Marmalade

Before we get to far in to the Christmas season I need to stop and introduce Marmalade.  This is Erin's sweet little pumpkin that she picked out and colored for Halloween.  She was carted around in a stroller and eventually ended up sleeping in a puffy pink tutu on Erin's bed.  I told Erin that Marmalade is just a pumpkin and once she starts to decompose we'll have to say goodbye to her.  Tears.  Big tears that kept Erin up at night worrying about her poor pumpkin.  I suggested we plant her seeds so we can grow a new pumpkin for next year but the thought of opening her up was even more traumatic.  So Marmalade sits by the door waiting for the day when the Christmas tree comes home and she get set out on the curb. 

Thank God for Penicillin

When a soar throat turns out to be strep all you want to do is feel better. What did people do before walk-in clinics and prescriptions? 4 pills later (and 8 days to go) I am feeling so much better. I didn't even have the energy to heat up soup or knit a row but today I made up for it.

I've been baking and sewing and knitting all day. The chocolate chip banana bread is putting me in the mood to prep for the Kids Clothing Week Challenge at Elsie Marlie. I'll be posting the additions to the girl's fall wardrobe all week.

Road Trip - Taos, New Mexico

Last weekend my husband and I took a road trip to Taos for a friend's wedding. It was a great trip from beginning to end. We had so much fun to seeing old friends, the hotel was amazing and the wedding was simply beautiful. Most of all I just loved spending time with my husband. We did as much as we could during our few days away.

Taos

Rio Grand Gorge

Angel Fire (Jeff brought his mountain bike so he could ride)

Hannagan's Meadow

I love weddings because it just reminds me again how lucky I am.

Western Attire

Western by lkurtin featuring French Connection jeans

We have a wedding coming up and the rehearsal dinner is a western BBQ. I know it is going to be a lot of fun but my first thought was, What do I wear?! I headed over to Polyvore.com to brainstorm some ideas. I'm trying not to buy any new clothes this year so hopefully I can pull a few things out of my closet or borrow an item or two. If not I'll hit the second hand stores. Plaid shirts should not be too hard to find in Arizona.

I'm also finding lots of fashion inspiration at The Sartorialist. If you have not discovered it yet check it out, its a great site.

300 Posts, Bag Love and Big News

My love for bags was one of the reasons I wanted to learn how to sew. I made this bag last week but I thought my 300th post would be a good day to write about it. I could not help but smile when I went back to look at my very first post (here). Same picture, different bag. Ironically this one is also made from an Amy Butler pattern but it was more complicated than the one I made 2 1/2 years ago.

This bag is huge. I'm not sure I really need a bag this size or that it will get much use but I love how it turned out. The contrasting lining with pockets, top stitching and fusible fleece structure are quite a improvement from my first bags. It is so fun to look back and see the progression in my sewing. I still find it fun and am excited to see where it will go from here.

Speaking about excitement for the future I am thrilled to announce a new project that has been in the works for a few weeks. During the Creativity Boot Camp I was encouraged to push myself and reach outside my comfort zone. That encouragement sparked a more personal relationship with a blogger whom I admire and have followed for awhile now. Jessica from Turkey Cookies and I seemed to just have too much in common to ignore. We live at opposite ends of the country and live very different lives but our mutual love for creating brought us together. We thought it would be fun to find our more about our similarities and differences through interviews and photography. This process of discovery and reflection will take place at our new blog Binding Interests. We are just beginning and curious to see where it will go.

This and That

Here are a quick update on a few things we've been up to this summer.

Today I went through boxes of artwork and school paper that I have been saving for about 8 years. I have Erin's scribbles, Ava's preschool alphabet books, first grade spelling papers... etc. I went page by page and pulled out "the best of" then closed my eyes and recycled the rest. Not fun, but it needed to be done and I feel better having a major item crossed of my list.

The girls are taking swim lessons and both had a great day today. Ava is improving her strokes and Erin and I had about 100 underwater tea parties. Just two days ago she cried because we dunked her 3 times. Amazing what a can happen when you show up rested and full.

Ava cooked her first batch of scrambled eggs all by herself. I remember it was the first thing I learned how to cook too. She was so proud.

Visited the zoo with some friends from my work.

Cut up old t-shirts, ripped pajamas and unsuccessful sewing projects into rags as part of a Craft Hope project. We sent them to the The Institute for Marine Mammal Studies to help clean animals rescued from the oil spill.

The girls are having a great time together this summer (for the most part). Erin has had several "sleepovers" in Ava's bunk.

Creativity Boot Camp - Day 4

"Heavy Metal"

I live in a steel box in the desert so I had a lot of inspiration for today's prompt. I turned to my owners manual and aperture jumped out at me. This was really fun to play around with. The shot is from a man hole cover. I loved the colors in the rust. Below are more images of "heavy metal" taken this morning.

"Sew" from "sewer". Speaking of sew, here are some after shots of my craft room clean up.

First Things First

We are back from our little vacation and settling into summer. The transition from the end of the year craziness to days wide open can be a little bumpy. We have to do lists and want to do lists and up until now I have felt more overwhelmed than relaxed. I thought I'd just jump right into sewing projects, new recipes, good books etc. but I'm not sure where to start. The problem is my "I'll have more time to do that over summer" pile. I have a stack of school papers to go through, closets that need to be cleaned out and appointments to schedule. When I'm not feeling crafty or ambitious I find the best thing to do is start cleaning one corner and see how far I get.

One room down and crossed off the list. Ah, that feels better.

Oh, It's Going to be a Great Summer.

Brining Work Home

The only time I think about work at home is when I am watching the news. Whenever I hear about drug raids, shootings or domestic violence I automatically think of my students. Many live in extreme poverty and have experienced more than I could imagine. There are many sad stories to tell but yesterday was particularly difficult for me.
First, I casually asked one of my second grade students "How was your weekend?". "Not good." He replied, "My dad lost his job." My heart sank. I could tell on his eight year old face that he knew how serious this was for his family. He is perhaps one of the kindest children I have ever met and the oldest of four. Not a good way to start the day.
Later that afternoon, after the kids had gone home a second grade teachers told me that one of my students had been withdrawn from school that day. She was a new student this year and had just began to open up. When I first met her she was quiet and did not look people in the eye. Recently I noticed a change. She was all smiles and hugs and I could tell she loved coming to school. We had no idea it would be her last day. I did not get to say good bye.
Finally, I had a meeting with a parent (of a second grader) and right from the beginning I could tell the mom had come with some things to get off her chest. Their trailer had burned down, everything was lost even the girl's school backpack. Next year she would have to go to a different school. Plus the mother had the additional stress of a dying grandparent, an estranged husband (who had beat her) trying to regain custody and police informing them that a family friend who had just been convicted of abducting a nine year old girl had written some disturbing things about their daughter. I knew who they were talking about because it was a big story on the local news several weeks ago.
I was numb for the rest of the day and am still not feeling like myself. I look at my own child, in second grade, and think about how different her life is from theirs. I prefer to keep this blog about my crafts and family but I wanted to write about these kids so I could remember their stories and as a reminder to myself to be grateful for all that we have.

Extra stories, snuggles and time together this morning. Sorry for the depressing post but I'm feeling a little better now.

I'd like to...

• take an online photography course. I'm thinking of starting here.
• update my Spring wardrobe.
• find more ways to cook Swiss chard besides this one (yum!). The garden is bursting.
• catch up on Mad Men.
• make a new top to add to this flickr group.
• finish this sweater before we reach 90 degrees.

Dirty window self portrait of my Easter outfit.

Papa

My grandfather passed away early this morning.  He will forever hold a special place in my heart.  I love you Papa and will miss you greatly.

Spring Break

I am on Spring Break this week but I started to feel overwhelmed with every line I added to my To Do list. I thought, that is not what a break is for, so I decided to take the week off and really enjoy it. We live at the center of a resort destination and the same hills and bike paths these tops spas use are just a few miles from my door. I love to craft but it is not exactly an aerobic activity so I put my To Do list aside and started a new one.

Monday morning I did some quick cleaning so I could relax and not feel guilty about not shampooing my rugs. In the afternoon I went to the grocery store and returned with bags of red, green, yellow and blue fruits and vegetables.



Tuesday I went for a hike. We use to hike all the time before we had kids. I remember taking Ava when she was 9 or 10 months old in a backpack. The sun was hot and she cried the whole way home. We even ran to get back to the car. That was 7 years ago. Now being back on the trails I remember why we went so often. It was a beautiful 6 mile hike in 75 degree weather. Just about perfect except for the sunburn I got on the back of my knees. I was thinking about my friends that live in the parts of the country where it is still cold and was wishing they could be here with me.

This morning I went for a walk, got my haircut and painted my toes. I think I'll go finish my book out on the hammock. Maybe, just maybe, I'll do a load of laundry.

The Girl's Room

Another day of cleaning day. I spent all day pulling out all those little pieces and returning them to their homes. The puzzles, blocks and hair clips are now back in their designated containers. A few toys were set aside for Goodwill. The room sparkles right down to the kitchen sink.

Changing My Mind

So, after 8 days of 30 minutes or less on the computer I caved. I felt a little bad at first but I have been so productive due to inspiration found online that I am choosing not to dwell on my broken promise for Lent. First of all... a new layout. I gave my blog a makeover thanks to an easy tutorial I found over at Clover Lane. After a little more searching on her blog I came across her post on 40 bags in 40 days. Instead of continuing to scroll through her wonderful posts I shut of the computer and pulled out the trash bags.


2 hours, 3 bags of garbage and a full recycling bin later I'm feeling refreshed. I purged my old magazines, medicine, lotions, nail polish, bath toys and then some. I still need to tackle the kid's room but I'm saving that for another day. For now I am enjoying reduction of clutter. I have also decided not to be so strict with my computer time but to focus on being present with myself and my family during Lent. Taking time to appreciate those small moments like making pancakes for my girls. Especially if that means getting of the computer to do it.