PuddinPop

Sewing room

2009-10-23T09:47:00.003-05:00

Finally putting up some pictures of my beautiful new sewing/laundry room. Dh had said he would have it done by Mother's Day lololol I never planned on that happening, things like this always take longer than you expect. He still has quite a bit to do in here, but it functions wonderful just like it is.

Here is my sewing machine table and a small dining room table for the girls' machines and the serger. Eventually this whole wall will have custom built counters for all 4 of our sewing machines.

This wall will have shelves on either side of the window and a window seat with storage.

Here is the laundry part of the room. Right now my shelves with all my *sewing stuff* are next to the washer and dryer, but it will be a folding/craft counter with storage underneath. I also have my new mud sink. We got a great deal on it. It was originally $225, but dh found it with a messed up side that he could easily fix and wouldn't show anyway, they sold it to him for $75!!!! That included everything you see, cabinet, sink and faucet fixtures. I love getting a great deal.

Chad is also gonna build me a cutting table for the middle of the room. Even though it isn't officially finished, it works great as is! I havn't gotten to sew in it as much as I would like, but eventually I will. Sometimes I just go sit in there and enjoy it. It is so nice to have a space just for you. Of course, all the children tend to follow me in and as you can see, the play kitchen is set up in there as well. But, you know what I mean LOL

Mom's quilt top

2009-10-23T09:46:00.004-05:00

Well, I still suck at blogging. I was gonna post 3 times this week, but totally forgot we were starting our home schooling. The first week is always kinda crazy and throw in a 4 week old baby and it just gets crazier!

Here is the quilt top for my Mom that I finished in like June! lol Not the greatest picture, I had laid it out on the floor in my new sewing room to figure out how big I needed to make the back. Figured I had better take pictures while it was out! That is as far as I got on doing anything. I really am itching to start quilting it, but no time right now. I just walk into my beautiful new room and dream about all the sewing I am gonna do one day *sigh* Oh well, it is more fun to take care of Sophia right now. She will only be this little for a short time.

Promise, I will post pics of the sewing room soon.

edited to add that if you click on the picture you can see the quilt much better.

Motherhood

2009-10-23T09:08:00.003-05:00

Surprise, I am going to blog again before several months go by LOL Here is a new picture of Sophia, she is taking a nap on her Daddy. She is 4 weeks old today, where is the time going : ( She is already weighing around 11 pounds, my babies do not stay little for long. She has those baby zits, I have to force myself not to pop them lol Oh, and she HATES to take a bath. It is the worst time of my day. I can do it in 2 or 3 minutes, but she screams like you are killing her the entire time. She is already smiling and talking to us, I swear she has been smiling almost from day one. You can tell it is a real smile, she looks at you and the smile is in her eyes too. These first 6 to 8 weeks with a new baby are crazy. Mostly wonderful, but also frustrating and exhausting. Overall, Miss FiFi is a wonderful baby. She just has a rough day or night a couple of times a week. Last night was a great night, well once I got her to sleep. She had a belly ache and screamed for about an hour before pooping and then passing out around 11:30. Then she only woke up twice to nurse. For some reason I am fine waking up twice, but three times and I just don't get enough sleep. Before last night, she was getting up 3 or 4 times and not always going back to sleep. Yesterday was rough, but this morning I feel great. Funny how sleep deprivation can make a complete difference in your mood. She also loves her Moby wrap, well a faux Moby wrap, I made my own. I actually got some diaper covers and diapers cut out yesterday while wearing her. I don't think I can sew with her in it though, she likes me walking around doing stuff. I do get dishes and laundry done while she sleeps in it. I try not to use it all the time though, only when she is really fussy and I need to get stuff done. I definitely don't want her to get spoiled to sleeping only when she is strapped to me and I am standing up! LOL No, we only spoil her to being held while rocking her, at least we get to sit down lol I mean, how can you not hold a baby. I do put her in her cradle sometimes and she does pretty good in it at night, but i don't let my babies cry. Just can't do it. Well, she cries, but we hold her while she is crying. I am thankful she at least sleeps in the cradle at night. I don't sleep well with a baby in bed with me. I just doze and jerk awake every 20 minutes or so. I wish I could sleep with the baby, would make my life a lot easier.

I am having a hard time dealing with the fact that she is my last baby : ( Our main reason for this is our age. Chad is 42 and I am 38. Chad will be 60 when Sophia is 18. I want to be alive when my children have grandchildren. I mean, I know there is no guarantee, but the odds get better that you are gonna die, the older you get, KWIM? Also, I know that more people have their children at older ages now, which makes me feel a little better. I won't be the only grandma at her high school graduation lol Anyway, I am totally just rambling, but all this stuff is just swirling in my head, and it feels good to get it out on *paper*. Postpartum hormones can make you a little crazy, well crazier than usual lol

I will be adding a couple more posts in the next few days. I have my Mom's quilt top to share and my mostly finished sewing/laundry room! I know I will post because I already have the pictures uploaded. For some reason, not having pictures taken and on the computer is my main reason for being a bad blogger.

More Pics

2009-10-09T08:47:00.004-05:00

Here are the pictures of the kids with Sophia. The girls got to hold her right after she was born, they were at the birth, but these are the pictures when my Mom and Dad brought everyone that afternoon. Samuel and Ava were beyond excited to see their new sister.

Sydney with Ava looking on. She loves the fact that she is old enough to really help with the new baby.

Savannah has been a huge help, she would hold the baby 24/7 if I let her LOL

Samuel told my Mom before we came home from the hospital that he missed Sophia sooooo much, and wanted me to hurry up and bring her home : D Such a sweet boy.

Parker swore he wasn't excited about the baby, but he wants to hold her as much as the others now LOL He has admitted he was wrong and is now very happy to have a new sister : )

Austin always has loved babies, he has his profile pic on facebook holding his sister. I think that may be to attract girls though ; / LOL

Ava ADORES Sophia. I should have never worried about her being jealous, she loves to sit by me while I nurse Sophia and rub her soft head. She is gonna be a great big sister.

Isabella loves Sophia too, she loves to hold her even when she is fussy. She is so patient with her and can always get her to sleep for me. You can see that Ava sneaked into almost every picture LOL

My Mom and Dad with Sophia. They have been and always are so helpful. They stayed with my children so that Chad and I could enjoy a couple days of rest in the hospital. They are the BEST grandparents a girl could ask for!

A picture of the baby socks I knit for her. They already don't fit anymore : ( They grow SO fast!

Ava was and still is fascinated with her toes LOL At first, she was also fascinated with her eyes for some reason. She was constantly trying to stick her fingers in Sophia's eyes. She was gentle, but still! LOL And yes, she still calls her FiFi, it is so cute!

My baby is 2 weeks old today, it makes me sad. I just love this special time when they are brand new, but it goes by so quickly. I wish the days would slow down just a little bit. She has an awake time in the middle of the night! For 3 days, it was between 3 and 5, but last night it was from 12 to 2. I am trying to even enjoy that time lol Got to see Ice Castles one night : )

Sophia Faye Richard

2009-10-03T09:56:00.004-05:00

Looooong time, no post! So sorry, I told y'all I was antisocial when I was pregnant LOL I am finally getting around to announcing Sophia's birth. She was born Friday, September 25 at 3:21am. A good 11 or 12 days past her due date! I was due to be induced at 5:30am that Friday morning, but thank God she decided to come on her own. At 1am I woke up having a contraction. All of my labors start this way. One minute I am not in labor, the next I am. I know it is time within 2 or 3 contractions. Kind of like in the movies, which is funny, cause that is so not normally how it happens. The contractions were fairly hard and 5 minutes apart, so I jumped in the shower and called my friends and family to let them know it was time. My last labor was 18 hours long, so I wasn't sure if I should go to the hospital right away or not. Well, once I got out of the shower, I knew I needed to get my butt there asap! I had planned on putting on makeup and fixing my hair LOLOLOL That didn't happen! I was barely able to finish throwing stuff in my suitcase. Chad, I and the 3 oldest girls headed to the hospital with me having hard contractions every 2 or 3 minutes. I couldn't walk up to labor and delivery, Chad had to find me a wheelchair. Once I got there, the nurses were going along as usual because apparently I was handling the contractions so well that they didn't realize how far along I was. When the nurse checked me, I was completely dilated. The look on her face was priceless, because they hadn't even called my dr. yet. Thankfully, he lives very close to the hospital. I, of course, was kinda freaking out, because I knew that urge to push was coming and I wouldn't be able to stop it. The nurse said she fully expected to deliver the baby. Well, my first urge came just as my dr. was running in the door LOL He broke my water to check for meconium, and sure enough there was quite a bit. So, they wanted her out fast. I pushed once for her head and then had to wait while they suctioned her, and one more time for her body. The relief you feel once the baby is out is indescribable! To go from so much pain to nothing, it always takes me a minute to catch my breath. The only negative aspect to the birth was that they had to cut her cord and take her to the warmer immediately to suction her thoroughly. Apparently, she had pooped quite a bit. I am used to having my babies handed to me right away. It was a good 10 minutes before I could even see her. She was SO alert right at birth. She would quietly look around at everyone, like she was putting the faces with voices she was used to hearing. She weighed 8 lbs. 15 oz., which isn't bad considering how late she was. We were expecting her to be 9 1/2 to 10 lbs. I was excited that she fit in the newborn diapers LOL Oh, and her middle name is after my mother : )

She is beautiful and perfect and so laid back! The kids can be making a huge ruckus and she doesn't even flinch. Which is a good thing, it can get quite loud at my house lol I am so thankful I was able to have another baby, she is such a blessing to me, her father and the rest of her siblings. I have so much help with the older children, even the older boys fight over who gets to hold her. My best friend Jessica took pictures at the birth and afterwards. Didn't get too many labor photos, since it only lasted a little over 2 hours LOL My fastest birth yet, her sister, Isabella, was born in 3 hours.

Here she is right after birth, look at how alert she is!

happy family : D She is always sticking her tongue out lol She was sticking her tongue out as she was being born, we have a picture of it, but I will spare y'all LOL

After birth with her Aunt Gloria, I love this picture!

This was after her first bath when she was about half a day old. The look on her face is hilarious! I made the little gown with some adorable knit fabric I found at Joanns. I also knit the hat, which is obviously too small LOL

Here is Jessica, who took all the beautiful pictures, holding her. I have tons more to share, the ones of all the children holding her for the first time are so special.

Lots and lots of pictures and an update

2009-07-27T09:29:00.007-05:00

Hey everyone, long time no see LOL Sorry about that, I have just been very to myself lately. Tired from the pregnancy and anemia and just kinda anti social. I have been doing lots of sewing and knitting though. Sophia is getting SO big, I don't think she will be one of my smaller ones. My babies have ranged in size from 7 and half pounds to just over 10 pounds. I think she will be in the 9 to 10 pound range! I am hoping I am wrong, but I can usually tell. She moves all of the time, which I love, but sometimes her movements are so strong they hurt, and I still have at least 7 weeks left for her to grow! Other than the anemia and the severe backache lol, the pregnancy is going well. Oh, and I think I know what her nickname will be. Ava can't say Sophia and has been calling her FiFi. I think this is adorable.

Also, during this time two of my kids have had birthdays. I am now the mother of a 17 year old! I really can't believe it, a 17 year old son AND I am pregnant LOL Also, Sydney turned 13! I now have 3 teenagers in my house! Good times ; )

One of my best friends, Jessica, got her a nice new Nikon camera and we are now aware of her immense talent. Seriously, she is an awesome photographer! If you would like to see some of her work, check out her flikr. She offered to take some pictures of Sydney for her 13th birthday. All I can say is WOW! I am SO glad she is my friend, I would have payed a fortune for this otherwise : ) One of the perks of turning 13 for Sydney is she gets to wear makeup. She has been counting down the days lol She is only allowed to wear very little, but I swear she looks so grown up in these photos. What happened to my little girl. Here are a few of my favorites, it was hard to pick! You can see the whole shoot on Jess's flikr.

Jess also took some of me and my belly. She is going to photograph my birth too! Jessica has been at my last 4 births. She is one of my labor supports and has made such a difference in my labors. She is one of 3 friends that I just can't give birth without, along with my mom and dh. I have natural labors (no drugs) so my girlfriends are extremely important. Now, I am going to have beautiful pictures as well! I can't wait to share them, I promise no graphic ones though ; ) My favorites are the ones with Sydney : )

Sydney had to help me up! LOL
Here you can see how big I am! Sydney was mimicking my usual stance LOL Gosh, what a difference in the two of us!!!
Like I said, I have been sewing and knitting up a storm! I even finished my Mom's quilt top, just been too lazy to take a picture of it, soon, I promise. I think it will have to wait until after Miss Sophia is born to be quilted though, my back can't handle it right now. I have really been enjoying knitting, I can just sit on my comfy bed and knit away, easier on my back than sitting at the sewing machine. I do have some pictures of my first ever pair of socks though! Only because they were knit for Jessica, and she took some pictures for me LOL They are knit out of Malabrigo sock yarn, which was heaven to knit with. I got the pattern free at Interweave Knits. I think many more socks are in my future. Fun to knit and portable.

I hope to be back here before another several weeks pass! LOL

Baby Knitting

2009-06-09T11:41:00.004-05:00

For a couple of weeks I was a knitting fool! It is funny, because sometimes I don't care to do it, but when the mood hits, I can't get enough. I am actually still in the mood, but I really need to tend to my sewing before the baby is born. I can knit with a baby in my arms, not so much use the sewing machine. I found the pattern for the gray sweater in a Debbie Bliss book I checked out from the library. I started it before I knew Sophia was a girl, so picked a neutral color. Once I found out she was a girl, I added a picot edge in pink. I love pink and gray together. There is a great video tutorial here for doing a picot edging. Both sweaters still need their buttons sewn on, I am so bad about completely finishing things. I will probably wait to sew them on until I want the baby to wear them. lol Oh, the yarn is a DK weight Merino yarn from Rowan.

I found this pattern at Knitting Daily. It was a free pattern. I love the cable down the front. I really like simple knits, but also love a little special stitch to add interest. This was rated as easy, but I wouldn't consider it easy. More like intermediate. A beginning knitter would cry if they tried this pattern. I used Sugar Rush yarn for this project, it is made from sugar cane. How cool is that?! It is so soft, even softer than bamboo yarn and has a beautiful drape to it. It really is perfect for knitting for children. I know, it is blue. I really love blue on little girls, you will see that I end up buying more blue than pink. I am going to knit a hat and booties to match, as well. The second picture is more true to the color of the yarn. I took all of the pictures on one of the girls' baby dolls. I know it is kinda creepy, but it shows how the sweaters fit.

26 1/2 weeks

2009-06-06T19:24:00.004-05:00

I thought I would take some preggie pictures today. I got the cutest maternity t-shirt at Ross (for $6.99!!) yesterday and wanted to document my belly wearing it. I just love the little rhinestone stork lol As you can see, the belly has really started to grow. I swear I can feel the baby getting bigger everyday. The kids can watch my belly move as Sophia kicks around inside. Yes, we have decided on a name, I got what I wanted and she will be called Sophia. Dh just doesn't want her to be called Sophie (men can have weird ideas sometimes lol) Still no middle name though.

We took the pictures right before heading out on a trip to Joanns, you can see Savannah holding my sales flyer. : ) I snapped the girls sitting on the swing. Ava was being a poot and didn't want to be photographed, little turkey. We have been very productive with our sewing lately. I am going to have a brag post soon to show you what my girls' have been doing. I am really proud of them, they are turning into some good little seamstresses. I have also finished some knitting to show y'all. I just need to get on the ball and photograph everything.

I have so many projects I want to do. This week I am sewing all 3 girls some linen walking shorts and am waiting for some fabric to come in to make baby Sophia a little crib quilt. It is getting harder to do what I want, I forgot how you can't just move around and do what you want when you get this big. Plus, a lot of my time is spent helping the girls with their sewing.

I love my Kenmore!

2009-06-01T12:35:00.003-05:00

This is a meme from Sew Mama Sew. I love to read sewing machine reviews, so I thought I would add mine as well : )

What brand and model do you have? I own a Kenmore 19606

How long have you had it? About 2 1/2 years

How much does that machine cost (approximately)? I got a great deal for $450. This machine originally sold for $799. There was an open box, a lady had returned hers because she decided she wanted an embroidery machine. I don't think she had even taken it out of the box.

What types of things do you sew (i.e. quilting, clothing, handbags, home dec projects, etc.)? All of the above LOL I mainly sew clothing for my kids and have recently started quilting. My machine handles everything really well. The only thing I wish is that the distance between the machine and needle were bigger when machine quilting a large quilt.

How much do you sew? How much wear and tear does the machine get? I sew several days a week, sometimes everyday. Usually for no more than 2 or 3 hours at a time though. I would say my machine gets average use, I wish it got heavy use LOL

Do you like/love/hate your machine? Are you ambivalent? Passionate? Does she have a name? I really love my machine. It has a lot of decorative stitches and sews a beautiful seam. It is also very smooth and quiet. I love the needle down button. I feel like I got a really great machine for a really great price. I don't have a name for her, but I want to think one up.

What features does your machine have that work well for you? Like I mentioned above, I love my needle down button. I also love my automatic needle threader, this wasn't something I even planned on using, but now I use it all the time. I also love all of the embroidery and decorative stitches, they are fun to try out.

Is there anything that drives you nuts about your machine? I am not thrilled with the alphabet because it is so small. But this is minor, I wasn't expecting a full out embroidery machine and don't really use them anyway.

Do you have a great story to share about your machine (i.e., Found it under the Christmas tree? Dropped it on the kitchen floor? Sewed your fingernail to your zipper?, Got it from your Great Grandma?, etc.!)? We want to hear it! Just the great deal I got! It was a surprise because we were just checking the machines out at Sears, not planning to buy that day, when the sales lady told us about the great deal on the open box. So, I got to go home with a brand spanking new sewing machine when I wasn't expecting to : D

Would you recommend the machine to others? Why? Definitely, you can't get much more machine for the price, even the regular price. This Kenmore is made by Janome, so I would highly recommend Janome machines as well. I can't afford a Bernina or Viking, you would pay well over $1000 for all of the bells and whistles I have on my Kenmore.

What factors do you think are important to consider when looking for a new machine? I want a smooth running motor and a nice balanced seam. My machine has auto tension, and I rarely have to mess with it. I really like my needle down button, and would probably require one on any new machine I bought. I think I will look for a bigger harp on my next purchase, it would make machine quilting much easier.

Do you have a dream machine? Well, I guess my dream machine would be a top of the line Bernina or Viking. I don't know about embroidery though. I prefer the way hand embroidery looks, but I am sure I could have fun with machine embroidery too LOL

Pincushion Giveaway results!

2009-06-01T07:47:00.002-05:00

Ok ladies, I used an online random number generator and the winner is number 118!!!!

alana said...: Beautiful pincushion and turquoise is my favorite color!! I hope I win! Thanks for the giveaway!

Yay Alana! I will be emailing you : ) Glad you share my love of turquoise. I hope you enjoy the pincushion.

I just want to thank everyone for all of the lovely comments, y'all were very sweet. I really enjoyed participating in this swap and hope to do another one soon.

Sew Mama Sew Giveaway prize

2009-05-27T18:30:00.004-05:00

Sorry I am a little late. Here are the pictures of the pincushion I am giving away. It is the pattern from Anna Maria Horner's book Seams to Me. I made myself one a few weeks ago, and I love it. So nice for carrying around with you while you are doing some hand sewing. It is nice and big too, room for lots of pins. I am including a pack of turquoise head pins with the cushion.

Everyone who responded to the previous post will definitely be included in the drawing : D

Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day

2009-05-27T10:43:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to let everyone know that I am participating in this. Will be back later today with pictures of the goodies : D

Mother's Day in Cajun Country

2009-05-12T14:14:00.006-05:00

Down here in South Louisiana we celebrate Mother's Day a little differently ; ) We had a crawfish boil. My Mom and Dad came over for the day and we boiled mud bugs. The girls had a good time taking pictures, there were over 190 taken on my camera.
We had 60 pounds of crawfish total, and this little ziploc bag was all that was left! Yeah, we are some pigs. I know Austin ate 10 - 15 pounds by himself. This is the sort of thing I eat until I am sick. We only eat it 3 or 4 times a year, they aren't cheap, so you have to get your fill when you get the chance lol

We also boiled potatoes, corn, onions, mushrooms, sausage and garlic. I ate half a head of garlic myself. Chad said I finally smell normal this morning : D lololol

My mom had also made two banana puddings for dessert. Let's just say I didn't bother eating dinner that night. I probably ate enough to last me the week. The kids had fun swimming and the guys watched golf. It was a very nice and relaxing Mother's Day.

The crawfish were HUGE, here is Savannah holding a couple up for the camera.

Paw Paw (my Dad) playing with Sam and Ava.

Samuel and Ava playing in the blowup kiddie pool my Mom bought for them.

Sydney Claire is such a cut up lol

A couple more random pictures of the pigout lol

Weekend Sewing

2009-05-05T08:36:00.002-05:00

After seeing all of the great projects from the book Weekend Sewing, I broke down and bought it. I don't buy many sewing books, I would love to, but it isn't usually in my budget. This book was well worth the money. There are at least 6 projects in there that I plan on making. My first project was the Trapeze Sundress. Except, I shorted it to a tunic. I just took 8 inches off the bottom of the pattern. I did have to shorten the pockets after doing this though, because they stuck out from the bottom of the shirt.

I am not sure if I made an error when I was copying the pattern or it is just the way the top fits, but I had a problem with the top gaping badly. I just put a box pleat in the middle and that seemed to solve the problem. I had to make a size large *gasp* to fit around my chest, which made it very tent like. This is fine right now, since I am pregnant lol However, if I was making this when not preggo, I would narrow the sides down a little. Of course, if I weren't pregnant, my boobs wouldn't be so darn big and I would probably fit in a medium lol

These pictures are not so great, I took them at the end of a long day. I was tired and not in the mood, which shows on my face lol Also, pictures kind of freak me out right now, I don't realize how *full* my face, chest and arms are until I see a picture of myself. I probably should have just left my head out of the shot, but Sydney didn't listen to me, and I didn't feel like cropping. I actually wore a white cardigan over the tunic, but wanted to photograph it without. Here is another belly shot, I am 21 weeks. ( Oh, and please excuse the crap under the patio. This is what was in the garage and it is being stored here until dh can build a new shed. Our old one was crushed by a tree in Hurricane Gustav. Sydney wasn't supposed to get this in the picture either.)

some sewing and knitting

2009-05-02T13:44:00.004-05:00

Time sure flies by, I can't believe it has been over a week since my last post. I really have lots to blog about, I just have a hard time getting around to actually blogging it. Really, my problem is getting the pictures taken and uploaded to the computer. I have a million ideas of projects I want to do running through my head. It doesn't help that I am hooked on knitting again. I have quilts, clothing, and knitting I want to get done LOL Not to mention that I want to make some heirloom clothes for this baby girl, I love delicate little clothes with hand embroidery on them.

Here are a couple of completed, or mostly completed projects. I made the pincushion from Anna Maria Horner's Seams to Me. I have had this book for awhile and this is my first project. I love many projects in this book, so I was glad to get one finished. Mine came out a little wonky, but I think it is because I got the wrong interfacing. I was in a hurry to do it, instead of waiting to get the right stuff. Overall, though I am happy with it. I love this design because I am always doing handwork and this pincushion is perfect for toting around everything you need. I have my embroidery scissors, thread or embroidery floss and anything else I need tucked nicely into the little holding spot in the middle. The only problem I had with the pattern is she says to sew a 3/8 inch seam for the patchwork around the middle. I had to sew a 5/8 inch seam to get my round outside part to match up with my middle tube. She does say you may have to adjust it, so just thought I would mention the difference if anyone decides to sew it.

I am also finished with the knitting for this baby's first little sweater. This is a pattern from a Debbie Bliss book I checked out from the library. I started it before I knew whether this little one was a boy or girl, I figured grey was a good neutral. I used a Rowan 4ply Merino wool. I had *just* enough yarn! You see the piece coiled up at the bottom? That is what was left! LOL The sides still need to be seamed up and the buttons sewn on. Also, I think I am going to add a picot edging around the bottom and sleeves in pink to make it look more girly. I just love little baby knits, I have already started a little hat and have plans for another sweater and several pairs of booties. I also want to make some daygowns and a quilt for this baby and about a dozen other things LOL I have about 20 weeks, I had better get moving! (click on the picture for a better view, knitting is so hard to photograph.)

I also bought two more books. Material Obsession, which I saw on Amber's blog, and just couldn't resist. When I went to Amazon, you could get Weekend Sewing with it for a discount. Well, with all the buzz about Weekend Sewing, of course I bought both LOL I already have all the pieces cut out for the Trapeze Sundress, but I am making a tunic instead. I saw one on Made by Rae and she is pregnant too, so figured it would work for a maternity top. I should have it finished today. I love that book, so many great patterns! It is the first time I had to trace my patterns from a pattern sheet with all of the patterns superimposed over each other like that. My eyes kept crossing trying to keep straight which piece I was tracing lol Not my favorite thing to do , but very worth it, I am sure.

Chain Piecing is my friend

2009-04-24T11:17:00.006-05:00

Here is the progress on my Mom's quilt. This quilt is a little more involved than my first one. Thank goodness I heard about chain piecing. I can't imagine how long this would take me if I did one piece of a block at a time. I cut the pieces for several blocks and do them assembly style. I have a good little rhythm going with my sewing and ironing. There are 6 different steps for each quilt block. I need 80 blocks for a twin size quilt. I have about 25 blocks completely finished and another 40 over halfway done. I am getting there slowly LOL I am having to be really careful with my piecing, lots of little points that have to meet. The smallest squares are an inch square once sewn together.

Here is a bunch of squares halfway done.

This one has to be redone because my points aren't meeting up. I have been doing pretty good, there have only been about six that I have had to redo. I don't pin either, I find it easier to just maneuver the blocks while sewing. I do this with most of my sewing, I only use pins on rare occasions.
Here is a picture of some of the finished squares in the arrangement used for the finished top. I am really loving how this looks. I found the pattern in a quilt book from the library. I really need a felt wall for the final auditioning. It is gonna be fun putting all of this together.
A closeup of a finished square.
Here is my little helper, Zsa Zsa. Everytime I start sewing she plants her furry self right in back of my sewing machine. She loves to sleep on my ironing mat too. Nothing that comes from my house is pet free, that's for sure.

Drumroll Please......

2009-04-21T14:04:00.004-05:00

Baby number 8 is a GIRL!!!!!!!!!

I was almost sure she was a boy LOL The boys are a little disappointed, they really wanted a brother to even everything out. Now the girls have a big lead with 5 girls to 3 boys ; ) No name yet, I was settled on Sophia, but Chad let me know that he did not like that name. Since she belongs to him too, I figure we can pick out another name. I can't wait to start sewing for her! I found a local sewing machine dealership that also sells gorgeous fabric. It is expensive heirloom fabric, but little baby clothes don't take much. I am almost finished knitting a little sweater for her. I started it before knowing boy or girl, so it is a deep grey. Since she is a girl, I will add a picot edge on it to make it more feminine.

Everything looked great on the ultrasound. We could see her moving around and drinking her amniotic fluid YUM LOL As many times as I have done this, God's creation never stops amazing me! To think that only a few months ago she was a single cell, and in a few more months she will be a full grown newborn! She has already grown so much from my 12 week ultrasound, I cannot wait to see what she looks like!

edited to add: sorry the font is so big, I cannot for the life of me figure out how to fix it!

Big Belly Pics

2009-04-20T14:32:00.002-05:00

Well, here I am in all my preggo glory LOL These were taken a week ago. The lighting is terrible, it was storming outside, so these were taken in my bathroom mirror. I am 18 weeks here and I think I have grown over the last week. I get *really* big, especially when the baby is over 9 lbs. Wait until you see my belly at the end! I have been feeling the baby kick, which is my favorite part of being pregnant. It is funny, because the movement gets more pronounced each day. Soon, Chad and the kids will be able to feel the kicks. Tomorrow is my big ultrasound when we will hopefully be able to see if this little one is a boy or a girl! I really don't have a feeling either way, so it will be a surprise. Either or is fine with me : ) Several of the children are coming with us, I think they are more excited than I am lol I will do a post tomorrow afternoon to let everyone know!

Closing in the garage

2009-04-04T19:43:00.003-05:00

Chad has been working on closing in our 600 square foot garage. We never put the cars in there (the 15 passenger van is too big lol), so it was just a lot of wasted space. Half of it will be a gameroom for the kids and the other half will be a laundry room/ sewing studio for me!!!! He plans on having it done for Mother's Day, how sweet is that : ) I cannot wait. We will have a sewing station each for me and all 3 older girls, plus shelving and a window seat. The laundry part of it will have a utility sink and folding counter. But the best thing of all will be my custom built island cutting table. I think he said it will be 4' by 8'. It will be so awesome not to have to cut my fabric on my bed anymore. He is also going to run electricity to it, so that I can put my sewing maching there when I need to quilt a quilt. The large flat surface will make things so much easier.

He has gotten a lot done on the inside, but it is boring not pretty stuff, like framing walls and running plumbing and electricity, so there isn't really much to see. However, this weekend he finished the outside. It really looks great, much better than those old 1970's garage doors that used to be there lol

Here is a view of the outside in progress, still so ugly.

And here it is finished, except for paint and doorknobs. Samuel had to model for the picture lol We will be painting the door a dark steel blue and the hardey plank siding a pale grey. I havn't decided if the trim will be white or black, probably white.

Here is a picture from the inside, not pretty! I will share pictures once he gets the sheet rock up, so y'all can see how the space will be. We found some pretty grey ceramic tiles for cheap at Home Depot, so I am thinking of painting with blues and greys. Picking paint colors makes me so nervous. My sewing studio will be on the side with the window. Oh, and all the lumber for the framing was free. It came from a window and door place that throws away all of the framing the doors are shipped in. Perfectly good lumber that they just throw away. And both new windows were repurposed from my BIL's house, they are adding on and were just going to freecycle these windows. We did have to buy the door, but got a really good deal on it. Good thing I like simple, those fancy doors are expensive!

Quilt finally done!

2009-04-04T16:06:00.006-05:00

I finally took pictures of my first finished quilt! I am really happy with it and thoroughly enjoyed the whole process. I just love this Urban Chiks 1974 fabric line. I decided to just do straight line quilting in the sashing and the border. I found the squares looked better without quilting inside them, I think the quilted sashing sets them off. I pieced the back with large pieces of several of the top fabrics. I love pieced backs. I am not crazy with how the binding turned out, I cut it on the bias and should have cut it on the grain so the polka dots would look right. I am already piecing the top of another quilt for my mom, I think many more quilts will be in my future : )

Back of the quilt.

Close up of quilting.

Catching up!

2009-03-31T09:12:00.002-05:00

Well, I am finally feeling better! The nausea has been gone for the last couple of weeks, but we have been so busy, that I havn't had any time to blog. Some things that happened in my absence.

We lost our sweet little beagle, Pixie : ( She was hit by a car. She never went in the road, I don't know why she did that day, but thank God she was killed instantly. We found her right after it happened and she was still warm. We were able to love on her and tell her goodbye. This happened at the beginning of my pregnancy, and I was hysterical, the crazy hormones made everything worse. I am better now, though I miss her everyday.

The girls had two dance competitions on back to back weekends. Thankfully, my morning sickness was almost completely over. It was exhausting, but the girls had a blast and did great! The competition was in Baton Rouge, so we were able to drive home each night.

We took a trip to Houston for my best friend's grandson's 1st birthday. This was the weekend after the two weekends of dance competition. Can you say tired? LOL It was worth the effort though, we had a great time. My best friend Melinda is in her early 40's and her daughter, Kristin is pregnant for her 3rd child. Actually, Kristin and I are due 2 weeks apart! How crazy is that?! When I met Melinda, Kristin was 7 years old and I was 22 and pregnant for my second child, Parker. Now she is 23 and married with 2 kids and one on the way. Where does the time go? I think this means that I am getting old LOL

Most of that happened in the last month. Before that nothing happened, I pretty much just laid in my bed and was miserable. I am SO HAPPY to be past all of that! Except for my allergies, I feel great. I am sporting quite a belly : ) I always get pretty big, and being number 8, my uterus just kind of goes right to it's pregnancy size LOL I am 16 weeks now, so I should start feeling the little one move soon. I can't wait, feeling the baby move is my favorite part of pregnancy. I even love the karate kicks at the end. I will take a belly picture soon.

Oh, and I finally started sewing again! I finished an apron for a swap partner that is two months late : O I know, bad me. I am gonna have to add some extra goodies to make up for her wait. I also finished the binding on my quilt and started my Mom's quilt. I will have pictures soon, I promise! It feels so good to be creating again, I really really missed it.

I am still ALIVE (sorta)

2009-02-20T08:22:00.002-06:00

This morning sickness is kicking my butt!!! I had it with all my others, but I don't know if it is being old this time or what, but I feel like I am dying! The reason I havn't posted in so long is because nothing is happening except me laying on the couch whining and watching way too much tv. My house is a WRECK and my poor kids are now behind in their school. I am almost 11 weeks, so it *should* be over soon (please God!) Even worse than the morning sickness is the total lack of motivation to do anything. I guess it is hard to want to do anything when you are nauseous 24/7, but I am starting to get depressed. Nothing interests me, not sewing or going somewhere, nothing. Of course, moving makes me even more nauseous, so I guess this feeling is understandable. I just want to be me again. I have always loved being pregnant, except for the first trimester, the first trimester sucks! So far, this morning I feel kind of ok, but this has happened before only to be hit with full blown nausea out of nowhere, so I don't want to get my hopes up. So sorry this is such a depressing post, but I don't feel good enough to be fake and pretend everything is great, and it feels kinda good to get these feelings out.

Oh, and I have already gained 5 pounds!!! This is because I have to eat something every 2 hours or the nausea is greatly intensified. Actually, the only time I feel decent is when I am eating, so I tend to eat more than I should just to feel good for a little longer. And I have to eat something with protein or carbs, not just fruit and vegetables to feel better, so lots of calories going in. Oh well, I will worry about the weight later. This little one is definitely worth it, but I will be so happy when this part of the pregnancy is over.

I promise to have happy posts soon with belly pics and cute stuff being made LOL Thank you if you actually read this, I don't blame anyone if they ignore it.

: D

2009-01-29T17:32:00.003-06:00

So, where have I been and what have I been doing? Well, actually not much more than laying around only doing what I absolutely must! LOL You see, I am expecting a new little one and he or she has been making me quite nauseous and tired! I have been dying to share my good news, but I was waiting until my first u/s to make sure everything looked good. This is quite an accomplishment for me because I am usually the one shouting it from the rooftops the minute that positive test turns pink LOL I am still announcing my pregnancy a lot earlier than most women do, but I just can't keep it in anymore! My little bean looked perfect on the u/s yesterday with a strong and steady heartbeat. I am due September 14 or sometime after that (I have never
delivered before my due date). The children are beyond excited as are Chad and I. Yes, this was planned, we have actually been trying for about a year. So far, I can't sew or knit, it makes me nauseous. I have been trying for a couple of weeks to finish the handsewing on the binding of my quilt, but can only do a little bit at a time. I can't lie, I really don't enjoy the beginning of pregnancy, feeling sick 24 hours a day is no fun, especially with other children and a house to take care of. But, I know it will get better around 11 or 12 weeks and then I will love being pregnant : )

Tine interviews me

2009-01-22T17:34:00.003-06:00

Sorry guys, I have been horrible with my blogging and everything really. I have a really good excuse, I promise! I can't share that excuse just yet ; ) A few weeks ago, Tine was interviewed on her blog, and I thought it was so interesting that I asked her to interview me : ) She sent me the questions over a week ago, sorry for just getting to them, Tine : )

1: You have a 7 kids....did you grow up in a large family?

Actually, no, I only have one brother that is 4 1/2 years younger than me. I really don't know why I wanted such a large family. When I was a teenager I didn't even want kids, how crazy is that? Funny thing, my brother has 5 children. Maybe having a small family makes people want bigger families LOL

2: I know your children love the beautiful clothes you sew. They pick out patterns and fabrics, how did you teach them to do that?

I really didn't teach them, they do watch me and all 3 girls love fashion, probably more than me. I guess it is just something innately in them. We love to watch Project Runway together, and my oldest, Sydney, seems to really have a talent for clothing design.

3: You have so many responsibilities...what would be a typical day's routine?

Hmmm, LOL I will give you a typical weekday routine including homeschooling.
I wake up around 6:30 with my dh and we drink coffee and watch the beginning of Good Morning America, I love our mornings together. He goes to work and I get on the computer and eat breakfast. After my breakfast, I wake the kids up and take my shower while the kids eat. Then we all do chores together and start school. Each child takes a turn with me to go over that days lessons and so I can explain anything they don't understand. Of course, there are lots of interruptions from Samuel and Ava during this time. I really wish this would go more smoothly than it does, but such is life with 7 kids! LOL Nothing ever really goes smoothly. We eat lunch around 12:30 and the kids are supposed to be finished with their schoolwork by 2pm. That isn't always the case : / After this, every day is different. All 3 girls are in ballet, and Savannah takes a sewing class on Thursdays. Austin plays golf and works at the golf course, and no I havn't let him get his driver's license yet lol Wednesday is my only day that I don't have to run someone somewhere. Dh is home by 3:00 a couple of days a week, but the other days he works with his brother in his plumbing business. We usually cook dinner together on the days he is home by 3. The other days we have leftovers. I really don't have much of a routine for the evenings, it just isn't possible with the kids extracurricular activities. I am usually in bed by 10:30 or 11. If I do get to sew on any particular day, it usually happens in the afternoons or in the evenings before bed.

4: Do you have an all-time favourite movie or book? If so which one?

Well, everyone on here knows how much I love the Twilight Series! LOL I would say my favorite all time movie would be Legends of the Fall. It is such a tragic and sad movie, but I still watch it over and over again. I adore Brad Pitt : ) That is a beautiful man, inside and out! I also love Steel Magnolia's and can't even count how many times I have watched it. It was filmed in Natchitoches, Louisiana, which is only a couple of hours away from where I live. Just a great story, of course it is a sad one too. I tend to like sad movies, what does that say about me?

5: What makes you happy?

My family makes me happy, of course. I also enjoy my time alone with my husband. Sewing and creating is right up there, as well. It really relaxes me and makes me feel like I have accomplished something. I love to look at beautiful things in nature and art. Seeing anything beautiful immediately lifts my spirits.

Great questions, Tine! I hope I adequately answered them : ) Just wanted to add what a lovely person Tine is. She makes beautiful quilts and other lovely things as well : ) Most of all, her genuine kindness shows through in her blog. I really really wish you didn't live so far away in Denmark, Tine. You are someone I would just love to meet in real life : )

Want to be part of it? Follow these instructions:

1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

A little knitting.....

2009-01-18T12:39:00.003-06:00

While I was having my sewing funk, I did get a little bit of knitting done. I had this 100 Pure Wool that was supposed to be a diaper cover, but I don't cloth diaper anymore, so I figured I would make a scarf. I picked the Brioche stitch. An easy repeatable stitch, but a little more interesting than plain knitting. It was an enjoyable project and the scarf is nice and warm.

I enjoyed knitting my scarf so much, I decided to knit another one. We have a brand new yarn store here in Lafayette called the Vermillion Yarn Company (I am pretty sure that is the name lol). Dh and I had a lunch date Friday and afterwards we went check out the new yarn shop. It has a male owner and he has beautiful yarn. The other yarn store here in town sold more of the novelty yarns (not my taste), so I usually bought online. I am so excited that I can see my yarn before I buy it now! He has mostly natural fibers, which is what I prefer. I bought some beautiful dark gray Merino wool by Debbie Bliss. It was 30% off too : )

I know these pictures aren't great, I had a heck of a time getting a good shot, even outside in beautiful light. If you click on the picture you can see it better.

Here is the Brioche stitch pattern if anyone is interested : )

Cast on an even number of stitches

Foundation row *Yo, sl 1 wyib, k1; repeat from * to end
Row 1 *Yo, sl1 wyib, k2tog (sl st and yo of previous row); repeat
from * to end.
Repeat row 1.

I just kept repeating this until my scarf was long enough. VERY easy!