The Bunny Hop

                                                  

It was a cold, wintry afternoon  for Vivienne's party. So, instead of running around outside, the children made fun playing "puppies" in the house, dancing to Francis England's sweet music, and making sugary cottages. I had picked up a stack of gingerbread kits on a whim, hoping that it would keep a room full of 4-9 year olds busy. And it was well worth the while. I traded out most of the candy for chex cereals and pretzel sticks, cranberries, raisins and coconuts. Getting the initial buiding to set was the biggest challenge. Perfect icing is the key to a successfully built gingerbread house. It was quite a feat to get the sugar glue off the floor and chairs after the party!

The carrot cupcake recipe came from Joy the Baker's blog. She had a recipe for a rich dulche de leche buttercream frosting. Yum. Making the cupcakes pretty was easy with local business Bake it Pretty. Check out her awesome selection!

fancy straws are such fun!

Vivienne's sweet doll with a violin from Gabi at Fairy Wool Dolls, and the little mouse in the teacup is from Etsy's Green Man Shop. Vivi got a lot of presents made by her friends, and art supplies. I love all the handmade goodness!

bunny art by local artist Ashley White Jacobsen

My Birthday Girl

My dear, sweet Vivienne Claire! You are now seven years old, and I remember the day you were born as if it were yesterday. It was quite a tale, since you hurried into the world so quickly! (Here is the whole story!) What a beautiful birth. You have know who you are since the day you were born, learning, creating  and growing with such will and strength. I love you, little one. You may not be so little now, but always my sweet Vivi you will be. Blessings on your year! So much wonder and splendor to come. XOXO  ~mama

Also wishing little James Patrick a Happy Birthday! With love and Congratulations to Genevieve and Bobby!

It's Puppy Love!

After many months of looking and hoping to find a family dog, we have adopted our pup. Sydney is our sweet girl, 12 weeks old  now. She came from a pet rescue in Tennessee, after wandering alone and getting hit by a car when she was 8 weeks old. Fortunately, she was taken to a vet and suffered only bruises in the incident. A month later, she was brought to the rescue to find her permanent home. The vet said that she has Golden Retriever and Collie in her, which were the two breeds that we were considering most. It seems that my patience has paid off! She is a a good listener, and is taking well to training. She loves to play and still needs lots of naps.

Today, we spend the afternoon playing at the parkwith friends. It has been such a treat to have mild weather.

Sydney, you are just the puppy that we have been waiting for!

knit happy girl

My almost-seven-year old daughter is truely knit happy lately! She amazed me yesterday when she sat and listened to stories on CD while Mia and I worked on our main lesson for the day. Vivienne knitted an entire scarf in a sitting. And the next day, she completed several shorter pieces and sewed them all together to make a lovely, well crafted piece. She also came up with an interesting texture by first finger knitting the yarn for a length, then knitting that, and continuing again to first finger knit, then knit for the duration of the skein. It gives it a very pebbled, snuggly texture. There is even scientific evidence that knitting can offer long term health benefits! Time for me to pick up my knitting needles, too.

And my little  gloves with the hole are continuing to become new things. Here is a little finger puppet.

Happy knitting!

Three Woolen Gloves

What does one do with a shrunken wool glove, or for that matter, a single without it's match or a glove with a hole? Surely, I cannot bear to throw these away! Just thinking about the amount of work that goes into knitting in the round for the five little fingers of each hand! Since I have started knitting and sewing, I have so much appreciation for the efforts that clothe me and my family. Materials which have used energy, time and precious resource to exist.

So, here I have one glove that no longer fits any person in the family after having several accidental trips in the washing machine, and a one of my gloves which has a huge hole. The kids and I had a fun time finding ways to recycle them.

Spring is on my mind!

Vivienne's cupcake pin cushion

Mia's hand, wrist and finger warmers

Finger warmers - the NEW look! The kids all wanted a golden ring.

Mia's heart goggles complete the look. Recycling is fun!

More Handmade Goodness

Vivienne's origami dwarfs, inspired by this book

It was with great satisfaction that I watched my children make and give handmade gifts for the holidays. For nine weeks, the girls would attend their Friday school at Dancing Springs Farm and tirelessly work on their handwork projects to give as presents. They made felted soaps, flavored honey, beeswax ornaments, knitting needles, knitted washcloths, sewn pouches, felted soaps, wood burned spoons, beeswax lanterns and MORE! And at the very final day, they made recordings of the beautiful songs that they learned , painted their own paper and wrapped their lovely handmade treasures. I could see the gratitude they felt for giving their treasures and it was so lovely to witness.

Vivienne made this pretty felt pouch for me

Mia's toadstool bag (and behind it, a treasured baby quilt made by Aunt Eileen)

Little dolls for the New Year's treasure hunt, made by Mia

When Grandma visited from Oregon, she made her traditional Springerle cookies with the kids. I love the special decorative cookie molds. They have a very special texture, kind of crusty on top and a bit chewy inside. I cannot stop eating these delicious cookies!

I love the contented feeling of working with my hands . Now that the busy holidays have passed and the cold winds are blowing, I will be knitting and making things for birthdays. It is the season for handwork projects, toasty fires, good reads and hot cups of tea!

Celebrating the New Year

This New Year's Eve we were blessed with the company of friends and family to say good bye to the old, and welcome in the new. We had a lovely dinner with good luck lentils and hoppin' john, rosemary collards with caramelized onion and a beautiful salad (thanks Brad!) and honey roasted pears for dessert. We enjoyed floating the walnut boats, a family New Year's tradition. This year we added fortunes and a more festive landscape for the boats to travel, per the suggestions in All Year Round, my hands-down favorite seasonal idea book. There is something so magical about combining the wonders of fire and water together. The kids were mesmerized and continued to play in the water until we dragged them off to bed.



Another beautiful element to the evening was observing the blue moon. It was the second full moon for the month, and as the evening grew dark, we stepped out the front door and the moon greeted us right there across the street. It shone in a way that reflected my own feelings of hope and wonder for the year ahead.

May our path be peaceful, may we always be good and true to ourselves. May we strive to treat others in the way we wish to be treated. May we find gratitude for the gifts in our every day. Blessings on your journey into this new, beautiful year! Happy 2010!