Creating
It’s not really feeling like autumn here yet. It’s like 90 degrees outside. BUT as autumn is my favorite season in Minnesota, I’m just going to keep sipping warm cocoa & chai and sewing cotton flannel backed blankets in my air-conditioned studio. And if you missed it, I am running THREE giveaways this week. The band Scythian’s new album, a Blessed is She planner, and on instagram, one of my autumn blankets! Just in case you’re looking for a little gift for that babe in your life, I posted a bunch of autumn blankets perfect for swaddling, playmat, crib, car seat, snuggling, in my etsy shop, Whole Parenting Goods. Hop over and use the code “shippingfree” if you so desire! The most special part about these blankets is the top stitching on the border. It takes a long time and I pick the stitch as reflective of something I loved in the designer cotton top fabric itself–a wave, a semi-circle, an arc. The lemons have always been insanely popular! Same with the zoo creatures! Happy shopping, friends! There are a handful of bibs & burp cloths in the shop too. Stay tuned for leggings again in October. You guys cleared me out of my last-season clearance in just three days!! preview of fall leggings!
Read MoreI’m linking up with my friend Ginny at her Yarn Along where every week she posts what she’s knitting and reading. She’s always reading amazing things and knitting even more amazing things. Don’t look for those knitting skillz here, friends. But the quality books? YES! The very first is my other friend Kelly’s wonderful retreat based on Thomas a Kempis’ Imitation of Christ. It’s called A Worthy Reception and I really enjoyed doing it. It was intense for this spiritual wuss but I’m going to do it again before the baby comes–really good to go deep and old school with a private retreat! If you have wanted to do some interior work but really can’t get away from your family or work obligations long enough to go on an actual retreat, this is the book for you. The next is a book a dear friend gave me I’m still working through called The Reed of God by Caryll Houselander. Talk about beautiful meditations about the Blessed Virgin Mary! It’s mystical but accessible. A must read for your fall. And what would a Nell reading list be without some pop psych book? I read Incognito: the secret lives of the brain by David Eagleman a while back and then lent it to my sister. I snagged it back when I was on the East Coast last month and hopped back into it. Eagleman is a neuroscientist who goes into the subconscious brain and so many factors that go into how our brains are developed and function. Fascinating…
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Who are these youngsters?? Okay, we’re coming up on seven years of marriage at the end of this month. I simply cannot believe it’s been so long but so quick. My friends Laura and Nancy and I were talking about our anniversaries that are all coming up soon and the vows we took when bam! we realized our next scripture study should center around marriage vows. We brought on a superstar to write on the fourth vow: Jenna Guizar, creator & founder of Blessed is She. She’s simply remarkable and one of my fav people in the world. Monday May 16th you can download your e-study guide right here for Waiting in the Word: Our Vows. We cover the four vows used in most Christian marriage ceremonies: 1) Love and Cherish, 2) Promise to be True, 3) For Better or Worse, and 4) Until Death Do Us Part. I wrote on being true. And it took a turn I didn’t expect. On our wedding day, I thought being true meant not having an affair. I’ve come to learn it that for me it means being invested in a rich intimate life–three kids later, even through extremely hard pregnancies, his long work hours, blah blah blah. There’s always a reason to not be emotionally and physically available to each other, and honestly open to treating the other with attentive love. We hope you’ll join us. It works a lot like our other Waiting in the Word scripture studies: you get a study with…
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a few new things up in the shop this week. My mind has been so preoccupied with the suffering of my dear friends Laura and Franco and the loss of their twin baby girls. Please keep this beautiful family in your thoughts and prayers as they navigate this breathtaking landscape of love and loss. So the whole week has been a bit of a wandering. SuperBoy also has had a persistent cough/phlegm attack so he hasn’t been to his three times a week afternoon nature school. BabyLoves was up a few nights coughing (is there anything more sad than a toddler’s coughing?) so everything felt sideways. 1) Day in the Life linkup at Simple Homeschool. Link here. I LOVE reading how other at home homeschooling mamas’ days go. I’m kinda a faker as he’ll go to Catholic school next year, but I’m still in the category technically! One of the big perks of blogger life is that your days are exposed in an intimate way (can be intimidating) that connects your hearts with other moms sharing those burdens and joys. 2) Inheritance. I’ve NEVER ever ever listened to Christian music. Sorry, bad Catholic here. Just not my thing. Ever. But this album by Audrey Assad, whom I’m privileged to work with at Blessed is She (Catholic women’s daily devotional ministry): wow. It’s called Inheritance and it’s on repeat. The kids love it and my heart throbs along with How can I keep from singing? especially. Buy // download // support a mama…
Read MorePeople ask me about how I make time for sewing when my life sounds like a zombie zookeeper’s. Okay, so I made that description up. But I do get asked it a lot. I make baby & tot leggings, bibs, burp cloths, skirts, blankets, and banners at Whole Parenting Goods. First, I wrote this about starting an etsy shop. Then I wrote this about what I’ve learned about being a “maker.” But today I’m musing about the actual logistics of how I make the time in my life with no time to sew. 1) all work and no (sewing creative play) means I’m a dull girl. Because I’m driven to make by my desire to continue to feed that creative part of me, I find the time no matter what. It’s not every day, but I’m always scheming something new, plotting something fun, or daydreaming about how I’m going to finish that seam, someday. I know I need a break when I’m not interested in getting to my machine. Sometimes that means I need to take my precious few minutes of creative time and handle some fabric instead, look at my grandmother’s box of old patterns, or scroll pinterest. Changing it up can freshen me so that when I go back to churning through orders, I don’t get bleh-ey. Something many mama artisans don’t talk about is that it can be a drag at times to finish the orders. Start them? Exciting. Finish the finishing touches? Tough. Especially if you are…
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I’m an English major with a creative writing emphasis. And a lawyer. {and new hair!!} But all I want to read is behavioral psychology and child-rearing books. And self-help. Didn’t I write about this last year? I guess you can say it’s diversified? It used to be all Sharon Olds poems, and then all SCOTUS decisions {RIP, Scalia!}. Now it’s all Dr. Sears. Colleen asked what I’m reading now and I took this selfie. Yes, an English major said “selfie.” {{hides face in shame}} And yes, sometimes your almost four year old girl needs to be calmed down by carrying her in the carrier the tot won’t even go in anymore! // Better than Before // I LOVE GRETCHEN RUBIN. Gretchen, if you somehow read this late one night when you’re scrolling trackbacks to your blog, know you have a real fan over here. Love all your books. This one is all about identifying how we make decisions, and then how those form into habits. And how to make new habits. // The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up // Marie Kondo. Admittedly, there are some very odd parts to this. I don’t agree with the extreme anthropomorphism of personal belongings. It does not resonate with me. But I do agree that one must be merciless and detailed when examining whether or not our closets, attics, and wardrobes really need to bulge at the hinges. It’s a quick read and helpful if you’re on the cusps of decluttering. // The Collapse…
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