On my very long list of handicrafts I would like to expose the young'uns to, is spirograph embroidery.

If you are unfamiliar with this art form, or know it by a different name, here is a very simple example.

Today, I received a Christmas card from my relatives in New Zealand, with a very cool example of spirography embroidery. I thought I'd share this great idea, and make a mental note to myself to try this sometime--maybe have the kids make our Christmas cards next year.

The blanket is done! The blanket is done!!!

Started last August, the blanket I knitted for my friend in superwash baby wool (so you can wash and tumble dry it) turned out great! It's in a robin's egg blue and lavendar (she doesn't know the sex of the baby).

I knitted it on circular needles (size 6) in a stockinette stitch (you knit both sides) which was perfect for bringing it along to the kids' activities. If I were to do it again, I'd probably use slightly larger needles (8 or 10) to get more of a striped effect in the stockinette, but this turned out fine).

Now, it was actually a pretty fast knit for a blanket...I had to take a break from it in October to make my daughter's competition costume.

As a last touch, after casting off, I went back and crocheted a little border around it (3 chains, and then a single into the blanket). Tada!! Big accomplishment for me...starter of many projects, completer of few.

;-)

An interesting site that has bird lovers' sketchbooks on it.

Wonderful for Nature Notebook inspiration.

http://www.surfbirds.com/Sketchbook%20/skindex.html 

Funny story how I came across it. I was thumbing through a very old issue of National Geographic World that was in a pile of magazines a friend gave my DD. It had an article on a very talented bird artist, Jenny Brumfeld, that at age 13, showed amazing talent as a wildlife illustrator. I was curious to see if her work was online, 11 years later. The internet is an amazing thing. Her work was featured on the Surfbirds site, and she is still a truly gifted artist.

What I really took away from this, is a sense of wonderment of knowing ones' passion at that age, and having the commitment to dedicate and continue to pursue it. I've read books on living your passion, and one of them suggests making lists of what your favorite things to do were at the ages of 11-13. What did you do for hours and hours until you were interrupted...they suggest that those were clues for your passion, and that you should try to tune into that again.

I hope that I will be able to key into my children's interests at these ages--make sure they are journalling, and when they are inevitably waffling when they are older, help remind them what their passion was.