Saint Nicholas and Weekend Recap

Panda's first Saint Nicholas Day was magical. I finished his stocking (a tradition started by my Great grandmother) and his first ornament on time.

We crept down stairs early in the morning. The tree was already lit. Panda was in awe of the sparkles of the sequins on his stocking. He received a wood rattle made of cherry and walnut wood and an apple and pear; they were later purred up for him to eat. Yummy. (the apple and pear, not the rattle ;)

Here is Panda's first ornament. I made it to match ones I made for Bear and I a few years ago.

Saturday we visited a local historical homesteading farm that was decked out for a Norwegian Christmas. There Panda met a Saint Nicholas actor. I'm not quite sure what Panda thought about him but I was so excited I nearly burst. I grew up with Saint Nicholas instead of Santa so seeing someone dressed as him was quite a treat. He looked just like the picture we have in our kitchen!

Sunday we decided to take Panda on his first "Sleigh ride". We even picked up some bells to hang from our belts to make a jingly sound for him. He was so excited that he laughed and shrieked till it was time to come in. We took Panda to the lake to see the ice and sun warmed rocks. I let him play with various crystals, rocks, and seashells.There was also a lot of water play. I even gave him a big bowl of snow to play with inside (that was a huge hit).

 (this is a close up of our mantel. I love it this year!) It was a wonderful weekend. I hope you had a wonderful weekend as well. Please leave a comment and let me know how your weekend was.I love hearing from you. Be Well.

Hair Journey: Week 4

Week 4. I'm posting this a little late, but things have been kind of crazy. Panda has been extra clingy and I have not been able to get a chance to blog lately. The color of my hair is off in this picture but I think the orange of our wood was playing tricks with my camera. Oh well. You can, however, see that my hair is still a little greasy but the itchiness is gone. I wash my hair about every two days with my honey mixture. I take a shower everyday and just wash it through with water on days I don't use my honey. I think my hair is still adjusting. I have heard that it can take some people longer than one month to adjust. The braid in the picture is not my real hair. It is an extension that I had matched to my real hair color from a wonderful Etsy store called Puppycatmeow. I love them. Till my hair regrows from my tragic hacking this will do. The beautiful barrette was a gift from a 13 year old neighbor of mine. I love it, it's beautiful and I know how hard she worked on it. It might just be my new favorite hair toy. One moth of no shampoo. I think we will stick with it, but this next month I think I will try some of those apple cider vinegar rinses. Be well. 

Card Lacing Stocking

 Saint Nicholas Day is Friday and I have a tradition of giving small stockings to some children in my neighborhood every year. This year I decided to make paper stockings (mostly because I had all the supplies on hand) but this would make a fun lacing craft for younger children.

First trace a stocking shape out on red construction paper or card stock ( I free handed this stocking, but there are several templates on google). Then cut out two stockings (this way when you are done you will have a pocket.. Next cut a small rectangle of white paper to make a cuff at the top of your stocking and glue it down.

Take a hole punch and punch holes along the outside edge. Using a tapestry/plastic canvas needle and some white yarn sew through the holes. Tie off and decorate with whatever you like. I happened to have some snowflake stickers on hand. The white cuff makes a great place to write names. I might just file this away for when Panda is a little older. I can just imagine him sewing them all together and then making a garland to go over our fireplace. I can also see him making ornaments using the same supplies and different templates. I hope this was inspiring. Have a blessed day and be well. 

Advent Garden: Light of Hope and Stones

 This is the first day of Advent. In Waldorf circles this week is the week to celebrate the light of stones. In the Christian advent this week's candle represents 'Hope'. This year our Advent garden will be a mishmash of the two. Since Panda is so young we are keeping things very simple. He is starting to show interest in the Advent garden (replacing our nature table for this month); so every day I try to set aside a time when he can touch everything on the table supervised and I chat at him about the different items. This week I pulled out various crystals, rocks, a salt lamp (for the candle), and our Hope ornament. Then we went for a drive around the lakes to see the sun sparkling off the ice and warming the rocks along the shore. It seemed an age appropriate way to introduce minerals to a 7 month old.

Panda's first Advent was also his first time in a church. I have been searching for a new church for quite some time.. This being the week of Hope is not a time to look back on what I left, but forward to this wonderful church which we found. Everyone is truly welcome and children were met with smiles and laughter everywhere I turned. Two children lit the Advent Wreath and every week the pastor calls the children forward for a special "Children's Time" before the sermon. Children were welcome anywhere in the church and not once did I see a disapproving ' control your child" look on any one's face. Panda became fussy and so we left the sanctuary. Three people came to find me at separate intervals (one of those people being the Pastor's wife) to tell me that they did not mind fussy children and that we were welcome to bring him back in... Wow! Just Wow. How very different than what I grew up with. We may have found a new place to fit in. A place where Panda can continue to be raised in a community of love, warmth, and light. So it is with Hope for a great many things that we start this season of love. Be well.

Upcycled Onesie : or How to keep an infant's shirt tucked in

 I bought this onesie at a thrift store for $0.65. I knew it would be to small by the time Thanksgiving rolled around but it was to cute to pass by and at $0.65 you just don't argue. This shows how I upcycled it to fit for Thanksgiving. This works on onesies and is also a great way to keep infant shirts "tucked" in.

 1. Find a onesie that is the same width as the shirt or onesie you want to upcycle.

2. Cut the onesies in half (cut lower on the one you are upcycling and higher on the one you are adding to add more or less length).

3. Turn both onesies inside out and pin together.

4. Sew.

5. Turn right-side-in and you are done.

Tips: This works better for short sleeves, but you can make sleeves longer by adding extra fabric for cuffs or use an alternate color fabric and sew a band in the middle of the sleeves. You can cut the long sleeves short, or do what we did and just push them up a little. This is a wonderful way to make an oh so cute outfit last a tiny bit longer. We hope you all had a blessed Thanksgiving. Be well and have fun!

Hair Journey: Week Three

Week three, I caved and used shampoo because my sister was in town and I wanted my hair to be "nice". Bad bad bad bad bad move!! After not using shampoo for three weeks and then using it my hair was instantly duller, staticy, dry, and just plain unmanageable. Ughhh. The good news is that I don't think my previous work was undone by this one washing. It seems to have gone back to the way it was before. Bear has made numerous comments about how healthier it looks and feels. He has also commented that he loves the way it smells, hopefully that will help to dispel the funky, musty hair smell myth that nopooers get. My resolve to stay shampoo free has only strengthened. It has been a wonderful experience so far and I have no desire to go back to the poo. Be well and have fun!

This Moment

"A Friday ritual. A single photo-no words- capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember."SouleMama". 

Bear playing raging bull fighter with Panda. I don't have photos but two things I want to savor this week are that Panda got his first tooth and he stood up unassisted for the first time. Be well and have fun!

P.S. Don't mind the mess, we were in the middle of baking day.