Rambling Organization

There are thousands of things keeping us busy these last few weeks.  First, and most importantly, was the purchase of our new old farmhouse.  Now making it livable will keep us busy for months to come.  Yay!

It's finally stopped raining enough for the ground to dry up.  Bright sunny days mean lots of catch-up work outside.  There's laundry to be hung (waiting so patiently in piles and piles and piles upstairs), potting soil to be made and tomatoes to be up potted, porches to be cleaned off, garden work, seed planting, grass mowing, ...  It's easy to get overwhelmed to the point where you are just standing in the kitchen with your hands on your head, shaking.

But, I've made a list.  It's miles long, but it's a list.  Each day I put the things I think can be accomplished in between the regular schoolwork, meal making, and housekeeping.  Today, I'm making soil, soil blocks, and up potting the tomatoes.  They are pretty much screaming to get out of their little 1/2 inch blocks.  Ok, ok, ... they've been screaming for about 2 weeks now.  Tonight we will have some friends over for a music night - fondly referred to as Guitar Night here. 

Tomorrow - garden work.  It will be so very nice when we can move into our new home and have the garden right there with us!  As it is now, I have to pack us all up for the day and head over to our garden. 

Slowly, we are getting our spring selves into gear.  Soaking up the sunshine and wonderful air.  Shedding the winter blues.  Wiping away the winter grime.  Planting seeds of all sorts.

Our Farm

We bought the farm!!  No, not the proverbial farm.  The farm we have been looking for for 15 years.  Our farm.  Land.  With an old farmhouse on it!  We are very excited this is finally coming together for us.  Very excited!

The house we are living in was supposed to be a temporary house.  Five years at the most.  It's been nearly 14.

There are some things we need to do in our new house before we can move in.  Luxuries like plumbing, electricity, and heating.  We plan to knock down a couple walls to make the space more usable for our family.  It's going to take a while, but we are excited for our new journey.

Plans are being thought up for what we'd like to do with our spaces.  Chickens, honeybees, fruit trees and bushes are all popping through our minds. 

As is our way, we are going to do the remodel as environmentally friendly as possible.  We've begun scouring for reclaimed fixtures and such, recycled materials, and natural things to make our home.  Hopefully, I will be able to post some ideas for you in the months to come. 

Right now, we are basking in the fact that it has finally happened!

Have a great weekend.

Some Things That Make Me Happy

clean sheets
smiling children
coffee
lovely weather
rain
open windows
the smell of dirt
tomato plants
spending time with family

Li'l Bird for Sweetpea

I found this great book called Cuddly Crochet by Stacey Trock.  In it, she has patterns for the cutest little stuffed animal creations for your little one.  I made this for Sweetpea:

Isn't it the cutest little bird you've ever seen!?!?  It measures about 5 inches tall.  I changed the color from blue to green, used a cotton worsted weight yarn, and is stuffed with bamboo stuffing I found at JoAnn's.

I did learn some things, though, for when I make more of them.  The first, and probably most important, is to keep your stitches as tight as possible.  In some places, you can see the stuffing through my stitches.  The second is to be more careful about how I attach the wings so they are symmetric - not lop-sided as mine are.  But, I know that Sweetpea will love it!  And I think it turned out pretty darn cute!  And that's what matters!

Happy Earth Day everyone! 

Zippered Coin Pouches

Today, I made zippered coin pouches for Munch and Boy.  Can you guess which is who's?!?!?  Sweetpea will get a different special mama made item in her basket this weekend.  Hopefully, I'll be done with that tonight and can show you tomorrow.

The pouches are nothing fancy, just lined zippered pouches that measure about 5 inches wide by 4 inches deep.

I did some fussy cutting for Boy's so that the space ships would be front and center.  Then I messed up the stitching at the zipper.  Oh well...  He won't care.  He is my biggest fan.

The periwinkle are blooming!  I love those.  They remind me of my Grandpa.  He had a small city lot that had a big hill that took up all but 3 feet of the front yard.  On it, he grew periwinkle.  He taught me how to propagate it by burying parts of the runners.  He also had a small, but productive, veggie garden behind his garage.  I was never allowed in it, but i watched as he gardened behind the little white picket fence. 

Spring Around the House

Here are some little bits of spring you can find floating about our house...

Boy's Pants

I made Boy's pants yesterday.  Since Boy is now 7, I was debating whether or not I needed to try a zipper and button pants, or if I could still get away with elastic waistband pants.  I've never done a pair of pants with a zipper and a snap/button.  I was terribly intimidated!!  So, I opted for something in between - flat front/elastic back.

(Funny the difference between him modeling and Sweetpea modeling!!!)

The material was in a hand-me-down bag of material.  I have no idea what it is, except that it is woven and unravels fast!!!  I did some super duper things to the seams to keep them from unraveling.  On the inner leg seams and the seam from the front to the back, i double stitched, zigzagged, and then top stitched the seam down to one side.  On the side seams, I just stitched and zigzagged. 

The pattern was just a basic pant pattern (actually a pj pant).  I only put elastic on the back waist.

I double top stitched the front waist for something interesting.

Boy loves them, and would be wearing them every day from now till they rip apart if I let him.  But they are for our Sunday family gatherings.  He really is my biggest fan!!  (Today, he came home from Breakfast with Grandpa, noticed that I cleaned all the mud he left on the floor on his way out, and said "Mom!  I don't know anyone who cleans as well as you do!!!"  You gotta love that.)

Finally, he starts to loosen up in front of the camera...