the un-inspired mama

i know the calender says it is october but the weather tells another story, therefore i have been completely un-inspired to do anything autumn related. our nature table has not been updated with all of my favorite decorations that represent my favorite season. my tee shirts have not yet been replaced by fall-weight sweaters. and hats... i really want to start wearing soft, hand knit hats! my inspiration for this space has also been missing lately. hopefully it will return soon, perhaps when the thermostat dips below 80 degrees and i feel on track again... we will see.

in my last post i shared a couple photos that were taken by a new friend, erin, a few weeks ago. if you go peek at her blog and scroll down a bit you can see a few more of our family's photos.

here are some other favorites from that afternoon ::

and, just for fun, a sweet little video of baby luca being entertained by his brother and sister. harper makes a couple appearances as well...
luca was very drooly that afternoon and a few days later we found out why when his very first tooth peeked through his gums. right now he has two tiny teeth. and he is still drooly.
enjoy!

ten and one

yesterday was much like our special september afternoon 10 years ago. warm and sunny with a subtle hint of fall in the air. the autumnal equinox.

he is still amazing. loving me even when i am unlovable.

and loving our babies. oh, my heart swoons.

today is the first day of our next ten years. and i am more excited than ever to see what they will bring.
living.loving.life.

♥

lust for life

rainbows on hips.
iggy pop in speakers.
singing out loud.
laughing at everything and nothing at all.
getting our silly on.

happy sunday, friends.

cables and cashmere are my favorite.

i want to tell you all about that hat i was wearing in my last post. my new favorite hat.
both the pattern and the yarn are from pepperberry knits. it is the hannah hat knit in 100% recycled cashmere. hat wearing bliss, my friends.

the pattern is really cool and gives you the option to customize the hat and the hat band. i choose the slouchy hat with cabled band. it didn't come out quite as slouchy as i expected but it turns out that i like a slight slouch.

i received both the pattern and yarn as a christmas gift last year from a sweet friend. when someone gives you cashmere in your favorite color you know they pretty much love you.

i have actually had the chance to meet and get to know heidi from pepperberry knits over the summer. she is so sweet and super fun and i can't wait to knit more of her patterns (like those mitts!) and that yarn.... there will be more cashmere knitting in my future, for certain.

as of right now

i am finally getting excited for autumn. it took me a while to get there but mostly because i had a crazy summer and feel like i missed out.

i have a mad sweet tooth. i generally try to keep it in control.

i am often unsuccessful in keeping my sweet tooth in control.

i have bruises on my hips from hula hooping.

i am really quite proud to be a home birthing, breastfeeding, cloth diapering mama. but i am even more proud of the fantastic little people these kiddos are becoming.

i am thirty six years old and still am not at all uncomfortable telling people my age. every once in a while it freaks me out that i am closer to 40 than i am to 30. but i get over it pretty quick.

i am self conscious of my crooked teeth. it used to be my long, skinny nose, but now days i could care less about that. i bet i will someday not care about my crooked teeth, but then it will be something else, i suppose.

i haven't read a book in an embarrassingly long time. i spend my free time (ha!) knitting and sewing these days.

i used to love to wear make up and cute clothes. now it is considered a good day if i am able to shower. and brush my teeth.

i find it funny that back when i wore make up all of the time i probably didn't need it much. but now that i am older and sleep deprived and not quite as cute and perky there is just simply not time.

and one more thing. i love the people who read my blog. like seriously, i love the kind folks that i seem to attract to this space. i love the sweet comments you leave me and the stories you share. i love reading your blogs about your families and your homes and your amazing creativity. and just simple day to day living, often the most beautiful of all.
for this, my friends, i thank you.

sweater pants :: re-fashion

we are busily gearing up for cold weather.
i recently took some thrifted sweaters and sewed a few wool diaper covers for luca. we almost exclusively use wool cloth diaper covers - either knit or sewn from recycled or purchased wool fabric.

these were made from the sweater sleeves. super quick and easy. there are quite a few tutorials available online. i really like this one ::
sleeve pants
and the leftover sweater pieces will likely become eco pixie hats.

the rainbow stripes is our favorite pair. i also just finished knitting a pair of rainbow pants and am currently knitting one more pair for him with the yarn from my previous post. then it will be time to move on to wool mittens and wool hats, and perhaps a small wool sweater or two.

on an unrelated to this post note, i think it is seriously cute that he sucks his thumb! i suppose a tiny pair of wool sucky thumb mitts would be a fitting project for fall, no? maybe to match his wonderful wool pants... ah yes, add them to the queue.

happily yours from the little house of wool,
erika

september 2010 happenings

brand new month, brand new happenings to post about ::

new kettle dyed colorway. i plan to knit something for luca. pants probably. i have been undeniably drawn to aqua blue lately.

new bag listed in the shop today. i really love this one.

new craving for an old favorite. this chai concentrate is so, so good. in my tea, in my coffee, on pancakes and even ice cream. i just made a fresh batch yesterday but don't expect it to last long.

and lastly new and wonderful inspiration in the autumn issue of rhythm of the home.

all of the above is sure to keep us busy for weeks. very*happy*busy.

welcome september!

current offerings

{shop talk alert}

i added some fun things to the inspired mama MAKES! shop this week.

kettle dyed yarn, spinning fibers, and a couple project bags.
(there is a third project bag that i have fallen in love with and i am having a hard time letting it go... i dunno, i might list it monday and see what happens)

i am currently working on a series of gradient and self stripping colorways and hope to have them ready to list next week.
autumn is near... time to kNiT!

now, if it would just get cold...

i {fi-nal-ly!} finished my shalom cardigan. i mean like, totally, ready to wear, finished. washed, blocked, buttons attached, bring on the cold weather. it is warm. and i really like the color. i think it will definitely get some love this winter!


i modified it quite a bit. i used wool from peace fleece in the lena's meadow colorway. rather than binding off after the triple yoke i left the sleeve stitches on some scrap yarn and came back to them later and knit full length sleeves. this would be super cute with 3/4 length sleeves too! the cuffs are knit in the same twisted rib as the yoke.

i also added three button holes-one for each tier of the yoke. the buttons are also from peace fleece. i found them in the bottom of my notion bag and coincidentally there were exactly three of them left. it was meant to be.

hey, summer, you are officially dismissed.

oh hey, a new season is approaching....

...affectionately referred to as BACK TO SCHOOL!

which means i have a new back-to-school project queue keeping me plenty busy. let me share.

i plan to sew this lunch bag for esme ::


i have become obsessed with bento boxes.


i want to sew some little snack bags like these, but i still need to find a food safe liner that i feel comfortable using. any ideas?


this dress is super cute and will be a fabulous project for the yards and yards of michael miller knits that i acquired this summer.

i found this adorable mushroom lunch bag tutorial this morning and when riley saw it he said "i want one!'


why, you ask, would a sixteen year old boy want a mushroom shaped lunch bag? his answer- simple. i'm a fun guy. enough said.

cheers

did you know that it is world breastfeeding week 2010? mama's milk certainly deserves a celebration, i think! here are a few of my favorite nursing photos from the past three years.

busy on-the-go harper, 2008- just stopping by for a sip.

breastfeeding harper on the salmon river

harper and mama on the payette river

and little luca nursing on the salmon river. turns out we like taking river nursing photos!

and a sleeping baby luca wearing one of our favorite little tees.
yum.

wander and return

we are just home from a short family road trip that took us through the beautiful idaho mountains, into montana where we spent some time on flathead lake and missoula, and then to riggins idaho to play on the salmon river. and in typical inspired mama fashion i barely touched my camera. boo. here are a few pics i did take, mostly of the last day of our adventure.

sleeping kids. finally. bliss.

wild blackberries for lunch. sogood.

the perfect wading beach for little people. and we had it all to ourselves. score.

super cute boys. swoon.

tiny toes in the river for the very first time. too cold.

sand monster? this photo is totally reminiscent of the classic bigfoot strolling though the trees video, no?

kissy face. he loves it, i promise.

mr. charming and inspired mama.