A Productive Day

It's funny what constitutes a productive day around here.  Something crossed off my to-do list.  A small corner of the house cleaned up and organized.  A sewing project finished.  I've actually had a couple productive days around here lately.

And while getting car in to be serviced this morning (oil change, sunroof and wiper blade recall) let me check something off my to-do list, I was even more excited to finish my first sewing project for Christmas.  Yes, 10 days before Christmas and I am just starting those sewing projects.  But that's how it works around here.  And they are all relatively small projects.  And none of them are necessary - except for the giant sheep cushion which I will start tonight.

Back for Ollie's birthday, I started a pair of sheep pajamas.  They weren't finished in time.  The bottoms were ready so I paired them with an appliqued T and he was happy.  He has been waiting, though, for the complete set.  I finally made the top.  Now I just need to sneak the bottoms out of his closet (they have jumped into his regular pants rotation) and wrap them up for Christmas Eve.  Check Handmade Gift #1 off my list.

** I actually made the top and bottom from two different Oliver + S Patterns.  The bottoms are from the older Bedtime Story Pajamas pattern and the top is from the newer Sleepover Pajamas pattern.  Love them both - and still learn something new everytime I sew with one.  Understitching?  Who new?!

Moving Forward

The sun has been missing around here for a while. It's been grey and pretty gloomy.  But I have been plodding along.  Feeling like I am getting things accomplished but at a slower rate than I would like.  I will focus on the 'getting things accomplished'.  Including multiple trips to get things out of the house.  So while I don't feel like I'm checking things off my list, I do feel like I am moving forward.  And for that, right now, I am happy.

Here are some of the things happening around here this week:

On my kindle: Buddha in the Attic  This is not a book I would have ever picked up on my own, but I am loving it.  It is heartbreaking and fascinating at the same time, told in a style I couldn't imagine a whole book in that somehow works.  Now I want to go learn more about this whole wave of Japanese mailorder brides.

In my kitchen: Super Natural Every Day  I made the two cookie recipes last weekend.  The carnival cookies (with peanuts, chocolate chips, and popcorn!) were healthy and fabulously yummy.  The Dad is already asking when I am going to make the Ginger Cookies again.  Yum.

In the shop: Posting is going slowly since we are so short on great light.  I did manage to get the velveteen and voile scarves posted.  And a great sheep dress that I had actually made for Art Star.  When I packed up for the show, I couldn't figure out why I was short a 12 mo. dress.  It drove me crazy trying to figure out where I miscounted.  When the show was over and I returned home on the third evening, Ollie took me by the hand up to the office.  He wanted to 'show me something'.  He pulled the missing dress, this sheep dress, out from under the bed.  He loved the fabric too much and didn't want me to sell it.  "Ollie, you can't wear this dress."  "I know, but you can cut it up and make me something."  Um, No.  This boy loves sheep.  Wait 'til he sees what Santa is bringing him.

Conversations about Santa: Ollie is convinced that Santa is going to bring him a machine that makes stuffed sheep.  One with a pedal that you push.  That screws to the wall.  I tried explaining that Santa probably couldn't bring that for him.  In tears, he cried "But Mama, Santa can make anything.  And he has his elves to help him."  The Dad is convinced that we can come up with something...  We still have two and a half weeks.

A Yummy, Treaty Recipe

Last night we were all wanting something "treaty" after dinner.

This has become my go-to, ready-in-a-moment treat over the last couple months.

Adapted from the Happy Herbivore's Instant Cookie Dough recipe, it is just that perfect combination:

1 cup rolled oats
2 T cocoa powder
2 T almond butter (or any other nut butter)
2 T maple syrup (even better with the dark Grade B)
1 cup frozen berries (blueberries or raspberries are our favorites - the photos are of a batch with crushed up
 raspberries)

Mix the oats, cocoa, almond butter, and maple syrup together until fully blended.  Then stir in the frozen berries.  Great both right away and later after sitting in the fridge.  The kids like it as a treat in their lunchboxes, too.

Yum.

December 1

Tomorrow is December 1st.

The Dad reminds me, on a somewhat regular basis, that it has been scientifically proven that writing down your goals increases your chances of accomplishing them.

I don't think he means the multitude of To-Do Lists that I create, scatter, replicate, and misplace every day.

Tomorrow I am beginning a 6-month experiment project. I am thinking of it as 6 months of homemaking.  Of domestication.  But really?  6 months of trying to make the life that I really want to be living.  A lot of it has to do with the state of our house, but it also is about how I spend my time, how I feed my family, and how I create the home that I really want to be raising my children in.

For my own sake, I am breaking it into monthly chunks.  With goals for each month. And writing those goals down here - since that make me more likely to accomplish them, right?

1. Go room by room through our house and get rid of anything that is extraneous - the clutter, the things we don't use or need anymore (and maybe never did).  For this I am inspired by William Morris - "Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful." and Kim John Payne's Simplicity Parenting.  The organizing and decorating will come later - for starters I just need to purge.

2. Eat a 100% plant-based diet for 30 days.  After reading some great books like this and this, I have been eating this way 80-90% of the time for the last eight months.  I'd like to go all the way for the next 30 days and see if it is something that is truly sustainable (and helpful) for me.

3. Sew at least one thing for Ella and Ollie for Christmas.  I spent September through mid-November cramming for the Art Star Craft Bazaar.  I am really looking forward to doing some sewing for my family.  I've got a gazillion patterns I want to try.  And a request for a giant (!) stuffed sheep pillow from the little boy who thinks I can make anything.

4. Spend at least one hour every day doing something for eieio. It could be sewing. It could be photographing or posting in my shop.  I have the habit of just feeling burnt out after a big show, letting my shop fall to the wayside and not capitalizing on the momentum and publicity.  I don't want to let that happen again.

I think that's enough.  Wish me luck!

Recovering

I think we are all recovering from the last couple days right now.

Art Star was a great success and a really fun weekend.  I met some cool people, purchased a fabulous set of prints, saw some repeat customers, and was reminded repeatedly why I do this.  And then I got home to face the aftermath.  Hmmm... 

Next up, Thanksgiving.  And my 20th (Eek!) High School Reunion.  And lots of thought and discussion about balance and benefit.  While I will keep sewing, I will also be starting on a new project when we return home: Six Months of Homemaking.

One of the things I love about reading some of the crafty/family/lifestyle blogs out there is the inspiration.  They help me clarify how I really want to be living my life.  I've been doing a lot of soul searching (while sewing, mostly) since the kids went back to school and I've found some focus lately.  And some motivation.

About eight months ago, I totally changed the way I eat.  Cold Turkey.  And it has had amazing effects on all of us.  Monday, I am changing the way I spend my days.  And I am hoping it will have an even greater effect.  There are multiple pieces to the equation.  I'm guessing they will be factored in slowly.  But it will happen.  And life will change.  And really, I'm so excited.

I figure the more I write about it here, the more likely I am to stick with it.  Some come visit!  Leave a comment!  Suggestions, questions, all are welcome.  I'm diving in.

habit

She turned seven and a half today.  Which means I have been home for seven and a half years.  Sometimes I worry I've forgotten how to hold a grown-up conversation...

Inspired by habit.

Holiday Art Star Craft Bazaar - This Weekend!

Down to the wire, as usual, I am still making just a couple more things.  And awaiting the arrival of the rest of my hangtags...  that are supposed to arrive on Thursday, just in time to price and attach for Friday.  No, I've never been a procrastinator...

I'm so excited for this show, though.  I've had so much fun at the Spring shows that I've done.  They do such a good job and draw such an eclectic group of people.  If you are anywhere near Philly this weekend, definitely come and check it out!  The very first Holiday Art Star Craft Bazaar at the 23rd St. Armory.  Parking may be difficult, but it is just a couple blocks from 30th St. Station - I, personally, will opt for Septa Saturday and Sunday mornings.

If you go, make sure you come say Hi!  I will be at Booth #16 along the back wall.  Can't Wait!

As excited as I am, though, I may be even more excited about what will come after Art Star.  Things are going to change around here, with a shift of focus.  And no, I'm not pregnant.  I just feel like I spent the last two months cramming, to the detriment of the rest of my home, and am excited about some solutions I'm planning to remedy that.  6 months of solutions.  Stay Tuned...

Business - Busyness

This is one of those weeks where there just doesn't seem to be enough time to stop (or even slow down) and play.  I am in full swing gearing up for the Holiday Art Star Craft Bazaar and a smaller local fundraiser the weekend before.

The kids are out of sorts - Ella yearning for a pet (more about that later) and Ollie just soaking up all Kindergarten has to offer faster than his little brain can handle.

So I have to remind myself to slow down.  To slow everybody down.

I get carried away at this point in the process.  Where it feels all about production - I think it carries over from the studio into the flow of our days, which really isn't much fun for anyone.

This afternoon we will play, read, and do a little bit of homework.  With my undivided attention, which is really what they want need.

A Smile in My Latte

Happy Friday!

One Last Weekend of Summer

Somehow, on our fall trip to New England, we encountered one last weekend of summer.

 

While mornings had a chill, the days were clear, blue, and hot.

Perfect for a walk to the beach, dipping hands (and feet) into the water, collecting shells, and finding their first live spitting clams.

We ate ice cream and found ourselves sunburned at the end of the day.

 

We fell into bed salty and exhausted, just as it should be.