Girls and Wheels

Hi friends! Becca here with yet another summer outdoors post! I mean, really, what's the point of summer if you don't spend as much time outside as is possible? 

Our little family just got a scooter, so Kirsten and I decided to take our wheels out for a spin, I being always glad for an excuse to pull out my rollerblades. 

"Watch this!" I shouted to Kirsten, who was scootering on ahead. She stopped abruptly and looked back as I began to accelerate towards her. Just as I reached top speed, I shifted my weight to one foot and spun round and round until I reached Kirsten with a neat stop, if I do say so myself. 

Kirsten just laughed and said, "You're crazy." 

"Maybe I am," I said, closing my eyes tightly as the world spun around me. "Goodness I'm dizzy!"

"Want to sit down? We could rest at that wall," Kirsten suggested, adding as I began to move jerkily to the wall, "Do you need help?"

I laughed and declined her offer, but honestly if that wall had been any further I don't think I would've made it on my own!

"Better?" Kirsten asked, settling herself atop the wall.
"Top notch!" I replied, rather breathlessly, and leaned against the wall.
"Aren't you ever afraid you'll fall flat on your face? You're not even wearing your shin and wrist guards!"
I grinned and said, "Nah, I've been doing this forever!"

 Kirsten looked unconvinced, "Well, okay. At least you're wearing a helmet."
"As if I could neglect that! What do you think I am, some sort of hooligan?" I returned in mock offense. She laughed at that, and then our conversation drifted on as we talked,

"Of shoes - and ships - and sealing wax,

Of cabbages - and kings." 

Old-Fashioned Berrying // A Photoshoot

"Having explored in the country pretty generally, torn three rents in her frock, and scratched her face in a barberry-bush, Nan began to pick the berries that shone like big, black beads on the low, green bushes. Her nimble fingers flew, but still her basket did not fill up as rapidly as she desired, so she kept wandering here and there to search for better places." 

- Little Men by Louisa May Alcott

"The earth had donned her mantle of brightest green; and shed her richest perfumes abroad. It was the prime and vigor of the year; all things were glad and flourishing." 

- Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens

Let's Go Fly a Kite!

Greetings, one and all! 'Tis I, Rebecca, back again after our long hiatus - huzzah! Boy, it's good to be back!

Phoebe, who I believe you've recently met, has quickly become my out-of-doors companion, always coming up with some new spectacular idea for our amusement.

Today was splendidly blustery, so Phoebe thought we ought to make a kite, and I quickly agreed. Once finished, we took it outside to test it out.

"Hmm, this looks like a pretty good spot," I said as we neared the birch grove.

"Agreed," Phoebe said. "Shady, but not overly close to the kite-eating trees!" 

We laughed, and I asked, "Now how do we get it into the air?"

Phoebe handed me the kite, still holding the spool, and said, "You take the kite and run as fast as you can while holding it up with the wind behind it. When it catches the wind, you let go and we watch it fly!

"Brilliant!" I exclaimed, and took off with the wind behind me.

"Run, run, run!!" Phoebe shouted after me, laughing with glee. 

Just as she'd said, the wind picked up the kite and plucked it right out of my hand. I watched it soar up and settle at a high point where the wind was steady. 

"It's funny," Phoebe commented as I returned breathless from my run.

"What is?"

"Well, I'm pretty sure I got it backwards and that I'm supposed to run with the spool while you hold it up..."

"Oh." We watched our red kite floating up with its funny little tail whipping about behind it.

I continued, "But I suppose what counts is that we got it up!"

"Right you are - that's the spirit!" Phoebe grinned, and handed me the spool so I could try. 

"Let's go fly a kite up to the highest height! Let's go fly a kite and send it soaring!" we sang, and so the summer afternoon flew by. 

Sisters and Evening Sunlight

Hi everyone, Kirsten here! It's been terribly hot around here during the daytime, so we've been swimming and staying indoors mostly. However, the evenings can be quite pleasant, so last night Charlotte, Harriet, and I took our books and read under the shade of the birch trees. I brought Kirsti with me as well. 

It was so very warm and the grass was so soft that Hattie almost fell asleep! She brought her Emily Dickinson collection, Charlotte her Jane Austen collection, and I brought Alice's Adventures in Wonderland to read again. 

Hattie roused herself from her reverie and sat up to admire the day. Charlotte put her book down and turned to our redheaded sister, saying,

"Harriet, tell us more about yourself." 

Hattie smiled and thought for a moment. "Well, you already know that I love poetry and that I play the violin - "

"Where is your violin?" Charlotte interrupted, "I haven't seen it yet."

"It's still on its way - I'm not certain when it's coming in."

I set down my book and sat up, playing with Kirsti. 

"When it does come in, we can have concerts with you on the violin and Becca on piano!" I said, listening all the while.

"Oh, that would be wonderful!" Hattie exclaimed. 

"Oooh and we could get all dressed up and have cookies and lemonade like it's the real thing!" burst in Charlotte.

"And I know Becca would be on board - she's always happy to bake us cookies and play us the piano," I added.

And slowly we made our way back to the house, making plans and summer dreams all the while. 

Meet Phoebe and Harriet!

Hello hello! Is anyone still out there? If so, I'm back, if only for a short time :) 

I've been at college for the past two years and decided to pick up my doll hobby again for the summertime! Last summer I worked on these two customs and now they're ready to meet you!

On the left is Harriet Katherine, based off of Anne Shirley, and on the right is Phoebe Jo, based on Jo March from Little Women.

Harriet Katherine has a Marie-Grace face mold, #61's hair, and #55's hazel eyes. I gave her the hazel eyes because Anne's are described as green-grey and I thought these were the closest. She also has custom freckles that I painted on using brown paint and a toothpick. 

Phoebe Jo has #61's body, Marie-Grace's hair (straightened and without pin curls), and grey eyes from an older Molly (they have shorter brown lashes). 

Harriet, sometimes called Hattie, is a dreamer and a girl of big ideas. Though not particularly quiet in speech, she is often silent until aroused from her imaginings, at which point she joins in the conversation with great relish. She is also rather a romantic, though not dramatic like Charlotte. Her hobbies are writing poetry, playing the violin, and pursuing her studies. Her favorite color is spring green and her favorite book is her collection of Shakespeare’s works. She is dreamy, intelligent, and “simply beautiful in everything she does,” to quote her sisters.

Phoebe, often called Phoebe Jo as a whole, is boisterous and great fun. She is often too loud for the girls’ little house, which leads her to seek the outdoors as a place of freedom and high adventure. She is always cooking up a story and, when not discussing literary subjects with one girl, is whisking off another. Her hobbies are writing, gardening, and running off on adventures. Her favorite color is red (a “good, bold color”) and her favorite book is Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott. She is a bit wild but very kindhearted.

Thanks for stopping by!

Gwen, Megan and a Surprise Attack

Hello Everyone! This week our good friends Gwen and Megan came to visit. It's been hot so we immediately headed out to the pool to relax with some chatter and cool lemonade! Kirsten and Charlotte talked to Gwen in the shade while Megan and I splashed about in the refreshing water.

"What have you been up to so far this summer?" Kirsten asked Gwen.

"Well, this week I was at an art camp - actually, Megan and I both were," she replied.

"That's so neat!" exclaimed Charlotte, "What did you do?"

"I took a class where we transferred photographs onto sea glass and Megan took a welding class."

"Wow, a welding class?" Kirsten asked. "That sounds . . . interesting. What did she do?"

"I made a tree," Megan told me, overhearing the other girls' conversation.

"A tree?" I asked, envisioning a detailed maple tree with tiny leaves.

"Yes, well, it's not a tree tree, it's like a stick tree, with simple branches. Rather like a tree in winter but without twigs." 

"Ah, I think I understand. Kind of like a jewelry tree," I added.

"I suppose so," she said, somewhat doubtfully.

"Hey, I have an idea, c'mon," I said, getting up.

"What's this grand idea you have, Becca?" Megan asked, also rising.

"Follow me, let's go fill some water balloons and surprise the others!"

"Oooh, I like it!" she grinned, and we crept away.

After filling nearly twenty water balloons (good and tight so that they'd pop right away!), we sneaked back behind our respective sisters with a full supply of ammunition. We could hear them talking.
"That sounds like a great time," Kirsten said, supposedly finishing their former conversation.
"It was!" agreed Gwen; then, looking about, asked, "Where did Rebecca and Megan go?"
"I haven't seen them for a while," Charlotte added. "Maybe they went to find some more food?"

Just then, perfectly timed and perfectly aimed, Megan sent her first balloon flying into the air and smack dab into Gwen! It was beautiful.
"Hey!" shouted Gwen, quite uncharacteristically.
All three of them swung round in shock.

"Becca!" Charlotte cried, as I stepped up to the plate and launched our second balloon, which went sailing through the air and directly onto Kirsten's face!

After that it was mayhem. Complete and utter mayhem. Balloons were flying, sisters were yelling and laughing, and, unbeknownst to us, Charlotte had disappeared in all the action! And then . . .

SPLASH!!! We were soaked by a stealth balloon!
"Oh! Charlotte!" we yelped. "Oh!"

We spun around. Charlotte was laughing with glee and we, seeing the humorous side of her sudden attack, burst out laughing and then bombarded her with questions.

"How did you do that?"  "What just happened?" "Where did you get that balloon?" 

I could hear Kirsten and Gwen laughing behind us as well. 

"Let's clean up and see if we can find some more of that lemonade and watermelon!" I suggested.

And so we did. After picking up the hundreds of tiny water balloon pieces and throwing them away, Megan and I wrapped up in a towel and we all sat around to enjoy the rest of our summer afternoon.

~ Rebecca

A Morning at the Lake

 This last weekend we went to the lake! It was ten degrees cooler there than here at home, but it was still hot, so we went out to enjoy the beautiful sunshine in the morning while it wasn't too warm. We packed a basket of amusements and planned to spend our morning on the dock.

"Oh, listen to that brook! Doesn't it sound simply delicious, girls?" Charlotte exclaimed rapturously.

"I like how jolly they sound, just as if they were laughing at all the world," agreed Becca.

"Oh Becca, not at the world, at least not exactly. That doesn't sound right, somehow." I replied, slightly puzzled by my sister's meaning.  

"Well, I guess what I mean is that "it's a world of laughter," Becca smiled.

"As opposed to "a vale of tears," I suppose," Charlotte said.

"Naturally," rejoined Becca, and we all grinned with delight, for there is nothing quite so inwardly pleasing as referencing something among those who understand without asking. (For those who don't know, we were quoting Rainbow Valley, the 7th book in the Anne of Green Gables series, when Faith Merideth says: "The world isn't a vale of tears, Mrs. Taylor. It's a world of laughter.")

Just then, we came to a charming bridge that crossed the "jolly brook," all covered with little mosses and peeling bark - simply perfect! 

"Oh look!" I said, pointing off to the left, "you can see the lake from here!" 

"Oh boy, it looks fantastic!" Charlotte said.

"Splendiferous!" Becca added.

I looked quizzically at her, "Becca, is that a word?"

She laughed, "That depends on your definition of 'word.' And here we are at the dock!"

And so we were. We walked out and admired the sparkling lake, now clouded over due to the slight breeze blowing over the water.

Becca set her basket down, "Oooh, we should go for a swim!"

"That sounds like fun - but not now, it's not quite hot enough." Charlotte said.

"I'll bet it's beautiful out here at night when the lanterns are lit." I said.

"Yes," Charlotte agreed, dreamily, "imagine floating on the lake at night surrounded by white fairy-lights with only the sounds of crickets and the water lapping the shore."

"I don't think the water really laps the shore around here, it's too marshy," observed Becca.

And with that practical yet very "Becca-ey" thought, we sat down. I retrieved my doll Kirsti and her book, Becca took up her knitting, and Charlotte began to read Swallows and Amazons.

"How perfect that you're reading that book here, on the lake!" Becca commented.

"Isn't it?" Charlotte smiled, "I always like to read books in the setting in which they are, well, set. It makes them even more alive to me!"

After that occurred a time of near silence in which we each enjoyed ourselves - and the lake - in our own way, broken only by occasional comments from Charlotte about the characters in her book and therefore rejoinders by Becca, who has read the series several times. 

"Well," sighed Becca, always the least willing of the group to sit for long, "I think I'll take a break from knitting. Here, Charlotte, why don't I take your picture in front of the lake." 

"Just let me finish this chapter," Charlotte agreed.

While they took pictures and fiddled with the camera settings (always a mystery to me), I finished Meet Kirsten, desperately trying to keep from crying when Marta died. Thankfully they were quite caught up in their photography, so neither noticed when I quickly wiped my eyes.

We had the loveliest time relaxing out there, and even went swimming later in the day!

Until next time!

~ Kirsten