WIP Wed & knitting for warmth

As I've spent much of the last 2 weeks knitting toys for the kids Easter baskets, I've realized something. Although I thoroughly enjoy being able to supply my kids with handmade toys, even more so when the toys are made by my own hands, I really prefer knitting to provide warmth for their little bodies. There is something distinctly maternal about providing warmth to our children, by feeding them, cuddling them, dressing them appropriately for the seasons. I remember reading this article in the winter edition of Rhythm of the Home, written by Eileen of Little Acorn Learning, about ways to provide both physical and emotional warmth to our kids. Eileen's words resonated so deeply within me, and the longer I thought on them, the more I realized the urgency with which I tackled learning to knit last year. In the year since I took my first knitting lesson, I've made hats galore (each kid got one for both his/her birthday and another for Christmas), 2 sweaters, 2 blankets, a few scarves, and now, mittens.

For these mittens, I chose a super-soft, alpaca/silk blend yarn from Knit Picks and a sweet vintage pattern with cables, which was a first for me.

The yarn and pattern was chosen with Elizabeth in mind, but these mittens decidedly do not fit children as the pattern would lead you to believe. So I have my own pair of mittens now! Elizabeth has chosen this superwash yarn in "dusk" for me to work on this pattern again with smaller needles and tweaking in the length, and hopefully, Elizabeth and I will have matching mittens. Warmth, indeed!

it's magic!

Last night as we had some friends over for dinner and play, the kids decided to put on a magic show for us.

First up, the grim reaper and fairy assistant (you can't make this stuff up!) wowed us with their magical prowess.

Next, the whole crew put together a multi-phase act complete with appearing coins, shredded paper that reconnected and handmade paper wands.

Even the baby "disappeared" under a large playsilk.

In place of the "credits" was a sign requesting that, in return for the wonderful show, one of their friends be allowed to spend the night. Hmmm... ;)

I so enjoy watching my kids take an interest in something foreign to my own experiences and throw themselves headlong into the process. Some cute websites we found along the way are listed below if any other kids' want to learn some magic.

MAGIC

schoolyard fairies

Elizabeth and a school friend have discovered a fairy wonderland in the trees along the edge of her school's playground. Would you like a tour of the schoolyard fairies' land?

These fortunate fairies have a shady, comfy house,

complete with a mossy bed, a kitchen full of berries

and a floral arrangement in every corner.

They spend their time tending the fairy garden.

They also have a celebratory arch over a circle of stones.

A fairy graveyard holds the less fortunate fairies in peace.

A fairy zipline.

I've been informed that even though fairies have wings,

they still find the zipline to be great fun.

Would you like to swing on a star?

{listening to Bing on daddy's old gramophone}

art preparation for London

Part of our preparation for our upcoming trip to London is to get the kids ready and excited about the fantastic art tour they will have the privilege of taking while we are there. I know many kids don't think an endless stream of art museums makes for a good time, but I believe that with the right amount of preparation and flexibility, art museums can be a fantastic experience for all ages. We've been spending some time lately doing various activities to elicit anticipation for all the amazing art we plan to visit while we're in London.

We've been experimenting with techniques, like Pollock's.

Elizabeth studied a unit in school on the Renaissance which included a more in depth study of Da Vinci, so we researched which of his pieces we will be able to see at the National Gallery.

Elizabeth is brimming with excitement about seeing more of her favorite, Van Gogh's, art while we're there. Here is her interpretation of the phases of the moon, Van Gogh style.

And since we just finished reading Peter Pan in Kensington Garden, Elizabeth has been making fairy beds and feeding grounds everywhere in anticipation of seeing the famous fairy abodes in Kensington Garden.

We have also been brushing up on general information about some of our favorite artists, including these Old Masters which we expect to see at the National Gallery...

and these modern wonders which we expect to see at Tate Modern.

Now, after meeting all these amazing artists and their incredible work, who wouldn't be excited about visiting a few art museums?

cars and bunnies and peeps, oh my (aka WIP Wed)

Beware, I have a lot to show you. :) Remember the adorable car fabric from last week? Finn now has a new crayon/pencil/pad holder. Well, he doesn't actually have it yet since I'm saving it for our trip, but I know he's going to love it since he saw the fabric on my blog the other day and got very excited about that "car and bus and van cloth".

{the outside}

{the inside}

Here's the holder fully stocked with colored pencils, crayons and a pad of paper. He even has an extra pocket for tape or scissors, or a box of soy crayons right now.

I even managed to include one of his beloved car buttons and a knitted i-cord loop closure so it doesn't flop open unexpectedly. I'm really excited by how it turned out and how many kinds of car fabric I was able to include.

Now...on to the knitting! I've been working furiously on Easter basket goodies, which are likely to not even see the inside of the Easter baskets since we're spending the week leading up to Easter in London. Either way, I wanted the kids to have some sweet, spring-y treats. First up, these adorably soft bunnies, found in the latest issue of Rhythm of the Home. I started out just using the soft blue yarn, but then decided to make Elizabeth's in a heathered pink. I think it was a good choice; I love how sweet they look together.

{look at that tail!}

I'm also three-quarters of the way done with a set of Easter peeps, also for the kids to take on our trip. I first saw this pattern last year when a friend made some. I so desperately wanted to be able to knit them, but I was still on washcloths and scarves at that point. I wasn't about to miss out on knitting some peeps this year now that I have a bit more experience! The yarn is pima cotton Crayon Boucle by Knit Picks. An inexpensive craft at $2 for 4 peeps! I also stuffed the peeps and bunnies with bamboo so they are washable.

{the spring knitted toy collection}

*kiss*kiss*

outside

The kids could barely tear themselves away from their outdoor play this evening for dinner, and I have to admit, it was rather nice to just *be* outdoors. We poked around in the flower beds looking at the daffodil shoots which are getting longer now.

Finn just wants to pick the remaining winter pansies.

I also spied a wee bit of green coming out from the hydrangea.

Elizabeth gathered more rocks, this time for a treasure chest.

Then she toted her treasures around the yard on their too-small, ages-old tricycle looking for more to add to the box...ahem, treasure chest.

Finn received a ride down the road in a neighbor's wagon.

And we were treated to a warm, glowing sunset to end our lovely time outside.

first weekend of March

The sunshine of the last few days brought some much appreciated warmer temperatures for the weekend. In true March fashion, the breeze blew enough to remind you it's not quite spring yet, but we enjoyed the sunshine and relative warmth of this first March weekend.

Finn still hasn't quite let go of the fun of the snow, but pulling his friend around in the sled did make for a very cute photo op.

I was on call for work the whole weekend, and the pager was busier than usual. We weren't able to get into many crafts, but Finn and I decided to make koolaid play dough this weekend. Not exactly natural with all that artificial color and flavor, but it was fun to sniff while we played.

Finn chose some spring-y colors and had such a wonderful time making everything from pretzels to snails to cars. I'm often glad during times like this that he has my attention to himself every other weekend to work on these crafts that are more age appropriate for him.

When Elizabeth came home, she and Finn spent most of the afternoon outside in the sunshine. They painted on the sidewalk with pansy petals.

And we went for a lovely walk through the neighborhood.

Until Elizabeth discovered the kids' favorite climbing rock...which gave her an idea.

And we started an observation jar with 2 different kinds of moss and a few of the rocks Elizabeth collected.

What simple, yet delightful, ways to experience a few snippets of spring on this lovely first weekend of March!

the sun

See that golden hue
Burning in the west
My dreams are with that color
My dreams are the sun

~ Dawn Michelle

And I found this little treat from Paul upon returning from book club this evening. I love that man! I always have more ideas on my "to knit" list than I'll probably ever get to, but I can't wait to try out some of the techniques in these books!

I hope you're finding some sun wherever you might be right now.