the week :: through the lense

it has been on the back burner, i have not been taking a lot of photos for a while now, and that should change. so i put the "hand made" lens back on the camera body and got started this week. it touched me in a special way, as i wander and have the camera ready be it in the kitchen, or living room table... this enables me to see with new eyes and i like it. we will see if it sticks, it is a start to a new friday review of what caught my eye. there is to be said, that i was inspired by erin boyle and her blog "reading my tea leaves". she does a wonderful job and it is so inspirational to have a look at her photos...

:: 1. we had to trim the apple tree in the back of the house, naomi rescued a few branches for me

:: 2. our oldest practicing. it is lovely to listen and an up lift to hear him do so almost every day

:: 3. the book jumped at me from the shelf at our local library, wonderful to find the world in it

:: 4. lots of spring greens, this time mixed with beets, carrots and lentils, very tasty


just four today, i have no more to show for.
next week will be quiet on my blog, i'm on vacation better said, helping with a kids camp.... lots of fun and little sleep, lot's of noise happy and even more excited!

food waste

there was a food delivery on tuesday...
we have a source of unexpected loads of groceries. every other week on tuesday evenings, we get 5 big crates of all kinds of food. lately many pounds of maroon puree and lots of the deliciously chocolate covered waffle cups. 20kg of apples, 18pieces of mango, sausages we will be able to grill at least half a dozen times. chicken hot dog sausages for the next kids program to feed the whole big group a wonderful snack. there are of course also odd things, like "saure rüben" (similar to sauerkraut, (but fermented beets instead of cabbage). on tuesday we got lots of berries, not seasonal, but organic (though i feel rather strange, eating berries imported from spain, which have been grown and harvested by under payed immigrant workers)...
but for us it is a way of helping to reduce food waste. it's all groceries which have been thrown away by stores and as you might expect, still wonderful and delicious to prepare and feed the family. what i didn't take a photo of, topinambur soup, it is a wonderful soup, though my people really don't like it...
i'm eating soup for lunch and dinner, it's fine, there are people not eating at all.

the color of today

its all yellow, on this sunny wednesday with a wonderful bunch of yellow tulips. there is no more to add to this day, as just look into the so beautifully built flower heads.

of course it was not all, it started with a smooth breakfast into this morning, the kids not quarreling with me or each other, but enjoying breakfast and bible reading around the table, with the first rays of the morning lurking behind the trees. having coffee with my dear neighbor friends, chatting and enjoying the friendship we have been building over the past couple years. this really has become an anchor in my week. every wednesday, we meet and talk and learn german together.

it got even better, we are getting ready for a new flock of chickens...
tearing down the old fence and making a list of items still needed to build a strong fence. joel wired the chicken coop, in order to mount a warming lamp. you read correctly a warming lamp, as we are getting chicks by the beginning of may. o we are all so much looking forward to welcome young animals into our garden. so much joy, so much color in my day!

raspberrie cake

let me tell you...
it would not be my usual shopping habit, to buy raspberries in april, rest assured, i would not buy the berries, if it isn't for the fact, that they where on their way out an thrown away. so that made me blink and put them in the shopping basket on saturday afternoon shortly before the shop closed for the weekend.
the cake biscuit is not home made, it also has been saved from the dumpster by a friend who brought it over. and that is, why we have such a luscious cake for sunday afternoon tea.

the filling/frosting was whipped creme mixed with vanilla sugar and creme cheese, to give a bit more flavor and texture. a first for me, and all loved it, i would do it again.

the week :: through the lense

 it has been on the back burner, i have not been taking a lot of photos for a while now, and that should change. so i put the "hand made" lens back on the camera body and got started this week. it touched me in a special way, as i wander and have the camera ready be it in the kitchen, or living room table... this enables me to see with new eyes and i like it. we will see if it sticks, it is a start to a new friday review of what caught my eye. there is to be said, that i was inspired by erin boyle and her blog "reading my tea leaves". she does a wonderful job and it is so inspirational to have a look at her photos...

:: 1. the beginning of the week was filled with finishing the "dotted scheme"

:: 2. and done it is, taking photos on my own as well as with joel, it was a quick session, i would have liked it to go on

:: 3. more work, the dozen crochet knit helmets for kids camp

:: 4. a wonderful bunch of tulips, thank you m for bringing them over

:: 5. and out of doors spring is so very real, o happy spring!

spring bloom

all the red flowers of the chaenomeles, a wonderful bush in full bloom for many weeks now. it's one of the first plants and it keeps on blooming for weeks. i love it and my heart leaps for joy. even in the rain, the red is so strong and shiny. thank you for spring!

and then there was that workshop i attended, one of the exercises we did, we used our left hand (or just the weaker one) and started coloring the big white sheets. it was fun, the whole group gathered around the big long table and coloring together, a bit wild and still fun, lot's of laughter. the second part of the project was, to cut or tear the paper into pieces and place them on the floor, in what ever way and form we wanted: garden was the theme. i didn't have to think twice, it must be a big bush in bloom, spring-bloom. a lovely exercise i felt happy and fullfilled, spring is so inspiring.

a quick look back

we are in the middle of spring it rains today. a good moment to look back to the beginning of the year, it is not old yet, still feels pretty fresh and new to me. and though the first quarter is coming to an end soon

i love going through my lists of past years and keep myself somewhat accountable. of course there is much more to living my life then this yearly list. it is a fun game for me, a way to not get lost in the woods of this every day being. to look at the trees, at least some trees, as they are just standing there on the way side and it does take me a moment of still and maybe a second look. a reminder, that i should go back to the sewing machine once in a while and then also look at all the books i read (or listened to) hurray! a wonderful, joyful look back.

1.  in general say more yes, and in particular to my kids
2.  be less controlling
3. grow mushrooms behind the house on wooden logs
       i just purchased the mushroom growing kit this week

4. sing in a choir
      we will sing again with the kantorei in early summer, i'm looking forward to that project

5. read good books
     - leon and louise, alex capus
     - invincible, diana palmer
     - the rosie project, by simsion graeme
     - the rosie effect, by simsion graeme
     - the imperfect offering, by james obrinski

6. take thursday afternoons off for crafts or reading or visit a friend
7. run 30k a week
    this one has been good and i love it, though my hip is not doing well right now...

8. this week :: through the lense, start my friday blog post series
    i like to venture out and about, to be more intentional about carrying the camera along

9. go out for dinner with joel as well as with good friends
    we went out once, it was a bit of an obstacle course, but wonderful when we finally sat down to eat

10. take a class what ever interests me
     a two day class on "Symbol Didaktik"

11. stick with the rule of not buying new clothes, yup it helped to have that one for last year
    i got a few new pieces from a yard sale, some i love and other things i passed on

12. take each child for special outings on their own
    with thea i went on a hike, just a sunday afternoon in spring, it was great

13. i want to give the cross country skiing a try while on ski vacation in february
    no, there was no cross country skying this winter, but there was snowboarding! yes i was standing on the board on two consecutive days and loved it!

14. practice gratitude “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.” -- Cicero
15. sew a quilt for my sister in law
    just finished the quilt for L "dotted scheme"

16. knit or crochet or sew at least one item a month go give away
    - pot-mitt
    - pot-mitt
    - portland pullover
    - blue moebius
    - 8 medieval knit helmets

17. sort through my books and give away what i not read or need anymore
18. keep buying fabric :) and stay at the machine more often
19. take a longish family vacation (outdoor adventure) this summer
   we have great plans and booked flights to podgorica in montenegro, the plan is to go sea kayaking at the bay of kotor

20. practice twice a week on the ukulele
21. go to the art museum in winterthur and the kunsthaus in zurich for this and this

dotted scheme

photos taken by joel

here it is, my latest quilt, it's a big lap size one and i call it "dotted scheme"
that one will make a big trip to my newest nephew over there in the new world! hello little boy, this is my welcome to you on this earth, in our big family circle
i had lot's of fun to try something new. the piecing together of the "whitewash" background was easy and wonderful to collect all kinds of little bits and pieces, stripes and squares, i was tempted to just leave it as it is, very plain. but for a child, no that was not possible, more thinking and a bit more research for ideas.
as i'm in the habit of keeping each and every tiny scrap, a stash buster was embraced.

all those color-schemed circles were sewn together and ironed onto a soft fleece, cut out and laid out onto that whitewash surface. i liked it better and better as it came together.
for the backing were a few big pieces needed. the waffle print was a left over from this quilt, years ago (it was a backing then too).

to choose a way to quilt the piece, it was falling in my lap. not even thinking was required for this one. it felt wo natural and logic and just the way of sewing it. lots of circles around the dots, irregular and go with the rhythm of it all. i love how it turned out and as i used a thick wool batting, it has a wonderful soft feel, i do hope, the baby likes it too.

the binding is puzzled together, trying to find the rhythm of the dots again, to make them stronger and nicely framed. i have to say, even the velvet fit in fine and that's what i try to do for those baby and toddler quilts, somewhere there must be a piece of velvet or satin. as this is such a strong texture to hang on to and not let go, when once gripped.

the week :: through the lense

 it has been on the back burner, i have not been taking a lot of photos for a while now, and that should change. so i put the "hand made" lens back on the camera body and got started this week. it touched me in a special way, as i wander and have the camera ready be it in the kitchen, or living room table... this enables me to see with new eyes and i like it. we will see if it sticks, it is a start to a new friday review of what caught my eye. there is to be said, that i was inspired by erin boyle and her blog "reading my tea leaves". she does a wonderful job and it is so inspirational to have a look at her photos...

:: 1. Kiwi-Cellery smoothy with a bit of agave syrup for the kids to like it...

:: 2. our cat, well it has been a lovely warm week, the cat was showing me how to enjoy it best

:: 3. more signs of spring

:: 4. and even more, deep deep yellow, i don't think there is more of it later in the year

:: 5. and the chestnut tree changes every day, i love to observe this one the best

work in progress

this is the last step on my dotted quilt for the newest baby in our extended family. i love the way it turned out and sewing the binding is very relaxing. a few more moments of sitting down and sewing by hand, as i help the kids to attend to their homework. i will post a few pictures of the final work as soon as it's done and i find someone to assist me in photographing the workl

and then this!!!

a crocheted helmet, it has been great fun to work on it, as a friend has been crocheting along. it is a little though will end up to be a big load of work to get done by the 23rd of this month. 20 or so helmets for a camp. all the leaders and helpers will be wearing those fun head coverings.

lots of laughing, lots of excitement to talk with the kids in the house about this project. it will be fun to use all the spare minutes of the next two weeks crocheting.

well i have not don something like this in my live yet, so why not getting really silly in my crafting. it has given me lots of laughs and will give me even more to laugh and as we all know, it's even healthy...

as it states here and here and here as well....

the threading sheep

this has turned out so super cool, thank you t! you are my wood worker, very excellent.
some how i stumbled upon this sheep quickly
quickly i fell in love with that wonderful way of learning how to thread and work with wool for a small child. we used all kinds of wonderful cards bought and home made to thread. there were flowers, animals, buildings and so forth. but this sheep was looked like something else to me.

though i needed two of those threading sheep and i needed them here in switzerland, not wanting to pay lots of shipping either...
on second thought, i remembered my nephew, he is 14 and has some great wood working skills. two years ago he made this camera for me. and so i asked him, if i could order two of those threading sheep, inclusive the needles. a quick response and he suggested a new design for a more "child friendly" sheep. of course i agreed, to his request and it turns out, that i really like his sheep a lot. such a jumpy and friendly looking sheep.
the wool i add to the sheep is from portugal, i ordered a couple years ago to knit a shawl and had some left. this is perfect, very natural and still working fine for threading the needle itself.

so here we go, there will be two happy girls, receiving those sheep for their birthdays!

kemptthal to sennhof

it is spring, it is warm and it is sunny, we have to go on a walk. that's what thea and i decided yesterday after church. just too perfect to stay home. so we packed our nap sac and went on the train to kemptthal, as our route would take us from kemptthal via chemleten and kyburg to sennhof. with a quick stop iin the city to get a bite to eat. it was a treat to both of us, a little portion fries from jack&jo at the train station. this gave us the strength to get speedily started behind the train station at kemptthal. up the steep forest and enjoying every tiny bit of it. listening to the humming bees in the blooming bushes, being taken at awe of the strong fresh green sprouting all around us. and of course we had to stop and watch, when we came by little ponds filled with frogspawn, wow there will be lots of little frogies in a couple weeks..... (or maybe someone will have a wonderful dinner......)

climbing up until kyburg was wonderful, joel and amos did the same loop, though with their bikes and of course, where much faster.
running down the steep steps, behind the castle, down to the river was the best! we loved it and ran almost all the way down, so fast a good rush of adrenalin, in trying not to miss any steps.
along the toess for 20  minutes was a bit dragging on, while thea got tired, but she kept up with me and the focus was back on track, while we wanted to reach the train station on time to catch the s26 home to winterthur. we did it and were so happy.

i love my little walker daugther, lots of good conversations and so easy to get excited!

the week :: through the lense

 it has been on the back burner, i have not been taking a lot of photos for a while now, and that should change. so i put the "hand made" lens back on the camera body and got started this week. it touched me in a special way, as i wander and have the camera ready be it in the kitchen, or living room table... this enables me to see with new eyes and i like it. we will see if it sticks, it is a start to a new friday review of what caught my eye. there is to be said, that i was inspired by erin boyle and her blog "reading my tea leaves". she does a wonderful job and it is so inspirational to have a look at her photos...

:: 1. a wonderful detail, i had to look at it again and again while in class

:: 2. while in zurich, i enjoyed the whole zwingli door at grossmünster, but this relief in particular

:: 3. first pink blossoms

:: 4. second first! hanging laundry in the garden this year

:: 5. a wonderful method to learn french, with our 1960is hermes