projects.

been working on a few things over here. the first was a much needed pair of curtains for the kid's room. they've had white shutters up until now and the shutters were losing it. one slat at a time.

so-- curtains to the rescue.

i got the tree fabric at ikea, but, of course, didn't buy enough. luckily a friend handed off some fabric she wasn't using and the grey corduroy was just enough.

(i must take this opportunity to brag about samuel's "museum" that he made. it's one of my absolute favorite things.)

okay. sorry. back to projects. the other thing i've been working on is this shirt.

i got a lovely grease spot on it. it is one of my favorite shirts- you know the kind. fits just right- is really soft. it's my go-to. but i couldn't wear it anymore. and then i remembered the magic of heat'n bond.

i ironed some onto two fabrics, drew and cut out a few butterflies.

arranged the butterflies on my shirt (being sure to cover my lovely grease stain)

then ironed those onto the shirt. i stitched them on afterward, for good measure.

and-- ta-da! a new shirt. kinda.

i'm usually too lazy for this kind of salvaging, but, well... i just really loved this shirt.

spring. she's stretching her legs

oh she's coming. we walked the yard recently and saw all the signs.

green.

tiny new green peeking from the brown.

red buds.

and flowers.

the kids are outside as i type. doing "a school project about making mud." (yes, they made this up, i think in a hope of convincing me of the task's worthiness)

fleece pants are now stuffed into frog rain boots. i hear singing and see two little heads bouncing as they run. what a joy to be outside. to feel His breeze blow through the house. thankful.

visits and babies

we had visitors. jason's brother and his wife were here for a long weekend. and we lived it up. a night out for the grown ups, a picnic at the park with ice cream afterwards. there was some adventure in the mountains, and a little girl getting her fingernails painted.

and i could probably show you the beauty of that trip in a few pictures, but... mindy brought her fancy beautiful camera. so i have to show more. forgive me.

oh these little bath-time bodies. they are so yummy. and i've been informing kate of her yumminess frequently, after which she laughs and declares that she is not, in fact, 'yummy.' but she's so wrong.

it is such a joy to see other people delight in your children. mindy and kate were in kate's room for an hour or so. the door was shut and i would hear occasional little-girl giggles and that was about it. then mindy emerged saying she just needed a little drink of water because her voice was starting to hurt from making it so high pitched for so long. they were playing horses. and i have no doubt that mindy's was the baby.

i feel so gooey-warm inside when people i love pay attention to the little faces usually around my knees. it's special.

the babies grow so quickly. sweet babies.

hope your week is settling in well. we're enjoying some time at home, some library books and tea.

valentines-ish

we don't do much for v-day around here. though i did make pancakes.

really, just for the challenge of it.

yesterday was so beautiful. i threw open the back door and left it open for a few hours. while little ones ran out and in- mostly out. they climbed trees and 'rescued' things. it was fantastic. we ate lunch outside.

for a Minnesotan, i'm becoming a bit of a baby when it comes to winter endurance. i'm grateful for the blooming daffodils and am already aching for more days like yesterday.

when i went for my walk this morning, it smelled like spring. that smell that mixes cold and green. delicious.

we've got family coming into town today. we're so excited to be together and as i've been thinking about the days coming up and trying to plan and prepare, i've also been struck, once again, by control issues. i hope these coming days will be filled with times where i lift my hands up to the sky- letting go of my plan and asking my Father to do whatever He wants with our time.

so glad He's in control.

catch up

today is such a beautiful bright shiny day. i hope it is at your house too. the weather has been a bit confused lately. i see teeny red buds on my tree in the front yard and i think i can see them shivering in the cold.

but home is beautiful. the kids are playing 'store' and 'library' and i'm so happy right now to be here. sometimes it is such a fight to hear the playing/sometimes-arguing as joy and beauty. for the moment, though, i'm seeing the good.

i finished up a quilt for a friend.

the design was all their idea and i just love it. they are so smart. it was a fabulous experience. i learned so many things about fabric, triangles, business and just how late i can stay up working without majorly making things worse.

and there was a birthday thrown in there.

little miss turned 3.

she's a self-declared 'big girl' now. we had a quiet day of celebrating. it was fantastic.

i know she's only three. but she's getting longer. those legs don't wrap up into my lap quite the way they used to. she asks me questions getting to the lofty heart of matters, starting to sort out so many things. oh these kids. these babies. they keep me on my toes, make me want to sleep all day and fill my heart with more than i can understand.

hope your week is starting well. hope you have some sunshine at your window.

sewing

i've been doing lots of sewing. lots and lots. sewing, then ripping, then sewing some more. i'm working on a patchwork blanket for someone and... it has been an adventure.

or as my mom keeps reminding me, "a great learning experience."

i know there is a lesson of patience, hard work or something in there. but i don't have much time to stop and think about it. i just have to sew.

drink coffee and sew.

but this project has afforded me some lovely things. afternoons of sewing, wncw, and my one and only lounging on the couch chatting with me. time to talk and be. it has been so nice. open space. time just sitting and resting in the room with us. allowing thoughts to form and conversation to deeply breath.

back soon. have to get back.

stuff

another little school-at-home post. the boy got some guide books for christmas. he was determined to find out what kind of tree grew in our front yard. a challenge, with no leaves.

but he did it.

thanks to our 'mulching' around the tree with the fallen leaves.

there's been a lot of thinking going around here these days. a little stunned at God's goodness. jason starts a new job soon. we are overwhelmed by the kindness of our Father to give such good gifts.

but my brain and heart are a little fried. i've got nothing profound, folks. nothin.

happy thursday, friends.