Paper Pie

Connecting With Nature

I'm realizing it could be something of an obsession of mine to analyze the pros and cons of living in Los Angeles. It seems to come up a lot, unintentionally. It is on my mind and has been for a long time, years probably. You see, there is a lot of traffic, a lot of hustle bustle, and a whole lot of time spent in cars in this sprawling city. There are days when you need to run a few errands and four hours later you have not returned. You have to drive a ways to get out of it, but when you do, the rewards are sweet.

This video was taken at the Coronado Butterfly Preserve in Santa Barbara County. We drove up there last Friday, with no expectations other than a little retreat and some time in nature together. What we found there astonished us. I am not exaggerating, if you are in Southern California, please visit this special place. I will not go into how much this video or these photos do not serve the abundant beauty that we discovered that day. The most idyllic place I have ever been, dare I say.

The fact that we did not have our zoom lens put a pit in my stomach - and it is still there. But, alas, there is always next year, because this, will definitely become a family tradition for us. Can you see in the photo above what looks to be a giant mass of dead leaves in the tree? It's not leaves. It is a cluster of monarch butterflies! They overwinter in a grove of Eucalyptus trees just east of bluffs that overlook the ocean.

There is a short, jolly man that stands at the base of the trees and asks if you have any questions about the butterflies. His passion for this place is evidenced by the giant monarch butterflies emblazoned on his t-shirt. He volunteers his time out in this wonderland - what a nice gift to the community. But I think that works both ways; it must be such a gift to see the astonished faces time and time again as they enter the grove, looking heavenward. Gasps. Silence. Reverence.

  We really did not need to see anymore. I mean that was it. That was worth the 3 hours we spent in holiday traffic to get up there. Hands down. But we kept exploring.






When I snapped the photo above, a girl around the age of six was walking by on the trail. In a soft sweet voice she said, "Aw...she looks so cute sitting in the tall grasses . . . and the short ones too."







We met lots of nice people on the trail that day. Strangers that smile are kindred spirits, I think - not really strangers at all. Surrounded by so much beauty, breathing it in, I felt recharged and all of the traffic irritation soon melted away. In those few hours, with my family, in this most ideal setting, surrounded by kind folks and abundant beauty - I truly felt at home.

Connecting With Family

Living out here, so far away from where I grew up and from where most of my extended family resides, I am particularily thankful for the family ties that we do have near. Ryan and his brother, Aaron, grew up in Pennsylvania but now we are all here in Los Angeles. We do not have to pack our bags, drop our car at the long term lot and hop on a plane to get in a bit of family time. Nope, we just have to hop on the 405 (which isn't a picnic, but the needles and yarn are always in tow). In the past few years we have been drawn even closer together as our children arrive. Rylie and her littlest cousin Reagan are only 6 months apart and we can't wait to see what these two have up their sleeves.

Liam, our 4 year old nephew, added his touch to the Thanksgiving table with "paper balls" at each setting and his Steeler's flag tucked in with the flowers.

These photos are from our most recent gathering for Thanksgivng, but we are together quite a bit. Well, it was at the cousins where Rylie had her first trick or treat. They are lovely people these inlaws of mine. They do especially nice things for us like babysit so Ryan and I can go on dates once in awhile. My sister-in-law, Kristy, threw me this amazing baby shower, remember that? She made it so special for me. She is gifted at pulling off very cozy, beautiful affairs, all the while making it seem effortless.

For instance this turkey, would you look at that? To ask her she would say "Oh, yes, just a simple herb roasted turkey."

Kristy is a native and her parents and sibilings all live nearby. They are a lively, friendly bunch and have become something of a surrogate family for us. We have spent many rollicking holidays together.

Photo by Kalli

Ryan and Aaron, can you tell they are related? Photo by Kalli

On a side note - isn't their door so pretty?

It is nice, this family connection that we have here. Admittedly, it is something that I have far too long taken for granted. As my years increase, and as I raise a child, I have often thought about the role of family and what it means. These are the folks that will always be with us, forever. We will not lose contact if distance comes between us. We will check in on each other and be genuinely interested in each other's happenings and happiness. These are the people that know where we've been and where we are going. These are the ones that we celebrate with (and commiserate, too) year in and year out. They are strong, stable mainstays to be counted on.

We feel lucky to have them, and though we contemplate moving out of this great big city and possibly even this great big state, it makes me strive for full presence during all of the moments we have together now. Because I know the day is coming when we gaze upon all of these photos in wonder and say - remember? Remember? Remember?

Connecting With Music

This is my favorite time of year without question. It is busy, yes. Hectic, for sure. But when I slow down long enough, I realize that the days are getting colder and darker, that even around here leaves change color and lilt to the ground, and soon all of our preparations will reap warm and joyous moments. Though, all of those things fill my heart right up and satisfy me to no end, I can't help but feel a little sad about the way that Christmas encroaches on Thanksgiving more and more each year. Stores close late on Thanksgiving day and open again in a few short hours for massive Holiday sales and deals. I think of those that are affected by the unusual work hours on this day meant to be spent with those nearest and most dear.

This week, in continuing the theme of Thanksgiving a bit longer, I would like to share the connections that we are so grateful for in our lives. I want to pause and reflect on how important this sense of community is for my family and what it means to us in the larger context our lives.

Perhaps, one of the greatest gifts that I have received in the past year is getting to know such an amazing group of mamas. We all live in the same area and know each other one way or another. We have a yoga instructor that leads us in a practice a few times a week in one mama's backyard. The little ones play amongst us and I've glimpsed Rylie doing a down dog more than once. I recently organized a music class that immediately follows up yoga on Friday mornings with a wonderful teacher, Sarah Peters. Her warmth is contagious and the kids flock to her. The class focuses on different music traditions from around the world and each week we explore drums, movement & rhythm. There is always a lullaby at the end to balance things out.


At the beginning of our session, Sarah gave each of us a CD and songbook. We play our CD around here a lot. Last week, we were in the back of the house away from the classical music that was playing on the stereo. The CD changed and the quiet beat of Sarah's drum was hardly noticeable. Rylie stopped what she was doing, cocked her ear in the direction of the drums and started dancing. Oh, the cuteness around here, I tell you.







It is amazing to watch the kids move through different moods during the class. They are always a bit shy to start. Sarah starts class with offering the djembe up to each toddler for a little axé. This gets the good vibes and smiles going. Some will tap it and some pass. Some will do everything to avoid eye contact with Sarah, or the drum, but by the end of class they are all fumbling over themselves to have a strum on her guitar.



Each class is a little different, but the songs stay the same so we all can sing along. During our class right before Halloween, there was lots of fun and spooky variation, including a dance party to Thriller. As a child of the 80s, I had Thriller on vinyl, and a Michael Jackson poster thumbtacked to my bedroom wall, so I was indeed thrilled. During our most recent class, Sarah played a berimbau.

We look forward to each week and feel very lucky to have found such a wonderful teacher. Apart from the hootenanny, for us, it is really about being together with friends and little ones and sharing lots of fun.

Hello From Sunday

What did you do today?

Links To Share

So thankful to have some downtime this weekend. Here is what I am finding at the moment.

* Congress deems pizza a vegetable

* A food blog chronicling one family's adventures in eating local

* Support small business today

* I eat a lot of eggs

* I am completely enamored with this pattern

Hope you are finding the weekend relaxing and enjoyable.

This Moment

{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. Amanda Soule 

Photo by Mandy

Happy Thanksgiving

For breakfast: A festive Cranberry-Apple Dutch Baby. Now on to dinner . . .

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

Preparations

Our extended family hosts a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner each year. Everyone shares a few dishes and we all enjoy trying each other's food. Last year, our family started a little tradition of our own. The night before Thanksgiving, we cook a special dinner for the three of us. This year, it looks like I am covering the mains while Ryan assumes the role of pastry chef.

A few weeks back, my neighbor was telling me that you can hollow out a small pumpkin, stuff it with ground meat, rice or barley, dried crandberries, veggies and herbs and bake the whole thing for about 2 hours at 350 degrees. She emailed me the recipe that she "sorta made up" and is even bringing over the barley for me. We definitely have a borrow-a-cup-of-sugar relationship. Earlier this week she gave me the very last tomato from her garden for a tablespoon of balsamic. Good trade, indeed. The housing gods were really looking out for us when they granted us the kindest neighbor in all of Los Angeles. How cute is this excerpt from her recipe?

Serve it whole, with the "lid" on -- I think it's charmingly cute food.  To serve, use a big serving spoon and scrape the cooked pumpkin flesh out with the filling on each plate. It warms the house & smells delicious!  Leftovers are also tasty.  I suppose in the absence of the pumpkin you could just make the filling part and add roasted chunks of any winter squash to it. But really, serving the whole pumpkin is so visually Yay.

Sounds fantastic, we are trying that tonight for our special dinner. I am finding it difficult to not bust into the kitchen and just start making it now. And what to do with those seeds? Well, I'd love to toast them, I've never tried that before. For dessert, Ryan is making Cranberry-Pear Crisp.

And for tomorrow, well, that took us a long time to decide. We were tasked with a veggie and dessert. No problem, my two favorite things! But what to make? Something apple-y? or something pumpkin? What about carmel? What about carmel-apple? Carmel-pumpkin? Yes, Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Dulce de Leche! And what veggie should we bring? Something green, since there will already be sweet potatoes and mashed potatoes? Yes, something vibrant, tasty and green it is.

Cool, we're all decided then. However, waiting until today to shop has proven a little less than relaxing. Just got this text from Ryan:

Tv crew broadcasting about the crowds at this Whole Foods parking lot. Terrible decision.

Bless his heart.

Doodles

We call Rylie Doodles. It is a nickname we granted her when she was about 6 months old. No reason really, it just sort of happened and stuck, as the silliness sort of does around here. And it is certainly no misnomer, because as it turns out, this girl loves to, well, doodle. Do you suppose her nickname has informed her passion? Not sure, but a passionate doodler she is. Shortly after her first birthday, I was sitting at the table jotting down a note with her in my lap and she grabbed the pen from my hand and started making marks on the paper. I was truly amazed. I had no idea she was ready. But we were excited to keep it going and quickly set up a family drawing time. We went to the art supply store and got a roll of butcher paper and a few spiral bound sketchbooks. We are using my old Crayolas right now, but you can bet that these and these will make it into Rylie's stocking this Christmas. 

Setting up for family draw! I kinda love this as a family portrait.






Rylie


Daddy


Mama

Since then, she takes every opportunity to draw, scratch, and scribble. Whenever she sees a pen, she proceeds with fierce determination to get a hold of it and put it to use. She also frequents my big block of post it notes and urges me to let her draw on them (and unstick every last one.) 

Rylie and her bestie. Photo by Mandy

The sketchbook and crayons are in heavy rotation around here. I am excited to continue down this road and to introduce her to new mediums and materials as she is ready and shows interest. This book is on her Christmas list and I hope to experiment with some of the activities. She loves for Ryan and I to draw along side her - often bringing us crayons and "asking" us to participate. Much of her book is filled with pages of Mama, Papa and Rylie drawing together.





Ryan caught the photos below just this morning.

She is amazing to watch. What started as a few timid scribbles has evolved into a full body, interactive art experience. She climbs on the coffee table, on top of her sketchbook, she carries the sketchbook around the house. She marks the whole page with quick, wide strokes. With quiet concentration she is completely absorbed and transfixed. We get out of her way and let her do her thing. As long as her interest is so intense, we will give her the space and opportunity for expression. I'm more than a little thrilled. Can you tell?

Domestic Bliss For Moda

A few weeks back, a mighty package showed up at my door. The UPS man said, "I've got one heavy box for you." Turns out 100+ yards of fabric is kind of clunky. My Domestic Bliss sample yardage had arrived! I was giddy. I thanked the delivery man, put the box aside and then I got busy. Not busy sewing, as you might expect, but busy at life. There was Halloween and a trip to Chicago. There was studio rearranging, all thrown in with a busy toddler and, well, my poor box of neglected Domestic Bliss sat staring at me from across the room, trying her hardest to fake a smile and not appear disappointed. But, yesterday during the bleary rain, I got to work with it and let me tell you, I am over the moon with this collection. There are 8 different prints and 27 bolts in all. In my absolute favorite colors; pink, plum and aqua with accents of red and goldenrod, it is bright and full of, well, BLISS!







Domestic Bliss will be in stores and available for order online in December. There is a nice sneak peek over at Fabricworm. We played and played yesterday, and when I awoke this morning, this was taped to my now more spacious studio floor.

Creating this collection was an intense balancing act as it was my first bit of work done as a mother. Rylie was 3 months old while it was all coming together. Somehow the visions I had during pregnancy of my baby sleeping happily in the bassinet by my side while I worked, were not being realized. I knew just then that my long, indulgent, and completely absorbing hours of solitude to work on projects were definitely a thing of the past. Since Rylie was born, I have been learning a whole new way. The single most important thing I've learned: surrender. Surrender like crazy. It is with surrendering my rigid ways of thinking and doing that I have been able to adapt to a new way of working, a new way of life. It is with changing my mind, attitudes, habits, patterns and beliefs that I have created space to see things differently and to try a new approach. And trust me, it is a process. A path that is always changing, moment to moment, and I am learning the importance of remaining, or becoming I should say, fluid, flexible, open.

When I think about how much my life has changed since I left my job in corporate America just over 2 years ago, I can't help but feel a bit of pride and tons of joy. I work much harder now than I ever did before - morning, noon and night to be sure - but every single bit of what I do sings to my soul and is fulfilling in a way that I never knew existed. I didn't know work could be like this. It is a constant juggle that requires me to focus and be precisely present in each moment in order to troubleshoot, problem solve, and many times, to pause, reflect, and appreciate the beauty in the chaos. Each day, a brand new adventure, but one that I anticipate with open arms and open heart.