With the arrival of the colder weather, my family’s inclination has been to slow down and take life easy. Robert’s wandering around the house in a fleece jacket and Sam has actually been persuaded to wear socks when indoors. (He usually sheds them within seconds of entering the house. I wish I could induce him to shed footwear into the laundry basket instead of directly onto the floor, but that’s a battle for another day.)

Claire has spent a fair amount of time cuddled up on the couch with a good book and some friends.

She’s also made sure her bunnies are warm and cozy before bedtime.

All of us have been nibbling away at the Amish friendship bread I baked the other day.

Everyone seems peaceful, except me. It’s like a creative bomb has gone off inside my head. I’m full of ideas of things I want to make and am working on half a dozen projects all at once.

I’ve started sewing a dress for Claire from the thrifted apple fabric I showed you a few days ago.

I found the pattern in an old Ottobre magazine. It’s one of those projects that’s fun, but requires a lot of attention to the little details. Although my progress is slow, I have high hopes for the finished outfit. It’s going to have an underskirt to make it fluffy and especially good for twirling.

Meanwhile, I’m decorating t-shirts using freezer paper stencils, drawing cats and bats and owls with my son for a school project, and, yes, I’m even knitting a little bit. I’ve decided to finish off a couple of projects that have been marinating in my closet for far too long. One is the Chevron scarf from Last Minute Knitted Gifts and the other is a Kureyon cardigan. The scarf will take FOREVER, since it’s made out of sock yarn. I must have lost my mind when I started that thing. The cardigan could be finished very soon, if I would just buckle down and work on it. All it needs is a collar and a front band. As some of you know, I have to take it easy with knitting, so I don’t aggravate a painful problem I have in my neck and shoulder area. I’m trying to be good about it, but it’s hard when you’re really excited!

Just over a year ago, when I first started sewing, I came up with a list of things I wanted to make. At the very top of that list were new throw pillows, placemats and pot holders. In all that time, I’ve only managed to make one pillow.* The other items were left by the wayside as more exciting projects caught my attention in quick succession.

The home dec projects now have a new glamour for me. It’s possible the chilly weather we’re experiencing here in the mornings has reminded me of the approach of the cold, dark rainy months ahead and the need for bright and cheerful comforts.

I’d been hoarding a bunch of Joel Dewberry fabrics and thought it was high time to cut into them. They’ll be appearing in a lot of my next few projects. The pillow on the left was made by following Dacia Ray’s tutorial for a Log-Cabinish pillow. I recalculated the size of the pieces for my smaller pillow form. It was fun to make.

The pillow on the right was inspired by a project in The Impatient Patchworker. I’m hoping the free motion quilting becomes a little less stressful as I practice it more. I have a hard time keeping my loops smooth and rounded rather than sharp and pointed. I had to take a long lie-down after quilting that one. Luckily, I had some nice pillows to cushion my head.

The cooler weather is also making baking very appealing. I used up a little bit of zucchini, carrots and apples in these muffins. They’re good, but a bit like eating a thick vegetable slaw. I’m going to make something decadent and totally lacking in nutritional value next. Sometimes, you just need to indulge.

*Oops. I’ve actually made two other pillows. I forgot about the shark pillow.

A few months ago, I accidentally deleted the database containing my weblog. Because Murphy’s Law rules supreme, and because I’m a complete idiot, I didn’t have a backup. Eight years of posts were gone in an instant. It was heartbreaking. That put an end to my desire to write here for some time.

Today, I happened across a database backup file I made last summer. It was like finding the pot at the end of a rainbow. I’m so happy! Even though one year of posts is gone forever, so what! I have seven back from oblivion, and that lifts my spirits. I didn’t write anything profound during those years, certainly nothing that’s touched anyone else very deeply–although I have made some fantastic friends through keeping this journal. The value of my blog–to me–is the memories it preserves, especially the entries about the birth of my children. What luck!

Other than fooling around on the computer, I haven’t been doing much. The kids and I baked pretzels this weekend, and they were scrumptious!