keeping us busy...

well there is never a dull moment in this family i will say that much. Miss. A was in fine form this weekend. on saturday we had a wedding to go to and Miss. A was off to an overnight trip to the grandparents house. this made for quite an exciting saturday morning as we tried to fit everything that needed to be done into a few short hours.

Daniel was having a bit of fun playing with Miss. A while i finished up the last bit of work on part of the wedding gift. i had envisioned these napkins for some time but then guests were around and i never actually got a chance to start them. two days before they needed to be wrapped i finally put needle to fabric. i was quite pleased with the end result and i now want to embelish a few more things around the house or for Christmas gifts.



well onto the wonderful entertainment of Miss. A. while i was working fervently on my project they were down the hall making skates. i stuck my head out the door of my studio and down the hall came the two of them. Miss. A with two cars rubber banded to her feet with Daniel pushing her.


we are a bit creative around here or at least he is.

later that afternoon as Daniel was shooting some photos in the basement i decided to take a shower while Miss. A entertained herself in the bathroom. about half way through this event i looked down and there she was climbing into the tub getting wet on the way in. there was not much i could do but let her play while i attempted to get Daniel's attention from the basement. it was all quite amusing watching her play in the tub PJ's, slippers and all. of course he came camera in hand ready to document the event.



we had a wonderful evening at the wedding. the rain parted and the sun came out just as the recession started. it was another amazing wedding but the final one for the year that we know of. we are on to the next adventure.

home alone

the house now feels empty after a week full of family. my sister and her son left yesterday afternoon and it was a bit quieter around here. i did not hear myself telling Miss. A no as much. while they were here she look to trying to 'share' everything with her cousin. he is not yet crawling and likes to sit and play with his toys where as Miss. A enjoys running circles around him and 'sharing' in the form of hitting him on the top of the head with the object in question. she was quite unhappy when objects were taken away from her. the faces of distress were quite amusing. we are just waiting until he is able to 'share' back and then the real fun begins.

it was wonderful to have my sister down for a few days. her and her family live up in Seattle but it seems as if every time she is down for a visit there is a big event happening or other family members are in town to visit as well. this time we were able to just relax go for walks and catch up on life. we are looking forward to them moving down here soon. the kids are going to have a great time playing together and growing up so close.

yesterday afternoon we mellowed out. i was able to catch up on some much needed emails as Miss. A drew and played with her pins by taking them in and out of the container. i was also able to start the long project of sorting through the thousands of photos we have taken since her birth. i am processing them so that i can actually put together a photo album of her life thus far. it is quite the process. i am not even yet through the day one of her life. this may take some time. while looking through the photos i was flooded with memories of the early days. it is amazing the amount of emotion that goes into childbirth.

today i am taking a break from photos and focusing on grocery shopping and sewing a wedding present. it feels good to get back into some long awaited projects.

family

though summer is officially over and kids are back in school it feels as if it is just getting started here. we have had family visiting throughout the past few weeks and we have been getting out a bit more enjoying the world outside of our new home. it is amazing how much time a new house can take even if things feel like they are not getting done.

on wednesday my mother came up and stayed for a few days. the minute i found out that she was on her way up i made a hair appointment. it was the first time in months i got a cut and it felt so good to sit down for an hour and have someone else worry about me. while here she wanted to help with Miss. A as much as she could so that i could unpack or do something but i was almost dilapidated by that freedom. i had no big projects lined up and so little got done i felt like things were getting done all out of order. last weekend we sorted through all of the magazine, newspaper and written recipe collected over the years and so i started to type them up. this is a very long term project and not top on my list but nonetheless i started with that project. i should have been organizing the bathroom or unpacking a box in Miss. A's room but no i decided to waste my time on something else. how is it that one actually stays focused on projects in a house especially with a little one waking up just as you are getting started on something?

friday afternoon we were going to head out of town a bit and go camping for the first time since Miss. A was born but we altered our plans a bit. Daniel had a full days worth of work and we were unable to leave town early.

so in modifying our plans we decided to go hiking out toward to coast which was a lot of fun. we went to the new Tillamook Forest Center and then hiked around. Daniel’s sister and her husband joined us, it was the first time we had been hiking with them and it was quite fun. there are more photos here.

there were a few wonderful gifts that came my way this week as well.

my mother brought up some great old Bernina Sewing catalogs. they have classic images and motivating designs.

i also received a package in the mail from Marianne over at Applehead and Appleseed. she sent me a few of her Runner's World magazines and along with it included a few surprises. about a month ago she started selling some great paper goods at her Appleseed shop and she sent a few of her items along. i love the image of 'Our Morning Dive' it just looks like something that Miss. A will be doing some say soon. the little bird cards are from the Tuckfield's Australian Bird Series and they are quite fun to look at. i wonder how they will be put to use.

this afternoon my sister and her son are coming into town for a few days to look at houses. her husband just got a job in portland and so they are moving a lot closer in about a month. it will be quite fun to have her living here since her son and Miss. A are only three months apart and she is expecting her second in early February. for the past twelve years we have lived in different states and so it will be quite a different thing to have them living so close. so on that note i guess i should go and try to clean a bit around here before more guests show up.

WIP [or] regression of work

last week i was quite excited about getting back into knitting. i forced myself to work quite diligently on my sweater. i woke up Saturday morning and went straight to blocking the sweater pieces that had been waiting around so patiently for the past two years or so. blocking went quickly as i listened to Music from Big Pink. this album brings back so many fond memories of my childhood playing around in my fathers studio. he is a painter and we would spend Saterday afternoons painting or drawing together. i would always try to convince him to draw me but would grow tired or need to move after such a short period of time. i am not quite sure how he had the patience for it. ::ok enough of the memories back to the regression of my sweater:: once blocked i started sewing up the armholes and then moved on to finishing the neck. sunday evening i picked up my work again and knit like crazy knowing that there were only a few inches left before it would be finished. as time went on i realized that there was a good chance that i was running out of yarn. that is always a problem it is like cutting your fabric to short, you have a hard time recovering from the mistake. in the back of my mind i am still thinking that i have an extra skein in my box of yarn but have yet to locate it. another problem with the whole thing is that they discontinued the yarn about a year ago and so there are very few places that actually even have it in stock. so now i am left with trying to figure out the next step and whenever that happens i move onto another project or four. i have now picked up a new project of socks and i am sewing some pillows for Miss. A's room. she loves to dive into them.

i will leave you with a photo from a year ago today. this is of Miss. A and Daniel when we were visiting Idaho last year. we have a family cabin on lake Ponderay that we would like to make it to each year but right now it is about every other. we went last year when Miss. A was two months old and it was quite fun.

::winner::

on friday afternoon i received a wonderful package in the mail. Alexandra from Moonstitches had a drawing giveaway for some beautiful Japanese fabric and my name was drawn among others. i am quite excited to use this forest of trees for many different projects. the first of which will be a pillow for Miss. A's room. i have been working on a few throw pillows for her since she loves diving into large piles of them. this fabric goes quite nicely with the already picked patterns.

thank you very much Alexandra for such a generous giveaway.

WIP: sweater season

the past few days it has felt like fall. gray mornings with rain and clouds that held on all day. it was wonderful i longed for sweaters and wool skirts. it was a bit depressing when i realized that there was not a sweater in site and i was unable to locate the box they had been packed away in. i was sent into a tail spin looking through all of my clothing thinking how i either did not like any of it or it did not fit right. i get this way every now and then but this time the thought of going into a store to try things on was quickly refuted by the thought of trying to keep Miss. A entertained. memories of my last trip to buy bras was quite enough to deter any such venture.

so instead of going and buying a whole new wardrobe or ripping open every box in the house to find sweaters i settled on knitting. i opened my knitting box and found a sweater i believe was started before getting pregnant. actually it is so close to being finished that it is quite sad. everything but the neck has been knit up and the neck i had attempted and taken out quite a few times. it is quite a simple task but you knit it separately and then attach it at the end. the hard part is following the repeating pattern because i would always stop in the middle and forget where i was when i picked it up again. so now i am determined to get somewhere with this. it will be finished by the time the real fall weather comes around or at least before a second child is born. something that is not planned for the near future....

finished work

i love making gifts for others because in some ways it insures that projects get done. in others it is just such a wonderful feeling to know that you are making an object that others may enjoy. i had been working on a few wedding gifts for some friends getting married and was able to push through to the end without cutting out intended projects. it seems as if these days i envision more things than i can finish but with this one it was complete. during the process of sewing the floor mat and aprons i was thinking of this couple and wishing the best for them. the labor of love was truly poured out during this whole process. i had given myself enough time to finish the work and in doing so i was able to enjoy the production and not just the end result.

the wedding was wonderful. small and beautifully put together. the intimate size of the event made it even that much more special knowing that a select few were chosen to help celebrate the event. i wish the newly weds many blessings and adventures in this new life together.

{a year ago today}

it is amazing how fast time passes. the other evening a good friend and i were talking about our kids and how they grow so fast, her son is almost exactly a year younger then Miss. A. i then started to look at photos of Miss. A a year ago and had the desire to start posting a few every now and then. we have taken so many photos over this past year and have only processed a number of them. i hope that by posting a few it will not only allow me to look back at the year but also process more of the photos.

i miss moments like this with Miss. A. taking naps together or just snuggling was so much fun. she does not like to nap in many places other then her crib so it makes it quite hard. at times when she is really tired she will put her head on your shoulder and rest but will be looking around again in no time. she is just that way. she loves to take life in and does not want to waist the time snuggeling with others. i do hope that this will change but she has never been much for this type of things. when she was younger she wanted to be held facing out so she would not miss a thing. these are just some of the many things that just add delight to her personalty.

on another note i have been staying bust with a few things that can been seen here.

progress

there was progress on many fronts this weekend and that always feels good. as i mentioned before my father (Pop Pop) was coming up for the weekend. it so amazing to have assistance from someone who knows what they are doing. our front room was cut and painted within an hour and the transformation was staggering. previously the room was a dark red that made everything feel quite small and restricting. we went with a "light brown" (which looks like a coffee with a lot of cream) from a wonderful place that mixes recycled latex paint. they only mix about ten different colors but this color was just right for the front room and it felt good knowing that i was was helping the world out just a little bit.

while he was painting the front room i was painting the third coat on the ceiling in my studio. i could not believe how much paint it took. the ceilings were quite dirty to start with so i washed them down but it just sucked up the paint. the studio was painted just after lunch and then the rest of the evening we were able to relax talk and deal with a teething child that did not want to go down for the night.

on friday evening Daniel was away and i took the time to finish the first stage of my wedding gifts. the pillow was a lot of fun to make and i was surprised that despite all of the steps it takes to baste, back stitch and then sew together it paid off and i love the end result. i then sketched out a few more designs to crewel and got started on them over the weekend.


Miss. A was quite helpful with Pop Pop and wanted to get into all sorts of trouble with the paint. it was quite sweet on sunday morning when the two of them enjoyed a bit of reading time on the couch.

so with the weekend over there are two rooms in the house painted and continued progress on projects which feels good. i like the feeling of balance between different projects. i am excited what this week has to offer.

WIP::week4

things are getting done! it is a fine balance between house work, house projects and crafting projects. i find that during Miss. A's naps i am able to do my sewing projects and then at night i can do house things. it justified this with the fact that trying to set up and paint during a nap time would be futile. so now i don't feel so bad working on sewing a few things.

it is so nice to have my sewing stuff set up even if it is in a temporary place for the time being. right now i am working on a wedding gift that has been in the works for about two months. i picked up crewel a
few months back and started making a few throw pillows for a gift. the initial needlework part was finished almost right away and then came the blocking. i found the perfect doily blocking board at a second hand shop and it works just right. i also have been wiping up a few burp cloths for a new little baby. i feel good about doing house things as long as it can be balanced by other projects.

this weekend should be a lot of fun. my father is going to be in town to help me paint a few walls. it pays off to have an artist and painter for a father, he will be cutting all of the edges something he can do without taping the edges. something i am very excited about because that means less work for me. daniel will be out of town all weekend so it will be nice to have some extra help around here.

::Family Time::

this weekend was filled with true family time. on Saturday we were able to enjoy a full day of yard work, house chores and a trip to our new neighborhood farmers market. it is so much better doing the dishes when two of you are working on them and yard work when everyone is involved. Miss. A was able to play in the yard and eat as much dirt as she liked as a result she was warn out by the end of it all. on Sunday there was more morning yard work and then we all went to explore our new neighborhood library. it is so much fun to get to know a new area. we have done a lot before in the area but to truly get to know the places we will frequent often is another thing. during the afternoon we rearranged boxes in the den and then i set up a small sewing corner in Daniels studio space for now. i was going crazy not being able to get to projects, even to just look at my fabric makes me feel better.

in the evening we went to the park and enjoyed a picnic and free symphony and 3 leg torso with friends. what a wonderful way to finish off a relaxing weekend.

ambulatory care facility

we have a walker in our midst! Miss A has been trying to walk for some time now but the time has come for her to walk more than crawl. i was hoping that she would hold off until we were all the way in our new place but it came right at the same time as the move. she is quite proud of herself when she walks from room to room. the only problem with more walking is more falling. it is amazing how much she can fall even if we feel like we are always watching her. just the other morning as i was making breakfast and she was playing in the plastics drawer she slipped on a lid and hit her nose on the open drawer. it is so sad to see but she is quite resilient.


on friday we also went garage sales a bit before accepting the fact that we should actually be home finishing up the packing of the house. we went to this great church sale and found a few key items. i found a wonderful silver basket to objects of some sort into, a pillow case to make a dress for Miss A with, wonderful mod wood bird and the best find of all some popsicle sticks with covers so we can make some yogert pops like my mother used to make for me. when i saw these i had wonderful flashbacks to summers as a kid.


after a few garage sales we went home and tackled the house. we moved all of our things excluding the artwork to our new place on Saturday! it was quite nice to have everything moved into our new place and by 1 am we were able to fall asleep knowing that the dinning room table was in place and there were places to sit in the living room.


i also was very happy to find a wonderful package in the mail at the new house. it is always so exciting to get mail especially swap packages. inside this package from the lovely Susanover at Plays with Needles i found an amazing amount of buttons. i believe the swap suggested twelve and there are over thirty in there. each one of them is unique and beautiful in its own right. i am now trying to think about some creative ways to integrate them into my latest projects. also included in the package were trims and ribbons, labels, and wonderful hand stitched doily. there are more photos here. thank you so much Susan for making my day.

now on to unpack a few boxes. oh no that will be after our soccer game this evening, the last one of the season.

WIP::week3

it felt quite good to finish and send my Vintage Button Swap package. yesterday felt quite productive. i sent my package and changed our address then went drop off our unwanted things at Goodwill. of course since i was there i had to just stop in and see what they had. i was quite happy with my findings, photos will follow soon for that.

Miss. A was dropped off at the in-laws for the night so we were free to make a big mess at the new place once we got the keys. last night we ripped up the carpet in the livingroom, hall and bedrooms and were pleased with what we found. the bedrooms are in worse shape then the livingroom. now we are off to rip up the tack strips along the walls before Miss. A comes back this afternoon. the fun is just starting...

WIP::week2

the fun is continuing as the boxes get stacked higher. i am finding it hard to pack knowing that i will not have access to many of the items for some time. take note of the many suitcases in the top photo, they are filled with most of my fabric and i wonder when i will get into them again.


this evening i decided it was time to pack my shoes. those who know me well know the numbers of shoes i have accumulated over the years. daniel even took it upon himself to make me what he deemed the 'shoeport'. the port runs longer than the length of our bed and is not big enough to hold all of them. so this evening i packed almost all of them away only keeping out running shoes, soccer shoes, flip-flops and a few flats...thats funny i am still unable to pack away about ten pairs of shoes will i truly get around to using them? it is like packing for a plane trip i always pack about two or three more books then needed or take two knitting projects and find that i never get to more than one.

another part of WIP this weekend will be to pick out some paint colors. we are going to be painting all rooms sooner then later along with ripping up the carpets. i am thinking the kitchen will be all white with an accent wall, in the dinning area, painted a robin egg blue. the idea is still being milled around but the same shade of blue will be repeated on one wall in the bathroom.
we will see how much work actually gets done this weekend. they are forecasting 107F for Saturday so we may be seeking shelter in a nice air-conditioned place.

New House::9 more days

it is hard to believe that we only have a few more days until we get the keys to the new place. for the time being we are keeping ourselves busy packing boxes and trying to not feel overwhelmed by the lack of space. right now my work in progress (WIP) is purging and packing items. actually the amount of purging has been less then i would have thought. i think more will happen when we unpack, or at least that is my hope.

the other day i came to the sad realization that i would probably not get around to many of the projects i want to be doing and so i started packing things up. into boxes when all of my yarn, fabric, ribbons and more. i did keep my buttons out because i knew that i was participating in the Vintage Button Swap. i also kept a few bits of fabric and cut out lamb pieces in order to finish some baby gifts but we will see if i get to those.


the last time i posted i talked about a birthday gift i was in the process of making. the outcome was quite pleasing. i did some fabric applique on a shirt to match a pair of pants and then carried the pattern over into a book bag i stitched together. i also experimented with applying a freezer paper stencil on the front with the birthday girls initial. the next task i would like to make are few bags for Miss A to keep in the car, maybe hung over the front seats, in order to put books and toys in.

i am looking forward to having my very own sewing room where i can spread projects out and just close the door when done working on them. it is will be quite a change from the way it has been.

Work In Progress:: birthday:baby:big sister

it feels good to get back into some projects that have been on my list.
lambs all around::

this lamb has been a lot of fun to sew together. i am making them out of a felted wool blanket and hand sewing them together. it is so relaxing to hand-sew these days.

burp cloth::book bag

i made a few burp cloths a while back and now have reason to make a few more. the book bag is for a friend who is turing one and loves to carry books with her in the stroller.

findings purse::

a fun little purse for the new big sister. she is just two and loves to collect things. so i thought a little purse would be wonderful for putting found objects in.

i am also very excited to starting thinking about my latest swap. it is a swap of sorts but more a collaberation with like minds from all over the world. Marianne of applehead has put together a calendar swap. each individual designs one month page for a 2007 calendar and then we send a copy of our work to all other participants. in the end we will each have a calender designed from women all around the globe. my mind is racing but that project will be on going for quite some time.

WIP::or why i had not blogged in so long

::party favors::

having a birthday is a lot of fun. i was very excited to plan and make things for the event and yet it required so much of my attention. i don't believe i looked at others blogs much in the past weeks, though it was hard at times to stay away. as more and more things were made i longed to document them but would forget and move on to the next thing.
::garland::

since the party was in a park i thought it would be fun to make a garland that hung from the trees over the eating area. it was quite fun cutting out the triangles and then sewing them together. i think i will modify them a bit now and sew them closer so that they can hang in Miss A's room.
::centerpieces::

the pinwheels we a lot of fun to make as well. with a bit of finagling on Daniels part we were able to construct them so that they were both baby proof and able to spin. not an easy task at first but in the end they worked.

happy birthday little one

it is so hard to believe that a year ago today Miss A was born. the first day was filled with sleeplessness and joy but we were ready to take on the world. each minute and hour was fresh in our mind we could recall how many diapers she had used and how often she ate even a week later.

some how we made it through the sleepless nights. we no longer keep track of how many diapers she uses but instead try to remember to write down the milestones as she reaches them. once so helpless she is now already showing us how independent she thinks she is. for her birthday she recieved a little push bike and she has already learned to get both on and off all by herself.

it is hard for me to immagine what she will be doing next year.

along with planning for her party these past weeks we have found ourselves in the middle of buying a house. i might start by saying that we were only just getting into the market when this all took place. we met with the realtor for the first time on a thursday and by tuesday we were not only looking at our first house but putting an offer down. by wednesday afternoon we had our offer accepted and friday we had the inspection. so now we are just going down the list of to-dos. it is hard to believe that by the end of this month we will be moving into our new place. i am happy to say that this new place includes a sewing room with built in shelving and sewing table. it has true 1950's charm and has not changed much since the owner moved in the early 60's. so from now until the end of the month we have our hands full but i am hoping to be a bit better about bloging and working on projects.

as for today we are enjoying a quite day at home with the birthday girl.