Happy Birthday Eve

Tomorrow my baby turns one year old (if you're interested, you can find his birth story here). It hardly seems possible that a whole year has gone by since I was handed that slippery and sweet boy. This adventure in raising two children, both so completely different from one another, has been amazing and a huge learning experience. I've tapped into parts of myself I hadn't been aware of and as I've watched both my children grow, physically, mentally, and emotionally, I've grown as well. I'm blessed in every way with this little family and in this little boy.

So, what can I say to my sweet boy at (very almost) a whole year old?

My, my little man, you have grown so much and are so big! You'll have a check up next week and we'll know more then, but at last check you were a skinny little thing, but so very long! I'm not quite sure where we got you from, being all tall and skinny, yet here you are. You're fitting nicely into 12-18 month clothes and even starting to creep into 24 months, at least length wise (you don't always quite fill out those pants in the waist and I'm already wishing for those adjustment tabs. You've also sprouted some lovely tufts of hair that are somewhere between a light brown and an almost strawberry-ish blonde. It seems you may have got just a wee bit of your Mahoney roots in the roots of your hair. And, finally, you've decided to get some teeth. Well, a tooth, your middle front one, to be exact. It's just popped through in time to help you with some birthday cake this weekend (off to a good start, right?).

You are doing so, so much! You've been cruising for what seems like months now (maybe since December) and crawling since you were nine months old. You don't quite crawl in the usual way, much to everyone's amusement. You like to keep your right leg in the usual crawling position with your left leg tucked underneath you as you push yourself along. It's very sweet and you're very fast! You also love to dance to any and all music (And you love, love, love music. It soothes you when you're very upset, even Mama's singing!). You love crawling up into Sister's rocking chair or climbing onto your doggy riding toy from Memere. You give high fives and hugs, and are a pro at waving hello and bye-bye.

You've started to become such a little person! You understand a lot of what we say and are working very hard to be able to participate in the discussion. You've started saying bye-bye, doggy, and daddy (though daddy and doggy sound pretty close). I know more and more words will be coming so soon and I'll be excited to hear what your little voice really sounds like. You love so many people, and so many people love you back. You adore Daddy and Sister - your face just lights up when you see them and they play with you. You are a bit of flirt, flashing big, shy grins at the ladies in your life (or even women you don't know!). It's been a joy to see you grow and change and start the journey to become you.

Right now you're patting Autumn (the doggy) and giving her loves and quietly "talking" to her. You are such a sweet boy and I love you so much.

Happy birthday, little bubby boy.

Crowning Achievement (Har, Har, Har - Pun!)

I've been oggling sweet little birthday crowns that every Waldorf mama I admire seems to have for her little ones. I finally decided I need to make a couple for my babies and happened have just the right amount of felted wool sitting in my big box o' fabric, waiting to have something done with it.

After about two hours of work, I finished up a crown for my soon-to-be birthday boy.

Here's M.'s crown, all finished:

The pattern was freehanded, but I was inspired mostly by these crowns on Frontier Dreams. What I'd really love to get more felt and add little pictures and things, or at least make the letter on the front solid rather than sort of mosaic looking (I didn't have a large enough whole piece of leftover felt to do so this time). I think for now, particularly for M., I'll likely leave it a bit plain, at least until his likes and interests become more clear, though I suppose I could put boobies on his crown, but that might look a bit weird to those outside of our immediate family.

I'm in the midst of sewing E.'s together, which will look very similar, but the purple felt will be in the front (her favorite color). She's quite excited, but somewhat disappointed she has to wait until spring to wear hers. Apparently it's very unfair that her little brother gets to celebrate his birthday first - after all, he is little shouldn't his birthday be last? (I seem to recall having this same sentiment when I was her age and I had to get ready to celebrate a new little brother's first birthday before my own.)

I love this sort of project. It requires very little skill on my part, but it still looks so nice. I'm a strong hand sewer (but don't put me in front of a machine), and making this crown strengthened that skill all the more, especially since I backstitched for the first time since I was probably ten or eleven to secure the band in back. Some embroidery would look lovely on there, I think, and I did pick up some matching thread, but I couldn't find my needles...and I'm not really sure on how to embroider (but I have a book!).

I have a couple other little projects up my sleeve, including a really cute one for Valentine's day. I'm hoping as I go through my very large box of fabircs and crafty bits I'll slowly add some lovely things to my children's playthings and to the very little art in our house - something I'm desperately trying to remedy. Desperation works nicely in creating a bit of beauty.

Wrapping It Up

This past weekend E.'s best friend had a birthday bash - very exciting! After picking up a few books and a fun play tent, we came home to realize we didn't have anything to wrap up the gift (which was astounding considering the crazy number of gift bags I have).

Then I remembered my tube of brown parcel paper. I had picked some up at the Dollar Store back in April for E. and her friends to color on at her birthday party. I had tons left, and while I wanted some for our art week to make a mural, I new wrapping a few books wouldn't be a big deal.

After I cut the parcel paper to fit the books we would be wrapping, I passed them off to E., along with our giant vase of crayons (yes, I keep our crayons in a vase). On some she drew pictures, others doodles, and for the last one, because she was losing some steam, we both did some colorful squiggles.

This was a really neat way to personalize the gifts a bit and get E. involved in making presents she didn't pick out (I had to pick them up without her) more "from her."

Our final product

I really loved how the gift wrapping came out (the pictures don't do it justice).

I'm definitely seeing this as our Christmas gift wrapping paper as well! Much less expensive, but so much more personal.

If I'd given us some more time, I might have: let E. paint rather than use crayons; tried stamping or sponge painting; dug out the pastels and let her use those (they would have looked really awesome on the paper, but I would have worried about a residue); or cute and glued on construction paper. 

Also, instead of using packaging paper, you can take an old roll of wrapping paper and use the white side.

A Birthday In Pictures

A bit more about the silks...

Silky Goodness

The girl's birthday is Monday. She'll be five. I can't quite believe it. For one, it hardly seems as though enough time has past since she was born, and for two, I hardly feel old enough to be a mother of a five year old who will be registered for Kindergarten in less than a month.

But her birthday is coming whether I want her to grow any older or not, which means presents. This year, though five is one of those big birthdays, my husband and I decided to go light. We know she's going to get lots of stuff from her grandparents and aunts and uncles. She may not be the only grandkid any more, but it's clear the arrival of her baby brother won't stop her doting family members from spoiling her. She also just got a ton of stuff in February and March from well meaning friends and family who wanted to have a gift for her as well as the baby when they came to visit. All very nice, but we've officially accumulated more toys than a Toys 'R' Us warehouse. I really don't feel like adding to the hoard. 

Baby Brother modeling Big Sister's birthday gift

With that in mind, I decided play silks would a great gift. Now, these probably aren't exactly like the play silks you can buy on Etsy or through Waldorf-based toy stores, either online or in person. Those are a bit lighter, more scarf-like, and are way more expensive than the $24 I spent at Joann's Fabric. While searching for some to buy online I saw prices as high as $75 for six, rather small silks. I love my daughter, but there was no way I was spending $75. I also saw tutorials on how to hand dye your own silks with Kool Aide. Awesome idea, much less expensive, but I have a newborn - it would have never happened. 

So, as mentioned, off to Joann's I went and I bought six 2 foot pieces of satin in a variety of colors. Then I found a seriously adorable little wooden chest and a glittery foam crown, deciding this year, the girl was going to get a princess treasure chest filled with beautiful silks and a crown to match. 

I'm really excited. 

Okay, what's so cool about play silks? Well, if you're a four-almost-five-year-old girl, you like silky, shiny, pretty colored fabric (this goes for 25-year-old girls, too). They are filled with endless possibilities, from fancy dresses, super hero capes, baby blankets, or backdrops for Barbie's next fabulous gala. And since my daughter is constantly getting into my fabric stashes, I thought it would be great for her to have her own stock to play with. 

I first heard about play silks when researching the Waldorf philosophy of education back in college. While I'm not completely sold on all things Waldorf, there are definitely aspects I love, particularly the strong emphasis on imaginative play and storytelling. In my opinion, more than any other toy that's considered a "Waldorf toy", play silks are the best, most open ended, most easily recreated, and can translate with any kid, even if you have nothing to do with this particular style of education. 

Pieces of fabric are right up there with balls and sticks as kids' first toys, and they are certainly kids' first imaginative play toys. How many of us built forts or created costumes from old sheets and blankets? The silks take it one step further by adding a really nice aesthetic and texture that helps keep kids coming back for more and more. 

So this is my first Waldorf toy and the first gift I've made for the girl (though I really did absolutely nothing...I don't know how "homemade" it actually is). Next project I'd love to take on that's Waldorf based and hand/homemade?: 

These hand kites can be found here on Etsy. 

I think these hand kites look so cool and so much fun. I can totally see the girl having a blast picking out ribbon colors, helping me tie them to a dowel or other handheld wooden object, and then sprinting around our yard this summer like a little sprite.

Stay tuned to see how everything goes over on Monday. I'm hoping the girl is just as excited as I am!