Thankful for Tilly Bear Birthdays!

Matilda turned five on Saturday!
This baby bear brings so much delight to us all.
She is silly, sweet, funny, a princess, a clown, a dreamer, a wriggly, squiggly mess maker, and lover of all things pink and sparkly!
She is obsessed with princesses! Especially Rapunzel.
Since watching "Tangled" she can often be found singing to her "magical" hair.
If she hurts herself she will sing to her "magical" hair before submitting to any conventional treatment.
She says "Pass the Castle" instead of "Pass the Parcel".
She says "Tumtimes" instead of "Sometimes"
She says "beefool" instead of "Beautiful"
She calls Florence the cat "Frolumps"
Yet she says "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" better than any of us!
She wanted, more than anything else in the whole wide world, a pink sparkly bike with tassels for her birthday present.... Really, tell me, how could we refuse?
:)








So I pause here to notice the moments of sunlight that sparkle like golden thread throught the ordinary days... Knitting moments together into beauty.
And I count stitches...
Stitches of Thank- Full-ness...
A yarn that spins straw into gold.

* Evening Knitting
* Soft Yarn
* Small beautiful corners of my life tucked away safe inside my heart
* A happy pile of new Picture books from the library to read
* A little girl learning to ride her new pink bike at the park with Daddy!
* The way sunlight glints upon the water's surface
* Little girl squeals of delight
* Boo's marionette shows
* "Do you like my new Bike helmet?" for the hundredth time in a row
* Silly sing-a-longs on the piano
* Writing a story for my girls
* Anticipation of a new baby that flutters in my heart
* Fun filled days that cause little girlies to fall soundlessly to sleep as soon as their heads hit the pillow :)
* A beautiful birthday cake made for a little sister by her biggest sister!

{This Moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo (or two if you're cheeky like me ;) - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.
Visit Soule Mama for more {moments}

Some interesting and inspiring links to share...

• "Jewels updated her blog!" thanks Andrea! for spreading the word :)

• "Sparrow" Thanking Amy for the link to this beautiful, touching piece.

• "My Wish for all Children Starting School" @ Let the children play. Absolutly. These are
  
• the things that matter most.

• "Uncopyright" @ Mnmlist.... Love this way of seeing things!

• "Freedom" @ Ordinary Life Magic.... Simply Amazing!
  

• "The Importance of Play" @ Christopherous Homeschool. Yes. Children do it for a reason!

• "Slow Down you move too fast" @ Dick Staub, Thanking Ann for the link. This is a wonderful reflection.
  

• "Blame Unschooling" @ I'm Unschooled. Yes, I can Write. I can really relate to this!
  

• More from the wonderful Sir Ken Robinson ... So many interesting (an entertaining points about the essence of what it means to be in our Element!)

• "Raising Happy, Imperfect Children" @ NY Times.com

• "As We Sing" @ Curious Acorn
  

Yarn Along

{~ Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs. I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well.}
I'm Joining Ginny today for another lovely "Yarn Along"!
Since last week I have finished up the little cabled cardigan and beanie and added a matching bootee and {a half} to the set!

Maybe next week there will be some oatmeal mittens too! Mmm what else can I knit in oatmeal I wonder? I have two 100 gram skiens left! A thinking cap maybe :)

As for reading materiel, my eldest girl emmy and I are reading "The Silver Skates" a lovely, classically written, Wintery tale. Perfect for these crisp, sparkling, blustery days.

Save Englands ancient forests

The Coalition government has announced plans to sell some or all of the public forest estate in England.

We have already lost much of our beautiful ancient woodlands, home to a myriad of animal and plant species. Much of the land has been bought up buy private companies who use it to build on.
The primary motive of private companies is always the bottom line, it is the policy on which they thrive.
Therefore the maintenance and preservation of the woodlands and the freedom for the general public to walk in them may be compromised.
The freedom to roam and ramble in the common held land of the countryside has slowly eroded over recent years as more and more of the common land has been sold off for development.
Sadly there may come a day when we have to pay for the chance to ramble with our children in the woods.

Keep our woodlands public, free, and safe from development.

Sign the petition now!

Here is a link to the Woodland Trust's petition page. where you can sign the petition.
Here is a link to 38 degrees Save our Forests campaign for more info.

Yarn Along....

Joining Ginny today for another lovley Yarn Along...

I have finished up all the pieces of my raglan baby sweater. They've been pressed and are just waiting to be sewn up.

As for reading. We have been enjoying "The Barefoot Book of Classic Poems" so much recently. It is a treasure chest full of little gems.

The illustrations are by the wonderful artist Jackie Morris. We have a few of her books already and each one is completely magical.

This book enchants my girls from the nearly 4 year old all the way up to the nearly 13 year old. It is a great way to introduce a magic mix of both traditional and contemporary poetry to young and old alike.

...Yarn Along

Today I'm joining Ginny for another lovely "yarn along."
I have just finished a cardigan and bonnet for the little Waldorf doll I made Matilda a couple of weeks ago.
The cardigan pattern is from Waldorf Mama and can be found here. It is quick and easy to knit up and perfect for 14 to 16 inch dolls.
The bonnet is my own recipe :) I'm happy how it turned out!
Now Poppy and her sister Bluebell have a matching set for those chilly winter days out with their little girlfriends :)
And what is the perfect "yarn" for two little dolly's? Why "Plum Tree Cottage" of course.
The girls love this story so much, I know every word of it by heart now!
Plum Tree Cottage is a sweet story about a little doll named Peggy who is trying to find herself her own little home. I recommend it highly for any little girls and dolls alike :)