krumkake

The list...

Remember that list of mine? Well, here is my update, for the record and for my own sanity. I think I'm doing pretty good.
1.Holiday Traditions: Done.
2.Christmas pajamas for the girls: Done!
3.Finish my sweater: That one has been put on hold so that I can work on Emma's sweater and Andy's Christmas stocking. But I am making progress on those.
4.Make some hats: I made mine, the girls picked out yarn for theirs, and I hope to start working on them soon.
5.Cut and sew my jumper: Nothing happening there.
6.Ornaments: I've made a few new ornaments and my Nana sent me a crocheted snowflake that she made. I still haven't come up with anything terribly exciting for the girls to do.
7.Andy's gift: The searchable one has been found. The one that I need to make is still waiting. The piece of fabric is huge and overwhelming. I will get to it though.
8.Made gifts for the girls to exchange: That one is not having any progress at all. They keep asking for these snow princess groovy girl dolls and I had thought it might be something good for them to give each other, but that isn't handmade and I was hoping they would make something for each other this year.
9.Doll clothes: Eek!
Well, there is still lots to be done. Fortunately, there is also still plenty of time. I didn't mention that we made a ton of cookies over the weekend and then put together goodie bags for the teachers at Emma's school. The last of those are being delivered today. Krumkake is still the new favorite, but the new cookie which I have decided to title "Great, great grandma Eula's orange chocolate sugar biscuits", has found it's way into our greatest hits list. Delicious!

Journey Bear stays the weekend

Emma's class has a bear named Journey Bear. JB goes home with a different student each night, and students can request him for vacations and special outings as well. Emma got to bring JB home on Friday. When we walked in the door from school, she immediately sat down with JB and his overnight bag. Suddenly she yells out "Mom, I can't find Journey Bear's pajamas." Well, what's a mom to do? I happened to have some extra flannel from Emma's new Pajama pants, so I made JB a pair to match. She wrote about it in JB's journal and will share it with her class tomorrow. She was thrilled with the pants, I'm just happy they fit him, and that I remembered to make a hole for his tail. Phew!

smells so good

We got a krumkake maker for Christmas - thank you so much Nana B and Papa T. We even were given permission to open and use it early - thank you! The girls loved rolling the krumkake, and discovered the new favorite dessert in the house - krumkake with vanilla ice cream. Oh, yeah! Incredibly good, and I love that there is a good job for the girls too.

First batch made today, after our disappointing viewing of the Nutcracker. Made up for it completely. Emma made some nice drawings to give to a few teachers this week, with a bag of krumkake. PS - Sophie calls them Krum - Krackers.

Japanese sewing patterns

They make me crazy. I cannot read Japanese patterns, so it really befuddles me as to why I decided to buy a sewing book in Japanese last year (I have since bought two more). I do have the good fortune of having a friend who does read Japanese and sews as well (this is her etsy shop), and she so kindly helped me out. That was how Emma's old blue flower skirt came about, though it was a little messy as this pattern used a few new-to-me techniques.This is my second time using this pattern, and now I love it. I think the skirt has a much more finished look and it's really easy, now that I get it.

This skirt may not be finished. Emma and I have discussed some options - a flower ribbon trim at the bottom, a pocket, a plain cream ribbon trim, or some cream colored crochet flowers sewn along the bottom hemline. I also thought some old doilies would be cute along the bottom. We are thoroughly inspired by this skirt.

Today.

We spent some time working on the outdoor lights then went out to the local tree farm.

Timber!

Then, once Andy completed all of the messy work (shaking out the tree, trimming the bottom branches, setting it up in the stand), the girls helped decorate the tree.

Wearing their brand new, mama-made jammies - monkey pants for both. This is supposed to be the cropped version of the pattern, but as you can see both pairs are way long. I can easily fix that problem, and the girls are so happy.

Lately

I have been spending a lot of time thinking about these girls. I don't want to buy them a lot of stuff. They like stuff and they do ask for stuff. I just figured that I could make some of their gifts and minimize the amount that comes from the store without leaving them feeling like Santa let them down this year. I made a bunch last year - as did Andy, the girls love their doll beds he made for them.

Instead, I am working on a few things. I have started Emma's sweater (though it may turn into a birthday gift) and I also let them pick out yarn colors for hats. But, I really wanted to come up with some other gifts that would bring smiles to their faces, and not require a trip to a store. I started making hairclips this week. I am using the wool felt that I already have and some plain metal clips that were also already on hand. Easy. And cute, but they are upstairs so the picture attached to this post is of the cute girls instead. The plan to make doll clothes for their dolls is still in place, though the amazing outfits on Etsy has left me feeling so tempted (to buy). I want to emphasize how much I don't like sewing doll clothes. That might explain things later on.

We photographed a baby only 9 days old today. When Sophie saw a few of the pictures, she asked if we could have a baby just like him. We are photographing another baby tomorrow, she is a one year old now.