In honor of his 106th birthday, we had Green Eggs & Ham, Pink Snow, and Oobleck for dinner!! Yum!!
Thank you Dr. Seuss for your amazing, creative stories and creatures!!
Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!!!
Mar 2nd, 2010 by Maria
Swimmable Mermaid Tail
Mar 2nd, 2010 by Maria
Kaia has been waiting, and waiting, for this project to happen. She picked out her fabric last month, but we had trouble getting the fins. They finally arrived today, so I had to get right on it!
Behold – Mermaid Kaia!
This was a fairly simple project to do. We got the swim fins from Metro Swim Shop (yes, you read correctly, I said ‘fins’. I got this fin for myself and will make my own tail as soon as I get the fabric. The description says it’s for kids, but it fits up to a women’s size 8 shoe)
First, I had Kaia put on her fin and traced her lower half (from waist down) on a large piece of paper. This gave me the basic shape of her body. When I was tracing the fin part, I had her sit up for that the fin was flat on the floor. The tracing is not the proper measurement of the pattern, it simply give me a shape to go by as I mark in the proper measurements.
Then, I measured Kaia around her waist, hips, thighs, knees, shins, and ankles. I took each of these measurements and divided in two, since you will have 2 sides to your fin. Ex: her waist was 21 so half that is 10.5
On the paper, along the tracing of her body, I marked the measurements in the proper places. Ex: at the waist of the tracing, I measured out 10.5 inches, marking on either side of the tracing, so that the center of the tracing is also the center of the measurements. Do this with all your measurements and then connect the markings. The markings will probably be an inch or two out from the original tracing. Use the tracing as a guide of how to shape the pattern. Does this make sense??
Then, cut your pattern out.
Take your chosen fabric and fold it in half. This way you will cut out both sides at one time.
Lay the pattern on the fabric and pin it down well through both layers of fabric. Make sure there are no wrinkles.
Cut out your fabric.
Take the pattern off and, if they aren’t already, put the right sides together (meaning the sides that will be showing once you are done should now face each other). Pin the fabric together really well so that it doesn’t slip or bunch when you sew it up.
Then sew along the sides leaving the waist open, and one side of the fin open (see finished picture below) I left 1/4 inch seam allowance on the first run and had her try it on. Then Iwent back over the edge with a zig zag stitch to finish it off.
To get the mono fin into the tail, you will need a hole big enough to slip it through. The adult monofins are a little more flexible and might fit through the waist hole and be worked down to the tail. Kaia’s fin is pretty stiff, so we left a hole in the bottom of the tail for the monofin to slide into and then put 4 pearl snaps to close it off. I zigzagged the open edges to prevent any fraying.
At this point I checked to be sure the monofin fit into the opening and had Kaia try it on to be sure it fit well, and figured out where she wanted the waist level to be. It was a little loose in the waist, so I took it in a bit. You could make an elastic waist band, but the fabric Kaia chose hugged her body well once I took it in, and didn’t need any elastic.
With the right sides still facing, fold the waist band down (wrong sides together) to where you want it to be on your body (below the navel, at the navel… etc.) and finish the seam. I did two lines of a wavy stitch to make it look like scales.
Kaia’s really happy with how it turned out and wore it to bed the first night (fins and all). You can see in this picture on the bottom left of her tail, where there are snaps that open up the tail to let the monofin in. You can even see a little of the pink fin sticking out. I want to fix that but Kaia said “no”.
I’ll post pictures once mine is done!
The big dig
Mar 1st, 2010 by Maria
We found this craft when we were cruising around on the web looking for info in sea monsters of prehistory. (scroll down to Sediment Fossil Surprise). As soon as Kaia read the details, she was dying to do it. So, saturday, we got all our ingredients together and created our layers of history in a cup. We took out our giant time line and followed along. Our first layer was from the Cambrian period (red jello) and had trilobite fossils (gummy bears) in it. The next layer was the Silurian period (chocolate pudding) and contained Pneumodesmus worms (gummy worms). The third layer was the Carboniferous Period (shredded coconut) with Belantsea fish (pink star cookies) in it (those things are crazy looking)! Next was the Triassic (more chocolate pudding) and Lepidotes (Cashews). Then the Cretaceous (whipped cream) and coprolites/dino poop! (chocolate covered peanuts). Finally, topped with granola to represent the Quaternary period, or where we are today. Whew!!
We piled these yummies high into our glasses and served them up for dad, with a card that had clues to what he might find in each layer.
As we ate our way through history we looked back at the time line to find our fossils, and when Toby was done he took out our Ancient Creature Cards and read to us about some of the things he found.
It was a sweet way to spend the afternoon. Literally! Nauseatingly, horribly sweet!! I needed a big glass of water and a nap after that project!! 
Send your name to Mars!
Feb 28th, 2010 by Maria
Kaia and I are in the middle of her studies on the solar system, so we couldn’t have found this at a better time! In 2011 NASA is sending a Science Lab Rover to Mars and you can put your name on a microchip that will go to Mars with the rover! Kaia loved this idea, so we sent in her name and then printed out a certificate of participation! Too coo!!
Come live with us!
Feb 28th, 2010 by Maria
We’ve finally got it all figured out and are happy to announce that we have some of our land for sale! We would love to have some other families out here with us!!
Here’s the schpiel:
10+ wooded acres for sale! We are a homeschooling family of four (6 year old daughter, 1 year old son) attempting to live as sustainably as possible. We have a small homestead with chickens, bees, and a nice big garden. We own 25 acres and would like to sell 10+ (due to county regulations, it can not be any less than 10 acres). The land for sale is rolling to steep, completely wooded and mostly north facing. Don’t let that discourage you, though! There are some beautiful homesites, as well as solar and garden possibilities. We are in Leicester, only 10 miles from downtown Asheville, but it feels very private. It is $7,500 per acre (firm). Let me know if you have any questions.
Blessings!
Mmmmmm, the smell of warm beeswax is so yummy!!
Leif’s view of his new mobile in the warm afternoon sunshine
Coffee Fossils
Feb 21st, 2010 by Maria
As part of our dinosaur studies, Kaia and I made some coffee fossils.
(Yes, that was me who shoved Jasmines head into the clay to see what it would look like!)
It was a really simple recipe with very cool results!
I love having things like this to do in our home school days. I often feel like we don’t get enough hands on and creative learning. Her math and spelling/language shouldn’t ever take more than about 45 minutes total of our day, but still… sometimes it seems like all day! I’m getting better at adding in more creative stuff, but it takes creative effort on my part to find or develop these things, and after a full day of teaching/learning/playing often, all I want to do is put my feet up and veg out! We’ve only been at this for 7 weeks, though and I think we are doing pretty darn good!
The cake
Uncertainty…
Proceeding with caution…
Shoveling it in…
Can’t talk… mouth full…
Everyone got in on the action
Leif had a great time at his little party! We served up lots of his favorite finger foods, followed by applesauce cupcakes. Mmmm, Mmmmm, Good!
He wore his handmade (mama sewn) birthday hat and one of his new bibs. Kaia made him a beeswax dipped candle for his cake.
Can’t wait to see what this next year has in store for this amazing little boy!
Here it is! My first official sewing project from my lessons! I’m calling her the “You are a Sassy, Sexy Housewife-Mama, and you Know It!” apron.
And Look! It’s reversible!
Isn’t it cute??!! If you want your own, you can get the pattern from Pretty-Ditty.
While I wasn’t working on the apron, I made some big boy bibs for Leif and a blanket and bibs for a friends new little boy.
I’m having so much fun with this!!
And if you are still interested in an herb trade for sewing supplies, there are lots of herbs left. Just let me know!
Here’s a look at some of the lovely fabric goodness I’ve gotten so far! Do you like my fabric and color-coded piles??
My little man is One
Feb 19th, 2010 by Maria
I don’t have the right words to explain how much I love you. How my life revolves around you. How your sweet smile makes my spirit soar; makes me feel like I’ve just taken in a deep breath of warm spring air. I don’t know how you did it, but when you came into our lives and turned our world upside-down, you somehow set us right.
Happy First Birthday my sweet Little Man!
What Homeschooling Looks Like To Me
Feb 12th, 2010 by Maria
Smrt Lernins is having a photo contest. They want to know what homeschooling looks like to you. Well, we’ve only been doing this for 6 weeks, but it seems like I’m always posting pictures about what Kaia is up to. There are so many photos to chose from. But, I think one of my favorites is one I took this last week when we went to visit family at the beach. I absolutely love that homeschooling is portable! We packed up some of her books and headed out to the shore, where she found herself a nice rock/table and went to work.
She did a little of her language studies first and then we read some books on dinosaurs. We decided that we were in the perfect spot to make a dinosaur. We measured out 160 feet (the size of a Seismosaurus), found some good drift wood drawing sticks, and drew ourselves a dinosaur!!
In this photo, I’m standing at the tail end and Kaia, the little red speck in the distance, is standing at it’s head.
And, of course, no sand dinosaur is complete without a little dino dung!
Leif wanted to support us in our dinosaur creating efforts, so he put on his Dino-Might shirt. (Punk hair courtesy of daddy)
You need a little more of his squishy cuteness? How about a side view?
Kaia wants to sew
Feb 3rd, 2010 by Maria
Kaia has decided that since I am taking sewing lessons, I must teach her! Now! As often as possible!!! So that she can use the sewing machine all by herself… with no one watching!
Hmmmmmmm….. We’ll see.
I did, however, help her make a little bag to hold her new fossil collection in. She did a fantastic job!!
And here’s what she’s keeping in her baggie:
Leif’s new pants
Feb 3rd, 2010 by Maria
Well, I think the internet might be back up… maybe… it’s slow and keeps going up and down, but maybe they are fixing it.
We’ve been snowed in, without phone and internet since the last snow 5 days ago. Let me tell you… After all the snow and indoor time in the past month, I’m getting to be one cabin fevery chick!!! OY!!!
Well, I did finish a pair for pants for Leif, finally. I started this outfit this past fall, but just got around to the pants. And they are SOOOOO cute!!!
Can you tell he likes them?
I put two little pockets on them, one red and one green, with a little owl on it.
Snowed in-no Internet-back soon
Feb 2nd, 2010 by Maria
Sewing and the Great Herb Trade!
Jan 29th, 2010 by Maria
I finally did it! I’m taking sewing lessons! I’ve been wanting to learn how to sew for a long time now. I can do a little on the sewing machine, but I’ve wanted to learn from a professional. Well, as luck would have it, I won a raffle for 7 sewing lessons from a professional seamstress!! I’ve taken two lessons so far and I’m having a blast! I won’t tell you what I’m making yet…. I’ll show you when it’s done!!! Anyway, I’m already planning all the things that will be made… a skirt for Kaia, pants and bibs for Leif, a skirt for me… I love the idea of making clothing for my family. Knitting them is certainly one way to do it, but knitting an outfit take ages. Sewing is instant gratification! So, here’s where the Great Herb Trade comes in. I have over 150 dried herbs in my apothecary… culinary, medicinal, spiritual, you name it (see list below)! But, right now I’m only seeing a few clients and spending most of my days with the kids. I have all these herbs and they are just sitting around. However, I don’t have any sewing goods. I have a sewing machine, and that’s it! So, here’s my proposal: You tell me what herbs you would like and how much and I’ll send them to you! In trade, you send me any fabric, notions, and sewing goodies that you want. You get to build/stock your herbal pantry, maybe even experiment with some that are new to you, and I get to build up my sewing supplies! Nothing wasted, lots gained! How’s that sound? Here is a list of the herbs that I currently have in stock. If you are interested, leave me a comment (and make sure I have your email) and let me know what you’d like!! Yay!! This is going to be fun!!! (oh, and ‘c/s’ means ‘cut and sifted’)
addendum – List edited 2/23/10 to reflect the herbs that are still available-
| Alfalfa c/s |
| alfalfa powder |
| Amalaki powder |
| Angelica root c/s |
| anise seed |
| Artichoke leaf c/s |
| artichoke powder |
| Ashwaganda Powder |
| Astragalus root c/s |
| Beet Leaf Powder |
| Bilberries whole |
| Black Cohosh root c/s |
| Black walnut hull powder |
| Bladderwrack c/s |
| Blue Cohosh root c/s |
| Blue Violet leaf c/s |
| Boneset herb c/s |
| Burdock root c/s |
| Calendula flowers – whole |
| California Poppy leaf c/s |
| Catnip leaf and flower c/s |
| Cayenne powder |
| Chamomile Flowers |
| Chicory rot – roasted |
| Cloves – whole |
| Comfrey Leaf |
| Coleus Forskholii c/s |
| Coltsfoot c/s |
| Copal Resin |
| Cornsilk c/s |
| Cramp bark c/s |
| Damiana leaf c/s |
| Dandelion leaf c/s |
| Dandelion Root c/s |
| Dong Quai c/s |
| Echinacea Purperea root c/s |
| Echinacea purperea root powder |
| Elder berries |
| Elder Flower |
| Elecampane root c/s |
| Eleuthero root c/s |
| Eyebright herb c/s |
| Fenugreek seed – whole |
| Feverfew herb c/s |
| Frankincense tears |
| Ginkgo Leaf |
| Goldenseal root c/s |
| Holy Basil |
| Honeysuckle flower |
| Hops strobiles |
| Horehound herb c/s |
| Horse Chestnut c/s |
| Horsetail herb c/s |
| Hyssop herb c/s |
| Jasmine flowers |
| Juniper berries |
| Ladies Mantle c/s |
| Lavender flower –whole |
| Lemon Balm herb c/s |
| Lemon peel c/s |
| Lemongrass leaf c/s |
| Licorice root c/s |
| Licorice root powder |
| Lobelia herb c/s |
| Maca Powder |
| Malva (Mallow) flowers |
| Marshmallow root c/s |
| Marshmallow root powder |
| Meadowsweet herb c/s |
| Milk Thistle |
| Milky Oat tops |
| Mugwort leaf c/s |
| Mullein leaf c/s |
| Mustard powder |
| Nettle leaf c/s |
| Nettle root c/s |
| Nettle seed |
| Oatstraw c/s |
| Oregon Grape root c/s |
| Oregon Grape root powder |
| Osha root powder |
| Partridgeberry herb c/s |
| Passionflower leaf c/s |
| Paw d’Arco root c/s |
| Peach Leaf c/s |
| Pepper – Black Malabar |
| Peppermint leaf c/s |
| Plantain leaf c/s |
| Prickly Ash bark c/s |
| Queen of the Meadow (Joe Pie) root c/s |
| Red Raspberry leaf c/s |
| Red Root c/s |
| Reishi Mushroom powder |
| Reishi Mushrooms |
| Rose hips seedless c/s |
| Rosemary leaves |
| Roses – petals |
| Rue c/s |
| Sage – ceremonial whole pieces |
| Sage c/s |
| Sarsaparilla (Jamaican) root c/s |
| Sassafras root c/s |
| Saw Palmetto powder |
| Shatavari powder |
| Shatavari root |
| Sheapherds Purse c’s |
| Slippery Elm bark c/s |
| Soapwart c/s |
| Solomon’s Plume root c/s |
| Solomon’s Seal root c/s |
| Spearmint leaf c/s |
| St. Johns Wort flowering tops |
| Stevia powder |
| Stoneroot c/s |
| Sumac berries |
| Thyme leaf c/s |
| Triphala powder |
| Tylophora indica c/s |
| Usnea lichen |
| Uva Ursi leaf |
| Valerian |
| Vitex berries |
| White Willow bark c/s |
| Wild Cherry Bark c/s |
| Wild Hydrangea root c/s |
| Wild Yam root c/s |
| Witch Hazel Bark c/s |
| Wormwood herb c/s |
| Yarrow leaf and flower c/s |
| Yellow Root c/s |
| Yellowdock root c/s |
Trilobite cookies
Jan 23rd, 2010 by Maria
You can’t study pre-history without making trilobite cookies!!
This was Kaia’s first time using the cookie press and she LOVED it! I had to make her a deal though… we make one full sheet of trilobite shaped cookies and she could use the rest of the dough to try out all the other cookie press shapes.
We ended up using this shape/disc. It made perfect little trilobites!
Once they were cooked and cooled a little, she used raspberry preserves to put in the middle of the cookie sandwich.
Then dip them in melted chocolate and give them some eyes (we used chopped up gummy bears:-) )
And serve them up at Trilobite Tea Time!! Mmmmmmm!! Taste much better than chicken!
Puzzlemania!
Jan 20th, 2010 by Maria
Leif loves puzzles! I’m not sure why, since he’s not old enough to really put them together. But there is something about them that attracts him and if you want to give him something to do, just put a puzzle in front of him. He’ll take all the pieces and throw them all around the room! I’ve got some rainbow stacker puzzles to give him for his birthday. But check out these puzzles from Puzzled. Aren’t they fabulous??!! I will definitely have to get some of these! And there is a great give away going on over at The Magic Onions to win one of your own!!
Getting outside
Jan 16th, 2010 by Maria
For a family that lives on 25 acres, we seem to spend most of our time indoors, especially in the winter. Now that Kaia is at home most days, I thought it increasingly more important to make getting outside a priority! So, we’ve added a weekly Outdoor Hour Challenge to our studies. This week, we got outside and made it a point to keep quiet and listen to the things around us. It was so peaceful and replenishing. The 20 minutes outside turned into a couple of hours for Kaia while she ‘ice skated’ on a puddle of water.
Here are my notes from the things I heard/sensed/saw while outside:
- The trickle of water from the stream to the pond
- paw prints (raccoon?) in the snow on the pond’s ice
- the crunch of our feet falling on the snow
- crisp, cool smell of the air
- happy bock-bocking of the chickens enjoying the warmth after a month of freezing temps.
- snapping of the branches in the trees
- young buds of this years leaves and fruit on our trees.
- the smile on Leif’s face as he looks up to the clouds
a break in the weather
Jan 16th, 2010 by Maria
Finally, it’s gotten above 35 degrees!! The snow has been on the ground for a month and it seems like every morning I’ll wake up to a little more! The past few days it’s gotten up into the 50’s and it’s been wonderful! The chickens are having a field day taking dirt baths and stretching out in the sun.
Speaking of chickens… have you ever heard of longcrowers? Check this rooster out! If you have crappy neighbors, you need to get you one of these babies!!!
Kaia and I had a great week of school! She always starts with math. She loves using the abacus. Most of what we are doing is review as we try to get caught up to her skill level in her new math program. She’s really enjoying so much hands on and not a lot of workbook pages. Leif really likes the abacus too… I’m going to need to get him one of his own
She’s also enjoying spelling, and usually does more than one lesson a day. There is a chart that comes with the program that you mark off each lesson you complete. She’s on a mission to put stickers on the chart as fast as she can. It really is amazing how fast she is progressing, though. She’s soaking it all up. It’s not that they didn’t teach it at her old school, but the kids had the choice to spend their day how they wanted and she always wanted to color. Me… I’m a task master. I think it’s important for her to start learning this stuff, so if I present it to her in a way that she enjoys, then we both win. All About Spelling has lots of hands on too… she’s all about that! Her reading skills are really blossoming! She’s feeling so much more confident and she’s started reading to Leif, writing letters to friends…
This week we also continued with Prehistory and the Precambrian period. We’ve started making a time line similar to this one. It’s fun to see the way her mind works with stuff like this. As she is filling in the pages, everything she pastes on the page goes in perfect alignment with the last piece. It’s all square and in order. Funny how some things must be in their proper place while other things (like her room) can be chaos! We focused on volcanoes this week and she made one out of model clay. We were supposed to create an eruption (with baking soda and vinegar) but she wanted to make a volcano just like Mako Island (from the show H2O: Just add Water, the Australian show about kids that are mermaids). So, she didn’t want to make it erupt.
Here are her little hands hard at work. You can see the secret entrance to the magic cave where the girls turn into mermaids.
She pulled the top of the volcano off so that she could paint the magic pool of water inside!
And here it is… Mako Island in all it’s glory! I think she should call it Phallic Island
Leif is keeping me on my toes, too. He finds all kinds of stuff to keep himself busy while I’m occupied with Kaia… like boxes full of shredded paper:
Even with his hands in the box, he can still give you a great “Who Me??? What did I do??” look!
While we aren’t busy doing fun learny-type stuff, I’ve begun planning this years garden. My cucumber, peas, greens, and beans did fabulous last year, but the squashes (winter, summer, and pumpkins) got hit hard by borers, and the tomatoes and melons just crapped out. So, I’m going to fill each bed with a good helping of chicken poop compost to see if that helps the soil. I’m also rotating what goes into each bed so that the heavy feeders aren’t draining the soil in the same place. I think the only thing I’m going to drop from my list is melons. I’ve never had good luck with them… you can’t can them up and save them for the winter, and for the space they take, you get so little return. I’ll just buy them at the markets when they are in season and use that space for other goodies. I’ve never had luck with Eggplant either, but it’s supposed to be so easy to grow. I think I’m going to try the good-old standard eggplant this year instead of trying to grow the skinny kinds. How do you grow your eggplant?
Well, my intention was to knit myself a new hat… one that completely covers my ears, because I can’t seem to get one that keeps my head and ears nice and warm. I found a great pattern and saw the finished hat in my local yarn store. But the pattern didn’t have a gauge (how many stitches per inch, etc.). I actually wanted to make it just like the hat in the store, so I bought the same yarn that they used and everything. Still, the pattern made a hat that fit Leif and not me. So, now Leif has a new hat. Still, I really liked the hat, so I adjusted the pattern and made one to fit my head too. You like?
first week of school
Jan 9th, 2010 by Maria
This week was the first official full week of Kaia and I homeschooling and we had a great time. Along with the standard weekly math, spelling/language, and stuff, we’ve begun studying prehistoric times (Thanks to Sarah for the curriculum!). We started by doing our own little recreation of the Big Bang. Kaia stuffed a balloon with all the confetti and glitter that she could.
Then I blew the balloon up and attached it to a post. I also tied a bamboo skewer to the end of a broom for her to pop the balloon with (I thought it would be better if we were farther away from the balloon so that all the stuffing could burst out without us in the way, and spread across the snow like a new solar system.) We were both in hysterics watching her trying to lance the balloon as it bounced this way and that. When she finally got it, we were both surprised and screamed! Then, all the stuffing fell like a lead weight straight down. A few stray confetti flew off with the wind. Kaia said, “Well, that wasn’t really a Big Bang, was it?” It was hysterical!
Later in the week, Kaia tried hopscotch on her prehistoric timeline. She had a blast, especially when the giant Leifasaurus tried to grab her as she hopped by.
And occasionally the Leifasaurus would plant his cute patoot in the middle of the time line and refuse to move!
Chasing and attacking the time traveler can be such fun!
But, he decided to let Kaia finish her exploration of the prehistoric time periods while he watched from his sweet wooden swing. Leifasauruses need to play, too, you know!
Doughnut crazy
Dec 26th, 2009 by Maria
Kaia and I crafted felt doughnuts, stuffed with polyfill and catnip, for some of our favorite feline friends! There are all different icing and sprinkle types, for your cat’s specific tastes. We gave the first one, a raspberry icing with chocolate sprinkles, to our cats as an early gift. As you can see, they are definite doughnut fans!
“It’s MINE! All MINE!!”
The Standoff!
The Smackdown!
The victor (note: Max, the tabby is at least 12 pounds… Isabella barely tips the scales at 6 pounds!)
“It’s still mine and you can’t have it back!”
“Oh NO!! Look out for the Giant Doughnut Stealer!!”
What’s your favorite flavor??
New Patterns
Dec 23rd, 2009 by Maria
I’ve put up my pattern for Leif’s Mossy Mittens
And if you are looking for a fast gift, here is my pattern for Paper Clip Ice Skates
Blessed Winter Solstice!
Dec 21st, 2009 by Maria
We have had such a wonderful last few days. Being snowed in has been a great adventure for all of us. The power was out for 24 hours, but we enjoyed the peace it brought and we kept ourselves fully entertained! There was tent building:
There was lots of snow play (sledding, snow men, snow ball fights)!
We’ve perfected our snow cream recipe and began experimenting with flavors!!
Snow Cream – basic recipe:
- 1 cup cream, milk, or other milk like substance (coconut milk, chocolate milk, rice milk…)
- 1/2 cup sugar (maple syrup would work nicely too)
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Mix well, and then add enough fresh snow to thicken like ice cream. Then enjoy!
Variations:
Mint-Chocolate Snow Cream:
To the above add: 2 Tbsp cocoa powder and 1/2 tsp. mint extract
Eggnog Snow Cream:
To the basic recipe add: 1 tsp. nutmeg and 1/2 tsp cinnamon
We all enjoyed opening our gifts this morning! I’m happy to say that Kaia considered her new skirt her best gift! (Take that Santa!) She’s worn it all day and we had to order her to take it off before she went to bed. When she loves something, she can wear it until it’s worn out very fast!
Toby’s gloves fit him perfectly and Leif likes his new stuffed, felt toys:
Leif also seems to like his new mittens (I’ll post the pattern soon. It’s really simple!)
I knitted myself a new hat:
And Toby made me a oriental style shelf/unit to put above my computer!! (pictures to come once it’s installed)
This evening, we ended with a lovely meal and a yule log bread (smothered and stuffed with chocolate!)
Have a beautiful winter!!! Hurray for the return of longer days!!
Big Snow Day
Dec 18th, 2009 by Maria
Well, it looks like we will be hanging out on our land for a few days, possibly weeks We are getting more snow that I’ve seen in 16 years! It’s a beautiful winter wonderland here, and Kaia is having the time of her life! She’s been in and out all day, coming in just long enough to let her clothes dry by the fire and then she’s back outside.
I’ve been fighting a cold, along with a nasty fever, so I stayed by the fire and knit all day! I’m working on Leif’s first pair of mittens. It brought back wonderful memories of my great-aunt Pearl. She lived in NH, and though my sister and I grew up in Miami, great-aunt Pearl knit us a new pair of mittens every year. We always looked forward to them! Maybe I’ll carry on that tradition and knit a new pair of mittens and a hat for Kaia and Leif each year!
While I was knitting, Leif was kind enough to entertain himself with a ball of yarn and the phone (if we prank called you today, sorry!)
I took him outside for a bit, but he really wasn’t sure what to make of it all…
My garden is in there somewhere…
Measuring the snow… So far we have 13 inches!
Yes, that is our lawn chair they are sitting in!
We just happened to go to the library earlier this week and got lots of books about snow and winter. One we picked up was absolutely perfect for a day like today.
Houndsley and Catina is a lovely book about the quiet and peace two friends find in the first snow of winter.
Sleep tight!
Ornament crafting
Dec 15th, 2009 by Maria
We’ve had the crafting spirit in our home lately! This weekend Kaia and I made some santa ornaments after seeing them at Write-It-Down. We just happened to have everything we needed and couldn’t resist the cute little guys.
Then we had a few friends over for more crafting. We made beeswax ornaments with beeswax from a local beekeeper! I got 5 pounds of it!! Mmmmm, the kitchen smelled yummy!
I had some lollipop molds, so I used a dab of play dough to block where the stick would go so that the beeswax didn’t flow into that part of the mold. I also put some sparkles in the bottom of the molds. (You could put some on top too, right after pouring the beeswax in, if you want sparkles on both sides.)
When the beeswax was cooling, but still soft, I poked holes for the ribbons.
Then there were the glittered pine cones:
And the pipe cleaner trees (Kaia’s is looking a bit like Charlie Brown’s tree… she said she will be putting more ornaments on later
And once our friends went home, and Leif finally fell asleep, Kaia and I just kept going and made Cinnamon-Applesauce ornaments with the recipe that we found over at 5OrangePotatoes. I love these!! I will definitely be doing them again!! And the cool thing is that you can use any cookie cutters you want and hang them around your house all year long!! They don’t have to be holiday ornaments.
We used some of the dough that was left over and made them into beads!! Just roll them into a little ball and poke a tooth pick through it for the hole.
We stamped a sweet little fairy print into most of the ornaments.
The house smells delicious!!
Sweet Rainbow Gnomes
Dec 12th, 2009 by Maria
There is a fantastic giveaway going on over at GardenMama today for a set of hand knit gnomes from Natural Earth Farm that are just adorable! A lot of time and love went into these sweet toys, so definitely go check them out!!
Wildcraft!
Dec 8th, 2009 by Maria
OK, I’ve been hearing about this board game for a while now and, I have to admit, I have been very resistant to it! I’m not totally sure why, but I think it has to do with the feeling that if I’m a good herbalist, I shouldn’t need the aid of a board game to be able to teach my kids about herbs. (I know, that is stupid… if it’s fun, who cares, right.) Still, when the game went on sale (1/2 off!) last week, I decided to give it a try. I really didn’t think Kaia was going to go for it. It doesn’t have anything to do with mermaids, castles, or the like. But, when the mail was delivered and Kaia saw the game, she flipped out! She was so excited to play, that we had to schedule an emergency “family play night” that night!
So, did I like it? I have to say, I am thoroughly impressed! It was SO flippin’ cute and fun! Kaia loved it and for once wasn’t all competitive about who won! (No one wins, it’s all about cooperation.) We all liked the story that went along with it… collecting herbs to help with our ailments…. picking huckleberries…. It is just fun! I even learned some new herbs!
Here’s how the story starts:
Grandma needs huckleberries to bake a pie. You and your cousins embark on an adventure up the mountain to collect berries as well as herbs she uses.
Will you all harvest the right plants to help with the trouble you run into along the way?
Will you make it back before nightfall?
The only way to win is by helping each other out.
Wildcraft! teaches you 25 important edible and medicinal plants and their uses in mostly first aid situations. (Wildcrafting is the harvesting of wild plants)
It also teaches team work, for you will rely on each other’s knowledge of plants and good fortune to make it to the Huckleberry Patch and safely back to Grandma’s.
You should definitely check it out! You may still be able to win a free one here. I don’t know if the contest ended yesterday or if it’s still going…
Window Stars
Dec 8th, 2009 by Maria
I always love seeing kite paper stars in the windows. They are so bright and happy. They fancy-up any house! With the winter coming on and it being a gray, gloomy day, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to make some of these! A Toy Garden and Nova Natural Toys have nice selections and good prices on the kite paper, and there are some nice tutorials on folding the stars at Arwen Art and Duo Fiberworks. Kaia and I enjoyed this calm, concentration time as we folded our stars.
