Pinewood Castle

From the Archives - Sundays in the Garden

Recent blooms ~

Phlox (Christ's Cross Flower)
These are the ones the deer did not get to!

Lavender
My all-time favorite herb. I aspire to own and read The Genus Lavandula

Cosmos (St. Michael's Flower)
I love looking at these out my bathroom window every morning when these are in their full glory!

Balloon Flower - see the balloons ready to pop?

Mallow - new this year. Can't wait to see the "fairy cheeses" when they form seeds!

Nasturtiums filling out

A Morning Glory (Our Lady's Mantle) growing up a sunflower

The Sunflower House - now taller than the children!

From the Archives - Mint Tea

Here's a nice recipe for mint tea I found in the paper.

Pick about 20 mint leaves. I love sending a child out to do this while I out the kettle on!

Rinse and pat dry with a paper towel.

Bring water to almost a boil.

Place 3 bags of green tea or 1 T. of loose tea into teapot.

Add hot water, let steep for 2-3 minutes. Remove bags.

Add mint and 2 tsp. sugar. Serve warm or cool and serve over ice. Nice!

From the Archives - Wordless Wednesday

From the Archives - Emergence

Old news, but I just have to tell you that last Friday our Monarch butterfly emerged from the chrysalis  - and we saw it happen!

First, the chrysalis turned dark, then transparent enough to see the wings inside.

This is kind of blurry, but you can kind of see the wings inside -

The next morning we asked Dancer to keep watch and sure enough, while the eggs were sizzling and the toast was popping she cried out, "It's coming out!"

Quick as a wink it was out and clinging to the clear chrysalis. The wings were small at first but grew larger before our eyes until we were all wondering how it ever fit in a chrysalis so small.

You know, like after you have a baby and wonder how it ever fit in your womb and if you could get it back in. Not that you want to. You know what I mean, don't you or am I the only one who wonders about these things?

Here is the empty chrysalis -

After several hours we took him outside for the big release. He flew right out and landed on the end of a pine branch. He stayed perched there for hours.

Today we saw a Monarch flying around our yard and of course wondered if it was "our baby". We were able to witness him both pupating and emerging and are grateful for the opportunity to witness this little miracle of life! We hope he stays around to sip nectar from our garden flowers!

From the Archives - Monarch Time

 Last summer we let some milkweed grow amid the flowers so we could learn about Monarchs. Once we figured out just how to bring the metamorphosis indoors we reaped the benefit of seeing the caterpillars ooze the green liquid as they formed a chrysalis and we caught some in action as they emerged from the cocoon.

The milkweed returned this summer as well as the Monarchs to lay eggs on the leaves.

Once the caterpillars reach an inch or more we cut a milkweed branch, wrap the stem with a wet paper towel and foil and place it in an empty glass -

and placed this inside a butterfly house.

We give them fresh milkweed every day and remove the old. In another week or so they will travel to the top, attach themselves and make a "J" shape before making a chrysalis.

The children seem even more excited this year to see it all happen again. After setting up the butterfly house inside I even witnessed what to me is an educational dream come true - Sunshine looked up Monarch in her new Peterson's Guide to Caterpillars without any prompting from me!

(I really should start doing the Small Success posts and include this as a huge success!)

(I could even share that without complaining, the girls drew a frog and toad in their nature notebooks while they watched the real things leap about in the metal tub we fill with water and big rocks for our amphibian friends. I've waited soooo long for them to get excited about their Nature Journals!)

So, go check the milkweed in your neighborhood and give this a try. You can even use a plastic storage tub or a jar with holes poked in the lid.

Here are some books we enjoy this time of year:

Monarch Butterfly by Gail Gibbons

Monarch and Milkweed by Helen Frost

And of course there are a bazillion caterpillar and butterfly crafts out there from which to choose.The egg carton caterpillar is always a hit!

Enjoy!

From the Archives - Wagon Wheels

HT: Renee

Wagon Wheels: Where Do They All Come From?

Jamie brakes for mailboxes - I brake for wagon wheels!

 

 

 

From the Archives - Sound Sleep

Walking around a college campus last weekend must have been what triggered the dream I had in my five short hours of sleep Friday night.

In this dream I was talking with my former clarinet professor from graduate school. She told me that  if I started practicing again and got my "chops" back I would be accepted as a doctoral candidate and offered a T.A. position paying $50 an hour (as if any T.A. in music would pay that much).

But still, in this dream I was ready to say YES.

The next thing I remember is sitting outside under a tree with my husband talking it over. He, of course, was bringing be back to reality because in the excitement of such an offer I had forgotten that I was a home schooling mother of four and would have to make other arrangements for their daytime care and education.

That's all I remember.

When I awoke I still felt the excitement of such a possibility.

I don't usually grieve over my decision to give up nearly twenty years of clarinet playing to give myself more fully to my vocation as a wife and mother but every once in a while I feel as though a part of me has been amputated and that my creative breath has nowhere to go.

The next night I dreamed that I was holding and playing a clarinet. The black grenadilla wood and silver plated keys felt just right in my hands and a true extension of my soul. While playing I was immersed in a different zone, a prayer, a state of meditation. This alternate state is what I miss the most in my life. The ability to be completely alone with focused concentration on creating something beautiful that communicates what words cannot. I miss becoming one with an instrument that produces a lovely deep purple melancholic lament as well as a round and bouncy spirited romp.

I even miss just the ritual of assembling a clarinet every day. I imagine it sometimes with my eyes closed - I wet my favorite reed while I take out the bell and add the lower joint, twist on the upper joint, connect the bridge, add the barrel, the mouthpiece, place the reed and slide on the ligature. Tighten. Not too tight. Inhale. And let my breath go. I could do this in my sleep. But for now, only in my dreams.

From the Archives - Wordless Wednesday

From the Archives - When I Grow Up

This is an example of the kind of thoughts Sunshine has in the van on the way to Mass:

"Mommy, what phone number will I be when I grow up?"

And I just have to add another:

Wild Strawberry was having a toddler episode and Dino with a big sigh observed,

"Babies always need what they want!"

(but they don't always want what they need!)

From the Archives - My First Post

Here we go - I am taking the plunge!  It is my hope that this will be a great way to stay in touch with friends and family - like a year-round Christmas letter and on-line photo album.  So feel free to bookmark my page, check in often and say hi by leaving a comment. 

First to catch up on the last few months.  I have been taking photos as if I had a blog - to practice!

MAY
We gave birth to our fourth child, who will be known on this blog as Baby Princess:

She has a loyal fan club composed of Dancer, Sunshine and Dino:

Our Little Flowers group ended the year with a tea party:

JUNE

Baby Princess was baptized:

She even wore her booties for a while before kicking them off!  Here's the proof!

We went strawberry picking.  Well, the girls did most of the work while Dino played in the dirt and I held the baby:

Dino had his 4th birthday:

And my mother and sister came up for a visit:

JULY

The 4th of course!  With sun so bright they should have worn shades!

Baby Princess gets a cousin her age!

Children's Day at a nearby historic farm:

Blueberry picking:

And back to the tea room, this time to meet other Catholic homeschooling bloggers "in real life" (IRL). What a lovely afternoon! At the time, I was the only one in the group without a blog and subsequently inspired to get serious about the idea!  I finally did it, ladies!!

And we finished off the month with a trip to the Science Museum:

AUGUST

Mmmmm, a few days at the lake courtesy of my in-laws:

A visit with Paul Bunyan himself.  "How does he know my name?" Thoughtful pondered:

A tea for the Feast of the Assumption:

And another for the Queenship of Mary (our homeschool is named Queen of Heaven Academy):

SEPTEMBER

A trip to the Arboretum - the children played in this (man-made) creek for an hour or so while we chatted with a former co-worker of Hubby's we chanced to see.  The children had perfectly grand time!

And the next day, The First Day of School:

We met up with my in-laws on Grandparent's Day for a Raptor Show:

The Three Mile Hike:

Our first Little Flowers meeting of the year:

Sunshine lost her 1st tooth:

Apple picking:

And a blackberry breakfast for the *Feast of the Archangels:

*The story goes - that before Lucifer was cast out of Heaven by St. Michael, he spat on the blackberries.  Thus, blackberries are no good after Michelmas so - eat your fill!

Oh, and the baby grew!  Here she is at 1, 2, 3 4 and almost 5 months!