The Birds

Our challenge this week was 'animal' theme.
Anything Animal.


I found this wonderful tutorial for these birds and could not pass them up! I was excited to do something with fabric. And tutorials always excite me. There is the possibility that something will turn out EXACTLY as you had intended. And that is tempting.

These were fun, and turned out really well. (Or, let me say, I am happy with them.)

After I did the first two, I changed the pattern. The one from the tutorial has a long beak that turns down a bit. It is more of a tucan, than a sweet 'bird on the wire'.
(can you see which ones I mean? Two Tucans, and 3 'birdies'.)

I just kept making them.

I had a ball.
And THAT is the very definition of 'craft time' to me!
Enjoy!

Preschool?

The pressure that has hit “even me” is astounding.
My child is happy, and healthy. I am grateful EVERY SECOND of EVERY DAY and ALL NIGHT, my kid is healthy. I will not complain about colds and sniffles, while some other parents out there face actual chronic medical issues. (We have been sick more times in the past two years, than in the whole of my life put together!...I am told this is normal.)
And so despite our GREAT good fortune, we are faced with pressure.
“Have you applied to preschools”?
Uh. No.
This question would imply that I have scheduled more than one tour, gone in and seen some places, and then chosen a few of the top ones, and paid the application fee, and filled out an application, and now, I am waiting to hear.
No.
None of the above.
I have not scheduled.
I have not toured.
I have not filled out (or paid the fees).
I am waiting. I could be waiting for a long time.
I am waiting until I feel like the little pet is ready to go.
I want her to have more words. Less shrieks. More independence. Possibly an idea of what the toilet is for (besides flushing)
If I want to wait until I am ready to send her, …until I am ready to say good-bye to my baby – then I can tell you right now, I will be 97 before the child leaves the house. She will have to learn which key opens the gate, find the keys, let herself out, and run away.
And, HA, that could be next week. For all I know,she is reading this post right now, and thinking “oh, is that all it takes? A key? I can follow those simple instructions!”

Peering out at the gate.


Okay, I'll look into preschools.
I won't be happy about it. But I'll look into it. Maybe next year?
For now, let's go jump in some puddles. "Can you say "puddles"?" Good Girl.

Green, Lucky, Scarf

Two weeks ago, the challenge was Green.
I started on this "simple" "small" scarf.

Excellent.
And then family came into town. And all bets were off.

So here, I submit to you, my tangerine scarf.

This is a personal victory, combining crochet and knitting!


I thought about making something for the lucky challenge. And I thought, and I thought. What little talisman could I make to carry around? What would I reflect on to bring me luck.
And I kept coming back to the same thing: I carry around 26 pounds most of the time. And I reflect on the luck I have been showered with already.
That 26 pounds was up a lot in the night this week, and that starts to reek havoc on my creativity and my imagination.
So, here is how lucky I am.

Sound of Music Parenting

I popped out the Elmo Potty Time video, and popped in The Platinum Addition of SOUND OF MUSIC DVD : disc one.
Her response was visceral.
She twirled around, and asked for "more more more" “the Hills are alive” We danced around the living room together. It was enchanting.

Media Ban?
No. We don’t have a media ban in our house.
I don’t think it’s appropriate for my daughter to drink Coke. Or eat dark chocolate. Or watch Law and Order SVU.
But I love it when she leafs through a magazine, and shrieks in delight when she finds a picture of a doggie.



Miss Thing is allowed to watch TV.
I will let you recover from the shock and horror of this admission.
I know what she is watching.
I am watching it with her. (clearly, we are not watching the approach of the Nazi's or Rolf's betrayal.)
We are singing and talking about it.
She lets me know which shows she likes, and which ones she wants more of.
She dances like the new “stomp in the yard-style" sketches in Sesame Street. (It is hilarious to see!) And she ends with a resounding “SIX!”, just like they do.
She waves her finger in the air, counting the 12 ladybugs at the “lady bug’s picnic” (it is impossible to keep up with the rapid fire pace of that song, even for an adult, but we love the motions of it.) “they had a jump rope, but the rope, it broke, so they all sat around telling knock-knock jokes… Lady bugs 12, at the ladybug’s picnic.”
Her little fist ‘knock-knocking’ on the door in anticipation. And her faux ‘giggle’ at the “jokes” untold.
She understands that there was no joke told. But laughs anyway.

And who wouldn't want to watch Sound of Music?
"Coo coo. Coo coo."
"Say good night to you."

Chalenge 10, Fat Quarter

In honor of Mardi Gras (in the Quarter, Fat Tuesday...) we were asked to make something out of a "Fat Quarter". This is a quilting term for fabric that is 18 x 22.
We were allowed to use other things, and embellishments, but the measurements could not exceed the Fat Quarter.

I got stuck in a 'quilting' space, and needed to snap out of it. Because, as we know, it is not realistic for me to do a quilt in a week. And, you cannot make a quilt out of just one piece of fabric.

So I thought about fabric in general. And struck upon the idea of using mesh to make a caddy to hold the bath toys.

I got 22 inches of mesh. (which, is sold by the bolt in a section called "utility fabrics". It is there next to ticking, and the fabric with the little tiny rubber dots that is on the bottom of baby footie pajamas.)
And I got some orange ric rac. While the bag is smallish, the ric rac is HUGE. So they create a funny, animated pair.

This could not be easier to make.
Take your mesh, sew the sides and the bottom. Fold a tiny bit down at the top, and sew the ric-rac around.


Done.

The piece hangs in the tub on some suction cups with hooks on them.

Here is in action.

Excellent. Washable. Quick drying.
And, pretty cute.

Twirling

There have been missed naps, snuffled, snorting, interrupted sleep, and no group activities for a while now.
We ventured out today.

And I caught this shot of the "happy dance" with Bernie.
Sweet.
If only they sold naps! Man, would that be popular!!

Summer Holiday!

We're all goin' on a
Summer Holiday.... !!!

My English Husband introduced me to Cliff Richard's movies. The highlight in the set is a musical called Summer Holiday.
A twenty-something and his mates get a double decker bus, and convert it into a 'camper' of sorts, for a road trip. Then they convince a beautiful set of girls to come with them. (Of course they do.)
If I had the resources (unlimited resources) I would invest in seeing this concept bus through to being built:


I took my inspiration from the bus itself.
And made this tea towel.


It is funny how similar the mechanics of this project to the freezer paper stencil.

This time though, I was smart enough to pick a something a little more solid.



I am really excited about how this came out.

It will be interesting to see if the applique adheres, or if I need to go back in and do some embroidery as well. But for now, I like the simplicity of it.

Deflated

I was working on my project and I had the iron out. (The tiny one was asleep, and properly contained, and no where near.)
The hot iron got a little too close to Rody, the inflated pony.

Whoopsie!
Dang it.


I'm not sure if he can be patched. I'm not sure if he should be, really.
We'll see. (We'll ask the car guy. He knows a thing or two about patching rubber.)