2.for.Tuesday

one: Home Ec. I never took home ec. in school. It always confilicted with something like band or spanish or show choir or something that could eventually wrap back around to the fact that I was in band. So. I really don't feel like I know what the heck I'm doing when it comes to sewing. I just pretend like I do and jump in with both feet. Usually kicking myself halfway through the process. Wondering where my brain is. I was thoroughly interested in this class. I think it would be a good thing for me to do to broaden my base as far as sewing goes. Then I think... yeah, but I could find tutorials to teach me how to do every one of those things on my own and save the $60 that I don't have in the first place. Yes I could. But there isn't anyone I like better [at least not off the top of my head] for throwing together a cute and fun class full of great projects than Rachel Denbow. I think she just might be the queen of craft. I would pay for the class just for her. I really would.

two: a multi-generational bassinet that is currently in my possession. If I remember the story right it was made by by my Mom's great-great grandma. My grandma Verde had 12 kids. When her first was born she was given this bassinet. It was used for all 12 of her kids and who knows how many of her grandkids. I know for sure that my mom was in it and I was in it. Now this new little person is in it. And the girl spends way too much time in it too. I'm thinking I'm going to have to get it out of this house soon if it's going to survive another generation.

2.for.Tuesday

one: I've been running into lots of great digital scrapping templates lately. This one I love for its simplicity and empty space [though admittedly the empty space isn't justified in the layout of my blog. There needs to be some type of end to the white space here for you to really get the feel of it]. Mostly I love the hand drawn quote bubble. So, it's free from Paisley Press. Get it here [among other great free things].

two: The doll. For the most part it's finished. Still missing hair and extra clothing. Whether or not it will have a face is still undecided. Eyes and cheeks I'm thinking, but probably nothing else. But I'm calling it done because I've fizzled on it. As indicated above on the scrap page, she will never give up her, "baby." That's what she calls the bear. She has very little interest in the doll. *A* seems to enjoy tossing the doll around. Maybe once it has hair? I'm not going to hold my breath. I don't know why I thought a mere doll could replace her baby. Even if it was made by mom.

I Am Lame.

I admit it whole heartedly. I've been dreaming of the perfect rag doll to make for the girl. I've not seen patterns that are exactly what I want so I decided to use my mad fake it skills and just jump in with both feet. But, you see, my mad fake it skills don't quite match up with my mediocre sewing abilities. I just couldn't get the feet to be feet. I wanted feet with some kind of a shape so I could make mini felt shoes. The girl loves shoes. The feet themselves turned out fine, but they looked wonky [and not a good wonky] when I sewed them to the legs. I was bummed. And that was the end of my dreams of a perfect rag doll. But there was still a small problem. The boys knew I was making her a doll for her birthday. They won't let me not make her a doll for her birthday. But the motivation is not there. I don't want to stumble my way through a rag doll any more. I bought a PDF pattern this morning for this doll and was suddenly motivated to sew it up and be done. But the pattern still hasn't come to my inbox. So... [you know what's coming don't you. It's the, "I'm lame" part] I'm stumbling my way through sewing a doll. I'm on the internet right now seeing if the pattern has arrived [for what is possibly the 10th time since I ordered it]. I thought I'd give it a few more minutes. I should just give up checking. The rules of my life dictate that it won't arrive until I've got the doll finished. And that's just how it is. Besides. I'm almost finished. So there. Another wasted purchase. And it isn't even the doll I was dreaming of in the first place. Argh.

2.for.Tuesday

It is celebration month around here. The girl turned two and *I* will be eight. Plus Father's Day. Plus a visit from my sister. Plus the seemingly endless countdown [only 4.5 weeks] until little #4 arrives. We've been a little busy. Today I'm going to finally share two projects that were first mentioned in a post from October 2009 I called round three. I had bought fabric for project #1 and ended up starting two others with the scraps. I think they're pretty fun.

one: Happy Banner. This little project keeps popping up in the 2.for.tuesday archives. It was first mentioned in February 2009 as something I wanted to do. It made it's second appearance in October 2009, when I finally got around to starting it. And now, here we go again. It's finally completely finished. And it's currently hung. And I'm intending to use it. A lot. You just might see it hung outside with some blue or pink tissue balls when the little finally comes. Yes, you just might.

two: I Love You Jar. This one has been finished for quite some time. I'm sure I've mentioned it more than once. I keep promising a post about it. Today you're in luck. This all started when I decided that my kids needed to do more service around the house. Not just for me, but for each other. I wanted them to notice things that needed to be done and do it. So I stacked my fabric scraps right side together and started cutting/sewing hearts. I stuffed them and sewed up the opening, though not in any professional way. This was about doing it. Not having it be perfect. When they were done I put them in a tin pail and we had a FHE about service.

Do a service leave a heart. That's really it in a nutshell. For example: *I* would often leave his bed unmade. *A* got home from school earlier than *I* so he would notice the unmade bed and make it. Then he'd leave a heart hidden under *I*s pillow. He loved doing it. *I*s favorite service was putting *A*s dinner dishes in the sink [as that's something he can't seem to remember to do]. He'd leave a heart where the plate was and then call to *A* that he forgot to take care of his plate/cup/etc. *A* would come to do it and find the heart. Seriously, they loved it. We finished getting all the hearts in the jar and got to do a fun family outing of their choice. Right now the jar is full and waiting for me to decide it's time to bring it out again.

Round Three

While in Phoenix this summer I purchased 1/4 yard each of nine different fabrics. I am currently in the middle of project #3 with said fabrics. Oh, it's been fun. What started out as a birthday banner turned into a birthday banner + squashy hearts [for the I Love You jar... more on that later]. After the hearts I had baggies full of odd scraps not really big enough to do anything with but too big to throw away. So imagine that little bit of randomness flying around in my brain + thoughts of a homemade [aka cheap] Christmas in the Miles house and you get collisions = sparks of brilliance [or maybe I should say craziness... it seems like they go hand in hand in my house]. I digress. The point? I've undertaken a huge job of tiny proportions. I can't wait to show you when I'm done. Here's a little sneaky peeky: Enjoy the journey! ps. since I had the machine out I did another quick + super easy + way too cute project. baby legs [tutorial here]! Love them! The Girl liked them too. She just doesn't understand why she can't be in my face when I'm holding the camera. I kept having to put her back on the bench [bench because it kept her at a distance longer + notice that her hair is turning blonde?] Since the project was a success the green/yellow argyle socks are up next. I picked the up at Target 2 pairs/$6'ish.