Sewing this Week and Other Musings...

Ah...another week has just about drawn to a close.
It is Saturday afternoon and I have returned from the market and am now resting a little before supper preparations begin...
 

I had hoped to become a bit more consistent in my writing lately but alas!
The Lord graciously sent me another order and He also allowed me the incredible privilege of hosting my first ever sewing workshop for young ladies 9-12 years of age.
I will tell you all about it in a moment but first, let me give you a glimpse of the goodies I have been creating in my sewing room lately...

 Miss Lettice is such a gorgeous addition to Heartmade!  
Each rabbit is quite intricate and time-consuming to make, but very special...  
I made one for my order as well as a Farmer Boy bunny.  

 

 The Farmer Boy rabbit is a more recent make but has become just as popular as Miss Lettice...

 

 

  Bunting formed the main part of my order.  
I made three beautiful large pink/red/white bunting as well as two large boyish bunting.  
I got to go fabric shopping for these so my collection is looking quite happy at the moment..{{Smiles}}

 

 

^ This one is my favourite...

I also completed two patchwork hearts with a flower cross-stitch motif...

...And a couple more ellie softies.
I think it is safe to say that the ellies are the most popular item at Heartmade at the moment...
In fact, I have another to send off this coming week...{{smiles}}

~

Just have a look at how big and precious Caleb has gotten!
We celebrated eleven weeks with this sweet boy yesterday...someone asked me to today if I was still enjoying my brother...
I replied that with every passing day Caleb becomes more special and sweet to us!  

^ This little fellow is laughing now, smiling more and has already outgrown his 3-6 month onseies...what a delight he is! 

~

Now...I simply must tell you all about the sewing workshop I mentioned earlier.
About a month and a half ago, the Lord led me to begin planning a sewing day for girls ages 9-12 and I was delighted to hear that I would be demonstrating how to sew pretty patchwork hearts to not six girls as I had originally planned, but to seven!  

Nancy was my assistant {I could not have done it without her...} and at 9am sharp on Friday morning, seven lovely girls joined us for a day of fellowship, sewing and tea!
Oh, it was so blessed...it was everything I had hoped and prayed it would be and more ~ what a faithful God we serve!  

One young lady remarked how it felt as if we were all princesses what with the elegant teacups and beautiful instrumental music playing in the background!  The girls worked diligently till 3pm {we did break for tea and then for lunch} and went home with a patchwork heart sewn mainly by hand {I used my sewing machine to secure the ribbons} with a pretty cross-stitch motif and I must say, I was altogether impressed by how patient the girls were with the sewing and the cross-stitching.  

And they all begged me to host another class sometime very soon...that blessed my heart and made all the hard work and effort really worth it!  It is not simply about the sewing...yes, I want to inspire them and give them a few of the basic "tools" to take their creativity further if they wish, but I also want to encourage them to see the beauty in everything, to enjoy fellowship and wholesome activities and ultimately, to inspire them to a closer walk with Jesus.  

The Lord doesn't need perfect individuals who have it and know it all, but rather he requires us to be broken vessels for Him and to be open and willing for Him to use.
I am praying much about forming a Bright Lights group in my area in the coming year...
While I am working through the training and preparing the lessons, I hope to do a few more workshops to really get to know the girls better as well as their mothers.  

I want to use my single years for God's glory and this is my very first step and oh!  It is daunting to think of a larger picture!  But...Jesus has given me grace for today and I don't need to think about tomorrow.  Sure, I can make goals and have dreams, but I must surrender them to Christ.  I can do nothing in my own strength as I am too weak...  He has given me a desire to encourage young girls to embrace their God-given feminity and the plans He has for them and I believe that in time He will bring everything that He has ordained to pass.  I need simply to trust Him and seek His counsel in prayer and in the reading of His Word.  

I sadly did not get pictures of the workshop...it was a rather busy few hours, but perhaps next time I will be more organised!  

~

 Painting:  Milkmaid with Cows by Julien Dupre

In other news, we have acquired a milk cow, my friends!  Yes indeed, Molly has joined our little farm and we will be milking her and looking after her calf from now on.   She is being loaned to us {actually, a couple years ago we did this and it worked really well.}
We do want to purchase our own cow someday, but in the meantime God has once again provided just what we needed ~ we had been praying for awhile that somehow things would work out so that we could keep a cow and it was a wonderful answer to hear that Molly could once again bless our family...
I will be chief milker {I hope I remember that which I learnt and build up my hand muscles quickly!} but I will be teaching my younger sisters as well.
As we speak, my dad is busy building a cow shed and in the garage is the cow feed and the shiny new milk pail is awaiting the first drops of rich, creamy milk to fill it to the brim...  Exciting, busy times lie ahead!

~

Next week Beth will be celebrating her 12th birthday {July 22nd} and the next day Nancy has a concert with the orchestra she plays in...  Our whole family are planning to attend ~ what fun that will be!  {{smiles}}

It is always such a blessing to share the daily blessings of this beautiful life with each of you, sweet readers!  Thank you for your kind words of encouragement and the friendship you extend!  

What was your week like, dear friends...?  Have you ever hosted a sewing workshop?  Have you tried milking before?

With love and joy in Christ,

Kelly-Anne