just do it

When people see something I've sewn

I often hear "I wish I could sew like that!"

or some other sentiment along those lines.

Just do it.

Really!

The only way to be able to sew 'like that'

is to start sewing.

I haven't always been able to sew like this.

Almost every time I make something,

Tyler comments on how my skills have improved.

And he's right!

This was my very first clothing refashion

almost exactly 2 years ago

and this was this week's.

Big difference!

(I see my photography skills have improved - thankfully - too)

But

I would have never been able to make what I make today

without learning

yesterday.

I'm looking forward to what I'll be able to make tomorrow.

So.

You want to be able to sew?

Start sewing.

You want to paint?

Start painting.

You want to ride a bucking bronco?

Start riding.

Just don't expect to stay on the beast right out of the chute.

2 hours at Carol Ann Cross

Salsa

We do

a lot of salsa around here.

the food - not the dance.

It's relatively healthy

inexpensive

and everyone likes it.

The youngest capable person usually gets the job of making it

although

Tyler or I will make it on occasion.

Our salsa is our version of Stephanie's recipe

that I got years ago at the Martha Stewart ladies night at Central.

(That was a good night - I learned to decoupage that night

and I also learned that you could (gasp) make your own tortillas)

We like to make it fresh as we need it

which is often a couple of times a week.

Sort-of Stephanie's Salsa

in the bowl of a food processor, put

2 garlic cloves

a small chunk of onion - maybe 2 Tbs worth

a jalapeno (more or less depending on how hot you like it,

and how hot your peppers are

we've got some wicked hot jalapenos)

a pinch or two of cilantro

1 -15 oz can of diced tomatoes

whir it till the veggies are all chopped up

then add another can of diced tomatoes

and whir it again for just a few seconds this time.

If you've got any Banana Pepper Rings in the fridge,

adding a Tbs or so of the juice makes it extra tasty.

~

This is super easy for us to make

because we keep most of the veggies in the freezer at all times.

I buy 3 lbs of peeled garlic at Sam's and keep it in the freezer

and we grab out cloves as we need them.

It lasts us about 3 months.

Sure

fresh is better, but it's a hassle to peel the cloves

and for some reason, garlic bulbs go bad really quickly in this house.

We run a bunch of jalapenos through the food processor at one time,

spread them out on cookie sheets and freeze

and then seal in zipper bags & store in the freezer.

It's easy to just grab out however much we need.

Cilantro we use fresh, but who could ever use a whole bunch??

After we've made a batch or two of salsa

I stick whats left of the bundle in the freezer - as is.

We just pinch off what we need.

When it runs out - I buy another bunch and we start the cycle again.

~

all this salsa talk is making me hungry....

7 quick takes - late August edition

1.

Tyler and I went out on a date Tuesday evening.

It’s been quite awhile since we had a proper date.

Proper date meaning

we aren’t making a quick run to the grocery store…

It wasn’t exactly for our anniversary

which sorta got lost in all the busy of late

but more in honor of it.

Less pressure that way, I think.

2.

We went to the movies on said date

and had a blast.

We saw The Other Guys

which I don’t exactly recommend, per se,

but we did both laugh out loud

several times.

And we had the theater pretty much to ourselves.

There may or may not have been some kissin’ going on.

3.

While waiting for show-time

Tyler gave me an anniversary gift.

(I gave him a trip to Belize ~ that counts, right?)

Money for a camera!!!

He didn’t even know I’d been eyeing some;

He just figured it was time for me to step up a bit.

I’m a little nervous about my lack-of-retention

though.

I was planning to wait

‘til I got next year’s challenge money to buy one

in hopes of my brain returning by then

so I could actually learn to use the thing.

4.

Josiah was playing with fabric scraps a few weeks ago

and put together a quilt for the girls.

He got to operate the foot pedal

while I sewed.

I’m glad I put my own sewing aside to do this with him;

I’m not always good at that.

Actually, just 2 days earlier

Jeremiah had wanted to sew something

and I told him I was too busy to help,

he’d have to do it on his own.

I wish I could have a do-over.

5.

Speaking of Josiah

he is really maturing lately.

That boy has been a challenge

pretty much his whole life,

so this is big.

6.

Lexi is an awful lot like her brother

Josiah.

Enough said.

Ya’ll pray for us.

7.

Seriously

Ya’ll pray for us, would you?

We are trying to discern God’s will for our family.

This is nothing new

we’re always trying to discern His will

but

we’re thinking He may be taking us

in a bit of a different direction than we’ve been heading

so we need to be extra-discerning

the perfect coleslaw recipe

I can hardly believe

I used to buy Kraft coleslaw dressing

to make my slaw.

I hadn't found a recipe that was to my liking,

and that was the best I'd come up with.

It's been years since I've even made coleslaw.

Last Fall

there was recipe in the paper for KFC's slaw

so I saved it.

Of course

I've tweaked it a bit

based on what I had in the fridge

and what I like.

And now

I give you

the recipe

for

perfect coleslaw

1 medium sized head of cabbage, finely shredded

then chopped just a bit so the shreds aren't too long

1 carrot, finely shredded

about 2 Tbs finely minced onion (fresh, not dried)

1/4 c. milk

1/3 c. sour cream

1/2 c. mayo

2 1/2 Tbs honey (or 1/4 - 1/3 c. sugar, if you must use it)

1 1/2 Tbs white vinegar

2 1/2 Tbs lemon juice

a bit of salt & pepper

Just throw it all in a big bowl & mix well.

Transfer to serving bowl

cover

and refrigerate.

Best when the flavors can mingle a few hours

cooks note: I would never dirty three measuring cups;

I use a 1/2 c. measure filled halfway for the milk

3/4 of the way full for the s.cream and full for the mayo

that's a record

I'm more behind than usual in my school planning this year.

As in

I opened a catalog for the first time

yesterday.

late afternoon.

But you know what?

I'm done.

Just ordered.

I had to let go of 'how I'd like to do school'

in order to embrace

'what we can realistically do'.

And I am ok with that.

I really think I am.

Now

to work on schedules...

Summer, what have you done to me??

I don't know what to say.

I just don't.

I was grabbing just a bite

(albeit a big one, Lana)

before heading to bed,

of the chocolate coconut cheesecake ice-cream

in the big freezer.

It was soft;

that freezer has issues,

so I moved it into the little fridge freezer.

That's when I saw them.

There are

- brace yourself -

four

containers of ice-cream in my freezer!

five, if you count Brandon's personal Breyers' snickers carton

but it just has a tiny dollop left

(and, technically, it's in the faulty freezer,

not with the other four offenders)

Ya'll!

We don't eat sugar.

Sugar is of the devil.

(well, almost)

It does bad stuff to people;

I know this!

And here I sit,

having either purchased myself

or authorized the purchase of all this poison.

All in the name of 'summer treats'.

I can't toss it;

that would be wasteful

and everyone knows I'm a frugal gal

but please,

somebody

stop me!

sometimes I wonder

why we bother to buy toys.

Lily was playing with something at nap time.

I had her give it to me.

She did, but I could see she was concealing something else.

I asked, "Do you have another toy?"

She nodded and I held out my hand.

A ball of fluff

smaller than a cotton ball,

that's what she was trying to hang on to

for her nap-time playing pleasure.

A little ball of fluff.

I think I need to sort through the play room again.

Lex' loves rice

I was nursing Lexi

sort of getting ready

for getting ready

for bed

when I remembered it'd been a few hours since she'd eaten.

I always like to try to get her tummy good and full

in hopes that she'll wake less to nurse.

Sometimes it works;

sometimes it doesn't.

I asked, "Do you want some oatmeal?"
Lexi loves oatmeal.

Without unhooking, she said, "uh uh."
Then, her eyes lit up and she sat right up and said, "Rice!"

She hopped down

went to the fridge, pulled out the rice and grabbed a bowl.

Lexi loves rice, too.

and all was right in the world

I couldn't get a picture of it

but Lex' was just so precious tonight;

we were praying

and there she was

eyes squeezed shut

shoveling pizza into her mouth like there was no tomorrow

~

With the exception of the 4 littles ones

having a nasty cold

now that Daddy is home

all is right in the world again.

countdown to Papa

(and Ton'!!)

only 12 hours to go

I think we're going to make it

bummer!

I was all proud of myself

for remembering

first thing this morning

to renew our library books.

Problem is

I remembered the wrong day!

They should have been renewed Wednesday.

21 books.

So now I have a $9.60 fine.

I could have bought a book with that!

~

Of course, in thinking about it

I don't go to the library on Mondays.

I don't go anywhere on Mondays.

Tony works on Mondays.

I am stuck home with no vehicle on Mondays.

Why

oh why

did I have in my head all week

that they were due Monday??

~

I miss my brain!

kindness of strangers

We hadn't been in the store two minutes

before I'd started thinking,

"This was a mistake.

Big.

Huge."

I missed the last two thread sales;

I sure didn't want to miss another one.

I had a whole box full of plush FOE

just waiting to be perfectly paired up with thread.

Lexi

turned into

The Beastie

as soon as we got over to the thread aisle.

To make matters worse,

optimistic fool that I am

had decided it would be fun for the kids to help match the colors.

Umm.

Not so much.

Fun for them, yes; for me,

no.

Brandon lovingly took Lexi walking through Hancocks

while we worked on our matching skills.

Josiah isn't too bad, actually.

Lily & Jeremiah may need to have their eyes checked!

I had several other things to look at

and by the time I was about ready to have them cut my fabric

I was pretty much done.

And then

this very well put together lady

with an adorable

(but huge!)

purse

stopped me and said,

"You are a good mother!"

I smiled the smile of the weary and replied,

"Well, thank-you. I don't feel much like a good mother.

I feel very impatient right about now."

It just takes so long shopping and running errands

with a passel of kids.

They love to look at (and touch) everything.

"Well, of course you are a bit impatient;

look where you are. You are in a fabric store with children."

I appreciated her comment

but

I was still weary

and I was still in a fabric store with a bunch of kids.

And I couldn't leave quite yet...

~

Then I got to chatting with the sweet little old lady next to me

while our fabric was being cut.

I asked what she was doing with her's

(I almost always do that - kinda funny, for an introvert)

and we talked for several minutes.

And she began admiring my 'lovely family'.

Then her friend, Bernie

(I refrained from telling them that is my dog's name...)

came over to visit to.

And they talked to the little ones

and praised my big helper

(whom they guessed was fifteen)

and told me over and over what a lovely family we were.

And I remembered

that

we really are a lovely family.

I forget sometimes.

check this out

Mom,

I know you never click on my links;

you'll want to click this time

and read about what Tyler's been up to.

while I've been home.

whining.

night math

This is one of those days

when I wonder if it might have been better

to just not have gone to bed

at all.

~

Lexi woke up ten times

in nine hours.

I nursed her anywhere from 12 - 30 minutes each time.

I normally just fall back asleep at some point while she's nursing;

not last night.

Not even one time.

In addition to taking care of Lex' needs,

Lily woke up 3 times needing attention

so I was back and forth between the girls all night,

sleeping often with Lily

in an attempt to keep her from waking up yet again.

Lily isn't quite so easy to tend to in the night;

she doesn't nurse (obviously ;-)

and often isn't really fully awake

so she's not exactly rational...

I haven't attempted to figure out how much sleep

I actually got.

Not sure my calculations would be accurate anyways.

~

This is one of those days

I wish I used caffeine.

mail time

On Fridays

when I worked a double shift at Shoney's

Glenda
would drive over to my apartment

and check my mail.

She was always looking for the same thing:

a letter from my love

~

Today

I got two

(count them, two!)

emails.

Three, if you want to be technical

but two of them were really the same note; sent in two parts

'cause technology works that way sometimes.

~

The difference between 24 years ago

when the letters flew fast and furious between us

and today is

back then

I had one shot at getting a letter.

One.

If the mail came and there was no letter,

that was it for the day;

I'd start anticipating tomorrow's mail run.

This week

though

I have been checking my e-mail and facebook

like a crazy woman

just waiting for those three little words

You've

Got

Mail

~

One thing that hasn't changed

after all these years:

the thrill I feel

seeing

Tyler -------

in the return address

proof that Lily is a blond

\

"Now, where was that shirt I just had?"

"Oh yeah, I'm still wearing it!"

oh, Momma loves you, Precious Blond Girl!!

Shawn, you ASTOUND me!

I've done it again.

A small flash of pure genius

that just tickles me to no end.

~

Cutting bangs has always been a bit tricksy;

you just have to trim off 1/4 - 1/3 of an inch

but the kid is all worried about getting hair in their eyes.

And to be fair

said kid usually does get hair in their eyes

because they didn't listen to Momma,

"Just keep your eyes shut."

I have masking taped 1 ply of t.p. to the forehead

and that method works decently

at keeping all those short pokey hairs out

but drawing on eyebrows in exactly the right spot is a challenge.

Today

I taped a sandwich bag to Lily's forehead

and it worked beautifully!
She could still see,

so she didn't have the frustration of being blinded by the toilet paper

and I could see right where I needed to cut

and not one trimmed hair came near her eyes!

It would have been really perfect

if I'd have had her stand over the trash can;

the hair would've just slid right off the bag into the trash!

*It goes without saying, but if you try this,

careful of plastic by the nose and mouth. yada yada yada*

nope, she can't

Well

the guys are packed

and ready to go

besides snacks and just a couple of other things from Walmart.

I only managed to get 4 pairs of pants

and 2 shirts made.

They took quite a bit longer than I expected

but overall I am pretty pleased with how everything turned out.

I think it's some of my best workmanship

and I learned a lot.

(nothing that I can remember at the moment. boo!)

I wasn't nervous, exactly,

but I really didn't want to mess these up.

I mean

I didn't want to end up with something that looked

homemade

or truthfully, even hand-made.

That's fine for girl's dresses

and kids clothes,

but a man doesn't really want to walk around in something

that screams 'my wife / mum made this'...

I don't think their clothes scream that.

whisper it, perhaps, but not scream...

Tyler's shirt

went together especially well.

(or is it good? I'm so tired, I'm not sure....)

I just grabbed a shirt from his closet

threw it on top of the fabric

and cut.

My pieces all matched up perfectly!

I've not had that happen before

even with store bought patterns.

Too bad it fit Tony perfectly

and not Tyler.

Of course

we didn't manage to squeeze in a photo shoot

before they got packed...

~

I love you both

and am so excited to see how God uses you this week.

can she do it?

Can she turn these 14 yards of Italian linen

into

4 pairs of pants

and

5 shirts

by Saturday??

We shall see.

Umm.

probably not

with this kind of help

(Shanna - that is the quilt I was wondering about)

just what I needed

Brandon got this card today

as a (very kind, but un-necessary) thank-you from Grampa Bil

for all his hard work Saturday

(Tyler & Brandon went to help Bill replace the kitchen floor

and by replace, I mean replace.completely. down to the dirt, replace...)

~

Needless to say

I've grown a bit weary from the events of the past several weeks

and I was still sniffling

about never mind what

when Brandon opened his card and showed it to me.

'Course

I busted out laughing

and things didn't seem quite so bad after all.

so, thanks, Bill, for the timely thanks

the sage continues. and ends.

To make a ridiculously long story short

(ya'll would be so proud of me

I just deleted the whole sorry tale)

it now appears that my washer and dryer were not

in fact

defunct

after all.

The washer was messing up because of plumbing issues

and

after installing a third

- this time brand-new dryer -

(I was tired of messing around...)

I discovered that it is quite likely

that at least some of the dryer's issues

were due to a flipped circuit.

Did you know

that a large appliance

like a dryer

uses a double fuse or circuit??

and that when a dryer tumbles but does not heat

that is the likely culprit?

Apparently

the 2 appliance guys I consulted with

were not aware of this either.

So

I now have my old working washer

and a brand new dryer

that I probably didn't need

and two

sort-of working appliance on a trailer

that I will be returning tomorrow

because I've already told the guy I was returning them.

Only now I have to tell him

that his dryer probably does work after all

and I am just stupid.

this is sorta how I'm feeling about now

would it surprise anyone that while I was posting this

my kitchen was flooding??

he's at it again

I was going to try to make it work;

I'm somewhat adaptable

after all.

But

the washer kept getting crankier and crankier.

So

I went and bought a new-to-me w/d set yesterday.

The guy delivered them around 5.

He tested both.

They seemed to work just fine.

Fast forward several hours;

I did a load.

I was happy my Tony would have a clean uniform

to wear to work today.

Washer worked fine

although there is a belt smell that I'm not thrilled about.

My new dryer works just like my old dryer.

air only.

~

It's ironic.

I've been writing a post in my head

about how I mange to get it all done.

By all

mind you

I mean all of the laundry.

I certainly don't get it all all done!

But I do manage to keep up with the laundry fairly well.

or rather, I did...