The Story of the Bodhi Tree

Patchwork tea towels

I have had it on my mind to whip up these tea towels for a while now. Originally they were going to be part of Christmas gifting, but my time + energy got the better of me! I was even more inspired when I received a set of Jane's beautiful organic towel sets. I have some overdue gift giving + trades, and these will be going off to those people in all different parts of the world.

There has been more needle felting going on over here! I decided our little village needed a pond....

I have been wanting to do a pregnancy post and soon I will, but for now here is a picture of my growing belly at 20 weeks. I feel so big already! I am carrying this baby similar to how I carried Angie, which was not as comfy as with Bodhi! Things are happening faster this time round, I guess that is what happens with each pregnancy.

The fruits of my labour

This is a project for the little sprout. I wanted to try a hand at overalls but was unsuccessful at finding a pattern I liked. So I had the idea to make a really long waist (which I have done for B in the past) and add straps when, and if it works out to do so. It felt like I was knitting these forever! I even ran out of yarn 5 rows away from completion. I have also had the idea to incorporate knitted/fabric/embroidery for a long time now and this seemed like a good place to start. I *really* liked how it all came together.

Mushroom wonderland

The past couple of days I have been needle felting again. It started off because Bodhi wanted a campfire. Then I decided to add the little mushrooms, and then the mushroom home came to life. I have wanted to do a playscape for Bodhi for a long time but it has always seemed a little daunting, kind of like making a quilt.

While I do enjoy needle felting I find I really have to be in the right space or else it can be dangerous! It is quite aggressive (which can be good sometimes!). I find that with needle felting I have more control of what I am creating compared to wet felting (but that is from lack of experience). When I first started to needle felt I literally used one needle to make felted balls, I did not know about felting tools. Luckily my friend Fern lent me her tool, and then after that I bought my own from here. I find that the key to a good needle felting tool is the weight it has to it.

Now I think I am done needle felting for a little bit! It is good to do every once and a while.

everything together

with the cap on

inside view

Opa Amaro arrives home

My stepfather is a Rolfer/body worker and spends months at a time in Germany (where he is originally from). This past trip was especially long - from the beginning of October until today.

Bodhi was very excited to pick him up from the airport this afternoon. He was even more eager to open up his gifts from Germany! Although most of the things that Amaro brings back are now available in Canada, there is always something special about getting them right from the source!

These masks are something that I had as a child and always loved. When I lived in Germany there was an amazing store in our neighborhood called Berg's Tea Laden that sold these, along with many other beautiful treasures. We had quite a hoot trying these on today! Fun for the whole family.

A sweet Ostheimer wooden horse

A set of Lyra pencil crayons (the Waldorf selection). We have many a set of these, but it is always nice to have a fresh pack!

Thanks Opa!

Park play

A beautiful day in the cold. It feels great to have a full day of play outside, especially with some of our most favorite peeps. We had a quick visit with Ella + Arlo as well as a big play with Jane and Cedar. Bodhi and Cedar are pretty funny together. Lots of running around being very boyish in my opinion!

By the way, if you have not visited Jane's new Etsy shop, then go over and take a peek. Her talent is undeniable and her sewing impeccable. Who wouldn't want to bundle their little folk up in one of her one-of-a-kind kimonos? I am just waiting until this little sprout is earth side until I decide!

Apron dresses/tops

These are off to Natural Pod this week. I made them in the fall when I had a burst of creative energy. They are reversible, with a cotton print on one side, and linen or cord on the other. They have ties at the top so that they can last longer, first starting as a dress and then turing into a shirt.

I really love this style of apron top for children and women! When I was a teenager I made many a backless apron top for myself and to sell/trade. Back then I wore them with nothing underneath, but now I would with a shirt ;-)

What a day

Usually Saturday is a huge resting day for me. Randy is home, and B and him often hang out together to let me catch up on sleep! Today Randy had to go to a workshop, so it was just B and I. Man was I tired. It is like by body and mind are programmed to know that when the weekend comes I get space and quite time. At first I was feeling at a total loss of what to do, and then I made a yummy coco and whip cream for us and I perked right up!

We spent most of our day inside playing, building villages and homes. Driving trucks around and using the tool set. All of the toys we buy have been carefully picked out and are used with love. B is at an age where he really enjoys all of them, and our place is quite open so when he is in his playroom he still feels like a part of what is going on.

Creative mojo, where are you?

I am feeling uncreative these days. I am even unsure of what to knit! I always have knitting on the go. I want to be productive but it seems like perhaps I need a quick break in order to be inspired again? I have lists in my head (sound familiar Shael?) of what I have to do. Trades, gifts, things so I can open up my etsy shop, stuff for the baby, pants for Bodhi.

This pregnancy is really exhausting and so maybe that is adding to how I feel. So I guess I should let the lists pile up while I take a rest, because I know that I always get it done in the end. Actually, that is how I work best.

Finishing up WIP's

I will confess to having piles of things that I have started to make and then left for months and even years. It always feels good to finally complete something that has been hanging around!

This is a wrap style dress from a pattern I got free online. I don't remember where it was from, but to be honest I found it difficult to follow and would not do it again. The yarn I used was... can you guess? Fleece artist. I had knit the whole thing up sometime last winter and had never sewed up the sides. Last week I blocked it and yesterday I sewed it up!

This is a wrap wool soaker that sat in my half done pile simple because I did not have buttons for it. Today when I made my trip down to the fabric store just for the buttons, I ended up not getting enough! The pattern is from little turtle knits, and the wool is just plain new zealand wool.

wool soakers

We cloth diapered and practiced elimination communication with Bodhi. He was out of diapers completely at around 16-17 months. I really enjoyed using this combo. My first batch of diapers were mother ease one size fits all. They are an "okay" diaper, but way too big for little babes. As B got older I discovered the large amount of wahm diapers online (a great way to support other working mamas). The diaper hyena and the diaper pin are great resources to find out about the different ways of cloth diapering and to see what is out there as far as diapers. We have a fair amount of diapers now, and it seems that all of my favorite "brands" are hard to come by now! This time round we will mostly do indian prefolds since they are easy to use while practicing elimination communication.

One of my favorite things about cloth diapering is using wool! How great is it that wool soakers work as a diaper cover? Most of my covers are either homemade knit longies + soakers, or sweater pants + soakers.

I was turned onto this wool soaker pattern by Fern. I like how it knit up, though I did do a newborn size and it still seems quite big. I used some fleece artist yarn that I had kicking around and it is nice and soft for a babes little bum!