Monday, June 25, 2007

Birthday Bash






The boys had their birthday party this weekend. What fun they had! They received many wonderful gifts and, even better, many donations were made in their names to various deserving charities. There were bubbles, Strawberry Shortcakes (Thanks Melanie!), a pinata, sprinklers, friends - big and small-, family, and lots of sunshine!


Sunday, June 24, 2007

The Latest (and greatest)

So, I have been working away on this diaper bag for my sister for the past month or so. The majority of time I have been able to commit to it in that time went to working out the pattern. There were quite a few features that she and I had discussed including an adjustable strap, zipper top, inside and outside pockets, and a smaller, purse-like profile. I think this definitely fits the bill.

We had also decided she needed a removable (matching) zipper pouch to stash her purse items in (for easy ditching of the diaper bag on those rare occasions she will get to venture out sans baby boy) . That's on the way, Teresa, I promise!

I will likely be stocking my shop with a few of these goodies, with matching pouches, for my upcoming Showcase dat
es over at ETSY.





Sunday, June 10, 2007

June...



So, June is a jam packed month for us. This month holds so many of our special days....Our anniversary, both Kai's and Luke's birthdays, Fathers Day, and the anniversary of our 'First Decree' in Kai's adoption (basically the day we got 'The Call'). Very often,although not this year, our anniversary or Kai's birthday will fall on Fathers day, which makes that day double sweet.

This is also always a time of reflection and internal celebration for me. I am reminded constantly by all of these days of remembrance and recognition of how incredibly fortunate I am. I sometimes get caught up in the busyness of the 'planning' and lose sight of how fortunate am I to have all of these moments to commemorate.


This year will be our first June with Kai and for this reason I really feel the urge to overdo each of our celebrations.
Last year June was very bittersweet...we celebrated Kai's birthday, which happened to fall on Fathers day, without him. It was very difficult. And Luke's birthday was a very intimate affair because we were packing and preparing for our journey to Taiwan to meet our son.

So this year, here we are, all together, and that is cause for a month of celebrating.

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Blogger-view...


So, the clever and talented Maia over at Glass Beach has interviewed me as part of a new 'Meet the Maker' feature she is just beginning...in fact I will be her first! So head over and check it out. It was great fun and I am honored to be chosen...

Besides being a super blogger Maia is also a very talented seamstress. Her
Etsy shop is full of great handmade goodies...I have been saving my pennies for one of her Wallets for a while now.

Tuesday, June 05, 2007

And so it begins...




Today is Luke's first day of preschool...He is actually there right now. It's one of those events in my life as a mom that I had imagined from the beginning. In my mind it was a day of joy...excitement at Luke moving to the next step, his world expanding.

I am not one of those overly protective types and am always eager for my kids to have new experiences. Because of this I am a bit surprised at how affected I am by today. I have had that adrenalin-y, knot in stomach, nervous feeling since yesterday morning...and it's not letting up. I guess once he is home, and I can begin to attempt to decipher his descriptions of the morning, I'll settle down a bit.

The thing is it's not about Luke being under the care of someone else that is bothering me the most, I trust his teacher. It's more about the era of Luke being just ours, only ours, not shared with anybody else, not subject to the demands of anyone else's schedule or ideas.. is over. Not that I wanted that to last forever...I am just feeling a bit shaky realizing I've had my go and now is the beginning of the world getting to slowly edge it's way in.

I know this all sounds a bit dramatic and blubbery...but my entire life shifted the day Luke was born and he, and then Kai, became the entire focus of every day. So...I became pretty freakin' invested emotionally in every little milestone.

That makes today a big day.

Staying home and caring for my guys is almost my entire life. So when one of them gains a little bit more independence, I feel pride and at the same time a little unsettled. I know in not too long I will readjust and this will be the new normal. I also know that this is just the first of many days like this. But today it just feels especially poignant because it's the first.


Of Course Luke seemed so ready and so happy to take on this new challenge. He couldn't wait to get started...saying "drive faster' as we were on our way there.


Oh, and no little tote was made. Luke decide he didn't want to spend the day before preschool shopping for fabric. Oh well. We kept pretty busy in the garden.

Monday, June 04, 2007

The Library Tote....






This is my latest creation. I am calling it the Library Tote...the way the strap cinches through the loop reminds me of the images of book straps from some of my childhood story books. It works well as a casual day purse also...I know because I made one for myself and I like it so much I couldn't wait for a trip to the library to begin filling it up.

So...with Luke's upcoming entry into preschool I am pacifying my nerves by coming up with the perfect little tote bag for him to bring his stuff to school in. I am pretty sure it will be a smaller version of the Library tote...but I'd like him to have a little say. Today we will journey to the fabric store so he can choose just the fabric he wants for his new bag. The first day of school is tomorrow so today is the day I really need to keep my hands and mind busy. I intentionally saved this project 'till the last day knowing I would feel this way! I'll report back on the finished bag soon.This is a photo taken on Mothers Day of my boys and their cousin Chasity. This is the only 'good' one out of about 50 attempts.

Saturday, June 02, 2007

Well Hello...







So, It's been a while. I had to stop and regroup. I started this blog at essentially the same time I began the Plumm shop and it was too much to take on at once. I find that I am the type of person who needs quite a bit of time, about 6-9 months, before I can completely work a new thing into my routine, my life. I tend to fumble about trying this and that until everything has a place in my schedule... and my head, for that matter. This really applies to everything...kids, friends, coffee makers, camera's, cars, houses.
It hadn't even been 6 months since we adopted Kai when I started making purses and I feel like maybe it was too much at once for me. I was feeling very scattered and spread thin until just recently. I needed the purse making as an outlet during a pretty stressful time, but being the perfectionist that I am, it became too much. I am going to ease back in slowly I think.
If you follow the happenings in my Etsy or Lov.li shops you have likely noticed that production has dropped off. I am going to continue to struggle with my 'all or nothing' tendencies...we'll see how I do.

Much to report..I think a list in in order.
  1. Luke begins preschool in 3 days.
  2. Kai and I have really improved our bond and continue to make progress daily
  3. I received a serger as a birthday gift and am anxious to figure it out
  4. I turned 30!! Hubby and I went away to Stinson beach for 3 days with no kids...bliss. I adore my husband.
  5. Kai is beginning to talk...albeit slowly.
  6. I have come up with a new tote bag design
  7. I ordered some fabulous labels from Rohm Customs at Etsy and they are in all my new bags. They rock.
  8. I have some Clothes in the works for the shop...stay tuned for that
  9. I have gotten my first cortisone shot into a joint and it is amazing. (I have had Rheumatoid Arthritis since I was 9 months old and have a bunch of icky fused joints).
  10. I quit drinking St@rbuc%s...cold turkey. It was making me a nutball.
  11. I painted my bedroom a beautiful silvery green color..It used to be rust colored. It is infinitely better now.
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