Inadequate Materials

I've been feeling a little crafty lately, partly because I'm trapped inside due to arctic temperatures, and partly because I miss the Captain and need something to keep me busy that doesn't involve my Visa and the internet. Here are a few of my recent creations: I've been on a bit of a crochet kick, and after making a well-received Barbie outfit for my niece, I decided my own Sindy doll from 1982 needed a little something new, so I made these (obviously hoping to usher in spring) and had fun dressing her up and having her join us here in the 21st century (bouffant-style hairdo notwithstanding). I will choose one as the final outfit and send the rest to one of the little girls in my life. Really. Sometimes a girl just needs a little bling. Does anyone even SAY bling anymore?! Earrings are so quick and easy to make and I keep a handy supply of sterling ear wires and other necessities in one of those sets of miniature plastic drawers you can buy at the hardware store for...

As you may or may not know, I came of age in the 80's. Today I had a chance to look back at that shoulder-padded, fluorescent, big-haired era when a blog I love featured some 80's-inspired cakes. To see them (and you really should), please look at this . It got me thinking about why I'm so nostalgic for that most embarrassing period in time, aside, I suppose, from the obvious. Everyone is nostalgic for their childhood. Still, it was a time like no other, so here are the highlights as I see them, but be warned. I'm barely going to scratch the surface: Music : Let's be honest here, most of the time we were turning the knob on our flip-number clock radio trying to find anything worth listening to. The crap we had to wade through to get to the good stuff warranted a sturdy pair of boots. Luckily for us, those were available too. In green suede. And they were slouchy. But I digress. For every thoughtful, authentic Crowded House song, there was a synthesized, saxophone...

I have to say, my weekend could've been better. The Captain headed out on Saturday morning for a two-week exercise in France, so I spent my Valentine's Day playing Monopoly with Firstborn and his favourite stuffed animal, and generally feeling sorry for myself. Incidentally, the stuffed animal beat the pants off of me. And then that blue feeling kind of spilled over to Sunday. I lamented being stuck out here in the middle of nowhere, my lack of a social life (I've recently lost two babysitters, both of whom have moved onto other things, so my rare night out is now no night out at all until I find another one) and the ongoing cold weather, which always makes it worse. In short, I was content this weekend to wallow in my own misery. Then Monday came, and the sun was out and the fog on my brain started to lift. Yesterday, I dropped the kids off at the casual daycare on base and met my friend, the Lawyer, for lunch. I know how that sounds. Right now you're probably pictur...

On August 29th, 1994, I began a new chapter in my life. I'd graduated from the local university with an English degree and was embarking upon what I expected to be the final year of my education (I was wrong, but that's another story). On this particular day, I was beginning a program designed to teach me how to become a journalist. I grew up walking a lot, and because of this I still enjoy walking everywhere I can. The community college in my area was a two-hour hike from my house, but this did not deter me. I was 21, and therefore could do anything I wanted, including taking a two-hour walk on nothing but a bowl of Froot Loops . This was my first mistake. It was a warm, sweaty, stinky day in my hometown, the Armpit of Southwestern Ontario. I hadn't even thought to carry a bottle of water. But when I stepped inside the college doors, my wooziness was counteracted briefly by a blast of heavenly air conditioning. I took a deep breath, hit the water fountain and silently de...

Here we have a shot of Rosemary's Baby after he ate some red paint a week or two back. I've used this photo because it looks a little nicer than one of him covered in poop. Yes! That's right! Rosemary's Baby has done it again! We have another poo mural ! Things were coming along swimmingly today, when I made the mistake of turning my back for approximately one minute. When I turned back around, Rosemary's Baby had gotten up onto my sewing table and grabbed my box of paper scraps, sending the contents floating all over the room. The box was in the highest possible place and, I thought, out of his reach. Let's just say this wasn't the first time he'd shown interest. I growled, dragged him screeching to his room and told him he was getting a time-out until I'd cleaned up the mess. It took ten minutes. And when I opened his bedroom door to let him out, there he was, grinning from ear to ear and covered in his art medium of choice, his own poop. So were t...

Today I was tagged on Facebook. I'm supposed to make a list of 25 facts about myself and post them in a note. Since I am far too technologically illiterate to figure out how to post a note on Facebook, I thought I'd post them here instead and kill two birds. Please forgive my excessive self-indulgence. 1 . In 2007, two weeks before my 34th birthday, I was caught trespassing at the town dump. 2 . I love zesting citrus fruits. 3 . I claim to read romance novels for research purposes only, but I secretly love them. 4 . I played with Barbie until I was 12. I still knit Barbie clothes . 5 . If I could redo my education, I'd skip university and take culinary arts instead. 6 . During my last home renovation, I laughed loudly when we found four wear-'em-with-a-belt 1969 maxi pads stuffed behind the living room drywall. 7 . I dreamed of owning a "Fame" T-shirt when I was 8, but never got one. 8 . I like being the little dog when playing Monopoly . 9 . I met my husband...

Today did not turn out as planned. After a week of mild running-around. I was so looking forward to Friday, and a break from the insanity. Firstborn's kindergarten class is a full day every other day and he had today off, so there was no lunch to be made and no bus to be caught. Rosemary's Baby just has nursery school on Wednesday mornings, so he had nowhere to be. I'd picked up a few necessities at the teeny-tiny small-town overpriced grocery store down the road, so I didn't need to make any day-long trips into Booming Metropolis with kids in tow. And we had leftover pancakes from the weekend still in the freezer, so I anticipated a "cooked" breakfast without any actual cooking having to be done. And then reality happened. I made it to bed at a decent hour last night, exhausted from the last few days, but looking forward to a good night's sleep and a lazy morning. Knowing I don't have to set the alarm sometimes justifies staying up well past my bedt...

My little niece turns one this month, and I wanted to make her something special and, of course, feminine. I have two boys, and there are no plans for more children, so I need to grab all the girly experiences I can. I saw some dolls in a fashion magazine this past week that were based on traditional Japanese kokeshi dolls , which are sort of a tourist favourite. They are made of wood, depict little girls, but have no arms or legs. The dolls I saw in the magazine were a more colourful update on the original. I liked the look, so I decided to try to replicate the look in a combination of knitting and crochet, and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. Now, I am simply not able to send my niece a homemade gift without sending her big sister one as well. And, lucky for me, this four year-old is finally old enough to like Barb ie ! So, I decided to make her a kicky new outfit for winter! I currently have my old Sindy doll modelling the outfit. For those of you not familiar, Sindy is ...

We've gotten through January, and someone-or-other has won the Superbowl! Woo-hoo! Actually, last year I made a concerted effort to acquaint myself with the ins and outs of football so that the Captain and I could enjoy watching it together. This year, we had no TV antenna. The Captain, ever the brilliant DIY-er, made a valiant attempt at constructing one out of things we had in the workshop, but we live so far out in the sticks, it just wasn't strong enough to pick anything up. So, we morphed into our grandparents circa-1940 and listened to it on the radio. It turns out that if you're not very familiar with how football works, taking away the visual doesn't help in the least. But I'm not one to let a good Superbowl celebration pass me by just because I can't watch the game, so I went about the process of making us a plate of wings, and some other terribly fattening foods, followed by an incredibly rich tiramisu-like dessert. And you know what happens when you ...