riding the wind with love and popsickle smiles~

 

the March winds whip, blow and howl. It teases, tickles and torments, like cousins will do to one another. 

wild winds carry away the dry leaves, dust and last remnants of grey days,

soft rain washes the winter weary faces of the counryside

and in it's place~

 fresh green pastures filled with wildflowers and grasses and ocean blue skies~

days like today leave us with the promise that soft warm days are peeking

around the corner just waiting to be lolled and luxuriated  in...

with popsicle smiles and bare feet.

these are the happy little sunshine faces

that I love... so much that it truly hurts...

and then...there is this little man...

...lordy..

.

oh me, oh my, how much can one Grandma's heart take...

well, I'll take all of it,

Happy First Day of Spring!

warming in the early morning sun

~ early morning sun warming my favorite chalk lamb hand made by Netty~

"The March wind roars

Like a lion in the sky,

And makes us shiver

As he passes by.

When winds are soft,

And the days are warm and clear,

Just like a gentle lamb,

Then spring is here."

Our first day of March here on Deerfield Farm is warm and calm winded.  Robins and Red-Winged blackbirds fill the trees with singing and flitting from the water barrel and then to the wet earth to stretch a worm from it's sleepy garden bed.

There's a slight yellow-greening of the tree tops down in the poplar grove and in the tea fields, tiny mint leaves, burrowed down in the winter mulch have begin to send out dark runners.

The rhubarb has deep red shoots pushing up through it's blanket of grass hay and the old lilacs by the barn door have fat buds.

I know this calmness and first taste of a soft and  almost warm day, with the grass fields beginning to lose it ochre and put up it's tufts of spring greens, is only a fleeting taste for us.

The winds begin to blow and howl when Spring first decides to grace us with her presence.

So, this calm and almost warm first day of March is so welcome to our winter weary souls.

I hope that wherever you are, that the sun is shining on your face and the sure hope of  Spring warming your hearts!

Happy March my friends!

love,C.

our Humble is so very pleased

little Humble recently became the very happy owner of her very

own wee Sewing Coffer and a Farmer's Wife flax comb~

both are lovingly hand made
 by Lori & Peter Brechlin

of  Notforgotten Farm

are they not the loveliest little things?

Peter hand made them and Lori has given them her special graining and aging~
They hand make many other wonderful little wooden items
that any seamstress and collector of fine folk art would love~

as you can see, little Humble is ever so pleased.
Thank you Lori & Peter Brechlin!

sweetest love

one of my very favorite dolls~ little Ladye Augusta of Deerfield Farm

...last evening,

by the candle lit fireside

our Augusta had a gentleman caller....

they sat side by side and listened to the quiet crackling of the fire

he leaned in closer....and whispered into her crumpled little ear

"oh my dear"..."how lovely you look this evening"...

and then pressed a hand written letter,

sealed with crimson wax, into her hand.

and while bowing low

he kissed her mitted hand,

and bid her good night...and a wish to see her on the morrow.

Inside, he had written in beautiful spidery letters, all in sepia ink

"I love thee - I love thee,

'Tis all that I can say

It is my vision in the night,

My dreaming in the day."

~Thomas Hood~

she could not have been more surprised...

blessed beginnings

~ a view from my window~

just as the last sliver of the winter moon slid down the icy mountain side into the west

the new year sunrise came and kissed the fields with pale pink frost~

a beautiful beginning for our new year.

sending much love and happy wishes to all of you,

 dear friends and family~

Christe' & Bob

at the edge of dusk this winter solstice

 Deerfield Farm at the edge of dusk this winter solstice

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

By Robert Frost 1874–1963 

Whose woods these are I think I know.

His house is in the village though;

He will not see me stopping here

To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer

To stop without a farmhouse near

Between the woods and frozen lake

The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake

To ask if there is some mistake.

The only other sound’s the sweep

Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.

But I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep,

And miles to go before I sleep.

I can't help but love Robert Frost.  Who cannot help but love him...his words are just as though

he's read my very thoughts and feelings, even before I knew I thought them or felt them... and puts into words the quiet ache of so much wonder and beauty in our world.~

God bless Robert Frost 

peace, love and light

there hasn't been sleep or words...

very early this morning, before the light had crept up over the hills behind our farm,

 I stood on the little landing between the snug little rooms

at the top of the stairs,tucked under the eaves of this old house.

Looking in, my two oldest grandchildren, just 10 and 7 were sound asleep.

 I am so very grateful that they are here,warm and safe,

just as they were when their Grandpa and I read them stories and tucked them into their beds last night.

Our 2 littlest ones, 3 and 4 months are safe at home with their Momma and Daddy,

cuddled and kept close, precious beyond measure.

Their sweet little faces, soft with peaceful child dreams, make me ache for those so shattered.

Those little faces will make us all even more vigilant for their safety and others around us.

and gives me hope for the future of every little child.

I pray in my heart of hearts that all 4 of my little grandchildren will grow

and live their lives

with love and hope, peace and shining light...just as they do now.

I pray that peace and love and shining light

will be a balm for the hearts of  all those who are without it this

snowy Sunday morning~

Christine and family

~~~

Our 2 children and their spouses are teachers for 1st grade, 5th grade and high school~

They too,ache and are shattered, hearing the unfathomable and heartbreaking stories of courage and loss that are coming from Sandy Hook.

Now they and their teaching partners across the country must be even more vigilant as they go about their days at school, watching over each student and visitor, doing all they can do to keep their students and each other safe.

And they will go back to school tomorrow morning and every day after that, to teach and help make our children's world a much safer place. 

I  know that, like me, everyone of you are hugging your children and grandchildren close, your nieces and nephews, friends and family, all of them.
Hug them close and tell them you love them...
and if you can, please hug a teacher.