Latest library finds:
Beyond the Visible: Hilma AF Klint sheds a well-deserved spotlight on a shockingly long- ignored innovator of art
The Music Shop by Rachel Joyce proved gentle accompaniment to a quiet, winter weekend
The Power of Ritual by Casper Ter Kuile has me write pages + pages of notes
My Creative Space by Donald M. Rattner on the psychology of work spaces

These shapes.
Things are not meant to be thrown away.
​Better for the planet + the budget. 
Just to live + enjoy simply...life.

​​Love,
​Jane

The Shame by Makenna Goodman has me considering the appeal of the book club (+ not because it's about a book club).
The Seas by Samantha Hunt takes us for a ride on the undulating power + complexity of words.

Kindness for health.
The trickier part was living with the startling abundance that became glaringly obvious when I stopped trying to get more.
​Clothing as a tool of service.
Gentle ways to welcome the new year.

Wishing you a weekend that feels like a balm after the week that just was.

Much love,
Jane

Lately I'm loving these library reads:
How to Build a Shed by Sally Coulthard (because I'd love to build all the things)
Anni Albers by Ann Coxon (because simple can be exquisite)
Upstate by Lisa Prystup (because it's a wabi sabi dream)
Oasis by iO Tillet Wright (because the desert is exactly where I'd like to be right now)

One dress :: 100 days.
Keep five t-shirts out of the landfill.
Always bring a smile to my face.
Now is the time for less.

​​My needs are small...oh, I've got plenty to be thankful for.

Loads of wishes for a happy, healthy new year, friends!!
Love,
Jane

I've been trying to get into a few more corners + closets to see what's hiding in there this week. I went through my books + really wanted to have a few less. Finally I just put them into stacks according to what I wanted to be able to let go of...instead of letting fear of regret rule. Once I could see the stacks that way, it was much easier to choose that path. I took a picture of a couple of books I felt I might need a reminder for...and let them go. 

This reminded me a bit of setting boundaries for our things. If we can decide that we'd really like for our books to fit on this one shelf, we can choose the ones that earn their spot on that one shelf. If we want our sweaters to fit in this one drawer, we can say no to the one that's on sale a little bit more easily.  ;)

Next on the list is my fabric scraps. What size would I like my scrap bin to be?  :)

​Where they are now.
Haunted.   
​Even the simplest of things are worth noting.
​Don't let shopping ruin it.
A weekend project or gift.
We haven't at some level quite factored in that we are now all grown-ups.
​​Glorious "enough".

Hope you are enjoying a beautiful weekend, friends! I'm so thankful for you!!

Love,
Jane

Today we're back to sunshine + open windows. I hammered the finishing touches into my overalls this morning + threw them in the wash (since my hands ended up blue again). I am already dreaming about choosing fabric for a second pair. We're doing strength finders assessments, mailing off a couple of poshmark sales + eating a few sweets too this weekend. 

So much inspiration.
The lungs of North America open for logging.
The evolution of an activist.
​Where does local news come from?
​​It's not about the shirt.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend + a happy Halloween, friends!  :)

Love, 
Jane

Day 6  :: A week of pajamas continues.  :) Today is windy with a forecast high of 71°F. This might just be the perfect day to venture out to the cider mill for some hot apple cider + then to do a little thrifting. Then again, it's the weekend...during Covid times...so we might just avoid people + stay at home...again. Anyway, a girl can dream.  :)

Also...a few things I've enjoyed lately:
​Clothing as a tool of service.
Just in case there is any doubt.
What's at stake.
​Food for thought.
Just to live + enjoy simply...life.

Have a lovely, safe weekend, friends!

This post is part of this series.

Love,
Jane

Before we moved to London, my exposure to Indian food was pretty much limited to the samosas we savored each time we were lucky enough to come across a Whole Foods in our travels. Once I had the chance to eat a little bit more Indian food, it pulled me right in. The flavor combinations are amazing + different from any other. Especially as the temperatures cool, I could eat Indian food every day. Meera Sodha's Fresh India is a fantastic guide!

Love,
​Jane

I recently finished + enjoyed Yaa Gyasi's Transcendent Kingdom. (Her last book, Homegoing, was my favorite book I read that year.) I finally got my turn with How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi + am looking forward to being inspired by Meera Sodha's Fresh India this weekend. (I love the library!)

Mourning the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg + all that it means for our precarious future.
Poverty has its freedoms; opulence has its obstacles.
Kombucha leather + mushroom bricks.
The equivalent of seven billion fleece jackets being flushed into our waterways.
But I have to wonder how much equestrian flooring + how many standing desk pads we need.
Both science + metaphor.

My thoughts are with all of you dealing with the weight of fires, floods + this pandemic. I hope this weekend finds you safe + able to breathe some fresh air.

Loads of love,
​Jane

-You don't need new desks or a school room. We tried desks, but the girls ended up at the coffee table or kitchen table. The schoolroom was our shortest lived experiment. I needed to be moving about my day + liked having them out in the open where they were accountable at least in the morning + early afternoon. 

-Do (+ finish) the hardest subjects first. For us, that was always math. ​

​-Every subject doesn't have to happen every day. We did math every day, but science + history on alternating days for longer time periods. This way they can get more deeply into a subject, rather than breaking away just as the learning kicks in.

-Take advantage of one-on-one learning. It can be so much more effective than classroom learning. No tangents. No waiting for everyone to sit down or quiet down or catch up. No shyness about asking the questions that are meaningful to them (encourage that). ​

-Recess isn't the only reason to get outside. Now science can involve using a nature journal...noticing which birds come + go when...studying the different types of trees in your neighborhood...planting a garden. 

-My intention is not to try to influence anyone away from being tethered to the school's resources, but I will say that homeschool resources are designed for at home learning. Science experiments often use the kitchen as the laboratory. In middle school + high school, the textbooks are designed for student led learning. Kits of microscope slides + chemistry experiments are available. Math books are designed for us, as parents, to track alongside our children...no prep time is needed...we just read through the lesson with our child, work through practice problems with them + then know the methods that are being utilized in the day's lesson. Each assignment (in the curriculum we chose) has problems from previous lessons in order to facilitate knowledge retention + the lesson number is listed beside each problem for easy referral (by student + parent).

-I personally feel that choosing homeschooling for a year will not disrupt your child's tracking with the neighborhood school's system...especially during this year of global educational upheaval. Our girls were able to go in + out of school (even in a different country), because we chose rigorous homeschool curricula. ​

​-At home learning teaches personal discipline, time management skills, provides time for individuals to come to answers without peers blurting it out first, promotes self-learning, increases reading + comprehension skills (because this is a primary mode of learning as they get older). Students can benefit from these lessons this year.

-Instead of spending time shopping for just the right desk (though, I realize that might be a priority if your student needs to sit at a computer for hours each day)...spend time preparing yourself for what is to come. Set intention with your attitude...your outlook...your expectations.

-Take time to step back + see the big picture. This is one semester...one year in your child's life. What opportunities can you take this year? What could this experience add to their childhood or adolescence? 

OK. I meant to keep this short + as succinctly meaningful as possible. I'm not sure I did either of those things, but I love this topic. It has been my unintended, but pleasurable work for a lot of years now. Please feel free to reach out. I would love to chat with you. Comments don't automatically post publicly, so if you'd rather keep it private just let me know. I am cheering all of you amazing parents on! Our children are not just our future, they are our incredible now! 

Lots of love,
Jane

I took some time recently to sit down + find some books to put on hold at the library. A few days later, we were able to pick up this exciting stack! It really made my day to have so much possibility at my fingertips. My current comfort with borrowed books is enhanced by knowing that our library is quarantining returned books for three days in order to minimize their chances of being Covid-carriers. We are able to pick up books via a drive-thru, which minimizes human contact too.

I've enjoyed reading Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie + Hood Feminism by Mikki Kendall. I'd been looking forward to watching On the Basis of Sex again with my girls. This movie stirred up so much emotion + made me think so much of the current Black Lives Matter movement...changed thought + culture making us ready + able to bring about a great shift in legislation. And then the final Ruth Bader Ginsburg quote of the movie, "I ask no favor for my sex, all I ask of our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks." So, yeah...tears.

Beautiful plus sized sewing patterns.
Dance, monkey.
Something I no longer recognize.
Painting for conservation.
If you sit at my table + eat with me, you will know who I am.
Fight for democracy + the USPS here + here.
Get out the vote!

Hope you have a weekend full of bright spots, friends!

Love,
Jane