Foamy Trees

Strike one:  It's raining.

Strike two:  It's cold.

Strike three:  Both kids have strep throat.

Sooooo...what do you do with your kids on days like this?  Fortunately for me and mine, we had made a pit stop to the local craft store yesterday.  This fueled us with quite a bit of ammo for the triple-whammy home-bound Thursday.  We opted for the foam tree house assembly kit:

Don't give us credit for all this cuteness.  It was very easy to assemble.  But next time I'd use a hot glue gun in lieu of Elmer's.  We had to complete it in two different drying sessions.

Today's happiness silver lining:  Even though both kids are sick, we've had some good QT.  And does the tendency for sick children to nap qualify as silver lining?  You be the judge.  But it will allow me some time to work on a new á La Modish idea for spring 2012!

The Accidental Easter Dress

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Oh my stars.  I love a happy accident about as much as I love it when a dress comes together.

So I've been on this cleaning/organizing mission lately.  This is mostly contributed to my hosting an intern soon.  As in, I can live with my own demons of disorganization, but heaven forbid someone else see the inspirational chaos that I call "my studio."

Part of the organization includes figuring out what the heck to do with all of my partially completed projects.  I mean, there are lots.  For starters, there are half finished shower gifts for babies not due until July, four coaster sets, a pillowcase dress (made for the á La Modish blog tutorial that's coming soon!), and two random dresses started on an ambitious Saturday afternoon.

Let's revisit one of the two dresses initiated on that weekend oh so long ago.  Okay, so it really started the day before on a trip to the local fabric store.  Although I'm a wee bit of a fabric snob, on occasion I'll venture down the road to store XYZ and pick up a zipper and some bias tape.  While there, I'll glance at the store's other wares.  On this specific occasion, I saw a big yellow sign hanging over one of the 6' x 3' potluck/buffet tables that had stacks and stacks of fabric haphazardly strewn about it.  And they were all 50% off!  I eagle-eyed some light blue shirting fabric and saw potential in it, if not simply because it was only $3.49/yard.  

I bought a whole bunch of it.  And then made a dress for Sabrina that used up most of it.  So before you indignantly hurl your apple pies at me for going all traditional on you, take a look and tell me that it's not amazing.  And take a second look and tell me that it doesn't just scream "EASTER DRESS."  

And so it was, my daughter’s normally much-planned-out Easter dress was accidentally checked off the sewing to-do list--allowing this seamstress some time to get back to those coaster sets.  And possibly start on a new handbag or two.....

Today's happiness:  New ventures.  In celebration of the Our Cups Runneth Over Blog, I thought it would be fun to list different possible meanings of said phrase.  Ahem...

• To the nursing mother:  These triple E’s ain’t fitting into my strapless bra anymore.
• To the 18 month old:  Someone forgot to put that rubber thingy into my sippy cup!
• To the guy at the bar:  This was not a perfect pour.
• To the star athlete:  It’s been a successful year!
• To the harried cook:  Measurements are just suggestions anyway?
• To the baseball player:  Um, let’s not go there…

"Bring me the sunset in a cup."--Emily Dickinson

Closet Life

This morning, I sit with you holding my thin-rimmed mug of Dunkin'Donuts coffee.  My hair hearkens back to my co-ed days of quickly braided pigtails.  I am wearing a light pink Oklahoma Sooners tee-shirt and a pair of slightly snug wide-leg jeans.  My feet are bare.

Just minutes ago, I was smiling to myself while standing in the middle of my closet.  Who else has a closet that looks like the chapters of a book?  If you were to read the chapters of my wardrobe, it would go something like this:

Chapter 1:  Oh!  The fast-fading days of college.  I have well-loved shirts espousing your love.  All three of you (OBU, OU and UK!).  A few pairs of shorts so, well, short that I'm uncomfortable wearing them.  But my husband thinks they're awesome.

Chapter 2:  The only thing stopping this Corporate American woman is a run her thigh-highs and a Starbucks.  All the skirt suits that were worn day in and day out still occupy their fair share of a corner of my closet.  I think I'm saving them for the off chance that I might be meeting the Queen of England.

Chapter 3:  We're gonna party like it's nineteen ninety-nine. because it gives me a good excuse to buy new clothes every weekend.  Fortunately for my well-being and my bank account, this phase only last about 3 months.

Chapter 4:  What?!  It's already time for the ten year class reunion??  Yes, I bought several different options for this reunion.  I think I settled on an orange, trapeze-styled dress with white patent leather wedges.  This was one of the numbers that got beat out:

Umm.  Yeah.  So I really don't think I need to explain why this got beat out.  Rather, why was this purchase ever made??

Chapter 5:  First child was born.  Dead-set on never falling into the mom-clothes trap, I still wear four inch heels while carrying my son around in that super-heavy snap in car seat thing.

Chapter 6:  Second child was born.  Four inch heels cause old cheerleading knee injury to flare up while carrying my daughter around in that super-heavy snap in car seat thing.  Stillettos traded in for ballet flats.

Chapter 7:  What am I going to wear for date night with my handsome hubby?  Well, since we are keeping it pretty tame with dinner out and then maybe a trip to the bookstore, I'll go with Guess jeans, fancy jewelry, and a White House Black Market silk blouse.  Long gone are the days of skirts so short that they wouldn't fit my toddler.

Chapter 8:  "I love designing! I think I'll start my own fashion-line!".  This is where it gets tricky.  You see, I have to look the part on certain occasions, donning stylish vintage earrings and hot-rolled hair.  Possibly even something brand-named that I got on sale at Stein-Mart.

But rest assured, on days like today where I'm just carting the kids to the grocery store and doing laundry, you can take it to the bank that I've got my hair braided and my favorite tee shirt on.

Today's happiness:  Having a full life!  I wouldn't change any of those chapters.  They have all made my life just a wee bit more interesting, if not my closet more crammed.

Last Friday was Her Knight

Her hair was perfectly parted and ever so delicately pinned back with a cheap, white, ducky barrette.  Her shoes were $3 as part of a buy one get one half off special.  And her dress was homemade.  She believed she was Cinderella, and sang the song with heartfelt gusto.  This was her night.  To be with Her Knight.  The man in her life, her daddy.

They danced.  They ate chicken nuggets.  They had their picture taken with the Chick-Fil-A Cows (Otherwise know by Sabrina as "dogs.").  And she brought home a red balloon.  This is the good stuff!

Meanwhile, my boy and I had our own date.  He wanted to get fancied up too and asked to wear a tie.  The Movie Tavern was our destination.  And the best part of going to the movies with Gavin?  He always ends up sitting in my lap, making me believe for just a little while longer that he'll be little for just a while longer :)

Today's happiness:  The Assurance Care Center. The proceeds of Her Knight go to benefit the Center.  To learn more about Her Knight and its mission, visit www.HerKnight.org.