reading material

In stumbling across this site I had a notion to share with you all the fantastic read from below.

I've become a member--which is free & simple & I hope you do too (or maybe you have).

We can be friends & share book information like wishlists, etc. It's really an incredible idea to make local & independent book sellers more accessible & competitive with the big-box fellas. Drew & I love browsing bookstores, used & new, & in the way that we've shed the corporate giant from our destinations we can now eliminate a certain .com of the rain forest persuasion from so frequently loading in our browser...We are up to the challenge of more exclusively patronizing small-business book stores like this one. We've even become affiliates, so link from our blog whenever you're making purchases please!

PLEASE--join & share your links in a comment or something. I LOVE seeing what other folks have on their shelves & wishlists, love!.

Here's the book Drew recently finished (& i osmosisly absorbed) which is a fun read for anyone.

You Can Farm

You might recognize Joel Salatin as the gentleman mentioned in this book.

What do you think? good idea?

little girls just wanna have fun

so, I heard Naomi singing some Cindy Lauper the other day while we perused a local thrift store--this really is the life I've always dreamed of; & while I almost blogged about my pride of her eclectic music repertoire--which includes your choice of any one of a thousand traditional kid riddles, it also consists of family faves like the Decemberists, Kelly Clarkson, Michael Buble (her favorite man), Sound of Music, newly added The Princess & the Frog, Sound of Music--did I mention Sound of Music?

:butterfleviah:

BUT, it occurred to me that the clearly charming & adorably mischievous personality of Leviah rarely gets mentioned. Below is a tune that reminds me of her by an artist I just noticed today to be completely delightful--we must download more! (listen to "dream")

so. here are a few things about our little lioness that are really beginning to shine.

1. she gets everything. you say, "go give this to da-da"--she complies

2. she is clever. she plays tricks on us & looks out of the corner of her eye to see if we noticed.

3. she's insane. she climbs, falls, jumps, walks, falls, screams, shouts, tickles, dances, prefers to be upside down, falls...this girl climbs to the top (spotted of course) of our attic ladder with NO assistance & in very slippery footie pjs--might I add.

4. she's sweet. she hugs, kisses, snuggles (temporarily), senses others' pain, welcomes guests.

5. in so many ways I see her dad which is probably why I am much more patient with her sometimes frustratingly strong will than he. But she's a delight to watch grow.

As far as I can tell Naomi is most definitely our pleasantness & Lev is our strong loving lion cub--let me tell you, she can roar!

a little secret

There's a secret that's not a secret at all & I'm divulging it now so that you might encourage me--well, us, or maybe just follow our progress.

We want to be farmers. For right now we're alright with the little urban homestead we have, but we have a master plan (& it's only ours, we'll see where we're ACTUALLY led), of being goat farmers. Well, really everything farmers. All this is the reason we ended up in Greensboro anyway, we thought here we might eventually be able to afford some land and we're getting there--dependent of course on financial institutions who are right now very hard to get money from, particularly self-employed individuals...

Our goals for the farm are immense & modern, eclectic & rugged, vintage & maybe even common (or commune). In practice we've learned so much about crops, chickens, bees, fruit, finding materials, networking, etc.

Relationships with other young homestead yearners, countless online resources, books, trips to local farms, & years of our subscriptions to Mother Earth News, Back Home, Martha Stewart, Our State & others have only deepened our urges & it's the time for us to whole-heartedly push forward. We feel it...

So, the house is being scoured, emptied & things of little necessity are being purged in hopes of impressing some new family in the market for a homestead of the urban variety. Should the money-lenders decide to keep our dreams from us (which we'll only know after January), at least the house is in tip-top shape & our clepto-tendencies have been unveiled.

We'll keep you posted with break-throughs & pitfalls. Do you have similar rural dreams?

Things my friends do

Life has been fortunate for me. Not only do I have a terrific family but I have been blessed to know some amazing people who not only accept my flaws & oddities, they are talented & inspiring. Today I want to share some of them! So, in no particular order I proceed.

Well, I'll start with Drew. He is an artist & although Home Theater design isn't exactly what he had in mind when he got his BFA in sculpture, it's an outlet for creativity of sorts...it pays the bills & he enjoys it--you can't ask for more than that in a job. But, he's a hobbyist in his down time & recently he started making candles. I love them & many others do as well--it's most exciting to ship of his adorable creations to folks near & wide. Take a Peek (there are also a few in the "sale" section--don't miss them).

Next I will talk about Hoot Baby children's clothing which is out of this world fantastic. Thanks to Drew's candles & a couple odds & ends vintage trimmings I was able to get my hands on a dress & tunic for Naomi & Leviah. I can't WAIT to dress them up & spend a day taking adorable pics, but in the mean time here's a pic of the quick try-on. Hoot Baby is expanding with Trunk Shows--which I can't wait to host--& a product line that only makes a mama question one thing, where can I find my size?!

Have I recently mentioned Savta's Dolls? There are posts dedicated to Lebo, but I have to point out that these waldorf style babes just keep getting cuter! Now there's Lebo, Ella & Leviah's snuggle baby that we'll name when she's able. They're amazing & I can't wait to see what more my Mother In Law comes up with in the future...true doll-making talent. She doesn't have a shop on Etsy yet, but she's getting there & right now she's filling orders for anyone who sees a doll & HAS to have one--pretty much every other Grandma she knows!

Now for the music that makes a background for our daily routine...we love finding artists of all varieties that are semi-obscure, but recently we were given the first Album from our Friend Solomon Lopez--a fellow 'Hebrew'--who has been gifted with a natural talent for song writing & performing. We have been listening for 5 days straight...it's meaningful & uplifting. Preview (make sure to listen to minute 5:12 for one of our favorite tracks!). It's available for download online through iTunes & others.

This list could go on & on. From friends who blog, to those who knit, & on to those who are just downright great moms that remind me to put that endeavor first. Thank you friends.