for my niece

Ever since my first niece (the daughter of Benjamin's oldest brother) was born a few months after Little Man arrived, I've been enjoying making fun and girly projects for her. When we found out that Benjamin's second brother and his wife are also having a little girl who is due to arrive in June, I was thrilled to have another little niece for whom to make girly things. The fact that I'm having a little girl of my own hasn't diminished my crafty enthusiasm.

I have a couple more things I'd like to craft for this newest niece before I mail her package, but here are the things I have completed already.

When I saw a cute little sunflower-adorned baby hat on Etsy, I just knew I had to make one similar for this niece. Her mama can pull off a cute hat like no other plus she loves sunflowers, so the combination seemed like a match made in heaven.

I had so much fun finding the hat pattern, perfecting my alterations to make it just what I envisioned, and making up my own sunflowers pattern. It quite lives up to what my brain envisioned.

The second gift that I have already completed is a blanket very similar to the one I made for Brother. I love having the warmth from the two layers of flannel without the bulk that batting adds. Plus the simple construction (just ten pieces) makes for a blanket that goes together quickly.

I hope my new little niece will get lots of use from the things her Aunt Christina loves making and (perhaps more importantly) that my sister- and brother-in-law will enjoy them too.

new van + daddy's helpers

One significant part of our recent lives that I have failed to mention here was our search for and acquisition of a new-to-us mini-van. My trusty little car (the one I've been driving since I was sixteen) died a sad death in early January, leaving us with only one car and the knowledge that finding a mini-van that would fit our growing family was no longer a back-burner project.

Now, searching for an affordable car in good condition with low mileage is not a piece of cake. Especially since we live in a small, remotish community in which the used car options are not plentiful. It's a long story, but here's the shortest version I can come up with:

We found what we thought would be the perfect van for us at a dealership only an hour away only to be disappointed by a pushy salesman and a refusal to sell us the vehicle we wanted at the advertised price. Instead, he tried to push a vehicle we didn't want down our throats (not literally, of course). We were very disappointed. Weeks later we were about to go back and agree to pay the unreasonable price since nothing else had come up. Much to our surprise, though, we found another van at a different dealership that we had somehow missed in our earlier search. They were eager to get it off the lot before the end of the month, and so we got a much better van for a much better price along with much better treatment from the salesman and company in general. The only con, really, was having to drive three hours to get it instead of one, something we were glad to do considering what we got.

I still marvel at God's wonderful provision for us. He answered so many prayers through the whole process and gave much wisdom. I'm deeply grateful.

I'll finish with a few photos I snapped of the boys helping Benjamin wash the new van. They were very zealous (though sometimes impulsive) little helpers and with some more experience will soon be pros at helping wash the car.

[Little Man loved using the hose to spray it off.]

[all three of my guys hard at work]

[Brother was happy to get in on drying it]

Now we're all ready to transport our growing family more than comfortably. Bring on the soccer-momming, I say. : )

more crochet love

I am not the only one who is crazy about crochet around here. Little Man seems to have caught my excitement. After sitting in my lap one day and gripping the hook with me, he decided to try it himself. He'll ask enthusiastically: "Mom! Can I crochet?" Most the time I say "yes" because he's very careful, and he sits down, grips the crochet hook and baby hat with a great deal of intense concentration, and mutters something like "loop, hook, go around, grab here" as he stabs the hat with the hook.

He's very cute. And since he's also pretty smart, I suspect that one of these days, I'll pick up my work only to realize there are a few random stitches that I did not put there.

Oh, and just to keep it real, I have already had him come to me guiltily and confess: "Mom, I cut your yarn." Fortunately the damage was minimal, and we both learned from the experience.

crochet love

Ever since I learned to knit, I have liked knitting more than I liked crocheting. However, the recent experience of spending hours working on a sweater (counting, looking up techniques on YouTube, ripping out, and trying again and again) yet having to abandon the project due to choosing a bad pattern has left me extremely discouraged about knitting. I just feel tired of basic scarfs and washcloths yet frustrated and overwhelmed about moving on. I'm sure I'll come back to knitting someday since I really do love so many aspects of it, I'm just (like I said) discouraged.

In the meantime, however, I have discovered (to my surprise!) that I can successfully read and implement simple crochet patterns. Being able to just pick up the tools I had on hand and make something lovely and quick and successful with yarn has done wonders for my confidence, and I've been really enjoying crochet these days!

It all started while I was searching Etsy for cute, handmade baby girl accessories. You know, just because I'm going a little crazy here about the girl stuff. I found all these adorable crochet hats and was even considering purchasing one/some until I gulped at the $25-$30 price tag. Now I know that it's not an unreasonable price to pay for something handmade, but considering that I could hand make it for so much less...

Long story short I signed up for a Ravelry account, found some fabulous free baby hat patterns there, bought some cotton yarn, and went to town. I have since made many baby hats. They're quick and fun (I can make one in an evening), and I can give them as gifts or sell them at farmers' market this summer. Here are a few that I've completed so far:

[this one will probably be for Sweet Pea]

[the little boy hats are cute too]

[I like this fluffy white one with a pink border.]

[one of several crochet flowers that I love to make]

[my second crocheted baby hat ever]

I have already gifted one of these cute little hats and am continuing making them at break-neck (well, at least arm-cramp) speed. I'm sure you'll see a few more as time goes on. Plus I even became oh, so bold and began a tiny pink sweater for Sweet Pea. We'll see how that one goes...

eucharisteo calligraphy

Mum has been reading the book One Thousand Gifts to me (no, I haven't outgrown listening to her read, and I hope I never do). In it the author shares her story of finding true and lasting joy through giving thanks to God in every part of life--not only the sweet, lovely times but also the messy and even hideous ones.

The entire book has been a deep encouragement to me, impacting my point of view profoundly, sending me searching to perceive the world through lenses of Divine perception rather than the blur of human reasoning. I wanted to capture something of this awakening in my word art. Something to crystallize my thoughts, to remind my forgetful heart of what I learned. This is what I made:

As the book explained, the Greek word Eucharisteo means to give thanks. Its root word is grace, which is etymologically linked with the word joy. I used dark grey water colors to write the rough outline of the Greek word "eucharisteo" forming the background for the English words "Grace," "Thanks," and "Joy," which I made in three fonts with various pens and ink.

It is a strong visual reminder to me that giving thanks to the Great Giver through the grace He gives results in deep, inexplicable joy. It transforms places of messy, overwhelming chaos into havens of beauty and order.

Grace. Thanks. Joy. I am grateful for the taste I have already been given and strain eagerly ahead for more.

organizing

Last week I did some much needed organizing in my craft area. It felt so good to organize my fabric, get rid of pieces and scraps I will most likely never use, and put away the miscellaneous tools and left over bits of projects that had accumulated. Between cutting out bibs from my collection of old pants (I cut out 34 bib fronts from them!) and getting rid of the excess denim, removing and saving only the usable sections of wool from my collection of old suit coats, and getting rid of that big bag of fabric, my fabric now all fits in six medium boxes and on a small shelf!

I'm very pleased with my tidy work area and have already been putting it to good use. (Project photos to come!) Hopefully my zeal for cleaning, organizing and downsizing will not stop with my project area, though I suspect it will stall for a little while as I do some more enjoying of the cleanliness of this part of my house.

thrifted

look at what I found

while I was out thrifting last week

it's a pink miramar casserole dish

produced sometime

in the 50's

since it only cost me a few cents

i decided to get it in spite of a few chips

later i discovered

that a chip-free one on Etsy

costs $35

so i feel quite delighted

with my bargain

price aside though

i simply love it

it's cute and small

with such delightful details

and is tinted just the right shade of pink

monday menu

This week we are going to try the interesting experiment of ovo-lacto-vegetarianism. There is no deep philosophy or lifestyle conviction behind this experiment, and it will probably not last longer than a week or possibly two. We simply thought it would be interesting to try something new. All that said, here's what we're cooking! My mom chose Monday and Thursday's dinners, and I planned all the rest.

M-orange scented chili

T-pancakes, omelettes, fresh fruit

W-fresh pita bread with hummus and assorted veggies

Th-warm quinoa and roasted vegetable salad with tuscan beans and green

F-wild mushroom pasta with broccoli

What are you making this week?

addicting

I began writing this post a loooong time ago (last November, to be precise) and never got around to finishing and publishing it. For now I've moved on from making flower pins, but I'll come back to them. In the meantime, here are the ones I made last autumn.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Guess what. I love making fabric flower pins. They are so quick and fun, and they're the perfect hand-sewing project for those moments when I don't have time or energy to deal with the sewing machine.

I've been excitedly making left over fabric scraps that I would have thrown away into flowers, flowers, and more flowers. Most of them I attach to a pin.

Some the tiny flowers, though, I attached to itty-bitty hair clips for baby shower and first birthday gifts for friends' little girls.

And then I couldn't resist making some larger flower-embellished hair clips to give to my cutie-pie niece for Christmas.

And then I made a bunch more from upcycled wool scraps and bits of yarn. (Oh, and a random carnation-y one out of flannel.)

These quick flowers are so fun to make, and I can think of so many uses for them that I find myself quite addicted.

journey images

Little Man spontaneously began calling our recent 2,000 mile road trip to Oregon a "journey," which I thought was quite appropriate. Here are a few of my favorite shots from the trip. (Ahem, uh, what I mean is that this is a long, photo-y post; please bear with me.)

ducks (those black specks)

on the Columbia River

just one fragment of the stunningly beautiful Columbia River Gorge

Little Man was thrilled to watch the big equipment

that was working just across the street

from one of our lunch stops.

barn and trees

Little Man and Grandma

at an elk view point

near Elkton, Oregon

(who would have thought?) : )

Grandpa and Brother at the elk view point.

(I used to ride like this when I was much smaller;

brings back memories.)

lopsided bull at the elk viewpoint

(hooray for long camera lenses!)

Little Man and Grandma at the Pacific Ocean

Brother and Grandpa and the Pacific Ocean

(It was Brother's first exposure to the ocean; he loved it!)

Sweet Pea and me at the ocean.

walking back to the car

drift wood

bridge beams

two of my friend's tiny goats

(these little fellows were just four days old)

Brother was enchanted.

Little Man loved them too.

boat and bridge on the Umpqua River