This Moment

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Adventures in Sewing

In November, my dear husband got me a sewing machine.  It was supposed to be my Christmas present, but he forgot about it and bought me more presents. :)

Anyhow, This little baby quilt was my first project.  I spent hours trying to get my machine to work properly - and consequently ripping out a lot of stitiches.  Then Keith discovered I hadn't lowered the presser foot.

I did not grow up in a sewing household so slowly I'm learning how things work, what works best and what steps you cannot skip. Such as, washing your fabric first.  Sorry baby Aiden.

This was my second undertaking - finishing the quilt I started 6 years ago before I moved to Ottawa.  

There are some great tutorials online for pillowcase dresses.  I tried out three different patterns on the dresses below.

My first attempt. It was too short in length for the width of the bottom.  Not the fault of the pattern, but my eager scissors.








These second attempts and the third below were made simultaneously in a flurry of sewing ambition.  These two print flowerly numbers actually serve as tank tops or tunics as the child grows.  However, these may be shirts by the end of the summer since I still have trouble sewing and cutting a straight line and had to hem them a bit shorter.

This was a fun little dress to make and is a variation on the pillowcase dress.  The tutorial I can't seem to find right now but I'll have another look around.

This large broadturn bag was a project out of Handmade Home by Amanda Blake Soule. www.soulemama.com.  I really liked it so I halved all of the measurements and made a wee purse for Lucy.




Finally, our nearly-three-year-old will be moving into a toddler bed shortly and so I thought I'd try my  hand at making bottom sheets.  I love the fabric I used for this first one.  The plan is to make a second in flannel for Winter.

Thanks for reading through my adventures in sewing!

Almost Vacation!

"Three more sleeps until Nana and Papa come."  I told Isaiah yesterday.  For the past few days "Nana, Papa" have been some of the first words out of his mouth each morning.  Our home goes from being a hive of packing and cleaning activity to being quite serene.  Lately, I've been trying to crank out a bunch or projects for my family.  Because my family lives so far away, I usually just hang on to birthday gifts until I see them next.  This trip is no exception.  I believe I am bringing 6 birthday gifts.  Since I haven't given these gifts yet, I can't post pictures of them all here - but I think I can safely show you some of Isaiah's 3rd birthday gifts :)  In addition to these mommy-made gifts - we bought him some rainbow blocks from Nova Natural Toys and Gifts.  This is a wet-felted wool ball with a bell inside.

The idea for the travel pouch I got from this pattern for a gratitude wrap from Soulemama.  I just made some modifications to the pockets.

These knitted pants were very near completion when I decided I wasn't going to like them as much as I wanted to.  Then I saw this sweater Soulemama just completed for her little guy and started to frog the pants.  This is the second time I've ripped out a nearly completed garment of this yarn.  3rd time is the charm, I hope.  I don't know if I'll get it done in time for his July 1st birthday.  Sometimes vacation means lots of knitting time and sometimes none at all - it seems to make my board games strategies suffer.

Quiet Mornings

For the past few weeks I have been getting up at 6:30am - a full hour before the kids begin to stir. I used to climb out of bed when I heard Isaiah calling me or Lucy crying and I spent the better part of the morning waiting for nap time when I could get a moment to myself.  This new regime is one of the little changes I've tried in order to prepare for August.  In August, we will be serving as a host family in a shelter for refugee claimants new to Canada.  The position promises to be both challenging and rewarding - and I think this little ritual of rising early, drinking coffee, reading, and maybe knitting a few rows in the quiet dawn before attending to the the needs of the rest of the house will help me to better serve them. 

Back from Hiatus!

A few months ago, I was feeling a little stagnant in my mothering day-to-day. My friend Natalie suggested I read her friend's blog. I never thought much about reading the blogs of people I have never met - but it has been a truly rewarding experience and breathed fresh and colourful life into my daily routine.

I am hoping use this blog as a family journal of sorts - a way of recording moments, memories, and the creative learning curve I have been on in recent weeks. Stay tuned :)