I decided a few days ago that I want a cute hat, (1) to go a little out of my comfort range and actually try to be somewhat stylish, and (2) for the days when I hate my hair. And today, I found one--and didn't have to pay for it! This is crucial, since we are in dire financial straits again...or I guess I should say, more than usual. Long story short, I went to DSW Shoes to try to use gift cards I've had since last Christmas, found nothing, was literally on my way out when I saw a really cute hat! (I'd even looked through all the other hats and nothing worked.) So I got my hat without touching my bank account! YAAAAAYYY!
Also, earlier this week I was at Goodwill scouting out materials for our Halloween costumes and came across two wooden dining chairs that I actually liked...for SIX DOLLARS EACH! I was so happy. This has been my plan since we got the table, to "eventually" find wooden chairs for one side, and use the bench on the other. The turquoise Ikea chairs we've been using drive me nuts--I can't count the times I've tripped over or stubbed toes on them because of the stupid way they're designed, and they're not very comfortable. These wooden chairs are a totally light color, yet they still look WAY better than those dang Ikea chairs (which are now stacked in a corner, because there's no other place to put them...)
They're not amazing quality or anything, but they're made of real wood, and eventually they and one of the benches that came with our table will both be refinished to match it, and we will actually have a MATCHING SET! We've gotten lots of compliments on how well the table turned out, and we're very happy with it.
I also just went to Target (which is like setting a mouse loose in a cheese factory--I probably should abstain completely) to find a red shirt for my costume, and found a nice red sweater for $10, plus some other good clearance stuff for me and some for Jamie, too.
Why is it that having a few new things lifts my mood so much? It's the opposite of what I should be doing--saving every penny I can. But BEING poor is one thing--feeling like you always LOOK poor and shabby is like adding insult to injury.
I just feel like I'll be better able to face things in a new cardigan.
Btw, I would have snapped a few pictures of the stuff to make this post more interesting, but my camera cord stowed away to California with my family, so I'm waiting for it to be mailed back.
Any guesses on what we're going to be for Halloween? I'll give you another hint: part of Jason's costume is a cork.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
A twist on the plan of salvation
Have you ever known anyone who really didn't treat you very well, at least at times--even threw your attempts to be kind to them or help them in some way right back in your face? Then have you been in church, been taught once again that we should love our enemies, bless those who curse us, and even pray for those who despitefully use us? (Did I get that right?) I have, and I've wondered how on earth I'd ever be able to do so. My other cheek is not easily turned.
I was thinking a little while ago about how hard I try to help Jamie, to feed him the right foods so he'll be healthy, which he usually throws on the floor, at me, or at nearby furniture; to show him good books that will expand his mind, which he ignores; to clean his poopy bum so he won't get a rash, while he kicks and hits and thrashes (although we have made some progress with that); etc., etc.
Just to clarify--I DON'T HATE JAMIE! I get unbearably mad at him sometimes. I still have truckloads to learn about patience. I might sometimes consider him my enemy, for a little while...but I never hate him. I would throw myself in front of a moving bus for him without hesitation if I needed to. I love him so much that it literally hurts sometimes.
But isn't it interesting how our Heavenly Father's plan works? "I'd like you to learn to love people who at times treat you like garbage. I'm also going to command you to multiply and replenish the earth, and you can thereby kill at least two birds with one stone."
I'm just sayin'.
I was thinking a little while ago about how hard I try to help Jamie, to feed him the right foods so he'll be healthy, which he usually throws on the floor, at me, or at nearby furniture; to show him good books that will expand his mind, which he ignores; to clean his poopy bum so he won't get a rash, while he kicks and hits and thrashes (although we have made some progress with that); etc., etc.
Just to clarify--I DON'T HATE JAMIE! I get unbearably mad at him sometimes. I still have truckloads to learn about patience. I might sometimes consider him my enemy, for a little while...but I never hate him. I would throw myself in front of a moving bus for him without hesitation if I needed to. I love him so much that it literally hurts sometimes.
But isn't it interesting how our Heavenly Father's plan works? "I'd like you to learn to love people who at times treat you like garbage. I'm also going to command you to multiply and replenish the earth, and you can thereby kill at least two birds with one stone."
I'm just sayin'.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Disney shirts (the cheapie way)
Well, Sam got the package in the mail, so it won't spoil it now if I share what I made for her kids!
Shirts: Wal-Mart. (And no kidding, not bad quality! So soft and reasonably thick!) Less than $10 for all three. (I don't remember exact prices.)
Fabric to make appliques out of: The Little Mermaid fabric: I've had it since high school, when I used it to make pajama pants for Sam! Cars fabric: would have been less than a dollar, but I had to wait so long at Wal-Mart for them to find someone to cut it for me, they let me take it for nothin'.
And I used Heat 'N Bond double-sided fusible web, with plenty leftover.
Close-up of the detail for the boys' shirts.
This was another project inspired by Crap I've Made, from this post.
I just cut around the picture I wanted from the piece of fabric, but not too close to where I wanted the finished edge to be.
I ironed that to the web, then trimmed them both (attached to each other) to where I wanted them for the finished product.
Then I peeled off the paper backing off the other side of the Heat 'N Bond, and there was the plastic-y coat on the back side of my fabric picture, just like on an iron-on patch you can buy! (I'm not gonna lie. It was cool and made me a little excited.)
I ironed that to the T-shirts, sewed around the edges--and that's it!
Ariel was a bit harder, simply because she had more colors around her edges and I wanted to match them. That took a few thread switches.
I was so happy to find not only a cute, not-too-expensive purple shirt, but one with a glittery little neckline, even! You can't really tell in the picture, but the Ariel fabric has sparkles, so they match. So cute and girly!
This is my kind of project--cute, fun, non-tedious, and completed in one evening (except for sewing around Ariel). And the materials provided inspiration for a movie to watch while my friend Jina and I crafted--we put on The Little Mermaid and had a great time. :)
I'll definitely be on the lookout for more cheap shirts to play around with!
Well, and for my kid, too.
Shirts: Wal-Mart. (And no kidding, not bad quality! So soft and reasonably thick!) Less than $10 for all three. (I don't remember exact prices.)
Fabric to make appliques out of: The Little Mermaid fabric: I've had it since high school, when I used it to make pajama pants for Sam! Cars fabric: would have been less than a dollar, but I had to wait so long at Wal-Mart for them to find someone to cut it for me, they let me take it for nothin'.
And I used Heat 'N Bond double-sided fusible web, with plenty leftover.
Close-up of the detail for the boys' shirts.This was another project inspired by Crap I've Made, from this post.
I just cut around the picture I wanted from the piece of fabric, but not too close to where I wanted the finished edge to be.
I ironed that to the web, then trimmed them both (attached to each other) to where I wanted them for the finished product.
Then I peeled off the paper backing off the other side of the Heat 'N Bond, and there was the plastic-y coat on the back side of my fabric picture, just like on an iron-on patch you can buy! (I'm not gonna lie. It was cool and made me a little excited.)
I ironed that to the T-shirts, sewed around the edges--and that's it!
Ariel was a bit harder, simply because she had more colors around her edges and I wanted to match them. That took a few thread switches.
I was so happy to find not only a cute, not-too-expensive purple shirt, but one with a glittery little neckline, even! You can't really tell in the picture, but the Ariel fabric has sparkles, so they match. So cute and girly!
This is my kind of project--cute, fun, non-tedious, and completed in one evening (except for sewing around Ariel). And the materials provided inspiration for a movie to watch while my friend Jina and I crafted--we put on The Little Mermaid and had a great time. :)
I'll definitely be on the lookout for more cheap shirts to play around with!
Spooky Soap Dispensers (from Crap I've Made)
***Note: I sent this link to Char because she did a post about others who had made these soap dispensers, and she featured one of my pics on the post (link below)!
A couple weeks ago I saw this post on Crap I've Made, and fell instantly in love. As soon as I got the chance, I snuck over to Target and found the very same soap dispensers on clearance that Char used, and bought three. The only thing I had trouble with was figuring out how to put a jack-o-lantern face on mine without adhesive vinyl, much less a machine to cut it for me. After toying with ideas about sticker paper and even just freehanding with a Sharpie, I went to JoAnn and was inspired with this idea:
Foam! It may not look as crisp as vinyl from a cutting machine, but it's a heckuvalot cheaper and I love that it's glittery.
I traced and then cut out jack-o-lantern face shapes, and after failing almost comically with a glue gun (the way the foam peeled right off, it was almost like it was laughing at my stupidity for even trying), used my scary E-6000 (of the adhere-your-furniture-to-the-ceiling-if-you-want variety) glue to make that foam stick. Since it doesn't set on contact like hot glue and I didn't want to sit there holding it all night, Jason suggested this idea.
Scotch tape. Worked great!
Add some ribbon and ric rac, and here's the end result:
(Pardon the water spots. I did make three, but this pic is of the one I finished first and have actually been using at the kitchen sink for a few days now. :))
Yay for finding ways around the expensive craft equipment I can't afford!
A couple weeks ago I saw this post on Crap I've Made, and fell instantly in love. As soon as I got the chance, I snuck over to Target and found the very same soap dispensers on clearance that Char used, and bought three. The only thing I had trouble with was figuring out how to put a jack-o-lantern face on mine without adhesive vinyl, much less a machine to cut it for me. After toying with ideas about sticker paper and even just freehanding with a Sharpie, I went to JoAnn and was inspired with this idea:
Foam! It may not look as crisp as vinyl from a cutting machine, but it's a heckuvalot cheaper and I love that it's glittery.I traced and then cut out jack-o-lantern face shapes, and after failing almost comically with a glue gun (the way the foam peeled right off, it was almost like it was laughing at my stupidity for even trying), used my scary E-6000 (of the adhere-your-furniture-to-the-ceiling-if-you-want variety) glue to make that foam stick. Since it doesn't set on contact like hot glue and I didn't want to sit there holding it all night, Jason suggested this idea.
Scotch tape. Worked great!Add some ribbon and ric rac, and here's the end result:
(Pardon the water spots. I did make three, but this pic is of the one I finished first and have actually been using at the kitchen sink for a few days now. :))Yay for finding ways around the expensive craft equipment I can't afford!
Monday, October 11, 2010
Biggest laugh of the day
P.S. Cooked my first whole chicken, with veggies, did it in the crock pot--it was delish, and now I have a Ziplock bag full of leftover chicken to use for other stuff and homemade chicken stock in the freezer. SCORE. This will become a routine in our house.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
a bit of gratitude
Today I finished the 9th and final volume of The Work and the Glory series, which is historical fiction about the restoration of the Church. I can't believe how much reading these wonderful books has changed my perspective. You really think twice about complaining about the too-small bathroom when you've been reading about people who, for their faith, are content to live in log cabins, sod huts, the back of a wagon, or a tent if need be. You know how, in church, people will thank the Lord in a prayer for the beautiful building you're meeting in? It means more when you've more fully imagined (and feel like you've lived, with the characters) meeting in people's houses, or out in the open, with logs to sit on. I kind of dread planning my lessons for the 4-year-olds, but I can tell myself that at least I have a manual to go by and don't have to come up with everything on my own. Etc., etc.
Last Saturday, I got on lds.org to watch Conference, since we don't have cable and I didn't want to try to keep Jamie occupied at the stake center--and the video streaming just would not work. I was frustrated for awhile, and ended up listening to it; that worked fine, at least. Tonight, while I'm finishing Sam's kids' project, I thought I would watch the talks I missed. So I went to the website, clicked the link, and almost instantly, there were the choir, the conference center, the prophet, right in front of me.
The early Saints got to hear their prophet if he came (sometimes hundreds of miles, by horse) and spoke to them in person. And I can hear mine any time, almost instantly.
Reading about the struggles they endured in being endlessly and horrendously driven from place to place, and finally having to travel by wagon for a thousand miles, for months and months, to a completely empty place and start a new civilization from next to NOTHING--all because they had faith and would not turn from it--and if I wanted to travel across the entire country, I could be on the other side of it in a few hours. If I wanted to move there, I could take ALL my stuff with me, not just what would fit in a wagon. My trip would be very comfortable and easy, and I could be there in days.
There are many ways to learn Church history, to better understand what we Mormons are all about from the perspective of many different types of people, and to strengthen a testimony and understanding, and historical fiction is one that works wonders for me. I cannot recommend this series enough. I've learned so much, and I have much more appreciation for our pioneer forbears (who would rather have just stayed in one place like anybody else, but did what they had to do). The first one starts out a bit slow, it's true, but it's practically impossible to put them down after that. There's no way you could regret reading them!
Last Saturday, I got on lds.org to watch Conference, since we don't have cable and I didn't want to try to keep Jamie occupied at the stake center--and the video streaming just would not work. I was frustrated for awhile, and ended up listening to it; that worked fine, at least. Tonight, while I'm finishing Sam's kids' project, I thought I would watch the talks I missed. So I went to the website, clicked the link, and almost instantly, there were the choir, the conference center, the prophet, right in front of me.
The early Saints got to hear their prophet if he came (sometimes hundreds of miles, by horse) and spoke to them in person. And I can hear mine any time, almost instantly.
Reading about the struggles they endured in being endlessly and horrendously driven from place to place, and finally having to travel by wagon for a thousand miles, for months and months, to a completely empty place and start a new civilization from next to NOTHING--all because they had faith and would not turn from it--and if I wanted to travel across the entire country, I could be on the other side of it in a few hours. If I wanted to move there, I could take ALL my stuff with me, not just what would fit in a wagon. My trip would be very comfortable and easy, and I could be there in days.
There are many ways to learn Church history, to better understand what we Mormons are all about from the perspective of many different types of people, and to strengthen a testimony and understanding, and historical fiction is one that works wonders for me. I cannot recommend this series enough. I've learned so much, and I have much more appreciation for our pioneer forbears (who would rather have just stayed in one place like anybody else, but did what they had to do). The first one starts out a bit slow, it's true, but it's practically impossible to put them down after that. There's no way you could regret reading them!
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Hey Sam!
Yeah, Sam Kale!
I'm making something for your kids!
Hee hee hee! :D
P.S. When I get the stuff I'm making to Sam's kids, I'm totally posting pictures, because I think they're coming out cute! (The stuff, though the kids are cute too, of course.)
I'm making something for your kids!
Hee hee hee! :D
P.S. When I get the stuff I'm making to Sam's kids, I'm totally posting pictures, because I think they're coming out cute! (The stuff, though the kids are cute too, of course.)
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Rawhide trip, plus general pics and video
I talked to my mom-in-law the other day, and she told me she pretty much looks at this blog daily to see her grandbaby--cue my guilt for not putting up more pictures and videos!
As I think I mentioned, we went with our friends to a mock "old west" town a couple of weeks ago. This is when we were getting out of cars and getting ready to go in. (That's Reagan in the background, all decked out in cowboy gear.)
The jail wagon with Joey and Allegra
On our way into the horribly cheesy "gun fight" show
I was sick for nearly a week, and I still have a pesky lingering cough. (NOTHING seems to help, either.) It was keeping poor Jason up on Friday night, so he came down and slept on the couch. When Jamie got up, he got all cozy on Daddy's pillow and loved it!
Jamie has started a really cute "blankie" stage. He loves to have one (or more) of his blankets nearby, and will at intervals bring one over to you, climb into your lap, put the blanket over himself, and cuddle with you for a few minutes. Love it.
Okay, they're not all of Jamie. But I had to share that we FINALLY found slipcovers we like, FINALLY found fabric for throw pillows that goes with them and that we both like, and I FINALLY got all four of the slipcovers made so that things look somewhat put-together in our living room! I'm so happy!
I used this tutorial to make the slipcovers, if you're interested. And I learned that if you let what will be the top overlapping panel stick out 1/4" over the outside edge on each side just at the middle part when you're sewing the three pieces together, it will lay much more nicely when it's finished.
Pretty, huh? Jason and I both love this fabric. He actually has opinions about such things, so I was very happy when I brought it home and he loved it.
This one is from just earlier tonight. Jamie's baths have even been shorter, because he loves wrapping up in his froggie towel and cuddling that way afterward! I just can't dress him right away when he's being so sweet and snuggly, so I brought him down and had Jason take a picture.
As I think I mentioned, we went with our friends to a mock "old west" town a couple of weeks ago. This is when we were getting out of cars and getting ready to go in. (That's Reagan in the background, all decked out in cowboy gear.)
The jail wagon with Joey and Allegra
On our way into the horribly cheesy "gun fight" show
I was sick for nearly a week, and I still have a pesky lingering cough. (NOTHING seems to help, either.) It was keeping poor Jason up on Friday night, so he came down and slept on the couch. When Jamie got up, he got all cozy on Daddy's pillow and loved it!
Jamie has started a really cute "blankie" stage. He loves to have one (or more) of his blankets nearby, and will at intervals bring one over to you, climb into your lap, put the blanket over himself, and cuddle with you for a few minutes. Love it.
Okay, they're not all of Jamie. But I had to share that we FINALLY found slipcovers we like, FINALLY found fabric for throw pillows that goes with them and that we both like, and I FINALLY got all four of the slipcovers made so that things look somewhat put-together in our living room! I'm so happy!I used this tutorial to make the slipcovers, if you're interested. And I learned that if you let what will be the top overlapping panel stick out 1/4" over the outside edge on each side just at the middle part when you're sewing the three pieces together, it will lay much more nicely when it's finished.
Pretty, huh? Jason and I both love this fabric. He actually has opinions about such things, so I was very happy when I brought it home and he loved it.
This one is from just earlier tonight. Jamie's baths have even been shorter, because he loves wrapping up in his froggie towel and cuddling that way afterward! I just can't dress him right away when he's being so sweet and snuggly, so I brought him down and had Jason take a picture.I was watching "The Work and the Glory: American Zion" (Vol 2 in the movie series) and when this 1830 wedding party scene came on, Jamie got SO excited! I don't think he squeals in this clip as much as he did originally, but wow, does he love music and dancing. It's so cute how uninhibited he is. If he hears music he likes, he grins, claps, and usually starts dancing around. I've played it multiple times in a row for him, and he still got excited every time!
Some other tidbits:
When we tell Jamie "don't touch," nowadays he gets a stern look on his little face, shakes his index finger and says, "Da doh doo." Can't imagine where he learned it...
He still will run TO you instead of AWAY from you when you pretend to be a monster trying to chase him.
He knows that a prayer usually comes after a hymn. Today during General Conference, the choir and congregation sang an intermediate hymn, and when it was over, he folded his little arms and bowed his head. He also does this when I sit down to eat my own food, even though he usually already has his and is eating in his high chair.
Did I tell you about when a member of the stake presidency, accompanied by a member of the Elders' quorum presidency, visited us one evening? Jamie was still up, running around while we visited. When the brother from the stake presidency asked if we could close with a prayer, we said, "Jamie, time for prayer," and he immediately assumed the position! SCORE! :)
Some other tidbits:
When we tell Jamie "don't touch," nowadays he gets a stern look on his little face, shakes his index finger and says, "Da doh doo." Can't imagine where he learned it...
He still will run TO you instead of AWAY from you when you pretend to be a monster trying to chase him.
He knows that a prayer usually comes after a hymn. Today during General Conference, the choir and congregation sang an intermediate hymn, and when it was over, he folded his little arms and bowed his head. He also does this when I sit down to eat my own food, even though he usually already has his and is eating in his high chair.
Did I tell you about when a member of the stake presidency, accompanied by a member of the Elders' quorum presidency, visited us one evening? Jamie was still up, running around while we visited. When the brother from the stake presidency asked if we could close with a prayer, we said, "Jamie, time for prayer," and he immediately assumed the position! SCORE! :)
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