Tea Time

The theme for this week at Mixed Media Monday is "Just Hanging Out." It makes me think of my afternoon tea time. It's when I take a moment out of my day to sit back and relax. My littlest one takes a nap and her brother has quite time. The best afternoons are with a hot cup of tea and a pencil/paintbrush in hand.

,

"On the wings of Love"

The theme of the week at Mixed Media Monday is " On the Wings of Love." Here is my entry.
I used scrap wood and paper, with the wings made from vintage metal.

Christmas card 2009

Pink

The theme for the week at Mixed Media Monday is Pink. Here is my entry.

Fall colors

There is no fighting it anymore, fall is definitely here. Beautiful fall colors are everywhere. Though there is a definite nip in the air. It seems as if nature just wants to skip fall here and go straight to winter. The last 3 nights it we have had frost and today there have been snow showers! Seems a bit early.




















I thought I would start making some Christmas presents. I made a pair of mittens today out of a felted sweater. They are lined with fleece from a thrift store. They are very warm feeling. I think will make quite a few of these for gifts. I was able to whip them up pretty fast.

Little owl hat

I finished the hat for baby Beau in Idaho. I think it turned out really cute, I just hope it fits him. They are already receiving snow in Idaho, so it will be just in time. (Though really the gift is 2 months late.) I'm thinking I'll have to make a few for Christmas for my nephews. It is time to get rolling on making Christmas presents.

I found these cute slippers at the "Bethel Butique" yesterday for a quarter. I bought 2 shirts, a skirt and slippers for 2 dollars. What a deal.

Baby blanket

Well, I finished the blanket for baby Shannon. It is only 3 weeks late! It feels good to be able to cross that off the list. I just haven't been much in the mood for sewing. I've been rather obsessed with drawing and painting instead. Overall I think it turned out pretty well, considering I have no idea what I am doing. I used the disappearing 9's for the front pattern. Thank goodness for binding. It is very good at hiding all the mistakes at the edge.
I started the baby hat for baby Beau in Idaho. That gift is really late. He is already 2 months old. I should be able to finish it tomorrow and get it in the mail. Next comes a Halloween costume for Fischer. He wants to be a pterodactyl.

What did I do?

Well, I did it! I called work today and left a message to resign. I haven't received a call back yet, but the wheels are in motion! I hope I can finally do what I have always wanted, create!

Fun with fermenting

Fermenting foods is something entirely new to me. I started doing Kombucha this spring, which I was a bit hesitant about. I wasn't so sure about drinking something which grew from yeast and bacteria living in harmony! I bought a book a few years back about different ways to preserve foods without canning or freezing. I remember reading the section about lacto-fermentation and being a bit frightened by the whole process. In one recipe for fermenting tomatoes it said if mold should develop on the top it was ok to remove and still eat what was underneath! Ugh! Needless to say I didn't try any fermenting for awhile.
This July I was lucky enough to go see Sandor Katz speak at the Kickapoo Country Fair about fermentation. He was such an engaging speaker and got me all fired up about fermenting foods. He talked about the many benefits of eating fermented foods. I bought his book that day, Wild Fermentation. Since then I have fermented green beans, sauerkraut, kvass (definitely an acquired taste), swiss chard, kefir and kimchi. Last week I got together with the girls to make kimchi. We chopped, grated, and shredded lots of cabbage, carrots, scallions, leeks, garlic, daikon radish, and ginger. I had never had kimchi before. With a week and a half of fermentation, we have very delicious results. The kids even seem to like the kimchi. Some of the other fermented foods get to sour or tangy for them. This summer I still did canning and freezing, but fermented foods has become a regular at our dinner table.

Listen To Your Heart

What does it say?

• Be a stay at home mom
  
• Live a creative life
  
• Provide good, local food for my family throughout the year
  
• Reduce, reuse, recycle
• Lessen our impact on Mother Earth
• Be happy