Witchy Ladies

They were little witches for Halloween. I made everything except the hats. I think that they looked adorable, but I'm wondering if it's worth it to make the costumes rather than buying them. I'm not sure if I could find a store bought costume at a reasonable price that I liked enough. The hunt for one would probably take just as much time as it does to make them. Any thoughts on the subject?

I hope you all had a spooky fun Halloween. We did!

Vintage Nightgown Patterns

Sadie has been asking me to make her a nightgown for quite some time now. Her request once again before bed a few nights ago sent me on an etsy search for vintage nightgown patterns & I think I'm obsessed now. I may try a vintage pattern for Christmas pajamas for the girls this year. Here are a few of my favorites:

MyraMelinda

finickyfinds

historicallypatterns

midvalecottage

janmarie

Quilted List Taker

I finally had a go at Jennifer's Quilted List Taker. I must say these are so fun to make. Her pattern is very easy to follow. I'm happy with the finished product. I bought a pack of little note pads, so it looks like I'll be making 12 of these list takers for an upcoming craft show. Any leftovers may go into my etsy shop. Or I may just give them as gifts. They would be the perfect little handmade gift for teachers, neighbors, friends, sisters & mothers.


Anyway, Jennifer's lovely patterns are available here.

Thanks for all the nice comments yesterday. At the time I wasn't sure why I was sharing these details almost one year post miscarriage...but now I can see that I am not the only person with these feelings & actually there are a lot of women out there who suffer with the same sadness. And I can't help but think that there are others suffering quietly with sadness over other things. "In the quiet heart is hidden sorrow that the eye can't see."

I did not write that post with a negative tone towards those that mentioned the miscarriage once Dylan lost his job. I know where each of those people's heart was & I appreciate it. I have done the very same thing. I guess it's good to have a little insight (obviously I needed it too) so that we can be more understanding.

So, with that said, I must tell you all that I love my life & I feel happy most of the time. Even during these kinda crazy times, we are making the best of it & smiling & laughing a lot. I enjoy sharing parts of my life with my online buddies. Thanks so much for even coming around & thanks for taking the time to comment & be so kind. You guys are awesome. :)

Getting All Personal Here

Photo taken by my talented sister Heather

I love my family with all my heart. I think you all know that. But truth be told, I've been struggling lately with a sadness. It was about a year ago that we found out that I was pregnant. We were excited. We hoped for a little boy, but would have been thrilled with another awesome girl. And then everything changed. That baby was gone. It was hard to deal with. The hardest thing ever to deal with? Quite possibly. Friends were wonderful. They brought dinner & offered to watch the girls. Some anonymous person left a Christmas wreath on our front door. No doubt, I will always remember that time in our life whenever I pull out that wreath at Christmas time.

I felt confident that I would be pregnant again before that baby's due date. It was a sad day when the due date rolled around & I wasn't. Then Dylan was laid off & we quickly packed up to move from Cleveland to Las Vegas to live at my parents house until Dylan finds another job. Lots of people told me, "It's a good thing you had that miscarriage. Life would be so much harder for you right now if you had a baby." That's not exactly how they said it, but that's how I heard it. I tried to respond by telling them that the baby would have been 4 months old & it wouldn't have been such a big deal to bring the baby along with us on our move. I decided that I would never again tell somebody...."Ah ha!!! This is why you had a miscarriage! It all makes sense now!"

I am really happy for others in my life that are pregnant. I truly am. But news of a new pregnancy or the gender of a baby hits me like a ton of bricks & I'm suddenly brought back to my loss. And I realize that I am still mourning. Still! It seems like it's been so long & I should just be over this. Will this sadness & longing & wanting that (it feels like) I go through on my own ever end? And now, with an unemployed husband, it seems like it will be forever until we add another child to our family. I mean who really tries to get pregnant with a husband out of work?

With all of that said, I know that the Lord has a plan for our family. I know that I am not the only person that feels or has ever felt this way. I don't talk about this with anybody really & I'm not even sure why I'm sharing all this here, but it has been nagging me for days. We all have adversity & trials in this life & we become stronger because of them. I am continuing to learn & grow from this trial that I thought would have been over a long time ago. The Lord has promised, “I will not leave you comfortless. … Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:18, 27

We must taste the bitter so that we can recognize the sweet. Right?

Print Your Own Calendar

Guess what! Printable versions of the calendars are now available in the shop. For only $5 a piece or $12 for all three styles, you can purchase the pdf files of our cute little calendars. Then you can print them off as many times as you'd like & give them to everybody on your Christmas list this year. Easy & affordable & super cool. Am I right?

We Have Calendars

2010 desktop calendars have been added to the shop today. Dylan designed three really great versions. Check them out!

First we have the Month-to-Month calendar. Very colorful. Very cool:


Then we have the Colorblock calendar. Very colorful & vibrant. Appealing to guys as well as girls:


And then, my favorite, the Fabric Stash calendar. Scans of actual vintage fabrics were used. Oh my! It's pretty. I love it:


Each of these calendars come in a case that folds out into a stand. Perfect gift for an office coworker. Seriously.

Let us know what you think!

Fall Swimming

My kids are loving it here in Las Vegas. There are grandparents, cousins, aunts & uncles around all the time to give them lots of love & attention. They are enjoying lots of new experiences, including swimming in the middle of October. The high for today is 91 degrees. I promise that I will not be bragging about the warmth if we are still around come summer.

This evening we have a family dinner & birthday party for my nephew. I'm sure the little cousins will all play outside while adults sit & chat of the front steps of my parents house. It's definitely something that I've missed while living away.

Sending warm weekend wishes your way. :)

Onesie Wonderland Winner

Congratulations Chanel! The random number generator chose you as the winner! I will get you in touch with Karilyn of Onesie Wonderland to make arrangements for your custom onesie!

See My Flag Pile

I've been working hard to get this large custom order of flag garland finished. There are 320 flags in the above photo. All cut, sewn & then pinked. I'm short 40 flags, which hopefully I'll get done tonight. Then I need to pin & sew them into bias tape. It will feel good to get this big project completed. Then it's onto finishing Halloween costumes & sewing products for an upcoming craft show.

It feels good to be busy, but I am super tired. We are settling in here & working our buns off every day. Missing Ohio, but discovering a deep down love for Las Vegas that we didn't know was there anymore.

In other news, I turned 30 over the weekend & I have a humongous zit on my lip. What gives?

Giveaway - Onesie Wonderland

I have a new giveaway for you this week. Check out the cute onesies that Karilyn at Onesie Wonderland is making & enter below. One lucky reader will win a custom onesie of their choice. If you don't have a little one, remember that these make great gifts & the holidays are right around the corner.

1. This giveaway is open to U.S. as well as international readers.
2. Visit the Onesie Wonderland blog & leave a comment on this post telling me which onsesie is your favorite. Be sure to include your e-mail address.
3. Earn an extra entry by becoming a follower of Onesie Wonderland. Please leave me an additional comment on this post letting me know that you became a follower.
4. The giveaway ends & winner will be announced on October 16th.

Good luck!

Artsy Clutch

I got the sewing machine out this morning to make a birthday gift for my mother-in-law. Sounds nerdy to say, but a happy feeling came over me when I heard the sound of the machine humming. Then Dylan walked in the room & made some comment about how it was good to hear that noise again. Funny how the humming of the sewing machine is a familiar & comforting sound to us. A common noise that has been missing for a few weeks. It's good to have it back & interesting that in this time of change & uncertainty it grounds not only me, but my whole family.

And the gift for my mother-in-law...an Artsy Clutch from Bend the Rules Sewing. I'm probably the last person on earth to make one of these. Really easy, really cute & a great little gift.

Rody Winner

Congratulations Shannon! You win the Rody. E-mail your shipping info to me & I'll pass it along to AllChildrensFurniture.com.

Thank you all for playing. Stay tuned because I think we may be having another giveaway pretty soon.

Here We Are

We made it to Las Vegas after three days of driving. The lights welcomed us back, as did all of our family. We are happy that the trip is over & that we have landed here. Our emotions still seem to be all over the place. The only way to describe it is that we feel lost. We are hoping that we can find employment soon, but worry seems to be all consuming these days.

I am tired. There is a lot of work to be done with unpacking. I'm thinking that if we are unpacked & somewhat settled here that our family will feel a little more relaxed. So right now my focus is on that. Plus once we're all set up here, I can get back to work. My sewing machine misses me, I think.

We will get there. Wherever "there" is.

A few notes: The shop is back up & running. Also, I have created a flickr group for sharing your shirts/dresses made from my ruffle sleeve top tutorial. Check it out here.