Walking in the Woods

This weekend, the wee ones and I traveled across the state to visit my parents at their Wisconsin property - 100 acres of gorgeous woods, complete with a creek and private island. We were able to spend two of three days enjoying the outdoors. Here's a brief peek at what we saw.

These rather unusual flora find was located by my dad, who knew I had been out searching earlier for mosses for an upcoming project. My dad, sister and I are unsure if it is a type of moss or perhaps some sort of fern. It is a very soft plant that grows a couple of inches off of the ground, but also sends roots down off of long shoots. Any guesses?

There was also a never ending variety of mushrooms - something most of you likely know I just love! I especially dig shelf mushrooms and we were able to find some the size of dinner plates!



Isaac also had a wonderful time trekking through the woods and discovering nuts, berries and some fungus of his own!


It was wonderful to see Isaac excited about exploring the outdoors with his grandpa, learning about different types of animals and their habitats as well as different types of flora from those under our feet to that above our heads. I have many good memories of exploring the forest with my dad when I was Isaac's age. It's something special today, watching my dad interact with his grandson and knowing he once interacted in a similar fashion with me and my siblings.

I am always humbled by the great beauty found in all the small details in nature and these pictures are no exception.

Upside down fungi.

Worm tracks under bark.

Welcoming Fall

Today I am thankful for:

• The love of my children. Nothing better in the world ... nothing.
• The beautiful fall colors, which although I missed most of, are hanging on just a little longer.
• The smell of a Mediterranean Fig soy candle burning in an antique silver-rimmed teacup (a gift from my sister).
• Breastfeeding my daughter successfully for nearly 8 months (she's never had a drop of formula).
• The wonderful communities on Etsy, Flickr and Twitter, which are a daily source of inspiration.

What are you thankful for today?

Found in the Forest

Managed to snag a treasury this evening and put together a nice selection of items inspired by the forest. Please click here to visit these wonderful artists and click through to show your love.

Time to finish up the Halloween costumes and start working on stock for an upcoming craft fair (in two weeks - yikes!). Have a great night everyone!

Back in action!

Yes, this wonderful pink log cabin style block means I'm back! Finally feeling somewhat human after what seems like the longest sickness ever. And, as it turns out, not the H1N1 virus.

I have a very small amount of this lovely Heather Ross bicycle print that I've been hoarding for this exact purpose (to be the center of some log cabin blocks). I am attempting to make two 20x20 inch pillows - with hidden zippers - for the living room. So far, this block measures about 10x10 inches, but it's well on it's away. I'm proud to say that it's all from my scrap bin thus far. Perhaps tomorrow I'll have time enough to finish it. I have never attempted a log cabin style block before and I always assumed it would time consuming and boring ... however, I'm pleased to say I couldn't be more wrong ... I can see how creating them could become something of an addiction!

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I have spent a good four hours today sewing two pilgrim costumes for my son and daughter's daycare provider. Her granddaughter and her little friend will be trick-or-treating as little girls just off the boat. I'd rather be playing with my designer prints in my stash... but this helps pay some bills, and that's always good!

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I couldn't resist posting this picture of Hannah from earlier in the week. She was just as excited as I to open our Fabric.com order and comb through the yards of fabric inside. Little did I know, she just wanted the box itself! We'll be getting another delivery soon as I have to order some Peltex II and the only place I can find it online is through Fabric.com. It's out of stock until the 30th, but I need a couple yards when it comes in, in order to make some really fun fabric luggage tags.

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Due to her own illness, Hannah spent a fair amount of time in the tub last week because it was simply easier than trying to clean up messes with wipes. She enjoyed every minute of splashing and playing in the water ... and I enjoyed capturing it!

And I owe a huge thank you to everyone who has helped me out this past week while I've been sick and dealing with sick kids. Your help has been hugely appreciated - Thank You!

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And, if I haven't lost you already, check out this great treasury by ArtByTheCat, featuring my Prayer print.

Still out sick

It appears it never ends. Since we last spoke, my sore throat has been relieved, only to be replaced by a wicked sinus infection. And to compound that, I likely have some sort of viral infection. I'll find out Friday if it's the notorious H1N1 virus or another strain of the flu. In the meantime, I'm loading up on Tamiflu, fluids and chicken noodle soup.

You know you're sick when you're too exhausted to even surf crafty blogs and cyber shop for fabric. I'm there.

Haven't fallen off the face of the earth

... just dealing with sick children for the past two weeks. Now, to top it off... I've finally come down with something. And the baby as well. Again. Son, he's sick too but doing leaps and bounds better than the girls in the house. Antibiotics for two of us. Lot of rest. Even more snuggling. Chicken soup. Throat lozenges. Tea with honey.

... we'll be back full strength in a couple days. :)

I actually won a giveaway!

Many thanks to Chara from Sew Click Create, who offered this giveaway a little while back - I was one of three lucky winners. She sent me out 10 different fat quarters from Pink Chalk Fabrics, as well as a cute card, some fabric deco tape and a neat bookplate sticker! It feels like I enter and enter things, not so much hoping to win, but more because I love letting other artists know that I'm out there looking and appreciating what they're creating. So, it was a huge surprise to hear that I'd actually won something for a change! I have a couple ideas for some of the fat quarters, so you'll have to check back in to see what they become!

And in the mean time, please go check out Chara's blog and her photography work - it's absolutely stunning! For those looking for some gorgeous pictures of a new fabric store in the Seattle area, check out her latest post here. Enjoy!

Lenny the Guinea Pig

This little Guinea Pig, named Lenny, climbed into bed with my 6-year-old son Isaac last night. When he awoke this morning, he was delighted to find his new friend! So much so, that I couldn't wrestle him away from him for church this morning. And apparently Lenny had a little too much fun at church because he now requires a few small repairs!

This is one of many softie patterns offered by Bit of Whimsy Dolls. She is currently offering her patterns at 1/2 off through tonight to celebrate over 5,000 sales on Etsy. I also own Molly the Monkey and can attest to their awesomeness! They are all well-written and easy to follow.

Isaac loves Lenny the Guinea Pig so much that he's asked for a new Lenny every year (so he can amass a Lenny collection!). I'm going to make a pink version of Lenny (maybe call her Lenora) for my 7-month-old daughter soon!

Mail-swapping Fun

I recently completed the 5-inch Noodle Fabric Strip Swap on Swap-bot - hosted by I'm Just a Guy Who Quilts.

I had never heard of Swap-bot until I was looking for places to list my Project Wonderful ad and saw that was a blog that had a huge following. I checked it out and was instantly hooked. I've done a fair number of fat quarter swaps outside of something like Swap-bot and have been surprised at how some people just flake regarding sending their fabric. An organized site, with rating system, holds people accountable for their commitments and allows for fewer flakers, which I'm sure everyone agrees is best.

Interestingly, I'd never heard the term "noodle" until I signed up for this swap. I must admit - I liked the idea of buying one yard of fabric, cutting it into 6 five-inch strips, keeping one and sending five out (getting five in return). Those 5-inch strips are very versatile - cut them in half again and you've got two strips 2 1/2 inches by 44 inches (perfect for log cabin squares) or cut them in triangles and you've get a bunch of 5-inch triangles for other quilting projects. They also lend themselves nicely to coin quilts.

I haven't decided what to use mine for yet, but I thought I'd share what I received. I sent the orange spirograph-looking fabric on the bottom. It's a fun print that is reminiscent of those spirographs I had as a child - hours of fun spinning a pen and a piece of plastic across paper!
Surprisingly, most of the fabric I received coordinates. I also received two pieces of batik fabric, of which I have none in my stash (one piece was an extra thrown in with another piece).

If you haven't checked out Swap-bot, I'd encourage it. I've found some great swaps so far, including a chocolate bar swap (I sent one to Findland and found a new favorite chocolate bar - Chocolove's Carmelized Ginger in Dark), a Street Cred Builder swap (fun, fun!) and a fat quarter vintage sheet swap (of which I'm signed up for the next three months of!).

If you'd like to sign up for the next round of 5-inch fabric strips, you have until Oct. 9th (and two more weeks to get your fabric out). Check it out here!

Weekend Sewing: Handmade Home

This weekend I whipped up these Treasure Bags from Handmade Home by Amanda Blake Soule (aka soulemama.com). My six-year-old son Isaac chose the fabrics - Groovy Guitars by Alexander Henry and a fun black/white/grey print we got at Joann's. The mesh for the bags is an upcycled window screen, purchased for 99 cents at Habitat ReStore (enough for 3 bags, actually). Isaac's little sister, Hannah, will be getting a pink version of the Treasure Bag in the future.

One bag is being filled with goodies and shipped off to cousin Ethan for his birthday, and the other Isaac will use to fill with treasures collected off the shores of Lake Michigan where we live.

I'm so pleased with how they turned out. Amanda's directions were spot-on and they came together very well. I did decided to make my own handles to match the bias tape I'd made for the top, which the pattern didn't call for. It didn't take me the better part of an afternoon, as described, but I suppose I'm a pretty quick sewer.

Handmade Home is chock full of wonderful examples of how to repurpose found fabrics into wonderful accessories for the home. If you get a chance, check it out - or better yet, buy it. This is one you'll be happy to have in your library for years to come!

If you want to see what others are making from the book, check out the Handmade Home Flickr group here. Happy crafting!

Mmm... blueberries!

Magic Window - 78 yards handspun yarn by SpringtreeRoad

Check out this yummy yarn by SpringtreeRoad on Etsy. Inspired by the blueberry muffins I made earlier this morning, I searched Etsy using the term "blueberry" and found this wonderful shop.

I must admit, I'm a huge texture person: I eat food and crave food based more on texture than taste. I cannot walk past anything interesting without reaching out and touching it. One of the reasons I enjoy working with fabric so much is because I like how it all feels different and like combining different textures together to make something tactile-y delicious. So, one would reason then, that I would like to knit and have a vast selection of different yarn.

Unfortunately, that isn't the case. I cannot knit to save my life. I don't think I can even cast on. I've tried. I did - at one time years ago - know how to crochet, but that seems locked in a part of my brain I cannot access any longer. I've tried to relearn and it just seems foreign to me. So, for my birthday, my mom got me the cutest little knit-your-own owl stuffy, which requires much more than a simple knit one - purl one technique. She promises to help me learn and I truly hope I can because then I can start lusting after yarn like the skein above.

Knitting just seems like such a wonderful thing to do to keep one's hands busy, while being productive at the same time. And there are just so many things I would love to be able to knit, especially now, for my little girl.

In the mean time, I'll just cyber shop for yarn. Here's some great ones:

1. Getting Cozy - 77 Yards by WoolyHands
2. Merino Bamboo Sock Yarn - Smitten Boo - Summer Lilac by StrickenSmitten
3. Pacific Mist Corespun Merino Bamboo Blend 58 Yards Bulky by SimplyTwisted
4. Handspun Handpainted Shetland/Baby Alpaca/Merino Yarn by WhorledPeace

Hannah - 6 months

My baby girl is growing and growing. It seems like just the other day I was feeling her roll around my tummy ... and sometimes it seems like those moments were forever ago. I love being a new mom all over again and having the opportunity to really appreciate and enjoy all those little things I feel like I missed the first time around. Sometimes it seems as if I don't get out the camera enough because we're just so busy living, so I am vowing to make more of an effort to get some baby shoots in there, before I end up with very few pictures of her at this stage.

I love these shots from this morning. She looks so tiny, yet inquisitive. And utterly beautiful.

Crafty time with the boy

It's been a long two days around here and this is the first fun we've really had - playing with clay and old metal type. Thursday night, Isaac crawled into bed with me and complained he didn't feel good. I figured it was just an excuse to snuggle - which I'll always take as they're few and far between at age 6. However, when I tried to get him up for school Friday morning, he insisted he couldn't go, despite having an all-day field trip he'd looked forward to every day for the past two weeks. So, I knew he was really sick. By midday, with Tylenol, his fever climbed to 104.5 and I took him to the pediatrician. I told her I suspected he had strep throat, because he was complaining of a sore throat and two children at daycare were recently treated for that. However, even before running a culture, she said she felt he had the H1N1 virus, and if so, would be the first case of it she'd seen here. In the end, they didn't test specifically for that because insurance apparently won't cover the $500 test unless the patient is within the high risk group (under 2 or over 65). The strep came back negative, of course. So, we're treating it like it's the Swine Flu and Isaac's sister Hannah, who is only 6 months, is on Tamaflu as a preventative for 10 days.

By this morning, Isaac was feeling much better and Hannah doesn't appear to be sick. So, while she was taking her afternoon nap and Isaac was forced to stay inside to avoid possibly getting the neighbors sick, we decided to have some fun with polymer clay and some old metal type I've had for a good year now. We made little round circles of clay and stamped the type into them. Isaac spelled his name, made another with a ton of exclamation points and just played around!

I am thinking these would make some really wonderful gift tags for holidays and have some crafty ideas rattling around my brain now! This clay is meant to be painted and glazed after it is baked, so there were no worries about the printing ink coming off on the clay.

Isaac and I also made a variety of other whimsical shapes. I made some funny houses, mushrooms, logs, flowers and other woodland items that I might use to decorate terrariums and he made a variety of shapes I hope I will be able to identify once he paints them - but that's part of the fun ... never knowing what you're going to end up with! I am honored to have a thumb print of his 6 year old hand forever encased in clay for me to remember how tiny his fingers were (Top center of the picture below).

And now it's 10 o'clock. Dinner is cooked and cleaned up, baby is peacefully sleeping, the big boy is sleeping and I'm sitting at the computer with my hot cup of tea with honey and some wonderful Ginger Thin cookies, blogging and searching for inspiration.

I hope your weekend is just as lovely!

Friday Find on Etsy - Fall Fashion

Now that it's getting a tad colder out - here finally, anyways - it's time to start thinking about some cozy layers and new tweaks to your wardrobe. Here's my selections to ramp up your fall fashions and even a couple for the little ones thrown in! Enjoy!


1. Cookie Scarf by Jill2Day.
2. Appliqued T-shirt with Deer Head by FinleyandOliver.
3. Made to order recycled fiber hat by Cocoondesigns.
4. Brown truffle fingerless reptile pattern wool gloves by Corrugatedfiber.


1. Organic Brown Chocolate Long Skirt by Mylittleaura.
2. Cozy for Chilly Fall by Littlebrown.
3. Fall Collection - Ruffles in grey with leather strap shoulder bag by lovejanice.
4. Acorn necklace in silver and concrete by lulubugjewelry.

Children's self portraits

My 6-year-old son took this self portrait earlier this summer with his camera (a Canon G3 digital point and shoot). It does allow for full manual control, which is what I believe he had it set on while taking this picture. All I did was turn it into a black/white image in Photoshop. I love how his eyes stand out most in this picture, which is one of his best physical traits as far as this mama is concerned.

However, perhaps my son's best trait is one that you cannot see. Tuesday, while dropping him off at school, a teacher I did not know stopped me and asked if I was Isaac's mom. I proudly told her yes. She went on to explain that she sees Isaac quite a bit throughout the day and is so impressed with his eternally optimistic attitude and his ability to see the good in everyone and every situation. She said he encourages other students to keep trying and reassures them that they're doing a good job when he senses their doubt. She told me that this is both rare and special in children and his father and I should continue to do everything we can to nurture this.

While hearing that Isaac is an exceptionally thoughtful young boy wasn't a surprise - his father and I comment often on just how caring, considerate and kind he is - I was so pleased to know that others see this in him as well and think enough of him to mention it to me. Some moments with Isaac that stand out are:

• Telling his grandma that she's a good baseball player ("You're doing really good Grandma! That was a good try," he'd say), even though she can't throw a ball to save her life (sorry mom!)
• He is utterly appalled that people litter ... on the side of the road, on the sidewalks and on the beaches. ("Why would somebody do that?" he will ask, and suggest we pick it up. "We should put that in a garbage can where it goes.")
• The first - and only time - he accidentally hurt his baby sister by kneeling on her finger, causing her to cry. His little chin and lip began to tremble and he cried, so upset with the thought that something he had done, while an accident, had caused her pain. His total concern for her was so moving to me.

And that's what I see when I look into those beautiful eyes - a very thoughtful, kind soul of a child who desires to make this world a little brighter place. I am so very proud to be his mama.