Fireman Lounge Set

My nephew just turned four on December 10, and I made him this lounge set.  I have been practicing getting my zigzag really neat, and I am finding it very enjoyable.  I love making these little sets, especially for boys.  There so many cute boutique-y girl outfits out there, and it is really nice to have unique and special boy clothes that aren't overdone or fussy.  These fit the bill, and I am scrambling to make another set for Maddox who has requested "choo choo trains" for his next pair.

Just one more pic...

I absolutely love this hat.  I will be making more for sure.  Thankfully, I have a little girl to sew for (and many others in my family) :)

The Whole Kit & Kaboodle

Well, here it is!  All the pieces except for the Polly Pocket dolls that I bought to be toted stylishly in the little purse.  I need a decorative dress form to display these items, Santa!

Happy Holidays!

Perhaps because I have been staying up all hours of the night sewing, or perhaps because any moment in which I am not nursing or holding my youngest baby I am at my sewing machine.  Whatever the reason, and there are many possibilities here, my husband has taken to calling me "Stitches."  I have not been posting as much here because I am not really sure that anyone reads this and I have been sewing up a storm.  Thankfully, my little business is doing fairly well.  This has helped tremendously in terms of our Christmas.  I do appreciate all my customers SO much!

For my own family, I have been sewing as many gifts as I can.  I can't show them here because, well, I guess they might check my blog on occasion.  However, I have to show off this little set I made for my niece.  It is not quite done - I have to make an applique tee to match.  The pieces I have completed so far are so sweet, though.  I will be making another one of these for my own daughter and will likely add the items to my etsy shop in case anyone else out there is interested.

She's TWO! (Party Scenes)

As much as I tried to remind myself that the most important thing about my daughter's birthday was spending time with her, the urge to bake a special little girl cake just for her overcame me.  My plans to simply make a display of cupcakes were set aside, and I turned to parenting.com for cake ideas.  There was a pretty butterfly cake decorated with candy, and I gave it a shot.  It was more work than I had anticipated.  Although I thoroughly enjoy baking, I do not thoroughly enjoy what seems to me to be rather tedious decorating.  In the end I was glad I had put forth effort, though, because all the kids at the party couldn't wait to get a special piece decorated with candies.

Sling & Swing

Here is the little crew out for a swing.  Ryan is in tow in the sling, of course!

Little Van Gogh

Maddie, like her big brother, loves painting these days.  In hopes of saving some of her little shirts I made her a quick smock.  This one is from Simplicity 3802 and it is really simple.  The only change I made is using 1/2" bias tape rather than 1/4".  I just used what I had on hand, and I thought the 1/4" might be a bit of a pain to work with.

Let's hope all those starry, starry night-esque swirls hide the messier side of her creative little endeavors.

Stars in Alignment???

Somehow all three little boogers are sleeping at the same time, and I AM (child) FREE!!!  It is a gorgeous November day - the temperature has to be near 60.  We all went for a walk earlier and the chicken noodle soup is cooking.  I just wanted to take a few minutes for a quick update since Ryan is nearing his 6 month mark - yikes.  Somebody stop this train!

She's Almost 2!

Mention her birthday and a myriad of images of the last two years flashes through my mind.  One of my favorites is the memory of holding her in the hospital with a feeling of utter bliss and relief.  Hers was a fast and furious delivery - in retrospect it was my easiest, though "easy" is but a relative term here.  The labor was 100% natural - ouch.  On the other hand, I was supremely proud of that fact, and the euphoria that followed the traumatic event remains unparalled.  I finally had my little girl, and my body did what it was supposed to do.  But, this post was not supposed to be about me...

Little Madeleine is quite a chatterbox.  She counts to ten and beyond, sings Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star as her big brother practices it on trombone - I have never seen or heard a cuter duet!  She also sings the alphabet and has added in the word "Ryan" as one of the letters.  (I find this precious as I added a "KH" to my alphabet at about the same age and then insisted my younger brother sing it the same way.)  She has also picked up the word "stupid" from Sponge Bob.  Of course she knows when to use it as well.  Today, for example, when she couldn't get her leggings on she threw them on the floor and said, "Stupid, stupid pants."  What can you do?

I will be turning my kitchen in a cupcake bakery next weekend and having the whole family over.  I am really looking forward to all the festivities, and I am glad she is turning two. Mostly, though, I am thankful to have so many wonderful memories already. 

Goats!!!

I can't really say why I love these little goats so much.  Maybe it's because they remind me of my childhood fascination with Hello Kitty.  Whatever the reason, I find it a bit funny that these are the only "kids" I will be adding to my family.

Mixing different prints and making a soft and safe toy is fun, and the pattern is really easy to make.  I purcahsed it from a seller on Etsy.  There is a bit of a learning curve to these for me because I have never free hand embroidered little faces like this, so please don't look too closely at them.  It's my first time stuffing goat arms and legs, too.

Halloween Bits

Halloween was so much fun this year.  I think the pictures speak for themselves!

Jennifer's Bag

My friend Jennifer asked me to make her a bag, and she picked out this fabric from Amy Butler.  It was a bit more challenging working with such a geometric print, but I am pleased with it (and I hope she is, too).

The Overachiever Bag

Because I lug a lot of stuff back and forth between school and home (nursing bottles and paraphenalia, my lunch, piles of essays, etc.), I decided to sew a BIG bag for myself. This one is made from Joel Dewberry's Ginseng fabric in a shade of celery. The inside is a super luxe cotton sateen in hot pink. I interfaced the whole thing inside and out.

Although I was a bit hesitant about the LARGE size, I tested it out by filling it up with my stuff, and it pleases me :)

It measures roughly 16" wide at the bottom 14" wide at the top, 17" tall and is mitered for 3.5" of depth. I also gave it some roomy pockets (for snacks) and a key fob, so I can get my classroom door open quickly without digging through my bag for keys.

Denim Bags

For my mom's birthday I decided to make a bag. I wanted to use really special material, but by the time I found the perfect print for her - one of Joel Dewberry's Ginseng prints - I was afraid that it wouldn't arrive in time. So, I used this beautiful dark denim and a really pretty olive & navy print that I had earmarked for an outfit for my daughter. I still have enough fabric to make the outfit for her, too.

Making the purse for my mom inspired another idea for a denim bag. I wanted to use vibrant squares and quilt them along the top band of the purse. Red stitching and wide offset handles give the purse a bit of a funky look. Here is how they turned out.

The Dewberry fabric arrived the day after I made the denim bag for my mom, of course! Now I am trying to figure out what to do with it.

Jumping in the Leaves!

Just a quick update here... Maddie has a new fall swing jacket. My mom found the perfect button for it, and I was able to squeeze in the time to hem it and finish it before it's too cold to wear it - yay!

Pumpkin Patch Fun!

We carved out a bit of time this weekend to take the little ones to the pumpkin patch this weekend (pun intended). Maddie LOVED the pumpkins. I think she would have stayed in the patch all day just trying to pick them up and sit on them. Good thing she wore her boots.

Ryan & I waited outside the corn maze while Daddy ventured through the mud with the toddlers. Upon exiting, Maddox (insightfully) announced that they couldn't get back to where they had started from so they had to find a new way out... Quite a life lesson for a three-year-old, I thought. Who knew he'd be a little philosopher? Maybe Ryan will have to let him borrow his wise owl hat.