Somebody's Birthday

The cupcakes are done. I did also find some pretty perfect gifts, like this toy - and Peter Pan on DVD. We let Thomas open his presents early due to our schedule this week, and he played with the truck for most of the night. ...He'll bring the cupcakes to school tomorrow. (Yes, those cupcake cups do have Lightning McQueen on them. How cool is that?)

Oh, and this might not concern you until you look a bit closer...


...You know the stuff you are feeding your children is just terrific when it "will remain fresh indefinitely." Hmm...

Aching to Make

These are just a few of the BEST CRAFT IDEAS EVER. I really have to learn how to make these things:

A little, and I mean little snowman - and so many other too-cute yet seemingly impossible mini-knits by knit_purr, like this mini paintbrush...
An origami ball - I like the idea of using newspaper or sheet music...
Toy balls...
Paper globes - for when I need something super simple and have the urge to specially select some beautiful papers...
What I really dream of doing when I start playing with fabric - Really...
Something useful, for which I already purchased the toile...
Something festive and partially in progress already - I have my own version in mind...
Another something super cute for Easter - Just about the only thing cuter is a baby's smile, and even that might be a close call...
Paper garland -this was store bought, but I would like to create my own...
I don't know why I love this so much. I just do...
Just the thing for your sweeter side (or mine)...
I might never make a porcelain doll, but if I do, I hope she looks like this...
Marzipan looks like such a fun medium.

Oh, I almost forgot this Race Track Quilt. (Now I'm just dreaming.)

Can you tell where I find most of my inspiration?

Uno

Somebody's birthday is coming up. There was a time when I could hardly imagine what it would be like when he would turn five. It's hard to believe that day is right around the corner and that he now enjoys games like tic tac toe and Uno.

In the car this afternoon we listened to an old Wiggles CD, and they sang, "Roll out the barrel (of fun)." At home Tommy pulled out his pirate ship and took out all the barrels he could find. He then handed one each to Brian and I and told us to roll them to let out all the fun. After we had rolled them sufficiently he informed us that the barrels were all empty and that there was no more fun. I suggested that they might be magic barrels so that they would never have to run out of fun. (Why not play along?)

Honestly, I am not quite sure I know what to buy him this year; so many of his favorite activities don't involve much. In fact, some of the barrels are really just old wine corks, and one thing he plays with almost every day is a paper pulled from a pile full of self-designed rolled up pirate treasure maps (or some times just maps). We might just be stocking up on markers and seeking out a new game or two. I guess we'll have to get creative (fast)!

A Little Crochet

It was time for something different. I still haven't finished, only because I ran out of yarn just a row or two from the end (plus the border). It was a bit too repetitive to enjoy as much as some of my other projects, but the blanket itself grew on me as I worked on it. That may be because the second skein of yarn still had some shine to it. The first skein had faded before I even brought it out. Oh well. I really just did it to keep my hands busy, so it doesn't really matter.

I may not have much more time for yarn-play or fabric crafts this month, as I need to start preparing for Tommy's pirate party. I have some ideas, but I'm not quite sure how to execute them. I don't want to give away my thoughts until after the party, but I would appreciate any general ideas you might have to offer!

Gathering Moments

I've been going through the past few months, absorbing all the warmth and comfort around me, trying not to miss one moment. This week, however, has been mentally and emotionally draining, and since the beginning of my blog I have made a point to limit my more serious and depressing posts, so I have written very little over the past few days. Here I try, not only to spread a morsel of hope or peace or beauty -or simple sweetness, but also to provide for myself a tiny little corner of refuge, where I can go back every once in a while and follow my links to peruse all the beautiful little things I have found on flickr and in other blogs. It's good to have a place like this. I highly recommend if you ever consider starting a journal as a path toward emotional well-being that you make time for at least one place where you can and must focus on those glimpses of light that grace each of your days-especially those that you might otherwise forget.

So in the spirit of peace and silence, and beauty, I won't begin now to explain how I have felt these past few days. Instead I will offer a single photo for thought. It's one that I took last week, on the same day that I took my most recently posted photo. (Sometimes I think in order to fully appreciate the depth of the photographer's (a term used very loosely in this case) vision, it's best to enjoy just one photo at a time.)


I like to look beyond the snow-covered branches. To me, the soft white shadows almost seem to swallow the trees with snow, yet they somehow seem so comforting-even inviting. I feel as though I want to wrap myself up in the white, and even though it is so cold I will be warm. ...The perfect place for quiet solitude, though it can't quite decide whether it wants to protect its untarnished surface, or whether it would be better loved by a silent path of footprints...

Or maybe it's just a photo I took from my porch before rushing off to work, trying to squeeze in a peek at the season before it's gone and my eyes start to shift toward dew drops and daffodils. Either way.

Some days a latte just won't do it.

Some days what you really need is a nice big cup of hot cocoa. And some times, on those days, you just don't have the energy to photograph and post a photo, or to explain why.

I'm still here and will post again soon.

Day Before Saturday Sky

Must. Create.

While I am creating, so many ideas come to mind that I just can't keep up. Now that I have finished several projects in a relatively short period of time and don't have any super urgent knitting needs coming up, I don't know what to do. Crochet? Sew? Knit? Draw? Paint? Fold paper? Photograph random unexpected corners full of peace and silence? Were it not so late I might take out the material for Brooke's dress. Were it a beautiful sunny morning I would embrace the natural light and follow it with my camera. I'm seeking... something. I started crocheting twice today, but it wasn't satisfying my needs. I looked at houses online and dreamed for a while. I thought about Tommy's upcoming pirate birthday party. I played with Tommy. I worked. I ate. I talked. I sat here for quite a while and even looked around a bit, for some inspiration. This must be an official addiction. Must. Find. Something. To Create.