needle felting project :: pumpkin mouse house!

my kids are super-lucky on the grandparent front. one of their grammies is a Waldorf kindergarten teacher. she is always there for us to bounce ideas off of whether it comes to parenting or school choices or creative projects.

this fall she gave BB a little kit for creating a pumpkin mouse house. he was delighted, but a little unsure of how to begin such a project. so, we decided that a little at a time was the best approach. and i was a little wary of him wielding a felting needle!

she gave us some delicious orange felt pre-cut to the pumpkin shape. he started by needling on the stem and some vines and leaves.
she had cut a little door in it already and a tiny little opening that we decided must be for any "mouse mail" to come along.

next we started to sew it together. the purple strips become the sides of the house.

before doing the back panel, BB decided there was more decorating to do, so he made this flower. all on his own!

it took many days of sewing, but he sewed the entire thing up himself. only receiving my help if he got stuck or needed more thread. after it was done i made him a tiny pumpkin to go inside and he made this little white mouse with yellow eyes.

this gift was such a treat because it was a great way for us to work together on something. i loved the coming and going from it that we did. each time he sunk a little deeper into it. the rhythm of the needle sewing one stitch at a time. he can tend to be in a hurry a lot, so this was nice pace.

one day i was doing some embroidery. he was sewing. and little CM was coloring. it was quiet as we were all so busy. and he said,"isn't this so nice? we're all together, but working on our own things."

it was. we watched the snow fall, drank Inka and it was a perfect moment.