skytop apple orchard...

first off, i would like to thank my friend jenny for taking all of the upcoming photos, as i left our camera @ home. THANK YOU!!

last thursday, our homeschool co-op suited up & headed off to a local u-pick farm, skytop apple orchard to be exact. 

the weather @ 8am, was not promising.  the skies were dark & ominous, the wind was blowing & there was more that a bit of nip in the air,  BUT we said that if it wasn't raining, we would give it a go & boy, were we glad we did!!

halfway there, the clouds parted & it was nothing but gorgeous blue skies!

 here's a photos of our crew, 35 folks in all make the hour trek to skytop (~ 2/3 of the total co-op)

 me & ev...& her rainbow pants!  (she got sooooo many compliments on these ;)

 we apparently came @ the end of the pickin' season & so had to walk a bit further to fill our bags...

 a giant pumpkin slide on their playground...

ehren lukas feeding the bunnies...;)

 the bridge leading into the bamboo forest, which was AWESOME & definitely a hit w/the older boys!

 aydin, monkeying around...

we had signed up for the fall harvest tour, which included an education rundown on the orchard & how it operates, a hay ride, a 1/4 peck of apples & a pie-sized pumpkin.  not bad for $8, right??

and on friday...??

well, we made apple pie, of course!!

this was my first EVER apple pie, if you can believe it.  i was always a bit weary of the crust part,  which i now know was just silly!

autumn blessings! xo

handmade christmas 2011 & other recent creative endeavors...

october is here!!  this means that the weather is cooling off & i am no longer thought insane for my constant knitting...

 (if you don't knit, it is seriously addictive, trust me!! ;)

@ any rate, i noticed that tanya is right there with me on the 'get crackin' on the christmas list!  i LOVE it!!

there is something seriously satisfying about making your own christmas gifts.  whether it be homemade jams/pickles to share, or wooden tree blocks, or hand knit/sewn lovelies.  in my experience, children really seem to treasure the handmade gifts from loved ones (& more so overlook their imperfections.)

it is a beautiful thing... & the love that goes into each.  with each stitch, do you not think of the person you are making it for, how it will look on them, why you chose these particular colors, how you can't wait to give it to them & all the while remembering good (& bad) times that you have shared together. 

THIS is why handmade will always & forever outshine any store bought gift in my book. 

ok, so enough with the rambling.  onto the goodies, right??

my first sweater (& my first christmas gift) done!

a 'ragman' for our sweet bean bean...

other than that, it is pilot hat central here. ;)

i got an order this week for one hat that is in the shop & she wants 3 more custom doll pilot hats to go with it.  so, 'dusting off' a pattern that i haven't used in a while to make them.

the first 2 are done & for 16" waldorf dolls...

this one is a super cute pastel rainbow stripes...

the second is a brighter orange/magenta/yellow merino that sk & i dubbed "farm fresh peaches"...

i am currently working on the third & final hat, it is for a 15" doll.  will be posting photos of that later this week. 

aside from that, ev wants a rainbow stripes hat for her doll "olivia" & i need to make her a new one for this winter as well.  so, by this weekend we'll have made *5* pilot hats.

they are classics though, you know??  ehren wore them constantly, but they were of the hannah anderson variety (before i had gotten the knack of the knitting thing ;).  so many times i have wished that i learned to knit when orin (our 11 year old) was a papoose, but alas....  still thought, enough little in the house to keep this mama busy.  and besides...there are always baby showers & nieces & nephews to hold out for...;) 

& what lovelies are you working on this evening??