Archive for February, 2010

today:

today i am…

february-snow

hunkering down and enjoying the view from my front door!

plaid-and-mocs

cozying up in plaid and mocs.

butter

readying cookies and tea.

wood-pile

restocking the wood pile on the porch and keeping that wood stove full!

everything-tote

1 down, 3 to go. i’m using some fabric from my mother and vintage curtain pannels i found thrifting to make heather ross’s everthing tote for my mother, her two sisters, and myself. it’s making me think of my grandmother (isabelle got her middle name – louise – from her) and all of the things i do to be like her. the garden. the canning. staying on this farm that she built by aquiring the land piece by piece in savvy business transactions. she was always making and remaking things – especially clothing for her family. her sewing projects that i remember most were the Braque cloth bags made with vintage fabric from our girl-trips to Brimfield, MA. so it only seems fitting, as we approach the birthday of my baby named after her, to celebrate the rest of the women in this family with a craft after our matriarch’s own heart. vintage re-made into bags. with love.

pops-coat

looking for a shiny red fabric to patch my grandfather’s coat.

reading

catching up on some reading: birthday. summer sewing. natural dying. pleasure.

plant-sprouts

checking sprouts. grape tomatoes. mesculin. basil. and one coffee bean plant. cris has the coldframe almost finished. just something to hold us over until he builds our greenhouse.

love-note

and last, but not least, i am loving today. loving this rare piece of writing – a love note – from my husband. and loving my husband for writing it.

have a great day!

the countdown

i love birthdays and holidays. they provide an end date for my crafty endeavors, a much needed deadline, and an event to look forward to. as the countdown to belle’s birthday pulls us closer to her invisible day (remember, she’s a leapling), i am finishing the details of her celebrations.

 

i quickly carvstrawberry-stamped this strawberry stamp to decorate the kraft paper i have to wrap her gifts. i’ve been looking through this book to review the strawberry cupcake and frosting recipes. i’m milling through the cabinets, making a checklist of ingredients.

baby-pear

but most of all, i am looking in awe at my “baby” who (it feels like) was just born a couple of months ago…and now she is headstrong, independent, beautiful, and so sweet.

sweet-sleep

now that she is a big girl, sleeping in a “real” bed, she has the freedom. and sometimes that freedom means getting into bed with brother for a little snuggle time…

much to say

this should really be two posts, but i can’t wait!

stacking-wood

monday was such an amazing day of appreciation and simple pleasures. the kids and i packed a bag and headed out to the back yard for our first campfire of 2010. we roasted marshmallows, played “soccer” and just enjoyed the bare ground. february can feel so daunting, but i couldn’t help but feel blessed. cris has been doing wood with my grandfather, and when the came back with a load of wood, the kids insisted on helping. when the trailer was unloaded, we rode back out through the farm to “help” split the rest of the wood. the kids loaded small logs into the tractor’s scoop while i rolled the larger ones to cris and my grandfather. i love working outside – it was simple and wonderful.

today…well, today has been full of indoor activity and our indoors has been full of visitors. grampie, pop, aunt jessy, gaga, uncle dan, joelle, and eli. whew! (and that was all before 9:00 am!)  once the crowd thinned out a bit, i got back to my sewing. this book has amazing patterns, and i’ve been flipping through it for months. i made the wool pants, but wanted to do something lighter for belle. i was thinking a birthday outfit, but i couldn’t help but put the pants on her as soon as they were done. yum!

carefree-apron

carefree-pants

and, after much putting-off, i finally dove in and added the snaps to wy’s shirt from this book. fast. easy. and totally right for this guy on the move.

shirt-snaps