Bluebirdbaby

This and That

Here's a little of this and that from our day today. I'm battling a 24 hour migraine and am feeling a bit wiped out, but here's a little glimpse of the happenings from our fabulous Wednesday. Oh, and listen to this. I just love it! Apparently I'm now on a French music kick. What could be better?!

:: Laundry. The little one is becoming an expert folder, as well as laundry basket diver. ::

:: New cookbook. I love it. I did a little dinner planning while the little one played. ::

:: Sasa's Christmas gifts. He adores them, as do I! ::

:: Gnome forest made by the little one and I. I just adore these blocks. ::

:: The kitchen is awaiting a mass remodel that will start this weekend. Oh my, oh my, oh my. Anyone have some color recommendations? I'm all ears. Throw some interior design blogs/websites at me, will ya?! ::

:: Candles for darkness. We light them all over the house. So cozy. Somehow they make such a frigid night feel a little warmer. ::

:: Books before bed. ::

And now, I'm off to rest my weary head. If I don't make it back to this space tomorrow, I wish you all a very Happy New Year!!!

It's Monday, No Bench and a Cat

 

• No bench today, but I figured a Christmas tree in the background might be nice. The cat just wouldn't get out of the shot, so there ya go...you get a little bit of Kiwi too.
• Got that awesome bag at Darling and DeLisle during my lunch break today. I LOVE it!
• I'm still in a post Christmas daze. Anyone else? I feel like I'm sleep walking.
• I consumed five cups of coffee today in an attempt to break through the daze. It was unsuccessful.
• I am craving teal tights. Random, I know. But I put together a little outfit to show you how terrific they are :: boots (Gah...I want these SO bad!), tights (teal ones), dress, sweater,  necklace, earrings, and hat. 
  See...teal tights are awesome.
• Love, love, love this song. Her story is pretty amazing too!
• We're gearing up for ripping our kitchen apart next month. Oh my.
• I love these colors.
• This set is so much fun.
• Waiting, waiting, waiting for Sasa to get home. I can't wait!
• Kale, broccoli, and brown rice with an almond tamari sauce is what's for dinner. Yum!
• I've been craving broccoli for breakfast.
• I got this necklace for Christmas from my two loves. I will never take it off. I love it so!

What are you into this Monday?!

And a big hello to all my new readers! I've gotten lots of comments saying you found me via Artful Blogging and are stopping by for the first time. So welcome! Thank you so much for stopping by.

And just a cute picture...the little one with Purple Violet in her sling heading for a walk to the co-op. So adorable, that one!

The Eve and Christmas Day

A-swinging, a-ringing,

The bells at Christmas say:

A merry Christmas to you all

And happiness for great and small,

With joy we sing and plenty bring,

This happy Christmas Day!

 

What a magical past two days we've had! The little one insisted over and over again that Father Christmas not come to our house. Instead, she wanted the sleepy fairies to deliver the presents. So they did, and boy...did they do a good job! They filled her stocking right up and left her a very special new friend that will accompany the little one on many trips in the future. Her name is "Purple Violet." She came with her own little presents :: handmade jammies, a dress and pinafore, a purple scarf just like the little one has, a hat (thanks Ann!), a beautiful purple sweater coat (thanks Poppy!), and many vintage doll clothing (thanks Melissa!). So Purple Violet will be well dressed. And she's already been warmly welcomed into the family.

We ate, we laughed, we enjoyed two walks outside, we opened such thoughtful, lovely presents...it was a beautiful day and everyone made it so very special.

The little one went to sleep saying "Maybe Father Christmas will come tonight again and fill our stockings all up!" Oh, and we couldn't forget to ask King Winter for some snow. I definitely think she'll be anxiously awaiting next Christmas, and I know I will too!

I hope your Christmas was just as magical!!

Merry Christmas!!

I'm signing off until after the holidays! I hope you all have a very merry Christmas full of warmth, love, and peace.

See you soon!

Winter Solstice Celebration

Lighting a candle:

Deep in the ground of the human soul,

Of victory assured,

The Spirit-Sun is living.

All through the winter of the inner life

The faithful heart divines it.

-Steiner

Sasa and I decided last winter that we wanted to celebrate the shortest day of the year :: the Winter Solstice. We wanted to honor the shortest day, the slow return of light, and the eventual return of spring. In the midst of a holiday season that often focuses on people, gifts, and objects, we wanted a celebration that was deeply connected to our Earth. We started our day making treats for the birds and squirrels. We wanted to honor them on the darkest day of the year with some homemade treats. We collected pine cones and spread peanut butter onto them, then sprinkled sunflower seeds on top. We had a huge plateful and were excited to share them with our woodland friends! We took a walk around the neighborhood, ending up in our favorite spot (the beautiful cemetery full of the oldest, loveliest maple trees ever) where we spread our loot out.

We did some shadow measuring (shadows will be the longest on Solstice!), to which the little one kept saying, "I am getting big, big, big Mama! Look at how tall I am!" as she pointed to her shadow. She was so proud.

After lunch, we all finished up our sun cake. Sasa had made a delicious honey cake, which we spread with lemon pudding, and topped off with some homemade whipped cream made by the little one herself. I drew a bare tree to symbolize the winter with some leftover whipped cream.

We spent the afternoon hand stamping our homemade wrapping paper. We wrapped and wrapped, stamped, colored, and topped off with pretty ribbons. The tree is looking quite festive at the moment!

And lastly, we ended our night with a candle lit party. (Don't worry...she's drinking sparkling cranberry juice!) We celebrated the light we are so grateful to have, had a terrific dinner (yam and coconut milk soup), followed by the delicious sun cake. Our house was full of candles, and we were full of gratitude for the slow return of the sun.

Below is a little verse I sang to the little one ::

The gift of light

We thankfully take,

But nothing may be

Just alone for our sake.

The more we give light

To one and another

It shines and spreads life

Growing still further,

Till every spark is set aflame.

Till every heart,

Joy shall proclaim!

-M. Tittman

A very happy Solstice to you! May you enjoy this dark day and welcome the return of light!

Advent Week Four

The fourth light of Advent is the light of humankind.

The light of love, the light of thought, to give and to understand.

The little one was super excited about lighting the fourth candle this week. She could barely contain her excitement when I announced it was time to light our wreath. We added people to our Advent table to celebrate humankind. It was a wonderful night full of celebration and gratitude.

Sasa had to set up an event at work yesterday, so the little one and I spent some time setting up a little Winter Wonderland on top of the piano. We moved our Advent wreath to the center of the scene, and I think the result is quite magical. She was very thrilled about it. I spent some nights making fabric trees via this tutorial I've been eying for far too many holiday seasons. I'm so glad I finally got around to it!

When Sasa returned, it was time for some baking and holiday reading. The little one loves reading about Father Christmas. It was such a sweet scene to see them curled up together on the floor reading book after book on a cold, wintry afternoon while the smell of soup on the stove filled the room.

And after a long day at work, Sasa and I hit the kitchen for some holiday baking. Nothing beats melted dark chocolate. Especially when mint is added. Oh yea, and a glass of Malbec doesn't hurt either. Gosh, I love this season. I love food. And boy, oh boy, do I love this man.

And thank you all so very, very much for all your thoughtful, amazing, and touching comments. You seriously make my day. You have no idea how special your words are to me. I wish I had time to respond to everyone, but my computer time is so limited these days. I do read every one. So here's a collective thank you!!

I didn't get around to posting our Solstice celebration yesterday, so I'll save it for tomorrow (on the actual Solstice). For those of you who asked, the Winter Solstice celebrates the return of light. On December 21st, the sun will rise later and set earlier than any other day this year. It marks the shortest day of the year, yet the slow return of light and eventually the return of spring. So yay for Solstice! We give thanks to the Earth, the Sun, and all the wild animals out there surviving through a long, cold, dark season. More tomorrow!

Yawn and Brrrr!

Home we are walking as down sinks the sun.

Day's work is ended, tasks are all done.

The wood is all chopped for the fire so bright.

Now we'll be snug in our house tonight.

A little scene above from the end of our day. Friday is one of our bath nights, and I can usually count on getting a little knitting done while she plays. It's warming up just a tad here (we're not in the single digits anymore) and we're excited for our Solstice celebration tomorrow. We spent the afternoon preparing for it. I just loved hearing about your celebrations! They sound so lovely. I'm excited to show you what we have planned and hopefully tomorrow night (if I don't fall asleep first!) I can share.

Oh, you'll notice that our book list on the side bar has changed a bit. The new categories definitely help organize them better.

Stay warm and Happy Friday! Yay!

A(nother) Day in Photos

:: Early morning reading ::

:: Christmas crafting ::

:: Jack Frost has been bringing us lots of frost flowers! ::

:: Afternoon play on the couch. I put my glasses on to read and she looked over and said, "Mama, take those glasses off!" I asked her why and she replied with, "Because you look so mysteeerious!" Then she asked me to take her picture. What a silly goose! ::

:: Apple crisp in the works. We wanted to surprise Sasa when he got home from work. I also had homemade vegetable pasta sauce on the stove. The kitchen smelled delicious! ::

:: Early Solstice/winter gifts ::

:: A spark of Father Sun's light ::

:: Finally, finally asleep ::

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Our day started at a bright and early (who am I kidding??....dark and waaay too early!) 4:30 a.m. It's dark, it's cold, it's nice and cozy in bed, but I awake to the pitter-patter of little feet running down the hall. The door creaks open and a little voice whispers, "Mama? Sasa? You awake?"

Um...we played the whole "sound asleep" card for a good five minutes, but that was clearly getting us nowhere. So it was a long day. A day I wasn't sure I would quite make it through. (I'm one of those "I could conquer the world if I sleep in until 8 a.m." kinda gals.) But regardless of the early wake up, we did indeed have a rather lovely day. It was full of more coffee than I care to admit, some Christmas crafting, three delicious meals with the two I adore most, and ended with a not-so-early bedtime (darn!) and plenty of snuggles.

Jack Frost has certainly been good to us. King Winter hasn't been sending any snow, but Jack Frost is making sure it's frigid out there. Almost every window in our house has frost flowers on it! So pretty, but I can't wait to see the yard again!

Stay warm! We're gearing up for a Solstice celebration this weekend. What do you do on Solstice?!

A Day in Photos

:: Finally have a French press...thanks to Tara (you rock)! Morning coffee with my eggs is heavenly! ::

:: Learning numbers and how to dial. We've been working on phone numbers in case of an emergency and we made up a little song to remember them. I drew this gigantic phone so we could apply number learning to our everyday life. ::

:: Wool is wonderful. All dressed up for our nature walk. It was a cold and windy day today! ::

:: Lunch (cheese, carrots, apples, and rice cakes with almond butter), while planning for dinner. I adore this cookbook. It was a gift from Sasa. He has great taste! ::

:: I think Father Christmas is going to be very good to the little one and Sasa this year! ::

:: Dinner prep. Chicken breasts (we haven't had meat in months!) in white wine and tamari, with whole mushrooms and butter. Sides of brussel sprouts and rice. Yum! ::

:: Her felt people were walking to a field of buttercups (a yellow playsilk) and the animals were all following. Later they stumbled across a strawberry patch, a blueberry field, and the ocean! How fun! ::

.............................................................................................................................................................................

I thought it would be fun to document our day in photos. The little one and I are in full holiday mode. There is gift wrapping, some shopping to finish up, decorations to be made, and of course...the everyday life kinda stuff. So our days are full!

Top the above day off with getting the little one to bed at a reasonable time, which allowed me to join some gals down the road for a knitting night full of wine and chocolate, and you have a recipe for a very good day.

Now Sasa and I are relaxing on the couch, with our latest book, and looking forward to ending the evening on a quiet note.

I hope your Wendesday ends on a peaceful note too! Are any of you doing some holiday crafting? I'd love to hear about it!!

Wine

Well, the wine tasting was a hit. I swear, I've never sipped so many kinds of wine in one night in my entire life, and I really wish to never again. Ten kinds of wine is much too much for one palette to handle! But it was a night filled with good wine, good people, 8 year aged cheddar (seriously...what could be better?!), and followed by some relaxing on the couch with my love before bed. It was a perfect evening!

I hope you all are well. The little one returns tomorrow morning and I just can't wait!!

Advent :: Week Three

The third light of Advent is the light of the beasts.

Animals of farm, field, forest, air and sea.

All await the birth in the greatest and in least.

We celebrated the beginning of the third week of Advent this weekend. This week celebrates all animals, so we added some of our favorite wooden animals (most from here) to our Advent table. We also had been collecting fallen feathers from our chickens these past few weeks to add to our table. The little one was very excited to light another candle this week.

The signing/show went great! Artful Blogging completely sold out (30 copies...oh my!), I sold many prints, and I met many wonderful people. Thank you all who traveled to stop by! I really appreciate it.

And tomorrow night we are hosting a wine and cheese tasting (yum!), so you may not hear from me until Tuesday. Enjoy your start to the week!

Our Holiday Gift to You

Will you join us on a winter walk? It was a lovely, sunny, cold winter day here in Maine. The little one and I put this little video together for you. I know a lot of you live in places with no snow. Although this video is mostly of the little one, there are blurry scenes of snow in the background! The quality isn't that great (any tips??! it was super clear in iMovie, but once on Vimeo it was horrible!) and for some reason the song plays over again at the end. That was clearly my editing mishap! But we hope you enjoy it anyway!

So sit back, enjoy, and Happy Holidays everyone. I hope to see some of you locals on Saturday at the Maine Coast Bookshop from 12-2 p.m.!

Ornaments and Snow

A couple of weeks ago we set to work making ornaments for our tree, friends and family. We used a simple recipe that I remembered doing when I was in preschool (I still have those ornaments and they still smell great!). I was reminded of the project when I saw my friend Heather had done them with her boys. The recipe is on her blog. We only used cinnamon in ours, as I had done as a child. The little one is beyond thrilled with the result. She takes her "horse" off the tree to play with it quite a bit, although she's still asking me when she can eat them!

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And today we enjoyed an afternoon outside, all bundled up in the cold, windy weather. We found a great sledding hill behind our house (mama had great fun!) and then we said hello to our chickens. They don't know what to think of the snow and often stay inside the barn all day. The little one checked for an egg, but we didn't have any luck today. Maybe tomorrow!

Hope your day was just as sweet!

Insert Big Sigh of Relief Here

Holiday shopping done (thank you, thank you, thank you Etsy). Photography work done. One sewing project out of five done. House cleaning done. Paperwork, flyers, and printed photographs for Saturday's show done. Packages to be mailed done. It was a good, productive, snow stormy day.

I worked a bit on the little one's Christmas present. Above is a sneak peak. I can't wait to show you more! It's been so much fun.

Sasa rocks. He got home from work early because of the storm and cleaned the entire refrigerator, shoveled, made soup, popped popcorn, and brought me wine while I was working away in my sewing room. Have I mentioned lately just how much I love this man? He constantly amazes me. He is the sweetest person I've ever met. I am so grateful that he is in my life. Now we're settling in, listening to Christmas music via Pandora (I admit, I love Christmas music...especially Duke Ellington's Nutcracker Suites), eating soup, and doing holiday crafts.

I hope you had a day just as productive and cozy. Stay warm!!

An Out Take

We shot a bunch of photos for our Christmas cards over the weekend. Apparently, my remote battery is just about dead, so many of the pictures resulted in me being not quite where I should have been. I'll share our finished card closer to the holidays. It was a fun project to put together. Above is one of the crazy out takes... at least my front half is in this one!

We're expecting a big snowstorm tomorrow (my one day off for the next two weeks) and I was planning on doing all my Christmas shopping. Oh well. Etsy to the rescue I guess! What are you currently loving on Etsy?! I've got a lot of sewing planned for tomorrow as well for the little one's big Christmas surprise (I'll share details later!) and I'm getting ready for my photography show/signing this Saturday. So it will be a busy, productive day regardless of a snowstorm!

Sasa and I are looking forward to a night spent on the couch, taking turns reading from Her Fearful Symmetry (we just started it), while I knit. I hope to have a finished knitting project to show you soon!

Enjoy your Wednesday!

Home

I've spent the past two days moving stuff. Ick. I had so many boxes of childhood school papers, toys, and clothes (thanks mom...but now what do I do with them?!) and they all needed to be sorted and stored. We're slowly renovating our home. The kitchen is scheduled for January. Most of the house just needs new interior paint. The past two days I've focused on getting the little one's big girl room (and bed!) ready. We're hoping she can transition to her own room this week.

Clearing out her little corner in our room opened up space for our dresser to be moved back in. Our room definitely has a bird theme going, and that Jade plant was a gift from a friend...it's my favorite!

And I recycled a chalkboard from an old easel and nailed it to our bathroom wall. It's fun to write each other notes and adds a modern touch to an otherwise very outdated (and hopefully not far from being updated) bathroom.

Still battling this cold. It's worse than before, but I'm confident it won't get the best of me. Thanks for all your well wishes!

St. Nicholas and Advent

Thank you all for entering the giveaway! Sasa (my random number generator) picked number 101 ::

beautiful! heres to hoping...

Posted by: Blayne | December 06, 2009 at 03:37 PM 

So Blayne...e-mail me and your patterns will be on their way!

Upon his snow white steed

With wind and lightning speed

St. Nicholas leaves the sky

And comes a-riding by

The little hare hops nigh

And lifts his nose up high

The stag with pointing horn

Leaps over bush and thorn

And all the creatures dear

Are drawing quickly near

Before St. Nicholas bow

Their little heads so low

And we will learn a tune

Of sun and star and moon

And sing our happy lay

Sing on St. Nicholas Day!

The little one got a visit from St. Nicholas this morning. We prepared for the visit the night before by polishing her shoes (or scrubbing off the dirt!), baking gingerbread cookies to leave for St. Nicholas, a carrot for his horse, and a special note and drawing. St. Nicholas was nice enough to leave a small piece of chocolate, a satsuma, and three special wooden figures (a squirrel, a chicken, and mouse), and an amazing pair of knitted mittens (thanks Ann for teaching the elves how to knit...wink, wink!) in her shoes, and a Solstice book.

This morning we woke up to a winter wonderland. The day before, the little one and I spent some time outside asking King Winter to please send snow. And he did! The little one crawled into bed with us this morning, and we all opened the shade to see a street filled with snow. She ran downstairs, put on her snowsuit, and she and Sasa spent an hour outside shoveling, making snow angels, and literally rolling in the snow. I stayed cozy and warm inside preparing some banana bread for the three of us. It was a morning I wish could have lasted forever.

And today was the start of another week of Advent. We added greens and berries to our table this week and lit our second Advent candle.

The second light of Advent is the light of the plants.

Roots, stem, leaf, flower, and fruit by whom we live and grow.

I'm battling another cold (Sasa is too), so you may or may not hear from me tomorrow! I hope you enjoyed the weekend. Stay warm!

Winter and Holiday Decorating

Hoping your day was full of peace, joy, and coziness. We spent the day preparing for the holidays. Many of you might remember that I'm usually not a fan of the holidays, but this year is different. Sasa and I have found a way to weave so many traditions into our lifestyle. It feels good. We are excited and anticipating so many new and lasting traditions.

And the first snow fell today. It started towards dusk. After a lovely dinner with family, we headed out for a special before bedtime walk. The little one was so excited. She put on her little "gnome suit" and gathered a bowl for snow collecting, and we walked around the block. We literally skipped, sang, jumped for joy, and giggled through the neighborhood with our tongues hanging out trying to catch some snowflakes. It was a night I'll remember forever.

I hope you are enjoying (or getting ready to enjoy) this holiday season! Stay tuned tomorrow for the winner of the giveaway!

Giveaway :: Whole Grain Baby

Varenia, owner of Whole Grain Baby, is offering a super awesome giveaway today! She is the creator of the cutest patterns ever. I am in love with this "square neck dress" (I'm picturing natural linen for the body and red linen for the contrasting yoke and sleeves for a holiday twist!) and this shirt looks so cute on her! She is a super talented mama and be sure to check out her lovely blog here.

Varenia is offering the winner 4 free patterns of your choice (wow!), and a discount for the next week (expires on 12.11.09) for all Bluebirdbaby readers. Just enter "BLUEBIRDBABY10" at the checkout.

I will draw a name on Sunday, 8 p.m. EST. Good luck!!

Signing, Shop, and Sun

First off, I want to announce a sweet little event that will be held next Saturday (the 12th) at the Maine Coast Bookshop from noon- 2p.m. I will be there with copies of Artful Blogging, free signed prints, prints for sale, holiday cards, hopefully some handmade goodies, and Sasa, the little one, and Doggie Fly! I will be offering photography tips, answering questions, and have a sign up sheet for a beginner's photography class held at my home in February (would anyone object to the addition of wine and appetizers at this class?!). Not only that, but there are many holiday events and sales going on in town on the same day. Woohoo! So if any of you locals readers want to head out, I would love meeting you!

And I've neglected my poor photography shop too long. I finally got around to adding new prints, print sets (as seen above), and holiday cards. Go check it out! And I'll refund any readers who make a purchase 10% when you enter "bbbwinter09."

In other news, we woke up to one of the worst rain storms ever this morning. It was dark, windy, rainy, and just plain miserable. Then three hours later, the rain cleared, the sun came out, and it was a balmy 60+ degrees in December. (I have to admit that as nice as this was, I am craving snow!) We spent almost the entire afternoon on the back porch reading, playing, knitting, airing out blankets, having lunch, and visiting with the chickens. How lovely!!

I hope you all had a marvelous Thursday too! Stay tuned for a fantastic giveaway tomorrow afternoon!

An Advent Candle Decoration

Wednesday is our craft day. I try to have everything set up beforehand. Today we were making Advent candle decorations. We use this candle at every meal and before bedtime, so it was nice to have something festive to add to it.

The little one is really into drawing letters lately. She likes to trace my letters, so I had written "ADVENT" in big letters for her to trace underneath. She had such fun! We cut out leaves, felted some "berries," and gathered some bells to string together. When it was all finished, we put it around our candle. Such an easy, fun little project!

And just something the little one wanted to share with everyone today...she has shoes "just like mama!" Found at a thrift shop, these Hanna Andersson clogs were almost brand new and super cheap. Oh my! They're a bit big for her, but that didn't stop her from wearing them all over town. She is just too cute!

Oh, and have you seen Grace's amazing shop? She just opened it up. Go check out her lovely dolls!!

The Best Ever

It's our 1 year "housiversary".

We've lived in our quirky little home for a year to this date.

We've lived a life of gratitude and joy for a year to this date.

We've woken up each morning more thankful than the day before for a year to this date.

I woke up to a special breakfast of fresh fruit with crème fraîche and waffles this morning.

I went to work and had a bouquet of beautiful sunflowers delivered to me. (I totally blushed.)

I came home to find a big sign waiting for me in the kitchen that said "I love you forever and always."

I took the sweetest guy ever out to eat at our favorite restaurant where we enjoyed good food and company.

Now we're home, reflecting on our past year together. It was wonderful, it was amazing, it was full of love, joy, and laughter. And we are looking forward to another year. And another. I am a very, very lucky person. Not a day goes by that I don't thank the universe for everything I have.

Sasa...you're amazing. I couldn't have asked for more! You're the best ever. I love you.