Making for a Birthday

Our littlest one recently turned two.  We had a small family celebration for him with a peach crumble pie and two little handmade gifts.

This third child of ours is so naturally balanced, so sure, and yet so open.  It was a wonder to watch him on this special day of his.  I imagine he feels himself a part of and inextricable from our larger whole and is comfortable with his place in the family.  I pray that the balance remains with him as he gets older.

Our eldest daughter made her littlest sibling a books about his very favorite thing in the whole wide world--TRUCKS.  And his Mama sewed up a little birthday crown that he absolutely refuses to wear so it had to be modeled by his older brother!

Trouble Dolls

One long {rainy} summer day in the middle of last week, I suggested that we make walnut boats to "sail" in one of the many puddles forming around our neighborhood.  My daughter knew that she would absolutely have to have a tiny little person to sail her tiny little boat.  I thought for a little while about how we were going to make this happen and then remembered the trouble dolls from my childhood.  Did you have these?  I loved mine.

I decided that we would make a couple of our own.  Using this tutorial, I (not we, this is definitely not a five and under project) wrapped toothpicks with embroidery floss and secured it with a glue gun.  I don't have an eye for detail and some of the wrapping (around the arms and legs in particular) requires just such an eye.  

They are rough, rugged sailors on sinking walnut boats and we love them still.

Home Sewn Baby Toys

I remember a year or so ago when I read Amanda Soule's The Creative Family thinking that homemade baby toys had to be about the silliest way that one could choose to spend very precious crafting time. I too remember feeling this way when first hearing of people hand knitting socks (and truthfully, I kind of still feel this way about socks).

Over the course though of the past twelve months (much influenced by our 10 months in Portland, Oregon, I am sure), I have come to love the rough around the edges homemadeness of nearly everything in our home, but especially on the bodies or in the hands of our small children. So simple. so sweet. so utterly innocent.

I made a couple of these cubes and filled them with 2 parts bamboo filler and one part rice. I love watching it in the hands of our littlest one.

Christmas Crafting

Christmas night was the first time in two weeks that I felt I could actually breathe. I put so much pressure on myself this year to make all of our Christmas gifts that the moments leading up to our big day felt a bit harried. I rarely got out of sweat pants, did much less cooking than normal and was more irritable than usual. This must be avoided next year. Must start crafting earlier than November.

I did get some nice time on the couch nursing or snuggling a sweet, sweet, smelly like milk baby who thinks knitting needles are pretty fun to play with.

So now that everything has been knitted, or sewed, or embroidered, I can move on to birthday presents (N's in January and H's in February). This year, I think I will save myself the pressure of hand-making their presents and instead support others that do. Thinking of this for N and this for H.

Another Lazy Days Skirt

Before leaving Portland, I promised Norah that she could pick out some fabric for a skirt because she didn't like the last one I made her AT ALL. I mean, I have to bribe her with lots of forbidden treats to even get her to put the thing on. As a new sewer, I desperately want to see my kids in my creations, so I knew I would make another one in a fabric of her choice. Sadly, the fabric of her choice is not one of my choice, but... she is wearing it and I am loving it no matter what. I got the pattern here, cut the fabric to 16 inches (I think) before the seams, and cut the elastic waistband to 19 inches (18 after overlapping). Olivia, her dolly, has one on the way too.

Summer Sewing

Just because I really don't have enough to do, I have decided to pick up sewing again! The pending cross country move with two small children in tow (and everything there is to do along with it) is not nearly as much fun~ I made Norah this skirt minus the ribbon at the hemline on Saturday. This poster claims that they can be whipped up just before dinner, hence the name "Before Dinner Skirts." Hmmm, then I guess I will have to name mine "The Before Breakfast Lunch and Dinner with Lots of Meltdowns In Between Skirt" or the "Bribe My Child With a Cookie to Wear It Skirt." BUT I did get some crafting satisfaction from the making of it. There might be a few more of these in my future...

A Bit of Healing

Amazing how my mind can take me far, far away from where I need to be the most--in the present and amongst my children. What fun we had today! Just a couple of moments of "presentness" from me and our whole evening transformed. We put on some music, Follow Me, got out the silks that I dyed for Christmas (which have been lying dormant for months now), and made me believe that we were going to Grandma's house through the forest and with a basket full of food.

I have been getting some help with this "presentness" in the latest book that I am reading: Buddhism for Mothers. Life has taken me too far away from my life and I am ready to get back to it. This book has some pretty effective strategies for letting go of painful thoughts and just being.

The beginnings of Spring around these parts (albeit rainy beginnings) are helpful in this as well. There are daffodils, cherry blossoms,and crocuses rearing up all over our world. And. we. are loving. them.


Oh! And we are all getting pretty excited about the newest addition coming to us in early July--right smack dab in the middle of the summer. Oh yes, finally a summer baby.

September Crafting

We are getting ready for colder weather and, with that, the holidays around these parts. September was a rather productive month for me in this department. I have been more comfortable recently with working on projects while I am with the kids these days, rather than just burning the midnight oil on them. In fact, I have discovered that there is something really nice about making things with my hands while my kids are around. Something simple and calm both for me and for them.

One fruit of my labor is this felt colored pencil holder, a project from The Creative Family. I made it out of 100% wool felt which was really nice to work with. For the outside, I simply sewed some pretty buttons on randomly and the inside simply consists of 15 or so little slots for our colored pencils.

























I also made these tiny slippers for old Hoiyo so that his tootsies can stay warm when he is around the house. The poor baby gets the coldest bluest feet so problem solved, hopefully. I am particulary impressed with these because they are made out of felted sweater wool and scraps of old yarn. No purchases required. I feel like a regular homesteader.

Back to Basics

I have been doing all of this reading of crafty blogs lately that has inspired me. I am not sure why I have not done many crafts with Norah (and Harvey) but I haven't. I have been stuck doing a few things--reading, going to parks, visiting friends, etc.. Yesterday morning I got out some old magazines, markers, crayons and stamps and we had some fun in the kitchen. Norah drew Dr. Yerovi and I made a collage featuring Brian a gay fashion designer and myself as a rather homely blond.

We also spent some time at the library (you can't take pictures there!!??!). There were just so many books that they both wanted to read and so little time before a meltdown. While we were there, I picked up a copy of Rahima Baldwin's You are Your Child' First Teacherr. I am pretty interested in the Waldorf model of education, but I don't know enough about it to consider sending either Norah or Harvey to a Waldorf School. This book, while focused on the early years, should give me a better idea of what they are about.




We spent some time outdoors this afternoon after the kids woke. I finally planted those paper whites that have been sitting in a bag on our window sill for the past few months. The likelihood that they will actually bloom is not in our favor but it was a nice afternoon activity after all.