chatter

It's the Last Day of January

2012-01-31T19:10:00.000-05:00

and we found ourselves outside on the playground without jackets.

Beautiful Normal.

2012-01-30T16:41:00.000-05:00

Just Because is my very favorite occasion to receive flowers.

Weekend, in Review.

2012-01-30T13:44:00.006-05:00

We were fortunate to start our weekend Thursday night, as Belle had no school on Friday, and Dave had enough hours in for the week to use some comp time. The timing couldn't have been better!

Belle lost her two front teeth [now seven total!] so we celebrated twice with local ice cream–as has become our tradition–it's been such a fabulous tour of regional ice cream shops!

In between our ice cream indulgences, we also managed to get the upstairs closet remodel all finished, the rod installed and Dave has already moved in the better part of his wardrobe.

We also completed the studio painting, and I am mostly moved back in. The light that now bounces off the brightened walls in that space is lovely beyond what I could have hoped for.

All this work afforded the Craunlets a little more than usual freedom play–which they both heartily enjoyed. The living room was a heap of a playscape from their adventures, and the couches remained pushed together forming a nest for all the increased movie-watching.

The work-and-play balance was grand indeed, and so both refreshing and productive for the Team.

It's Almost Done.

2012-01-28T14:17:00.000-05:00

A weekend on Project.

Here's hoping all the furniture goes back into the studio tonight.

It's been so good to reclaim this room–oh how bright it is again–but the piles of displacement are quite daunting.

Please Slow Down.

2012-01-26T11:17:00.002-05:00

almost seven years old–seemingly moments ago just a babe–please slow down.

Sweetest of Parcels

2012-01-25T16:45:00.002-05:00

The best mail days are ones where the postbox lid isn't all the way closed due to the height of a small present. Tucked neatly–but tall–into today's mail, alongside a small handful of letters boasting their importance, was the sweetest of parcels.

So unexpected; a treasure of a surprise sent with attentive generosity from a friend.

The Momofuku Milk Bar Cookbook; it's pages full of good reasons to stay in the kitchen all winter and bake. Awesome towering layer cakes, honest in their assembly and lavish in their ingredients.

It's a beautiful read, a sweet story of a young pastry chef stir-crazy for her future, and a sumptuous book packed full of comforting-come-fancy recipes, enticing pictures, and clever kitchen tips for dramatic cakes.

As Team Craun approaches birthday season again [for Belle and myself] in February, it couldn't be better timed.

Beautiful Normal.

2012-01-25T13:55:00.000-05:00

The lovely weight of a book in the hand; my recent finished stack on my night stand.

On Treasure Hunting.

2012-01-24T14:25:00.005-05:00

Nate and I tackled a few morning stops at our favorite resale shops in quest of some much-needed Craunlet footwear. Though almost wholly inappropriate for Winter, we found these uniform-friendly and sweetly styled navy leather buckled flats for Belle.

And the tag was the magic color-of-the day, which translated to ONE WHOLE DOLLAR total. My word, the luck!

Sitting right next to them on the shelf were these casual and easy-to-slip-on-in-a-hurry brown boots for the Nate. Unfortunately, they were not marked with the certain deal-busting color, but still at a mere four dollars, we decided to go for the stellar Winter option. They will certainly beat out his cool–but only cloth–Converse in both warmth and protection.

I chuckled to find the two pairs situated right beside one another–like best friends–on the same shelf among the 100s of children's shoes, spread over three shelves down the aisle. Both pairs match the personality of each Craunlet near exactly, and are perfectly-sized to their little feet. Sitting there side by side, just waiting for us.

We toured the tsotchke aisle lastly, and scored the loveliest little yellow butterfly trinket plate. I was absolutely smitten at first sight, and rationalized that it could be useful–though small–for Belle's party, so we brought it home as well.

It has two tiny holes in the back where a ribbon could be threaded for hanging, so I think it's more permanent home will be among the eclectic and growing installation of plates, salt-n-pepper shakers, bud vases, and the like, on the kitchen shelf and wall above the sink.

For under 9 dollars total, it was quite a lucky little treasure hunt.

School Valentines.

2012-01-24T08:58:00.000-05:00

Her fingers busy with thread again, Belle is hard at work in a decided effort to tackle braiding. I flagged this sweet Valentine's idea and printable [from Dandee] a while back, and it seemed the perfect time to pull it out for Belle's classmates. I updated the text layout just a bit, so it could be on center in the circle, as Belle requested she sign them on the back. We used a heart punch for the holes–we just couldn't resist the over-the-top Valentine's cuteness.

Isabella's braiding ability is really improving, and in her impatience of waiting on me every time she needed a knot to start and stop each bracelet, she has also mastered that skill with this project.

I can remember countless hours spent with string pinned to a cushion creating simple woven friendship bracelets. Time and memory flash by in an instant, Belle now poised in the same determined posture so familiar to my own childhood.

Watching her like a little factory, sweetly concerned if she will get them all done in time, wondering which color pairings the boys will like best, and how she might package them to hand them out.

Her care with all the details and minutia of the project is all too familiar; how can so much of who we are be embedded in our babes?!

Anyone else working on their Valentines in January?!

Beautiful Normal.

2012-01-23T14:55:00.000-05:00

Nate is building, building, all the time.

Tackle-a-Weekend-Project Cinnamon Hot Cocoa

2012-01-23T08:54:00.001-05:00

Somehow this most comforting broken-and-repaired mug of cinnamon stove-top hot cocoa with marshmallows encouraged the impulse to finally paint the studio.

Or get it started, rather. The lower level is now in a total state of displacement, as the studio is piled up and stashed all over the place. And it's taken two fastidious layers of primer to un-red the room. The week is looking so bright already.

Tackle-a-Weekend-Project Cinnamon Hot Cocoa

1/4 C extra dark baking cocoa

2 T brown sugar

1 Cboiling water

dash ground cloves

dash ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp cinnamon

3 C milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

mini marshmallows

Combine cocoa and sugar in small saucepan; stir in water. Bring to boil; reduce heat and cook whisking constantly 2 minutes.

Add cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon + milk. Simmer 5 minutes [keep just from boiling]. Whisk in vanilla. Pour hot cocoa in mugs; top with marshmallows; freshly whipped cream would be heaven, surely–but we had none on hand.

Weekend Breakfasts, on the Weekday.

2012-01-20T11:11:00.001-05:00

There's nothing more lavish to me on a weekday morning than a bubbly sweet baked breakfast; something generally relegated to weekends and holidays. It seems the most royal of indulgences.

This morning I put an end to a fierce craving I've held back for almost two full weeks.

Blueberry Stuffed French Toast Bake, Worth Being Late for School.

16 slices white Italian bread
1 pkg cream cheese [8 oz]
1 pint blueberries [fresh or frozen]
3 C milk
3 eggs
1/3 C maple syrup
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 C sugar
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbs cornstarch
1 Tbs butter

Butter a 9x13 baking pan. Cut 10 slices of the bread into 3/4" cubes, reserve. Spread softened cream cheese over one side of the remaining 6 slices of bread, and arrange in pan cheese side up to cover the entire bottom surface. Spread remaining cream cheese to fill/seal all crevices between the bread. Sprinkle 1 generous cup of blueberries, and then top with bread cubes.

Whisk milk, eggs, syrup, vanilla and 1/4 cup of the sugar until well combined, and pour over bread. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 350º. Mix 1/4 cup of sugar with nutmeg and cinnamon, and sprinkle over bread. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil, and bake for 25-30 additional minutes until top is golden brown, and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

In a small pot, mix cornstarch with 1 cup water, and add remaining sugar. Bring to a simmer on medium heat and cook until thick. Remove from heat, and stir in butter and remaining blueberries.

Pour blueberry glaze over individual servings.

A Glimpse of Her Growing Up.

2012-01-19T13:15:00.005-05:00

It's an otherwise closed-door instructional model at the Arts Center where Isabella has taken Ballet for the last handful of years, excepting the once-a-semester in-class performance for parents. This semester, Isabella was introduced to a new instructor; one that I quite admired upon first meeting, and respected immensely upon hearing glowing recommendations from the head of the dance program. I was struck immediately by her professional demeanor, and let's be honest, her fabulous British accent completely drew me in.

However, after getting a glimpse of class this week, watching her interactions with Isabella and the other students, and seeing firsthand the results of her rigor with them, I am beside myself with awe of her, and the progress she chartered in one semester. The performance held no silly songs, no spinning, leaping, or twirling. It was an intense presentation of form, ballet positions, and increased understanding of movement to music and body awareness. And though each of the girls occasioned smiles during their performance, all of the girlish giggling and silliness was absent. It was smooth, orderly, and shockingly professional for the 6-yr old demographic.

Watching Belle's sweet little frame float across the smooth floor, stretch out upon the barre, and lift itself up upon her tiny toes, I couldn't help but see her far older than we she first entered those doors. Her concentrated looks, and entire body focus illustrated the determination of the few months of this semester.

I was reminded of the profound potential within children to rise given both the challenge and a healthy learning environment, partnered with someone that can simply convince and encourage them that it is possible with practice.

Nate's Dalcroze Eurhythmics class performance was the very same evening, so we divided and conquered. As soon as I lift the footage from Dave's phone, I will share his performance as well.

I Love Hanging Out With This Kid.

2012-01-18T14:02:00.002-05:00

We stopped into a dollar store this morning on our way to a meeting with the sole purpose of finding a few new distractions. To Nate's absolute delight he found a nearly-identical to Grandpa's motorcycle–complete with Grandma's seat, and a leather travel bag.

Even better, its one of those pull 'em back, and watch 'em race off kind of wheeled toys. TOTAL WIN.

Missing It. And Not.

2012-01-18T13:26:00.000-05:00

We failed to get to any annual correspondence this year, at Christmastime, and then even the New Year. I cannot recollect when we last forwent either. We had a bumpy relational Summer, one with much growing pains and heart ache. A shifting of terrains that seasons provide in letting some die to make room for the new life of others. But eye opening at the very least, and though I feel like certainty is still quite coming into focus, embracing a little blur has also been OK.

Driving down to Columbus for the New Year, committed to connect with good friends despite distance, drove such a terrific stake into the ground. I will not let relationships that matter keep sliding. I suppose it's a resolution I never penned formally, while we quietly let the Holidays pass without cards. But one that incised itself in my consciousness throughout Autumn.

I will pen more letters. I will send more packages. I will get in the car and drive to visit friends. I will invest more in relationships that are working. I will relent and give needed neglect to the ones that are not. I will let those go. I will let those go.

People will pick up and leave with no consideration, and they will text one-liners that read simply: very busy over here. And they will not always tell the truth, even without lying. And I will let those go. All the withholding, all the unnatural struggle. I will let those go. And all that letting go, will clear out more space for bringing in. And I will dwell here most decidedly, and not miss it.

Happy Weekend.

2012-01-13T16:39:00.001-05:00

Nothing more exhilerating than playing in freshly fallen snow.

And then thawing out all of the frozen with warm cups of hot cocoa.

Snow and Paper.

2012-01-13T14:36:00.001-05:00

It's snowing out there something furious. So I am inside, and playing with paper.

The glorious light reflecting off all the white is so sweetly welcome.

It's Official.

2012-01-12T14:35:00.001-05:00

The letter we have anxiously awaited, arrived by post at last this afternoon, and it bore our expected good news!

The babe is enrolled in Kindergarten! And both Craunlets are in school this coming Fall–how has the time flown by so quick?

Give Her Needle and Thread.

2012-01-12T14:05:00.002-05:00

Belle is taking sewing by storm. Both her patience and her craft are astounding.

Her second hand-sewn project is a wooly soft felt needle book. Her running stitch is wonderfully even and sturdy; her first button is sewn down snugly in place, and is keeping the book neatly closed.

It's staggering to watch her, all focused and aware, engrossed in a sewing project. She's concentrating with her tongue half out of her mouth, merrily stitching away with her legs crossed.

And she is smiling ear-to-ear with accomplishment when the project is finished. Eager to start the next.

On Comfort, and Coconut Pudding Cake.

2012-01-10T14:08:00.001-05:00

There's something about the divine indulgence of a sunny and quiet afternoon. One further sweetened with some leftover delicious.

It's a fabulously comfortable "everyday" cake, and it's always my go-to when life slows down enough to make a quick cake.

It's the classic "box of this" and "box of that" recipe. These type are not all that frequent in our home, but the occasional indulgence feels so lavish and comforting both. I was introduced to this particular cake through Dave's family, it was Grammie's Cake–and famously appreciated–I fell for it immediately.

Bake a yellow cake [I usually err for a box that boasts pudding in the cake, etc.] in a 9X13 pan, and then let it cool completely. Smash gouges into the top surface of the cake all over using the back of a wooden spoon. Next, whisk up two small boxes of instant vanilla pudding [I used a french vanilla one for added richness] and just before it is setting, pour all over cake, and smooth with a spatula. Refrigerate for a bit. When set, coat entire top with a small tub of whipped cream [I went for real cream here] and press in generous amounts of flaked coconut. Chill, and eat cake.

Legos and Brrrr Little Boy Feet

2012-01-09T14:36:00.000-05:00

Play is so intense around here sometimes, there is little time for bothering with lost socks.

That Remind's Me...

2012-01-06T11:36:00.000-05:00

We stopped into our favorite local coffee shop this morning. And I got my double espresso macchiatto served up in the cup we prefer above all the others. We refer to it as the perfect sad fishy cup.

And it reminded me. We haven't told our sad fishy story yet.

You see, for Christmas, we gave our two pet fish [Clementine Bubbler + Finnegan Dasher] a cleaning fish, remember? All was going well, for a handful of hours. And then it wasn't. Initially, Clemmie and Finn seemed to be bullying the new guy. Fish are a surprising emotional roller coaster – it was tragic to watch. But, as it turns out our sucker fish had some kind of YUCK, and he pretty much moped around the back of the tank for his first day, before we realized that he wasn't actually cleaning the filter's water intake vents, he was being pulled to them because he was lifeless. We were so sad, here it is Christmas Eve, and our Christmas present to our fish just died.

It seemed like even Clemmie and Finn were sad about it, they hung out together disconcertingly close to the bottom of the tank commiserating. Or so we thought. Only they continued to stay too close to the rocks for comfort–like hovering–and they all but stopped swimming their friendly competitive laps around the tank. Turns out they weren't sad about Christmas, they were sick. VERY SICK. We tried treating it, we immediately changed out the filter, and even refreshed their water.

And they just got worse. Visually and emotionally traumatic degradation. We watching them slowly become lifeless. Just terrible. New Years Day we lost Clementine. The very next, poor Finnegan followed.

So Team Craun is taking a little reprieve from pets, and from the cinematic heart ache of life and death. And honestly, as much as I miss watching them swim around their tank happily, it's nice to have a little break from all the worry and stress that these little lives also brought with them.

This Quiet.

2012-01-05T16:40:00.003-05:00

In my afternoon, I began writing truth to quiet all the commotion–the crowded chatter of my mind a whirl with deadlines and to-do's. Almost finished, I was brought present by the sing-song quiet ringtone of my new phone; still an unfamiliar sound.

It was an almost stranger; the distant daughter-in-law of our former sweet neighbor Mary. She was calling to tell me that she passed away on January 01. And in our awkward quiet, she interrupted my processing of the truth with:

She always insisted that she would die in January. She always seemed to have it her way.

And we both laughed. Because she did, and that made knowing and neighboring her such a splendid treasure. She lived so loudly, bold in her age in wisdom–and born to die.

It Snows, Therefor we Build Forts.

2012-01-03T16:59:00.004-05:00

It's Belle's last day of Winter break.

And it's blizzarding something fierce outside.

Enter Nate's new and super Awesome Fort-building Christmas present, the Habitadule.

Watching the Craunlets design and build collaboratively in the living room, then explore and enjoy all the crevices and openings of their fort was just what our snowy morning needed.

Happy Snow Day!

NEW YEAR.

2012-01-02T14:57:00.001-05:00

We couldn't be readier for a fresh start around here. Team Craun packed and hauled itself a couple short hours down to visit friends in Columbus, and ring in the new beginning together. The adults old friends, and the children new -- but it was magical amounts of relaxation, laughs, and conversation. It was also a good reminder to be better at maintaining friendships. We tend to let the space between our visits grow far too long.

I am looking forward to 2012. I'm motivated to tackle more creative projects around the house, to get myself back into the studio and making prints with more frequency, and to entertain a lot more friends. We don't let enough people in; carve out enough time to share life and to celebrate relationships.

My two favorite Christmas presents this year are the two pictured above. A gorgeous plate for my kitchen wall art plate collection, and a stunning multi-stripe wood cutting board that will make a lovely cheese board. The plate was a surprise from my Mother-in-law, and the cutting board entirely handmade by a good friend. These two gestures reminded me how well we can be known. Two small pleasures. Both beautiful and functional. Shared.

Happy New Year! I hope it is one that is rich with friends and family, and grand in surprises and much creativity.

On Sewing, and First Stitches.

2011-12-28T13:41:00.002-05:00

I'm about to admit something terrible: Isabella has been on-and-off asking to learn how to sew for nearly a year. GASP! I know, what a sweet request. How could I not jump immediately on her interest, and the opportunity to sit by her side and teach her to stitch? Well, selfishness, I suppose. Partnered with a personal lack of patience and confident skill in that department, specifically.

Making the matter more tragic, I actually come from a family of quite talented seamstresses, and quilters; fanatics for needlework, knitting, and crochet. It's a shame really. I love sewing, I appreciate the handmade, and cherish all of my [several] family-made quilts, and potholders, and kitchen towels, dish rags, and washcloths, and bedding sets, slippers, scarves and curtains, even...

Belle's first piece has me absolutely beside myself. Boy, she was ready to learn! She focused all of her energies and summoned up an hour's worth of patience to create the most darling tiny pillow. She carefully measured and cut. She chalked out a small path for her first ever running stitch. Then she quickly went to learn the whip stitch, and danced it out neatly around the three open edges of her pillow. Ever gently, she stuffed it softly full, and closed it up.

Quietly on the couch in the warmth of the afternoon, threaded needle, steady stitching, her legs crossed and her tongue part way out in intense concentration. I looked at her with incredible undoing. The mental picture of my mother in this same position in so many of my memories. So comfortably. Just sewing like she always has. Even on her first attempt.

Thank you to Grandma Dubs, who let Bella sit at the machine with her nearly a year ago. Her first inclination and desire to learn. Thank you to Auntie A for the most charming book + sewing supply kit, complete with gorgeous awesome fabric that has Bella piqued and potentially hooked on cloth and thread. And to Grandma C for the super fantastic pint-sized sewing machine. For all the miles of thread to come, I am grateful to each of you for getting us started.

How lucky is the Little Miss [as well as myself ] to have such a sewing-supportive family.

It is Snowing. At Long Last...

2011-12-27T17:38:00.001-05:00

and Cleveland is sparkling magical.

Team Craun Christmas.

2011-12-26T08:34:00.002-05:00

It was a flurry of much getting ready and sharing Christmas Cheer.

The Craunlets getting quite excited on each approaching day.

It was a couple afternoons of wrapping presents.

And finally nestling them under the tree at dark.

It's ultimate arrival at dawn; presents opened in a flash.

Savored and celebrated with all-day-pajama-play.

Catch the play-by-play action here, on our updated picture pages.

Merry Christmas.

2011-12-24T09:25:00.000-05:00

Christmas weekend is here at last.

May your holiday be joy-filled and rich with family and friends. Merry Christmas from Cleveland!

Reasoning.

2011-12-23T13:42:00.000-05:00

Enjoying the quiet, and finding fragments of past preschool pages...

Wishing the Fish a Merry Christmas.

2011-12-23T13:20:00.004-05:00

As Clementine Bubbler and Finnegan Dasher approach their first Christmas, we decided to lavish them with a few presents. First, a little tank maid service:

She remains yet to be named, but I am quite anxious to stop calling her the sucker fish soon–it just doesn't seem nice at all. We also rolled out a fantastic blue backdrop to brighten up the view from the tank, and sprung for a few small plants to cheer things up a bit. I'm loving the bright red one pictured here.

With fresh water, a full plant + stone rearrangement, and a housekeeper, our two finned friends seem very merry indeed.

Making Merry.

2011-12-22T14:17:00.003-05:00

The magic. That bright twinkle in their believing eyes.

And the grand anticipation of the certain coming of Christmas.

H A P P Y.

2011-12-22T13:09:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday to my awesomely handsome husband. May this coming year be richly blessed, and marked with much joy and increased laughter.

I love this photo immensely. It's your confident intensity; your silent questioning. I have it printed out and leaning against my desktop monitor, so I see it when I am slipping down that rabbit hole of the Internets, and contemplating rash decisions...and silently–exactly as you give me this look in real time–you softly question both necessity and practicality. You coax me away from the edge of a self-created cliff, and speak reason into all the circumstances.

You focus my frenetic tendencies, and urge me to understand myself. To slow down. You help me carve quiet out of crazy. You distill me. With and because of you, I am happy.

Happy Birthday Dave!

On Celebrating like a Superhero.

2011-12-12T22:32:00.002-05:00

We built a cardboard Gotham City of sorts, and even hand-printed up miles of raster dot sky with interspersed comic clouds.

Our little Clark Kent waited for his friends to arrive.

So we could enjoy the tower of cupcakes, the Superman Jell-o parfaits, and even some Kryptonite candy sticks.

We broke out the party superballs, and the kryptonite glow stick necklaces, and shared them with our friends.

And we partied like Superheroes celebrating Nate, and the sheer excitement of turning FIVE.

Ready to Party.

2011-12-11T13:43:00.000-05:00

The babe is turning five, and we are all excited to celebrate!

Still Super[hero] Here.

2011-12-10T09:05:00.000-05:00

Birthday Party installation is well underway. I'll be happiest when the sky is hanging, but Nate's enthusiastic response to the first completed panels the other afternoon, was absolutely priceless:

Stun-faced, he exclaimed: Oh my Word! That's a lot of Dots!

For the Superhero.

2011-12-07T13:49:00.003-05:00

Team Craun is up to it's eyeballs in Superhero Party planning for the Nate. I cannot believe we are less than a week away from the babe turning FIVE. How has the time flown by so quickly?! What better way to celebrate than with a cape, and an entire city for that matter...

Once again, the Dave has his cardboard work cut out for him, as you can see his 2- and 3-dimensional corrugated construction plans in the perspective drawing above. Don't you just LOVE the Bella + Nate scale figures?! I could die from the attention to detail. And mind you, this is version three–the "pared-back" one. In the elevation view below, you can see the buildings continue from left of the central open space [above] and wrap around the corner to spill into the dining room where they transition back into 2-dimensions against the wall much as they do behind the living room seating.

Needless to say, the family has been all birthday work and talk all of the spare moments in this week, and we are ever excited to celebrate Nathaniel's big birthday. We submitted his Kindergarten application this week also, and we so very much look forward to all of the big events that the fifth year boasts.

For you Nate, I would print the SKY. Yards upon yards of raster-dot sky, in fact. But I digress, and I certainly need to get back to printing–if we are ever to finish.

Greener Grass.

2011-12-05T14:23:00.000-05:00

On a bit of a whim, I picked up some flat moss the other day, and decided to green up our large potted plant in the living room. I saw the idea here first, and absolutely loved the look. And darn it, I thought, why not just bring that greener grass over onto this side of the fence, or window rather.

I love how it caps the craggy soil and blankets the brown earth with soft piles of tiny green loops and curls.

Advent, rearranged.

2011-11-30T17:28:00.003-05:00

We've got our Advent boxes up again this year, but with a little change in their arrangement.

I thought it would be lovely to have a tree-shaped board behind them–secretly hoping to avoid pinning 24 little boxes to another spot on the wall once again–giving them a natural and cohesive backdrop. I laid out the boxes on our dining room table last week, and was amazed at how easily they shaped into a lovely tree.

The fabulous Dave measured, sketched, and then whipped out this spectacular plywood tree in his woodshop using a scrap piece from another project. All in an afternoon, our Advent calendar got an update. I love when projects work out like that.

Nice to see the reconsidered version of the usual. Tomorrow is Day #1, and the Craunlets couldn't be more excited about the promise of all those tiny sweets.

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T08:51:00.001-05:00

I decided to tackle the atrocious salt-n-pepper tchotchke cabinet this morning, to unearth the wide collection of shakers that have with time accumulated in the far reaches of the lower cupboard.

Turkey Salt-n-Pepper shakers inherited from Dave's Grammie, Ellie Craun.

These broken and twice-repaired [ironically, right at the necks] turkey beauties will be the lucky pair to grace our Thanksgiving table this year. I can't help but already laugh while thinking about each of us taking turns shaking a turkey over our feast.

Gratis, For this I am So Thankful XLI

2011-11-23T14:56:00.002-05:00

As we look forward to celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow, I thought I would pause for a bit and catch my breath to gather in a few good things that I am thankful for this week.

Though this last week has been hurried and busy, it was also chock full of beautiful life and blessing, and for that I am so thankful:

401. for the Craunlet's laughter, and slow-poke mostly stay-at-home days that school breaks afford. This morning we made art for almost two hours before bothering to get dressed. Perfect start to the day.

402. Sunshine. It's mighty cold out there yet, but the welcome light is warming and uplifting.

403. little surprises like metal shirt clips found in a forgotten pocket of my satchel. ones that read HANDSOME and VALUABLE on either side. I couldn't agree more. And I cannot stop turning it over in my fingers, smooth and sturdy, polished and true. I need to remember this more. Even if I have no idea where it came from. Possibly from a shirt of my handsome and valuable husband.

404. for our fabulous fold of friends, family, and colleagues that rocked out with us Sunday afternoon for our House Painting Appreciation Party. We are mighty blessed here. I am certain this was markedly one of my most favorite gatherings that we have ever hosted. A surely diverse group of people, centrally celebrating their collective carving out of their time and life to come alongside us. I was overwhelmingly encouraged and undone at how supported we are–even in this seemingly lonely season–and certainly reminded to keep building relationships that invest into people, to lift up our friends and family more often, and to serve others in seasons both slow and busy.

405. for gold glittery stripe-painted sticks all glued around a tall glass vase. How lively the height of the wild centerpiece was amongst our party spread.

406. for gilded paint brushes, hand metal-stamped with the word GRATIS. Our party favors for our guests. The joy of making things lovely and personal. All the glorious details of appreciation and celebration.

407. handmade paper food flags folded over popsicle sticks. Sheets of paper that I personally pulled at the Morgan Conservatory with the Artist Book course that I am teaching this semester at the Cleveland Institute of Art. It's such a pleasure to create with materials on hand, constantly using life's bits-and-pieces and making things beautiful.

408. hearing compliments spoken about my sweet growing-up-too-fast Isabella from many of her first grade colleagues at the Fall Festival that I was able to volunteer for in her classroom yesterday afternoon. Hearing other 6 year-old's speak encouragement into the witnessed life and choices of another 6 year-old is a profound and encouraging atmosphere.The hope of our future.

409. the sweet sibling relationship of Nathaniel and Isabella. My heart breaks to pieces with joy as I listen in on them creating games, and playing side-by-side in their rooms. Their friendship is a blessing beyond articulation.

410. for the manners which Nathaniel has been exercising this week in full force. For his compassion and generosity that are time-and-time-again convicting. His capacity to give is astounding.

H A P P Y T H A N K S G I V I N G !

Still Holding On.

2011-11-17T17:17:00.000-05:00

Somehow busy demands that our house move like clock work.

Nate has started making his bed this week. The Craunlets each cleared out and organized their desks, making them again useful for homework and preschool activities. We've managed to keep the dishes and clothes cleaned and put away for each day, and even tidied up the living room nightly.

Bills are being paid on time, mail is still being sent out and brought in with cheer, and there has even been a little room for some Craunlet catalog perusing and Christmas wishlist creating.

And it's been oddly refreshing to drop into our beds entirely exhausted. Like sleep is somehow better deserved in this season.

For the Love of Letterpress.

2011-11-11T14:57:00.000-05:00

YOUR EXHIBITION. Isn't that incredibly inviting?

Image Credits: We Love Letterpress

Seriously, what are you waiting for, this REALLY COULD BE YOUR EXHIBITION. It's a call for entries sort-of-thing, for an International Letterpress Exhibition that is slated for the Spring of 2012 at Zygote Press. April to be exact; what a lovely time to celebrate Letterpress.

I've already pledged for my wall space. Do you love or print letterpress? Check out the initiative here, and reserve yourself some wall space in the exhibition.

11.11.11 and Holding On.

2011-11-11T14:34:00.000-05:00

A Week of Mondays.

2011-11-09T17:06:00.011-05:00

I knew going into this week that it would be a brutal one. It's a less-than-ideal schedule full of several overlapping opportunities that couldn't be passed by. November filled up way back in September, when I was still optimistic about my Fall schedule. That's probably a good thing. Had I fully considered the life and household impact of teaching 4 different programs, at 3 different locations, to a diversity of age levels [from Kindergarten to College] on 4 of the 5 available weekdays, I might have worried. A LOT.

But here we are, most of the way through the first week of overwhelming overlap for the handful ahead of us, and we are holding on better than I anticipated. I think it was Monday. Thank you, Monday, for fully sobering us up to the insanity that November will be to our family schedule.

We woke up early–the new schedule for 3 days of the 4 committed to this craziness–and started to get ready and pack up for the day. To add to the insanity of our starting week, we scheduled a windshield repair for my car. Only, I had a demo scheduled for my college class that day, that required transportation, so the husband and I planned to switch cars.

Easy, right? Except it involves switching belongings, transferring car seats + parking passes. So, I move the husband's car into the driveway to ease the transitions, and park it right behind my car. We have 10 minutes to spare, and we are actually all ready. This means that Nate is my car, because I forgot to mention, that even though he felt better on Saturday, he decided to continue being sick on Sunday–AND MONDAY TOO–so he was coming to school with me. Which required MORE STUFF, to the tune of a bag full of activities, and the portable DVD player with Superman and Horton Hears a Who. All of this, and my teaching necessities, packed into husbands car.

OK, so we are all packed up, and both vehicles are ready. Isabella and Dave are in my car so he can drop her by school like usual and then get to work. Nate and all of our combined stuff is in Dave's car, and we are ready for our now half day.

I climb in, adjust the mirror, and then turn the key in the ignition GRRR RRRR RRRR RRRR. Every light on the dash flashes on in a panic, and then nothing. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. As in definitely and completely dead battery at 8 am in our driveway, and blocking in our working car kind of nothing. LOVELY.

This made certain the need to contact the Print Department's fabulously skilled TA to take on the demo I had scheduled for the afternoon. Thank goodness I had already called her the afternoon before, after Nate's illness cancelled our childcare plan for the day. Now I needed to tell her, that I would also be arriving late for the morning session of class.

Because next, Dave maneuvered my car out into the lawn and around his car, and we pushed with every tired muscle in our overworked-on-the-house bodies to move his impossibly heavy Volkswagen forward in our driveway.

To note, Isabella is now in full-fledged panic mode–still buckled into her car seat in my car–and worried to death that she will be LATE FOR SCHOOL. I reassured her that although I appreciated very much her deepest concerns, and her passionate commitment to punctuality, that this crisis actually affected her in THE VERY LEAST. As she is FIRST on the drop-off list, her day will remain absolutely NORMAL AND UNAFFECTED.

After much rearranging, extra driving and dropping off and picking up, Monday turned out OK. Nate got better by evening, and the battery replacement was a success in the afternoon.

Take that, WEEK. Team Craun is for the win.

Inches and Miles.

2011-11-07T19:31:00.002-05:00

After 20 combined working hours over the last two days, we made significant strides on the front face of our old and lovely stick built house. And we are truly seeing her begin to shine. The second color coat made the grays so deep and rich, and we finally sliced through them with creamy white horizontals [to be actual trim next Spring], tackled more of the rake painting, and the front face of the porch roof.

I cannot remember nicer weather in November. The weekend was made absolutely grand by the sunny warm temperatures and our outdoor productivity.

Assurances Fading.

2011-11-05T08:33:00.001-04:00

I think my work generally reflects our life and my response to the world in each of its seasons, but I am finding myself particularly enjoying the act of making my current work. I think it's the planning and the process both, as well as the final image that results. I think it's also the straightforward accessibility to the right now as well. I find them strangely encouraging and hopeful despite their portrayal of change, degradation and uncertainty.

I'm dropping off a triptych of these framed and progressively fading OK prints this morning, for a regional print invitational exhibition that will open in a few weeks. They hang lovely in their frames [thanks to the handy husband for his time and love in the woodshop, and all of his attention to detail in their finishing] and I am so proud of how I hinge mounted them, applying new tricks from my recent Matting and Framing Works on Paper workshop offered through the Intermuseum Conservation Association in Cleveland as part of this year's Octavofest programming.

Taking the paper hinge up and through a small slit in the mat board [hidden just below and under the top edge of the work] is absolutely ingenious, and profoundly simple! The hinge tension pulls upward onto the back of the board [fastened down by a horizontal overlapping tape], there is no folding, and potential for future slippage, and the work hangs confidently flat against the board on the front.

Local readers, come on out for the Opening Reception [Friday November 18 from 5-8 pm] and enjoy the work of 28 regional printmakers. More info here.

What Today Mostly Looked Like.

2011-11-04T16:43:00.001-04:00

Nater bug takes a sick day; at least he's got this spiffy new truck box.

In the Crevices of My Spare Time.

2011-11-04T13:50:00.003-04:00

I busted out my porcelaine paint pen yesterday during some art time with Nate at the dining room table. I drew up a storm on a small pile of white ceramic mismatched mugs from the resale shop.

The marker slides across the already-glazed ceramics effortlessly, and makes drawing a sheer and quick pleasure.

After drying overnight, and then baking in the oven for a short little while, they become permanent and dishwasher safe.

What a fun little collection for our coffee drinking.

Rock, Paper, Scissors.

2011-11-03T11:57:00.000-04:00

I found these gorgeous tiny pencil-top erasers in a local art supply store for ninety-nine cents, so I splurged on two sets. I'm thinking they would be lovely perched atop some round wooden dowels.

A beautiful variation on a fun little game, and something to keep in my pencil cup for when I need a studio break.

CSA, Week Twenty.

2011-11-01T16:11:00.006-04:00

Community Supported Agriculture. Local, In-season Food. Fresh.

WEEK DONE. As the Fall pace quickens around here, and we charge into the whirlwind of the holidays, we are sadly looking at the end of our weekly CSA with a bit of relief. It's been a delicious 20 weeks of much incredible flavor, food variety and exploration.

Week Twenty Round Up:

1 eggplant
5 purple beets
1 bunch white radishes
1 pint hot pepper butter
2 green bell peppers
1 head cauliflower
1 bunch curly purple + dinosaur kale
1 head broccoli
2 lbs carrots
1 bunch cilantro
1 buttercup squash
3 turnips
1 lb sweet potatoes
6 red apples

To celebrate the conclusion of our 20-week fresh + local food adventure with City Fresh, Dave whipped up a fabulously smooth and tasty Sweet Potato Pie!!! What a simple and heart-warming comfort food with fall flavor. So delicious, we found ourselves cutting slices even for breakfast.

Celebration Sweet Potato Pie

1/2 C butter, softened
1 lb sweet potatoes, cooked + mashed
1/2 C white sugar
1/2 C brown sugar
1/2 C milk, plus a splash more
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/8 tsp allspice
1 pie crust, unbaked

Mix butter, potatoes, sugar + milk until well blended. Add vanilla, eggs, and spices; mix well. Pour into pie shell. Bake in 350º oven about 1 hour, until set [a knife inserted into baking pie should come out clean]. Pie will puff up as it bakes, and sink down as it cools. Allow to cool on wire rack.

The Straight and the Curve of It.

2011-11-01T13:46:00.005-04:00

It's been a long road of many bends, and one that promises a long journey still ahead. We had a lovely quick doctor's appointment at the close of last week for another x-ray of Belle's curvy curve in her new-ish brace. The doctor bounded in with a big smile, and raised his hand to meet Belle's in the air for a high five. His first words, following the smart sound of their two hands coming together, were: We have a hold! The brace is holding!

Though we lost a lot of ground in terms of numbers, and degrees, [remember here] the scan we had on Friday heralds the same report as July. That overwhelmingly discouraging news then; how quickly it is good news now. There has been no movement in these four months. The curve certainly shifted and settled into a larger number than the cast allowed, but it is holding.

And Bella floated out of that appointment. For this next four months, her freedom still in tact. And that is also something, by the grace of God, that we are so thankful to be holding.

The Work Finished, and the Fun Beginning.

2011-10-29T14:08:00.000-04:00

The costumes were completed, and fit perfectly to the Craunlets just in time for Trunk-or-Treating at Isabella's school last night. This morning we headed out to the Metroparks in costume for a fun little photo session. Next on slate for the weekend, much family and friend time, and way too much candy.

Nathaniel in his full Great White Shark costume:

Isabella in her full Monarch Butterfly costume:

Closing In.

2011-10-28T15:04:00.000-04:00

Almost there. Only a few more details remain, including the final fit-out on the Craunlets. And the end of Costume Construction 2011 is finally within sight. I wish I could say the same for our living room floor.

So Many Little Pieces.

2011-10-27T17:42:00.000-04:00

It's magical how millions of bits-n-pieces of paper all piled up with gel medium can look so lush. And take so long.

It is most certainly going to be a very late night here.

Wings + Fins, In Progress.

2011-10-27T13:32:00.003-04:00

The costumes are taking shape, albeit slowly, and looking already fantastic. Dave's three-dimensional skill with paperboard is astounding. He's crafted and cut out the butterfly wings. He's finished the body which will wrap around Isabella's and close shut with a strip of ingenious latch cuts that Dave constructed [down the center front strip].

The wire + foam core antennae are finished and all fuzzied up with chenille stem, which we attached to the body for stability [as opposed to our originally planned head band].

Also in progress are the side fins for the shark.

On slate for today, much much decoupage! I've already begun the silver side fins...and they are looking lovely. Next, to sketch out the wing patterning, and break out the oranges and blacks for the butterfly.

Costumes, In Plan.

2011-10-25T20:35:00.002-04:00

At last, we have the master plan for our Craunlet Halloween costumes; Nathaniel will be a shark, and Isabella a monarch butterfly.

These decisions were made many moons ago, and we even zeroed in on the materials and construction details a couple weeks ago. As for actually beginning work, that waited until last night with Dave's gorgeous pencil work, and these lovely plans:

Team Craun is looking at a few late nights ahead, with many sheets of foam core, much tissue + crepe paper and copious amounts of liquid acrylic medium.

A Week[end].

2011-10-25T12:59:00.003-04:00

Our weekend was full of face-stretched smiles and playful abandon. It was a family embrace of Autumn at a local farm, with lots of laughter, good friends and much apple munching.

See more of our merriment, on our updated picture pages here.

Because I have Always Wanted to Try This.

2011-10-24T21:01:00.000-04:00

Sometimes the heart wants silly things. And on occasion, it sure feels good to entertain it's desires, even at the risk of a public display of silliness, like walking on sticks.

Amazingly, I'm pretty good on stilts. Who'd of thought?

CSA, Week Nineteen.

2011-10-21T11:13:00.004-04:00

Community Supported Agriculture. Local, In-season Food. Fresh.

It's almost over. I say that with a bittersweet sigh. Next week is number 20, the full run of the CSA season. It's been a mostly enjoyable fresh + local eating challenge, marked with only a handful of times when we found ourselves too busy to slow down and be inventive with meals, and actually grumbling with a burden of burgeoning produce storage threatening to overtake us.

We signed up for the full season with City Fresh in early June, and to ensure our faithful commitment, we elected to pay our weekly family share fully in advance. I'm glad we did; we enjoyed the fruits of a complete seasonal and local harvest, one that we might of bailed on had we been presented with a weekly choice and financial burden. It was a lovely expansion of our recipe repertoire, and offered the Craunlets many new and surprising food experiences. I would have never imagined that cabbage would become Bella's favorite vegetable, or how they would both devour Cauliflower Au Gratin, and beg for second helpings. Our food conversations were enriched, our preferences to squash varieties refined, and our time around the dinner table became one of exploration and adventure. For these things, and all the healthy habits that were encouraged and further honed by this experience, I am thankful. I pray our family meals are always filled with this much pleasure and variety, that the table is often graced with new foods, and always full-to-the-brim with lively conversation and much gratitude.

Week Nineteen Round Up:

1 bunch oregano

3 white radishes

3 purple beets

1 head garlic

1 lb sweet potatoes

1 red bell pepper

1 eggplant

1 bag mixed lettuces

1 bunch dinosaur + red russian kale

1 head cauliflower

1 sweet dumpling acorn squash

6 red apples

1 head broccoli

1 leek

1 pumpkin

In an effort to clear out our produce drawer yesterday morning, I whipped up a feisty delicious BORSCHT!! that bubbled away most of the afternoon fairly unattended [you won't find that advice in the recipe below] as is my preferred soup-making method. BORSCHT!! for dinner was a heavenly end to a busy and cool day. And all afternoon, and into the evening, I really enjoyed randomly shouting out BORSCHT!!

1lb. stewing beef, diced into small cubes

12 oz. beef consomme

1 C. water

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1/2 C. yellow onion, minced

6 small/medium purple beets, peeled + grated

several small new potatoes, peeled + diced

3 carrots, peeled and cut into small matchsticks

1/2 C. leeks, minced

2 C. cabbage, shredded

1 tsp. garlic

2 T. flour

2 T. lemon juice

1/2 tsp. pepper

2 tsp. dill weed

In a large pot, simmer meat in consomme and water 45 minutes or until tender. Stir in salt, onion, beets, potato, carrot + leeks. Cover and simmer 30 minutes until all vegetables are tender. Stir in cabbage, cook an additional 5-7 minutes. Combine flour + lemon juice in a small bowl until smooth, slowly add to soup. Stir until mixture thickens. Served piping hot.

We enjoyed ours scooped lavishly over wide egg noodles.

Finnegan Dasher Swims No More.

2011-10-20T13:06:00.002-04:00

Goldfish death is surprisingly slow and saddening; it was a long week here of pretty much waiting daily for him to float. Sweet Finn came down with what we think was fin rot, [never google sick goldfish, by the way] which is so terribly apropos to his namesake that it's heart-wrenching. Those glorious fins he had, our little fantail.

So Clementine Bubbler again swims alone in her big tank:

Aside from several curious questions that the Craunlets had about Finnegan's death, they are mostly eager to replace him, getting Clementine another companion.

Encouraging me after I expressed my concerns about Finn's lack of progress in getting better, Nate remarked casually:

It's OK Mom, Dad and I were already looking at the other Finnegans when we were at the pet store buying his medicine.

I guess it will be OK. And soon, we will have a Finnegan Dasher, Jr.

Most Awful and Best Days.

2011-10-19T11:33:00.000-04:00

She's clutching my hand in the morning, her face allover red from crying. This is my most awful day! she works out in between shortened breaths. All this weight and drama the result of getting dressed. The white sweater, or the pale blue one. The sky falling. And we are tripping over all the little pieces littering the ground.

And in that very afternoon, the little Miss is again holding my hand tight, and she is marching out into the parking lot with a beaming glorious smile. She announces boldly; this is my best day! The now blue sky is careening overhead dotted sweetly and perfectly with white clouds we haven't seen in days.

My mind is crowded with loss and disappointment, and the brevity of life. And she reminds me how a day can turn on a dime. How we can decide to change our perspective, even if we cannot change our circumstances. These only moments that we are afforded, each of them precious and rare–never repeated–they can either be our most awful or our best days.

Beautiful Normal.

2011-10-14T10:59:00.000-04:00

A lovely little paper escape, with a striped patio surround. Nate's frenetic ability to envision the planar construction potential of printer paper is astounding.

The Wieght of This World.

2011-10-14T10:34:00.004-04:00

Because quiet seems so far away.

We lost a dear colleague at Zygote this week. A generous heart, and a huge smile. The enormous hole he leaves in our shop; I cannot even begin to articulate. Younger than me; and the weight of this world became too heavy. And it is done. Forever. The sting is so sharp.

And this week has been abnormally busy for me. A lot of teaching, and meeting, planning, and creating, deadlines, lectures, and errands and the normal clutter of life all piled up. And the nagging crave for quiet persisting. For a few moments alone. Something post-Craunlets that is incredibly rare, like a precious gem. And I love their constancy, their joyful and relentless inquisitive chatter. The necessary precious all-the-time reminder of what's eternally important in life. The essence. But there's the occasional want to stop time–for just a moment–to catch my breath; to process the realities life presents us with. To put all the pain and loss into perspective, to rebuild and keep moving forward slowly, rejoining the pulls of life. To both appreciate and celebrate the new graces that each day affords. Our only today.

A good friend of ours has started blogging at Aaron himself, and the other day he shared this video. It's lovely and spot on, and beautifully articulate about how incredible it is to enjoy being alone.

Even if it seems a rare occasion right now–as this season affords me–alone is a sweet salve to the spirit, and it's irreplaceably restorative.

I am ever-ready for this weekend.

CSA, Week Eighteen.

2011-10-14T10:05:00.000-04:00

Community Supported Agriculture. Local, In-season Food. Fresh.

This week has been a want of time. A constant craving for the slowing down that Autumn is supposed to afford. Time to cook. Time to savor. Time to enjoy. And yet busy just keeps marching on. Next week there is a grand clearing in our schedules, a carving out, and creating of space. Something I am hungrier for than food.

Week Eighteen Round Up:

1 red bell pepper
1 bunch kale
1 cubanelle pepper
1 bunch radishes
1 lb sweet potatoes
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 bunch cilantro
1 head cauliflower
1 head broccoli
1 bulb garlic
1 heirloom tomato
1 head cabbage
1 bag swiss chard
1 bunch purple beets
1 yellow onion
1 buttercup squash
1 zucchinni
4 red apples

It's a bountiful week for our eighteenth family share of produce from City Fresh. Only two weeks left in the season's schedule, and it's another bittersweet ending. Oh, the sweet dualities of this season.

Hold On.

2011-10-13T14:27:00.003-04:00

I finished up a sweet little abecedary this week, just in time for the fourth Annual Abecedaria Exhibition, jog your memory of prior submissions here: third, second, first.

This newest one is titled hold on, and it's an alphabet book that enumerates the dualities of both hope and despair in the act of holding on. It's a small book, easy to hold in the hands with an exposed sewn binding. The alphabetically ordered folios quietly list out single words that relate poetically or physically to holding on.

A loud resolution of strength and not giving up.

Well timed with the season in which I find myself.

Happy and hopeful, but laced with a measure of uncertainty and loss.

Local Peeps, the book is on display at the Morgan Art of Papermaking Conservatory & Educational Foundation as part of the Abecedaria Project Exhibition. There's even a free and fabulous Opening Reception on Saturday [October the 15th] from 7-9 pm. Click here for more information.

Beautiful Normal.

2011-10-11T14:57:00.001-04:00

Craunlets taking turns being buried beneath a blanket of gold.

Sunny Days and Tall Ladders.

2011-10-11T12:50:00.002-04:00

This weekend was a whirlwind of sunshiny gorgeous weather and steeply leaning ladders. We tackled the first color coat on the front façade, planning in the two-tone gray base that will be separated by future horizontal trim.

We also reached way up, and leaned far out to tackle the priming and first color coat of the rake. The what?! The part of the roof that extends out over the gable. The now golden yellow mountain peak that cloaks the height of our gable all the way up to the tippity-pointy-top some thirty feet from the ground. Such a heralding of hope.

We took a quick break to unearth our Strawberry garden gnome from our now overgrown and entirely unattended patch, deciding that he could keep an eye on us, watch over the painting progress and bring us a measure of good cheer.

It was a bright and productive weekend both, and one that afforded a few friends and even some celebration. A robust work-and-play few days that also provided an exhausted start to the week.

Ready to Week[end].

2011-10-07T16:31:00.003-04:00

It's a warm weekend on slate for us, and we intend to take a lot of ground in our painting efforts on the outside of our house.

Local peeps, swing on over to help or stop by to cheer us on.

We scored the fabulous bucking bronco coin bank [pictured above] at our most recent Street Fair. Every time Nate inserts a coin, the horse whinnies and gallops–It's a hoot and a half! And now the little guy finally has his own bank; total score!

CSA, Week Seventeen.

2011-10-07T12:55:00.000-04:00

Community Supported Agriculture. Local, In-season Food. Fresh.

This week features a pumpkin! a couple gorgeous varieties of squash, and many hearty root vegetables; we are certainly welcoming in the Autumn harvest with wide arms. It is week seventeen of our fresh + local food adventure via City Fresh.

Week Seventeen Round Up:

1 lb sweet potatoes
1 bulb garlic
1 bunch pink radishes
1 bunch mint
1 red bell pepper
1 lb. creamer potatoes
1 cubanelle pepper
1 bag cooking greens
1 head cauliflower
1 bunch carrots
2 leeks
1 pumpkin
1 head broccoli
4 apples
1 swan white acorn squash
1 sweet dumpling squash

The carrots will likely be curried into a savory soup later in the week, and we hope to pack the squash full of brown sugar, butter + pumpkin seeds and enjoy them roasted on the grill. Autumn is such a delicious season!

Mistaken Compliment.

2011-10-06T13:00:00.004-04:00

Yesterday afternoon, as I was walking towards my car parked out on our street, a neighborhood passerby said what I thought was: I like your Scion.

I politely said thanks.

It was when she went on to further say that she has been trying to convince her husband to quit painting too, that I realized I might have mistakenly heard the first compliment. [And how did she know I've been trying to convince my husband to quit painting??] When she added, I was so glad when I saw that you guys decided to side, and she pointed at the front of our house, that I was certain. Certain that I had mistaken her first compliment, and even more certain that our work ethic teeters on insane.

She likes our SIDING.

Our days, and weeks, and months of hard work on the front [and sides] of our house. The stripping, and sanding, the filling and bondo work, the miles of silicone, the priming and cutting in of window trim. That grand [and still going] overture of time and love, that fully restored original wood lap of our 1880 home. That she likes, but she mistakes it for new siding.

I'm not sure if I want to dance in the streets, or just cry.

First Observation.

2011-10-05T16:55:00.000-04:00

Nate has made his first written field observation in the notebook within his explorer bag. It is so sweet.

I love how it's both matter-of-fact, and yet deeply poetic:

Leaves stay on the ground
and blow away.

Meet Finnegan Dasher.

2011-10-04T13:12:00.001-04:00

Well, here we have it. Clementine Bubbler got some spacious new digs this weekend, and a new friend. We welcome to the Team, Mr. Finnegan Dasher:

The Craunlets are beyond excited to have two fish, and I catch them often with their faces and fingers pressed against the glass watching their pets race and play in their new aquarium. Finn is a quick and spunky little fantail–constantly swimming in and around all the new plants and darting through the tunnel–instigating increased adventure with Clementine.

So far, their friendship has formed without a hitch. It was likely good timing to introduce a friend with a new and larger space, and one with certainly more interest.

This Big and Small World.

2011-10-01T17:30:00.004-04:00

One of the most contagious things that I have gratefully contracted from the Craunlets, is their insatiable wonder of the created world. I remember vividly the first afternoons I spent outside with Bella, as she fingered single blades of grass in sheer amazement and intrigue. I felt that very moment that she understood so well that this world was made for her, for all of us. Made for our enjoyment and appreciation. All of it, orchestrated beautifully and wonderfully, spreading out in front of us daily. The grand performances of life.

I don't think I ever fully savored the changing colors of Autumn, the bounty of buckeyes that befall our sidewalks, the tiny bird's eggs and found nests before I was forced to slow my pace, and stop in sheer amazement as a caterpillar crossed our path. Or as earthworms inched slowly towards a forming puddle in a rainstorm. Watched daily and eagerly as our tulips rise, and bloom in succession. The constant slow movements of life and beauty.

Most of our walks, bike rides, and trips to the playground bring home pockets-full of treasure for the nature bowl. Fueling this passion to explore and collect, the fabulous Auntie A whipped up the most delightful nature explorer bag for Nate [project idea and tutorial from Chez Beper Babe, here]. She even made two charming and perfectly coordinating field notebooks.

I gathered together a variety of containers and exploration accessories for the inside contents of the bag, and then splurged on a little red wooden Audubon bird whistle.

Nate was practicing his bird calls yesterday afternoon by the screen door. Whistling, waiting. Then whistling again. And then he came bolting to my side in amazement:

I called them! I called them mom, and they called me back!

The pleasure of this world through their eyes is so infectious.

CSA, Week Sixteen.

2011-09-30T13:20:00.003-04:00

Community Supported Agriculture. Local, In-season Food. Fresh.

Our fresh + local food adventure–through our weekly family share of produce from City Fresh–is rounding into it's last bend with only four weeks remaining on the schedule. I am told there will be two holiday opportunities, but otherwise, we are back to the market for our fresh produce. Nate and I scoped out a local fresh market this morning, and we were delighted + excited by the overwhelmingly regional selections and prices both. Nate was whipping through the few aisles enthusiastically identifying zucchini's and naming squashes by their varieties. He nearly brought tears to one of the owner's eyes, and she offered him a job on the spot. I think we have found our new grocer. The commitment to local produce, meat, and bakery items is unparalleled by any of our other options. What great timing! We were just beginning to mourn the closing out of our CSA season.

It's officially Autumn here, the breezy cool days have begun to demand savory warm soups, and many root vegetables of all colors. Though our schedule couldn't be much busier, it's a pulling in, and a simmering down kind of food season for our family. We've begun sharing thanks around our dinner table, as part of our blessing. It's a sweet nightly surprise to see what the Craunlets lift up in thanks. I am amazed that–though it is often small and selfish pleasures that they share–there are evenings when they are thankful for having a warm home, for fresh food and not knowing hunger, for family near and far, health and provision. Things that seem much too big for them, but as I am reminded, not too big for their hearts.

Week Sixteen Round Up:

1 flamingo pepper
4 apples
1 bunch beets
1 poblano pepper
1 bunch cilantro
1 head broccoli
1 red bell pepper
1 lb sweet potatoes
1 bunch carrots
1 bunch white radishes
1 lb green beans
1 bunch curly kale
1 eggplant
1 pint grape tomatoes
1 red tomato
1 green tomato
1 bunch chives
1 buttercup squash
1 watermelon

Tonight's dinner is already bubbling away in the soup pot. It's a hearty peanut butter, sweet potato + acorn squash soup. It's warmed with a bit of fresh ginger, a good dash of ground coriander, and a pinch of both salt and pepper. It smells like autumn in here. I cannot wait to share our dinner table and break bread with friends tonight. It's a sweet small family joining ours, and the promise of an evening of much conversation and laughter.

Beautiful Normal.

2011-09-29T13:43:00.001-04:00

The surface of Nate's desk; rolled drawings and a Superhero figurine.

For the Birds. 802, and OK.

2011-09-27T14:41:00.005-04:00

Last week I carved out a few evening hours to take a fresh and fast ceramic decal class taught by the fabulous Kristen Cliffel that was offered at Art House, only a handful of blocks from my house. I came armed with a few simple images on my flash drive. An OK stamped print in the loose shape of a tornado controlled by a grid, and a scattering of birds that I photoshopped into different scales and reflections. I had no grand plan other than to learn the decal process, and to hopefully make a fabulous plate. I have this thing for plates. I was mostly interested in seeing imagery that I use in print translate itself in a print-like application to ceramics. It seemed like it would be a playful extension. And it was. More than I could have imagined.

It's a simple process, one that's unbelievably quick and rewarding. Pulling your wet and thin image gently across the release paper, sliding and situating it ever so gingerly onto the waiting [factory-glazed] ceramic plate or tile...I couldn't stop at just one! I was delighted to see my fascination with bird imagery get more playful, due to the experimental aspect of this new process and my flock of more than a dozen little birdies begging for use. I culled some text decals from the "free pile" to undertone the playfulness with a little more urgency and a touch of sadness.

I picked up my finished and food-safe fired pieces this morning, and to hold them in my hands–all smooth and permanently adhered, images burned forever on the plates–I am over the moon! Here we are, at post eight hundred and two; weary and worn, overworked, but yet comfortable, hopeful and full of life and laughter at the same time. These constant dualities punched out here on Chatter in a regular rhythm; some more than eight hundred times. And everything is OK. And I am still making amidst the constant whirlwind.

Color. At Long Last.

2011-09-25T19:16:00.000-04:00

The front façade of the house is fully primed. And her windows have their first coat of color. COLOR!! Already, I am absolutely smitten. She is becoming quite the beauty.

We finally updated our house picture pages too, click on over here to see a fuller view of all our progress. Slow and steady.

A quite productive weekend.

CSA, Week Fifteen.

2011-09-23T15:05:00.005-04:00

Community Supported Agriculture. Local, In-season Food. Fresh.

More apples. Can anyone say applesauce? My father-in-law has lent me his food mill, and after one use [for our fabulously divine peach butter] I am head-over-heels smitten. I want one all for my own. But for now, this borrowed one is working splendidly.

This week's family share from our City Fresh CSA is a mix of treasures on the cusp of two seasons. Lots of colorful root veggies, a cantaloupe and a deliciously full head of broccoli.

Week Fifteen Round Up:
4 apples
1 bunch Thai Basil
1 bunch lemon balm
1 handful radish micro-greens
1 tomato
1 pint tomatillo
1 lb sweet potatoes
1 bunch carrots
1 eggplant
1 bunch white radishes
1 head broccoli
1 bag swiss chard
1 cubanelle pepper
1 bell pepper
4 ears corn
1 cantaloupe

The week was made sweeter also by another trip to our local raspberry farm, and two heavy quarts which we enjoyed by the handful, and also processed into some rosy delicious jam. I know, more jars of sugary sweet preserved fruit to put down. I'm serious about getting ready for winter, and equally serious about putting off all of the pestering demands of work right now, and instead standing over a bubbly simmering pot of molten fruit. This week, I also blame a good friend who gave me a huge canning pot on Monday. The pot insisted it be tried immediately. And raspberry jam seemed a perfect fit. When the week of clouds and rain broke yesterday, we seized the sunny opportunity, and picked two baskets full of sweetly plump rubies.

In the coming cool-temperatured week, we are hunkering down to fix up a hearty soup that will combine our overstock of sweet potatoes and acorn squash. A soup that richly calls also for creamy peanut butter. Did I mention how much I love Autumn meals?

In Progress.

2011-09-21T20:50:00.002-04:00

The constant clearing and re-claiming of space; this is what occupies the studio desk this week.

Moving forward; making work. A finished triptych of prints, and a small artist's book in progress.

Feels good to be hitting a stride as we move again towards Fall.

Poster Children; Still on Project.

2011-09-20T11:00:00.004-04:00

This is the epitome of house painting weekends around here.

Craunlets climbing far higher on ladders than I would have otherwise allowed, prior to the insanity that has set in due to the relentlessness of this endeavor. So yeah, here they are smiling, perched on either side of an A-frame ladder, with only half an eye on them.

Honestly, I am so desensitized to seeing them monkeying around on our lower ladders, that this now-normal situation wasn't even the least bit concerning. I wasn't an ounce worried about their potential 6-foot fall to the stone path. In fact, I was way too preoccupied keeping my wits together whilst balancing on the very tippy-top of the fully extended 28-foot ladder I was using to reach up to the very heights of our front gable with my paintbrush.

That's a daunting high. And worry not, dear readers, it's a ladder on which the Craunlets are not permitted to play.

This weekend's huge accomplishment, you ask? The front façade is fully primed up in gray, and she looks lovelier than ever.

For the Love of the Crunch.

2011-09-16T14:02:00.004-04:00

We hosted a friend and her two babes this morning for a casual playdate. I made coffee. And she baked and brought over these fabulously crisp and delicious biscotti.

They are chocolate, and hazelnut, and just the right amount of crunch.

They've been a perfect accompaniment to this chilly cool day, and a second cup of coffee.

And they have me thinking–as much as I adore all things crunchy, sweet, and baked from scratch–I should really tackle biscotti.

CSA, Week Fourteen.

2011-09-16T11:34:00.004-04:00

Community Supported Agriculture. Local, In-season Food. Fresh.

Maybe it's the sudden change in the weather; we are all of a sudden hungry for hugely filling and warm meals. For extra and heaping helpings at the dinner table. For the variety of color we love on our full plates, and this week's timely family share from City Fresh deliciously does not disappoint. Further, it even included the sweet surprise of a sunflower in addition to the wide mix of produce. Team Craun is loving our Cleveland CSA.

Week Fourteen Round Up:

4 apples
1 head broccoli
1 bunch carrots
1 bunch cilantro
1 head purple curly leaf kale
1 cubanelle pepper
1 eggplant
4 peaches
1 flamingo bell pepper
1 heirloom bell pepper
1 lb. sweet potatoes
2 slicing tomatoes
1 cantaloupe
1 bunch chives
1 pint concord grapes
1 banana hot pepper
1 bunch radishes
1 bag spinach
1 acorn squash
1 sunflower

Hungry for a hearty and warming soup, and eager to use up several remnants of last week's CSA share, I whipped up a fabulously early fall soup for dinner. All culled from the kitchen shelf and refrigerator, using up the last bits of this-and-that we had on hand. The very best kind of soup. And perfect for our chilly Autumn temperatures.

Everything We've Got Creamy Corn Chowder

4 T butter

1 white onion, diced

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp cracked black pepper

2 stalks celery, diced

6 ears sweet corn, boiled + sheared from cob [approx. 4 C]

4 C potatoes, peeled + diced

5 C Vegetable broth

1 ham steak, trimmed + diced

2 tsp fresh thyme

3 T flour

1 C heavy cream

1 C whole milk

Cook onion and celery in butter until tender but not brown in a large stock pot. Add potatoes, corn, vegetable broth, salt + pepper. Bring to a boil, and reduce to a good simmer for 15 minutes. Combine heavy cream and whole milk, whisk in flour until well incorporated. Pour into soup pot, and stir to combine. Add ham steak and thyme, and return soup to a gentle boil. Simmer for an additional 8-10 minutes until soup is slightly thickening and hot through.

Fabulous with toasted fresh bread and garnished with a sprig of fresh thyme.

This Normal.

2011-09-15T13:58:00.001-04:00

Loving the return to days with Nate. His bear personality, both ferociously intense at times and yet passionately cuddly.

And his process at play is so different from his other half. Miss all-in-order and a-place-for-everything. [Seriously, who does a 100-piece puzzle like this?!] The days alone with one help me to savor the sweetness of each of them. Uniquely different, and perfectly themselves.

On Bread and Slather.

2011-09-15T13:50:00.006-04:00

It's when the chaos begins to crescendo. I crawl away from all of the demands, and gravitate to the kitchen. To the room of delicious comfort. To the chopping, and peeling, the bubbling down, and constant stirring. The distracted focus shifted from work to a simple paying attention to process. The sweet fix of stress.

And it's often justifiably something that I have long wanted to learn or accomplish. Yesterday was a bender of more water-bath canning. And a long desired goal to learn how to make fruit butters, and jams. It's an urge to make in abundance, and a compulsion also to escape.

The lids popping into their seal has become an addictive sound in my kitchen. The towers of jars preserved, a small obsession and storing up of future food pleasure for enjoyment whilst in the anticipated throes of winter. Opening up a jar of local treasure, and remembering its season long past, and the delicious flavors saved. It seems so nostalgic, and so long passed to our experience and understanding. And it's the food foundation I ~~want~~ insist upon for the Craunlets.

I'm in the kitchen again today–work at wait once more–whipping up a large tub of french boule dough. Enough for four on-demand loaves for the next several days. What else could support our already-opened jars of concord grape jam, and peach butter?

Recipes here: concord grape jam + peach butter. Both are fabulous; I assure you.

In the Middle of This.

2011-09-13T20:58:00.003-04:00

A small in-progress artist book that's currently on my studio desk.

And my brief but decisive mantra of the moment.

Week[END].

2011-09-09T13:38:00.001-04:00

We seem to have been bitten by the Fall hunker-down bug today, and we are furiously cleaning and organizing and sorting and storing more than we ever have in our best Spring cleaning overtures.

We're on a roll over here, and I hope the energy lasts through the weekend, as we whip this house back into shape.

CSA, Week Thirteen.

2011-09-09T13:26:00.006-04:00

Community Supported Agriculture. Local, In-season Food. Fresh.

A bountiful mix of fruits and vegetables in this week's family share from our Cleveland CSA, and a certain leaning towards Autumn with the acorn squash, sweet potatoes and concord grapes.

Week Thirteen Round Up:

1 acorn squash
4 apples
1 bunch cilantro
1 eggplant
1 pint concord grapes
1 bunch kale
1 head green leaf lettuce
7 okra
1 bunch oregano
1 patty pan squash
4 peaches
1 green bell pepper
1 orange med/hot pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
2 lbs red skin potatoes
6 ears sweet corn
1 lb sweet potatoes
1 bag swiss chard
2 red tomatoes

Finally putting the piles of apples to use, Nate and I whipped up some terrifically delicious applesauce. It's infused with lemon peel and cinnamon, and is slightly sweetened with brown sugar [recipe here]. We both agreed easily upon licking our stir spoons clean, that the batch was certainly fabulous, and worth all of our time coring and chopping and cooking and stirring and mashing.

I've been meaning to attempt canning for ages, and a big pot full of bubbling hot applesauce seemed a good place to start. So–on a bit of a whim–I decided to give it a go. We filled up four freshly cleaned pint jars, immersed them in a boiling water bath for fifteen minutes, and then placed them on a wire rack to cool. Less than twenty minutes passed, and I heard four pops as the seals settled down. I'm still amazed it was so simple. And I'm darn delighted to have something completely homemade and local on the pantry shelf.

Of course, now I'm resolved to turn this week's concord grapes into jam. If Summer was a pie bender, I am certain already that Autumn promises to be a jam and canning fest!

Gratis, For this I am So Thankful XL

2011-09-08T14:56:00.008-04:00

I'm a total Roman Numeral fail. It seems in digging through the archives, I managed to skip over XXII and plunged straight to XXIII without a blink, somewhere way back between September and October of 2010. Oops. It's been a while since I punched out a gratis post here, though I've plenty to be thankful for. Today seemed like a good day to pick it up again.

I very nearly numbered today's post as XXXX, until my fabulously smart sister informed me it would properly be numbered XL, as in subtract ten from fifty sort-of-thing. But XL turns out to be quite apropos–beyond correct–as this post is now punching itself out to become an EXTRA LARGE one...

It's been a nearly-coming-unglued kind of summer, and all week the temperatures have dipped way low. They've been accompanied with gray skies and frequent rains. And they are sufficiently drenching everything. The windows have been all-the-way open, and the smells and sounds have been so invigorating. Autumn is coming. Indeed. It is coming, and this Summer must relent.

381. I am thankful for abundant provision. I am undone that we have the luxury of a warm home, and the pleasure of fresh and healthy foods for meals.

382. I am thankful for the Dave. The steadfast and hardworking husband. My very best friend. And I am this week pointedly thankful that his finger is on the path to full recovery, and he is at last back on duty for the Craunlet nightly baths!

383. I am thankful for Skype. For hour-long free video phone calls to my parents, where the Craunlets chatter away and play show-n-tell with the Grand Dubs. It's so close to actually having them over, and just sitting around the dining room table.

384. I am thankful for Isabella's first grade teacher. She's exactly who I had wanted for her Kindergarten teacher, though she is just right [and admittedly, probably even better] as her 1st grade teacher, as it has worked out.

385. I am thankful for my last year of days with Nate. We are hitting preschool pretty hard this year, and I am enjoying his personality and playful spirit. Just today, we raced to the top of the stairs for nap time. His win was followed by a waterfall of his cacophonous laughter.

386. I am thankful for friends and family that have carved out minutes, hours, and days to come alongside us in our house-painting endeavor. I am thankful also for the fruits of this hardest ever work, that we are beginning to see out there as we get to more painting. This house that is more and more becoming our home. It feels so rewarding to care for something so correctly, even if it is the longest and hardest route. Restoring this house has been restoring me this Summer, and for that I am unquantifiably thankful.

387. I am thankful for lost teeth, and hugely round smiles with a row of empty on the bottom. I am thankful for the sweet family heirloom pillows that were handmade and given to the Craunlets by a distant family member; they perfectly hold a tiny tooth, and their small prize from the Tooth Fairy.

388. I'm thankful for holiday weekends, and days packed full of adventure and relaxation resulting from the simple vacation-shifted perspective of having more time to do these things than normal. Why do we let normal invade our week days, anyway?

389. I'm thankful for the simple pleasure of making food. For dicing up a fresh garden salsa, cooking down a huge batch of applesauce from local apples, processing peanut butter, and mixing up fresh dough for bread. Man alive, food can be so delicious to the belly and the spirit.

390. I'm thankful for this life adventure. For my Team Craun, and our awesome two Craunlets. I cannot imagine it better differently.

391. I'm thankful for my many jobs. For the opportunities to make and teach print and book arts. For the late night design gigs with my husband, and the piles of to-do notes and phone-call lists that litter my physical desk top.

392. I'm thankful for second-run movie theaters, and our family ticket total of $6 to see the new-ish movie of Winnie the Pooh. And I am thankful for its beautiful sweet story of friendship, loyalty, and perseverance. And the many funny lines and scenes that even the Craunlets' giggles could not refuse.

393. I'm thankful for deliciously dark and locally roasted coffee. I could sip on their Full Moon blend all day.

394. I'm thankful that my first attempt at water-bath canning seems to have yielded four successfully sealed pint jars of applesauce. Having no official equipment makes me all the more excited. Though I'd love to go crazy investing in these lovely canning jars by Weck.

395. I'm thankful for the Craunlet's insatiable hunger for learning. And I'm thankful for their current research projects on butterflies, and sharks, and for the charming books that they are creating to illustrate their learning.

396. I'm thankful for crossed-off to-do lists. I have lots of them this week, and it feels incredibly triumphant!

397. I'm thankful for near-daily rest time, and the consecutive hours of quiet that it provides my afternoon.

398. I'm thankful for our first pet's resiliency and resolve to thrive. Clementine Bubbler has survived many water changes, and has most recently endured a cracked fish bowl, water leak, and a cloudy rock avalanche.

399. I'm thankful for the sweet surprises of the post. For all the junk, and bills, it's the lovely crayoned postcards and handwritten letters that reason the mail's existence.

400. I'm thankful for 400. For my brilliant resource on Roman Numerials, and for catching my error, and finally catching up to the numbers.

I Nominate my Mom and Dad.

2011-09-07T10:03:00.005-04:00

It was a quiet but quick lull in the family meeting; the topic of needing someone for the 2012 Family Reunion Games was raised. The rain fell around the picnic pavilion as we reviewed the minutes of last year's reunion, parsed out the new and old family business, and voted in positions for the coming year. And in a stroke of amazing confidence, Isabella rose and spoke: I nominate my Mom and Dad. History wrote itself down immediately, the youngest to impart a nomination on family record. Some almost 80 years of family reunions. This quiet one comfortable in a crowd.

And it is written, Team Craun shall now host the games at next year's reunion. Her nomination was quickly secured by a second–made certainly official–as most sat still astonished, it was jotted down into the minutes.

It was a holiday weekend full of all sorts of familiar adventure. Reunion games of the old fashioned style. Much pot-luck feasting. Spider swinging on the playground; these sweet Craunlets growing up, and growing closer. These dear friends.

The weekend also afforded an overnight stay at a hotel, indoor swimming and a buffet breakfast. It was a relaxed fun knitting together; a fresh breath of life blown into our little family. And a certain slowing and cooling that heralds the very beginnings of approaching Autumn.

Week[END].

2011-09-02T16:42:00.000-04:00

It is here at last. And we are slowing down to enjoy our long weekend.

It will involve much relaxation, droves of family, and feasting on all sorts of pot-lucky nibbles. The very best kind of weekends, in my opinion.

CSA, Week Twelve.

2011-09-02T11:06:00.001-04:00

Community Supported Agriculture. Local, In-season Food. Fresh.

It seems we are entering the teaser weeks -- the ones that promise occasional cooler temperatures and hints of impending Autumn, but can at the very next turn serve up a handful of sweltering days for a hazy and humid heatwave. There were mornings this week that were absolutely chilly, and the cool breeze a sweet welcome to a busy day. And today, we cautiously opened the door to a heavy veil of warmth and the promise of rising temperatures and approaching thunderstorms.

The same frenetic mix is noticed in this week's City Fresh share also -- hello, delicious acorn squash. We plan to stuff you full with maple sugar, and sunflower seeds and then roast you on the grill. But we are still loving all the tomatoes and peppers, you will once again be diced into a tasty garden salsa for our holiday weekend festivities.

Week Twelve Round Up:

2 slicing tomatoes
1 eggplant
1 head red butter crunch lettuce
2 cucumbers
1 red bell pepper
1 bunch beets
1 med/hot pepper
2 lb. red skin potatoes
4 peaches
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 pint yellow roma tomatoes
5 okra
1 handful micro greens
1 bunch basil
1 bag assorted cooking greens
1 bunch mint
1 acorn squash
5 ears sweet corn

With last week's peaches, and our recent raspberry-picking, I whipped up a fabulously tasty pie. And I can attest once again that pies fix everything! The first two slices of this one were enjoyed well after dark last night, whilst sitting on the kitchen counter and sharing a glass of wine and quiet conversation with the husband. And the Craunlets, they enjoyed their first slices for breakfast this morning, as a Thank Goodness it's Friday surprise!

Summer Peach and Raspberry Freedom Pie

Crust:

All-butter double pie crust

Filling:

2 C fresh raspberries

4 C fresh peaches, pitted, peeled + chopped

3 T [heaping] cornstarch

3/4 C sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 T lemon juice

1 tsp lemon zest

1 T butter, cut into small pieces

Roll bottom crust 1/8" thick into a circle on lightly floured parchment to 13" diameter, fit into 9" pie plate, and trim edges around pan. Set aside in refrigerator to chill 30 minutes.

Gently toss fruit with lemon juice and zest. Whisk to combine dry ingredients, and gently mix into fruit mixture. Pour into prepared crust. Dot pie filling with the small pats of butter. Roll out the top crust, and cut vent holes for baking, and place on top of pie filling sealing the edges with fork tines. Trim, and place pie in refridgerator for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 425º and line bottom with aluminum foil to catch any bubble over.

Bake pie for 40 minutes, until browned and bubbly. Let cool on wire rack.

Sweet Local.

2011-08-31T13:16:00.005-04:00

On a bit of a morning whim, Nate and I headed out to pick a quart of raspberries at a local berry farm.

I think we might do this weekly for the season -- what a sweet delight! The patches were heavy with deep red berries, and it was such a lovely quiet start to the day. We slowly combed a row of the patch together, talking and moving the berry basket along with us in the grass.

And we even scooped up some local raw honey; a golden treat gathered from Cleveland bees.

If we can refrain from eating up all of the berries this afternoon, I'm hoping to whip up a raspberry peach pie. I'm on a bit of a summer pie kick around here; they are so delicious with all of this in-season fresh + local fruit.

To Those Who Make.

2011-08-30T13:58:00.002-04:00

Cleaning the studio today. Making space for more making.

A small new piece on a wood panel, part of my endurance stamping series. Pondering security, control and withstanding. It's perched in front of a fabulously large screen-printed poster: Good things come to those who make. And is beset behind a small ceramic sculpture from a friend.

In Order.

2011-08-30T11:07:00.001-04:00

It's the first frenetic week of the Fall semester. And I'm actually faring alright with all the chaos and change, reduced hours of sleep, and crazy rushed morning routines.

And oddly, I am longing so very much for an outdoor clothesline. We've had the perfect line-drying weather this week; breezy and sunny skies in the mid 70s. It makes me want to turn the music loud, hang lemony wet clothes by wood clips just above the freshly shorn grass. And I want to overindulge on freshly baked blueberry pies with vanilla ice cream.

Like the one I baked up just a couple weeks ago for a quiet opening at Zygote Press remembering and honoring one of our friends. And a long overdue pie that he had joked about on the review of my MFA thesis show. Standing under a print that referenced 4 and 20 blackbirds from Sing a Song of Six Pence, asking where the pie was, casually cheerful but with a certain undertone of grumpiness.

Don't pies fix everything?

Summer's Promise Blueberry Pie

Crust:

All-butter double pie crust

Filling:

6 C fresh blueberries, rinsed + stems removed

1/2 tsp lemon zest

1 T lemon juice

1/4 C flour

1/2 C sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

2 T butter, cut into small pieces

Egg Wash:

1 egg

1 T heavy cream

Roll bottom crust in 1/8" thick circle on lightly floured parchment to 13" diameter, fit into 9" pie plate, and trim edges around pan. Set aside in refrigerator to chill 30 minutes.

Gently mix berries, sugar, flour, cinnamon, lemon zest + lemon juice in a large bowl. Transfer to chilled crust. Dot with cut butter pieces. Roll out top crust, cut vent holes with cookie cutters, or slit later with knife, and place gently on top of blueberry filling. Press to contact firmly around edges of crust, joining top + bottom layers. Trim, and then crimp with tines of a fork to seal.

Return pie to refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill. Preheat oven to 425º, line bottom shelf with aluminum foil to catch bubble-over.

Whisk egg + heavy cream [or milk] together and brush on top of pie. Place pie on middle rack in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 350º and bake 35 additional minutes until juices have thickened and are a hot bubbly mess.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

You Make Me So.

2011-08-26T16:30:00.005-04:00

I am ready for the weekend. For the miles of house-painting ahead. For the friends that are coming alongside us. For never quitting; for keeping on. And staying encouraged. For working all the available hours of the sun. Ready for the last weekend before the fury of our Fall academic calendars resume; the ones that promise to make us so...

Print on left is by Terry Schwarz, print on right is by Brooke Inman.

CSA, Week Eleven.

2011-08-26T09:25:00.004-04:00

Community Supported Agriculture. Local, In-season Food. Fresh.

Back from Playcation, we were all very eager to pick up this week's family share of produce from our Cleveland CSA yesterday evening. At week eleven, we are now more than half way through our 20-week local food adventure with City Fresh.

Week Eleven Round Up:

1 zucchini
1 bunch cilantro
8 apples
3 tomatoes
1 cucumber
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 head red leaf lettuce
4 peaches
1 bag new potatoes
1 head cabbage
1 bunch dill
1 bag purple, white + green beans
1 eggplant
4 pickle cucumbers
1 yellow summer squash
1 bunch kale
1 quart assorted peppers
1 red bell pepper
8 ears sweet corn

Out celebrating our Anniversary, and then jumping town for our annual Playcation--we deferred our missed two shares to a friend. And lovely as she is, she documented the loot in list and photos [thank you Sarah!] so I could keep a full season record.

Glad to have our fridge and counter-top restocked with fresh produce, we grilled up four of the ears of corn last night, and they were certainly the most sweet and tender of the season we have had yet. We have two quarts of tomatoes of all variety that we harvested from our garden, and with our now surplus of peppers, and the bunch of cilantro, we are up to much chopping this weekend for some garden fresh salsa.

Don't Thank Me Now.

2011-08-25T13:47:00.004-04:00

It was the weekend pictured below, now a handful of weeks past--but I remember it keenly. The reassuring mess of our progress. Somehow all of these colors and in-progress pieces of our house all piled up on the front porch being strangely encouraging.

We were thanking the last of our friends who were leaving, Dave shook his hand as he expressed his gratitude for the hours of heat-scraping paint removal that he had generously given to us, way up on a ladder on the side of our house. It was then, following our expressed appreciation, that he turned and remarked:

Don't thank me now, thank me when I have been over half a dozen times, and the job is done.

These few words; a sweet balm to our weary and worked spirits. Certainly the most generous and encouraging string of words that have been spoken to us in this entire endeavor. I want that attitude. I want that compulsion and commitment to friends and family to come alongside them for the duration. To partner with them in facing the things ahead of them that threaten to swallow them up whole.

We pack up our efforts every night, and look at the swaths of still-to-do and it is so incredibly easy to get overwhelmed and discouraged. And this friend, he knew that. He worked alongside us. He experienced it. That aching wish that more could get done. But further, he committed to keep helping. To keep going.

Playcation, in a Nut Shell.

2011-08-24T20:04:00.001-04:00

This picture totally cracks me up.

It is the very epitome of this year's Playcation, captured so effortlessly. Tons of just hanging out and letting our legs dangle on the patio swings and chairs. It was a constant rest made mandatory from the nonstop daily adventures, but so completely rewarding to be afforded the many consecutive late afternoons and evenings to just chill.

We updated our Picture Pages with the highlights of our Playcation, you can get a glimpse right here.

More Firsts.

2011-08-24T10:15:00.001-04:00

It's unbelievable to me that we are back-to-school again, and facing now the first grade with our very first babe. This growing-up-way-too-fast little lady, Isabella on her first day of first grade:

I love her facial expression and posture in the second shot. It's so Isabella, and it came right after her cheesy posed-picture smile on the left. Seamlessly, and so her.