The 52 Project

3//52

                                  "A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016."

flynn:: today we were talking and i put my hands on his shoulders. i couldn't believe how strong they were. his face is looking older all the time. his body takes up so much physical space in our house. 

birdie:: we hosted brunch and he assigned himself the role of official greeter. there was a little greeting, but mostly there was running around, doling out animal facts and offering to entertain by sucking on lemon wedges.

indy:: i've noticed we're nursing a little less these days, although the requests still come with the same demanding, forceful hand squeeze gesture high overhead and are now accompanied by "Maaaaaa!" otherwise he can be found begging to have the record player turned on, hoarding spatulas, dropping food into the bunny's cage or this: standing at the sink in the bathroom, peacefully pouring water onto the floor. i'll always remember this day when flynn and i were both forced to read in the bathroom (him curled up in the shower stall, me cross legged on the toilet) for over an hour so indy could get his sink time in. 

Mind the Gap

“Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know it's normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.” -Ira Glass

I'm reminded of this lesson often with children around. Here is how it usually goes:

-"I'm going to draw a castle/mermaid/tree/airplane/etc" and child sits down intently with paper and crayons, tongue protruding ever so slightly while working away frantically. 
- 5 or 10 minutes later the child puts down the pencil and sits back to survey their work.
- at this point, you can see it all over their face; that look of "what the fuck is this??!! I didn't draw this!!! Where's my castle/mermaid/tree/airplane/etc??!!!" 
- cue the wailing, crayon throwing, paper crumpling and writhing on the floor. 

We used to jokingly refer to this as "The Phantom Hand" and wait out these bursts of artistic agony as patiently as we could while sipping our coffee. But I distinctly remember when I gave up on closing the gap in my early 20's, shortly after we closed our retail store. I took it hard, as a sure sign from the universe that I simply didn't have "it" and that the end of my artistic vision was a door shutting firmly. That darn Phantom Hand was all over my photography, my writing, my painting. And so I gave up. I decided that I was better off as an appreciator rather than a maker. That I would leave those loftier pursuits to people who had the innate ability to know what ISO setting to use, to those who could write words that were moving and soulful, hilarious and profound.

All well and good, being an appreciator, but here's the thing; if you are a born maker or creator you really have little control over that need to make something, to create something from a few scraps of paper or loose words floating around in your brain or pieces of wood scattered around on the garage floor. You cannot help it. Fighting against that need will only leave you unfulfilled in so many other aspects of your life because spending many of your hours each day in the creative process is the only food your soul knows how to metabolize. And coming to this realization made me see that the only difference between them and me was that they had closed the gap. They had repeated and tried and failed enough to reduce the difference between what lives in the mind and what is held in the hand.

So I forced myself to create some truly awful things, to put it out there no matter what the end result. To look at the individual stitches and appreciate the warmth the scarf rather than the wonky, uneven edges. I took classes and watched videos and asked questions like a 4-year-old on Red Bull. Slowly things have started to change but I know I'll be closing the gap and swatting away that damn Phantom Hand the rest of my life.

I read this quote to my oldest son occasionally, when I see the pain of the awful final product overriding the desire to make something and I think he gets it. Another helpful thing is that whenever the boys are getting ready to try a new skill, such as skiing, perfecting a corner kick, chopping an onion, making a bracelet or buckling a seat belt we tell them that they should plan on doing it 50 times before they can expect any kind of proficiency. You can be frustrated and declare your sucki-ness on attempt 51.

If you need a bit more of a nudge, this is a great entry from Cheryl Strayed's Dear Sugar column.

Source: Palm Beach Post

Source: Washingtonian

Source: youtube

Source: SundanceNow

Source: Entertainment Weekly

Source: Interview Magazine

Source: Milford Mill High School

The 52 Project

2//52

                                    "A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016."

flynn:: this week I'm reminded of one simple fact: fourth grade is hard. and yet here's my almost ten year old, always willing to help, happy to see his baby brother make an appearance in his class, offering to help paint and load dishes. lately we focus on empathy, compassion, honesty and friendship knowing that at the core, there is a very golden heart. 

jonah:: back to school and an invitation to share something about winter break gets this, "My mom let me walk through a tunnel to see the F-word." 

indy:: this kid has never known a day without excitement, chaos and so much love from his brothers. and now that the boys are back in school i'm proving to be very poor entertainment. 

LOST IN SPACE

• Have you watched Master of None?? If not, it's a must! 
• Speaking of good tv, season 2 of Mozart in the Jungle is now live
• Looking for a good winter movie? Advanced Style is an inspiring watch for a lazy weekend
• David Bowie on Extras will always be a favorite episode
• And speaking of David Bowie, The Linguini Incident has great one-liners...and an Arquette
• This bleak stretch of winter always has me hunting down new places to hide out for the day. Any of these libraries would do 
• Some delicious salads  to up your winter vegetable game
• If you want to relive your high school break up in gut-wrenching, cringe-worthy detail, then listen to Eliza Starting at 16 Episode 3. How brave to put it out there and how I wish I had been this smart at 16! Or 22! Side note: Eliza is the daughter of Gretchen Rubin, of Better Than Before and the boy in the breakup is Rosanne Cash's son
• Thinking about Obama's last State of the Union address and had to listen to this again
• If you need a break from making fun of Anthropologie furniture, give this a try. Or the always hilarious Fuck Your Noguchi Coffee Table
• Ahhhh, Maggie
• I've been listening to this a lot lately on my walks. I love hearing Neil Young songs in female vocals
• Prepare yourselves: robots are coming...to flip your pancakes! 
• Huzzah! How to set Chrome to always use Amazon Smile

Source: Architectural Digest

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Devil Be Gone! : Getting over that awful illness that just won't leave

I'm not really one to get sinus infections, I'm more of a cold and cough kinda gal. But right before the kids' winter break I started to have a lot of congestion, look slightly feverish and wasn't feeling great. Within a week I was constantly blowing my nose and had a terrible sore throat. With Christmas just around the corner and three kids now home everyday I knew I had to go through my bag of tricks - and fast - to get rid of this ick. A few days later I'd gone through bottles of saline solution, doubled probiotics, enough Wishgarden Kick Ass Sinus to line the bottles up like bowling pins, acupuncture, foot stomping, wailing, essential oils, Sudafed, Mucinex and, even though I despise it, pulled out the neti pot. Nothing. I got worse. I ended up starting a round of antibiotics in desperation, still...nada. Heading into week three and functioning on little sleep I decided to do what I'd put off for ages and get my own primary care naturopath (the boys see a wonderful Anthroposophic doctor). After an hour and a half consult I came away with a targeted plan for getting rid of the acute sinus issues and a larger plan for dealing with the root of a lingering illness (getting back on my adrenal management plan, increasing my Vitamins A and D).

She explained that when you have something hanging on this long and seemingly getting worse, renewing the blood flow to that area will bring a new army of lymph cells, which is just what is needed. In order to do this, the best answer is hydrotherapy; warming socks and sinus packs. I'd previously used lemon warming socks on my middle kiddo to bring down a nasty fever when we were up in the mountains and they worked well but I'd never considered them for myself, and certainly not for sinus issues. Now, after two nights, I'm starting to feel better and have stopped using all my over the counter meds.

Warming Socks

Preparation:

The thought here is to increase blood flow and encourage lymphatic drainage down to your toes. You're going to start with very warm feet, then put on a pair of wet, cold cotton socks, then layer over a pair of heavy wool socks, jump into bed and go straight to sleep. Or, jump into bed and watch Sherlock. When you wake up in the morning both pairs of socks will be completely dry and warm. It really is like magic.

Method:

-Warm your feet; either take a hot bath/shower, put feet into a tub for 10 minutes use a heating pad (I use a heated millet bag under the covers until my feet are super toasty).
-While your feet are heating, fill a sink with cold, cold water and put your cotton socks into soak and make sure your wool socks are laid out.
-After warming toes rush to the sink, quickly wring out the cotton socks and hop back into bed. Slip cotton socks on, lament about how awful they feel then throw on those wool socks. It's uncomfortable for a few minutes but then you really don't notice.

Repeat for three nights

To read more about the benefits of warming socks and see a really cool diagram of the lymph system, look here.

Immune Boosting Garlic Lemonade

Originally a trick from a midwife, this is a great drink to sip on whenever you feel something coming on. I like that it can be made stronger or weaker depending on steeping time and adding honey to taste makes it incredibly palatable for those who associate lemonade with the more traditional variety. You know, the good kind.

Preparation:

-2 heads organic garlic (large)
-2 organic lemons
-1/2 gallon glass jar or large pitcher (you'll need 2 containers)
-honey
-kettle full of boiling water

Method:

Scrub your lemons with a bristle brush, then cut in half horizontally and squeeze juice into the jar. Drop the lemons in. Cut the heads of garlic horizontally and drop into the jar. Fill the jar with boiling water, put the lid on and let steep 20-30 minutes. Strain the mixture into another container and store for a day or two. I'm guessing it can go into the fridge but I try to sip on mine throughout the day so it goes pretty quick. To serve, drink warm or hot with raw honey to taste.


** Disclaimer: Sadly, I am not a doctor. I'm just a girl in her kitchen dropping granola down her shirt. My recommendations come with the best of intentions and personal success but that never replaces the counsel of a trusted doctor, nurse or health care provider. Always use common sense and ask questions, especially in the treatment of illness for babies and children. **

The 52 Project

1//52

"A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016."

flynn:: he's learning so much about himself all the time. that loom from last Christmas that gathered dust all year brought the important realization that when it comes to crafts and games, he's an instant gratification kinda guy. so after popping out all the pieces of star wars risk and reading overly complicated directions he decided he is better off sticking with chess and gladly put it in the donation pile. 

jonah:: i'm a big believer in swing-set therapy and he is exhibit a. wind in his hair, mud in his toes, zebras on his leggings. every day. 

indy:: we're certain "billy bob" - that lone front tooth, won't be alone much longer. i so love seeing him bust out a big grin with his goofy toof. 

LOST IN SPACE

• I'm loving these vintage photos, especially the ones of Debbie Harry and Charlotte Rampling
• Speaking of old photos....dying over these behind the scenes Star Wars pics! 
• Make sure to show some love to your cast iron. I scrub mine with a bristle brush and 1/4-1/2 cup of kosher salt and it makes all the difference. Here are some more useful tips
• Everlane has new items coming soon, along with a beautiful mini line
• I loved all my Christmas gifts this year, from the ones that felt like a special treat to the ones that I have used religiously each day since. This new milk frother has increased my quality of life dramatically! 
• If you need a new chapter book for kids in the 5-12 age range, you'll love The Green Ember. The audiobook is also fantastic. 
• Purl Soho can do no wrong. All their best projects of 2015 have me wanting to clean out the grocery money and go into a knitting cocoon for the next eight months. 
• We've loved all the recipes we've made so far from Easy Paleo Meals, Kelly Brozyna's latest cookbook. The cashew/broth based "cheese" sauce is so versatile! 

Source: Vintage Everyday