Ozark Mama Deer

|These first two weeks of 2014 have seemed to fly by however, it feels like we've long been into this calendar year in looking through my photos- there've been many episodes of weather, life, play and work in these short days. We had sub-zero windy temperatures which kept us indoors.|

***

| A little fever and cough in the house to start the new year off, we kept the items below at arms reach. A nice friend on Instagram suggested we use peppermint essential oil on his feet to lower Loukas' Fever, and it worked beautifully! I had Advil on hand just in case but am happy to report that we didn't need it and with the use of these goodies: a locally blended "Thieves oil" on the feet and our friend Maria's Birth Song Botanicals Children's Respiratory Support tincture (along with lots of yummy homemade bone broth and a homeopathic cough syrup) we were able to nurse our little fox back to good health. His cough lingered for a few days but he is doing much better. With all of the flu scare that has been present, we are doing our best to keep our vitamin D levels up and wash hands and limit our public outings. Of course, living in fear is never a great way to approach life but we really are keeping cautious. Seeing your kids fight off bugs is never fun, and can be draining. At the same time, the sweetness of their little flush faces is one I'd like to etch into stone for all eternity. |

|Loukas' little cups of hot tea with honey requests and his insistence that he "felt great" in between coughs were pretty priceless. Is that okay to say? That my child's winter virus was kind of adorable? I think so. The tenderness a mother feels for her sick little kid is one that I guess is issued at their arrival. Nothing seems to stir up that extra bit of courage and serenity that moms and dads need in order to be there for their child, like their falling ill. I remember feeling this way seeing my husband sick for the first time, knowing that I'd never be okay if he wasn't okay. In the wee hours of the morning, when you are pressing your ear to your child's chest and listening for breath sounds, hoping to not hear a rattle or crackle, and propping them on up and saying "it's okay" while laughing a bit at their tiny observations and knowing that that will be the case- that they will be okay; one can't help but feel enormously humbled by the reality that families all over are dealing with ill children who will not get better. You just can't help but feel so tremendously grateful that that's not you while not really being sure that you could handle it if it were you and yours. Our courage as parents is God/The Source/Everything. And God is the lightness and the good that we recount that brings us to our knees. I'm starting to understand that a little more everyday. I know my kid just had a cold and that I am not on the other side of a life altering experience, here, but the reminder is still there- and I'm reminded to be Grateful. |

***
|Recounting Joy. I feel good when I do|

|The presence of my children's little kid toys - they won't cute-up every little corner forever|

|Simple pleasures and staying in the pj's far past noon|

{{he loves his dinosaur shirts and like to ROAR when he wears them}}

| Finding Indoor Fun. Loukas and I created our own play dough one afternoon in the thick of the stir-crazies while Jasper napped. I googled "homemade play dough without cream of tartar" because we had no cream of tartar and found this recipe here, but substituted spelt flour it was all we had on hand and colored it with liquid chlorophyll (again, making do.) Then we got real wild and sprinkled in some glitter. Both Boys have enjoyed our glitter dough quite a lot. Jasper even thinks it tastes great.|

***

| In Arkansas, you get it all. Seasons within seasons, it seems like. The fall leaves are still spattered about the ground, the snow falls and the ice forms and before you know it, it all thaws away like it never was- only soggy ground to remind us of the precipitation that fell and stayed and went away, giving our Earth a cold drink of Sky.

This one likes to show off, tasting grass like his Dad loves to taste leaves of trees

|| I feel there are a series of photos missing here that I ought to mention- A breezy sunny day at the duck pond where we threw rocks out onto the ice that covered part of the water. When we loaded up to head out with stale graham crackers left over from Loukas' Birthday Party S'mores, I situated myself in the driver seat and said "Oh, I forgot my camera." When I made to go get it, Loukas interjected "No, Mom. No camera." So I left it, and took a couple iPhone photos but kept our time free of that documenter Mom energy. It's so easy to get wrapped up in recording all the wonderful moments that we share with our kids, but it's also nice/grounding to hear their requests for a lens free Mommy face ||

***

|We Celebrated a special birthday a couple evenings ago- Jerrmy's Grandmother is staying here in Arkansas til Spring and it was her 82nd birthday on Tuesday.|

And this little boy is closing out his second year... Three weeks til we Celebrate the anniversary of his arrival and we are doting and taking note of all that he has been and is becoming, our little baby bear|

|Scenes of Home. My little Happies. A fun little tote extra I added for myself when scoring some leggings for the boys on Little Hip Squeaks' winter sale; The brightness of those squiggles have turned out to be a real deal cheap thrill. |

| Also, I don't want to go into too much detail about this, because it's maybe a little more than anyone wants to know about, but after close to 5 years of being pregnant or breastfeeding-- my hormones have been going a bit haywire. Maybe you are experiencing this kind of thing too, and I just wanted to share a product I think helps, another tincture by Maria at Birth Song Bontanicals which I used after Jasper's birth to help with the hormone super fun hormone plunge the days following delivery. I now also use this tasty tincture around my "moon time" and I'm thinking it is going to to be of much help with the drop off of hormones that I am sure to experience when weaning my little nursling |

|Today, the Sun is brightly shining and a soft breeze takes turns with a stronger whooshing wind, rustling the leaves of the trees while little shadows dance on the floor in the light that spills inside. Cardinals are hopping from branch to branch while chickadees chase each other around the same bush- begging me to come breathe in a bit of January in the Ozarks. On days like today it's easy to get lost in time- for a moment not knowing what is to come next- a perfect mix of fall and spring, but winter has only just begun. |