Gimme an 'A' !

::FRESH:: stocks tomorrow on Hyena Cart at 9 am and 9 pm.

I am working on some letter art for the stocking ~ each is 5" square on a sturdy base of recycled wool (completely covered with new wool). There is one custom slot which can be used for multiple letters, a single monogram, or even a name banner...

A Fairy in My Garden

OK, I am lagging on the sushi post LOL
But in the meantime *cue elevator/ phone on hold music* here are a few pictures from the one day of sun in the last 10~ Sunday. And Rowan in the outfit she chose and wore to church int he morning!

A Simple Japanese Fan Craft & Origami, too

This Saturday we decided to take a virtual trip to Japan in honour of my sister's upcoming Rotary exchange.
It was sort of spur-of-the-moment-we-actually-have-an-afternoon-free but thank goodness for Google!

We planned a meal of sushi (I'll blog about that part tomorrow) and wanted to add some other elements to it that would appeal to a preschooler...

So we went through mommy's (admittedly vast *blush*) craft supplies and came up with enough pretty paper to make some of the wonderfully simple origami patterns as found at the Origami Instructions website, in the kids' section. At almost-4 Rowan was able to follow the pictoral directions for orienting her paper and with help getting the folds in place, could crease them suitably for the activity. We used 12" scrapbook paper cut into 6 x 6" square pieces for each creation and decorated with crayons (we love our 'Close to My Heart' Watercolor Crayons, they rock for blending and coloring!).

While we worked we listened to some traditional Japanese music (google, again!) and talked about some of the traditions and geography of the country~ as well as, Rowan being Daddy's girl, Godzilla!

I was going to tell Rowan the story about Sadako and the 1000 Paper Cranes, but that was met with a 'no thanks, Mommy'. Well.

Once we had completed our origami projects we moved on to making paper fans to fan our sushi rice and for decoration on our table. These are pretty rough, but they have lots of potential for prettying up!

• Cardstock, cut into 'rainbows' roughly 7" wide and 4" tall.
• Popsicle/ craft sticks
• white glue (we used 'Tacky Glue' for extra hold)
• tissue paper (we used patterned decoupage paper I had stashed away, any tissue would do)
• scissors to cut out and trim the fans.

1. Cut out your 'rainbows', one for each fan.
2. Tear or cut your tissue paper into small pieces (smaller for a longer craft/ attention span) and cover the front side of the fan with a collage of tissue paper, this creates a rice paper effect and is very easy even for toddlers. Be sure to help younger ones secure down all corners of their paper, don't worry about overhanging paper.
3. Trim the overhanging paper edges of the fan.
4. On the back, glue down 3-4 craft sticks like spokes on the fan~ spread along the edge of the fan and stacked together at the base of the handle.
5. Embellish with ribbon or tassels, or keep it simple (like we did because our rice was ready for making sushi!) Older children may enjoy finding and copying/ tracing Japanese symbols or letters on their fans.

Together, both of these crafts took about 1.5 hours and could have taken much more (Rowan wanted to do more origami)~ great for a rainy afternoon!

Check back tomorrow for the sushi making (oh my.).

A Girl and Her Dog

It makes my heart so joyful to see Rowan bonding with our new pup.

After a few rough days of jealousy ~ Rowan acting out in ways I have never seen including writing all over the front porch (walls, shoes, her bike, door) with chalk, writing in one of my books, running away outside (major no-no with lake out back), and even peeing on the floor 'like a puppy' (oi.)~ they are starting to seek each other out for play and company.

Archie had his first couple of lessons today and is already 'offering' sits for rewards and using a gentler mouth for receiving them. It is day five at home and we haven't had an accident inside for two days and he nows to go to the door and to return to the house once he is done his business. Whew.

So far two of the main reasons for choosing the breed (Shetland Sheepdog): trainability and desire to please/ stick close to pack (herd!) are showing strongly. Yay! now if I can just get used to a dog that constantly circles my feet when I am trying to move ~ it is amazing that at 8 weeks the herding instinct is so strong (and he doesn't come from working lines, either!).

Happy Canada Day!

Happy Canada Day!
Here are a few patriotic treasures from some of my favourite Canadian sellers.
Our commnity celebrated on Saturday with parade and games and frieworks, so we are just lying low this rainy holiday.
From thelittlereddoor :From Nova Scotia artist aliceinparis:From loopyforewe (these beanies are awesome, we love ours!):Oh my cuteness, I hope the baby comes with the hat! From Mad About Colour in NB along the Fundy shore where my favourite beach is~ St. Martin's!:
And finally, one of my favourite suppliers, dyeingforcolour:
Have a great day,Canadians and all!

Crazy Felted Needle Books

A little bit crazy quilt, a whole lot of felt....

I have been trying to come up with a way to do something like the laptop sleeve I made for myself in a smaller (therefore affordable based on time to make) format~ I have a few ideas, but the first out of the gate are some fun little needle books. The textures, colours and whimsy make me happy and in the 4" square size they are large enough to hold needles, threads and other notions yet small enough to carry any where.

The very best part (for me as a felter!) is that the front of the wallet is suitable for transporting needlefelting needles without breaking the delicate tips as happens in more flexible needle cases.

Each needle book is made with a combination of upcycled wool (sweaters etc.) and wet and needlefelted new fiber. All stitching is done by hand with cotton floss. The button is vintage (from my grandmother's button jar) and the tie is handspun yarn.

One of the first designs is now available in our Etsy shop.

Yoga for Kids Rocks! (DVD Review)

We have been enjoying working through the Yoga Kids (Marsha Wenig) DVDS # 2 & 3 (ABCs and Silly to Calm).

If you are like me, and your knowledge of Yoga is more theoretical than practical, you will love these DVDS not only for the kids, but for yourself. I often find myself doing 'butterfly breaths' to release anxiety!

Rowan is 3.5 and she is able to follow along. She follows with interest, although many of the moves require more time for her to accomplish than is allotted, so we make good use of the pause button to feel comfortable with the positions before moving on. All of them are physically possible for most 3 year olds, they may just need a little help organizing their limbs!

We have watched each DVD multiple times (they each run 30-40 min.) and Rowan happily stays engaged throughout as they do move through the exercises briskly, but with a combination of children, animated images and songs in an outdoor setting to keep up the interest. Silly to Calm is best watched in one go, while the ABCS can be started and stopped, if one fast forwards and finishes each session with the 'Zig Zag Breathing at the end.

As a child educator in faith I particularly appreciate that these DVDs easily move across all faiths and teach children important concepts like 'om' (oneness) and 'namaste' (greeting the sacred in others and in self) through the movements. Focus on breath and being grounded are excellent skills for all of us.

The 'Silly to Calm' DVD has a number of movements and sequences we have used to work with strong emotions as a family~ a volcano releasing anger and frustration, breathing to calm, gross and fine motor movements to work out fatigue or anxieties.

For our independent preschooler who likes to rush through everything, these DVDs are a wonderful exercise in the importance of slowing down, doing things right and well and being focused on one task at a time. Wait a minute... that is also good for her rushing mother, too!