HAPPY THIRD BIRTHDAY

  We celebrated our daughter´s third birthday with closest family and friends.

  Here´s the dress I made for her, just for the occasion:

The dress was paired with medium grey pants, alike the color of the sewn-in belt here, and topped off with a silver necklace she got from her godmother when she was born.

Besides being pretty, the fabric is also stretchy and comfy. The pattern is somehow pressed into the fabric. They can make neat things these days!

I trimmed the neckline with a strip of the same fabric, stretching it a bit when sewing to prevent neckline from drooping.

The belt continues all across the back too.

I could not resist making myself one too! I lined mine from waist down with nude fabric to prevent it from clinging to my legs when I walk. It shows through here slightly, but when I put the tunic on, and wear a nude bra, the color of bare skin will continue all the way down to the hem, and you can´t see the petticoat at all. I also wore grey pants with my tunic.

I asked my talented son if he knew how to make origami balloons. The answer was an immediate "yes", and he started folding paper right away without looking for instructions! I was impressed.

He first made some sort of a cube and then blew it puffy, just like you would a normal balloon. These look quite artistic actually. Really nice!

The most important part of any party, food! First we served a main course of vegan spaghetti bolognese with small veggie bites on cocktail sticks (a huge favorite among kids!). Then we tuck into this table of strawberries & cream, home made coconut cookies, popcorn, double chocolate cake, and marmalade.

I made gluten-free double chocolate cupcakes for my son and my sister. The recipe was vegan, so it was easy to just switch the regular wheat flour to gluten-free one.

Happy, happy birthday my love!!!

  Funny thing is that, initially I never even wanted kids. Boy am I so glad I thought out of my box and gave it a shot! My life would be so dull and empty without those two awesome individuals! They rock!

GLUTEN-FREE FLATBREAD

  This is my absolute favorite baking recipe! I use it for everything, from pizza crust to cinnamon rolls, just varying ingredients accordingly.
  This time I made a gluten-free carrot bread for my son. Many eat gluten-free "for fun" nowadays,  but my son is lethally allergic to gliadin, a protein in wheat, rye and barley. So we´re talking about life-saving food here.

My ten-year-old son still doesn´t like his veggies, so I "hid" a pound of carrots in the breads. When grated finely, they seem to disappear, only improving moisture and adding a bit of sweetness.

I used millet, buckwheat, brown rice and corn flour to make the bread. I always buy whole groats and grind them in my own stone mill right before baking  minimize oxidation and maximize nutritional value.

   The recipe (makes 4 flatbreads):

1 3/4 cups (4 dl) gluten-free flour (no thickeners like psyllium included)
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 lb. carrots, grated finely (or any other veggie/combo and as much as you dare...)
about 1 cup (2,5 dl) water

+ Combine and mix the dry ingredients. Add the wet ones and mix. Stir in the veggies. Add water until you reach an easily spreadable  dough. Make four flat breads on a baking sheet layered oven tray, and bake at 440 F (225 C) for about 15-20 min.
  Best eaten straight away, but thanks to the carrots, preserves well and moist for a few days wrapped in the parchment paper in the fridge.

  These breads make an awesome takeaway food to work or trips, as they are a whole balanced meal, especially if you add cooked beans or lentils in the dough. A nice lunch with a cup of tea!

YULE OUTFIT FOR A LITTLE GIRL

  This is somewhat an X-mas present, but I gave it to my two-year-old daughter already...

...for obvious reason. This color combo is to be worn prior to and on X-mas, not after. The dress is made of soft cotton velour for warmth and comfort. The leggings are cotton jersey.

The edges are trimmed with a slightly darker jersey to give a bit of contrast. I was soooo tempted to use the polka-dot fabric here, but that would have made the whole dress unsuitable to wear after Yule. It is simply utterly too lame to dress like an elf after Christmas!  =)

 

I HATE KALE- GREEN CHOCOLATE SMOOTHIE

  My ten-year-old son hates vegetables. Cucumber and potatoes are the only things he´ll eat without a suffering face. But behold, Vitamix to the rescue! I have found a sneaky way to incorporate raw leafy greens into his diet, without him refusing one bit. In fact, he now asks for kale almost daily!

Chocolate smoothie, what a perfect way to start the day (and hide greens)!

A high-speed blender makes an unbelievably creamy and smooth texture. This stuff is very different from the produce of an "ordinary" blender, that leaves the smoothie more or less chunky.

The recipe (serves 1):

1-2 handfuls of kale (or other leafy greens)
1 banana
5 medjool dates
1-2 Tbsp cacao nibs
vanilla
3 tsp cacao powder
1/2 avocado
1-2 cups soymilk (for him, for myself I use water)

+ Blend everything until creamy and smooth.

This is satisfying and filling, and keeps us all going until lunch time.

FUNERAL DRESSES

  We attended a funeral recently. Funerals are never fun, but it is fun to plan what to wear to the occasion. Overall I try to keep a positive mind on funerals, thinking it is the last party thrown to the person, and we´re there to celebrate having known her/him and all the good things shared together.

  In the past four years we have been to four funerals, and I thought it was time to make myself a new outfit. My daughter doesn´t have such dark clothes in her everyday wardrobe, so I knew I´d have to make her something in any case. So why not make matching dresses? She is still so small, that it counts as cute. =)

  Here´s the one I made for her:

Instead of all black, which is too harsh and sad for a little girl like her, I chose a more subtle print in grey and black. The fabric is nicely soft, stretchy, and warm for the weather. Even party wear needs to be comfortable to wear, so one can concentrate on partying, not worrying about clothes.

The pattern is a casual one, not complicated. For example, I also made the Bad Piggies dress with it. Raglan sleeves are always comfy.

To avoid dullness I added pompoms to the hemline. And by a great coincidence I found the same kind, but in larger scale, to my own dress.

Like mother like daughter. We both surfed through the ceremony with comfort, ease, and style! And rose a few smiles on the guests´ faces on the way. =) In addition to that, I eased my own sorrow by wearing aromatherapy earrings with bergamot essential oil on them.

I gotta to use this opportunity to share an idea I came up with for the flower bouquet. I wanted to make one myself to show respect for the deceased. Usually the arrangements are directly from the florist´s, are quite pricey, and don´t last long  (especially now that it´s so cold outside). So my innovative own idea was to make a wreath-based arrangement with a center piece in the middle. Here I chose a spruce twig garland and placed a lantern in the center hole. To top it off I added red roses to circle around the lantern. The whole deal is placed on a plywood round to keep it all together. People liked it, and said they especially enjoyed the calming flicker of the candle flame. This is something I will definitely redo in occasions to come, always altering the design according to who´s being celebrated.

THURSDAY OUTFIT FOR A LITTLE GIRL

 Each day of the week has a mood of it´s own in the plan I have designed for my girl´s garderobe. "Nostalgic" is the feeling I´m aiming for with this Thursday outfit for my 2 1/2 year-old. You know, like in the 40´s and 50´s when cardigans and skirts were the basic apparel for girls and young women.

  Although I´m not all for pink, I´m not all against it either. Perhaps every little girl can wear some pink every now and then, but not in a too mushy kind of way.  =) This one is bright and fun.

A classic cardigan and a skirt. The cardigan is streamlined, and is in fact just a shirt with a row of buttons sewn on top. The skirt is made of stretchy cotton jersey and is sewn together with the tights, so that they share a waistband. That way the skirt won´t twist and turn on her, but stays in place no matter how wild she gets!

Buttons repeat the dark brown of the leggings...

...as does the neckhole edge. The brown binds the outfit together giving it a finished feel.

    No ribbons, bows, ruffles, or anything romantic or too cute, and a girl can surf with style in pink!

UNISEX OUTFIT FOR KIDS

  Most of the clothes I have made for my girl lately have been quite girly. So now for a change I wanted to dress her in unisex, all around cool and classically stylish, clothes. But as always, comfort and coziness first.

A pair of soft & stretchy corduroy pants coupled with off-white and light grey jersey shirts. A true staple in anyone´s wardrobe.

This fabric was found in my old stash.

The sleeves bear a small detail so it´s not all that boring. =) But in a unisex outfit you have to be careful with details anyway, so that it still suits boys too.

Pants are made of a leftover piece from these leggings.

A wide zig zag works lots better than a twin-needle in my sewing machine, giving a more stretchy result.

This fabric is another leftover piece, but from my mom. Now I realize that this whole outfit is made of recycled material, so I can proudly call it a piece of "ragshion" (a term I discovered in all my cleverness =) some time ago). The sleeves are slightly cropped.

I turned the sleeve pieces inside out, so the reverse side of fabric is shown on the outside. The color is the same, but texture is super-soft and somewhat fuzzy. It creates a subtle change in the otherwise plain look.

  Lately I have sewn so much for my kids, that I´m running late on my own Mabon Collection. Better hurry up before the wheel turns again...!

SUNDAY OUTFIT FOR A GIRL: A BIT BETTER

  Although we are not a religious family, it is a nice idea to wear something a bit better on Sundays. Therefore I made this outfit for my girl:

Brown is the key color in my Mabon palette, and it applies to kids´ clothes too, but in a lighter shade. I made the leggings in dark blue to give the outfit variety, although I was tempted to use dark brown at first. But this way the whole is a little brighter and makes the dress pop out even more.

I had these crochet flowers in my stash from an earlier project, and they suit this dress perfectly.

The original pattern had the sleeves in short (see here and here), but now the weather is cool already, so I lengthened them. Simply eyeballing did the trick, no measuring needed. =) I left them about 4/5 in length to keep them from getting dirty so easily. Very handy.

The leggings are made of soft and stretchy corduroy-like jersey. They keep my girl warm and cozy.

  Naturally this outfit can, and will, be worn on any day of the week, not only on Sundays. But Sundays were the inspiration, as I like to create variety in her wardrobe too. There is always a thought/idea behind each outfit. Mindfulness is the trend these days. =)

CHERRY BERRY DRESS FOR A GIRL

  Red cherries on white is such a delicious classic, that I could not resist buying this fabric when I saw it. Yes, I admit, purely by impuls (shame on me). But it makes such a cute dress for my girl.

Now this makes me crave for a cherry pie!

A real treat. The material is cotton jersey, so the dress is super comfy to wear. The back is identical to the front. The cherries themselves were detail enough for the dress, so I did not want to overwhelm the whole with further decorating. I like a certain sleekness in clothes, leaving room and attention to the person wearing them.

Raglan sleeves.

A ruffle in the hem adds volume and girlishness.

   My daughter got a cherry tree as a gift when she was born. The tree is still very young of course (but alive, which can not be taken for granted under my care... =), but there was not a single berry in it this year. Last year there were like five, but none this summer. I wonder why. So luckily, thanks to this dress, we´re able to enjoy cherries in at least some form!

PATCHWORK DRESS FOR A GIRL

  Once again I´m so happy my second child is a girl! Without her I would not be able to make these adorable little dresses! =) Boys´ clothes are plain old boring, there´s not much room to be playful. And it seems the older they get, the narrower the accepted wardrobe becomes. (Yawn.)

  But back to cute girls´ clothes! Here´s the latest of my creations to my two-year-old:

Floral mimic-patchwork dress in late summer/early fall colors. I still can´t do pink alone, but here it is a part of the whole, and looks more stylish combined with the deep red wine. The pattern is the same I used to make the light blue dress for her, and I still think it is perfectly shaped. This one is completely different style-wise, and once again proves that one great pattern can go a long way.

The only accent is the red "belt" around the waist. There is so much going on with the patches of plaid and flowers, that the rest needed to be more calm to remain stylish.

How could I resist this? I bought the fabric two months ago already, and my fingers have been itching to turn it into this dress. And now it´s finally here, right on time for Lammas.

No tricks in the back either, just a zipper.

  The very first day my daughter wore this dress, she got compliments on it and her cuteness. Isn´t it strange how even young girls are noticed for their looks, compared to boys, who can live a life free from scrutiny? Well, since it is so deeply within us/our culture, why not take advantage of it early on?!   =)

WHAT HAPPENS AFTER YOU DIE?

  You go back to where you came from before birth (and I´m not talking about anyone´s genitals =). That´s my interpretation of it. No biggie, and I don´t want to spend my life concentrating on my after life (which in my opinion is the purpose of many religions).

  My nearly-ten-year-old son came home from school today with a friend of his (11 years old). Soon the friend´s phone rang and all he said during the conversation was "oh dear" and "oh no". The phone call ended to his words "well, call me if you want company". We were all in our kitchen, so I could not help hearing. I did not dare ask him what it was, it was not my business after all. But he shared it with us: his neighbor, a 16-year-old teenage boy had died today. It was the teen´s sister, one of his closest friends, who had called him.
 Last Friday the teen boy had lost control of his motorbike and hit a tree, hard. He had been speeding and his helmet had flown off during the crash. He got hurt badly and rushed to the hospital. He was in critical condition until today.

  Usually these stories end well. Thanks to the amazing medical care these days people recover, get well, and continue with their usual lives. But not this time. It was a surprise.

  I did not know the boy, but knew well his sister - my son´s classmate. She is one of the most cheerful and lively girl I know. I hope her positivity will carry her through these hard times. Considering there are only six kids my son´s his class, and fifteen in their school altogether, this tragedy is major. We live in a small village in the countryside where almost everybody knows each other, so it is needless to say the whole village is in mourning.
  Soon after the phone call my son and his friend got another one: they were invited to go the place where the accident had occurred in the middle of the village. All the teenagers and kids, who had known the boy, had gathered there to support each other. They held hands, hugged, lit candles, and brought flowers. This happened immediately the sad news spread. I was positively surprised by how compassionate and thoughtful children can be in a situation like this.

  I was prepared to answer the question of "what happens after you die", once again. But it did not pop up. We have discussed the matter with my son many times before, so maybe he has his thoughts sorted out already.

  Consequently in the same Friday night another accident had taken place in our peaceful village: a car crash. A middle-aged man had run off the road with a friend along in his pick-up truck. But for that there was a reason: he was quite heavily drunk. Both men were hospitalized, but their lives are not threatened.

  Also the news of Robin Williams reached us; he has committed suicide. So sad.

  Childhood is protected and treasured to the best of our knowledge. We grownups say, after looking back in time, that it only lasts so little. We have plenty of time to live the grownup life, there is no rush.
  How about thinking the same about death? That we should protect and treasure life to the best of our knowledge. I bet the dead say, after looking back in time, that it only lasts so little!

VISITING CHICKEN

  Since I´m testing to eat eggs now, we took a trip to a nearby organic chicken farm. They produce eggs, not meat. I wanted to see what their chickens´ living conditions are like, and to buy some eggs, whole spelt grains, and rolled oats. It made a nice little field trip for me and my daughter.

The farm is located in this beautiful scenery.

To my surprise they also had a small cafe open in the summer months.

We begun our journey. Different species of chicken are sorted in their own coops.

I was happy to discover they had lots of activities and a chance to climb and fly.

A beautiful individual. I doubt the chicken in mass production farms look this fine and dandy.

The roosters were very handsome and healthy.

Omg, what super cute bunnies they had! This one is still a baby, and stole our hearts immediately.

Quickly it´s mother came to make sure we´re not dangerous.

My outfit is from my Freedom Collection, and my daughter is wearing a mommy-made dress too.

One of their most exotic hens came from China. This is a he...

...and here´s a she with their chicks.

Old-fashioned machinery suit the organic surroundings, and are a proof that the people are not doing it for the money, but for their beliefs and hearts. Admirable!

There was also a playground for kids. Here under inspection is a second (or third or fourth) hand pedal car.

They had also a few ducks. These chicks are a week old.

Then it was time to head home sweet home.

  We both had a fun time and gained new experiences. And when we got home, I made us scrambled egg salad. Truth be told, my daughter did not like the eggs, since she´s not used to eating them. So I guess we´re both learning...  =)