Bag Swap Sneak Peek

Here is a sneak peek of what I sent to my bag swap partner today.  Can hardly wait until she receives it and I can share the whole project.  Also, looking forward to receiving my package!  Swaps are fun!! 

Silhouette Giveaway at Tatertots and Jello

Have you seen the Silhouette giveaway over at Tatertots and Jello?  Go Enter!!  I'm excited for another opportunity to try winning one of these!  I keep trying.  Now, I'll be honest and completely confess.  I am not sharing this giveaway with you out of the goodness of my heart.  I'm just not that sweet to my dear blogger friends because if you enter, it just reduces my chances of winning. haha!  I'm sharing because it earns me an extra entry.  There....now you aren't deceived about who I am and my conscience is clear for sharing my motive.  haha!!  Now, go win one and punish me for selfish ways!

Five Minute Friday -- Deep Breath

It's Five Minute Friday time again.  For details or to participate, click the link below.

Deep Breath -- Ready....Set....Go....

A deep breath offers a brief moment of calm and reflection in the midst of chaos. That pause is enough to keep one from slipping into distemper, uttering a sharp word, or being overcome with tears.  I wonder if it doesn’t give us the air we need for life’s other, more rewarding moments...to praise, to sing, to whisper, to ooh and aah.

Jacob cries, cries, cries.  Deep Breath. I continue rocking and singing a lullaby to sooth his discomfort.  He falls asleep.  Nothing has ever been more beautiful than his smooth face, soft lips, whispy hair, and his chubby thighs. I catch my breath, praise God, and whisper my love to my sleeping son.

Two hours later, I reluctantly wake, hearing the call to nurse this little one.  My body aches from weariness and I do not want to rise, do not want to open my eyes, and I consider switching to a bottle and sharing this duty.  Deep Breath.  He nurses, looking up at me with those mesmerizing blue eyes.  I’m in love.  I catch my breath, praise God, and whisper my love to this precious son.  I smile and he copies me, showing those gorgeous dimples.  Ooh…aah...

Catch Up!!

I have so many fun, delightful things to share.  Some I've been anxiously waiting to arrive at their destination and opened before I shared on my blog.  Some, I've just been too busy to get to blogging about.  So, I'll get right to it.....

Look what I won!!!  Quilt Hollow had a giveaway for an autographed copy of this delightful quilt book.  I won! Yippee! 

And look what I got for Mother's Day!!  I'm thrilled! I've wanted this book for so long.  My sweet hubby took me to dinner at the Longhorn Steakhouse and then a Joann's shopping trip afterwards.  I got this book, then some supplies...extra interfacing, magnetic closures, a couple zippers, thread.  I also had a sweet card, truffles, and a Lilac Blossoms scented Yankee Candle from the family.  Spoiled...I feel spoiled! We had a wonderful Mother's Day weekend!

This is my final fabric selection for the bag swap I'm participating in.  Because I used the Bonnes Amies I was planning for my mom instead.  Pics below.  But, this will be these 3 fabric and one of these vintage inspired buttons.  I won't post pics of this finished bag until much later. 

This is what I made for my mom for Mother's Day.  The fabric is Bonnes Amies by Swirly Girls Design. The pattern for the purse is the Lily Beth pattern from Arsty Crafty Babe.  I added a coordinating zippered pouch.

What a perfect button for this fabric...found it at Joann Fabrics and had to get it!

The bag of the bag...show a different portion of the print on the bird fabric.

I added the doilies and braided trim to the pockets.  The pattern doesn't tell you where to place the pocket, it just gives you an idea on the diagram. But, then you sew the top band around for the lining and I actually thought it made the pockets too low in the bag.  When I make another, I will keep that in mind and bring the pockets up.

The pattern does not come with a zippered pocket, but I added it. And added a label!

I made this little zippered pouch for my lil' sister's 15th birthday.  My daughter, Kristy, made this beaded bracelet.  She named it the Opal Beach Bracelet.  I love it!!

Kristy is learning to make jewelry and these are her first pieces.  I think they are beautiful and it's exciting that she has a desire to make jewelry.  Love creative, craftiness!!

That is all for today!!  Must get back to the kids!  :-)

Five Minute Friday -- Motherhood should come with...

It's Five Minute Friday time again.  I have been enjoying this.  For details click the link below.

This week's subject is "Motherhood should come with..."  Wow! What a topic! My mind went in a lot of directions, including what motherhood should come without.  I decided that I'm not in a contemplative, serious mood today.  I decided to go for lighthearted and fun....perhaps I'm longing for that kind of day. 

Motherhood should come with...

With a tool belt.  It should contain:

A wand—to smack ourselves in the face and bring us back to reality when we are moping about how bad we have it.

A sock magnet--which automatically finds the missing, matching sock.

A can of Odor-Be-Gone—to spray when the baby potties, the cat sprays the couch, the fridge hasn’t been cleaned in weeks, to cover the mildew smell because you forgot about that load you put in the washing machine yesterday morning, but safe enough to spray under your arms and in your mouth on those days that you haven’t made it to the shower and you are frantically wondering what your breath smells like when hubby leans in for a kiss.

Rose Colored Glasses—to handout to those unexpected visitors dropping by. They will not see the pile of unfolded laundry, dust bunnies in the corner, toys scattered on the floor, the wilted plant in the corner because you thought a plastic one would be cheesy, or the toilet that one of your children forgot to flush.

A Thinking Cap—to remember where we put the car keys, to put the milk in the fridge and not the cupboard, which side we nursed off last time, and to answer all the kids’ questions such as “why do mosquitoes exist,” “where are my shoes,” “who started mother’s day,” and “do babies blink.” (questions I’ve tackled in the last couple days! ;-)

Well, time is up….I’m sure there should be lots more in the tool belt.  What would like in yours?

Multitudes Monday

I've updated my One Thousand Gifts list this evening. 

54. A Sunday afternoon, lying on the swing on our back deck with Jacob on my chest.  I feel the rhythm of his breathing, the swaying of the swing, and the breeze kissing my skin.  My view, the beautiful cathedral ceiling of oak branches, with new spring leaves, the blue sky marbling with brown and green.  The birds fly in and out.  Their wings beat and when settled they sing the praises of God.  I wonder at how amazing He is, how much He must love us to give us so much beauty.  I think of how much I love Jacob, so much that it seems my heart should burst with trying to contain it.  Then I fully comprehend, feel, the verse that we loved Him because He first loved us. 

55. Kristy, sitting Jacob on her lap, playing the piano for  him.  He loves this music, this time with his sissy.  I love how his feet rest on the piano.

56. A flower picked for me by my Nathan. The reward of a kiss!

57. Coffee that tastes sweeter and more refreshing when poured by Matthew, a loving son wanting to pamper his mom in the morning.

I am blessed!

Click for more information on starting your own list of one thousand gifts.

Sweet Harmony Meets Nicey Jane

I haven't shared my new bag yet. I finished sewing her last weekend and have been using her this week.  I love, love, love this bag!  Of the bags I've made, this is my favorite...not the easiest, but my favorite!  This tote is very roomy.  It works perfectly as a diaper bag/purse combo and it still fits in the bottom of the stroller.

The pattern is the Sweet Harmony Tote by Amy Butler.  It isn't difficult, but I've sewed a few bags before and they seem to make sense to me in a way that clothing patterns do not.  haha!  However, it is time consuming (*disclaimer--I tend to be a perfectionist and that slows me down) and a good portion of cost lies in the interfacing, fusible fleece, and peltex.  That stuff adds up fast!  I think I spent more time cutting all the pieces, trimming the interfacing/fleece and ironing all that on, than I actually spent sewing the bag. 

There are portions of the bag that are thick to sew through and a bit difficult to maneuver.  I'm not sure I would have wanted to try this bag on my other machine because it didn't handle thickness as well as my Husqvarna Viking.  Just wanted to throw that out there, if you are considering this pattern.

The fabric is Nicey Jane from Heather Bailey.  I am a new Heather Bailey fan!!

Both sides have a large outside pocket and I pulled this one open a bit so you could see the cell phone pocket on the inside.

The other side...the pockets are trimmed with piping.

Large pocket, but I sewed a decorative stitch in the middle to create two smaller pockets. Added some ricrac and a name label, which I've recently ordered to start attaching to items I make. Love those!

Large interior zippered pocket

There she is...my fun, functional, pretty, refreshing, spring bag!