Thursday, September 24, 2009

Fall

Willa's first day of school, 2009

Sorry not to have posted in awhile! Fall has come to Belfast, and we have all been happily busy getting into the rhythm of the new season. Willa is back in school in the 3-6 Chickadee classroom at Cornerspring Montessori, Rob is at work for various colleges and private high schools on new campaigns (with a little travel coming up), and I'm diving my time between book projects, the sabbatical project (the oral history of the new back-to-the-land movement), office work at Morningstar Midwifery, keeping in touch with Columbia College, volunteering for Citizens for Midwifery, various little poetry gigs (sending out manuscripts, readings upcoming at Bates and the Belfast Poetry Festival, at which I'm collaborating with a visual artist and a musician), and on and on. And Jem is learning to laugh and grab. To keep us all relatively sane, I've devised a household schedule that is timed to within an inch of all of our lives. But it's kind of working.

And part of the schedule (and point of the schedule) is to make sure we have enough time for reading, crafts, open play with the kids, and cooking good food. All of which are also happening, happily!

Tomorrow is the beginning of the Common Ground Fair, put on by the Maine Organic Farmers & Gardeners Association and the social event of the season here in Waldo County. We are attending all three days of the fair, volunteering at tables and shopping for Maine-made goods and produce, attending workshops and lectures and joining in the contradancing and kids' vegetable parade. Every single aspect of the fair is so exciting to me, from the sheepdog trials to the spinning demonstrations, from the talks on social justice and permaculture to the workshops on baking bread, not to mention all the FOOD, all of which is organic and grown and made right here in Maine.

Below, some pics from the past month or so, including evidence of Ravit and Gabe's wonderful visit at the end of August, complete with country fair (and my first canning experiment: Ravit and I canned nine jars of blueberry jam made from wild organic local blueberries!); our friend Ava's Labor Day, outdoor wedding; our egg share from our friends at Fail Better Farm; and more.
Kids with the newlyweds Uncle Gabe & Aunt Ravit
Beautiful eggs from Clayton and Kendra at Fail Better Farm

With the Union Fair Blueberry Queen

Jem, also known as WonderchubBlueberry jam I canned with Ravit!