Knittin' my Veggies

Not many people know this, but I love to knit. My mom went through a knitting phase back when I was a little girl and taught me all the basics. While she was making us chunky sweaters with hearts and happy faces, I was making cardis and sweater-pants for my Barbie. I still feel a little nostalgic whenever I pick up those needles...which, until recently, I hadn't done so in a very long time. And no, I'm not knitting sweater-pants for Jaden.

I'm knitting veggies! It all started when I came across this book: Amigurumi Knits by Hansi Signh. I flipped through the first chapter of knitted vegetables, and I was sold (actually, I was pretty much sold when I saw the eggplant pattern). Cute, squishy, true to life and fun to make. Well, once I got the technique down (definitely not for beginners).

I had to teach myself all over again how to knit in a round, so the start was a little rough. But I love that the projects in this book (so far) only takes a few nights in front of the TV to finish, so they're relatively stress free. In fact, they're more of a stress reliever these days.

Here are my first three veggies. I like to think that their imperfections make them even more realistic.

 

My husband thinks I'm nuts.

What are you going to do with those after?

Are they baby toys? Dog toys?

No hun. I might just put it all in a basket and display them somewhere.

No comment.

Hello Sunshine ♥

It's been a little while since I last posted...I feel so behind! But instead of trying to recap the past 2½ months, I think I'm just going to pick up from this moment. So, as of this moment: Jaden is a week shy of 15 months. He's walking, climbing stairs, playing pretend with his teddy bear, and says hi ma, hi da, bye ko (as in Kody), along with a number of other baby words. Loves ba-time (bathtime) and hugs dad when it's be-time (bedtime). Slept in 'till 10 am last weekend, "sings" along to the Handy Manny theme song and recently discovered ice cream. I'm waiting for the day he gives me kisses and tells me he loves me.

I love this shot I got of him the other night. I used to be really annoyed by the west-facing windows in our living room—it's gets so bright (and hot) in there when the sun sets. Lately, though, it's been one of my favourite places to snap pictures of Jaden (usually playing with Kody). This one was a fluke I got just before falling on my back and getting attacked by the little guy.

Happy birthday, my sweet little boy

I can't believe my little guy is one today...more so, I can't believe I've been a mommy for a year now. As much of a milestone this is for him, I'd like to think it is equally one for me too. That's probably why I woke up yesterday (the day of his big bash) and was surprisingly excited. Giddy, almost. I'm now a mother of a one year old.

I had planned a small-ish birthday party for him with mostly family (note: a small family gathering for us is around 30'ish peeps). These are 30'ish of the most amazing people to me. You know who you are. Thank you for making Jaden's birthday (and all of the days that lead to it) so wonderful. He is truly blessed to have all of you aunties and uncles in his life. I can't begin to express how deeply grateful I am for all your love towards us. :)

On another note, I am still trying my best to keep at P365, though uploading them is a whole other story. I can't believe how quickly february is going by...I'm so behind! A month of images are on the way. For now, here's one (I guess it's two) from last night's party. Image no. 52.

Elements for this page from Paislee Press: Snapshots no. 2

p365 | week 1 & 2

I'm excited to announce that I finally uploaded my first batch of p365 photos to my account on flickr. I've been having a lot of fun with this project so far, but I'm sure it'll get a lot tougher as I go. Especially since I'm returning to work full time next week. I'm sad that I'll be missing so many hours a week of my time with Jaden. He seems to be learning something new everyday. It's hard to think that I may not be there when he takes his first steps, or his first tumble. I guess it will make our time together that much more precious.

Here are images 001-015 of p365 | 2010...

001 | view from nana's window | jan 1

new year's morning in newfoundland.

002 | speed crawling | jan 2

003 | christmas loot | jan 3

004 | not so cheerful breakfast | jan 4

maybe he knew i was going away.

005 | view from the top | jan 5

flying over the riviera maya.

006 | much needed beach day | jan 6

007 | double duty | jan 7

used my diaper bag as a beach tote. water-resistant. sand-resistant.

008 | duties of a matron of honor | jan 8

speech that i practiced a million times but still choked on the words.

009 | coronas & jenga | jan 9

rainy day in mexico.

010 | cruel clouds in the sky | jan 10

overcast.

011 | hello sun | jan 11

two days of rain and clouds we finally catch a break.

012 | sun rise | jan 12

morning of the day we fly home.

013 | hello jaden | jan 13

after being away for a week it amazes me how much you've changed.

014 | 2 planes, 4 airports, multiple tantrums | jan 14

st. john's to halifax to toronto to edmonton. twelve hours later we're finally home.

015 | good morning | jan 15

kody and jaden in our bed.

A new year...a new project!

Welcome to 2010! This year, I've decided to take the plunge and embark in the great adventure that is project 365. For those who aren't familiar, p365 entails taking one photo a day for an entire year. I'm actually quite excited about it. 2010 is sort of a milestone for me (I'm turning the big three-O). With everything going on in my family-life, work-life, personal-life, I figured this assignment is the perfect motivation for me to take a step back, look around and document those little moments that pass by so quickly. On top of that, I'm going to further push myself to upload those pictures on a weekly basis (starting after I get back from my trip, of course) and maybe do some journaling/scrapping too. My goal is to publish an album of these 365 layouts at the end of the year. Yes, I know...it's a mammoth task. But I've seen what amazingly creative things other people have done with their p365 photos and it's definitely an inspiration. Wish me luck!

Disheveled on the Road...Happy Holidays! :)

We're almost half-way through our holiday now, settling nicely at my mother-in-law's gorgeous new home here in Harbour Grace, Newfoundland. With all the craziness of the season, I finally found a little time to post a few pictures from Christmas. Just a little "Jaden fix" for all the aunties back home that haven't seen him in almost two weeks (and will have to wait another two before we get home). I have to say that the baby have been on his best behaviour so far through the trip. He was excellent on the plane (aside from one short meltdown in Toronto) and is loving all the attention from the family. We had a great stay in Ottawa with relatives who made our few days there absolutely fantastic...and our time so far here in NL has been nothing short of wonderful. Thank you "nana" for allowing me to sleep in for the past week. Seven more days and we'll be on to the next leg of our trip...Mexico! Hope you all had a Happy Holiday! :)

A quiet evening at Uncle Randy and Aunt Pat's place in Ottawa.

Having a beer with daddy.

Christmas morning in Newfoundland.

Playing in wrapping paper and boxes (and ignoring all his new toys).

One of many new outfits.

Jaden's First Halloween

For his first halloween, we dressed Jaden up as Woody from The Toy Story and went around to show him off to friends and family. He was surprisingly cooperative considering all the elements that his costume included, although there was quite a bit of resistance initially while I was attempting to put everything on. Cowboy booties...cowboy hat...I was starting to wish I had just gotten a one-piece pumpkin or monkey suit. But he turned out to make a mighty fine cowboy, I must say. Can't believe he actually fit into that size 12-18!

My Newest Find: Ebates!

Those who know me knows that I love to shop online. I'm a true bargain hunter and I find that things are usually cheaper on websites than in stores. Especially when you find a good coupon code for that store for free shipping and additional discounts. Seriously...don't check anything out in your shopping cart before doing a google search for coupon codes. Chances are there's more savings out there, and who doesn't love to save?

The other day, I was doing some pre-Christmas online window shopping, and I came across a website called Ebates that actually gives you cash back when you purchase from sites like Ebay, Abebooks, Nordstrom, Sephora....huge list of stores. You have to go check it out to see if it applies to your favorite stores. Right now there's a $5 credit available to new members. Go take a look...and make sure you sign up through this link so they know I referred you. Please and thank you! Happy shopping! :)