Five Flowers

Happy Mother's Day (late!)

I just wanted to wish all you moms a happy mother's day!  I have a sick little one here, and family in town, but I hope to be back in full force next week!

Turning Two

Someone just turned two!

We have had a whirl-wind of family here, and more on the way this week.  I hope to write more when things quiet down::

We had a fun party, and lots of growing up has happened over the last few days.  But I have so much crafty news to share in a few days when I havea bit more time!

[Kids and cupcakes-- it doesn't get any better than that!]

Grateful

Well, we all have so much to be grateful for.  And after the last few nights of drama and crying with my daughter, tonight I am grateful for a night of peace

:::

I am also grateful for my dear friend Sheri (from happinest and Mamazine)... she surprised me with this incredible photo today... she knows all too well what I love; thank you Sheri!  [And if you haven't heard, Mamazine is holding their second Mama Focus contest!  I can't wait to enter:: I have to bust out my new tripod.  Oh, and you have to join the flickr group too!  It is worth just looking through all the incredible photos of mamas.]

:::

I am also grateful for Japanese import fabric; I just picked this up from my LFS, and I am going to make my boy a cape with his name in wool felt... cute!  I am hoping to use this tutorial I think.

:::

And I am grateful for all of your comments lately- I am sorry I haven't been able to respond to everyone, but the screaming children have sucked taken up all my free time. 

On another note, I have heard that a couple of my favorite bloggers/ artists are going on indefinite hiatus; I am bummed, but I understand that it is time for them to move on in their lives!  Good luck to them!

:::

As soon as it's done, I'll post pictures of the  cape and another sewing project I just finished (yes!  It's true... the new arrangement is working!)

Growing Up, Part Two

So, some of you might remember about a year ago Poppy saw a dead skunk in the road, and maybe you remember how empathetic and  upset she was.  Well, today on her field trip for school we came across a dead bat, and it really sent her for a loop.

She has already been experiencing some emotional days- part of being on the verge of turning four- and she is grappling with the concept of death and what it means to be alive.

We had to leave shortly after; the rest of the day was spent talking about "getting dead", Stellaluna, and playing at the arboretum to find lizards that were still alive.

Three Things

Three things I am thinking about right now::

how i really want to make this tunic and this bag~~ Amy Butler rocks!

::

how i put too much honey in my tea, and so i might need to switch to this (pretty!)

::

how i really need to sleep with out my son's feet kicking me all night; it is time to keep moving him back into his bed at night (he sneaks in, and I wake up to him snuggling... sweet, yes.  but i miss sleeping, too.)

Celebrating Earth Day

We come from the ocean

living in the ocean

come back to the ocean

turn the world around

-henry belafonte

::

As Amanda mentions in her book, we are always trying to find ways to give a gift back to the earth.  It's fun to let the kids choose what that is going to be, where they want to go, etc.

::

Hope you are able to take a moment and celebrate the earth today, and everyday!

Comfort Food by Kate Jacobs

So, I just finished reading an advanced copy of Comfort Food, by Kate Jacobs.  It has a voice and feel to it that will be familiar to readers of The Friday Night Knitting Club (FNKC).  This was certainly a readable and likable book, and I finished it pretty quickly.  The characters are fun, and I cared enough about them to want to quickly discover what happens next.

The book is about a celebrity chef, her relationship with her grown daughters, and sudden changes in her career.  I guess they are even going to have a website set up to go along with the fictitious Cooking Channel that the main character is a part of. There are some things that bother me that may make this sort of easy reading (and I had similar thoughts on FNKC).  Sometimes the dialog is inauthentic, and the characters are often predictable in terms of what their particular journey is going to be.  But that said, it is a pretty fun read!  And this book didn't have any plot twists that got me to stop reading entirely (unlike the FNKC).  Comfort Food is a sweet, quick read. 

Almost 2 and a haircut that's new

So my guy will be two in a week and a half or so, and I can't believe it!  I finally had to cut the baby hair back a bit:: he was growing this crazy mullet, and well, it wasn't working !

[By the way, he calls the monkey on his pj's Bobo, after Bobo in Hug, one of our favorite family reads!]

Black Apple Doll!

  Welcome Wueve (like nine in Spanish, "nueve") to our home:

My girl isn't really napping anymore, and so today I decided we would try and make something while her brother napped.  Poppy named her Wueve.  Now, how is this sewing all possible, you ask?

Well, I have been reading Amanda's book (The Creative Family), like many of you out there, and I decided to really set up a sewing corner in our bedroom.  It really does make a difference: I can always see what I have, what I might want to make.  And because I don't have to set-up and take down every time, I can do more spur-of-the-moment crafting.

It's not glamorous, but it works! 

:::

So, the doll specifics:

It's Emily Martin's (from the black apple) Black Apple Doll pattern from when she was on Martha.  And I got to say- this was a fun and quick pattern.  It was done in a couple of hours... and Poppy got to help! 

The face is canvas, the hair is wool felt, and body is "apples and pears" by Alexander Henry,

and the legs are Freshcut by Heather Bailey

New Filters

Well, I had planned a post with so much more to say, but since my son still isn't sleeping, I'll have to leave you with my photoshop play:

Cheers!