Intentional Weekend: Mommy Date

In six days, we leave to drive her down there. She'll spend the week, happily ensconsed in her grandparents' house. And every morning, for two and a half blissful hours, she will go to Sewing Camp. She has wanted, wanted, wanted to do this for so very long. Despite the fact that I've told her it is far too early to pack, she has reaarranged her drawers and I can tell that her clothes are already sorted into piles for each day she will spend away from home.

When a girl is the seventh in a family of nine children and she is four years older than the "Little Girls" and there are two brothers between her and the "Big Girl," sometimes she really needs a Mommy Date. When her little sister asks to come along, she might just shoot those big brown eyes at her daddy and beg him to "do something with those little girls." And he will.

We went to the fabric store to choose fabric for the quilt that she will make while she's in Charlottesville. She flitted happily from bolt to bolt, dragging the heavy load hither and yon so she could come up with exactly the right combination.

And then, she chose the perfect shade of  thread. We also shopped for measuring tape, scissors, and a seam ripper--all pink.

Of course.

And, after much consideration, she chose a box for all her goodies.

(That purple one on the lower right came home with us.)

Shopping finished, we shared a big bowl of Pho. Conveniently, there was big screen TV in the restaurant and we could chat and watch the US Women's World Cup match while eating our girly lunch.

And then, to make the afternoon truly perfect, we might just have picked up some happiness.

{A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. The cups said "Happy 4th of Gelati." Who could resist?}

She said she's going to send me letters from camp. 

I can hardly wait.

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual.  Photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week.  A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, visit Soulemama to leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

About that List

You know, the intentional summer list. We're working on it. Here's progress:

#2

 

 

Katie did it:-)! Pretty much all by herself. And the mistakes? She shrugged, smiled, and said they didn't bother her one bit. Good girl! (She does not get that from me.)

#13

A big deal. A very big deal. But he's quiet and understated and we'll just go with that. (But really, it's a huge deal.)

Yarn Along

Since my reading is much the same as it was two weeks ago and I just gushed about it yesterday, I thought I'd share Stephen's and Nick's summer reading lists today.

Stephen consulted reading lists from local prep schools to come up with his summer list. Most of his books are on Kindle. His current read, The Hobbit, is a well-worn favorite from our shelves. is reading:

The Yearling

The Hound of the Baskervilles

 Hood

Ender's Game

The Hunger Games

Catching Fire

Mockingjay

Nicky chose his books from volumes already on our shelves:

Stone Fox (this is my favorite book to give to a child who is just ready to spring into chapter books. It looks like "real" chapter book. And it is. But the print if farily large, the pages small, and the book easily read in an afternoon. A great confidence builder!)

The Year of Miss Agnes

The Great Brain

Niagara Falls or Does It? (written by Henry Winkler, who is dyslexic, with a kind heart towards dyslexic kids)

A Boy at War

Red Sails to Capri

The Case of  the Baker Street Irregulars

In my happy little knitting world, I'm still making very slow progress on my To Eyre shawl. I'm coming around the bend to the decreases in front, so maybe by the weekend it will be finished. I'm kind of bummed to see how small it is, but I'm thinking about adjusting the numbers and knitting it in denim for fall soccer games. (Actually, I'm waiting for a friend of mine to adjust the numbers and knit it bigger and then I'll just do what she did;-) This one is a pretty little capelet kind of wrap. Not quite sure what I'll wear with it? And I guess I need a shawl pin. Where does one purchase shawl pins?

Below, please smile with Karoline, who is ever so happy with her newly seamed Baby Surprise Jacket. I didn't seam it. Alas, working with cashmere so much seems to have sensitized me further to cashmere. This jacket makes me wheeze. When I took it out so that a friend could show me how to seam it, we both noticed that the same allergy that was present when we visited the yarn store was back with a vengeance. So, she seamed the whole thing for me. Still pondering buttons and gearing up to highly medicate and weave in all those ends. Karoline absolutely loves this sweater. Her appreciation makes it so worth it.

Go visit Ginny for more knitting and reading tales. I've settled into a Wednesday afternoon tradition: a big cup of tea and enough time to myself to click through a big bunch of the links at Ginny's. I am enriched by the yarns shared there.

Summer Simplicity

Outside My Window

Four little girls have been happily playing all day long, despite ridiculous heat and pesky big brothers.

I am Listening to

Nothing right now, but I've been listening to a book on Kindle all day long.

I am Wearing

A simple t-shirt and seersucker capris.

I am so Grateful for

the kind words about this post. Your comments on Facebook and your emails are treasures. I'm privileged, particularly, to hear your stories of grace.

I'm Pondering

"Providing the right stuff--opportunities, shoes, private schools, skating lessons, etc.--has become the gold standard for many parents when it comes to excellent parenting. Since each of us longs to be the best mother possible, we quickly ride the same train in order to be better. The problem is, we are duped. Rarely do kids describe their mothers as being fabulous moms for the material things they provide. When I ask adult children about their parents, they talk about their mothers' greatness in terms of their kindness, affections, and caring. (Yes, and they even describe their favorite foods their mothers made.)  Young kids talk to me about their moms' moods, how fun they are or whether they are crabby. They don't boast about their shoes, their schools, or the sports they play when talking about their mothers. They talk about their moms, not what their moms give them. 10 Habits of Happy Mothers

I am Reading

10 Habits of Happy Mothers. Good stuff here. Really good stuff.  I'm listening on Kindle. This book is so packed with great wisdom. Together with Simplicity Parenting, I think these are the best of parenting books. 10 Habits isn't a parenting book as such, but if mothers employ these 10 habits, they will be excellent mothers. And happy ones, too. So good I'm seriously considering a book study.

I am Thinking

about asking some small businesses and Etsy crafters if they'd like to sponsor this blog. Let me know if the thought appeals to you. I'm shooting for the beginning of July...

I am Creating

~A Baby Surprise Jacket Ginny came and helped me sew the seams together. Still working on button options.

~To Eyre shawl. Oh, I so love, love, love the process of knitting this one. The yarn, the pattern, it's all good. And nearly finsihed

~These skirts. Four, so far, as we made Gracie's this morning, in time for a midmorning tea party. There is another one cut and ready for Katie to sew later today.

On my iPod

Not much new. I'm listening to my Kindle these days and really impressed with the audio. I kept it with me while I sewed and  then, all afternoon, as I've decluttered in the bedrooms with a vengeance, I've listened. The sound quality is very good. 

*Just to clarify: I'm listening to the Audio Book version from Audible on my Kindle. I'm not listening to the Kindle text-to-voice version.

Towards a Real Education

I suppose I should put down the knitting and the sewing and start writing lesson plans. Next week. Definitely.

Towards Rhythm and Beauty

I am in love with summer rhythm. In love. The morning rhythm is good. The bedtime rhythm is peaceful and happy. I'm so in love with this rhythm that I might write a whole post about it.

To Live the Liturgy...

The rosary on tape is part of my little girls' bedtime routine. We use an ancient cassette tape of a children's rosary produced by Lion Communications. I've searched high and low for these online and never found them. Anyone know? These rosary tapes are my very favorite and those songs are etched into the fond memories of all my children. One of those songs was even my "labor song" when Mary Beth was born.

I am Hoping and Praying

for Elizabeth deHority. She is constantly on my heart and in my prayers. She needs you now. Please, please pray with me. 

 for a friend for whom life has been exceptionally difficult and lonely

 In the Garden

We have enough basil for our first batch of pasta pesto tonight. Good thing, too because I forgot to defrost anything else.

Around the House

Much decluttering. Everywhere. New calendar season, new season of life. Time to clear the clutter.

From the Kitchen 

With the demise of our spare refrigerator, there has been a drastic shift in shopping and planning routines. I can't shop in the quantities I need to for the week because we don't have the storage space. There are 11 people eating here, three meals a day. So, we're shopping every three days and re-thinking things a bit.

One of My Favorite Things

The smell of the room when I'm steaming cotton lawn.

A Few Plans for the Week

more clutter conquering

more crafting

that's about it...

Picture thoughts:

  

{These is Gracie this morning. She wasn't here yesterday so she didn't get in on that photo shoot. We made her skirt this morning.)