the belly chronicles

last of the cozy days

The mild winter is spurting to an end and spring is around the corner...some days upon us, some days teasing us with slushy rain and snow. I'd better finish showing you some of the winter knitting that went on here. Unfortunately for me, there's not much of it. Most of the autumn and winter was spent knitting and unraveling the same sweater (February Lady Sweater) 3 times in 2 different colors. Fun, huh?

After the first unravel, I pulled out this sweet Cascade Farms heathered eco-wool and knit this jumper for Miel. It's the same one I knit 2 years prior, and I'm so glad I did it again. The pattern is from Catherine Tough's Easy Knits for Little Kids. It's Miel's go-to layer for wintertime. Perfect for school and for layering under jackets and sweaters with tights or pants underneath. There's nothing like seeing your little one in a layer of hand-knit wool when she sets of for a chilly day at preschool.

The big motivation for getting going on it was the sweetest store on a backstreet of our Motomachi neighborhood with a gorgeous assortment of buttons. Miel took the longest time choosing the pearly flowers that grace the jumper.

So now I've been project-less for the past month or so. I did make a quick headband for myself and the next day found it with the clothes that were coming out of the dryer reincarnated as a felted coffee cup sleeve. Not in the flow. So I waffle between trying to force myself to create something from my stash to prove that I am worthy or just to take a trip to the yarn store, buy something lovely, and cross my fingers that I'll pull it off this time. The answer seems obvious, but still I waffle.

 

 

and some more holiday crafting

In the midst of all the toy frenzy, for Chanukah I was able to crank out a small handmade project for each kiddo. Miel got a soft pink and purple fuzzy scarf, cozy enough for every day.

And Isaiah got this messenger bag. I had so much fun making it. At least mostly, till the end when I wanted to tear my hair out! It's from the book One-Yard Wonders, the same book we used for Isaiah's teacher's bag.

It was originally for his drawing supplies, since those little fingers need to be busy all the time, but now it seems to make a convenient case for his growing Bey Blade collection. Go figure :)

for the sake of making

In the spirit of catching up a bit on the huge gap--initiated by our first visitor, Dale, back in November--I've got a few posts ready for you about holiday crafting and pre-holiday travel. Now you can't blame Dale for showing us such a great and full time that I couldn't even tell you about it, but as we gear up for our next VIP visitors, I think I'd at least better catch up a little and bring us all up to the present.

Ahhh...holiday crafting. This year was interesting in the crafting department as in so many other ways. Since we've come to Japan, since my kids are both in school each day (Miel just in the mornings), and since I'm not working at all for the first time in most of our family life, I have LESS time for the usual things...cooking, making, nature walking. Yes, a paradox I can't really explain, except in terms of time warps and such. But, time management has always been a big one for me, so it's no surprise really.

So, I've let go of a lot of things. (We'll talk about my changing relationship with cooking in another post.) For this reason and a whole bunch of others--overcompensating for the nature deprivation, wanting the kids to fit in, needing more toys as a result of city living--I found myself at Toys R Us 3 times and I really caved on some of my values when choosing what Santa could bring the children. Case in point, Miel received a Disney princess castle on Christmas morning (purchased by me!!). This breaks 2 of my toy "rules": no new plastic and no branding (especially of old traditional fairy tales!). Anyway, I won't get started ranting, but you can probably feel the indignation rising in my chest just reading this.

Fortunately, I found that balancing a few handmade things into the mix helped me feel a bit more grounded into our family values. And that's what I really wanted to share with you today...

 Isaiah and I had great fun making this collapsible shopping bag for his teacher. He chose the fabric at the store, sewed pretty much all of it,

and was really proud of his work!

It's from the book, One-Yard Wonders, which is my first sewing book and a perfect beginner one because everything is just one yard. So, even if I mess up, it probably hasn't cost me that much time or money that I can't go back and do it again. Each project teaches me a new skill or two, and I'm really falling in love with sewing. I don't think Isaiah even realizes what a beginner I am and how lucky we were to have had a successful project.

He brought some sweet bookmarks for his classmates to their end-of-year party. Again, he did all the sewing, writing, and decorating and felt really good about the making. He might not have the energy to pick up one sock off the floor, but he's always liked having a serious job.

Miel also made some for her friends, and our little flurry of pre-holiday making got us all in the spirit.

sleeping pretty

You probably remember Julia, who lives with Cafe Bear and Bubbeleh under Miel's care. Julia finally got some clothes! She was wearing Ms. Rabbit's wool skirt and sweater all these months, but c'mon, it's spring. She needed some new duds.

So far we've got...yup, that's right, a nightgown. After trying to follow patterns several times, I gave up for months before finally deciding to just wing it. All I could figure out how to do was a self-designed sack.

Of course, me being me, after laboring for a few evenings and finishing all the little edges on the sleeves and hem, I gave her to Miel just one step away from being finished. I explained that the back is open now, but that I'm going to put some snaps on there for her.

"I want a zipper."

Of course you do, my sweet. So it got a little more complicated, but I figured it out! 

Yay for me! This is huge success in my book.

Who knows when Julia will get some real clothes? It might be a long while...So I made her a little matching pillow and blanket so at least she'll be cozy in all that time she spends in her crib!

And now big brother wants his own doll...with skin like his Indian friend and hair like his African friend. Sorry, Julia! Your clothes might be a loooong way off!

family draw

So much drawing has been happening here lately, thanks to a string of how-to books we've been taking out of the library.

Isaiah is the kind of person who likes to do things according to instruction, the way other people do them, and have the product come out "right." (Where does he get that from?) He gets easily frustrated when his drawings don't come out like the real thing...although he's recently been making some "abstract" art...a relief.

 

These books give him a step-by-step way to focus his energy and get the picture he wants on the page. We're practicing patience, focusing, and using the eraser!

 

 

He gets really proud of the results!

I don't know about how it is with you when drawing with young kids, but I'm finding it therapeutic. I've never been at all confident in my drawing skills and have been as apt to say, "I can't draw" as I am to say, "I don't run." But with the children, I've been careful never to say that and to let them know that everyone can draw and that there is no right way. But now that Isaiah's drawing sophistication is sneaking up, I'm grateful to have a guide that helps me draw a cardinal, or a compsognathus, or a bush-baby lemur.

Everyone's in on the act...though Miel switches to her own thing pretty quickly.

The books we've been using:

• Draw 50 Birds by Lee J. Ames and Tony D'Adamo
• 1-2-3 Draw Wild Animals by Freddie Levin
• Draw Dinosaurs by Doug DuBosque
• How to Draw Dinosaurs by Jim Arnosky

owl smiles

 

I so appreciated a recent comment that my blog brings smiles. Well, cuz...this one's for you.

I'd love to think that these photos show off my sewing prowess, but I'll have to settle for proud foibles, I think. Don't get me wrong...he's still just young enough that he'll wear them (with calf-high socks for an extra fashion punch). And he thinks they're cool. After all, it's reptile week at school and owls eat small reptiles.

Predator shorts!

The making of them was a fun adventure! My friend Kate (an actual sewing professional) and I labored over the pattern and I was thrilled to be able to navigate my way around my first set of sewing blueprints. I even solved a few mysteries for the both of us.

I learned alot along the way, but in the end, the process was more successful than the outcome...after all, they do match his new curtains.

beauty in and out

"I tell you, the more I think, the more I feel that there

is nothing more truly artistic than to love people." Vincent van Gogh 

February was a month I feared, but it's actually the month I've fallen in love with Minnesota. I know . . . kind of crazy. I've had this fantasy since childhood of living somewhere covered in snow throughout the winter. A good lesson in being careful what you wish for, right? We used to get snow on the golf course near our house in Pennsylvania during storms and we'd try to rush out with cross country skis, but the snow would never last and the conditions would often be soft and slow. Here, we just need it to be warm enough to be outside.

Today was such a day. Sunny, almost 30 and Isaiah and I hit the trails at Quarry Hill, admiring the local "cloud factory" and skiing across the frozen pond.

When we're not out there playing, we're inside keeping cozy. Our art studio/sunroom has gone a bit amok lately with non-stop painting. I love these images. 2 boys collaborating on a self-portrait started out innocently and of course became filled with fireballs, blood and cannons. Discouraging, sure. But better on paper than with sticks and tinkertoy rods in the playroom.

And just so you know, Miel's forehead is just fine. She really likes band-aids. And face paint.

sweet girl (in some winter knits)

 

 

Now I know . . . there's nothing like a 3 1/2 year old girl. She brightens the day, sweetens the night, and keeps us all in line. (She's the only one in the family who straightens her room 3 times a day, makes her bed upon waking, and picks things up off the floor because she likes everything in its place.)

She's a dream to knit for . . .she doesn't mind the scratch of wool and is very clear about what she wants. This hat and the pink sweater were my winter projects for her this year. Maybe I'll even get a skirt knitted up for her . . .we'll see.

She is a pure, sweet drop of honey . . . big love in a little package.

(And no, that is not the Minnesota ground under her feet . . .we haven't seen the ground in a few months. That was taken down "south" in New Jersey.)

curtains

 

The sewing machine and I are getting to know each other, in that on again, off again kind of way. I'm not quite so intimidated by its inner workings, but there have still been a few midnight "I can't figure out how to work this *^#@ thing" moments.

Each of the children now has one window covered in curtains. They chose the fabric, but I'm the one who cares infinitely more that their rooms have curtains than they do!

Miel's even have ruffles because, in my carelessness, I bought too little fabric and the panels were a couple of inches too short. "Just add ruffles," piped an accomplished friend. Didn't think I could do it, but here they are. . .with some fun fabric chosen by Miel that I never would have even considered.

Isaiah's banner was his birthday present from me. Finished the night before his birthday, of course. From Amanda Blake Soule's Handmade Home. And yes, the "peace" message, a bit of my high hopes for what he can hold within himself and bring to his family and the world around him (and even his sister!).

ps...I probably won't be cluttering up Facebook every time I post if I continue to try to give you a regular little dose, so if you want to know when new postings happen, click on the subscribe button and I'll be conveniently delivered to your inbox.

old-fashioned silhouettes

Wow, I'm loving all your comments, e-mails, and encouragements. The fact that you check in here means the world to me, my own small, still-connected world. I'd love to be your daily treat :) A little harmless guilty pleasure :)

I've got a backlog of winter crafting to share. These silhouettes were probably my favorite project of the holiday season. I made 3 pairs, one for each set of grandparents and one for Nanny, who didn't live to see the finished product but would have loved them. We have her set hanging in our hall.

I encourage you to give this a try . . . it was easy. Really easy. Really.

I took photos of the children standing sideways against a blank wall.

I printed the photos the size I wanted them.

I cut them out with an exacto knife.

I painted them black.

I bought some frames.

I cut some ivory card stock into an oval to fit the frame and glued the pictures on.

If you're really motivated, you could throw these together and make someone very happy this Valentine's Day.

Wishing you much love and light this holiday!

p.s. Sorry Mom and Dad. I feel like it would be better if more work went into your gifts, but this one was just simple and easy.