What a difference some time can make.

A few weeks ago I posted about Brooklynn's first sewing experience (you can see it on in the picture above, the red floss).  She was quite intent on finishing it for a few days but then lost interest.  I put it away, with plans to re-introduce it in a few months.

Last week, she asked me if she could sew a "B".  I pulled out her sewing basket and wrote the letter on the fabric.  I quietly reminded her that if she couldn't do it perfectly that it was ok and that it was the practicing that is important (she is very much a perfectionist and will get frustrated and quit if she doesn't do something right).

Well, you should have seen the look of shock on my face when she showed me what she had done in half an hour.  The difference between her first and second attempts were like night and day.  She made wonderful straight, tiny stitches (much better than mine, if I'm being honest!).  She was so excited and the proud.  It was so sweet to see!

Crafting On: Hand dyed longies

Joining up with Nicole at Frontier Dreams for Crafting On.  Check it out to see the amazing projects by some lovely ladies! :) 

Still working on the birthday sweater.  I am happy to report that I have finally figured out how to attach the sleeves.  Of course, in doing that, I miscounted and did it wrong anyways...but at least I know now!  I just have to get the energy up to take it out and do it again.  Sigh.

I tried my hand at dyeing wool.  I am quite pleased with the result!  I was going for something a little brighter but I think this turned out quite pretty.  I'm excited to do some more!

I am knitting a pair of longies for Amelia.  My hope is to switch over to all wool covers.  She is starting to grow out of her smaller sized PUL covers so this is the perfect opportunity to start making the switch.   I'm thinking about doing ruffles at the bottom instead of my standby ribbed cuff. 

Valentine's Day

I know that a lot of people don't like Valentine's Day.  And while I do understand their concerns, I truly believe that a holiday is only as commercialized as you allow it to be.  Its the same with Christmas, Easter, St. Patricks Day, and so on...    I think it is wonderful to set aside a day to focus on the important relationships in your life.  So...we spread Valentine's day out over the whole week.  For us, it is not just about romantic love (although we celebrate that too!) but about showing love to all who are important to us.  We don't give presents (except Ryan gave me a washboard this year...I'm sure very few people will understand why I'm excited about that!) but we focus on taking deliberate steps to show people how we care.  

We started yesterday with showing love to our family.  After some discussion, we decided that we would make daddy a very special (and fancy) supper. Of pink pancakes.  So really, it only looked fancy. 

 Of course, we had to dress up.  Brooklynn is always looking for reasons to wear a party dress!

 Family pictures are oh so interesting with 3 small children.  And I don't think I could have been more subtle with the camera remote!

 

I put a pink heart on each person's plate (or high chair tray) that said "I love______ because..."  During dinner, we went around the table and said why we love each person.  I recorded what was said, by whom and how old they were.   We will do this every year and keep them with the Valentine's Day decorations.  I think it will be fun in years to come to look back on what we said.

Crafting On: Lovely and Warm

Joining up with Nicole at Frontier Dreams for Crafting On.  Check it out to see the amazing projects by some lovely ladies! :)

Still working away at Amelia's birthday sweater .  I admit that it isn't going so well, so I'm not too motivated to pick it up.  I've never knit a sweater from bottom up before and I'm completely lost on attaching the sleeves to the body.  I'm sure its a simple fix but I just can't figure it out and haven't had a lot of time to work at it either.  If anyone has any tips, I'd love to hear them! 

So, I went for some more thinking-free projects this week.  With the "winter" (can we really even call it that?!  Its been so mild!) weather coming to an end, the kids need some lighter hats and mittens.  Their winter sets have really taken a beating and Weston's mittens have big holes in them so I did his first.  I didn't follow a patter again, so the mittens are different lengths but he was a happy little boy and that's all that matters!

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 I also finished the crocheted heart garland for above our nature table.  Just in time too! 

Kickin' it with Daddy

I love watching my husband play with the kids.  I admit, I am a little jealous of how good he is at it.  He gets right down on the floor  and they have dragon battles (which somehow get turned into tea parties by a certain little girl) or car races or anything else they can imagine.  He does this without whining about the hard floor...(why do they never want to play while sitting on the couch?!)

 When I take the time to sit and watch them for more than a few minutes, I'm always amazed by the things they come up with.  When I look at their toy, I see it for what it is...but they can turn it into anything.

 I watch how Ryan gets so into these games with the kids, how he builds on their ideas and together, they come up with elaborate plots and I am reminded of just how blessed we are.  Ryan is better than any man I could have chosen for my babies.  And they really do deserve the best!

 I know that as they get older, these times will change and become less frequent but I hope that they will always enjoy playing together.  And I hope that, like their daddy, they will always enjoy using their imaginations and being creative.  Goodness knows that it will serve them well if they do.

 So for now, we all look forward to quiet nights in, with the dragons, the Storm Troopers and the princesses.

Ryan, you're so cool...no wonder I married you!

Studious Knitting

I'm joining up with Nicole on Frontier Dreams for Crafting On.  Please check out her wonderful blog!

I've been dutifully working on Amelia's birthday sweater, trying to multi-task by knitting and studying.  I've had to rip out the sleeve twice.  So...reading and stitch-counting are obviously not something to be done at the same time.

Since I have an assignment coming up, the sweater took a back seat to the studying.  That being said, I have a hard time concentrating if my hands have nothing to do.  So I pulled out some lovely purple wool I had left over and knit a pair of longies for Miss Amelia.  I decided to do a fold over cuff to keep her tiny feet warm in our very cold house.  It turned out a little bulkier than I would have liked but overall I am happy with the result! 

Finding our Rhythm

I've been struggling to get into (and keep) a rhythm in our house since Christmas!  It has been particularly difficult in the past few weeks since we've been sick and I've been lazy.

Funny though, you would think that lying around "relaxing" would have me in a better mood!  No, I find myself keyed up and overwhelmed with all the things I have to get done.  Its very stressful being lazy!

I miss the predictable flow of our days.  There's something so peaceful about always knowing what comes next.  It allows me time to get everything done, takes the stress away and brings me peace.  I find that our house looks cleaner, our meals are healthier and the kids are happier when we find our rhythm.

So my goal for this week is to find that natural rhythm in our days.  I know I will have to make some changes to our old routine since Amelia has changed her sleep cycles a bit...but that's the beauty of rhythm, its ever changing!  And as long as those changes come about in a gentle, gradual way, I'm okay with that!