A Den of One's Own

A den, a hideaway, a grotto, a shady secret spot.  Isn't that what every child needs?

Kitted-out Kitty

 
Hi there!  We've had family visiting for the past few weeks, and I've been spending evenings chatting and sewing... this lovely little creation from Clothkits for Boo.  By hand.  Every little tiny piece.  Somehow I just had to do it, and now I do think it's out of my system.  Phew. 

So I introduce to you Kitty, with her complete kit:

... dungarees

 
...in a pretty floral dress

 
 
... in her 'car outfit'

 
...and her sunflower kimono

this kitty knows how to wear her hat at just the right jaunty angle...

 
Kitty has been taken to Boo's heart and is now accompanying her of many of her daily adventures.

Boo in Okido

 
We have been fans of Okido magazine for a little while now.  We heart the art/science themes (e.g. the weather, babies, emotions etc), the funky innovative illustration and the age-appropriate stories and activities (mazes, doodles, finding characters etc).  Boo senses an alter ego in the character 'messy monster', as I am sure do many young uns reading his stories!  The 'Dirt' issue is particularly special to us, however, as, there on the inside cover are two pics of the Boo herself mucking about in muck.  She appears top and bottom right, in her wellies.  We affectionately refer to her as 'child of the mud', seeking out muddy puddles as is her wont, so she fits right in here.

The Boo Paper Doll

A little while ago I made Boo a paper doll based upon herself...

 
I drew out some clothes based upon her own wardrobe, some of which I coloured and some of which she coloured.

 
 
 
Can you spot which one she did?!

Today we decided to update her wardrobe as Boo has grown out of all the items we based these pieces on.  Everything went a bit pink...

 
 
The poor girl needed some shoes...

 
... and here are the originals they are based upon...

 
The colouring became a bit cursory as time went on, (Boo not showing any signs of inheriting my love of colouring as yet!), but paper Boo was soon bedecked in Boo's favourite 'Kjitebjorn (polar bear)' t shirt.

 
When I was little I love love loved paper dolls, so I'm thrilled to share this with my daughter (you could indeed ask, who are these for?).  I remember having a very precious box of them and I seem to remember I had some hand-drawn and coloured ones which had belonged to my mum (I will have to check my fact with her here, it's possible this is a fantasy).  There are some great vintage ones available on the internet to print out.

What's next I wonder, a whole family of dolls and wardrobes?

Play is the answer

Play is the answer to the question, How does anything new ever come about?

Jean Piaget

 
 

Let the Play begin!

 
A certain wee little man has just begun to hold toys and try to mouth them... though at this stage, his fists are far more reliable for him.  We await the exciting developments ahead in the next few months.

Meanwhile, Bear has been on his travels

 
Plane hand crafted by Dadda Boo. 

 

Let's Play!

http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/483

Play is vital for the sound development of our kids, but we shouldn't forget its importance for our continued well being and innovatory capacities, so says neuroscientist Stuart Brown.

Scenes from a Festival

  More buggies than in Mothercare, clean toilets and baby change stations, no alcohol and several strategically placed toy shops, it can only be a festival designed for families, the Children's Festival to be precise, an annual event taking place in Vanier Park, Kitsilano.  We went to see The National Acrobats of Taiwan, and very impressive they were too, particularly the man who performed tricks on the top of a vertical stack of chairs, balanced on 4 champagne bottles, balanced on a high stand.  My stomach was flipping.  

Oh what's this?  Playing around with the new camera and its 'colour select' function?  That'll be it, and fun it is too.

Good fun.  We'll be back next year, and I've got my eye on checking out some puppetry when Boo is old enough to sit still and listen through a show.
 
 
 
 
 
   

First Snow

We have been Bisy Backsons this weekend.  Boo was mesmerised by the magical puppet show and the gnome-sized creations in the 'winter wonderland' at the Vancouver Waldorf School's Christmas fair Saturday morning.  In the afternoon we headed to some open studios at the Eastside Culture Crawl .  Apart from visiting a few galleries it was the first time I'd seen local artists work in Vancouver, and it was pretty much like many open studios I've been to in London, with a few more misty landscapes thrown in (with conditions being as they are I'm finding myself falling in love with the misty vistas arounds us).  I'm always interested in seeing work in paint, printmaking and the like that I've made work in, but what we really loved was the handcrafted wooden furniture, like that at Hartwood Creations.  Dadda Boo is inspired to get into his wood workshop and get sawing and sanding.

It may be wet, but there is beauty to be found in the dark.

  

 

Sunday I finished painting Boo's room and moved her back in (pics to follow), so reclaiming my studio.  Its just the beginning of development for each room, I have tons of ideas for making Boo's room magical and my studio inspiring and functional.  

Work done, it was time for play.  Snow play.  Our local ski mountains have opened a month earlier than last year, so we glided up Grouse Mountain in the gondola with Boo padded up in her new snow gear.  Dadda Boo started to ease himself back into snowboarding with a few bumps, and Boo just took it all in.

 

 

 

A kitten for a Boo

With my brother in town, we headed out on a bit of a tourist trip yesterday, to have a wander around around Granville island and its colourful markets.

A staple of any visit to Granville island for us is the Kids Market, and the shop that specialises in puppets, especially the animal ones made by Folkmans.

Boo got her hand up an eagle

 

... a chipmunk...

 

... a mouse....

... a skunk...

...and a rabbit in a hat!

 

But the biggest hit of the day was the 'dress the kitten' mini sticker kit we picked up for a couple of bucks and kept the little lady busy for the rest of the day, and is still hanging in there although its adhesive qualities are now a little lacking.  I used to love paper cut out dolls with their little clothes, particularly those you coloured/painted yourself.  I remember having a very special box of them which I used to get out for great quiet play by myself, until the little tabs broke off and they had to be carefully repaired.  I seem to remember my collection including some that we found in my nan's house, from my mum's childhood, which were very special.  I don't think I'll rush out and buy any beautiful paper cut outs just yet though, judging by the short life of anything paperbased in the hands of the Boo!

 

And the rain stopped, the sun came out and Vancouver looked a whole lot more beautiful.

 

With rain forecast for at least the next six days, that is something to savour!

 

 

Happy as a Boo in muck

Well, we haven't seen much in the way of fungi yet, but the sun is back (and that's perhaps why) and it's 'outside play' for us, aka gardening for mama.  We are enjoying the rich colours that are emerging in the foliage around us, and laying the ground work for some planting in the coming weeks.  It's so exciting to come to this point, after weeks of clearing, cutting and digging (thanks Dadda Boo!)  

We have two of these large flowering shrubs (Spiraea?), which had heads of tiny pink flowers when we moved in, now with the foliage darkening to purple, they are looking lovely.

We have a number of azalea bushes, but this one is the favourite right now, with its reddening leaves.

More of the Spiraea (at least that's what I think it is, based upon the 'Tree and Shrub Expert'!)

English Ivy round the side of the house, which seems to be weathering well having been cut back mercilessly in August as it was growing rampantly.

Boo prepares a wooden window box for planting, whilst on the look-out for creepy crawlies and wriggly worms, the latter of which I am ashamed to say she has a proclivity for squeezing to death.  Wood lice and caterpillars also often suffer the same fate in her hands.  I try to stop her but she's quick I tell you.

 
There's nowt so happy as a Boo in muck.

The empty window box becomes a boat for Black Bear to voyage across the garden ocean.

Looks cute doesn't he?  Well his excrement isn't, and that's what we are having the pleasure of clearing up on a regular basis from our lawn. Boo's beach ball has also been savaged, though she quite liked the idea of the raccoon posse playing football on the grass whilst we sleep.  Boo now has a new song, 'Goodbye raccoon, shoo shoo shoo, goodbye raccoon, we don't want your poo'.  Boo's fascination with animal excrement continues unabated, especially after we saw a huge pile of 'bear poo' in the park!

Much to look forward to, as the garden and the studio start to take shape in the coming weeks.