a little crafty nest

no lazy days here

I'm not so sure why "lazy" is used to describe summer days.  I feel so very full right now, gardening, harvesting, canning, knitting, spinning, beaching, parenting...Oh, I'm not complaining ~ far from it!  I love the busy-ness of family life...it keeps this Virgo on her course.  I tend to flounder with no projects in sight, though that hasn't been in a long, long time.

I put my spinning aside for a few weeks nursing a raging infection in my fingertip.  After a month, six doctors, seven appointments, 3 rounds of antibiotics (hello, yogurt!), and medical leave from dish duty...it still persists.  Oh, so discouraging!  I'm sure it's due to the stress of the last year and a half, combined with an average of four and a half hours of sleep a night. 

But nevermind, that!  What I'm taking forever to say, is that I picked up my spinning again and lo and behold, I am really starting to get it!  So exciting!  Inspired, we went on an excursion to wildcraft some plants to dye the yarn...the beginning of many such adventures.  (I'll post more photos of the outcome later).

I also found a few moments (over the course of a month) to sew up a chambray skirt for myself. 

Of course, summer evenings are filled with homeschool prep ~ I love it!  While other things get neglected (like blogland and finishing the garlic braids), I am happily painting alphabet cards.  And enjoying random summer bouquets.

Me, I wouldn't trade my busy days for those lazy dog days at all! 

How are you keeping yourselves busy right now?

 

mama earth's children

Mama Earth has begun to rouse her little children.  There are signs all about ~ finally! ~ that they are returning with Spring's arrival today.  Yesterday, we saw our very first snowdrop, peeking out from her cozy green cloak...

And inside, Spring is blooming, too.

And we had wee little visitors this morning...Mama Earth's babies decided to stay with us.  They delighted the children, promising little flowers outside...soon, we hope!

Happy Spring, dear friends!

handmade for the holidays (napkins and a fairy, too)

I always seem to have Big Plans for holiday making...and this year, especially, my follow-through is a little less than impressive.  Perhaps because there seems to be a lot of "help" of the most innocent, wide-eyed kind...

So while little Huckley got involved with this fabric pile, I got busy sewing...napkins.  I admit, I have a little napkin fetish going on this year, and the seasonal variety are oh so festive!  I have lots of fabric ends from making stockings and gift bags and pajamas, and with a simple snip here and there, many squares were cut.  The children had a fun time matching front and back squares for me to sew together.

We made enough to host my family's Boxing Day Dinner for twelve...though, there will surely be some more made for gift giving this season. 

And while these little hands were kept busy...

...a little Christmas Fairy came alive...

She has her place beside our homeschool hutch, overseeing all the busy-ness of our daily activities.  I also heard Sunshine mention to her brothers that she is making sure they are behaving...hmmm, works for me!

Happy (handmade) Holiday making, to all my crafty friends!

whirling twirling

Little leaves falling down

Red and yellow orange and brown,

Whirling twirling round and round.

Falling softly to the ground.

-Suzanne Down's Autumn Tales

Outdoors, some of our trees still look like this sugar maple, while others are a wee more sassy... 

 
And indoors, these leaves are whirling twirling with the Autumn Fairy...

 
 
Happy Equinox, friends!

reading the signs

My littlest one is just 14 months old.  He walks ~ no, runs ~ and climbs and loves to snuggle.  He also tells me things that he is thinking, that he wants, and how he is feeling.  It is not guesswork on my part, he literally is telling me all sorts of things...and who knew a non-verbal toddler had so much to say.

Well, he isn't exactly non-verbal.  He has a terrific grunt that he uses in various pitches for nearly everything.  He says "Boooooop" for nursing, "Mama", and "Pap".  When he was ten months old, he could say the dog's name...every five minutes!  Then he began walking and words took a backseat to simply experiencing wonder.

Huckley is my third baby and like his brother and sister before him, he uses baby signs.  Each of them began at different times...Forrest was using signs a lot at thirteen months, while Sunshine was very chatty with them at ten months old. 

 
"dog"...We see a lot of this one!

Huckley is more casual about it, and that's just fine.  We are pretty laid back about the whole thing...if we remember to make the gesture when we say the word, then he learns that he can use that gesture too.  Both Forrest and Sunshine are the real teachers here, and they are the ones helping Huckley learn to communicate.

 
"hungry"

I never really sought out to do this baby signing.  It kind of just evolved from the universal baby gestures of waving goodbye and pointing.  When I browsed through the book "Baby Signs ~ How to Talk with your Baby Before Your Baby Can Talk", I saw how helpful signing could be for both the child and the parent.  All mamas know how upset their babies can get, usually due to frustrations.  With signing, those frustrations are hugely reduced, if not eliminated.

 
"all gone"...he is waving his hands back and forth.  He really likes to use this with food or with toys.

Huckley has a fairly good signing vocabulary : he names objects (dog, book, poopy diaper), he expresses needs (thirsty, hungry), he describes things (more, a little bit, all gone, listen, where is it?), and several more.  Sometimes, he'll wake up from a nap and immediately and repeatedly make the sign for dog (panting with his tongue sticking out) and won't be settled until we go find the dogs.  Did he dream about his dogs?  Does he miss his dogs?  I'm not sure about the details, but it was easy to go find the dogs and reassure him.

 
"dog", again!  This is his favourite sign, as well as "more" (food, books, fun)

I especially like it when Huckley uses the signs like "Where is it?".  He is asking me a question and together we can find what he is looking for.  Sometimes, he is playing a game with me and hides the ball behind his back and signs "Where is it?"  Then he erupts into hilarious laughter.

 
"listen" or "do you hear that?"...usually it's because we hear the horses or the dogs barking

When I first saw this book I was so sceptical, thinking it was like teaching a dog a trick.  But truly, it amazes me how much my baby can tell me and only from simply repeating gestures when using certain words.  For each of my three children, it was really quite simple.  Soon enough, Huckley may begin to put two or three signs together...or even substitute a word for a sign. 

 
"thirsty"...although, this is a funny version as he usually strokes his throat up and down

I'm also not worried tha"t my baby will fail to learn language because he is so effectively using signs. My older two children are so articulate, despite Sunshine not wanting to speak until Huckley was born.  (And then within six weeks of uttering her first words, she was speaking in sentences).  Perhaps the best part about baby signs is that Huckley is more actively expressing himself, letting us glimpse the person within.  And that little soul who is emerging and colouring our lives with his vibrancy is one amazing person indeed!

I'd love to hear if anyone else has used baby signs?  What are some of the more unique signs your baby used? 

felt painting from the heart

It might be debated that when a person loves to journal, they love the art of language.  The ability to capture the essence of one's emotions, however fleeting, with a few chosen words, may often be a gift worthy of volumes and volumes of journals and diaries.  For me, this is true.  I have carted around many of my documented emotions and events for over 30 years.  Like an old friend, they stand by me, reminding me of the girl I once was, of the small dramas that starred myself.

For each of my children, I wanted to create something just as memorable to capture that feeling, that essence of their past year.  I once thought I might quilt them a square to later be made into a wall-hanging, for them to enjoy in their own homes later on down the road.  Until I came across a beautiful "painting" in which the artist used felt. 

For Huckley's first birthday a few weeks ago, I made a turtle for him surrounded by four little fishies. 

 
The turtle has become a bit of a symbol for my dear littlest boy...for now.  When I made him his baby quilt, the turtle and the fishies were there, swimming along.  I think I could make these felt paintings really detailed, but they were a simple gift, made in very little time.  Somehow, this is just perfect.

Miss Sunshine celebrated her third birthday, and as many of you know, this has been a very challenging year for my little girl.  That first night in the hospital, amidst all the surreal drama unfolding, I quickly sketched a little guardian angel for my sweet girl while she looked on.  I tacked it beside her hospital bed so she had something to gaze on other than the IV drip, the tubes, the computers, the very sterile atmosphere that became our home for the next ten days.  So this past year is represented by that very same guardian angel.  I know she's there, too.  She saved my baby girl once, she won't leave her now!

 
(The truth be told, I preferred the hospital drawing to this one...it was much more spontaneous and lovely)!

In Sunshine's room, her first three felt paintings hang together...just like a quilt.

 
As my children grow, their wall "quilt" will grow, too.  Each year, a new felt painting will be added, making a patchwork quilt of their life on their bedroom wall.  Sometimes, words are not needed to capture the essence of emotion.  Sometimes, it just has to come from the heart.

flower headbands (a mini tutorial of sorts)

Sunshine has just two friends.  That may not seem like a lot at first, but, then again, she is only two herself (three next week!).  And when you are two, those two friends mean an awful lot.  Her bestest little girl friend is the daughter of dear friends of ours.  And this past weekend, their little girl turned three.

With very little time to make something, I literally whipped up a flower hairband for the birthday girl.

 
It might also be a crown, as her mama pointed out.  This is very simple to make, and briefly here is what I did.  First, I cut out a rectangle of green cotton, one third longer than the circumference of her head (I based it all on Sunshine's measurements).  I also cut out flowers from some wool felt, and a piece of elastic, one inch longer than her head circumference.

 
Then I sewed up the green cotton, turned it inside out (the only laborious part of the craft), and inserted the elastic.  (By the way, I have only recently discovered in many years of sewing how easy this can be done using a safety pin to feed through the tube ~ sheer genius!)

 
After the headband was made, a few stitches in the center of the flowers using embroidery thread finished it up.  Sweet and simple, my kind of birthday gift.

Of course, Miss Sunshine really really wanted one, too.  How could I resist?

 
Do you remember how sweet your friendships were at the tender age of (almost) three?  Moments to treasure, that's for certain!

rainy day spring play

It's raining...lots.  I love the rain and the Life it brings forth...birthing vibrancy and blossoms and ohh, that good earthy smell!  Indoors, rainy day spring play can be a little more boisterous than at other times.  Our Spring playscape is a good way to (usually) help bring that energy down a little.  I've shown our playscapes before, in Autumn and again in Winter.  The children really love the stories and games they create with simple, handmade toys and I love to watch their imaginations soar.

 
We were rather inspired to see this family across the neighbour's field when I brought out their new toys.

 
 
 
Seasonal playscapes are such a simple way to bring nature indoors or to make a special story come to life.  With a few silks, some rocks and branches, and a few handmade felted toys, suddenly a little world emerges.

 
These trees are such fun to create!  A simple toilet roll inserted into a knitted brown tube and topped with a pom-pom makes easy trees...though, I learned not to make the trunks too tall or they topple.  By creating new pom-pom tops for each season, the trees can change their foliage just like outside.  I especially love the soft colours of our blossoming fruit trees.

 
 
And now that my littlest one is mobile, he is so tickled to join in the big children's play...even if it's for a brief moment before he tastes the toys!

 
While the rain nourishes the garden and brings all the Life forth, these little ones have a few moments of quiet play with a very simple Spring playscape.

white gold

We are so lucky to live where we do!  In addition to all the homegrown veggies and fruits, we supplement our diets with local chickens, beef (from across the road), eggs (from beside our place), honey, and even bacon if we are feeling like it.  Most of these places are within walking distance...like a .1 mile diet.  This summer I am crossing my everythings hoping my dear husband will finally build The Coop for some hens of our own.

We also get local dairy products from various friends.  (For some silly legal (?) reason, we are not supposed to buy unpasteurized milk, but I prefer the real thing to commercial milk that has been overheated, killing any beneficial enzymes and nutrients the milk has to offer.  Oh, and fresh sweet milk is absolutely delicious!)

 
My children and I drink litres of goat milk each week, while my husband cannot stand it!  He says it's goaty.  I think pasteurized goat milk is definately goaty, but the real deal is pure liquid goodness.  It helps that our friend's goat farm is immaculate and the goats are so well loved.  We know this to be true because we've been coming here for years.

 
 
 Josh prefers cow milk which we obtain irregularly from another friend's farm.  She calls us when she has a surplus and then we hit the cow milk jackpot and I make lots of yogurt and whey all at once.  I use the whey in lacto-fermenting other foods, like pickles and kraut.  Also, you can soak your oats and other grains overnight in whey to help in pre-digestion.  A great book on many more lacto-fermentation methods is Sally Fallon's Nourishing Traditions...a fascinating read, in my humble opinion.

 
 
Because I have cow dairy sensitivities, I started my children directly onto goat milk...these goat's milk, in fact!  (Incidentally, we have since learned that giving cow dairy to very young children has shown them  to be more predisposed to developing Type 1 Diabetes.)

 
We get a lot of goat milk and when there is enough, we make our own yogurt.  I find that goat yogurt is a bit more finicky, and some batches can have a runnier consistency than others.  Perhaps it's due to the temperature of our cookstove where I place the jars, but I've also read that this is the nature of goat milk.  With granola or on pancakes, though, it doesn't bother us if it's not always creamy thick.  I've also heard that you can thicken goat yogurt with tapioca (a root starch derived from the cassave plant) or with xanthum gum (a natural sugar derived from corn). 

Last week, Rae showed us her clever uses for recycled sweater sleeves.  They are sort of like our milk warmers for incubating yogurt. 

 
After bringing the goat (or cow or sheep) milk to 82C (180F), I quickly remove it from the stove so it will cool down to 44C (110F) and mix in the starter (storebought or a little leftover yogurt).  Then I set the yogurt atop our woodstove, (or beneath, depending on the stove temperature), and let it go to work for about 6 to 8 hours.  Afterwards, I sometimes mix in a little honey or vanilla for flavouring Josh's cow yogurt...he likes it like that.

 
I remember reading that a person can absorb part of the character of the animal that is the food they eat.  This was referring to the type of dairy that one consumes...cow, sheep, or goat.  Perhaps that's why my boy is so full of frolicking good energy...have you ever seen little goat kids leap about after they get their milk?  Ahhhh, it is so adorable!

For our family, I look forward to our visits to the goat farm.  A chance to thank the kids and mamas for the precious milk that sustains my family. 

 
I love knowing where our food comes from, whether it be from a two legged or a four legged friend!

cabin feverish

A few days ago, we were feeling the flowing rush of Spring as we noticed little specks of colour beneath our oak tree bloom into bright, cheerful laughter like this...

 

It must have been Old Man Winter laughing for this is what we awoke to this morning...

 

Clearly, this mama robin was not all that amused, either!  Really, now! 

I had some help with the problem of all that white stuff atop my garden beds.

 
I am just not able to wait one more minute for the chance to get my fingers into the earth! 

And we seem to still be indoors too much.  The children are beginning to go squirrelly as the energy is surging through their bodies like the sap through the trees...I can feel them fairly buzzing about from activity to activity.  Well, this isn't too hard since all their activities seem to be fantasizing what to do once all that snow finally melts.

There's the biking...

 
There's the skateboarding...

 
And then there's the current favourite game of Dock.  This is simply when the children strip down to their undies (bathing suit), and lie on a playsilk (towel) while reading a book and listening to the waves lap against the dock.  It's rather amusing to see the flurry of activity as cushions and clothing go flying, shouts of direction and excitement, so that they can simply "play" relaxing. 
Yes indeed, I rather like the peaceful, serene element of this game!

Despite the snow drifting endlessly from the heavens, we brought a little Springshine into our home with some crafting.

 
With so much energy surging through their veins, it was wonderful to sit peacefully for nearly an hour and enjoy their quiet company. 

 
And until the weather cooperates with my grand gardening plans, then we'll have to be patient and sit out the snow a little longer.  Afterall, the beach in the livingroom looks awfully inviting!

little spring gnomes

While there may be over a foot of snow in most of my garden, the promise of spring has sprung with our very first snowdrops and crocuses under the oak tree.  With some wishful thinking, I crafted a pair of little spring gnomes for our spring nature table.

 
Oh, these were such fun to make!!!  The children found them in front of the newly visible fairy door at the base of our oak tree. 

 
This tree is truly the guardian of spring for it is under her branches that dozens of snowdrops and crocuses and daffodils emerge.  The fairy door arrived one Midsummer's Eve a few years ago...but that's a story for another season!

 
We've whispered to these little spring gnomes to ask Mrs. Thaw to hurry up and melt all that snow so we may garden.  We're crossing our fingers and remaining hopeful!

accessories for an angel

My little Sunshine has hair borrowed from an angel's halo.  It's white and surrounds her head like a golden aura.  Usually, it's sticking straight out the back or a mass of mini-dreadlocks. 

 
I have toyed with the idea of giving her a big girl trim, but I can't bear to snip a single lock!  The wispy, baby-fine dander reminds me that she really is still just a baby. 

But I can keep it from hanging in her eyes with a few clips I found for under $1.  Inspired by a gift my dear friend from the coast gave her, I made a rainbow of hair accessories that were fun, easy, and oh so quick.

 
Each clip was completed in under 10 minutes.  I love instant gratification! 

 
And Miss Sunshine loves her clips...she has a hard time deciding which to wear.

 
So why not wear all of them at once?

 
Come to think of it, maybe she didn't borrow anything from an angel...maybe they borrowed a little something from her :)

handmade home ~ a special secret place

I remember those places as a child that evoked magic and mystery...places only pint-sized folk could access.  When we built our home, I was imagining such a space in the empty zone beneath our stairwell.  With a little of the leftover flooring, and a kitchen crafted by St. Nicholas himself, a special secret place appeared, like magic!

 
And if the door is open, feel free to enter the enchanted kitchen (or bear's den, or dungeon, or pirate's galley, or...)

 
This door was handcarved by my husband's stepfather, Grandpa.  It actually still needs to be hung after we properly size it to fit, and sand it in a few rough spots.  Grandpa put the little door in for trucks to pass through...clever fella with creativity oozing from his fingertips!

 
 
And on the other side of the sink at just the right height, is a wee window overlooking the creek. 
 
The playhouse has been here since we renovated our home four years ago, but before Christmas I wanted to put some more effort into it.  Sometimes, a little rearranging or refreshing is all that is needed for a new perspective on the familiar.  Other times, a few tasty felted treats for afternoon tea does the trick, too!

 
Cookies, ladyfingers, and fruit tarts...our favourite!  And my wee little daughter with diabetes can eat all she wants of these sweet treats:)

 
It has been a lot of fun for me,too, saving tea tins and collecting various nuts, branches and stones to make the "food" for the kitchen. 

 
For several days running, we have had gallons of hot drinks and pounds of sugary confections.  Tea, anyone?

 
One day, the children will be too tall to walk through this door, but I envision changing the space to suit their needs.  Perhaps I'll replace the kitchen with big, fluffy pillows for a cozy reading nook or a creative writing haven. 

It's so wonderful to have such a special secret place...what are your children's?

wee little gnomes

We are the little men

The dwarfs and the gnomes,

We live in the caves,

In the roots and the stones.

We want light like the stars,

Yes, the stars in our homes.

So we polish and shine

The crystals and stones.

(Winter Wynstones)

As the midpoint of winter passes, the snow lays thick and deep.  It seems as if all is quietly still and asleep.  But, beneath the cold earth, little gnomes are busily working...

 
A rainbow of little fellas made from scraps of wool felt and roving, crudely carved alder branches, and a bit of embroidery floss.  Even my five year old son is able to create a well-crafted gnome.  Simple and sturdy, they are wonderful additions to our winter playscape that allows the children's imagination to soar.

 
With a few silks in wintry colours, some crystals, and a wool roving river, these gnomes seem quite at home. 

 
I really love these pom pom trees!  I made a few for our Autumn playscape in gold, crimson, and orange wool, and now these have been replaced by snowy tree tops.  Come springtime, I am certain there will also be some treetops full of blossoms.

 
While big brother was at the ski hill with Papa today, Miss Sunshine played for a long time with our winter playscape.  I love how her imagination is really blossoming, seen in her creative, "pretend" play.  When Forrest returned, he needed some soothing and quiet play after a long day of exertion, and this playscape was where he gravitated while dinner was prepared.  I never would have guessed, but this space in our home truly is one of the more used areas for our children, and their friends.

 
The magic of childhood is a wonderful thing!  Everything comes so alive to little people...it's really rather humbling.  Sitting on the daybed beside this playscape, nursing the baby who keeps leaning forward, trying to grasp a hold of the pom pom trees, I am amazed at how simple this was to offer my 2 and 5 year olds.  A true gift for me to be included in their space, to partake by simply being present...enjoying this fleeting moment of their childhood.

handmade for the holiday (little angels)

I believe in angels.  I have a fairy godmother who is now one of the most wonderful angels up in Heaven.  I know she looks down on me with love, blessing my life in beautiful and mysterious ways.  (One of these days I hope to tell you a little more about her for she was such a lovely lady)...I've been missing her a lot lately.

And thinking of angels, I have been crafting a few of them here and there as gifts.  I have only managed to make two so far, but there are three more in the works.  The first was for a seasonal handmade exchange I participated in through morning sun rae and sew natural studio.  This was my first swap and it was fun.  I was a little nervous, to be truthful, about creating something for someone else, and especially for mailing it on time (it seems that I'll meet deadlines but then whatever I mean to send lies around collecting dust before I make it to the post office)!  However, this time I tried my best and managed to mail it just one day late.  Abbie at greening sam and avery was my partner and I made a little angel for their nature table.  More specifically, I made a snow fairy to represent all the massive amounts of fluffy snow we usually have around here.  She took on a life of her own, and I am happy with how she turned out...I hope they are, too!

 
I was so flattered to hear that my own mother really loved this fairy...so I made her very own special caroling angel for her Christmas tree (her first name is Carol).

 
By far, the very best little angels in my life are right here with me every day, all day long...I think they are my finest creations for sure!

 
It seems we are surrounded by angels at this time of year, though perhaps it is a good way to be reminded of all the littlest angels in our lives.  Besides, what is the holiday season without a few little angels?

counting down

Hard to believe it's December the First, isn't it?  I remember this was one of my very favourite times of the year when I was a child.  My brother, sister and I loved that our mom would get us each a chocolate advent calendar.  Each of us coveted the little shaped treats, despite their terrible after-taste!  (In fact, at university my mom still sent me one each year)!  We also made paper chains out of wrapping paper that we strung up all around.  I also remember a burlap advent calendar that had a candy cane for each day of December.  Oh, the three of us loved these ways of bringing in the holiday cheer!

When Forrest was a babe, I had big plans of making an embroidered advent calendar with wool felt.  Four years later, I am still putting on the finishing touches.  Somehow, I found this project difficult to work on during any month other than December.  Stitching St. Nicholas in July feels a little...obsessive!  Thus, for four years it is still a work in progress.

 
A labour of love, this craft is!  For every day of December there is a felt decoration that speaks of what the holiday season means to our family.  Here are the first five ornaments...

 
...a candle for Advent, a heart, a wreath, a snowman, and a snowflake.  The children have seen me stitching away so this is not an entirely surprise craft.  While one child finds the day's surprise here, there is also the Advent spiral that follows a stone, then a pinecone, then an animal, and finally a person to the shining star.

 
And for the third little person, I just had to get this beautiful calendar that is similar to those chocolate filled ones from my youth.

 
With no unpleasant chocolate aftertaste!

my super heroes

It's true.  Everyone needs a superhero.  They come in handy...clean up messes, rescue harried mamas, and generally invoke goodwill and happiness.  This has been a favourite game for Forrest in the last while - dreaming up costumes and deeds and scenarios that require his superhero brilliance.  He spends a lot of time cutting and taping scraps of paper together to make the perfect mask.  However, I spend far too much time adjusting (and re-adjusting) this same paper mask. 

 A proper mask was in order.  While Forrest watched me stitch it up, he detailed how he wanted me to wrap it in various play silks and leave it beside his bed while he slept...as a special gift for his alter-ego.  Unfortunately, little Huckley came down with a fever that curtailed my fancy stitch work and to finish this mask before bedtime would indeed prove heroic!

Forrest, or Super Hero, didn't mind.

 
His amazing abilities...well, they change by the minute.  At last check, he was able to subdue teenage bad guys and lasso cows.  Really.

His superhero friend also needed a mask to conceal her identity.

 
Miss Sunshine's special powers include being able to deliver 100 kisses in the blink of an eye!  (Ohhh, I love that!)

Together, my dynamic duo...

 
If these two characters only knew that they really are my super heroes.   I would love to embrace life with their exuberance and enthusiasm.  I love that the simplest things become wonderful moments.  I love that they follow their hearts into new adventures that include games of being mama in the kitchen or papa chopping firewood.  They continually amaze, inspire, humble, and love me. 

I'm pretty sure I know the real identity of these two superheroes.  Then again, they are constantly unfolding and evolving, and perhaps I'm just starting to get to know them!

 
Who are your superheroes?

...to the tips of his toes

Well now, some of you know that my little Huckley babe has a cozy noggin and a warm body.  Now to complete his first little outfit, I took the arms from another felted sweater to make a pair of pants.  I just love that the ribbed cuffs make the perfect pant bottoms.

 

I made an extra long rise on purpose to protect his little innards from getting cold.  It's easy for a baby in a sling to get his shirt riding up high, exposing his kidneys.  I added a little elastic to ensure they won't slide off, but I don't think it was that necessary...his big diaper prevents that from happening!

Still, they seemed a little plain to me, so I added a little fun to the bum.

 
A pretty little purple bird that moves as my boy wiggles his butt!

 
To keep Huckley's toes warm as the house heats up in the morning, I made him a pair of slippers, inspired by a beautiful pair Melanie made here.  Originally, I had wanted to make them like moccasins, but without a pattern I kept having to readjust by snipping away at the fabric until much of it was gone.  

 
 
These were the hardest things for my brain to wrap around.  I'm so pleased with using the sweater cuffs for the top of the booties to help keep them on Huckley's toes.  Next time around, I plan to double up the bottom sole and make the leg cuff twice as long. 

 
Warm toes indeed!  These ended up being fairly easy to make, and I hope to make the whole family similar ones in the New Year. 

And so here is his whole outfit....drum roll, please...

 
Oh, yes, he looks quite cozy indeed! 

If only these wooly fibers could speak, they would whisper softly to my boy that he is surrounded by the love of his mama, from the top of his head, to the tips of his toes!  But I am certain he knows that already!

from the top of his head...

November weather has descended, bringing with it darker days and longer nights.  When we wake up in the morning, our wood cookstove is out and there is a chill in the house.  I do so love the lighting of the morning fires and warming up the household.  A sort of awakening for our home.

The older two children know to greet the day, bundled in their woolies and slippers.  However, my wee fella obviously needs it all done for him.  And with him growing ever so quickly, we're running out of woolies for this little butterball.

So this past weekend, in a few hours, I managed to make him his first outfit.  From the top of his head, to the tips of his toes.  First off, I accidentally "found" a hat I had knit him back in the spring.  His big, beautiful noggin is finally ready to wear it.

 
Just like my girl's rosy pilot hat, I enlargened this one from the original pattern by Sublime Yarns and used some of my most favourite wool, Indigo Moon's Merino Superwash (colourway: Bluejeans) on 3.5 mm needles.  Such an easy knit and it fits so wonderfully.

 
I've said before what a big fan I am of hats with earflaps.  And Huckley looks so sweet, I think.

 
The rest of the clothing I made for Huckley came from a very old sweater I have been carting around for years.  My stash of used sweaters is low, but I managed to find this navy and purple one so I started snipping.  I wanted a warm vest for my baby, but holiday gift-making is taking up my precious crafting time so a knit vest will have to wait until after the holidays.

 
It's a bit roomy and boxy, but then it should last all winter and well into spring.  

  
So the top half of him is cozy and that makes this mama relax a little more as the fire gets stoked to chase the chill from the house.

Now, just a few more things to complete his outfit to the tips of his toes...
 

the halloween that nearly wasn't

I almost ruined Forrest's Halloween.  I say almost because there is a happy ending for all involved.

We have had a lot of fun around here thinking up costume ideas, looking in our favourite storybooks, flipping through magazines, sketching details of various inspirations.  One day, in early October, Forrest and I came across a wonderful gnome costume.  The perfect costume.  It was so sweet and simple, a happy little red capped, white bearded, blue sweatered gnome.  Perfect.  In that moment.

And, like all four year olds, Forrest decided he wanted to be a pirate.  And a superhero.  And a villain (?).  And, oh Mama, I really don't want to be a gnome anymore. 

I don't think I heard him, though.  I was dreaming up the soft velvety fabric I'd make his sweater out of, perhaps with a hood.  Off to the fabric store we went.  And I saw the most beautiful blue velvet and red felt, both for half price!  And again, Forrest said, Oh, mama, I really don't want to be a gnome anymore.  Hmmm...I tried one more time to talk him into it.  And that sweet boy of mine simply shrugged and agreed.  Because he is agreeable like that.

The lady at the store was about to cut  the blue velvet when I realized I was ruining Forrest's Halloween.  I  took a good look at him, and he smiled up at me.  Out came the pattern book again and Forrest almost leaped for joy when he saw the pirate costume.  Actually, maybe there was a lot of leaping going on.  All I know, we both felt a lot better when we left the fabric store.

 
 
Sunshine was a little easier to dress up.  Into the tickle trunk she scrambled and resurfaced looking very pink and fairy-like.  Surprise, surprise!

 
 
Most of her costume was not handmade, though I had made the wand a few years ago and I did spend a little bit of time on her crown.

 
I found the pattern for it in an issue of Living Craft magazine and added my own touches to it. 

 
Off we went  to the local school to enlargen the pattern.  Unfortunately, either the original is not sized correctly (unlikely!) or the secretary at the school didn't enlargen it by 200% (most likely) because after putting the last finishing detail on it, hours before leaving to drive into town for the Waldorf Enchanted Walk, it was all too apparent that it was meant for the head of a baby! 

 
Shhh...we won't tell him it is a flower fairy princess crown.  Well, maybe he just won't care.

As for Forrest, he was one happy, dancing pirate!

 
No ruined Halloween afterall!