Tag Archives: Homemaking

April 14, 2010

Working?

By fionaeason

This week I got my work permit in the post.  A month early – arrggh.  Now I have to look for paid work.  Yesterday I applied for a job running an after school programme in North City – quite the poorest part of the county and probably not even a real vacancy anymore (seems the non-profit website I used is a little unreliable)…but it made me dust off the CV and get my head around some letter writing skills again.  I am off to try my hand at applying online for some Med School research assistant jobs now.

I am looking for part-of-the-time-paid-work as we have a part time place for Kazuo at a daycare centre nearby that will be quite suitable.  I am not planning to go back to teaching here as I only want to engage in paid work for the social contact and to gather together a little fund for relocation expenses.

I think that the rest-of-the-time-unpaid-work takes up enough of my energy and enthusiasm.  Working outside the house again will be a challenge.  Frankly I am not sure how the super-moms do it…and I guess I have discovered that I need our family life to be my main priority for a few years yet, so paid employment that involves passion and take-home enthusiasm/activity might just be beyond my own personal remit.

At the same time, Akira has embarked on job-seeking and is getting some good responses…so we shall see how that impacts our future plans soon I guess.  All change again!

I am feeling a little wistful already about my days with my little man…and nervous about how his sensitive little soul will cope with daycare as he has lately become (predictably for his age) very wary of others, very clingy to Mama and Dada and very shy of other children.  Sigh…if only it was possible to stay home all the time, but alas, our lifestyle does not really allow for such luxuries these days.  Not working, with all the social strangeness that comes with it, is still quite an attractive option right now.

But on with the serious job of finding some other work…and on with the happy job of looking out for this one:

1 comment   |  tags: , , | posted in Homemaking, Work

April 2, 2010

This Moment

By fionaeason

{this moment} – A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you’re inspired to do the same, leave a link to your ‘moment’ in the comments for all to find and see.

Check out SouleMama for the inspiration.

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , | posted in Craft/Design, Film, Homemaking, This Moment

March 18, 2010

Winter Sewing/Crafting Pt II

By fionaeason

Finally my poor sewing machine has made the journey to and from the Brother Repair centre in Tennessee and is home safe, sound and in great working order again.  But the wonderful generosity of Tarah meant that I managed to get a few crafty projects off the ground over the winter – especially given how ill we have been.  In my previous sewing post I mentioned that I had made some cushions for the sofa.  I finished their felt companions recently.  They do look a little duller than I expected, but they help to make the futon a little more curl-uppable.

After receiving my lovely button brooch from friends in the UK last month, I remembered that I had picked up a jar of old buttons while rummaging on the 61 Mile Yard Sale a couple of years ago.  So I ferreted them out and had a sort through.  It was pretty much dross, but I found enough to have a go soon at making a pretty hodgepodge of a brooch like the one I was sent, and the leftovers I glued together this week into some funny  little button/felt pins to brighten up my summer cardies:

I also managed to finally complete the bunting I have been making for Kazuo’s room.  I was in the middle of making his birthday bunting when I received Handmade Home for Christmas.  I hadn’t considered making a bunting a permanent fixture in the home until then, but I loved the idea of the single-word banners in this book.  So much so that I barely made any changes to the original idea on the cover – except to pluralise, use my own font and change the end images.  I’m not too good at dreaming up my own crafty ideas, though I usually use published ideas to fuel my crafts, but then I stumbled across the delightful toadstools that Janelle at Heartfelt was using to embellish her crafts.  They are so lovely and I am totally in her debt for the inspiration – I urge you to check out her Etsy site – her upcycled kids clothes are simply delightful!  Kaz seems quite taken with his bunting (a ‘baba’ – just like everything else beginning with/containing a ‘b’ – there are surprisingly many of those!) and it will hopefully create good dreaming karma in his little space:

We made a trip to Hobby Lobby last week (still so profoundly disappointed with fabric selections in this town…) so there are now a range of spring sewing projects in the pipeline.  Yayy for the return of the machine!  There may be more to come…

3 comments   |  tags: , , | posted in Craft/Design, Homemaking

February 17, 2010

Winter Sewing – Part I

By fionaeason

Cushions are my latest obsession.  I do go through phases.  They are nice and easy to sew, and I can construct a couple while Kazuo is sitting at the table watching me sew if they are cut out the night before.  Before Christmas, the only handmade Christmas presents I managed to construct were the two cream felt cushions I made for my mother-in-law.  I based the covers on a design I had admired at the 2008 Rock n Roll Craft Show at Third Degree Glass Factory.  I took them with me to London and got some inners from IKEA that fit beautifully and did NOT break the bank.  They looked substantial.

Acquiring similarly priced inners in St Louis is nigh-on impossible.  The cheapest I have found are twice the price of the IKEA inners, and much less robust.  So, with tarting up our plain old living room sofas in mind, I made a foray to my fav local Goodwill and got me a bundle of cheap old cushions that I can recover.  Not something I would do for a gift, but perfect for us as they are made of much better stuff.

Round one I managed to construct this week.  I was fortunate to receive some of the lovely paua-style fabric from Cushla’s that I had coveted in my Christmas Wish List (thanks Mum!) and so I used a little to make panels in the centre of some black cotton.  The cushions all have 12″ zips in the back so that they can come off and be washed.

One thing I want to know…how do crafty Mamas manage to sew with toddlers around?  I know my mother used to set up the sewing machine inside the playpen and have me outside pottering about, but I don’t think that Kaz would have a bar of that, and besides, we don’t have a playpen.  This week, I succumbed to food-bribery (to which I usually have a deep aversion), since I could not stop the pop from trying to use the foot control – kinda unnerving when the machine races away while your fingers are fiddling about by the presser foot!  So I trussed him up in his clip-on high chair, and gave him a couple of these tasty crackers, and one of the tiny gingerbread men we got in the UK.  Not a big treat, and nothing too filling, but diverting enough for me to sew up two cushion covers and keep Kazuo in a friendly state of mind.  We even played hide and seek behind the sewing machine.    But if anyone has any other bright ideas, then I am all ears.  I can’t sew when he is asleep, it is too noisy in our wee apartment.  And he is past being diverted by toys in the high chair, just throws them instantly to the ground.

Well, the cushions made it through production.  Here they are cheering up our rather muted living room:

4 comments   |  tags: , , , | posted in Baby, Craft/Design, Homemaking, Sewing

February 11, 2010

Crafty Amazingness

By fionaeason

Last year when I had a rare crafternoon with Julia (and my sewing machine jammed irretrievably), she was working on the most incredible paper cutting delights with some old Funk and Wagnalls Encyclopedias.  Imagine my joy when she presented us with our very own masterpiece for Christmas:

Here is a side view, including the lovely old book binding – I’m pretty sure my father sold Funk and Wagnalls in the 60′s, so it was a doubly poignant gift:

Today I finally made it a wall in our dining room of arty little companions that I had been collecting up for sometime:

Here they are looking very much at home. I am so grateful for Julia’s crafty contribution to our decor!

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , | posted in Arts, Craft/Design, Gratitude, Homemaking

November 12, 2009

Not Working Seems To Be Working…

By fionaeason

…for now anyway.  After reading my lovely friend Mandy’s comment on yesterday’s post, I have spent some time today reflecting on things I have put out into the blogosphere in the past year, and musing on how not working feels now, after more than 18mths of the habit.  I have been inspired by, and feel some camaraderie with other stay-at-home-mothers who blog their daily lives.  It has helped immensely to read their thoughts and to feel that I am not alone, and indeed there are some very creative and interesting people out there bringing up their children splendidly…

In the past week I have found the erosion of my social position (if you could call it that) in the absence of paid employment more acutely than I have done this year.  Not sure why that is… nothing much has changed.  But I guess, like homesickness, these things come and go in waves.  So it appears I may not have really resolved any of the feelings of being all at sea that come from not working, rather just buried them beneath a patina of getting-on-with-it-ness (is that preoccupation?).

Nevertheless, on the whole it seems that the job of the homemaker generally sits well with me – for now.  I keep busy keeping the baby clean, healthy, happy and hopefully stimulated enough to be developing at a suitable pace.  I usually manage to keep the house tidy and clean, the pantry stocked, and food on the table.  Most weeks I also manage some sort of creative endeavour and/or some interesting outings and social engagements.  I am also keeping involved with some political activism of sorts and making an effort to stay engaged a little with the outside world, though often it is only the internet that answers for that.  As I said to Akira’s aunt last week, I do enjoy the quiet pace of life with Kazuo, and am reluctant to disrupt it in the near future, though the prospect of paid employment is looming on the 2010 horizon.  And one thought that bugs me, is that most women are expected to do all the things I mentioned above AND engage in some kind of paid employment… now where does the energy for that level of commitment come from?  How must the division of labour in the home shift to accommodate the working mother, and am I cut out for such a juggling act?  Even more interesting, how could my split personality (for surely that is what is required) impact on Kazuo, who currently has my more-or-less undivided attention?

Well, I don’t have much to show for today’s not-working, but one of the main activities was keeping the little man somewhat close to his usual sunny dispostion – seems he woke on the wrong side of the bed.  Here you can see us at the post-consolation-point, Kaz still in his sleep sack from his nap, but managing a smile after the hard work of cheering him up from a teary awakening has been achieved.  I am grateful for the tenuous and perhaps fleeting ability to still comfort him/get him to sleep with a little cuddling, a bit of patting and some soft singing.  I hope that persists for a wee while yet.

After the Nap

1 comment   |  tags: , , , , | posted in Baby, Family, Gratitude, Homemaking, Motherhood, Work

November 5, 2009

Helmet Free!

By fionaeason

Well, it has taken me a while to get round to this – but I wanted to give a FINAL update on the helmet – it is all over!  We are still somewhat skeptical that it made any difference, or was really all that necessary.  But the fact remains that in the three months or so that Kazuo wore it 23/7, his head did round out considerably and one would never know that he’d had a flat spot at all.

Although he was not phased by having to wear his helmet, I am enjoying our little guy being more affectionate and cuddly without the impediment of the plastic.  He is having to learn (slowly and the hard way it seems) that the floor is hard, and that leading with his head when he rolls over, or indeed when he forgets to use his hands to balance in his pre-crawling moves, is going to result in a painful bump on the head.  We have had some wonderful bruises to the forehead in the past fortnight.

So Kazuo is getting on with normal life, helmet-less.  I am enjoying the new things he can do and the little things he likes to participate in around the house.  Here he is helping Dada ‘fold’ the washing.

Laundry Boys

And this was him, a little too bright and early this morning, in his new Nana-made sleep sack that arrived in the post from New Zealand yesterday.  He has more or less made the adjustment away from Daylight Saving without too much trouble, but this morning it was awake just before 6am, rather than his usual closer to 7am… and we were all feeling a little less than chipper.

Snuggly

Yesterday we had a visit from the Parents as Teachers parent educator, who suggested more stacking and nesting activities to stimulate Kazuo’s fine motor skills.  I had already been taken by these stacking boxes on the weekend, so a perfect opportunity to add them to the toy box.  They are by Sami, who also did the wonderful book of faces that Julia’s folks brought Kazuo a few weeks back.  He loves nothing more than destroying a tower of blocks.

Stacking

We have (as I have mentioned ad nauseum so far) been so happy with the wonderful sunny weather this week – and the weekend is set to be even better.  This morning was farmer’s market shopping, and we stopped at the playground on the way home.  Although it made him smile the first time, swinging really has been slow to catch fire for Kazuo.  A bit like his mellow, slow response to the swimming pool.  But the past few days he has really enjoyed the sensation of the swings, so this happy little outing made his morning.

Swinging

It’s been a long haul of physio and helmet wearing, but we are so glad to have our chimpy wee chap back to normal now, and to be done with all the trips to the children’s hospital for the time being.  They have taken good care of us, but it will be nice to have a few weeks leading up to the holidays that are not filled with appointments to keep.  And more cuddles and snuggles to come!

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , | posted in Baby, Gratitude, Homemaking, Outings

September 6, 2009

Culmination of Craft Week

By fionaeason

The sewing machine and all my craft materials have been taking over the dining room all week, so I thought I better get finished up for a few days so we can clear the clutter.  Also, the holiday weekend has turned into a washout of St Louis-style monsoony thunderstorms, so indoors activities were the order of the day.  Since my Monday post, I managed to complete these little trousers for Kazuo made out of an old t-shirt from the Goodwill:Upcycled Trousers

I made this little proto-type shoulder bag for a friend’s birthday:

Heart Bag

And this triptych for our dining room, using some organic motifs I have been mulling about for a while:

Paintings

Here they are hanging on our big bare dining room wall:

Dining Room

And although I didn’t have to do much (or spend any money, thanks to a Walgreen’s voucher for free digital photos), I did make up this photo mobile that the Moulin Lab sent us for Kazuo, it was great to gather up photos of family and friends for him to gaze at when he is lying about in the crib:

Mobile

Here he is getting acquainted with everyone, (I got some wire to string it up above his bed as there was no way we could screw into the ghastly plaster ceiling) it’s a little distracting for bedtime, so it is handy that I can just pull the mobile out of sight towards the window:

Pop and Mobile

A satisfyingly creative week, but I have loads more projects swirling about in my head, so I guess it won’t be long before the dining room is overcrowded with crafty scraps again!

2 comments   |  tags: , , | posted in Craft/Design, Homemaking, Rainy Days

September 1, 2009

Crafty Sewing Week

By fionaeason

After burbling on about how annoying it is that the pool closes this coming weekend while the sunny hot weather will probably go on and on (last year it went into late October) and bleating about how summer is NOT over etc etc… the weather took a turn on the weekend and the mornings and late afternoons have been quite cold.  Cue winter clothes… jeans (check, can do up my pre-preggo jeans finally!) and cardies.  But what about the boy?  It is several months since he wore long sleeves or anything on his feet and in that time he has almost doubled in size!!

First, we trekked out to Target for our once-a-month-formula-shop and picked up some long-sleeved onesies and ten pairs of socks.  I hunted through the clothes drawers and found a couple of 3-6mth hoodies that still do up and will serve for now with a t-shirt under them and ditto with the little cream cotton jersey I made last year.  I also have a little jersey on the needles that will be suitable soon enough (if I ever get it finished) and there are a few jerseys and a cardy that I have had stored away that will probably need to come out when it gets much colder.  My mother has just sent some little cotton knit trousers which are great for keeping the sun off little legs in the stroller, and will do the trick now that it has cooled down, but there is a dire need for more things for his feet and more trousers and lightweight tops/jackets if this cooler weather keeps up.

Fortunately, it felt like a crafty sort of a day yesterday.  I have been getting the sewing machine out a bit lately for little projects, so I set it up while Kazuo was sleeping and began rummaging through my craft boxes and on the internet for ideas.  I made use of some free online patterns for baby shoes:

Baby Shoes

and a pair of stretchy organic cotton trousers (note to self:  don’t use the stretch stitch on the hems in future, they look a little too girly!):

Trousers

and had used my nous to invent a pattern for a little jacket:

HPIM2212

though I started that a few months ago, so it will only do for this interim period I think, but it is good to have it finished.  Kazuo’s feet have grown (along with all of him) quite considerably, and even my attempt to enlarge the little shoes pattern is not really adequate (they just fit him today…) so I will have to make them even bigger next time!

It was wonderful to be properly sewing again after such a long hiatus.  However, the machine is not a quiet as I had thought – so in our quiet apartment, sewing while the baby is sleeping is not really an option.  For some reason, our little guy, who slept soundly at three months through even our ghastly, insanely loud vacuum cleaner, bursts into tears now when I use things like the coffee grinder or food processor (not to mention the ultra-scarey vacuum!) so I did feel bad when he woke shrieking from his morning nap because I had hazarded a few seams while he slept.  Sigh.

Usually I set him at the table in his chair with some toys to watch me sew, and he manages for a while – he is initally mesmerised by the whirring and spinning.  But the fascination soon fades.  Here he is keeping me company yesterday afternoon:

Sewing With My Helper

The smile is really a reflection of how much he loves the camera now and belies the tears that were angrily spouting a few minutes earlier from frustration at having to sit and watch and not join in!  We are off to Hobby Lobby this afternoon to get a few more supplies for trousers and little shoes, and maybe the odd Christmas present (yes, if I am making them again this year, I think I need a head start) and may do a trip to the local Goodwill tomorrow morning as I found a great idea for making little trousers with interesting patterns on them just by using old XL men’s t-shirts from the charity shop, and I want to see about getting some old cardies/jerseys to fashion some easily-sewn winter woolies (‘cos let’s face it, I will NEVER have enough time in the evenings to knit an entire winter wardrobe, one jersey and maybe a couple of hats might just be my limit this year!).  So watch this space for the results of my crafty endeavours!

1 comment   |  tags: , , , | posted in Baby, Craft/Design, Homemaking

August 24, 2009

…and Hand Picked

By fionaeason

In our continued programme of finding lovely outdoor things to do on the weekends while the sun still shines, we set out early yesterday morning to pick the last of the summer blackberries

Wind Ridge Blackberries

and some Encore Peaches that have just come onstream at Wind Ridge Farm near Wentzville, about 45min drive away.  It was the nearest we could get to the kind of ‘just down the road’ pick your own fruit & veges that I grew up taking for granted in Nelson.   The fruit were looking beautiful in the summer sun, and it was a lovely morning out.  Kazuo was in the backpack, which was a bit of a challenge for him when Akira bent over into the blackberry bushes (they both came away with a few little scratches) but gave him an excellent view of the pretty peaches in the trees.  As always, he loved being outside and had a happy little morning.  We even managed to find a peaceful spot under some picked-out trees to have a morning tea picnic.

Wind Ridge Peaches

Although the berries were pretty picked over, and the peaches were only just coming into ripeness, we did get enough for more than a taste of country goodness.  Here is our little helping – three punnets of berries, and a peck of peaches:

Pickings

Last night I stewed up one punnet of berries (have frozen the other two) with some water and a dash of the honey we were given last weekend when we went out to Overland with our friend Tarah to visit the bees that had swarmed in her compost bin earlier in the summer.  The bees were happily established in their own hive and have been getting into something distinctive as the honey is a dark dark amber and has a wonderfully strong flavour.  All I had left in the freezer was chocolate ice cream, so we poured the berries over that and it was AMAZING.  So simple, so so tasty.

I am scouring the net for imaginative ideas for the peaches (though they are so good I think we may just eat them all fresh…) and think I might try my hand at poaching them in some white wine.  Shall see how they go ripening further first.

I buy our fruit and veges at a farmer’s market in the Loop each week, they are the cheapest I have found, so I don’t really get to satisfy my desire for organic/local much of the time.  They do source a lot of their produce from the greater St Louis area, and it is great value all year round… but I do miss the amazing taste of fruit and veges procured from source.  Somehow picking them off the tree yourself makes you feel convinced of their superior quality.  This is a spurious conclusion in that I am sure that if we could manage more organic food in our budget, it would taste even better… and there are no guarantees about production processes with these PYO places… but it was a sweet outing, and so the fruit just seems that much sweeter.  Summer… you are long here, but you are delightful!

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , | posted in Homemaking, Nature

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