It was 101F today in Los Angeles so I decided to take Beatrice to a new indoor playground that recently opened up in our neighborhood. Inside there were several rooms dedicated to different activities like crafts, puppets, and reading. In the far corner of one small room off the main hallway there was a small table and on that table was a small cup of yellow fingerpaint left over from an earlier crafts session.
We walked inside, I set Arthur down on the floor in his carseat, and immediately, immediately, upon entering the play area Beatrice ran directly into the paint room, grabbed the cup of yellow paint, ran back out, and poured it all over Arthur, shouting, "Paint, Arthur!"
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Monday, August 22, 2011
Thank you, Summer!
Summer St. Pierre has been babysitting Beatrice for me twice a week every week since Beatrice was eight months old so that I could work on writing part-time. In those nineteen months, Beatrice and Jack have become almost like family. Not to mention the fact that Beatrice completely adores Summer.
In fact I would say Beatrice's relationship with Summer and Jack has been one of the best parts of her life so far.
Now fall is around the corner and with it will come some big changes. Summer is going back to work full-time as a teacher, making a lot of other (older) kids as happy as she's made Beatrice. Beatrice and Jack are starting preschool. We have a new baby. And I have new writing assigments and different daycare needs. Which means that this will be the last week that I drop off Beatrice at Summer's house and head over to Starbucks to write for five hours.
Naturally I'll still see Summer all the time (we've been friends since fifth grade, after all) and Jack and Beatrice will continue to be great friends, but I can't help but feel sad to see this part of our lives end. And not just because every time I pick up Beatrice, Summer has done something absolutely adorable to her hair.
Thank you, thank you, Summer! Whatever work I've gotten done the last year and a half is entirely because of you! I don't know what we'll do without you. (And you still have to come over and do Beatrice's hair before any special occasions.)
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Arthur, Month Three
Arthur is three months old! And his three favorite things are looking at mobiles, listening to music, and being outside. Every evening when it cools off I take him outside and put him on a blanket on the lawn where he lies happily looking up at the sky and occasionally chuckling to himself like he seems some private little joke up there.
Beatrice was never all that interested in mobiles and other dangling-object-diversions, but Arthur is absolutely giddy about any objects hanging over him. His favorite is the mobile my friends made for him, which he will stare at for almost an hour at a time, laughing and squirming and kicking.
In fact Arthur is always full of laughter and smiles (his laugh sounds sort of like a little happy hiccough) but unfortunately whenever you pull out a camera to document him doing something cute he completely freezes and stares fixedly at the camera instead. As you might expect, therefore, I have a lot of pictures of him staring fixedly ahead.
He's also a fairly clingy baby, at least more so than Beatrice was, and often insists on being held. Beatrice generally wanted attention only when she had a specific need, like a bottle or a diaper change, and so it's taken me awhile to figure out that sometimes Arthur doesn't want any particular thing, he just wants you to pick him up.
He continues to roll over daily and can move himself effectively if slowly across the floor by lying on his stomach and pushing himself forward with his legs (he hasn't quite figured out what to do with his arms yet). He can hold his head up more or less indefinitely, but of course that leads to a false sense of security in his parents and occasionally when he's tired his head will flop suddenly and dramatically over, reminding you that he is, after all, only three months old.
At this three-month appointment the doctor commented on what a sociable and interactive baby he is, and indeed Arthur seems to really love attention. He is also very vocal and makes a wide range of coos, sighs, and sounds like "ah-goo" and "goo-goo."
He also sticks out his tongue a lot.
Beatrice and Arthur continue to work on their new relationship. Beatrice "helps" me by bringing me Arthur's diapers and wipes and by choosing Arthur's outfit every morning. Every evening she "reads" him a story, often Madeline.
When Arthur cries she says to him, "I know, Arthur, I know, you're okay," in imitation of me, and reports to me "Arthur is sad!" She will then suggest to me that possibly "Arthur is hungry," "Arthur is lonely," "Arthur wants to eat milk," "Arthur's tummy hurts," "Arthur bumped his head," or "Arthur has an 'owie'." She might then kneel down next to the baby and shout, "Be happy, Arthur!" at the top of her lungs.
She is very good about sharing her toys with him and respects the idea that certain objects belong to Arthur. Whenever we go anywhere she asks eagerly, "Is Arthur coming too?" and often says unbidden, "I love Arthur. Arthur is my brother." She even made up a little song for him that she sings to him in the backseat called "Arthur's Song." He really seems to love her, too, and smiles and laughs whenever he sees her.
If all of this sounds perfectly ideal, of course, that's not the whole truth. She's still much too rough with him, though she's slowly getting better, and occasionally she lashes out - as when her best friend Jack was paying attention to Arthur and she got jealous and hit Arthur in the head with my car keys. But we're working on it - every day gets a little bit better.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Welcome, Ivy!
On Tuesday Amy, Evan, and Miller welcomed Baby Ivy to our group of family and friends. I've met her and I give her two thumbs up - congratulations, guys!
Find out more about Ivy here.
Find out more about Ivy here.
That's one possibility
Today while playing Beatrice threw three wooden blocks at Arthur, hitting him in the head.
Arthur starts wailing.
Beatrice immediately brings me a baby blanket and says, "Arthur is crying! Maybe he is cold?"
Arthur starts wailing.
Beatrice immediately brings me a baby blanket and says, "Arthur is crying! Maybe he is cold?"
Sunday, August 07, 2011
Camping Practice
We had wanted to take the kids camping this summer but we've been so busy with house renovation and house guests that we probably won't have time to go away this year, so tonight we took Beatrice out for a little "practice camping" in the backyard.
She had a wonderful time playing in the tent, eating campfire-roasted hot dogs, and of course, making smores (or "candy crackers," as she calls them). She ran around the yard with her flashlight, said goodnight to the moon and stars, then settled into her sleeping bag to sing songs and read camping-themed storybooks by the light of her flashlight. By ten o' clock at night it was pretty clear she wasn't ever going to sleep in the tent, so we carried her back into her own bedroom and said goodnight, thus ending her first experience "camping."
How to Build a Teepee
Here are the instructions on how to make a teepee like this one. I started by combining these instructions from DIY Network with these from Rachel Denbow's blog Smile and Wave, then added some adaptations of my own.
This makes a teepee whose final dimensions are 66 inches high, 48 inches wide, and 48 inches deep, so suitable for small children and small bedrooms.
Supplies
* 6 - 1" x 2" x 6' pieces of wood
* 1 - 9' x 12' canvas drop cloth1
* 3 yards of leather cord
* 3 yards of ribbon
Instructions
1. Using a ¼" bit, drill holes into each piece of wood, 12 inches from the top. You'll use these holes at the end to tie together the wood pieces with the leather cord, so make sure your cord fits through the holes.
2. Gather up all six pieces of wood and temporarily tie them together loosely using cord, rope, masking tape, or anything else. Space out the pieces of wood so that the base is a hexagon with each side 24" long.
This is your chance to check out the size and make sure it's what you want before you start cutting fabric. I knew we had only 48"x48" to spare in the children's bedroom so I made a masking tape square of that size on the rug and made sure our teepee would fit in it.
Thank you, Shackleton.
3. Now, unroll the canvas drop cloth and cut out five side panels and one three-part door panel. The side panels should look like this:
With dimensions of 11.5" x 54" x 30.5".
The door panel is in three parts that should look like this:
The top panel has dimensions 11.5" x 14.5" x 15.5". The bottom panels have dimensions 10.25" x 40.5" x 17.25".
4. (Optional) Add a pocket.
Cut a piece of canvas to this shape:
With dimensions 27.5" x 11.5" x 30.5".
Position it on the wrong side of one canvas side panel 11 inches from the bottom seam.
Stitch the bottom of the pocket to the panel. You can leave the sides pinned but not sewn because they will get attached later when you create the side seams.
The pocket - attach along the bottom seam.
5. Hem the tops and bottoms of all the side panels as well as the top of door panel #1 and the bottoms of door panels #2 and 3.
6. Attach all five side panels to one another using French seams to create a channel 2.25" wide to slide the poles into2.
To make the channel, start by stacking two side panels on top of one another with the wrong sides together. Sew them together with a ½" seam allowance.
Then open up the panels and flip them around so that the right sides are together. Stitch the panels together again with a 2.25" seam allowance.
This creates a 2.25 inch-wide channel into which you will insert the wooden poles at the end.
Do this to connect all five side panels.
One panel will have the interior pocket, but you can just sew over that the same way as all the others.
The side panels attached with French seams, with pocket in the center
When you're done, your tent cover should look like this:
Five side panels connected with French seams.
7. Now make the door.
Start by hemming the straight sides of both door panels with a ½"
Then sew each door panel to the top door section with a ½" seam, aligning the panels along the outer edges. The two door panels will overlap in the middle – this allows the teepee to be closed securely.
I stitched back and forth over the place where the doors overlap a few times to make it sturdier.
Align the door panels along the outside edge so that the two flaps overlap in the middle.
Then sew the door panel to the rest of your teepee using French seam channels, just as you did with all the side panels.
The finished cover
8. Now put the canvas cover on the wood frame.
First disassemble your "test" frame.
Thread a wooden pole through each of the channels, then gather them back up and spread out the frame again.
Tie the top together by threading the leather cord through all the drilled holes and winding around each pole until it feels stable and secure.
7. Add ribbon ties3.
Cut eight lengths of ribbon to 12 inches each.
Hand-sew the ribbons in the following places:
I placed my side ribbon ties at 24" up diagonally from the bottom seam, and my center ribbon ties at 9", 20", and 31" from the bottom seam.
These will allow you to tie the teepee closed or tie back the door to leave it open.
That's it! You're done!
I also made the directions into a PDF here.
-----------------------------------
1. I used 8oz weight canvas because I was concerned anything heavier wouldn't make it through my inexpensive, lightweight sewing machine. However my machine had no trouble at all with the canvas and I could probably have used 10oz. without trouble.
2. Many people make teepees without channels, instead sewing the tent cover as one piece that is attached to the wooden frame with ties. However, while channels are quite a bit more work, they also result in a sturdier, more portable teepee.
3. You could do this before putting the canvas up on the frame but I find that it's easier to see where they should go when it's all hanging in proper position.
This makes a teepee whose final dimensions are 66 inches high, 48 inches wide, and 48 inches deep, so suitable for small children and small bedrooms.
Supplies
* 6 - 1" x 2" x 6' pieces of wood
* 1 - 9' x 12' canvas drop cloth1
* 3 yards of leather cord
* 3 yards of ribbon
Instructions
1. Using a ¼" bit, drill holes into each piece of wood, 12 inches from the top. You'll use these holes at the end to tie together the wood pieces with the leather cord, so make sure your cord fits through the holes.
2. Gather up all six pieces of wood and temporarily tie them together loosely using cord, rope, masking tape, or anything else. Space out the pieces of wood so that the base is a hexagon with each side 24" long.
This is your chance to check out the size and make sure it's what you want before you start cutting fabric. I knew we had only 48"x48" to spare in the children's bedroom so I made a masking tape square of that size on the rug and made sure our teepee would fit in it.
Thank you, Shackleton.
3. Now, unroll the canvas drop cloth and cut out five side panels and one three-part door panel. The side panels should look like this:
With dimensions of 11.5" x 54" x 30.5".
The door panel is in three parts that should look like this:
The top panel has dimensions 11.5" x 14.5" x 15.5". The bottom panels have dimensions 10.25" x 40.5" x 17.25".
4. (Optional) Add a pocket.
Cut a piece of canvas to this shape:
With dimensions 27.5" x 11.5" x 30.5".
Position it on the wrong side of one canvas side panel 11 inches from the bottom seam.
Stitch the bottom of the pocket to the panel. You can leave the sides pinned but not sewn because they will get attached later when you create the side seams.
The pocket - attach along the bottom seam.
5. Hem the tops and bottoms of all the side panels as well as the top of door panel #1 and the bottoms of door panels #2 and 3.
6. Attach all five side panels to one another using French seams to create a channel 2.25" wide to slide the poles into2.
To make the channel, start by stacking two side panels on top of one another with the wrong sides together. Sew them together with a ½" seam allowance.
Then open up the panels and flip them around so that the right sides are together. Stitch the panels together again with a 2.25" seam allowance.
This creates a 2.25 inch-wide channel into which you will insert the wooden poles at the end.
Do this to connect all five side panels.
One panel will have the interior pocket, but you can just sew over that the same way as all the others.
The side panels attached with French seams, with pocket in the center
When you're done, your tent cover should look like this:
Five side panels connected with French seams.
7. Now make the door.
Start by hemming the straight sides of both door panels with a ½"
Then sew each door panel to the top door section with a ½" seam, aligning the panels along the outer edges. The two door panels will overlap in the middle – this allows the teepee to be closed securely.
I stitched back and forth over the place where the doors overlap a few times to make it sturdier.
Align the door panels along the outside edge so that the two flaps overlap in the middle.
Then sew the door panel to the rest of your teepee using French seam channels, just as you did with all the side panels.
The finished cover
8. Now put the canvas cover on the wood frame.
First disassemble your "test" frame.
Thread a wooden pole through each of the channels, then gather them back up and spread out the frame again.
Tie the top together by threading the leather cord through all the drilled holes and winding around each pole until it feels stable and secure.
7. Add ribbon ties3.
Cut eight lengths of ribbon to 12 inches each.
Hand-sew the ribbons in the following places:
I placed my side ribbon ties at 24" up diagonally from the bottom seam, and my center ribbon ties at 9", 20", and 31" from the bottom seam.
These will allow you to tie the teepee closed or tie back the door to leave it open.
That's it! You're done!
I also made the directions into a PDF here.
-----------------------------------
1. I used 8oz weight canvas because I was concerned anything heavier wouldn't make it through my inexpensive, lightweight sewing machine. However my machine had no trouble at all with the canvas and I could probably have used 10oz. without trouble.
2. Many people make teepees without channels, instead sewing the tent cover as one piece that is attached to the wooden frame with ties. However, while channels are quite a bit more work, they also result in a sturdier, more portable teepee.
3. You could do this before putting the canvas up on the frame but I find that it's easier to see where they should go when it's all hanging in proper position.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
