As mentioned here M WAS Buzz Lightyear when he was younger. He dressed this way all the time. Only the rocket was added to the outfit for Halloween. His brother was an eagle that year. D really got into his character. His arms did not go down the whole time we were walking around town! He soared.
M was also a prolific artist. Here are some of his Toy Story illustrations. If you have seen the movie at least a gazillion times as I have, I am sure you can recognize the army men parachuting down beside the jump rope.
Here we have Rex, Ham, and the army men carrying the baby monitor.
And of course, Woody and Buzz.
I fell in love with these drawings when he made them. I started doing them in bluework. (redwork with blue thread.)
Like many projects I start, they get buried under new projects and resurface periodically. I like working on these on and off as they remind me of when the boys were small and how we did things we never thought we would do before we had children. We went to Burger King and got the Woody doll. Then B drove around to all the Burger Kings in the "tri-county area" trying to get the Buzz Lightyear give away doll. I don't think we have been to a Burger King since!After the boys had the Buzz toy they both wanted to play with it and have it in their bed at night. This is when they REALLY learned to take turns. They each had a night with Buzz and then a night with Woody. For years after that we called turn taking "Buzz-Woody."M does not know that I am working on this. Unless of course he is reading this blog while he is at school. Perhaps this would make a fun graduation gift in a few years.Don't you think a quilt out of these would look great in his dorm?
Teachers all the time
Two year olds are quick learners. They soak up everything around them. B has started teaching P birds from our bird identification book. She knows bluebird, blue jay, cardinal, chickadee, pileated wood pecker and many others. We are all amazed at her skill in learning new things. She also learns things that we are not trying to teach her. We find we are teachers all the time- even when we don't think we are. The boys hear that a lot. "You're a teacher all the time." It has become a sort of code word for them to be more mindful of what they say and do. Table manners, language, dangerous things, whatever it might be.P loves to join in whatever others in the house are doing. She has fun "exercising" with the boys in the basement.
She has learned how to do jumping jacks and can lift a short dowel stick over her head. She has also demonstrated some exercises on the weight bench. She sits on the bench, moves her legs, and counts to ten as if she can hardly breath! Yep, she is a quick study!
New Blogger
P has a blog. Or so she says. The other day she was running around the house saying,"I have a blog, click, click."She likes to go up to the computer and click. When she leaves the desk area she says, "offline. unload."Recently we were folding clothes at the dining room table while dinner was in the oven. She looked out the window and said, "Mom, take a picture of the sky. It's pink!"
I guess this is her post.
Seeing Orange
It has been gloomy, rainy, and foggy the last few days but yesterday we were seeing orange.Yes, that is our Christmas tree. We have not taken it down yet. We will leave it up until it starts shedding lots of needles. It is still holding them fairly well. We do enjoy the tree lights at night.
Sometimes we have to take our children's lead in seeing things in a "new light." Yesterday, P found one of the balloons left from the Physics Demonstrations and asked me to fill it for her. She had such fun discovering with it. She looked at reflections in it and lots of things through it.
Everything was fine until she got a little too close to the tree.
She had a bit of a Piglet moment. There was a large bang and she stood for a moment and then said, "and I lost my balloon, too." She looked all around the tree for it. And could not believe that the "damp rag" on the floor could be her balloon.Oh, but it was fun while it lasted.
Physics Demonstration
You should have been at our house yesterday. D and some of his AP Physics classmates made a video to promote the Physics class. They filmed lots of experiments and demonstrations. I was most impressed by the imploded pop can. They put a little water in the can and then heated it in the wood stove. They quickly took it out of the fire and placed it upside down in a bucket of ice water. There was a large boom and the can imploded.
Bending a stream of water with a static charged balloon.
The high schoolers used a number of P's toys as props in their production. She kept a close eye on the activities. They launched tennis balls with a very large sling shot. They even tried to launch flaming and exploding tennis balls. Some of their experiments worked better than others. I hope I get to see the finished video.The aftermath.
Hope the video works as well as the real action. I am pretty sure M will be taking two years of Physics now!
Catching up
I have gotten a bit behind the last few weeks and am now trying to catch up. I was going to send out Christmas cards and then as the day got closer I decided I would do New Year's cards. Now,as we are already into January, I will take my time and just write some notes!I had a few Holiday gifts that were not quite finished by Christmas either. B really likes hand knit socks and I had planned to give him a pair. Instead, I wrapped up the yarn and needles and gave him a "kit." I started the socks while we were up north.
So much for getting ahead over winter break.
New Year - New Snow
We had a great time in Cadillac while it was snowing here. This was our road as we came home today.
The van is now stuck at the end of the drive but we did get to play a little in the snow. We made some snowballs
and a great snowman.
It even has "two eyes made out of coal!"
New Years Eve
We usually stay home for New Years Eve and sit around working a puzzle or playing cards trying to stay awake until midnight. Not very exciting. This year we are doing something different. We are traveling to Cadillac, MI for the First Night festivities there. We will hear both boys play with the Chelsea House Orchestra. D will play violin and M will play djembe. P will dance in the audience.
Have a great New Year's celebration!(cookie boy ornament made by my sister M)
The Lab
The boys have been working in their "lab."
They have been taking apart old, broken electronic equipment.
I am not sure what they plan on making. M has grand ideas. There are lots of great parts here!
Also, they have done some fixing. We watched "Toy Story" with P last week. That was a favorite for M when he was little. He WAS Buzz Light Year for more than a year. He would wear Buzz pajamas and cardboard wings everywhere he went. After we watched the movie, he gave P his Toy Story toys. Both Buzz and Woody had to have their voice boxes fixed. P's favorite character in the movie, however, was Hannah's doll Janie. M, of course, didn't have one of those. I did notice that Janie looks a lot like the doll on the Island of Misfit Toys in Rudolf. I wonder about that...
Grandmother's quilt blocks
While we were visiting family for Thanksgiving, my aunt H. asked if I would finish a quilt that my grandmother started years ago.
H. had given my grandmother the fabric and some transfers to embroider. She thought this might make a good winter project.
My grandmother had all twenty four blocks done in a week!
H. gave me some fabrics to go with the embroidered blocks. I substituted a brighter yellow and put the blocks together yesterday.
It is a twin size quilt. Now I need to get some batting and decide how to quilt it.I know my cousin will enjoy having this quilt for her boys.
Gingerbread Men
We have been doing a lot of baking in the last week. It is getting to be ridiculous. Yesterday we made gingerbread cookies. P loves the cookie boy story and recites the cookie boy's lines "Run, run, as fast as you can. You can't catch me; I'm the gingerbread man."
Even the boys joined in to decorate.
I love the different styles of decorating.
We also made chocolate chip cookies because, well, we always have to have some of those.We still have some holiday cookies that we have not made! There are those raisin filled cookies that B makes every year. After two weeks of baking and eating, I think we will all be waddling back to our routines in the new year!If only we had some snow, we could more easily burn off some of these cookies.
Carrot Cake
The carrot cake turned out so tasty I thought I would share the recipe.Carrot Cake2 cups all purpose flour2 teaspoons baking powder1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda1 1/2 teaspoons salt2 teaspoons cinnamon2 cups sugar1 1/2 cup vegetable oil4 eggs2 cups finely grated peeled carrot8 oz can crushed pineapple, drained3 1/2 oz can (1 cup) sweetened flaked coconut1/2 cup chopped walnutsfrosting12 oz cream cheese, softened3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla2 cups powdered sugarInto a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Stir in the granulated sugar, oil, eggs, carrots, pineapple, coconut, and the walnuts. Divide the batter between two buttered and floured round 9" cake pans (or one 9" by 13" pan) and bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan on a rack for five minutes, then run an thin knife around the edge of each pan and invert the layers onto a rack to cool completely.In a bowl with an electric mixer, beat together the cream cheese, butter, and the vanilla until the mixture is fluffy, then add the powdered sugar gradually, beating until the frosting is smooth. Frost cake as desired.P. helped bake and frost the cake. Just as we finished the frosting, I had to leave the room for one minute to help someone else. As I left, I said, "don't touch the cake. If there are fingerprints in the frosting I'll know they are yours."
She just couldn't help herself. This is what I found when I returned.Here's wishing you that "dig right in" excitement.
Shall I Knit You a Hat?
One of P's "knitting aunties" gave her this book when she was born, "Shall I Knit You a Hat? a Christmas Yarn" by Kate Klise, illustrated by M. Sarah Klise.
This year it is a favorite. P requests it every day. It is a sweet story about a rabbit and his mother who design and make hats to give their animal friends for Christmas. The little rabbit thinks about each friend and they make a hat that is just right. I enjoy reading the story because it is about thinking of others, giving, knitting, handmade.... all of the things I like wrapped up into one story. I wondered what P liked about it. Last night I asked her what her favorite part of the story was." Carrot Cake!"The rabbit and mother eat carrot cake while they design the hats. And, at the end of the story after they have delivered the hats they stay up late on Christmas Eve and have three pieces each!Today we shall make carrot cake.
Tea Party
P. and I had a tea party yesterday. A REAL tea party. We invited her "knitting aunties."
Although we live far from family, we are lucky to have great friends here. P is surrounded by wonderful people as I was growing up. I love that she is so comfortable with these very special women, my friends, her "knitting aunties." We missed you yesterday, "Deller."We had strawberry rhubarb pie and got to use the pretty china and had tea in the fancy cups.
P used her Peter Rabbit china and had milk in her cup. She told her brothers all about it when they got home from school.Here is the recipe I use for the pie:Strawberry Rhubarb Pie1 cup sugar3T quick cook tapioca3 cups rhubarb cut into 1/2 inch pieces2 cups sliced fresh strawberries1/4 teaspoon nutmegStir together the ingredients for the filling. Let mixture stand while you prepare a crust. Fill the pastry lined 9" pie pan with filling and add top crust. (I am generous with the measurements and use a 10" pan.)Bake at 375 for about 50 minutes until the crust is golden brown.When strawberries are in season, I assembly line mix the fillings and freeze them one gallon freezer bags. I measure the fruits and add them to the bags. Then I mix the sugar, tapioca, and nutmeg in a little bowl and pour into each bag. I shake the bag a little to stir it together and then roll the bag. I stack them in the freezer like fire wood. When I want to make a pie, I pull out a bag of filling and let it thaw until it comes apart but not until it is mushy. I then make the crust and pour the filling from the bag and bake as usual.Good food and good friends, not much better than that.
Homegrown dinner
During dinner last night, D. made the observation that except for the dairy products our dinner was all home grown!
Green peas, potatoes, onions, chicken, and applesauce.
We had a little taste of summer on a snow day and I didn't have to go to the store!
There is not much better than that.
Teen Designer
A few weeks ago M. announced that he would like a new hat. He has been using the same hat for about 5 years. It was made out of some of my first hand spun yarn. A bright orange that he chose. It is quite small on him now.First he said he wanted a hat with ear flaps. I told him I could do that. He looked through a book of hat patterns and picked a shape that he liked. Then he said he just wanted it one color. We went down to the freezer, where I store my wool, and he chose Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino. Wonderfully soft stuff.He chose a few colors that he liked and then said that instead of ear flaps he would like braids with tassels on the top like his cousin C. Sure. I can do that. He then added that he would like a little color work around the bottom. Yeah, I can do that too. He looked through my books and found a design on the cover of Latvian Mittens by Lizbeth Upitis.He liked most of it but the repeat of the design didn't suit him so he charted out the design he wanted on graph paper and I have started the project.
Lucky for me he used that quarter inch graph paper!
I enjoyed the rhythm of knitting with a yarn in each hand and weaving the colors as I went. This hat design has a hem so that it will be double thick around the ears. I knit the hem and then a purl row for an even turn and then knit the color pattern. I joined hem to the front when they were the same length. I discovered that when I hemmed it you would no longer see the back of the color pattern. I like the way that you can see a pattern on the back side too.
Here is the front. It would make a nice ear muff as it is now but I will keep going with just the black and then put those braids on the top. Unless he changes his mind about that.It has been fun to see him involved in the design of this project. Now I just hope it fits.
My family does not understand
For some reason my family cannot understand my level of excitement when I brought these home yesterday!!! That is one big roll of rick rack!
Handmade Christmas Cards
Today's featured artist is my sister. For the last fifteen years we have been graced with one of her lovely handmade Christmas cards.
They are truly unique works of art. I have to say I love that little gingerbread man. If P. could reach it, I am sure she would kiss it like she does the little felt bears on the tree.
We grew up in Virginia but G. now lives with her family in New Mexico. I am guessing that is what inspired the cactus card. It was the first one of this style card that she made. Each year we eagerly await the new design. Sometimes we also get handmade cards for other holidays. The pressure is on now, dear sister.She also made the dove ornament featured here and many other ornaments on our tree.
Decorated
This was our weekend of decorating and getting in the holiday mood. We don't do much for outdoor decorating just a string of old colored lights on the chicken barn. These are the lights that my husband's family had when he was growing up.
This is the beginning of the darkest month of the year here. I like that these lights come on at dusk and are on before anyone gets up in the morning. Usually, we like the dark so that we can see the night sky but winter is cloudy most of the time. I like lights on our tree too. I have them on whenever I am home. Sometimes I just sit by the tree at night and enjoy the glow.P likes the tree decorations. Most of the decorations went on during her nap yesterday. D. did help her with a few of the last ornaments. He is a good brother. We still have to put on the icicles (one strand at a time) to add that extra bit of sparkle that moves with the air currents.
P. really likes that little embroidered felt bear made by her aunt. She has also found that if she stretches her arms out she can touch two of those bears! I know she would love to have one of her very own! I wonder if she would let it be packed away with the decorations. You see that she has put her chair very close so that she can gaze at all the ornaments.We also did some baking this weekend. In addition to the Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies that ALWAYS have to be in a bin in the refrigerator we made Amy's Pumpkin Muffins found at angry chicken. We also got out the cookie cutters and made some shortbread cookies!Add a little Christmas music and we are feeling the spirit now.
Getting the tree
We go to a tree farm every year to get our tree.
It is a local farm with no frills. No petting farm, no hayrides, no cider, or hot chocolate- just fields of trees.
We cut it ourselves
and carry it to the car.
Very impressive.
