I'm a bit of a grouch this evening as it's been a very long parenting day. The boy is at that limbo nap stage where if he naps he'll be up all night but without one he's exhausted by early afternoon. Oh how I miss naptime, those wonderful two to three hours stretches of time for just me, me, me. For my own sanity I now usually have him do a half hour to forty five minute of quiet time in his room, but it's just not the same as a naptime.
Today we also went through all of Buddy's toys and got rid of the ones that were broken or he no longer plays with. Of course, this was not an easy process and only added to my grouchiness.
So after an extremely early bed time tonight for Bud, and in keeping with my nut theme of late, I made these nutty guys. I got the idea from this picture I came across on a Japanese website (scroll down).
It's just painted peanuts glued onto a walnut shell. I wish there was someway to preserve the peanuts so I could save them for next year, but they're fairly fragile and with the bugs we have around here I'll probably toss them after Christmas.
And speaking of ornaments, I just love this sweet ornament that Gina sent me. Isn't it lovely?
PS, "no get all nuts" is Hawaiian pidgin for "don't get excited/upset" or "don't go overboard" and it's an expression used a lot around our house. Happy Monday everyone!
I'm not looking forward to when naptimes go away...not at all.
Couldn't you varnish the nuts or something? To perserve them, I mean.
They look so good for them not to be around next year!
Posted by: Tamie | December 10, 2006 at 10:15 PM
I'm with you on the naptime thing - its not quiet around here because of the protesting!
Posted by: The Weekend Warrior | December 10, 2006 at 10:41 PM
Schecky hasn't napped in over 6 years, but I still miss that time...
The peanut ornaments are so cute they should be banned in all 50 states!!!! (Maybe even D.C. and the territories, too...)
I love the way that you give your creations such personality! You have a very distinctive style, and I think I could recognize something as being "yours" even if I didn't know you were the artist....
Posted by: lla | December 11, 2006 at 02:17 AM
I still remember my disappointment when naptimes weren't needed anymore. lol
Those little peanut ornaments are adorable! Couldn't you store them wrapped in tissue paper and then inserted in a ziplock bag? When my son was little (25 years ago), my mother made some ice cream cone ornaments for our tree that were made with actual sugar cones...the ice cream was stuffed fabric. No varnish or preservative and I'm still using them! Maybe I'll do an ornament post this week.
Posted by: Jan | December 11, 2006 at 03:38 AM
Very cute nuts! I thought they were standing on cookies, it was making me hungry.
We just went through the no-more-nap thing this summer. It was a bit trying. I would still try to get him to do a nap ever 3 days or so, but the only way I could get that to happen was if I took one too (which doesn't help with sanity that much). Pretty soon I realized that I was the only one napping! It's much easier now that we're on the other side, and we get the advantage of slightly earlier bedtimes too.
Posted by: Amanda | December 11, 2006 at 05:29 AM
I love all the cool things you do with nuts. All the ornaments are adorable. Makes me wish I had a Christmas tree to hang some ornaments off of.
Posted by: sara | December 11, 2006 at 06:06 AM
i'm already nuts thinking of all the things i gotta do, plus just finding out we're hosting the small youth group from church next sunday evening....my children seldom took naps after 2 years old - i kinda just ran on empty all day....
Posted by: debbie | December 11, 2006 at 06:30 AM
I love the peanut people:) Store them in the fridge or freezer if you have room and see if that works. Might have to seal them if you used waterbased paints.
Posted by: Barb | December 11, 2006 at 06:39 AM
When my own children are sleeping, all feels right with the world and I don't feel guilty about not entertaining them with all the right educational, responsible, uplifting activities that I picture in my head, but can't always get to.
Posted by: IamSusie | December 11, 2006 at 08:29 AM
Wonderful ornaments!! Could you preserve them by coating them with something? A sheliac would make them shiney but should keep out the bugs too right?
Posted by: Heather | December 11, 2006 at 08:47 AM
Ohhh I love the little peanut people! I wonder what you could do to preserve them? What about a coat of PVA glue that has been watered down a bit?
Posted by: lazylol | December 11, 2006 at 12:45 PM
I'm going to be a grump once my boys no longer nap. Hopefully I can squeeze one more year of naps from Big J.
Oh I hope you don't have to throw away the peanut ornaments. They are too cute.
Posted by: sally | December 11, 2006 at 02:34 PM
Okay, I no get all nuts -- but it's hard because those ornaments are so crazy adorable!
Posted by: laurie | December 11, 2006 at 07:50 PM
Awwww, nuts! I am loving this nut obsession, Myra, especially the snowmen. Keep this up, and we'll have to call you The Nutty Professor (Jerry Lewis or Eddie Murphy version - both were superb).
Posted by: momo | December 11, 2006 at 11:44 PM
the ornaments are so funny, so sweet, they made me laugh when i saw them!
louise
Posted by: prairie mouse | December 12, 2006 at 08:06 AM
I was reading about the nuts before the picture came up,and was thinking naa that wouldn't look any good!!! THEN when the picture popped up I just had to laugh how adorable!!! They would be okay in an airtight container, for a couple of years anyway!!
Posted by: Kirsty | December 12, 2006 at 01:13 PM
the nuts are adorable!
i NEED to put away/donate my son's toys too...there are just too many that find their way all over the house.
Posted by: joyce | December 12, 2006 at 01:44 PM
those nuts are great! Too bad you couldn't find a way to preserve them..I wonder if you shell(pun)acked them if it wouldn't keep the bugs away. I've preserved a cracker before--several coats of clear nail polish.
Posted by: Snowbear | December 12, 2006 at 04:25 PM
I love the little Santa!
When I was a child, my grandmother would make all sorts of breads during the Autumn months. Each time she would pick a really nice looking one, take it outside, and spray it with some sort of spray that made it rock hard, like a brick. Then during Christmas she would gather them all up in a basket to use as decoration. I have thought all day what that spray could be, but I just can't think of it!
Posted by: Wishing On Clovers | December 13, 2006 at 08:11 AM
shellac them! Is that even how you spell that?
Seriously those little nutty guys are too cute.
Posted by: Christy | December 13, 2006 at 06:37 PM
Sounds like me and you are in the exact same stage right now. It is just killing me because my boy who will be 3 next month is phasing out of his nap and my daughter is phasing out of her second nap! So sad! I feel for you, hun!
Posted by: Claire | December 14, 2006 at 06:57 PM
love the peanut winter guys! i actually saw this in another japanese magazine recently but i can't think of which one (i *thought* it was "oshare koubou" but i checked their back issues online and it doesn't look like it ...). we don't celebrate xmas at our house but i was really tempted to make some because they were so dern cute!
hope your grouchiness is going away. transition time is always difficult, but "this too shall pass." ganbare!
Posted by: yucaree | December 15, 2006 at 04:32 PM
Hey Myra! Love the pidgin. Here we'd say 'don't get your knickers in a knot'.
x
Posted by: Shula | December 17, 2006 at 02:50 PM