That's what Ani said to us this morning when she woke up - "Happy Valentine's Day Eve Morning!" And so it is! It's a snow day too. Another ten inches fell overnight, and so the kiddos are all home from school. It's perfectly timed, of course, for making all those class Valentine's that we hadn't quite finished before, interrupted by breaks for sledding (and shoveling!). It's a good day.
I hope you're having a lovely day!
Greetings from Oak Meadow!
Oak Meadow offers an affordable independent school experience for students in kindergarten to grade 12. Our progressive, experiential homeschooling curriculum can be used independently, or by enrolling in our accredited, teacher-supported, distance learning school.
Our curriculum is built on strong academic standards that can be adapted to meet the needs of the developing individual. The flexible format allows you to create your own rhythms for learning and to adjust lesson plans to fit your homeschooling schedule and student interest.
Visit our website to learn more and to view curriculum samples. Call 802-251-7250 to speak with one of our educational counselors or send your questions to info@oakmeadow.com. Check out our online bookstore to see all our curriculum offerings, or apply to our accredited distance school for one-to-one teacher support. You can start anytime!
Use independently and follow our 36-week print curriculum for a comprehensive experience, or customize to meet student needs and interests.
Enroll full time and earn an Oak Meadow diploma, or take individual courses for enrichment, credit recovery, and transferable credit.
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It’s time for Oak Meadow’s annual Valentine’s Day special! From February 14 to 28, take 20% off all items in our bookstore!
This weekend, Oak Meadow is generously offering the following gift to ONE lucky SouleMama reader:
$150 gift coupon to use in the Oak Meadow Bookstore
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To enter today's giveaway, leave a comment below (one entry per person, please). Comments will close by 9am EST on Monday. Winners will be chosen by Random Number Generator and announced in this post shortly after.
I'm slowly emerging from the cave I've been living in since last week. It turns out that "little chest cold" I thought I had, turned into the full-on, real-deal flu. I guess yarn wasn't the only thing I brought back from NYC (I heard from several others at VKLive who came home with the same, oh boy!). I was down for the count, I can't remember being that sick in a very very long time. I tried my best to quarantine myself from the world - and my family - in hopes of keeping everyone else away from it. With lots of fire cider, and elderberry, and good rest...fingers crossed I did just that!
But I'm emerging now, back to reality slowly but surely. Towards the end, when I started to feel a bit better, there was a good deal of knitting. And way too many entire seasons of Grace and Frankie. And then a new book (There, There by Tommy Orange). So...not all bad things, really. And then we had two days of fifty degree weather! Now that was a treat and a welcome back to reality for sure.
Assuming that healthy trajectory continues, I'm excited to be heading to Boston this weekend for the second annual Boston Farm & Fiber Festival! Taproot will once again be sponsoring the Knitting Lounge (this year, in the bigger kitchen space). If you're local, come on by to this fun, free, and open to all event at the Boston Public Market. Bring your knitting!
We're deep in the very final stretch of proofreading for our first Taproot issue of 2019, Issue 31::REVIVE! Today, I'm holed up with the laptop, some tea, a pile of cough drops and a tissue box beside me. Achoo! It seems I've caught the funk that's been making its way through the family. But never mind that (I tell myself), because I'm distracted by all the fun and goodness inside the pages.....AND on the cover of the pages! I love that we work with a different cover artist each year - it's been such a pleasure for the past seven years to do that, getting to know each one well and working together through the seasons of a year. I'm always so tickled and surprised when the artist I admire and reach out to says "Yes!" and this year was no exception. We're so happy to be working with Jenny Kiker for our six issues in 2019! You can find more of her beautiful work on Instagram as Living Pattern. Her botanical paintings have stolen my heart and each time I look at that cover, I feel such peace! Do you know the plant? It's a Calathea, often called a Prayer Plant, and look what it does in the evening! How cool is nature?
Alright, back to it. The clock is ticking on this issue! If you'd like to start your subscription with this issue, tonight at midnight is the deadline for making that happen! Bonus! We are giving a complementary calendar to all subscriptions that are made until February 1st! Find all of that info on the Taproot website.
Have a lovely day!
Someone has all but taken over my little studio nook of late. Adelaide has been a busy bee cranking out so many goodies for her dog Sonny. Actually, she has grand plans of a little shop full of pet things she's made, but for now she's 'testing out' all of her creations and 'developing her product line' (she sure does have all the right lingo). Sonny is the happy recipient, or patient one at least. Can you believe how big he is? He's grown up so very fast, and continues to be such a love, I can hardly believe our luck. Of course, some of that is just who he is, but a lot of the really good behavior and sweet disposition is the result of his relationship with Adelaide, who continues to devote so much love and time to him and his training. She's got an agility set up in the barn these days, and I can't tell which one of them is happier while training. It's a beautiful thing to behold, and well, all the cuter with a flannel plaid neck scarf, don't you think?
I'm just back from a whirlwind of a weekend in New York City! I was there for Vogue Knitting Live, meeting up with some of our Taproot contributors and friends alike. It was fast and furious - like any whirlwind weekend trip to NYC can be. I broke away one evening to see Gloria: A Life, an off-broadway play about the life and work of Gloria Steinem (and others). I didn't even know about the show until I saw it on a poster while I was driving in the back of a Lyft from airport to hotel. It was such a random discovery, but one that stuck with me as the weekend went on, until finally I just went and bought myself a solo ticket and went by myself. The play itself was amazing and I highly recommend you see if it you are close! The first act is all about her life and the movement, and the second act is an interactive 'talking circle' led each performance by a different facilitator. This particular evening happened to be a taping for television, and so when act two began, none other than Gloria herself walked into the room to lead the circle. Gloria! I have heard her speak a few times before but this was so special, in a relatively intimate theatre (with silk pillows as chairs, thank you very much), and as such a surprise. I was truly bursting with joy (and also hope) by the time I left that theater.
I came home with just a bit of yarn. More than is needed for a woman who raises sheep and has a closet full, that's for sure. But there was so much beautiful yarn to be admired there, I just had to bring some home. I discovered La Bien Aimee, which is soon to be a hat for miss Annabel. There is some Farmers Daughters Yarn and Barnyarn Knits yarn working their way to being A Girls Best Friend shawl. And..a bit of Mad Tosh Vintage which I think might just become a Nurtured sweater. Because it's nearly February and we all know the first and only knitting rule of February - COLOR!
Wishing you all a lovely start to your week!
Well, THAT happened. I am now, it appears, the mother of an adult child. What a trip!
I seriously think I've spent most of the month with my nose deep in the photo boxes and photo albums. It helped - that slow leak of tears. On his birthday, it was nothing but fun and celebration. We spent the blizzard with some of his friends on a mountain he's grown up on, doing just exactly what he loves. His siblings showered him with what they know he loves and he was gracious about it all. It was sweet.
A friend of older children once told me to 'cry early and cry often' during Senior Year, in hopes of not being the one who holds it in all year and then falls apart at graduation. I might still fall apart at graduation, but it won't be for lack of trying to pace myself through this year. Sadness, yes, at what is no longer. But just as much the tears trickle out from pride and overflowing love. Excitement and anticipation too, for what comes next for him, and for all of us together as a family.
Love, love, love...so much of it. Eighteen years worth.
Greetings! I'm Amanda Blake Soule - mother of five, author of three books on family creativity, and editor-in-chief of Taproot Magazine. I live with my family in an old farmhouse in Western Maine where we raise animals, grow vegetables and make lots of things. I write about it all here on the blog. Thank you for visiting!
