Stitches in Play

mother's day in pictures

Hope your mother's day was full of big hugs and smoochy kisses.

Here's a little recap - mostly in pictures - of our day.  If you're wondering why so many pictures, it's because they take up a whole lot of room.  Which means that I have to write less.  Because writing takes time.  And since I'm pretty much behind in every thing that needs to get done today, I have very little time left.  Plus "a picture is worth a thousand words" which enables me to convey a large amount of data to you quickly.  So here goes: 

In anticipation of mother's day I bought myself flowers on Saturday.  I bought them because I was in the market and spotted these gorgeous peonies.  I absolutely adore peonies and have been coveting Erin's for nearly a week now.   Plus I knew that my wonderful husband would arrive home from work early sunday morning and may be too tired pick up flowers on his way home.  He gave me the sweetest card instead and told me how much he loved and appreciated me.  He then told me that he didn't stop to get me flowers because he was sure he wouldn't find ones more beautiful than these peonies (he saw these before he left for work on saturday night). I'm fine with that because we just celebrated our 20 year wedding anniversary and I can honestly say that he has told me he loves me and values all that I do every single one of those days - and on days when the kiddos are fighting he has been known to tell me how much he loves me and appreciates me numerous times in one hour!

Next we ate my favorite cake for breakfast - Raspberry Almond Cake from the Fresh Market.  Yes, there are five of us and we ate over half the cake - it's that good.

Then Ezra presented me with a beautiful letter that made me cry and freshly picked flowers which he picked for me on his morning run.  Never mind that he may have slammed the door on his way out at 6:30am jolting his mama out of her peaceful slumber.  I forgave him because he gave me a huge hug and because he told me he had to get up extra early in order to look up on the internet how to make an envelope - and I love the envelope so much because he made it.  Plus I forgave him because he is now thirteen and I don't know how many more freshly picked flowers and handmade envelopes I will receive from him.

Then I tried to document this special moment between mother and son with a picture when Abigail flung herself into the shot - because this girly of mine loves having her picture taken!  I'm fine with this because frankly, the girl is cute.

Plus she gives a fine pedicure!  All I had to do was sit in the chair shrouded in purple tulle and she rubbed my feet and painted my toes.  Good stuff, I tell you.

She also gave me a card that read "I love you more that donuts, I love you more than cake."  Of course by that time she had already consumed two slices of cake for breakfast - so she may have been sick of cake!  But I choose to believe that my girly loves me a whole lot nonetheless.

David picked me strawberries from our garden.  They may not look like much but they are the sweetest, yummiest things ever!

Then he went outside and played nicely with his sister.  No fighting allowed on mother's day.

This photo is from a few weeks back but I just had to share what the middle child has to put up with. He was watching his favorite show on tv - Chopped on the food network - when Abby attempted to kick him.  It was all in jest (of course!) but this happens so often around here that he just leans out of the way while continuing to watch his show.

Well, all this excitement took place before 10am so we rounded off the day with a yummy salmon lunch prepared by yours truly.  Followed by a trip to the movie theater to see the Avengers. That movie is over two and a half hours of action-packed fun full of violence and adventure which apparently we all love because we really enjoyed it.

Hope your day was spent having fun with your kiddos.  And now I must remind myself that mother's day is long over and that I have groceries to buy, dinner to cook, toilets to clean and homework to check over - all before heading out to taekwondo at 5.  Happy Tuesday to all!

topsy-turvy (but in a good way)

Stopping in to say Hello!  

We are safe and sound post hurricane Irene - we lost power for two days, several trees fell, and there are leaves, branches and debris scattered on our property but we are just fine.  Sending best wishes to those still dealing with the aftermath of this storm.

I've been away from this space so that I can fully partake in the fun, and topsy turvy summer, we've been having.  The kiddos and I have been playing and driving and eating and driving and spending time with friends and driving some more this summer.  All the while we have been enjoying a wonderful and fun-filled summer while redoing the city home.  We knew it was a fixer and were excited about putting our personal touches on this home.  After nearly two months of new roof and new HVAC and tile and countertops and paint everything seems to be coming together to the make the sweetest little city house we could've imagined.  I cannot wait to share our new space with you.  But first we have another week of summer to enjoy around here before school begins. 

Just to prove that we're all about topsy-turvy around here - here's Abigail watching tv. 

She'd much rather pose for pictures than watch Sorcerer's Apprentice with her brothers. 

My guys didn't mind the power outage too much.  Gave them more time to work on puzzle solving.

And picking and eating yummy veggies from our garden.

We have a beautiful bounty thanks to Ezra who loves to tend to the garden.  He has been out there each morning at 7am watering and picking and doing whatever else he does because I'm really more of a garden "planter" - the tending part is really not my thing.  I'd rather be in the kitchen making pasta sauce and lasagnas using these yummies!

I heart you all (and miss you) and will be back once school starts!

a quick PS:  the hubby and i enjoyed a wonderful film via netflix last week.  I wholeheartedly recommend Departures (2008).  Watch it - you will not be disappointed.

appreciating the moments

School let out two weeks ago and we have been thoroughly enjoying our summer vacation.

Eating healthy lunches that include yummy eggs courtesy of our sweet hens.

Arranging flowers on our kitchen table.

Picking perfectly sweet strawberries from our garden.

Reading and playing together.  (not always this amicably)

 

Gobbling up salt water taffy.  (yet another reason to love trader joe's)

Swimming (and splashing and teasing and giggling) in the pool until we are exhausted.

And then resting up so that we can do it all over again the next day.

These days I am being patient with myself. 

After the tornado hit our town the oldest boy has arrived home from am school by 12:45.  With Mondays off from school and my husband working most weekends I have had little alone time. 

I have been taking moments for myself here and there.

Giving myself space to breathe deeply. to pause. to think.

to enjoy the weather.  to walk my dogs in the woods.

I have also chosen enjoy the not-so-pleasant chores.  like cleaning out the chicken coop.  mowing. weeding.  planting. mulching. driving my kiddos to Hebrew school, swim meet, taekwondo, math bowl practice.

Chosen to spend more one on one time with my kiddos.  with ezra leaving for school at 6am I have two hours each morning to spend with the younger kiddos.  Middle child who never gets to sit in the front seat of the car really enjoyed the privilege each morning for the short drive to the bus stop.  even though we barely drove for a mile he loved adjusting the seat and turning on the seat warmers.  I never use these because it can't be that healthy to sit on hot electric coils but i figured that just a few minutes each morning wouldn't hurt.  Plus we giggled as our backsides became warm. 

We also found the time to stop by the ice cream shop after finding out that his team did not place in the statewide round of the great computer challenge.  We decided on ice cream floats to "drown our sorrows" and giggled at how silly we sounded.  In the booth, sitting on extra tall bar stools the boy told me how much fun he had and how well he worked with the two girls that comprised his team.  We agreed that his team would have done better if there was more time to practice bridge construction methods.  We realize that with the short school year only four practice sessions may not have been enough and we move on.

We are living in the moment.  We are focusing on fun.  We are sucking down ice cream and soda through pink straws.

I'm not really making much of anything these days.  Still knitting a dishcloth out of yarn sent to me by a friend.  Washing dishes using the dishcloth she knit for me.  Feeling fortunate to have made many wonderful friends through blogging. 

Just finished washing dishes from lunch.  Peering out the window every so often to see that the rain has broken and the sun is shining.  Feeling fortunate that I have dishes to wash.  Fortunate that it's summer and I no longer have to wake up at 5:30am to get ezra on the 6am school bus.  So happy that I am a mama with many commitments and responsibilities who is finally figuring out that not everything needs to be done immediately or perfectly.  But that each and every moment must be appreciated.

We are also just two weeks away from finalizing the purchase of a small home in the city.  We are just overjoyed.  After years of hoping and dreaming and preparing our country home is nearly paid off and we were able to make a small space in the city a reality.  For the past six years I have been driving to the city several times per week (usually fridays and sundays and some saturdays) to the city an hour away to attend temple services and hebrew school.  This is the closest temple to our home and while an hour drive each way isn't that bad add in three kiddos and a husband who's at work while mama is driving said kiddos and you get the picture.  Plus with two bar mitzvahs in the next three years we are going to love our little oasis in the city even more.  We are already planning lunches and play dates with all of our city friends who have generously invited us over and fed us over the years - this home base will do us a world of good.  I am not even allowing myself to think about the fact that I will have another kitchen and two more bathrooms to clean or bedrooms to pick up and more clothes to put away because I would rather do all those things with my kiddos than spend six hours per week strapped into our car seats driving through traffic.  So if all goes well in two short weeks we will be enjoying our woods and chickens in the country and our friends, temple and community pool and playground in the city.  Oh, and while this had nothing to do with our decision to buy the city house it just happens to be exactly one mile away from a trader joe's and a target.   I am one lucky girl - and I am appreciating each and every single moment because they fly by so fast.

Thanks for letting me share this news with you friends!  Hope you are appreciating the moments this summer.

snow days

This Sunday the snow came down. A whole foot of it!

In the morning I took photos out the window.

But once the wiggles set in and i had three stir crazy kiddos on my hands we took the show - and the camera - outdoors.

  

Then the sun came out and we set forth to explore...

in the veggie garden:

with the girls: who refused to let their feet touch the snow and remained "cooped up" (pun intended) for two whole days.

 

with icicles picked off the roof:

All that play can be exhausting so we took a break.

Then back inside for a snack.

I have been making Ina Garten's Cherry Granola for a while now but when Soulemama posted her granola recipe i decided to combine the two into what turned out to be the best granola EVER!

We just mixed all the ingredients leftover from making holiday gifts for the teachers and we got this half gallon jar + one quart jar full of yummy, healthy, hearty goodness.

We couldn't stop munching on it right out of the jar...

 

But around here everyone enjoys granola best over a bowl of plain yogurt, generously drizzled with honey.

Happy New Year to you! 

the long weekend

Today marks the end of a long, long weekend.  Due to Tuesday elections and countywide budget cuts the kiddos were home for a five day weekend.  We had a great time beginning with a huge taekwondo fundraiser for St. Jude chidlren's hospital in which our school broke 2,500 boards in three hours! (there were many soar arms and feet but nobody seemed to mind - or complain too much.)  The kids had a blast with all the excitement of breaking boards, moon walk bounce attractions, and a dunk-the- instructor tank - plus some much needed early Halloween candy.  On Sunday we played at a meet the new rabbi picnic followed by some trick or treating with friends in a new-to-us neighborhood.  For much of the remainder of our long, long weekend we stayed close to home and savored the fact that we did not have to be anywhere or do anything in particular.

The weather was gorgeous but chilly.  And although this mama usually opts to stay indoors and knit when the highs are in the 50's, we spend most of our days outside.  I often wish that I enjoyed being outdoors more than I do and I am immensely grateful for doggies, kiddos and (now) chickens that force me to get out and breathe in the fresh air!

We had time to revisit our veggie garden and collected its bounty.

Lots of new sweet peppers and ...

grape tomatoes.  Yum.

 Of course some knitting was done.  (more on this later in the week)

Pumpkins were painted.  (using paint markers)

 We were focused.

We were silly.

We were serious.  We had a blast.

 

Today, on the fifth and final day of our break, Abigail decided it was time to sew something out of her "favorite fabric."  We opted for a skirt because it's a quick project and simple enough where a six year old can actually help.  We used the super simple selvage method to sew the skirt.  (Simply sew desired length of fabric selvage to selvage and then make an elastic casing for the top edge and hem the bottom edge with ribbon. Done.)

This skirt took us thirty minutes to sew.  But I had the most fun following the girlie around for the next two hours as she twirled in her new skirt...

and picked flowers (weeds actually - but pretty weeds) in her new skirt...

 
and ran through the woods in her new skirt...

and engaged in conversations with her doggies in her new skirt.

I will honestly be sad to see them go off to school tomorrow.  Good thing the weekend is only two days away! 

 

seeking beauty

It's cold and it's raining.  In fact, it's been raining for nearly a week.  I set out today to take pictures of some fall decorating in the dining room but my house was dark.  I intended to share a new project but there wasn't enough light to take photos.  So I took my camera out in the rain - in search of beauty and inspiration...

 

 




 

And look what all this rain brought us...  The following photos were taken on Saturday, during a much needed break from the rain.
 



 

Besides getting to devour all these veggies, this rain has been a great excuse for ignoring all the weeding and mowing that needs to be done.  This weekend, when I wasn't driving the kiddos to taekwondo, or Hebrew school, or a birthday party I focused on getting the inside of my house ready for Fall.  Because, rain or shine, Fall is my favorite season.

documenting

All three kiddos began school on Tuesday, September 7.  Everyone is thrilled with teachers, schedules, schools (Ezra is now in middle school!) but I have yet to find a moment for myself.  On Tuesday I drove the youngest two to elementary school and stayed at the school until noon sorting fundraising packets, organizing emails and PA announcements, and meeting with volunteers - because this year I am PTA vice president in charge of fundraising. I know, what was i thinking... but the school needed someone and I couldn't say no.  On Wednesday I did more of the same plus cooked a special Rosh Hashanah dinner to celebrate the New Year.  On Thursday I cleaned a bit and then prepared and cooked and baked and wrapped and decorated for Abigail's birthday on Friday.  Yes, my baby is now 6! 

My sewing space is almost organized again, my schedule is packed, and my day is an hour shorter because my middle schooler arrives home at 2:40 but I have missed this space and all of you terribly and my goal is to begin posting regularly beginning today.  

This is a catching up post - I'm easing back in slowly.  Just my kiddos and some food but I will be back soon with some making because I have so many ideas and things I want to try and I cannot wait to share!

Documenting the last BLT sandwich I made using the final batch of tomatoes from our garden.  Summer is over and all our tomatoes are done but I have this photo to remind me of all the yummy-ness we savored and of all the fun we had outdoors.

     

And speaking of fun outdoors...Here are two of my kiddos playing around after Abigail's color belt testing.

   

We also traveled to a taekwondo tournament in Raleigh, North Carolina last month and the kiddos had a great time competing and exploring in a new place.

This is a busy week for us because my boys will be testing or their black belts on Saturday and many an evening is spent in the studio perfecting their technique.

 

Documenting my littlest two getting off the bus on the first day of school.  Ezra got out of the car to be the first one to greet them.

 

Documenting my kiddos' reaction when I asked them how their first day of school went.

 

Documenting that I asked them to move to a spot with better light so that I could take a photo to send to the grandparents - but, as we all know, the staged photo is never as good as the impromptu one. 

 

Documenting that my baby is now 6!

 

Documenting that she received many wonderful gifts...

 

But none evoked more excitement that the rainbow streamer.

"Now I can be a real gymnast!" she screamed as she spun and twirled.

   

Documenting this moment so that we never forget that true joy lies in appreciating the simple things.

 

May you always find joy in twirling a rainbow ribbon, my sweet girl.

Documenting the joy this mama feels when she sees her kiddos sitting side-by-side, deciphering the instructions to a new game. 

Now enough with all the documenting - I'm heading off to do some makin' so that I have something new to share.

 

But before I go I must share how absolutely easy, quick (they bake in just 9 minutes), and yummy these Buttermilk Pudding Cakes are.  Mine are a bit darker because we used whole wheat flour.

Have a wonderful day!

growing

 

Summertime has always been synonymous with "growing".  And there's been lots of growing going on around here.  The chicks are now ten weeks old. 

They have done an enormous amount of growing.  Because at the start of summer these three week old girls looked like this.

 

 

 

Lots of growing going on in the garden.  

 

Growing berries for breakfast.

 

Picked fresh by a girly still in her pajamas.

And this eleven year old kiddo is growing up way too quickly.  I snapped this photo of him around 7pm the other night as I was preparing to send off the fundraising packets for their school.  Abigail was dancing to some not-so-quiet music and David was complaining about the fact that we were out of muffins.  Ezra made himself a sandwich and quietly stepped outside to eat it.  I watched out the window as he took deep breaths and savored the quiet - interrupted only by the sound of frogs croaking and an occasional bat flying over the pool to catch a mosquito.  I don't know how many years I have left in which this kiddo will want to talk to, and cook with, and give hugs to, and share what he's read with his mama. 

But I know he will never grow too big to love and care for his pets.  Years ago I taught our doggies to take walks off leash but these days they listen best to this boy.

 

And watching our sweet hens grow is giving us yet another chance to learn and grow and laugh together.

I have a feeling that these sweet girls will be providing our family with a lot more than just yummy eggs.  They are giving us hours of bonding time and many giggles.

How (or what) did you grow this week? 

thankful on memorial day

Feeling so very thankful for the chain of events that brought these girls into our family. 

 

 

We ordered 30 day-old chicks to split with two other people.  One passed hours after arrival last Thursday and the other 29 are in two brooders in my laundry room.  I absolutely adore having them and playing with them and caring for them and just plain watching them grow - and these girls grow quickly.  They are seven days old and already testing out their wings!  We love our pets around here and we can already tell that these girls are going to fit in beautifully.
 

A big thank you to Abi Gayle of SpiderWomanKnits for all the wonderful information and advice on selecting chicks and constructing a brooder.  Blogger friends are the best!

And thank you so much to Kristyn for these awesome handmade + personalized note cards.  I love them.

Our taste buds are thankful for the garden that provides us with fresh green onions and dill to serve on  buttered potatoes at dinner.  (These are the green tops of our onion plants because I couldn't find chives this year.)
 

And grateful for bits of sewing time here and there that allowed me to finish up this large 6' x 6' quilt top.  I'll share more once I get some pictures of the completed quilt.

It goes without saying (however saying is often important) but I am most thankful for my family and friends and my home and dinner time with my family.  My favorite part of the day is during dinner when we go around the table and ask each of the kiddos to tell "What was the best part of your day?" and "What was the worst part of your day?"  Their answers often spark wonderful family discussions and other times we all laugh at how good we have it because the "worst part" wasn't that bad all.  Yes, I am very thankful for dinner time.

What are you thankful for this week?

brick pattern quilt and preping for chicks

Spring has kept me super busy.  We live on five acres and have tons of weeding, mowing, cleaning and gardening to do.  And we have been reading all we can and preparing for our chicks.  They shipped from here today are will be arriving very soon - we are so excited!  

Now on to some sewing and quilting.  In the last post I said I'd share some quick instructions on how to make a random brick pattern quilt like the one I pieced for Abigail.  This is a great beginner pattern because none of the seams have to match. 

 

First, Cut fabric, selvage to selvage, into 6 inch strips.  (The strips can be wider if you'd like  - just make sure they are all the same width)

 

Second, Cut strips into random sized rectangles.  I just lay the strips horizontally on my cutting mat, randomly position my ruler across the strip at any length between 5 to 14 inches and cut using a rotary cutter - no measuring.

 

Third, randomly sew rectangles together end to end into super long strips.  I place all my rectangles in a bowl, randomly pick up two rectangles and sew them together - I only throw them back in if they are the same fabric.

 

Fourth, cut pieced strip into desired lengths and sew these strips side by side to create the quilt top.  For instance, if you want a 5 X 4 foot quilt top, cut strips into eight 5 foot lengths and sew them together side to side. (you will need 8 strips because eight 6 inch strips make about 4 feet)

I'll illustrate this final step in my next post as I only had enough time to piece half my rectangles into one super-long strip.  We spent the rest of the time reading about chicks, watching you tube videos on raising chicks, shopping at Tractor Supply and Southern States and preparing a brooder.  Fun Stuff!

Happy Wednesday to you!

 

quick projects

My girlie asked for a "cover" to wrap her bear in.  You see Berry ("spelled like the berry in strawberry, mama - and not like the beary in brown bear.") doesn't have pajamas and is cold at night.  How could this mama possibly say no to keeping sweet Berry warm?

So we picked some fabric, cut it into strips, and pieced together a cover.

 

Even the kitty likes how it turned out.
 

This design is so simple and super quick to sew because it is pieced randomly and none of the points match.  I'll be back in the next couple days with some quick instructions on how to make one of these random brick pattern quilts.
 

 

The best part about this cover is that it also doubles as a super hero cape!

 

My husband was home today because he will be working all weekend and we spent a few minutes cleaning up the garden and "picking" our lunch.  This is our lunch at 11:45 am.

 

Lunch at 11:50 am.
 

Lunch at 12 noon.

(Arugula sauteed with olive oil and garlic served over leftover quinoa and corn.)  

Hope you find some quick, easy and satisfying projects today!

going green

My kiddos have decided to help save the earth by reusing, recycling, and saving water and energy.  Today my five year old daughter even used the bathroom in the dark to save electricity!  We are also trying to use fewer paper products and to do my part I sewed some "paper" towels. 

 

Just cotton fabric sewn, right sides together, with an old towel.  Then turn right side out and topstitch along the edges.

These are much more absorbent than the dishtowels we are currently using.  But if we are going to stop using paper towels all together I'm going to need to make some more of these.

 
And speaking of green, my sweater/shrug is almost done blocking.

  

For dinner I added some green to our pasta with clam sauce.

Saute lots of garlic and basil in olive oil for several minutes.  Add two cans chopped clams (with liquid), chopped tomatoes, red bell pepper, and baby spinach leaves. Saute for five minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste and toss with whole wheat angel hair pasta.  (I also added 1 cup of starchy pasta cooking water) Enjoy.

 

And mustn't forget all the green outdoors.  We added some fresh mulch and I set out the 'shine' stone that Lisa sent me last year.  All this green sure is making me smile.

Hope you are finding lots to smile about today!

from the weekend

Another weekend flew by way too quickly. 

 

Third strawberry was picked from our garden.  This one is for the girly.

 

She took it into her fort and away from brothers, for "safe eating."

 

This brother tends to the garden each day.

This Saturday he led his team to victory in the state annual Great Computer Challenge.

Then he climbed a tree.  Congratulations my sweet boy.

On the crafty front, just two long seed stitch rows from finishing my shrug.   

See you back here soon with some crafty stuff.  It's been five whole days since I've seen my sewing machine... but first I need to spend some time cleaning up around here.  Have a wonderful Monday!

  

working the land

We had a busy and exciting weekend full of sport's tournaments and competitions but each evening we could not wait to return home and "work the land."

 

We turned our old sandbox into a planter box and filed it with sweet onions and arugula and cherry tomatoes. 

 

Ezra and David took great pride in planting everything just so.

 

We liked our new bed so much that we built a second one for strawberries, cucumbers and more tomatoes.

I had to take a minute to let it sink in that my kiddos were growing up and had chosen to turn their play space into a garden.   We do live on five acres and they still have plenty of space in which to play but for the past ten years they have swung and climbed and jumped and dug and been pirates and super heroes in this space.  But today they are gardeners who are taking great pride in selecting and growing their own crop.  My kiddos are growing and that's a good thing.

Then we watered all our little seedlings and wished them to bear loads of yummy, healthy, fruit.

And then, just to show this mama that we are not all grown up just yet, we watered one another!  Good times.

In the meantime, I finished assembling the nine-patch quilt top only to realize that I have completed three quilt tops in the last month - all of which are patiently waiting to be sandwiched and quilted.  I better get to work.

But before I go I'd like to share that I just finished reading the book Lighting Their Fires by Rafe Esquith and I cannot recommend it highly enough.  

Hope you get a chance to work your land this week.  And if you think you don't have enough space watch this.

more on quilting

Look familiar?  Yup, it's more strip piecing around here.  I've pre-cut all the fabric for this quilt. You didn't think I was going to cut and sew hundreds of squares, did you?  If you look carefully, you may see that I replaced two of the main fabrics.  This is because I decided to make this quilt twin sized and I didn't have enough of the other two fabrics.  All fabric requirements and instructions coming by the end of the week.  If you can sew a straight line and cut strips, you can make this quilt.

In my last post I offered tips for free motion quilting. 

However if you are not yet ready for free motion you can quilt your quilt using machine-guided quilting which is really just like regular sewing.  All you need to do is:

1.  Tape out a grid on your quilt using blue painter's tape. 

        (or you can just follow the lines in your quilt)

        (you can remove and reuse the tape over and over so tape out just several lines at a time)

2. Install a walking foot.   

(you must use this foot to avoid wrinkles in your quilt.  The walking foot contains an upper set of feed dogs to match the lower feed dogs already in your machine - these work together to feed all three layers evenly.  The walking foot is also ideal for attaching binding.)

3.  Put in a new quilting needle.

4.  Sew along the lines of the blue tape, removing safety pins as you come to them.

First watermelon from our garden - not very big, but very sweet.

Have a wonderful week!  and don't forget to play.