Beauty

 There is something in the air when spring arrives.  Not just the smell of the earth coming to life again after a long winter hibernation.  No. 

There is this desire to grow and dream and explore your horizons.

I have been thinking a lot lately how fleeting this time is.  How quickly life flows by, how one season follows the next and before we know it a new year has begun. 

I do believe it was just yesterday my brothers and i were riding our bikes up and down that dirt road, knowing every turn, pot hole and dog we would meet along the way.  It was just yesterday my oldest brother moved away from home and i cried, partly for the fact he was gone, but mostly because that season of my life was over.  Our family was changing.  It was just yesterday my other brother announced his engagement on the 4th of July, calling the camp phone late one summer night.  Such happiness filled my heart, knowing our family was changing once more. 

People are constantly growing and changing and realizing new things about themselves.  Families evolve and change as a result.  Sometimes the changes are clearly beautiful, like the six babies that mean so, so much to us.  Other times as people age, the beauty is harder to see, as sadness and fear creep in.  But we must find it.  We must search and change with our loved ones, while keeping our fond memories close.

Life is anything but predictable. 

and

Life is every part beautiful.

Spring is here and it is time to grow.

Signs of Spring

Breathe in spring.

Preparations for a new sugar house!!

Soon to blossom peach trees

The Hebert's first cows have arrived!  Three pregnant, due in two months :)

"While the changing of the seasons is a slow and gradual transition, it does seem as though there is always a first day.  The first day on which the scale tipped, and more of our time is spent out of doors than in.  The first day on which jackets are shed, the first day on which we spy crocuses beginning to appear under the debris that winter left behind.  The first day on which the brave, and  usually young among us walk barefoot upon the earth - feet squishing in gooey, cold, rich mud. "My toes are breathing mama!"  I hear from my little ones.  Indeed, we are breathing."

-Amanda Blake Soule

Martha, Ruben, Polley and Obadiah

We went venturing on a long hike through 300 acres of pristine forest on Sunday morning in search of a sugar-bush holding 1000 taps.  We never did find the grove of sugar maples, but we did find history.

On this beautiful mountainside, a homestead was thriving.  The stone walls, impressive.  The fields, perfectly square.  The stone well, still in tack.  The water trough still bubbling fresh spring water.

The foundations crumbling, while trees now stand strong and tall in their kitchen's place.  The remains of a cook stove and a cattle shoot.  The history of different generations built on one another.  History under our feet and around us.  

While imagining their lives, their hardships on this hillside, we spotted the graveyard.

Obadiah, the son of Ruben Eaton & Polley died at just five years old.  Martha, the wife of Ruben died in 1848, at 87 years old.  Ruben died at 67 years old.  Martha was alive as George Washington became our first president, and died just 14 years before Abraham Lincoln took the reins.  I've not yet figured out the relationship between Polley, Ruben and Martha, but do know that they had a beautiful piece of land up here.

I wonder how long it took them to get to the nearest mercantile.  I wonder who the littlest gravestone was for, probably a very young child that couldn't thrive.  I wonder what livestock they had and if they were trappers.  I wonder what vegetables were in their gardens and how much firewood they needed to make it through the long winters.

We thought about what brought them joy and entertainment.  We thought about how long it must have taken them to make these fields, to build these structures.

My, how much has changed since the day they walked this land.

Just as we are

Thank you all so much for your kind words and heartfelt stories of similar experiences.  I was questioning whether or not to post such a personal story, but really, it took such a weight off me just getting the words out on paper.  That honesty stuff is refreshing!  I need to let myself write more about the not so positive times, which will in turn help me to cherish the great times.

So to follow up, here is a post of great randomness. 

Love and Positivity with life, right now.

Just as we are.

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Up first: Homemade dolls made for our nieces and nephew as they welcomed the new twins into their home.

The first doll i made still sits in my craft room, basically a demo and trial run. 

The next three were made in one weekend with the help of my mom!  From left to right:

Pinkalicious, Goldie & miss no-name.

London, Keira & Isabel named them and have already requested "friends" for their birthdays :)

And let me tell you, stringing and stitching yarn hair for hours on end requires a nice glass of red to accompany the operation.

For mister Jack-  a monster of sorts.  Whose eye fell off within an hour of playing. 

That may require a re-design.

With a pointy tail :)

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Up second: Some moments captured over that past few months that make me smile.

Charlie & mama jaunts in the woods while boiling.

 Valentine's Day Tulips <3

Heavy February snow storms leaving blankets of fluffy snow.

The "please drop some veggies on the floor" stare as i make our nightly salads.

Early morning sunrises that make getting up early so worth it.

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We’re headed to VT this weekend to celebrate Easter with my parents. 

I can’t wait to get back on Jerusalem road. 

Happy Weekend!