Nature Photo of the Week - Week 38 - Reflection

Today we went on a hike at William O'Brien State Park. It is one of four hikes that we did over the past two days during a camping trip at the park with our 4-H club.

The photo I chose is of two rocks in the St. Croix River. The clouds are reflected in the water (though not clearly) which makes it seem almost like an abstract painting to me in some ways.

We had a small group of people that we camped with - only one other family spent the day on Thursday during the day; and another family spent the afternoon on Thursday and stayed overnight.

However, in retrospect, having only one other family to spend time with and get to know better was an ideal way to spend this field trip. What made it even better was that for both families, there were new experiences that each had while at William O'Brien. 

What was fun for us was being able to introduce a family to overnight camping. The children had never been camping before or stayed in a camper cabin...so the experience was new for them. 

Being able to go on the same hike with two different families who have two vastly different age ranges of children also gave me an opportunity to see nature and the same area from two distinctly diverse ways. 

I also enjoyed showing the youngest children the "gnome house" that Sophia and Olivia used to be thrilled to find and sit in when they were little. Passing along those memories and that tradition was fun for me to do. And, like the theme of this week, gave me an opportunity to reflect on all the wonderful memories I have of exploring William O'Brien State Park with Sophia and Olivia throughout the years.

Giving & Gnomes - Countdown to Christmas - Day 8

It's the little things in life that humor us...and for the eighth day of the Countdown to Christmas it was a visit to Gammelgarden Museum and picking up the gnomes who were in the entryway.

Sophia with the male gnome. 

Until she picked him up, he didn't look that big. 

She said the gnome was light.

Olivia still felt like just wanted to sit by the gnomes while they ate rather than touch them.

Olivia by the gnomes at Gammelgarden.

Visiting Gammelgarden was the last stop after a day of giving. We chose to get the majority of our donations done for the 12 in 12 project we've been doing since January in which we do 12 different service projects each month during 2012.

First, we stopped at Family Pathways to drop off clothes and household items.

Sophia holding a bag of clothes, and 

Olivia by three bags of household items

that we donated to Family Pathways.

Then we went to Northwoods Humane Society where we donated a bag of cans. The funds that are earned by recycling the cans are used to support the animals at Northwoods who are waiting for families.

Sophia and Olivia dropping cans in the can collector.

We also donated a bag of Kitten Chow and $12 to Northwoods Humane Society.

Olivia holding the Kitten Chow and 

Sophia holding $12 for Northwoods Humane Society.

We went into Northwoods to drop off the donations and took a look at the animals needing homes.

Sophia and Olivia checking out all the kittens

who were playful and eager for attention.

We headed to Cub to drop off a hand-embroidered toy that we placed in a little cart for children. It's free for the child who finds it.

Olivia by the toy in the cart for a child to find.

While we were at Cub, we bought a bag of food that we donated to the local food shelf.

Sophia and Olivia with the bag of food for the food shelf.

Our last stop was the public library where we donated 42 books. The books are either used or sold. If it's the latter, the proceeds are used to purchase new books.

The girls with the books they donated to the library.

We talked about today being the first day of Hanukkah. We were planning on making cookies, but were tired so we decided to wait until the 9th to make them.

It was a good day, and helped us all remember that the best part of the season is giving - not receiving. 

Visit Gammelgarden & Donate Food - Countdown to Christmas - Day 4

Today's activities for the Countdown to Christmas included visiting Gammelgarden to see the holiday decorations; going to play practice; and donating food to the food shelf.

Gnome at Gammelgarden.

Gammelgarden is a museum that we visit regularly.  The name means "Old Farm" in Swedish. During the summer, visitors can tour the buildings and learn more about the lives and experiences of early Swedish immigrants. Gammelgarden is the only open-air museum devoted to Swedish immigration in the United States.

So, each year at Gammelgarden I take a picture of the girls by the gnome display by the front door. Apparently, someone in the pink coat thought it would be funny to cross her eyes. So, Sophia looks like she has crossed-eyes - a new visual challenge she aquired since last year.

The girls by the gnome display

at Gammelgarden.

There was a little snowstorm on Saturday, so everything was covered with snow. It was the light, fluffy kind of snow which is nice - no need to snowplow, and shoveling is easy to do.

A dala horse covered in snow.

Gammelgarden was decorated for the holidays - St. Lucia is celebrated here on December 11th with Christmas right around the corner on the 25th.

Woven hearts in the window

at Gammelgarden.

Also, today Sophia and Olivia donated a bag of food to the food shelf. There's a collection cart in the lobby at church.

Sophia and Olivia donating food

to the food shelf.

After they donated the food, they went to play practice. They will be performing in a Christmas play on December 16th and 17th.

Decorating for Valentine's Day with Natural Materials

Each year, the girls look forward to decorating the home for Valentine's Day.  Last year, I made a variety of window stars that I put on the windows.  After the holiday, I packed them away to use again this year. 

It was so easy this year to decorate the main window in the dining room.  Here's what it looks like:

As the girls and I looked through the bin of Valentine's Day decor, we came across the paper cuttings I did last year for each of them.  One chose red paper as the backing and the other chose pink.  We hung the paper cuttings with a couple more window stars in the living room.

Since I just put out the winter nature table scene on the dresser in the dining room about a week ago, the girls and I decided to keep it up.  So this will stay up for a little while longer (perhaps right after Valentine's Day it will be changed to another scene).

Winter Nature Table

Since we decided to keep the winter nature table where it was, Olivia suggested putting a Valentine's scene on the bookshelf.  The table is more craft focused rather than nature focused since the winter nature table has the nature elements (e.g., rocks, sticks, pinecone, walnut shell beeswax candles). 

Valentine's Day Items

The display on the bookcase has hand-embroidered gnomes made from wool felt and sheep wool stuffing from sheep who use to live here.  The elf clogs are hand-embroidered and made from wool felt as well.  I made a pair for each of the girls using their favorite colors.  The wet-on-wet watercolor lanterns are made from watercolor paper, kite paper, and tissue paper.  The girls made them a few years ago.  The two cards are handmade featuring origami designs made from Japanese paper. 

The picture is of Casey who died 3 years ago on the day before Valentine's Day.  An artist painted the picture in exchange for some of my work.  It's been a treasured picture...and one that has been the focal point of several displays.

I like to make a few new things each year, so this is a new window star I made.  It follows a base pattern that I use for another star, but I changed things up a bit to create a new pattern.  Here it is:

I also made a couple of miniature bears from a wool sweater that I felted in the washer/dryer.  The bears are holding a paper bunting with Valentine's Day theme paper.  The bears are available in my shop, but I'm going to make another set so the girls have something else to decorate with in future years. 

Bears (made with a felted sweater) holding a bunting

The other item I just started making are bendy dolls with wire, beads, and wool felt.  I use a length of wire and two different size beads to create a miniature human form.  The clothes are hand-embroidered onto the wire frame.  The hat needed to be hot-glued onto the bead head in order to stay...otherwise it just slips right off.

I'm doing some for my shop as well as some for home.  The girls like them because they can bend and be posed in different ways.  Here is the trio of dolls that I made this weekend:

There are still a couple of weeks until February and some more things the girls and I want to do before then that relate to the holiday....more crafts, recipes to try, and activities to do.  Next week, I'll post some more Valentine's Day ideas.

Family room window with winter-white stars

Day 26 - Bears in the Woods & Natural Play Toys

Bears in Woods
Originally uploaded by Pictures by Ann

This morning I did a few projects that I've wanted to do for some time now.

First, I made a couple of pocket-size bears from felted wool sweaters, cotton fabric, and buttons. Everything is hand-embroidered (the bears' features, around the edges of the bears, and the fabric to the wool).

Then, I made a trio of gnomes from green, red, and white wool felt. The gnomes are stuffed with wool from sheep that I raised. The first set is for my shop, Harvest Moon by Hand. The second set is going to be for the nature table that I set up for the girls each month.

"Art Every Day Month" is wrapping up in three days. It's been fun to challenge myself to do something creative each day. Working with wool and embroidery are two things I enjoy doing. I particularly enjoy making natural toys - both for my daughters as well as for customers.

Having open-ended toys like the bears and gnomes along with some simple, natural "props" (like pine cones, gems, rocks, sticks, and colored wool) can open the door to hours of imaginative play. I'm always amazed at the stories and scenes the girls can create with natural elements such as the ones I've mentioned.

Helping Children Learn Math Using Math Gnomes

Math Gnomes
Originally uploaded by Pictures by Ann

This is a set of Waldorf-inspired math gnomes that I made for a customer for my shop, Harvest Moon by Hand.

The gnomes stand between 9-10” inches tall, and each is needlefelted by hand. Sometimes I use 4 barbed needles at a time and at other times only a single barbed needle (for example, when attaching the curly sheep wool to the face and body or creating the math symbols on the bodies).

Each gnome has a different math sign on the body - addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and equals. Individual gnomes and combination of gnomes can be used in combination with natural tactile elements (e.g., pebbles, gems, acorns) to make learning math more tangible.

There are many Waldorf-inspired stories using math gnomes on the internet. You may choose to use one of the stories as they are presented...or create your own stories.

The gnomes are made from sheep wool - the interior core is from cream-colored wool from sheep that I raised at Harvest Moon's organic farm. The exterior (colored) wool is from a variety of textile artists who hand-dye sheep wool.

For a set of custom-made gnomes or other needlefelted items, please visit my shop, Harvest Moon by Hand.

Valentine's Day Table

Valentine's Day Table
Originally uploaded by Pictures by Ann

This is the table that Olivia and I set up for Valentine's Day. At other times of the year, there are more natural items on it, but since the ground is covered with snow, there's not much out there to bring indoors.

So, this year I made 5 gnomes in 2 different sizes to add to the table. The other items have been made or purchased in the past.

The beautiful felt sculpture in the pictures in the back was custom-made by Soft Earth Art in New Zealand. The two figures represent my daughters.

Simple Natural Toys for Children

Trio of Gnomes with Red by House
Originally uploaded by Pictures by Ann

I made a variety of gnomes for my Etsy shop, Harvest Moon by Hand. This trio is in autumn colors, and are made from wool felt and stuffed with wool from sheep I raised.

They do not have faces because then children can use their imagination to give the gnomes "feelings" based on what they are playing.

My daughters love to have toys that are more "open ended." I find that their play is more imaginative when the dolls or toys like these gnomes.

I also include hand-embroidered toys that I make on the nature table so the girls can play with natural elements (e.g., pinecones, stones, sticks) and the toys. It's amazing what stories they can come up with given a few simple, natural items.

The gnomes are available through Harvest Moon by Hand at http://www.harvestmoonbyhand.etsy.com