*~*~*~*Spotlight on writermama12!!!*~*~*~* - Page 2 « Back to Group Discussions

[writermama12]

c.chip, I am trying to perfect my baked egg custard. I've made it like six times this winter and last night's was the best yet! I also have gotten into cooking with citrus and zest and making delicious sauces and gravies to spice up meat dishes. The best dish I've made this pregnancy was a tangerine-molasses glazed roasted duck with whole wheat pearl couscous with tangerine-oregano oil. 

I wouldn't consider him a hippy anymore (I never was) and our lifestyle has changed considerably from that time. But, I think DH is absolutely a hippie at heart and in his worldview. He is not uptight about things in general except for his highly philosophical ethical standard from which he judges people and events, and could care less about appearances, material stuff, technology...he is old school and loves thinking and learning abotu things. He also loves working with his hands and being self-sufficient, especially building with wood, and is soooo handy. He can make just about anything. He built our couch, all of our many bookshelves, the new baby's corner hutch, and so much more. We have a yurt on 50 acres we own in Maine and he built the massive deck it stand on by hand without power tools (it is in the wilderness). He's great! 

I guess the hippiest stuff we do is camp off grid as often as we can in Maine. On a good year, we will camp up there 8-10 times. 

[spughy]

Totally random question for you - if you could travel anywhere in the world - WITH your DH and kiddos - where would you go?  What about if you left them behind?

[writermama12]

Great question Spughy-- With the family I would probably go somewhere vast and green, Ireland for sure. We have already had several conversations about traveling there and to Italy where DH has family and has been two or three times on his own. If I were to travel on my own, I might want to go somewhere totally foreign to my understanding of "world", like to a tropical place or maybe to Australia. Hmmm...I love Neruda's book of poems called "The Heights of Machu Picchu" so maybe I'd go there! To Peru!! That would be awesome. 

[scarletsmiles]

Writermama, reading through your thoughtful responses I think I'd love to meet you and your family and see how you go about everyday life. Sounds lovely. You and your DH seem very deliberate about how you choose to live your life. I love that.

2 qs, 1 more deep 1 less so.

1. How do you approach spirituality with your children? Do you have a church, draw from religious traditions?

2. I'm a big wuss when it comes to the cold. Do you have any tips or approaches for living in winters in Maine?

[writermama12]

Thanks Scarletsmiles,  We try hard to make sure we are intentional about living. It was one of the conditions we both agreed to before getting married and we wrote our vows aimed at that precise sentiment: Love is active and it takes intentional work. If I love you, I must be actively doing so, not just "feeling" some vague feeling.

1) This year I have given quite a bit of thought to traditions and community. I am atheist and my DH identifies as Agnostic. I was raised without much religion. My mother said we were potestant but we rarely went to church. I put myself in Catholic High School to learn about that religion and decided I did not agree with the way women were treated. It was not until many years later that I came to a greater understanding of how religion was created and why during my Master's degree. I began studying Environmental History and Nature Writing.

We are raising our children non-religious but we talk a lot about the function of religion in people's lives and why it exists. We have some friends who are Christian and some who are Unitarian and some who are Jewish and more who are atheist, too. We have recently joined a family oriented non-religious group called North Shore Freethinking Families on Facebook, founded by some friends of mine, and have already had some really nice functions. We also hold conversation gatherings to talk about how to approach holidays and rituals and we chat online all the time about all sorts of ethical, spiritual and BIG topics focusing on what we believe and why and how to usher our children through BIG questions. DH and I draw from literature a lot, which draws from many different religions, and identify a lot with the Transcendentalists and eastern traditions. DH practices Tai Chi and Chi Kung. 

2) Winters are really not bad if you have adequate gear/clothing/heating. I do not live in Maine but camp up there a lot. I have actually only been able to camp in the winter there once but my DH winter camps every year. I live in the North Shore of Massachusetts, still cold but less cold than the Maine mountains. We have a wood burning stove that heats up the house very well. Also we do go outside for walks and hikes even when it is really cold, think 10-15 degrees. DH will go out lower than that but I don't much enjoy it. You just bundle up. Cover all the sensitive skin parts with hat, thick insulated gloves, good boots, and a scarf or balaclava for cheeks and nose. Our boys are pretty winter hearty too since we consistently take them out in it.