Another Dance Competition

Today my girl had another of her dance competition, this time in the next state over. It was a much smaller competition at a quite large venue. This was the third time they competed and they did amazing, earning lots of awards. Since we were farther from home and there were a lots of dances before the awards ceremony we were able to watch some of the other dances from her studio. It makes me glad we choose the school we did. The senior dancers are amazing, earning tons of top awards, and several of the choreographers also earned awards and accolades for their routines.

She still has two more competitions this season. I am excited to see how they do. Every competition they get better and better.

Many blessings this fine, boogieing  night.--Kate

Sunday's Adventures

We had a very full day on Sunday. We left the house at 9am and did not return until just after 8pm. Our day began with Sunday school and church. Then it was a quick stop at the theater to purchase our evening movie tickets before we headed out of town to meet up with Grammy at painting.

The paint project was hosted by Pinot's Palette, but they can not have painters under 21 in their building. So the painting event was in the gymnasium at the Girl Scout's building. It was a huge crowd, probably at least 50 people. The picture was an owl on a branch. It is always interesting to see how each person puts their own interpretation into the painting. I think my girl's turned out pretty great. Grammy was just there as the assistant this time. She was not sure if there would be other adults painting. There were probably as many adults painting as kids, so I would imagine that she will definitely be painting next time too.

While she was with Grammy, the boy (including their dad,) and I went out to lunch. Then all of the boys went to the Mobius Children's Museum and I went to pick up the girl. The children's museum is awesome and the boys stayed their until closing. They played the instruments, dug up some dinosaurs, tossed bean bags at targets, kicked some soccer balls, dressed up as firemen, played on the water table and pretended to be squirrels.

 

 

During all of their awesome activities, us girls headed back home to watch "Beauty and the Beast." We met our mom and daughter friends at the theater early, afraid that we might have to wait in long lines. Both girls got a little restless waiting for the previews to start. Everyone enjoyed the movie, maybe the moms more then the girls though. It is pretty much the animated version come to life. Which I loved, and my girl liked, but she did say "Mom, we have seen this before." The only thing is, if I was to watch it again, I would definitely do so in 3-D. The movie was visually stunning and of course the music was amazing. For anyone who loved the animated movie I highly recommend this one.

So that was our Sunday. Anyone else have any big plans?

Many blessings this fine, rainy, Spring night.--Kate

Day Packed with Fun

Today has been 12 hours packed with activities, excitement and wonder. Church, painting with Grammy, Kid's museum, and Beauty and the Beast. I have tons of photos and memories to share, but I am also exhausted. So all will have to wait until tomorrow.

Many blessings this fine, filled day.--Kate

Another Fun Sunday.

Almost exactly two years ago. We surprised the kids by taking them to see "Cinderella" at the theater. I figured my girl would be most excited about the "Frozen Fever" short at the beginning, but actually loved the whole experience. Her brother was probably a bit young and got quite restless before the end. Both were very well behaved and we took them to several more movies after that before their baby brother was born.

Well now, two years later, the new "Beauty and the Beast" is in theaters. This time the girl and I are going to go on a mommy-daughter double date with a dance buddy and mom who have both become good friends. This is only one of two activities my girl has on the calendar for tomorrow. She is also going to a painting event with Grammy. I am excited to share all the detail tomorrow.

Also the Sloths are done and will be hitting the road on Monday for their new home.

Many blessings this fine, misty afternoon.--Kate

First Dance Competition.

Today was my daughter's very first dance competition. The KAR (Kids Artistic Revue) International Dance Competition. Thankfully she danced at the same place that she has been doing her June productions for the last three season. So she was comfortable on that stage and when she started to feel nervous I was able to remind her of all the times she has danced there before.

Her dance was a ballet piece to the song Carmen (from the Opera.) The story was that they were part of a class. One of the girls is the "teacher" of the class and one girl in class would rather be naughty then listen to teacher. During the dance the naughty girl recruits more girls to misbehave. By the end of the routine the class is split, with the naughty girls doing fun and wild moves and the good girls doing what teacher asks and looking at the other girls with expressions of shock. It is a seriously cute routine and the girls did a fantastic job today earning a "Top First Place" trophy and a judges award for "Tutu cute." My girl got to go up to the judge both times to collect the trophy the plaque and the pins that each girl gets as an award.

We are not allowed to take photos during the competition or the girls could loose points on their routine. We could purchase a video and professional photos taken during the routine, which I did. When they come I will be sure to post what I can of my girl. Until then here are a few of her at the competition waiting and with her trophy at home and some of her "good" girl poses. She had a wonderful time. Which is good because we have four more competitions before the season is done. Wish us luck. I think I get way more nervous then she does.

 

 

 Many blessings this fine dancing day.--Kate

Thanks For Playing

My mom joined in on the icebreaker I posted Thursday and even sent a photo. I thought you would all enjoy it as much as I did.

Hmm! Only three things. Who am I? What would I need to be content on a desert island or anywhere? Okay, no people but you said nothing about a pet. I would have to have a dog or maybe a cat which could forage better for itself. But I'm afraid of the dark and in case of danger, a cat would just climb a tree but a dog would be at my side protecting me. My mother was a huge animal lover so we grew up with lots of pets, dogs, cats, birds, fish, turtles, guinea pigs, hamsters and sea horses. When I went off to college, I had a cat in the boarding house at the U of Texas, the dorm and apartment at WSU and even in the living area at Deaconess when I trained for a year to be a med tech. So I would definitely need my dog.

Second would be a photo album filled with photos of my family starting with my mom & dad & three brothers. Next would come my own family, husband and three children and finally all my beautiful grandchildren. All those wonderful memories. But better yet would be a box with my photo albums inside and also all the wonderful Shutterfly albums and calendars of my grandchildren growing up made for me by my children, Mark, Kati & Keri.

The last thing is not so easy, but one needs to keep busy on a desert island and I really love art in all its many forms. Creating something beautiful is an important part of who I am and my enjoyment of life. I think we crave color which is why we want winter to be over with all its white, gray and dull browns. We want sunshine and blue skies and green grass and lots of flowers of every hue. I guess, I can't beam Pinot's Palette to the island but I can take an adult coloring book with lots of colored pencils

So there you have it.......my dog, a box of photo albums of my family and a coloring book.

 

I also want to say thank you to Jennifer for being my most faithful blog follower and also playing my icebreaker game. 

Many blessings this fine sunny Saturday.--Kate

Make A Girl A New Pair of Boots.

My girl has been asking me to teach her how to sew for a while now. I do have a few simple projects for her to try, but there have been other activities and projects that have been filling our time lately. Then this past Sunday we had a rare day where the whole family was together and without obligation. So we decided to run some errands together. At our Michaels stop I found these adorable boots that you can decorate with DIY charms, tassels and fringe. The biggest step in the project was designing and sewing charms. I thought it might be the perfect introduction to sewing for my girl.

It was a fabulous and fun project for the two of us to work on together. My girl also gained some new confidence and skills for design and sewing. Plus Olivia now has a fancy pair of boots, that can be decorated over and over again.

I love teaching my daughter life skills that have been handed down through many generations of women in my family. I know that this has been a loved and much used skill for at least 4 generations. My grandmother's aunt who did sewing jobs for others. My grandmother, who made baby clothes for all of her grandchildren, many great grandchildren as well as a house full of beautiful collectors items. My mother who sews amazing quilts and outfits for her grand-babies and many other awesome creations. Finally, I have been working as a contract seamstress for the past 6 years and so many years before that sewing. I could not be more thrilled that my daughter is interested in learning how to sew.

Many blessings to you this fine stitch filled (and snow filled) day.--Kate

Time for a New Hobby

For a few years now I have thought it would be fun to learn how to spin my own yarn. At the moment though I do not have room for another large piece of textile equipment. To be honest I have no idea if I will be any good at spinning, or even enjoy doing it. So buying another fairly expensive piece of equipment is also not the best idea. A drop spindle on the other hand is a very small, inexpensive and portable way to test out this new skill.

At the same time that I purchased the drop spindle I found a fiber that was completely prepped for spinning. It will allow me to get use to how it feels to spin the fiber without also having to worry about how consistent I am keeping the thickness of the yarn. I figure baby steps are a nice way to learn a new skill. Then once I feel comfortable and confident spinning at this weight I will find fiber that I will actually have to work at keeping the thickness even.

I am actually really excited to learn how to spin my own yarn and eventually dye my own colors too.  I do really love the vibrant colors of the Noro fibers though so for now I will be having a lot of fun making my own yarn and deciding what projects to create with what I spin.

Wish me luck.

Many blessings to you on this cozy, fiber filled autumn day.-Kate

Birthday Joy

Today has been a fabulous birthday filled with family, food and fun. My mom joined the kids and I and took us all out to lunch. Then we did a little shopping.

She brought these delicious little individual bundt cakes for my birthday treat, from this great little shop called "Nothing bundt Cakes."

 It was also a gorgeous sunny autumn day. So all in all absolutely perfect.

Many blessings to you on this fantastic day-Kate

Getting back to work.

It has been a long while once again. Lately I have been working on a number of yarn projects and finally felt the push to share this one with all of you. Mom and girl matching fingerless mitts.

I have a massive yarn stash that has needed some attention for a while. In using some of the stashed yarn I thought it would be a great opportunity to learn some new stitches too. I needed the project to be a practical one though. One that I would either keep and use or be proud to gift to someone else. I found this wonderful pattern on my favorite fiber site Ravelry. It is "Cabled Fingerless Mitts", by Hannah Cuviello. It has a fun and simple cable pattern done in a beautiful variegated washable wool.
 

They are done (well almost) just in time to keep our hands warm during this beautiful chilly wet autumn.

I have had so much fun with this project I have been inspired to dig into my stash again. So be on the lookout for more yarn projects posted here.

In the meanwhile on my quest to find new stitches I have come across two fun projects for my oldest two. One will be my girl's first crochet project and the other will be some superhero fun. So stay tuned for these.

Finally there will also be some Halloween costumes to come at the end of this month. They will be adorably spooky.

Of course this little one will be sure to have his sneaky fingers in on all the adventures. 

Many blessings to you on this soggy autumn night-Kate

Saturday's Sales

I have already confessed my love of books. Well recently I received notice that a local bookstore was having major sales on their used books, 4 for $20 (for books priced up to $29.99.) So of course I had to go check it out. I ended up finding 10 books, two of which were already under $3. This lead to a desire to check out my favorite used book store, "Little Man Bookstore," where I found 11 more books. I capped off my day of book shopping with a trip to the craft store to use my 60% off coupon to buy Tilda's Studio by Tone Finnanger a book I have been salivating over for about a month now. If you have not seen the creation's of Ms. Finnanger she is worth checking out. She makes lovely items but the display scenes she designs for her photos are gorgeous.

So I ended the day with 23 books and the averaged price per book was just under $4. I wish I could say that this will sate my appetite for books for a while, but one never can tell.

A fair number of the books I found today I picked up because I thought my kids would really love them for bed time stories. I found The Indian in the Cupboard and Harriet the Spy, great classics. I also found a book called Ginger Pye, about a clever dog in a clever family. The series I think I am going to start with though is called The Critter Club about four girls who start a pet rescue center. Both of my kids have a strong love for animals.

I am excited by my new mountainous pile of books, and I have a strong desire to dive right into all of them, each for a different reason. I suppose I should rein myself in a bit and at least try and finish the books I am currently reading. Let me tell you I am very excited to embark on the many adventures waiting just inside the covers of these new treasures.

Many blessings to you on this very fine night.--Kate

P.S. Here is an example page from the book Tilda's Studio. I think it is so bright and lovely. I wish this was how my creating space looked.

Saturday's Sew up

I have a number of projects that needed some finishing touches to truly be complete. So today I will be sharing a few sewn up project.

First, I decided that my new angora ear warmers needed a little more excitement. So I added a few felt flowers. My daughter was watching me work on it and mentioned that she wished she had one of her own. I happened to have a left over piece big enough so that she now has her own. Her's is the band with the cluster of three flowers. Mine has the pink with long brown stems and the pale blue flower in the middle.

The second project was that my converted mini skirt bag really needed some type of fastener to keep the top flap closed. I had no clear picture in my head until I came across the rhinestone rings. Once I found the little pink flower buttons I knew I was in business. I am now completely and totally in love with my new bag.

The purse had its first big test run today and the closures worked perfectly.

Many blessings on this fine night.--Kate

Our Movie Adventure

So we just experienced our first movie theater adventure as a family. It was everything I had hoped for and imagined. My boy at almost 3 was, as expected, antsy but he loved the previews commenting after each one whether he wanted to see it or not and if he thought it was funny, silly or scary. He sat fairly quietly for at least 75% of it, but there were periodic moments of fussing and wiggling and in general bothering of the sister. I do not think that we will be so quick to have a second go at the theater with brother, (or at least not such a packed theater.) Sister on the other hand did wonderfully and loved everything about going to the theater to watch a movie.

The movie we chose for this first time experience was the new Cinderella. Yes, of course a huge part of the reason for choosing it was because of the "Frozen" short--"Frozen Fever." Both kids loved it and laughed from start to finish. That said I think my girl loved Cinderella even more. It was a lovely, beautifully shot film and I  appreciated the frequently referenced importance of being kind. Best of all there was never a moment when either child was scared.

All in all we had a wonderful time today. Even though our girl is quite obviously ready for movie theater experiences I still believe that they will be fairly rare occurrences because the pleasure of the event is still far outweighed by the unpredictability of the content. Both kids are quite sensitive and I would hate to have an unexpected moment ruin their fun. After combing through many reviews about this movie I felt that it was probably a save bet and I was so glad (and relieved) that it was.

Many blessings on this fine
celluloid night.--Kate

Saturday's Surprise on Sunday Afternoon.

I am so excited for this next surprise. I mean jumping out of my own skin excited. Tomorrow afternoon we are taking our kids to their first, at the theater, movie. I do not want to say anymore until after we actually go to the movie. So keep your eyes open for all the the details to come tomorrow.

Many blessings to you on this fine night.--Kate

A Wonderful Birthday Party (and my 100th blog post)

The very best way to tell if a birthday party was a success is by the degree to which you are tired afterward. Today was a major success. Both kids were in bed, asleep before 8 tonight and I think there is a very good chance that I will be in bed before tomorrow is here (which does not happen often.)

Today was a truly great day. We turned our house into a "Frozen" wonderland. My girl was able to help make the frosting for her snowflake cake and the cupcakes and even got to decorate the cupcakes. She had a marvelous time greeting each guest (or customer as she kept calling them,) at the door. It was a special treat to get to play with so many dear friends at once, (and every one of them got along and had fun.) She received exciting and beautiful gifts, each one she wanted to play with right away. Then she was able to cap her day with dinner out with her family. (There were cousins, Auntie, Uncle and two grandmothers.) There was even a special Birthday song and ice cream sundae.

 

 

I have no doubt that this was a day we shall be talking about for a long while. Every bit of it lived up to my own excited anticipation from yesterday too. As an extra special bonus this blog has also reached a milestone, the 100th post. I must admit I was a bit thrilled when I realized my 100th post was on the same day as my girl's party. (An extra piece of cake for me, in celebration of course.)

 

Even though I am tired after all the busy wonders of the day I am also a little excited to get started working on my boy's party now. I think the fun of sister's party has got him a little excited for his party too. He and I are going to have a great time planning.

Many blessings to all of you on this fine and celebratory night.--Kate

P.S. Another clue that it was a great party.

No Surprises

Surprises? Sorry.
Slumber
Slothfulness
Self Sanctuary
Stitches and Stories
Silver screen on the small screen
Snickering
Snacking
Snuggling
Stillness
Surrender
Soul salve
Sustaining
Strengthening

Salutations this splendid sundown.--Kate

Sharing Hearts with our Neighbors.

One of life's great blessings is good neighbors. Everywhere I have lived I have always had at least one good neighbor. I think it is imperative to be known in the places I live and to know the people around me. That is one of many things that makes our current neighborhood so special, the people here seem to want to know and care for each other.

After a few years of living here, we have met quite a large percentage of our neighbors. There are a handful that we are quite close with though. One of the first neighbors that we met are an older retired couple and we have become quite fond of each other. When we went Huckleberry picking this past summer we shared some berries with them as a birthday surprise. There have been many long conversations about our interests and histories. We are always glad to see their smiling faces and receive their warm words.

So today's surprise was a small heart banner I made for them. It was our families way to share with them just how much their friendship has meant to us. It had been my hope to have it done last week in time for Valentine's, but it was a full week. So a little of the heart motif has carried over into this week. I feel really fortunate that my children get to grow up in a neighborhood where they are loved and look out for by many.

 

Many blessings to you on this fine evening.--Kate

Neighborhood Valentine Delivery

Today's special Valentine's Day activity was to deliver Valentine's Day cards to our neighbors. We live in a great neighborhood, on a block that is ideal for taking walks around. There are about 36 homes on our block and we knocked on each one. Not everyone was home when we went around but we were able to hand out about 26 Valentine's cards today. We definitely shared our love today. From our deliveries we received lots of smiles, a few hugs and many, many thank you's. Everyone was surprised and really appreciated the Valentine's Day card and some said it was the only one they received today. One of the best outcomes of today is that we made some new friends. 

In 8 of the 36 houses we have families that are already our friends and for them we had an extra treat of little boxes of chocolates. Daddy also had to work today so a few Valentines and chocolate boxes went to work.

After a busy day of deliveries we finished our special day with a meal at our favorite restaurant. The food is wonderful but part of the reason for it being a favorite is that it has the most amazing ceiling. It is made to look like the sky.



Today has definitely been one of my favorite Valentine's Days. I think card delivery will have to become an annual tradition. The kids finished the trip around the block with huge smiles on their faces and I think a little more love in their hearts. 

Many blessings to you on this very fine Valentine's Day. Sending out to you, all of my love. (and if you leave me a note perhaps a little bit of chocolate.)--Kate

Old toys, new friends

We met a new friend today and were able to pass along some of our old treasures. The friend is the 1 year old niece of Rob's coworker, Jen. She is also a good friend to our family.

Our new friend is as cute as a button and my kids were thrilled to pass along their outgrown items to her. A few days ago the idea of parting with these old toys was scary. Today they kept coming down with more and more things that they thought she might like. There were no battles, no tears, just smiles, laughter and the joy of sharing. I had a strong suspicion that would be the case since both of my kids have loving, generous hearts.

Our new friend was a bit overwhelmed by it all but I believe that she will find much delight and entertainment from her new toys, just as my kids did. Jen was also a bit overwhelmed I think, she offered to pay us something for all that she was getting. We all said "No way." Much of what we have is because of the generous hearts of others, that is the way that it is done. It is also one of my favorite parts of being a mother (a parent,) being a part of this community and the traditions of motherhood. I think providing care and support to one another is the greatest gift we give and receive.

Many blessings to you on this fine evening.--Kate

A Christmas Surprise.

Today, as a Christmas surprise, I was taken on a "girls' day" trip to a painting class. The "girls" who went on this adventure were, my mother-in-law, my sister-in-law (Marjorie), a neighbor and close friend of my parents-in-law (Bobbie) and myself. It was a special surprise planned by my mother-in-law for Marjorie and I. All we where told ahead of time was to bring clothes that could get messy. Which was definitely not a hint that gave the surprise away. One of Marjorie's not so serious guesses was panning for gold. 

Another wonderful part to the surprise was that the class was at a nursery, which was once an orchard. The building front looks much like they did in the many old photos that hung on the walls, and they have done a beautiful job caring for and refinishing the inside so that it has kept an antique, early 1900's charm. It was a lovely location that one could easily spend hours wandering around in. Besides the nursery there was a cafe and in the old Fruit Shed there was a large selection of home and garden furnishings, like pots, (some that were water fountains.) Also in the Fruit Shed there was a little fabric store, a wine and art gallery, a olive oil and balsamic (on tap) shop and another art gallery. That is just in the small section that we walked through to get to where the art class was being held. 

The art class is open for people of all interests and skill levels. It is called "Sip and Paint." Everything is provided, canvas, paint, brushes, a little picture of the painting we are working on for the class and a table filled with delicious snacks and a variety of beverages, mostly wines, (perhaps to improve the technique.) The teacher, Unni, does a wonderful job of guiding you through the painting and walks around frequently to offer up suggestions and aid in color blending. Amazingly at the end of 3 hours you actually have a painting ready to take home, and if you can manage to refrain from making "finishing touches" and are brave enough to allow your work to be viewed by others, it is ready to be hung proudly in your home. 

Today really was an excellent Surprise Saturday. 

They all turned out amazing. It was so much fun to see how everyone has a slightly different take on the picture. 

 The painting I did.

Many blessings to you on this fine night.--Kate