Halloween in New England

This year we had a crazy snowstorm over the weekend, and we had a white Halloween.  I grew up in Canada, so this wasn't my first time to trick-or-treat with snow on the ground, but it was a pretty big deal around here.  That and the fact that lots of towns are completely without power (which means no heat and for the rural folk, no water either).

We were lucky, and didn't have any problems with power, so we have been loving playing in the snow.  And I have to admit that it was kind of nice to get the kids all bundled up under their costumes to take them out for their candy collecting.  It was a little nostalgic for me (not so much for Mr. Carlee who grew up in Texas).   

My boys dressed up as a fireman and his dog (a dalmatian), and as soon as I get some good light around here I'll be taking some pictures to show you what I made (and didn't) for their costumes. 

I hope everyone had a safe, and fun, and warm Halloween this year.  My boys had their first experience trick-or-treating, and they are already talking about going again next year!

Halloween 2011 Summary

Here's a look at what our Halloween was like this year.

We had Jack-o-lantern pancakes for dinner on the weekend.  I used my favourite whole-wheat buttermilk pancake recipe, and added bananas and raisins for a face.  The idea come from here. 

My four-year-old loved making the faces, and the banana was delicious.  I think jack-o-lantern pancakes will be a new Halloween tradition.

We just moved last week, so sewing has been on the back burner.  I did not make any of our costumes this year.  The kids wore costumes from the dress-up box, and my husband and I planned to do the same.  The day of Halloween, however, my daughter decided that she would make her daddy a turtle costume.  I was so impressed.

I cut out two turtle shells from a cardboard box, and M did all of the colouring.  I poked two holes in the top of each, and attached them together with ribbon.  It was very sweet that M worked so hard, and also that her daddy wore it. 

That's a pretty convincing turtle, don't you think? 

We came home from trick-or-treating with a decent candy haul.  Today we have had fun organizing the candy.  This is a fun way to work on math skills like sorting, counting and patterning.

I hope your Halloween was just as fun!

Paper Village

I found this printable Halloween Village via the Tangarang blog.  The blog shares both a colour and black-and-white printable.  We used the black-and-white one and this was a lot of fun to decorate.  I thought I'd share because it was a big hit at my house.  Once you've printed the pages, I suggest cutting them out and folding before colouring as the lines are quite faint and it was tricky to see them once they were coloured over.  To finish our village, we taped it to a piece of cardboard and decorated that too.
First we made a Halloween themed village.

It was so much fun that we decided to make one for fairies. 

I'll be bookmarking that page because I think the paper village printable is a fun project for any time of year.

Sometimes I bite off more than I can chew...

One of the really awesome things about living out east, is picking trash. People here leave unwanted items on their curb for semi-annual large trash pick-up from the city, but also with the idea that someone will take it home before the garbage does. Some of the stuff that gets left by the curb is truly junk, but sometimes you can find some really awesome stuff. I have friends that have scored nice couches, bookshelves, desks, dressers, etc. this way. You all know how much I love thrift shopping, but picking up free stuff is much, much more exciting.

A few weeks ago I found something awesome by the curb while driving on a street I don't normally go down.

It must have been fate, because I have actually been on the hunt for a nice little wooden cradle for years. I have never found something I love at the right price, and I think this little cradle is so cute. And free is definitely the right price.

Since it was someone's garbage, I knew it was going to take a little work to turn it into something that I will actually put my baby into. The first thing I did when I brought it home was to throw the mattress into my garbage can, and clean it down with some disinfectant. Even though I was planning on stripping and repainting it, I wanted it to be clean until I had time to really work on it.

Today was the day that I started to strip off all the old paint. I did a little research to find a stripper that had good reviews and was as non-toxic as possible (since I'm 7 months pregnant and I have two little kids running around), and I went with Citristrip from Home Depot.

Things went along well for the first bit, and I managed to get the whole thing covered with the paint stripper. Based on the way the paint was blistering, I innocently thought I might just get the whole thing finished in just a few hours.

And initally, it started coming off just fine too. Then I started working on the spindles, and I realized this was going to take longer than I thought.

After working on it all morning, I spent a few more hours out there this afternoon. And it didn't look much better than when I started. At one point my neighbour walked by and said "Are you getting close now" (refering to my baby's due date), and I told her I still have two more months to go.

Translation: I have two more months to finish scrapping off all these layers of paint, sand the whole thing down, repaint it, cut a new foam mattress and cover it, and make some cute little sheets. Suddenly two months doesn't seem that long anymore...

What have I got myself into? Any tips on removing old paint? I think I'm in the market for something magical to help me out of this mess...

A Few of my Favourites

This coming weekend, I am moving.  (Again.  Yes, I just moved in June, and am moving yet again.)  This means my sewing machine is packed up, and all other projects are on the back burner until I am settled in my new house.
So, instead of showing you what I've been up to (because I'm pretty sure pictures of me packing boxes is not that interesting), I'll share with you some of my favourite places that I look to for inspiration in the crafty and sewing world.  For me, I want to be inspired, but also feel like I see something that I could do at home.
Made

Who doesn't love this blog?  (She has over 11,000 followers!)  I have made her circle skirt, and am planning on a happy day garland for my new space.  I feel like Made has projects at a range of levels and has a great aesthetic. 

My version of the circle skirt.

Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Let me tell you this blog is consistently good.  Always good.  Every single recipe.  The other day we had her Cowboy Dinner, and it was super tasty.  I also love her BLT Pasta. 

Simple Sewing for Baby

This is a book by Lotta Jansdotter that I checked out from the library over and over and over again.  The sewing projects are really simple, but also quite cute.  My favourites are the giraffe rattle, and book mates.

I love these book mates as a fun addition to my kid's bedroom.


























The Artful Parent

This blog really jiives with my philosophy that art for kids is about the process not the product.  She also does a great job of bringing the natural world into art projects.  Some of my favourite Artful Parent posts are fabric postcards and the pocket dress. 

My Artful Parent-esque Apple Prints.



  

 

So, what about you?  Please share a few of your favourite sources of inspiration.