Need Some Egg Dyeing Inspiration? Check out our Natural Egg Dyeing Guide!

 

A Norse Solstice

Good morning and Happy Solstice! I hope you are all having a lovely day wherever you are. It's been a while since I've posted and things have been so busy. Today I wanted to take a moment and share a short story that I wrote for my form drawing class this past weekend. I can never seem to find the exact story I want so I often end up writing my own. I am hoping to share more of these with you all over the coming weeks, months, years. Please feel free to use them in your own classes if you can. 

**********************************************************************************

A Norse Solstice

The wind blew cold during the dark time of year in Midgard. The people stayed inside where it was warm and safe from the biting cold and inky dark. To help pass the time they would tell stories, sing songs and practice their handcrafts and enjoy their time together.

 It was the time of the year just before winter, known as The Wild Hunt. During this time the god Jolnir would lead his group of hounds and warriors screaming through the night sky. The purpose of this dark evening drama was to drive away the ghosts and spirits who would take advantage of the darkness to roam about the earth unfettered. 

And woe be unto any mortal who was caught outside at night during this frightening time. If the cold and hunger did not do them in they might just keel over from fright at the sight of the Wild Hunt. Thankfully, however, the laws of hospitality were adhered to more at this time of year than any other. Showing someone hospitality this time of year, giving them some hot soup to fill their bellies or a warm coat to cover their shoulders or a soft bed to rest their weary head would often mean the difference between life and death.  Jolnir was already busy sending the wandering spirits outside to the afterlife. No need to make more work for him by creating another angry spirit.

While conditions were cold and dark above ground in Midgard, below ground in Alfheim it was warm and bright and busy. The elves and dwarves who lived there spent the dark part of the year tinkering and carving and making lovely little toys and delicious candies at Jolnir’s request. They knew that the night before the Wild Hunt was to end on December 21st, the night of the Winter Solstice, Jolnir would make his appearance to come and gather up all the toys. They were always amazed when they saw him as he was quite a sight to behold clad in his red leather pants and a fur trimmed jacket which served to keep out the cold during his nightly rides. 

Now for most of the Wild Hunt Jolnir’s purpose was to terrify the wandering spirits, but Jolnir always felt bad about terrifying the mortals in Midgard. To make it up to them, at the end of the Wild Hunt, he would gather up all the toys and candies that residents of Alfheim had so graciously made and make one last flight through the night skies on his 8 legged steed. 

On that night, the night of the solstice, the children down on the earth in Midgard would leave their boots on the hearth beside the fire before they went to bed. Their boots would be filled with hay and carrots for the eight legged steed. They would then snuggle into their beds to sleep the night away. Sometime during the night Jolnir would slip down the chimney and leave the beautiful gifts and sweets behind. 

Morning would then come, the children’s eyes wide with wonder at all the lovely things that Jolnir brought them. The next night would be quiet, the Wild Hunt finally over for the year. And over the next several weeks the sun would come back and the world would be lovely and bright once again. 

Monday Rundown 2/17/20

February here in Arizona is pretty delightful. Coming from the cold Midwest/Upper South and being used to being bundled up in mid-February it's always a bit exciting and confusing to be outside eating lunch with my students and being perfectly comfortable. 

Our school week is only 3 days this week due to Rodeo Days. I have mixed feeling about rodeo culture and it's treatment of animals, but I am grateful for a bit of a break. Having never experienced rodeo festivities I am interested and kind of want to see it for myself, but then again I don't want to support someone so brutal. I am still trying to decide if we will go to any of the festivities or not. Regardless, who can argue with a 4 day weekend?

In other news around the house, our seedling have been planted and I am waiting for them to get big enough to put into our Tower Gardens. I started out with one Tower Garden years ago and ordered a new one awhile back. I had a nice garden going this past fall, but a windstorm wiped out my plants so I decided to wait until spring to start again. I do still have a few broccoli, garlic, potato, carrot, and beet plants out in raised beds and they should be about ready to harvest pretty soon. This whole concept of planting through the winter is another thing that is mind-boggling to Midwest/Upper South me. 

With all the new things for my grades classes at school I feel like I've been neglectful of my handwork students, but that changes this week. I have spent all weekend working on project samples for crochet hats and washcloths and we will be getting new supplies in this week! I can't wait to get my students working hard on new projects! I have a few new patterns that I will be posting on Wednesday for Handwork Wednesday. 

Hope you all have a wonderful week!

Don't forget to check out our self-guided courses at: 

www.simplecottageschool.com

The Herb Cabinet: Honey Lip Balm

Each week we will share one of our favorite herbal recipes with you. This week we are sharing the best lip balm ever! Forget the expensive store-bought kind! You can make your own honey lip balm with this super easy recipe!

Honey Lip Balm Recipe

Ingredients:
1 1/4 c. herb infused oil
3 tbsps beeswax
1 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp liquid vitamin E oil
Essential oils if desired

Directions

Melt oil and beeswax together in a double boiler or a other non-reactive pot. When oil and wax are well blended remove from heat and add in honey, ,vitamin E oil and essential oils.

If you like this recipe, don't forget to check out our self-guided herbology classes at www.simplecottageschool.com 

Monday Rundown: 2/10/20

New year, new life!

Since I last posted in late September things have changed once again! After an unexpected turn of events I am now the Class 3 and 4 Grades Teacher at the school that I had been working at as a Handwork teacher. As such I haven't had time to do much except for lesson plan, eat, and sleep. My dream has always been to be a Waldorf teacher so this was a huge blessing!

Despite all my busyness, I have had a bit of time to get my Tower Gardens back up and running for the season. I may not have big gardens these days, but my two Tower Gardens and a few planting bags for root vegetables work just fine for now. I just put planted several new seedlings so they will be going into the Tower Gardens in just a few weeks. The lovely thing about Arizona is that it's early February and 70 degrees out. Perfect weather for my Tower Gardens.

Although, it's still winter I am already starting to think about the summer. Conferences, trips, Outschool summer camp classes! There is so much to do! I can't wait to share it all with you!

Handwork Wednesday: Beginner's Wash Cloth Pattern

This is an amazing pattern for teaching both knit and purl stitches. 

Yarn: Worsted Weight Cotton
Needle Size: 10

Directions:

Block 1

Row 1 -K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5
Row 2 -P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5
Row 3 - K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5
Row 4 -P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5
Row 5 -K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5
Row 6 - P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5

Block 2
Row 1 -P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5
Row 2 -K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5
Row 3 -P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5
Row 4 -K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5
Row 5 -P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5
Row 6 -K5, P5, K5, P5, K5, P5, K5



Block 3 - Same as block 1

Block 4 - Same as block 2

Block 5 - Same as block 1

Block 6 - Same as block 2

Block 7 - Same as block 1

Goal Setting Sunday - 9/29/19

Wow! It's been a looooong time since I've done this! I'm trying REALLY hard to get back to journaling, goal setting, and self-care so this seems like a good start. 

Last Week's Goals:
No goals from last week, but I think just getting this blog back up and running was an accomplishment.

This Week's Goals:
Monitor my blood glucose and ketones every single day.
Cardio and weights 3x this week. 
Do my monthly check-in for biz and life workbooks. 
3 blog posts


I'm starting off small with only 4 goals this week. Check back next week to see if I was able to meet them all!

If you are inclined to set your own weekly goals go ahead and post them on your own blog and leave me a link in the comments. Next week we can review our goals, report on our achievements and then set new goals. Let's help hold each other accountable!

Waldorf, Handwork, and Rebirth

It's been nearly 5 years since I've posted to this blog. I feel like I've lived an entire lifetime in those few short years. We sold Walnut Cottage in early 2016. Since that time all the land around it has been bought up, the houses torn down and new developments have gone in. Mostly car lots. Yuck. While I desperately miss those days in the gardens and with the chickens at Walnut Cottage I am grateful for having sold it when I did. I really don't enjoy the idea of having a car lot for a neighbor.

As sad as the fate of Walnut Cottage may be, I am afraid that I have even sadder news. In early 2018 Jacob completed suicide while serving in Syria. I can't even begin to explain the situation, but suffice it to say the kids and were and still remain devastated.

In April the kids and moved to Tucson where we are getting along quite well. I had been teaching online, but found a handwork teacher position at the local Waldorf charter here and I am beyond overjoyed about it!

While our lives have changed dramatically a few things remain constant. Waldorf, handwork and gardening. I miss writing about those things. I don't know how I can transform this blog into something new, but I plan to do my best. Walnut Cottage 2.0? Nah, that sounds silly. But maybe something else...I wonder...

So very tired...

Greeting friends! Hope everyone had a great holiday season and that you're getting ready for spring. There has been a lot going on here at the cottage, some good and some not so great.

If you've been to the gas pump lately you've no doubt noticed that gas prices are down significantly. While this is great for the rest of the country in the interim (it does have negative long term implications) it's disastrous for our family. Jacob's hours have been cut by half and since most of what he makes is from overtime his paycheck has taken a very significant hit. We are okay for the moment, but it's not sustainable for the longterm. This means either I go back to work or find a way to pick up the slack while working from home. Of course I prefer the latter since it means that I can spend more time at home with the kids. Which brings me to the good goings on...

In the interest of bring more income into our household I've been VERY busy working on projects!

I've finally finished all my Dr. Sear's wellness coaching and pregnancy and postpartum coaching classes. I hope to start offering the online versions of these courses starting this Monday as soon as I launch my new website so please stay tuned! These are really awesome and powerful classes that are super fun and interactive! I love the way the material is presented and the way it translates for implementation into a home setting. Seriously. These classes are AH-MAZING!

I've put a ton of new things up in the etsy store and am planning on doing a lot more in the coming weeks. If you haven't checked it out lately go do it now!

I've also started working on my courses for childbirth education, postpartum and birth doula work and lactation education. While it's going to take me awhile to get through the course work I hope to be doing some postpartum doulaing and childbirth education classes by early this fall.

Of course with all this work and taking care of the house and two kids I'm exhausted. However, despite the gray clouds looming overhead, I am actually pretty happy with all the work I've been doing and I hope that you with join me on some of these journeys in the coming days as I post new arts and crafts, new classes and new coaching and doula offerings! Have a great weekend folks!

Monday Rundown- Holiday Edition

Whew! What a week! Sorry I failed to post last week, but Jacob made it in early on Sunday morning and the rest of the week from that moment on was pretty much a whirlwind!

We got to spend 6 glorious family days together cooking, baking, playing and visiting. We retired early on the night of the solstice and slept extra long. Even though we didn't do anything particularly special I think getting the extra sleep was a fitting way to mark the longest night of the year. The next two days were passed by preparing for Christmas Day and Christmas Eve.

When Christmas Eve finally rolled around we had a wonderful day visiting family. Then on Christmas Day Jacob made duck and other delicious dishes for our Christmas dinner and I got to pull my Great Grandmother's linens out of the closet and use them for the first time in two years. The kids made out like bandits both days with some beautiful and thoughtful presents.

Friday was spent enjoying each other's company, having a nice dinner out and then visiting the Christmas light at the Louisville Mega Cavern. We had to be up early the next morning to drive Jacob to the train station in Indianapolis to catch his 6am train. Saturday and Sunday were spent putting the house back together, resting and nursing the wound that Jacob's leaving always causes.

In the coming week I plan to pack up the Christmas tree and put away the lights. It seems like I just put them up not too long ago. Funny how time seems to pass by more quickly the older I get. I hope that in the coming week I can carve out the time to plan for the new year. I plan on making plans to savor every bit of time I have with my growing baby, my ittle boy and enjoying the fleeting moments I get with my husband.

Hope you all had a great holiday season and are making grand plans for the new year! Have a great week!

Goal Setting Sunday - 12/28/14

Last week I decided to dedicate each Sunday evening to setting and reviewing my weekly goals. I think that this week I will print out a copy of this post and pin it to the fridge so that I can see it and remember what goals I set. 

Here are my results from last week's goals. 

Last Week's Goals

1. Christmas baking on Tuesday.- Done!
2. Do one reiki session for my husband on Friday. - Didn't do. Sorry Jacob!
3. Christmas presents wrapped on Tuesday. - Done!
4. House cleaned by Tuesday night. - Didn't do on Tuesday, but it got done eventually. 
5. Shopping finished on Monday night. - Done!
6. Banks and bills on Monday morning. - Done, except the fact that I tried to pay one bill out of the wrong account and overdrafted. Womp. Womp. I'll remember to check the next time bills are set for autopay. 
7. Return all correspondence Monday afternoon.- Still haven't done. I am truly terrible at this! Sorry to anyone I owe a response!
8. Christmas cards sent on Monday afternoon. - 3 lefts to send. 
9. Enjoy this time with my husband and don't get too rushed. - I think we did okay!
10. Make it to the gym Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.- Didn't do. :(

This Week's Goals

1. Return all correspondence by Tuesday morning. 
2. Do one reiki self session.
3. Finish my Life and Biz workbooks for 2015. 
4. Put all Christmas decorations away. 
5. Get Will signed up for after care if school office is open. 
6. All laundry put away by Monday night.
7. House cleaned by Tuesday morning.
8. Gather Will's school items Sunday morning. 
9. Meditate at least once. 
10. Finish Christmas cards.

If you are inclined to set your own weekly goals go ahead and post them on your own blog and leave me a link in the comments. Next week we can review our goals, report on our acheivements and then set new goals. Let's help hold each other accountable!

{this moment} -12/26/14

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. 

If you're inspired to do the same, head on over to Soule Mama and leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Goal Setting Sunday

With the new year on the horizon I've decided that I'm hoping to improve my thought collecting skills so that I can more readily meet my daily, weekly, monthly and yearly goals. In order to do so I've decided that I will start off each week by listing my goals so that I can get a clear idea of what I need to do.

Here's my list for this week:

1. Christmas baking on Tuesday.
2. Do one reiki session for my husband on Friday.
3. Christmas presents wrapped on Tuesday.
4. House cleaned by Tuesday night.
5. Shopping finished on Monday night.
6. Banks and bills on Monday morning.
7. Return all correspondence Monday afternoon.
8. Christmas cards sent on Monday afternoon.
9. Enjoy this time with my husband and don't get too rushed.
10. Make it to the gym Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

If you are inclined to do the same go ahead and post your goals on your own blog and leave me a link in the comments. Next week we can review our goals, report on our acheivements and then set new goals. Let's help hold each other accountable!

Monday Rundown- It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

Last week I told you that we weren't sure if Jacob was going to make it home for Christmas. After much finagling and some logistical acrobatics it looks like he may just make it. It involves a train, a bus, a dog sitter, a mailbox and maybe even a thumbed ride by the time it's all said and done, but as long as we can get him on the train this Friday he will be home on Sunday morning. I hope. Keep your fingers crossed blogfolk!

In the meantime we've been rushing around trying to get all the Christmas-y things done. I only have a few more gifts to buy, cards to mail and gifts to wrap. I'm planning on spending the next couple of days doing some baking and cleaning. I still have to find some type of roast beast to adorn the table. Jacob wants a goose, but I'm not too keen on spending $70+ for one. Any ideas on where I can get one for less than $70 are welcome!

Will has had a wonderful week which included his first every party with friends. He has such a great time and it was nice for me to be able to talk to some of the other parents n his class. In just the few weeks that he's been at school he has changed so rapidly for the better that it's truly amazing! They also had their Winter Spiral ceremony last Friday and I was amazed at how beautiful it was and how reverent all the children were. Sending him to school was definitely the right choice!

Litha had her first real food yesterday. She thinks unsweetened applesauce tastes funny, but baby oatmeal is pretty good. She also finds it rather amusing to blow raspberries with her food. She's a delicate flower, that one.

So, all in all everything seems to be falling in to place! Have a great week y'all!

{this moment} - 12/12/14

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. 

If you're inspired to do the same, head on over to Soule Mama and leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Holiday Joy!

In case you haven't noticed I've been rather obsessed with essential oils lately. As you can see from my etsy store in the sidebar I've been making some neato essential oil diffuser jewelry. I'm also a representative for doTERRA essential oils. I've always been a fan of essential oils, but lately it seems I've been immersed in the world of essential oils and I really want to share them with you. So, each week, I will spotlight one of my current favorites and tell you what I love about it. If you think you would love it too please help our family out a bit by visiting my site and purchasing it.

When used in a responsible manner they can be incredible helpers on the path to wellness. However, the essential oil I want to talk about today is pure holiday fun! It called Holiday Joy and it is a delicious blend of wild orange, nutmeg pine, cassia, cinnamon bark and vanilla absolute.

I've been diffusing it almost daily since early November with my Aroma Ace Diffuser. I've also been using it on the terracotta ornaments that Will and I made for our tree We just put a drop on each ornament and it makes the tree smell wonderfully festive!

When it came out this holiday season I bought two bottles and I'm so glad I did because I'm pretty sure that by New Year's Day they will both be all gone!

To get your bottle of Holiday Joy or any other essential oil you might be interested in please visit my website.

My doTERRA Essential Oil Website

If you are in the Louisville, KY area, please Contact Me and I will be more than happy to share doTERRA's amazing oils with you in person. 

Monday Rundown- I'll Be Home For Christmas, If Only In My Dreams...

I'd hoped my first Monday Rundown after my long hiatus would be a bit more positive, but unfortunately, no such luck.

Jacob's truck has broken down and getting it to someone who can fix it is going to be an epic undertaking since he's 40 miles from even the nearest gas station. We thought it was just a frozen gas line, but after increased temperatures, gas treatment and warming lamps it appears that it is something more serious. Even if he can get it to a mechanic the likelihood of it being taken care of in a timely manner is pretty much nil. Nothing in North Dakota gets done quickly. Mechanics will likely have a backlog of vehicles to repair, parts will take forever and then the fact that if it's a problem with the engine the expense will likely be phenomenal.

I'm not holding my breath that he will make it home for Christmas and I'm completely bummed out about it. I don't know how to tell Will, but I'm planning on refraining from doing so until the end of next week so that it doesn't affect how he's settling in at his new school. I find myself crying and cursing the oilfield and then feeling guilty for it because I feel like I'm biting the hand that feeds. Whatever. I just want my husband home for Christmas.

Of course, I'll rally, just like I always do and turn my focus on things that are more positive. I'll work on my etsy store, I'll use my oils to keep my mood uplifted and I'll be extra mindful with the children, just like I alway do when the oilfield interrupts my life. But for now I'm going to lie down and wallow around in it awhile.

If your loved ones are near to you please give them a hug today. If they are not, be sure they know you love them. And if you have some extra positive vibes or prayers to send, please send them our way. We need a Christmas miracle.

It's been awhile...

It's been almost two years since I last posted here. At the time I thought we were going to sell Walnut Cottage, go off on a grand adventure to North Dakota and live in a camper. I started a new blog about oilfield life and was excited to tell you all about it. But the house didn't sell, the permanent camper living proved untenable and we added a new member to the family.

We attempted to sell Walnut Cottage as the housing market was gaining steam. It should have sold easily. It didn't. Now I know why. We weren't meant to leave it. We've now been back here for nearly a year and I'm ready to start blogging about our sweet little life here at Walnut Cottage again.

Some things are the same. Jacob is still working far away and our hearts ache for him and we miss him daily. I regularly scheme up ways to get him home while maintaining a good quality of life for our family. I am grateful for the oilfield and the life it provides us, but it has also brought us much heartache. This is why I choose not to blog about it exclusively anymore. While I appreciate it I don't want it to be my identity.

Some things are different. We have added a new beautiful little girl to our family. Her name is Litha (her due date was the summer solstice) and she was born right here in my bedroom in Walnut Cottage. I believe this was the primary reason why Walnut Cottage did not pass from our hands. That is, it stayed with us in order to provide a warm, comfortable entrance for our sweet gal.

In light of our peaceful birth experience  I am currently studying to become a birth & postpartum doula and childbirth educator. Since I was blessed with such a peaceful, quiet birth I feel like I have a duty to help other women acheive the birth they want. I will be finishing up my first few classes on my journey in January and will then be certified in pregnancy and postpartum nutrition education. I can't wait to begin this journey.

Of course, I can't go any time without arts and crafts so I've been working on getting my etsy store back off the ground. It will include the batiks that I've always sold, but I've also been working on essential oil diffuser jewellry as well. Please check it out and buy something if you see something you like.

In closing, I hope you will once again join me at Walnut Cottage. It is our family's home and we love it. We may spend some time away from it to visit Jacob in North Dakota from time to time, but we will always come home to Walnut Cottage.

New Blog Is Up!

Check it out at:

An Update-ish.

I know it's been a while since I updated this blog. A great many huge life altering things have happened in the time I have been away.

First, it is with a bit of sadness that am announcing that Walnut Cottage is for sale. With Jacob gone managing everything became impossible for me to do alone while working outside the home. We were required under the mortgage to stay in the house for 3 years after purchase and that three years was up at the end of February. The house went on the market in April. This is the reason I quit blogging. I didn't want to make it any harder on myself by creating lovely posts about the house while trying to disconnect myself from it.

The next step in our plan was to whittle down all our worldly possessions to what we could carry in the car and join Jacob in North Dakota. We did this, but unfortunately, oilfield life is extremely unpredictable and Will and I are now back in Kentucky. All I can say is, if you are an oilfield family (or really any family for that matter) save, save, save your pennies! Thankfully, we saved our pennies and are fine and are now back on the upswing.

We are planning to return to North Dakota in a few weeks, but in the meantime was are hanging out here at Walnut Cottage having a great time. We are enjoying the warm, sultry Kentucky summer complete with runs through the sprinkler, solstice celebrations, lemonade popsicles and lots and lots of crafty, arty things.

The house is still for sale and it could sell any time so I suppose that this is my good-bye post from Walnut Cottage. But never fear! This is certainly not the end of my blogging days.

I have been putting together a new blog about camper life in North Dakota. I have been struggling with the name for a few months now and I'm not completely satisfied yet. Once I finally settle on it here in the next few days I will start blogging there about our preparations to go back to North Dakota, then about our trip and finally on making our camper a home. I truly hope that everyone who has followed our family on our journey at Walnut Cottage will join us at the new blog when it goes live.

Well, that's all folks! So long from Walnut Cottage! It's been fun for me and hopefully for you, too! I hope to see you at the new blog!

Lots of love!

-Chelsea