Buy My 'Papes, Sir - Newsboy Hat

I love to knit and crochet.  Okay, maybe my love borders on obsession, which borders on total neglect of my children and husband for hours at a time while I sit, yarn in hand... but whatevs.

On my favourite pattern site, Ravelry, there are over 220 000 patterns available.  Of those 220 000 there are 73 000 patterns that specify that they are for the female gender, be it baby girls, child aged girls or grown women.  Never mind the thousands of clothing items for dolls.  There are only 8 000 that specify that they are for boys.  Okay, forget the math. The point is there are an infinite amount of patterns out there for girls, and a limited amount for boys.  And I get it.  Sweaters, dresses, darling hats with larger-than-your-baby's-head flowers on them tend to be way more exciting than plain toques (Canadian for beanies.)  But, I like to dress up my boys, and I like to make things for them. So, in my attempt to do just that, Silas got a new hat!

No, it isn't meant to be on sideways, but when a 20 month old dresses himself...

 

Call me lazy, but the quickest way to knit and crochet is to use thick yarn and big stitches.  So these hats are designed to be quick and easy.  Made with bulky yarn (or two strands of worsted weight yarn, even better because you can bust up your stash like mad making these) they only take an hour to make.  That's my idea of a great project.   So, whip out your crochet hooks and crochet up one of these for your own little one, or for the next baby shower you go to.  Put that bag of yarn from your grandma to work!

Here's the pattern for the Buy My 'Papes, Sir Newsboy Hat. (Just click on the link, and it will take you there.)  If you do make one, I'd love to see pictures, or upload them to Ravelry.  Let me know if you have any problem getting the PDF and I will make sure to get it to you.

 

Tutorial: A Birthday Shirt

Did you notice the shirt Eli was wearing on his birthday?  Well, let me refresh your memory:

I didn't think he would like it so much, but he wouldn't even put his pirate shirt on because he "loves the shirt that says I'm four."  He wanted to wear it the next day too, but apparently when I made it I forgot that no woman in her right mind would make her four-year-old a white shirt for his birthday, however cool it is?  I should have picked the blue shirt.

The shirt was so easy to make. The t-shirt cost me only $6 at H&M, the fabrics for the applique were just scraps from the Black Apple Dolls I made last year. I am going to make one for Silas's second birthday - I just have to find a plain blue shirt in his size.

Okay, let's get started:


Stuff you need:
- plain t-shirt (beware of white!)
- 2 contrasting fabric scraps
- a lightweight, double sided, fusible interfacing - I use Heat'n Bond Lite
- sewing maching

Take your shirt, fabric and interfacing. You will use a lot less fabric if you cut out your fabric shape and the interfacing first, and then very carefully iron the interfacing to the wrong side of the fabric.  Otherwise you can iron a large square of fabric to the interfacing and then cut the shape out of both.  Because I was using scraps I did it the first way and just trimmed the edges afterward.  So, once you decide which way you want to do it, pick a shape, any shape, and using one fabric, cut that shape out.  My circle was precisely the size of that nice yellow record sitting beside the t-shirt.  You could cut out a star, a square, even a trapezium if it suits your fancy.  Any shape will do.  Out of the second fabric cut a number.  I just drew mine freehand, but you could blow up a number in Word and use it as a stencil.

Peel the paper backing off the interfacing and iron the shape to the centre of your t-shirt.  

 

Using a matching thread and either a applique stitch or a zig-zag stitch, sew along the entire edge of your shape.
Iron your number anywhere onto your t-shirt and sew it onto the t-shirt too.

 And that's it.  You're done.  Your kid will never forget how old they are again (and neither will you)!  Enjoy.

best. dad. ever.

Too bad for the rest of you, but my boys have got him, and since there can be only one, all your children are hooped.  That's right. We've got the very. best. dad. ever.

Don't ask me where I got this idea. It was on a blog, somewhere. I'd love to remember, so if you know, tell me.  But, in any case, the t-shirt we made Jared for Father's Day really sums it up.  I'm a lucky wife, and my boys are even luckier. 

Love you Jared!

Jenny

The Greatest Raw Chocolate Dessert EVER!

If I haven't convinced you to try a raw food recipe yet, please let this be the first. You won't be disappointed, I promise!  I have being trying to write this post for months now, but the problem is, every time I make this recipe it gets eaten long before I can take any pictures.  But, finally I remembered to have my camera on hand while I made it.  Trust me, the pictures don't even come close to doing this justice.  My sister, Alice, came up with this recipe, and she will forever go down in history as the creator of this fantastic dessert. We love you Alice!

This recipe is fabulous for so many reasons.  First of all, it is good for you. No, it's not just not bad for you, but it is good for you.  Do you know how healthy coconut and raw cacao is?  Don't trust me, do some research and you will be eating this all day, every day.  Also, the ingredient list is simple and can be made with just a bowl and a spoon. Many people may not have almond butter or coconut oil on hand, but both are easy to get a hold of.  I use cacao powder, because it's raw, but it can certainly be switched for cocoa, and vanilla extract can be used instead of powder.  Alice likes it best with maple syrup, but agave nectar would be just fine. You get the point.  As I tell Jared often, raw food is an art, not a science.

Make it, and enjoy!

Raw Chocolate Fudge

1 cup - raw almond butter
1/2 cup - coconut oil (warmed to liquid state)
2 cups - shredded coconut
1/2 cup - agave nectar or maple syrup 
1/3 cup - cacao powder
1 tsp - vanilla powder
1/2 tsp - salt
1/2 cup - ground almonds/almond flour (optional)

 Mix together all ingredients in a mixing bowl.  Place the mixture into a 9x9 or similar sized pan. Place in the freezer for at least two hours before serving.  Keep in freezer, if you don't eat it all at once!

Tide Pool Exploring

Why it hasn't been blazing hot at all here in Victoria, I don't know. Instead, we never leave the house without sweaters, and the place where we go most often and want it to be warm the most, the beach, is usually the chilliest, due to that pesky wind.  We did manage to find one empty beach though, with beautiful, sandy, warm tide pools, full of all sorts of "sand creatures," as Eli calls them.  We didn't bring our swim suits, so the boys stripped down and relished in the warmth. 

 

And, because we all know how much I love breastfeeding pictures in beautiful places:

He's FOUR!!!

How can one not be madly in love with this kid?  I honestly don't know.  It's been four years since I was transformed from who I was into who I am, and I wouldn't go back for anything.  Eli makes me smile every single day.  He has taught me more about myself, my relationships, my God, than any classroom could ever teach.  He has completed rocked my world!  Today will be a day of crazy pirate adventures, treasure hunts, and eating what ever he wants, but for now I just want to declare to the world that I. LOVE. THIS. KID!

Swimming in Potholes

On Sunday, after church, we went for an afternoon picnic in the park. We are trying to see everything we can while we are here in Victoria, and we'd heard the "Sooke Potholes" were worth the drive, so we loaded up and headed out. Turns out a chilly Sunday afternoon, while not the most ideal time to swim in the Sooke Potholes, is definitely the best time to visit the Potholes if you want them all to yourselves.  It was beautiful, and there were so many perfect skipping stones that Eli almost didn't mind not jumping in.

I spent the time playing around with the settings on my camera! 

"Look mom, this rock looks like a nose!"

 Don't eat the rocks, Silas.

 Eli's idea of dunking himself in the water. 

 I can't get enough of this profile. I love this boy!

 "I'm the leafy treetop!"

And, for the few moments I wasn't snapping pictures, I was enjoying the afternoon from here.