being a kid

eliot is qucikly turning into a little kid. he really likes the playground. he can hold his own pretty well with the 'big kids' and started to go down the slide by himself. he is looking so much more like a kid than a baby. he still loves to cuddle and be held like a baby, i will have a hard time letting that go.

this is at a beach park pretty close to us. out of picture range is a pack of teenagers swearing a blue streak. i will have reservations about bringing eliot back there after school hours. on one hand i was glad they were hanging out in a place where there were adults around but on the other hand it would have been nice if they kept the language away from the playground. one of those thoughts to ponder in the future. eliot fits right in with the way he says beach. it sounds an awful lot like a similar b word.

such fun at the beach.. not so much leaving the beach.

more interesting plants at the other ocean side park.

and in an attempt to thwart chair and table scaling i gave eliot a piece of paper and some crayons. he liked banging them into the paper, hasn't quite gotten the subtleties of drawing, or scribbling yet. i think he was more interested in organizing the crayon box. play ended when ingestion of crayons began. repeat temper tantrum shown above.

whispy

these images seem a little more fall than spring to me but i couldnt help but take them. i took so many pictures of these whispy seed pods while hunting for buds and green. i was playing around with photoshop editing this particular shot, and i couldnt decide if i liked the black and white or color picture more.

quiz and figure 8

lets start today with a quiz. what do all of the following objects have in common? witty answer will come at the bottom of the post.

first, let me say, i am a horrible knitter. i dont find it relaxing, in fact, it makes me a little tense. the part i like.. the repetition. all i know how to do is knit, no purling here. i can barely cast on. but.. i decided to try making a cowl neck scarf/hat thingy (great blog by the way) that i have seen floating around in blog land. i have had a pair of circular needles hanging around for a while so i thought i would give it a try. the yarn is a combo of brown and white wool from a local farm.

it took me forever to try and figure out how to knit in a circle. i really thought i had it. i even got into it about 6 inches by the time i figured out 1. i wasnt going to have enough yarn to even get close to the length i needed. 2. it was looking an awful lot like a knit, purl to me.. odd. and 3. i was making a figure 8 that couldnt be straitened out. so.. yesterday morning the unraveling began. good thing i dont really get attached to knitting. now, i am knitting it on #10's (or 15's?) as a big rectangle that i will sew together when i get the right length. much more my speed.

this is before the unraveling.

and.. our first glimpses of pussy willows. i love these, so pretty and simple. i think they would make a nice quilt motif.

and.. the answer to the quiz: a sampling of the items i had to pry out of eliots mouth today. does the oral fixation ever stop?!

time out

has it been a week already? i have been working through a late winter/early spring funk. its been working itself out through knitting, sewing and sleeping. the more sleep the better! it is nice to turn the heat off and open the windows to let in some sea breeze. spring is starting to show itself more and more.

i have finally finished the two little dresses i have been talking about. these took a lot more sweat and seam ripping than i had initially envisioned. i am happy with the final result. a few more goes at these would do me good.


i will be sharing some glimpses of spring this week as i get my sewing legs back. i have a new project to start this week that is a lot less three dimensional and a lot bigger.

up to

this is what we have been up to lately.

flying some birds...

working on a couple of summer dresses...

and finishing up projects...

web updates

before i go to bed and right after indulging in my new favorite treat, cinnamon toast, i thought i would post some of the pictures i am working on for alittlebunny.com

this one has such an annoying flare that i dont think i can post it. i tried to edit it out but i am probably better off just re shooting.


my favorite little helper. he loves the camera, especially looking at the pictures on the view screen after they have been shot. he still refers to himself as baby when he sees himself in pictures. very sweet.

a week in pictures

there has been some serious blog neglect here recently, i apologize. i have been busy with a few projects and with spring around the corner we have been able to get out side a little bit more. it has been a welcome change.

eliot has discovered the great joy of taking the head of barbie. unfortunately, he cant quite get it off himself so he comes running over to me with a very serious face and yells "baeeee!.....ooee". Translation.. take barbies head off mom. laughter always follows.

also, recently discovered, the joy of mamas shoes. he can do this himself now, shuffling around the house. i dont really wear heels very often but when i do he is right there to offer a helping hand. seeing this picture of our hallway makes me realize how desperately we need to hang up some art! so bare..

various dinner experiments from the 'great foods fast' book. roasted acorn squash and shallots. this will be a repeat.
fun at the playground.

a commissioned stuffed animal i just finished up. here is a little peek of her in progress. this was a nice little break from clothes making. i am now in the process of making a couple of little girl dresses. i will get some pictures of my progress up soon.

lots of catch up..and... news..

i was feeling a little self portrait-y tonight and played around in photo shop for this one. i havent taken a picture of myself for the purpose of simply taking a picture of myself in a long time. i used to have to do it in art school all the time. it is good practice, i think. this wound up being a reflection of sleep deprivation more than self reflection. however, eliot has been sleeping a lot better lately, i must admit.

easter binging.
visit from uncle tim and aunt trisha.

working on a new duvet cover for spring. this is a sheet i found while out thrifting. i hope i actually get it done before the end of the season. i mean really, it's about 10 minutes worth of sewing. i was testing out my camera's ability to take multiple shots in a row to document my little bed hopper. eliot thought the sound was hilarious. i'll have to remember that next time i try and take a 'good' picture of him...ie not in halloween clothing.

some cut outs for a new stuffed animal i am working on for a little girl.

i had to have a jump on the bed too...


and...the big news...we have a DATE.. woo hoo. this is a big deal because we have been planning a wedding for about 2 years now that never seems to materialize. now.. we have no choice but to get to it. it is going to be August, 30 at Ft. Williams. that is a weight off.

sleep and other news

eliot slept all night last night! it happened once while we were gone this weekend but i didnt get the matching hours. last night however, i did manage to get a good night sleep with my only interuptions being bathroom breaks and telling kevin to roll over and quit snoring. both of which i can do without really waking up. granted, eliot got up at 4 but, beggars cant be choosers.

the block stacks continue to multiply around the house and they are being built with very cute socks on. these cute little socks came from my mother. she didnt knit them but boy are they cute and also made from recycled yarn.

our trip away was nice this past weekend. it was 60 degrees when we arrived on friday. that was great! walking around without coats and letting eliot stomp in as many puddles he could find was fantastic. the crocuses are out down there too. what a breath of fresh air that was. of course, we have another month or two of winter here before we see flowers again.

back to the routine. hopefully the good nights sleep continue and we have an early spring!

worker bee

eliot has a new favorite pass time, instead of pretending he is a truck. with a little help from daddy he has been making massive towers. sometimes they double as cell phones (see the executive post below).

and a little pirate embroidery for a friend's sweatshirt.

we are off to the cape this weekend so it will light posting until next week. have a lovely weekend.

the executive

brrruuummm

the truck/tractor obsession continues. i think its anything with wheels, really. today, when we ventured out before the rain, he beelined it right to a brand new bmw and checked out the tires. he has also taken to flapping his wings like a bird trying to take off if we try to redirect him , hold his hand or pick him up if he doesn't want to be. im afraid we are raising a very dramatic child. he has mastered the fake cry and fake tantrum like a pro. it is hard not to laugh, which is exactly what he is going for in most cases. i need to get the video camera out and figure out how to download the antics.


here are my favorite pants. i have ripped them in too many places to be worn any longer. today i bit the bullet and cut them up in hopes that i can create a pattern and make a new pair. i really hope it works!

and here is the pile of cut out pieces for the dress i am working on. it is less of a pile as of nap time this morning. i was able to get the back darts sewn, the front sewn to the back and one sleeve 80% done. it has been fun sewing something a little different for a change.


and per request here is the meatball recipe: it is based on the recipe in martha stewarts new cook book 'great foods fast'. i highly recommend it!

meatballs:
1pkg ground turkey
1/2 white onion finely chopped
1 egg
large dash of milk (1/4-1/3 cup)
3/4 cup bread crumbs (i used italian style)

sauce:
large can crushed tomatoes
3 or 4 cloves garlic
olive oil
italian herbs
3-4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper

start the sauce in a large deep skillet. cook the garlic in the oil for a minute or two then add the tomatoes and herbs. let it simmer while you make the meatballs.

in a bowl add all of the ingredients listed under the meatball section above. mix it up really well and then form into balls adding them to the sauce as you go along. cover and cook for about 25 minutes stirring and turning the meatballs so they cook evenly. add the parsley to the sauce toward the end of the cooking time and serve over pasta.

this is so easy and its really tasty. i think a nice variation would be to spice up the sauce a bit with some red pepper flakes but i doubt the kiddo would like it as much :).

wedding plans

this is camp soci in yarmouth. we looked at it as a potential wedding location. it might be a little on the small side but the price is right at $50 per day to rent. i am waiting to hear from the park coordinator to see if it is a possibility.


i was trying to imagine it during the summer with flowers and trees all in full green mode.


scraps of fabric are starting to pile up around my craft area. there is a lot of waste in the fabric biz i think. i havent thrown any thing away in hopes that i will someday get the motivation to so something like these. This woman is an amazing quilt artist.

tonight we went on the art walk. the day where the galleries open their doors and have openings. it was fun but still a little much for eliot so close to bedtime. i also made some yummy turkey meatballs for dinner and cut out the fabric for the dress pattern i mentioned in an earlier post. hopefully i will get some sewing time tomorrow during eliot's nap. if anyone wants the meatball recipe let me know (its really good!).

trudging along

winter is marching along outside with bouts of snow then sleet then rain. little by little the mountain of snow in the parking lot next door is turning into a pool in the middle of the sidewalk. eliot finds it fascinating. we took him for a well visit the other day and the little guy still only weighs in at 21lbs. he is almost 3 feet though, especially when he walks on his tip toes.
otherwise, all is well in baby health.

this below is me as a little dr. i was digging around through old pictures my dad sent to me a while back. i remember that doll pretty clearly, and that table.. very seventies.

a little bunny has been somewhat of a challenge lately. i have been having a lot of struggle trying to decide where to go with it and how i want to proceed. i had a good 'liberal arts education' moment with Ann Veronica. as i mentioned, i went in and showed samples and they placed a small order (12 pieces, 6 outfits). i agreed to a fairly lousy consignment deal (50/50) just to have a deadline and keep working..get stuff out there etc. once they got the order they decided it was out of their price range after all and they wouldnt be taking them! a really aggravating experience. i think they were expecting me to lower my prices but i was giving them a really good deal. i didnt want to burn any bridges but i did let them know i wish they had though about their price point a little more before they placed the order. i tried to turn it into a positive experience by having her show me what sells in that shop and why. that did, at least, give me some frame of reference. ah well... hopefully i can get them in another shop.

this has made me question my attachments to the designs and fabrics etc. i dont want to cheapen them by using lower quality fabrics etc but i think i do need to come up with better fabric suppliers. learning as i go....

sketch

this is about as far as i have gotten with spring/summer A Little Bunny. kevin gave me this notebook for christmas and it is gradually getting filled with notes and ideas. now, i just need to execute them. i am in the work and rework pattern phase. i am slowly adding styles to my repertoire as i get the patterns worked out. it is giving me a lot of time to work on the conceptual aspect of the whole thing, although i am trying not to get too bogged down in the details and just DO IT.

moving along

getting back to normal around here. it is amazing how fast things can get chaotic, even in a small apartment, if you don't keep up with it for a few days.

i just picked up a couple of patterns for myself. i haven't made any clothing for myself since a brides maid dress last year that i wasn't particularly happy about. i hear good things about the built by wendy line from simplicity so here's hoping i can get it right. i never can quite get the sizing right but my sewing skills have improved exponentially since my last foray into women's fashion. there is a dress and two shirts i want to try. it may be a while but i will post the results when they happen.

kevin has been trying to get his drawing groove back. he hung up big sheets of paper down the hallway and has been doing some sketching. i hope it doesn't encourage eliot to draw on the walls , but its nice to see him drawing again either way.

we have another snow storm happening right now too. it looks wet and sloppy outside but inside my plants are happy! kevin is always trying to convince me they are dying but this is living proof that they are indeed thriving. just because they are growing a little crooked doesn't mean they are done for. i don't think my plants have any choice but to thrive as i have, at least, some of the dna of a plant goddess (my mother).

KO-ed

eliot and i have been knocked out with the flu since wednesday. it has been a long few days. kevin got the flu shot through his work and i think that is why he was spared. great way to loose a few extra pounds! but, the worst of it is over. eliot seems no worse for wear, other than a needling a little more mommy cuddle time, and that is certainly no problem. kevin has been doing a great job nursing us to health..he deserves an extra round of wings this week :) in my delirium he still wasn't able to convince me we need a dart board in the house, however.

being sick gave me a lot of time to sit and be still. i spent a much of the day on saturday looking out the window and watching the seagulls play in the updrafts between the buildings. then around sunset i noticed the scenes below. there is a huge group (actually called a murder) of crows that live in portland and roost in various spots around the city. right now they seem to be sticking to one spot down the street from us. it is really amazing to watch over 1,000 crows fly over head. they get in all kinds of tussles with the seagulls on the way by our windows. it is pretty dramatic and a little creepy. eliot signs bird like mad through the whole thing. forgive the low quality images, i definitely haven't been at my best! i want to go down and photograph the lot of them when they are actually in the trees. the sounds the make are pretty eerie too.