Fourth Grade Field Trip to Starker Forest

Today I chaperoned my sons’ 4th grade class strip to Starker Forest. It was one of

the best field trips I’ve gone on and I’ve gone on quite a few doozies as an overachieving

Mom.

There’s on thing wrong with this sign that took us a while to figure out…. “durning”?

The guides were great and the kids were attentive (mostly).

Big ‘Shrooms!

Newt!

Egads- wasp nest. Glad it was empty!

Snowpocalpse 2, Day 2

It snowed all day long again today. This is looking out our back porch towards our

shop/studio. That’s Nick.

Max and Henry. You can get a sense of the depth from the snow piled on the roof

of the studiobarn (also referred to as the “shabin” with credit to our friend Stu.)

A view of the back of our house.

Henry frolicking with our a real coat because he’s crazy like that.

15” and counting…

Our corner

Cold bird. (Robin perhaps?)

Groucho Max

Of all the toys he could chose from at the dollar store this was what he picked. He's quite the entertainer. He is also the most stubborn boy ever when it comes to pooping in the potty.He says even when he is a man he will not poop in the potty. Good thing he is so darn cute.

Good times....

My parents came to visit two weeks ago. The weather was typically terrible and my Dad caught a cold on the plane (theoretically) and it got passed along to Nick.We still had a good time.

My Mom (Fran) Max and me.

Henry and Grandma Fran enjoying some cookies

It was an opportunity to get a rare family portrait taken at an odd angle so that Nick looks like he is a giant and his head is touching the ceiling.

My crazy kids pulled out the ironing board the other day and started giving each other massages.I don't wear they got that from. I'm assuming it was on some cartoon previously .

Good times....

Henry's First Day of First Grade

Today was Henry's first day of First Grade.

He is relaxed and said "this is so cool!"

Showing off his new lunch box filled with his usual fare of Ramen in a thermos and salami and a juice box. He hardly ate anything. He rarely does.

In front of the school before we go in with Nick and Max hiding behind them.

The excitement of using his new pencil case.

The excitement wears off.

Here is some of our summer fun. The boys both took swimming classess all summer long. Max got to acheive his dream of catching fish at our friend's creek in Harlan in the coast range.

New banner,new shawl pin and valentines candy

Today we finally changed the banner for our Etsy shop. We have been using the same one since we started the shop in May of '06. Our pictures were crappier back then and the items we had featured aren't particularly big sellers now. So it was time for a change. I'm pretty happy with this new design. It has a nice fresh spring feel to it. Unfortuantely Shipwrecked Beads (my main source for the glass beads)seems to be out of those exact same color green glass leaves that are on the pink flower earrings in the banner but I've got something close that I'll be able to use in the future.

I just listed today this new shawl pin design. It may look familiar because it is a variation on my Dancing Swirls Sterling Silver Earrings. This is the Dancing Swirls Light Weight Aluminum Shawl Pin

On to the cute kids...

Iraqi voter or sticky nasty blue candy eater?


Wild sugar high.

Henry methodically examines his Valentine's Day booty from the school party yesterday while Max sits back and takes it all in.Luckily for me they have more of an interest in the disgusting junky candy than the chocolates. So I got the chocolate.

What is this?

So I've had a little time to screw around with some ideas. So far none have been all that successful but it's all a "process" as the artist types like to say. I've always wanted to make more useful objects that are pretty but functional. This is one of the latest experiments. What is it?


It's made using the same 9 gauge aluminum wire I've been using for everything-hanging vases, ornaments, jewelry, shawlpins.



The original intention was a soap dish. But it is oddly shaped and too small for a conventional soap bar.


Your special leaf holder? Trivet? Nick suggested it could hold one ball of yarn.I'm thinking that there isn't a large market for such an item.
I'll keep working on the soap dish idea and I'll take any new ideas out there.


On the home front Henry has been really enjoying the wii. Max doesn't seem to really care much about it. It's too hard for his little 3 year old mind and hands to work well.But he has been obsessed with drawing in his new Justice League coloring book and markers from Aunt Michelle.


Pay no attention to the filthy house surrounding my kids.They don't seem to mind.

Max likes fruit!

A little too much! This was one of those terrible parenting mistakes.One that I should have known better about given what a mess this kid is all the time.
Note to self-never leave a 3 year old with a bowl of berries unattended. He also peed all over himself and the couch at the same time.


This was the icing on the cake of one of those parenting days where I found myself screaming in the driveway at one point like a lunatic Mom whose kids won't just get in the car but have decided to do everything else possible to dawdle and make us later than we already are.
Good thing they are do darn cute!

My Little Nerds

The game gets tense.

A pooped Batman takes a break.

Life has been very hectic here as our Etsy sales have started really picking up. iIguess people are Christmas shopping. Then yesterday we had the pleasure of being mentioned in Anne Hansons' Knitting Patterns Knitspot blog thanks to Deb of FearlessFibers who sent her our Celtic Budding Spirals Aluminum Shawl Pin. We've been getting tons of orders from her lovely readers who came and visited our Etsy store and have been buying lots of shawl pins and jewelry.

This weekend we start the Holiday Market in Eugene. I had planned to have lots of stock but alas, I have the bare minimum. At least the cold and cough from hell is slowly abating.

Back to work!