mud

We get a whopping great bag of lovely organic veg from the Veg Lady every week. But really it looks like a bag of lumpy mud. Don't get me wrong, I am pleased as punch to have found Jenny who grows so much lovely stuff in a small space, who literally lives on her bit of land and grows grows grows under the principles of organic and bio-dynamic. But, scrubbing away that mud.... phew.... I am such a wimp! Week by week now it's all just mud around here.

The driveway I am sure was once pebbly or gritty or something, now it's just a swampy with indentations made by tires to form slick chocolate puddles.

It's on this driveway that The Foolish Mother let The Beauty wander without one of the THREE all-in-one water proof, mud proof suits (given to us or hand me downs of hers) that hang in the hallway. Instead, dressed entirely in hand wash only wool she falls splat in the mud. I have never ever seen her do this in her wet suits!!! Never, which just goes to show you how funny life is. I had to laugh; she looked so ridiculous, and I was of course, ridiculous too when the rest of us were sensibly clad. Sometimes little things like what one of your children are wearing slide you by in the rush to get outside. And so my passion for all things woolly extends to washing all little things woolly. In fact I was excited (yeah, er, really) to see that these things clothes just rinsed out, no soap or anything and are now dried and wearable after one day of drying out on a rack in front of the fire.

Anyway. Here's The Beauty and I (pic taken by Felix) just after the mud fall (he made me pose thus, he's that sort of boy - in fact he told me to make myself look like James Bond and I think he might have been disappointed by the resulting effort.....).



On the subject of clothing can I just say that I am loving this little plum Disana wool dress which is the Christmas gift from my Dad for The Beauty (he doesn't know yet as the money has not exchanged hands or anything but I kinda bargained ahead.... lets hope I wasn't foolish again.) Here's something nice too; I went to the local Steiner school Advent Fair last weekend (alone I hasten to add, last year when I dragged everyone along my dh didn't even get past the hallway before turning on his heel and wandering out back to the car after seeing some guy prancing around trying on a nettle fibre waistcoat and the boys skulked and wanted only sweeties....).



Anyway this time there was a lovely stall with a sweet local family selling Disana and other wool clothing. They didn't have the size dress I wanted but I ordered from their website later and shhhh, it was cheaper than Cambridge Baby where I usually indulge my wool passions, plus if you enter 'Steiner' in the discount code, you get free shipping. So there, a little tip off :) I'm sure they won't mind my advertising them. I am envisioning this dress lasting to at least this time next year it is very very generous fitting. All Disana clothing is I find, my 6-7 yr old is wearing their 5 yr old coat this year and fits very well on him.

And oh, I hardly *dare* put up another picture of the LTK Pilot Hat, but here we are. It's NOT for Esmé, it's for her cousin of equal age (but much larger physical proportions) for his birthday this weekend. I have since added a little red felt bird to the side and am loving the colour. The wool was sent to me so long ago by my sweet friend, and here it is finally made up. It so suits The Beauty though that I am half tempted to keep it.....



Just for knitting notes - the back of these hats have a tendency to curl up as so, I am wondering next time (oh yeah, I'm pretty sure there will be more, even my SIL requested another of these) to change the bottom strip to something more sturdy like moss stitch..... anyone else try this?