winter blues...



our little gnome...



 snowy days...

the magic of the forest...
winter has landed early this year, as below-freezing temperatures have begun... along with car problems and a lack of energy... i have been reading a great book, "Birthing from Within", i am really picky when it comes to pregnancy-based books, but this one is absolutely amazing, the only one i recommend thus far... i've been struggling between a home-based or hospital birth cause although i really want to have it at home, we don't have running water or a bathroom, and the yurt is only one room... but maybe it will be nice enough outside by then, maybe it can work?... i don't know yet... i see pregnancy as a natural part of life, not a medical issue, but alas, all of that will unfold naturally too...
taking walks definitely helps me clear my head and it just feels so good, although it is getting more tricky as winter progresses... i have also felt the baby movements by placing my had on my belly, so that is a fun new experience...

me and my honey really want to do something for our babymoon, but winter makes it so tricky since our car sucks... i have to do some more creative thinking on that one... i am also feeling for a wardrobe change, but gosh darn, i think that is just the winter blues creeping up on me, already!

snacks and baby chat...

 our morning walk (me and mischief)

 harvest's private walk

 our cozy yurt home

more snow today, wow, has it ever come early this year!  today after honey makes a delicious breakfast (as always:), yoga, and a morning walk, i have a snacks and chat get together with kathy, rachelle and kate about giving birth... kathy showed us a slideshow of when she gave birth to edie and it looked really wonderful... this was a truly helpful experience as i really had no idea what happens in a birth; labour especially... having the knowledge that these friends gave to me has given me a whole new perspective, and i think a lot more confidence of what to "expect" when my day arrives... definitely helpful indeed, and lots of yummy goodies too!

winter thoughts...

 forest in our backyard

 spot the bird, they are hard to catch!

 on the river

as winter peaks her head in, we suffer a great loss with our uncle david passing away so quickly from lung cancer.  this is a sad time for us as we ponder loss, life, death and sadness.  a lot of "whys" and no answers... why are we on this earth? why do we come here? where do we go? why do we take life so seriously when we all die, some so much sooner than others?  life is so beautiful at the same time, especially the love that we experience... death is so sad because it is a loss in the lives of the living and the dead... why don't we know why we are here on earth? so many thoughts...

half-way there...

yup, 20 weeks in, and I am feeling really good, like wow, this is so much better than those first three months, and even better than the fourth month... so good news, hopefully continuing until birth day!   here is my tummy, i am not feeling too bad about gaining weight, i have always had an active lifestyle and a healthy weight, so i know that to have a healthy baby i gotta be eating all that yummy stuff... last night i made a really good chicken and rice dinner, it is pretty easy to cook with chicken as i haven't cooked meat in like forever, so chicken is a good one to start off with!  i have also been doing yoga, meditation and a walk almost every day, and that keeps me mentally, spiritually and physically balanced...

chicken in a spiced peanut sauce...

1 medium onion chopped

1 clove garic finely chopped

1 green bell pepper chopped (i used broccoli)

4 tbsp olive oil

2 lb boneless chicken pieces

sauce:

5 oz peanut butter

2 cups chicken stock

1 tsp of turmeric, coriander, cumin and red pepper flakes

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven 350 degrees F (I used my skillet for the "baking" part, since i don't have an oven).  Saute onion, garlic, and veggie in 1 tbsp oil until soft.  Remove veggies from skillet and set aside.  Add remaining oil to same skillet and fry chicken pieced until golden brown all over.  Return veggies to skillet.  Place sauce ingredients in small saucepan over low heat, cook and stir until well mixed about 5 min.  Place chicken in ovenproof dish and spoon sauce over top, bake 30 min (i put a lid on the skillet to cook on stove).

phoenix reborn...

yesturday, rememberance day, marked one year since the miscarriage, and now i am almost twenty weeks into this pregnancy with renewed love and hope...it is amazing how the universe works, if you just pause and think about it all...unfortunately, our society has so totally confused us about life and the magic of the universe, that it takes willful moments of pause to see the whole picture, and it only comes in teeny bits and pieces...i just had an outburst of uncontrollable laughter thinking how funny I am, how funny humans are with our perceptions of ourselves, all of our thoughts, each of us with all our "stuff" in our heads...it is just so weird that we live in these minds of ours, that we live in these societies of ours, that we live with all this weird "stuff" and why...why...

first snow...

our first snow came yesturday, it was only a tiny bit, ten minutes or so, but it was definitely a reminder of the long cold snowy winter ahead! luckily honey has collected so much wood, it makes all the difference in the world...

our little heirloom tomato...

just had the ultrasound today, and 8 cups of water later, and the greatest need to go pee, we successfully got to see the baby!!! the doc actually let me pee halfway through cause she said my bladder was crazy full, and she said in reality you really need to only drink 3-4 cups water and hour before...but alas, it was all worth it, as we found out that the baby is very healthy and happy!  what a relief:) he was a mover and a shaker, but i can't feel it yet because my placenta is against my tummy, but she said that would change in the next week...19 weeks and two days gone by! wow!

quiet moment...

i wanted to add this photo in with my two cuties...

bell peppers and fun things...

 fairy for my friend joni, her christmas gift, ready to be sent and made with love...

 christmas gift for my adorable nephew karl, yup, i knitted this! thanks to stitch'n bitch the knitter's handbook!

 mushroom surprise! i love mushrooms:)

more fun felting and knitting these days as you can see...i love making gifts, it is so much fun and there is always a different energy in the gift, i just hope they like them too...
i haven't written in a while cause i have been busy working, and crafting of course!  i have been feeling good lately, love the walks, love the warmth of the woodstove, love my honey and of course harvest the cutie... i am still having horrible sinus congestion and allergies, which is quite annoying...so, i have been steaming lately, and that seems to help for a bit...probably hyper allergic cause of the baby, but if it is animal hair (harvest's), well, i'd rather suffer... i am also feeling a little worried cause i haven't really felt the little bell pepper moving and i am supposed to by now, but alas, the ultrasound is this week and that should help...
i wouldn't have chosen to do an ultrasound, but because of my miscarriage worries, i am happy that i am doing it or else i would be really worrying!
i am also starting to drink nettle, red raspberry and alfalfa tea, so i am excited about that, for my healthy happy baby...
i watched some videos on women having natural births, wowzers are we in for a ride!!! it was an emotional moment for me, i can't believe what is coming up!