A little easier

Life.

has become a little easier as I am daily feeling better (with the exception of today!). 



Yes, I am feeling like this tonight...but this is my first bad day in a week!  Woot Woot!

If you'll scroll down just a bit and look to your left, you'll find a list of my maxi dress series I did in the spring/early summer as well as a list of all my bag tutorials thus far.  I'm hoping these will also be 'a little easier' as well!  Is there something YOU would like to see made easier to find on my blog?  Are there types of projects that you would like to see more of in the future?  I would really like to get some feedback...

as I have another pretty HUGE life changing event in the not so distant future.



Yup. I work as a part time receptionist at the moment, and come December 30th, I will no longer be working my part time job and will be completely a stay at home Mommy!  One thing I really want to do is beef up my blog and grow my oober small sewing business.  So, I'm really hoping to get some input from my readers.  What do you enjoy seeing on my blog?  Is there something you would like to see more of...less of, or something you have never seen that you would like me to add???

Come on! Spill the beans folks!

Angel Wings...and a tutorial???

My little angel...and anybody who knows her and is reading this is dying laughing right now!!  I love her to pieces, even on her 'spicey' days...which is more often than not right now. 

Moving on...

...angel wings...

I purchased a cheap angel costume for her to play in but I didn't want to drop the extra $$ to buy wings. (I probably should have and just saved myself the trouble!)

So, here's what I did...

Materials:

2 wire hangers

4 white sheets of felt

1 feather boa (If you are making these wings for an adult, I would go with 2 boas)

glue gun and sticks

wire cutters

pliers

Step 1.

Shape each hanger into one wing.  Twist at the bottom and cut off excess wire.

Step 2.

Lay one wing on one sheet of felt. 

Apply glue to the inside of the wing and press second sheet of felt on top, sandwhiching the wire wing in between.

Step 3:

Pull apart the sheets and begin to lay a line of glue on the outside edge of the wire wing.  Glue all the way around the outside of the wing.

Repeat these steps with your second wing.

Step 4:

After the glue is dry, cut out each wing around the outside line of glue.  There should be about a half inch perimeter around the outside of the wire frame.

Step 5:

Cut a strip of felt from your scraps. Overlap the wire ends from each wing onto this strip.  Apply a LARGE amount of glue under and on top of the wire ends.  Wrap the strip around the wire, gluing as you go.  I added 2 more strips for stability. 

Here's a guide for attaching the feather boa.

Step 6:

Cut the boa in half.  I began on the inside of the wings where they were attached. (You do NOT want the boa attached to the center of the wings!)  Your boa should be put together by a rope.  Glue the rope (not the feathers) around the edge of the wing, all the way around, then up the middle. 

Repeat for the other wing.

Step 7:

Attach the ribbon ties.  Measure how long you need the ties to be based on the size of the person wearing the wings.  Cut two pieces.  Find the middle of one ribbon.  Flip the wings over feathers face down.  Hot glue the ribbon center to the center of the wings.

Repeat with second ribbon tie.

Wait until morning and let your little angel try on her wings!

Remember how I mentioned that we have a lot of 'spicey' days?  In order to get this smile, we had to play the "don't you smile" game.  Do you remember that one?  I hated that as a child.  I could never keep from smiling no matter how angry I was!!  And now I do it to my little girl.

angel wings

In retrospect, I may put glitter or sating fabric to the front of the wings.  The hot glue, when dry, turns to a funny shade of orange or yellow...brown even?  You can see that through the white felt somewhat from the front.  So, when I get around to it probably next Halloween, I will do something to hide that.

No go make some angel wings for the little angel in your life!

A Glimpse into my Life

Do you ever wonder how in the world we Mommy's ever get clean?? 

I mean seriously. I am lucky if I get to take a shower every other day. No really. This is good. I'm not complaining, I'm just letting you know so YOU don't complain!!  Ha!

6 1/2 years ago, I had my first baby and when I wanted to take a shower, I would lay a towel on the floor of the bathroom and bring him in with me.  At least I could hear if he was crying or needed something.  

Child #2 came...

Child #3 came...

No more babies in the house but some unpredictable children.  My son is at school now but the girls are home.  On this day I told them to stay in the living room and watch Dora while Mommy was taking a shower.  I couldn't believe my eyes when I came out... 

They were laying side by side (very rare) and watching Dora.  You know what else?  No little hands pushed aside the shower curtain or flushed the toilet after going potty.

This was the best shower I have taken in a LONG TIME!

*sigh*

Today...

I am 12 weeks pregnant...

and yesterday afternoon I had my first contraction for this pregnancy.  I've been expecting it, and wondering when exactly the first one would happen.  They aren't painful.  They feel 'funny.' So, I push on my lower abdomen and feel a small hard ball.  This is how I know for sure that it's a contraction. 

I see my regular OB tomorrow morning who will make a referrel for me to see my high risk OB.  I will begin seeing him at 16 weeks as well as begin progesterone treatments.  It's rather odd for me because the first 12 weeks I don't really feel pregnant.  When my friends find out that I've had that first contraction, there is a general look of shock and fear.  While I totally understand this, I am so far past that...it has become for me a confirmation of my pregnancy.  I know. I'm weird!!  But it's kind of exciting...I'm growing this new life and I can now feel real things that confirm this for me.  Is there some fear involved? Yeah.  But we are praying every day for a healthy baby in May.  If I stress over it...it will simply make me sick and I won't be a good Mommy to the 3 little ones I already have. 

So, I am prayerfully moving into week 13 and my 2nd trimester!

Woohoo!! 

My weekend...a high chair and mai tai wrap!

Well, I wouldn't really call it 'mojo'...but I seem to be getting my energy back.  I spent a great weekend visiting with my older sister and her family.  My sister and I were both pregnant back in 2007...she with her fourth, I with my second.  Both of us only had boys at this point.  Our due dates were 10 weeks apart.  Wouldn't you know, we were both pregnant with girls.  What a shock it was to find that out!  There were 7 grandsons and no granddaughters yet in the family (either side for me).  On August 13, 2007 I gave birth to my first daughter EXACTLY 4 weeks early.  EXACTLY 10 weeks later, my sister gave birth to her daughter EXACTLY 4 weeks early. 

We are amazed...and thrilled each time we get together to find that our girls are such good friends and get along so well together!  They play all day long, take naps together, feed their babies together, sleep in a twin bed together whispering and giggling as 4 year olds do. 

In August, my Brynna turned 4...and her only desire was to have her cousin come for her birthday.  We were able to work it out and so they spent Brynna's birthday weekend together, playing and having a ball!

**A special princess birthday tea**

This past weekend was Kaiya's birthday weekend...so it was great for Brynna to be able to spend it with her and pay back the favor!  They spent the weekend riding on the back of four wheelers and in Kaiya's new Barbie Jeep.

I got to go see my sister in law and newest nephew Jack Sawyer.  It was in making gifts for little Jack and my sil that I finally felt like I was getting crafty again!!  Unfortunately as what usually happens when I make something for others is...I forget to take photos!  ARGH!! 

I made her a mai tai 'ish' baby wrap and a fabric highchair.  Here are some photos of others I've seen around. 

source

source

I would like to add that if you try the fabric high chair, it will only work with a chair that has slats in the back.  You can follow the source links to each tutorial. 

I have a question for all my favorite followers!!  What was the dumbest thing you ever did while pregnant??  I have a whole list so I'll save that for later :)

I'd like to introduce you to...

Yesterday morning, my son was running a nice high temperature so my lofty goal of being able to bring all my kids to our first ultrasound flew away in the wind...non-existant wind that is.  So, instead...all of my kids stayed home with Daddy (his day off is Monday), and I headed off to meet my littlest munchkin.
Baby F

My due date was adjusted from May 13th to May 9th. 

This little one was moving all around (more than I've ever seen my other kids do on their first ultrasound)

The heartrate was 173 :)

Ultrasounds are the absolute best!!  Especially at this point when I can't feel any movement, but I can see on that screen those little arms waving at me and watch tiny feet kicking at nothing. 

I think it's fun to guess genders so I'm going to install a gender poll. Based on what little information I have, let's see if you can guess right!!  I would also LOVE to hear any of your favorite names! 

On a side note, I'm feeling pretty decent today...so far :)

A Celebration of Life

While I have mercifully been spared experiencing the loss of an infant, or a miscarriage...the statistics say that 1 in 4 women HAVE experienced this.  I know that I personally have a sibling in heaven due to a tubal pregnancy.  I have a niece or nephew in Heaven due to a miscarriage.  I have 3 beautiful children (one of whom gave me QUITE the morning this morning...she is the epitomy of "woke up on the wrong side of the bed.") and I can't immagine losing any of them, at any age.

October 15th is the pregnancy and infant loss awareness day.  Another blogger, Kirsten, who's son passed away last October from a congenital heart defect, is hosting an amazing way to remember the lives of these sweet babies who have passed away.



If you personally know someone who has lost an infant or gone through a miscarriage...let me encourage you to find a way whether it be via email, a personal letter or card, phone call...whatever it might be...find a way to acknowledge these babies to their parents. 

If you have experienced a miscarriage or the loss of an infant, you might consider taking part in Kirsten's amazing way to remember the life of YOUR little one, by Saying Their Names.