Alina's Adventures

A conversation with myself about how to spend holiday money.

Hand-embroidered Romanian tablecloth on the kids' tea party table....

There are books you haven't read by Romanian authors in the Dalkey Archive... The holidays are a time for catching up on things we love, including books.

People matter more than books. You should hang out with your partner and master the chain stitch together over a cup of lemongrass tea.

A frugal, green-tinted female might consider upcyling all the extra yarn for a hanging mural. It could be a new year tradition-- a way of weaving the past through the present. Imagine the symbolic value.

But harem pants...

Forget upgrading the house. Having a small carbon footprint soothes the way the soul treads over the earth.

Give the money to Habitat for Humanity and make spoon dolls instead. Imagine the family who will receive a house... imagine their story. Humanize the abstraction of love.

Make thank you cards for everything we've been given.

Coryell Casa holiday playlist.

Anna and Prophet thought this was the silliest tree on the tinsel trail.

When it comes to trees and holiday decor, it's all a matter of perspective-- all about how we decide and agree to look at things. 

And while we're looking at things, don't forget to sit and savor the moments. Nothing is perfect. Presents don't replace presence. And love is an ongoing story..... Sing it.

Because everybody needs a holiday playlist.

And we skittered through CHOM at light speed.

Prophet shares a cup of tea with her cousin.

The farmer's market pleased everyone.

Isla melted me when he changed truck gears.

Kansas Truck Stop.

A scrap flower by the Eldest and a decades-old poem found in one of my diaries

 

Fear smells like old boots
left in a gas station restroom,
the kind you never wanted to put on
stinking from miles away
yet everything begins with this lack
for anything better to wear.

The long-legged
cowboy hat cocky
tries to pay for my gas
a heart races, doom sounds 
like spinning vinyl
revolving doors
exits bloom into prospects
his eyes twinkle
Southern boy blue.

Fear tastes like a beard
after chicken at Denny’s  
two shots of tequila 
spiked us into sharing
the laugh that cinches the deal
not BOGO but one of a kind
desire crisped by the deep fry.

The salt from here
unforgettable puckers.

Handmade holidays and sewing callouses.

What the Eldest stitched for his friend, Erin

I love handmade holidays-- despite the incessant tug to stitch as I speak, walk, sit, wait, or daydream. So many beautiful things to make for people we love and admire. This year, we've been rummaging through the huge box of decorator fabrics donated by Pamela.... and all sorts of critters and creatures are coming to life.

The Eldest models his creation

The King spent at least an hour last night learning how to embroider from the Eldest. It's the first year in which the King has decided to participate in handmade holidays and I love hearing their husky voices bicker over thread techniques.

Miss Meow tries out Gnome's chair. 

Little Isla took her ornament home on Friday...

though the box interested her more than the ornament itself.

"Mom, I really want to make something for Josiah's family...."

The Eldest and I collaborated on a ornament for our neighbors, the Blankenships, whose oldest daughter was born with Rett syndrome. If you haven't heard about Rett syndrome, it's probably because it is a rare congenital disorder. The Eldest designed the purple ribbon himself and wanted very much to make this gift-- which warmed my heart because it came without prodding or poking. The gift of life is a beautiful one, and if you're looking for a gift to give friends and family this year, consider donating to the Rett Syndrome Foundation. Research and cures cannot emerge from the woodwork-- and rare congenital disorders are not high on the research interests of any drug companies whose interest in profit rules the bottom line.

And so the stitching continues.... with every stitch, I consider the gift of friendship and family, sew love in between seams, backstitch with a kiss.

Free printable holiday poem by Christina Rossetti.

Our unfinished tree... a work in progress.

A Christmas Carol by Christina Rossetti (PDF)

Our holiday wish list.

Since we are picky about toys (we prefer no plastics, no violent stuff, and no misogynistic toys), our family and friend frequently ask what to purchase for the kids for holiday gifts. Since it is no fault except my own for not answering, I decided to make a list of things we'd like or love to receive- precious things, many of which will allow us to learn more in our homeschooling.

(The ones with an asterisk are on our Amazon wishlist.)

FOR GNOME

Story Box Circus by Janod *
Story Box Farm by Janod *
Family Pastimes Cooperative Game *
Once Upon An Alphabet by Oliver Jeffers *
In My Heart: A Book of Feelings by Jo Witek *
Mooshka Tots Doll *
Apple sorting game *
Children's tea set which can be used to drink tea *
Water pouring pitcher for drink time *

 

FOR PROPHET

You Are Stardust by Erin Kelsey *
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland In A Ship of Her Own Making by Cathyrenne M. Valente *
A Kid's Herb Book by Leslie Tierra *
OGO Bild pod *
50 t-nuts for climbing holds *
25 kids' large rock climbing holds *
Periscope *
Discovery Kids motorized pottery wheel *
Melissa and Doug magentic wooden alphabet *

 

FOR THE ELDEST

The Wall by Peter Sis *
The Tree That Time Built by Linda Winston and other poets *
A Kid's Herb Book by Leslie Tierra *
Toy rope ladder *
The Microbiology Coloring Book *
History of Art Card Game *
Student Owl Pellet Kit *

 

FOR HIM AND HER

Into the Field: A Guide to Locally-Focused Teaching by Clare Walker Leslie *
Baxton studio chairs for the study *
Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay *
Spectrum: From Right to Left in the World of Ideas by Perry Anderson

The King's cool gift.

It was a surprise. A sign intended to demonstrate when I was grappling with words, trying to write, and therefore better left undisturbed.

The King got the kids to paint it in secret. How much more could I love a dude that understands my need for space and makes every effort to honor it without throwing a messy den or unmade dinner into the batch.

Do I use it? Sometimes.

Though mostly I write on the back stoop-- and in the bed-- anywhere I can steal the seconds. So I'm grateful. For the gift. And for what it symbolizes. 

How to make an easy-sew cash ornament.

What to do with all the Romanian lei in our piggy banks? How to bring a little Romania onto our tree? Why not stitch an ornament?

supplies

1 Romanian cash leu (or euro or dollar or whatever)
thread and machine (use a constrasting thread color)
piece of colorful fabric cut to same length as cash
hole puncher
six inch hemp twine or whatever string for hanging

how-to

First, use your hole puncher to punch as many holes as you like in your money. Clever folks can punch a shape if they want to get frisky.

Then fold your bill down the center with your chosen fabric inside the bill. Make sure the printed side faces up so you can see the colors through the punched holes.

Use your machine to stitch together the edges, leaving a little room at the top for the string. Fold the string in half and tuck it 1 or 2 inches inside the folded fabric. Then stitch and backstitch to secure. Play around and make stitch designs until you're satisfied. Now you have a durable, longlasting ornament that can easily be slipped into an envelope to travel across the states and excite loved ones who come from Romania. Or whatever your native country might be. 

Making sock monsters from socks.

At last count, we had over fifty unmatched socks. So I made a sock monster this weekend-- and the girls made sock cuffs. Get this, though-- the King made his own sock monster. He asked me nicely to help him out with the eyes (which I plan to do pursuant to fire tonight). 

Part of me thinks it ridiculous that I can be excited when the King does something conventionally outside his gender's craft domain, and then part of me feels guilty for feeling excited. Should I just respond as if such things were normal? Isn't excitement a way of babying him?

No, self, it's just a way of reminding him that he can be good at needle and thread-- his penis does not prevent him from sewing or from enjoying it-- despite his socialization to the contrary. I know, I know, it's sexy for a woman to wield a circular saw or a power drill... I've seen the Man Show, I got the message that it's okay for us to build stuff because men have decided to find it "hot". (Part of me resists handling power tools for fear of pandering to the new sexy.) But the King doesn't get social sexy points for stitching. Instead, he gets nerd points. In my book, nerd points are the only points worth pursuing or having. 

A random assortment of handmade holiday cards for your viewing pleasure.

Because we didn't have the extra cash to purchase fancy Minted cards this year.... but boy did we have lots of materials from which to make collage cards. The kids either colored, painted, or wrote at least one part of each card to ensure our handmade cards were kidmade as well.

Front: kidmade watercolor, printed quote, glue stick, cardstock, scissors

Back: kidmade watercolor, glue stick, white mailing sticker, pen to write your message

Front: black ink pen, white paper, glue stick, family photo

Front: kidmade watercolors, scissors, glue stick, white paper, black pen

Front:  kidmade watercolors, scissors, glue stick, white paper, black pen

Back: kidmade watercolors, scissors, glue stick, computer printout of words

Front: kidmade watercolors, scissors, glue stick, free printed gift tags

Back: black ink pen, yellow Avery office stickers, free holiday clipart, glue stick, white paper

Front: copper glitter, school glue, scissors, kidmade watercolors, white Avery office stickers

Back: kidmade watercolors, scissors, glue stick

Front: kidmade watercolors, scissors, glue stick, white paper

Front: kidmade watercolors, scissors, glue stick, white paper, copper glitter, school glue, black pen

What St. Nicholas brought this year.

Gnome and Prophet crafted ornaments for their own holiday tree, left by St. Nicholas near their shoes. They've been concocting ornaments from string, floss, and even uneaten cereal flakes and then adding them to the their tree. I'm glad they have a space to create their own version of conventional American Christmas.

In addition to the tree, St. Nicholas left some clementines, Guatemalan worry dolls, and suspenders for each. 

While Prophet appreciated her Tetris-style suspenders, it was Gnome who forged a special relationship with what she calls "my wangs". After running about the yard by herself for at least half an hour, she raced into the house to ask if we'd seen her "flying"-- and how he wings "were flapping".

She insisted on wearing her wangs to the tree lot, under her coat, and even in her carseat. Boy oh boy did the scene get rough when the King suggested she remove her wings for the duration of our tree-hunting expedition.

Pajamas were also a red-letter area. Gnome cried and cried because she didn't want to take off her wangs. We compromised by insisting she change into pajamas and then attaching her wangs to pj bottoms. The kids colored and painted holiday cards while the King made a fire. Gnome slept with her wangs. Thanks for the wacky gift, St. Nicholas.

Holiday decorating at our house: The manger scene and diy versions.

The manger scene is unpacked and put on the piano. There are so many stories lodged inside the nativity-- stories of tribes and discrimination, stories of poverty and tradition, stories of childbirth in which we resemble our animal brothers and sisters.

The wise men, or three kings, carry magic potions and Eastern incense which you can smell on a Sunday in any Eastern Orthodox church. We brought our own frankincense back from Romania a few years ago, and I love to burn it at Christmas.

The angel hangs from a metal rod with a star in the center of her chest. Who wouldn't love to bear the sky and its stars in their torso? Now for a little nativity craftivity...

MY FAVORITE NATIVITY FREEBIES

DIY wooden nativity set (DIY Candy)
Printable coloring nativity set (Marloes de Vries)
DIY lego nativity set (Apartment Therapy)
Simple wooden nativity scene (Dabbles and Babbles)
Felt nativity ornament (Wild Olive)
Christmas nativity tableau (lil blue boo)
Printable nativity scene (Made By Joel)
20 minute felt finger puppet nativity (Little Bit Funky)

What we've been doing these holly-filled days.

Watching the last leaves change color and look like flames on the top of the grass.

Collecting the leaves where we find them and stitching them together with a needle and a long piece of embroidery floss, a hanging mobile collection of autumn leaves. Soon, the leaves will be too crinkly to withstand movement. Then we burn the mobile.

Going on picnics with a vat of Manna Grocery African Peanut soup..... because the cumin helps our sore throats.

Paying our respects to last year's holiday tree who resides in the woods behind our house. Don't ask me how his name became "Hairy" but that's the name by which the kids address him.

Welcoming Bunica from her long trip to Romania, where she voted in the presidential election and saw another little piece of history change for the better.

Hanging out with fantastic cousin Isla Alina, whose name still makes me want to cry a little when I say it in its entirety.

Wandering around the University of Alabama quad with dear old friends.

Playing dress up and then wrestling in high heels and fancy dresses. Because nothing says wrestle like sateen.