The bitterness of eight

I haven't felt it before. At least not like this. But eight is so much, so big, so not a baby for so far, that it kind of hurts that he grows.

I get the feeling that  I can notice a lot of differences. That he really looks older, that he is stopping being a small child to become more like, I don't know, him, and I love to see it, to be present in this transformation, but I do get that, as he puts it: he growing into his own person, into his own ideas apart from me, becoming himself, and I feel proud and kind of sad.

Butterfly wings and more sewing

 I have been working the past nights on some butterfly wings for some orders on my shop.

I haven't ever made wings on purple and I found out that I had to use a different method than in the other ones, which is longer. I also want to get a wood frame for doing them, because as I work now it means to have four of the total of 5 chairs of my house out of use.

I enjoy very much this work, and I'm planning on doing more of this and less of the work outside, I love to give classes and I really bond with my students, babies and pregnant couples, but it really isn't working for us as a family for different reasons.

One of them is that salary is very short, plus I'm asked to give free classes and this is proving to be too exhausting for my kid and me, also, I don't get to have weekend time with him, and now we have a lot of work starting third grade on homeschooling, so I had to choose.

I'm also working on some eating sets, such as the one I made years ago for my kid to take to school but with different fabrics.

When ever I can I sew something for my kid when I have been sewing a lot for work. I have ordered some pretty fabrics to make pillows for the birthday party, since we don't have enough chairs, but they didn't arrived on time, they arrived today and are beautiful, I hope to get to make the pillows soon, but tonight I made one dinosaur one for my not so little one.

What are you working now?

Making hand puppets

Today I helped a friend to make hand puppets for an exhibition she has to make to promote her workshop.

We had fun, she brought her niece, who played with my kid and they both had a great time.

I know that she didn't had money and I didn't ask for payment, she did brought some groceries, and it feels very nice to help friends, but sometime I think I should just say no, because I don't organize my priorities well and I end up not eating enough or loosing time we should have used on homeschooling or even just bonding, I don't know...

Do any of you have this kind of problem?

Calvert again

We love our Calvert program. It's very structured and a lot of hard work, but we really love it and enjoy it, it took a while to be able to get back here, but here we are.

The excitement of getting and opening the boxes felt like a party.

And I know, is only July, but we started already, and we are very happy, taking it a little slow at the beginning, getting used to it again.

I'm a little nervous, for teaching this year in English, since it is our secod language, but it seams that my boy has a better level than I thought, he understands a lot and is learning more all the time.

I think this year is going to be great, and having him in my life is the best.

Sewing sewing, like a busy bee

Yarn Along it's a day of the week to share what you are knitting and reading created by Ginny, you can add your post here every Wednesday or to the flickr group any day.

So, my kid's birthday is this Sunday, and I'm oh so far from done with all the crafting, but I keep making progress. Of course time to read is not on the picture right now, nor knitting, but I did finish the shawl I talked about last week, just that I don't have foamy block to block it. I do love it, I hope my gran would like it, but for me I would make the large size, this one is medium.

Last night I worked on the mini bow and arrows pouches, and the swords, axes and hammers, all in felt, so kids could not hurt them selves. I made the blade on the swords one side grey and the other side blue, so they can play turning them when the orcs are near.

I also started to place things on the wall, the elvish crowns on Rivendel, the Dwarf Beards, etc. I still have to find a place to hang the floral crowns and the leaf hair pins that I think are kind of hobbit style.

And made the cardboard shields so the kid can decorate them, these are pretty easy and you can reuse any box. I add little shield photos so they can get ideas.

It's been crazy, but I'm pulling it, I'm still have to make the capes (I already made the design, but I think it needs some improve) and the messenger bags to go, did you saw the Smaug Piñata?, I love it.

Smaug :: the fabric piñata

 I'm joining Nicole today on Keep Calm, Craft On, you can visit her here.

I give you Smaug, the fabric piñata, answering to the situation of not having were to brake a piñata in my house. First I must say that here in Mexico piñatas are great tradition and we don't see it as an act of violence, it's just tradition, I understand to some of you may not feel very comfortable about beating and breaking an animal figure, maybe this option could be good for you too, even when it was not why I did it. I really didn't have were to hang it and my floor is wood so I was afraid that it could be damaged, or for an accident with the hitting pole, so I developed this.

I decided to make a dragon with a zipper, and two loops on the back, thinking that a pair of adults on a chair could hang it high, and after the kids attack it with the q-tips arrows we can roll the zipper and all the candy and toys will fall.

I have been trying to develop a nice bag for the arrows and mini bow, and this is what I came up with, all the arrows outside hold by elastic and a little elastic to attach it to the risk. I'm not all convinced with this solution but I'm running out of time, because I had to move the day a week before because if not it would be the same day than the Fifa Cup Finale, and I know kids and parents would have their minds else were, so I still have 11 pouches to go along with many other things.

Here is a short explanation of how I did the piñata. I cut many stripes to make the dragon scales and then I sew them up, I wish I had had only yellow to cover it all, but this is the fabric I have available at the time, I just wish it does not looks too Chinese. This part was longer that I expect.

Then I add the pointy thing in the back (I don't know how to call it).

Then the zipper, I'm rally bad at this but I used a lot of pins and it end up fine. I used a jacket zipper because that was what I had on hand.

I closed the tail and got to work on the head. I wanted it to be a puppet too, so kids could play with it after.

I got the idea  to make a fire that can be secured with a snap, using chiffon fabric and burning the sides.

After that I filled it with candy, I must admit I went a little crazy this year. I used to be very healthy on this mater. my son's god mother used to compliant because I would only have raising and nuts on my prior piñatas, but I have some emotional process of feeling free to do as I want that lead me to this. I have been in not so healthy relation ship that was too controlling.

I also added some nice toys, jumping ropes, loteias (bingo), pickup sticks and monkey sets, little cute erasers, wrestlers, cup and plates sets, jumping ice cones, and those number mind games at the bottom, do you know them?, my mom would always include them at my parties, kind of a educative mathematical touch, I include that in the little bags of candy I'm giving at the end so they would not have the risk of breaking that I didn't had in mind but I could not fit all in the slim Smaug.

And that"s it, what are you working on?