An Afternoon Sewing Project

It's been a while since I first saw this adorable bag on someone's blog. The blog author was showing simple bags you could sew and this one caught my eye. It looked simple but functional and I loved the bold print.
One day when I was browsing through the 'as-is' section at IKEA, I came across a cushion slipcover that was black and white. I grabbed it, figuring I'd someday use the fabric for a bag.
Then, another day I was browsing through the scraps bin at JoAnn Fabrics and came across this lovely yellow and white fabric. Ahhh...the inside of a bag someday!
Well, someday finally came...yesterday.The bag was pretty easy to make. I didn't have a pattern. The above mentioned blog referred to another blog that had a tutorial on how to make the bag. However, over time the creator of the bag decided to take down the post, improve the instructions for making the bag, and begin selling the pattern. Urgh. Well, thankfully, I had sketched the pattern with measurements. So, I just did it by memory.
I ended up pulling it back apart to modify the shape slightly since my fabric wasn't as long as the pattern called for. My bag is smaller than the one pictured. But, overall, I think it turned out pretty cute!I was especially pleased that it only took me about two hours to finish the entire thing.

Christmas in the Making

The kids enjoyed helping make some gifts this year.
We made blankets for 2 sets of grandparents. We get to see the other grandma in another month--yeah! She's coming for the little man's arrival. Her present isn't done yet.
I picked a gift to give that the kids could help make because I think it makes them more special. Plus, I never know what to get our parents that will bless them. It's really hard when you live far away from your folks because you don't get the passing "oh that's cute" or "I could use that" comments. Who tells people those things when you live far apart?
So, we made blankets. These are super easy to make, but they definitely required some energy. I had to lay out the fabric on our front living room floor and then scoot my bottom around the perimeter making cuts.These days it is more work to crawl around on the floor than to just go buy something at the store.
Then, the kids and I tied off all the strips.
Let me say, it was a labor of love. My dad is an athletic director and my stepmom watches the football games, so we made them a football blanket.
My mother-in-law loves the Dallas Cowboys (always has, even though she's always lived in northern PA). So, we made them a Cowboys blanket.
And, what do you do with the little scraps that are left over from trimming the edges? Well, you let your 6 year old become a designer and fashion belts and scarves, of course. Then, you dutifully model them!
(I absolutely LOVE that Asa is wearing a "scarf" he made in the picture above. Go back and look! He didn't make it into too many pics because he wasn't the best at tying and would get frustrated.)

Sew Easy and Fun

I quickly uploaded these pics and saved them in a post before we left town last Friday.

I sewed this up in about an hour on Thursday night. My friend Lara inspired me with dresses she has made for her daughter and for little girls in Africa. Very cool way to bless children!
I used a combination of two patterns to create this dress. I liked the idea of a "pillowcase" dress, but didn't have a cool case. So, I used a pattern from habitual (she emailed me the pattern; feel free to email her and request it). But, I wanted the tied shoulder straps, so I used the pattern from Freshly Picked to create the bias tape arm holes/straps and elastic gathers in front and back.

I will be making one for Jenna this weekend and will use the complete pattern from habitual for it. And, by request of Rylee, in the future I'll make her dresses less "puffy". (She's so skinny that it really would look better to make them a little more slim.)

A Little Sewing Project

I bought these brown flowy pants (gaucho maybe) at a resale shop for $1 about six months ago. They were a size x-large, but I thought I might be able to take them in a little and make them fit.
They have been sitting on a pile of clothes that need to be mended (hemmed, replace button, hole...you know...stuff you never get to). I got a sewing machine for Christmas and immediately repaired a dozen items. Since then, I have made a few projects, but because of a lack of funds for sewing materials, I've left my machine all alone for a few months.
This weekend I finally hemmed Joel's pants, fixed a few pockets, modified Jenna's dress from India, and adjusted these brown pants.
I'm most excited that I took them apart (took off the waistband; took in the waistband and each side seam; then put it all back together) and they still looked right when I put them back together again. And....they were ONE DOLLAR!!!
I'm also excited because I think they will be useful as my belly gets bigger with the baby. There's already a bump there, but that's just fat. Hopefully it will fill up with baby and no more fat will be added...yeah right!

*After trying to take photos using the full length mirror in the girls' room, I had Rylee snap some shots of the pants in the kitchen. Rylee using my dSLR...she did a pretty good job! (with some editing, of course)

More Pics, as promised

This is the lovely bride I came to see walk down the aisle to pledge her love and life to Jerry. She was a radiant bride. Her wedding was beautiful. It was a great celebration and lots of fun. As a bonus treat, I had lunch with the newlyweds today. How incredibly special is that?!

Congratulations Denelle & Jerry!

Isaac is the cutest little man. He was fascinated with the camera and I used it to lure him into my lap for a cozy picture. He soon realized I wasn't so strange and actually let me kiss him on the cheek.

He likes to help with his baby brother Ry-Ry. Rylan looks just like his daddy and Isaac looks just like his mommy. Such sweet boys!

I went to lunch with friends after church and enjoyed seeing Randen holding Rylan. He was very proud.

And, I've been working on a project for 18 months that I finally finished! Back when I was pregnant with Rylee, my friend Heather made a cross-stitch for me that was beautiful. We had it framed and it has hung in Rylee's room ever since. (well, it's temporarily off exhibit because we keep changing the girls' room around and it needs a major overhaul, but that's another post entirely)

As I mentioned in a previous post, Heather was with Joel and me when Rylee made her debut into this world. She and her hubby Paul did not start their family until almost 5 years after us. One day, when she was about 7 months pregnant with her first, I saw the same cross-stitch at Michael's and thought "I have to make that for her!"

let's pause here. please note: I have not ever done a large cross-stitch. I cross-stitched a cluster of 3 balloons that was about 2x2 inches when I was 12 years old. I have three young children and serve in ministry.

So, I started the cross-stitch in December of 2008. I took it with me on our trip to India in January '09. Isaac, the planned recipient of the gift, was born in January while we were gone. I worked on it here and there, but would set it down for months and not work on it. Then, I knew I'd be seeing Heather and meeting Isaac in September, so I worked furiously to finish it. During my trip, I got the flu and knew there was no way I'd get it done. I set it down again after returning home. During that trip, I found out Heather was expecting baby #2. So, I began working on the cross-stitch again. In February I planned this trip to Arizona for Denelle's wedding and knew I'd see Heather and get to meet the new baby. The cross-stitch HAD to get done! I had a deadline.

I have worked frantically to finish this project and today it is complete! I am so proud. You have no idea. Well, you might since I'm writing so much about it and posting it on my blog! I feel very accomplished. Someone said to me as I was working on it, "Oh, you cross-stitch." My response, "No, I do not. This is my first project and my last. It was a special deal."

So, there you go.

Teacher Appreciation Week

This last week was Teacher Appreciation Week at Jenna & Asa's preschool.

We had the pleasure of telling their teacher, Mrs. Sonya, how awesome and amazing she is and showering her with some tangible signs of our affection.

I saw a great idea in the Disney Family Fun magazine and decided to use it for our class gift. Then, my friend Kristin had a great idea to do a tote bag for Mrs. Sonya.

On Tuesday, I had each kiddo come one at a time with me to get their hand painted and stamped on the bag. I sent out letters to parents last week asking them to give gift cards if they chose.

Mrs. Sonya's flowers contained lots of gift cards to some of her favorite places. We hope she knows just how much all our kids love her and how much we parents appreciate her hard work to love our kids and teach them.

House Full of Kids Cooking!

The Friday before school started (that would be just over a week ago), I had two extra kiddos for the day. Our friends were on a tour in India, so I had A and E with me. A and Rylee go to the same school and my friend, Kristin, has a daughter who will be in A's class. So, I decided to invite Kristin and her crew (4 kids) over to make cookies with us.
Ellie, our amazing kid sitter, has not been over recently since Dani came to see us and then I've not worked with having extra kids, so she wanted to do something with us for a day. Cookie making was Ellie's idea. She's just awesome.
So, we had 9 kids...ages 10, 8, 8, 5, 4, 3, 3, 3, 3. (Yep...4 three year olds!) Ellie and I made the cookie dough and stuck it in the fridge just as Kristin and her kids were arriving. The kids played while us older folks talked. Then, we decided to roll out the dough.
The kids rolled and cut shapes. The dough really wasn't cold enough and got sticky. But, it was still fun.
As we finished the last of the cut-outs, I took out stuff for making personal pizzas. I had 2 rolls of Pillsbury dough that I cut into chunks for each kid to squish. Then, I had little bowls with sauce, pepperoni, ham, and pineapple. We cut parchment paper for each kid and then just slid each piece onto a big tray to bake....made it so much easier!
The kids cleaned up while the pizzas were baking, then we all had a little lunch (fruit, carrot sticks, and some chips rounded out our meal). We cleaned up from eating and the cookies were cooled. So, we tinted the icing I made and let the kids get to work--only this time we did two shifts with younger kids first and then older kids.
The kids had so much fun decorating! We made about 8 different colors of icing (well, Ellie did the tinting), had a half dozen types of sprinkles, and had a big mess going! (Did I even have to say it was messy? Isn't that a given!)For those of you who know me well, you know I don't really like messes. I don't care for my kids to paint because it's messy. It takes a lot for me to get out the playdoh. But, I'm a sucker for something that can be used--like cookies to eat and share and pizzas for lunch.
I talked at Christmas time about crafts and projects. I decided then that if it involved food, I was up for it. Remind me when December rolls around! Do not let me buy anything for crafts if it doesn't involve food! Or, invite me to your house to do the non-food craft thing!

So Much Happening, So Little Time to Share

I have so much to share! I think of things to blog about all the time. Then, I think "who cares?" I mean, really! Is there really anyone out there who cares about all these postings?

If I'm really honest with myself, I would have to say "I hope so" and "I'm doing it for myself". I hope you enjoy what you're reading. But, I also appreciate reflecting and "journaling" about the events of our life. I usually learn more about myself, my family, the Lord, and life as I take time to look back.

This will be a snapshot post about things that have happened this week, then I'll be working on my post about when my parents came to visit (last week). That post will take longer since I'll have more pictures, so come back to check and see it once it's uploaded (maybe tomorrow--depends on my computer!).
First, we are incredibly blessed to have a yard full of flowers and plants--thanks to the previous homeowner. One thing she planted that we never would have done is roses. Just look at this vase full of sweet-smelling roses that came from my yard! You can see my favorite little corner of lush green and pretty color below. I love to look out my kitchen window and see this beauty. I'm telling you, there are many days when I just stand and praise God for His generous gifts to us. We enjoy our yard very much!
Second, Rylee had a Drive-In Movie day at preschool yesterday. Kids made cars from cardboard boxes, then drove from their classroom to the big room. They got some popcorn from the concession stand (and Skittles, says Rylee) and watched the movie Cars. Such fun! Rylee had a princess carriage for a car. (Daddy was very much in on the action of making the car.)
Third, I talked about freezer cooking a bit in previous posts. A very good friend of mine, Kristin, introduced me to the concept after I shared my frustrations of meat prices and lack of menu planning. So, I'm happy to report that my meal-time frustration has decreased greatly. I'm still not great at planning it out way in advance. But, I have a freezer with lots of options in it. Kristin blessed me with my starting supply of freezer meals and I've taken the reins. This week I scoured the grocery fliers and found some good deals on meat. So, I stocked up and went to work.
I don't have a big freezer, just the one on 'top' of my fridge. Inside this tiny space I have 2 beef roasts, 4 sets of pork chops, 4 pork loin roasts, and 5 chicken dishes (plus things like orange juice, butter, hotdogs, beans, strawberries, and vegetables). All are prepped with either a marinade or seasonings. I have a list on the front of my fridge so I know what my options are. I'm planning to add a few ground beef recipes, when I find that on sale.
I'm finding that my kids are doing better about trying new things since I'm making dishes I've never done before. (That's Jenna eating a treat after finishing her dinner last night.) Plus, as my friend Kristin says, I don't feel so bad if they don't like something if I haven't just spent hours in the kitchen making it. Besides, we're working on having gracious hearts about food and it's good training. (We were already doing training for mealtimes, but this post about the subject is good and says a lot about how I feel on the subject. Hard work, but good.)
Finally, I made this super cute, very nice purse/bag yesterday. Yep, I made it! My friend, Bonnie, designs patterns (click here to go see her site). She's a super talented seamstress and has a business of sewing. Her latest addition is patterns. I've been wanting to learn from Bonnie, so she offered to help me make a purse. I picked the fabric and went over to her house for a few hours. After some good visiting and a little work, I was able to leave as the proud owner of this stylish bag! It's called the Sammie Grace bag. (By the way, I sewed it all myself. Bonnie has an amazing machine, which helps, but I actually sewed straight lines.) Joel makes fun of me because I look at patterns in the fabric section of WalMart. I don't even own a sewing machine. But I used to! I made the twins' crib bedding 3 years ago (two sets). I might just have to get a sewing machine again. With two girls, I can see lots of possibilities.
Okay, that was this week in a nutshell. Come back soon to see a posting on our visit from Annma and Granddaddy, as well as pics from Rylee's bday weekend!