And now for something completely different…

From February! My daughter turned 4, and while I was pretty sentimental (4 seems so much older and more grown up than 3 – and she will tell you all the things she can do now simply because she is FOUR!), I decided to embrace all things panda in order to throw her a humdinger of a party.  Which was good, since it gave me something to do the week before when we were SNOWED IN. Thank God I had gone to the store and had had the fortitude to stock up on baking supplies before the blizzards hit. I’m from Pennsylvania, a wierd state that is “up north” when we’re in DC but growing up, “up north” meant New England. But I digress. All that to say I wasn’t too worried about going out in the snow…they were predicting 12-18 inches or more, we all were skeptical we’d get more than a foot. Two storms and 36 inches later, I was glad I had cake making supplies.

The party wasn’t huge, just our little circle of playgourp friends and parents, the folks that have gotten me through the past 4 years and my daughters closest friends.  And being in DC, this was right about the time Tai Shan was leaving our zoo to go back to China. A certain four year old in our house was heartbroken. But, she’s easily perked up (becuase she’s FOUR!) and the panda cake I made was a huge success. Especially the black icing that made for black mouths. And the next week she got to bring panda cupcakes to nursery school to celebrate post-snow with those friends.  I think I’m more proud of the cupcakes than the big cake – took some raisinets and black gel icing to make the faces. Basically, I outdid myself and am wondering how on earth I’m going to top this one for FIVE next year!

 

Busy

Lame-o excuse for no blogging, I know. But it’s been CRAZY around here. First The Snowpocalypse hit, then Christmas and New Years, then hubs came down with walking pneumonia, then Natalie got her first ever ear infection followed by me getting a nasty case of bronchitis. The sick fairy really hit our house hard, only to be followed by Snowpocalypse II: Electric Boogalo and less than a week later, Snowpocalypse III: Yeti’s Revenge. 2 feet plus 18 inches equals a LOT of shoveling and cabin fever.

And now it’s the end of April, I started this post two months ago. Jeez! Anyway, I’ve been working my sewing machine hard the last couple of weeks, trying to work my way through some spring fabrics I’ve had squirreled away for ages. Have so far made two sun dresses and a seersucker smocked top with matching pants for my daughter.  Also crocheted a baby blanket for a gift back in march, and am currently making a peacock bath towel for my friends 18month old who is obsessed with peacocks. It’s pretty frickin awesome at this point and all I’ve done is cut it out, attached the hood, and bias-taped around the edges. Tomorrow I’ll start cutting out and attaching the peacock feather details. Did you know a girl peacock is called a peahen? That’s your random trivia for the night.

I’ve also been photographing up a storm this winter/spring – twice visited the newly opened local yarn shop to photograph their wares, as well as a fancy-pants baby shower, some engagement pictures down by the cherry blossoms, and I have 2 family portrait sessions in the works and my first wedding in less than a month. If all that plus a day job and a 4 year old isn’t enough to keep someone busy, then I don’t know what is. 

Pictures to come soon…

 

Winter Hobby

I love to crochet, but I’m a little too ADD to follow a serious pattern. So I’ll never be able to crochet a sweater or something of that nature. However, things for small people I can handle and I’ve made some hats and baby blankets that are pretty kick-ass if I do say so myself.  Bold yet not obnoxious, lots of strips and silly poufs.  I did a blanket recently with a giant baseball in the middle and Red Sox colors for my baseball obsessed friend Adam and his wife and their new baby boy. 

A few weeks ago I whipped up a hat for Natalie with ear flaps, fleece lining, and a pouf on top at her request. I also made some opera mittens (mittens that go all the way up to her elbows as to prevent drafts where the jacket cuff and mitten usually gap), which I want to put matching pink flowers on the tops but a certain stubborn almost four year old won’t let me.  I also intent to make a matching scarf, but can’t decide between pink and brown stripes or more brown with pink flowers at the ends. Decisions, decisions!

However, crocheting mittens got me thinking that I could come up with some crocheted animal hand puppets that would be pretty awesome, too…

 

Woohoo!

I’ve only officially been doing this photography thing for a few weeks now, and I’ve just booked my first wedding in May. Thanks, Kate and Bryan for thinking of me!

Tomorrow I’m shooting Christmas pictures for a friend and her family – we’re headed to the local botanical gardens and their indoor holiday train display. My friend’s almost 4 year old is obsessed with trains. Granted, most little boys really dig vehicles, but you need to multiply that by 12 to understand Timothy’s enthusiasm. We figured taking pictures at a location where he’s sure to have a happy grin plastered across his face would be half the battle. And I plan on having a pocket full of m&m’s on me, too.

 

Holidays!

With a month till Christmas and Thanksgiving tomorrow (there’s an 18lb turkey defrosting in my fridge…), I started in on some ornaments for etsy.  Three are three sets of three listed now – two are red and green, one is all blues. Got the idea from my grandmother (a master quilter when her eyes were still good) – they are made from pieced together bits of old holiday cards. Eco-friendly and festive! Check out my etsy shop for ordering. I’m pretty quick on the turnaround and can usually have them in the post no later than the next day. Plenty of time for decking the halls.

 

At long last

New goodies up at etsy!

http://tinyapple.etsy.com

 

Coming soon, I swear!

I just have to gather my stocks and take a few pics and post them on etsy. Sounds easy, yes. except that we’re in the middle of a bathroom re-do that has to be done by the end of the month (when our tenant comes home and we have to give her back her bathroom that we’ve been camping out in the past two weeks). And at 5am this morning? Water on the other bathroom floor, coming from a leaky toilet and what we presume are stripped valves since we’ve had to replace such valves on two other sinks and one toilet in this house since moving in. So…we’re off to Target in a bit to use their bathrooms.  Although I’m sure we’ll manage to find *something* to buy. I can never seem to walk out of there empty handed even when they don’t have what I came in for.  Thankfully I also have a key to the neighbor’s house (hi Deb!) and will be headed over there at least a few times today as well. Curses!!

 

Welcome!

Visiting my site after picking up a card at the Acorn Hill sale? Welcome! It was a great day for me; once I re-group and assess what remains of my wares, I’ll be posting groups of fruit and veg for sale on my etsy site HERE. And, for you Acorn Hill’ers and friends, you have my card, which means you have my email. Feel free to shoot me a note if there is something particular you are looking at or want to buy from etsy but not pay shipping/fees. I’m happy to deliver to your home in our area.

Thanks for making this a great day!!

 

Marketing

It’s odd to have to market oneself. Not something I’ve EVER been good at, oh me of little confidence and shyness and who absolutely loathes any sort of public speaking. I designed and ordered business cards, which I think came out tremendous, and have been kicking around the idea of postcards advertising what I’m trying to do, and sending them out to friends and family. But it just feels wierd so I haven’t ordered them yet.  I can’t rely on word of mouth to get business…I want to, but I at least need to get the word out more first before I can rely on those friends to spread it.  Anyway, it feels like a HUGE step…I don’t know that I have ambitions to become the DC area’s most sought after event photographer, but I want the chance to get paid to do something I love.  Sure, I’d do it for free and have been for a while for friends, but if I get paid, maybe someday I can quit the desk job I occasionally loathe but need to pay the mortgage.  And teach my daughter that I can be an awesome mom, provider, and inspire a love of photography and art that is already blooming inside her.

 

Pumpkin

Feeling a little like fall today, nice after the muggy past couple of days. Pumpkins are finished, now on to a few more fruit and veg standards for the craft show – only two weeks away!