Find your place at Spring Bird
Okay, I REALLY can’t stop painting walls and furniture. The other day, I made over this unique stepping stool that currently functions as a bedroom plant stand. It used to be white, but when I swapped my bedroom rugs, I realized that it needed to …
I had to post this picture of Marbles, because it embodies the essence of Summer. For me, the internal productivity pusher struggles to embrace the lethargic, sun worshiper of my truer spirit. Our cats, Marbles and Ninja are such good reminders to just soak up …
Show your love for the prettiest Monarchs in all of the land with this waterproof vinyl sticker! Sticker measures 3″ x 2.41″ and costs $2.00
Oftentimes, the deer like to play with the rope of our tree swing. They nudge it with their noses. It’s real, prime time exciting stuff! The other day, one of them climbed through the loop and got momentarily stuck. For a split second I imagined …
This afternoon, I had the pleasure of weeding and harvesting the neglected, upper meadow asparagus patch. For those of you who have never toed around in an asparagus patch, let me paint you a word picture before you look below for a more visceral vision. …
This land that we call Spring Bird has also been called Siloam, Torkel Korling’s Arboretum, a dairy farm, and has been/is occupied Potawatomi, Peoria, Sioux, Ho-Chunk, Miami & Kickapoo Land. While this land that we call Spring Bird has had many identities, it has always …
I live in the woods and am surrounded by the most glorious old oak trees.They offer so much to the natural world, but they also nurture my spirit, giving me inspiration and protection. I painted this neon tree painting on my patio, during a course …
I feel gratitude each time I turn down my gravel driveway. I’m grateful to be home. I’m grateful that my home is a woodland, and I am grateful for the “Quiet Thank You” sign that reminds me to be silent. If guests are staying at …
My neighbor’s husband made this birdhouse, which my neighbor gifted to me awhile back. In fact, a nest of baby birds hatched within its walls last summer. I finally got around to painting it this past week, and here it hangs – on the patio …
When the mushroom spawn arrived, our patio became an inoculation station. Fortunately, sunshine also made its glorious appearance – lighting and warming our tasks. We were working with shiitake spawn from various strains and logs from red oak, white oak, and sugar maple, which Pat …
This excerpt from Dan Deacon’s song, “When I Was Done Dying”, captures my feelings about Spring which dawns today in the northern hemisphere. This season smells like a fresh new playground ball mixed with ice melt. It feels like sticky, squishy mud, and it looks …
This month, Patrick has been harvesting oak and maple logs for shiitake mushroom inoculation! For now, he is stacking them (about 100 logs) in the shade of these yew trees. At the end of the month, we will be drilling holes in them, stuffing the …
A few weeks ago, on our way to Milwaukee, I noticed maples being tapped in someone’s backyard. I smiled. Temperatures in Northern Illinois must have reached above freezing during the day and below freezing at night. This sap seeking process is a seasonal ritual that …
