vacancy at the Inn

Ole Mother Hubbard went to the cupboard 
and 
the cupboard was bare.....
or was it?

Seems that with the majority of the household sick

there aren't as many drinking glasses getting washed. 

This would leave an empty kittie condo...
or so he thinks.

Get out Thomas

crafting :: Young and Old(er)

Sophie and Hannah have been sewing and doing many other other crafts lately. 

It is like a workshop around here! :o)

I have snuck in time here and there to do some crafting myself

I had this notion that I should make some totes for little girls like the Giddy-Up skirts that I have made in the past.

They turned out super cute if I can say so myself

hehe 

Now they are just waiting to be loved on by a little girl and filled with all sorts of treasures

I just added them to my shop.

Giveaway :: Ideapad

I think it would be fun to get in the habit of finding give-aways and sharing them with you each weekend. 

I don't have sponsors here (yet) because of the newness of my blog to share give-aways from soooo I will go scouting them out....just for you! 

xo

:: Here is the first ::

Head on over here to get a crack at it!

Good luck and hope you win

my entry for 10 chances for the laptop myself

"I entered Crissy’s Can’t Wait til Christmas Lenovo Laptop Giveaway and hope to win a $799.00 IdeaPad!"

sure! I will jump through the hoops :o)

Handmade Christmas

 Last year there was a large campaign over at Etsy for shopping handmade. I hung my button on my sidebar (at my old blog) proudly. While I know it isn't financially realistic to totally shop handmade I sure appreciate the recognition that many are putting forth the effort to support the crafts-people who handcraft the items from their imaginations for us. xo


I am sharing some peeks from my own shop Lissilulu over at Etsy here. I really would like to do a shop update in this space once a week like many of my crafter friends, but most of the time the weeks slip by quickly.

So here is my update just in time for Christmas shopping

xo

 thank you for popping over for a peek!

and for supporting my family

xo

Day before Thanksgiving

 doesn't this photo look familiar? it's my header without cute red-headed daughters and greenery :o)

all I could think of when I saw these prints were the dance classes that have foorprints to follow on the floor...

birdie tango anyone?

 cable knit sweater of snow

Wishing you and yours a special Thanksgiving Day!

the kids and I are eating dinner here with a couple of guests...very large turkey in order to make many hot turkey sandwiches for days to come.

pumpkin pie

apple pie

strawberry-blueberry pie

scalloped corn casserole

stuffing

gravy

mashed potatoes

martinelli's sparkling cider

LOTS of thankfulness here on Melbourne Road 

xo

On the farm :: The first snow

 so much snow...where to start??

 all toasty and cozy inside

 We are so enjoying this treat of snow in Southwest Washington. 

:: Outside ::

Lots of igloo building. angel making and giant snowballs in the yard and pasture.

:: Inside ::

warm drinks. homemade chicken noodle soup. hot fire. playing the piano and singing

This Moment :: first fish

{ This Moment } 

A Friday ritual. 

A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. 

A simple, special, extraordinary moment. 

A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

 

More moments over here: SouleMama

Hoping your weekend is filled with people and things you cherish

~*~            ~*~            ~*~            ~*~            ~*~            ~*~

Party on!

We had a nice family time at Hannah's end of the season Soccer Party. 

Friends, good food, awards and cake.

Hannah has made some new friends now. 

this will be nice since we now live 30 minutes away from our old neighborhood and her old friends.

it was sweet in only an 11 year old girl kind of way...

lots of picking each other up 

and

talking

and 

giggling about future sleep overs

and

swapping phone numbers...

xo

Around my home

:: In the kitchen ::

Roast  beef, carrots and potatoes one night turned into beef soup for lunch the next day

Smells heavenly!

:: Kids ::

Hannah and Sophie have been designing and embroidering the cutest applique pillows

Hannah = frog sitting on a lily pad 

(she will sell it in my Etsy shop as soon as I list it)

Sophie = mouse standing in front of his hole in the wall nibbling a piece of cheese

Aliss = teaching herself chords on the guitar and singing songs from church with it

Zack = whatever 14 year old boys do beside the xbox hehe

Tessa = waiting patiently for her car to be fixed, 

also has a family shoot coming up with a sweet pregnant mama in it

:: Creating ::

working on a Poochie Purse design 

for a purse type carrier for sweet little doggies to be close to their people...

It is proving more difficult than I wanted because of the nature of using repurposed furniture showroom samples. 

I will live though! hehe

also I have been feeling the urge to create another herd of candy colored ponies for Giddy-Up skirts BUT also for tote bags. I dreamt of them one night...now thats scary!
(there are lots of pretties over in My Shop now)

:: outside ::

The rain is pouring down, bunnies are snuggled in and most of the leaves have fallen to the ground except for some strong-willed apple trees.

the steer come to the pasture fence every morning and call out for their morning hay too.

winter is upon us

xo

boundaries

in therapy circles boundaries are what we put around us to let in (or not) others.

on our land we put up fences.

on garments we sew to the end of the fabric.

the same goes with reading a book....to the edge of the paper.

then we flip to a new page and start a fresh page.

Life seems to be on the verge of flipping to a new page for the kids and I. New home, new vehicle (thank you God), new college (studying for the BA now)...


Why is it so hard for our views of ourselves to budge boundaries? We still see ourselves as we always have instead of what we are becoming? Even though we aren't there yet.


As I am nearing flipping the page in my life to one child becoming on her own, 4 other children growing more in every possible way every day, being on the cusp of finally helping others through hard times as a professional and realizing that through all of this I have always been this person inside....she has just been on more of a journey lately.


physical boundaries change...we can see them which helps them be more permanent in our minds.


emotional boundaries with who we have been, who we are now and who we will become are a little more difficult to make concrete.


we tend to judge worth on accomplishments instead of  kindness, a smile and just plain being....

today..i am going to be aware of my thoughts on who I am while I am getting to where I want to be and like her

This moment :: underwater swimming

{ This Moment } 

A Friday ritual. 

A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. 

A simple, special, extraordinary moment. 

A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

More moments over here: SouleMama

Hoping your weekend is filled with people and things you cherish

~*~            ~*~            ~*~            ~*~            ~*~            ~*~

Hannah swimming underwater at the YMCA

Veterans Day

:: Thankful for ::

Our American Veterans 

who have chosen 

and some that still are choosing 

to put their very own lives on the line for us.

Thank you!!

xoxoxox

Autumn Walk

 

 Daisy is pulling Hannah on her shoes with wheels (Heely's)

I love walking with my girls...they are so funny to be around. My son is too, but he's not so excited about afternoon walks. haha 

Out enjoying the crisp autumn days with them and our pooches is one of my favorite things to do...no agenda, just walking, talking and enjoying each other and the scenery...
love, love, love scenery in the Pacific Northwest