WOW Wednesday - April 2, 2014

This morning we are experiencing a little bit of "April showers," so it seems fitting to do a rainy day craft today! :)

One of my favorite things to do is use coffee filters in some artistic fashion.  With this craft, you can also use cupcake papers. The craft is found at No Time For Flashcards. 

Another fun thing to do on a rainy day is to paint rocks.  Whenever we are out and about, my youngest and I hunt for rocks to use in art and craft work.

What things do you enjoy on rainy days?

Wabi Sabi

Running a business is a little bit like living in permanent states of Wabi Sabi.

From Wikipedia:

Wabi-sabi (侘寂^?) represents a comprehensive Japanese world view or aesthetic centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection. The aesthetic is sometimes described as one of beauty that is "imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete".^[1] It is a concept derived from the Buddhist teaching of the three marks of existence (三法印 sanbōin^?), specifically impermanence (無常 mujō^?), the other two being suffering (苦 ku^?) and emptiness or absence of self-nature (空 kū^?).

In all the 13 years of living here, I have never, not ever, had anything go entirely as planned. Honestly, at first it really sort of freaked me out. According to all the books and websites I'd read, everything should go like clockwork once you get the basics laid out.

You know, like having a wonderful garden ready to go in, according to plan, only to keep having snows visit your area. :D

Have a good one,

~ Kim

WOW (World of Wonder) Wednesday - March 26, 2014

Art journal cover by Kim Upton

Each week we will explore a topic of wonder that you can share with your family. It will be low-cost, with easy to obtain supplies.

Kids love making journals, and they love writing in them as well. Here is a great link to get you started!

Picklebums - Kids and Journaling

Have a great day!

Weekends on the Farm

Today's weather indicates lots more Spring cleaning.  This is the time of year where we need to get our storage areas together, get rid of what isn't needed, and make room for seedlings.

When you have your own business, especially one that grows things for others to use, weekends are the days you work the most.  This is where you have long stretches of time, without interruption, to complete farm-hold tasks.

Along with that, it is a time where we can come together as a family to see what classes and courses we can offer to our current clients, as well as do a "think tank" on what we might create in the future.

Currently on our plate is a course which uses popular video games as a method to teach math and science.  This will fit in nicely with our MOOC program, as we are very big on self-directed learning around here.

This weekend we will have a very special guest coming to visit us.  Last year he was able to catch some star trails from our back yard.  It was pretty awesome.  Hopefully it will clear enough tonight for him to catch some more!

Have a most wonderful weekend, y'all!  

Grow Wild,

~ The Uptons @ Green Being Farm and School

Welcome! Happy Spring 2014!!

Welcome to the virtual home of Green Being Farm and School!  We are so excited that you stopped by to sit a spell.

After finally obtaining a small amount of grant money, we are now able to maintain our web presence a bit more.  The money will also be used to offer online classes to those who are unable to attend courses in person.  (we had this about 5 years ago, and Google was totally fantastic in helping us get things squared away).

As the days and weeks go by, we will add more content to this page.  Right now we are just working to get posts out every day - even if they are small ones - to establish a good online work routine.

All of us here are looking forward to all the new possibilities ahead.

Happy Spring!

~ The Upton Family