Soggy, Stinky Towels

We have pretty lived at the pool this summer.

Thank you, Mom and Dad, for buying a house in a neighborhood with a private pool. Really, it has made our first summer back in the sweat-inducing heat much, much more comfortable.

The only problem is that I am washing a load of beach towels everyday. And sometimes twice a day. I am not kidding people. It's really starting to get to me.

So when I saw $4 beach towels at Targhetto, I snatched some- and then I thought of this lady's last post, and thought hmmm... wouldn't it be awesome-spice if I made them something that wouldn't get left in a smelly pile in the corner of the bathromm (or worse, the car)?

And thus the birth of the Towel-Dress Thingys and the Towel-Almost-Robe.

Please, don't try to reuse these names. They are being copyrighted as we speak.




Now, I was going to just buy the pattern from Dana, but her patterns only went up to size 5t, and Porter-Pot is in the final stage of that size, so I thought: hey, I'll just wing it.

The girlies were fairly simple. Just wrap and and add straps.




Porters... eh. I did not add a tie to the robe since I knew Porter would just end up using it as a zipline from the girls' top bunk down to their dresser (true story, by the way. Except he used three different belts tied together).

And since all I did was cut and sew, then cut and sew... and then cut a bit more and sewed a lot more, it ended up resembling Japenese warrior's attire. But, hey, he loves it.





And I didn't have any velcro, so that's why my kids are clutching their new towel-thingies shut in every picture. Don't judge me and my lazy sewing, I figured that they probably wouldn't use the velcro to keep them closed anyways.

Little Miss Adi wanted to demonstrate how well her Towel Dress-Thingy works on our tree swing.




And when we are done swimming, the kiddos can wear these home, so at least they wont grow mold in the car anymore.




That's the plan, anyway.

Sew Crazy

Here he is. The teeny, tiny boy that has done a number on my body these last few months. This is actually him 11 weeks ago, but I never did post this pic from my ultrasound.

Now I know trying to discern what is going on in an ultrasound for the most of us is like trying to read braille. It just doesn't make sense. But if you look close enough on the right side, you can see his face. Can you see his two little eyes?

If you find the eyes, then you will be able to see his little nose. And guess what? It appears as though he will be our fourth child that was gifted my exact nose.

Doesn't it look flat on the end? The funny thing about that is when I was in labor with Porter-Pot, right before he came out, Orrin said, "Let's just hope this one doesn't have your nose." The nurses were horrified! I think a few of their mouths hung open (yes, I had several nurses, it was a like a party in there).

I laughed pretty darn hard since my nose is a mystery to my family. It doesn't belong to my parents, nor their parents, but it seems to be a strong enough trait that my kiddos all end up with it. Yes, you read that right, there I was ready to push out a baby and I was laughing.

"It's an inside joke," I tried to convince the nurses. I don't think they ever forgave OP though, seeing as how they stopped sneaking him meals.

It's not the best picture, mostly because I was too lazy to scan it and decided to just take a pic with my camera to transport it onto here.

I felt a little bad when I realized that I haven't really posted anything about this new buckaroo who is getting ready to make his grand entrance into this world. Trust me, we are so excited for him (Porter the most, I think). I've been sewing up a storm to get everything ready for him.

A plethora of blankets:

Swaddling types,



And the big kind that I mainly use for covering up while nursing in public.




The hand-quilted sort of blankies. This dumb owl blanket that I decided to quilt around every. single. owl. Not smart, Courtney. Definitely not smart.




Little bibs,



burpcloths,




and onesies,




Let's not forget the binky clips (let's hope this kid likes pacifiers, 'cause I have about twice this many),




A blanket made to fit inside of his car seat,




And more. But they are packed away already (some already in Arizona), so I will leave them up to your imagination.

I just really haven't had the time to take these pictures, what with this move looming over my head. But, I decided that I had better make time, or else it just plain wouldn't get done.

And I need to toot my sewing horn at least a little bit, right?

We've also gotten his car seat, stroller, swing, pack 'n play, a bumbo... etc. You know, all those things we had and then I got rid of before we moved? Yup. Awesome. Not to mention the other essentials; diapers, socks, wipes, diapers, onesies, outfits, nail clippers, diapers, jammies, sleep 'n plays, diapers... did I mention diapers?

And yet, there's always more stuff to buy, isn't there? *Sigh*

I've also made little gift sets for the kiddos to get when I leave to have this little man.

The girls get these:





Baby dolls to love, a diaper bag, a variety of blankets, burpcloths, bibs, their own binky clips, headbands, boppy pillows... everything to make them feel like little mommies themselves.





Now, what to do for Porter? And then it hit me. The kid loves dogs. Seriously. He loves them. So here's what he's getting:



An adorable puppy to pack around, a hobo bag, a dog bed, a food dish, a bone, a collar and a leash. Oh, and the puppy's own blanket, too.

So, in case you thought I've been just sitting around here on my laurels, you now have picture proof that I've been sitting on my laurels, sewing!

Please allow me to introduce...

A wicked vampire bride, an oh-so-glamorous prom queen and an unmasked Batman.


Well, I finally did it. I dragged the kiddos out into 50 degree weather without proper layers (umm, you wouldn't be able to see their hand-tailored costumes if they had on jackets for warmth) today.

Fortunately for them the little shoot only lasted 5 minutes. Unfortunately for me, the shoot only lasted 5 minutes.

I didn't get nearly as many shots as I wanted, but it was cold and Porter kept stripping off his costume...

Oh, and did I mention that I forgot to charge my camera's battery so as soon as I turned it on "low battery" was flashing at me?

Duh.

Anywho, scroll on down to see the chillens in all their glory. Oh, and please forgive me for the number of photos, but I couldn't choose favorites!


First off, there is Mini-Batman.

He would not wear his mask. No amount of coaxing could get him to leave it on at all.


And here he is flexing his muscles for the camera.


Don't you love his "flexing face"?



I designed and made the main part of Mr. Porter Pot's costume. I didn't like any of the patterns I could find in stores (can you say girly-man?), Not that his costume turned out any better, but at least I know I did it!

I did, however, use a pattern for the boots and the belt. And those three things took me longer to sew than the whole rest of the outfit.

Go figure.



Here is Little Miss Vampire Bride (who refuses to wear her vampire teeth that we've spent the last two months searching for). The editing on this photo is actually a bit freaky.


I also designed and made this little outfit. The veil is not at all how I imagined it, but Miss Nae likes it, so I guess I can be satisfied.


She HAD to have fake blood. HAD TO HAVE IT.


Don't you love the necklace?





And now, Miss Piper Pauline as the Prom Queen.



Another messed-up Courtney Original. This is actually the second dress that I made for her. The first one was too light.

But I had a bit of a difficult time figuring out the waist on this second one.


Piper loved posing for this one. She wants to be a model when she grows up.

I hope she doesn't really pursue that dream.


Pip is the only one of the three who really loves her costume and does not want to take it off. Ever.


This is why I love this little punk-rock-Prom-Queen:


Now, keep your fingers crossed for me that these costumes will make it until Halloween and won't get lost or destroyed.

Ghosts of Halloweens Past...

I was perusing through my old Halloween photos today and came across these gems.

It has been the only year I have been able to coordinate all three kiddo's costumes (the girls are just plain too opinionated sometimes. Don't know where they get that *wink*).

So, without further ado, I present to you:

Halloween 2007
**are you as excited as I am to scroll down?**


*you should be!*

Here's Miss Adi Nae as "Dorothy" (putting words in quotation marks make them important. Just ask Pipes).

This pic reminds me of the part in the part in the Merry Old Land of Oz song when Dorothy asks, "Can you even dye my eyes to match my gown?"


And here's Miss Pips as "Glenda the Good Witch".

No, she is not a princess (as EVERYONE asked that night).

This dress was the most difficult think I have ever sewn in my entire life.
And that includes when I made Piper's blessing dress.

And, finally last, but never least, Mr. Porter Pot as

The Scarecrow.

Doesn't he just melt your insides?

Or does he only have the affect on me?

Oh yes, I made all three costumes. And that may sound (and maybe even look) impressive. But please, please, PLEASE do not look to closely at the pics.

The impressiveness falls a bit when you see all of the mistakes.

A Halloween Preview....

But just a peek!

**By the way, Miss Adi Nae wants to be a Vampire Bride. Perhaps Mommy talks a bit too much about Twilight?**

"Everybody but me has one..."

was what Adi told me after school the other day.

She's talking about scarfs, of course.

I bit my tongue and didn't remind her that it is 90 degrees outside and scarves are more of a hindrance than a fashion statement.

I also didn't remind her about the 5 scarves she had last year and refused to wear.

I understand how fickle fashion can be (even when you're six), so I tried to remedy her problem with a little bit of knit fabric from Hobby Lobby.

I even added some of the fabric to a couple of pairs of cut-off jeans to make the matchy-matchy skirts...

She loves the scarf.

So much that she immediately removed it after I took her picture and has not put it back on.

Piper, however, hasn't taken it off since I finished hers.

Oh, I just can't wait for the teenage years.

*sigh*

Daddy's Girl

One more creation to share with ya'all today (and then I really must do some chores).

I was sorting through some of our clothes for a yard sale a couple months ago and came across a couple of OP's shirts that no longer *ahem* fit him. I especially loved a certain button up-polo shirt and just hated the idea of selling it for 50 cents.

Then I thought about the Pioneer Motto:

Fix it up.
Wear it out.
Make it do,
Or do without.

Honestly, I am not one who usually adheres to this policy, but I was feeling a bit on the adventurous side that day and came up with this:

The Daddy's Girl Shirt

How very dramatic, I know.

It only took a few hours, some sweat, and a more than a little grumbling. But there it is.

I saved the buttons down the front, the short sleeves and detached the collar from the original shirt. Then, using one of the girls sleeveless shirts as a guide, I cut out the main part of the shirt over said-buttons then gathered up the sleeves and re-attached them (and added small elastic into a sewn-in casing on the arms).

I then took a fat quarter of fabric that I had laying around and sewed in three small casings into which went some more small elastic.

The neck line was the trickiest part, and I had to redo it about 5 times- and it still ain't perfect- but after re-attaching the collar, it all turned out pretty well.

This all may sound simple, but I think my un-picker may be out of commission after this project!

And just so you don't start thinking that I left my princess-cowgirl out, Miss Piper also has one made from another of OP's ill-fitting tops too- just no picture of it at this time.

Funning Around...

Today is Clown Day in Pip's class. The teacher invited all the kiddies to dress up as, well, clowns.

This presented a conundrum for Piper.

Everyhting in her tiny little body screams to be pretty. She loves to wear all things sparkly, pink, and princessy (yes, that is a word... now). So when her teacher (whom she loves) tells her to dress like a clown in miss-matching clothes and crazy hair, Piper is a bit torn.

I came across this rainbow-ish fabric at Walmart and immediantly thought of my baby girl. It just looked like her. And thus, the clown-fairy-princess dress was born.

I used the same idea as the these dresses that I had made previously (which was not easy with this organza-ish material), and created a giant flower to cover up a couple mistakes in the front of the dress.

**And, if you look closely, you can see the long strings that I forgot to cut off. My ninth grade sewing teacher would so flunk me if she saw my horrible finishing job.**

That was as clowinsh as she would go. No mis-matching shoes, no funny clown face-paint.

Ain't she a cutie?

Sew Crazy

My amiga Harmony came over yesterday, and after a healthy lunch of Wendy's hamburgers, we released all of our crazy kids outside to play and get wild with water while us ladies got wild with the fabric.

We sewed for about 4 hours straight.... oh my. By the end I was ready to throw my sew machine in the garbage and just walk away. Luckily, Harmony was the voice of reason and kept me focused on the end results, which were:

Porter's 4th of July shirt

Holiday dresses for the girlies with matching hair clips

And a couple of other fun little summer dresses.

Once again, we ventured into the land of no-patterns. Harmony had bought some really cute dresses like these at a boutique, and we figured we could do the same for a fraction of the price (and we did).

I have a few other dresses to finish, but I'm not sure when I will work up the courage to pull out the sewing beast again...