Sam and Claire cleaned out the pumpkins as best they could and directed the cutting of the designs. I, of course, was in charge of sharp implements. Sam chose an elaborate spider design. Claire was happy with a goofy face.

Our jack-o-lanterns garnered compliments from the neighbors!

Of course, trick-or-treating was the most exciting part of the holiday. Their dad and uncle took them around the neighborhood and they came back with an unbelievable amount of candy. I guess our neighbors were suckered by how cute these two kids are (I know I would have been!)

More holiday photos can be seen here.

I had hoped to finish my orange jacket in time for trick-or-treating. I had imagined attaching some black felt cutouts (only temporarily) to make it look like a jack-o-lantern, but I just plain ran out of time. I did finish it the next day and am very happy with it.

I think I managed to save it from looking too “clownish.” Cutting down the sleeves helped a lot. It’s not something I can wear all the time, since that neck is deep and wide. It looks best when I wear a turtleneck or crew neck top underneath it. Also, the wide neckline allows the cold in. My next jacket is going to be less “stylish” and more practical. Even though I disparaged the material a lot in the past, I’m eager to sew with fleece again. It’s easy to handle and makes perfect outerwear for the damp weather we have around here.

More details on the McCall’s jacket can be found in my pattern review.

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While most people will be eating chocolate candies and sniffing bouquets of roses, we’ll be riding buses, flying in airplanes and driving vans to California! We’re going there to visit family and to partay. It should be a fun time

Claire and I are stressing out about the dress code at the party venue. I can’t find pantyhose to wear with my dress (although I’ve been informed most people don’t wear pantyhose anymore) and Claire doesn’t know what to do about her hair.

She may be onto something here…

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1. Frosty, 2. Kids in the Igloo, 3. Shoveling, 4. Sam’s Baby Blues, 5. Claire, 6. Claire

Created with fd’s Flickr Toys.

I tried to coax the kids into making a snowman, but they were more interested in shoveling the sidewalks…and the street. Eventually, we had a large enough snow mound to create an igloo.

What fun! Some worrywart neighbors expressed concern for letting kids play in a structure that might collapse on them, but we weren’t worried. First of all, we were always supervising them when they were playing outside, so if something happened, we’d be right there to take care of things. Secondly, Robert and I built snow forts like that throughout our childhood. My brother also used to go winter camping at 7000 feet and built similar structures to sleep in.

Know-it-alls really get my dander up.

Christmas Day was very relaxed. We opened gifts, played board games and ate an exquisite meal. I made beef bourgignon–and oh my gawd, the sauce on that dish is to die for! We sopped every bit of it up with homemade bread. Yum!!!!

As is traditional for my family, I baked Potica. It was gobbled up in no time flat. In years past, I’ve had trouble getting the sweet bread to cook thoroughly in the center without burning the outer portions. I baked it at a lower temperature this time and it was a big improvement! Wrapping the whole thing in foil for the first portion of its baking time is also something I’ve been meaning to try.

My brother and his fiancee also came to visit us for a couple of days. We don’t get to see each other all that often since they live far away in Montana. We had a splendid time playing Yahtzee (I won-woo hoo), building puzzles, eating, drinking…and clowning around in my handknits.

Will loved the hat I knit for him. It’s supposed to look like the cunning hat worn by Jayne in Firefly. I had a hard time knitting badly. It should look worse than it does, haha!

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Afternoon in the Studio

One afternoon not too long ago, Claire watched me cutting and stitching fabric with a look of utter boredom on her face. I had encouraged her to find something fun to do, like coloring or playing with her ponies or building something with blocks. Nothing satisfied her.

Claire: Mom, when I grow up, I am NOT going to sew.

Me: Well, that’s ok. What do you think you might enjoy when you’re all grown up?

Claire: Washing dishes.

Me: Why wait? You can do that now!

Dinnertime Conversation

Me: Claire, you could use a fork, you know.

Sam: Yeah, princesses use forks when they eat.

Me: Haha, Sam, you sound just like a parent.

Claire: Or a bus driver!

Conference in the Garage

Sam and Claire found their dad in the garage with a piece of lumber, some screws and a screwdriver. Helping dad build things is always exciting and they were eager to find out what he was up to and how they could get invovled.

Sam: Dad, what are you doing?

Robert: I’m covering up this hole in the door so animals don’t get in.

Sam: Like gorillas?

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Now, however, since I have the luxury of preparing meals in peace, we enjoy each other’s company over dinner more often. It’s one of the best improvements in our lifestyle since I quit my job. To honour the good food and good company, I dressed up our table with new placemats and napkins.**

It’s funny how such simple things can make life so much nicer. And when I say they’re simple, I’m not just referring to their ubiquity; I’m also referring to how easy they are to make. I didn’t think to take photos and turn this post into a complete tutorial, but I don’t think all those extras are necesarry for explaining how to construct these items. Think of it like learning to make one of your grandmother’s most admired cakes. You add a handful of this, a handful of that, mix and bake.

Here’s my recipe for placemats:

1. From a piece of paper (newspaper, gift wrap, freezer paper, whatever…), cut out a rectangle. It can be any size that pleases you. Just for reference, mine was 17″ X 13.5″. I just liked the look of that ratio. There’s no special reason for it.

2. Round of the corners of your pattern. You can do this by folding the rectangle in fourths and freehanding a curve with your scissors, or, if you’re more particular, you can use the edge of a plate to draw a curved corner and cut along that line. Whatever works for you!

3. Wash and dry your fabrics. Or not.

4. Cut out the fronts, backs and lightweight batting using this template as a guide. I think I had about a yard of each material and made four placemats.

5. Make your quilt sandwich and baste together using the method you prefer. The basting spray found in many fabric shops works great for small pieces like this.

6. Quilt as desired. I free-handed some swirling lines, but you could also stitch parallel lines for a nice effect.

7. Bind as desired. I used the quick and dirty method and bought a few packages of pre-made binding. Homemade binding could make these extra special.

Here’s my Recipe for Napkins:

1. Cut out 18-inch squares or whatever size you like. If I had had more fabric, I might have made mine about 20-21 inches square.

2. Hem. I used the method described in this Purl Bee tutorial, including the zig-zag stitching, which I really like.

Enjoy your creations!

_____
* My hat goes off to working mothers everywhere.
** I cannot, for the life of me, figure out how to color correct these photos. The light in our dining room is not a traditional tungsten light. It really makes everything a ghastly yellow. Anyway, I’m sorry about the poor-quality photos here.

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Today, we sat down together for a little family drawing time. My kids already are confident artists and enjoy coloring and sketching, but I think having some additional bits of inspiration set out on the table and the better quality materials Amanda recommends made this an even more enjoyable experience.

Here, Sam works on a large scale grinning skull he found in one of Ed Emberly’s drawing books:

Claire didn’t attempt to draw anything in particular, but she enjoyed experimenting with markers:

I tried painting with watercolors, which I haven’t done in a good twenty years or so.

I had fun–after I put a damper on my critical side and just enjoyed the process. Already I’m looking forward to our next drawing session.

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It looks complicated, but it’s not. I just made a simple layer cake, frosted it with pink tinted buttercream frosting and then made a template from a Hello Kitty Coloring page. I scored the design into the chilled frosting using a toothpick, outlined it with black gel frosting and piped in little stars to color each section.

My attempt at piping shells around the edge of the cake wasn’t entirely successful, but I started to get a better feel for it towards the end. I think my next cake will be even better. I learn a lot from each one I do.

It did take a long time to decorate the cake and it was gobbled up almost instantly. Was it worth it? Yes. The cake and frosting tasted good, unlike the cakes you get at the grocery store. Kids also seem to remember their cakes years after the celebration and it makes me happy to provide them with a good memory.

I’ve also been doing a lot of regular old every day cooking, which is a big deal for me. I always enjoy whipping up a feast on special occasions, but the drudgery of everyday cooking has often defeated me in the past, so I resorted to heating up dinners from frozen food section of the grocery store. I still do that on occasion, but am better able to prepare shopping lists and find something tempting to make in the huge notebook I assembled of my favorite recipes. It’s mostly filled with articles from cooking magazines, which I was able to toss after this big organization project was done. Now, I don’t spend hours and hours looking for a vaguely-remembered recipe in a stack of magazines. I can just flip to the relevant section in my notebook and get cooking.

I’ve also started baking bread again. It’s one of those things that requires you to do it often to do it well, and when you do it well, it’s one of the most satisfying things imaginable. I’ve tried to convert Robin, my sister-in-law, and Dave, a family friend, to bread bakers.

They did a remarkable job with their first loaves!

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