A winner!

Thank you for all your lovely comments on my 1-year-anniversary post. It really is wonderful to know there are people who enjoy coming here and reading (and, of course, admiring those cheeks!) As promised, we drew a name today to see who'd won Gerda Muller's Spring.

Lucy helped me choose a winner.


She didn't want to let us in on the secret, however.


So I recruited an older child to share the good news:


It's Mary Jo from fivegreenacres. If you haven't been to her blog, go on over there right now; you're going to love it! Congratulations, Mary Jo!

1-year "blogiversary" and a giveaway

(How do you know it's time to start a blog?
You start taking pictures of things like bread dough rising in a bowl.)


One year ago today, I began blogging. I'd been reading so many amazing blogs--about the environment, about cooking, about motherhood, and teaching, and homeschooling, and unschooling, and homes and crafts and sewing and all the other incredible inspiration that's out there. And I couldn't help it; I started taking pictures of the things I was making and jokingly referring to them as my "blog photos" when I emailed them to a friend. After a while, my partner started to insist "you need a blog." And I kind of did. I wanted to show the things I was sewing to someone who'd be just as excited about it as I was. I wanted, when I joined a challenge, to be able to record my progress on my own blog. I wanted to participate in some of those tempting swaps! I wanted to add my voice to the bloggy conversation, though with so many inspiring bloggers out there, I wondered what I had to offer.

I'm still wondering. Why do I feel compelled to do this? Why does the feedback from strangers matter? What is my particular niche?

But it doesn't really matter to me right now. What matters is that I've loved doing this. I've loved coming here to record some of the bits that make up my life. And most especially, I've loved "meeting" you who come here. Thank you. Thank you for reading and caring and commenting.

In honor of my "blogiversary," I'd like to offer a little thank-you present. I hope you'll understand when I tell you it's thrifted and used (the way I like things, and a part of my commitment to the environment). I know you'll understand when I tell you it's a children's book (have you noticed I LOVE books?). I recently came across a near-perfect copy of the lovely book Spring by Gerda Muller (you can see my copy here), and I'd like to share it with one of you. Just leave a comment on this post to be entered in the drawing, and I'll pick a name on Friday. (Please include your email address if your comment doesn't link back to your blog.)