in the future

I made a lion for a friend who had a baby. Then I decided to make a blanket to match. It can't be too hard to find cute lion flannel, can it? Uh. Think again.

I looked at a few too many stores (oh, I don't love shopping), and spent more than I wanted to, but in the end, I think it turned out well. Next time, I'll find cute flannel then make a toy to match.

I hope he's happy in his new home.

bugs in a bag

I have two daughters with birthdays in July. One is turning 11. The other, my baby, eight. Seriously, where has all of the time gone? Thankfully my Tessa still likes little girl things. So, for her approaching birthday I made these:

Five little finger puppet friends, a butterfly, a bumble bee,

a blue bird, a daisy and, of course, a ladybug.

Tessa has always had such an amazing imagination. My mom jokes that if Tessa is playing in the other room, there's no way to be sure if she's alone or having a party.

She also has a wonderfully tender heart. Often she talks to me about Lucy and how she wishes her cousin were here on Earth with us. No bug collection is complete without our ladybug.

I was going to make just a plain old bag for the bugs,

but then I had the idea to make a tree.

I can't wait for T's birthday.

hide-a-bed

My daughter was invited to the birthday party for a little girl she babysits. We went to Target for a small baby doll. I learned my lesson making these beds last fall, always buy the doll first. I made several but couldn't find babies small enough to fit, never mind that we had a million that size when my girls were small(er).

I based this on little doll bed purses I bought for my daughters at a craft fair before Easter many years ago. I know the concept is an old one. When I showed this to a good friend of mine she started gushing at the memory of her own doll bed when she was young.

(the blanket is a separate piece)

to go

I don't love every item I ever make. In fact, I'm pretty picky about the ones I even like. So to have a set about which I love nearly every piece, well, that's pretty amazing! Here is such a set:


The only one I don't love is the ice cream, but even that I don't hate. I do love the box, I got it at a craft store. I love the hamburger parts.

I love how the fries are all individual and can be taken out of the bag. I love the apple slices and their little seeds. I love the juice box with the picture on front & a straw sticking up from the top.

All of these items are firsts for me. I wanted to make things I've never made before because this set will be included in a baby-sitting tote that my girls will take with them to their new jobs & one of the kids already has one of my typical food sets. This way there won't be any confusion.

an ugly buddy

Inspired by a monster on a cup we got at Target, I made an ugly buddy. I think his name is Steve. Or Dave. Not sure.

I haven't been much into the whole blogging thing lately. I guess I don't feel super creative these days. We've been doing a lot of work on the craft room. The end is in sight. Thankfully. Most of the things I've made lately are either gifts or donations. With birthday party invitations coming around now that the girls are back in school, I've been making a lot of presents for little girls. It's been fun, they've been cute but with the last minute-ness they all seem to possess, I don't ever remember to take a picture.

I should think of something clever to say, but I seem to be short on 'clever' too. :)

***update: his name is dave. thought you'd like to know.***

another activity book

My nephew had a birthday. I made him an activity book, similar to the one I made before.

This book would be great for the car or church or wherever.

The girls colored the first page for him (but used different crayons so these stay pretty). Because he has a two-year-old brother (Elliot is turning 5) we included washable crayons, you know, for the sake of the benches in the chapel.

Elliot. My boy. He's such a boy too! He loves trucks and cars but doesn't like getting dirty. He has a full head of adult-like hair and a great, big smile. He blessed us almost exactly one year from the day our hearts broke when his older sister died. I love him.

You Bet I'm Proud

This was made by my 13-year-old daughter.

Now don't get me wrong,

I am proud of her school achievements,

she gets good grades and is in advanced classes.

She is gifted in music and art.

She is funny and sweet and helpful.

She bakes.

But this? This might be IT.

Good job, Birdie!

new friends

eddie (giraffe) & quintin (bird)

friends made for the first birthday of a little girl who did not live even to see her first christmas. little kenzie's story is heartbreaking. her parents had a fund raising carnival to support research into the disease that took their beautiful daughter from them. we were unable to attend, but i was able to donate a few items to their gift shop.

lunch!

more food creations:

Every kid's favorite (well, except Tessa)

PB&J

The sandwich was made with mostly acrylic yarn (the PB is cotton). The bread is two strands thick and even still I am not sure it is thick enough.

***

Another crowd pleaser

pizza that could be either pepperoni or cheese.

I may be slightly addicted to making play food. Tessa loves them and is sad these are not for her. Luckily her birthday is next week and I plan on making more as a surprise.

oh are ee oh

Anybody want a cookie?

The girls are loving these, even though one has a bite missing.

Low in calories, high in fun.

a question and some other stuff

I've mentioned my love of remnants. Several times. I suspect it's incurable and I'm ok with that. I recently found a couple of pieces that I adore. They seem to be calling to me, but I can't quite make out what they are saying.

Any suggestions about what to do with them? Of the black there is 7/8 of a yard and 1/2 a yard of the white.

***

I'm making another flower, but this one is bigger and has no stem. It is intended to be a gift for my friend's daughter's birthday. I thought it would be cute on her bed.

I hope I have enough of the pink yarn.

***

and just for fun, a couple of future strawberries...

does this mean it's really spring?

a new puppet friend

This puppet is named for another nephew of mine, Elliot.

Tessa is a little sad that he will be moving on, unlike Porter who ended up under the Christmas tree with a tag for her.

But I'm sure Elliot will be able to find a little friend who will love him as much as Tess loves Porter.

PS, he's much cuter in person. I promise.

a crocheted bunny

My second oldest brother took it upon himself to give all of his younger siblings nicknames that ended up following most of us into adulthood. I, myself, am the family's Baby Rabbit. It can be, and most often is, shortened. Rabbit, Rab and even Rabbi. That's me! As you can maybe imagine, rabbits have always had a special place in my heart, even though I didn't ever really like the part of being "set free". That involved my brother grabbing me and shouting "BE FREE, RABBIT!" while he carried me to the porch and proceeded to lock me out of the house. How many ten-year-olds do you know who can break into their own home? I knew.

For the recent sweater set I made, I also crocheted a little rabbit to go along for the ride. The colors just seemed to scream "Baby Rabbit" to me. And so a rabbit I made and sent as a surprise to the friend who ordered the set.

My mom likes to tell the story of a very young Marcia who approached her with a long face shortly before Easter and with tears in her eyes held her pony-tails straight up above her head and asked, "How can I be the Easter Bunny if I can't get my ears to stay up?"

flower

When the Aprils of my childhood would roll around, the kids (mostly boys) in my school class would usually begin chanting:

Spring has sprung

The grass has risen

Two more months

Till we're out of prison!

I made this flower on a request and wonder why I never thought of them before. I love it and am nearly finished with a second, purple one. Yay flowers! Yay spring!

a felt book

Because I'm pretty sure we have the most awesome pediatrician around, I made a felt book. He really is amazing. I had a whole post listing all of the wonderful things we love about him, but it didn't work right, everything kept messing up. So, because I'm on day 3 of a migraine, you'll just have to take my word for it.

I've been wanting to do something for his family for a while now. When I saw a felt book on my friend Kalleen's blog (At Second Street) I knew that was it.

After finishing the tic-tac-toe page I started with the people but didn't really like making them, so I abandoned them for a while to make a sea. I don't know what made me think of it, but I seriously love it. Behind the waves are pockets to hold fish, seaweed, clouds, etc.

In his family they have four children, 2 girls and 2 boys. They recently adopted their baby from Ethiopia.

I realize he probably isn't going to want to play with a felt book much, but I know his kids, and I figured they would like it.

a few gifts

For some young friends of mine:

Bubble Gum, for a little girl who reminds me a lot of my girls when they were preschoolers.

Caramel Kitty II, for my nephew's birthday (brother of the nephew who received Buster II)

Dots, a birthday gift for my adorable niece who just turned one.

Buster II

cat parts

***

For my nephew's birthday, Buster II - in memory of Nephew's first cat (who is actually still living as far as we know, Buster just didn't want to move when my sister did and the family who bought their house was happy to let him stay and continue catching mice in the very large field/backyard).