Friday, May 13, 2011

No Matter What



Allow me to explain.

It happened like so many times before: from afar I heard the sound from my youngest that tells me she's been physically assaulted by my oldest. It's a specific sound, and way too familiar. My temper flares as soon as that sound hits my ears. Every time.

This time, though, I make my way to the scene to find my little one shrieking about injustice, but the offender is nowhere to be seen. My temper rises, and I search, calling. No sign, no answer when I call her name. I am nothing short of livid at this point, clinching my jaw and muttering, rehearsing the words I'm going to scream at her once I find where she's hiding. They go something like, "I don't care what she did, YOU CANNOT HIT HER!" and "I KNOW you know better than that because it seems I have to tell you this every single day!!" and "God #@*&it, child, you best answer me when I call you!!!!"

It's clear why she's hiding, I realize, as she sheepishly rises up from behind a rock outside our front door. My purple face tells her all she needs to know, but I manage to responsibly suggest that she stay at least an arm's length away from me while I deliver the verbal onslaught. (It's no wonder to me why she has trouble controlling her temper, by the way.)

She wisely spent a whole bunch of time in her room before she tried to make her testimony. We were all much calmer and more rational at this point, though my anti-violence lecture still lasted about ten minutes.

"Maybe if I wrote it down, it would help me remember," she suggested. "Perfect," I say, having forgotten the brilliance of assigning sentences as punishment. It's writing practice and discipline all in one!

I line the paper and explain that these sentences are to be done in her very neatest handwriting or she'll have to start all over, that she's still in trouble and the words on the page are meant to sink deep into her head, and so on. She says, "I get it, mom, you can go now." Another wise move.

The above picture is what I found when I checked in on her about five minutes later.

A little dismayed, I ask why her letters go all crooked at the end of each sentence, and she answers, "Because it says, 'I will not hit my sister, no matter what.' You know, like you say when you really mean it."

It's italics!! She wrote the emphasis words in italics.

And just like magic, I'm not mad anymore.

Saturday, April 2, 2011

A Perfect Circle

A Disclaimer: If you are unmoved by or uninterested in the amazing and often hilarious things that come out of the mouths and minds of children, this blog may not be for you.

For the rest of you, here's a story written and read for you by my very own Mazzy, inspired by the If you Give... series by Laura Numeroff.

Of particular brilliance are the illustrations.



Atta girl, Maz.


Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Mid-Week Music Video

I'm not too proud to admit that my family watches our fair share of YouTube videos. Some because they're funny, some because they're informational, and some because they're viral. My favorite ones, though, tend to be of the music variety. The old late-nineties MTv lover in me never died, I suppose, though the bands (read: the videos) I'd choose to tune into now would never have made it to premium cable.

So, I think it's high time to fulfill an early teenage dream of being a VJ. If only once a week. Move over, Martha Quinn.



Saturday, March 12, 2011

Gifts For My Girls

I wanted to share some gifts I recently made for the girls. At our house, Mama-made gifts come when inspiration strikes, so they are specially cherished because they are one of a kind, designed so specifically with each child in mind, and filled with love.
First, for Scarlett, I made a little lady tool belt.
It was inspired by the stash belts that can be seen in abundance at summer festivals. I salvaged the leather from an old coat that was begging to be repurposed. The leather was great, but the jacket was hideous. The butterfly clasp came from a flea market years ago and has been patiently waiting for me to put it to the perfect use.
This particular eight-year-old's utility belt features plenty of pockets for treasure collecting and little custom compartments to hold all of her essential tools: a pocket knife, a flashlight, a pair of scissors, a large purple whistle and (on special occasions) a hammer. Now those things she always seems to need are always within reach and her hands are free for climbing trees and riding her bike. Next came Tallulah, who just had her first birthday. I wanted to make her something to help us remember this important milestone, something that would last, that would withstand being chewed on and dragged around and loved and still be around for her when she has a one-year-old in need of a Mama-made gift. And it had to be a doll.She has red hair and blue eyes to match Tallulah's own, and I stuffed her with the sweetest smelling wool bits to avoid using polyfill. She fits right in with the rest of our doll family, and most importantly, she fits just right in those loving little hands.

I get such a feeling of satisfaction from creating something with my own two hands for the ones I love. I hope you feel a little inspiration to make something for yours.

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Drums, Please...

A list:
(for those of you looking closely, this was only one of two pages of names)
A hat:


A hand:


A winner!:


Congratulations, Mrs. Hunter.

Thank you to ALL of you who commented, liked, joined, shared and tweeted!
We're happy to have you.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

An Ordinary Average Day

We are:

~Building a small scale Cherokee Indian longhouse

~Getting a little carried away and making elaborate furniture to go in the Cherokee Indian longhouse
~Wearing big girl panties and filling everyone's boots with goodies from Mama's basket

~Drinking Carrot-Orange-Lemon juice with a side of Wheat grass

~Working on novel #2

~Dropping one kid off here

~Meeting my best girl for afternoon coffee here

~Eating veggie burgers for dinner here

~Heading back home for a little American Idol with the girls.

~Then off to bed to read a little bit of this before I doze off to a good nights sleep so I can wake up and start it all over again.

How did you spend your day?







Saturday, February 26, 2011

Our First-Ever Giveaway!!

You may have noticed, and you may have not, that we haven't blogged in some time.

There are many, many reasons for this: Winter boredom, laziness, a sharp decrease in desire to spend any more time than absolutely necessary in front of the computer, particularly with a willfull button-slamming toddler on the scene, and a sharp increase in desire to cook and read and snuggle with our real babies. The most important reason, though, is that DamestarBaby (and all that comes with it) has always been second to our ever-evolving families. We mother first, and sew second. We're super grateful to have the option of ignoring our business when we need to, and so are our kids.

That said, we still sort of feel bad, and we're ready to start paying attention again. What better way to celebrate than with a giveaway?!

So, here's the deal: the winner will receive two shirts of their choice in any size they'd like. TWO SHIRTS. For example,

a Chakra shirt for your daughter

and a Guitar for the little man in your life.Perhaps a gift for a birthday party,
or just a little wardrobe lift.

These are just a few examples, peep the rest of our shirt options in our shop.

No matter how you slice it, you win two of our shirts, for free. Well, almost.

It is a contest, and there are rules. It's like this, to enter you can:

1)Become a Fan of DamestarBaby on Facebook

2)Follow the DamestarBaby blog

3)Link back to this post on your own blog or Facebook wall or Twitter feed

If you are already a fan and a follower, just comment so and you'll be entered. If you do more than one of the above, leave a separate comment for each action and you'll have twice (or thrice!) the chance of winning.

We're procrastinators ourselves, so we'll give you a whole week. This giveaway ends Saturday, March 5 at 3 p.m. The winner will be chosen at random, because we couldn't possibly choose which one of you we like best.