Into the Woods

What do you do when you get back from the dr. and baby number two has an ear infection, but the day is just so lovely? You simply must bundle him up and throw him on your back because the woods are calling.The color seemed to have been sucked out of the woods as we approached over the bridge, so went searching for anything we could.
R's eye was looking pretty pathetic, but no worries the antibiotics are working now.
Asher told tales of being a deer and was on the lookout as always for his real mama.
Osage Oranges seeds seem to now be the hit of the woods. Their crumbs were spread all over, a little pale yellow found in the woods.
Bright green on this alligator log.

Pale green found on the forest floor.
A transformed squirrel practicing scurrying up a tree.
Ashened moss on a downed tree.
Green stood out the most.
White mushrooms were pretty subtle color finds.
A seahorse missing his sea.
Ashened tree. I don't know if there was a burn in this part of the woods this year as the leaves don't look it, but so many of the trees and snags really show signs of burning.
Bright yellow found last
A great day in the woods, running into some of our most favorite new friends at the end.

Stringing up the Holidays

We are prepping for the solstice this week. Plans for decorating our trees outside for the birds and warming our inside with candles.
Drying citrus in the dehydrator was awesome, and they are still tasty. We have grapefruit as well.
and you may recall of my love of all things garland-i-fied. We have a few more things to string up. Holidays are creeping up and we are in the midst of Hanukah. Doughnuts for breakfast in the morning, eggrolls for dinner last night... got to love the oil celebration.

Favorite Moments

The boys hanging out in the sink so that I could make dinner and supervise. Thank goodness for a big sink.

Ben was feeling under the weather and I was tired, dinner still needed to be made, so this was a lifesave, plus they are so cute in the sink together.

And even cuter cuddling together under a blanket.

And super snuggly when they are sick. We are trying to get our energy back as we battle an ear infection (River) along with teething and some colds in all of us but Asher, who keeps running like a frieght train- he really has limitless energy these days, how do you make your kid hibernate?

Closing 'Em Up

Luckily we had some good garden days at the end of December to say goodnight to our beds for the winter.

River was thrilled to be crawling around the garden, he has reached a mouth maturity where he can control a bit better what goes in, so wood chips and pine cones for chewing don't make me so nervous.

Asher, played with the chickens, he was the mama hen, the girls were his babes.

He is telling me all about keeping the flock together and what fun things they like to do. you know like scratching and pecking and eating.

A final sage harvest.

and the catalogs are already rolling in so we can plan next years adventures in the soil.

Meadowbrook

I don't enjoy playing blog catch up, as I feel that it just enables ever posting again, but this was a great day at Meadowbrook the Monday before Thanksgiving. The boys got to have some great fun with their Bubbie, Zadie and Uncle Gator. I got to enjoy the quiet of the prairie and some fun on the playground. The weather was amazing.

Sunlight

In all the business we are still enjoying all the moments of lights as the day length decreases and gearing up for our solstice celebration. Sometimes the central illinois grays can get to you. We have been outside as much as possible and whenever the sun peaks out and casts light, we stand in it.

Thankfully we have a few really, really nice days for extended hikes.

and pine cone collecting to make presents for our outdoor feathered and bushy tailed friends.

Tree Climbing practice is on the agenda most days in the woods.

It gets harder each year to say goodbye to my favorite season and put on the extra layer to greet the cold, but I am embracing it and loving the wood stove and the extra cuddles of a first winter season with my two boys.

Jerky

We've been busy around these parts, we had a week off of working in the kitchen, so we headed back in for some food fun centered around the dehydrator. This is our first ever batch of beef jerky.What a rewarding easy thing to do. Ben through together a marinade for some top sirloin and rump roast based in soy sauce. We let it sit for 30 minutes.

Layed it out on the dehydrator trays.

And woke up to the sweet/spicy smell and this amazing product.

We made a full jar of it. Oh is is soo sooooo soo so good! A little spicy for Asher, but we'll just make some more for him.

Organic, locally raised Beef Jerky with no preservatives or artificial crap. Good meat dried and preserved. This is what dried meat at it's roots is, not some unhealthy meaty snack from the gas station.

River:: 9 Months!!

Our little R, whose not so little passed the 9 month mark and is edging in on 10 months now. We don't go in for the weigh in until the 17th of this month but I am pretty sure he has exceeded 25lbs. Atleast that is what my new buff mama arms are telling me.And oh the fun this one has. He is pure sunshine, and a bit of fire. He has given Asher a few pushes now and is letting him know that he is part of the family and will not be forgotten.

He is quite proud of his new skill set. Climbing stairs, free hand standing (steps are right on the way), making music with his hand, signing more, up, still grunting to poop every day in the potty, greeting his PaPa, with just a bit of a "B" sound.Every day just keeps getting more fun. I love the boys interacting, they are such a hoot. you can already tell they are brothers and I can foresee all the trouble they will get into and hopefully all the love and cuddles.