And The Winner Is...

Ella, from Little Red Caboose. I first came to know of Ella about a year ago, when I first made this quilt. In some ways, I think this fabric was supposed to go to her. I've been following her life online with her little boy, and I feel a kindredship with her. She seems to be living a similar life as mine, just a couple years ahead of me and a little further up the highway on the coast of BC.

You can find her here:
Etsy
Flickr
Blog

And how beautiful is her belly?!

I can't say enough how much I love and appreciate all your sweet comments!!! I really wish I had enough to send to all of you. I really, really do. I have more giveaways planned in the future, so please stay with me.

Thank you all, friends. You inspire me endlessly.
Love,
Amber

Clarification

Hello, friends.

Thank you so much for all your comments and kind words yesterday, I love reading them all. Keep 'em coming. There are still a few days before I'll randomly choose a winner. I wanted to clarify that the giveaway is only the fabric, not the finished quilt. I apologize for the confusion.

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My shop is stocked full of new soaps and variety packs. Come on over and have a look.

Happy Wednesday to you all.

A Give Away

Remember this quilt I made last year? I have left-over fabric that I'd like to give away. There's more than enough fabric to make another quilt or two, at least one the same size as this one I made. My finished measurements are approximately 45" x 55", a perfect size for a toddler or lap quilt.


Just leave a comment, even if you're new here or haven't commented yet, I'd love to here from you. I'll randomly choose a winner Friday night and send your package along. And I may just throw in some soap or a candle :).

Thank you for stopping by, friends. Happy Tuesday.

Kitchen Essentials

Out of all the kitchen ware I have in my kitchen, quality knives are what I consider the most essential part of good cooking. Food tastes better when things are cut using good knives. Ingredients are more uniformly cut, and therefore cook more evenly, blending flavors more perfectly.

My preference are Wusthof and Henkles. I mainly use Wusthof because they just feel great in my hands. But I have several Henkles that I use for different reasons. They are definitely worth the investment, they last forever.

I have other kitchen items I just couldn't do without, like good pots and a quality cutting board. What are some essentials you have in your kitchen?

Freezing Water

Do you put out fresh water out for animals during the winter? You should. It's difficult for animals to find unfrozen water during winter. Quite often, the only unfrozen water they're able to find is water that's been treated with antifreeze. And while antifreeze is sweet to the taste, it's highly toxic and deadly. It's a common toxicity we see in the veterinary ER during winter months.

If you think of it, try leaving fresh, unfrozen bowls of water out for wildlife near you. I do it daily when it's freezing. I also put out water during summer months when water is sparse. My mom and dad taught me this :).

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I'm planning on taking an apiary course starting February. It's a hobby my dad does and I've always wanted to learn more about.

Have a good weekend, friends.

A Couple Things

Alex has been away this week working a job on Orcas Island. With his absence, Burl's had a hard time falling asleep. So we've spent the past few nights driving around, taking pictures and enjoying our town in the middle of the night.

I've updated my shop with a few new items. I hope you enjoy!


Happy Wednesday, friends.

CoSleeping

Thank you for your comments yesterday. I loved reading your goals and being reminded to include my son more in my daily activities. I appreciate you, friends, and the amazing inspiration you all are to me.


I've been thinking a lot about cosleeping lately and what an important part of our family it has been over these past couple years. It's a practice we're all happy with and one Alex and I are both advocates for.


During Burl's infant stage, there were countless benefits to cosleeping. Now that he's older, his needs have changed but the benefits of cosleeping are still just as important. One of my favorite benefits is the opportunity I have to mother him through the night. Is he comfortable? Is he too warm or cold? Did his blankets fall off? These are all questions I think about, even while I'm sleeping. With him laying right next to me, I'm able to hold him and mother him and take care of his needs throughout the night. We love cosleeping, and don't intend on doing things differently any time soon.


Every now and then I'll here him whisper, "Mama?". I just put my hand on his back and he breathes a sigh of contentment, "Mama". It's very sweet.


There are some great reads out there that support the practice of cosleeping and dispel many myths.
Cosleeping.org
Mother-Baby Behavioral Sleep Laboratory
BreastFeeding.org
NatureMoms

If it's something you're considering, I can't recommend it enough. If you practice cosleeping, leave a comment on what a favorite benefit of yours has been.

A New Year

Happy New Year, friends.

With this new year, I have a few things on my mind, some things I'd like to improve upon and do a little differently. Throughout the year, Alex and I come together to regroup and discuss our personal and family goals. I'd like to share a few with you today.

*Always first on my list of goals is to be more frugal. Over the years of being married to my fiscally-conservative husband, I'm slowly starting to pick up more of his habits, and will hopefully do so even more this year.

*It's a hope of mine to become better at meal planning and food budgeting. I have some ideas I'll be sharing in a later post.

*I'd like to be more present in this space and improve the feel here to make it more personal. I'm not yet satisfied with what I've created here, nor do I feel like it's quite 'me'. I'm also hoping to be posting more often with some sort of regularity.

*Finally, I'm hoping to spend more time focusing on my shop. I'd like to improve the layout, presentation and general feel, and again make it more my own.



I have more on my mind, I always do. There are several mama-sewing-cooking-knitting-photography-arts-crafts-animal-gardening and health related topics I've been thinking about, which I'll be sharing more of later on. So here's to looking forward and the start of a fresh year!

In the meantime friends, what are some goals on your lists at the start of this new year?