Wherein we look at lots of pictures of a corduroy dress

I sewed a new dress for Fiona last week or so.

It was fun to take an evening to sew ... I haven't had the chance to do it since right before Christmas, between sickness and busyness.

Anyway, I had the idea of a yoke dress like this, with a very high "waist" (where the skirt attaches to the bodice in the armscye rather than beneath it) for a while. This style doesn't seem as popular these days. I have a few vintage patterns for this style, but none in Fiona's size. So I just decided to make my own pattern and I'm glad I went for it.

It turned out almost exactly as I wanted it to. (I would make it a bit less full and with a larger neck opening if I did it again, but otherwise I love it.)

The fabric is a fine-wale corduroy from the fall at JoAnn. I used two small vintage white buttons but otherwise left it unadorned -- partly due to lack of time (I really needed a sit-and-finish project, if you know what I mean), and partly because I just wanted to experiment with a basic design and look. The back uses a continuous bound placket, which is now easy for me after my first struggle with it on the bird dresses.

Although I just sketched out a pattern using basic proportions from some of Fiona's other clothing as a guide, I keep meaning to buy the master patterns from Children's Fashion Workshop. I think my clothing design skills would improve a lot if I used that resource to its fullest!

Someone is looking very two-ish to me these days, as we approach a big day on Saturday! (Wow, already?!?!?)

Anyway, this was a fun project to see to fulfillment -- from designing the pattern to sewing it, all in an evening -- and I'm really fantasizing about getting some more things made in the coming weeks! The best of all, though, was trying it on my wee one, and the joy of seeing her wear something that I had created just for her. That's why we do it, isn't it?

Valentine's Day: what it is, and what it isn't, about

So yesterday passed the holiday that may be my "least" favorite, although "least" is sort of misleading as I do like it, just not with the same fervor as the other holidays in my life. I've written about Valentine's Day before, both my feelings of ambivalence about it, and the importance it has taken on as a way to stop, look at my children, and write for and about them. Some families share a birthday letter with their children each year; for me, it is the handmade Valentine that has come to be that moment when I look at them, the people they have each been and become over the last year, and write about it to them. (Most of my handmade valentines have been rubber-stamped, but my favorites were the fabric hearts from three years ago.)

Anyway, this year, we were horribly and desperately sick from February 3rd onward. First, with sinus and upper respiratory crud, and then, starting last week, with a stomach virus that knocked both me and James out for a full six days. I never got to make my handmade valentines this year. Instead, very humbly, I wrote my babies' love notes into store-bought cards, and felt a tiny bit of loss as I did it. There were no heart garlands, no heart bunting.

Instead, there were plain store-bought cards, simple gifts, lunch from Chipotle, and celebration at having recovered from almost two weeks of illness. And I think that is a pretty beautiful Valentine's Day, don't you?

February 1

Hello, dear friends. How have you been? I can't believe that all of January went by with just one post from me. Not my intention at all -- it just sort of happened. Part of it was feeling a little bit depressed (as I get from time to time) about materialism and whatnot that can be part of the loveliness of the blog world. Part of it has been a very real lack of computer time. And a huge part of it was a difficult struggle with writer's block. I know the general advice for writer's block is to try to work through it, but that's also a challenge. I once read an interview with Heather B. Armstrong where she said that she sometimes has such horribly painful writer's block that it is actually crippling. Of course, a big difference between me and Heather is that I don't make a dime off my blog, much less support my whole family with it! Anyway, I'm going to try harder.

I do have a few things in mind, although the writer's block is still naggingly present.

I haven't been good about getting my 365 photos uploaded to flickr, either -- that is not for lack of taking them (I've missed just a few times times -- I think 3 or so -- still some misses, but not too bad for my first attempt at something like this), but really because of the very reduced time I've had for the computer. Anyway, my goal is to do this! So here's to a better effort.

Here are some photo highlights from January:

Home comforts and simple pleasures kept our sometimes hectic days in check.

Many different, delicious beverages were enjoyed.

I ripped out an entire sweater.

And started it over.

Our world was a beautiful place.

If you visit my 365 set, you can see each photo from the month and read some reflections on nearly each of the days. Some are funny, some are sweet, one includes a recipe ... they will help you get a better idea of what has been going on with me for the last, quiet, month.

2011, I like you already

Welcome to 2011, friends! It's looking mighty fine from here, I must say. 2010 certainly had its ups and downs -- unfortunately, more downs than it should have. I'm so looking forward to this new year, and the promise of its unblemished days and months ahead!

On that note, I'm looking forward to chronicling it in a new (to me) way. I've decided to jump in on a 365 photo project -- a photo a day for the entire year. So many of my friends have done it (some of them for many years now), that I finally felt the time was right for me to give it a go. So, please join me over on flickr, and follow along with my year in photos!

I'm going to try to do a 2010 retrospective post, like I did for 2009 (I love looking back at that) very soon. And I plan to redouble my efforts to be in this space much more than I was last year.

I have some other goals for 2011: less computer time, more making, more reading, a greater effort toward creating some time and space for myself in the midst of our busy family life, and more time carved out for my husband and me to reconnect.

What about you? What are your hopes and goals for this fresh, new year? I just love its possibility, don't you?

A very merry Christmas

This has been one of the busiest weeks on record for me. I have been making so many things! I'm hoping that when you see everything I got done this month (in some upcoming gift posts), you'll forgive me for being absent this whole week and not doing the Holiday Home Tour. Maybe I'll share some of our decorations with you next week, as we'll be celebrating the Twelve Days of Christmas in our customary way.

Anyway, I've been a knitting and sewing machine this week. Along with some baking (much of it of the lemon variety, thanks to my dear, dear, sweet friend Sarah and her lemon tree), and some birthday celebrating. (Today is my husband's birthday. He turned an age that starts with a "4" and ends with a "3".) So, yes, a very full week.

So from here, I'm going to wish you a very merry, blessed, and bright Christmas. See you next week!

love,
Grace

Holiday Essentials Studio giveaway winner

Thank you all so much for your kind words about Beatrice over the last day. I'm sort of surprised by how much grief we've experienced, but I guess we haven't had to go through the loss of a pet in a very, very long time.

Anyway, I'm still going to do the Holiday Home Tour, but I'll be doing it next week instead.

And the winner of the Holiday Essentials Studio giveaway is commenter number 24, Becca:

becca said...

sounds fantastic! our holiday traditions are going to see a play, making a gingerbread house and rolling beeswax candles.

Becca, I will forward your email address to Morgan and she will get you your password.

Thank you all for playing along!

Beatrice

I used to be really afraid of dogs. I suppose I'd had a couple of bad dog experiences, and I'm also just a high-strung person (to put it lightly -- and I was so much worse when I was younger), and often that isn't a great combination with animals, since they sense so much about us.

The summer after my first year of college, after lots of begging and cajoling from my siblings, my parents agreed to get a beagle puppy. There was lots of dinner table discussion about a name, and we finally came up with Beatrice, after the character in Much Ado About Nothing (we are a literary family).

Beatrice changed everything for me. I came to love dogs through her. It is because of her that I have my own spoiled beagle. We used to joke that Beatrice and I had the same hair (with her auburn-y ears), and the same makeup (she had darkly rimmed eyes; I just made mine to look that way).

Anyway, we know where this post is going, of course.

Beatrice died today. I wish so very dearly that I could write that she died peacefully in her sleep. That she snuck off someplace on my parents' wooded mountain property and laid down and let go. But, that's not what happened. She was still fit as a fiddle at 13 (although she'd been deaf for a number of years -- we don't know why). What happened to Beatrice feels almost too tragic to type, and yet amusing and ironic enough to befit the Shakespearean origin of her name. She was killed by a UPS truck.

It's likely the driver didn't see her -- he backed into her and just knocked the life out of her. As simply and terribly as that.

Of course, I know that she was just a dog. But she was a dog who meant so very much to my family. She was so beloved, and she will be so dearly missed.

I'm taking comfort tonight in the words of my church's catechism: "Animals are God's creatures. He surrounds them with his providential care. By their mere existence they bless him and give him glory."

Beatrice was such a good little doggy. She surely gave God glory in her sweet and humble little life.

We will miss you, sweet pup.

{Photos here are from Easter of 2001, when my own pup, Lucy, on the left, was just about a year old, and sweet Beatrice was  4. I was 23 and not yet a mama.}

Holiday Essentials Studio giveaway

My friend Morgan designed the most amazing online holiday craft super extravaganza of craft. I mean, it is really very awesome. It's part tutorial, part community share ... with 12 beautiful projects (with all the style that you would expect from one of Morgan's projects). I'm super excited to try some of the projects this weekend!

The entire studio (which includes a chat room and discussion board in addition to the 12 projects) is $16, which is a great deal, but I feel so privileged that Morgan has offered one of my readers a free registration for the studio. Please leave a comment on this post, sharing a favorite holiday activity, craft, food, or tradition of yours. I'll choose a winner on Friday night! Good luck!

Giveaway winner, and a few other things

Random Number Generator picked a winner for the giveaway of Modern Top-Down Knitting, and it's commenter number 102, Angela:

Angela said...

Love your new hat. I got a new red coat this year and that hat would look great with it. You will love it with your new red coat.

Angela, please email me your address and I'll get the book out to you!

On to other stuff:

I have two more things to give away to you! One is another book (yay!), and the other is a great giveaway from a blogging friend! Look for those this week.

(On the subject of giveaways, I am not currently taking sponsorships or ads on my blog. For now, it doesn't seem the right decision for me or the blog. I would only review or mention a product here that I have personally used and like. I am not getting paid to do giveaways. I was graciously given a review copy of Modern Top-Down Knitting by the publisher for the blog tour, although it's a book I would have purchased myself, anyway. The other book giveaway is for a book I had already purchased. The giveaway copies are gifts from the publisher, STC Craft. Anyway, I wanted you to know, just so it's all open, and not awkward.)

Also, my good, good friend Jennifer is hosting a Holiday Home Tour this week and I'll be participating by sharing some photos and details of some of our decorations. If you'd like to join in, hop on over to Mama Urchin and let Jennifer know -- she's making a list. This is such a fun idea. Thank you, Jennifer! (Please let me know here if you decide to join in, I'd love to see your decorations, too!)

Being

I'm so sorry I haven't posted in the last two days. What I had intended to post on Wednesday felt kind of out of place after coming home from church that evening, smelling like incense and feeling quiet and meditative (in the best of ways). And last night I sat down to write, and fell asleep while my photos were uploading. So, no post!

I'm looking at the photos I've taken over the last couple of days, and thinking about what makes a house a home. It's hard to define, isn't it? My house is usually far from tidy, but there are all these small, quiet corners, the little things that make up our daily lives; bits that wouldn't mean anything to anyone else the way they do to us. And it's a beautiful collection, this home, this artifact of a family's days of living and working and creating, eating and sleeping, breathing and being.

Today I have Erin's post on my heart. It was a good reminder to me -- not to stress and fret, to be OK with saying no to things, to embrace the good quiet and peace that can be ours in this season, if we allow it in.

This weekend we'll seek out our Christmas tree, and do most of our decorating. We will listen to some of our favorite music of the season (some of which can now be found in the right-hand sidebar, below the books). We will celebrate, live, work, create, eat, sleep, breathe, and be.

I wish the same for you, my friends, this December weekend.

Modern Top-Down Knitting

I'm so excited to get to be on the blog tour for Modern Top-Down Knitting! (If a little less excited about pictures of me all over the blog. Ahem.)

It is a gorgeous, gorgeous book, full of stylish, refined projects. I am already a huge fan of top-down construction, but Kristina McGowan adds so many ideas beyond the typical raglan-sleeved sweater in this book. There are exquisite tops, dresses, skirts, sweaters, hats, and even two dressed-up versions of arm warmers, which I love.

I had a hard time deciding what to knit from this book (I knew right away that I wanted to share a project from the book with you), but I finally decided on the Subway Hat, because I've been looking for a new hat for myself for a while. I have a small-ish head and have had trouble with some styles of hat looking good on me, so it's been tricky to come up with something I really liked.

However, when I saw the bonnet-y look of this hat, I knew I'd found what I was looking for. Polished, refined, and just a bit different -- I was smitten. (Ravelry details here.)

(I know you are all going to say this is a lovely picture of me, but I think my eyes look weird. I decided to share it, anyway, because it shows the way the hat flips up on the bottom edges so well.)

I immediately knew I wanted to go with an aqua and red combination (I need a new coat this winter and have all but settled on a red wool one, so I thought this would be a good choice). I had some trouble finding a yarn in the color I wanted in a weight suitable for the gauge in this project (at least not at my LYS), so the tension is a bit looser than I would have liked, but once I lined it, it worked out fine. (Lining it was a brilliant design detail -- it gives the hat so much structure!)

I did make one mistake, which was making the crown section too long before splitting it for the neck. I wasn't paying attention carefully enough, and once I realized it, I figured it would probably be OK. It is just fine, but it makes the back of the hat less neat and trim on the back of my head, which is all right, if not perfect.

I loved making this, and I am really looking forward to making some more of the designs from this book. The attention to detail in each pattern -- from crochet edging and details, to the use of different trims -- is really lovely.

Please be sure to visit the final two stops on the blog tour (tomorrow, December 8, at Knit and Stitch, and on Thursday, December 9 at Craftsanity).

And ... I have a copy of Modern Top-Down Knitting for one of you! Please leave a comment on this post by Monday, December 13, and I'll draw a name and announce the winner that afternoon. Good luck!

For the love of tradition

This morning my children were up well before the sun to rush out and discover their surprises from St. Nicholas. They tend to be early risers, anyway, but today was an especially early and exciting morning. Alas, I don't have as beautiful of St. Nicholas photos as I've had in years past.

What I do have more than makes up for it, though:

*A simple celebration that is both exciting and reassuring, something that holds our family in its magical embrace year after year.

*Something that we have been doing without fail since the first year we were parents, so strong in its consistency, its link to the past (our own, and the many families before us who have celebrated in similar ways), and the future.

*Three new books to add to our collection, all three of which choked me up as I read them aloud today.

*Excitement, joy, magic, fun, and love.

What traditions does your family hold dear at this time of year?

Friday night

I don't have a "real" post for you tonight -- I had a long and exhausting day of too many errands, unfortunately, and not enough blog planning. ;)

However, I did get some pictures of my little one playing piano (and singing along), "just like mama."

Also, I wanted to let you know that on Tuesday, I'll be hosting a stop on the blog tour for the new book Modern Top-Down Knitting, along with a giveaway. It's an absolutely gorgeous book and you won't want to miss this!

Sing We Christmas, and lessons therein

One of my happiest childhood memories is of standing around the piano, singing, while my mom played Christmas carol after Christmas carol. It was such a happy, peaceful time, and because of it, I also know all the words to at least three (if not more) verses to all the major Christmas carols, too.

I'm a little embarrassed to admit this, but despite the fact that my mom is a classical pianist, and the fact that I have degrees in music performance (cello), my own piano skills are ... lacking.

However, we live in a house that came furnished with a piano, and this summer my mom found these two vintage Christmas carol books at a used bookstore for me. So I decided to start working on my piano skills, with the hope of creating similar happy memories for my own children.

The red book is from 1942 and is in 4-part choral arrangements, so it's above my ability level. However, the white one (from the late 70's) is easy. So I began fumbling through "The First Nowell" a few weeks ago. I made myself a goal to become proficient at one song at a time, and move on to as many as I was able by Christmas.

So far, "The First Nowell" has been learned and polished, and I'm pleased with how it sounds, so I moved on to "Good King Wenceslas" on Thanksgiving. I'm becoming fluent with that now, too, so I've begun learning "Coventry Carol", which is a little harder for me. I'm excited about my progress, though, and doubly pleased about the (perhaps not-so-) surprising benefit of having my children see me practice and improve at something that I haven't always done. (Most of the things I "do" were learned before they were born, so they haven't really had the opportunity to see me learn something so new.) It's a good example for Elisabeth with her own cello practice, as well as just being a life lesson that I hope they learn during their time home with me.

And, now we can enjoy (a few) Christmas carols sung around the piano, just like when I was a girl.

Holiday and Winter Favorites ~ 2010 edition

It's hard for me to believe this as I write it, but this is my fifth post of favorite holiday and winter books. Five years in a row I've been posting these! Surely I'll run out at some point. Surely. But not this year....

(And not next year, either; I have more waiting in the wings! You can find the previous years' posts at the following links: 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009. I shared so many in 2007 that it's a Christmas miracle that I have any left to share. ;) There will be one repeat this year, and I imagine there will be a few here and there in future years, too, since we're reading older books in new ways, as our younger children keep growing and appreciating books that their older siblings loved before them!)

Oh, and please don't miss Big Susan, The Tomten, Christmas in Noisy Village, The Mitten, and The Hat. I promise that you will love each of those books as much as we do!

A Day on Skates This is the kind of book that sort of takes you by surprise. I'd heard about it for a long time before we finally read it for the first time last year. I was never sure what to expect, based on the cover -- I'm not sure if I can exactly put that into words, but I was a little bit wary of a certain self-consciousness that books from this era can occasionally have. I need not have worried. It is wonderfully clever and classic, along the lines of another favorite children's book of mine, The Wheel on the School. A Day on Skates delighted all of us last year, and we will definitely be reading it again this year!

Silent Night I was sad to see that this book is out of print. It would really be worth searching out a used copy, though. The text is three verses of the song "Silent Night", and the illustrations have a gorgeous simplicity. I love the illustration of the choir of angels, whose robes are part of the night sky. And it's part of my small collection of children's Christmas books that portray Mary nursing Jesus! (Love.)

Snow Tree This sweet book shows a group of forest animals decorating a tree with their own small gifts to remind themselves of the brightness of summer during the snowy cold of winter. I love the textured pages, and Fiona absolutely loves the animals. (This is the book pictured in the photos of this post.) Fiona is so into books like this right now -- with sturdy, textured pages, and lots and lots of animals to talk to and squeal at! (The Lonely Scarecrow is along the same lines and she loves it, too.)

Christmas Farm This is such a cool book, as it follows a story for a really long time -- about ten years in the life of a little boy, and a farm of Christmas trees. It is so sweet to see him grow up along with the trees over the course of the book. At the end, there is some historical background on Christmas trees which is fascinating.

One Winter's Night This book also appears, sadly, to be out of print, although you can still find it at Chinaberry (the link I shared). It is the story of a young pregnant cow lost in a snowstorm, with the parallel story of a couple (Mary and Joseph) told in woodcuts. The illustrations are beautiful, and the woodcuts really make the book. It is so heartwarming and well-done!

Room for a Little One This sparkling tale is perfect for the littlest ones (Fiona enjoys it and will sit through it although she is a mostly non-verbal 21-month-old) -- I think it's even available in board book format. Even without the Christmas guests at the end of the story, the message of peace and acceptance, and of there always being room for the littlest and most in need, is so beautiful.

Winter's Gift I love this poignant, tenderly-illustrated story. Like One Winter's Night, it deals with a lost, pregnant animal, although the story (besides mentioning a Christmas tree) doesn't take on such a Christmas theme. It's really a story about making our way after loss, and finding joy after grief. I think this gentle book could be easily overlooked (and especially in a collection as large as ours), but that would be a shame, because it's really a treasure.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

I hope you find some new favorites for your family to read, enjoy, and love -- either in this post, or in some of the previous years'. I love sharing these favorites with you year after year! (And don't hesitate to share some of your favorites in the comments!)

It begins

So here I am, on the last night of NaBloPoMo, having made it to the end, and I want to thank you all for being here with me! It makes it much easier when readers are so supportive!

Tonight we are cuddled down on a cold evening, cozy with favorite tunes on the stereo, awaiting the first day of the advent calendar. This year, I feel prepared and at peace, because we have all the supplies purchased and on hand, ready to go for each day. I'm thankful for that! We've done a lot of cleaning and sorting through things over the last week, so I don't feel like I'm decorating a messy house. And I am dreaming about some new decorating ideas ... I love the possibilities.

I am looking forward to a peaceful, hopeful, blessed advent. And I'm wishing you the same!

(And though NaBloPoMo for me has ended, I still plan to be here most days, having started a habit!)

More on mindfulness!

You all are so sweet. Thank you for your comments on yesterday's little post -- they ranged from affirmation to concern, and each one was so sweet. I forget sometimes that not all of you have been with me since the beginning of this blog, and so you may not know that I've written here about mindfulness quite a few times. The first time was here (almost 4 years ago! look at tiny baby James, not even a year old there!), and there is a quote in that post that I think warrants sharing again. It expresses, for me, the core of what a mindfulness practice is.

"If while washing dishes, we think only of the cup of tea that awaits us, thus hurrying to get the dishes out of the way as if they were a nuisance, then we are not 'washing the dishes to wash the dishes.' What's more, we are not alive during the time we are washing the dishes. In fact, we are completely incapable of realizing the miracle of life while standing at the sink. If we can't wash the dishes, the chances are we won't be able to drink our tea, either. While thinking of other things, we are barely aware of the cup in our hands. Thus, we are sucked away into the future -- and we are incapable of actually living one moment of life!"

-Thich Nhat Hanh

I do know that being gentle with oneself is a huge step, but I have become a master at gentleness with myself, and I know when I need to step it up and employ some discipline. When I work hard (and it is hard work for me) on being fully present in the moment, then I know I am really living my life, rather than just existing in it, and that's so very important to me.

It's also important to my spiritual journey. Last year, a wise priest I know said, "Being in the moment allows us to be available to the eternal present all the time."

Anyway, I'm so heartened to know that so many of you are right there with me on this journey. I am a very goal-directed person (hello, Type-A personality), and really understanding, in my bones, that life is about the process has taken me a long time. I don't know that I'm there yet, but much closer.

Thank you all for being here, in this moment, with me.

xoxox

Being present this advent

I stayed home from church today with a vomity baby. As I was giving her the first of several baths, and she played quite happily in the warm water, I wondered to myself when it is that we seem to outgrow our ability to live in the moment? It seems like it's something that most adults struggle with, but young children don't struggle with it at all. My baby felt crummy, she'd just vomited in her bed and her hair, but she was happy in that moment in the bath.

I've been conscious of this for a long time -- I started working with mindfulness more than four years ago now -- but I wonder if I've gotten any better. My mind wanders -- sometimes in a "good" way, a way that I approve of, that doesn't distract me from the moment (but still wandering), and sometimes in such an "aggressive" way that I am completely removed from the present. I just wonder. When does this shift occur?

Anyway, I'm working this advent on being more fully present (because I can always improve -- the exercise never seems to get dull). Today we began a little bit of decorating. In a beautiful family moment, the strains of the song "Peace on Earth (Silent Night)" (it was that version, but I love the original, too) came on at the very moment my husband lifted the lid on the box with our nativity stable in it. Elisabeth and James were crowded around, and it already seemed like the perfect moment, and then James said, so excitedly, "The thankstivity!" That has to be one of my favorite advent moments, ever.

And I have a PDF to share with you of what we're doing this year with our advent calendar! You can find it here. This will hopefully help to see how it can be broken down into something simple, rather than getting overwhelmed by all the different options of things to do and give (you can see my previous extensive list here). I'm sure you may have questions for me when you look it over, and please ask in the comments! I'll respond there, too, so that everyone can see the answers. (Quickly, on day 20 it says "make fanky", and I'm sure you'll wonder what "fanky" is. It's a fried cookie from my mother-in-law's Czech heritage, almost exactly like Polish chrusciki.)

I hope that seeing the way I plan our activities is helpful to you, and gives you some ideas about where to start when planning your own family's seasonal observance. Remember to keep it simple -- in the end, you and your children will be much happier that way. Have fun!

The list is being made (finally)

A peek at our advent calendar list. I finally got around to making up the list today. Fortunately, we have very little to actually purchase for it, so it doesn't really matter too much that I'm late.

I was thinking, after I have it typed up (because I so have to make it "official", of course), I would make it into a PDF for you so you could get an idea of how I organize it and the kinds of things we actually do (given the overwhelming nature of my long, long list of ideas). Would that be helpful?

I almost forgot...

Oh, my! I almost forgot to post today!

Today we spent most of the day doing a deep cleaning of the house to prepare for the beginning of decorating that we'll do on Sunday (we gradually decorate all through advent).

I worked on our Christmas cards for a little while. I plan to have them ready to mail on Tuesday, which means I have a lot more work to do over the next few days!

And, another shot of yesterday's pretty pie, an apple-blackberry pie (which was not as spicy as the Michaelmas pie we've done in the past, but perfect for Thanksgiving).