tea time with toddlers

Today I got out my tea set from when I was a little girl. My mom had a special tea set growing up that she still cherishes to this day, housed in her china hutch. When I was still in elementary school I knew it was important to her that I have a set of my own. I remember purchasing this tea set so vividly. We were up at family bible camp and one afternoon we went into Alexandria with the intent of finding a tea set for me. We went into antique shops and gift shops and finally we found this set. I can't quite remember how old I was when we did this...maybe upper elementary?

This morning I got the set out with 2 two-year olds and 2 four-year-olds and gave them very detailed instructions on how I wanted them to treat these treasured dishes. They completely rose to the occasion. It was a very polite and calm tea party. We talked a lot about manners and polite ways to ask for more as well as grateful ways to say thank you. I brought out one treat at a time and they sat so nicely and were excited about every new item. Their favorite part seemed to be asking for "more tea, please!" which was just water poured from the tea pot into their tiny tea cups.

The tea set will now go up high in my hutch and only be brought out when I can fully supervise its use. And I'm already excited for the day when I can go shopping with Elsie to be sure she has a set of her very own.

celebrating a new baby

Oh man, this baby boy was so sweet. Rory's cousin Kerah just had her first baby fifteen days ago, and in the spirit of family, she ventured out to the country for a little lunch with a few Groves cousins. Her sister was visiting from California and it was awesome to be all together.

Over lunch, Kerah shared her birth story. And I'm not kidding, I think it might take the cake for the very longest, hardest labor and delivery story I have ever heard before. I was in awe of her endurance as she told the story, and because of her, in awe of woman-kind! I listened to her story and then remembered that sometime at the end of September, I'll have to birth a baby too.

Now I can't even explain it, but the more she shared her story the more excited I became to get to do it again. I felt the real privilege and the honor of getting to carry and then birth a baby. And maybe it was because I was holding her little boy in my arms as I stood and bounced him by the picnic table, but even as she told of the hours labor, my heart swelled when I realized I'd have one of these teeny-tiny babies again, of my very own.

Kerah was a rock star for coming out to the farm. Her big water bottle, the babies feeding schedule, her own need for rest and good food all brought back a flood of memories. And I'm so excited to do it again.

stair step forest

Last fall we discovered one of my new favorite places on planet earth. It's a little county park, just a mile from our house. We had driven by for years (literally) before we finally ventured down the steps. I wrote about how we were there for the first time at the very moment my friend Mama J took her last earthly breath. And then we visited again when the leaves were falling so quickly it was as if we were caught in Times Square on New Years Eve. The leaves were like confetti fall around us.

It was on that visit that I ran into a woman while walking back up the stairs and said to her, "this place is magical." And she asked if I had seen it in the springtime yet. She said that in the spring the floor of the forest is covered in white flowers so that it looks like snow. It doesn't last but a few days, so be sure not to miss it.

Well you can imagine my anticipation all winter long. I can't imagine they stay in bloom for very long and I don't want to miss it. I thought about leaving my number on the sign up front, begging for a phone call when the flowers were blooming, but then I realized I just need to do my own investigating. So on Saturday we went and found lots of green, and just a few blooms. Then tonight (writing this on Wednesday night) we went again and found many more blooms. But I have a feeling the real show will be this weekend. Maybe early next week. And I can't wait.

Until then, I have pulled out my wildflower guide and am now adding wild flowers into the mix of discovery along with song birds. I'm not sure what is happening, but this spring God has my full attention. I am hearing things like I just got new hearing aids. And I am seeing things like I just got my first pair of glasses. The world feels so alive to me, and I'm so grateful for these heightened senses.

Learning wildflower names always reminds me of the time my Grandpa Phil took my cousin Sarah and I out on a hike in the desert when we were in 7th grade. He pointed out every flower and told us each name. And then we came to a patch of white flowers and he looked and said, "I haven't see that one before. I don't know what it is." And Sarah and I looked at each other because we knew...it was someone's popcorn they had spilled. Oh we laughed later. And Grandpa had cataract surgery soon after.

april at the grovestead

+My wake up walks continue to be an awesome addition to my day. I love how instantly grateful these walks make me feel. Grateful for bird songs, grateful for the grass that is getting greener every day, grateful for lilac buds. I start my day filled to overflowing with gratitude and that's the best part of these walks.

 +Rory is back in his office. This makes for a very fun destination when we need to go find an adventure. Except for the time I sent both kids out there to say hello and he was on an important phone call.

 +The chicks are in the garage! There is no cover on their cage and thankfully all cats seem disinterested. But I am so grateful to have access to my downstairs bathroom again! The smell was keeping this pregnant woman from utilizing that bathroom which is tricky when this pregnant woman has a baby sitting on her bladder all day long.

 +This lovely weather has brought back lots of farm walks to check on everything. Our apple trees look great after a long winter. Unfortunately our second hive of honey bees did not survive the winter. Our bee keeping friend inspected the hive and was happy to report there was no foul brood or other signs of disease. It seems the queen didn't survive and without her, the hive would slowly die out. We will try again this year, eager to continue to grow our own bee-keeping knowledge.

 +Ivar got a new set of wheels! Auntie Lisa brought this bike over yesterday after she cleaned out her garage. The tread on those wheels were made for the country! Ivar can ride it on the gravel, on the grass and even in our field. He loves it so much.

 +It's time for this barn to come down. We're looking into all sorts of options for the barn wood, but I think we're all ready. It's pretty, it makes for charming pictures, but it's not super safe and it's just time.

+Rory is in full swing, dreaming up the plans for the summer ahead, sketching out the next projects, making many visits to Menards each week. At one point this winter he told me that he didn't think this spring and summer would be nearly as busy as the last few years, and that made me laugh a bit. So far, he is busier and has bigger plans than ever. It makes for a full and exciting life. :)

 +Our farm cats have been quite cooperative with our kids. I find it pretty remarkable. In this game, our kids kept stuffing Thomas the cat into the mobile chicken coop, closing the door and then opening it and watching him shoot out like a rocket. They laughed so hard every time he would shoot out of that little door. And the cat kept letting himself be caught. I would have felt badly for the cat, but he's a cat. He can run, climb trees, hiss, scratch and run away. And since he never did any of those things, the game continued.

kid quotes

There are some words I refuse to correct, because they are so cute to me.
These are Ivar's:

            -He calls the remote control a camote untroll

            -And a permanent marker is called a provident marker

            -When we drive by Buck Hill (a ski hill we drive by occasionally) he'll yell, "It's Ski Ball Mountain!"

            -Today he started calling our woods the Spooky Branches Forest

            -He'll yell, "It's the PBS man!" when the UPS guy drives up to our house

And these are Elsie's:
Big Softy = the big blue bathrobe Elsie sleeps with along with Pinky, her pink blanket

She'll ask, "Mommy, can you scramble this?" when she wants me to open up a plastic egg for her

When I put Elsie down for bed she says, "and now you go have a sucker with daddy?"

When Elsie doesn't want to do something or feels sad she tells us, "I'm feeling a little tender."

When Elsie knows she's in trouble with her dad she'll start crying, "Daddy! I am feeling a little worried!!"