Kadence's Winter "Onederland"

Our youngest grandbabe turned one year old just a few days ago. Kadence Noelle was supposed to arrive on Christmas day -- but-- she came a few weeks early.  Please indulge this"gb" one more time and allow me to share a few more family photos of our babes at the birthday party and at Christmas~
(and--- there is a little surprise for you all at the end of this post!)

her Mama made her little "tu-tu"

for her winter Penguin themed party

well, let me just say

that she was NOT going to wear the bow

that matched her outfit!

when you are one year old

it's ok to have your name printed on your bottom!

(actually, it's pretty darn cute!)

taking a photo with her sitting still

was not easy!  

she's a girl on the move!

the clothes come off for the eating of

the birthday cake!

~

Now-- her big sister, Keri Beth

also had a cute little matching outfit to wear --

but -- she was NOT wearing that

because, she IS a Princess.

 it's tough trying to carry out

all of your Princess duties when you are

 3 years old!

this would be the 

"pouty face"

(can you say Diva?)

us "girls" before the party

(Keri Beth, Kadence Noelle, and Maddy girl)

(it only took about 40 tries to get this picture!)

Papaw is grabbing a little snuggle

before the party

My best vintage Goodwill find ever!

~

vintage solid wool with a pink satin lining

perfect condition with the original 

"ILGWU" tag in the back.

~

I paid $3 for this little coat at the

 Goodwill store!

My friend Shell

created this beautiful little

wintery, snowy, Princess crown

for "you know who".

nobody does "bling" better than Shell! 

~

this little Winter crown

was perfect for the Princess!

she never took it off and insisted on

wearing it the entire time of our

Christmas celebration~

~

(heaven help us all!)

 playing with her

Sophia the first princess doll

Kadence did not really understand

the whole Christmas thing --

she loved the paper

and she was intent on watching her big sister!

Our Christmas miracle--

getting this photo made

before one of them wiggled out of our arms!

~

A little surprise gift from me to you~

When I posted a photo of me wearing these gloves on my last post, I had NO idea that so many people would notice (or care!!)  Over 40 emails arrived within the next few days asking me about these beautiful felted gloves.  So~~~ I spoke with Aurelija, the designer of the gloves and she has agreed to offer a special discount to my readers. 

You can find the gloves here and if you purchase anything from her etsy shop between now and the month of January, you may use the discount code SALE15AURELIA   for a 15% discount on your purchase. Who loves you baby? (me!!)

Some updates~

~~we are winding down to the last few days to sign up for the

 Grow Your Blog party.  The deadline to enter is January 15 -- 

I am already beginning to load your blogs into place for the party.
As of right now we have almost 200 entries for the party -- its shaping up to be a very nice event.  You still have time to invite all of your blogging friends -- the more, the merrier, as the purpose is to meet lots of new people and grow your readership and FOLLOWERS!!  

Please note that I won't be sending you emails after you are loaded in place -- there is just NOT enough time for me to do that, I hope you understand.  If you left an entry comment -- you will be at the party!  You can find all the info for the party here~

~~

I wish you all a wonderful and blessed New Year. Every day is what we make it -- my goal for this day and every day to come is to make it count~ do something special for someone I love,(like all of you), and to enjoy and appreciate all the blessings that surround my life and those I love. 

xoxo,

Vicki

Just keepin' it real~

Visits with grandbabies, hand made teddy bears, the last of the Pink Scarf deliveries, and a beautiful heartfelt gesture from a dear friend -- all the blessings that are so very special to us in our life.  This is my chance to share some of those most special memories with you~

Mason - 5 years old
Avela - 18 months old

We just returned from a wonderful

visit with our grandbabies in Atlanta. 

It seems like you just turn your back

and they grow so much!

Avela poses by the Christmas tree. 
(ALL the photos in this post were taken with our
Iphone 5 cameras)

You probably already know this-
but-- grandbabies are BUSY, BUSY, BUSY!!
~
there was lots of jumping on top of
Papaw's belly!

we celebrated Christmas with our babes
so there were new toys to play with~

the dollbaby lost out-
but Avela took off with both the teddy bears
in her new grocery cart!
~
(the teddy bears have their own special story
later in this post)

Mason was SO excited about the five
one dollar bills that his Papaw gave him ---
he wanted to take us all out to dinner!

EARLY morning building!
Grandbabies do not sleep late
when we come to visit!!

Avela's favorite toy was her
gb's iphone!

Avela's first ride on the merry go round
at the mall

Papaw captured this magical moment
with his iphone~

she is laughing out loud here~

we went to this little Italian bistro-
I said, "Mason, turn around here and smile for your gb".
and THIS -- is the picture that I got.

You can pay for expensive photo props ---
or-- you can plop the baby
on the bed at the Pottery Barn Kids!

but the truth of the matter is really this --
most of the time when you are taking photos of
busy, busy, busy grandbabies,
what you end up with mostly is
this!

 Papaw got to fly a vintage aircraft
while we were in Atlanta-
a Waco YMF

Mason was as excited about the airplane
as his Papaw was!

these precious little Teddy bears
were created by my friend Gregory Patrick.
~
Greg's story of how he came to knit
teddy bears is both unique and heartwarming.
Once a homeless person, Greg now knits these bears
as his means of making a living
 and uses them
to touch the lives of people all over the world.

You can find Greg at his blog
Mad Man Knitting.
He will be happy to make a precious little bear for you-
but --as with all things that are specially 
created and made
one at a time~~~
you will need to patiently wait your turn.
~
Just like me when I make my little nests,
Greg only has two busy little hands and
they are constantly
knitting!

Miss Maddy girl
~
I've been promising photos of our Maddy girl
(actually my sister's grand daughter,
but - we count her as our own!)

Here she is posing with her
favorite Uncle on Thanksgiving day.
~ 
Maddy girl will turn 5 years old next month!

A few weeks ago,
I delivered the last of the scarves
from the Pink Scarf Project to my 
friend Donna.

(Kay, me, Donna)

Donna and her friend Kathy 
met me and some friends in Columbus for lunch
and the scarf exchange.
~
For me -- this was the final great moment
of the Pink Scarf Project.
 The true completion of what had been
such an incredible project.
~
Meeting both Kay and Donna was the greatest
experience.  Before this day,
we had only communicated through our blogs
and emails. 
Can I just say ---
they are the
NICEST. PEOPLE. EVER!
(I just can't put into words what this day meant to me.
I could get all gushy here!)
~
You can find more photos of our meeting 
on Donna's blog here
and on Kathy's blog here

Sometimes people do things that
are so heartfelt and special
that it truly is hard to find the words
to express your gratitude.
~
My dear friend Deb
has created these beautiful little smocked gowns
for our most special babies
in my NICU.

Deb told me that the making of the little gowns
had been in her heart for such a long time.
~
This is really Deb's story to tell
and I want you to read it as she
has written and shared it on her blog.
You can find more photos and Deb's special story
here 
and here
and here

And finally~

Merry Christmas to you all
from the Gardener
and me.
~
Treasure every day you spend
 with those you love.

Love,

Vicki

ps -- thank you to everyone who has sent me best wishes for my recent cataract surgery --- all is well -- and round 2 will be coming up soon! More prayers please!

And--

You just have a little over 2 weeks to sign up for the big party!  You can find all the info here-- be sure to bring your friends along too!  It's going to be a wonderful opportunity to make new blogging friends and increase your followers!!

Hats ON!

Nothing says winter like a beautiful knitted slouch hat -- so I made ten! Each of them unique -- some with sequins, cables, embellishments, and even a knitted suede hat.

"When you wear a hat, it is like medicine for the soul. 

 The hat is the expression of who you are as a women in every moment~"

unknown  

When you wear a hat-

you are making a wintery fashion statement.

Everyone notices a girl in a hat! 

~~

Introducing my winter slouch hat collection~

(all of these hats are "one size fits all"

they are super slouchy

and can be adjusted to fit in many ways.) 

the Eleanor hat

~

seriously slouchy-

made from a soft acrylic yarn 

that is accented with sequins.

The entire band around the hat is

an over sized wide cable.

the brim can be rolled up or down

to adjust to your own style.

~

no two people will wear this hat alike

there are SO many possibilities.

the Marilyn hat

~

washable suede

this hat is super light weight and stretchy

but incredible WARM!

this is the hat that I wore in these photos

shown earlier as part of the Pink Scarf Project.

My email box literally filled up

with folks asking about this hat!  

~

Maria and I took off that morning to

frigid temps--

I popped this hat on at the last minute.

Its so light weight -- and yet

it is warm as can be.

~

Every time I wear this hat -

someone asks about it.  I actually

made three for this showing,

but already sold 2 here locally. 

so now there is only

one left! 

the Lesly hat

~

made from the most exquisite mohair yarns-

this hat is slouchy, stretchy, soft, and WARM.

I knitted this hat sitting on the beach in St. Martin 

last spring-

it turned out so beautiful that I had

to make one for myself. 

~

This hat is drop dead gorgeous

with that perfect slouchy drop!

~

(this hat style is the same pattern

as the suede hat above-

the mohair makes this hat also very lightweight

but wonderfully warm and slouchy!) 

a little story~

while I was knitting this hat-

an elderly gentleman came up to me and asked

if he could touch my yarn.

He told me that his wife had recently passed away

and that she had loved to knit.

He told me that she always used the most beautiful

yarns and that I reminded him of her.

He said that he was an "expert on beautiful yarns

 because of his wife.".

~

Every time I wear this hat, 

I think of that sweet man.

He said her name was Lesly

so I named this hat in her honor.

 the Madelyne hat

~

a simple bucket style

with the most incredible slouchy drop.

a brim that can be rolled  up or down-

this hat is super WARM!

I love this style of hat

and I own it in three colors!

me and my favorite slouch hat

at Lake Louise, Canada

the Vicki hat

~

I love to make hats

and I love to WEAR hats in the winter!

This is the tan sequin hat 

that I am wearing in the above photo.

So-

I named it after me.

(I can do that - right?)

the Christine hat

~

another one of my favorite hats,

and I own this hat as well.

~

Similar in design to the Eleanor hat

 (except without sequins)-

this hat is made from the most exquisite yarn.

Marled hues of denim blues,

with a tiny metallic silver thread 

throughout~

this is the perfect hat

to wear with your blue jeans and boots!
(I made 2 because I LOVE this yarn!)

the Angela hat

~

this beautiful hat is the same style

as the one named for me--

I used a multi textured

"thick and thin" yarn

with silver metallic threads

throughout.

~

and because I can't 

"leave things alone!"

I added beaded flower and leaf

 embellishments.

~

yes --

it's gorgeous!

the Clarissa hat

~

this beautiful hat is the same style

as the Christine and Eleanor hats

pictured above.

~the sequins

in this hat just glisten

so beautifully in the light.

want to make a statement?

this is definitely the hat for you!

(I don't own this hat yet --

but I will before the winter is over!)

the Margaret hat

~

BLACK- that iconic color that is always perfect.

The sequins make it even more special.

~

this is also the same style as the 

Clarissa, Christine, and Eleanor hats

shown above.

wear this hat with your best black winter coat

or your blue jeans and leather jacket-

~

black never goes out of style.

period.

a little story~

I knitted this hat while we were on

a cruise earlier this year.

Sitting on the deck beside me were two

little German ladies (who did NOT speak English).

~

They were asking me to tell them what I was knitting.

Finally, when I finished the hat,

I put it on my head and modeled it for them.

They were both so excited that

they jumped up and down clapping their hands!

~

(try to imagine how super cool

I looked wearing this hat on the top deck

of a cruise ship along with my bathing suit!)  

~~

You can find all of these hats 

listed now in my

 ETSY shop.

~~~~

For those of you who are on the Woodland nest waiting list --- nesting has officially begun here in the Sacred Yarn room!  I have already begun contacting those at the start of the list -- so if you are on the list, you will be hearing from me in the next few weeks! 

AND~~

a little reminder that you are all invited to the next party starting on January 25.  If you wish to participate you will need to go here and sign up!  If you are already signed up to party with us -- be sure to tell all your friends!  

Stay warm and snuggled in--right now out my window it is pouring the snow! The perfect day to be thinking about hats! (I'll be wearing one when I head out in a bit!)

Vicki

~coming  up next--
I've got so many things to tell you and to show you.  I've grouped them all together in a little "just keepin' it real post"--