Green Eggs!

Hey folks! I hope you all had a lovely Winter Holiday! : ) We had a blast with Kidzilla this year. He didn't really get the whole gift thing, but it was still fun to watch him get excited about removing paper from packages and bags. And I finished his stocking before Christmas! Yea for late nights!
Dave went out to check on the chickens today during lunch today and came back with a lovely surprise, Sweet Cheeks started laying, and her eggs are green! All of those pink eggs were from Belina, who is a very prolific layer! I'm super excited and will share a photo later.
In other news, I've started to get things together for my spring line of toys and dolls and will be placing my fabric order on Friday. Pigs, Chicks and Bunny dolls are on the way. I've also partnered with a company that makes soy crayons and will be offering eco friendly crayon rolls. I'm excited to start working with some new fabrics and textures, and am looking forward to unveiling some items made from organic cotton fabric.
In the middle of all of the holiday excitement, I managed to find a little time to start working on a new quilt, which I'm very excited about. The last quilt I pieced was a gift for Dave a looong time ago, and it's been fun cutting and matching up the squares and the pattern is a breeze.
Anyhow, I hope that everyone has a fab and safe new year! Abi

Chicken Update

Isn't Nugget the meanest looking chicken? She's totally giving you the eye right now... Beside Nugget looking like a total cranky-pants, the chickens continue to thrive! Three of them are laying, Belina and Petunia are confirmed egg layers, and either Nugget or Sweet Cheeks are also laying, we just can't figure out which one. The eggs are pinkish, so I suspect that it's Sweet Cheeks, which is sort of a bummer, because I was looking forward to blue or green eggs. I guess this means we'll be adding to the flock come spring time! : )
Dave and I started buying ornaments while we were dating and it's since evolved into a tradition. We buy one ornament or one ornament set each year that reflects something that we did during the preceding months. We have a step stool with tools on it for the year we remodeled the kitchen, a flying pig for the year we got engaged and a tiny baby foot print from the year that Kidzilla joined us. I take a photo of our ornament and do a little scrap book page with the story of why we selected that particular ornament for the year. It's a fun tradition and it's neat to look back on what was important to us and why. This year, we were discussing ornaments and decided that we should get something chicken related.... and look at what I found!!!
Christy, of C BarJ Crafts , makes these. So I sent her a request to see if she could make some custom chicken ornaments, and she happily obliged. Even Dave is excited about them! Quick service, excellent communication and custom ornaments that were modeled after photos of my little flock! Awesome! Isn't Sweet Cheeks (on the left) cute? I just love the way her moustache and beard came out! No promotional consideration was given for this, they just came out so cute that I had to share!!! Anyhow, this might be my favorite holiday purchase this year, and I'll be back for some more for my chicken friends when things calm down after the holidays.
Have a great week everyone! Abi

Quick Quick!

I feel like lately, many of my posts have been last minute and quick updates. : ) It's a sign of the season. Typically, November and the first half of December are crazy at the day job, and this year has been no exception. Add to that lots of great new customers and tons of custom orders and a handful of craft fairs and things have been non-stop!
I'm not complaining. I hit my first major business goal this month, and am really enjoying making things for people. I've also met some really nice people on Etsy; a hip mom in Tx, looking for stockings for her family, a fun gal in NE (!!) looking for a custom animal and a bee for her little ones for the holiday. I feel blessed to be sought out and asked to create something that will be a part of this year's festivities. It is a very humbling thing.
My husband has become official IT support for MonkeyTree Creations. He designed my new labels and did all of the graphic design work for both the penguin and owl patterns. He also has been spending lots of quality time with Kidzilla while I've been off at shows or out rounding up supplies. I say it all the time, but really, the man deserves an award. : ) Are there any award makers out there? Send me an email!
Kidzilla continues to grow and thrive despite the constant madness. He loves to sit on my lap and sew with me, so some of your creations may have been sewed by mama's big hands and baby's tiny ones. It makes me tear up a little when I think about it. I don't know if I've shared, but he's pretty consistently hated everything I've made until last week, when he picked up a finished owl and gave it a hug. When he noticed that I noticed, he promptly threw it off the couch! He's a little stinker!
Anyhow.... MTC was featured on the SproutzStore's blog today ~ you can find the post here. They are my favorite online fabric store and most of the designer fabric that I use comes from them. Their customer service is unbeatable, and they are super nice to boot! Check them out if you have a moment! Also, if you are in the area, come by and see me at my last show of the season tomorrow, 12-12, at Camellia Waldorf School in Sacramento! Have a great weekend! Abi

The Photos are here!

Here's a link to Megan's blog post with the photos from our shoot earlier this week. Aren't they lovely? If you are in the Sacramento area, she is fantastic and will be doing free mini-sessions in Woodland at Sweet Potatoe Pie tonight. Have a great weekend everyone!

snapshot

Hey Folks! I'm having the most amazing week! I'm working on a handful of custom orders and am having so much fun! I took today off to catch up on some sewing and to head over to Megan Wilkinson Photography to take some shots of the owls and penguins for my patterns. She's so awesome! I'll be sure to share when the proofs come in. I had a blast playing with her little guys while she was working.
If you are looking for faster (and more frequent) updates on what's going on, I've started a facebook account for MonkeyTree Creations, so if you get a moment, head on over and find me there... Or you can also find me on Twitter.
I'm headed to bed in preparation for what is sure to be a crazy busy work day tomorrow. I'll have photos of the goodies I finished today up soon... and (hopefully) will have some news about a great collaboration I'm working on to share! : ) Abi

Gifts for Kidzilla

When I was pregnant, Dave and I spent a lot of time talking about our values and how we wanted to raise our children. We were in agreement from the start wooden and handmade were our preference for toys. We started off pretty well with some funky stuffed animals, made by a small company, and picked up a few organic and reclaimed wood goodies.
In keeping with this tradition, we wanted to find Kidzilla something imagination driven for the holidays this year. I turned to Etsy to find something suitable, and found the fabulous LittleBirdsBoutique. She makes all sorts of fun kids stuff, including these awesome TeePees!
They are made to order with luxe designer fabric in contemporary designs and prints. The first two photos are samples of the fabrics that she can use to make your teepee. You can choose from specific collections, or she can help you choose. Aren't those fabrics amazing? And check out the swank finished result! I want this Amy Butler teepee for myself. : ) We got ours ordered last week, and I can't wait to see the finished result! Head on over and check LittleBirdsBoutique out!