It's that time of year

I've been busy. Very busy! So busy that I haven't had time to blog. I'm just about done with all of my Christmas preparations. (yay!)

So here's the rundown of what I've been working on:

Sewed 5 American Girl doll dresses for Noey. (they are so cute!)

Sewed 8 Lunch Bags. (being modeled here by Sophie and Noey. One was gifted already and one was not yet complete when this photo was taken.) We're going to make Holiday Snickerdoodles to put inside the lunch bags. (Noey needs a haircut!)

My shopping is complete and I just have to sew up an armchair caddy for my dad and then the sewing is complete! I'm feeling really good about the season at the moment! (and pretty darn proud of myself for being so organized!)

Here's a fun meme I saw over at Jillian's blog. Made me realize that I have accomplished more than I thought! (but still have a few things I want to do!)

Things I’ve Done (In Bold)
Things I Want to Do (In Italics)
1. Started my own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band

4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than I can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world (in FL and CA)
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sung a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched lightning at sea
14. Taught myself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown my own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitchhiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of my ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community

36. Taught myself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had my portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had my picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life

90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Rode an elephant

It's a Two-fer

My 5 hours of free time translated into 1 hour of sitting on the couch doing nothing while watching General Hospital, 3 hours of actual sewing, and 1 hour of house cleaning. All in all a productive afternoon.

Sometimes I just need a few minutes (or 60!) to decompress and relax my brain a little bit. I don't even knit - I just sit there - doing nothing. I'm not an avid follower of GH but I watch it every once in a while. It's good, mindless television.

Once I finally relaxed and got motivated I started working on 2 blouses at the same time. They are both from the same pattern (my good old TNT) so it was easy to do a little assembly line sewing. The first one is a copy of my friend, Cathy's, blouse. It has muslin for the bottom, a cute blue quilter's cotton for the bodice, and it will have a different, lighter quilter's cotton for the sleeves. The second one is a copy of a blouse I saw in the Eddie Bauer catalog. It's made from muslin and has tucks. Hopefully I will find some time this weekend to finish them.

Be Afraid....Be Very Afraid!

It's the not-so-wicked witch of the West Coast!

Try as she might, Noey just can't look scary with that little angelic face!

We stopped by the Halloween store on the way home from school Monday afternoon and picked up the final pieces of the costume. We were lucky to find a purple hat with purple hair, and a purple broom. (can you guess what her favorite color is?)

I finished up the little poncho I've been working on so today I'm sewing for ME! Grandma is picking up Noey from school and she will stay with G & G all afternoon until after dinner. That gives me a solid 5 hours to sew, sew, sew, and watch my Twin Peaks DVD. I got the complete series for Christmas last year. Noey used to go to G & G's house every Tuesday, so I had Twin Peaks Tuesdays. I guess I'll have to change that to Twin Peaks Wednesdays, since we now horseback ride on Tuesdays. My sewing machines are conveniently located in front of the DVD player, so it makes for a very pleasant afternoon.

The Halloween Costumes are finished!

Let the Christmas gift making commence!

I finished Sophie's costume Friday afternoon. She was here for a playdate, so we tried it on her, she declared it "Perfect!" and that was that!

This one is Noey's. Sophie's is pretty much the same, except with red details. The dress is a nice, soft stretch velvet, which could become a nightgown in the future. The cape has spider webs and purple sparkley's. It's hard to see, but it turned out really cute! Hopefully I'll get a good pic of the little witches wearing their costumes.

Immediately following the completion of the costumes I started on my Christmas gifts. By the end of the weekend I had two gifts complete. I made The Lunch Bag by Favorite Things. (actually I made 2!) It is so cute! I used an Amy Butler fabric that's been in my stash for a while. I had originally planned to make myself a purse with it, but I'm so glad I didn't. I really want to keep one of these bags for myself.

It's a Dog's life

It's been a while since I've talked about or posted a picture of Chrissy. I have a real love/hate relationship with that dog!

Of course we love her, but....since I am her primary caregiver I get a little fed up with her. (what with all the pooping and barking)

But then I hear Noey talking so sweetly to her, or see her all dressed up in doll clothes, or I find them cuddling on the couch and I realize she really is an important part of our family.

(Noey took the headshot - she's quite the little photographer, isn't she?)

Busy, Busy, Busy

I keep hoping things will calm down, but it doesn't look like it's going to. We have been busy girls! (Brownies, Sunday School, Gymnastics, Horse Back riding, playdates, homework, projects, etc....)

Last weekend as we were driving home from gymnastics on Saturday, Noey said "We never do anything fun!" So on Sunday we went to the local Pumpkin Patch. We've gone there every year since she was born. Noey picked out her pumpkin, petted sheep and goats, and had her face painted. She also went on a pony ride, which surprised me. Since she takes riding lessons every Tuesday, and is galloping, loping, and posting, I figured a pony ride on a mangy, old "horse" tied to a bar, going round in circles, would bore her! (plus it cost $7.00, so I was kinda hoping she wouldn't want to do it!)

Some crafting has been going on around here, just nothing for me! (and it looks like that's the way it's gonna be for a couple of months, what with Christmas coming and all!)

I have been drafted to make Noey and her best friend's Halloween Costumes this year. I actually really enjoy making Noey's costumes. I had made all of her costumes until she hit kindergarten and then she wanted store bought. The girls are going to be twin witches with capes and all. I took them to JoAnn's a couple of weeks ago and let them pick out their fabric. They both chose black stretch velvet for the dress, and a spider web print for the cape. I finished Noey's this past weekend and I hope to finish Sophie's today.

I have also been working on a poncho for a 2 year old that my friend, Sheri, asked me to make. It's the fourth poncho I've knit in as many months, so even though it's easy and pretty fast, it's kind of a drag. It's harder for me to knit or sew for someone I don't know.

I'm feeling pretty good about my Christmas presents. I already have a couple stashed away in the closet, and I've figured out what I can make for all the ladies on my list. I'm going to make some clothes and accessories for Noey's American Girl doll, and maybe some matching pajamas for Noey. For my mom, sister-in-law and niece, I'm going to make lunch bags and maybe slippers. I have a lot of the materials needed on hand, so I can get started right away. Now I just need to figure out what to do for the men!

Instant Gratification

I love knitting, but it's such a slow process for me. It seems that it takes me such a long time to produce a garment.

Sewing on the other hand is instant gratification. I love that I can have a new outfit in a day or two. Since I have started sewing again I have been concentrating more on quality than quantity, but I can still whip out a TNT skirt in a day, and a TNT blouse in a couple of days.

With both my sewing and knitting I have been trying to be more thoughtful about my choices. I know what looks good on me and what doesn't. I'm not knitting or sewing the latest trend anymore just because everybody else is. I'm also more realistic about my clothing. First and foremost I am a mom, and my clothes need to be easy, multi-functional, and wash & wear. I work in a very casual environment so the mom clothes translate pretty well. I don't have the time or energy to have a work wardrobe and a mom wardrobe.

So........here's the latest addition to my mom wardrobe. I started the skirt last weekend and got everything done except the waist and hem, but then I got side-tracked by the other skirt that I wanted to wear yesterday! I finished this one last night. It's a 6 oz. denim from Fabric.com that I've had in the stash for a while. You can't really see but I double top stitched the seams and hem with white thread. A friend of mine had a similiar skirt that I tried to copy. It's a nice weight denim and really comfortable.

The blouse is once again one that I made before my trip. I bought the fabric from Fashion Fabrics Club. They were not related fabrics and I just kept my fingers crossed that they would match.....and they do! It's one of my favorite blouses and I always get a lot of compliments when I wear it.

I don't know what's next on the sewing front. I have a Teacher's Installation Service at my church/preschool next weekend and I'd like to have new outfit for it, but I don't know what it will be.