Handmade Flannel Comfort

My friend Barbara got me all excited about these microwaveable cozy bags this Christmas. She suggested we go in on a bag of feed corn together. I demured. Said I was ssure my mom would like one and that I'd make one for us, but I didn't think I needed feed corn in bulk. I made my two. Then I emailed about more corn. Much more corn. My kids were all wanting the one I made. I wanted the one I made. Mike ended up with the one I made. We need many, many more.

Now that the gifts have been given, I can share them with you.

This is an excellent step-by-step tutorial. And here's a little play-by-play of our making.

Two squares of lovely Sandi Henderson Farmer's Market Flannel, right sides together.

Stitch all the way around, leaving an opening to use to turn it right side out. I usually double pin at either side of that opening so I don't get distracted and forget to stop and then stitch the whole thing closed.

Trim the corners so there's no bulk.

This was a great tip: slip a paper towel holder inside to help iron the seams flat.

Turn the square right sides out and use chopsticks to gently push those corners square.

Then, use that paper towel holder again to pour the corn feed corn into the square. I sprinkled my corn liberally with eucalyptus essential oil before pouring it into the square. Then I just stitched that hole closed. Ta dah!

Then, I moved on to make some narrower, long bags for necks and shoulder.

I have a thing for ric-rac. Love, love, love it! So when I saw these, I was sure they were for me. Only I wanted prettier. And pinker. But of course:-). Again, click on the tutorial for the full details. Everything you need to know is right there.

Both the neck warmers and the cozy can be used in the microwave to heat or in the freezer for an ice pack. We need ice packs all the time around here, so I'm making many--some to store in the freezer awaiting the next need for a cold pack and some for warming. 

It gets a little tricky to sew those channels with the rice in the bag. I found it helpful to push the rice all the way down into the bag and then pin right above it, all the way across, to try and trap the rice. It was also helpful to use striped flannel, so I didn't have to mark my stitching lines. See the sole green pin on that blue line? That's where I'm going to sew. The line of pins below is the rice-trapping line. It's a bit tedious, but so worth it.

Light Reflections

I have asked a few friends to drop by and add a little light and warmth to this space while I soak up sunshine with my family the next couple of weeks. Megan from Contented Sparrow is literally bringing light today. I do hope that you'll wander over to her place--there is so, so much beauty there. If you ended up brewing another pot tea--or even a whole pot--and hanging out there all afternoon, you will thank me. It's a wonderful, beautiful, spirit-filled place to be.

Hi there. I pray this finds you well today. I'm Megan and I have an eclectic little blog called Contented Sparrow. Eclectic is my vague way of saying that I can't really pin down what my blog is really about. It's just bits and pieces of me, the work of my hands and heart, and some of what I learn from God along the way. I've admitted over there before that while capturing moments and color and light with my camera comes naturally to me, writing does not. That's why it was with great trepidation that I agreed to write up a little post for dear Elizabeth while she would be away on her lovely vacation. Sorry, y'all, I'm no Mrs. Foss! I have no insightful words of my own to offer you today. I'm pulling my wisdom straight from God's Word! Because we're celebrating the Light of the World born in Bethlehem those years ago, the Light that leads us now, let's remind ourselves of what HE said about light.....

"...that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all."

1 John 1:5

"I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness." 

John 12:46

"...the people dwelling in darkness

have seen a great light,

and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death,

on them a light has dawned.”

Matthew 4:16

"The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory." 

 Isaiah 60:19

"...because of the tender mercy of our God,

whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high

to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,

to guide our feet into the way of peace.” 

Luke 1:78-79

"The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone."

Isaiah 9:2

"For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."

2 Corinthians 4:6

"...giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son," Colossians 1:12-13

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."

John 1:1-5

"For it is you who light my lamp; the LORD my God lightens my darkness." Psalm 18:28

"The LORD is God, and he has made his light to shine upon us."

Psalm 118:27

"And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb."

Revelation 21:23

And, a prayer by John Baillie that praises our Bright Morning Star, words that cause me to still, breathe, and my soul to rise to Him. My prayer for you today, too.

O Lord and Maker of all things, for whose creative power the first light came forth, who didst look upon the world's first morning and see that it was good, I praise Thee for this light that now streams through my windows to rouse me to the life of another day.

I praise Thee for the life that stirs within me: I praise Thee for the bright and beautiful world into which I go: I praise Thee for earth and sea and sky, for scudding cloud and singing bird: I praise Thee for the work Thou hast given me to do: I praise Thee for all that Thou hast given me to fill my leisure hours: I praise Thee for my friends: I praise Thee for music and books and good company and all pure pleasures. O Thou who Thyself art everlasting Mercy, give me a tender heart today towards all those to whom the morning light brings less joy than it brings to me:.... O Light that never fades, as the light of day now streams though these windows and floods this room, so let me open to Thee the windows of my heart, that all my life may be filled by the radiance of Thy presence. Let no corner of my being be unillumined by the light of Thy countenance. Let there be nothing within me to darken the brightness of the day. Let the Spirit of Him whose life was the light of men rule within my heart till eventide. Amen.

*Advent wreath can be found here.

On Monday Afternoon {in Florida}

I find myself:

::noticing God's glory

Outside my window right now, the Atlantic Ocean stretches beyond my sight's end. The day is sparkingling clear, a bit cold and brightly beautiful. Definitely the way to begin a vacation.

::listening to 

the music coming from a wonderful tabletop carousel that has Sarah utterly enchanted. Sounds of The Nutcracker fill the air as my girlies make donut holes with my Aunt Diane. Happy morning!

::clothing myself in 

I've been thinking and think about Kelle Hampton's wise words. She said,  "I like dressing up. It makes me happy. Skirts, cute heels, red lipstick, hats. It's art to me, and I do it because I like it. I used to make crap up like "I had an appointment" as if I had to have a reason to wear a cute blouse. You know what? Sometimes I wear them in my house. On Saturdays. When I have no place to go. Because it makes me happy." Getting dressed in the morning can be a matter of pulling on whatever clothes or it can be our first opportunity of the day to express creativity and maybe make a little art. Dressing as art? I think I can see it that way. I'm wearing new jeans--ones that fit--and a long sleeved shirt with a blue batik print. Mike noticed the shirt first thing this morning and commented on how much he likes it. See? Art? Works for me.

::giving thanks for

Safe travels. Thirteen hours in the car. Mike drove the whole way and it was really a good trip. Really.

 

::pondering prayerfully

It is requisite for the relaxation of the mind that we make use, from time to time, of playful deeds and jokes.-- St. Thomas Aquinas 

::clicking around these links

No clicks this week. I'm on vacation :-)

::turning the pages of this book

Nikon D40 for Dummies. I plan to read this tonight. The whole thing. 

::thinking thoughts as I go about my daily round

I'm flitting from my mother's house to my aunts' houses. My family knows how to rock interior design. It's crazy how beautiful these homes are. So, so much to see and absorb and love. Art, furntiture, cabinetry, fabric. Sigh. Truly beautiful here.

::creating by hand

I stitched a pillow cover all the way down here, just sweet square from Loulouthi Needleworks. It makes me happy just to look at it. The very first part of my grand bedroom renovation. Yay!

::learning lessons in

vacationing. 

 

::encouraging learning 

it's art history all the time here. We are blessed by beauty.

::carefully cultivating rhythm

after we leave here, I'm going to adjust the schedules offering by this awesome website to every one of our Disney's days.

::begging prayers

for peace, patience, and safety.

::keeping house

it's all about keeping the van organized

::crafting in the kitchen 

No cooking for me. We did have a Trader Joe's treat at every state border crossing. The girlies gathered Meyer lemons from the tree in my mom's yard this morning. Then, they squeezed them to get plenty of juice for lemonade.

::loving the moments

of being together in the sand and the sea under a bright blue sky.  

::planning for the week ahead

Did I mention that we're going to Disney World?

Intentional Weekend: Packing and Planning

There will surely be some dipping and dancing this evening, but today we're all about packing and planning.

{this moment}

I really wanted a picture to capture what I see when everyone is gathered around the table, each in his or her own place. Sarah Annie was feeling poorly on this night and didn't want to be anywhere but on my hip...In the end, maybe this is more real.

{this moment} - A Friday ritual.  Photo capturing a moment from the week.  A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, visit Soulemama to leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.