The observatory

The observatory has been a favorite of the children's, especially my oldest who is 6, for years.

Last year the one we had broke, and we just got a new one, the children were both very excited to get started. We do it different every time, and throughout the season it changes several times, depending on the animals we find.

Sometimes it has been a rock garden for crickets and lizards, other times sandy with branches and rocks for a small box turtle. It has also been a small pool with plants for tadpoles and yet other times has housed simply plants. We always release the animals within a week or so, if they have not escaped before that, and always try to mimic the habitat where we find them

The children spend hours observing the little creatures and their behavior, catching bugs for the animals to eat if needed, give them names and add to the habitat to make it more cozy for them.

Needles to say, todays observatory will house baby frogs, as they are abundant and well loved by the children.

We started with the empty shell, and from around the pond dug out clods of mud and vegetation.

Then looked around for the little froggies.

Found and caught some.

Show them their new home for the coming week.

And observe...

And here it is at home on the deck, a perfect little replica of the pond, and all the froggies are thriving, and the children loving it. My daughter just came in and told me that "hopper" just ate a bug while swimming in the water.

We also found time to pick some strawberries, they are abundant here just now.

A ladybug why not...

And the very territorial farm rooster.

Thanks for looking in,

And happy thursday to you.

Herbalicious

Early spring brings the abundance of fresh herbs.

One of my all time favorite herbs (for tea anyways) is the stinging nettle, it is packed full of nutrition and can be used in fresh tea as well as literally any dish where you would otherwise use spinach.

I go through great length to find spots where they grow away from traffic, and where no one is spraying any pesticides.

It has become a favorite excursion of ours to go wild herb picking, and while I am the only one who pick the nettles, the children love picking especially the red clover flowers, which are just flowering now. They love to eat them straight off the stem, and in this way I know they get their greens as they are not great lovers of salad. ~Yet~

Once picked the clovers go in a jar with water, and I use the flowers each evening for tea. They do not keep well once picked, so I pick no more than I will use in about three days.

The great nettle.

I pick off only the top to encourage new growth, because once they flower they are no longer as delicious, and the flowering happens quickly. If the nettles are slightly pulled the roots will come out, so it helps to use scissors.

Once at home I soak them to clean, put them in a salad spin to get rid of the excess water, and leave them on a tea towel to dry completely before storing them in large ziplock bags in the fridge.

If completely dry the nettles will last about two weeks.

Each evening I fill my tea press with the fresh herbs, adding whatever is fresh and in season.

These days, along with the nettles and red clover flowers, I add Bee Balm (Monarch flower), as well as mint and lemon balm, for added flavor as well as nutrition.

Mmmmmm!!!

And soon we will have wild blackberries for picking and jamming,

as well as....

blueberries!! Yum!

How abundant the natural world.

Welcome!

Welcome and thanks for stopping in.

Native to Denmark I have lived in the States for about 20 years.

Being a rootless sort of person I have travelled plenty and lived in many places, yet for the greater part of the past 20 years I lived in Miami Beach, where I met my wonderful husband, and had my first child. For the past 3 years we have lived in Asheville North Carolina, this is where our son was born, and where I woke up to homeschooling.

We spend most of our time outside exploring. The children have developed

a very real reverence for nature and everything in it,

and their creative play never seizes to amaze me.

During the darker winter months we do many creative projects inside,

and during the warmer months we play mostly out. Like most I suppose:)

I do hope you enjoy.

With gratitude and love~Christina~

Frogs and Fairies

Where better to start than in a muddy pond, full of frogs and toads.

We have some friends who run a small dairy, and it is our favorite place to go.

It is peaceful and beautiful, and the children are completely free to be children, for although this farm used to be our neighbor, we are presently city dwellers. Granted Asheville is a small city, and lovely, yet we are all looking forward to return to the country side.

When we arrive the children run straight to the pond, and weather permitting jump right in.

The excitement is always the same, no matter how often we go.

The enchantment of connecting with & in nature is a sight to behold.

How grateful I am for these moments.

Springtime brings the added pleasure of babies.

Heaven!!!

It is in nature like this that my children nurture their connection to each other as well as.

And when the time comes to set all the captured creatures free once more, it is always done with great ceremony and tenderness.