1 Month baby dreads

today is my 1 month dread anniversary. 

 some are twisting and looping up more than others and some are losening up right on schedule.

this stage in the process they are misbehaving and doing their own thing which makes me love them even more. I still have not used any chemicals, I just mix sea salt water and tee tree oil and spray on randomly. 

the drying process is what helps them lock and the tee tree oil keeps them fresh.

once in a while i use a bit of jojoba oil to help tame the fly aways. everything used is 100%  natural and organic. there are no longer 31 dreads, a few have split and and a few others had babies!

thanks Nev for the upddated pictures and helping me document this amazing journey.

can't wait to see what they look like in a year from now..!.

I up and did it.

ever since i can remember i have always been fascinated by dreadlocks. something about that look of knots and naps and twists and loopy loops makes my heart skip a beat. 

to me they are an expression of strength, a spiritual understanding of sorts. 

I began this new journey april 21st, five days after i turned 37
 finally realizing i have waited way too long to be comfortable in my own hair. so, i up and did it.

i will let my hair grow free, tangle and flow as it will, in its natural design free of chemicals.

every day i am 'waking up' more and more. seeing the truth, and becoming who i am meant to be.

i was 31 when i realized who i really was. (so yes, i guess in essence i am 6yrs old) it was also the year i had my son which changed the course of my life forever and ever. i never thought i had it in me to love a baby boy, but when i had that little guy, the love in my heart was beyond measure, it was when i realized there was way more to life than what we know or can ever understand.

 it opened up a plethora of doors i never even knew existed in which shifted my universe and
 shook me awake with a vengeance. 

after several days of twisting and ripping and knotting my hair i finally felt complete, and as i counted the locks, i loved and appreciated every one. each one representing a new journey of its own. 

a representation of new life and freedom and individuality. 

i counted 31 dreads.

 funny how the universe speaks to us in so many ways.

my dreads are two weeks old now. frizzy and all kinds of funny but i love them anyways. 

they're me. 

so hello, im erica. and 31 is my numba.

  

The hair is the richest ornament of women.  ~Martin Luther

Hilltop and spilled pop

 peeling bum away from the wii is no easy chore but sometimes it just has to be done.

there's not much time before his withdrawls start kicking in, so we hurried to the hilltop for a semi-picnic pizza lunch. would have loved to have an ice cold pop with that but bum spilled that all over the back seat in record time. ice, lid, straw and all. and i only got one lousy sip.

yep, summers here alright.

here's for discovering new trails, dirty little hands, flowers for mama, droopy potty pants, and muddy shoes.

Childhood is measured out by sounds and smells and sights, before the dark hour of reason grows.  ~John Betjeman, Summoned by Bells

Thirty six!

 once a year me and ben will be the same age for two days. 

he is saying hello to thirty six, and i'm saying goodbye.

we celebrated our age mainly by hiking in the woods discovering new places, spending time with the kids, deer watching and drinking some wine. 

the best part of the day was saying goodnite to the bats down by the river..

oh, and making it through the hike without being eaten by bears!

Happy Birthday Ben. I hope its your best year yet!

 and for me, farewell 36, i'll miss you dearly.

"the most important things in life, aren't things at all".

~Anthony J. D'Angelo

Dirty little river rats!

     

winter is finally over i think. out popped the sun this week forcing my windows open and blasting us with spring's goodness and true colors. i hope this time its the real deal, cause we've got the fever!

“When people say that school prepares children for the real world, what's implied is that it is the difficult parts of school (doing things you don't want to do, forced interaction with peers, following rules that you don't believe in) that are important. What's implied is that the real world is going to be an unhappy place and that being treated unfairly by people is a part of life.

It may be a part of life in school, but it is not a part of our lives. School is as far away from the real world as possible. In school we learn that we cannot control our own destinies and that it is acceptable to let others govern our lives. In the real world we can take responsibility for choosing our own paths and governing our own lives. The real world is what we make it.” 

― Rue Kream, The Unschooling Unmanual

Happy birthday Sam!

Nev Haley Photography

August is off to a good start...

 this morning my little guy pumped my gas then took me to breakfast, just us! he held my hand and told me how much he misses me when i'm at work over blueberry waffles and orange juice....

london is talking more in sentences and singing the cutest little songs, and

nev will be competing in a judo tournament next weekend in toledo! 

yesterday we made it up to idle hour ranch to wish sam the giraffe a happy eleventh, 

it's hard to believe, but giraffe's can live to be up to 28yrs old!

we all had a great time, but boy was it HOT

Happy Birthday to you sam.. you live in a ZOO. bahahaha

xoxo

I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read, and all the friends I want to see.

~John Burroughs

Bum's garden

There is a garden in every childhood, an enchanted place where colors are brighter, the air softer, and the morning more fragrant than ever again.  ~Elizabeth Lawrence