How to Begin the New Year on the Right Foot!

We began our New Year... with a trip to Montauck State Park, and a 2 1/2 mile hike through the hills along the river.  The whole gang, Mama, Papa, and 6 little ducklings made our way up and down, back and forth, in, over and around the various obstacles, and 2 hours later... we arrived!  This first shot is of Kendra, showing off her handstand whilst blending in with the background...

.... our train of hikers heading up a hill...

 Kendra takes a Zen-ful moment to rest by the water, seated on a large flat stone that jutted out into the stream...

This was nearing the end of our hike, I laid on the ground for this shot... just looking for a different perspective, and ended up catching a great shot of sunlight...

Long view of the river from one of the highest points on the trail..

Lovely play of light on the water...

... a nearly perfect shot of reflection... just the right proportions, color, light... one of my favorites!

Spooky light coming through the trees....

another great capture of light, streaming through the trees onto the river...

Timothy and Kendra, on the climbing tower, where we stopped to drink our flask of hot English Breakfast tea, and eat organic chocolate... before loading up to return home...

Just behind the climbing tower and swings, at the rest area, is an enormous rock face, that Timothy braved, to climb out onto a ledge and rest... just happened to catch this shot of him... he looks so small, not just because of the distance away, but because, the rock face is so very high...

A wonderful day was had by all.... wee fellow in the Ergo, trading from Mama to Papa's back, the the rest meandering about here and there along the trail, looking for good walking sticks, bartering swaps for each others sticks, finding interesting rocks and fungus and critters...  Just the best way to detach from all the holiday hustle and bustle... I wish there were some way to bottle that feeling, that connection with nature, family, and the creator... all at the same time...

...time for catching up

Shots of my peeps at the holidays... of course we have 4 wee diddles that cannot have their photo published, so the usable photos are limited.  Dana, 18, attending RTI for the Firefighter/EMT program.  (w/Ethan in the background)

Ethan, now 21, and the new barrista-trainee for our local "Giddy Goat Coffee House"... planning to attend a local college next fall....

DH stealing a kiss and caught by the camera... sheesh, we are not getting any younger, are we?!

... the lovely Miss Kendra, opening gifts, just before she received an unexpected new mountain bike... unfortunately, we somehow missed the surprise! photo...

...and sweetheart Timothy.... my awesome studious, artistic child, donning a mama-made earflap hat,that he was gifted...

The holidays, these days, are more about everyone finding time from their busy lives to come together and just bask in each other's company for  while, and not so much about the decorations, or even the food... there were other guests floating through on the day, and the wee ones that cant be photographed publicly, yet...

I have mixed emotions about seeing my children so grown up, some with families of their own already, and not able to make the long trip home too often, but making their way in the world.  Pretty hard to believe I am the mother of 9 bio, 4 step children, and Nan to 4, with another on the way in March... How did this happen, I suppose in between the laundry, the homeschooling, the story reading and the trips to the beach, it has gone from present to past, and their childhood is nearing its close.  Kendra, 14 next month, with only 4 years until she is off to college... and the last fledgling in the nest, will bring 4 decades of raising my family to an end, but the parenting will go on indefinitely... as I field questions, requests, and even occasionally offer up some unsolicited advice, ( as is the unspoken expectation :o) ) from time to time.  

It was a heartwarming end to the year, and gives this mama, who has such a terrible time letting go, great hope for what 2012 will bring into the lives of my children... Hoping you and yours had a wonderful holiday season too!

Lentil Soup

I am posting this for a friend... but have shared this recipe many, many times.  It is a favorite at our house, not just because of the uber nutritious ingredients, but also, because, it is one of the handy recipes that you can whip up in half an hour...so here goes:

LENTIL SOUP

2 c. organic red lentils
2 qt. water
1 whole onion ( chopped)
3-4 good size carrots
2 c. spinach ( chopped)
chopped garlic & parsley
1/4 c olive oil
1 t. sea salt

Put it all in a soup pot and bring to boiling point, then turn down to simmer for 20 mins.  You can cook this longer, but we like ours with the veg barely done.  You can add more or less water during the cooking time, for desired thickness.  If you use yellow lentils, it will not taste the same.  The organic red lentils have the  most amazing flavor!  This is also great made up the night before and left in the fridge.  Just re-heat and serve... it is our idea of " fast-food" ;o)

Enjoy!

(oh yeah,  I didnt happen to have a photo of red lentils, (lol) so the pic is of carrots from our garden this past year)

...at our home

I am going to try to commit to blogging more consistently... darn that FB... it is just so easy to hop on and off, posting snippets of my world... when I would much rather dig a little deeper and put together a blog post.  Well, one true thing... folks do what they want...they surely do!  And so here, today is the first blog post under the tag  "at our home".  Please enjoy!

...at our home today, we are listening to:  Celtic Wonder, "the Briar and the Rose" gently lulling in the background...(amongst a plethora of other delightful Celtic tunes... it sets a lovely tone...) You can listen here at this link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAKE_3c4QxQ

With nappies drying in the sunshine and breeze, we are working on the last bits of stitching for a wee quilt made from this fabric, by Valorie Wells... just about my favorite fabric designer... (but right up there with Anna Marie Horner and Alexander Henry)  You can see the fabric below:

Then a lunch of org Muenster cheese, org apple wedges, and sprouted corn tortilla's filled with org cream cheese and our homemade zucchini relish....all washed down with this tea:

It is from the bulk herbal selection at Monterey Bay Spice Co. and you can purchase it at this link;

cranberry orange tea...

Later today, we will be folding laundry mountain, a result of a mini fall-deep clean that took place this week... While we are folding, we will be also doing a little history lesson about a little fishing community in New Brunswick... and will be watching this video :

"Quest for the Sea"

It is available at Amazon in a 2-cd set... and well worth the investment.  

Well, that is it for the peek into life ..............at our home!  What's going on at your place!?

Link Love Monday!!!

I have stumbled upon so many great resources of late, that my Google reader is chocked full.... I thought I would try to begin a practice of posting links on a Sunday evening or Monday morning...so we will see how THAT! goes... ;o)   anyway, hope you find something useful!

http://www.janetlansbury.com/
one of my all time favorites for early learning....

http://www.teachpreschool.org/studio/
a little conventional, but still good info here...

http://www.playbasedlearning.com.au/
just like it says... all play, all the time!

http://pinkandgreenmama.blogspot.com/
very artsy and fun!

http://www.frugalfamilyfunblog.com/
lots of variety on this one...

http://www.childcentralstation.com/
kinda doubles as a homeschooling resource...

http://www.ohdeedoh.com/ 
this one touches the suppressed interior designer in me... lots of great tips on decor/design for kiddos space

I will be trying to keep to a particular theme/category each time I post... so more on children, domestic arts, nature, homeschooling, alternative medicine, etc...coming in the future!

namaste
Sidonie

take a stroll through some shots of the herb and floral gardens of Hobbit House....

The Best Corncakes on the Planet!!!

I thought I would share my hoecake/corncake recipe...  It is a staple at our house and we use these as bread with salads, soups, chili, egg or potato dishes...  Such a simple, basic food, but so versatile!  Here is the recipe...you will find yourself pulling this one out of the hat time and time again  : )

1 1/2 c. white organic cornmeal
1 c. organic  tapioca starch
1/2 c. organic brown rice flour
3 t. aluminum-free baking powder
1 t. sea salt
1/2 c. oil of your choice
3 organic eggs
milk to make a batter with pancake batter consistency

Put all the ingredients into a bowl and mix gently.  Do not over mix, but make sure all the dry ingredients are dissolved. Pour batter by the large spoonful onto a hot, well-greased cast iron flat pan or griddle and turn as needed.  When golden, place in stacks and keep hot until the meal.  Be generous with the grease/oil on the griddle as it makes lovely crispy edges.  Enjoy!