Winter's Solstice

Photo from 5 Orange Potatoes website.

It's almost Christmas, 4 shopping days left! We are all very excited here at the house. Last night the kids and I sang Christmas carols and wrapped gifts, The Twelve Days of Christmas and Rudolph the-red-nose-raindeer were the favorites. Rem add-libbed every now and then, like his dad he has some interesting and funny comments...haha! It was all good and appropriate for PG. I don't think we will get snow this year for Christmas like last year, but a nice chill will make our holiday spirit a little warmer.
This morning we had a lunar eclipse, the moon was red and if I had known I could have posted sooner and warned everyone so they can get up and watch it! I've been wrapped up in Christmas I missed it!!! My friend Megan told me about it. Everyone can google it and see pictures...hehe!
I was reading through 5 Orange Potatoes blog and there is a tutorial for making a dream pillow - moon phases the picture above. I am definately going to make one for L. How perfect!

Looks easy, thanks Lisa! (Just to clarify I don't know her personally but I love her ideas).

Advent Calendar

Christmas is just around the corner and the boys have a countdown. I have wanted to make some really neat and cool advent calendar...I have not, it was one of those things I haven't had time to do. With both Rog and I working and the kid's school and after school activities we do not have much time once we are all home. So here is Ram's countdown...he just came up with it on his own and it has become our family advent calendar for 2010. He is coloring in the ornaments until the 25th when the star gets colored in!!!
Seven shopping days left until Christmas! I hope you are all almost done, and can sit back and enjoy!

happy thankgiving!

Much to eat and much to be thankful for...family everywhere.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25 14.25.05
Originally uploaded by ravenramandmoon

Vampire, Snow White and Colonel

The kids had a great and long Halloween weekend, they went trick-or-treating on the 30th and 31st.



Vampire, Snow White and Colonel in the US Marines.



Close up of Ram's face painting, I didn't realize L had climbed on the table and Rem was raiding his loot! (in the background).

Hope you all had a great weekend and lots of candy!

Happy Halloween!

Happy and safe Halloween weekend!

sewing challenge day 6 & 7

Day 6
I made a trash bag cover...haha! They actually call it a waste basket cover. I got this Japanese book a while back, Linen Wool Cotton and have been dying to make something...so I made this bag. I love how clean the white linen looks considering what is going inside it...trash!! It will be with the vacuum to pick up trash right before I clean. Our only trash can is in the kitchen and I tend to go back and forth so I get distracted and forget to finish cleaning. (I really do there is always something else I could be doing or helping the kids.)

It came along pretty quick too. Love it! I'm picking up trash everywhere...haha! Isn't it funny when you get something new how into it you are... My straps are just a couple inches shorter because I used this almost perfect scrap of fabric I had from the nap mat.







Day 7
One of my co-workers was having a "Monday" today and couldn't wait for the day to be over. I decided to make him a neck wrap, it's filled with rice so he can get some spa time either cold or hot...hehe! I hope he likes it. This took me about 30 minutes to make because it was so easy even filling it was easy. Sewing is therapeutic for me, as I have mentioned before it relaxes my jaw if you can imagine that, but it does...I'll have to ask Rog if I'm making faces...haha!

sewing challenge day 1 to 5

Day 1
Okay so I'm off to a good start, I didn't think I was going to sew anything today with all the homework the boys have to turn in Thursday and buying a new vacuum, but I finish the sewing machine cover I had started a while back.
I need to tell you about our vacuum dilemma, it died a couple of weeks ago and we started shopping for a new one yesterday. The boys really wanted a Dyson, which are extremely expensive. I do have to say they look nice, but $500 dollars...I couldn't do it. So we ended up getting a Hoover which has a lot of the same features as the Dyson but several hundred dollars less. The boys love it and they have been cleaning the house. They got the carpet done including the corners and the ceiling!!!! I had to make them stop. Rem's chore from now on will be to keep the carpets clean, pretty hard thing to do with Fred in the house. Ram's will be to keep the floor in the kitchen clean. Roger and I will have the rest of the house...



Back to the subject, I use the left over blue duck canvas I had used for the stroller bag I had made for my sister's baby shower for the outside of the cover. I may had some applique to it later but I'm not sure I don't want to make it bulky. When I iron I want to have it smooth. On the inside I used the fabric I had saved from my old ironing board cover, it's that metallic heat fabric. My sewing machine sits on the kitchen table (right now) and the sun hits it I was afraid it would yellow. So now I have a simple cover that doubles as a traveling iron mat! It came out a little shorter than I wanted but that's because one side of the iron cover was worn and the other side tapered.





Day 2
Book marker! Okay the day was almost over and I couldn't think of what to sew (in about an hour or so) so I made Rem a book marker. He had mentioned he needed one and I got to use my Japanese fabric I ordered a while back! The back is Anna Maria Horner scraps I had.
I used my new iron mat, didn't feel like taking the big iron board out for a little thing and it works great!!!!



Day 3
Sick today...I didn't sew today and kind of messed up my challenge, but no one is perfect...hehe. This makes it one whole week of being sick. I slept after I got back from Taekwondo with the boys, I think I wore myself out at work today.

Day 4
I finished quilting my lake quilt and started on the binding! I did wavy lines going the length of it and waves on the border. It was freehand and it was kind of fun not perfect but it was good practice for me. The boys went shooting at Rog's sister's house which they have been wanting to do since the last time they were there...boys and their guns. Bren...Rem got to use the bullets you got him, he said he really didn't want to because they were special since he go them on his birthday, but we explained he could get more...hehe! I stayed home to rest with L but they had a blast they shot and caught chickens...no pictures. Rog didn't take any....



Day 5
Finished the binding on the quilt and went to a Roger's dad birthday, not sure how old he is??? There were no candles and we got there late. The quilt is made from the Odyssea cake layer pack and used some Amy Butler fabrics on the back and borders.

I also made a mat for Luna. She seems to enjoy sleeping on a baby comforter at my in-laws and I didn't want to tackle a quilt just to fold up and use as a mat. I've noticed she lays on Fred's bed so I made her a sleeping mat. I used a technique for making the ties from the Pink Penguin blog, that she used for the handle on her zipper bag. It was easier than trying to turn the fabric inside out! (I'm also going to try and make that wristlet as soon as I get a chance). The print fabric on the mat tore as I was turning it inside out, made the whole to small for such a bulky item out but I think the next time I make one I will use a different approach, stuffing it with batting after I sew the pieced together. I used zig zag to keep it from tearing and I don't think it looks bad since it was a small tear.



Okay I think my challenge was to sew everyday not finish a project a day, but I seem to be inspired to complete things...hehe!