At Home in Ourselves
Our camera totally bit the dust. Devastating. Depressing. Demoralizing. But I guess I'll live :-) We sent it in to Nikon, and in the meanwhile Missa offered to send me a memory card reader so that I can upload some photos and post a new blog soon! In the meanwhile, I thought I'd go back to some photos I took of our little home last summer. Today is the one year anniversary of the day that my truck flipped over in a snow storm with three-year-old Mycelia and I in it, and one of the many blessings that came to us after that horrific accident was finding the sweet, late 1800s miner's cabin that we moved into just a week later. So this post is a celebration this last year's growth and renewal and of our family finally settling in to ourselves, our home, and our busy, beautiful life together.
After reading my post all about the car wreck, my lovely friend and customer Cerise sent me the most thoughtful and extraordinary gift- a bottle of "Whale Song Ocean Water" essence (curious? read more here). I always call on the help and protection of the earth's cetacean family before going on car rides now (I think about how completely aware of their surroundings, especially through their hearing, for thousands of miles around them, the whales are, and of their steady and methodical mode of traveling great distances, and of how they keep their young near and do whatever they can to protect them) and this essence is a wonderful way to initiate that ritual. The truth is that I'm terrified of car accidents now (I had a fender-bender with my freakin' landlords last week and almost had a panic attack), and having this one tangible connection to the strongest protective force I feel in my life has been a godsend. Or a Cerise-send. Thanks so much sister.
The nightstand above is usually covered in a random array of books and half drunk tea cups, and the side of the bed here often acts as support for a pile or two of books as well. I really could better utilize the bookshelf on the right there, but I use it mostly for essential oils, photo shoot make-up, hair stuff, bits of lace, beloved old magazines and periodicals, binders from past herb/wellness classes, and all my genealogy books and trinkets from my ancestors. But I prefer to have the books I am currently engaged in right at arm's reach.
"All Is Vanity". I have had this hanging on my wall since high school. I like to always be reminded of my ultimate fate, it makes me more appreciative and in awe of this living business, especially when I get caught up in trying to present an image of perfection. The bedspread always makes me brighten a little when I enter the bedroom. It belonged to Harland, who was my grandmother's boyfriend from the time I was five (they met through a random coincidence involving my other grandma) until he died of cancer during my pregnancy five years ago. He was a wonderful man and one of the three best grandpa's I've ever had :-) When he was dying and in and out of consciousness and in a lot of pain he would slowly turn his head over to look at me during his rare cognizant moments and say "you take care of that baby now". I tell Mycelia that story a lot, and we honor Harland's memory as we do all of our biologically related ancestors.
Graham's best friend since childhood, Seth, gave this darling bird mirror to me for my 27th birthday. He thrifted it and repainted the frame. It's very special to our family.
Graham built a shelving unit into the wall so that our whole desk area could make sense and function optimally (he also built shelving for the pantry and Mycelia's room, they have made all the difference in making the most of our teeny house).
This book shelf also came from my childhood home (as did our bed and nightstand, come to think of it). It feels so good to have all these links to my past surrounding me. You can see the Love Is Now book from my giveaway last summer. Total amazingness. And did you recognize the profile on the top shelf there? Yes, it's Sasha, cover model for a small comic book made by her husband Chris called Annie Walker.
Our cozy kitchen. I love telling the story of how we acquired the "nook" dining table. I knew that such a thing was the only piece of furniture that could possibly make such a miniscule space work. I searched for "kitchen nook" on Craigslist over and over again, seeing as how the cheapest new one I could find was $700. Finally I took the "nook" out of it and just searched for tables, and this one showed up right away, 15 minutes away, for $100!
Our super hippie cup collection cracks me up.
It really is such a functional house for the three of us, and allows us to keep everything in its place (okay, even if that place is a pile in the corner of the laundry room or stuffed underneath the dresser) with a little extra room for extraordinary extraneous flourishes.
Finally, a little slice of the refrigerator. Back when my baby was a baby! I think this is my favorite photo from her first year of life.
Okay, going back to the bird mirror. Have you seen this? It should be Etsy's theme video :-)