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...


Sunday, June 26, 2011

Summer Fun

Summer is cookin' and the fun is nonstop around here! One of the things Rowan put on her "Summer Brake Collage" that she really wanted to accomplish was a lemonade/cookie stand. She created the big sign weeks ago (months ago?) and Friday was finally the day to do it. We baked giant m&m cookies all afternoon, and opened for business when our first customers rolled in at 3:30. We were sold out of cookies by 4:45, and by 6pm Rowan had earned $39!!  She paid some to her friend that sat with us and helped, and was excited beyond belief at her success.  (Thanks to all our friends who stopped by!! We will definitely be doing this again, and making twice the number of cookies this time.)
We've been watching our gardens explode since May, and I had to take a picture of Rowan in front of the giant gold lillies on the south side of our deck. They are huge! I had to actually stake and tie them this year because the stalks were threatening to fall over and crack off. The blooms themselves are bigger than my head!
Our bird-watching continues with renewed vigor as well. A friend turned us on to Safflower seeds - a seed that the songbirds love but that squirrels and grackels don't. So far it's been working like a charm! The cardinals and tiny finches and songbirds have been flocking, with morning doves hanging out below - and none of the big birds come to scare them away. However, all the screens were removed from the back windows on Friday for repair, and that afternoon as the light changed our little birdy friends started smacking against the windows in an effort to fly into the trees they saw reflected there! Rowan and I quickly stopped doing the Science Kit experiments we were trying and got out the window crayons. We covered the kitchen windows with big, colorful pictures in an effort to keep the birds safe. So far, it seems to be working!
I finished the second Afghan sweater this weekend, and got it blocked out to dry this afternoon. This time I used only three colors, and it got a little tedious, so my next sweater will have more variation again. 
I've dug out all the little bits and pieces of green, blue, and purple from my stash - the next sweater will truly be a mish-mash of scraps, but hopefully will turn out interesting!
                              
Last night was our end-of-year MOMS Club banquet - oh man, was it ever delish! We had an international food theme, and our potluck was filled with tasty foods from all over the world. I made Lebanese Tabbouleh and Israeli Stuffed Dates (which I can't keep out of.) SO yum. Jen (our President and my good friend) sewed each of the outgoing Board members a bag and made us all a set of beautiful cards. I love them!! She chose a  wonderfully colorful fabric for mine - with a Girl Scout theme! So perfect! Thank you, Jen!
We've got one more day until Day Camp starts, so I've been researching camp songs, games, etc. to have in my little folder of tricks. The weather turned simply nasty today - hot and sticky and ick. Hoo boy! Let's hope the week gets a little cooler and less muggy while we're at camp. (Please!!!) Tomorrow we'll start packing our backpacks and making sure we're ready to go. Can't wait!!
Posted by at

1 comment:

  1. KathyJune 26, 2011 at 9:36 PM

    What fun, as always, to read up on what you and your family are doing.

    I'm knitting up a storm, as well, and will show you when you come in a week. I still haven't tried the vest pattern though.

    So glad the lemonade stand was such a happy event for everyone and that the weather cooperated. Is a Build-a-Bear still on the shopping-with-the-profits list?

    Hopefully the weather will also be nice for day camp next week. Storms are sure rolling through Iowa tonight. Hopefully they'll be out of your area by tomorrow and stay away for a while. Enjoy!

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)