Bluebirdbaby

Rainy Day Play

Blue

Apparently it's a blue-sky kind of week. The weather has been gorgeous and we've been enjoying every second of it. We only have a couple of weeks until the black flies come out, and then we're stuck inside again. Such a short window to enjoy the lovely weather!

Stephen took the day off to work on our deck. The floor is almost finished, then we'll be working on the railing. Finally, a screened room will be added and stairs that lead down to the ground. We think a hot tub would look fabulous up there in the future...

We've discovered Otay is definitely an outdoor cat. She whines and meows and jumps all over you until you open the door to let her out. She's just like a dog and will chase us all over the yard, comes when we call her, and digs large holes in the garden. Oh, and the sandbox...she thinks that is the best thing ever.

The little one has requested that every minute be spent outside, evident from the tantrums she displays as I try to get her in for lunch and dinner. She'd happily play outside until the sun went down, and I admit to expending a great deal of energy chasing her all over the yard, mostly trying to steer her clear of the road. But we have been enjoying ourselves. We've been walking everyday down the road to see the horses, chickens, tractors, and our friend "Mamee's" house. There are buds on the trees and flowers popping up everywhere.

This internet break has done me good. I've enjoyed it and do not intend to stop. I think I'll say to expect random posting for a while. I'm just enjoying everything that's been going on here. Books have been read, seedlings have been ordered, gardens have been prepared, flower beds have been raked and weeded, we've baked everyday, Stephen and I have been enjoying our quiet time reading at night, but mostly I feel like there is a certain "frantic" feeling that has disappeared. Trying to check e-mails, upload pictures, etc. all while multi-tasking left me stressed and frazzled. It's allowed me to be more present with myself and the little one. I almost wish we were back in the computer-less age.

As the little one and I were raking the garden yesterday I began to think of my mother. We had beautiful flower beds around our house growing up. We were always outside gardening or inside baking. I was trying to imagine how much of that would have been lost if we had a computer in our living room. How would I have felt if my mother was online instead of getting her hands dirty in the garden? (And this is in no way said to make anyone feel bad about their computer usage! It's just my feelings about how my time is spent.) Those times spent gardening and baking are some of my fondest memories. I want to make sure the little one has that too.

I have two new things to introduce to the shop, and while I felt I was under a time crunch to do so, I am just taking it easy. I'm enjoying the orders coming in and spending whatever time is needed in my little green room. I've made a goal of dressing the little one in only handmade this summer, so I'm excited to get working on some special things for her. Of course, I'll share some finished pieces here in the future.

So now I'm off to get some reading done in the sun on our half-finished porch before the little one wakes up from her nap. Enjoy your week! I hope you're sky will be as blue as ours.

The Ol' Switcheroo

Being fortunate enough to have some warmer days lately has made me think about spring. It's a long way off, but just being able to open a window and let in some fresh air motivated me to get things organized. Our old living room/play room set up was getting a tad stale, and the little one had lost interest in many toys. I packed away quite a bit of them, but looking at the above picture, I realize just how many toys she has. Mostly simple things like blocks, stacking objects, musical instruments, and puzzles. But I realize that we do have a lot and I'm really of the principal that "less is more."

We didn't buy most of it. They were gifts (her "Baba" loves to spoil her!) and many were found in thrift shops for little money. But they do pile up. So it was nice to get a good sized bag put away. Her old kitchen set-up (the toy she plays with the most) seemed a bit cramped and inspired a good afternoon of rearranging.

In the kitchen's place, a bookshelf sits with piles of books thrown on the shelves. Small baskets for easier access will soon keep those books organized. I really do love moving furniture around. In our small and open living space it can seem impossible at times, but it's amazing how one little difference can really make a room seem entirely new.

Next on the agenda...paint!

Here

I realized yesterday was one of the first weekdays I have not posted since starting this blog. It felt odd not to sit down with my computer after the day had come to a close, working out my thoughts of the day's events by typing away at the keyboard. But it's late February, and really, there's not much to say. Custom orders are being worked on, teething tablets are being consumed like candy, laundry is being washed, meals are being prepared, books are being read, and we're trying to enjoy the cold and snow, no matter how far away green grass seems. 

Perhaps excuse the prior ramblings and just enjoy the picture. That's the sunlight at 5 p.m., hanging on a little more as each day passes. So you see? Spring really isn't that far away and soon beaches, picnics, catching fireflies, picking flowers, fresh tomatoes from the garden, laundry drying in the sunlight, and walks through the woods will follow. And then we'll be dreaming of snowmen, hot chocolate, cozy fires, mittens, and wool socks. So I think I'll just go on enjoying winter, because it really isn't that long, is it?

Scenes from our day

~Post-breakfast vacuuming~

~Beds are made~

~Green snacks: Veggie Booty and sliced pears~

~Making mama tea~

~Latest favorite activity: jumping on mama's bed before bedtime~

Have a lovely weekend. See you on Monday.

A Bit of Randomness

Yesterday, the marvelous Rhea came over for some chatting and tea. I call her the "marvelous Rhea" because she really is quite marvelous. She knows me well and as soon as I whipped out my camera she asked, "is this going on the blog??" Rhea is a terrific graphic designer and has agreed to completely rework my logo for the shop, including business cards and some free gifts to include with my Etsy sales.

I'm really excited about it all and hope to reveal the new look with the next update of my shop. Hopefully that will be towards the end of the month. There's so much crafting going on here, but I want the next update to be a surprise. I'll show you snippets here and there in the coming weeks so at least you know something is going on in the green room.

The following are completely random photos I've taken around the house lately. I guess quite fitting for a Friday, where the craziness from the rest of the week seems to melt away in anticipation of the weekend. Ah, Saturdays...lounge pants, pancakes, a good book, a movie, some snow playing (and eating), and visits to our favorite little book store to see friends and have my daily soy mocha.

A hat the little one found buried in Stephen's office. She dragged it upstairs and placed it on the floor in front of where I sit on the couch. I found it after she had gone down for her nap and chuckled as I read the visor.

A mobile that was my sister's, then passed down to me, now passed down to the little one. It sits in our living room where the sunlight streams through the window most of the day.

A glass bubble I thought looked brilliant in the sunlight.

My favorite dried flowers that I never tire of.

I hope your weekend is full of creativity and laughter. Stay warm! See you back here on Monday.

We Love Orange

Favorite clock

Snack

Fresh squeezed

Thrifted chair

Empty lunch bowl (Rice pasta and goat cheese. It was good.)

Custom order crown (Of course I had to test it.)

And definitely not orange, but a little sneak peak at the "big project" that has been underway for the last two months. Hopefully within the next couple of days I can show you the completed project. I'm waiting for a few finishing touches to arrive in the mail...

We Love Stripes

My "weekend shirt"

Alex's pants

Favorite rug

The little one's pants

Just a few more quiet posts until after the weekend. I have a big project in the works that is almost completed, and hopefully by Monday there will be an update about that. Have a wonderful weekend and thank you all so much for your thoughtful comments about my article!

And the stockings were hung...

Our family has decided to celebrate Solstice instead of Christmas. What exactly that means for us will develop over the coming years as our family grows and learns. We already have some traditions in place that seem to suit our family's style, like a special ornament for the little one each year. This year's ornament came from the Etsy shop called My Little Acorn. A bird ornament! How could I resist?!

It's so well made and I just adore the colors. I bought two, one for an ornament swap at a party next weekend and one for us. The little one just loved it and felt very special finding the perfect spot for her new ornament on the tree.

I finally found the time to finish our new stockings. We plan on doing just stockings on Christmas with little, practical, and fun gifts inside. We are really trying to stay away from the commercialization of Christmas and all the gifts it entails. The stress and greediness, the expectations and commitments all seem to drive our family further and further away from our culture's biggest holiday. But we still want to honor the special day in a few unique ways.

The stockings' fabrics were carefully selected to fit each of our personalities.

Stephen is very fond of his and asked how I wrote our names on each one. (Well dear, remember the other night when we were sitting on the couch together, me with a needle, embroidery floss, and fabric in hoop?)

Elisabeth was ecstatic about hers. She insisted on taking it down and carrying it around with her. She kept pointing to the bunnies hiding behind the trees and giggling.

Three hours of stocking making for just one short time of the year? Definitely worth it after seeing my family's appreciation. Nothing beats handmade.

Deck the Halls

I admit, I'm really not into Christmas. Gosh, that sounds horrible, doesn't it?! But with all the Christmas decorating and crafting going on around here in Blogland, I somehow got in the spirit to do a few things...

A tree was first on our list. I really wanted to get a live tree this year, but our budget wouldn't allow it. So we got a small tree from in town, decorated it with any ornaments I could find that weren't breakable, and placed it in our living room where it would be in constant view. My little helper was actually very helpful. She placed more ornaments than I did on the tree and likes to take them off to do it all over again. And I was pleasantly surprised to find myself ordering holiday fabric from Superbuzzy to make a tree skirt and matching stockings.

I put a few decorations that belonged to Stephen's mother around the house. Our home is very hard to decorate for any type of holiday. There is limited wall space (being that our kitchen, dining room, living room, and music room are all one room) and not too many tables around. So finding places to put things is challenging.

I am particularly pleased about our Christmas cards. I found these letterpress holiday cards at a local store and immediately snatched them up. A fun picture of the little one will be included, and hopefully mailed out before the holidays.

So you see? I don't really earn the "ba humbug" title. All you festive bloggers out there saved me this year. Enjoy your weekend!

Winter Nature Table

As I mentioned before, our temporary nature table was on top of the little one's play kitchen. It was kind of in that "end of fall, not quite winter" mode. After being buried by 11 inches of snow (yes, eleven) I decided it was time for the real winter table to begin.

We've been moving furniture around, trying tables in different spots, and switching rugs from room to room. This area behind the couch was previously taken up by the harpsichord Stephen built. It has since been moved to another room and all of a sudden the back of the couch looked rather bare.

An antique table belonging to Stephen's great aunt took the harpsichord's place, and on it went our wintry things: acorns, pine cones, favorite bowls, a bare tree branch, pine needles, felted gnomes, a white silk to represent the snow, and little wooden pine trees.

Okay, I will admit the arranging was more for mama's enjoyment, but the little one just loves to come over and peek at everything. Sometimes she takes off with a gnome, but always puts it back a bit later. The bowls were thrifted finds and in them contain winter's treasures.

I really adore seeing how other people put together their nature tables. If you've posted about one on your own blog, leave a comment because I'd love to check it out!

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Corners of My Home

*I know I'm due for a crafty post, and don't you worry...there will be one tomorrow!*

We did a little reorganizing over the weekend. Our house isn't the easiest to rearrange as we please, so subtle changes have to do when I'm in need of a little something new. Switching carpets around, moving a table here and there, lamps in different spots...you know, the little things that when all changed at once, do seem to create a whole new room.

This is the little one's corner. Where the most play takes place and where she "cooks" me soup countless times throughout the day. Our temporary nature table is on the top shelf of her kitchen. The cupboard and oven doors still need to be attached by Papa, but it's not high on the list of to-dos. The broom on the right is probably the second most played with object in the house. She loves it and often helps mama sweep the kitchen.

This is where we keep an endless supply of paper and crayons. Most of the time the crayons end up in her mouth, so I'm not investing in anything fancy yet. The basket and paper sit on the bottom shelf of our bookcase, right next to her basket of books. I love looking over and seeing her scribbling on a piece of paper.

And lastly, not quite a corner but Elisabeth's favorite spot; her perch, if you will. Papa put up a bird feeder over the weekend just outside these big windows. We  have had so much fun spending time looking out the window at the birds. I think I've mentioned her amazing love for birds before. I have no idea where it comes from and I certainly have to wonder why her favorite book is A Field Guide To The Birds. She found this book stuffed in between hundreds on the bookshelf months ago and hasn't yet let it out of her sight. So mama is learning a lot about birds lately.

As I mentioned above, a crafty post will follow tomorrow. You know, all this holiday crafting going on can't exactly be revealed on the blog because of some family readers, but I can show a bit here and there.

I Love Creating

We have been on the search for a new shower curtain for months. I kept putting it off until the disgusting state of our existing shower curtain was no longer ignorable. So I looked around and could find nothing for a price a family on a budget was willing to settle for. I ended up getting two liners to at least keep the floor dry, but they were oh so boring.

Enter thrifted sheet. I found it this past weekend and bought it on impulse. I had no plans for it and couldn't even decide if I liked it. When I saw this photo on flickr and realized the curtain was a repurposed duvet cover, I got the bright idea of making my own shower curtain. So that's just what I did a few nights ago.

Super easy. I serged the bottom edge to the desired length, then added button holes to the top of the sheet where the shower curtain rings would go. It took me about 15 minutes. I waited for Stephen to get home and walk into the bathroom, fearing he would say "oh my!" and declare it too "flowery," but he was sweet about it and agreed it looked much better than plain white.

I made a matching bath mat using scraps from the sheet, a vintage table linen, and backed it with an old towel. The little one loves pointing at the flowers. She spends a good deal of time smelling them too, thinking that all things mama calls "flowers" are supposed to smell.

She also spends a good deal of time taking off with the bath mat. I wouldn't be surprised if this ended up in her bed and I spent another night making a duplicate.

And there are four new pants up in the shop. I am really into the charcoal corduroy. I have a feeling there will be more of these in the future. And for all you blog readers out there, I am offering free shipping until next Wednesday. Just write "blog1107" in the comments to seller area.

Progress

After a large wholesale order for outfits like the ones in the shop, we finally decided to start creating my workspace.

Let me give you three, really good reasons why I need this workspace:

This is how I store my fabric. I have boxes all over the dining room floor filled with fabric like this one. I honestly don't even know what's underneath the top bit.

And, my attempt at actually organizing the fabric I have multiple yards of ended up like this; knocked over in the first 10 minutes by a small somebody who just couldn't resist. I don't even bother stacking them neatly anymore.

Or what about the fact that we haven't eaten at the dining room table for at least 6 months?! It looks like this all of the time because I work whenever I get a free moment. It drives me crazy and you can see this mess from every other room in the house.

So with the help of our neighbor, the men got down to business Saturday morning and started creating my little space. Stephen has continued working on it all weekend and just finished putting up the drywall tonight. It's starting to look like a room! I'm so thankful he was willing to part with a corner of his big workshop.

I already have the colors picked out for the walls and I'm doing something very funky with the concrete floor. It's very exciting to think about having my own space. I will be more than happy to leave the dining room and my small, windowless corner. I'm thinking on holding off on all "in progress" pictures and just showing you the end result. Much more dramatic that way. For now, I stay at the dining room table cutting out oodles of wee little pants for the wholesale order.

And...

Bluebird Baby may just be an official business in a few days! After the town meeting tonight I should find out if my business license has been approved. A big thank you to Blair for answering my many questions about this whole process. Be sure to check out her amazing Etsy shop too!

An Escape

My sewing area is technically in the dining room. I have a little table in the corner with my serger and sewing machine, and a smaller table next to it with my laptop and printer. (I've decided that having my laptop right next to the sewing machine is NOT a good idea. I get distracted very easily...) No, you won't be seeing photos because it is a setup I am not proud of. It's messy, and I am not usually a messy person. A rainbow of thread covers the floor, there are toys (like the above) around my desk and bits of Elisabeth's favorite Deland bread she discarded earlier crunching under my feet. My basket full of trim and elastic is on the verge of exploding and somehow I've still managed to find a spot to unload all of my acrylics and brushes.

The dining room table serves as my cutting table. It's an antique and I have to admit that the rotary cutter has slipped a few times (sorry Stephen). Because I usually have to drop whatever I'm working on the moment the little one wakes, my half completed projects stay on the table until the next free moment I have. We no longer eat supper at the table, but instead eat after the little one has gone to bed, sitting on the couch while watching a Netflix. Good, quality bonding I tell ya.

Stephen and I have discussed the fact that I really, really, desperately need my own space. A place to get away... just for a moment. To step outside the daily life that can sometimes drive a mama nutty. An escape. Ah, yes. Escape. A perfect word. So Stephen is hearing my plea for an escape and has agreed to turn over a little room in his woodworking shop. All for me. It will be a while, but I really can't wait.

And on a completely different note, a swap with a certain somebody had me digging around for this. I (a person afraid of heights) went up a ladder to reach the loft where this was tucked away in a box. Are you stumped yet Grace? This box brings me back to my days at Simmons where I visited the art store down the street daily. I became obsessed with charcoal and have quite a few finished pieces to prove it.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Home

We returned home one day short because of some sniffles and a runny nose. This is the first time the little one has been sick, so I'm not sure what to expect. I'm also not certain that it's actually anything but teething. The drool fountain, which stopped around month seven, has returned with full force and will soak a shirt in about 30 seconds.

Regardless of the above, we had a marvelous time with Grammie. We tried to stay sane with a week full of rainy weather and an antsy toddler waiting to go outdoors and ride her bike. We played a lot, read a lot and ate a lot. That seemed to do the trick, but we were ever so pleased when the sun arrived on Saturday.

While in Portland, I ventured into Edith and Edna for some Sublime Stitching patterns. I am always amazed by the things in that store. Such talented artists and oh so inspiring. I wanted to fill a bag with goodies to take home, but our budget just won't allow it. So a stitching pattern was my only purchase and I enjoyed the time walking around Portland (in the pouring rain) without the little one on my hip.

On Saturday we had a joint celebration of three birthdays: my mother's, and the birthday that my brother and I share. I made a gluten and dairy free cake and I must say that it was delicious. Even the gluten eating among us enjoyed every bite. It was my first bit of sugar after a two week diet of only agave nectar and maple syrup, and the fact that I had three pieces in one day sent my body into sugar shock. So now I am on the hunt for baking recipes where natural sweeteners work well. Any ideas?

That project I showed you a sneak peak of the other day will have to be revealed at a later date. I actually forgot to take a picture of the entire thing, and I can only say that it was a bag I made for my mother. My own design and definitely something I will be making more of for the shop. I also included this little zippered pouch that I made with the help of Amy's book. I wish I could have gotten the embroidery hoop marks off the corduroy, but even with much ironing, they didn't budge. If you're familiar with the book, I obviously altered the pattern a bit. I was surprised that the lining had to be hand sewn inside along the zipper. There has to be an easier way! Overall, it was a simple, quick project and made a very practical and stylish gift.

Much more tomorrow. I hope you all enjoyed your weekend! 

Mishmash

mishmash |ˈmi sh ˌma sh; -ˌmä sh | noun:
a confused mixture : a mishmash of outmoded ideas.

This whole week has been spent catching up on things I neglected during my eight day illness. My posts feel as scattered as the days have been, so please forgive the "mishmash" quality of it all.

Yesterday morning I left to go on a fabric hunt for some special orders, alone! Along the way I picked up these. I seem to be drawn to earth-tones and vintage inspired material. So when I discovered that the majority of these were reproductions, I wasn't surprised. I haven't a clue what to use them for, but I'm sure it won't take long before they are on the cutting table.

Speaking of new material, I seem to be doing a lot of this lately. I had no idea that most of the time spent creating something was behind the ironing board or cutting table when I first began sewing. Now I iron all of my material as soon as it leaves the dryer, whether I plan on using it right away or not. When I start a new project, I really like to dive right in and don't have the patience to do all the ironing first.

The prints are framed! Tucked away in my little corner, I finally feel like this space is becoming my own. It's a temporary studio space (I hope anyway), but I still want it to be an inspiring space to sit down and create. These prints are certainly inspiring.

And the last of the mishmash ... the little one chomping away on an apple. It seems to be her favorite snack this season and I often find the discarded core tucked away with her books or next to her play kitchen. Thank goodness I've always found them the same day. It's hard to miss that apple smell!

Cozy Corners

Living in a house that is essentially one big room has made me very aware of the sun; where it comes up and where it sets. You can sit on the same couch all day long and watch as the sun's rays move from one window to the next, and eventually end up on the opposite side of the house than when the day began.
This window seems to catch the most of the sun. It sits right in the middle of our family "room" and provides hours of sunshine throughout the day.

I'm still under the weather and now it looks as if the wee one is too. Thankfully, she is still able to breathe while sleeping, so at least someone is getting some rest!