Coming to you from my smart phone, and my mother-in-law’s computer. Cheers to typing with one finger, feeling the warm sun on your back, weekend soccer games at Grandma’s, hints of Spring, and starting fresh– Monday.

Sometime mid-February our weather here went from the low 60s (extremely unseasonal for the mountains) back to the 30s and snowy (that’s more like it). While the quiet solace snow brings can be insular, even comforting, I can’t help but look ahead.  I am dreaming of Spring.

Blades of green grass and daffodils ruffled by light breezes. That fresh, chilled snow-breaking smell of warming soil and children’s voices ringing happily outdoors. It’s hard for us humans to love where we’re at. To juice our moments for all their worth.

It’s hard for me to love the last of this winter. I’m lusting after mid-morning sun on bare legs, the crimson brown of new branch growth– buds nubbing out, getting bigger, breaking almost silently as they succumb to a fresh stab of leaf.

Spring.

These Spring thoughts moved me to mulling over The Waste Land. T.S. Eliot’s seminal epic draws on the seasons throughout, and never ceases to surface in my mind this time of year. It’s the thread of that first verse. Some mnemonic device of the barren branches, unpredictable weather, dead worms. Poetic power, “IL MIGIOR FABBRO.”

Indeed:

“April is the cruelest month, breeding

Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing

Memory and desire, stirring

Dull roots with spring rain.

Winter kept us warm, covering

Earth in forgetful snow, feeding

A little life with dried tubers…”

Breaking down means rebuilding. Inevitably, this time of year I’m not only watching the sun, the grass, the flowers and trees. I’m ready to break out of my cozy sweaters, I’m ready to feel the light air on my neck and arms, I’m ready for my winter toes to go naked in a favorite pair of slides.

One area you can look to both break down and rebuild is your wardrobe. I’m also ready to CLEAN out. I am one of those who really does get that Spring cleaning bug. Do you feel me? So in this fever, I’m writing about white shirts for one reason– the white shirt is the perfect transition piece. The perfect always and anytime, no excuse. The perfect bridge to any full-fledged season.

Listen, I understand it is a stretch to call on the strength of Eliot’s words in a post about a white shirt, but the reality is we all make our own reality. Take the tumult and the churn of Spring– the crazy, uproarious gusts of cold wind contrasted with mild lamb-like afternoons, the scattered snow and rain alongside cerulean skies and lung-burning fresh air– and put a white shirt on it.

Pick one that has some structure, that holds its shape. Choose a cut that flatters your figure by hugging your waist but not gapping or pulling across the chest. (This can sometimes be difficult, we’ll talk options on Wednesday.) Don’t go for something trendy, or do, if you think that you can turn that trendy white shirt into a classic in your closet. Wear it now and years to come.

Spring to Fall and around again, you’ll pull out that white shirt and pair it with everything from high-waisted mom jeans and slimming pencil skirts, to track pants for a Saturday morning or a destroyed pair of Levi’s for the beach. Pop the collar and go to brunch with friends, or pull out an old ratty version that you may never wear in public again to clean your toilets. Borrow your husband’s french cuffed, long-tailed version for a lazy Saturday.

Pick a white shirt that makes you feel doe-eyed and perfect:

Or young and sultry:

In control of your universe:

Or my personal favorite, just really freaking jazzed. Carpe!:

“The river’s tent is broken: the last fingers of leaf

Clutch and sink into the wet bank.The wind

Crosses the brown land, unheard. The nymphs are departed.

Sweet Thames, run softly, till I end my song.

The river bears no empty bottles, sandwich papers,

Silk handkerchiefs, cardboard boxes, cigarette ends…”      

You know, Eliot wore white shirts too:

Not bad, eh? You’ll probably never again read a juxtaposition of Eliot’s The Waste Land alongside a white shirt prospectus, but at least you can’t call it regurgitated!

Summer will end and Fall will come again. And if you see the shirt below pass by like flotsam on the Thames, pluck it out. It’s a great wear! The tumult will continue– seasons, tides, family– all of it. But there are certain things that will prevail. Like… the white shirt.

XX, Megan

Images 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8

THIS POST IS A TRIPPLE THREAT, SO WATCH OUT! CRAFTING, BAKING, CHEMISTRY, ALL IN ONE SHOT!

Any friends out there used or heard of Kiwi Crate? No? Yes? We love it!

We were introduced to Kiwi Crate by our Nana, my mom. We have loved every month since. Kiwi Crate is a monthly activity box. For me it was a God-send for the crafty not-crafter. I always wanted to do “crafts” with my kids, but…

Problem 1) I did not want to go pinteresting for kids craft projects. I grew up with a crafter, and I really enjoyed those benefits, but I wasn’t interested in finding things to create on my own.

Problem solved: Kiwi Crate. Each crate has a theme, and there are two specific crafts or activities inside your crate. After your kids have whizzed through those exercises (cause I promise you, they will get good at just knocking those projects OUT), there are extras to keep you going. Kiwi Crate includes a “magazine”, a little booklet of sorts with LOTS and lots of additional information and resources for you to expand the theme for the month into more fun, games, and activities.

Problem 2) I did not want to load up on crafting materials. I have a phobia of collecting too much STUFF. (Doesn’t always apply in the clothing realm, but, go figure.) I have never liked having an excess of stickers, or thought it might be fun if I had every print and texture of scrapbook paper. This is not said to diminish those who have and create beautiful work from their crafting. I just couldn’t ever bring myself to buy it, have a bin of it. I was afraid if I did it would take over my entire house.

Problem solved: Kiwi Crate comes will ALL OF THE SUPPLIES you will need for your projects INCLUDED in your crate each month. And your first crate even comes with a pair of scissors so that when future Kiwi Crate’s call for scissors, BAM! You’ve got ’em. Other than that, they may suggest that you put a paper bag or mat down to protect your child’s workspace if the project is especially messy, gluey, colorful or would otherwise cause damage.

Problem 3) And MESS brings me to my last point. I didn’t ever want to deal with what I saw as the dark side of crafting, MESS and MESSY CLEANUP. Now here, to a certain extent, I simply had to learn that it is a pipe dream to believe that you can live your life and keep your house in the vacuum of CLEAN. Doesn’t exist. Isn’t real. Doesn’t happen. EVER. However…

Problem solved: I have to say that Kiwi Crate is NOT ever overly messy or clean-up intensive. Sure, there are scraps of paper to throw away. There is paint on the table to be washed off. There are rainbow hands to be rinsed. But Kiwi Crate has fantastic kid-friendly media on all fronts.

This particular crate was all about baking (obviously). The first activity (not pictured) was to make a chef hat and apron for your further baking endeavors. Adorable! We actually haven’t done this activity yet because my boys wanted to make their cakes first, aprons second.

So they got out their foam triangles, taped them together on the their “baking sheet” (that brown piece of paper you see), and then squished and squirted and partially smoothed their clay paint to their fully decorated cakes. Their cakes were FAKE, they were foam and clay. They were craft cakes, which was FUN! However, all this did was make us hungry for the real thing.

Here’s where the CHEMISTRY came on stage. I’ll explain. Maybe a month ago, Miles watched a Sid the Science Kid (fabulous PBS production) show about how COOKING is CHEMISTRY. Sid’s teacher Susie explained to her class that when cooking, there are many steps we take that cannot be undone. (She used the example of pancakes. See YouTube clip below!) So for example, when you mix the water and flour and the eggs, you can NEVER un-mix them. You have created what scientists call and IRREVERSIBLE CHANGE.

Ever since watching this, Miles has been into talking about and labeling all sorts of things as irreversible change– much of it having to do with cooking food and eating it as per Miss Susie. An irreversible change occurs when you COOK or BAKE something– like a pancake or a cupcake– because through the heating process you cannot UNDO the reaction that has taken place. Pancake goes from batter to bready. BOOM– irreversible change. Pancake goes from bready to burned,  you can’t undo that one either! There is no going back! (Who knew that baking could be so existential?)

https://www.youtube.com/embed/f4Dy-7X2CXQ” target=”_blank”>

So there’s Miss Susie’s ditty about pancakes. I also stumbled across this awesome little online experiment to further help kids understand the principle of an irreversible reaction. (Click the link, that image is only a screen capture.)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/10_11/rev_irrev_changes.shtml

Fun, right?!?

Science for the gourmand, who knew!?! (Probably many halfway intelligent people, but this was so fun to walk through with my kids.)

So we thought we’d better have at this irreversible reaction, and make ourself some cupcakes that could actually be EATEN! (Another irreversible reaction/change there, folks!) I’ll leave you with the pictures below. Don’t fail to view the one where Miles has finished pouring the dry ingredients into the mixing bowl and Parker takes over mixing duties. At which point, Miles feels that this is an appropriate time to pick his nose. You know, when your task is done, have some fun.

Yep, I think that about covers it. Science Friday, Kiwi Crate, and Fun Bake!

Hope you’re baking up something delicious this Friday, too!

XX, Megan

A note about gender: I have boys, so I do my crafting and experimenting with boys :). Kiwi Crate is just as girl friendly. When you choose a subscription or a gift you have the option to select the gender of the recipient. Kiwi Crate will then tailor some, SOME (not all) of the activities in your crate to whether a girl or boy is receiving the crate. However, I would say that I haven’t had an activity in my boys’ crate that wouldn’t have been just as fun, engaging, and enjoyable for a little girl.  And certainly science experiments don’t lean toward one gender or the other.

P.S. Most of our Science Friday projects also come from Kiwi Crate, and that information is absolutely FREE!!! You can go to their website. Click the “DIY Ideas” tab, scroll down the “Ideas by Theme” list and click “Science Experiments”. These you WILL have to grab supplies for but they are simple, fun, filled with learning, and maybe a little bit messier than the Kiwi Crate itself.

The Six O’clock Scramble does it again! This delicious soup is perfect for a cold night, and it’s so healthy and fresh you won’t fee bad about having seconds! A great meal for you Whole 30 or Paleo eaters out there! My boys oooed and awwwwed over the beautiful color, and then promptly gobbled up every bite!

Read more!>

Along with my ode to Edward Abbey’s Desert Solitaire, I wanted to take on a more family/kid centric subject this Friday– camping with your progeny. I also have a Mom’s Guide to Moab that you don’t want to miss!

I want you to know that this was maybe two minutes after setting up camp, and quite possibly the LAST time these two little adventure lovers sat down for the rest of the trip. Well, maybe for a quick bite to eat. We have some high energy gentlemen! Read more!>

Today we’ve got some baking goodness going on over here. Coconut Granola, friends! It is just. so. good!

Read more!>