Little bits.
On Friday my mom took the day off of work and we met up at Greenfield Village. It was really fun, and the weather was perfect. Also, my sister and her kids and my grandma and aunt came along too. I didn’t get as many pictures as I would have liked- even with baby in a sling, it’s hard for me to feel motivated to take pictures. Too much of a juggling act. And Jeff just doesn’t think of it as much as I do- although when I am fumbling around to get a few he usually remembers and grabs the camera. š
The house we took pictures of was pretty stunning, but my favorite (which of course I didn’t take pictures of…) was a little homestead where they gardened and had a ton of raised beds, and there were drying herbs and peppers and squash everywhere. The people there were really working the land/home the way that they would be back then, and they talked about how it all worked and what everything was… I loved it! It didn’t look like an easy life- they told us about how they had to basically heat one room per day and stay in it because just to heat one room through the winter took about an acre of trees (and even then it didn’t go above 60 degrees F). I’m all for localizing and simplifying- to a more severe degree than some of my like-minded friends- but I definitely see the use for some of our advances. Like earthships. Earthships are the coolest thing! If only they had them back then. It was funny though… er, sad really. I was touring the garden and this guy was attempting to show my mom and I what they had grown, but we kept having to correct him. He didn’t know half as much as we did about their garden- and we’re not big experts. So, it’s one of those things that I mourn about the way life is now. Generations upon generations of knowledge that has just been lost due to our way of life. I so wish I could just flash back in time to apprentice with those homesteaders. They knew how to survive the winter! They knew how to dye wool, what each of the dying compounds were and looked like, how to preserve their food without canning/freezing, etc. It’s just a wealth of knowledge that feels a bit lost now. Anyway, it was a fun trip.
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Asa, my little guy. Jeff plopped him in this basket earlier, and I thought it was a much cuter way to display all our unfolded laundry.
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Sun + rain = magical.
Big girl. She was telling me about her orange balloon from Jeff’s brother’s house. She went there this morning so Jeff and I could get the last of the canning done with minimal interruptions. It’s done!!! (at least, all but my canning of soups here and there) A big sigh of relief from us tonight. It was a really busy year, and I’m so proud of our efforts and all that we accomplished. Anyway, my sweet little girl is really turning into a kid lately. She’s full of stories and energy, and she’s stretching out in that same way when she went from baby to toddler before my eyes, not so long ago. They just change right in front of you and become these amazing little people…
…people that we get to have a real relationship with. It’s so fun.
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In other news, this week will be spent organizing and getting rid of some stuff, and preparing the house for our harvest party on Sunday. We decided just to have a few friends over for a potluck and call it a holiday. Simple, not scary, in honor of the season and those who have passed… I think it could be a really great new tradition. If you asked Vera about it, she’d likely say: "I gonna be a faiwey. And mama gonna make for me a faiwey wings, and faiwey crown, and faiwey shoes, and a faiwey dwess. And I gonna fly awound, like a faiwey." (Probably exactly like that, too…)
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Quote of the day:
"To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge." (Disraeli)
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both of your tiny people are growing so much…just from week to week, i can’t believe how much they both change in pictures <3
Okay, so good, it’s not just me! I seriously look at both of them and think “how the…?” <3
I really want to go back to GF Village, like, next week. I was sad we had to leave after what felt like no time, and didn’t get to see all the houses which is what I most wanted to see. Love hearing you tell about it, though!
I wonder how poorly insulated those houses are/were. Because I’m pretty sure that in an energy-efficient home a modern woodstove can heat the whole house using way less than that. Well, we’ve just gotta buy land where most of it is forested, I guess. š
Oh, and I love your kids!!
Yeah, I think even just having part of the house with an earth wall would make all the difference. It helps to think that we do know some things that would have improved life back then… š
I love your kids!!!
This is so weird that you’re writing about Earthships now. We just saw a documentary about them yesterday, we’d never heard about them before. I totally want one, they’re cool and effective *and* pretty! š
Was it Garbage Warrior? It is so amazing, and it makes no sense that we haven’t totally switched over to that kind of building. Making use of all the garbage, too! I think they are so beautiful! You should totally build one. Maybe that’s why you haven’t found the right house yet… *nudge nudge*
It was on Discovery Channel, something called “Green Tech”. The bit about Earthships was just a small part of the program.
Their retro-fit package looks really interesting, but importing it would be quite a hassle (different electric systems etc.).
No way did you visit Greenfield Village!! We went there on Saturday š
Ben LOVED all the animals on the homestead. It was his first time seeing ‘real’ sheep and cows and chickens. He loved the sheep and said ‘Baa baa’ but was puzzled by the cow. Apparently it didn’t look ‘human’ enough because he’s only ever seen the anthropormorphized versions in kid’s books.
It’s really funny that you checked out their gardens: we did too! We could identify that they were growing some lettuce again with the colder weather and then they said there was some horseradish that the greens looked like parsley but most of it was already gone.
Glad you had a good time, we did too! Have a great harvest party this weekend.
How funny! I wish we were there on the same day! Great minds think alike, yeah? Maybe next time we can all meet up. š
I love the pics, esp the last one of dad and daughter crossing the sunny wet street. š
Your little one is getting bigger by the day! He’s so adorable! š
Great photos Grace! I’ve never been to Greenfield Village…we’ll have to do that one day while visiting the in-laws. Sounds like a cool day trip!
Funny you mentioned Earthships…we just watched Garbage Warrior and WHOA! Do I ever want to build an Earthship. Some of them were simply gorgeous. I was completely struck by the concept of living without utility bills, mortgage, etc. in a way that was beyond knowing that such a lifestyle could exist. I am now altering our long-term plan to shift from building a small log house to building an Earthship (in my mind, anyway…no firm plan yet!).
**I was also reminded of the phenomenal waste of time that goes on in our legislative system, by the way, but that’s a different post.
Wish we could visit at your harvest party!
Oops, that’s me above, didn’t mean to be anonymous. š
It’s a really cool place! Although I will say you might like to start with the houses/homesteads, they are the most interesting to me… and it’s easy to get caught up with other areas and lose energy by the time you get to them. You guys would love it, I bet!
Also, yes, Earthships are so great. And I totally agree with you about the waste of time that our current system is… not to mention waste of resources with all the inefficient building we’re all married to. Just generally kind of frustrating. I’m really glad we have people like him to fight that stuff. We also have dreams of building an Earthship- hopefully on that land across the street (although we’ll likely have to fight with the historic society on that one…). I hope you guys can do it! It’s such a cool thing!
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