proud mommying moments: handmaking, perfectionism & the pioneer farm

pioneer farm project handmade by little rikrak / images by me : kristal davis / rikrak

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confession time:

now don't tell anyone, but i can be a super-over-bearing perfectionist-seeker of a mommy! 

i know, you're probably not shocked, right sweeties? :) 

we all want the best for the children in our lives. 

i do too.

but sometimes i'm a meddling mommy. 

i want to involve myself in every step of every project to make sure it's as perfect as perfect can be. 

i'll admit: that's not always helpful. :)

so here's a proud mommying moment (and handmaking life lesson) i wanted to share with you all...

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so little rikrak had a fun school project last month: the pioneer farm.

• first there was lots of adorable research. (think supercute little-one handwriting!)
• then trips to various hands-on sites. (feeding cows, visiting pioneer barns, touching great great great great grandfather-made tools. splendid!)
• then an essay rough copy. edit. & good copy.
• then practicing a fun interactive presentation.
• then building a beautiful model.

through all of it... i wanted to get my mommying 2-cents worth in. but the best lesson of all for me? as tough as it might be, let your little ONE shine! 

if you've ever been privy to a child working on a project, i think we can all agree... it's VERY tempting to try and lend a hand (or lend many hands!) , especially as obstacles arise.

but i had personally decided to be the most hands-off, support from the side kinda helper i could be for this project. i could see the excitement in little rikrak's eyes as he brainstormed fabulous idea after fabulous idea, many of which i couldn't have thought of. 

we all have our own fabulous perspectives, don't we?!

needless to say i'm over the moon proud of little rikrak's hard work and creative figurings on his latest life project.

and just look at this wonderful DIY model!

the cute handcut bales of hay.

the fun pipe cleaner oxen yoke.

the handmade, not factory-made or mommy-made wonderfully child-drawn marker lines on the barn roof.

he MADE that. 

what joy there is in that sentiment, for each of us!

 

many a time i wanted to get in there and "fix" or "alter" or "adjust" something. 

BUT i KNOW there is great learning, and beauty, in the handmade. "imperfections" and all.

it's a value our family shares deeply.

sometimes my quest for perfection as a mommy invades that ethic.

i struggle with it.

i know some day we'll have to dismantle this fabulous model (unless we can build a *museum for everything little rikrak has handmade* 3rd floor addition to our home! mr.rikrak?)

but for now i just look at it all day on my desk and smile.

and best of all: the pride on his face for a project he handmade. that's a wonderful thing, indeed!

isn't it magical when little ones work hard, overcome challenges and see a project thru with vim & vigour.

well done, sweetie pie. i'm so proud of you.

(and don't you love the open-up barn roof and removable hay loft? makes for hours of fun playing, let me tell you!)

did i tell you how i FORCED us to watch little house on the prairie episodes as bonus *research?* LOVE IT!

tell us something you're proud of in your little ones' lives.

how do you step back and let the little ones in YOUR life shine?

yay to handmade families.

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pioneer farm project handmade by little rikrak / images by me : kristal davis / rikrak

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i like pie

i found this adorable little note one morning last week.

little rikrak really cracks me up ... always.

inspired ... i'm gonna leave more cutiepie notes for dearies to find. 

it's such a good feeling discovering them, isn't it?

found any cute notes around lately?

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happy mother's day!

 

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happy mothering day sunday, dearests.

i celebrate all of you wonderful women out there who touch the lives of our wee ones as mommies, aunties, grandmas, teachers, friends, neighbours and more.

just click on the images above to read some of my thoughts over the past few years on how my mom, mommying, grandmas, and all of you have touched our lives.

be well, sweeties.

hugs & hugs

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family music night: a super fun DIY project to try

gramophone art print by PragyaK

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we've got a fun new tradition at the rikrak family home!

thanks to my talented brother's great idea & great organizing. we're having bi-monthly family music nights.

it's superfun. super-encouraging & super-easy to DIY!

it's a little like a family talent show, on a regular basis.

now i was so lucky to grow up in a fabulously fun musical family (i know that's not always the way!) and whenever aunts & uncles came to visit from afar there would always be nights of singing and playing and a whole lot of family-sing-song fun!

but whether that's in YOUR past or not, i kinda think family music nights could be something fun for EVERY FAMILY! here's why: 

pluses: 

- it gives everyone in the family a chance to come together. and sing and play and SHINE! regardless of ability or what kind of music you listen to!

- AND it gives us all a deadline to WORK on fun new projects! (you know how having a deadline can help give us the *PUSH* we all need to learn/try/make something new!)

- it's a FABULOUS way to bring generations together! 

- AND need an incentive for your cute kiddies to get practicing their instrument of choice? setting a music night date works like a charm! 

- AND isn't it a great lesson for our kiddies to see us as the adults working on something new? see us practicing? see how we handle it? for certain!

- a wee bit nervous to perform on your own? it's a great way for folks to work together on fun duets, trios and more!

- let's be honest - music brings us together, nicies! enough said!

here's how to do it!: 

what you need: 

- a fun family, or fun friends (no actual musical talent needed - just a LOVE of music!) 

- before you even start, commit to having more than just ONE family music night! that way the pressure is off, you can try something else new the next time! try to commit for at least a few!

- a casual atmosphere - in the living room, around the kitchen table, snacks & treats to munch on.

important: set the date well in advance so everyone has time to work on what they'll play/sing/write/dance to!

how to:

-gather guests on the chosen evening or afternoon!

-be fun and casual

-everyone gets a chance (or two!) to do something musical and fun they've prepped! can't play or sing? well i bet you have a great SONG you can share: just push PLAY on the ipod & have everyone listen! ... at the end, everyone can play and sing together, improv style!

- have fun!

okay - that's it!

case in point: 

the first round, i'll admit - everyone was a wee bit nervous at the rikrak home (even though we're all family - of course everyone wants to do their best!) but it was SUPERFUN! there were great duets and fun jamming and a whole lot of sing-a-longings!

and  this time around, little rikrak has 3 acts he's been working on, including an adorable little song he wrote himself! AND it's wonderful to see mr.rikrak playing his lovely guitar more than he has in years!

love it!

yay to great new family traditions! (and superthanks to my brother for suggesting it!)

what's something fun YOUR family loves to do together? 

share a fun new tradition you're trying!

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the signs of spring!

robin's eggs nest print by christine lindstrom

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oh wonderful spring!  
delightfully, it's sprung here in lovely southern ontario.

tiny buds.
gentle greens.
soft & blue skies.
sweet little birdie sounds.
especially love seeing it all unfold through little rikrak's eyes.  welcome welcome!

   what's your favourite sign of spring?
                       i'd love to hear.

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the valentine's day menu recap

happy molar tooth plushie by squidhead

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what did you dine on for valentine's day, sweeties?

a romantic homecooked dinner with loved ones? 

a fabulous restaurant feast with dear friends?

little rikrak, you ask?

why ... he ate his tooth! 

eek. yes - after a fun-filled valentine's day party at school where he reported eating(you'd better sit down for this menu, sweeties!)

22 cinnamon hearts

5 sugar heart cookies

4 chocolate hearts

3 chocolate kisses
(eek again!) 

(and pretty much none of his healthy lunch - ya i know - who can blame him - it's valentine's day!!) he swallowed his loose baby tooth during a "giant gummie worm" finale to the party!

alak. 

alas.

how would you handle lost or *eaten* teeth with the tooth fairy?

ever happen to you as a child? 

remember what the tooth fairy did?

happy eating!

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handmaking with kids: best toys ever!

bakers twine @ katrinaalana

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still looking for that perfect toy gift for the wee ones?

look no further than the neighbourhood park or front lawn.

love love LOVE this fabulous post over at geekDad where jonathan liu reminds me about the virtues of: 

the stick

a box

string

a cardboard tube

& dirt.

yes. good old dirt.

so true.

so true.

oh the endless possibilities all around us!
{thanks for the fun link, mr. rikrak!} 

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proud mommying moments: the ukulele

:: darling handmade ukulele-ness ::

clockwise from the top-left corner

nicholasfrith

skylaar

rozenn bothuon

celentanowoodworks

sterainstruments

cherijame

birdandbloke

sometimes crafter

bRainbowshop

cabin no7

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well nicies. i have a new love.

the ukulele, and my little one strumming it!

my smitten-ness has been growing & growing over the past few years. 

but as little rikrak readies for his 1st ukulele concert this week, i can happily confess that it's my new favourite sound: hearing him so cutely strum & sing fabulous folksy hit after fabulous folksy hit!

it's absolutely adorable.

what sound are YOU loving these days?

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the *bought* halloween costume

urban photograph by jennifer squires

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last week little rikrak sat us down.

we could tell by his serious demeanor that this was important stuff.

"mom...." (he nods knowingly toward me)

"dad...." (he gestures to mr. rikrak)

(i'm beginning to sense he may have practiced the speech in the mirror a few times..)

 he draws in a BIG, deep breath.

"this year i want a *bought* halloween costume."

and so goes the funny tale of being a handmaking-obsessed mom.

parents, aunts, uncles, friends of wee ones ... you know how it is...  since the time little rikrak was born we've tried to make him fun homemade halloween costumes. he's been an array of cute painstakingly-sewn together outfits, and a mix of practically-stapled-together-at-the-last-minute-as-we-fly-out-the-door DIYers. and now... he's wanting to show his own personality by choosing a store-bought outfit. love it.

life's funny that way, huh?

well after oodles of far-too-gory hunts at the shops last week, we finally all agreed on a fun costume. he had the great idea to add a few creative, personalized touches (that-a-boy!) and the finished look is a fabulous one!

how do you feel when your little handmade-raised cuties long for store-bought goodness?

i'll confess - i think we all yearn for a little something *bought* sometimes. 

i know i do, as much as i adore handmade.

& i'm wisely reminded today:  *all things in moderation.*

{ ps: the mommy in me thinks it so sweet & adorable he was concerned how we'd take it! }

happy parenting,  halloween cuties!

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see you soon, nicies.

gorgeous artwork by the fabulous katie daisy, 

the artist behind *the wheatfield*

:: above :: wild air

:: below :: life is beautiful

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dearest nicies,

you're wonderful. 

... and so i'm off for a little family-time break.

*to bask in the wonderment of our little sweetie;

*to have a little tune-up done on my windpipe! (many thanks for your hugs & well-wishes in the winds, sweeties! fingers crossed it'll all be good!)  

*for hot summer day roadtrips with the windows down &amp &  the music LOUD; 

*to cheer on the flowers & veggies in the garden;

*to play in the water and get covered in sand as often as possible.

excited to hear what you'll be up to for the next month-or-so, sweeties.

tell me ... what's your perfect summer day look like?

 wishing you lots of them.

be well

& i'll see you mid-august.

lots-o-love 

-k.

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play day

oh the fun! kids' obstacle diagram source

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it's little rikrak's *play day* at school.

did you have this as a child?

a series of crazy outdoor stations where kids play on teams to compete in obstacle courses, funny relays;  snack of freezies and wait for the megaphone blast to move to the next silly station?

i gotta tell you. i didn't love it. not at all.

but little rikrak: it's surely his favourite day! all the running around and crazy athletics = just his thing! :)

i guess as adults we've come to think that obstacle courses are more of a daily challenge, then the fun of shimmying through a giant tube and passing a bouncyball over-and-under thru a line of giddy primary sweeties!

thank goodness for kids reminding us even obstacles can be superfun, that no challenge is too big, and that being silly and fun is what we all need everyday!

hope you have a totally playful, obstacle-FREE weekend, nicies.

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your first art

 little rikrak's first art love: column by ulysse comtois

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what was the first piece of ART you really remember seeing in life?

how does it affect your artistic sensibilities, ideas, inspirations and creativity today?

this week is little rikrak's birthday.

among his many fabulous traits (i'm biased - what can i say?) is his sincere love of,  and joy for, art & design. i see it in the way he looks at shapes and spaces; how he excitedly talks about lines and curves / shadows and light; how he handmakes with great enthusiasm, and vigour. 

i also admire his wise appreciation of handmaking and art at such a young age. 

i was thinking last night about the first art i really remember him adoring: i think it would whole-heartedly be the "column" by Ulysse Comtois : it's a brilliant piece  - a lightweight aluminum sculpture of 67 movable plates.  everytime he sees it his eyes are WILDLY WIDE - interactive art at its best!

the first time i really remember feeling moved by a piece of art was my recollection of seeing lawren harris' *mt. lefroy* at the amazing mcmichael gallery. i was about 8.

infact, i'll confess, that piece of art stands out to me because i detested it so much. i so passionately despised the dark lines,  menacing light and surrealist imagery. perhaps it is so vivid of a memory for me as i realized in that moment the emotional response one could so feverishly have (good or bad) to art. 

how art can create opinion.

it's a wonderful thing, isn't it!

so what are your first memories of fine art? 

what painting, sculpture, photograph, illustration stands out in your personal fine art history? 

i'd love to hear.

(just incase you haven't had the joy of playing with it yourself yet, here's an animated short of some of the fun possibilities column illicits!)

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on pins and needles

:: artful pins & needles ::

photoworksbydawn

MayaLee

xoxolovejessica

namolio

alleluja

made in lowell

maude and lola

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seems as though tis the season of *on pins and needles*... a grand slew of things to be a little anxious / thoughtful / worried about / mindful of! 

some things are a little worrisome. some much less so.

life's like that, right!?

on the sillier end of things (i.e. not real worries!) ... we're all on pins and needles here tonight about game 6 of the stanley cup hockey finals!

now you may know i'm not such a hockey fan (read my mean tirade , jokey dis-love tale here) ... but little rikrak and mr. rikrak LOVE the vancouver canucks. me too!

so instead of worrying about all that other stuff tonight, let's just cheer on our cute canucks!

go vancouver!

what do you do to ease your nerves when you're worried about stuff, nicies? 

cheering for boston or vancouver?

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under the weather

under the weather by kyanos

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dear oh dear.

we're all under the weather. 

the whole gosh-darn rikrak family household.

so it's an early night, lots of soothing hugs and good wishes in the wind that each of our own unique ailments might look better and brighter in the morning.

what helps you most when you're not feeling so well?

here's to a speedy recovery for everyone! Pin It

girls weekend

:: glorious weekends away with ::

flying house studios

lolasroom

TcaponePhoto

 sugarlily

sandrasmart

joystclaire

sixthandmain

jackierueda 

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oh dear. 

seems as though poor Blogger.com isn't feeling so well these past few days. 

along came the mammoth crash and gone are yesterday's tales and all of the world cup votes (so please PLEASE go vote again if you can!)

but fear not. the weekend's ahead of us. the week behind us now, lovelies!

and i'm off on a delightful little getaway with one of my dearest friends in the world.

can't wait for back to back to back hours of visiting and exploring. 

just girls.

wishing you a glorious weekend, lovelies.

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handmaking & mom

 my mommy & me

from the Etsy article: because i said so: wisdom from mom

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over the past couple of years here @ the rikrak studio we've talked about that intricate bond so many of us share between our art of handmaking and our mothers and grandmothers.

here are some of my thoughts on that wonderful connection as we celebrate our wonderful mother's and mothering nicies this weekend. 

connecting our grandma's &  crafting

what my mommy taught me about handmaking:  on etsy

( & some handmaking tales}   

i asked: what's the most precious handmade gift YOUR mother gave you?

thanks to all of the amazing mothers and grandmothers and aunts and teachers and loving women out there who make this world a better place thru their kind mothering & mentoring.

and most of all, thanks to my amazing mom & the fabulous handmaking grandmas i was blessed to learn from. 

do YOU have a grandmotherly- or motherly connection to YOUR art or craft? 

 i'd love to hear about it.

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my mom

happy birthday letterpress card by dutchdoor press

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today is my wonderful mommy's birthday.

she's the kindest, most generous, most loving, most thoughtful person i know and i'm so lucky to have her in my life every day.

it's been a really really difficult year for my mom.

thru it all she continues to teach me grace under fire, generosity in difficult days & how kindness, patience and a thankful heart can get each of us thru those dark dark times. 

thank you, mommy rikrak.

happy happy birthday and here's to wonderful things ahead. i love you so much.

have something wonderful a mothering figure has taught you?

we'd love to hear! Pin It

we've taken the plunge!

multitasking signed original photograph by heather evans smith.

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hot-diggity-dog, nicies!

well after many moons of handwashing dishes we've bought a dishwasher!
{i actually don't mind washing dishes compared to some other kinds of housework... it's certainly not-as-bad-to-me as toilet cleaning or grout scrubbing, but not quite as fun as window cleaning or vacuuming, my faves!}

granted: there's something kinda soothing about dishwashing - playing around in that warm sudsy water, right?!   but...  after careful thoughtful consideration; and in the hopes of freeing up some all-too-precious time for better familying lately {goodness knows things have been o-so-hectic around here of late!} , we've taken the dishwasher plunge again.

and wanna know a secret? i'm soooo thrilled! crazy, right, to be so excited about a domestic machine? but i can't wait!

how about you?

like to wash your dishes by hand or by machine?

either way - hope you have a great, dishes-not-piled-too-high, thank-goodness-for-certain-modern-conveniences kinda weekend, cuties.

off to fill up the bathtub with bubbles do to a couple more loads before that splendid machine arrives! 

bubbly fun to you, sweeties! Pin It