Imperfectly Charming

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Happy Easter! (yes, I know it's late-- but when you think about what Easter means, I think we should be saying Happy Easter all year-- so Happy Easter!) As you can see, taking pictures was very interesting this year. Emma definitely believes in the action shot, or should I say catching things in their natural state! At least that's the reason we like to give when she won't stand still for longer than a second for you to snap a pic. She'll stand there and smile and say cheese, but that's it. As soon as she finishes the last s sound in cheese, she's running to the camera to take a look. Oh, the joys of digital cameras! It's actually pretty cute, unless you're the one trying to snap the picture! Here are some of our attempts!







If you've seen these pictures you've seen my latest project. The bunnies! Please take note of the sequence of pictures trying to capture the girls with their bunnies-- I think my favorite is Emma's face when she dropped hers! Let me give you a little background on the bunnies:
About 2 months ago I sat in my den and looked around at all of the clutter- meaning- toys! toys! oh, and did I mention, toys?!? Just a few weeks before that day I had bagged up 3 large bags FULL of toys and taken them to the local drop-off site. Yet, still, there I was surrounded by toys. So, I decided that we weren't buying anymore toys. (we'll see how long that lasts) So far, we've stuck to it. Now, they still received Easter toys and presents, their grandparents and aunts & uncles gave them lots of "cool stuff"! However, the Easter bunny at our house brought them bathing suits, a Bible for Chloe and books for Emma. And I made them these bunnies. I know they are technically toys- but I figure these were handmade and will hopefully mean something to them later in life. Especially when they realize just how uncrafty their mother is, and that this was a HUGE deal for her to even attempt to make these! I saw Kata Golda's book on a website I like to visit, and it claimed to be a easy, fun "first" project for the beginner sewer. It is made of felt and stuffed with poly-fil fiber. Thank goodness my mother, a Master Seamstress!, was available for me to ask, "What on earth is a whipple stitch, a blanket stitch, and why would you do a double-run stitch?!?" While the book is great at giving templates and cute ideas, it lacks a little in the explanation of the stitching department. The main reason I chose this project (other than the crazy cute animals) was because it stated that part of the charm of these animals (you could do a dog or mouse too) was that they were imperfect- and their imperfection gave them character and charm! Well, if imperfection makes you charming, then these bunnies are the most charming creatures around! Seriously, though, they weren't too hard to make. Probably the hardest part (other than stitching the eyes and threading the darn needle!) was having to wait to work on them until the kids were in bed. So, that made for some long nights the days before Easter, but it was totally worth it when I saw their reaction to them. They both love their bunny, and so far have taken extra special care of them. I think I'll try a mouse next time- probably next Easter! My fingers need a break from all the pricking! :)