Sick, sick, sick

So at my house we have ear infection, sinus infection, strep throat and chest X-rays for suspected pneumonia. And guess who has these things? ME!! Bed for me for a few days.

Christmas Crafting

About this time of year (one week until Christmas) I begin to panic. My to do list seems too large and my fears of my own crafting inadequacy raise their ugly head. So, instead of dwelling on the impossible (getting everything done, and indeed, doing it perfectly) I share with you some things that have been crossed off the Christmas crafting list.

1. Christmas cards to go with cookies for the girls' teachers. I had Violet paint with water colors and then we punched out snowflakes and reindeer, glued onto card stock and sprinkled liberally with glitter.

2. Christmas Houses - Lucy's teachers got these. She directed the color choices and painted. The little people (vaguely) resemble her two wonderful teachers. (photo taken in the morning rush out the door..I see milk left on the counter....who did that?)

Here's to all of you making presents this season. May you find enough time to stitch and paint, may your scissors always be where you left them, and may your gift be opened with enthusiastic oohhhs and aahhhs.

Happy Anniversary!

Tomorrow, Tim and I celebrate our 17th wedding anniversary. This is the collage he made me to celebrate. The canvas includes wonderful photos of my family, some of the things I have made this year, and Proverbs 31. It is one of the most amazing presents ever.

Could a girl ask for anything more from her husband? Not only does he work so hard juggling the house, the girls, his own business, laundry, school schedules, getting up earlier so that I don't have to take the kids to school before racing off to work, cooking, travelling and fixing blown fuses, but he encourages me to work hard at my career, gives me time at home to create things for the girls and only occassionally rolls his eyes at my fabric collection. Then he makes me a handmade, from the heart gift, to celebrate our marriage. It is a blessing to have made it this far. Some days I know both of us would have walked away, but what we have now is a testament to the fact that we stayed, we worked it out, we decided to choose love. He is an amazing example to me every day of selflessness, of love in action. I hope that our girls see their Daddy as the kind of man they want to marry. They can't go wrong with that as their goal.

Advent Stocking Girls

One of the little pressies in the advent stockings were these little girls inspired by these. The girls love their little look alikes and Lucy has requested a Mummy and Daddy one too. I have planned to do something like this fun collection for each of them in a little carry box.

I have also been trying out this fun freebie. No time for hand emboidery so I am trying out machine stitching it.

The girls are getting into the handmade fun this year. Hannah has drawn and is embroidering a unicorn for Violet (that is what she asked Santa for this morning) and Lucy is working on a book for one of the family. It is lots of fun to help them and see them enjoy the process of thinking of something each person would like, and making it happen.

Not enough sleeps until Christmas to get everything I want to done - will have to cull the mammoth "to do" list!

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas

Funny things happen when you decorate a Christmas Tree with three children. They put all the Australian animal ornaments together so that "they can talk Australian to each other", and all the white dove ornaments are huddled together on one branch "except this one, he's my pet". The majority of the ornaments are on the lower half of the tree. A few favored ones were placed by special request by Daddy on the uppermost branches "because that's so precious". Apparently decorating a tree is excrutiatingly exhausting and one can only be revived by the first hot chocolate of the season, and maybe a cookie or two.

We also have a new Advent Calendar for the big countdown to Christmas. Our last advent calendar - a snowman with little drawers was a bit wee for use, now we are three, so at the last minute I decided to have a new one. I found 24 little stockings and filled them with tiny treats, a few candies and special activities to do together. As they are already asking "how many days until Christmas?", they should enjoy it. My treats were a little heavy and so I have just lined all the stockings up across our buffet.

I hope you are enjoying getting ready for Christmas as much as we are!

Happy Birthday to you!

My wonderful hubby moved from his mid to late thirties today. He was treated to a Blu Ray player, a card with pictures drawn by his girls, and possibly the worst looking birthday cake ever. Happy Birthday Tim!

Christmas Cookie Extravaganza

From the wee one's point of view

Collecting leaves at the Art Gallery

A new dress

Fall Weekend

Fall in OK is a funny thing. It could be 70 degrees, or it could be 40. Lucky for us, Saturday was closer to 70 than 40!

We headed off to a local art gallery that has "Free Family Saturday" and provides free art supplies for each kid's art kit (this month it was colored pencils), and fun projects to do. There is also an art card featuring a painting on exhibit that the kids try and find. One of the art projects usually relates to the type of painting on the art card.

This month the art card was a Pollock painting and the kids got to try their hand at their own Pollock-esque art. We had to stand back so as not to get splattered!

The final product....

Lucy is 5!

Today my middle girl is 5. She is blessed with a wonderful extended family who sent lovely pressies for her. Her Aunty Em made her a beautiful Waldorf type doll, including sleep mask, pillow, and sleeping bag for the long trip over from Oz. Thank you to all our family for your thoughtfulness and for helping us celebrate her birthday! We miss you all.

2 1/2 hours - last kid in bed to last stitch in place

That must be some kind of record! Sign me up for the "best use of 2 1/2 hours" award. Finished a baby quilt top tonight after the kiddos were in bed. No picture of the quilt because all my photos are taken in the middle of the night with the flash and look terrible. So you will have to wait and see what it looks like, but I can show you the fabric that I used.

More quilty WIP

This is one of Hannah's quilts for her bunk bed.


It was fun to have her help decide where to put all the fabrics. A different kind of quilt for me - not a star in sight! I usually do more traditional patterns but this fits Hannah pretty well. We are also working on a doll that matches, and Hannah is going to make the doll a quilt. So, it is nearly done - the only remaining question is stripey border or just bind it to the white?

2 movies later....

My lovely sister Emma encouraged me to get on and sew the Christmas quilts I have planned for the girls this year. 2 movies later, Violet's is together.


I love it! But you may have noticed the oops...


Yes, it would appear I miss counted sashing strips. And it would also appear that I have no more of that fabric left. Which leaves me heading to the fabric store tomorrow to buy a wee bit of one fabric...or maybe two....or three....I think I have a coupon.....

Did we stay at DW forever?

No, no, of course not. We got back and promptly got sick but now all is well....I have a bazillion photos of Disney, but they shall not make an appearance today. Instead I have a new dress for Lucy that I whipped up today.
And, the project I am working on for Lucy's class at school. Her class is awesome, and every year they pick a "birthday project" to work on for each child for their birthday. The birthday child chooses a birthday committee and they carry out the aforementioned project. This year it is birthday portraits, to be turned into a quilt. That is where I come in.
This is what I get, plus the original drawing.

And this is the finished product.

Vacation crafting

As well as the usual packing for a trip, there has been a huge amount of sewing and crafting in the past week. I have sewn 9 skirts to match the new T-shirts for the special trip to the happiest place on earth.


I have learned to make curly clippies to go with the new skirts that match the T-shirts for the special trip to the happiest place on earth.

And then I needed a crafty project to take - just in case there was any down time on the special trip to the happiest place on earth.


I gathered my supplies for my project (something like this maybe?), and then I needed something to carry them all in.


Ta-da! A new crafty bag, in fabric that makes me happy, for a little project to take on the special vacation to the happiest place on earth.

Lucy's Dress

I love this dress. Lucy picked the fabric herself. I sewed it - my first dress ever. I am particularly pleased with the pintucks in the sleeves and bodice (apparently it doesn't take much to make me happy).

Lucy loves it too and wore it to school with her long brown boots. Luckily it is unseasonably cool here so she didn't melt.

Lonely-itis

I have just been putting a sobbing 8 year old to bed. She is suffering from lonely-itis. She said other people don't have it, but they give it to you. It takes as little as two days for you to feel sick from it, and it takes much longer for it to go away. She DOES NOT want to go back to school tomorrow (she has only been there 2 days so far). If anyone knows the cure for lonely-itis, please, let me know!

Fabric = Potential

One of the things I love most about fabric, or any new craft supplies really, is the potential that lies within. This little bundle is slated to be twirly skirts, dresses, and maybe a headband or two. Will it actually become that? Who knows! But the potential is there...

1st Day

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

Fall Fashions

I love this fabric. Very soft corduroy made into skirts for the two littlest girls. The boots could be the best bargain of the season. Only $10 from...wait for it....WalMart. Little V got lime green ones too.

A quilt for a cowboy

For a new little guy with the name of a cowboy. Got to cuddle the most peaceful newborn ever. Thanks Henry Wells. May you spend much time snuggled in the quilt, made especially for you.