Crafty Fun

 We have had so much crafty fun in the last few weeks that I felt compelled to come out of blog hibernation.

I moved my art desk and supplies to the heart of our home, right into the dining room. Which is also our homeschool center. All of this makes for a very messy, non- decorator magazine space; very lived-in and reflective of our day to day life. I wasn't sure about it at first, but now, I love having my desk in there. My supplies are right under my nose all day long; I can't help but show them the love they've missed for the last 5 years.

 

 To get myself back into creating, I started with commissioned pieces from the kids. Elijah requested a painting of a motorcycle jumping over a mountain. And I finished a piece started long ago for his room. Not the greatest photos...

 

 Adah wanted a princess and a sand castle.
( Its a drawing and its behind glass so the photo is very poor quality.)

 From there, I moved into a painting for Gabe and I' s room. Its in progress....

 With stopover in a twice-failed drawing of our wedding day. They've been shoved into a drawer. No hard feelings. I am just glad to be working somehow or another. 

 

We made this gratitude tree to count our blessings:

 And today we went wild and made this turkey with items gathered from our yard and pantry. The kids absolutely loved it!

I highly recommend this craft for the sensory thrill of the different natural materials. But, its not for those who wilt at the idea of sticky, dirty (fun) messes.

I wanted to get in on the gluing, so I made this:

 I keep wondering if its going to catch fire above our blazing hot woodstove. 

Can you read that it says "Give Thanks"?

 

 Let's see.... there is this crocheted flower and leaf mobile in the works for Naomi.

I am also knitting a hat and mittens for Adah and a pair of legwarmers for me.
(I realized recently that I work well with many projects going at once. It helps me not to get overly focused, analytical and critical of what I am working on. When I feel myself falling into this creativity killing pattern of mine I move onto something else for a while.)

And last but not least, one of my most favorite creations...

Love to all,

Liz

Adah's Birthday!

Adah celebrated her 3rd birthday this month! Oh my goodness, we love her! She is such a sweet and funny little girl. She lights up our lives with her sparkling personality. We are blessed beyond measure to be her family.

Success and Silliness

Elijah is READING! 

Here is a clip of his success and ensuing silliness between he and Adah, if you're interested.

We reached this happy milestone last week!
It has been so sweet to share in his joy at the accomplishment of reading a book all by himself.
I feel his demeanor is different in the wake of this triumph. Like he's been trusted with the keys to a great treasure: he carries himself with a shade more maturity,
holds his head higher.
 Like he's been admitted to a secret "grown up" world, that up until a few days ago, was just out of his reach. He behaves as a newly minted member of a privileged people,
those who can unlock the magic of words.
*Sigh.* My little man.
I am happy for him. I pray he'll have a lifetime love of reading!

P.S.~ This was an accomplishment for me, too: My first homeschooling effort and God blessed us with easy success. 
May ALL of our homeschooling be this triumphant!! :)

Happy Birthday Adah Lucia !

Two years ago today Adah Lucia was born! I didn't think it was possible to love another as much as I love her brother, but of course, I was wrong. Look at this sweet face! I never had a clue what kind of person she would grow to be. I still don't know! Its so awe inspiring to watch her morph into a totally unique person with a totally unique personality. Its so simply obvious, but who can understand it- There has never before been nor never again will there be another person like this one! How marvelous and thrilling to be a part of her life.

I am mystified by her. Who is she? What a gift to watch your child unfold before your eyes, revealing bit by bit who they were divinely created to be.

Here is a photo tour of her special day. It didn't work out to have a party for Adah today. Determined to make her day special anyways, I dolled her up and took her on a tour of her favorite people. First stop, Nana's house:

Then off to Greenville to meet my parents for a playdate at an indoor play center. 

Check out E and A's faces when they saw Mimi and Pop-Pop walk in:

 My folks took us to lunch at a adorable and delicious cafe, where we also enjoyed cake, candles, balloons and presents:

Lastly, we stopped by Daddy's work for another round of cake, candles and presents and of course, Daddy-love:

I thank God everyday for creating Adah and putting her in our family and for making her the amazing, bright, bubbly, sweet, beautiful girl that she is. I feel like the most blessed mom in the world to have such a special daughter!

Some Scenes from Early Spring

Look how they grow...

Elijah, 3.5 years old....

See that word 'cat'? He wrote that all by himself; no one was in the room, no one suggested it or helped him.  This might be bragging, but I was hugely impressed. I asked him what he was doing and he told me, "I'm spelling." I was a little taken a back by how well it was written and that it was, well, that it was a word! So, I questioned him further and he told me that he had written the word cat, "See?".  He said it with a bit of an attitude as if to say, "Can't you read?".  I love him, he's so cool.

Adah, 20 months old....

She is a little distressed because she is stuck in the cabinet. If she would have let go of the Thai flavored potato chips in both of her greasy paws, she probably could have climbed out. She loves to raid this cabinet, its full of snacks. I often find her fully tucked into the cabinet digging through a bag of chips or box of cereal. Its like her little secret lair of treats; if I had one, I'd probably be in it all day, too. I love her, too, a lot, a lot.

Some Christmas Cuteness

It is what every good mom would do, right?

Grab the video camera? When you look over to see that your 18 month old has taken off her sock and is sloshing it around in her cereal.... naturally, you get the video camera. I mean, there she is, looking pleased as punch eating cereal off her milk-soaked sock. And really, who could resist capturing such a happy baby doing such a silly baby thing on film? If Gabe were here he would have absolutely fallen apart over the grossness of it all, but me, no! I found it rather cute and funny, for some reason. So here it is...

A New Hat for Adah

The hats I made for Adah last winter (here and here) have long since been outgrown. The baby can't have a cold head, can she? So, I set to work on making her a new hat. My requirements for this hat were that it be:
1. simple-  I have very little free time for knitting
2. free- had to be made from yarn I already have stashed away
3. big enough that she won't outgrow it in a month's time.

I achieved all my goals with this extremely simple rolled brim cap. I crocheted a flower and attached it with a cute little button to dress it up. I also added a pair of crocheted straps in an attempt to keep it on her head. But, no such luck. I might as well give this hat to some other child who will use it, because I doubt Adah will ever wear it.

I managed to snap a couple of quick pics before she yanked it off and tossed it to the floor with disgust.

Will somebody please tell the child that this hat was made with love by her mommy using vintage Morino wool and its cute and  really practical?