Works in Progress

Can you guess what costumes I'm working on for us grown ups?

Preschool Halloween Party

Today was Beckett's first ever school Halloween party. They've been doing, singing, making, playing all sorts of spooky Halloween kinds of things all month, but today they had special treats and games and of course everyone wore their costumes. Check out the little claws on B's fox sleeve. They're my favorite part and all his idea. He also wanted it to be red, "not even a little orange." It's his favorite color, after all.
Unseen forces have conspired against me this week, it's been a comedy of errors. My unhealthy relationship with Joann Fabrics has become increasingly dysfunctional and, adding injury to insult, my sewing machine dramatically threw its needle arm at me and refused to put it back on. Fortunately I'm good friends with the Halloween Fairy, and she saved the day, as she usually does this time of year. With a borrowed sewing machine and very few minutes the Fox became wearable, if nowhere near finished. The important thing is that my boy was happy, giddy even, and got to spend the morning foxing around with Spiderman, a bumble bee, a pony and seemingly countless princesses.

Now I'm off to make more costumes and finish up this little fox before Sunday. Hope you're up for it, little borrowed Singer!

My New Favorite Sign

I just saw this sign for the first time up at our local bakery. How awesome is this? I mean, it's a little strange to live in a country where such a thing even exists, where self consciousness has any bearing over giving your child the best possible nutrition, and I'm certainly not going to hunt for one of these signs before feeding my baby. But it makes me proud to be a breastfeeding mother and gives me hope that things are changing.

There are many legit reasons, medical and otherwise that women choose to formula feed, and I'm passing no judgment here. But can we please become a society that accepts, even embraces, that breasts are lovely and intimate and alluring and wonderful playthings but sometimes the girls've gotta work too?

Utter Chaos

It seriously looks like my steamer trunk threw up all over the living room right now. This whole project of getting rid of long stashed clutter feels endless. It's exhausting. I'm getting to the point where I just want to shove everything back into dark corners and closets and not think about it for another year or so. I'm past the point of no return though. Besides, look at my beautiful steamer trunk! It was my great grandmother's and she brought it with her from Norway when she immigrated to the States. Shame on me for treating it as a craft supply dungeon. Wanna see the coolest part?The original Stavanger to New York label is still attached. I get a little fluttery every time I see that.

All Clear

I finished All Clear last night. Then dreamed about it. Then spent the day daydreaming about it, reading historical accounts of the Blitz and listening to this. I highly recommend it, it's a small sort of time travel. The book left me with that lingering haunted feeling that comes after you've really been taken for a ride. And the Blitz is as scary a place to be taken to as it gets, but the remarkable human element during those bleak months is humbling, moving and damn inspiring. I'm damn inspired.

Books and Some More Books

My project stream has slowed to a trickle. Sick baby, sleeplessness, no sewing machine and now this. I've spent every spare minute with my nose shoved into it's spine. It's the conclusion to this, which was equally enthralling. The one thing I have worked on a little, is getting some framed Moomin prints for the playroom.These are all illustrations from Who Will Comfort Toffle? I'm happy to see this book is soon to be re-released. It's really the chapter books that we've spent so much time with in recent weeks, but B gets a big kick out of seeing these characters in color like this.
Our mini home makeover is slow going. But it is going. I'm feeling inspired, but all that has to wait. Ta ta for now. My book is calling.

Halloween Decorations

We're huge Halloween nerds around here. At least 3 of us - there's still hope that the little one might have some latent "cool" genes going for him. We have a private street-front entrance to the stairs up to our apartment and this year Beckett wanted to deck out the front door. I cut out some simple ghost and pumpkin shapes and he drew the faces. Aren't they awesome? I never expected myself to be one of those crafting with the kids kind of moms, but their artwork is so much more genuine and expressive than any stale old adult work. I'm a convert. It's going to be really hard to take these off the door on Nov 1st. Who knows, maybe B can draw a mean turkey face?
And of course we have some things inside. Lots of the same goodies as years before. The garland we made last year was falling apart, so I ran it through the sewing machine - my first time sewing paper , it totally works - and brought it back to life. B is also really into the Hattifatteners, ghostlike characters from the Moomin books we've been reading, so we made some accordian fold Hattifattener paperdolls. I suspect we may be making many many more of these in the remaining 13 days till Halloween.This weekend my simple rearranging project turned into a huge de-clutter project. The closets were emptied, and many many boxes of things are destined for Goodwill. It feels great, or it's getting there, but my desk still isn't in working order. So no sewing yet. But soon, I promise, because I have some serious costuming to accomplish.

New (to Me) Winter Sweater

Check out this awesome 100% wool 'Handmade in Greece' sweater I got from the local charity thrift store near my parent's house. At first it just looked warm and chunky, but it's actually a super flattering A-line silhouette, fitted through the bust with slightly too long sleeves. I'm in love.

I'm up to my eyeballs in an apartment rearranging jigsaw puzzle. I have great Halloween decorations to post and I'm one seam and a bit of ribbing away from being done with all 7 projects!!! Ah! But first I have to finish #7, and to do that I have to move my sewing table, and to do that I have to move my steamer trunk, and to do that I have to move a few bookshelves, side tables, toy boxes... you get the idea.

Acorn People

After Beckett had picked out his favorite "little brown specials" for the shadow box, there was a stout pile of acorns left over. While I was busy gluing the box together, he went to my desk, completely unprompted, and came back with a fine tipped sharpie and some craft wood balls. Probably remembering this project from last winter. All I was aware of is that he was being quiet, still, and was in no danger of hot glue burns. So my jaw dropped when he presented me with these, asking me to glue them together.

He, very diligently, drew tiny faces on the balls, and sorted through his acorn tops looking for perfect hats, then picked out an acorn body for each one. Obviously we had to make a little world for them. B painted the inside of this box, then we added twigs and dried moss.
Can you stand it? Because I can't. I'm so impressed with his creativity, his ingenuity, and, frankly, his sweetness. Our world has become increasingly ruled by monster trucks and wrecking balls and car crashes, so it's wonderful to find my big boy still has an affinity for a little woodland cuteness.

"Little Brown Specials"

As I've mentioned before, Beckett loves to collect acorns. Actually, he collects all manner of natural wonders. He calls them "specials" and usually proclaims "I found it for you!" with heart breaking earnestness. We have a basket loaded with all of these treasures, rocks, leaves, pine cones, shells, etc, but the smaller objects get lost in the clutter. So yesterday B picked out a few of his favorites and we made this shadowbox. It's labeled "Little Brown Specials" at B's request.The best is yet to come. While I was gluing this together, B went and did something even cooler. So stay tuned for more acorn awesomeness.