My Poor Abandoned Blog!

I have neglected my little blog! I'm so sorry! I've been working at CVS and I've been working a lot and definitely staying busy with that and keeping up with Madi! :)

Well, since my last post, Jason got a new job working for Hertz! I stay home part time with Madi, which I love but naturally still wish it was more! I try to make time for my sewing but it never works out that way! I need to since some of my Christmas presents will be sewn!! I've been trying to focus more on making my mark.! I recently met my regional manager, my local mentor and one of the top sellers in OKC (I was the other, which still surprises me lol). Well, we went to dinner and it was very motivating! If I didn't love mark. products enough already I loved mark. even more after that!! It is an incredible company to 'work' for!! I absolutely have always wanted to be able to stay home more and be my own boss and I know mark. offers that and more! Plus what girl doesn't love to play with make up and fashion?! It's pretty exciting! Ultimately I'd love to stay home raising our kids doing mark. and sewing!! I am slowing trying to make that happen!

Anyway, enough about me! :) So, Madison recently reached two and a half! I cannot believe she is so close to being three and preschool age, etc! She is so smart and I forget it sometimes and we'll be out and about and people will ask how old she is and surprised how well she talks and how smart she is for her age! Of course, I wish she knew a little more; mainly sign language, I really wanted to teach her more, but she says what she wants so much it gets lost! She knows a lot! She will say something and I have to stop for a minute because I can't believe she knew that! She remembers things from days ago and about certain people, it's funny! Right now she has been on this kick that if she knows a toy or something came from someone in particular, she asks for that toy that so and so got her! Like her little magna-doodle type thing she got last Christmas is her 'color game Grammy bought me'! Every time! She is funny! She asks when we pull up to CVS or I put on my shirt that I'm going to work! She can count to 10 and knows the numbers up to 20, they aren't always in order from 11 to 20, but she knows them! She was able to identify her ABC's a year ago, and now she can sing the song...she learned it a little backwards, but she knows it! She also likes to ask what everyone's name is! Most people love it and are very friendly, but sometimes it get be annoying....only when I'm already annoyed by something else; actually stuff like that cheers me up. :) She is getting too big! When shopping for her this Christmas it's amazed me, it seems like yesterday we were buying for a 6 month old or even the baby to be! Where did the time go?! Part of me (ok all of me) is ready for another baby, but I'm worried that with Madison being almost 3 I'll miss the small things with the 2nd one and that one will be 3 and Madison will be 6 or 7 before I even blink!! My oldest niece is already 9!! Just the other day she was Madi's age! It is crazy! Time is an amazing thing in every aspect!

Anyway, I've rambled on enough! Plus it's late and I need to get to sleep!! Have a great weekend and I will try to post again soon! I have a mark. party tomorrow, so hopefully I can let you know how it goes!! I'm donating a portion of my proceeds to March of Dimes and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation! So, if you'd like to help with those let me know or donate before the years out (for tax purposes) :) They are both great causes, and I do have a personal link to both!

Take care!! HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!!!!

Update of Sorts!

Sorry I haven't posted much in way of life updates. Things have been pretty good here. Madi gets too big everyday! I can't believe how fast she is growing! She learns new words all the time! We're still working on potty training. She's sat on the potty a lot lately with nothing to celebrate. I think she might be anxious about it or something because she will either potty in her diaper directly before or after but not while sitting on the potty. It's just funny too because she really wants to sit on the potty but never does anything. Her potty is in the bathroom with us, so she sees what we do, so I don't know, maybe I'm trying too hard. I am a little anxious of her being trained because so many kids in her class are trained or close to it. I just keep reminding myself to step back and just let it be her time. I think part of it too is that I'll think she's ready so I'll try and work with her and it fails. It will come, I'm just trying to be patient. :) She also had her Curious George phase and still likes him but right now her favorite is Dora! We introduced her the toys first, but we recently got netflix so we've been watching the episodes. She still goes crazy for Caillou too! She is a fun little one! She is also at that age where she really fights to get her way. She tells me no a lot and has to almost be bribed just to do something! It can be frustrating, but she loves to play with Mommy and Daddy (and frankly anyone) so that's been fun too!
I did go visit my friend who had her 2nd baby and it definitely helped me see what I'd be in for if we were to have baby #2 any time soon. Although on the flip side seeing that baby and my best friend's baby, it's also giving me the fever! It will come in time. :) It's definitely great to see these little babies! It's also great to see their parents enjoying and loving on them! :) We are also having a good time at Mother's Day Out! They plan things for everyday during the summer to keep it fun! It's great! Last week we had water day and make your own Sundae, next week we have bike day. It's pretty fun, even though Madi's age group and the kids I watch can't get as involved as the older kids, they still loved having ice cream! It definitely keeps Madi and I busy and that's a good thing! :)
So, update on my 'businesses' I haven't plugged them as much as I'd like, but I am planning a mark. party in a couple of weeks to let people become familiar with the product, etc. I'm pretty excited about it. I haven't pushed my sewing too much I guess because I'm afraid if I get too busy with it, it will become more of a task than a fun hobby. I don't know, I'm still thinking about it, so we'll see. :)
Anyway, that's pretty much what I have for now. Thanks for reading! :)

June Friday Night Sew In

So, sorry I've been slacking when it comes to my blog. Friday was June's Friday Night Sew In. I got a new book that showed some little or no sew bag patterns and I didn't have any of the material to make anything and even looked to see if there was a way to use the fabric I had to make the bags but nothing stood out at me. So, instead I looked through my fabric and tried to find something I could make. I have this almost canvas material I bought trying to figure what I wanted to make I knew I wanted to make a tote of some kind but could never nail it down and actually still have some left over that I still can. :) Anyway, ultimately it worked out b/c I had some ribbon I've been trying to figure out what to do with it. So, I actually used the same pattern I used for the zebra bag I did a couple of sew ins ago. I love how this one turned out. So, here are the pictures! Sorry it's practically Sunday morning, but here they are!

Happy Father's Day!!!

I'll try to post something soon about everything else going on. :)

Friday Night Sewing

So, Friday night passed, and I got some stuff done; not enough considering my list and I tried working on some today but didn't get much done today either b/c Madison was a little cranky! :) I am almost done with one of my catalog bags and am so glad, because through the whole process I've had a hard time deciding how I wanted to do it. I hope the final project is everything I wanted and my cousin's want! I'm especially happy that I'm almost done with the first one b/c the second one will be a lot easier! :) I have not done my make up bags that I need done for Monday, so I'll have to work on those probably tomorrow, unless I have time tonight. :) So, without further ado, here are the 3 pics I have of my unfinished bag. :)

Front of the catalog bag and one of the sides

back and the other side of the bag

inside the bag, yes that's the table not the bottom,

that's b/c it's unfinished LOL! :)

Kristi, if you see this, hope you like it so far. :)

Sew In, Mark. and Babies......

So, tonight is our May Friday Night Sew In! I literally almost forgot! May apparently has been a crazy month! The second weekend of course with the carnival, Madi's bday, etc. and ever since then just trying to catch up! :) I still need to finish my cousins' catalog bags, they are almost done, just need to be put together. Those are just the start of my sewing list right now. :) I had a few ladies from Jason's work order some mark. stuff and Jason had mentioned getting a handmade make up bag with your first order; which I had technically only planned on doing for my online party weekend, but I don't mind! :) I also have been carrying a mark. purse I'd recently purchased, but am wanting a change for a while, so I'm dying to make me a new purse, but it's at the bottom of my list, b/c everything else I need to make is for everyone else! :) Naturally I don't mind at all! I also had said I was going to make the gifts for my nieces teachers esp since one of their teachers likes to recycle so I am actually excited to make her a reusable shopping bag and some reusable snack bags. I am not quite sure what to make for the other teacher, but I'll think of something! I want to get as much done this weekend as possible! I'm really hoping I can knock of most if not all of the things on my list by Monday at the latest!
BABIES! :) Not on our end, yet; but I have two friends that had their due dates literally a week apart! My best friend's due date is the first week of June and our friend who was due to have her 2nd next week actually gave birth to her little girl yesterday!! We have not had a chance to go see her yet, but I'm pretty excited! Their first son is 2 1/2 months older than Madison, I call him her little boyfriend. LOL. I'm constantly hoping mostly for my best friend that she'll have her first baby any day now! I know how much fun it is not the last month let alone the last couple of weeks! Just an fyi we are talking about #2 but nothing is certain right now. ;) We'd talked about having another sometime after Madi turned 2 or around 3. Since that is where we are we'd be ok if it was from now until then. :)
Speaking of Madison, she's doing great! She's grasping some of the potty stuff! She sat on the potty at Mother's Day Out the other day and I had her sit on the potty for quite a while the next day and she actually pooped! It may seem silly to those who don't have kids yet, but it was a big deal!  She has also gotten a lot better about going into her class at Mother's Day Out! This past week she didn't cry at all! I also learned it helps to let her walk in, maybe help carry her bags in! So, that was probably most of it! She also knows everyone's name (she hasn't told me them all, but her teacher said she knows everyone). She loves it and I love that she loves it! I also love my little class too! They are such a hoot to watch and play with! They are younger than Madi, so that's fun to see the difference! :)
As far as my mark. business, I'm still working on it! I probably don't market myself as much as I should, but I do have lots of ideas, so at some point I'll put those into practice. :) I have read a lot on the forums and have talked to my mentor (a new program that mark. has that I love!) and will be having a mini party soon! Mark. doesn't have an upline or downline like most of those companies (like Mary Kay, Party Lite, Pampered Chef, etc), so they started the mentor program, which I like b/c it's someone there to help you build your business, answer questions, and give you ideas without you feeling like they are just telling you these things to help their pocket too! Although, I think the mentors do make something off of being a mentor but it is not directly related to your sales! It is funny b/c ever since I have been in mark. I love it more everyday! It just seems like a great bunch of ladies to be included with (for the most part). I have taken part in some of those independent rep companies and haven't really felt that way, although Premier is pretty close, it was just harder for me to sell (just because I don't think I had the customers for it) so I couldn't enjoy it as much. I love the people in Premier, just wish I could enjoy them more. :)
Anyway, so tonight is the sew in so stay tuned tomorrow, for the results, and if I remember I'll try to post more about what I accomplish this weekend in general. :) Don't forget to check out my Etsy page, and my mark. page!

Thanks for reading!
Ashley

Is It Monday yet?

Ha! Never thought you'd hear someone say that! Monday will be like my Saturday! Since I'm working at MDO, they have an annual carnival (which I've mentioned) and it is 'tonight' (in quotes b/c right now it's 2am so to me, it's tomorrow). So, Thurday after working at MDO everyone was to come back to help set up and get stuff ready and Friday come back and work during the morning to finish the set up and make sure everything is ready! Friday night is the carnival in which all the teachers man their stations and work the games, etc. All that is only the half of it for me since I chose to make something for the auction, which of course I waited until this week to finish it! ;) Not to mention Saturday afternoon I have a baby shower to go to (which I still have not officially figured out what I'm going to be giving her!), and pretty quickly after the shower is my baby's 2 year birthday party! I CANNOT believe she's going to be 2!!!! Sunday is Mother's Day and Madi's actual birthday so we will be busy pretty much that whole day as well! I am hoping that at least Sunday morning my sweet hubby will get up with Madi so I can sleep or maybe Madi will cuddle with me since it's 'our' day! ;) Of course being the mother I am, I'd much rather Sunday be all about my baby, but what can you do? So, as of right now I don't plan on doing much on Monday, although I kind of want to do something special like go to one of those bouncey places (has the moonwalks etc) to 'celebrate' my baby's bday! :) We shall see! So, I also wanted to blog to let you know what I made for the auction. I made a cute little fabric basket that I got from an online tutorial, which of course when I was almost done noticed that the girl that posted the tutorial had a note that it should be for your own use only; so I felt bad to auction it, but if it was cute enough, it wouldn't have bothered me much! ;) Well, needless to say, the basket turned out A LOT smaller than I had thought, and did not have a great representation of my work (lots of mistakes...) so I scrambled together a cute little messenger bag! Of course in the auction I included one of the make up bags I made for my Mark. giveaway and of course some Mark. products! So, without further ado, here is what I made!

sorry the pic is blurry and fuzzy, my camera was charging so I used my phone!

front, but the flap flipped back

inside!

my cute 'little' basket!

(the fabric is part of what I won in the FNSI in March!)

inside my basket, the fabric is not supposed to be that bunched/gathered up!

I also opened my Etsy store (like 20 minutes ago!) so you might want to check that out, it doesn't have much right now, but I will add stuff as I can, if you haven't noticed I'm a little busy! I also have some catalog bags I need to make next week that I've already set aside for about a month! I feel horrible b/c they are for family and frankly should have been made a month ago! So, that is my very next task (after my Mothers' Day gifts)! So, hopefully I'll try to update again soon on how my crazy weekend was and how things are going with a 2 year old *sob*!!

Friday Night Sewing........

So, I got started kind of late last night, it was a crazy day yesterday! I didn't get done as much as I wanted but I will be able to work on more tonight. I did get my bags done for anyone that orders from my Mark. page through tomorrow. Any order from $2 to $20! Regardless it was very nice to sew last night! I needed it and am very much looking forward to doing some more today!! So, here are some pics!

I do love how they turned out! I may have to keep one for myself! :) Have a great weekend!

Friday Night fun!!

So, 'tonight' is our Friday Night Sew In...I'm pretty excited! I do have A LOT of stuff to work on; I might also get to have a chance to sew on Saturday night too!! I plan on working on my 'gift bags' for my Mark. online party and a birthday present for my sister and a few other things! Watch Saturday for all the good stuff I get done!

By the way, not sure if I've given a full update of Madi and at Mother's Day Out; I do love it! I work with kids from ages 1yrs to 2yrs and even though Madison fits in that age group, she is actually in the class next door which is actually fine with me! :) She actually hates when I drop her off, but she calms down pretty quickly and does good throughout the day! She's gotten attached to Mrs. Emily because she freaks out when she leaves too, but ultimately she does good! I've been asking her if she's ready to go see her friends when we go to hopefully help her get excited about it. Today I was asking her if she had fun today and if she played with her friends, she of course repeats me saying she had fun with her friends and I love the way she says it! It is interesting too b/c our class goes outside when her class goes outside so that is hard when she goes back in but it's fun to see her playing with other kids like that. It is a good experience for both of us! I am especially excited that I have an oppoturnity to expand my sewing! The carnival is the Friday before Mother's Day (which is also Madison's birthday) so I will be pretty busy getting ready for that whole weekend!! I have to figure out what I'm going to auction off, set up a website for anyone that may want to purchase something after seeing my auction item, plan Madi's birthday party, and figure out what I'm going to get and/or make for Mother's Day! Of course the best part is I'm pretty much waiting until now to get anything going! I am a procrastinator! I'm trying not to be in this case because some of this stuff cannot wait!! That is why I'm so excited about this weekend! :)

Have a good Friday and weekend!

Online Party!

Okay, I wanted to let my blogging friends know that I am having an online party at my Mark. eBoutique! It will start noon Wednesday the 14th (my Daddy's birthday!!!) and end at midnight the 18th! If you spend $15 and use the code PRETTYWILD you can get a free lipgloss with your order; if you spend $25 and don't use the previous code you can get free shipping (code MARKFS25). You can also order directly through me and get free shipping the only difference is you will have it shipped directly to you if you purchase from the website and if you go through me, it comes to me. I will be giving away a free item for every order and be drawing a name from all the orders and give a basket of goodies away! For my sewing buddies I will definitely be putting my goodies in some kind of gift bag I make and with the Friday Night Sew In this Friday I may use that night to work on those along with some catalog bags I need to get done! I am donating a portion of my proceeds to March for Babies for a friend of mine who is aware of this issue first hand; you can also purchase an m.powerment item in which the proceeds from those Mark. gives to a group supporting women dealing with domestic violence. So check that out this weekend and check back here for the Friday Night Sew In!

Also, not sure if I mentioned but I won a gift for March's Friday Night Sew In! I love it! I got some fat quarters and a cute little pin cushion! Take care and hope you have a great week and weekend!

ME :)

Starting an Online Shop, etc

Okay, so I figure maybe with my sewing buddies out there and friends and family that follow, someone can help me think of something.

Let me start back, so I've mentioned on here previously that I was starting at a Mother's Day Out; well last week was my first week and I'm almost through my second week. Well, first let me just say I love it! Madi gets to play with other kids her age and different toys than the ones she is used to at home! I get to play with other kids slightly younger than Madi and make money doing it. :) Of course this week I'm fighting a cold so it's making it hard to fully enjoy! So, to my point, starting at the MDO has possibly opened the door to one of my dreams; as I came in and signed in last Thursday the director commented on my purse (the zebra one in the previous post) and I told her I made it, she was amazed and the bag I carry for Madi is a corduroy tote I made using this tutorial. So, as we got to talking about it, they mentioned they have a carnival at the end of April and I should totally make something to be auctioned off. Of course one of my first thoughts, was, 'why didn't I think of this sooner?!' I work with kids who constantly use diaper bags, bibs, burp cloths, etc which are some of the things I've been thinking of making if I were to ever open an Etsy store. So, today she mentions next week we are having a meeting about the carnival. So, I was talking to her about what exactly I need to plan for. I will pretty much make one item to auction off at a silent auction and give them a value on that item and they'll start the bid slightly lower and we'll go from there. I have not actually verified if I will directly make the money off of that, but honestly if I make something really great and have a website for them to go to and thus bring in business, I don't care. :) I don't mind giving gifts to bring a customer base and start a business!

So, here is my main reason for this particular post, I am ultimately planning to open an Etsy shop by the end of this month. I haven't decided what I will auction off and I'm not entirely sure what I will start off with in the shop, most importanly I have no idea what I might want to call the shop! That's where you come in! I need your thoughts and ideas of what to call my shop and maybe some things you think might go well in it! My initial idea is to auction off a diaper bag in nuetral colors of course, but I was also thinking of adding a few coordinating burp cloths and bibs maybe even a ribbon blanket or tag blanket whatever they're called. I also am currently in the works of making a catalog bag for my family members that sell Scentsy and of course have made one for my Mark. stuff as well! So, I'm thinking of maybe once I have my complete pattern for those bags in order selling those as well. I also can't decide if I want to make a full diaper bag or a tote bag of some sort to accomodate all the age groups? I also thought it was interesting that when my director saw my zebra purse she said it would make a cute dance bag for the older girls. I do like that idea but not sure I want to make that for the auction because I want something that will gear towards anyone!

So, please let me know your thoughts, ideas and suggestions! I greatly appreciate them! Everyone who gets this in my email are some of my core group, so I hope you will let me know what you think! Also, if you do get this in your email make sure to check the actual blog to see other comments to see if it inspires you, etc. Thank you all for reading this and in advance for your comments and ideas!

Ashley :)

Sewing!!

Well, last night was our March Friday Night Sew In and I really didn't know if I was going to get to do very much because we had to take care of my parents dogs for a bit, do laundry and get Madison to sleep! But finally around 11pm or so I set out to get some of my sewing done. I didn't think too much on what I was going to do, like I usually do and just decided to finish my best friend Terri's diaper bag since her baby shower is next weekend! I also worked on the burp cloths and bibs! I am so excited they are done! Unfortunately for you guys, you don't get to see full pictures because Terri gets to be one of the first people to see it besides me! :) I did take pictures to see that something is sewn together but you can't see the 'big' picture! :)

Aside from the sew in I recently bought a pattern that I'd been wanting to get for a while, picked a bag from the 4 patterns and got the fabric and put it all together! The fabric isn't something I would typically get, it's more my sister's style but I liked it and went for it and love it! I'll have to make something for my sister with this fabric! :)

Well, when I went to get the fabric for that bag, I had my nieces with me and let them pick out some things while we were there and my older niece who has been interested in sewing picked a cross stitch kit! Needless to say I did a lot of it for her but she did most of it, she is actually still working on it, though! Well, this was all before spring break and seeing that I watch them after school everyday, I also watched them a couple of days during spring break and they both wanted to work on some type of stitching/cross stitch things, so 'Grammy' went to the store and picked up some kits and cloth for cross stitch and some books of patterns. In the process of showing my older niece how to cross stitch I really wanted to dive back into it! So with one of the new kits my mother had bought for them, I found some of my embroider thread, cut off some of the cloth and followed the pattern from one of the kits! I didn't stitch it quite like the kit calls for, but I love how it turned out and I know, now my niece is excited to do her version of it! :)

Well, to top it off, last weekend I went to a Scentsy party for my cousin and she mentioned she wants me to make her a catalog tote for her and today I was looking at pictures of some on Etsy! I had been thinking on it all week trying to figure out exactly how I'm going to do it. After looking at pictures and things I'm really exctied to do it! It also helps that I am now a Mark. rep, so I will make one for me as well! I definitely don't see a lot of people marketing these, so I think I have something here! I'm very excited about it! I will keep you posted on how that goes!

I had actually also planned on working on some reusable snack bags and maybe some reusable shopping bags, but that didn't play out with time, etc! I am eager to get these going, though because everytime we end up with plastic bags I just cringe! I've been saving them b/c I DO NOT want to throw them away! I have found things online of how you can turn them into reusable shopping bags, so I may do that to make use of them! I may also have to invest in a giant tub to recycle everything I can! I don't like throwing plastic away anymore! We've got to make this a better place for our kids and their kids and grandkids! We can only make it better; every little bit helps! I also love the incentive CVS now has that you get money back for using reusable shopping bags! I think everyone should start doing that to help us to remember to use them and also get more people to use them! Also, you should definitely check out the Green Bag Lady's website sometime I keep the bag I won from her in my purse so that I can use it when I'm out! Sorry, I didn't mean to get on my soap box there, but it's been bugging me lately and I think it should bug more people so we can clean this earth!

Take care and stay warm today in Oklahoma! First day of spring and it's snowing! Go figure! :)

So, that is all I have for now, take care!

Ashley

Friday Night Sew In and more.....

The Friday Night Sew In is on again for Friday the 19th; I have yet to decide what specifically I will be working on, but you will all know and see soon! :) I have worked on a couple of things here lately, and started on Terri's diaper bag, so I have plenty to keep me busy that night, just need to figure out exactly what! :)

Also, for those who haven't seen or heard, I am now a Mark. rep and am very thrilled to be! It is make up, skin care and fashion accessories. I am hoping this will be what enables me to stay home with Madison and subsequent children for as long as possible! That of course is my ultimate goal, and my short term goal is to build a customer base and maybe line up some parties to prove to those who have seen me fail before (and sorta myself) that I can do it! :) So, please check out my website, let me know what you think; if you don't see anything you might want, pass it on to someone you know probably will! Also if you purchase online do note that you recieve free shipping with your first order of $25! I'm working on the incentives for ordering through me, booking a party, etc. The awesome part about Mark. also is that they also do fundraisers! So, let me know if that is something you may need!

Another fun thing that is new for us, is after spring break (this week) Madison and I will be at a Mother's Day Out! I will be helping teaching and therefore she will be in a class with other kids her age which I will not be teaching! :) The bonus of that, though, is I went to high school with one of her teachers, so that helps knowing her before hand; not that I would be worried at this place, it seems like a really great place to work at and for the kids! A good thing about working there is that I will be able to still pick up the girls after school, but I will not be able to watch them this summer. So, good and bad but it'll all work out in the end! :)

A lot of good things going on right now, so I'm very excited to see where it all takes us! So, stay tuned and we can all find out together! :)

Until then! :)

Baby, Sweet Baby

So, here I am after 2 am yet again still awake. I was working on cutting out some things for a baby to be born in June ;) and was thinking about how worn down I am and exhausted, etc. For the past two weeks, at least, some how Madison and I have been going to bed really late and sleeping in really late and this weekend it seemed to really show the reprecautions! Madison was cranky most of the day but took a nap like sleeping was her favorite thing; but come bed time; a time we, like most parents, use as our break became the worst part of our days! We spent several hours fighting to get her to sleep! She would even get upset over little things just because she was so tired! It was definitely frustrating b/c we knew she was tired but we couldn't do anything to help her! Not to mention what it does when both parents are worn out and exhausted from her, it just felt like we were all fighting each other. Although, I will say it was nice because in all that Jason and I knew that we were both worn out and tired, so even in the moment we may have yelled at each other or whatever but directly following understood that it wasn't personal. All day, I've been beating myself up because I hadn't addressed our little sleep problem sooner and frankly probably didn't realize the extent of our sleep schedule. Being a natural night owl, I kind of enjoyed it because I got to stay up late and sleep in; I am NOT a morning person! Although, I was actually really missing having Madison in bed by 9:30 at the latest regardless of when she would wake up in the morning. Since she was born we never really had a problem getting her to go to sleep, at least at first; as she got closer to a year or so, we did go on a few drives and/or rock her longer than usual. This past weekend I was really wishing those would work! The drive finally did, of course a drive at 1:30 in the morning to get your almost 2 year old to sleep is crazy! Of course once she gets to sleep Jason and I are telling each other she's getting up at 9am! Ideally that sounds great, not when we were up that late too and when you are worn down like we were, 9am comes fast! Back to my point, sorry, I'd been beating myself up for not addressing this situation because ultimately it had cost us some desperately needed time with friends!!! We had cancelled two play dates with one friend and I had ended up cancelling my day out today because we woke up so late and I was still half asleep even then to decide what I wanted to do. Of course the weather this weekend didn't help being so gloomy all we wanted to do was sleep and our child wanted to literally bounce off the walls or the furniture or anything she could get on! :) It really amazed me that she wasn't more tired because she's had a bit of a cold the past few days and I'm not sure what caused it but Saturday morning(ish) after having her breakfast and juice she threw up! That of course led to us missing a birthday party for one of her/our friends!! I was hesitant to go to the party because of her cough, but not knowing what had caused her to throw up and if it was going to continue I wasn't going to take a chance! All that to ultimately say that today I have really felt the toll of all of this emotionally! I just feel like I have or am drifting from my friends and somewhat Madison's friends too. When we've gone out to the store or something she just wants to run around and play and I'm just watching her thinking, she needs a playdate! It kills me, though, because I'm hesitant to schedule something we may end up backing out of because we aren't on a normal sleep schedule. Despite the fact that it's so late tonight, I am determined to be up at a decent time tomorrow and get something accomplished before lunch and get us back on a normal schedule! I know she needs it as much as I do; I'd like to think one of us needs it more than the other, but I don't think that is true at this point! I miss the playdates and time with friends, it's really worn on me and I feel like I've failed everyone, on some level I know that may not be true, but I'm so worn down it just could be. I am determined and hope to get things back on track b/c Madison and I need to feel and be normal again!! Take care and stay tuned! :)

Friday Night Sew In.....of sorts :)

So, last night I was part of the group that had a "Friday Night Sew In" I got everything in order, had Madison all set with Jason well, before I got started on anything I decided to make a pillow for my dog so he could lay under my chair while I worked. It did not work out that way, he preferred the couch! :) Needless to say I made him a pillow out of the scrap fabric and thread I've been saving to use as stuffing for him.

Amazingly, this fabric came like that, I did not do the squares, wish I could say I had, but I did not. :)

Here he is laying on it

Well, after I did that; I figured since I had recently told my aunt I would make her some reusable shopping bags to use instead of plastic! So, I decided I would do a couple of those and then try to work on a couple fo burp cloths or bibs for one of my best friends that is having a baby in June.

Here is the first bag I made. I was so excited to have time to sit down and knock out a few projects and then get on here and show everyone what I had done. Well, of course having a 21 month old, things do not always go as planned! Last night was that night! We got her laid down and in bed asleep by 10, which I wanted earlier but 10 was good! Well, of course she woke back up and decided to stay up until 2 am!!!! I did manage to do most of the bag off and on while she sat on the catch watching cartoons hoping she'd fall back asleep and of course she didn't. Finally after fighting her and trying everything we went to our last resort; the car! I was also so greatful that she stayed asleep once we got home! I wasn't completely finished once we got her to sleep so I finished it up and cut another bag out and got to sleep by 3 am! We all slept in today which was nice. I may try to do my whole project list over the course of the weekend, we shall see. I did enjoy the few moments I had to work. I absolutely love the idea of sitting down and working on stuff and looking to see what everyone else did! I am pretty sure I'm in the minority of the group of non-quilters unless the others that did something other than quilting are also quilters. :) Although a good thing because it gives me a chance to meet new people with my same passion and a chance to maybe have some tips when I do someday try my hand at quilting! :) It was fun and I look forward to the next! Look for more pictures once I do finish my projects! I am really looking forward to the baby stuff so stay tuned for that!!! :)

Latest Projects and Friday Night Sew In and Contest!

Well, since they are shorter I'll start with the sew in and the contest. The contest I posted about previously, I did not win, but I did enter to win one of 50 bags from the Green Bag Lady and I did actually win that and by the way you absolutely should check out her page in general! She is behind a GREAT CAUSE! I am becoming one that absolutely feels guilty now anytime I have plastic that I am done with or no longer need! She has a great post about the plastics in our waters that really makes you think here. Anyway, so I won one of her bags and the point is to give it to a sweetie or keep it for yourself if you choose! Well, being that one of my best friends (and the 1st person that came to mind that would use it), I picked Terri but in the email that was sent out it did mention if you don't have one, they'll send you one too! So I got 2, one for her and one for me! (Mine did come in handy this weekend at the Affair of the Heart!) She also loves pictures of you using the bag, so once Terri and I have a chance we are going to do that! :)
As for the Friday Night Sew In, there is another one coming up on the 19th I have a button linking to it here on my blog page. I am still debating what project I want to work on; I want to get going on the baby stuff I am making for WeeBoz, but I want it to be a surprise and since we have to post pictures; that's my hang up. I thought about zooming in so you can see I did something but not exactly what it looks like. I don't think I need to do any more for me after you see below. :) Stay tuned to find out! :)

So, apparently all three things in this blog seem to have two things in common; sewing and Terri! Ha! I did not plan it that way, it just happened! So, for Christmas, Terri got me this great book in which she also received and loved it so much got it for me. It is called One Yard Wonders, everything in it uses at least a yard of fabric. That's the main idea; of course some may call for extra for trim, etc but basically you could use only a yard and maybe a couple of notions, etc. Once I got this book home; I could NOT wait to get started and started going through my stash to see what I could tackle! Well, over time I managed to make a few things and when I had to watch my nieces on my birthday because of no school, I was determined it would be a fun day so I let them each pick out something they could help me with and the fabrics they wanted to use. They love helping me with crafty stuff. Of course Kyleigh was more active in helping than Katelynn, that is just their personalities! Well, of course typing about it does not do justice, so here are some pictures! :)

 

So, since it won't let me put text under the pictures the way I laid them out, and the pictures are not necessarily in order they were made; here are some descriptions: the tops pictures are the book of course; the first project is listed as a sewing kit, but I made it to use as a Ninentendo DS case, but it may end up being used as a sewing kit!; the next project is called a scrunchie bag; it looked really cute in the book and I think mine turned out okay, my strap is shorter than what it calls for, it is very cute and handy!; the next project is of course Kyleigh's apron, she is very into arts and crafts so she wanted to make the apron that holds pencils or paintbrushes or whatever!; the next of course is Katelynn's, we really love how this turned out! It is one of the book pictures at the top, it is an apron that converts into a craft tote, I actually cut an extra main piece I'm going to make one for Madi; the next is a reusable shopping bag.....goes with using instead of plastic! I also love the way it folds up and can fit into your purse!; the next I love because I've been wanting to make a sewing machine cover and there it is! I did mess it up a little in cutting it b/c I was using my new rotary cutter and board but I made up for it; next is a trash compartment for your car! I was going to take the picture in the car but I took the picture in the evening that was too cold for that!; and finally this bag is called the folklore bag and the picture in the book is a bag made out of squirrel fabric, so I call mine an urban folklore bag! :) I just finished it on Valentine's Day! I love it so far! I should have put more pockets in it; but I like it!

I do completely intend to make as many things from this book as possible and use it over and over again! There are lots of things in there that you could make as gifts or for yourself! Good baby stuff and actually some adult clothing too with just a yard of fabric! It is great! I HIGHLY recommend it!!

That's all I have, I hope you enjoy the pictures and should be fun and interesting what I make! Take care and let me know what you think!!

Giveaway!

So, since I've participated in the Friday Night Sew In; I've found a lot of other fun blogs; one I've decided to follow is Sandy's in Stitches and she is having a giveaway for her one year blogiversary! If you want you can certaintly check it out!

Inspired.....

So since my last Friday Night Sew In; I've been inspired to work on and finish some other projects I've had to work on. I'm really excited too b/c the February Friday Night Sew In is on the 19th and today I went shopping with Terri to pick out the fabrics for the stuff I will be making for her baby so I will probably tackle some of that then! Plus I just got a book of projects you can sew with only one yard of fabric (thank you Terri), so I hope to be a busy little bee! :) Well, mainly I wanted to show off some of the things I tackled since the last FNSI. :)

some of the bibs I've been working on!

burp cloths

sewing machine apron! I love the fabric and this thing is so handy!

straight on

I know it's not a lot but I've been trying to pick fabrics and narrow down some projects. Will be making a cordorouy tote soon; very excited! I will post pictures of that as well!

Here are a few cute pics of Madison!

saving this for when the boyfriends come over;

she's looking at herself in the mirror and this was not a productive moment! :)

cutie!

CHEESE!!

riding a "power wheels" Harley!

with cousin Bella's build a bear's glasses! She did this on her own!