My newest treasure...

 

This weekend I went rock hunting with my Dad down in the creek behind his house, I found quite a few treasures but this carnelian agate  is my new favorite. I am totally thrilled with this find. 

Now I have the fever. Springtime is the best with all the rain and changing river depth it really moves things around. 

I even dream about rock hunting. It is wonderful meditation, never gets old.

A few crafty things....

 A few weeks ago I busted into my needle felting kit I purchased at a local yarn shop during the Portland Yarn Crawl this year. I sat in the sun in my yard with my eldest daughter one day during spring break and we had a good time making little felted bugs together. I love how portable needle felting is and it is so fun and easy!

 

  

 

 Sophie made this one, it turned out great. It was her first try at needle felting.

 I treated myself to Anna Maria Horner's Fine Feather fabric back at Christmas time and was not sure what I would do with it. I had these pillow forms in my sewing room that needed covers but I didn't have enough yardage of the Anna Maria fabric to make both pillows. I found a fun fabric at JoAnns in the remnant section that was a perfect fit to complete the covers, a funky mandala shaped print with blues that worked well with the feather print. I just made an envelope style pillow case and the back is held in place with a velcro tab. Simple and fun and now I get to look at my feather fabric every day.

The egg hunt...

Hood River Valley Blossoms..

A few photos from our weekend drive ..

Day Trippin' in the Gorge

We visited Tom McCall Preserve over the weekend for a stroll along the Plateau to see the spring wildflowers. We were a few weeks earlier in the season than the last time we visited and the lupines were not in bloom yet, but I would have to say the temperature was perfect and there was balsamroot blooming everywhere.

A stroll along the Lewis River

A Sunday day trip to visit our beautiful neighbor to the north Washington and the stunning Lewis River.  Lucia Falls Park has a short but gorgeous trail along the river that is a great little hike for small kids. The trail is a loop but we always turn around at the end and walk the riverside trail twice. I am so envious of the homes on the other side of the river with decks and little ladders down to the river, oh what a view, a home for poets and artist and dreamers for sure.

My Birthday Girl 13 Years Ago...

Wow. This picture was taken in the very begging of my mothering journey. I really can't believe my baby Sophie is a teenager now. I was just a few months out of my teen years myself when she was born. Time really goes so fast and children grow and change so much over the years.

This photo cracks me up because I remember finding that sling a box of hand me down baby clothes from a friend. The only time I used it was for this photo. I remember my mom and I going out into the yard of the house where I grew up to take this photo and I remember saying, "I don't think this is right". Sophie did not last in it very long either. Don't worry, I later bought a ring sling, that I used correctly.

Children growing up is so bittersweet. I ache for the younger versions of my children. Maybe it is that I am afraid of them growing up and needing me less. I am starting to panic a little.

A Teenager!!??

Thirteen years ago today, our lives were forever changed by a dark haired baby girl born with firey faerie eyes, eyes wide open to greet the world for the first time.

Our first baby girl is turning thirteen today!

I can't believe I am the Mom of a teenager now!

Happy 13th spin around the sun Sophie! We love you!

Yarn Along: Hats,Hats,Hats and a Belated Yarn Crawl Recap

 I have been on a hat kick lately I guess. I just finished a Star Crossed Slouchy Beret for my oldest daughters Birthday (13!). She picked out the yarn and the pattern. It was fun and fast and super easy cable pattern after working on this doozy....

 This is my Skeleton Key Tam that I have been working on like crazy, enough to wear a hole in my finger from the cable needle..ouch. That was a lot of crazy cabling. I love the design but it was turning out a bit small and I didn't notice until 70% through the pattern that I was knitting on size 6 needles and was supposed to use a 9! Oops! So I  am feeling frustrated and not sure if I am going to frog it or just finish it and give it to one of my girls. I do think the pattern would show up better in a lighter color, This was not the yarn I purchased to make the hat originally I planned to use a light blue tweed until I realized I had way less yardage than needed.

 I finished my second Blume Hat. As you can see I still need to weave in the ends( and bush my hair...geesh). I was wondering why it look different than the last so I reread the pattern and noticed I forgot to pick up stitches along the brim that creates the petal look of the hat. I actually kind of like it better without it so I am just wearing it around as is for know. I can always go back and knit the brim. It was hard enough for me to re knit the hat in the first place after the first one was a pain in the butt took forever but I loved it when it was done, but sadly lost it. This is my replacement, hopefully I can hold onto this one because I doubt I will have the patience to knit it ever again. It is a simple pattern but the tiny needles and sock weight yarn drove me nuts.

 A few weeks back was Portland's Rose City Yarn Crawl. It is a fun event that links all the local yarns shops together for a four days of sales and raffles. Each store you read you sign in for the raffle to win a huge basket of yarn for each store and get your "passport" stamped. This was the first year I actually went to all of the shops. It was exhausting honestly. The worst part was driving in the SW suburbs that I am pretty unfamiliar with...tons of twisting interstates and highways, and traffic in the suburbs is so much worse than in my S.E. Portland neighborhood. I wish I had GPS or a smartphone, it would have been so much easier. I don't know how some of these ladies would hit them all in one day, I spread mine out over 4 days and was still exhausted...and I am about half the age of most of the Yarn Crawlers. I am glad I did it but I think next year I will stick to the stores within the City limits. One shop in particular towards the very end of my Crawl called the Dublin Bay Knitting Company was particularly cozy. It was pouring down rain outside and dark and dreary, and the shop was so warm and cozy with a fireplace with cookies and tea spread out on a small table surrounded by comfy couches and Downton Abbey was playing on a flat screen t.v on the wall. Sigh, a little bit of heaven.

 Here is my passport before I handed it in at my last stop!

These are my goodies that I got along the way. I am lucky to have the Yarn Crawl right after my Birthday ever year so I have a little spending money to treat myself.  I got two skeins of yarn, a needle felting kit, some beautiful ceramic buttons made by a local artist, and a bunch of patterns that were 3 for 5 dollars(score!) I got several patterns by Coco Knits that I have had my eye on for years. The one pattern you can see is called Zip and I wanted to make it for my son about 5 years ago. I guess I am getting another chance to knit it for Nalah while she is still small.

I am currently reading Afterbirth:Stories You Won't Read in a Parenting Magazine a collection of parenting tales by various writers. I just spotted it at the library one day and thought it looked like a fun read. As I am home alone with three kids five days a week I need to keep my sense of humor about parenting as much as I can.

I also finally got my hands on Wild by Cheryl Strayed a local author.  I have only just begun but it is quite the tale, The first few chapters have already broken my heart. 

Wow knitting friends, thanks for reading through that monster of a post! Please follow along with Ginny at Small Things to see what other blog friends are knitting and reading and to share yours as well.