knitting, notes, etc

Are you in the midst of endless winter like we are? Argh! I really don't mind winter and having grown up in the Canadian Prairies I'm a big season fan, but this winter is trying my patience. *so. much. cold. so. much. snow.* Proof you say? Well here is my son who is 5'9" shovelling snow at the back door. It's getting hard to know what to do with the white stuff.

It hasn't helped that our crew is sick yet again. Hence my absence from the computer. We are taking it all in stride and doing our best to keep our spirits up. Even if that means mid day basking in the sun from the indoors. For a brief moment it gives me the illusion that everything is green and growing outside. Yes I'm a dreamer.

chalkboard calendar

Just over a week ago I was eyeing the very sad calendar page pinned to my fridge. The calendar is both sad and small, easy to ignore and unremarkable. Then my son missed his orthodontist appointment because sad, small calendar is not only unremarkable but also hard to read with it's small print.

Something needed to be done. It had to be dramatic and noticeable, it had to be easy. And so came the chalkboard calendar idea. I googled the concept and found lots of inspiration. This particular one caught my eye, it's less permanent which can be a good thing if you don't want to mark up your walls. However I'm a mix-it & paint girl so I went the route of paint.



Chalkpaint to be exact. I used Rustoleums black chalkpaint - available at Home Depot. Next I marked my spaces with 1/4 inch tape to delineate the squares of a chalkboard and wider tape to set a boundary. From here it was pretty fast and easy. I painted a coat of the black chalkboard paint, waited for it to dry and then re-coated (4 hours later).



The next day when I checked my wall it looked a bit rough and uneven. I sanded the chalkpaint down to make the walls a bit smoother, wiped the whole surface down lightly and painted a 3rd and final coat. If it wasn't for the sanding I would say that the whole process was completely painless.



Make sure to let the chalkboard cure for 3 days with no writing, etc. Once it is cured you have to condition the chalkboard by using a piece of chalk on it's side to cover the black. It helps to have minions do this part for you. Finally use a chalkboard brush to dry clean the board and you are good to go. After 7 days you can wipe the board down with a cloth. But as you can tell that won't be happening until the last day of January when I get ready to fill in the next month.



Give it a whirl, and if your aren't brave enough to paint your wall then remember you could always buy the wall decals linked earlier.

disclaimer: This post was not sponsored by Rustoleum or Home Depot Canada. I paid for the chalkboard paint all by myself :)

summer rituals and finding a new rhythym

we ride as a family almost every evening enjoying the trails. exploring new areas and paths being paved around our home. Our goal is to have some good ol' bike ride fun, but with that we find a common way to be together as family, a way to engage each of us.

I've been having a paralyzing fear of my kids growing up for the past while. It's happening right before my eyes and I can't seem to slow them down. I vacillate between my longing for those earlier years when days blurred into each other and it felt like those "baby-days" would never end and the reality of where we are today.The transition is both hard and wonderful as I watch my not so wee ones grow into strong, independent persons. My thoughts wander: where do I fit in now? is my job done?

Surely not with 7 year olds, teens & pre-teens still roaming the house. My role has simply changed and finding my groove is not so easy. Then again I am not alone, we are all changing. The eldest one is now a man cub, almost as tall as me at 5'10 ~ well maybe a few more inches to go. He has gone through the most transition this past year. His interests have taken him away from his world of physical imagination play to more adult like mimicking and conversation. It's been expected but at the same time hard on the others. They long for their "leader" to play again like he did once before. To lead them on an adventure filled with magic, monsters and villans. I see their broken heart and it breaks mine. I feel sad for the ones left behind but recognize the inevitability of it. As the youngest of 13, I understand all to well being left behind while others move on, it's a lonely road.

This is where we are right now, navigating a new phase. We are still a family, changing and finding a new rhythym and new ways to express our togetherness. Hoping ultimately that we will embrace it with grace and enjoy the ride.

May/June happenings

Now that it is officially July I thought I'd post a few highlights from the past two months instagram style. 

from the top: 

~ dance recital for the girlies who played the part of orphans singing "it's a hard knock life (Annie)" *ps, they did not dance in the Crocs ;P

~ flowers from daddy for two girlies who did such a great job at their dance recital

~ mass organization of papers around the house, including 5 years of the girls' art work *big job

~ mushrooms along the path of our daily bike ride

~ lunch for me: sole on a bed of lettuce *yum 

rain, rain go away

is how I am feeling today. I'm chanting up a slew up positive vibes hoping the weather will soon change from the week-long rain we've been experiencing. Thankfully I've just checked the weather for the um-teenth time and it assures me sunny days are on their way. C'mon Mr. Sun my veggie garden needs planting and I'm raring to get my hands dirty.



...while the rain is a bit of downer, it's been good for tackling a lingering project.



...and inspiration: good ol' Jenga would make a great future quilt.



...all this indoor time calls for some clowning around: cool and scary!

may

A little catch up on things and life. I hope you don't mind it in pictures. In fact I hope you don't mind that there are only a few pictures. I seem to roll that way right now. My camera has been left behind at home more times then I would like to admit and I can't actually remember when I last took some decent shots of the kids. Ugh! Thank goodness iPhone is helping me catch bits of my day.





I was thinking about how busy life feels for me right now. I can't seem to keep up with it or find my rhythym -frankly, it's disconcerting.  I keep hoping and waiting for the second surge of inspiration and energy to hit me and daily I find it evading me. Maybe it's cyclical? or maybe I just need to look at life through new lenses. I don't know the answer. I also don't know why things feel so busy. It's not like I haven't always been running with something or another..., perhaps it's the age of my kids now? I find raising little children taxes your energy in a different way - you are exhausted overall and spend a lot of time doing repetitive tasks, but our outtings were always closer to home and more infrequent. With my older kids, they are more independent but guidance & conversation is huge and we seem to have more groups & outtings that involve driving. Though we've made a lot of effort at keeping those things to a minimum, you know the simple life, there are still a few things that have us leaving the house on a regular basis. Blah, blah, blah, I'm sure y'all know what I am talking about.



In search of a solution, I have made some changes at work recently. I have gone from 80+ hours a month to about half that. This past month has been the first time that I am working reduced hours. The first thing I am noticing on my reduced hours is a sense of relief that has washed over me. I feel like I am able to get a few things done around the house that have me chasing my tail and I feel less stressed overall. My ultimate goal with my new found time will be to start cultivating some blocks of studio time just for making, just because. Ahh, the good life - I can't wait!



Of course no sooner do I reduce my hours at work then I have to pull semi-full time hours this coming week - a commitment I made pre-work hour reduction. It should be okay though. It's part of my job to be available periodically throughout the year in bulk hours when needed. After my week of chaos I will be back to my shortened hours. yay... and some serious making ~ can't wait!



Photo details:

~ my girls primping for a party, even miss lily dog got in on the action courtesy of the twinadoes.

~ at soccer: early season games can be freezing, thank goodness the warmer weather has arrived.

~ my self-love gift for those "making" studio times.

~ mother's day love, the bunnies finally left me one tulip in my yard. They faithfully eat them all, in four years at this home I have never seen one bloom.

oh my

Our winter just abruptly ended and I do think my dreams of warmer days have now been realized. It's beautifully mucky & dirty all about and the snow has been melting at lightening speed. Hard to believe we had a tobaggan run in our back yard last week. It's all brown grass, wetness & doggy-do back there today.

Decidedly my favourite part of spring is the awakening... nature, the return of our friends and the daily treks outside by the kids finding new treasures are all a lovely pace from winter's long sleep. When the girls were outside earlier today they happened upon a discarded bird's nest. It probably fell out of the tree, a left over reminder of last year. Amazing how those little mumma bird's make up their nest in anticipation of little birdies, so complete & perfectly suited for their needs.  I feel as though I've been nesting for the past few years - making our home complete & suitable for our needs - and the results, like the birdie nest, are lovely & durable. But I'm ready for a change and just like a mumma bird I am filled with anticipation for a new adventure. Here's hoping I'll be brave enough to follow through.

Happy Friday, xo.

 

hello and goodbye

A fitting title since my first post this month comes almost at the end of February. I am slow time of year, as I make my way through what I hope is the end of winter. Not that it was a bad one; our winter has been unseasonably warm this year, even kibboshing all attemps at an ice rink on the lake as customary for us. Still, I find myself day dreaming of gardening, beaches & warm sunshine on my skin, ahhh!

For now we keep ourselves busy with:













~ posies: something special to spice up a little something I made this past fall

~ tea parties: now that they are reading & writing, little notes are given to me with special requests <3

~ minecraft: because this mumma caves & gives them techie time

~ doggy cuddles: because the theme for SPFebruary is with something you love

~ kale goodness: dehydrated for chips, in smoothies, lasagna, soup - as many ways as possible.

~ impromptu weddings: since my niece recently became engaged, the talk at the table & the play has been all things weddings. Here she is a flower girl & this summer my girlies will be her flower girls :)

~ thank you iPhone for helping me capture a little bit of each day ~ 

smoke detector batteries

January is a hard month in these parts with the brutal cold arriving. I find myself spending increasing times indoors staying warm, drinking hot tea, reading books & earlier bed times. Why fight it right? I've also dubbed January "organization month". I'm inside for endless hours so it is a good time to catch up on unfinished things, declutter & tackle those monotonous projects that need to be done but always seem to be forgotten. 

One project that pops into my head throughout the year is changing the smoke detector batteries. It's one of those panic thoughts where I often find myself thinking "when did I last change my batteries" and then when I finally check, I can never actually remember the date change. Well I wisened up this time, pulled out the masking tape and voila: battery dates are labelled. Next time my brain goes into smoke detector battery panic mode, I will simply flip them open and note the last change date.

As for frequency, I've read two opinions that batteries should be replaced every 6 months or once a year. Please read though your manufacturers recommended date to determine your time frame for battery replacement. Oh and don't forget to test your batteries once a month to make sure the detectors are functioning properly (replace if necessary). Happy home and health to you. xox

sure fooled me!

This fall we started our school year on the right foot with an organized and dedicated space for our resources. Let me tell you how happy I am to finally have this space in place for all these items. Most of which have been sitting in banker boxes until needed and then we go on a mad hunt for such and such, you know the book about "... blah, blah, blah"   

The planning for this little area started way back with these renovations. I knew it would be a long while until I saw this area complete as this is an open concept shelving unit in a central part of the home and I didn't want dusty construction from ongoing projects wrecking havoc on our education resources.

With the hallway & stairs newly completed (more on that later), the hubby started his work on a custom build-in shelving unit. Let me first say that carpentry is not his fortay, but he does a fantastic job at it none-the-less. In the early days it did take a fair amount of convincing that diy is the way to go and a typical conversation would go something like this: 

me: "honey, it would be great if we could build something in this area (of the hallway) since it will be dead space" 

him: "umm, I'm not a carpenter..." 

me: "I realize that but we can't afford to hire a carpenter for every little thing that needs to be done and by the way, who was the first carpenter anyway?? someone had to start somewhere." When I sense he isn't biting, I throw in a desperate attempt aimed at his spirituality :  "Jesus was a carpenter" ...at this point his eyes are rolling and he just wants me to stop already.

him: "alright already, but this will take some planning"  I think that is code talk for stalling but I am immune.  

me: "great! I already have the plans drawn up"... as I hand him a drawing of what I would like. 

him: sensing the lost cause of it all he succumbs to my insatiable desire for project 'organize this home'  "k, I'll need to make some measurements and then we need to go to home depot..." 

Once the unit is built, we jam it into place, fill holes and cracks - I'm dangerous with the caulking gun, add a few coats of low VOC paint and a water based varathane to seal the deal. I let the unit cure to a solid hard finish for about 14 days, overkill I'm sure but at this point I don't want any mistakes.

AND didn't mr. duckyhouse do a fantastic job? he may not be a carpenter, but he sure fooled me! 

The shelves were sorted and organized, baskets (from Costco) were filled with hands on learning items as well as crafty kid stuff.  Our texts, current books, binders, dictionaries, etc all live in this zone. It's our go to place for everything education. I love having it central and readily available. I'm sure the kids find the visual aspect much easier as well and I couldn't be happier! 

in my corner...

...summer is officially here and that means so many, many good things:

...the weather is giving us beautiful warm days of sunshine sprinkled in with overcast days of shade and even a sprinkling or two of rain.



...our friends have returned and they have brought with them new little ones to love and admire.







...our school year is ending today and now we turn our attention to some serious outside play - bring it on!



...the garden has been planted and the veggies are growing, the flower pots are blooming and green is always our favourite colour.



...soccer season has ended for the summer, bike riding is a daily occurrence, we've made one trip to emergency so far and popsicles continue to make an appearance in the grocery cart.



...I am excited that mr. duckyhouse will officially be on holidays for almost all of July in which we will soak up his goodness with lots of play, beaching, day trips, and yes even some more renovations.





...I am picking up my camera again after a couple difficult months and realizing that it is through the lens that I am inspired to live a more grateful life.



...hoping your corner is filled with grateful memories too!

braided

she wanted braids

and i obliged her...how could I not? 

that crazy, bundle of sweetness. 

glimpse

just like the title says:

a glimpse of my studio shelving filled with fabric. I've been making the move over to the newly renovated studio. It's been a long time waiting and a lot of work unpacking of boxes that have been home to my supplies for the past 3 years! It feels good to finally put my roots stuff away and have a dedicated space to call my own.  

I am a happy girl.    

happy be-lated fall & halloween

Ready for a little show and tell? I finally sat down at my computer for an extended camera dump & edit of photos.  My main motivation was the rumor that snow is threatening (dismal looking clouds in the sky) which makes taking exterior photos of green things & gardens difficult.  

Smarter girls would have snapped shots of the house during the beautiful warm months when the flowers & trees were in their prime. But I've been too busy fixing things to be smart. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I mentioned here that we were doing a little updating on the outside of the house. You know: scraping, painting, building, gardening, etc.   Yeah, there was a whole lot of all the aforementioned.  

The original exterior was in pretty bad cosmetic shape.  The paint was chipping and peeling not to mention an undesirable shade of sticky-note yellow.  There were rotting boards and pillars in need of replacing and the front garden was disastrously placed with dead foliage, heaps of decorative rocks mixed with weeds and grass overgrowth.   

Knowing all that needed to be done, we set about the task: we scraped & sanded, patched & primed, built & painted, dug up and re-built our way to a new digs, complete with new fixtures, decor & my obsessive need for a burnt orange front door! Our original plan was to tackle the outside of the house a few more years down the road but things weren't going to last that long.

Side note: One of our goals working on our 30+ yr. old home has been to provide it with some character (read: cozy) using colour & landscaping, to soften the linear lines & draw ones eyes away from the front load garage - something I'm hoping we have achieved. (And yes, I realized the roof has to go...but that will have to wait a bit longer).  

From old:

{photo retrieved from realtor's website}

to new:

yes, much cozier. Ready for your visit...come on by.