gnomes and pockets

after much deliberation, calvin is going to be a garden gnome for halloween. i made the hat using a pattern from bend the rules sewing. it turned out cute and calvin loves wearing it (yay!). i am also making a belt and a wee vest. for only using what i have on hand here, i am pretty impressed with how it is coming out (maybe that tells me that i have a bit too much on hand...). the beard is a different story. i have not found one that fits him or that he will keep on. i do have some white felt so i am thinking of fashioning a felt beard and then somehow attaching it to his hat and/or vest so that it stays on without having to go around his head (this seems to be an issue). i will keep you posted on how it turns out.

playing out in the yard last week calvin discovered that pockets have a purpose... he can put stuff in them. a whole new world opened up for him. he is a child that likes to squirrel away rocks, balls, bits of this and that so pockets are perfect. i did learn the hard way that i now have to check all of his pockets before putting his clothes in the wash.

an autumn sunday

the trees started to turn colors this weekend. it was a beautiful new england site for our family visiting from california. i completed these booties (from this book given to me by Ari) for a friend whose baby was due in a week but decided to come today. luckily i had given them to her on friday. newborn emma will look super cute in them, i'm sure. i can't wait to meet her. i liked the pattern. it was easy, although i used quilt batting instead of fusible fleece. it worked fine. i am a little concerned about the ankle openings, they seem a bit small. the booties do open with a velcro flap so the foot should slide in easily. hopefully they will fit well.

speaking of ari, she and i and a couple of friends held a handmade summer swap. i received this very handsome applique elephant shirt from her. calvin loves it! he did not want to take it off (and he did not want to stand still for a picture either...). thank you ari!

it rained here on friday and saturday so calvin got to wear his rain boots and raincoat (from grammy and grandpa). he had not been keen about putting them on the last few days but yesterday he asked for them. i think being able to go out in the rain and splash in puddles was a large incentive. of course both the jacket and the boots are way to big, but i wanted them to last awhile. they are wearable (barely) and he can walk (sorta) without falling over.

happy sunday!

101

sorry i was a bit absent last week. it was a crazy busy week with a few too many commitments crammed into too little time. but it was all loads of fun and worth the small bit of extra hustle and bustle.

the winner of the fabric box is.....ari! thank you to everyone who commented. i am finishing up the box and will hopefully (fingers crossed) get it in the mail this week.

speaking of this week our new chairs arrive on friday. we ordered them forever ago from room and board. the chairs come in several stocked fabrics, but we ordered a custom fabric so it took awhile. we ordered two chairs (no ottoman) to sit opposite our couch. they're comforable and mid-century looking, which happens to be the style that most of our furniture fits into. i hope they look good. the colors are so hard to envision on chairs when looking at a small swatch of fabric.

happy sunday!

100th post

wow. 100 posts. 100 ramblings about what i am thinking/doing/making.


i started this blog to communicate with friends and family that live in distant lands about what was happening in my everyday life. it has turned into a place for me to show/write about my life and also a place to meet new (cyber) friends. the online community of artsy/crafty moms is amazing and special. our moms did not have this medium to use as a resource for inspiration, gratification, and validation. i cherish it daily.


in honor of my 100th post i am doing a little give-away. leave a comment by friday sept. 12 and i will pick a person at random to win a handmade fabric box. i made some for calvin here. i use them to hold calvin's books, bibs, and other assorted things.

happy 100th post!

strawberry jam

we made strawberry jam a few weeks ago. i used pectin and sweetened it with honey, which turned out delicious! the blueberry jam i made earlier this month called for 6 (!) cups of sugar, so this time i wanted to try something different. we have eaten it in some form or another everyday since i made it and today we are going to make soulemama's lemon scones, which i know will be fabulous with jam.

dirt

calvin loves to dig in dirt. so when we had to (re)plant the circle in the front of our house with some new hydrangeas and grasses, calvin was all over it. he loves to dig deep into the earth with his hands and squeeze the dirt. then he opens his hands and focuses in on seeing the tiny piece of earth that he is carrying.



the warm summer day ended with dinner on the beach, and my boys digging in sand and watching the water ebb and flow.

baby shower

i went a friend's baby shower on saturday. it was animal themed so i made these brownies (using ari's award winning recipe) and put animal crackers on top. the animal crackers added a nice little crunch. so good.

i made a quilt for the new little one. they do not know the gender so i went with yellow and orange. i used the pattern from here. all the fabrics were from my stash so they came from all different places at all different times.

i am back to work this week, part-time. i am looking forward to the predictability of a schedule, but not spending mornings with calvin depresses me a bit. i am eager to put my newly aquired masters degree in literacy to work.