My favs: personalized mug set, vintage book cord caddy, knitting needle organizer, oh, so many lovely things…it’s not too late to pick up those scissors and or thread!

http://www.designsponge.com/2011/11/diy-best-of-handmade-gifts.html

My niece, Emma, came to visit recently and she is my go-to gal for paper crafts. She has so many origami kits! This time, she brought a kirigami kit so we could add some cutting into the crafting mix.

She taught me to make these large snowflakes out of six attached petals. Fun!

While Luke and Tim were busy making monsters (yup, I’ll post those, too), I went to work on pages for this little book. It’s still missing a cover, but it’s filled with textures, tabs, flaps, and pockets so there should be enough fun for a while. It was fun to make, and easy, too, even though I figured things out as I went along.

Just so you know…Stay-at-home Papa has discovered the sewing machine and there are many monsters coming our way!

When I was visiting Kate and Tim in Winnipeg, we happened upon a great little knitting shop (Wolseley Wool) where design-minded Tim and I set about choosing some good colour combos for projects.

This yarn was Tim’s choice, the colours, too and we wanted to design a hat for baby Ruthie (who was sleeping for the whole shopping trip). He sketched out a design and I made it happen. Here is the result!

Unfortunately it’s too small for RJ, but Bear loves it!!

Pattern notes to be added soon…for a good version!

My mom found this recipe on Cookstock. After a few modifications, here’s how I’ve come to make these crackers:

Rosemary Raisin Walnut Crackers

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup dried fruit (cherry raisins and apricots are my favs)
1/2 cup nuts (walnuts, sliced almonds, chopped almonds)
1/2 cup seeds (poppy seeds, pumpkin, sunflower, honey-coated sunflower seeds)
1 Tablespoon flax seeds or chia seeds
1 Tablespoon sesame seeds
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced or 2tsp dried

3/4 cup yogurt
1 Tablespoons honey
1 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 Tablespoon molasses, unsulphured
1 teaspoon baking soda (scant)
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

Mix first 7 dry ingredients in large bowl.
In measuring cup, mix yogurt honey, brown sugar, molasses, baking soda, and salt.
Combine wet into dry ingredients.
Pour batter into two mini loaf pans or freeform batter into two logs on a baking sheet (use parchment paper).
Bake @350°F for 35 minutes.
Cool, wrap, and store in the freezer at least overnight.
Without defrosting, slice very thinly, about 1/8-inch.
Place on cookie sheet lined with parchment, sprinkle lightly with kosher salt.
Oven dry @225°F for about 1 hour.
Turn off oven and leave to dry and cool; store airtight.

We’ve stumbled upon a bird theme in Ruthie’s room…starting from little birds that Luke bought from Moss before she was even born and was added to by Grandmere and Grandpa who brought a birdie mirror to greet the hours-old Ruth at home. Since then we’ve collected cards, paper, a paper bird from Stratford and a glass one from Winnipeg and even some green tin ones from the Yukon! What a lucky girl.

What we have pictures of here are the birdie name tag we got at a new fav store, Little Peeps on Queen St. East and a RUTHIE sign designed by Lauren Tennant. The sign shows the letters of RJ’s name ‘hidden’ in bird-inspires settings.

First on the agenda: The Country Bride Wedding Quilt
This was created by my grandmother, Jean Taylor and quilted by the team of women – The Thrifty Quilters – from our home church, St. James Presbyterian near Belmont, Ontario. I received this on my wedding day, a warm, rainy day in August 2007. It wouldn`t be right to say that Grandma wasn`t there…I think, as my Aunt Jessie said, that it was Grandma who nudged the heavens into raining just for the 45 minutes that the ceremony lasted so that we`d move indoors to St. James church to be married in the very spot that another Jessie Taylor said her vows decades before. I love the freshness of the colours and the white-on-white stitching of this. I also love that there`s another one just like it waiting in the attic of our farmhouse for my sister on her special day.

Our baby girl, Ruth Jeanetta, is named for her great grandmothers: Ruth Cleminshaw and Nancy Jeanetta “Jean” Taylor.  These little, tiny, baby leg warmer/socks are knit to match a pair that GG (Great Grandma Ruth) has.

I just used the pattern stitch from Kumara Bed Socks (ravelry link), with some ribbing at each end. So cute and we can still see her litle toes!