back to school sewing

I ordered a mini bundle of fabric from bloomerie.  They have the cutest little bundles and pre cuts of assorted fabrics.  I like that some of the bundles are a mixed grouping of fabric and not all just from one specific fabric line.  I ordered the summer breeze bundle back when it was summer time and it just sat and looked pretty on my table until right before the start of school.  That's when I had the time and the notion to get a project going!

I made some pencil pouches for my girls for back to school.  It was so fun to mix and match the stack of fabrics and pair up the different prints.  (all the fabrics are from the summer breeze bundle except the yellow and white print...that was in my stash.  It came from Joann's)

Each pouch is a little bit different, in either size or embellishment...but that was what made these so fun to make.  I just did what I wanted to do without worrying about it.  (note to self:  do that more often!)

And if you know me at all, you know I only have 2 girls and since I made three pouches, that meant there was one left over for me!  I'll show you later, how I'm using mine!

And before you start to scold me, I did not leave my boy out.  I just knew he wouldn't want a girly pencil pouch.  Instead, he got a lego mini figure holder.  I put pencils (lego ones!!) in it for back to school, but he decided to use it for his extensive mini- fig collection!

Here's our breakfast bar all set up for the first day of school.  I've got kiddos in 5th grade, 10th grade and 12th grade this year!  The little dishes are holding their vitamins...their daddy faithfully lays those out for them every. single. morning.  They are not thrilled about that...but one day they will appreciate the sweetness of it.

 When I ordered summer breeze, I also ordered another fabric bundle (I'm not seeing that one on the website anymore)...but I'm thinking I need to find some time to make a table runner for autumn! Aren't these just the best colors for right now?! This stack of fabrics is just begging to be worked with!  I hope you find some time to work on something that makes you happy!

stacks

My mom keeps laughing at me because every week I say something like, "After next week, things will slow down."  I swear it's the truth.  But I can see why she doubts me.  We're wrapping up our school year and sliding into the final week of rehearsals for the Mainstage production that Maggie is involved with.  Baseball, basketball, yard work, and regular family life all pile in there to make for some pretty overflowing days.  I've been seeing my week in stacks so here are a couple of the stacks I've worked through this past week.

I'm going to be teaching a history class next school year and I've been working through the topics and activities that I want to work through.  We have our teacher meeting today...so excited!

 My mom lent me her kindle so I could get caught up on our book club reads...I missed last month when they discussed Her Mother's Hope by Francine Rivers.  Next month the selection is Her Daughter's Dream....I'm finding myself frustrated by the lack of communication amongst the characters!

These books are also making me realize how vital it is that we pass on a legacy of hope and grace to our children!  

 My boy is loving this series.  We can't check them out of the library fast enough.  Yesterday we picked up 3 more and since the CDs were check out for two of the books, he actually got the books to read! yeah for more reading! 

Blueberries to nibble on all day long.  These are the best blueberries I've had.  I made a special run out last night to pick up more!   

 I finished a pile of Mother's day bracelets for my girlfriend to give at her church's Mother's Day Dedication....new design and card!  Yeah for Mothers!!

Mckenzie's pile of shorts to be hemmed....yeah for summer temps (I think they're coming!) and short wearing weather! 

Hopefully your stacks are reminders of the many joys in your life....

look around you and see how the blessings are piling up! 

Have a wonderful weekend and Happy Mother's Day to all of you! 

 Enjoy your days!

right around the corner

I've got some recently finished projects to share....soon.  Really, they are just around the corner and if I could just turn that corner, I'd get them posted.  But we're switching gears and heading into our school time routine and for some reason that just seems to stall me out.  It's all part of easing into the new routine.  Eventually I'll get moving again and when I do, I'll show you what I've finished up.    In the meantime, I'll leave you with some photos of our summer's end.....

[Kristyn came to visit. Whoo Hoo! We had a wonderful time catching up and making new memories- here we are heading out to dinner and to see the movie The Help]

[beautiful veggies from Kristyn's mom and dad ~ Thanks Jo Ellen and Howard. 

We've gobbled them all up!]

[John Samuel and Connor scootering down the street~ John Samuel was thrilled to have Connor here!]

[boys in shopping carts at the fabric store....a new project was in the works]

[a day at Greenbrier lake, playing and paddling]

[measuring and cutting...sewing, measuring and more measuring]

[tubing on Lake Meade....that's Maggie and her friend, Michelle]

[sunset on the lake and a very wonderful summer]

So, that's how we've been wrapping up our summer days.....I hope your summer is ending on a beautiful note as well and that you turn the corner into autumn with plenty of grace! 

the last stretch

We're on our last official stretch of summer.  School starts in about a week and the machine of routine will get back into gear.  Some of us are excited for school to start.  Some of us are not quite there yet.  Hopefully in another 13 days we'll all be ready.  I've been getting us ready and mapping out our schedules and curriculum.  The bookshelves are loaded up and ready to go. 

It's going to be a great school year...it's going to be a great school year, it's going to be a great school year....(can you tell who's not quite ready yet?)

In other news, our painting project is well underway.  My honey, who is ever thoughtful and has my best interest at heart, hired a painter to come in and do the painting.  He didn't want me wiped out and tired going into the start of the school year.  Isn't he great?   So, while they're painting...I'm blogging.  Pretty good deal, huh?  Here's the color I chose...it's called Desert Tumbleweed by Sherwin Williams.  I'm really loving it.  The trim is Pacer White also by Sherwin Williams.  I'll show more pictures later when the drop cloths are all folded up and the rubble has cleared. 

In the meantime, I thought I'd wrap up summer by squeezing every last drop of goodness out of the season.  I'll post a photo each day (or so) with something I'm savoring as summer winds up.  Feel free to join me as I savor summer. 

stage debut!

This past Saturday was Cedar Brook Academy's Mainstage Production.  This year was a One Act Festival. There were 4 stand alone scenes that made up the show.  The cast has been working on their characters and parts all school year.  Every Thursday that they have had class, they've run lines, worked on facial expressions, stage directions and fine tuning their performance.   Mrs. Abbott, their director is amazing in her ability to direct, encourage and bring to the surface these treasures that they all bring to the stage.  Saturday was their night to shine and they shone brilliantly! 

This was Maggie's first big production in a real theater with a serious (although comedic) production.  She was new to the group and not even sure she wanted to audition in the beginning.  Well, she couldn't have had more fun or stretched herself more than she did in this class.  She learned so much and made so many wonderful memories.

Her main role was a chatty girl on a blind date who had a penchant for talking with texting lingo.  lol!  It was hilarious IMHO.  As she rambled on during the night, her date was clueless as to what she was saying.  jk!  He insulted her by asking if it was appropriate to talk in letters (frowny face!) and she promised to get him blacklisted from all the social dating sites! 

 BTW,it's even funnier because Maggie doesn't even have a texting plan in real life!  She did a wonderful job nailing her character and timing her lines perfectly with such humor and expression.  And those earrings...wow!

All the cast and crew performed their roles wonderfully and with a packed house for both shows, they received thunderous applause.  After the show was over and the set was packed up, we headed to ihop to ring in the morning.  (whew!  this is when I wished she had her own driver's license) 

The cast party was yesterday and the programs were all signed and hugs were all given...now we settle into a calmer (although much less exciting) schedule.  Thanks to everyone who supported Maggie.  She was so blessed to have so many friends and family come to the show or offer their encouragement to her. 

twig books

We love books around here. Our love of books borders on craziness sometimes. We buy them, borrow them, lend them, check them out of the library and we make them too. Here's a quick and easy way to make a book. You'll need: some heavy card stock for the front and back cover, paper for your inside pages, a hole punch, a rubber band and a twig. Cut all the paper to the size you want your book to be when completed. Ours is 8 1/2 by 5 1/2. Punch holes in one of the short sides of all of your pages. Make sure your holes line up when you stack your papers together. We scored our top cover page just so it would bend easily when the book was being worked on. Now, insert a rubber band from the bottom of the book up through one of the sets of holes. Slip your twig in the rubber band (this keeps it from slipping out while you bring the other end of the rubber band up). Now, thread the other end of the rubber band up through the second hole and loop it over the other end of the twig. Ta da! You have a bound book. Make sure your rubber band isn't too tight or your book pages will bend....if it's too loose, the twig won't stay in. Now the fun begins...decorate your cover and have fun filling up your book. John Samuel's book is titled: Celebrate Autumn. Everyday he's writing some sentences about what he enjoys most about this season and then he's illustrating them. Here's where it gets fun....You can make these books for yourself or your kids can make them for presenting a school project or keeping a journal. Use a pencil for the binding instead of a twig and make a book to keep your lists in. Or, use a chopstick for an Asian themed book...or a short ruler for a book about measurement...try a miniature flag for a book about flags....see how fun this can be? Enjoy! If you're as crazy about books as we are, a great resource for making your own books is: The Ultimate Lap book Handbook. I don't own it...but I've borrowed it!

seasons

I've heard people say that women go through seasons in their lives. I guess that sounds better than going through a phase...you think? One way to tell what season it is, is to look around and notice the things that are going on around you...so, as I survey the details of my life, I realize how full this season is, in which I find myself. The bulk of my day is spent in educating our kids. We've chosen to home school and that has an impact on a large chunk of my day. Home education has been a great choice for us. Way back when we started to home school, I felt like it defined me. I was really self conscience about being a 'home school family'...now that we've been doing it for so long, I feel like it's just a part of who we are. It's definitely not a phase...this year is our 10th year of home schooling. Unbelievable. I always say that I'm probably the one who has learned the most....it has taught me self sacrifice, diligence, accountability, time management and how to lean on the Lord (among other things). I still struggle with insecurities and wonder whether academically we're doing enough, too much or hitting all the important stuff. (I don't however worry about socialization...in case you wondered) Our typical day starts with a group Bible time. Right now we're reading through the book of Joshua. We just read a chapter each day and talk about how we can apply it to our lives. It's probably the most important thing we do all day long. After Bible the kids start in on their schoolwork. From that point on, I'm moving from one student to the next, teaching math, editing papers, working on science labs, reading history, teaching phonics....you get the idea. This is really the first year that everyone has their own individual curriculum for everything. No one overlaps on specific curriculums. I've got a High School Sophomore, a 7th grader and a 2nd grader. In past years, I was able to share a science or history curriculum between two kids. This year everyone is doing their own thing. In between lessons, the rest of life happens. (I throw in a load of laundry, get dinner started, make phone calls or check my favorite blogs.)On Thursdays, the girls head to classes and John Samuel and I go to Community Bible Study. Fridays are full with morning school here and then science, geography and a logic class at a co-op. The trick is maintaining a steady at home schedule. There are so many options...but in order for us to do a thorough job of getting school done, be have to be home. John does some supplemental stuff in the evenings with the kids. It's a full family effort. It is a full time job. One that has benefits I may not even know about in this lifetime. Some of the things that make it all worthwhile are:

• I love seeing the light bulb go on when one of them catches on to a new concept.
• I love that they know each other and are involved in each other's daily lives.
• I love not having to pack lunches!
• I love seeing them help each other out with struggles.
• I love being able to let them find their wings and follow their interests as they learn.

I know that there will be seasons where I have more time to myself than others. This however, isn't one of those...but that's OK. I wouldn't trade this season for anything. What season are you in right now? Enjoy it! The seasons go by too fast.