Our Christmas Week...

We made magic gingerbread cookies!

We used berry juice from blackberries and cranberries to color the icing.

The batter looks rather odd here. You have to slowly add the butter bit by bit until it melts. The fun part was adding the baking soda! It fluffed up and doubled in size. That is what made them magical :)

Yes, I know! My photos are terrible but this was at night. Wassil is something we always have at Christmas.

Some of our favorite gifts. This beautiful puzzle is from Community Homestead. It was made by  some very very talented people. You should definitely check out their link! 

This is a fantastic game! We've played a few times since Christmas.

I made 2 mermice! In case your wondering who this cute little mouse comes from. The author/illustrator husband and wife duo live in our town! Their books are beautifully illustrated and in the back are many sewing and knitting projects from the story. They make fantastic gifts!

Lil' was so excited to get these beautiful handcrafted animals from Wild Apples. This artist is truly talented. They were made in the U.S.A and they were much more affordable than Ostheimer. Although they are very beautiful too.

I made some "fairy lights" from egg cartons to brighten up the dark nights. The pictures really don't show how beautiful they are.

Out eldest received a candle kit for Solstice and made candles for Christmas night!  I  am in need of some advice from fellow "naturalist" parents. Although we requested that no one buy our children gifts, we still received many plastic toys. I didn't want to be rude and kindly accepted them. Now, we are stuck with them. What have you done in the past to avoid this? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Gratitude Sunday

Today, I'm simply grateful for the sun and all of it's glory! As we celebrate it's victory over darkness, the coming days of new life, may you and yours have a blessed Christmas day!

{This Moment}

In her words.... "I'm making your dishes come true Mommy!"

Winter Solstice Crafts For Creative Friday....

Earth clay with herbs and spices!

We used what we had to make these beautiful smelling ornaments! Various dried flowers, allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon, rosemary, thyme, curry powder and sage.

Some of the ornaments were "smashed" with herbs and spices on top and in some we mixed them right in. Not to much as the clay can get brittle and crumbly. 

Lily used roses and thyme in this one. 

I really like the warm amber glow that the cinnamon give when rubbed onto the clay. We  also made a  few beads for a mobile.

This one is a happy heart for "Big Sister"

Last night Tory and I made some pomander balls in preparation for  Winter Solstice Celebration!

She was excited about this craft as she is every year. This time though, her hands were strong enough to poke the cloves through the orange rind!

She used raffia to tie them up.

They smell so wonderful! I love the look they get after they dry. 

I am also working a very simple cotton blanket for my new nephew. Sometimes the easiest projects always turn out the best. I hope you and your family have a lovely solstice! Are there any special things you do on this day with your family?

The Tail Bone Breaker....

We waited all day for my nephew to be born. That gets very tiring. Especially for little big sisters!

He was finally born at about 9 pm.

My sister nick-named him beefy. He was 9lbs 3oz.  That was big enough to break my sister's tail bone. That poor thing! She was amazing though. 

He is perfectly happy being a little brother. He is absolutely perfect! 

Long Time Gone!

I have been so busy. Our internet wasn't working at all so I couldn't blog but I am so glad I had 2 full weeks away from my computer! Tory turned 9 and my nephew was born on Saturday! I got to watch him being born. He was so big, he managed to break my sister's tail bone. She is amazing! 

Our "Phoebe's Birthday" inspired birthday cake. 

The beginning of advent.

Blackberry smoothies!

Gnome clothes. 

I hope my nieces like him! I'm making them a pair for Christmas.

Horrible pictures yes! But the paper turned out beautiful! I wrapped  the soap I made in it for gifts this year as well. I made grapefruit/bergamot soap and lavender/mint soap. Smells very nice according to my guinea pigs ( my family:)

I knitted a Phoebe Dress for Lily's doll.

St. Nick brought this cute little puzzle! As well as beeswax candle sheets! 

Yum!!!!!!

Yesterday I received a lovely package from momto5 as http://onemamasjourney.blogspot.com/ of some goat's milk soap and lotion. I have been in love with hand made soap for a while and I happen to love goat's milk. It is so very soothing to my skin. Far better than anything I have used yet. Anyway, this stuff is AMAZING!!! I am not kidding. I love the Nag Champa scent. I cannot say enough great things about about this soap and lotion. Here are some pictures to prove how good this stuff smells....

This is the yummy stuff I'm talking about. Goap and Gotion :)

As you can see, I'm not the only one who couldn't stop smelling it!

She seems to be in a state of bliss. (:

She likes the lotion (or goation as we are calling it) just as much as I do.  I was so excited to find out that I had won her giveaway! It's so nice to receive such a wonderful gift like this! So again I just have to say thank you to momto5!!! Now were wondering if we can buy some!?

Creative Friday.....

We have been very busy getting ready for Christmas. My eldest daughter's birthday is a few days away so I'm busy making a few gifts for her too. 

I finally got to finishing our King Winter. What do you think?

I also finished our Christmas Angel too. I'm not sure the flower will stay in her hand though. 

Lil' was very proud of this most beautiful ornament she made. Not bad for a 3 year old.

Purse strap for Eldest Daughter.

I'm knitting both my girls a simple pair of slippers for Christmas. Simple because I'm going to knit something a bit more complicated.

I'm going to be knitting this Fire And Ice Shawl with this special skein I got from my favorite yarn store as a thank you gift. Its a skein of Lorna's Laces DK Honor in the colorway The Loopy Ewe Shuffle made just for customers who shop there. Although you can order the yarn on the Loopy Ewe website, they're just currently out of stock :( I've never attempted a shawl so it should be a challenge. I really need to learn to knit past the basics though. 

As a child, I played with this all the time. A few pieces have been lost over the years but my children enjoy it anyway.

I have packages to open today too! I ordered "Phoebe's Birthday" and 2 mermouse kits. And something I won from a blog giveaway! I can't wait. Have a beautiful weekend.