Shop Update!

A little shop update for yah!

I made this funky "Neat but not Gaudy" Needlepoint hoop complete with sequins of course!

Pet silhouette, now with an embroidered option.

Custom painted Child portrait.

And more garlands like this Striped pastel garland.

What I've learned this week and it's only Tuesday

(my Tuesday post where I share and explore what motherhood has taught me, to help demonstrate how much I am constantly learning, (some weeks more than others.))

* I earned a serious merit badge for our first time out moment in the laundry room this week... for some reason there is a communication block during snack time- when she signs and says "more" with a mouth dangerously full of snack, I patiently tell her she needs to finish what is in her mouth first.. and then she looses it- her mouth opens revealing a nasty mash of food, and that big silent build up cry forms and explodes... and then there is no turning back... thus our little time out moment when I quietly sat with her and had to wait until she calmed down before giving her more snack... phew. a good lesson in patience (I hope)

* That I'm one serious ninja- able to be stealth and sneak into her room during nap time to retrieve my forgotten cell phone.

* I might talk about myself in the third person referring to myself as "Momma" to our dog out of habit when the baby is asleep ; / Millie doesn't seem to mind.

* That sitting in the sun during our "recess" outside-fun-time before  lunch, is REALLY nice, like- really nice. And conjured up images of myself doing just that all summer long... which reminds me I should get going on making a sand box or something!

* Working on when she asks to be picked up (by saying "Up, peeeese") by not always picking her up, but instead telling her no up, and suggesting she play with this or that, or explore this or that, or help me with this or that.

* Even though we only use disposables over night with the babe, and cloth diapers during the day- the 7 disposable diapers that stack up in our trash between trash days is ROUGH... and is making me consider a cloth over night alternative- thoughts?

* Cutting her finger nails, which was once an epic task of apparent torture, is now a lot better and perhaps pleasant when I sit her in my lap and trim her nails with little nail scissors and not with her usual baby nail clippers- BIG difference... the little scissors allow me to cut close and more accurately with a curved edge rather than creating sharp daggers - leaving part of the nail tall and the other slope shorter than the nail line and harmful. (see what my mind is full of- nail cutting strategies!)

16 months old

The little miss is 16 months old today... and where to begin!? Well on Friday it was like she had a turbo setting we never knew about that she suddenly decided to turn on! The husband and I looked at each other in shock, amusement, and terror. lol  Here she is on Saturday prancing around our room in her diaper and rocking a little bow- that was a scrap of fabric from a sewing project. She's a girl aright! Each day brings new words and I think in two months time her chattiness will be more understood, which in some ways will be a blessing ; ) since some of her meltdown moments are the result of not being able to communicate, but that's why sign language and noises (like animals etc) are helpful to bridge the gap. So I'll keep it brief this month and share some pictures and a video of our little family member. ~abs

A Love Letter to Winter

***

Hi all, Happy Monday! I know winter isn't technically over until the end of March-ish, but I'm calling IT! I feel like a fake trying to share snowy pictures while we have 50-60 degree days here on the east coast. I apologize if you are still digging out of winter, but perhaps my Love Letter to Spring- will help you to look forward to the new season!? So here it is, my last Love Letter to Winter. (the idea behind these seasonal themed posts is to help me- and you, start our week with a visual treat, as my Monday Inspriation) Check back in later today for a little blog post about the babe turning 16 months, and maybe I'll get around to sharing my Warby Parker glasses I spoke about at the end of last week!? o

***

***

***

Do You have a Bed Time routine? Plus a weekly round up...

I've hinted on here lately, that this past week has been a bit full on... I'm not sure what made this week different than the rest...? Perhaps it's just weeks upon weeks stacking up on each other without a break in the routine of motherhood... that per chance took its toll this particular week? This is not to say that I am less happy, but when weeks tend to feel like one never ending long ass groundhog day, it does make me pause and reassess. Ultimately I want to do a little gratitude round up on this Friday... my best friend in college kept a gratitude journal and wrote in it every night!! It was a great practice (I observed) and it's something I've been thinking about lately... when it comes to my bedtime routine, how can I make my bedtime routine more peaceful and rejuvenating, a gift to myself?  Let me say, I am not one for routine, I think that was the hardest adjustment about becoming a mother- setting a routine for our baby and thus living my life around this new routine.  And it's becoming harder and harder to make time for myself... I know I could find time to work out, stretch, just sit, read, etc but I've found myself falling into the rut of not considering my needs a priority... I think in some ways I get to the point when I don't even know what my needs are, and thus I don't think to ask for help, etc until it's too late and I am officially fried!

And now our daughter is almost 16 months old and her bedtime routine is pretty predictable and comforting... and yet my routine is not. Think about it- what if every night I took a warm bath, played with my toys, was bathed by a servant ; ) then carefully dressed, read to, sung to, talked about the wonderful day, reflecting on all the fun that was had, turning off the lights- looking up at the stars artificially cast on the ceiling (thanks to a certain ladybug), more singing, kisses, cuddles and then when I was at peace- placed in my bed surrounded by soft cozy things, to hum myself to sleep...!? Get it!? I mean this would be awesome, what a gift-to-self! Do you have a pleasant bedtime routine!?

The argument against such a routine, is that my day sort of begins at 8pm when the baby is officially down and out. I hurry around, do dishes, laundry, toilet stop, then head down to my studio around 9pm and work there until 11pm or so, then I come upstairs and usually watch something on hulu with the husband (while I am still knitting or working on something), then I fall asleep tired and sore, with my mind still racing with all the crap I did not get done. It's ridiculous... and the only way I could see this changing is if our daughter went to a daycare!? But COME on! this is America... If we were in France my daughter could go to the local creche, a subsidized child care for children under 3. Well, now I'm officially rambling... so I will get to my gratitude bits from this week... And do share any bed time routines you have for yourself! I would love to hear some suggestions. Ultimately I know that not every night could be so pleasant, but it's good to know how it COULD be and thus remind myself to shoot for that goal. And I'll report back if I come up with anything for myself.

The Gratitude list/ Weekly recap: On Sunday I took my Terrain gift card and splurged on something I wouldn't typically buy for myself- a little arrangement of spring bulbs. They smell amazing next to my bed. They remind me of Easter, and I love smelling them when I fall asleep and then when I wake up in the morning (and I assume all night long too, perhaps I'll have more flowery dreams?) Our daughter loves smelling them, checking on their growth, and seeing which new buds have bloomed. (after each sniff she says "MMMMmmmmm!") And after my visit to Terrain, my curiosity of Terrariums has been rekindled, so I might take their terrarium workshop in March!

I had the morning to myself today to give myself a haircut. My last self haircut was right after Thanksgiving and it was looking baaaaaad, very grown out, sad droopy with a mullet in the back. BTW this is the AFTER shot! ; ) It's a messy take on the classic bob, and it's much shorter in the back... a little shorter than my ultimate goal, but pretty close! (I used a razor and my special scissors and really worked at pinning back sections and pacing myself, cutting it from section to section.... one of my better haircuts. I realized I've been cutting my hair for 15 years!!)

And last weekend I started knitting this doll for our daughter (since I didn't have enough yarn to start the fox stole) ... This was a FAST knit! I am adapting the Margaret Free Ravelry download Pattern into a blabla doll inspired little one. I will put three knit balls of hair on top and a little face, hopefully by the end of the weekend. I will admit that I mostly knit this doll to use up all of these strange bits of yarn I had in my stash... It's the spring clean project, and it's a good one, because you can stuff the toy with all of those bits as well! So long crazy yarn leftovers!

I also knit up this little pink number for baby Luca, my husband's BFF from Alaska's baby who was born last week. (love this pattern!)

We tried it on Mr. Bunny before we sent it in the mail! Hats are a big deal with little miss C, and so is her bunny so the combination was pretty stellar as you can see.

And on Sunday, Cam and the little miss at my parent's Player Piano, playing Moon River (because if it was Teddy Bear's Picnic she would be dancing around not sitting still!)

Well that's the little weird-o random stream of consciousness recap from me! Let me know any bed time routines for-self you may have? and have a nice weekend!

~abs

Weekend Project: Make a Peter Pan Collar

aaahhh can you feel it!? Spring seems to be just around the corner, and I'm stoked! And as I look ahead and think about storing away my wool accessories, I thought it would be fun to investigate the Peter Pan Collar trend for this Weekend's Project! So here's a quick little round up for you.

Above: By the blog HonestlyWTF, their tutorial is VERY cute and includes a pattern you can download!

If you want a little feminine glitz, check out this pearl collar tutorial.

And this quick little video really sums up the process nicely (similar to how I made bibs for our daughter! lol)

But if you aren't feeling crafty enough, and your sewing skills aren't up to snuff, etsy always has the answers! like this collar by hellostrumpet.

And qtpiworkshop is full of darling peter pan collars, like this floral one!

And I love the crisp denim Butterfly Collar by xMotherx.

Let me know if you make one!!

Links and Such

Hey All! how's your week been!? Mine has been nuts, AGAIN! I won't go into the details (mostly cus it reads like a boring grocery list!), but just know that I've been trying... trying to get back to emails, phone calls, stuff.... I thought the above quote was a good one to keep in mind when we feel impatient about reaching our goals... Anywho, My WarbyParker glasses came today and I'm excited to share the 5 pairs I ordered for their at home try on... maybe you can help me decide!? I'll post pics either this afternoon or more likely tomorrow. In the meantime, here are this week's Links and Such!

An honest and dear article from A Cup Of Jo
grow celery indoors
Love this interior
a different take on the elbow patch, an easy DIY
pretty scarves
I want this rug, real bad, will take donations! ; )
check out this chair! our daughter's room could use something like this...
365 days of vintage, girlfriend has a lot of vintage!
Fox Socks and a bow tie of course
A new dog bed for Millie?
another great example of cleaning with Vinegar
A great way to organize children's books
cute gift wrapping
darling necklace


In Case you missed it from me:
NEW to my studio shop: Custom Silhouettes
Josh Ritter's newest Video, pretty awesome!
More added to STUNNING

Handmade Shout Out: GrayDayStudio

I thought for today's Handmade Shout Out, I would do a little self promotional one, and share with you more goodies from my NEW etsy studio shop! I love to hear your feedback, so let me know if you have a favorite or if there are any other things you would like to see me offer in my shop!?

Above: Neat but Not Gaudy, canvas tote, the perfect gift for that OCD friend who is a bit of a neat freak, or give the bag with an ironic twist- to your friend who could use a little help in the cleanliness department!

Prints of original work are now available, like this wallpaper dress.

I've also made paper garlands from old artwork... they are fun, one of a kind, little narratives for your home or for gift wrapping!

I am also in the process of offering original artwork, like this Feather Bouquet.

So head on over to my shop, add me to your circle, spread the word, and check back in often as I continue to add more goodies to the mix! Have a great Wednesday!

Love is Making Its Way Back Home

Josh Ritter - Love Is Making Its Way Back Home from Josh Ritter on Vimeo.

Check out this new Josh Ritter video I just heard about on the Etsy blog! It's so mesmerizing, reminds me of The Curse.

Stunning

more added to Stunning

What I've learned this week, and it's only Tuesday...

(my sometimes weekly motherhood post, written with the idea that motherhood is a constant teacher.)

* taking a bath with our daughter worked at easing her new random hatred of bath time. We played with the bubbles and toys and she actually stayed in the bath for more than 5 seconds... (trade off, it seems she reserved her crying for bedtime, so that was awesome)

* the trick of dividing her food into a muffin tin kept her attention during dinner and she ate a lot of the food (on a night where she was whooped, under the weather with a bad cold and at least two new teeth)

* having her call me "Momma, Momma" over and over again upon seeing me after we have been apart is really great, it's awesome, I love it

* she's getting better when wielding a spoon, but some days she requires a wardrobe change before nap.

* speaking of naps, we are out of the 1 hour zone and into the 2-2.5 zone!! hooray! perhaps because we have "recess" everyday before lunch, and if she does wake up after only an hour, I don't go to her, I let her wrestle around until she falls back asleep.

* Never leave her tiny bowl of cucumber within reach when you are out of reach, it leads to a toddler's mouth FULL of veg. Which I'm happy she's into I'm just not into the whole chocking thing.

* a little baby fever is made better with lots of hugs and cuddling (see above picture, sad little one)

* I love listening to her singing and chatting to her animals before she falls asleep and after she wakes up in the morning. (I also love watching her "read" to herself, while turning the pages. And "counting" favorite objects in and around the house.)

* her solo outdoor playtime, where she wonders around on her own, discovering and inventing games, is beginning to translate to her indoor playtime, making her more independent with a longer attention span, which is great!

Music Monday... music as a time machine

There are just some things that can instantly transport me back in time certain scents and fragrances and of course music... Thus whenever I listen to Bon Iver, I am instantly transported back to living in Maine, and the summer of 2009 when we went to my cousin's wedding in England. I listened to Bon Iver's album "For Emma, Forever Ago" that entire summer. In fact, after we left Maine I couldn't listen to the album, it was like a sad break up, it made me too sad.  But now, nearly a year after our move I love how it takes me back....  Here is one of my favorites.... Happy Music Monday!

1st Customer at GrayDayStudio will get....?

This darling one of a kind paper garland made by yours truly of course! It's currently not listed in my shop, so check out the pictures here, and head on over to peruse my shop and be my first customer and pick up this little gem!

Images include some collage pieces, a bull's nose, two British Women in gas masks circa WWII. Each circle is 1.5 inches. See more garlands HERE.