It begins...

A friend recently forwarded an email to me titled "The Invisible Mother," a short essay comparing the tireless and often thankless job of a mother to the builders of Europe's great cathedrals. Both give their whole lives for a work they will never see finished, both make sacrifices and expect no credit, and both are fueled in their passion by the faith that the eyes of God see every detail. The writer of the essay was inspired by the thought that our endless efforts in motherhood, invisible as they may seem, are worth it and can make an enriching life.


For many of us, the way we choose to hold our invisibility at bay is by creating something tangible. For me, my days often end with knitting - my love of fiber and the need to do something relaxing end up producing something I can hold and look at. Nobody will know how many times I swept under the high chair that day, or how many toys I picked up, or how many times I tried to coax a "please" or "more" or "sorry" out of my 5 year old. But a darling, handmade infant hat? That you can see.


I start new projects every day, and my 10 year old does the same. In this process of creating (and yes, often not finishing our projects!) we connect with each other and a bigger picture of ourselves in the process. My plan for this blog is to share the projects that excite me and bring some accessible proof of my existence in this invisible world of mothering!


So, this blog is dedicated to the mothers out there whose days are filled with the minutia of tasks that build our children and our families. I often tell people that I haven't decided what I want to be when I grow up. But for now, I am the builder of a great cathedral. With every shoelace tied, lunch packed, and forehead kissed, I build.


And I can hardly wait to create something new...


Saturday, October 29, 2011

Let the Good Times Roll (oh dear, my waistline!)

During the past week we've been crafting, cooking, and hosting up a storm. Not to mention, I shampooed every carpet in my house. It is CLEAN around here, and I've got blisters on my right hand to prove it!


Rowan's homework assignment last week was to create a book holder for her desk at school. Her teacher gave us instructions on how to shape the cereal box, but the kids got to design their own covering. Rowan chose to use leftover gold wrapping paper from her birthday, with some "Rowan" heart stickers for decoration. Pretty fancy!
Rowan also had a friend over to play last week. The two girls always come up with an elaborate (albeit messy) plan to turn their playtime into a "show" which involves posters and set design and tickets and of course a performance. I love it! They get so creative, and so excited about their project and it keeps them entertained for hours. Their show last week was called: Balloon Exploders. Here are the tickets they created...
Other than me, the audience consisted of Emily, Jenny, Lanie, and Kanani:
The set/stage was designed using available resources...
Note the explosive TNT poster on the side...
The entire show consisted of the girls pumping air into long balloons and then letting them escape to fly, farting, across the room. Every effort was made to hit me with them, but only one came close. They were very proud of their efforts, and much giggling took place.


I hosted Knit Night as well as a PartyLite candle show at our house this week, and my inner Martha Stewart emerged in the form of mini corn fritter appetizers...
...rosemary buttermilk scones...
...a "Rustic Fall Tart" made with plums...
...spiced cranberry apple cider, and a few other goodies. I broke out the few dishes that were left of my grandma's set to add a festive, autumn feel to the array of culinary yumminess.
I made way too much food, of course, and am happily still eating leftovers!


Much to Rowan's utter delight, I purchased a re-usable gingerbread house "kit" last weekend at the Holiday Mart. The plastic house base can be used over and over for different holidays and occasions. I bought a bunch of candy on Thursday, and Rowan got right to work that afternoon...
Here's what she's completed so far - and she's VERY excited to practice the art of frosting things, which can be really tricky for an 8 year old. I wanted to help her SO badly - it was hard to just stand back and let her learn but I did it! Mommy victory! (P.S. Her hair is green for "crazy hair day" at school!)
Today starts the official sale of Girl Scout cookies!  If I haven't already harassed you via email, be sure and let me know if you'd like to order some. How can you refuse this face?
And before I sign off, I'll just leave you with a few cutie pictures of my girls as we gear up for Halloween weekend!




2 comments:

  1. So bummed I missed out on the scones. Also, I have a collection of Franciscan Apple! LOVE the appleware. So, I will probably hound you to show me your grandmother's pieces. Hope you don't mind.

    Also, I will be contacting you for Girl Scout cookies!

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  2. What a feast for the eyes in this post. Seeing all those fun girl activities and GIRLS, food and frosting - all of it a treat to share. I had to weep a little seeing Mom's dishes. They were tears of joy that her old dishes would grace your home and be so filled with fantastic foods. I am sure she must have been beaming down upon you, if that sort of thing is possible!! The costumes, the reusable gingerbread, the farting balloons. So much to grin and laugh about! Thanks for sharing your life in such a delightful way!

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