Nursemeg

Today I am trying to beat a cold.  It really a shame because after several years of staying in on Valentine's Day, Moose and I planned to go downtown tonight and try a nice place I have wanted to eat at for a long time.  So I am playing it safe and resting today in hopes that I can go out tonight.

Nutmeg loves to nurse me when I am sick so today I let her wear my nurse hat and she found her Alice apron and we created Nursemeg!

Santa Lucia Day

St. Lucia Day is coming up and I found this darling St. Lucia Day paper doll printable last year but I can't for the life of me find out how to link it to the original source.  Have fun with it.

http://tpettit.best.vwh.net/dolls/pd_scans/xmas_morning/200dpi/kirsten.jpg

I am spending the day making a Lucia Dress for Nutmeg since she has outgrown all of our white things.

Ordinances, New Baby, Vew Crafts and 2 Fairies

Boba Fett was baptized and confirmed a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints last weekend.  It was a good time to spend with my family and get a great family photo.

See how I got Moose to wear a tie?

Boba Fett requested that we go out for ribs at Applebees.

Blech.

I have been spending a lot of time millinering getting ready for the Boutique at the Barn. 

But I have had time to make a Halloween wreath that  I found here.

 

I also managed to make a nightgown for Kristen's sweet adorable new baby girl who is the most beautiful baby ever.

  I had to make it, the baby was 2 weeks over due and I was going stir crazy waiting to discover if it was a boy or a girl!I am so happy she is a girl.

Today we had sweet Bella over to play with Nutmeg and they were awfully cute.

I need to re-enact this up at the Gardner's place in the woods.

Aren't they the cutest pair of girls ever?

Today was a glorious autumn day.  I hope we can get a few more weeks of weather just like this as payment for our awful rainy and cloudy summer.

Washcloth

Today I washed her face tenderly and worked the marshmallow out of her hair.  Her moist cheeks shined like the blue eyes in the mirror and I realized there will not be many more times when I wash her hands or face.   She chooses her own clothes, does flips on the trampoline and reads books with chapters. She is so smart, and independent and her legs are so long.

Where is the "I Know You Well Enough to Hug You" Line?

I hugged an acquaintance today upon hearing some really joyful news. But then as I left the dry cleaner's I realized that I don't know her well enough to be dispensing hugs.  Now its awkward (with me anyway.).  Good thing I don't see her much, hence the possible inappropriateness.  I am just hoping she doesn't think it was weird and just genuine.

In other news the wedding extravaganza went well-ish.  By well-ish I mean most people had a lovely time and things went very smoothly with the exception of my Mother in Law breaking her pelvis.  It happened here at Starlings and while it wasn't my fault at all I still  feel responsible.

 Nutmeg was a darling and dutiful flower girl

 She ran out of petals by the time she got to the tent so she self regulated to one petal at a time.

She was freezing but did her best to keep warm.

And then at the reception she wiped her chocolaty and bacon wrapped scallop hands all over her dress.  I think I handled it very well, which is why I was at the dry cleaner's in the first place.

The Cutest Flower Girl Dress in the History of the World

While I am grateful to the Royal Wedding for the inspiration I think I improved on the design.  I am very, very happy with this dress.

I used the the bodice and sleeves from Vogue 7681 heavily altered for Nutmeg's slim shoulders and made up the rest.  I liked the box pleats and the scalloped lace on the royal bridesmaid's dresses but thought that the very plain bodice, structured sash and leg o' mutton sleeves to be too stiff and not romantic enough.  Vogue 7601 has princess seams on the bodice and the sleeves are so delicate.

There are about 8 layers of tulle underskirt but the dress works best with a nylon petticoat beneath it.

When I made Vogue 7681 for Nutmeg 3 years ago, it was made from a very stiff taffeta and the sash and bow were very stiff and I loved them.  This sash is made from duponi and has a heavenly drape.  I love it too!

 

When it was nearly finished I decided that the bodice needed a little bit more so I added the lace at the neckline.  Just so.  3 rosettes made in the Demi-millinery style and out of a double thickness  and no raw edges finish the details.

Wherein I find our Homeschool Lacking

Boba Fett says this isn't a Valentine. 

 

I don't know what he thinks a valentine is but this is definitely one.

On the back it reads "I SCOTT lots of love for you."

If this isn't a valentine I don't know what is.

Heart? Check.  

Handmade from construction paper? Check.  

Punny, implied yet non-committal declaration of love? Check.

Obviously my kid would have learned this if he had been to public school.

In other news Nutmeg has been over the moon excited about Valentine's Day.  She has been counting the days all month long.  This morning she woke us up 2 hours early running into our room screaming "It's time!" 

Since we don't make a terribly big fuss over Valentine's Day, last week, I wisely I asked her why on earth she was so excited about it.  "Because I want one of those heart shaped boxes with chocolate." she replied.

Silly girl, every one knows that the reason to be excited about Valentines Day is the 30 year old Moss Family Tradition. 

Cinnamon-Marshmallow Valentine Suckers,  the sure fire way to be the most popular kid in school one day a year.

St Lucia Day - Age 4

Lucia Day didn't go so smoothly this year.  The baby I tend was scheduled to arrive at 8:30 so there was a deadline.  Nutmeg got up albeit with a bad attitude but Camrock (who was the designated helper) was much too sleepy to be helpful.  There were tears, fighting and commotion for 45 minutes. Meanwhile I was lying in bed pretending to sleep with the camera poised, for 45 minutes thinking the doorbell would ring at any moment and there I was in bed still.

Nutmeg was very uspset because she wasn't able to wake us up for real.   So she had this look on her face when she finally shuffled in the room

We pretended to be asleep and she perked up, then we "woke up" from our pretend sleep as she started singing...

"Away in a manger no crib for his bed, the sweet little Lord Jesus lay down his sweet head. The stars in the heavens look down from the sky, the sweet little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay."

Despite the fighting it was a great way to wake up.

Grammar is So Unforgiving

Today is the beginning of the end.  Nutmeg has been reading Level 1 books for a few weeks now, reading is her new passion.  I am so happy but also sad because not 10 minutes ago she was looking at the cover of Little Red Riding Hood and said to me "Mom, shouldn't it be l-i-t-t-O-l?"

Nutmeg has a charming little accent that is hard to pin down.  She likes to pronounce things with a lot of vowels.  "Littol," "clev-uh," "Sister Doming-uh."

As I explained to her that "little" was pronounced "litt-L," I could see the puzzle pieces arranging themselves in her mind. The puzzle of "They way that I say words are not they way that they are spelled.  Either the words are spelled incorrectly  or I am saying them incorrectly."

I am afraid that the benefits of reading and correct spelling will shortly chase her haughty little accent away.

When Was the Last Time You Took Your Children to the Temple?

 The other day I was speeding along the freeway listening to Natalie Merchant's Kind and Generous on the radio.  This song has always made me think of my Heavenly Father and how kind and generous he is to me.  How I am in debt to Christ for his gift to me.  I sang along "la la la la-ing" through the autumn leaves and the late autumn sunshine, just as the song ended I saw the spires of the Portland, Oregon temple peeking through the evergreens.

I debated with myself as whether or not we should stop.   I knew that the kids would complain but the spirit told me that this was the time so I took the exit and within two minutes we were walking around the temple grounds with my middle child murmuring about how he just wanted to go home.


Soon it became evident that everything was new and exciting to my 4 year old daughter.  It had been so long since we had been to the temple she couldn't remember any of it. 


We sat at the reflecting pool and talked about the temple, what it means, what you must do to be able to go there and that in the temple we make promises to Heavenly Father that we will keep his commandments. My husband is not LDS and sometimes it is had for me to talk about the temple with my children.  But there in the sunshine it was easy.


As we walked back to the car my daughter said to me "Mom, you know what I was doing back there? I was promising."

"Promising what honey?"

"Promising that I will do what Heavenly  Father wants me to do."

Remind me in a dozen or so years to remind her of the first promise she made at the temple. OK?  Thanks.


This little trip took us a grand total of 10 minutes but I hope gave us 4 eternities worth of memories.

The Prince What Rescues the Fair Maiden

"Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose."
I love that girls are girls and boys are boys. Anyone who has one of each knows what I am talking about.

Entrusted to our Care

"Children are an heritage to the Lord."

This is so true. Every child is a gift from heaven a glimpse into the Almighty. When they are new you can almost see the angels about them and you can certainly feel them. I love to watch them as they dream and smile and wonder what they are remembering.

Each child is different and as they grow they teach us things about ourselves and also about others. Take mine for instance.

Healer

Nutmeg is smart as a whip, communicates clearly, has her own ideas about how things should be done and does them with out any help. Thank You. She looks like a china doll but is as rough and tumble as the boys and can climbs like a mountain goat. She is also gentle and caring and there is nothing she likes to do more than take care of me when I am sick. She is diligent.

Philosopher

Then there is Boba Fett, he is not as co-ordinated as his siblings and takes a long time to say what is on his mind. You might think that he isn't as bright but he is. He takes information in digests it, thinks about it, turns each piece over and over in his mind and then hours, days or weeks later comes up with a insightful question or observation. Though easily discouraged he is determined. Beware he is the kind that has ideas that change the world. He is also HILARIOUS. Whether he means to be or not he keeps us laughing all day long. It is just so funny to hear such big words coming out of a little boy in the appropriate context.

Judge/Avenger

Camrock is my enigma. Try as I might I will never figure him out. Calm and easy going yet he holds on to vast amounts of rage that sits and simmers and never explodes. He has a very strong sense of justice and as I tell him that could be a curse or his greatest attribute. He is polite, thoughtful, good and kind. He takes a lot of abuse but never betray him.

Every child is different and a child of GOD. They have been entrusted to our care. It is our duty to help each child be who the Lord wants them to be. A humbling yet exciting charge.

What's in Your Purse?

Grandma and Grandpa took us to the zoo yesterday. Nutmeg took the camera along and wore it across one shoulder along with her leopard print purse because she was going to be an "explorer." The best part was that she was wearing khaki Bermuda shorts and a white shirt and only needed a safari hat to complete the look. There was a safari hat for sale in the gift shop but I am sure you know how zoo gift shop prices are. It was so fun to see her digging out the camera to take a picture.

Last night Moose and I took a look at the memory card.
There were a lot of useless this-is-what-you-get-when-you-give-a-4-year-old-a-camera pictures
but there were also these:

It made me realize how she sees the world, a world made for big people. No wonder she keeps growing up so fast, she needs to get where the action is.
And then there was this picture:
You might look at this and think it is just a picture of my rear end, and it is, but it brought to mind so many things:
This is what I look like to my daughter.
She is literally looking up to me, she is probably looking up to me figuratively as well.
When I walk ahead of her I think I am leading the way but does she think I am walking away? Leaving her behind?
Is this just a picture of my backside?
I took this picture, it is the contents of Nutmeg's leopard print purse dumped onto a bench made of Redwood in a hasty search for quarters to put in the gumball machines . I just thought it was so cute. 4 pennies, the jar I bought for 25 cents for her to use as a jam jar in her play kitchen (but no matter how many times I put it on the little kitchen shelf I find it used as a container to store things like the plastic ladybug that is inside in this photo), and a bunch of acorns.

I can just imagine her packing her purse.
Money? Check.
Jam jar with a lady bug? Check.
Acorns? Check.

Then I remember where she must have found those acorns.
I put them on the desk in the dining room.
I love acorns and I pick them up whenever I see one.
I put them on the desk the other day when I was cleaning out MY PURSE.
I carry acorns in my purse.

They are always watching. What a blessing, what a responsibility! I am so humbled that the Lord trusted me with such a sacred responsibility.

Happy Easter?

On Sunday I realized that Nutmeg really needs a new summer dress. I make them long and squeeze as many years as I can out of them. The dress she wore on Sunday I bought when she was 6 months old and she has been wearing since she was 18 months old. That's 3 years.

So last night I went into the sewing room to tackle the project that has been filling me with guilt since March, the 2010 Easter Dress.

I had the dresses (I have a matching one) all cut out and then that fateful day arrived when I received the telephone call that turned my life upside down and I have only just started putting to rights. All thoughts of Easter dresses were instantly shelved until I could get to them again.

The past month I have had those dresses hanging over my head like a black cloud as I noticed Nutmeg's Sabbath options becoming shabbier and shorter with every week.

The dress is going together swimmingly and I don't know why I put it off so long. Still, the sleeves need to be put in and I hate sleeves, they are such an unpleasant chore. I am sure that the skirt pattern runs a little short, but even so I am going to have to add at least 6 inches to get a decent hem on this skirt. That is how much she has grown in 5 months.

I don't think that I will get to my dress this summer.

P. S. I am awesome at pintucks, but we already knew that.

Mother, May I?

Mother's Day has to be the best holiday at our house.

Today the sun is shining, I wasn't expecting gifts, however, I woke up to
a very creative "Valentine" down planned to the smallest detail by Nutmeg and her written plans, executed with the help of Moose under her the direction of Nutmeg.Heart shaped jewelry from Boba Fett,
flowers and long coveted Matryoska nesting dolls/measuring cups from Moose.
I get to show off my new Mori Girl Skirt, made by me, designed by me, drafted by me, cursed by me fitted by Paula.

At church I am leading the children in a Mother's day song in Sacrament Meeting and in Primary there will be games, aprons, rolling pins and squirt guns.

After church there will be our annual Mother's Day Picnic (no cooking,) but this year it will not be at Council Crest Park but on the porch of my new house.
We get the keys at 6 pm.

The New Look

First there was Dior with the "New Look" fitted jacket, nipped in waist and a full skirt.
The New Look marked an abrupt change in fashion and one of my personal favorite periods in costume.
Now we have Nutmeg with the "New New Look"
The New New Look is delicate, whimsical and practical.
Mussy self cropped hair, leotards, pastel colors, tulle, tights, mid-thigh tutus, and mid-calf galoshes; get yours today!

I'm a Copy Cat and I Don't Care

I saw this post yesterday and hastened myself to Joann because I needed a centerpiece for the table so that I can stop buying so many fresh flowers, and because I am mad about ranunculus.

Not angry mad but crazy mad.

I didn't even know that ranunculus existed until last spring when I saw them Home Depot. I thought that they were lovely that I bought a bag and planted them. They never came up, happily, the silk flowers look as good as the real thing.

Not only did I find ranunculus but I found the exact plants that Samster Mommy used in her box. Usually I try to make things my own but I love the freshness of this color. May these words never come from my fingers again; but, good thing Joann has the same stuff all over the country.
Super easy, the cost was about $15 which is more than I would have liked but the tiny basket was $5. Seriously Joann, I know that basket cost like 25 cents to make.

Nutmeg helped, in fact Nutmeg did most of it, she was a real tyrant and barely let me do anything but trim the stems.
She is pretty proud.

Converting Trials into Blessings

Nutmeg has been really trying us lately. She used to go to sleep all by herself in her own bed with no problems and stay there. But lately we have to lie with her for an hour before she will sleep and then woe betide us if she wakes up and find that we have abandoned her. I am the one that puts her to bed and have been getting so frustrated with her because after bedtime is Mommy Time! I am anxious to get to my knitting and my movies and my snacks and chats with Moose.

We had been resorting to tactics that go against my core parenting philosophy and it felt bad.

The other night it dawned on me, instead of lying there frustrated with her while reading easy fiction or browsing blogs I could use that time to study the scriptures. I have been unsuccessful in finding a time that works for me and that is seriously hampering my goal to rejuvenate my relationship with my Savior. So for the past few night Nutmeg has gone to sleep without tears and have been reading the scriptures pondering and praying. What a blessing! See, it is all how you look at things.

This is what has been touching me this week, The Relief Society Declaration. This is often overlooked and forgotten but it is so key to who we as Sisters in Relief Society are.

THE RELIEF SOCIETY OF
THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS

are beloved spirit daughters of God,
and our lives have meaning, purpose, and direction.
As a worldwide sisterhood, we are united in our devotion
to Jesus Christ, our Savior and Exemplar.
We are women of faith, virtue, vision, and charity who:

Increase our testimonies of Jesus Christ
through prayer and scripture study.

Seek spiritual strength by following the
promptings of the Holy Ghost.

Dedicate ourselves to strengthening
marriages, families, and homes.

Find nobility in motherhood
and joy in womanhood.

Delight in service and good works.

Love life and learning.

Stand for truth and righteousness.

Sustain the priesthood
as the authority of God on earth.

Rejoice in the blessings of the temple,
understand our divine destiny,
and strive for exaltation.

I particularly love the lines "Our lives have meaning, purpose and direction" and "Find nobility in motherhood and joy in womanhood."