of goodies including hannah’s birthday cake.
:: we can watch the last episode of downton abbey on sunday now! (mama was stressing a bit about missing it)
:: we can nibble on valentine treats and sip tea in bed.
:: we can snuggle up and watch lots of movie.
:: if we are feeling better in a day or two we can take hannah out to get her some hiking boots for her birthday.
:: in only 3 more weeks we will visit the lake.

Instrument Making
Did you know a simple whistle could be made from a piece of bamboo? How about a xylophone from copper pipes? In this program we will focus on designing and building musical instruments from usual and creative materials. We will also explore the wonder of sound. We will investigate whether sound travels better through a solid or a gas and other fun experiments. Come and explore the mysteries of sound.

description of a program chris is teaching over the next 8 weeks.

i think he had so much fun making the ukelele that he wanted to explore a little bit more.

and for those of you who are local, he will be giving a naturalist walk and talk at glen providence park in a few weeks.
hope to see some of you there!

https://secondandedgemont.com/2013/02/13/3314/

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