Homemade Christmas: Play Clothes

To:  The girls

made with love

From:  Mommy

As Christmas drew near I knew there was not enough time (or energy) to sew 7 pairs of jammies, the stack of knit fabric I ordered remained uncut.  I did however have a bit of time to sew something quick for the girls.  I admit sometimes I sew things for the girls that only I like then end up having to beg them to wear them.  But this time I determined whatever was created would be a gift for them, not me.  So I made them some very pink, very comfortable, little bit sparkly and very spiny play clothes.

I started with a natural thermal set from baby Gap.  Did you know size 4T and 5T are always on sale there because most people shop Gap kids for that age, they were a really good deal.  So I purchased them with plans to dye them.  So at between at 11:30 pm on Dec. 23 all four pieces turned a bright magenta.  They were through processing an hour later and out of the dryer ready to be wrapped at 1:30 am.  At that point I didn't think it was enough to just dye them so I added a little satin bow to the CF neckline.  

The skirts are from the tried and true twirl skirt pattern from Studio Tantrum.  They are so quick that one summer I ended up making 21 of them for each of my nieces, but I have not made them since.  My serger was already set up for rolled hem and lazy me did not want to change the settings so I experimented with exposed seams.  I liked the result!  The fabric is lightweight denim that sat untouched in my fabric stash for over a year.  It was the reverse side that convinced me to use it and the two sparkly applique pieces I had on had made them just girly enough. The waistband is a very pink satin. 

Here they are in action:

And because they were so quick I decided to make a few for my nieces.  I used up what scraps I had from the pink linen Sugar City Journal dresses, they too looked great with the exposed rolled hem seams.

Homemade Christmas: Play Mat

To:  Henry

Made with Love

From:  William

This may have been one of the most fun projects I got to assist in this Christmas, probably because William never tires of creative projects and he was so focused and sure of his idea and design, all I had to do was provide the materials and final sewing.  Here is a photo of it in the works:

It started as a simple piece of white canvas.  William drew two scenes with pencil then went over them with a fine point Sharpie.  Watercolors were added on top.  This proved to be a challenge because the canvas was so so absorbent it bled, we used a hair dryer to help.  We also noticed shrinkage wherever the watercolors were applied (should have pre-shrunk the fabric).  It turned out okay because the entire surface was evenly covered in watercolors.

Below is the suburban scene.  You may notice the DIA, Toys R Us, McDonalds, Trader Joe's, a playground, the zoo, a statue, a huge parking lot, Michigan Stadium, Whole Foods and a house all surrounded by train tracks or roads.

Here are a few views of the "country" side.

You may notice two pouches pulled out from the binding, those are to hold engines and cars and can be flipped to the outside of the mat to avoid obstruction on the tracks and roads.

William also decorated a Michigan car and family passenger car for the engines to pull. I helped him with the sizing on Adobe and he finished them with Modge Podge and paint.

The entire mat folds up neatly with a handle and snap. 

A few things we had to think about along the way..... what if Henry got so busy playing he had an accident on the play mat?  The watercolors had to be sealed.  We used Modge Podge again because it is non-toxic.  The only disadvantage is it made the play mat a bit stiff.  In that case it was lucky I got the outer binding on first because I don't think it would have been easy to sew through the Modge Podge.

Henry sure enjoys playing on it and I even like seeing William's artwork draped across the floor.  Good job William - you know you could probably sell these on etsy, this is definitely something I would have liked to buy for Henry.

Homemade Christmas: Baby Quilt

To:  George

Made with Love

From:  Clara

This quilt was made from Paul's old Brooks Brother's dress shirts, scraps from a linen skirt, some soft old corduroy pants, and a bit of fleece.  The appliqued "G" is a brown velveteen from the scraps of the girl's dresses, babies love texture and I love that this quilt is covered in it.

I started the machine quilting but the time crunch before Christmas made it sloppy so I stopped.  This week we may finish it but I can't promise it to be perfect because remember I'm not a quilter, nor is little Clara.  

Marie' is the one who got me interested in quilting - her finished projects always tempt me to give it a try.  When she sent me a link to Oh Franson, I could not resist.  Here is a peek at the back. 

The backing is a Japanese print from Super Buzzy.  Browsing through all their prints was almost as much fun (and time consuming) than sewing the quilt.  I was 1/4 yard short so I used the same piecing technique I saw on Oh Franson.  The machine quilting does not look great but it was my first try and enough to convince me it may be my last.

You may ask, "how is this from 4 year old Clara"?  Well, I certainly did the majority of the work but utlimitly it was Clara's idea, her layout, and her final say on the backing fabric.  She did arrange the pieces, clip some threads, sit on my lap, and keep me company during the process.  But what I think she enjoyed most was wrapping it up and hiding it under her bed (even though George saw the entire process while wrapped on my back).

Homemade Christmas

Homemade gifts are among the most heartfelt and has become our most favorite holiday tradition.  Christmas morning there was little talk about what Santa brought because each child was so overly excited to present the special gifts they so carefully created.

As Peter was wrapping his gift to Maryanna he noted "it must be hard for the elves to make gifts for all the children without really knowing their personality".  I agreed and we shared of the joy of giving to the people we love.

Here is what Peter made completely on his own for Daddy.  It is a Heisman trophy for all the front yard football games he won.  Peter made it in his homeschool sculpture class, it is a wire form slabbed with a mix of clay and cellulose then painted gold on a plaster base.  We were told that is it Daddy's this year but next year someone else might win it.  For now though it is sitting proudly on Daddy's desk.

Maryanna made a special gift just for me, all by herself when I wasn't looking.  It is a paper plate painted with acrylics.  She said it was for me to eat on but was disappointed to realize it was not a good idea to wrap something with wet paint, you can see where the wrapping stuck.  Not only did this gift bring tears to my eyes but it also explained a mysterious mess of paint in the laundry room.  I told her she could make me a felt lunch on it.  

A Very Merry Christmas

There's nothing more merry than playing all day with the ones you love.  Captured above the kids are amused by a ceiling light show put on by Paul and his new hand powered flashlight, my dear mom is always good for a really practical gift. 

My new favorite tradition is the non-traditional feast of Pilar's tamales, cortido, casamiento, tortilla chips, fried plantains, avocados, pomegranates, and Izze soda.  Not only delicious but allowed me to play instead of slave in the kitchen.

I surprised Paul with an old Battleship game, it was a $1 thrift store find.   I barely won and Paul is still requesting a re-match.

Paul surprised me with a new laptop!  Now we can facebook each other face to face, but playing Battleship would probably be more merry.

Holiday Activity

We've been busy.  Its been fun and tiring, productive and messy.  All the energy and excitement have kids jumping off couches and racing laps around the house.  All the kids jumping off couches and running laps around the house have the parents both joyful and exasperated at times.... but that is just part of the balance of fun.  Besides all our busy gift making (will post those next week) here's what we've up to:

Listened to Christmas music

Went to a book signing for the Twelve Days of Christmas in Michigan with local illustrator.

Practiced our hand bells (note Peter's foot on Clara's foot, a little tap tells her when to ring)

Made cookies with Nanny

And decorated them

And ate them

Redecorated the tree

Got away for a date

Enjoyed Handel's Messiah

Made some ornaments

Dirtied lots of dishes

Watched Barbie's Nutcracker 

And visited Santa at The Henry Ford

I was up at the sewing machine till 2:00 am last night.  Minus the Christmas jammies (I wisely gave up on those last week) and our Christmas cards all is finished and wrapped.  The fridge is stocked and the kids all promised to help do a major clean up today.  The work, activity and buzz, it is exciting is so many ways!  

Stockings

Our stockings are a random collection.  Picked up here and there and only added to when another child has joined our family.  George joined our family shortly after last Christmas but it wasn't until last week that I remembered we needed to add another stocking.

With the scraps from Maryanna's wool coat still laying about me here's what I came up with.  Actually it was the older boys who arranged the scrap snowman, I just did the sewing.

More on our stockings here.  They are fun and simple to sew, so much so I can't believe I actually purchased them in the past. 

    

Thoughts on Heaven

Our ward's seminary teacher, the very sweet and creative Amanda Jones sent out an email requesting us to interview our children's thoughts on heaven why Jesus loves us.  What a joy it was on this snowy Sunday to pull them aside individually and chat with them of scared things.  What a joy it was to hear their unfiltered responses.  Here they are:
James, age 11

"I know Jesus loves me because he died for us and it takes so much love to die for someone.  I read about it in the scriptures and I feel it is true.

I want to go to heaven because it would be a great place to be, I want to feel of Heavenly Father's love and see Him for real, I'd like to live forever in His presence"

I think heaven is a beautiful city, it looks so majestic, almost flame like, words cannot describe it. Like a kingdom of gold with a golden gate and with white horses with golden wings that pull chariots, and resurrected beings with white robes and we are with people we love."

William, age 9

"I know Jesus loves me because I heard about it and I felt his love, sometimes I feel his love when I feel miserable, it is a feeling in my heart that comforts me.

I want to go to heaven so we can have everlasting happiness, It sounds really comfortable to be there.

I don't know what heaven is like, something like a pure white city, there would be animals roaming the streets, there will be all kinds of different landscapes"

Peter, age 6

"I know Jesus loves me because Heavenly Father taught him how to love.  Jesus helped make our earth.  He died and got resurrected so everyone can be resurrected.

I want to go to heaven to see what Heavenly Father and Jesus and all the angels look like because I forgot.

In heaven you could rest and have free time there without any contention.  I think it is clouds but when you are in an airplane it is not visible.  I think it is lots of people sitting on clouds taking naps"

Maryanna, age 5

"I know Jesus loves me because when I was little he told me. Also, when I was born before I came to earth he told me. Do you know why I know he loves me still?  Because I feel him in my heart!
I want to go to heaven because I want to see Jesus again, and of course I want to see Heavenly Father also.

Up in heaven its brown stuff all over and there's people and their names are Heavenly Father and Jesus, I can't remember what Heavenly Father looks like but he is a human and he looks white when he comes down from heaven.  He loves me too.  There is brown stuff in heaven because every picture I see of Jesus there is brown stuff around him."

Clara, age 4

"I know Jesus loves me because I do good things to other people, he loves me because I am a child.

I want to go to heaven so I could eat yummy food and because I really want to meet other children and play with my friends in heaven.

In heaven Jesus and Heavenly Father are there and also Mary, Jesus' mom.  It is a different color place"

Henry, age 2

"Jesus loves me because I want to go to Jesus' house.  Jesus loves me because I love him.  Jesus is white.

I want to go to heaven's house.  

Heaven is green or blue or purple, it looks not like a naughty place, it is a happy place.  I love it and Thomas (the tank engine) is there and Jesus can play with Percy and I can play with Thomas.  I can sing Scripture Power loud for Jesus.  Jesus needs to shoot bad guys.  I need to fly up and fly up like Dumbo to Jesus"

As for me.....

I know Jesus loves me.  In his lifetime he shared many parables that we may learn of his life, love and purpose. One of my favorite is of the lost sheep because just like everyone else, at times I am the lost sheep.  The love of the Savior is both universal and individual, it is unconditional.  The words of Isaiah are piercing with this truth and when sung to Handel's music even more so....Isaiah 40:11 "He shall feed his flock like a shepherd:  he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young"...... Isaiah 53:5-6 "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all".  I know Jesus loves me despite my imperfections, I know his love is perfect, I know it is his love and life that may perfect us all.

To me this knowledge brings me closer to heaven.  I may not know what heaven looks likes, but I have certainly felt it, it is peace.  Though this peace may come and go with the distractions and chaos of earthly living, peace, or a piece of heaven is what I live for. I don't believe it is something we have to wait for death to discover but it is something that can grow in our hearts and then carry us beyond when our mortal life is through, that we may once more return to the presence of our loving Heavenly Father.  

One thing I am sure of is heaven would not feel like heaven unless I was surrounded by the ones I love.  Here is a little picture of my heaven, as captured last night while all the kids were asleep for our annual sleep over under the Christmas tree.

I will be honest in recording that this scene of "heaven" only lasted a few hours, the rest of the night felt quite the opposite with the dog throwing up all over and the youngest ones repeatedly waking with both laughs and cries.  No doubt we are tired.  

But my greatest hope this Christmas season is that I may find peace, and draw heaven near even through the most troubled nights and noisiest days, that the love Jesus offers may remain still in my heart, not just a day, a moment or season but with me forever and guide me towards heaven.       

      

Day at the DIA

We enjoyed a full day at the DIA this week.  My sister in law's mother, Mrs. Castaing is a volunteer there and was very kind in guiding us on a private tour.  The collection is quite extensive and even after 3 hours we barely scratched the surface.  But Mrs. Castaing was effective in sharing her knowledge at the children's level and also very helpful in seeking out specific pieces we each wanted to see.  

We began our tour at the knights armor because that is what the boys were most excited about.

Next stop was Diego Rivera's famous murals of Detroit's industry.

Maryanna was inspired by Degas's dancer.

We were all impressed to discover Van Gogh's self portrait on display.

William was memorized by the sculptures.

Clara and I often read a bedtime book of poems and lullabies illustrated by Mary Cassatt's work.  We were thrilled to see one of her pieces in person.

We enjoyed a virtual 17th century French aristocrat 3 course meal projected onto a table top.

Peter felt a little creeped out by the mummy and Maryanna wondered out loud about what would happen if it all the sudden came to life, got unwrapped and chased us through the museum.

The stained glass was spectacular.

But when most of us had seen enough Maryanna was determined to find Watson and the Shark (although she called it the "naked guy and the shark").  I insisted the museum was too big and we'd come back and see it another time.  But her determination won and we found our way.  

It is was fun to have Nanny and Poppy come along.  They are always very helpful and seem just as excited about learning as the kids are.  It also helped that I dressed my kids in church clothes, that way they were less likely to run, yell or wrestle among the exhibits.

George was good as gold on my back.

Here was my favorite piece, a collage of reclaimed wood arranged into a landscape - very earthy.

The kids were ready to head home (except for William who is still kicking himself for forgetting his camera).  In the lobby as we were getting coats on Maryanna impatiently called out ..... "I've got to get home so I can paint", and the boys were discussing the possibility of "Santa" bringing a DIA membership.

But what I'm still chuckling about is Henry's observation.  When we got home I asked him what he saw at the museum, he replied ..... "I not see Thomas (the tank engine) mommy, I see lots and lots of body parts".  

It was a great field trip and I feel so lucky to live close to this magnificent collection of treasures.  Thank you Mrs. Castaing for sharing your knowledge and treating us to a culture filled day!