teaching a child to sew

this photo is of moonpie mending a night gown - age 5

one of my fondest memories from visiting my grandmother as a child is learning how to hand sew. i would sit on her little couch and she would hand me an old rag and a threaded needle. i don't remember any real instruction, but i'm sure it was there- just very gentle. i would sit and sew and sew and sew. i remember the shock i felt when i went to college and i was the only person i knew that could sew by hand and for that matter, sew on a button.

i didn't learn how to sew on a machine until about 4 years ago. my mom bought me a small machine for christmas and i just started reading the manual, trying different things out. i had no instruction, just lots of practice. and with that came lots of failure! reading a pattern was just one more step in the confusion for me, so for the first 3 years, i never used a pattern. just kind of did what felt right. i still rarely use patterns, but i have found online tutorials so helpful in learning small finishing skills and neater ways to do things.

i've always disliked the fact that i had to teach myself how to sew (and knit). i feel like hand crafts are something that should be passed down from someone that loves you! john and i think that it is important for both of our children learn how to sew. not only are you learning a skill, but there are character lessons there as well, like patience, perseverance, being quiet.

the first stitch i taught moonpie was the whipstitch. i think this is the easiest stitch for a child to learn first off because there is no real skill needed. to do a whipstitch you

• start (insert needle) from the back of the project so the knot is in the back
• instead of going back in on the front of the project, you 'whip' around the edge to the back of the project
• continue this pattern

once you are done the stitches go all around the outer edge of the project. i know youtube has plenty of instructional videos if you need to see it in action!

beat the heat

buddy helps wash the car...

did i mention it's been over well over 100 degrees every day this week?

feeling important

i finally put together a sewing basket for my little moonpie this weekend. she has been sewing for a while now and it is one of her favorite activities to do. i put this basket together for her so she can sew at the drop of a hat, not having to wait on me to find her needle, etc. i stayed up pretty late making her pin cushion and finding all of the right 'ingredients' (like every pink, vintage button i own!).
the next morning when i reluctantly rolled out of bed i found that she had made me this little wallet! before this time she had never threaded a needle by herself, and had only watched me instruct her on sewing a button in place! i was so impressed!
she just loves her basket. she kept going back to it all day, making button cuffs, doll skirts and the starts of an apron for herself.

i can't tell you how excited it makes me to see her loving sewing. she told me once, a while back, that sewing 'makes me feel important'. giving her something of meaning, something of purpose, makes her feel big. important. what a gift it is to be able to offer that to her!

lucy too

the kids and i spent the day out of town today. before leaving home i went out to check on the chickens. they all were fine and they had food and water. i decided to leave them in their run- a new practice we are trying in order to take back the yard. well, i just went out to feed them some scraps and found lucy, our auricauna, dead. oh man, i feel awful. it got up to 103' today and the poor thing couldn't take it.

this weekend i will be setting up a new spot for them under the trees.

so for the record- that's 2 chickens lost this week.

and i know this is common. i know chickens go down in the heat, but man, it really stinks. trying to live 'simply' can sometimes be really hard.

i haven't even told the kids yet.

peeps watch 2009

oh man, i knew this day would come, really i did. but did it have to be the day john left for camp? one of our sweet little bantams ('peeps') is on her last leg. we have built a little bed for her in the old dog crate and she is just lying there with her head turned back and resting on her back. her eyes are closed and her breathing is rapid. she is dying. the kids are so sad! this is their first experience with death- what a hard lesson it is. moonpie is sure that when she gets to heaven, she will have a farm house and peeps will be one of her chickens.

sounds good to me...

on a happier note, gardenmama is having a fantastic giveaway- 2 vintage aprons (one for mama, one for child). i have just recently began reading gardenmama's blog and i am really enjoying it. she has a real gentle quality to her living. check it out!

-------------------------------update----------------------------

we took peeps out to yonderway farm and farmer jason took care of her for me. that's a relief! she was doing really poorly and the other chickens started pecking at her. she couldn't even move or open her eyes. poor little chicken...

thumbs down for 'up'

amidst all of the glowing reviews for pixar's 'up' movie, i thought i'd share our experience. you know, just to give two sides to the whole thing!

i should begin by saying that we are really conservative when it comes to media for our children. that's our 'thing', if you will. we don't watch television, but we do have a family movie night once a week (or a 'it's way too hot outside emergency sing-along video' occasionally!). our moonpie has a sensitive heart, so the movies we choose are always gentle, and usually made in the 50's or 60's.

fast forward to yesterday, the day we threw all caution to the wind and saw a movie in the theater WITHOUT being previewed or even researched a tiny bit. or the fact that i've boycotted all movies rated PG for the kids. it is rated PG- that's right, they tried to warn me with the rating!

here are the positives about 'up'. it has a great message. the theme is that personal relationships are the greatest adventure anyone can have. i agree with that- of course i do! also, there is no objectionable behavior, coarse language or weird sexual innuendos. i hate that about modern kid movies. moving on... i should also mention the animation. it is spectacular! the skin on the people looks real. better than real. like, just got back from a facial real!

so what didn't i like? the peril. my oh my, is there peril! i can't exactly say how long the chase scene between the dogs and the characters lasted, added on by the murderous old man, but it was loooooooooong. and just when you thought it was over (a dog would yell 'squirrel' and point in another direction, funny!) it picked up again. my poor little moonpie was a wreck. she is very intuitive and had already picked up on the more adult themes of an inability to conceive ('why can't she have a baby, momma?'), the death of a beloved spouse, and a dead beat dad. add to this a glorious bird being bitten ('momma, does he still have 2 legs?') by a vicious dog and an old man trying to kill the main characters- and she was a ball of nerves. but determined to stay in that theater. i think she needed to see it all resolve. she needed the happy ending. buddy on the other hand told me he wanted to leave. NOW! i handed moonpie over to her daddy and took buddy to the lobby. he is more of the out of sight out of mind persuasion. but his big sissy had to be carried to the car and asked to just 'rest on the couch' when we got home.

last night before going to bed she said, 'momma, when you asked if i wanted to see that movie i should have said no'. and while i appreciated her sense of responsibility, i felt horrible. no my sweet girl, i should have said no. i'm the mommy.

in true moonpie fashion she is working it out her own way. she has already made a dog costume and is playing the role of the vicious 'alpha'. and this seems to help. a little play therapy, if you will.

i think, for us, we better stick to the gentle adventures of pooh, or the silly antics of charlie chaplin.

and if a parent of a preschooler asks me for a recommendation, i'll have to say '2 thumbs down'.

living lovely

my friend cheryl launched a website about a month ago offering products for kids, women and the home. it's called the lovely life. check it out if you get a chance. it's a really neat site- they give personal testimonies for every product, and send out a weekly newsletter. there is some good stuff on there!

can i also mention how lovely my life has been with my vita-mix? i mean, i'm using it 3-4 times a day. everyday.

and, while i'm on the theme of lovely, thank you so much for all of your lovely words on our special day. the consensus is correct- i am married to a very thoughtful man. and he's good not to just show it on big days. he is day in, day out considerate. i think i've mentioned it here before, but we've been together since i was 15. the time that i've been with him has now outweighed the time that i had been without him (does that make sense?). i love that...

one lovely event, one sweet husband

last friday (june 5), john and i celebrated our 10 year anniversary!  he had a big weekend planned for us, but kept it all a secret from me.  that morning, a friend came to watch the kids and we left.  john took me just a few miles outside of town to a beautiful home on 20 acres of pastureland.  it is situated on one of the highest hills in brenham- the views were amazing!  i am a sucker for long flowy grass, and this place was surrounded by it.  

up to this point i thought that this was the surprise- a quiet weekend in a big ol' house.  john's cell phone kept going off, and i was getting annoyed.  i kept telling him to just turn it off, but he finally let on that something was going on the next day and he needed to keep in touch (not to mention the children at home!).  i should add here that i really don't like surprises.  my brain needs to be prepared for situations.  so this was making me a little crazy.  i kept reminding myself to just let it go- that whatever he had planned would be wonderful.  he told me that our families were coming up for lunch.  easy!  i could do that!

saturday morning my parents were bringing the kids up to meet us.  when they pulled up in our car i couldn't make out the driver.  i mean it kinda looked like my sister, but she lives in san francisco.  why would she be here?  but out she came.  holding a dress.  holy cow- this was a bigger deal than i thought!  john finally told me that we would be having a small ceremony 'to celebrate our love'.  can i say that sweating and hives soon followed?  there's only one thing i hate more than surprises- being the center of attention!  he reminded me that it was going to be laid back, just family and a few friends, and that, yes, people might be looking at me, but that's ok!  so after an hour of being sequestered to the master suite of the  house, i began to get really excited.  

my sister and the kids and i walked out around the house to find a small crowd seated just off the porch.  they were on hay bails and quilts and our dear friend joel was singing one of my favorite songs- 'i do' by edie brickell.  the scene was overwhelming.  i just couldn't even fathom all of this was for me!  people coming in from san francisco, austin, san antonio, dallas and houston!  i met john by the steps and our friend justin prayed over us.  we sat on a nearby hay bail and justin read some scripture to us and offered us some words and a blessing. that was really special to us- he read the same scripture that had been read at our wedding.  

after that joel sang 'if you needed me' by townes van zandt while john prayed over our little family.  he then presented a gift to me.  about 6 months ago he had asked me what i wanted for our anniversary.  i said 'a new camera' or 'a vita-mix', but he made it clear that he wanted to get me some new jewelry.  i don't really wear jewelry, so i asked him that if that's what he wanted to do, to make it something really special.  i think my exact words were 'something antique-ish',  and he did.  he asked my grandmother if she had any heirloom jewelry that i could have.  she passed down the pearls my grandfather had given her on her wedding day.  john had them re-silked and cleaned.  they are beautiful and aged, the prettiest pinky gray color.  i was blown away by that.  they are just perfect.

the ceremony was quick.  john told me later that he had planned on sharing some words with me but that it was too hot!  so we moved on to lunch on the giant porch.  i must say here that no detail was left unchecked.  john had assembled some very sweet friends of mine to cover each area.  brandy was on flowers and decorating.  one of the times i cried that day was when she handed me my bouquet.  it had basil and rosemary in it.  i mean, i couldn't have planned anything more perfect.  the tables were covered in burlap and set with fine china.  the only color was the yellow of the wild flowers and the pink in moonpie's roses.  and the food!  debbie and amy were on food, and it was amazing!  so many fresh baked loaves of bread, smoked bar-b-q (because we're texans and it just ain't a get together without the b-b-q!), salads, fresh picked fruit, and lots of desserts!  a few raw cobblers for me made by debbie, and lots of chocolate and cream for john brought by the grandma's!

the most surprising element for me though, was my dress.  my sister designs clothes, and she had designed a dress for me!  she had a pattern maker and a seamstress work with her to create the most perfect dress- just for me!  i was floored.  i mean, it fit perfectly, had blue in it and was topped off with vintage buttons.  

it was my dream wedding dress!  err, re-wedding dress.

this day was amazing.  and it's even hard for me to put it all in words because i was truly so surprised and overwhelmed by all of the love.  truly.  every detail that john had either put together himself or described to 'his ladies' was better than anything that i could have done.  

his love for me, and their love for me, was so evident in every twist of bread, every stitch, every flower, every mile travelled and every thought.

 this day that john planned was a celebration of our love for each other and for our children.  so entirely perfect...i just can't even begin to say how wonderful it was. reading back over this i am sure that i have left something out, not given full justice to all the love, but i'm incapable.  i'll just let a few choice pictures speak for me.

***special thanks to grandma kathy and clover for these wonderful pictures!***

cliff hanger

oh man- have i got a story to tell you...

but it's going to have to wait, because i don't have time to do it justice right now.  this weekend was amazing.  my husband is beyond kind and thoughtful.  hopefully tomorrow i can post in a more collected state and offer pictures.  but my mind is still a-buzz from the fun!  

i should mention that one of the gifts john gave me was a big, fat, beautiful vita-mix blender.  i've been wanting one for ages and he did it!  and he didn't just run out and put us in debt to get one.  he worked 20 hours in 2 days doing handyman work in order to pay for it.  twice.  that's sweat equity, baby.  i've been using it like crazy!  really- at least twice a day.  i love it.  i made raw almond butter with it tonight!  i'm a little excited about it!  hence the exclamation points!!!

so if you can hang in there with me just a little longer, i promise to write up one lovely post.  almost as lovely as the event.

because it was an event.  a small, sweet event.

favorite book friday

two years ago we traveled up to portland, or to visit my brother and sister in law.  they had a friend that loaned them a box of toys and books for us to use the week we were there.  jamberry was one of the books included.  i recently picked us up our very own copy while thrifting.  when i read it i am taken back to that lovely week in fall, where fresh berries were being sold on the street corners, or free for the pickin' on all of the hiking trails we took.  this is a fun read, with words like 'razzamatazzberry'.  lots of rhyming and a rolling text.

i'm off for the weekend.  today marks the 10th year of my marriage to my beloved.  10 years!  yowza!  we've known each other for 20, which is even crazier.  he is whisking me away to an undisclosed destination.  that is so much like him- always full of surprises and adventure!  gotta go pack...!!! 

(for what, i'm not sure.  snow skis?  wet suit?  unitard?  oh please god, don't let me need a unitard!!!)

beautiful chef

moonpie has always been my kitchen helper.  the first meal she had an actual hand in was when she was around 18 months old- she helped me break fresh green beans.  i remember that meal.  we had a friend over with a child about 6 weeks younger.  she told me how she just couldn't see herself letting her child help out in the kitchen.  it would be too messy.  the meal would take too long to prepare.  i guess this meal was momentous for two reasons:  moonpie's first, and my first inclination that i just might be doing this parenting thing a little different than others that i knew.

buddy has been in the kitchen since day one.  or two, to be exact.  he was tied to me the day after he was born, helping me make dinner.  my kids love to help, and they are of an age where they actually are  helping now.

last year i taught moonpie how to peel and cut veggies and fruit.  this has been a major time saver for me!  she's even using real knives now (disclaimer:  i am very near to her during this time, reminding her to hold the knife or the food correctly).  buddy is now helping out with cutting, using his 'safe knife' (that's a butter knife to you and me).  

yesterday, after quiet time, moonpie requested that we make something.  her exact words were 'i really just want to work with dough'.  i asked which recipe she wanted me to get down and she replied 'none.  i just want to do it my way'.  ok.  she told me the ingredients she wanted (oats, whole wheat flour, evaporated cane juice, butter, peanut butter and daddy's secret stash of chocolate chips.  no secret, apparently) and that she needed one of my 'granola pans'.  i got out a variety of measuring cups and she went to work.  after the kids ate most of the dough, they rolled the rest into little balls.  we pressed them flat and i stuck them in the oven.  when they smelled done, we pulled them out.  and, much to my amazement, they looked like real cookies.  after they cooled, we each ate one.  i couldn't believe it.  they were good!  i mean, really good!  and oh so sweet.  i asked her how much evap. cane juice she used and her response was 'umm...quite a bit'.  uh, yeah, that sounds right.  when john got home, he was presented a plate of cookies.  he, being the good daddy he is, picked one up to sample.  he whispered over to me 'you really made these, right?'.  nope.  he called her a phenom for the rest of the night.  he couldn't believe that she could figure out the ratio of each ingredient.  

thinking back to moonpie's first attempt in the kitchen, and then the many after that, i can agree with my friend.  cooking with children is  messy.  it's time consuming and never error proof.  sometimes there are carrots that are cut thicker than others, and sometimes flour ends up on the floor, but we're cooking up more than wednesday night pizza.  you know what i mean?  doing life with my kids is way more important to me than speedy meals and a spotless kitchen.  and look at the fruit- a five year old who knows her way around the kitchen.  one that is not afraid to create something out of nothing.  and that to me is worth every late dinner and every stain on my counter top.

a few projects

here are a couple of my projects that have been keeping me busy.

this is a little table i found on the corner on trash day.  when i found it, it was in much better shape, but after my two it became...just gross.  this picture is after i sanded the top and decided i didn't want to sand anymore.  the paint was oil based and really hard to get off.  

so i grabbed a jar of mod podge and a couple of vintage books i've picked up while thrifting.  this is the biggest decoupage project i've attempted.  i've discovered that i'm not very good at it.  oh well, i'm pleased enough with the end result.  i got some vinyl cut in the fabric dept. at our local big box store and picked up some old school desk chairs for a buck each!  the little chalk board was 50 cents and the cutey mug was part of a set- 4 for a quarter!  (i already had the shelf).  so, including the can of paint, i think this whole area was created for under $5.  i love how it has brightened that corner of our kitchen!

this lamp shade is the one i bought for moonpie's nursery before i had her.  it's awfully cute- for a girl!  but since my kid's share a room, i wanted something that they'd both like.  i found the greatest fabric EVER and have used it in 2 projects thus far!

here is the little reading area we created after john painted their room.   the little 'table' the lamp is sitting on is a vintage puzzle holder turned on its side.  the frames are both thrifted.  i always hate to throw away dust covers from our books.  the art is so great!  here is one solution we've come up with (i've also used them to wrap gifts).  moonpie has requested that i 'girl' up the selection a bit, so we'll be adding more soon.

(look at the way buddy is looking at me here! haha!)