a few nature outings and a sewing project

this was a gorgeous afternoon spent on a well-shaded waimanalo beach. i took lots of adorable pics of the kids and scott playing in this big hole, but the kids were in their birthday suits as usual... i'm starting to feel like i shouldn't be putting my kids' nakey bums on the internet so much.

even my crapola camera can sort of convey the perfection of this day:

the following four pictures were at the lyon arboretum, where i take the kids for a walk sometimes. having a little non-stressful interaction with nature seems to put us all in a better mood. at the arboretum it is nice and cool-ish, there are groomed paths, and of course lots of beautiful trees, flowers and plants that we all enjoy.

the kids love this gazebo and pond with its amazing water lillies that mommy can't stop taking closeups of... and sometimes there are frogs!

awww...

and here's a little gift i made for a small friend's birthday. usually i make all the birthday gifts we give away to friends. they'd probably enjoy something from the toystore a lot more, but oh well... i just like doing it.


this here's a toolbelt. i made a similar one for aidan as a test run. they both turned out pretty satisfactory. we kept the hammer for aidan so that ryan's parents wouldn't hate me too much.


the other tools i think are fairly harmless: phillips and flat head screwdrivers, plyers, measuring tape, a tiny clamp, and iddy-biddy adjustable wrench.

that's all for now folks.

a dress for ivy

i'd been eyeing this fabric at the fabric store for some time, and it finally got the better of me. i like the little yellow rebel ducks going the wrong way. the colors are great, despite what my lame camera would have you believe. i bought a half a yard which was the perfect amount to make this little dress for ivy. this was one of those sewing projects where the stars aligned, i winged it with no pattern, and everything turned out peachy. a very rare occurence for me.

front

back

it's a simple drawstring design. the drawstring acts as the straps and also creates cute gathers around the top of the dress. the string ties at the front where there's a small slit (finished with a little placket). sorry if you don't give a hoot about sewing but i was rather pleased with how this turned out. i'm hoping this design will allow the dress to function as a top as she gets bigger, as it's very roomy and the straps can be made as long as you please by loosening the drawstring.

the model shots:

and the funny faces:

(my favorite)

"helping" around the house

recently i ordered some stuff from this montessori online store as sort of a birthday present for aidan. it's hard to find good quality, child-sized household items that aren't simply toys, y'know? a kid can feel good about himself when he has the proper-sized tools for the job-- that actually work. and my kids like to "help" with housework (which usually means more work for me). anyway, we're so happy with the things we ordered (oh the excitement of receiving something in the mail!), which include a sturdy broom, dustpan and whisk broom, gardening gloves (sword-fighting gloves if you're aidan), a window cleaning set, small pitchers and glasses, a tiny glass juicer, a vegetable chopper, an apple slicer... i believe that's the bulk of it.

anyway, in the catalogue aidan saw this clothesline stand and proclaimed that he needed one. i remembered that i had a folding stool from the olden days that never got used anymore-- it now has a new life as a clothesline. ivy wanted to use it too, so fighting ensued-- good thing there were two of those old stools. since that was too easy, i had to make a couple goofy little bags to house the mini clothespins previously purchased at the craftstore (when you see them, you really just buy them without a second thought because that's how cute they are). so here are some pics of the kids helping with some of the daily work--hanging out the diapers--and enjoying it.

deep concentration.

ivy, always watching her brother.

ivy puts the clothespins on upside-down. and takes them all off. and takes the items off the clothesline. and puts it back. etc.

the quickly-made clothespin bags. they tie on to the wooden frame of the reincarnated stools. ah, there's nothing like an easy, pleasing, home-made thingamabob for which you have all the materials right at home. my only regret is the hideous florescent yellow twine i had to use for the clotheslines.

update: i started this post like six weeks ago and it took me until now to publish it! i do finally have a new camera but it takes crappy pictures, i'm very disappointed to say. you'll get to see the poor quality in all its glory soon, i hope. or maybe in another six months.

hmm, another six-month lag in blogging. it seems i'm not very good at this. in my lame defense, my camera's been broken, so i've had no recent pictures to post. the ones here are all several months old. at least there are a few videos at the end of this post that are from our recent trip to california.
these first few are of a little hike we do sometimes -- this time our friends shannon and collin came with us.

the next two are at the contemporary museum.

a st. patrick's day hui (playgroup date)-- who dresses this kid?

at the honolulu zoo

the wonders of toilet paper

and some video...

a day at the beach

aidan's first "real" surfing experience. scott paddled out with him and caught a couple white-water waves, then aidan got unbearably cold. winter is tough here, i tell you.

ivy was sleeping in the backpack most of the time, so no pictures of her. but later, she found a cozy spot in the closet:

a new post!

finally. apparently i'm not good at keeping this blog updated. so here are some pictures from a month ago-- christmas on big island.

christmas morning. this cute little kitchen was from grandma and poppi. it had to be completely assembled (by scott) late on christmas eve, then disassembled and packed back in the box so we could bring it home. it stays in the box until we move into our new house-- next weekend! yay!

some chop-able food to go with it

ivy mostly liked the wrapping paper

moving on from christmas morning, aidan loved this silly swim ring thing i found lying around. he felt so liberated, swimming "all by himself."

naked babies in a hammock.

a little beach time

a little reading time (notice the book is upside down)

this is how you charm the ladies.

people should cook like this more often. sorry about all the nakedness, but i love their little bums.

gabe, studying his petroglyphs.

aidan and ivy had a blast in this galvanized tub. it was rainy and "chilly" (for hawaii) but aidan must have been in there for at least an hour.


not a bad way to end the day-- asleep in a pretty girl's lap.
now i will go to sleep. or some form of psuedo-sleep with ivy waking me up or crowding me off the bed all night. i have to keep telling myself that some day--SOME DAY!!--both my kids will sleep through the night. but tomorrow is ivy's first birthday and so far that full night of sleep i used to know and love is nowhere in sight. sigh... it's a good thing she's so darn sweet.