Tradition!

Yesterday was a Rosemary Day, and this is what greeted me when I came in the door,  a sweet little girl in a sweet little reindeer dress.  Rosie was decked out in her Christmas finery because both her grandmothers made plans to take her out for lunch in what we hope will become a yearly Christmas tradition.  Nonna drove to Mr. Deli and Mrs. Too! ( kinda perfect--two bubbies observing a first annual Christmas luncheon in a Jewish deli!), and I sat in the back humoring our granddaughter who wasn't quite sold on the idea of a midday outing.  Lunch was a Rueben Sandwich for Nonna while I ordered a Veganini Wrap.  Both were amazing (I sampled Patti's and she mine) and so were the pickles and potato salad!

Rosemary took a seat in her car seat, although sometimes she sat on laps.  Next year, she will have her own food, but this year it was BYOB for Rosie who sipped a bottle of her mama's milk.  We hoped to get a photo of the three of us during the event, but time and Rosemary's patience ran out a bit, so when we returned home Nonna snapped a few:

It really was a fun day and memory in the making.  And she really was very happy....really she was.

I couldn't resist

Lately, I have become intrigued with Amigurumi, the Japanese art of knitting (or crocheting more often) small, stuffed animals with anthropomorphic features.  The patterns are quite stylized and actually remind me of drawings I saw in manga, Japanese comics some of my students read.

Last weekend, I got on a bit of a roll making these Martian Mice friends.  And even though these will be Christmas gifts, I couldn't help posting their cute faces.  Just looking at them makes me smile.

Even their behinds are happy!

In the bag

In my preparations for Christmas, I endeavor to be mindful of the wasteful way we package things--the items we buy and the gifts we give.  In the past, I have wrapped gifts in tea towels, eschewed wrapping paper for a single satin ribbon, or used tissue paper because I believe it decomposes more readily.  This year I made a few reusable totes and small pouches to house gifts.  Just yesterday, I stitched up this.

This travel size pillow case was quick and easy to sew together.  I simply pieced the inside border and then stitched together the body and the two borders.  My children had travel pillows made for them by my grandmother (Matthew's still sits in his room!).  Always useful for small heads, the smaller sized pillow is great for car trips, watching television, or adorning the bedroom.

By family consensus this year, we are reducing the number of gifts we buy and give.  This rocketship pillowcase will house a special gift for a very special boy.  After the case is emptied, it will be refilled with a pillow. How about that?  Two gifts in one!

On Mending

My Grandma had a mending basket;

a shirt missing a button,

a skirt with hem ripped loose,

Grandpa’s overalls wanting patching.

And my mother darned socks;

who does that now--

spending precious hours

weaving holes shut?

It takes time to mend;

sewing up the rips

and tears of living, restoring

things back into a state worth using.

Happy Thanksgiving

If the only prayer you ever say in your life is

thank you, it will be enough.

             --Meister Eckhart

"Women helping women"

Last week, a women's comedy improve troupe (No Artificial Sweetners--isn't that a great name!) that my daughter-in-law belongs to, staged a benefit performance to help the women of Mwariki.  Prompted by the stories of Brenda  Eppley, a Fulbright Fellow, these players made people laugh and in return asked for a donation of money, yarn, or knitting books to send to global sisters seeking sustainable ways to live in a village where the male population has been decimated by war.   Brenda documents the story here.  Read it.

As a knitter and quilter, I am captivated by stories that connect those of us who work with our hands.  Women have always clothed families, covered beds, and warmed hands and heads with the yarn and fabric passing through their hands.  Women have always championed their families, their villages, education, justice, and peace in words and deeds that reflect a uniquely feminine voice and step.  Like Brenda and like Alexis and her friends, I too want to help in whatever small way I can. My small part was to pack up some yarn and books from my stash to theirs, from my hands to theirs, and from my heart to theirs.  May God bless them as they learn and labor.

It's beginning to look a lot like

Almost Thanksgiving.  For some reason, even though grocery store circulars and recipe emails have been touting our national day of thanks for some time, mid November still surprises me.  My intuitive calendar remains stuck somewhere in October.  However, almost all our leaves our down, save this surprising flame bush, and the tree silhouettes outside the windows where I write are brown and spindly in contrast to the lush green foliage of the previous season.  We are heading into winter's hibernation....sigh.  I am not quite ready to do that.

But despite that weird internal calendar, I have been sewing a bit in preparation for Christmas.  A few simple potholders--gifts for Alex's teacher, Jamie's daycare provider, and for whomever else I decide to give them too  Easy and quick and fun to put together.  Basically I cut:

          one 4 1/2" h square for the center
          two 2 1/4 x 4 1/2" strips
          two 2 1/4" x 8" strips.

Sew the shorter strips on the top and bottom first and then sew the long strips to the side.
Cut the back and batting (about 8 1/2" squares) and quilt.

Sew on the binding with 1/4" seam allowance (One potholder takes about 40" of binding, I cut 2 1/4" strips) and finish either by machine or hand stitching.  Ta dah!

Even though I drag my November heels, I confess to thinking about Christmas.  This year,  I want to stress less and celebrate more.  I overhead wise counsel for women for the season of celebration--"be a host, not a martyr."  Part of our family will be here for Thanksgiving and our whole family will gather for Christmas.  The thought of that warms my heart, and I get excited with thoughts of preparations.  This year, we are going to try something new with our big Campbell family time.  With two now-growing families, my sister-in-law still seeking work in this challenging economy, and my husband and I who are trying to downsize our stash of stuff, we all decided to pick names for our gift exchange.  We each will buy one gift (and Jim and I will fill stockings).  The only exception will be for the children or a handmade gift.  A true blessing of the season is simply being together.  With our family spread up and down the East coast, those times when all the leaves expand the table are preciously few.  Laughter, chatter, bodies bumping into each other in the kitchen, and toys strewn all over the house will be the best and most lasting gifts for all of us.