What's in the box...

What's in the box? Well with all the outdoor time going on here I have been getting a little twitchy that I am away from my beloved sewing machine...so I looked for a portable project and this is what I came up with...A small project and even better it uses stash, because I am sure I am not the only Mom that needs to think of those pennies when the kids are at home... so buying lots of lovely yarn and fabric is a luxury I am having to resist at the moment...

So when something looks this cute I think I can get the buzz of making something new and save some of those pennies for the daily ice cream that seems to have become part of our summer routine
Whilst the children are playing and crafting either at the beach or in the garden I am busy knitting my little cupcakes (fairy cakes). I have an idea for them to sit along side the Critters in China Cups (see last years July posts), because along with all those lovingly collected china cups and saucers I also have all the side plates so I think it would be a nice mix for selling along side each other...it also helps me to have a break from knitting up mice...
The kids carry on crafting what ever the weather and I make a little nest to get on with the knitting...
Of course Archie the BIG BUNNY so loves us being at home in the garden as he just adores the company.

Funny Story....It was my Moms birthday this week and my family got together for a little party for her, usually I bake a cake, due to being away and returning home early for the party I was unable to bake one, so I thought one of my knitted cakes would be a perfect token for her.  Well as she unwrapped her pressies she looked in the pretty box, pulled out the cake and smelled it (there's an idea...lavender) she made a polite 'Mmm" sound and popped it back in the box...so my conclusion to this is whilst I love things like this, especially if it was hand made by a loved one...well some people just look at it as...for want of a better word...silly!!! Now back to my knitting...I have some more silliness to be getting on with...

Living the dream...

One week of the summer holidays has gone by already and so far it is totally living up to expectation...
The children and I took of for a week and we got so in to our summer groove...We hit the beach for a week of cold swims and ice cream...sitting in the cooling light of the evening wrapped up in a thrifted chenille blanket watching the sun go down on a deserted beach...The children dug endless holes in the sand and I sat and knitted my socks...Once the boys fell asleep in the evening, usually passing out from exhaustion, I would sit in the peacefulness of the cottage and read, or listen to a podcast and knit...a few summer projects on the go.  Then I would retire to my sumptuous bedroom and curl up with a pot of tea and read. All ready and refreshed for another day of beach life... BLISS!!!

So we return home and the sun is still shinning, today we are just having a pajama day, the paddling pool is filled and the boys are hunting for the frogs in the garden after are success with the tadpoles we have a few hoping around! 

Lots of plans being made for the rest of the holidays....lots of things getting made, either by sewing, knitting or working with messy glue...a huge mass of photo's being taken and best of all...lots of outside play...

(This is my first post using my Mac book and its still very much a learning process...)

In the bag...

Well its all over...the end of term is finally here...the presents got finished, the last minute PTA events got attended to and the goodbye service to the last class about to take the next big step in their world was filled with tears... So its here at last...the start of the summer holidays...filled with promise, promise of long summer days, eating ice cream and feeling the sand on our skins, BBQ's in the fresh air, camping and meeting up with friends and family...
Most of all, not looking at the clock, days and days of just going with the flow...time to chill, to read with my children, to take slow walks and eat pic-nics and lots craft activities...
Its the best time of year and the start of the holidays is by far the most exciting time...
So whilst I get into my summer groove I am going to be off line for a few days. I need to get into the flow of being free from living by the clock, to reconnect with my little family, to establish the ground rules and to get on with some serious 'making' time. So many things are planned for the summer, I have some goals I want to achieve with the children...learning to tie shoe laces, reading and improving writing, working on the joy of photography with my eldest child and lots of sewing and knitting for me...so please bear with me and I shall be back soon with all the news...Enjoy the summer and take time out to create...create a mess, learn something new or just simply follow your dreams...to me this is what summer is all about...

Photographs....1)teachers presents wrapped and ready for giving 2) Suzie Sews bags all complete especially made for each teacher with the fabric selected by the children 3) a close up 4) a little extra parcel for a little poppet, one of the teachers babes...

Chasing my tail and bag it all up...

Chasing my tail, am I the only one? It seems madness around here, so much going on with it being the last week of term and I just feel like I am chasing my tail...blogging is a luxury on the time scale so I am afraid I have not been on line as much as I would like. I am on various committees and this week it seems to be full on with activities. School is the majority of the time taker, which I love and I would not have it any other way. It does however make me very excited about the start of the summer break...nearly seven weeks of full on kiddy time, no school runs, no extra curriculum activities, most of all NO CLOCK WATCHING... SO when I do manage a few minutes of computer time, this is my new area for it...no more stuck at the computer table, I can multitask with a bit of cooking time as well, I love my new Macbook, although I am still trying to find my way around it and have succumbed to purchasing a mouse as I am just not quick enough with the touch pad. So who would have thought it? I am at last (and about time to) getting more computer literate, maybe now I will be able to show my oldest one a thing or two...Yer right!
OK, this I have to share with you...the finished pair of socks, how I love my socks...I have wanted to make socks for so long but 'knitting in the round' just scared me, so I sat down one day and made myself learn...it was worth it...second pair well on their way already...
So with the end of term comes the 'do you don't you give the teacher a gift'? As part of a small village school I feel this is something that we do in this household. I draw the line at expensive gifts though as the gifts are from the children...this year due to addiction to making bags...
...we, and I say we as the children are involved, making their teachers book bags...so the fabric was selected and the process of making four bags with embroidery name tags on them began...I proudly finished the first one and showed it to the oldest child...who instead of smiling said...'Do I really have to give her a pink bag?' Mmmmmmmmm now someone helped with the selection of the fabric...so whats a Mom supposed to do, make another one in different fabric, make him take in the pink bag, or go and buy a 'Best teacher Mug' to go with the other collection of mugs I am sure she will have...I am still working on this decision...
Still we are ALL enjoying making the cards...all three of us so enjoy playing with those little square bits of paper and we have more books on origami than I care to mention...in fact when we are out in a restaurant or even just having a glass of milk in the local cafe its those little squares of paper (or even a napkin) that keep the children entertained and sat at the table...

So its time for me to get on with the sewing orders so I know they are all done before the holidays start, it was a school concert this morning and then later its party time...but for now I am off to my sewing room...

Summer Love and Pond life?

Well well well...the rain finally stopped for a day and the sun came out...just look at the difference from last weekend (see previous post) to this weekend, instead of bouncing rain on the garden table we had a little tea party set up...Mmmm the summery smell of a BBQ...just lovely...and you can not beat Pyrex for outdoor eating, this stuff is so strong... of course there was a big helping of knitting thrown into the pot...
as we sat and enjoyed the garden, the children and I were not alone...
My youngest one was delighted to be picking some of the strawberries that he had planted earlier on in the summer (one of the few plants not to have got washed away) all ready to chop for the fruit salad...
and on a day spent pottering around the garden it would not be complete without our free range bunny Archie and the guinea pigs (no photo's of them as they stayed in the shade)...
In fact the day was just so exciting we never really had time to change out of our PJs before the playing started...

At the start of the summer the children and I dug out a hole and sunk into it a big bucket to make a little child friendly pond, later we collected some tadpoles and slowly the the little bucket is starting to blend into the garden and fill with wildlife...just look at this fine fellow, so nearly there, soon he will be hoping off to make his own way in the world...
I added in a little solar powered fountain so when we are in the garden we can listen to the lovely sound of water tinkling away...
Looks like Archie likes it...
Now I did say the pond is coming to life and I have been looking through some of my nature books to be able to name the various insects and swimmers we are finding...this one has me stumped...it is attached to the wood in the pond (the wood is to help the frogs get in and out) its got some of the what looks like eggs submerged in water and some out of water...it iridescent and I have no idea what is gestating in this gloppy shimmering stuff...
I am guessing it will be some kind of fly...any ideas??? I started a search on the net and gave up after the various descriptions of Alien styled creatures...

So there you have it, at long last a peek into my life on a summer's day. How I love summer. My life is just hectic at the moment, nothing major just lots of end of school year stuff and the usual Mommy things. I am however also trying to work out my new lap top...another reason for the slowness in my postings, I am getting there and I am sure with in a week or so I will be up to speed...also I am on a 'FINISH THE WORK s IN PROGRESS' mission, so I am free for the summer holidays...I am getting there and I will be back to craft blogging on my next post, thanks for bearing with me. Off to sports day now...lets hope the rain stays off, those clouds are looking a little angry!!! Have a great day.

Rainy afternoon...craft time...

Another rainy afternoon, now I know I should be a bit fed up with all the rain we are getting at the moment, Hey it is the British summer time after all. When it rains this hard I feel it gives me just the excuse I need to ignore the gardening (unless I take up underwater gardening) and to just simple NOT DO the housework because that would make me just plain boring...no, a rainy afternoon is just the thing I need to get on with some guilt free crafting time... Its the end of the school year and I am caught up in a flurry of school trips, PTA events (baking cakes)! and end of term productions...Drama, Violin, Choir, the list goes on. I am so enjoying seeing the fruit of all the years work, also a little sad that the first school year for my little one is nearly over. I was in his classroom today (helping with a school activity) as the teacher ran through the itinerary with the children I looked around at the lack of personality to their cosy class room, the things that made this class room theirs...their name badges, the words of the year, the home corner, reading corner and of course all their fabulous art work...all areas now clear and I presume put in bags for them to bring home on the last day of term...
So whilst the rain came down later in the day and I found myself sitting at the kitchen table planning the weeks baking I thought I would add a bit of colour to the cakes I was needing to bake. So I popped into my craft cupboard and pulled out a few favourites...
After punching many, many perfect circles...with a little bit of sticky tape and a few colourful plastic (hygienic) sticks...
...there you have it, little flag style toppers suitable for the best sand castles or to decorate cakes with...
So the baking begins and the list is a long one, the cakes are made first so I can nibble on them whilst I cook...

TIP... if you bake a lot of cakes and like me, you get a bit fed up making butter icing...make it in large batches (as long as your butter is well in its best before date) and store it in plastic boxes (similar to the ones you get at take aways) and keep them in the fridge. Take them out a good hour before baking to soften the icing and if desired you can mix in colour or flavour (vanilla, almond etc...). The children like helping me with the batches as we usually end up with a Kitchen like a Christmas snow scene.

Knit therapy...a work in progress

Knit therapy, it is indeed a work in progress, it is constantly ongoing with moments of pure high when you finish a garment...but it is so much more than that, the excitement of planning your next project, the visit to the yarn shop, fondling the yarn and getting just the right one and leaving with your little bag of goodness...It is indeed therapy for the sole. Then you have the hours of knitting time, time in front of the telly, sitting under a tree in the garden or (and I have been known) to even knit in the bath. When you equate the cost per hour, knitting is a cheap hobby, yes the yarn seems expensive at first, think of the hours of enjoyment you get as apposed to a drink in the pub in an evening...a couple of glasses of wine and your already on to the price of two luxury skeins of yarn. Maybe if your really flush you could even treat yourself to the two!!!
I have wanted to knit all my life, I learnt to crochet a chain by my cousin (we sadly lost her to cancer last year) when I was a small girl, I knitted squares, just squares...I could not do anything else, I think they all ended up in the bin, my Mom was never much for keeping things for sentimental purposes. Through my travels in life a few people have offered to teach me to knit but it never happened then one day a couple of years ago a friend (that would be you Caroline) actually sat down with me and taught me to read a pattern and by the end of the first session I had been taught to psso!!! (I have blogged about this previous) I rushed off the next day to buy the yarn for the pattern I had been given to work on. The shop assistant must have known I was so innocent to the world of knitting as she sold me a completely inappropriate yarn...not to be put off I worked on this project till it was finished...
It was big and bulky and very thick not really suitable for the babe I had made it for, I had rib stitches when I should have had moss and visa versa, the buttons did not fasten up straight and the general look was a little, well odd! Still I learnt so much from that piece of knitting and through this knitting my acquaintance with the teacher grew from just another Mom friend to a great friendship and we carried on our knitting time for a couple of years until a move made it impossible for us to continue, still we see each other a few times a year, time gets focused on our knitting and we chat via the phone about our projects and yarn and all things wool related.
Knitting has become part of my everyday being, I knit pretty much everyday, I have a project in most rooms, yes I would love to be a 'faithful to one project' kind of knitter, no I have lots on the go at one time. Socks when I am in the car for those few minutes before schools out, a huge messy basket by my chair in the living room with my big projects in, a knitting bag for knitting night and a pile by my bed of yarn I just like to look at when I slip into sleep or pick up and knit a few rows when my youngest once again can not sleep and needs to climb into my bed for a few hours, once I am awake I can get back to sleep easily so a few rows always helps.
Yes knitting has changed my life, what could be nicer than to sit and pass through your hands a beautiful natural wool and with every stitch you knit with love a garment for your children to wear. I look at the sweaters, bags and scarfs not to mention the endless mittens on string I knit and I remember so much about the place I knitted them in, the age of the children and it triggers off a whole trip down memory lane, a living photograph. Some remind me of happy times of sitting in the garden by the pond whilst the frogs make their merry noise whilst sipping a cool glass of something summery. Sometimes the memories are so sad, when I knitted a sweater by the side of my fathers bed as I watched him, day after day, slip away from me, helpless to do anything about it. Yes these are the memories of life and my knitting keeps them alive for me. For my children I keep a knitting journal of my knitting, photos of my projects and a few words that will help them to understand the importance and the need to make things by hand.

Today I was reading the book Last Minute Knitted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson, one paragraph really stood out for me...Wrapping Knitted Gifts:One of the simplest ways to present a handmade gift is wrapped-without a box-in tissue paper that compliments the gift. It does not mater if the tissue is wrinkled, or if the corners are not perfectly square. To tie the package with yarn leftover from the project and to make a gift tag by stamping the recipient's name on a pretty piece of paper. I think this wrapping has a sweet, imperfect feeling just like so many hand made gifts.

Photographs: 1)Finished this week, felted handbag knitted in Noro 2) Debbie Bliss knitted sweater for my youngest with a sail post motif knitted on the front (WIP) 3) The socks...whoops I have dropped a stitch and I need to buy a tiny crochet hook to pick up the dropped stitch several rows down caused by watching Hero's on the telly. 4) The basket by my chair...just too much going on here 5) My favourite knit made a few summers ago and still in use, a ducks patter, my first pattern and I was overjoyed with it especially as it was my little ones favourite thing to wear. Also his night time bear that gets a new sweater made with the odds and ends of the yarn of my youngest ones latest sweater so they each have the same clothes.

4th July...

It is with warm wishes I wish any one who is American a very Happy 4th July...

Beach hut dreaming...

My whole life I have felt the need to 'nest' to make a place my own. It can be any place just so long as I make it mine. Even as a child I would rearrange my bedroom every week. I think its a need in me to put roots down. As an adopted child I have no roots, I do not know where I came from, the hospital I was born or indeed any family history. So the need in me to dream of a little home I call 'my own' is a strong one. I think my desire for a beach hut is all part of this... So many pictures of my week away and some fabulous memories of time spent with my babes, as I go through the photo's the beach huts seem to feature a lot. What is it about these little buildings, often in some disarray, they pull at my heart strings and I imagine decorating them with Cath Kidston fabrics and collecting lovely vintage treasures to fill it with and a beach hut would not be complete without a set of miss matching Tupperware...
A place to brew the perfect cuppa on a hot day, for a sleeping babe to enjoy their slumber away from the mid day rays, to change out of your swimsuit with style rather than fumbling under a towel that inevitably drops at the crucial moment revealing you 'bum' to all the beach...
Of course this being the UK we have to factor in a good dose of rain throughout the summer...so a place to throw everything in when the heavens open, never mind the tea a huge mug of hot chocolate topped off with marshmallows to put a smile on the children's faces...can not you not just imagine yourself there?
To watch the sun rise and set, to build a campfire in the late evening so you can BBQ the sausages to fill those hungry tummies after a day of splashing and digging, a place to curl up in whilst the sand itches your cooling skin as the day light fades...
Yes this is what a beach hut is all about...but it is just a dream, in reality this is the closest we get, sheltering from a cloud burst..hey a girl can dream...can't I???

(one of these beach huts was up for sale at the small cost of offers over £70,000)

WIP update for my next post...and so many of them!!!