white apples . a blog

even in the leafless winter

Juni has been home from school all week for winter break and we've been enjoying the warm, sunny, most-definitely-not-winter weather - that is, when we weren't recovering from yet another round of stomach bug/norovirus. The past few months have been packed full of colds and sniffles and fevers and stomach discomforts and various other viral-mediated miseries (such as hand-foot-and-mouth disease, GAH! the aftermath of which I am still, STILL, experiencing a solid month later; yes, adults can get it and, believe me, it is not pretty). Right now the wind is blowing and the sun is shining and buds are popping up everywhere and I am so, so relieved to say goodbye to this crazy winter we've had, with its confusingly mild temperatures and its incessant kid-borne illnesses.

Juni only goes to preschool for three days a week, four hours each day. One week off didn't seem like too much of a disruption to me. Yet my usually adaptable little girl seems quite out of sorts with this break in her weekly rhythm. We've experienced unprecedented levels of stubborn defiance this week - throwing things and talking back and a general unchanneled restlessness that leaves chaos wherever we go.

At least we've been able to play outside most days. We've watched little finches build their nest in our birdhouse. We've chased the squirrel away from our birdfeeder (again and again). We've counted mole holes (there are many). We've run around the back yard yelling, "Deer! Deer! Deer! DEER!!!" (okay, that was just Owen).

On a particularly bright and windy day, we dyed silk scarves with Kool-Aid and hung them up outside to dry. This was an easy, fun project and the kids have been playing with the silks every day (with much excitement and high-pitched squealing). I suppose this was our way of welcoming spring - bright and airy and soft and, I hope, I hope, free from germs.

I bought the 35" square silk scarves from Dharma Trading. For dyeing, we used this tutorial and this Kool-Aid color chart.

*post titled with apologies to Mary Oliver and her poem "Starlings in Winter"

robot love

This is the quilt that I made for my friend Kellie's new little baby boy, Liam Parker. This is a pretty big departure from my usual fabric choices, but I thought the teal, maroon, and mustard color combo was interesting and unusual for a boy and I hoped little Liam would one day appreciate the quirky robot theme.

The fabric is Cogsmo by Cosmo Cricket for Andover Fabrics. I love all the prints together and with the stripey binding and circuit board printed backing, the whole thing ended up looking pretty adorable for a little boy. However, this quilt has a bunch of little mistakes that are driving me crazy. In planning the design, I didn't consider size, so this quilt is huge for a baby. Huge. Also, for some reason, I didn't have enough pins to baste this (huge) quilt properly (where are all my pins?), but instead of spending the few dollars for another pack, I forged ahead. So this is pretty much the worst machine quilting I've ever done. I opted for minimal quilting lines, outlining the squares. But the whole thing was quite shifty, so there are puckers all over the place, making the whole quilt rather... wonky.

Hopefully, sweet baby Liam won't mind. Congratulations, Kellie and Chris!

PS: Liam's quilt is draped over Juni's new play tent. My brother and I put it together one morning while she was at school using this tutorial. It is the perfect spot for afternoon reading, pretend camping, and impromtu popcorn parties.

a pair of birdies

I've been neglecting this space in favor of resting and nurturing and healing these past few weeks. We managed to make it through all of winter with not so much as a sniffle and then, right when the weather turned warm and the flowers started to bloom, the entire household got knocked over by some sort of plague. Juniper was the first to get sick. And, as usual, it didn't slow her down one bit. Not a single complaint or whine or cry through a high fever, runny nose, sore throat, and cough. Poor teething Baby Owen was next with sad-faced baby whimpers and miserable late-night fussies. Luckily he bounced back pretty quickly as well. I, however, ignored some cold symptoms for weeks, which earned me one visit to the Urgent Care Center and one 3am trip to the Emergency Room with a high fever and severe dehydration. I spent two days in the hospital, while a team of (young and handsome) doctors tried to figure out what was wrong with me, speculating everything from a faulty gall bladder to Rocky Mountain spotted fever. Turns out, my "little cold" had developed into pneumonia. Now, after taking multiple antibiotics and getting plenty of rest courtesy of my mom, I'm mostly back on track.

Don't ignore your health, mamas.

I meant to post these photos weeks ago, before all the health woes. These are two Birdie Slings I made as birthday gifts for my sister-in-law and my mom. The pattern is by Amy Butler.  As advertised, it is easy to sew, but requires a lot of cutting and interfacing and oh, the ironing... so much ironing. And it also uses a suprisingly large amount of fabric. Then again, this is a huge bag. If you're the kind of person that leaves the house with eight pounds of supplies in your purse, this bag is for you (mom). 

I made the first bag using three designs from Amy Butler's Love collection (which I LOVE). I have a soft spot for that particular color combination (warm plummy purples and lime green). The main fabric for the second bag is from the Lantern Bloom collection by Laura Gunn. It is even more brilliant and painterly in person. I am hoarding at least another yard of this fabric in the hopes that another perfect project comes along. The solid is an espresso Kona cotton and the lining is some orange and brown houndstooth that I found at the local Hancock Fabrics. After making the first bag, I decided that something this large required some sort of closure, so I added a magnetic snap to the second one (sorry, Amy, your birthday was first).

I love the huge handle. I love the pleats. I love the round, poochy bottom. And I love that it is large enough to really showcase a beautiful fabric. Now I just need to make one for myself.

january blues

I love January. The rush of the holiday and birthday season is over and we've been spending our days puttering around indoors, enjoying all the little corners of our house. Like much of the country, we have just emerged from some uncomfortably frigid weather which, due our poor, drafty windows, prompted much snuggling for warmth in the chilly evenings and not a few mugs of hot chocolate. 

 

And since I tempted fate in my previous post by bragging about my lack of illness in 2009, I promptly got knocked over by some kind of cold/flu/virus last week, taking Juniper down with me. I spent several days glued to the couch, feeling miserable and whining pathetically and taking my temperature just so I could bemoan the extent of my feverishness. Juni also spiked a bit of a fever and spent a couple of nights revisiting her dinner (and lunch and breakfast). After each upchucky episode, I would rush to her side in a panic. She would be sitting up, rosy-cheeked and horrified at being jerked out of her sleep by such a startling occurrence. However, not two seconds later, she was smiling and giggling, delighted that Mama and Daddy have shown up for a middle-of-the-night snuggles. Needless to say, Juni tolerated being sick much better than I did. 

a puff piece or The Toasted Marshmallow Milkshake

Moving into a new house is like getting to know a new partner - one that you met during a crazy week of jet-lagged, caffeine-fueled speed dating a few months ago and with whom you now find yourself in a long-term, committed relationship.  It takes time to discover the personality of a house.  You find wonderful little gems you didn't even know were there and strange little quirks you had no idea existed.  It's fun - a puzzle, a lovely little treasure hunt.  One new quirk that I will have to contend with is my stove.  The poor little thing, its temperature varies widely.  Some days it's cooler than expected, other days it's hot hot hot.  While I wrangle with my temperamental appliance, I've been satisfying my dessert cravings with milkshakes.

a smattering of things

• Congratulations to Lindsay on her adorable new baby boy!
• Juniper made brief appearance over at Natalie's lovely little blog.  It features her beautiful handmade creations, including one of Juni's favorite play mats.  Natalie also made me a custom green and brown mat as a gift for a good friend of mine who is expecting her little one in a few weeks.  Want one?  Visit her shop.
• How much fun would it be to have this in the back yard?  For the kid, I mean...
• Care for some momtroversy?
• Swine flu.  Serious stuff.  Trying hard to resist puns involving the phrase "when pigs flu".
• Seven brands later, we finally have a winner in the which-baby-bottle-Juni-is-willing-to-drink-from contest.
• I have less than one week left of my maternity leave.  Let the grumples begin.