Thursday, September 30, 2010

the sky is rainbowing


the sky is rainbowing, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

Have I mentioned that this little person is absolutely loving every minute of kindergarten? Here he is showing me his Holographic Diffraction Grating Glasses.


I am loving being a red room mama for the second time. I can sit back and feel the magic. He is in the perfect place for him and is so in the moment. After school today he really only wanted to draw, write, and practice the ASL alphabet.

baking day


baking day, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

Ruby and I made lentil soup and oatmeal bread today.

painting and drawing time


painting and drawing time, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

This is pretty much what we do before dinner every night.

Saturday, September 25, 2010

pure awesome


friday's show and tell, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

This is what he took for show and tell on friday.

arm warmers and hat for the school auction

16" waldorf doll for school auction

past the equinox


sunflower, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

On the first day of fall we heard geese migrating at night by the light of the full moon.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

genuine beehive


blues, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

Ruby, Papa, and I went to the Bristol Rhythm and 'Roots Reunion this past weekend, spending three days walking the main street in downtown Bristol listening to lots of great music. Bristol is always great for people watching. Just one hundred and ten miles from our own little sleepy town, the festival crowd is just a little more twangy. There are cowboy hats, cowboy boots, western shirts, tattoos, and long sideburns. Older gentlemen sport a hairstyle I've always called "the swoop", and I saw one genuine beehive.

My first show of the festival was on the "folklife" stage in an old vacant department store. I walked through the heavy glass double doors and Del McCoury starts to sing "1952 Vincent Black Lightening. The first song of the festival was my absolute favorite Richard Thompson song.

I liked the Grit Pixies, Phil Wiggins, Missy Raines and the New Hip, MSG Acoustic Blues Trio, and the Carolina Chocolate Drops. Ruby enjoyed riding around in a red wagon, peanut ice cream and the Green Light's spicy tempeh peanut wrap.

So, we went for the bluegrass and stayed for the Piedmont blues, a side order of funk, and Yarn. I'm looking forward to putting on my boots next year.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Bristol


Bristol, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

favorite


favorite, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

ruby


ruby, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

Monday, September 13, 2010

curried quinoa salad

curried quinoa salad

4 onions
2 leeks
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups quinoa
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cup toasted unsweetened coconut
cilantro
salt
1 tablespoon sweet curry powder
1 teaspoon whole cumin
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

Begin by simmering your quinoa until it opens.

Slice and saute onions slowly until they are golden. Thinly slice the leek and cook until softened. Add salt, cumin, and curry powder and cook about another minute. Add balsamic vinegar and stir in cooked guinoa. Add raisins. At this point I refrigerated overnight, but you could also continue and serve this warm or at room temperature. I think the flavors really develop overnight though. To serve I topped the salad with toasted coconut and chopped cilantro leaves. Shriracha hot sauce on the side. This could be my new favorite breakfast.

Sunday, September 12, 2010

sunday

Instead of sitting stunned on the couch watching Gofrette this morning, we all got dressed and went to the Unitarian church. The kids are all signed up for a bit of religious education. Ella jumped right into her class, surrounded by friends and taught by a cool papa from our school. John ordered me to "not leave the room", but he quietly participated and made a paper candle for the chalice that they filled with friendly thoughts. They learned an affirmation, had a one minute silent meditation, read a story and chopped fruit for the after-church potluck. If we can convince Ruby to stay in the lovely nursery sunday mornings will have something to offer every member of the family.

Afterwards we went to Shadowlake for a potluck lunch and cello recital. John had a spill riding on a "turtle" and now has a purple lip and cheekbone. It fits right in with the scabbed knob he got at the pond on friday night. My sweet boy says he looks very rough.

Wednesday, September 08, 2010

heart sutra

I recently reread Awakening The Buddha Within By Lama Surya Das, and tonight I found this audio from the chant room at the Dzogchen center.

Monday, September 06, 2010

yoga


yoga girl, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

We went to the lake for the last afternoon of the summer yesterday. Apart from the raucous cicadas and the slanty afternoon light, it still hasn't felt very autumnal around here. I'm destined to wear white and linen again as the temperatures are climbing into the high eighties again this week.

john


john, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

john


john, originally uploaded by ellajohn.