At Home

Considering all of the nature photos on this blog, it would seem we live in the forest. But we actually do spend a lot of time in our cozy little home. 

Here are a few photos I took today, walking around our place. 

Chestnuts, acorns, and other things Rafael and I have found on our walks, along with a tiny white pumpkin that an elderly lady gave Raffi from her garden. He plays with it a lot....he loves his little pumpkin. So it's a bit scraggly already. Maybe you noticed the little beech flower with the white felt ball...my mother-in-law made it, and I find it so so sweet.

Some of my favorite books, which I use to press leaves...

Raffi has some of his fall books on display in his room. His favorite right now is Happy Halloween Curious George. I gave it to him so that he might understand Halloween when we celebrate it this year.

This boy adores children's books and magazines. Here he is this morning, during one of his reading marathons. Sometimes he is in his room looking at his books and magazines for over an hour.

Rafael has a lantern, a rabbit-shaped night light, and this little Winnie the Pooh flashlight. Because it is getting dark so early, we like having little lights that we take with us on evening walks. I think it's especially important to create little traditions for cold weather and short-days. Lighting candles at dinner, turning up the heaters before bath time, taking a thermos of hot cocoa or tea on walks.

Tiny baby-boo pumpkins and a handmade autumn garland from a generous and thoughtful friend. 

And of course many, many pumpkins, in all shapes and colors. I seem to bring one home ever day in fall.

I try my best to make this brand-new apartment feel like an old house with character. One fortunate factor is that we have the corner apartment, nestled into the woods, with a river bending around one side. Of course I dream of some day owning an old renovated farmhouse, with lots of history and charm. But for now, I am grateful to have our warm, safe home, which we have filled with love and our own stories, day by day. 

xoxoxoxo

A Playgroup In the Woods

The fort pictured here is something I built together with Rafael, his cousins, and his grandma and grandpa the past couple of weeks. We would stop there on our walks in the woods to eat little picnics, always adding more sticks and leaves. We were there so often that a little path formed leading up to it.

While sitting there with Rafael and his best friend Flo the other day, I thought of how nice it would be to share this spot, and the experience of playing in the woods, with other children. I quickly created a website, set a date, and invited all the local mothers I know. And on Tuesday, a freezing cold autumn day with blue skies, 18 of us gathered in the forest to play. 

This will be a weekly meet-up, year round, rain or shine. I am so happy that I went ahead and quickly organized this....usually I weigh the pros and cons about things for ages before taking action. This time, I just figured I have nothing to lose. 

I have many ideas for things I would like to try out in the future; games, snacks, rituals. 

But the kids were really happy just being out in the elements, and having a little tree fort as their base. 

It's definitely fall here. Freezing cold temperatures (we had our first frost this morning) and leaves turning yellow and red. I am craving baked goods, soups, roasts, and frothy hot chocolate. You too?

xoxoxo

Rain or Shine: A Childhood In Nature

A few days ago I told a Mom who has teenaged children about Rafael's picky eating, and she said: "You know what I think kept my kids healthy when they were little? Getting outside every day no matter what weather we had. Even if it was pouring rain, we put on rain coats and boots, and got out into nature."

This made me smile, because it's exactly what we do. Unless one of us has a fever, we are out in the woods every day, jumping in puddles, building stick forts, looking for mushrooms and salamanders, and balancing on fallen trees. 

My floor is covered with little leaves, burs, and bits of earth just hours after vacuuming, but it's part of the deal. My son and I get ticks, bruises, wet toes, and mud in our hair. That's fine. 

Recently I had the opportunity to sign Raffi up for daycare, and I considered it for a few days. I thought about what I could do with the time he would be there...creative projects, exercise, gardening, photography. I considered what it would mean for him: learning to integrate into a group of children; learning to be apart from me for longer periods of time; playing with children and making new friends. I wondered if he would eventually get bored staying home with me and if I was possibly keeping him from socializing with children his age. 

Then one morning we were out in the forest, lugging big sticks for a fort, when I stopped to show him a cluster of mushrooms. As he knelt down and began asking a plethora of questions, full of enthusiasm and curiosity, I finally made a decision. He would stay home with me another year.

I was reminded that this opportunity I have, staying home with him, able to raise him and spend time with him, is so incredibly precious. There are many years ahead when he will learn what teachers and other children have to teach him. Until then, nature and I have quite a bit to share with him. 

I had a silent, inner dialogue with my son...saying to him, "These years are for you. I am dedicating them to you." And it felt so, so right. 

xoxoxo

Rafael's Second Birthday!

(( Good morning birthday boy! Here's Raffi and I, still in our pajamas, opening his first gifts ))

(( Here's Raffi eating his favorite breakfast, his Dad's oatmeal pancakes with butter and maple syrup ))

(( Let the party begin! ))

Yesterday we celebrated Rafael's second birthday. We kept everything very simple, just snacks, cake, and balloons, and it was wonderful. Raffi had so much fun with his friends and family. In fact, this morning, when I asked how he had enjoyed his birthday party, he answered, "More birthday!"

I made a delicious chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, and also a little smash cake just for Rafael, like I did last year. 

These photos don't really show the whirlwind of fun and play that was going on, but only because Ramon and I were so busy hosting and keeping Rafael in check that it was hard to take photographs. 

So, this is the end of another amazing year getting to know and love my son even more. And the beginning of another! I feel so incredibly fortunate to be Rafael's mother. How did I get so so so so lucky?!

xoxoxo

Fall Begins

Mornings are cold and crisp. Bushes and branches are edged in pink and gold. There are fallen acorns and beechnut hulls along the path, and everything is glistening and wet from night rains. Rafael loves to go on what he calls 'adventures,' off of the main path and up little cleared ways into the wooded hillside, where he 'works,' with a toy saw and hammer, mimicking the lumberjacks he sometimes sees in the forest. He also likes lifting heavy fallen branches and tossing them into a pile down in the ditch.

Sometimes Raffi's two cousins join us on our nature walks. Together we built a little stick-house, which we decided was either for a hedgehog or a gnome, and filled it with acorns and a walnut shell bowl with wild flowers for whoever moved in to eat. We caught a little golden frog and put him in the house, and he did stay there for a while (probably to hide from us). I always check up on our stick-house and add moss, ferns, and bark to the walls. We made big plans about constructing a whole village of stick houses before winter. 

The forest smells strong of mushrooms but I've only found a few small ones so far. I really hope to finally discover and photograph some amanitas this year. 

So now begins the most beautiful season of them all, and what always seems to feel the shortest: Autumn, gorgeous savory delicious misty colorful cozy autumn! 

xoxoxo

Wurstelprater!

Images from Rafael's first trip to the Viennese amusement park 'Wurstelprater.' His eyes were wide the whole time. It was almost too much. We didn't stay long. But he loved that we went with his aunt and two cousins. 

I loved eating cotton candy again after years! 

It was such a perfect way to say farewell to summer. The most amazing summer I've ever had, because it was shared with my funny, sweet little boy!

Thank you for reading....I read and appreciate every comment. There haven't been many lately, and I wonder if it's because I'm so bad at responding. I hope you all know that I really love hearing from you, and if I don't answer, it's because I often check on my iphone...then I'm not signed in, and can't answer without being signed in, so then I always think, "I'll answer later when I'm signed in." Then days go by and I realize I once again haven't communicated to you how happy I am that you stopped by. 

So I'm saying it here: I am so happy that you stop by and take part in this journey of mine. Watching my little one grow up, sharing in my love for nature, comforting me through hardship and rejoicing in my blessings. Thank you! You are appreciated!

xoxoxo