Finishing for Friday (on Thursday) =

October has shaped up to be a busy month. I have had such a blast preparing and celebrating the season even though our temperatures refuse to back down from the 90s. It looks like we will have cooler weather for our Halloween celebrations which is awesome as the boys 'costumes' really are not complete without their jackets. It brings it all together.

This past week, In a fit of crafting I made a pair of reusable trick or treat bags for the boys to use in our local MOM club party.

Well, we were a little late to the party and the bags did not see any use, but I love them and look forward to trying them out tomorrow. I found a few themed placemats and dishtowel and cut and sewed them into these. I love the idea of keeping them and having the boys use them yearly. I might even add a patch for each year to help us recall how they dressed up.

And it goes along the sustainable, non plastic lines, even though the original materials may have been created in a place where folks do not get paid enough for their talents (sorry, digression, consuming is something I have been thinking about a lot lately).

I loved seeing Halloween come to our home in different ways, the various homages to the season, my favorite of the year. This little display features an antique chair I found at last week's craft fair (my only purchase and quite reasonable at 20$) and a cleverly carved pumpkin, designed by my brother Jon.

I called him Peter the Pumpkin eater, as he consumed his little brother/friend. So very cute, and now collapsed due to our unseasonably warm weather. Glad I had a photo opportunity.


Speaking of Jon, I had to include this shot I took this morning. This is Jon and David, his best friend since the small years.

I know we are all worried at times in regards to the disaffection of the young, the early loss of innocence that seems to happen if allowed. But here is a shot showing that all youth is not lost. My baby brother, now a senior in high school, still gets dressed up for Halloween. Today is their dress up as they are off tomorrow. He was up late chopping up t-shirts and preparing his "Robin" boy wonder costume. Pretty sweet. huh? Creativity definitely runs in the blood. I loved it when he said he was doing it because as a senior no one can make fun of him, he is at the top. Love him.

And to top it off, I have one more Christmas present crossed of the list. This is the Sun Ray Shawl, a pattern I found due to Brook.

She made it look so lovely and I wanted to try a new lace pattern. This one is free, easy and quick due to largish needles and thicker yarn. I have knit a few Xmas gifts with Knitpicks Elegance and I am smitten. It is soft and drapey and has a great feel in the fingers while knitting. And Knitpicks' prices make the slight luxury so reasonable. The photo does not do the color justice, it is a deep blue green with a sheen due to the silk. MMMmmmm. I will not say who it is for as the recipient occasional stops by. But it is a lace piece for someone I dearly love. The deets are on ravelry.

So, Friday, you are not here yet, but I am finished with you so I can get down to the real business of Halloween. So, here are a few shots of the boys 'in costume'.

Now, I did not mean to do two giveways in one week, but I want to see how many out there can guess what they are going as. First commenter to get it right will receive a special little sewn gift, the mystery piece I have yet to blog about. More on that next week.

Okay, folks. Now is the time to embrace the spooky, the altered, the different, the hidden, the scary and the sweet. Hope you have an awesome holiday and find just the right identity for you and your little ones. I cannot wait to see the posts coming up after this weekend. Boo!

We have the Winners!

Wow! I want to say a huge thanks to all the readers who commented, both old and new ones. Let me tell you, one way to garner a whole bunch of comments is to do a giveaway. I loved reading your encouraging comments regarding the jewelry and felt bolstered to take a step forward, but I will get back to that.

So, we did it the old-fashioned way, with little paper bits rolled up tight and the winners are

Preeti

and

Pinku

It is awesome that I picked Kat because she is an Aussie living in Japan, and the necklaces were made in Oz, so, serendipity working in it's best form. And Preeti has a wonderful blog here, she is embarking on sock knitting, something we knitters all have to do at some point. I love that both of the winners are international and crafters and mamas. Once again, thanks for all the comments and interest.

Which brings me to the next point... I have gone and opened my own Etsy Shop.
You can find the remaining necklaces featured there, plus a few Box Bogs from an earlier post.


Apparently, things were a little slow at the craft fair this past weekend, which makes any of you out there winners if you would like to score a cute little bag.


I have been contemplating a shop for some time and I am glad it has come to be. I plan on stocking it with some of the different crafts I dabble in and will always let you know when there are "bits" to buy. Hope you enjoy items and buy, buy, buy. Smiles.

And if you have not had enough of the giveaways yet, go visit Jennifer at JCasa Handmade. She is a huge inspiration to me in the sewing category, really lovely patchwork items and quilts, lot of fun stuff for the little ones. Read about her giveaway and enter if you would like one of her precious handmades. This blogging/craft/mama thing has really opened my life in so many ways and just want to say thanks again.

Pinku and Preeti, I will contact you to get info as soon as I feed the yodeling twins and get another moment to sit at the comoputer. Smiles!

To Give is Divine :: The Giveaway

First I would like to say thank you for the wonderful birthday wishes and the encouraging comments regarding the crafts. I really appreciate all the folks who choose to visit and read, hence the following post.

There was a time in my life, in those dark age years before knitting, when I fancied myself a bit of a jewelry creator. I loved the art of taking wire and twisting and shaping to create links, of choosing precious stones and other bits, of making something. Creating via craft is a very obvious theme in my life, throughout my life. It helps me channel many different emotions and energies. This was one medium I loved for many years, but that fell to the side when fiber came into the picture.


A month ago or so, I was a bit surprised to find a tin of my old necklace creations during a clean out of the hole we call a master closet. Looking though them brought back the days when I made them. Most of the necklaces I found in that tin were made in Australia in 2004, during a long and lazy journey across half of that continent/country. I recall the places, the precision required, the joy in almost finishing one and starting the next. I am a believer that handmade items become imbued with the circumstances of their creation, so these are quite chock full of goodness.Long ago I put down the pliers, but the rediscovery of that time stamped in this way was nice.


I doubt I will pick up the tools anytime soon with my little banshees in the house so I want to give a few of these away as a thank you to my readers, all that stop by and see the latest craft or latest crazy thing that has happened round here. I would love to send out a special little package to two of my readers, all you have to do is leave a comment on this post before Tuesday, October 28, 9 p.m. PST.


A few things.
::All necklaces are made with genuine sterling silver wire and findings, semi-precious stones and freshwater pearls and one with a bit of wood bead I found in Australia.
::They are quite short (choker length) and a few might require a bit of lengthening using sterling silver chain not shown in the pictures.
::Thinking of posting the rest up to my Etsy shop after the giveaway. Any interest?


Again, this is a way to say thanks; for reading, commenting, supporting, befriending. It is such an adventure, to find a new pathway in life via a medium I never thought could connect us all like this. Now, leave a comment so I can put you in the drawing. I will report the winners on Wednesday.

The title of the post is not meant to imply that I am divine. Just that it feels so good to give. Last week saw a few brown packages into the US postal system, entrusted to make their way to two other countries. I felt all giddy when I sent them. Isn't giving fun?

Finishing for Friday

I am excited about so many things on so many levels. It is proving to be a busy month, and some of my initial intentions have yet to pan out. I wanted to have my first pattern up, my give away ready, their Halloween costumes complete (Saturday is our twin group‘s annual Halloween party, anticipating 40 sets of twins. Madness)…and none of these things are ready yet. But there are a few things that did come to be complete.


This weekend there is a great craft fair called the Village Venture in Claremont. I have attended for years and a good friend has always had a booth where she sold the coolest purses, vintage inspired with a bit of cheekiness imparted by saucy appliques. Well, this year she has struggled to find the time to make her purses and we decided I would make a few things to put in her booth, see if I could generate a few sales and fill a few open spots.

So I made a some bags and I like the end result, bright and fun and vivid. A few months ago I made myself two bags and I use them heavily, they fit on the wrist and carry just enough to make them useful.



There is another project that I will be selling tomorrow, here is a closer look.

I want to see how it goes over on the weekend, whether it is well-received. It is a pattern that came to me due to many long stroller walks, many fumbling moments and a few spilled bottles/sippy cups. I will say more later...but crossing my fingers and hoping it is appreciated.


I am linking this post to the Finished Friday posts. I came across this blog due to twin mamahood but was happy to find another crafty lady. I really love how the world of motherhood and crafting intersects so often on blogs. If you have some finished items go post them over at LitandLaundry on Fridays. it is so neat to meet other crafters through this medium.

Hope your Friday brings some completion to your week, a feeling of accomplishment, and a little something to share. Mine is bringing my 33rd birthday tomorrow. I have to say it again...the decade of the thirties is proving to be the best years ever. So grounded, so full, so fun. Bring it on, 33!

KNits :: Onward Ho, Matey!

There has been scads of knitting and other crafting going on but I realized I have been a bit lax in reporting it here. I am so happy with the pace of my Christmas Knitting. I chose fairly small projects in order to make it a realistic goal to make something for each family member (and you know how many of those there are).

My latest FO is Skully, this great little beanie made for a great little boy.

The original pattern is this, very nice but I was worried it would be a little much for a young boy. I scoped through Ravelry and found this version and used the same idea. Basically, I kept the skull motif and the beginning border and then just went with a basic beanie recipe for the rest, using the decrease method from this hat. It turned out just as I had hoped. I love the fact that the skulls look a little evil, their grins just a tad bit manic, very appropriate to the season even if it will be stored until Christmas. The deets are on Rav, if you have not joined up yet, you must. It is such a valuable resource for any knitter, novice or expert. Oh, the other modification I did was a knitted in hem, the original pattern suggests I knit in the hem later, but I find it much simpler to do the hem as part of the pattern rather than go back.

And I loathe picking up stitches.

Have to give a few props to my baby brother.

He gamely modeled the hat this morning (a bit tight, he reported, which is good as this is for a smaller boy). He even liked it. Now that is a major accolade as he is a high school senior. Hmmm, might have to revise my Christmas gift for him and whip out another one of these.

(Close up of grinning Skull, very Nightmare Before Christmas, eh?)

And the Bandwagon is done and buttoned up and blocked and requiring a photo session, which will not happen this week as we are going to hit 95 degrees today (WTF?) It never fails, I finish a sweater and the thermometer skyrockets. maybe I should knit a bikini so we can see some snow. Hurump.

Pumpkin Junkies

We are totally in Halloween overdrive in these parts. I think it is a weird compulsion I am having due to missing two seasons of Halloween. In '06 I was newly pregnant and just felt like shit, unable to muster much energy to do anything, except put on some cat ears and fake eyelashes (?). In '07 I was fairly newly Mama'd with a healthy dose of PPD and two 6 month old boys just barely sleeping (and not through the night). I barely mustered the energy to stuff them into ready made costumes and take them out that evening for a few hours. But this year, I am raring.

Decorations are up, house is quite Halloweeny, costumes are in planning stage and the pumpkins, well, we have the pumpkins.

We have been to the pumpkin patch four times since October 11th. Hence the title. In our defense, last week we were a week early. This weekend was the official Pumpkin Festival and it rocked. So, we went two days in a row.

It was perfect...we went post-nap so the crowds had thinned a bit. And we had scoped out the situation the week before, so I knew that I wanted a few specialty pumpkins. We picked the special ones up at the Farm Store, had a crazy ride in the wagon courtesy of Mama.

We ate 'Dr Bobs ice cream (rated second best in the world. The world), wandered through the nearly denuded pumpkin fields, petted some sheep, watched a cow pee, (Omg, almost on Owen's head...and it was a river of pee, people, so gross) watched a baby goat try to brawl with a much bigger goat, carried some pumpkins,

took some pictures...all kinds of fun.



And today, we topped off the evening with a quick jaunt to our little city's Pumpkin Patch, where they have a barn and animals and there is a park over the tiny bridge and it is a few blocks from home. So, who can blame me for saturating us in the Halloween spirit. I have a lot to make up for.


Being at the Heritage Park patch today brought a vivid memory back. Last year, this very week, we brought the boys there for a few photos. I was having a really hard time at this point. Really hard. And we met parents of twins that were 18 months at the time. She must have seen something in my eyes (like, despair exuding out of their deeply shadowed depths) and told me a few times...."It gets better, really, it gets better". Which I absolutely could not believe at the time. I looked at her lovely kids and all I could see was a bigger version of my not-sleeping-not-easy babies. Today, I watched my boys in the exact same spot, running from chicken coop to bunny cage to piglet enclosure, laughing hilariously, tripping, babbling, trying to climb the rotting barn steps and I could have cried. Because it has not just gotten better. It is amazing. Amazingly fun, amazingly hard, but amazing. Tonight I watched Owen 'read' me the Edison bill and when I laid Mason in his crib, felt his little hands pull his blankie around himself, essentially tucking himself in for the night...and I thanked the gods. Thanked them that I am better, that they are happy, and that we have Halloween.

Regarding the Halloween costumes...they are actually quite simple, but it is all going to be in the hair. Stay tuned. The big reveal shall come.

Lazy Saturday Blogging

So far the weekend started out swimmingly with a nice dinner last night and a package in the mail. I am going to share my modified version of this recipe because it was delicious and the boys ate it with gusto. I am beyond exited about that as getting veg into their mouths has been a trial of late. The recipe uses butternut squash, but i am going to substitute many different types over the next few weeks and see how it goes.


For my version I steamed the squash a few days before and stored it in the fridge (such a lovely quick snack for Mama, the squash chunks are awesome cold or hot). Yesterday I pulled them out, in a medium saucepan heated up some olive oil and added a head of garlic (cause I am crazy like that) and a handful of dried herbs (basil and oregano, we are out of sage). Once the garlic was soft I added the squash and sauteed until the squash was heated through, then added the called for cup of Half and Half and some salt and pepper. I used our immersion blender to puree the sauce (one less pan) and added the pasta water to thin the resulting lovely, but thick sauce. (Oh, yeah, put on a pot of water for the pasta before you start the whole sauce making). We mixed the pasta into the sauce and ate it like Mac n Cheese, but I added some fresh shredded spinach for a little bit of 'healthy'. I watched with approval as the boys ate a whole plate. And the adults enjoyed it too. It is a great use of season veg, try it tonight, why don't you?

The package was a little early birthday present from Tim (well, Etsy, but from Tim, you know). I found a great fabric seller and scored a healthy amount of fat quarters and half yards from Heather Ross.

I have come to covet the fabric, but try not to look too often as I cannot resist buying when I do find her whimsical prints. These were a great deal and I am itching to go look at more, but I refrain. I have yet to use the lot that I do have, it feels almost sacrilegious to cut into them.

I am so weird with certain things like that. It will all become something one of these days, until then they can be my latest eye candy (and the cotton is so so soft).

Now, off to drink my tea and to do a few other bits. Have you ever tried these teas?

I am finding them a godsend during this dry, windy Santa Ana month. It is the only time of year I have 'allergies' but these teas usually do the trick.

To Remember

I had forgotten until today. I had forgotten those new days. The days when they were still fragile, when they were coated in downy hair, when they still exhibited the new born gaze, the one of infinite looking, but never sure at what.

I had forgotten the fineness of their hands, the lack of control of their head, the freshness of skin. And I was reminded of it all when I had the pleasure of meeting Julia’s son Griffin. Still a new little one, though grown per her assurances.


We spent a good part of the day catching up, talking and having a bit to eat, even having some knitting/crochet time thanks to the excellent Griffin who slept accommodatingly on Mama’s lap. It was good to see her and just to be. We agreed it is wonderful to have another Mom to talk to, to share with as we both journey through this thing called Mamahood.

Seeing her in the early part, in this new, ‘getting to know you’ part brought home again how very quickly the time goes…once the early part is over. It brought my thoughts back to those days, when I had so much going on but so many of the days seemed endless, as did the nights. I remember thinking the cycle of feeds/changes/wakings might never end. And I really believed it.


Funny, now, when the day comes to a close I try to recall how it was that it went so very fast. I have never in this journey longed to bring back a time from before, I cherish what is happening with the boys as it comes. Today did not make me long for the early days, but it did make me wish that I had a better recollection of how it was. How it was to hold their tiny bodies, to watch their endless gaze as it fixed on something,

to see their thin arms flail suddenly in the midst of those strange sleep spasms, to hear their odd little grunt/squeals.

It also brought home how very quickly one forgets how to handle a tiny one. I felt all thumbs as I tried to burp Griffin and give his Mama a chance to get some of the freshly wood fired pizza into her mouth (you know the drill, other Mamas reading, the pizza came and the once silent Grif then demanded immediate milk action. Which Julia handled with great aplomb). I could barely make myself thump him on the back, worried that it was too hard. Which is laughable because I remember demanding of Tim that he give them a good whack.

It was a great day but at 4:00 I realized I had to go to get home to the boys. I pulled up to see Mason framed in the picture window, he spotted me during my approach and his face lit up and he pressed his face to the glass, trying to kiss me through it. I found Owen in his Daddy’s lap,’reading’ his latest favorite, he gave my return the proper acknowledgment by shouting “car!’ and pointing it out to me.

Then we put them down tonight and I snuggled next to their sturdy bodies, felt their long limbs, scratched and bruised from their daily adventures, heard their going to sleep babbles. And I remembered. I remembered why this is the absolute best thing I have ever done. I may not totally recall the early days, but I know these days are just as enthralling.

Meme Madness

Marnie tagged me and I thought I would finally do one. Sorry to all the other tags I have received before, I always mean to get to them. Anyways...

NUMBER 1:
The rules are these: answer the following questions with one word answers, then pass this meme on to seven others.

1. Where is your cell phone? Don't know
2. Where is your significant other? School
3. Your hair color? Brown
4. Your mother? Here
5. Your father? Here
6. Your favorite thing? Family
7. Your dream last night? Weird
8. Your dream/goal? Canada
9. The room your in? Bedroom
10. Your hobby(obsession)? Knitting
11. Your fear? Loss
12. Where do you want to be in six years? Canada
13. Where were you last night? Home
14. What you’re not? Quiet
15. One of your wish list items? Freedom
16. Where you grew up? California
17. The last thing you did? Bloglines
18. What are you wearing? Yoga clothes
19. Your TV? Rachel Zoe (kill me)
20. Your pet? Mishka (GSD)
21. Your computer? Clone
22. Your mood? Mildly Bored
23. Missing someone? Nope
24. Your car? Subi Outback
25. Something you’re not wearing? Bra
26. Favorite store? Etsy
27. Your summer? Gold and hot
28. Love someone? Someones
29. Your favorite color? Red
30. When is the last time you laughed? At their bedtime
31. Last time you cried? Last night watching the HBO special at Arlington Cemetary...families of loss, seas of loss, pain so raw and painful. I held my boys and wept quietly for the loss.

NUMBER 2 (playing tag with memory loss):
The instructions are these:

Go to your 6th Picture Folder then pick your 6th picture.

Pray that you remember the details - and do your best to describe the photo.


First time I put them in these knitted hoodies. We were on our way here.

On one of the evening hikes we took almost daily, the time of day when we would reconnect, talk about what they did, and let Owen take his little evening cat nap. I miss those walks.

Looking at these photos made me a bit nostalgic, but not for the old camera. God, I love our Canon.

I will not tag ya'll by name but please play if so inclined. Let me know if you do, I love finding out people's little innocuous bits. Cheers.

Savoring

Autumn days are passing quickly and I am trying to savor the moments. It has been beautiful this Fall, weather cooling and golden light just barely lingering. I love sweater weather. Though it keeps coming and going here; cold, then hot, then cold again.

Here we are in a weekend excursion to the Cal Poly Farm store.

If you live nearby, please go to check it out. It is open to the public year round, has local produce for the most part (including local bulk honey, bring your own bear if you can) and the grounds are full of interesting nooks and crannies for the little people to check out. We actually went a week early and the pumpkin patch was not open to the public. It proved to be a blessing as we were able to slip the boys under the fence and get some shots of them (without folks in the background).

I love the new features I am finding on FLickr. The slideshow is great and the corner rounding of the pictures can be done via their editing tool Piknik.


Hope you are finding this Fall to be delicious and that you can savor your moments; with little ones, with yourself, with your families.

And for my knitting readers : Bandwagon (aka February Lady Sweater) is done, needs buttons and some loose ends woven in. Now just to get some golden light shots to upload and add to the thousands of others on Ravelry.

Hmmm, not crazy about the rounded corners on Blogger...any one have a suggestion for a good app/tool for that...you know I am talking to you, Steph ;)

My Banshees

So, it has been a bit of a rough developmental time here at the Yates house. Amidst all the toddler fun that is occurring , well, the boys have gone pre-verbal and that is shaping up to be one of the bigger challenges we have experiences. I meant to go read up a bit before writing, mind you, I learned all this stuff waaay back in PT school, but I did not. So, as of right now, the boys have words (never counted, but not a whole lot), twin speak or toddlerese…you know, the unique language they seem to develop when they learn they have voices...and screaming.

Screaming, folks. Loud, loud screaming. Of which they can control but choose to use. And not judiciously.

I understand their dilemma. Their comprehension is through the roof, they understand receptive language almost too well. I have had to curb some of my less than stellar phrases and we spell quite a few things in their presence (like O-t-t-e-r P-o-p-s).

The limits of their spoken language, their need to tell us what they want, well, it must be frustrating. I watch as Mason now hesitates when he comes to a truck or bus in his books, wanting to say the right word and knowing ‘car’ will come out. He looks at us and tries, but then perseverates on ‘car’, gets pissed, and then screams. He has a pretty low threshold in the frustration area. That would be directly due to my genetic input. Sorry, Mace.


Owen is different. He does not hesitate at all when it comes to using his repertoire, casually throwing his words, identifying any and all animal as ‘dog’, oblivious to his generalization. But the kid likes to yell, then scream when he gets excited or wants to direct my attention. And that can be a lot of the time.



So, we muddle along. I have found using repetition and modeled conversation does help, at least to save some of my sanity. I usually start the conversation with a
“What do you need, M/O, water, snack, etc…”
“Yes, Mama, please can I have a ….”
“Sure, Mace, just let Mama get it out of the cabinet…etc”
Sounds pretty reasonable, huh? Now back up and read again imagining two screaming banshees screeching at the top of their lungs…yeah, the conversation can sound a little silly then. But it gives me a focus point. When that does not work, we do a ‘Time Out’ for excessive screaming. And not proud to say it, but I have shouted a few times. That really does get their attention, for the moment, anyway.


I do not want to paint it as total bedlam, but the last few weeks have been trying, those few ‘melting’ hours bringing forth a lot of their frustrated vocalizing. There is one thing it has also brought forward. I tend to think a lot during these times, during those moments of calm, about my Self and my parenting. I realize I can trend towards the thought…”If they would just…get through this, have more words, be able to speak, just not, um, scream”. But what that makes me realize is it can cause me to miss that Here and the Now…because they will pass through this and I want to remember it, painful as it may be.

To end on a lighter note, one neat part is deciphering the words they are using. For the last few weeks Owen has been wandering around saying “Abby, abby, abby, abby” at random moments. I tried to figure out what he was associating the word with, looking for objects or actions. Well, last night, Tim and I were watching them bathe, I asked Owen to swim and he laid down, kicking, laughing and saying ‘Abby’. I looked at him and asked him, “Are you saying ‘Happy‘?”. And he turned to me and smiled so big, so wonderfully, so happy, and nodded his head. I died.

(Yeah, I put that barette there? So?)(He is going to kill me someday).

And Mason, though occasionally hesitant to use words with books, has no such compunction during other activities. We have decided his running litany is in French and it sounds really, really interesting. He makes the simplest of actions intriguing, talks to and about his brother a lot, and cocks his head with this inquisitive look that just about kills me. The other day we were doing body parts and I asked him to show me “Mama’s nose” (he usually does his own body parts) and he looked at me like “Why?’.


So, I am trying to remember to embrace moments, breathe deeply and I ask, any advice out there for other strategies, Mamas? Leave it in the comments. Please.

Oh, in this vid if you listen carefully at the beginning, you can hear Owen saying "abby".

Such a Twit

I so do not need to be anywhere else on the internets. But I went and did it. I joined Twitter and I am loving the fact that I finally did. If you have yet to hear about Twitter, you can find out more about it here. But basically it is another way to stay connected and almost mini-blog from your phone if you so choose. And I so choose.

I first found Twitter due to Aimee at Put Your Flare On...she did it a lot in the early days of her little boy's life and I loved hearing the quick updates. Then I followed it a few times here and there. And then I joined in the fun. If you are so inclined, go and sign up and add me on to your followers. I am here.

And if you are on and I have not found you let me know your Twitter name and then we can Tweet together.

My main use is to put in quick updates on the crazy things my children have been doing lately (crazy, I tell you). But here is just a little picture of where I found a little boy the other day, in my son's crib, no less. Where did my babies go? I really cannot tell you.





And the other boy (Please excuse the ubiquitous Dot in the mouth. They are obsessed and I feel not the need to fight them.)(And what is up with the monk's tonsure...gotta' work on the hair).



And the two of them together.



So, anyway, come and Tweet. It is loads of fun. Just make sure you have unlimited texting or you will be in trouble if you turn your phone on.