It begins...

A friend recently forwarded an email to me titled "The Invisible Mother," a short essay comparing the tireless and often thankless job of a mother to the builders of Europe's great cathedrals. Both give their whole lives for a work they will never see finished, both make sacrifices and expect no credit, and both are fueled in their passion by the faith that the eyes of God see every detail. The writer of the essay was inspired by the thought that our endless efforts in motherhood, invisible as they may seem, are worth it and can make an enriching life.


For many of us, the way we choose to hold our invisibility at bay is by creating something tangible. For me, my days often end with knitting - my love of fiber and the need to do something relaxing end up producing something I can hold and look at. Nobody will know how many times I swept under the high chair that day, or how many toys I picked up, or how many times I tried to coax a "please" or "more" or "sorry" out of my 5 year old. But a darling, handmade infant hat? That you can see.


I start new projects every day, and my 10 year old does the same. In this process of creating (and yes, often not finishing our projects!) we connect with each other and a bigger picture of ourselves in the process. My plan for this blog is to share the projects that excite me and bring some accessible proof of my existence in this invisible world of mothering!


So, this blog is dedicated to the mothers out there whose days are filled with the minutia of tasks that build our children and our families. I often tell people that I haven't decided what I want to be when I grow up. But for now, I am the builder of a great cathedral. With every shoelace tied, lunch packed, and forehead kissed, I build.


And I can hardly wait to create something new...


Sunday, February 27, 2011

It's Not a Toy

Oh yes, I just pulled the "It's Not a Toy" card out. Rowan decided her brand new fashion scarf (which she BEGGED me to buy her at the mall today) would be perfect for using as a jump rope in the living room. Not so much.
We spent 30 (very long) minutes shopping for a few spring clothes for Rowan before our movie this afternoon. She slays me, she really does! We were at The Children's Place, which has some very cute things right now - all grouped in darling combinations that are easy to mix and match. Oh, but Rowan refuses to beat to my particular drum when it comes to clothing. The display will show 4 cute tops - same style but different colors that all go relatively well together. Then right below the shirts will be the selection of pants or shorts that go with the tops - most of them you can mix and match with the tops, but there is always one combo of shirt/pant that really should not be worn together. And yes, that's the one Rowan always wants. Seriously?? The pale pink flowered top with green, purple, and white accent colors - she picks the blue bottoms. The purple/green/white plaid that could go with black, navy, green, white, brown - she wants the coral colored leggings. Lord help me! And really, the clothes are only  of minor interest to her. She wants to look at scarves and hats and shoes and bathrobes (she has 2 already). And declares after 15 minutes that we need to be done. It's just WAY easier to go alone.


Back to crafting! Friday afternoon I did manage to finish Rowan's cowl bind-off before school was out, and brought it with me so she could wear it home. Here she is, proudly wearing it (in her jammies.)
In the 15 minutes while we were waiting for her friend to come over before our evening Girl Scout activity, Rowan decided to transform the empty chicken nugget box into a chicken. And a bed for the chicken. I get to  live with these lying about the house for a while. (We don't believe in crafting down-time around here.)
Saturday was spent in CPR and First Aid training (CHECK!) and then Brad and I went to Cinema Suites for dinner and the new Liam Nieson movie, Unknown. It was good, but no Borne Identity. Brynn magically slept through the night and I was awake before 6am with the house to myself. Time to knit, people! Here's the progress so far on the front of the baby sweater...
I am almost decided on the second sweater I'm going to make - it's really a coin toss at this point! Here are the two options - feel free to vote in the comment section!
Classic or funky - help decide! This is for a baby due in March - Brad's good friend, Kevin, and his wife. I've never met his wife, but Kevin is super cool.


Back to the fashion scarf - since I wouldn't let Rowan use it as a jump rope, she decided it was perfect as a blindfold. So, she immediately broke out the paper and scissors and created her own pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey game. She is very proud of it, and the donkey is pretty adorable!
And of course (since the scarf isn't a toy) Rowan had to play fashion pirate on Brynn. Brynn was tolerant at first, but by the last picture (taken by Rowan) she'd had enough.

My question is this, if an object (i.e., fashion scarf) can entertain a 7 year old for 30 minutes, inspire games, bring sisters together, and cause much revelry...is it a toy?
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2 comments:

  1. KathyFebruary 27, 2011 at 11:30 PM

    I'm laughing and laughing! Naw, not a toy, just an ordinary object with unlimited 'unordinary' possibilities. Her creativity is fabulous. Love the chicken, love the donkey, LOVE that girl!

    We play a game in my classroom where we pass a common object, like a fashion scarf (ahem) around the circle and each student tells another way it could be used other than its intended purpose. We go round and round and ROUND. The possibilities seem unending to the fresh, creative, imaginative minds of the young. I say encourage this all you can! :)

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  2. Christy Z.February 28, 2011 at 7:36 AM

    I vote classic on the sweater...

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