Loving lately

It has been a good long time since I made a list of stuff I love.

• Garden lettuce. Next year maybe I will just plant all lettuce and peas. They are the only things that have really thrived. The zucchini, beans and tomatoes got some frost damage earlier this week. Next year I will get some frames built to protect them better. But the lettuce is still so, so good. 
• Bite-size Heath bars. Large potential for overindulgence. They're so little and easy to eat. So, so yummy.
• Pound cake. I use the Betty Crocker recipe and put vanilla glaze on it. Double the vanilla. It soaks in some, crusts over some. 
• Dr. G made a Pandora station based on the Smiths. It just played for me, in a row, "Reel Around the Fountain" (amazing lyrics), "Here Comes Your Man" by the Pixies, and "Pretty in Pink" by the Psychedelic Furs. Pandora is the bomb. I also have an Indigo Girls station, well loved and used.
• New music from Ari Hest and Rosi Golan performing together as The Open Sea, coming soon. Free preview on myspace. So perfect for a chilly autumn.
• New music from Mindy Gledhill. I just got it today - it's very clever, light and fun. I want to go back to hearing more of her depth and strength, though, too. Vocally, I mean. I think the content on Anchor has plenty to think about. I just want that powerful voice that wowed me when I first heard her sing in Fresno. Next album, Mindy?
• My flower/herb beds out front. Red petunias, sedum, phlox, marigolds, mums, salvia, pansies, nasturtiums, mint, sage, and parsley have all played so nicely together all summer. Tonight I bought some bulbs - crocuses, grape hyacinths and white daffodils. I think they'll be so pretty! And I think tomorrow will be a great day for planting.
• Speaking of the garden, look at Sustainable Seed Company for heritage organic seeds. I know I'm not the only person already thinking about next year!
• Forest Born by Shannon Hale. I'm right in the middle of it, so I can't do a real true review just yet. But oh, I think this might be my favorite one of all the Bayern books. I love the themes about guilt and healing. I love how adeptly the author uses little linguistic cues to accentuate the cultural differences among her characters - the different regions and nations they come from. And of course I am inhaling the story like the rainy, piney Montana air. Anybody who needs a good world to get lost in after finishing Mockingjay - this is a good one. Start with The Goose Girl. Four good books in a row - have fun!

Now, some homeschool stuff:

• LearnThat.org. This is the new incarnation of what used to be eSpindle. We use it for homeschool spelling. Love it. Slightly tempted to start using it for myself and learn all kinds of esoteric vocab.
• Books by Joy Hakim. We are using the A History of Us series for American History and the first volume of The Story of Science to guide our science studies and squeeze in some world history at the same time. Her voice is so enjoyable. I am getting a pretty good education/re-education working with Sam on these.
• Teaching Textbooks for math. I love the friendly voice and the fact that S can do it completely on his own. I also like the mixed review right now, at the beginning of the school year. S is acing everything!
• The Trumpet of the Swan. Our first literature unit this year, and it had me on the brink of tears almost daily. So beautiful.
• Drawing with Ed Emberley. Thanks to Grandma Judy for introducing S to this. It makes art very accessible to a guy who still struggles with hand-eye coordination, and as a bonus, it also motivates him to write stories! He has three Ed Emberley books now and wants the rest for Christmas. Santa, take notice!