I have really enjoyed making gifts this year. Last year the twins really kept me on my toes. They were 18 months and into everything. They still are into everything, but at least they play better now and can be re-directed. I spent every bit I had in me last year trying to do what I could with the older two to keep it as normal a Christmas as I could. You see, the Christmas before I was not even home and had not been home for a good while. You can read more about that here, but the main idea is that my husband and older two were at home (day #25 without my girls!) and the twins and I were in government limbo over in Hanoi, Vietnam. Needless to say, to be able to craft and bake this year is not only something I love to do, but and extra special treat as well!
A blog I like to go to, Sew Mama Sew, is collecting posts of how people celebrate. What their traditions are, if they craft anything, and in general how they celebrate. I already posted about the traditions in our house here. Today, I’m going to compile a bit of the craftiness that has been going on. This year we didn’t want to not give presents to our loved ones, but things were tight when we looked at the budget. Enter my love of crafting. I’ve enjoyed making several gifts this year and adding some baking on top of that.
The most recent project as been the above roving. We layered some wisps of it, felted it, and the girls are helping me sew them into this:
With all the colors you can find wool roving in what is not to love! The instructions can be found here. It takes a bit of time, though is fairly easy. The older two and I have been working on them together and they will be gifts from them to some very special people.
About a month ago I posted about these projects:
If I had the time, I would have loved to make these houses over at The Long Thread. Please go check them out, it’s worth the click. They are simple, but oh so nice and I’m betting very sparkly. I have to wonder what they would look like in soft pastel colors or even a combo (pink and robin egg blue with white.)
The other projects still on my list are an old fashion, black fur with red satin lining muff for each of the twins. They love anything with a pocket and really like soft, furry things. In fact, anything soft and furry (the trim on their coats) is promptly designated “soft kitty” (as in soft as a kitty.) I also need to finish up 4 more of those wristlets (they are almost done.)
A new item on my list, well it’s not even on there yet, is tree ornaments. My older two are wanting to make some tree ornaments for their friends. Any suggestions, anyone? Something that a 7 and 8 year old can do without too much help?
Yesterday, I wrote about my adventures in baking with the girls and my mom. Here’s a photo of those Eggnog Logs…silly name, tasty cookie:
Here’s an old photo of my truffles, this years are not decorated yet
And seeing as these boxes are going to my brothers-in-law, I wanted to include a bit of “man” food. Don’t get me wrong, I like jerky and Chex Mix as much as anyone else. You have to admit, though, a photo of this
just isn’t as appealing as the rest of this post!
In fact, it is so unappealing that I can not end my post with a tray of raw, albeit seasoned and soon to be tasty, beef. Here’s a better one, one that makes me smile. Every mom likes to catch a picture of her kids with Santa. This guy was the real deal, just ask Liz and Jane. Thankfully, even the twins were more than happy to oblige:
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