Easter gifts

We had a lovely Easter visit with friends in Asheville, NC (go south & get snow. go figure!), sandwiched between two miracle car trips: I didn't quite fall asleep. Though I'm a Mama who delights in childhood's secrets, the Easter bunny has never been more than a fleeting presence. But the baskets? always. And one is always hidden in the dryer, as I remember in Frandsen celebrations. I wonder if they'll catch onto that... This year, I even let the girls choose their basket goods.

Although they're very supportive of my shop, and sweet little helpers, I think it's a bit disappointing to them that what I make, before always for them, now disappears into the bright blue box down the street. So I promised to make each a little playset, "whatever you want." Orders were quick and specific. Audrey: A camping playset, with a root baby and fairy, both about 2 1/2" (she really included that). A leaf sleeping bag for the fairy and a brown blanket and needle-felted nest for the root baby. I added a box of pebbles for fire rings and such, a basket, and a couple of pottery bits. And this lovely surprise: the deciduous tree from sewing stars that I've been drooling over ever since Teresa Levy gave a sneak peek of it in her blog. The pattern is still available in her Woodlands: small toys to sew vol. 2 booklet. Audrey kindly took a break from composing "The Princess's Official Contract" (I couldn't make these things up) to set it up for a photo op this afternoon. Awesome is the fall foliage as fire and the "gum bush" (there's bubble pink Extra under the spring topper).

Marian wanted "a mama and a baby caterpillar and a leaf with holes that they are eating." Science and lifecycles and such, push aside! My sweetie gets what my sweetie wants (the kid honestly thinks that another word for "daughter" is "little darling").Lucky me, I have a holiday-lovin' Mama myself, and got this perfect Easter treat in the mail for me! (I've been heavily hinting for more knitted dishcloths, and this apple-green one is cheering my soul. I might have to start doing wash every day so I can always have it fresh!). How perfect is that strawberry applique? My mom always does everything so neatly. Even her cooking has this lovely roundness to it.
Baskets were rounded out with the usual candy (peeps and chocolate are musts) and generous little bits from our sweet visitee. Plus Crocs (we love 'em). Plus a handful of buttons from millymollymandy, whose artwork I adore. This was my favorite set:
I've heard since from my sister that she bought the tree hugger print for her own little darling's bedroom. Lucky Amari! Very soon I will have the My Favorite Spot print set for mine...

**edit: purchase done....in finding the pic above, I was reminding that mandy is heading back to the UK after an extended US visit in 3 days, and ordering now "saves" me something like $5....oh man, they're so cute...plus, I really had a tree when I was a wee Washington girl....