The Project...(WARNING: It's lengthy)

This is what I have been devoting every free moment to the last week:

Generally when I agree to do things, I get myself in over my head.  It's common practice in my world, and then I have to find a way out of said thing.  This time (once again) it invovled Biggest Sister and Big Sister and Halloween costumes.

Why, you might ask are we discussing Halloween costumes now?  Well, if there is one thing I learned from my mother about Halloween, it is that you DON'T want to be sewing the arms of a Power Ranger costume as a child is walking out the door.  Nor do you want to let your children see you cry in the process of constructing these costumes.  Both of which tend to happen with procrastination.  I can remember many o' Halloween eves that Big Jan spent burning the midnight oil to make sure that our costumes were ready to go for our school party or the actual Halloween trick or treating.  This is one mistake I don't make, I HATE being late and being rushed.  And I do like to look out for fabric sales. 


After over an hour and a half of back and forth over what exactly these 'Tangeled' dresses were suppose to look like (I've never seen the new Disney movie telling the story of Rapunzel, but I'm told it is very good) we had a workable drawing.  Google was no help as my search brought up several variations of the costume for dress up and on different dolls and what not, but they simply would not due, according to the girls.  They want the real thing...of course.  There is no pattern for this dress, but after making more than my fair share of Disney princess dresses, I was (not so much now that I know what is involved) willing to take on the challenge.  So, we drew it up and headed out shopping.

My VERY rough sketch...

The bulk of the dress is dark purple satin. We simply can't use an easy to work with fabric like cotton, oh no, no, it must be satin.  Satin is slippery and shimmery, and it frays, badly.   For those of you who don't know, it has been the bane of my existence in sewing princess dresses for the past 3 years. There is a small strip in the middle that is light purple, satin of course, because it frays (not really, but I think they are trying to sabotage me).  Then there is pink ribbon laced up the light purple satin and tied in a bow at the top, I think.  At least, that is what we discussed.

The top of bodice is also lined with lace, but only around the neckline, I think, at least that's what we discussed (are you seeing a pattern?).  We needed 2 separate, but coordinating pieces of lace to accomplish this look.  You simply can't have 2 inch lace to line the neck area, it's just too much. 

The eyelets

Back bodice with zipper

The skirt portion is about what I would consider 'tea length'-must be a British term, but it's not to the ground and it's not just below the knee. The skirt is 'flowy', the flowier (is that a word???) the better.  The girls must be able to 'twirl', that is a requirement.  The skirt also has lace trim at the bottom.  I chose cotton.  The girls did not have a choice in the matter.  Then there is the matter of the sleeves.

The sleeves have strips of pink in them. I opted for a quick fix, a wider version of the ribbon that will be used to lace up the bodice.  Plus this way, it won't fray...I hope.  Did I mention satin is slippery and shimmery and hard to work with?  Fraying, makes me crazy!  Ribbons are also satin, in general.  These costumes will require extra seam sewing, as in double the sewing time...BARF!

We got all of the fabric and notions including 2 colors of purple satin; purple lining for the bodice; 2 different, coordinating pieces of lace; a special border, with little eye's to lace up the bodice; zippers and 2 different sized, same colored, double sided ribbons.  All for the bargain price (with my coupons of course) of about $36 dollars for 2 costumes.  I had to subtract the batting and other little things I had to pick up for other projects while we were there.  There are similiar costumes for sale for about $40/ dress.  So I guess we're saving money(?)

The fabric and necessary notions to complete the project, x2.

And after a few hours, a little focus, a bit of neglecting Guyface (not really, but he was awfully whiny while I wasn't paying attention to him) and a visit from smallest sister to check sizing, ta-da!

Why do I put myself through this you say?  Well here is why.  First of all, my mom made ALL of our Halloween costumes (even when I was a dice, she painted a refrigerator box, or dirty laundry, she cut the bottom out of a laundry basket and tied rope on to it so I could hold it on my shoulders).  She made me a princess costume (before all the Disney pricesses took over), she made me a Miss America costume, a bride and many others.  I remember them all.  And I loved to play dress up in them after Halloween.   These are memories I will always take with me. 

The other reason is illustrated here.  This was Halloween the second year that I was around the girls.  This was pretty much how the previous year went as well... I am not trying to pick any fights, but I left after we visited with them before trick or treating, saying never again.

These beautiful girls deserve beautiful costumes and that is something I can do. I am going to make sure it happens.  And I have, ever since then, with the exception of Payton wanting to wear her Snow White dance costume last year. She did ask me to make her a Jasmine costume right before Halloween.  I respectfully declined, she'd made her decision in July when I asked and was still able to do something like that.  In October, there was no way I could do it, I had Guyface 11 days after Halloween.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have another dress to make...

Baby Boy's Bumper

I said I have a project up my sleeve, and I do.  This is NOT the project. The problem is, these pesky necessities get in the way. 

See, the problem is, Guyface is pretty mobile.  He can't quite crawl, but he drags himself and he can move 360 degrees on his tummy.  And he likes to get in to stuff.  Lately, he has taken to wedging an arm and a leg between the slats in his crib, then he panics, wiggles, and screams bloody murder in the middle of the night so his mama will come in and shake him loose and put his plug back in so he can get back to his peaceful sleep.

His mom, she's not amused by this behavior.  At all.  So out of necessity, I made a 'bumper'.  I'm against bumpers really, well, until a child gets stuck in the slats, panics, wiggles and screams bloody murder in the middle of the night, every night, several times.  I worry about SIDS, but I also think, that at this point, he's strong enough to move if he gets too close or if it covers his nose and mouth.  So I'm going to go with it for the time being.

This was NOT a fun project.  I hate making things I HAVE to make.  I would much rather make things that are fun, or put a smile on someone's face.  Pretty sure Guyface could care less about it.

It didn't dawn on me that you would be so interested in the process of making this bumper until I finished, so you don't get any photos of the 'making', but you do get a picture of the finished product.

This is his crib-it was Big Sister's crib before it was his.  We did get new sheets and changed from girly pink and purple themed to a 'farm theme'

The bumper, gingham with red piping on the top.

The bumper's ties...who has time to tie nice bows, it was after BOTH our bedtimes!  Maybe my mom will tie them in nice bows the next time she comes out.

This is the crib skirt that I made for Guyface out of burlap and gingham (same gingham as the bumper).  I made it when I was 8 months pregnant.  That was a terrible idea.  I should have made the bumper when I made the crib skirt.

I also recovered the cushions on this chair that my mom got for the nursery.  This was also done at 8 months pregnant and I may have cried, multiple times, trying to recover it.  I resent this chair and do not rock my son in it because it was such a pain to cover and brings back bad memories.  Actually, that's not true.  I don't rock Guy in it, because I just put him in bed, start his seahorse music toy and he's out. Yeah buddy!  That's my baby...well, until he gets stuck in the slats, panics, wiggles...(Need I go on?)

This is what Guyface was doing while I was finishing up his bumper...well, that is when he wasn't crying because he wanted some attention from his mama.  And before I took this picture, he was snoozin'.

I worked a half day today because Guy was sick.  He showed marked improvement by the evening, so I will be working a full day tomorrow.  My LAST full Friday, well until next May.  I'm excited.  Then I should have time to get to the project I keep eluding to.  =) 

Spring has sprung in to Summer!

Though it has long-past for this growing season, one of my favorite times in Iowa is when the corn just starts popping up through the dirt (wait, soil, it's soil in Iowa).  I love the bright green that shoots out of the rich, black soil after a long winter...and this winter was L-O-N-G!

Though this picture was taken about a month and a half ago and I'm just getting to it now, I still love to see the contrast between the bright green racing stripes running through fields.

Love those green stripes!

The other side of Iowa spring/summer, is the storms.  Unfortunately, this spring has not been kind to the farm.  They've lost two, large trees and one more that was dead and just needed to come down. 

It also knocked over my precious tomato plants that I have strategically placed on my porch (on casters, no less) away from those pesky rabbits that eat them before I get the chance.  I have tomatoes, they're green, but they are there and if I didn't check on them today, we might have lost them. =)  Good news is, we didn't!  I also have some peppers and cilantro growing on my porch.

Spring has definitely sprung, in fact, look, here's my garden.  Can you tell I attempted to weed it yesterday after I took Guyface for a walk and he fell asleep in his stroller?  I didn't think so.  Dang!  I did.  At this stage, because I planted something that I know nothing about growing or have never grown before, ie) carrots, Okra and peas, I guess I'm kinda screwed.

You can see the green beans and the onions.  And those dang rabbits are going to town on my raspberry, blueberry and blackberry bushes.  I'm going to have to do something about this!

Lastly, I planted something in this other garden box, however, I have absolutely NO IDEA what it was.  Sadly, I can't remember.  I'm going to blame it on a severe lack of sleep and obligations to work full time.  We do have some volunteer plants in the second garden...  Five bucks says they are pumpkins.  I wish they were cucumbers. I think I am going to miss having cucumbers in my garden this year.  I didn't think I wanted them when I was buying seeds, but I do want them, and I don't want to go to the store and pay like $3 for one!  Next year, I'll plan better. 

On a completely unrelated note, I haven't been blogging because something called life, has happened to me!  Aye yie yie!  Busy lady!  Here are a few highlights:

Guyface's Baptism

Brady's birthday

An inpromptu photo shoot with the girls and Graham Tuesday night.  I've been cleared to show their faces.  Here we go-Sickos, be warned, I will end you if you come after these girls...ever!  Promise.

My baby boy doesn't like grass...

Recovery...

It has been a VERY long time since I have had as much fun as I had Memorial Day weekend.  Mostly because I generally find that the kind of fun we had, is quite painful the next day.  As an adult, I am generally able to weigh the consequences with the actions and make the better choice.  Memorial Day weekend, we made an exception...

It all began Saturday around 7pm...a tan Jeep Wrangler rolls in to the neighborhood with a bunch of clowns blasting 'Buncha Girls' by Frankie Ballard (a new country music artist that we just happened to know and be friends with since high school).  Not only are they blasting music, but they are screaming 'FRANKIE BALLARD!!!' and 'TAY-TAY' (as in Taylor Swift, who was headlining the show that Frankie was playing in the next day). SO embarrassing, but VERY funny!

('Sweet Jesus! You're embarrassing me' was all I could think, I do have to live in this neighborhood after all!).  So they all roll out of the car, cocktails in hand-it only took them 5.5 hours to get here from Minneapolis with all their bathroom breaks.  Sidenote:  The poor driver was sober.  That changed pretty quickly once said driver hit the door.

Anyway, I made a nice dinner of prime rib and horseradish sauce, homemade mashed taters and white chocolate mousse for dessert.  In the middle of dinner, one of our guests decided he was going to go play 'sandlot' baseball with the neighbor kids next door and hurdles our porch, which drops off about 12 feet.  Needless to say, he rolled out in to the grass-good thing he had a few drinks in him, a broken ankle would NOT have been the way to start the weekend. Subsequently, others joined them and they played until after dark.

After that it was cocktails and stories in the living room and even some of our brave neighbors ventured over to meet some of the Michigan/Minnesota gang.  I believe they now have a better understanding of where exactly it is I come from.

We called it a night relatively early about 1230, knowing full well, the reason they were all here: Frankie Ballard was playing a concert at Wells Fargo Areana, and we had prime tickets (well, we didn't know we had such great seats at the time, but it didn't matter, we had a purpose)! 

We also had a lot to do the next day to prepare.  We went shopping for ingredients (and cuff-links for Mo-apparently this is common practice anytime Ash takes him on a getaway...Love you Mo!) to make Special K bars, Homemade Salsa, 'Crack Mix' (no illicit drugs involved thank you very much, we stick to the booze!)  and a few other essentials, like a fifth of Vodka that was packaged in a fire extinguisher, because every road weary country singer needs one of those...



This is what it looked like...


We started cookin' and drinkin' about 2 o'clock.  My mother-in-law offered to watch Guyface for the evening.  She arrived @ 430pm.  In the meantime, a tornado or wind scheers, etc, hit our hometown (don't worry, though there was damage, all of our families are OK).  Everyone introduced themselves to my mother-in-law we were all, already, a little too close and a little too loud (this would get worse, much worse as the evening rolled on...)  But they all introduced themselves and we packed up the goodies and headed to one of my favorite downtown restaurants:  Centro.

As usual the food and the martinis did not disappoint!  After a quick bite, we cruised to the concert, but not before Mo almost got in a fight with a groom who arrived on a caboose.  We arrived early as Frankie was the first act.

We screamed our heads off-everyone around us was staring, it was hilarious!  We were having a great time.  Frankie did AWESOME, he's  (and his guitar players are) very talented!  Shortly after, he came out in to the crowd, and after he took pictures with a number of little girls (and big girls for that matter...) he invited us back to hang out.  I think everyone was a little surprised when we showed up on the bus with 2 big coolers full of homemade goodies (and alcohol).  I think the comment was 'usually people just come on here and drink all the booze!'  Well, not good friends, we were trying to make him feel like home.  Unfortunately, he had to catch a flight the next morning and wasn't able to enjoy all the goodies on the bus as it headed back to Nashville.  But we're quite sure the boys on the bus partook and hopefully enjoyed. =)

We bar-hopped a little bit in downtown Des Moines, as much as one can on the Sunday night of Memorial Day weekend anyway, there was a little 'Chunder' here and there and someone might have had to relieve themselves in an undisclosed location before we hopped in the car to make the 25 minutes drive home-good thing we had a driver!  If we would have gotten pulled over with the mess of people we had in the truck, we ALL probably would have gone to jail, just for being idiots. =)  It was more fun than I have had in a very long time.

All in all it was a wonderful time and a very fun weekend! Because I didn't have his e-mail when I started this post and I'm pretty sure he's not going to be home to get a hand written thank you note, I will publicly thank him here.  Frankie, THANK YOU! We had a fantastic weekend, the highlight being getting to see you hit the 'big time'!  Congratulations on your success, thanks for hanging out with us and please let us know if you're ever in town again...we promise we won't starting drinking until 5pm =)


Before the heavy drinking ensued...Don't we all look so chipper?





This is us before it started to get too ugly... =)




And finally after Frankie was done with his aftershow obligations:  Ash, Mar, Katie and me (and downhill we go!)