Wordless Wednesday: clowning around

THE KNIT MAXI DRESS(!!)

Two sewing posts back to back? YES, yes indeed. Because I'm so excited about this I had to post it right after I finished.

Last week, Jill at Made it on Monday posted a tutorial for a simple maxi dress. (btw, Jill has great posts ALL THE TIME, this is just the first one I thought I could handle by myself! Check her out, seriously.)

I already had the fabric AND we're going to the beach this weekend ... a fun new dress was in order!

Yesterday, during nap time I started studying the tutorial and kept thinking I was missing something or maybe not understanding exactly right or probably, I just wanted to be 101% sure that I WAS reading it right that I made a non-knit prototype dress. That's right ... I made a practice dress before I made the real dress. (sigh) I ended up having it right after all and whipped up the prototype up in a couple of hours.

It definitely helped me figure out how to better cut my SUPER stretchy knit. And gave me a couple of ideas of how to tailor the dress more to my body type and how I wanted it to fit.

the prototype.

I used Nanny's fabric and didn't bother to baste the skirt ... that saved some time. I did try this on but it was slightly obscene. I'll spare you. I could have spared you again and actually slapped on a little makeup and fixed my hair ... eh, oh well.

THE DRESS((!!))

I cut the straps 4 inches wide instead of 8 inches and I didn't add the zipper (again, because this knit is SUPER STRETCHY) but otherwise, followed the tutorial. I love that the bodice is lined. And well, I pretty much love the rest of it too. It's really comfortable and flow-y.

I really am proud of myself. And THANKS AGAIN, JILL. I love your blog!

July Second Saturday Sewing or How I Became the Mom Who Dresses Like her Kid

Saturday was filled with quilts, bags, skirts, scrapbooks, chik-fil-a, chocolate and RC Cola. Fun times.

The main work table. sewing and scrap booking.

overflow ... or the last one to arrive. HW is finishing up her pleated purse. I really like her fabric. very summer-y and fun.

Marie finished the front and quilted her baby blanket. She only has the binding left. She did a fantastic job on her very first sewing project ever.

JSS and I made this SUPER SIMPLE SUMMER SKIRT from I Am Momma (the site I got the idea for the ABC rocks)

JSS finished hers and one for her daughter.

Because I bought a HUGE amount of fabric I made one for Daughter too. I finished hers but had to take mine home to finish it up. I got frustrated with my basting skills and decided to start it over and sew the final stitches at home after I got a break.

This skirt really was super easy to make. The hardest part for me was just deciding how big to make the waist (my knit was SUPER stretchy) and how long I wanted the length. And, of course, cutting the fabric to get the maximum use out of it ... I'm still working on that skill. but it was easy to put together and is SO VERY COMFORTABLE. And pretty cute.

Daughter and I showing off our matching skirts. I had plans to cut some length off hers, but then decided to leave it long so she can get more wear out of it. She told me, "I like these matching skirts. They go together forever." :-) sigh.

fun times.

Alphabet Rocks

Cheri @ I Am Momma is pretty amazing. I love.love.love her blogs posts. Especially when she made Alphabet Rocks for her son(s). It's her first idea I've loved enough to copy. Please visit her blog and look at all the fun things she makes and great ideas she has.

What I used:

• I picked up two packs of decorator rocks from walmart. I got two because I am making a set for each kid and I didn't think there were enough big rocks in each pack. It ended up being just enough. (now we have lots of small decorator rocks waiting to be used for something!)
• I stayed with Cheri's color scheme and didn't even have to buy any paint. (If you're not going to use the paints for anything but this project, get those little pots of paint that are connected. If you have no idea what I'm talking about you'll see them when you get to the paint section in your favorite craft store. OR you could use paint pens. I might have done that if I didn't already have the paint)
• I did get a black fine point paint pen to outline the letters
• clear gloss finish spray paint to seal. (that REALLY makes the rocks look shiny)

Then I started painting letters. Each need at least 2 coats. Some needed three depending on the color of the rock. When that dried I traced the letter with the paint pen.

uppercase letters before I spray painted them

lower case letters on the back before spray paint

I had 4 "big" rocks left over. So, everyone got a rock with his/her initial on the front and name written on the back. (those are post spray paint. see the shine!!)

I'm really excited about the kids playing and learning with these. They both love collecting rocks. I figured it'd be a great way for Son to learn his letters and a great way for Daughter to learn what the lower case letters look like, plus begin to spell simple words.

EDIT: I actually made these almost two months ago. And after a lot of heavy toddler play, I recommend exclusively using paint pens. Skip the acrylic paint and use a thick tip paint pen for the letter and outline it with a thin tip. The paint is rubbing off on about half the letters but the paint pen is holding strong.

Wordless Wednesday: unrelated twins forever separated by a screen

An Independence Day Lesson

Last July 4th, we had the most wonderful family fun day. I've been quietly looking forward to this year's adventure for quite some some. I just knew it was going to be fantastic. We were going to follow the same plan: park, ice cream, fireworks. It was going to be wonderful. Everyone was going to have a super duper day.

or no.

It rained and that really threw us off. No problem, we'll go to McWane until the rain stops. (McWane closes as 6 and the fireworks start at 9)

We all took turns pulling on ropes.

my turn

Husband's turn

Daughter's turn

Son's turn

Daughter is getting better and better at taking pictures of things and people. I didn't even have to crop this one to get Husband and I in the middle.

dancing. This is a move that Husband and I call "the donkey kick" They were cracking us up with their mad skills.

So after McWane closed, it was still raining. a lot. That crossed the park off our list and made the picnic snacks I packed slightly redundant. We adjusted our plans and decided to go to a restaurant to get something to eat. Then we'd head to the park, park the car and walk to downtown Homewood for ice cream and find a spot to watch the fireworks. great. back on track. mostly.

Husband and I make a quick list of all the places we've taken the kids that they have done well at. Well, first we go to Nabeels. closed. Then we head to V. Richard's. closed. Next we stop by Rojo. closed. sigh. We did see that Mellow Mushroom was opened, but we weren't too terribly keen on it. But we headed that way. That's when Husband mentioned driving by Sitar.

HURRAY. The Indians didn't close to celebrate Independence Day! The food was great as usual, but the kids were wound up and the service was slow. So enjoy my dinner, I did not. There were lots of threats. And lots of "sit downs" and "stop doing thats" They weren't loud and they weren't disruptive, but it still stresses me out when a 2 and a 3 year old can't sit in a chair and be still for 40 minutes. (insert laugh here ... really all the parents of 2 and 3 years olds, take the opportunity to laugh at my lunacy) Still, they've done it before. I know they are capable of proper behavior. So sometimes I forget they are toddlers and will, ya know, act like toddlers.

With dinner over we headed to the park, loaded the stroller and started walking to So-Ho Sweets. We also made the mistake of telling the kids that was where we were going. So they are getting all geeked up about getting ice cream. We get there and (drum roll please) So-Ho Sweets is closed. Not closed for the day, but empty with a for lease sign on the door. (sigh)

ok, no ice cream much to the kids' dismay.

So we head to our fireworks watching spot and try to salvage the day. I pull out the glow necklaces and the kids run around and play for the 15 minutes that we're waiting on Thunder on the Mountain to start.

showing off their necklaces

(BTW, this is Daughter's new favorite party dress. I got in on clearance at walmart for $3!)

This is when Husband corralled the troops so get them calmed down a little right before the fireworks started.

during the fireworks they marveled and danced and ran around and cheered. They really enjoyed the show.

a shot of the fireworks

An Independence Day Lesson: you can't recreate perfection, so you might as well just shoot for fun.

And the truth is, I was stressed out and mad that things weren't "perfect." We didn't recreate 2010 and all go home euphoric. But the kids did have a great time and Husband and I did laugh a lot about the ridiculousness of the situation. It wasn't perfect, but it was fun.

Palisades Park with the new backpack

About a month ago, I did something I have never done before. But it turned out so well, I look forward to more of it soon.

(Disclaimer:I realize no one loves to look at pictures of my kids as much as Husband and I do, so while this is another Palisades Park post, it's different from the last one I posted. But in my defense, if I spent all my time with cats, I'm sure I'd talk about them and take a lot of pictures of them too. Then you could call me Crazy Cat Christy)

Anyway, since we started hiking, Daughter has been talking about wanting/needing a back pack for hiking. (We always carry one with a diaper for Son, lots of water, snacks, camera, id. typical things that's good to have while hiking) So, she thinks she needs one to carry all of her hiking stuff. She finally found a Dora one at Target that we couldn't say no to, mainly because of her extreme excitement and its price. Soon after she was ready to go hiking.

OK, that's great. But we bought the back pack on a Sunday and only hike on the weekends when Husband is home from work.

hmmm. I am a grown woman. Surely, if I can't handle taking two toddlers into the woods and making sure everyone makes it out alive then I have bigger problems than I thought. I can do this. So, I promised an afternoon hike. And it really was fabulous.

Daughter carried her backpack which held two sippy cups, 4 oranges, Wet Ones and paper towels. She loved it!

photo op at the gazebo before we started.

Son is so excited. It's almost like he's on Santa's lap all over again!

he's still a super jumper

"Mommy, I found this branch. It's from a tree."

reading one of the flip signs that identify the trees on the Tree Trail. She says they say pretty much the same thing, "this tree has bark and leaves and berries."

The backpack slowed Daughter down, so to keep them closer together and easier to monitor I suggested hand holding. Lots of hand holding. I may have even screamed, "HOLD HIS HAND."

Now, this is the place where I'd put any playground pictures that I was posting. But well, they all looked the same as last time's playground pictures. So, instead here's some pictures of my kids playing in a sprinkler for the first time ever. The area around the playgrounds have been recently sodded so they are watered nightly. And of course, the timer goes off and the water turns on right as we were walking to the car.

Son loved it.

And Daughter did too.

And because I am a semi-prepared seasoned Mom-Of-Toddlers, extra clothes are almost always in the car. play away.

"I'll hold the U-keen-y"

Daughter proudly showing off our first two zucchinis of the season. Black Beauty Zucchini Squash, if you want to get technical.