Snow and lots of sewing

We just got close to another foot of snow in central Virginia. It has been really amazing around here with respect to snow. I think that puts our total up to about 3 feet of snow that we have gotten this year. I love snow and should probably live in Vermont instead of Virginia. The snow this time is totally amazing though. It is perfect powder or at least as perfect as I have ever seen. It is super fluffy and beautiful in the sunlight. So I went out early this morning and took a few photos of natures glory.

I made another pair of the recycled t-shirt pants. I am getting really close to finishing the pattern so very excited. I also made pumpkin mini muffins for my little guy. I finally bought a mini muffin pan for him. He can of course eat the big muffins, but I think it is fun for him to have muffins that are his size. I am off to bake a bit more before he rises from his slumber and then we are out in the snow for this afternoon since it is warming up a bit.

Toddler longies

So it has been really cold here this winter. I am sure I am not telling you anything new since it has been really cold in a lot of places. I finally made Jonas a pair of longies out of some left over synthetic yarn that I had in my stash. I have been intrigued by all the diaper covers that I have seen online and I saw that some people make them out of synthetic yarn also. They work pretty good if you use a tight knitting gauge. The result is similar to using polartec fleece covers. So I decided to make a pair for Jonas to use as a diaper cover and also to keep his little legs warm. The pattern is very similar to the boy bloomers execept it has a lot more shaping and an extra leg gusset. In other words it is a lot more complicated. The longies fit him great with all the extra shaping so it is definitely worth the extra steps. I also really like the gusset since it gives him a lot of freedom of movement. Here are photos of the pants and the little guy in action. He really looks adorable in his knitted pants.

Toddler recycled t-shirt pants

I am working on a new pants pattern. It is modeled after a variety of yoga pants that I have seen online. It has taken me a lot longer to come up with a pattern than I thought it would since the pants are pretty simple. The first couple of tries were too big in the hip and then too big in the waist. I am also working on the pants rise to accommodate the cloth diapers. Anyway, it is taking a while to come up with a good pattern. It is interesting that before he was born I definitely spent a lot of time thinking about a pattern and making samples. I find that these days I try to be more efficient with my time since I usually don't get large blocks of time for crafting. I do have his afternoon nap time to mull over different ideas. He typically takes a good afternoon nap. I rock him in the rocking chair and either tell him a story or sing him a song and he is off to sleepy time. I am getting close with the pants pattern and here is my result so far. I am going to change the waistband a bit and also work on the cuffs. I would like for the pants to grow with him, but the cuffs are bit too floppy. I think a few more alterations and then it will be good. This pair was made from recycled thrift store t-shirts.

Spinach quinoa waffles

The little guy loves waffles. He generally is not too picky about food. I have noticed that since he turned 18 months that he goes in spurts with eating. It is not that he has any particular thing that he dislikes. It is more that at times he is too busy playing and exploring to want to sit and eat. He then makes it up at the next meal and eats everything in sight. I am glad that he still loves to eat a lot of veggies including his favorite which is any type of greens. I decided to make him waffles with two things that I know he really likes including spinach and quinoa. I have some cubes available in the freezer so it made it really simple to add them to the waffle mix. I had to adjust the liquid level a bit, but they turned out great. He ate them readily with the Creamy Cashew Dip from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan by Dreena Burton. I actually made the dip with almond butter instead of cashew butter. He now asks for "Almo" with his waffles so he likes it a lot.

By the way, I love all of Dreena Burtons cookbooks. She has a lot of kid friendly recipes. She also has a great section on food introduction for infants in her book Vive Le Vegan. I used the introduction schedule and Jonas did great with everything. It has been a lot of fun to cross every stage and add different food items. The book is full of lots of great ideas for feeding a vegan baby and toddler and it has been a great resource. I also like the book from Cathe Olson called Simply Natural Baby Food. I have made a lot of recipes from the book and I love that a lot are low salt and sugar. The book is not vegan, but it easy to adjust most of the recipes. One of his favorites of course is the whole grain waffles with lots of molasses.

Here is the recipe for the Spinach quinoa waffles. I have to say they make a really yummy savory waffle.

Spinach quinoa waffles

1.5 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 cup rice or soy milk
1/2 cup pureed cooked quinoa
1 cup pureed cooked spinach
1/3 cup oil
1 tablespoon ground flax
1/2 cup soy yogurt

Mix all the dry ingredients together in one bowl. Add all the liquid ingredients together in another bowl. The ground flax can be added to the liquid ingredients. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry and mix until combined. The batter should be fairly thick, but still be able to pour. If it is too thick then add more rice or soy milk. If it is too thin then add more flour. Heat up your waffle iron and start cooking.