Week 1 in PA

It is POURING today. Millions of nature's teardrops are playing a rhythmic tune on the red metal roof. Leonard Cohen is singing in the background, offering to be my man and next to my luminous screen, a cup of cherry tea sits steaming .

Wait a minute, isn't it supposed to be summer right now? I should be sitting by the pool with a watermelonade in my hand, squinting at my dark-looking screen. The crickets should be singing their summery serenade in the background.

But, to take a look on the bright side. We only have had two rainy days this last week, and the waterfall across the street will be wonderful tomorrow. And I am sending good weather vibes out there right now. Next week will be bright and sunny. I'll be sitting on the back porch with my computer and sewing machine, surrounded by art supplies. I will be making many a beautiful thing.

So far, the lawn is mowed, garden furniture pillows are being recovered, cookies have been baked, and a workspace has been carved out. I am ready for week two.

*

Moving to the country...for 6 weeks.

It has been a crazy summer so far, driving back and forth between the country and the city, packing, unpacking, planning, driving, catching up on mail, emails, etc. Again and again. Consequently I haven't been able to get much else done. I want to work on my books! I want to make crafts! Blog! Tweet! We decided to try another way, so we found someone special to live at our place in the city for a while.

 
The big day has arrived: tonight we are driving to North Eastern PA and staying there until the beginning of September, except for a 7 day interlude, a trip to Los Angeles. So, here I am packing up half the house. No time to blog much longer, but I wanted to give you a warning. The next few blog posts might center around frogs, snakes, birds, a vegetable garden, the weather, cooking and baking cakes. Yum!

*

The Lonely Moose by John Segal

Every night we pick three books to read. Both my husband and I love picture books, so we have a lot of them. Yet I find myself reaching for the same few books again and again, partly because my daughter enjoys them, but mostly because I like to read the books to her. The Lonely Moose, by John Segal is one of those. A reluctant loner moose rescues an injured bird. The bird follows the moose and ends up living on the big animal's antlers until it can fly again. When the bird finally takes off, the moose feels lonely. Suddenly, being alone is not that much fun anymore... 

Segal tells a simple, sweet story with an unlikely grumpy hero. The watercolor paintings convey the atmosphere of the story perfectly with their simple beauty.

When my husband came home with the book, I thought it looked a bit boring but it immediately grew on me. My daughter laughs out loud every time we read the part where the bird convinces the moose to eat a worm. I know we will keep reading this book often for years to come.

*