Peter Rabbit the Turtle

It's been a long time since Charlie has had a cold. Which is especially strange this year as there has been some nasty stuff going around. But, yesterday he woke up with puffy eyes, a runny nose and a dry cough. Poor thing. :( It's so sad when a little one is sick.
I remember one of the first times he got sick and wishing there was something more I could do than Children's Advil and cuddles. We went to Toys R' Us and bought him a dinosaur. Now we don't make a habit of this and he was too young for it to become an expectation, but I just felt so helpless, I had to do something.
So as we sat curled up in bed drinking tea and apple juice yesterday morning, I started to think, this is the perfect day to use my new sewing machine and we will make something out scraps to make him feel better. As I suggested this to Charlie, he got so excited and wanted to make a lizard. A tad ambitious if you asked me. As I was going through things we could make that are "easy"(my sewing skills are limited to mostly straight lines), I thought of a turtle. Perfect. Charlie was on board.
He picked out the material he wanted for the shell and I picked something for the bottom that I knew we had enough of, then away we went. Charlie picked some buttons for eyes which turned out really cute.
All said, it went a lot smoother than I thought. We made some adjustments along the way (like now it is a sea turtle, not a regular turtle for fear of not being able to establish what was leg and what was a head).
Anyway, it's done. Not a bad project for the day with a sick kid and cold weather outside! I actually kinda like it and may make a few more to sell.
The finishing touch for any stuffed animal, of course, is a name. This is all up to Charlie. So I asked, "what are you going to name him?" Charlie asked, "What's the name of that rabbit?"
I was confused, so I asked, "You mean like Peter Rabbit?"
"Yeah. Peter Rabbit. That's his name."

So, there you have it, Peter Rabbit the Turtle. I may not be able to make a killer Chicken Noodle Soup to make him feel better, but hopefully this will work just as well.

New Year, New Ideas

Happy New Year everyone! It's 2013. Most people take this opportunity to make resolutions, a couple of years ago though, I decided to take a different approach to the new year. I like to pick something that I've considered difficult, unknown, scary or new to tackle each year. I know it seems sort of silly to need an entire year to complete what may be a simple task, but hey, this is my challenge so I invent the rules.

2010 started it as that is the year I turned 30 and I had always wanted a tattoo. Done. 2011, make a quilt. If you read this blog, you know that is Done (although quilt #2 is still in the works). 2012, really take the time and dedication to learn yoga. Done and still going. I knew this one would I would really like so I waited for the right time to start. I do believe this is something that will be with me forever.

Which brings us to today. January 1, 2013. What to do this year?

I bought a bunch of books the other day and have two more on the way. I read "Steal Like an Artist" in about an hour. All I can say is, I'm inspired. Talks about journaling. So that is on my to do list this year. Started "The Book of Awesome" all about really great things in life that make you smile. Read a great article in "Outside" called "Take Two Hours of Pine Forest and Call me in the Morning". Basically, it says GO OUTSIDE. Which is funny because that is what "Steal Like an Artist" kinda talks about too.

Skimming through two Yoga magazines and started reading "An Object of Beauty" which is really off to a great start (especially when I can hear Steve Martin narrating it in my head).

So what does all this mean? I feel like there is a common thread of Nature, Positivity and Creativity here but can't seam to connect the dots into a solid 2013 goal. I've already that decided that this will be a year of journalling and keeping track of ideas and inspiration. I may need a huge wall in my house somewhere, or the nice huge scrapbook Dad bought me for Christmas. For now I'll keep on this path, hopefully the positivity and nature will lead me to some great paintings. In the mean time, I'll keep my eyes and ears open for my 2013 goal (and keep reading).

Cheers!