Over the past two weeks, I have begun to realize how much it means to me to make things.  As a mom of four (soon to be five) very creative little people who are constantly cutting and pasting and drawing and creating huge worlds out of sheets and pillows and clean laundry, I spend a lot of my energy tending to their ambitious, fearless, limitless projects and helping them clean up their ambitious and artistic messes.  And I sometimes get caught up in the messes and forget about the making…

But making things is important to me.  And I am beginning to realize that I am a much better mother and wife when I take note of the things that are truly part of who I am and honor them.  Being creative has always been part of my identity.  And it is part of me that I don’t want to lose.  When I take a half an hour to crochet or make a journal or cut and paste a handmade card, I feel like I have done something that I was created to do.  And seeing a finished product makes me happy.  I think that sometimes, as a mother of small children, it is easy to see the largest portion of life as spent on things that never actually get completely done (think laundry, dishes, three meals a day, etc.).  We are building something slowly here, but it takes years to see some of the progress.

I have noticed that if I go outside with the kids and watch them play while making a hat, I feel like I am more present in the moment, grateful to be making something and grateful to be able to interact and play with them.  If I allow the mess to happen and join them at the kitchen table with scraps of fabric and tacky glue, I find that sharing that creative time with them always makes me feel like I have enjoyed them and connected with something rooted deep down inside of me–the desire to create and add beautiful things to this world.

I have decided that I am going to try to make something every day.  Even if it is little.  Even if it is only the start of a project.  Even though I am entering the third trimester of this pregnancy.  I want my children to see me doing something I love every day.  I want to hang onto this part of me.  I am committing, as best as I can, to do it.

My goal is to add new listings to my etsy shop weekly, and also to share any great ideas we have had doing creative projects at home.  This week, I finally stapled up some books of the kids’ artwork.  I made 12 volumes of their drawings and paintings, and stacked them up in a little basket by the front door.   Rosie, Paloma, and Kells all had a great time looking back over their drawings and elaborating on the stories behind them.  It also had them drawing again right away.

I made a couple of handmade journals this week as well.  One is from an old board game and the other from a beautiful handmade paper card that my niece sent me a few months ago.  And I made several hats, which I have posted to my etsy site.  Here are a few of them:

I have 14 items posted in my ETSY SHOP for sale–handmade hats, journals, guitar string jewelry, and I will be doing my best to post more next week.  Please stop by (((HERE!!!))) and see if you can find anything you are looking for!  Thank you for taking the time to read this all the way through, and for your support, which helps us continue to carve out a creative life for our growing family.

Love,

Mackenzie