fave song:
jane:  ben howard's old pine
jo:  twenty one pilot's clear
julia:  bastille's pompeii

fave book:
jane:  the artisan soul by erwin raphael mcmanus
jo:  the book thief by markus zusak (still)  :)
julia:  a snicker of magic by natalie lloyd

fave place visited:
jane:  point dume beach in malibu, ca
jo:  big sur, ca
julia:  joshua tree, ca

fave album:
jane:  ben howard every kingdom, vance joy dream your life away, foster the people supermodel
jo:  twenty one pilot vessel, bastille bad blood, coldplay ghost stories
julia:  bastille bad blood, boy mutual friends


(we have to mention that all of these are all of our favorites!  we just agreed to diversify to add more!)   :)

what are your 2014 faves?  we'd love to hear!  :)

love, 
jane + jo + julia

i have found the One my soul loves.   

jo: reading has always been one of our tiny tribe's favorite things, and Christmas is no exception! we love these holiday books and are sure that you will too…

jane:  of course, we've always loved getting the christmas books out as we unpack the christmas decorations.  i wanted the girls to tell you about this tradition they started when they were a bit older.  jo began to pick the books off her shelf that had christmas moments in them to revisit during the holiday season.  these are not necessarily christmas books per se, and that's why i love this thought so!

julia:  the family under the bridge by natalie savage carlson is about a hobo named armand, who lives under a bridge in france. one day he finds his home under the bridge occupied by three young children. the children's mother is working and their father is gone. armand is not pleased at first, but eventually falls in love with them.   i loved this book, it was a sweet and simple story.                                                                            

kit's surprise by valerie tripp is the third book in the american girl, kit's series. kit is feeling like christmas is not going to be merry  this year. the great depression makes life hard for everyone, and there is no extra money for presents. things aren't going as planned, she gets stuck caring for her grumpy old uncle hendrick and has a fight with her friend, but luckily there's still some unexpected surprises coming her way.
​
shall i knit you a hat by kate klise is an adorable picture book about a little rabbit and his mom. a big blizzard is on it's way, and when mother rabbit knits little rabbit a hat, he suggests making hats for their friends too. this is a really cute book with sweet pictures.

jo:
i read main street's third book, 'tis the season when i was about twelve. ann m. martin fleshes out every characters' story, providing us a glimpse into several types of families' lives... it was the first book that made me teary.  :)

betsy and tacy [and tib!!!] go downtown by maud hart lovelace is such a wonderful book! (i recommend the entire betsy-tacy series. they're so lovely and every book can work as a stand alone) it tells the story of a wintertime in which betsy is finally old enough to go downtown by herself. this inspires trips to the library and the theater, as well as tobogganing accidents, christmas shopping, and more! this book never fails to make me feel happy and cozy!

home for the holidays by heather vogel frederick is part of the mother-daughter book club series that i love. the book club is reading the betsy-tacy books (mentioned above!) and it's also the holiday season, which inevitably brings all the drama that several families of teenagers and their moms can bring. beginning on thanksgiving and ending at new year's, this book is so fun/groan worthy. from secret santa drama to trips across the country, this book always puts me in a Christmas-ready mood!


other suggestions:
little women by louisa may alcott
little house in the big woods and little house on the prairie by laura in galls wilder
other american girl christmas books

what are your favorite christmas reads?

happy cozy reading, 
jo + julia + jane

i am a seeker…
a blessing hunter
who captures joy
with just one word:
thanks.
~ann voskamp 

wishing you joy!
jane

hello!
let it be known that i love zines. love them! they're personal, interesting, unique, and such fun to get! they let your voice be heard, they're entertaining, and they are of any style... not only all this, but they're also really fun to create. easy too. and fast. what's not to love?

making a zine couldn't be easier! get as creative as you like and do anything you like! be free! 
it all begins with an idea, or a person. your zine can have a theme, or not. if it's for someone else, perhaps think about what that person enjoys. whether burritos or fandoms or polar bears or curled hair, take all of those facts and interests into consideration. how can you make a zine about that? what are some interesting aspects of this topic? what would make this person smile or laugh or cry or scream, "yes, i get that!"

also think about what you're good at, or like doing. whether painting or sketching or writing or whatever... it has a place in zines. (if you're like me and slouching while whispering, "but i'm good at none of those things? but i'm really great at uh eating cupcakes?" that's okay!! you know how to cut stuff out of magazines? great. you have a talent in cut and paste zine making! but also perhaps do some writing/art making, because no matter how well you do it, it'll turn out so cool.)

and now... you make it. 
~if you're not interested in making several copies of your zine, go ahead and assemble a little booklet! you can do this by folding pieces of paper into halves, quarters, or eights! you can even cut every eighth in half for a teeny tiny little zine! this layout allows you to not have to cut anything.
~time to create your pages! use anything you like to create your little booklet. use paint, markers, crayons, magazines, scissors, glitter, a typewriter, journal pages... anything. the great thing about zines is that all you need is a pen and paper, but anything else is also brilliant! write and doodle and sketch and paint and glue down pretty things. do anything!
~if you would like to make copies, but don't know how many pages your zine will be, make your pages on only one side of the piece of paper (otherwise you just fold the pages as you wish and use every page. but doing this, you'll only use half the blank spaces). when you're finished, fold as many blank pages as you need, and cut out your filled pages. glue them onto the blank ones and you're good to go! now you have sheets of paper to copy. as i am really bad with copy machines, i prefer to pay a tiny bit extra and have the good folks of the ups store copy my master-copy for me. black and white copies are cheaper and look really great. color copies are a tiny bit more expensive and look exactly like your original.
~to assemble your zine, simply fold it up, cut any folded edges that would obstruct the reading of your zine and bind it! you can bind zines with staples or by stitching.

zines are such great gifts! above are some of our originals. they're themed on things like favorite poems, aspects of nature, our dog, being cozy, family walks, and pandas.  we love exchanging zines with each other!
i really hope you feel inspired to create a zine! 
xxx,
jo

Jesus is my perfect gift of peace.
He is enough.
i need nothing more.
i can rest in Him.
let there be peace on earth.
and with eyes on Christ,
let it flow through me.

our tree is sweet and simple.  lights and stars.

we used this air dry clay and some small cookie cutters.  roll or press the clay flat after working it a bit to soften.  cut and make a hole for hanging with a toothpick or awl.  let dry according to instructions on the package.  we added bakers twine for hanging.

these stars would also make great gift toppers, table place markers, or napkin ties.  it would also be fun to press a fiber doily into the clay before it dries for a sweet texture.

hope you are enjoying all this season holds!

love, jane

we picked out our tree today and i noticed some stray branches laying around.  so we gathered a few up and used them to bring a little more cheer inside.  simple and compostable after the season.  (plus they were free!)  and they smell great too!

love, 
jane + j0 + julia

our tribe loves nature.  we like to notice how the sky looks when lit from below the horizon.  we wonder at how God cared enough about us that He bothered to make light refract that way.  we like to record these moments when we remember to take the time to do so.  

this embroidered nature journal cover is a gift i am giving this christmas.    

the freestyle embroidery was inspired by melissa's lovely work, and it was so fun to do.  i think there will be more of this in my future.  yesterday, i listened to podcasts and stitched away.  making makes me so happy!

a blank moleskine is going in here (lined one, just for the picture).  this journal will accompany this inspirational book that we like.  we also all have this book that is so much fun for all ages and inspires so much observation and learning!  one of my all-time favorite books!

(lining fabric here)

what are you making for christmas?

love, jane