Handmade With Love

Knitting has become such an important part of me. 

I enjoy the time spent crafting each stitch.  

Time spent holding a person in my heart,

 with my thoughts focused only on them. 

Thoughts on how my life has been touched & what people mean to me. 

What needs are being faced that I can help with? 

This time I spend knitting, is time spent in prayer.  

I love that I can come before God, as I am, 

doing what comes so naturally to me 

& He meets me there. 

I come away refreshed & renewed.  

I am excited about all the good that my life holds. 

All the blessings that I hold close to me.

 I am blessed by this gift of knitting, 

& I am fulfilled knowing that my knitting is advancing God's Kingdom

 in away that only God himself could orchestrate.

Ice Flows

Nona & Jacob have been asking me for weeks now to take them to the beach. So today Phil & I finally took them. As we got into our van & started off Jacob asked, "Mom, did you bring my swim suit".  I think in his mind, the beach is forever summer. He was a little surprised to see this once we got there.

I was a little surprised to so many seagulls. I did bring some snacks to share, just in case. I'm glad I did because these feathered friends were starving.

After playing in the snow, & climbing on the ice all afternoon, we stopped for some hot chocolate, & a game of Chutes & Latters. Who knew the beach could be so fun in the winter.

Pancakes for Supper

This is a great activity for when it's cold outside 

& you aren't quite ready to brave the cold.

For supper, make your favorite pancakes, & make them special. 

Be creative! 

Help your kids make pancakes into different shapes. 

Use a cast iron skillet. 

 Trying cooking the pancakes over a wood stove.  

Then bring out canned fruit, whipped cream, walnuts, bananas, maple syrup. 

Whatever is your families favorites.

Once you have finished & everything is cleaned up, snuggle up close on the couch to read

Pancakes for Supper.

40 Degrees

We finally have a warmer day where nobody in our family is sick! We are celebrating. We went to Jacob's favorite park, River Bend Park. We hiked the trail that has way too many mosquitos throughout the summer, watched sticks float as we through them into the river, & played on the playground. Needless to say, we got muddy!

The Toy Maker

It is this time of year when everyone seems to be scratching at their doors, longing to go outside & feel sunshine on their skin.  My children have started to cry when they see that it is snowing, & daily I am asked if it is warm enough to plant our seeds or go to the beach.  I too am anxious to do these things.  I also know that we still have almost 2 months before we really start to feel the weather change in these parts.

In the mean time, I am searching for new & creative things to do with my kids that will help to distract them from the weather outside.  

In my searching, I came across this website. It is filled will all kinds of free paper projects to make with a story to go along with the projects. Stock up on some cardstock & warm up the printer. There is hours of fun things to make & play with here. 

The Rocking Yak Slippers

I have just finished writing a pattern for these slippers. They are for The Rocking Yak.  I am quite excited about them. The variations seem to be endless. Pictured here is a basic slipper that can be worn 3 different ways. I'm thinking of adding unspun yak down to the inside to make them extra warm & oh so soft.

I'd love to hear your thoughts.  Good or bad - I like to hear what people think so I can either improve it or leave it as it. Is this a pattern you would consider making?

Soup Night

Monday nights around here means soup for dinner. This is something new I started this winter.  I'm not sure where I got the idea from.  I guess because it's quick & simple it appeals to me. I don't usually want to do much cooking on Monday since it is also my house cleaning day. 

Anyway... since this is a new tradition to us, I have been on a search for good soup recipes. I'd love it if you would take the time to share your family's favorite soup recipe.

Our current favorite is this Tortellini Soup. It is so simple.

What you need:

1 package of tortellini found in the refrigerated section.

1 bag of baby spinach

5 quarts of chicken broth

1 lg. can of diced tomatoes

Pesto; to taste

Place the ingredients above into a large stock pot & bring to a boil. Let simmer until the pasta is cooked. Serve immediately.

I told you simply right? 

The Rocking Yak

The Rocking Yak is a  grassroots company working in Tibet to aid in poverty alleviation. The mission is to work with rural Tibetan communities in the Yunnan province to produce quality, handspun yarn of pure yak down, knitting patterns, & kits to sell in local & foreign markets.  The Rocking Yak is committed to paying fair wages & earning a FAIRTRADE status for the company.  All of the profits are reinvested into the communities we work in.  

Our goal is to help the Tibetan villagers in our region by:

1.  Providing them with a chance to earn additional income, to better their livelihood, & reduce the income gap with them & the urban dwellers.

2.  Increase their self-worth as we impart in them a skill that has market value, while embracing the beauty of their culture.

3.  Using the profits to improve their quality of life through investing in healthcare & education.

As of now, The Rocking Yak is in the beginning phases of opening. Lots of work is being done on the Chinese side to get all the paperwork finished for approval by the Chinese government.  This is not as easy as one might think. 

My role in The Rocking Yak is to write patterns & design items to be made by the Tibetan villagers. I am currently working to complete the finishing touches on a few patterns.  These patterns will be available for purchase in my shop.  All income that is made from the sales of these patterns is going back into The Rocking Yak to help with the start - up costs of getting things rolling.

I am also working at putting together my first trip to Tibet. I am hoping to be able to go in the fall of 2009, but may have to wait until 2010. We will see how well plans fall into place.

For the Birds

These simply bird feeders are easy to make, kids LOVE making them. 

Their excitement to see the birds try them out is contagious. 

What you will need:

Pieces of dry bread. You can make your own. I asked Panara Bread for any scraps they had.

Bird seed

Peanut butter

Cranberries

Oranges; sliced into circles

String

Sewing needle

First spread peanut butter onto the pieces of bread.

Then place the bread peanut butter side down into some birdseed.

Set that aside.

Next string some cranberries onto a piece of string.

Tie the string to a piece of birdseed bread & add a slice of orange.

Hang the treats out for the birds to enjoy!

XOXO Happy Valentine's Day XOXO

I got all of my pink & red paper out of stash,

 & helped the kids make valentines. 

It was a lot of fun to see who my children chose to make cards for.

 The people they chose have been close to their hearts since they were born.

 Thank you for sharing the everyday life with us, and all the love you've given to our family!

Peanutbutter Kisses

These cookies were my all-time favorite when I was growing up. I haven't had any since I was little & I'd forgotten just how much I love them. I also didn't realize how simple they are to make. I loved being able to share these with my kids today. Jacob informed me that they are now his favorite. 

Here is the recipe I used:

1c. brown sugar

1c. powdered sugar

1c. white sugar

3 eggs

3c. peanutbutter

54 kisses

Mix the peanutbutter, sugar, & eggs.

Roll into balls & place onto a cookie sheet to bake. 

Bake at 350 for 10 min.

Press a kiss into each cookie & let set to cool.

Laundry Helper

I am really enjoying this age of 4.  

All traces of the "terrible twos" (ours were more like the terrible threes) are gone 

& left behind are these wonderfully helpful, loving children

As Springtime nears...

Just a few more weeks & it will be time for us to start going through our seeds to plan for this year's garden.

However, the kids & I decided that we cannot wait any longer.  We are feeling the need to have dirt on our hands & sunshine on our faces.

We decided to plant some seeds to grow indoors.  We cleaned out some tin cans, covered them with paper & painted them.  Then we got our hands into some dirt & filled the cans.  After placing a few tiny seeds into each can, the kids watered them & placed them in the sunshine to grow.

It didn't take long for our seeds to start growing.  In one weeks time we could see the first green sprouts emerge from their sleepy holes in the dirt.  My kids were so proud to these their plants start growing.

We will be giving these plants away as gifts in hope that this little bit of green will give our loved ones the joy of spring that they are longing for.

February 8, 1860

We have had much of the weather for a month past, reminding us of spring.  February may be called earine (springlike).  There is a peculiarity in the air when the temperature is thus high and the weather fair, at this season, which makes sounds more clear & pervading, as if they trusted themselves abroad further in this genial state of the air.  A different sound comes to my ear now from iron rails which are struck, as from the cawing crows, etc. Sound is not abrupt, piercing, or rending, but softly sweet & musical.  It will take a yet more genial & milder air before the bluebird's warble can be heard.

Henry David Thereau

Playdough Color Wheels

Every child loves to play with Playdough. This activity is a great hands-on way for children  yo learn the color wheel while playing with Playdough.  I have also included extra instructions to add the tertiary colors for making the project more advanced for older children.

What you will need:

1 container of red Playdough

1 container of yellow Playdough

1 container of blue Playdough

Instructions:

Divide each color into 2 equal balls.

Divide 1 ball into 1/2.

The other ball will not be mixed with other colors & will be used to represent the primary colors.

Mix one 1/2 ball of red with a 1/2 ball of yellow to make orange.

Mix one 1/2 ball of yellow with a 1/2 ball of blue to make green.

Mix one 1/2 ball of blue with a 1/2 ball of red to make purple.

Help your child to place each color in order to make the circle of a color wheel.

Tertiary Colors:

Divide each color into 1/2 again.

Mix one 1/2 ball of red with a 1/2 ball of orange to make red-orange.

Mix one 1/2 ball of orange with a 1/2 ball of yellow to make yellow-orange.

Mix one 1/2 ball of yellow with a 1/w ball of green to make yellow-green.

Mix one 1/2 ball of green with a 1/2 ball of blue to make blue-green.

Mix one 1/2 ball of blue with a 1/2 ball of purple to make blue-violet.

Mix one 1/2 ball of purple with a 1/2 ball of red to make red-violet.

Help your child to place each color in order to make the circle of a color wheel.

Weekend Playdate

I love the weekends for the simply reason of having the time to play with my kids. However, I don't always have the energy or the creativity to come up with new things to do all the time. I have a feeling that I am not the only mom out there with this problem. That is why I am going to start hosting  "Weekend Playdates". This is going to be a weekly feature here between the hitching posts. A place for me to share different ideas of things to do, make, read & play for weekend enjoyment.  I too would like to hear your ideas.  What did you do over the weekend? What new game did your kids come up with? Have you got a project to share? I want to hear about it. I hope you will join the "Weekend Playdate" & share with us your ideas.

Amish Country

A milkweed pod from last summer still standing on amish farm land.

I have taken more notice of milkweed after finding this Milkweed Project.

These horses belong to our amish neighbors across the street. 

They are a joy to watch from my couch on cold winter days with a cup of tea warming my hands.

Sleeping in the middle

Jacob sleeps in the coldest room in our house.  Most nights, at some point, he makes his way into the warmth of Mom & Dad's bed. We have always enjoyed sleeping with our little guy. When he was smaller, we would argue over whose turn it was to sleep with him during his nap.  I love the feel of his hair against my cheek, the way my body fits perfectly curled up around his little body, & the smell of his precious "Gankie".  I know this time with him won't last forever. For now, I treasure waking up every morning to our little guy sleeping between us. 

The most wonderful time of the year.

Winter has become one of my favorite times of the year. 

Everyone I tell this to looks at me in disbelief. 

"How can winter be your favorite?" 

Well Soulepapa said it best. 

I love the slower pace of winter.   

I love the time spent indoors with family, because nobody wants to be outside.  

I love watching snow fall as a fire burns.  

My kids love to play to the snow. 

It brings joy to my heart as I heat up water to make them hot cocoa when they come in.

 I love the rosey cheeks that they have after being out in the cold. 

I love the opportunity to knit for my family to give them warmth. 

All these things warm me up from inside my heart, & I hardly notice the cold outside.

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Also check out this wonderfully winter post.

For you

I love these images of my children. They were made on  this great website I found through a friends blog. You can upload your images for free & they will be given the look of treasured antiques. Make sure you check it out! 

FYI - the website is japanese, but it can still easily be navigated.