i do like it, i do, i do

Sort of 'I think I can', but after spending two hours plowing the driveway. Thank goodness for our tractor, clearing away 30cm of snow plus drifts. The power outlet for the snow blower is on the back of the tractor. So, that's two hours driving backwards. My neck is now, I'm sure, a chiropractor's dream. Or nightmare. But it's plowed and I still think it's pretty and I still love living in the country. Honestly.

The house has been warmed today by my oven making baked beans from scratch. A long process but well worth the result, especially on a day like this. The kids are just in from playing in the snow; a fire and warm supper awaits.

I have been pondering the strange beauty of snow drifts the past couple of days. They are so fluid, yet take on strange angles and have odd little cuts into them. The wind as sculptor - I love it.

comeuppance

Here it is, Tuesday. And I am indeed getting my comeuppance (who invented that word?) for complaining last year that winter was decidedly un-wintry. The earlier snow had no chance to leave before another 30cm came along, starting early yesterday morning. I'm not complaining yet. I am definitely liking it. Wait 'til February, then I'll be sick of it all. But I will definitely not be saying that winter is too slow coming this year!

The weekend was busy but all good. Friday R and A went to JPP and got back their history and science marks (R scoring A+ in both, A getting A's in both) and hearing glowing reports about them from their Creative Writing teacher. As their mom it's heartwarming to hear them so well spoken of, and as their teacher it's doubly good to hear their academics praised by another teacher. Next week is the last until next term. I've enjoyed the days one-on-one with M but I think the break will be good for us all. That and not driving downtown through the winter weather.

Saturday was the party for the band. It's nice to get together with no need to accomplish something rehearsal-wise. I had a ball making lots of fancy little fussy goodies. Everything came together well. I'm writing it here so next year I can remember just what the heck I did:
- sweet & sour meatballs
- satay beef with Thai peanut sauce
- mini phyllo cups filled with Greek salad - cucumbers, onion, tomato, olive, capers in a vinaigrette
- broiled shrimp with two sauces: Cajun mayo and raspberry horseradish (thanks to Goaliemom)
- endive leaves piped full of a cream cheese/sundried tomato pesto mixture
- phyllo triangles filled with brie, green apples, walnuts and shallots
- crescent canapes, made from biscuit dough covered with cream cheese/horseradish and fresh veggies
- stuffed mushrooms
A big pot of wassail (sort of a hot mulled cider) simmering on the stove was also a big hit. Everyone brought desserts or drinks and we had a fun evening together. Silly me took no photos at all. *sigh* I didn't get the whole house decorated but used some natural materials to make it pretty. I filled one large bowl with fresh-cut cedar, apples and oranges, and another with cedar, cinnamon sticks and one Christmas ornament. Not too bad, and that sort of decorating seems to suit the old farmhouse.

Sunday was church, then in the evening we headed to a local seniors' home to provide music for their Christmas service. We led a few carols and I brought in some special guests: violinist Snowman and her brother, and R, A, & M. Between the kids on violins and the girls singing a couple of songs, I'm not sure the rest of us needed to show up! I think the folks really enjoyed what we played/sang for them.

Yesterday we enjoyed the snowstorm from the comfort and safety of our house, and the girls realized a drawback of homeschooling: school doesn't get cancelled in bad weather. Cut short to allow for play time, perhaps, but not nixed. Tonight we plan to head to Seren's for dinner for much food and conversation and laughs.

The farm looks pretty but the barns seem more lonely - except the chicken coop, where the hens are glad for their heat lamp. The rest of the buildings, though, are dark and lifeless. When will we change that? Sometimes it feels so far away. I stood out last night in the wind and snow, looking and them and thinking how forlorn they looked. Someday ...

distractions

This place is so pretty under a white blanket. I know I'll be longing for the lush green again before the winter's out, but it's all so pretty with a new cover laid down last night. The girls are itching to get out and make footprints all over the pristine lawn. I am thinking, not so much itching, that I need to get the snow chains on the tractor and hook up the snow blower attachment.

The birds are excitedly hopping around the suet and seed we put out, and are proving a huge distraction to lessons - but are in themselves an opportunity to learn, so I try to keep some semblance of focus with the girls but can understand the gazes shifting from paper and French lessons to the chickadees and blue jays who arrive for the feast. The verb conjugation just can't compete.

But what is learning if only confined to books? Sure, some things must be read about. Case in point: R and A are both enjoying reading about Alexander the Great right now, and since a trip to Asia Minor and ancient Macedonia is not in the cards, books are our best bet.

Much as we want certain academic standards, one very important goal in our home schooling is for the girls to love learning, to ask 'why?' and know how to find answers, to appreciate and be thankful for the things of life that we too often overlook. So much can be learned by patient observation. So some days, I chuck the lesson plan so we can get out and experience life, not just read about it.

clubs and parties and engagements, oh my!

Clubs: I spent a couple of hours on Sunday night going way out of my usual zone, heading downtown to a nightclub by myself (mucho thanks to D for watching the girlies so I could do this) to see uber-drummer and his band play a set. So I walked into Zaphod's feeling decidedly out of my element, chuckling at how non-homeschool-mom-ish it was, and how I didn't know anyone there, and how much older I was than everyone I saw. And then he saw me and came over, big hug, he was so glad I came out and all smiles, I think a bit surprised I came, and I decided: this was so worth coming. To have someone genuinely glad to see me, not because they need me to do something, but just because I'm there. To show him he's valued and loved. They then proceeded to rock the house - very well-done, very tight, original music though heavier than my usual listening fare. But as a musician I could definitely appreciate the talent the guys have.

Parties: This Saturday night we're hosting the gang from the Sunday morning crew (band, sound, & media) and spouses here for a 'do. I'm having fun this week making appetizers, finally using all these elegant little recipes I have collected and not been able to use. Last night I played with phyllo dough (brie, grannysmith apples, shallots and walnuts. Wow.) and today is Asian dumplings and meatballs for the freezer. I do love to play in my teensy little kitchen.

Engagements: Dear nephew Bean is engaged. To a lovely girl who is a perfect match for him in so many ways. Our families will celebrate their marriage next summer. The girls are ecstatic, D and I are so happy that this special guys has found such a great girl.

So happy. And yet my thoughts jump from there to J. Maybe they were already there (first snow of the winter always takes me there), but I'm sure the leap would have been made anyway. I don't want in any way to diminish how wonderful this is for them. It is precious to find that one who becomes your friend, your partner through life, and so much more.

literature

I'm almost done A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. It's one of a series of classics I've been going through, including Notre Dame de Paris (Victor Hugo) and Silas Marner (George Eliot). It's good. Very good. I've always liked Dickens's writing, Great Expectations, A Christmas Carol, and Pickwick Papers being my favorites. Tale has a shadow hanging over the story - one of those stories where the foreshadowing is helped along by one's knowledge of history. The characters are in Paris in 1792, not exactly a safe haven. And I think I can see a nasty but noble end in store for one Mr. Carton.

Dickens can tend strongly toward the over-melodramatic (case in point: The Old Curiosity Shop) but his characterizations are wonderful. From Mr. Jingle to Miss Havisham, the Dodger to Scrooge, Joe Gargery to Pickwick, they are enjoyable to read. Some, true enough, are quite the caricatures, but they are fun nonetheless.

I do love to re-read an old book. It's like visiting with a good friend. You already know them, but each time you visit you find out a little something else. Maybe it's something new about them that you'd not noticed before; maybe something they say reflects on your own life in a new way. Or you can just sit, and be.