little happy birthday things

 

As usual, Stacey always knows which little things will make me smile most. These malted milk eggs are Brach's and I had not had them since I was a child. They tasted just like they did all those eons ago. So weird! Brought me back to sitting on our old brown carpet in the early morning light, sneaking a peek into my Easter basket, rifling past the small Beatrix Potter book, the Hello Kitty stickers, Bonnie Bell lip balm, and See's sugar egg to find the nitty gritty good stuff...the black jelly beans, and the malted milk eggs. Ah, memories! 

And of course, this beautiful mushroom pillow cover in the prettiest of vintage hues. Is this crewel? Tufting? I have no idea, but it is the sweetest, dreamiest pretty on the bed! I still have to go through birthday week pictures, but for know,  here's a smidge of a highlight, I wanted to remember. 

diy: snail garland

 

I have had the idea for this snail garland for a few years now, and what better time to make it than for a fellow snail fan and swap partner? I used vintage neckties, wood dowels, bendy wire, and beads to complete the whole shebang. LOVE! 

the february bed

 

crocus & bumpass potting shelf

 

The jonquils, daffodils, and crocus have come up pretty early this year. They add such a lovely pop of color to the garden. With all the rain we have been having, everything is super saturated and lush,  but mostly green, not a lot of color, so these beauties are a welcome bit of sunshine.

The a-go-gos are not grill people, sure, we love a bbq but we just don't do the bbqs. This was the sister a-go-g's old grill and we tried offering it up for free on both Craigslist, and the local Buy Nothing group with no takers. I guess grillers tend to want their grills to look pretty? There are no holes and the inside totally works. Oh well, their loss is my new potting shelf. We store the potting spoil and tools inside, and use the grill shelf to the left as a potting bench. Works for me, and the spiders LOVE it! 

diy: jar grippers

The fabric selection may have been my favorite part. I'm not even sure my swap partners will use them, or even know what they are for, but I like them and am glad I finally made them.

I had the idea for them for a few years now and since our swap theme was sustainability, I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to make them. 

I already had the colorful grip backers in my stash. They had been purchased for a preschool sorting diy and they would be perfect to use as the backing. I made patchwork squares first, then placed them over each circle and added a quick stitch in the the center to anchor to the circle. After pinning the edges, I trimmed the excess fabric off then used a zigzag stitch around the perimeter of the gripper to adhere the patchwork to the top. Voila! They could also be used as trivets, or even under pots for a pop of color. 

pie for breakfast

 

meeting the mister for a lunch time walk

freeze, frost, & preschoolers

I knew it was going to freeze overnight. I also knew it would take forever to get the ice off the windshield. We central coasters do not experience this type of ice and cold often so we lack the tools for the scraping and the warming, and the things I do not know the words for. Because of this, the mister & popped a tarp over the windshield and while it took me almost as long as it does to de-ice everything, I didn't have to keep pouring water over the windshield. My hands were numb though. Ouch! 

I am back in my happy place. A happy place. Somewhat. Very somewhat, but I'll take. Currently subbing at a fairly local school and while I am enjoying the kiddos immensely, this current gig just may do me in. 

But I will hang in there. This may lead to something more permanent with someone I love working with. Crossing fingers and bring on the sticky fingers, sand in my shoes, and germs of those little vectors. Thankfully we're mostly outside. Phew!