(warm) merry wishes

happy holidays to you all, may warmth, happiness + peace surround you! this will be my last post of the year. time to relax and do some much needed work on the website. there is a surprise in store that i'll be happy to share with you in the new year along with my list for 2009! i am leaving you with a few photos of the hood (and my car)...there is more snow on its way! this is the biggest snow fall in something like 20 years! luckily the white blanket of fresh snow makes it feel so magical and will make this a christmas for the books.

i am also leaving you with a little fun activity that i learn from my country cousin, t.. her and her daughter mix up some oats with a little glitter to make reindeer food. they leave a little trail to their house so that santa knows where to go, the glitter is a sparkling signal. they also leave an old key on their door for santa to use (they don't have a fireplace) so he is able to get in and leave the goods. lucy and i mixed up a batch of reindeer food and left a little trail to our door, its especially pretty in the snow!

{click to enlarge}
i am signing out and i will see you all again in the new year, hopefully with a new site to share!

xoxo.
des

and we're off

holysmokescow (as my niece used to say)! over a foot of snow, yikes!

this is how we rolled today...all fancy like. let's say that i have put in my cardio time for the day since the only way to return home, in any direction, is strictly uphill. we were able to run to the post office, the bookstore, toy store + the bakery on our 'tube sled'. it was quite fun, we got honked at, smiled + waved to by passerbys of all ages. miss l. had a good time + took it upon herself get comfortable and lounge a bit. she is sporting dad's old snow suit from when he was 5, very nostalgic and sweet.

its beautiful outside and everyone seems to be taking the weather with a grain of salt (figuratively and literally) but it looks like more is headed on its way. i hope everyone is staying warm and enjoying this wonky weather.

cookies, the good kind

{lucicorn: by dave}

the holiday baking has gotten to a slow start this year but thanks to more snow! we had an excuse to stay in a bake. the first batch of sugar cookies were to be highly toddler friendly, in every sense of the word. lucy has a few instructionals below on how to create a lovely holiday treat for yourself or for those special someones in your life. the top image was inspired by a beautiful woodland cookie display created by caroline swift over at design*sponge. but without further ado here are miss bean's first diy(s)!

how to make a cookie sandwich

select three of your favorite freshly baked cookies. layer one, add a huge amount of frosting. repeat with layers two + three, increasing the amount of frosting with each layer. add desired amount of sprinkles. smash together.

how to eat a cookie sandwich

be sure to document your masterpiece before devouring. get a firm grip on all three layers, using both hands is recommended. find a cozy place to take your first bite. repeat last step until finished. find any remaining facial frosting with tongue. enjoy!

can you tell we had a good time making wonderful treats? hopefully the baking has just begun cause seeing lucy do the things she does makes our hearts sing!

hammered

{miss l. on a nite owl hunt}

our neighborhood is celebrating winter solstice with a display + parade of luminaries tomorrow. last weekend there was a workshop were we gathered with friends new and old and learned the art of lantern making.

here's the secret:
take an empty tin can. fill with water. freeze. hammer a nail in desired location. repeat until done. i must say that i am a fan of repetition so this gave me a fix. it can be addicting, especially when having a lot is better than just one. i think next year we'll have to get started earlier, although there is still one lonely can sitting in my freezer as i type. these would made great last minute gifts!

on a side note: lucy has been searching for owls lately. one seems to hang out on our living room wall at random times of the day + i think there is an owl family living in her room. the search usually involves a flashlight, a lot of singing + the occasional scream down the hallway. does anyone know of any good owl snacks or what provisions an owl prowler might need? the searches can last for hours.

honestly

if your name starts with: s. t. l. m. b. a. k. you may want to close your eyes, scroll down + count to 10. this year's calender is done!

sparkled

snow has fallen upon us once again, 8 inches worth! powdered + sparkled, we laughed and played in the snow. i mixed up a little food coloring in a squirt bottle, purple of course, and let miss beans have at it. our yard was a delightful painting all of her own.

i was hoping to build my first snowman (being a native southern california girl), all excited i was finally getting a grip on the whole process when l. asked to go inside. this how it played out.

"mama, i'm freezing i want to go inside" said lucy.
i replied, "no snowman then?"
"no, i'll go inside and stand over the heater while you make the snowman. i'll watch you from the window."
i said o.k. and went about my way when i noticed lucy munching on the carrot we has set aside for a nose, then the snow really started to fall. no snowman.

gnome

projects 3-10 finished! although 9 + 10 are not pictured because the owners are readers of this blog and can surely figure things out. there are also a couple things that just happened in the midst of the sewing craze: a dress, pants and a buckwheat pillow-all for the little gnome. i'll try and get some photos up when i can.

now its time for wrapping and the card making (my favorite part). we hide our cards to each other in the tree and have to search for them on christmas morning, our little tradition. but other than that i think i'm done with the makin'....maybe. there are a few things on my mind that keep me up at nite so i might just have to cross them off the list.

speaking of lists. i have got one in the works that i will happily share with you all in the new year. its got some projects, fun stuff and yummy eats all waiting to be checked off one by one before 2010! warm wishes to you all + hopefully the snow days haven't put you in a cabin fever craze.

frosted

snow fell saturday evening and has still managed to stick around with all its sparkling magic. for those of you unaccustomed to seattle snow, it happens for one day, enough to get our fill and then 'poof' its gone till next year. so when i saw snow falling close to midnite on saturday i had to wake up lucy, just in case it was gone in the morn. i brought her to the window still sleepy eyed and watched her try to figure it all out, we had ourselves a little snow snack which was followed by a stream of giggles and then went right back to bed. luckily it was still there in the morning.

the snow made for a pretty car ride for our annual kringle extravaganza! the brother, his family and mine all head out to a special danish bakery to gorge ourselves on unbelievable amounts of sugar, almond paste + marzipan every holiday season. for our sake its just far enough away to be inconvenient. after the mass indulgence we still manage to bring a few things home for ourselves and a few things to ship out to others. it makes for a wonderful family tradition.

10 days! its so exciting, santa is almost here!

splurge 08

{le creuset 6 piece set; william-sonoma $549, holga mug; circa ceramics $40, kromski minstrel; woodland woolworks $539, hollyhock bud & horse chestnut earrings; abigail percy, 3191-a year of mornings; amazon $17.95, walnut iphone cover; miniot $117ish}

so if i could just dream about getting all the things i've been eyeing or secretly wishing for, if money were no option, if someone one were to read my mind and could see all the goods i have stored in there, if i were to splurge...these would definitely be at the top of the list! i'm just saying.

i am d-o-n-e, done with my christmas shopping! i have a few things to make for a few special someones, but no more purchases...everything will be handmade from this point. yipee! i think i have 3 on the list for sure but first i need to design our christmas card before i do anything else.

p.s. buy handmade, buy local...it's a good thing

419208

{lucy's 'o8 ornament: teal owls on felt}

oh christmas tree! today we all headed up to the mountains to pick our tree, for $10 we purchased a tag (much like hunters do) to be legal for noble fir hunting. the hunt was on. it was a 6 mile ride to the top of the mountain were we could forage through the woods to hunt for a pine scented addition to our family. after 3 potty breaks (the adults, one nearly fatal), a toddler meltdown and checking out every tree in a 1/2 mile radius, my mom found him, buckley. he stood atop a slop amongst two other trees, he was proud and eager to hop in the truck and ride home with us.

we of course made a pit stop on the way home to grab a bit to eat, chocolate malt included. i never watched twin peaks but to those of you who did, yeah its the diner, known for the cherry pie? we also stopped by the bakery so my mom could treat miss bean to some cookies, macaroons and whatever else the pair of them picked out. on the ride home they sat in the back passing treats back and forth, i honestly think that's the most sugar lucy has ever had in one sitting. i guess that's what lola is for... right?

well buckley is up, lit, and all cozy with decorations. he's not a fancy farm tree but a charming mountaineer with a wool tree skirt and glittering golden stars.

hand carding

most of you know that i have a sweet obsession with all things fiber, nearest to my heart is wool. i have been gifted with lots of beautiful alpaca fleece. my words cannot tell you how happy my heart is to be doing a craft that our fore-mothers have passed down generation to generation. i have started hand carding the fleece into lovely rolags: light, fluffy puffs of wool. the process is time consuming but fulfilling nonetheless. my mother on the other hand finds it to the likes of a lullaby and wants to nap instead. she thinks its funny so see me doing grandmother's work; i must say she makes for entertaining company while i card and card and card.

the wool is being put to use making numerous gifts for loved ones (here's a clue TT). i know that i have promised to stay away from a spinning wheel for as long as i can, dave doesn't want to lose me to hours of yarn making, but i can feel the idea bursting in my veins.

countdown

our creative neighbor lark has been making an advent calender for her partner since they started dating (they are now newlyweds!). this was something i always had as a child. so magical and special that i thought i'd start the tradition for miss bean. we stashed a few felted finger puppets that dave + i made along with some chocolate gold coins and other special treasures. using fancy paper clips we hung them up on some pretty ribbon. a simple but wonderful way to start off every morning although i feel a paper chain calling my name.