Easter Hunt, 2017

Easter weekend - phew! We are still recovering. Easter egg hunts, brunches, neighborhood events, birthday parties, and soccer matches. There was a lot going on, and Mr. Jones was recovering from a terrible stomach flu. Still, the weather was great, we saw good friends, the girls had a blast, and Lulu tolerated the rabbit. She told us beforehand that she only liked "smaller rabbits" and when I tried to put her down next to him she wailed, "Nooooo". So we all got a photo with the Easter Bunny! Then we had donuts and got our arms painted, and went home for a nap, with enough chocolate for coming weeks. I think we ate sweets the entire day. Maybe that's what Easter is for.

PS. Penny's sweater pattern is "Pompom Rabbit", Ravelry link here. Lulu's sweater pattern is called "Sweet William", Ravelry link here. Lulu is wearing a Geranium Dress and Penny is wearing a skirt (no pattern used) in a fabric called "Garden Delights" by Gray Sky Studios.
PPS. Last year's trip to this Easter Egg Hunt is here.

January's Inside Out

January is almost over, and I don't quite know what to make of it. We had an epic snowstorm and we were inside for almost two weeks straight. For someone who doesn't like to stay home (with kids, that is, alone I can stay home for hours and hours) it was a struggle. Somehow with sleds and shovels and tons of art supplies and dress-up clothes, we got through it. I started a new job, we got a new President, and who knows what lies in store for all of us. One thing I know is that if life continues to be as sweet as it has been with these two ladies, we're going to be okay.

I've also been working on a New Year's Resolution to print and archive family photos. I'm not much of a scrapbooker, but it's important to me to have printed photos the girls can look through them without a device being turned on. So in January I've lived in 2017, and 2012 and 2013 simultaneously. I'm working my way to present day, and it's truly been a walk down memory lane. To look at the photos above, and think everyone is talking now, everyone is drinking from cups, and there are no diapers in this house anymore! It's truly mind blowing. We are growing UP around here, ya'll!

PS. Lulu's dress pattern is McCalls 8635 (from 1966) in vintage polyester bought at an estate sale. Penny's hat is Big Top Animal Hats by me! Details of Penny's sweater are HERE and Lulu's coat are HERE.

Alice in OMSI-land

I made Penny an Alice in Wonderland dress.  A friend gifted us the pattern (Simplicity 2330, already cut to a size 5) and Penny begged me for it as soon as she saw it, telling Lulu that the last homemade dress I made was for Lulu's birthday so it was her turn for one. Penny likes the book of Alice, and loves the dress. She's been asking me about my sewing progress for a month, and finally, this past weekend, it was finished. I made it from a cheap calico and white muslin from Jo-ann Fabric. She wore it to OMSI, the Portland science museum, and told everyone that gave her a second glance that her mom made her dress.  This girl is the best thing a crafty mom could ask for.

Meanwhile, there are a few things, including the spinning trick above, that Lulu has mastered at the museum. She goes right over to this whirring machine and starts balancing these wheels on a turntable, attracting 8 and 10 year-old kids, in amazement. Lulu, uninterested in their compliments, is continually fascinated by the machine.  We have a science Prodigy, don't you know? ;)

Halloween 2016

Like last year, the girls had many ideas for Halloween that got narrowed down to two costumes each. Penny wanted to be a princess, or princesses. We had come back from England with an Anna (from Frozen) dress that she has worn almost every single day. She was happy to wear that, for Halloween. 

We tinker with princesses fearfully around here, borrowing the DVDs from the library and skipping through large sections with mean mommies and terrible witches. Still, the girls love Cinderella and Snow White and Penny assigned herself Cinderella, "since I have yellow hair" and Lulu would be Snow White. Lulu happily agreed.

I realize it seems odd to sew princess costumes that can easily be bought at the mall or grocery store, but with the frequency these girls wear costumes everyday, I wanted them to be in softer fabrics, and fit well, which the store bought kind never seem to. Simplicity 2817 had both princesses in one pattern. Done and done. We wore them to a dear friend's Halloween birthday party, the day before trick-or-treating.

Back in September, I had asked Lulu what she wanted to be for Halloween while we were driving home from preschool one day. "The Pumpkin with the Purple Eyes", she shouted at me. I had no idea what she was talking about, and attempts to clarify were futile. So I just asked for details: "Does the pumpkin face have purple eyes or do you, Lulu?" She seemed exasperated with me. "I DO." When I made her the costume (Simplicity 2788), and showed her the mask, she smiled slightly, nodded slowly, and took the costume and hung it in her closet. Job done. She wore it (for a while) on Halloween night for trick-or-treating, and for the preschool party. Penny wore face paint from her school day, and her beloved Anna dress, changing back into Cinderella for trick-or-treat.

This year, Halloween was kind of a dream come true. Mostly, I just wanted no rain, which I got. The energy on the street was magical. It was so great to see our neighbors: on the sidewalks, answering their doors, or on our doorstep. The girls loved running from house to house and I'll never forget Lulu looking into her treat bag and shouting, "I got a lot of CANDY. I want MORE CANDY," while Penny would call over her shoulder, "Thank you! And I hope you have a Very Good Halloween!" as the doors with smiling people closed behind her. Mr. Jones held his chest looking at them, admitting he was almost in tears. I don't even like princesses, but I'll sew them anything that makes them this happy, and remember their joy for years. It's starting to feel like we have kids now, instead of babies. It's so different, and I love it…almost as much as Penny and Lulu loved Halloween.

PS. Halloween 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012. 

Pumpkin Places

We decided to try a new Pumpkin Patch this year. A bit further afield (so to speak), this farm had a boat to ride, a pumpkin patch, horsey rides, a hay maze, a slide, free face painting, and a train ride with a spooky tunnel. You could not think of more things to please a two and a half and four year old if you tried. With so much excitement, it was almost possible to ignore that the pumpkin patch was a true mud pit. I'm just glad we were able to fit in a visit to this place between days and weeks of rain. 

The girls wore homemade dresses. The details on Penny's is in this post. I can't remember the name of the fabric from Lulu's dress, though I used Simplicity 1208 (without all the fancy parts) for a basic gathered waist dress. I bought it a yard and a half of the fabric off a clearance table at the craft store, as it reminded me of vintage sheets in both it's pattern and softness. I think it's by Michael Miller? I wish I had more, though I have no idea what I'd make with it.

Previous trips to the pumpkin patch include 2015, 2014, 2013, and 2012. Wow, we've come a long way.