Dark Days; Bright Spirits

Here in Fairbanks our daylight hours consist of shades of gray. If we venture into town, drive along the ridge line or on a south slope during the late morning or early afternoon we may be blessed with a glimpse of the sun skimming mountains to the south. The good news is that the darkest days are behind us and we are gaining several minutes a day, which is noticeable. I was surprised to see how high (or rather than it hadn't already set) the sun was the other day at 2:30 p.m.

Despite the grayness outdoors, we fill our home with lots of light in the form of watercolor and beeswax lanterns everywhere. Ice luminaries clutter the front porch, to be lit on special occasions or when expecting company.

I tend to make it through these dark days with high spirits. I am certain that the amount of time we spend outdoors from spring to fall and our seasonal homesteading lifestyle contributes significantly to how content we are to come indoors and craft, read, rest, cook, play games and make the most of our dark days.

This year we are have even more to occupy our thoughts and time. I looked at the calendar the other day and realized we are down to eight weeks until my due date. And Avery came two weeks early - and six weeks is coming fast! Thankfully there isn't really much that needs done, other than fitting in as much school as possible, scheduling friend visits and fun things for the kids, knitting last minute baby projects and going on bouts of cleansing frenzies. I wish it was more realistic for me to take a sponge to every surface in the house. I have a mad urge to eliminate all dust from the house.

Otherwise, the carseat just arrived in the mail and is currently in the car, until we all load up and see how crowded we are. I've washed and sorted newborn diapers, diaper covers and clothes from bigger baby clothes, and they are stored where they cannot get hairy or dusty. I am going to enjoy these quiet  mellow days as much as possible - gray or not. As I know our world is about to flip upside down as we know it. I am savoring every moment of this final pregnancy; every little move and shift that calls me back to her presence. Here are some pictures from our last couple weeks.

Wool angel that I made with locally grown and spun mohair, from Becky's Angora goat named Opal. (the hair is the Mohair - and I adore it).

The kids and I made lots of Birch Bark heart pockets this year. I love that they are a traditional Scandinavian Christmas tree ornament. And I love that Noah was able to make them. Avery made some that weren't pockets, but flat pieces that were easier for her to weave together.

Dustin and I just celebrated SIXTEEN years together! Which just blows my mind. I picked the picture that I looked best in (sorry hon, :)

We actually took the kids out with us to eat and celebrate because they are that enjoyable to eat out with! And we figured relaxed eating out with kids is about to come to an end.

Here is a cardigan that I totally messed up on but I wasn't going to redo it. It is incredibly soft. I knit it with a Specialty Blue Sky Alpaca. The yarn is the first yarn I bought after finding out that we were expecting. I picked up wood buttons while we were in Maine.

I stopped in to check on my root crops the other day. So, here is a picture of some of my vegetables that I grew this summer and didn't have room to store at my place. I am so proud of our harvest, especially the carrots- they are big, crisp and sweet and storing wonderfully. 

And there you have it; gray days filled with indoor and inner light and love.