Making It Meaningful

Crafts on Etsy

I just opened up a little shop on etsy. com the store for all homemade items. I figured I would give it a try. I just love to make things and this way I can share a bit of my creativity with others.

Come and visit me at www.countrymommyto6.etsy.com

Blessings

Melanie

Coming full circle

We have had a lot of loss of livestock and pets on our farm in the past 3 years.  We were finally able to see one of them come full circle to fulfill their purpose to us. We bought a young steer 2 1/2 years ago, and raised him up. Named him Brutus and he was a gentle hereford steer.

1250 lbs after  we raised him up on hay, corn and grass. He produced 660 lbs of beef for our family. Our upright freezer is stuffed full and our chest freezer has a lot in it as well.

Seems strange to name your cows, but we really don't feel sad as he did what he was suppossed to do. He was a nice cow, but we are carnivores and let me tell you.. he has provided well. We are truly blessed.

Melanie

Cloth Paper Dolls

I just fell in love with this fabric from Windham called Paper Dolls http://www.baumtextile.com/cgi-bin/fabricshop/gallery.cgi?Category=321 

This weekend I cut the dolls and clothes out, ironed on a double sided stabilizer and put a heavy muslin on the backs. I found some clear velcro dots to adhere to the dolls and the clothes so that they can still better. I haven't attached them yet. I am using these for a gift for my 4 year old daughter and 5 year old niece for Christmas. Such cute material!!

Now it is much more cost effective to buy paper dolls, but the little tabs tear off so easy, and these can be like an heirloom to pass down to my grandaughters later :) Something fun to make besides.. Aren't they just precious! I wonder if they would sell at the craft show we have in town this Oct? They would be fairly pricey with the material, stabilizer, backing and velcro dots though.. something to ponder..

blessings to you

Melanie

Low cost Christmas Ideas

I know we aren't the only family struggling financially this holiday season. As we get closer to Christmas I need to start thinking of ways to give gifts without a financial strain. One way I have been able to get a gift so far for each child is through paperbackswap.com. I used my credits on their to get a used book for each of the kids as well as some Christmas books. The books are typically in great condition. I have gotten all christian series for the older ones. For the oldest a Frank Peretti series called veritas (2 hardcover books). For 11 year old one called Door Within Trilogy I have gotten the first 2 hardcover books. I got a series called Tribulation Force in graphic novels for my 9 year old. A devotional Bible study for the 6 year old, and a couple Raggedy Ann books for my 4 year old. So they each will get a gift of a book or 2.

I was thinking on giving them various coupons as well. To come up with some individual ones that suit them and their likes, but also some that they each get.  Some examples:

An ice cream cone from The local ice cream place

A new book

1 hour of a board game with Mom

Make your favorite cookies

Choose dinner one day this week

Get out of school for the day (with homeschooling this is doable)

Buy a $10 item at the store for you in 2009

A T-shirt of your choice

Any other suggestions on the coupons?

And then for extended family and friends it gets tougher.... I am hoping to make some things with material I already have on hand. But I need to get a move on with it for sure!! For DH's Dad, he has diabetes so I think I will make him some sugar free cookies that he can stick in the freezer for later. For Grandparents I think I will enlarge some photo's I took on a nice Nov day of the kids. I was going to have pictures professionally done, but that just wasn't going to work out.  So I took the digital camera and got some nice shots of all the kids together and I think with that I should be able to get some nice 8 by 10's reproduced at Walmart or Walgreens for a reasonable price. I could have the pics each draw a picture or make something out of clay as well.

What are your low cost ideas this Christmas? To keep the finances under control, to not get too worldly with the gift giving yet still be able to celebrate the joy of giving, and to make some memories?

Blessings

Melanie

Thanksgiving Table Topper

I made this table cloth today for our Thanksgiving feast. I am not sure yet if I am going to back it and quilt it or just leave it as a top. I got the snowballs from a swap on one of my quilt groups and the side panels are from fat quarters from different swaps as well. Really helps me to get a variety of fabric without having to buy the variety. The boys are afraid to eat on the table topper! I told them if they don't use my creations what is the point in making them!!

Melanie

Start Em young

When we were on vacation this summer we spend some time at my Father in Law's house. My MIL passed away 9 years ago, she was a seamstress and reupholsterer in her day. There was still material around so I chose some to take home and incorporate into a quilt here and there. My daughter was given a box of 'scraps' that she pretends to iron, and can cut up.. all came from Busha's house (polish for grandma). Well one day she decided to cut up a bunch of fabric and handed it to me and said Mom make me a blanket with this. So I had her sit with me and design where each piece went. I of course had to work some wonders to get it into a rectangle and then put an old baby blanket on the back for the backing. It is a baby doll blanket and she was so proud of it. I hope this is just the beginning of her taking an interest in sewing and quilting. I didn't have the interest as a youngster though my mom sewed clothes for us often. I just never was interested until we moved to the farm!! Seemed to go along with the whole farming paradigm. So here is my daughter with her first creation... (and a couple of hams in the back!!)

Blessings

Melanie

Jubilee Rescue Ranch

Our Farm name is Jubilee Farm. Well it seems that it should be Jubilee Rescue Center or something. The amount of animals we tend to take in for this and that reason!!

We have 2 lamancha's that someone couldn't sell at fair because he wormed them too close to fair. They were slotted for sausage (the kids named the pepperoni and salami) but that hasn't happened yet.  Our dog Luke came to live with us because his owner was moving down south and he couldn't take him with him. We have 2 young calves that came because someone didn't have a home for them. I got our horse on freecycle to come and retire here. We got a pig a couple of weeks ago that had a hernia and wouldn't live long enough to get to the weight they like to sell them at, so they gave it to us and DH is using that for his sausage too. And just last week DH brings home a cat Lucky who via this person and that person ended up at a trucking company that he works with and they asked him if he wanted it because the owner was in jail! Goodness and now Lucky is the lucky one hanging out in the house and everything!! So if you have any unwanted pets or farm critters I think we are the local hangout for those kind of animals!! Praise God we live on a farm where we can manage to help people out and take some of these animals that otherwise who knows what would happen to them. Always room for one more on the farm!!

Blessings

Melanie

First Baby Chick Hatched!

Here's our fisr baby to hatch!

It's a Buff Orpington...

1 down, 8 more to go....it's going to be a looonnng night!

Art Class

The homeschool law states that we need to study the fine arts including music. So to meet that requirement partially I have the boys attend an art class for homeschoolers at our local art center. (Well local being 20 miles away). They get exposed to a variety of mediums and ways of making art. I wish it was a bit more indepth on the art appreciation aspect, mainly because the boys won't study it with me nor do they find an interest in it. They do love the art portion though and I am thankful for a teacher who volunteers her time to teach the students so they only pay a donation to the art center and a one time supply fee. So far this year they have done some 3-d drawings and some pastels. Today they start working with clay and sculptures. It pretty much takes most of our afternoon as we have to drive there and the class is 1 1/2 hours so I run errands in town while they are there. Only the 2 oldest boys are going this year, and it every other Tues.

I will have to take some pics of their work to preserve it and to share with you.

Melanie

Sewing Weekend

I was blessed with a full weekend of sewing!! Back to the quilting and sewing now that fall is in full swing. I love sharing my creations here so here are the things I was able to work on this weekend.

My 11 year olds Safari Quilt. I basically pieced and completely the whole top this weekend. Many many hours involved in it, but I think it turned out beautiful!! Now the hard part to do the quilting in time for Christmas!!

I made some stocking blocks for an exchange on one of my groups. I am making several different ones of these and hoping to use some for a wallhanging or lap quilt for my Grandma's for Christmas.

And some Jacob's ladders for a monthly lottery on a yahoo group. I love entering the lottery just for the opportunity to make various blocks!!

So now I still will do some more stockings and need to order the backs for the Safari quilt and a Dog quilt (that I still need a picture of) so that I can quilt them for Christmas. Lots in the works and the sewing machine is HAPPY!

Blessings

Melanie