Live Free

weekending

This weekend was cold, dark, and wet. Only now, after four days, is the sun even attempting at peaking through the clouds. I have to say, the dreariness was a welcome excuse to indulge in the comforts of home. 

To celebrate our laziness, we drank hot cocoa, made brownies, snuggled with our favorite picture books under a newly thrifted afghan, and I even caught the sewing bug.

Yep, I just completed three twirly skirts for Ms. Bea. She's out at the library sporting her polka dot one as I type this. But the other two are here beside me, eagerly awaiting some warm weather, and little girl wear. 

I think these little outfits will look smashing with some sweet saltwater sandals, and a bonnet, or a sun hat! Sometimes I still can't believe I have a sweet little girl in which to sew for. 

I'm off to make bread and soup. Yes, I know, that's something I should have done during the cozy soup weather, but my hands were busy elsewhere. C'est la vie! 

Happy Spring! 

PS: Linking up with Amanda at The Habit of Being.

A Quilt for Beatrix

Two years ago, I began piecing a quilt for Beatrix. She was just a wee babe. I wanted to make something useful for her, that she could keep, and pass down to her own children one day. 

I consider myself to be a basic sewist. I like to sew, but I don't make anything fancy, thank you very much. So I started piecing what seemed to me to be the simplest of quilts: a stacked coin. It was very easy (and fun) to sew together. I enjoyed picking out the fabrics. I enjoyed the simplicity of the print rectangles bordered by the crisp white. The back side was inspired mostly by Denise Schmidt and her lovely modern designs.

Last fall, after I made both the front and back of the quilt, I began hand quilting it, but I never finished. Instead, it sat in different spots of our tiny home, collecting dust and fur from our cat. He even went as far as shredding up the edges of the wool batting. Naughty kitty - he just couldn't help himself. This awkward sandwich of unfinished quilt sat and sat and weighed heavy on my mind. I knew I needed help with it. I felt defeated in my attempts. I shied away from admiring other quilts on the web or refused to let myself think "quilt" at all because I already had this unfinished project taking up precious space in my closet and my conscience. 

Until...this fall, when we moved into our new house, I discovered that I lived just a few blocks away from a wonderful little quilt shop. And so, finally, in December, I mustered up my courage and brought my quilt to the shop so that the owner and quilter, Glenna, could take a look at it. I was sort of embarassed by my incomplete, and imperfect efforts. It was obvious I had a thing or two to learn before successfully completing a quilt on my own. For one, the back side was smaller than the front side, so I needed to add borders to make it the proper dimension. Also, I was quilting it together slightly crooked. Glenna, was also going to have to trim the torn pieces of batting and baste new batting to the trimmed up edges. It seemed like a lot of work to me - much more than I would have realistically been able to do well. 

Last week, I recieved the call to let me know that the quilt was DONE. I raced over the very same day to pick it up.

I'm so glad I asked for help in completing this project. It came out so sweet and just perfect for Beatrix. It's truly heirloom quality! This is her quilt. She loves it. I love it. With it having a wool batting, it provides a warm substantial layer to her bed, keeping her cozy on the coldest of nights. I love peeking into her room while she is sleeping to see her nestled up in it. I can only imagine the use this quilt will get over its lifetime. To know, that this is just the beginning of a very long story...

Being productive in Louisiana.

Well, I have to admit, even though I was away from home last week, I was pretty productive with little chores I wanted to start and finish up. Mom is a good motivator. She's a woman who just doesn't stop moving and cleaning, and doing things, and organizing, and cooking, and working in the yard, and on and on - ever. Believe me, I'm a total slacker compared to her. 

I'm beginning to make a few pieces of clothing here and there for Bea to wear this fall. So last week I made her a dress and corduroy pants. Both turned out pretty cute and I really enjoyed using my mom's sewing machine. Being able to use the zig zag stitch on seams made me feel so big.  

As part of my Lifeways training requirements, I have to knit or crochet at least six wash cloths. For the past several years, I've said that I've wanted to do this - to make wash cloths. There's just something divine about the weight of crochet or knit cloth. And wash cloths seem so much more doable for my remedial knitting skills than socks or a sweater. Yet I haven't made any. Until now. I'm knitting up cloths left and right these days...sort of. And I'm way past my quota. My hopes are to have a healthy quantity for the start up of the new school year at The Natural Child.  After play time, I'd like to have a little wash basin with warm lavender water where the children can wash their little faces and hands using a nice knit wash cloths.  I've been doing this with Bea when she wakes from her nap each day and she (we) love(s) it. Well, more than she likes me wiping her face and body, she really loves washing my face and body.  She can be so gentle and sweet sometimes! 

A neighbor down the road from my mom has a small blueberry patch, so we got to do a little blueberry picking.

Though in all honesty, by the time we arrived at his house, it was really hot and humid. Bea was distracted by the heat and we only managed to pick two pounds!

Still, there's no blueberry picking in our part of Texas, so I was happy to pick even a small bucket full. Kerplink, kerplank, kerplunk....

My mom, who declares herself not a gardener has a fantastic garden this year! She's learning a thing or two from my brother for sure.  Last week, she had more tomatoes than she could give away to friends, neighbors, and family, so she helped me can them. 

She enjoyed having a little helper around to help her bring in the harvest at the day's end! 

It was my first time canning tomatoes and it was so much fun doing it with her. She use to be an avid canner in her early years of motherhood, but it had been many, many years since she has preserved anything.  We canned about 25 pounds of whole/crushed tomatoes.

You should see my tiny pantry. Nearly half of it is taken up by canned tomatoes and the strawberry jam that I made in May. I'm sort of proud about the actual putting up I've done this year. Though I don't think I have any more room to put anything else up.  

Otherwise when we weren't working away, Mom thoroughly enjoyed being in the presence of Bea. She was so floored by her verbal skills, as it had been four months since the last time she saw her. Bea's newest phrase that she likes to say 568 times a day is "hey mom."  I guess she heard me call my mom that way, so now she calls out to me that way too.  She is so silly.  

Bea also got to bond with her big cousin Sophie.  Those two are something else together. It's like they've known each other in previous lives or something.  Sophie is nine years older than Bea and they absolutely adore each other. "Come on Sophie!" Bea would say.  And off they would go, "writing", drawing, playing with marbles, or just lounging together on the couch. Today, Bea asked me several times to go to Sophie's house. A request like that tugs on my heart strings a bit. Since day one, I knew my girl was an old soul. Goodness, is she ever... 

Tomorrow I'll post about the day trip we took.  

a girl and her chicken

Our eight chicks have provided more fun and entertainment than we ever thought possible. One family member in particular has a very special bond with them.  Yes, oh my, oh my, Bea loves her chickens. More than almost anything it seems. More than toys for sure! 

I've learned a couple of great lessons while being a mama to a toddler and a chicken owner simultaneously. One lesson is this: to a toddler, there really is no greater incentive to getting all that winter gear on than to get a turn to feed the chickens and let them out of the run. The allure of chickens is powerful, people! 

One hen in particular has taken a great big fondness over Bea (and myself).  This hen wants nothing to do with her nice stand-by friends when Bea and I enter the picture.  She quickly loses all loyalty to the rest of the feathered crew and instead follows our every move. Literally. She's hysterical and we love her so. She is also the hen whom my brother predicted will reveal herself to be a rooster. Oh, I just can't fathom.  I certainly hope not as we can not have roosters.  I couldn't bear to part with her, rooster or not.  

A blurb about Bea's outfit:  she's wearing another pair of pants (this time cropped) that I made with the Made By Rae Big Butt Baby Pant Pattern. She likes these a lot especially since she's got pockets with trains on them. She's very much into obsessed with modes of transportation these days. I support the habit, I suppose. She added her own flair and accented the outfit with a western style belt found on the floor of mama and daddy's closet. The rear clothespin clasp was daddy's idea. The photos were taken this past weekend when the weather was mild and sunny, which is not the case now.  

Sewing Again

My to do lists for much of the month of January ended up having a significant amount of non crafty type work on it.  Yes, really, I don't know how to make tax preparation fit in the crafty category.  My brain hurts just thinking about it.  But all that is done and over with and my plate is very happily looking a bit emptier for February.  

A couple of weeks ago, as I was sorting through Bea's bigger sized clothing, it became quite apparent that her size 3 stack was growing nicely with a large variety of items, yet her size 2 items (of what she's beginning to need now) included just a few summer dresses. Anybody else slowly collect pieces of clothing for little ones seasons ahead of when they'll need it? We've been fortunate enough thus far, that Bea's wardrobe has consisted of a mixture of hand me downs from cousins, cute scores from thrifting, a few mama made pieces, or deeply marked down new items that I've bought from end of season sales. 

So for the first time ever, Bea needs some clothes!  Not a lot, but a few pieces that she can mix and match, layer, and put on and off herself.  This last reason is the most crucial reason for taking on the task of making her clothes for the spring and summer.  She has hit the sensitive period for wanting to care for and dress herself.  She can easily occupy herself for twenty minutes or so, exploring different ways to put on underwear, mama and daddy's clothes, socks, and shoes.  Very endearing indeed!   I want her to be successful at this and I want her to be comfortable as continues to be a busy, busy little girl. So much of the clothing that is out there being sold for babies and toddlers, looks so uncomfortable, and so cumbersome to put on.  Skinny jeans for a pudgy toddler.... Um, no.  

I've begun to make some little wide leg elastic pants. I'm using the Made By Rae pattern. Fair warning to all: this pattern is quick, easy, gratifying, and therefore, addictive!  I've made Bea two pairs already.  One of the greatest things about this pattern is that they are made to fit over the poofy cloth diaper bottoms! Hooray for the end of diaper overflow! Once she becomes potty trained, I think I'll still be able to use the pattern for her.  I can size down (if necessary) and lengthen the bottoms.  

I'm also going to make her a few jumpers and a few more cross back sleeveless smocks with little bloomers/shorts to mix and match.  Fun! Fun! Since, she's napping right now, I've got to take advantage and get cutting into some fabric. It's suppose to get really cold here this week.  Brrr..maybe a nice pair of corduroy trousers would be nice to wear this week...  

Out and about

If you know me well, then you know my 'out and about's' are of the predictable and mundane sort. Let's see, the grocery store, post office, bank, grocery store, grocery store, grocery store... On the weekend, I might tackle one or two thrift stores.  Yes, and that's about it!  

But this weekend, my oh my, I put myself out there. The weather was sunny and bright on Saturday. And so I just had the greatest craving to drive alone and stretch my legs, and think uninterrupted thoughts without having to answer "wa ya doin'?" five hundred times.  And I also wanted to see some pretty fabric and yarn.  So off I went to two of my favorite little shops in Austin.  I bought a couple of yards of fabric because the little one will need some "I can do it all by myself" items for the spring and summer months which will be here before you know it.  She is, of course, all about the care of self these days.  More on that (and toddler clothing ideas) later....

I didn't get anymore yarn. Nope. Not until this is done. Alright, let's not go there.  

We were sort of caught up on chores around the house, or at least, we didn't feel like facing them on Sunday. So we took a drive.  Which is something Byron and I use to love to do "before we had children."

Aside: I always get perturbed by people who complain about or compare their life to before and after they "had children."  But here I am saying it too because Bea is not the "let's take a drive kind of child"!  At least I don't say it very often though.  Really, we like having the little Bea around a whole lot. We were quite a bore before we knew her! 

What was I saying? On Sunday we took a drive out to one of our favorite small towns close to Austin. Besides a couple of antique stores, their main street looks like so many other American small towns. Beautiful, yet vacant, brick buildings with for sale or for lease signs adorning their windows. All just waiting to be revitalized. It's always, always fun to do a little antiquing in between herding and buffering a toddler from collectibles and breakables. Good times! Really, it was! My spirit can't be broken! 

And that, my friends, was my weekend. By Sunday afternoon I was exhausted from all the out and abouting I did. And now I should be happy and content at home for another couple of months! 

 

The Weekend

We did some listening, singing, and dancing to this fabulous new album. 

We enjoyed some fresh air from our opened windows. 

And we made some important preparations for the big holiday coming up. 

Good times! 

Weekending

August is my February. When northerners are itching for warmer weather, giddy with anticipation to see life spring forth, after so many months of being cooped up... Yeah, well that's me, right now. I can't wait for Fall.   

Until then, I have to say, we're finding plenty to keep us busy.  

In between sewing and brewing, reorganizing, and many episodes of Mad Men (oh my, it's been a long time since I've loved the television...the Drapers' wardrobe...can't get enough), the little one has been providing us hours of entertainment just being her curious, musical, silly self!  

Hope you enjoy these random photos of our random moments of this August weekend.  

 Let's jump on mama over and over while she plays around with the camera.

   Thrifty find! We haven't had a bedroom clock in a couple of years...

  Watching bread dough rise. 

 The sewing table...

{helping me} With close guidance, she found great joy in this work.  

 My sewing nook! I finally got around to making curtains for the window from a thrifted bedsheet I bought for a buck! I love almost everything about this corner of my home.

Yay!! I love this spot in my home. The light flowing through the yellow of the curtains creates the warmest glow! 

  

 
  

  

Sew Baby Sundress

 

 

 
I made this little dress for Bea a couple of days ago.  It's for the fall. No, she's not going to model it anytime soon. Yes, in the 100+ degrees weather a girl can still fantasize about the coming season ahead even though the possibility of crispness and coolness seems like a foolish thought. TWO MORE MONTHS.  I used the Sew Baby Sundress Pattern that Amanda made for her little girl a couple of months back. 

On the hanger, the dress looks a bit boring. Or maybe it's the buttons that clash. Not sure. The outer fabric is navy corduroy and the lining is linen. The fabric for the pocket is from a vintage flour sack scrap. I love that this dress is reversible. I think the whole thing will look more complete once the the little one is actually bouncing around in it with these shoes.  Oh my, I had just about given up on finding a "good pair of little girl shoes".  

The dress is a breeze to sew.  There is literally one pattern piece. Since it's reversible, the double fabrics give it a nice drape. Now all we need is a breeze from the north.... 

Chicken Dress and Kitchen

Last week, during Bea's naps, I took to the task of making her this Oliver + S dress. It was my first time making her a piece of clothing that had this many pattern pieces. Up until now, I've been a big fan of jumpers and pinafores. Yikes, this pattern made me a bit nervous with 10 whole pieces (I later figured out that I didn't need all ten pieces).  Still, I traced and cut them out just in case I decide to make one of the alternate versions of the dress later on. It was my first attempt at gathering.  It wasn't quite as scary as I thought it would be. In the end, I'm sufficiently pleased with the dress.  I see lots of flaws in it that I'd rather not have. I need to practice getting the yoke and the sleeves to match up nicer as well as the yoke and the main back panel. But I did it - I overcame the fear of working with a real pattern. Perfect or not, it is indeed a dress, that Bea can wear, that her mama made for her!  

I think this little pattern has lots of potential.  I see lots of little blouses in fun prints (layered in the cooler months) and lots and lots of little dresses of linen, corduroy, and cotton.  

The two prints I used for this dress come from Joanne's as I wanted to use less expensive stuff for the first run.  Besides, the chicken print is one of Bea's favorites.  Anytime I have fabric scattered across the living room floor, she always gravitates towards it, drapes it around her neck, and prances around the house.  Chickens, it is, for my little bird lover!  

In addition to the dress making news, Bea and I received the most lovely of gifts. Yes, I'm as happy as she is!  I don't usually post much about "stuff" here, especially new stuff. Although sometimes, in all my giddiness, I'll post about thrifted goodies. However, today, I just can't resist. Let me show you Bea's new play kitchen.   

 

At the end of the school year, I borrowed The Natural Child's play kitchen for Bea to use over the summer. It's a fine wooden kitchen. We found it used on Craigslist, looking for a good home. It has served the children at The Natural Child well and we will use it again this year. Bea has spent hours playing with it both at school and at home. However, I knew that once the children returned to The Natural Child in the fall, Bea would still be left needing a play kitchen of her very own at home.  

Anticipating all of this, months ago, I shopped and shopped around on the internet until I found just the kitchen I wanted Bea to have. It wasn't until last week that I finally got around to ordering it. Today we received it. And, oh my. It's some kind of lovely. Do they make them in my size? Solid hardwood. Smooth, beautiful, warm, sturdy. She spent her entire waking moments (except for the hour in which she was whisked away to the pool), playing with this kitchen. Opening, closing, putting here, putting there, taking out, and moving over. Over and over all afternoon. I think this "toy" will be played with for years, and generations to come. The set of pots come from The Juniper Tree Store. They're enamel and have a wonderful weight to them. We are so happy with them as well!