Wednesday, September 1, 2010

it's september 1 . . . do you know what that means?

Yesterday, my Monkey found a dead ant on the floor in our kitchen.  Normally, I would go into major cleaning mode - sweeping, mopping, wiping down every surface in the kitchen - over the site of this dead little invader.  But this time was different . . . this time my Monkey (she's 2 1/2) knelt down on the floor beside the dead ant and said, "We should pray for her."  I knelt down beside her (and the ant), and she began in her 2 1/2 year old sweetness praying, "God, thank you for the ant . . . mumble, mumble, mumble . . . She was a good ant, and I loved her." 

My heart melted.  My little Monkey who is non-stop action, movement, chatter from the moment she wakes up until the moment she goes to bed paused for a moment to notice the tiniest of creatures. 

(Here's a pic of my sweet Monkey.)

How often do I do that?  In the midst of my busy day and all that needs to be done in a day, how often am I attentive enough to notice the small things? 

Where am I going with this?

Well, I feel like my little handmade Christmas goal is one way I've been noticing the small things.  I've been paying wide-eyed attention to what my girls like and what makes them tick so that I know what to make them.  I've been listening closely to other friends and family members as they share the details of their lives that may point to clues about what I should craft for them.  Making someone a gift that is just for them is akin to practicing the art of listening and paying attention to the small things. 

I'm thankful for that reminder from my Monkey. 

So it's the beginning of a new month and that brings me to another gift - another month of paying attention . . . noticing the small things to make something that has been labored over and loved on.

First, here's the second bassinet that I completed a week or so ago. 

I'm still working on the pillow, blanket and a possible diaper bag to go along with each bassinet.  As you know, I'm not one for actually finishing my craft till Christmas in the month I started.  ;)

However, I am going to do something rare . . . I'm going to announce my fourth craft till Christmas on the first day of the month.  Amazing . . . unheard off . . . baffling!  I'm feeling a bit proud of myself for being so on the ball with this. 

Truth is that I've already made my girls WAAAAY more gifts than I usually give them.  Last year we gave each girl two gifts plus stockings.  I have a ton more ideas that I would love to make for them.  However, I have to cut myself off; otherwise, I will never get to gifts for grandmas and grandpas, cousins, etc.  

So I'm moving on to . . . handprints.  I wish I could be more specific, but I don't even know exactly what I'm going to do yet.  However, I do know two things about my fourth craft till Christmas:
  1. I will be making gifts for grandparents.
  2. It will involve handprints . . . and possibly children's art.
I will also be finishing up a few odds and ends on all the gifts I've made up to this point.

What will you be working on this month?  Only four months left to make a gift or two for your family and friends so . . .

craft on!
 

12 comments:

Beverly {Flamingo Toes} said...

Ack. This is inspiring and stressful. Can't wait to see what you do with handprints. I'm sure it will be adorable.
I'm trying to come up with something I could make for my son. I'd like to make him something - but there aren't a lot of ideas floating around for teenage boys. Any ideas? Hmmm.

Anonymous said...

ah, such a wonderful, sweet reminder of listening with attentiveness. i needed that, thanks for sharing!

Debra Hawkins said...

I am excited to see what you are going to come up with for these! I loved her little prayer, my daughter is almost two and every time she says "Amen" after family prayer it melts my heart.

Unknown said...

What a sweet little prayer and a sweet little girl!

I am so excited for what you come up with. I love kids' handprints. We did my baby's handprint on a decorative pillow for grandma last year, with the saying "Grandmas hold our tiny hands for just a little while and our hearts forever." She loved it!

I'm sure you've seen this fun handprint idea from I Am Momma Hear Me Roar, and I am also loving this idea from Say It On The Wall. I'm sure you'll come up with something even better though!

Quimby said...

We make a Christmas ornament every year - one for each child and one for each set of grandparents. One year it was plaster of paris handprints; another was a paper reindeer (footprint head, handprint horns); another year it was using felt hand-prints and turning them into mittens. I still have the plaster of paris handprint I made for my mom in 1st grade - I remember the teacher just poured the plaster into paper plates to make the mould, and then we painted them gold. (It was the 80s.)

Good luck with your craft - there are so many great ideas out there, the sky is the limit, it just depends on what you want to make.

Quimby said...

We make a Christmas ornament every year - one for each child and one for each set of grandparents. One year it was plaster of paris handprints; another was a paper reindeer (footprint head, handprint horns); another year it was using felt hand-prints and turning them into mittens. I still have the plaster of paris handprint I made for my mom in 1st grade - I remember the teacher just poured the plaster into paper plates to make the mould, and then we painted them gold. (It was the 80s.)

Good luck with your craft - there are so many great ideas out there, the sky is the limit, it just depends on what you want to make.

Mommy of Three said...

i love getting your crafty ideas. =) I love to craft but am not much on thinking up my own. ha I found this wonderful artsy design that i personally am going to do for myself. ha I am thinking about making them for a headboard type look behind my bed. Anyway thought i would share the idea in case you were interested and had not run across it. Can't wait to see what you decide on though as i may have to copy. lol http://according-to-kelly.com/2010/07/mod-podged-hand-trees-from-at-second-street/

Jocelyn Christensen said...

Your second baby carrier turned out awesome! Nice job!!

Michelle said...

The baby carriers came out great!!! Very intrigued to see what the 'grandparent' gift is. I'm always looking for ideas for what to get/make for the Grandparents.

chris said...

Melts your heart when you realize that Monkey is understanding God on some level. Precious. Love the fabric you used on the second bassinet. Well done!

Julianna said...

I want you to know that you have inspired me to make atleast one handmade item each for my children. I wanted them to have something handmade that they can cherish and didn't come from the store and have DISNEY stampled all over it. I don't know what I'm going to make yet!

Melissa said...

What an absolutely beautiful post and I love how you said it all here "Making someone a gift that is just for them is akin to practicing the art of listening and paying attention to the small things."

Thanks for the reminder of why we do it.

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