Huckleberry Friends

Happy Holidays!

Here is a picture of my last ride from the Ferry Building Farmer's Market the day before we moved to Mill Valley. Isn't our tree the cutest? And I pedaled her home myself!

Why did I think it was a good idea to move the day after a craft fair, and 10 days before Christmas? It's been hectic, but so nice to be in our new apartment with the view of the redwood grove. I made my first Christmas dinner, had family over, and a really nice day. Isabel is crazy about her new wooden train and babbling up a storm. It is a delight to see her interacting with her grandparents and being a completely different person than she is with us. She is starting to have her own life, separate from us. 

Today was crazy shopping for our brunch tomorrow (it's my birthday and our housewarming!). Hopefully hubby will take picture for me to share with you.

I hope everyone has a peaceful holiday season.

New toy

I just got my lastet toy, an iPhone, and am using it to post to the blog and take pictures of my sweet puppy. Poor neglected Roxie - pushed down the pecking order by the baby. Doesn't she look sad and adorable?

Bakfiet = Freedom

Sorry to be so out of touch lately (I have many emails to return) but we did not have internet for a while, and I've been trying to find my groove in SF with a toddler, husband on the job hunt and starting my own business.

Okay, this post is about my new love. If you are a bike geek, read on. If not, your eyes will glaze over so you might as well ignore this.

I love bikes. Anyone who knows me, knows this. Bikes are all about freedom, political smugness, environmental responsibility, ease of mobility and, most importantly, having fun like a little kid. But I am also paranoid about safety (too many broken bones and hospital stays for this not to be the case), so I never wanted a kid bike seat or trailer for Isabel. Enter the bakfiet, my new Daisy Bike. She holds 200 lbs in the front box and 80 lbs on the back rack. She is the station wagon of our family. Yesterday, we came home from the farmer's market with the following in the box:

 - Isabel

 - Stroller

 - Diaper Bag

 - 3 big bags of groceries

 - water bottles, hats, jackets and toys

This was so easy! I hardly felt the weight. If we had to take public transportation, I would have been miserable because it would have been too much to carry. If we even had a car, we still would have had to schlep everything to the parking lot and then deal with being cooped up in a glass and metal box in traffic (I REALLY hate cars a lot and always dread being stuck in one). But with the bike, we carried our goods to the bike rack, loaded up, and chatted to the hoards of people asking questions about it. Most people get very excited about this bike, from other commuter cyclists and fixed geared hipsters, to construction workers in big trucks. Everyone can see how much fun it is. 

I really believe that if we can make the roads feel safer to people, this type of bike will be the future of our cities. And I mean that people only need to FEEL safer because once you get more people on bikes, then all of the cyclists really are safer because car drivers and city officials became used to bikes and work with us. I want to see a day when getting around by cargo bike instead of car is boring, not a traffic stopper.

Okay, back to the fun. In the photo above, you can see Isabel and Roxie going for a ride along Mission Creek, near where we live. I would love to live in one of those houseboats behind us, but that is a different post. Isabel loves the bike, but Roxie is going to take some convincing. Once she realizes that it is her ticket to the beach, she will relax.

And yes, the bike handles very easily. Much easier than I thought it would. Because of it's weight, once it gets going, it is very easy to keep it going at speed, even when fully loaded. Hills are more of a problem, but we modify where we go. Living along the Embarcadero is easy because it is flat and traffic is not too bad. We ride every day. Even if just to the playground. I am always so happy when on my bike and love that I can share this love with my daughter.

I am also posting this on my new blog: http://www.huckleberry-friends.net/sfbakfiet/. My goal with this new blog is to spread the word about bakfiets in SF, but also to find the other 8-9 bakfiet owners in SF and have them post their experiences to the blog as well. Changing the world, one pedal turn at a time.

Ride on!

I Left My Heart in San Francisco

A while back, I promised some exciting news. Well, it's completely official - we are moving to San Francisco. We put our apartment on the market, sold it, and found an apartment in SF. We found the apartment yesterday, so I feel like it's really happening. We will be living about 1 mile from one of my dearest friends, Anne, who I hardly ever talk to anymore. It makes me so sad that we have slipped out of our very regular phone calls (all my fault with baby and work), but am so happy that we will be sharing dog walks and coffees once again. We will be living in my old zip code of 94107!!!

We will have a dog run, biking, walks along the water, fog, farmer's market, Rainbow Grocery, Crissie Field, Fort Funston, trips to the Russian River to visit another dear friend, burritos, trips to LA to see the in-laws, really good coffee (easier to find in SF than NYC), friends in the Mission (more bicycles!), NYC transplant friends in Alamo Square, South Park (bread salad and swings!), sculling on the bay, friends on Potrero Hill.

Also, there have been a couple more Etsy sales, so I feel like that is going to be successful (with a lot more hard work), and I just might be able to pull this work-at-home-mom thing. It's what I want most.

I am so happy. So very very happy.

Walking, new blanket, molars

She is walking and loving it! The little wobbly steps are growing more confident and she has learned to fall on her butt. Go Isabel! And watch out mom and dad as I'm going to get into EVERYTHING!

Here is the latest blanket. The back side is brown and looks so gorgeous with the red and pink front. I'm making a top this morning with the same fabric. Sigh, I love this sewing so much and really hope I can make some kind of living by it.

On a less happy note, I think the molars are coming in. Isabel cried and screamed so much last night, but the worst of it was that she did not want me to hold her. She has never pushed me away like that before (a sign of things to come in the teen years) and I was heart broken. Once again, I feel justified in my decision to continue nursing because it was the only thing that would calm her down and help her sleep. My poor little peanut. At least she won't remember this suffering, but I always will. I only wish I could take the pain on myself and spare her.

Happy Girl!

Up early to make 2 new blankets and a new elephant top. Must take photos today if it doesn't rain.

I sent the blog and Etsy info so some friends and family and am so happy with the feedback. It's funny to sit alone every morning at my sewing machine with my dreams tucked safely in my own head. But when I put myself out to the world, I am amazed with the feedback and support. It makes my head whirl with joy and hope that I'm not making a huge mistake to follow my dreams.

Thank you all for your kind words!

A Gift and Dogs

I made this teddy bear for Boo's 1st birthday in March. It's late, but he lives in France and is visiting Boston with his parents, so I thought I'd wait to give it to him in person. It's such a sweet pattern and I love the sage green yarn (it's merino, silk and cashmere!). I'm looking so forward to seeing Boo's mom, K, who I've known for practically half my life. We lost touch about 10 (?) years ago, and it's funny to see how similar we still are. Kids the same age, sewing, cooking, quieter lives than we led when we were younger and single. It's good to grow up.

I have the best dog ever. Roxie gets into a lot of trouble when she plays with Isabel's toys, so she was nervous to help model the new teddy. But she'll put up with anything for praise and the promise of cookies.

Roxie was this scrappy puppy mutt when we adopted her and she was afraid of everything. I would take her to the dog run and she would sit on my lap, afraid the other dogs were going to eat her. We have been so fortunate to have Karen as her dog walker. Karen loves Roxie and made her feel so comfortable that Roxie is now the leader of these 3 boy dogs who she plays with every single day. Simon, the dog just to her left, tries to eat every small dog he sees (hence the muzzle), but all he ever does is put Roxie's head in his mouth and drool a lot. Once, at the dog run, Roxie was pushing Simon around and hanging from his neck skin by her teeth. Literally. Her feet were all off the ground. These dogs love each other.

Roxie was out with the big boys and saw her baby, Isabel, so started to howl. I love when she does that because she looks so sincere. We leave for Boston tomorrow, so Roxie is at Camp Karen, where she does not miss us at all as she spends all of her time wrestling with Karen's Rottweiler, Diesel, or eating Rottweiler-sized dog biscuits. We, however, will miss her a great deal. She is our first daughter!

Independence

I have a baby who is quickly turning into a toddler. Sometimes she will eat the food I painstakingly cook and puree for her, but sometimes she won't because she wants to feed herself. How is a mom to get healthy fruits and vegetables into this baby/toddler's mouth? Mix bananas, zucchini, dried apricots and figs, honey, eggs, and whole wheat flour and make muffins. Even Hubby gave them a shot and liked them, although the whole wheat flour and lack of sugar makes them taste very healthy.

Success! Isabel ate one!

My Mom Rocks!

I have the best mom ever.

My mom loves me. She is the most supportive woman and always backs up my crazy ideas and dreams. Today a package arrived from Amazon. Without even thinking, I opened it up to see my Mother's Day gift from mom. Two of the gifts were books on how to have a successful crafting business. Most mothers would be horrified to find out their daughter wanted to leave the safety of the corporate world to start a home-based business. Especially a mother of the baby boomer age - these women who worked so hard to create a world where we did not have to be in the home and could have these high-powered corporate jobs.

Such a simple gesture of buying me these books speaks volumes (yes, pun) about how much my mom loves me and wants nothing more than for me to find my way to happiness in my life. I hope that I am as supportive and loving of Isabel as she finds her way.

Thanks, Mom! I love you and miss you!

Blog Makeover and Final Dress!

First of all, my darling husband gave my blog a much needed makeover. Thanks sweetie! It is so pretty.

After getting up at 4am yesterday and today, I was able to write a new pattern and sew it up before work. I'm not sure how many hours that was total, but it's done and I'm in love with it. I figured out the secret to a reversible pinafore without buttons. It's tricky and kind of a pain, but I did it! All it took was lying in bed every night and visualizing fabric being sewn up. I know I'm not the only one who does that.

I can't believe I was able to make something with my own hands and see it worn by my perfect daughter. Unlike my day job, this is something I'm proud of because it is something I made. I'm one step closer to a part-time WAHM world. Yeah! It's floral on one side and sage green on the other. Now I have to figure out how to make pants that are sage green with a floral cuff. Pattern making begins tomorrow at...4am!