It all started when... take 2!

I have felt so inspired to write as of late, but am having a hard time putting my thoughts and emotions into words. There just doesn't seem to be enough ways to convey what we have been experiencing lately and the joy and peace that seems to be coming with it. We have been so ingrained to believe that bigger is always better and if you find something great then buy three of them! lol Isn't that pretty much what the world would have you believe? Since moving to this little old house, we have found that bigger isn't always better. I can literally FEEL the difference this place has made in me. Not only have we lost weight (about 20 lbs each! Kids not included), but we have felt a slow down in our outlooks, and a re-purposed view on how we do things.

 If you have been following me for very long, you know that I come from a long line of "makers".I am a firm believer that there is a turning point for us all at some time when the stars align and we actually start listening to the little signs and pathways that God puts before us... one of those "it all started when" moments... Well, I am not sure where this path is going to lead me but I am definitely feeling one of those redirecting "it all started when" moments happening to me right now and I am excited to see where it will go! :) It has been a few years now since I got my spinning wheel in a thrift store and unfortunately I haven't been able to devote as much time to it as I would have liked. You know with the kids, and animals and homeschooling... not to mention the puppet making, gardening and moving... there's not always enough time to go around! But, recently, I've been taking the time for myself (although I will admit it feels selfish) and getting back to the knitting and spinning that I enjoy so much.



A few months ago, we started going to a new church closer to our new house. We have met some of the most amazing people since going there and one of them I am finding has quite a bit in common with me and my crafting obsessions! :0) Well, to make a long story short, she had this loom that she was looking to get rid of and asked if I would like to have it. It took everything in my being not to just jump at the opportunity to get yet another creative tool but I did take my time before saying yes. I began researching it and talked it over with hubby and was still on the fence about it. I am no where near ready to be some master weaver, and I know that this loom will probably sit here for quite awhile before I give it the attention that it surely deserves but how do you turn down a once in a lifetime chance to have a loom like this!?

Considering the lifestyle we are trying to attain and the farming things we are learning and experiencing, I thought it was time for us to read the next book in the Little House series "Farmer Boy". I think it was within a day or so of getting the new/old loom that we started reading it and I was just giddy over the descriptions we were reading about how his Ma would spin the wool and then weave it into fabric to make their clothes. I know I read these books years ago but I am loving the details that it goes into about dying the wool and how soft and warm his clothes were. There was an appreciation for what his mother did for him... something you can't get off a $.99 rack at Walmart. It was such a delight to turn the page and find this drawing...

That will be me someday... :)

A gift...

It's funny to me how the universe brings us what we need when we need it.... I've always believed that but sometimes have to be reminded from time to time....

From the time I was little I have had this gift of thrifting... I don't know how I was blessed with it, and feel kinda snobby even talking about it but when it comes right down to it, I really do have a gift when it comes to thrifting and I really do feel blessed  by it... over and over again...

My first experience with it came when I was probably 4 or 5. I was going with my grandparents as they set up at a flea market. I can remember being told to bring a jacket and fighting that I didn't need one. Then my next memory was opening the door and seeing the fog floating across the field of tables being set up and thinking that I had been soooo wrong!! What is it about being a kid and just having to fight what we think are terrible rules? lol Anyways, I can remember thinking that I was going to be sick, it was so chilly and I didn't have any room to complain! My gram took me to look around  while my papa started to set up their tables and I remember bending down to look thru a box and finding a Cabbage Patch blanket for $.75!! What luck!! I had it wrapped around me for the rest of the morning!! I still have that blanket to this day... yes, I know I'm a packrat! :)

From then on, I have always had the best of luck at finding what I need/want at yard sales, thrift shops and even the occasional dump! lol In high school, I even passed that luck on to friends that would take me shopping with them when they needed to find the perfect dress! After I got my first prom dress for less than $20 (new) they became believers in my gift too! lol



I think I must be passing it on to my girls now... I must sound like a terrible parent in the store tho. I can remember my oldest wanting one of those electronic dogs on a trip to Toys R Us. You know the ones... they bark and pant and cost a small fortune? Yeah, as we are looking at it in the store, I told her that in a few months, after Christmas had passed that we would start finding them in thrift stores when the other kids got tired of them and then we could get them and "rescue" the homeless toy dogs... little did I know how true that would be! A few months later, on Freecycle, someone listed not the little dog that we'd been looking at but the $200+ big electronic lab! He even came with working batteries and his very own bone! Now my girls make comments in the stores when they see something they like.... "Guess we'll have to keep our eye out for that one huh Mom?" lol I love it!! :)

If you've been reading my blog for very long, you already know about the newest "treasures" as we call them, that fell into our laps. Again... we are so blessed... But more so, I think that it's all about timing. I think that had I found those tools a few years ago I wouldn't have known what to do with them, or at the very least I would have bought them and they would have set in my closet unused. But to get them now, when I am ready for them? It's amazing!!

I have been a wood burning fool! lol I've been working on toys swaps, and gifts and even a few custom orders from friends! As soon as I get caught up I am hoping to start listing some in my etsy shop too! After years of feeling out of place at our last location, I feel like I can truly feel the glow of God's good favor on us. I know it's probably silly to feel that finding the best tools for our hobbies is a blessing from God, or that he would waste his time on such trivial things is crazy but I really do... We were ready for it and He is opening doors for us....

After having such good luck with the wood working tools, a few days later I got a call from one of my favorite thrift shops in town. They have a wish list board and I had added a reel mower (yes I know I'm crazy) and a spinning wheel. I knew that they were both long shots but figured I had nothing to lose! Well, a few months ago, she did get in a reel mower (which I love by the way!) and then a few weeks ago she had gotten in a spinning wheel!! The price however was A LOT more than I was willing to put out for something I had never tried before! lol  She asked what I was willing to pay for one if she ever got one in again. I explained that I was really just looking for something to try out, not a big investment so I was looking for a cheap one, probably not more than $50. At the time I thought for sure that I had blown it. I would never possibly find one that cheap in a thrift store, and sighed as I kissed my dream of spinning my own yarn away... but wait!! She called again! A lady had overheard her talking to me on the phone. She said that she had a spinning wheel at home that she had used in while and that I could have it for $50!!!! You remember that gift I told you I had about finding what I need/want? I think it's been in over drive lately! lol

So, within a few hours of getting the call I was in at the store and bringing my new "baby" home... :) But just wait... God wasn't finished with me yet.... but that will have to wait for another day! :)



I love learning about the process of things. Whether it's making a recipe from scratch or turning wool from a sheep into yarn that will later keep my kids warm on a cold winters day... the process is the real journey and I'm so glad to be on this adventure....

It all started when....

How many times do we look back on our lives and think "It all started when..."? Well, I can already see that comment coming true in our lives and I'm excited at the possibilities...

It all started when....

My first interested came when my Grandpa passed away. I know that sounds sort of odd but I can remember all of my Uncles standing in the garage deciding who wanted what of his tools. A few of them took a tool that they remembered him using or something like that but then there was a lot that they all decided could just be gotten rid of. Even at seventeen, I remember feeling this urge to hold on to it, to try and carry on a tradition I had otherwise never had any interest in. I remember seeing his work bench with wood parts already cut out and in progress for some bird feeders... it still makes me sad at the thought that he left something unfinished...I've often thought about those bird feeders and how I should make one like it just for some more closure.... maybe to prove to myself that I did it...

I'm so glad that I spoke up that day, and asked to have his scroll saw. I still to this day don't know why I did and then went on to feel bad for years because it sat in a box being unused. It would sit for about 6 years until I met my husband. Now I think it's pretty cool to think that a grandpa I wish I could have known more and my husband that I adore, would come together to teach me how to do wood working. We both come from a long line of "makers" and now we are both learning more and more so that this work of art isn't lost on our generation and so that it gets passed on to another one.

Well, if you've been following me for very long at all, you know that I am big into making childrens' toys... puppets, play food, and in the recent years... wooden. I've dabbled with the scroll saw, somewhat enjoyed the band saw and now fallen in love with wood burning!! I've had one of those junky ones for a few years, and it has served it's purpose well however I've been feeling lately like I needed to step it up a bit.... enter THE ad in the paper... THE ad that would change my toy making forever! :)

I was actually going to this sale in hopes of finding some woodcarving tools for my husband . The ad said that they had wood working tools but I figured it was a long shot at best. DH is always teasing me about why can't I find him good deals at yard sales! The tools I tend to find at yard sales are usually either way over priced or completely worn out and not worth the money... But still, I keep trying... and boy am I glad I did!!!

The girls and I went to the sale and showed up to a carport and cover porch FULL of old men going thru table after table of misc tools... now I'm not completely helpless when it comes to tools, but this was so overwhelming and packed that I decided just to ask. And wouldn't you know, they had just sold their nice wood carving set complete in a nice carry box?! I could have just cried.... until they directed me to the corner of the porch and said they thought there was some more up there... so there I am, in a skirt with two little girls in tow weaving in and out of old farmers etc (we were getting some pretty funny looks) to go find these other tools... not only did I find a set of carving tools for my hubby but I also opened an old plastic case to find what I was pretty sure was a more professional wood burning tool!!!! I asked one of the other guys shopping there just to be sure and it was!!!!!!  I went up to the guys selling it to ask him a question and he was a bit hard of hearing... instead he answered back... I'll take $20 for it! I thought I was going to fall over as I gripped it a bit tighter! lol

And so my newest obsession, uh I mean adventure, in wood burning began!

These were my first attempt at making peg dolls... I made one for each of my girls and they love them!! Now I am hooked and have been crafting up a storm!

We are big fans of Anne of Green Gables so I had to make Anne and Gilbert! :)

My friends saw my postings on FB and have been making requests for custom orders too! What fun!!

I'm having fun with the new challenges and my list to make keeps growing and growing...

I later found out that the wood burner and other wood working tools that I bought, had been used by an old lady that passed away. I had the chance to go in her wood shop and see some of the projects she had made... they were amazing in details, the kind that take your breath away. She too left a few projects unfinished... but I have a sense of awe... at the idea that these tools went from one crafts woman to another... and I'm proud to keep these traditions going... both for a lady I never met and for a grandpa I dearly loved...

Traditions are priceless...

Another moment in the recent past that has left a last impression on me and gave me the courage to try my hand at wood burning came from one of my VERY favorite fellow bloggers, MamaRoots! It was her article in Rhythm of the Home that first game me the confidence to try... just try to create something as beautiful as hers... not that I will ever be that good... but I tried and I loved it!!!

And bit by bit I am learning and getting better!! :)

I am just loving the learning process involved in working on wooden toys. I came across this post and thought it was really great! So if you're interested in making wooden toys... let me be the first to say... JUST DO IT!! Take the leap... cast your fears of messing up away... and see where the adventure takes you!!!

Someday you'll be able to look back and say "It all started when..."