Bees Alive!

I wasn't too confident after the cruel winter. They are flying!  Honey this fall?

Snowdrops

Make me so happy. 

Toothless Plush

Finished just in time!

Directions and pattern here:

http://quirkyartistloft.blogspot.com/2013/03/free-pattern-toothless-dragon-plush.html?m=1

And We Have A Color!

Blue.

Strawberry Rhubarb Tarts for Thanksgiving?

Rather than a whole pie for two adults and two children. With a scoop of vanilla ice cream tomorrow - might be a new tradition!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hiatus, and a Lot of Changes

If my blogging has dropped off the cliff this year there are a couple of big reasons, and big changes. 

The first was that blogging is only a hobby - mostly a motivator to me to finish projects in order to post them!  It isn't a business or a way of life for me. So it comes waaay down on the list of priorities of activities to spend time on, I'd say after being a good mother, wife, daughter, friend, homeschool teacher, housekeeper, crafter, gardener, and probably some other things like being a person who goes to bed on time so she isn't a cranky wreck the next day. After all that is being a good or at least consistent blogger. 

Second, I love Pinterest (you can follow me over there - much more action) And I NEED Pinterest, because we are putting an addition on our house.  

Before. The double window on the ground floor is the kitchen. 

During. 

We are adding a family room, kitchenette/pantry and ADA bathroom downstairs (in case we ever need it the family room could become a first floor master suite) and a master suite upstairs, which this old farmhouse didn't have. Oh, and we added a porch and French door off the kitchen.

We expect to be as done on the inside as we are on the outside by Christmas. 

There are many frugal and crafty projects underway, two vanities and a kitchen cupboard from old dressers, a clawfoot tub to be painted black because it will be freestanding, a grape arbor from pipes, etc. Then there are just all the design decisions - it's like being able to get any book you want out of a beautiful library, but then you have to keep it forever ... And even if we were made if money there are still so many things I'd like to do myself. 

And finally, there will be FINISHING everything.  We moved in here with a 9 month old and a 2 year old so I just threw stuff in rooms and hoped I'd have time to sort it out later, like maybe when the kids are in their 30's?  I don't honestly know how some bloggers with beautiful houses and young kids manage it - I guess it goes back to priorities. So I solemnly vow to spend the time as we move in to the new half of the house to finish those rooms all the way, make full use of all our new storage, and then work on the old house to get them to match up in level of done-ness. 

Finally Hung Up My $8 Mirror

Why it took two months even after I bought the supplies is too long a story to tell here. It just needed a wire, people!  

Tooth Fairy Pillow

In readiness. The pillow fabric was an old t-shirt of hers and the tooth was a picot polo shirt with a big muddy swath across it - too yucky to donate but with plenty of useful fabric left.

Now we just wait for the wobbly tooth to fall. 

New Porch Cupboard

From ReStore, Habitat for Humanity's salvage store. I'd been looking for something to corral all the outdoor toys and equipment. Hoping to paint it white one day with some sort if shocking interior - salmon pink? Cranberry? Bright orange?  That will have to wait for time energy and just the right paint. 

While I sit here blogging this two hummingbirds just got into a tussle over rights to the feeder over my head. I ducked for dear life then had to laugh at being so startled by something so small. 

Dress Up Wardrobe from a Dresser

I can take no credit for thinking this up - saw it on Pinterest.  One $20 craig's list dresser later, a little paint, new knobs, and finally, finally the pile of costumes is off the floor where it had exploded out of a little suitcase and threatened to become sentient and carry off the children.  A bonus is trying to instill in the children that when you put things away and can see them, dress up is far easier and much more fun!

Fall

Our gorgeous tree was just kind of a purple color when all the other leaves were out.  Then suddenly this week, fireworks.

The bees didn't make it this year.  Here is the top bar hive broken down for winter.

Comb they can use next spring.  I'm not discouraged, but a bit more experienced.

And how lovely.

Homeschooling - Halloween Math

Frankies (and Mummies) arithmetic from No Time for Flash Cards

Haunted house and ghosties arithmetic from Pre K and K Sharing - we modified to be a haunted house drawn on the white board, simple addition equations are under the ghosties.  J really liked making the materials for both of the exercises!  It helped motivate him to do the math - which he normally will resist - the combo of the monsters he made and the new activity interested him and he focused and enjoyed it.

Pink Cake with Strawberries

Somebody is turning FOUR (with one candle to grow on).

I made a pink ombre cake.  Now, I don't think that ombre necessarily belongs everywhere.  Don't hate me, but neither do chevrons!   But this seemed like a pretty ok place for a bit of ombre.  You have to make the layers anyway, why not distinguish between them? 

The cake itself is the yogurt orange cake from a tattered old copy of the very first Moosewood cookbook.  It makes a nice moist cake with a good crumb and you can flavor it anyway you like.  And, you know, despite the cup of butter in it, it also has yogurt, so it's kind of good for you, right?

The frosting is not good for you at all, but oh so good.  A stick of butter, 8oz of cream cheese, a tsp vanilla and a Tbsp lemon juice, and 2-3C powdered sugar depending on how stiff you need it.

Can I just say my little girl's eyes rolled around a little in her head when she saw how big and how pink her cake was?  AND it had strawberries?  AND a surprise amount of pinkness INSIDE? 

Happy Birthday, sweet P.  Many many happy returns.

PS - I've been away for a while.  Nothing major, just summer.  There is always so much to do, and photographing it seems so secondary - let alone sit down at the computer.  See you soon with our homeschooling adventures, year one.

Pendulum Painting Outside

Pendulum Painting didn't get into the Art and Yoga Camp but I hope to try it again in the one we do in August.  Easy to set up but the trick is getting the ratio of paint to water correct - too much paint and it just makes spots.  Also crucial is the distance to the paper from the paint tip - closer makes more "spirograph" lines, farther up in the air makes "dotty" paintings - both have their charms!

Paper Mache Volcano and Wet Felting with Kids

 Also from the Art and Yoga Camp - paper mache volcano with a bottle inside to allow for vinegar and baking soda lava.  JUST like on the Brady Bunch....

Wet felted vignettes - made inside plastic bags.  With tabs sewn into the tops and hung on twigs they make cute little art.

Big Painting

 Another go at painting on craft paper on the sidewalk - this time for Art and Yoga Camp.

Milk Jug Makeover

 

A yard sale purchase for a dollar - it had been in a garden and had lots of rust.  I sprayed it with rust stopping paint (black) then two coats of our trim enamel.

 Following a tip from pinterest (of course) I used the stock market pages to transfer a design I found from a vintage milk bottle for sale on ebay.  I blew it up to letter size and didn't worry about the poor quality since I was just tracing it and it was a pretty simple graphic.  The stock market pages technique worked very well!

 I covered the tracing with red permanent marker.  After having the milk jug for two years in the rusty state, I was suddenly unable to wait the amount of time it would have taken to go get a paint pen.  The color looks great so far - not sure how it will hold up or fade yet.  But I can always trace back over it.

 I love the back of the bottle - so cheerful!

 Now we have a pretty little stand in our entry way for the flag when not flying and umbrellas, canes, etc.  I love it.

Tie Dye with Kids and Koolaid

There's something about summer.  We DO a lot more, and we HAVE a lot less time to do things like blog about our projects!

This was a project a month or so back - tie dye with koolaid.  The great thing about koolaid dyeing is that it is completely safe with kids.  You don't need to set the colors with vinegar, because the citric acid in the koolaid will do that.  It is cheap.  You can play around with mixing and dipping.  It comes off your hands by bathtime.

The cons about koolaid is that it dyes protein (animal) fibers like wool much more permanently than cotton.  So for summer t-shirts your results will be short lived if you launder them in the wash.  Wash by hand in cold water, as infrequently as you can, if you want to keep your design.

 

 Of course, if you happen to wash the colors out - you can always dye them again.  All you need is a container and some packets of koolaid - about one packet to 1C of water.  The water doesn't even need to be hot.  PERFECT for little ones to experiment.

Be warned if you have a boy who likes red - cherry koolaid will inevitably fade to pink.  You can always give that one to your sister!

Fixing Doors

This weekend we fixed THREE doors!  Two aren't really worth showing here.  Our laundry room door has been sticking badly since we moved in.  This wet summer we assumed it was just an old door swelling and we might have to replace it.  Luckily, before we did that, I actually looked at the door as I was struggling to close it and realized that the top hinge was practically off the wall.  Tightening the screws did the trick - now you can shut that door with one finger.  Seriously, it was so bad we were using the other door most of the time.  Wish I had looked up a little sooner!

Then Mr. Sycamore banged on the kitchen door with a hammer, and now it shuts perfectly too. 
I don't know what he did but it really worked.


So here is door number three.  This is the before picture - you will notice, there isn't even a door!  Just an ugly window from the 80s in our serviceable shed.  This is the view when you park in the driveway.  Nothing, but nothing, to look at, unless you count the empty gas can I am supposed to remember to go get filled.

So we took it into our heads to turn 1/3 of the shed into a music studio for playing and recording.  We built a partition wall last summer, and we had two free windows stored in the shed when we moved in.  We bought a door and put up the framing.

And last weekend, fueled by caffeine and some nice weather, we got it all up!  There will be a small deck attached in front, and the whole shed will get board and batten siding which you can see half started around the door.  I can't tell you how it feels to have this big project in place - I know there is a lot to go - the deck, interior walls, insulation, a/c, paint, landscaping, etc.  But all that seems routine now that we figured out how to put this crazy wall together right!

Two thirds of the shed now is mine.  For gardening stuff, tools, projects, painting furniture - once I get  all the junk piled up on the "shed" side cleaned up and organized.

 Check out my ideas on Pinterest and wish me luck!

Another Kid Messenger Bag

For the little Hawkeye in your life.  This one I printed on printable fabric from Joann's (using "stencil" font - after searching through the long long font list for something like a stencil, it was actually named stencil and what do you know, in alphabetical order) then sewed to the flap after I'd made the bag (so I would know the appropriate size).  I made the strap a bit shorter.  Good for medic supplies or even carrying around your army guys.  In my experience kids love having their "own" bags and they always can use more of them for their million and one important things.