Puddles!! (But First, Snow)

Last Wednesday, 

Leap Day

February 29th

it snowed. 

Quite a lot. 

Winter arrived in Minnesota on the final day of February and dropped a few inches of heavy, wet, build-the-world's-tallest-snowman snow. 

The girls reveled in it. 

Correction: Elena reveled in it. 

Stella refused to put on gloves and learned very quickly that snow is cold. 

And cold hands make for a miserable little girl.

(and an "I told you so" mom)

(Still accepting Parent-Of-The-Year Awards)

(duh)

And one week later, 

as fast as it came, 

it retreated once more. 

Spring is coming. 

I can smell it on the pavement in the morning. 

I hear it in the song of the birds. 

Soon, green grass, golden sunshine (that lasts past seven o'clock!), 

lilacs, oh how I missed the lilacs the last two years,

and fresh breathe-it-in-deep-and-sigh-it-out air will arrive.

But before spring can...spring, the thaw must come. 

And with it-water. 

Which means, puddles.

I could photograph these girls 

all

day

long.

It is just SO natural taking their photo.

No stress.

No pressure.

No fear of failure.

Just heart.

Pure, blissful, amazing heart.

And I love the feeling of it.

Cheers,

a

Monday. Photo Day.

Sort of.

You'll have to head over here for the full monty.

But here's a snippet of what is waiting for you:

Cheers,
A

Freestyle

Saturday I sewed.
When DRL and  I went to Austin in December I picked up some fabric
at my favorite Austin fabric boutique, The Stitch Lab.
I had a half yard of quilter's linen in this great deep indigo color and it happened
to coordinate perfectly with the Erin McMorris' Summersault print I acquired on my trip.
The problem: I only had a half yard of that, too.

Oliver+S makes my favorite children's clothing patterns.
Almost everything I've sewn for my girls has been from one of Liesl's great patterns.
But they all require at least one yard of the "main fabric" for dressmaking.
I found myself on the horns of a dilemma.

I wanted to make Stella a dress.
I wanted to use these two fabrics.
I had no pattern.

Crap.

Except not!
I found a Gap dress in Stella's closet,
a hand-me-down from Elena,
that seemed exactly perfect.
I traced the body, adding extra width for the placket,
and a half inch all around for the seam allowance.
I relied heavily on the skills I learned making Liesl's patterns:
Sewing a placket,
adding a sleeve,
basting,
pleating,
hemming.
And I winged it.
I freestyled Stella a dress.

It's not perfect.
It doesn't lay flat in the front.
I accidentally cut the bottom (left) back piece.
I had to applique a patch there (I only had a 1/2 yard. I couldn't cut a new piece).
The pleat is slightly off-center in the front (It's spot on in the back!)

But I'm crazy happy with how it turned out.
Stella looks amazing in it.

Here's to trying new things.
To being brave and throwing the "you can't, no way" out the window.
Because the only thing worse than completely screwing it up,
would be to never have tried in the first place.

Cheers,
A

Belated

You turned two on Fetivus, Stella.
Two whole years we've known you.
Two whole years you've had to completely steal our hearts for life or longer.
You are daring.
Adventurous.
Wicked.
You love to laugh and run circles around Gramma's living room at approximately 6:15
every
single
night.
This past year has been a busy one:
Two moves, one across country.
Your first surgery. It seems your ears have an affinity for infection.
Your first pair of glasses AND your first box of disposable eye patches.
(Argh!)
Your last set of your baby teeth.
Your last bottle.
Your last cup of milk in the middle of the night.
Your last night sleeping in a crib.
Your last day as an infant.
You're a toddler now, child.
And with that comes great responsibility.

Run.
Explore.
Chase your sister until she screams "STOP IT!"
Tickle.
Dream.
Roll down hills and scrape your knees.
Sing.
Dance.
Let the music you create fill your soul.

I am so excited to be your momma, sweet girl.
I am so excited to continue to watch you grow.

I love you more than you know.
Forever and ever.

And still a day more.

xo

Blue Spruce.

The day after Thanksgiving is wrought with Tradition in my family.
We don't shop.
We don't pepper spray the masses in order to have the best pick
of Wal-Mart ladies' comfort tees.
We don't eat leftover pie
(We don't leave extra, silly. That pie gets eaten!)
The day after Thanksgiving is
always has been
and always will be
Christmas Tree Day.

Growing up, we'd go buy one from a lot.
When I moved out after high school,
it became the day I hauled the fake tree out of the box
(turns out I'm allergic to fire-retardant used on commercial lot Christmas trees).
Now, for my mother and my step-dad
it's the day they go to the Tree Farm and cut down the perfect
Blue Spruce.
Or was it white pine?
Boston fir?
Something evergreen-y.
With needles.
And a general triangular shape.

I digress.

This year marked Elena and Stella's first trip to the tree farm.
And we bought two trees.
One for Grammy and Papa,
and one for our little nook inside my mom's house.
(Which is currently skirted with a handmade tutu from a fairy party. More on that later).
Mom and the girls picked out the trees,
Papa manned the saw,
and I, of course,
took photos.

Cheers,
A

Five Long Days

I got a new lens last week.
It is
without a doubt
the best thing since sliced bread.
Since the internet.
Since Essie nailpolish, and pinot noir, and coffee, and, and, and....
Since this blog! That's how amazing it is.

I bought the lens nearly a week ago,
five
full
long
days.
Five days of it staring at me,
begging me to shoot with it.

It got its wish on Saturday.

Thanks to some great weather
and the two most beautiful girls I know.

Cheers,
A