Potato party

I have no idea if it is a Bavarian thing, but we went to celebrate a potato party yesterday in kindergarten. The kids sang a potato song while we put some potatoes in the fire in order to eat them later. Afterwards there was a potato play and finally: We ate potatoes. Even if all of this doesn't sound very surprising the kids were having loads of fun. It was really cold though, so we left kind of early.
I left the children with my Mom afterwards and went to a fabricstore in Munich City in order to get some patterns. My husband lost lots of weight lately, so that means he needs new shirts. Oh no, I am not THAT good - I am not sewing him shirts (who has time for that). But I thought I can recycle his old shirts for my son. Now comes the clue: They are iron-free and made out of great fabric. It is kind of hard to get iron-free shirts for kids in Germany, so this is my chance. I will hopefully start this weekend, so there will probably be some pretty blue (striped, checkered) posts coming up. I was also thinking about sewing some matching pyjama pants. Let's see what happens.
Bye for now
Svenja

Party banners

The fabric for my next project arrived lots sooner than I thought. It is from the Barefoot Roses Collection by the very inspiring Tanya Whelan. I managed to make one banner this morning. It is supposed to be used next week at the childrens' Halloween party. There's a lot of girls invited which probably all come dressed like princesses - so it can't be too spooky. Well, let's see how this mixes with vampire decoration. The butterfly bunting is by Laura Ashley home. They do have nice stuff, don't they?

Sorry, the pictures are a little dark but it was quite early in the morning. Keep you up to date on the party planning...
Svenja

That's what I call great service

I found this great fabric shop www.twinsgarden.de online, which (even better) is located in Germany. This week I placed my first order and was amazed by the outstanding service. Ingrid Amenda who runs the shop managed to send everything - including a personal note and some goodies - in 24 hours. And I mean 24 hours from placing the order to the moment the postman delivered the package. I can't believe this is happening in Germany. Too wonderful to be true.

Anticipation

Isn't it the best feeling in the world to really look forward to something? My hubby and I have booked a "grown ups only" vacation, and it is coming up in some weeks. So this is why I am full of anticipation right now. Thanks to the www I already have some pictures to share with you.
It is a beach house in Malibu, private beach access only. I miss the kids already because I know they would love it there - but if it is really as nice as it looks we might just take them next year. Do you have a dream holiday coming up as well? Let's hear about it...Have a great day!
Svenja

Memory lane

My children are turning 3 and 5 at the end of October. A great reason to go down memory lane.This is Lis, 6 month old. Lying on the floor in her nursery in our first house in Paderborn.
And Ludwig, about the same age. The picture was taken in our first appartement in Munich-Bogenhausen.
Ludwig, 1 year and 2 month in my VERY favourite holiday home in the Netherlands.
Just before we started to visit Lis' first Oktoberfest. This picture was taken on the porch of our second home in Munich, which I sometimes dearly miss.
One of my favourite pictures of all time. Both children love to dress up and love Pippi Longstocking by Astridt Lindgren, one of the best childrens' author worldwide. I love those guys. It is ALL about them, every day.

My MAC addiction

Isn't it the best to go out and buy cosmetics? As a married woman I found myself getting rid of some bad habbits (like smoking) and developing addictions (fabric, cosmetics) instead. You can see that I am a loyal addict, preferring MAC. Ever since a Macy-girl in NYC showed me how to handle all the colours, this is what I use everyday. They say that addictions run in the family. When my godchild Carlotta was in Munich to visit this summer we went to Ludwig Beck and the girls had their lips done.
I am so glad I took these pictures, it was such a girly moment and they were so proud.

1965-1968

What a great aera to have lived in... This armchair (Up5) is one of my favourites of all time. It was born in 1965, just like my husband and is still so contemporary. Design by Gaetano Pesce für B & B Italia.
And another one I will buy as soon as I have the perfect room for it. It is three years older, from 1968, design by Eero Aarnio. The Bubble Chair. Luv it.

Sandberg and no end

I am sure that I told you about my love for Sandberg fabrics before. I must have. This season I was so into the star fabric that I used it for almost every piece I made. It's still everywhere in my house, from the livingroom to the kids' rooms. And looking back, I have to say it came in quite handy for my lovebirds and the peace bus. Have a favourite fabric design yourself you buried yourself in this year? Show me!
See yah
Svenja

Wonderwoman

On a good day you find someone on the web who really leaves an impression. So, Shirley, forgive me, but I just had to post this entry as "Wonderwoman". Shirley lives in New York City, which itself is amazing. I don't even know how I found her blog, but I have been following her steps since then. Shirley is a mother of three with a growing population of grandchildren and a VERY active life. She is taking part in the EDM challenges, so a lot of her wonderful (mostly watercolour) drawings are having their origin there. I love her animal drawings, her architecture sketches, how she keeps track of her exhibition visits by drawing part of the artefacts. I could go on forever: views through open doors, N.Y.C. sights, ballet dancers, everyday kitchen or household goods. I very much recommend to check out her work at her blog www.paperandthreads.com. As I am very much into the child segment, I am posting some of her pictures (all copyrighted by Shirley) of nurseries, grandchildren, decorations and playdates at the park. Thanks Shirley, for sharing your work with the world.
Copyright for all pictures by Shirley Levine of www.paperandthreads.com

Crafty kids

This afternoon I got all crafty with the kids. Our daughter and her cousin Paula painted a "Haunted House" (I guess Halloween is knocking at their doors big time) and my son and I did an elephant box. I love painting big style, well at least the first part. Afterwards I put them in the tub while I was trying to clean up their paint-footprints in the livingroom. Right now they are sound asleep and I can start my part of the day. Which means off to work, as my husband gives a storytelling seminar tomorrow and asked me for writing excercises I have to come up with tonight. All you crafty or not crafty Moms out there - treat yourself to a quiet evening. Mine will definitely include a glass of red wine. Cheers,

Svenja

Oktoberfest 2008

When you live in Munich it seems that you always go to Oktoberfest the very last minute. It was said to be raining today, so we went early and spent two and a half hours until it started. My husbands brother, his wife and their daughter are visiting, so the girls all got dressed in Dirndl dresses and off we went. As you can see, moods were great. The blue and white slide is a must and as much fun as it looks. It is a big tradition in our family to go there, as I went there when I was little, too. When it started raining we took a cab to our most loved pizzeria. They are so friendly and love kids (Italians, they all do!). It is the best place ever because they don't look at you weird for coming to their restaurant all wet with hungry children which need to be fed NOW. All in all a great day.

I went on a trip to Freiburg to one of my oldest girlfriends, Almut, last weekend. We had so much fun - we always do. It really is a shame we are living that far apart from each other... Anyway, on the way there (which is like 5 1/2 hours with weekend traffic) we were stuck in traffic on the Autobahn and suddenly everyone had to go to the toilet. I had no other choice than to sit them down on their potties, which looked so funny that I got out of the car and had to take a picture through the open trunk. My kids thought it was all hillarious - you can tell by their faces. We went to a soccer game of Almuts younger son Justus, so you can see my very happy little boy (soccer, what else to say...) and my daughter Lis who is admiring her daughter Carlotta (who again is my fabulous godchild). What a blast. Everyone was so enjoying their time together, I just had to post these. Oh, and by the way: Almut, thanks for the fantastic reciepes. We are eating your food ever since. Yummie!

Girls, girls, girls

I know, the time my daughter loves pink is soon coming to an end. Almost five, she will soon love greys, blacks and turquoises. Which means I am going to wear a lot of pink again, so that we don't look alike all the time. Anyway, this soon to be history love of pink made me sort through my pictures and look for things I made for her and other girls lately, who love pink, too. I hope you enjoy the pictures.

Love Svenja

Pirate Pat

I know that I am not the only pirate obsessed Mum in the world. It is hard not to be as soon as your boy goes pirate crazy. I posted this guy on flickr and found out about a new group by revoluzzza called "The monthly craft challenge" which features pirates as Septembers' theme. What a great idea!
Isn't his back fun? I just had to do it this way, as I think the more detailed, the easier to love.
See yah
Svenja