ALMOST DONE!

Sooooo.......my newest almost completed project. I am doing a favor for my Dad's wife's sisters daughters aunts mothers son. Take a minute....did you catch that? Okay, good because I'm just kidding. But fer real.....it's for my Dad's wife's son's fiance'. Is that a little easier? They are getting married on September 11th. They asked me to do a little sewing favor. I had to make 56 of these babies. Yup, 56-count em'. Yikes! I didn't really know what I was getting into. I had no idea this would be so time consuming but I'm not a complainer, only a helper :). It just really pays to be friends with me! Just kidding! These little rectangles are going to be underneath centerpieces on the tables at the wedding reception. I had the HARDEST time with the black fabric because it is so thick and hard to iron down to sew. I decided to use the little strips of steam a seam. I HIGHLY recommend that product. It is perfect for non sewers who want to do a quick hem. You just iron it down and voila a perfect hem is made! Next is the flower girl dress. This project will actually be fun I think. I'm a little nervous as I don't have a pattern but I think I know what I am doing. I am anticipating several trips to the fabric store because I am TOTALLY guesstimating the yardage of fabric that I need.

Pictures of the flower girl dress to follow!

Jules

8 IS GREAT!

WOW! My first born is 8 today. This boy has taught me VOLUMES about myself and life in general. As I reflect 8 years ago today all I can do is smile. I or should I say we have come a LONG way. I remember overreacting to EVERYTHING when he was a baby. It is funny how much you change with each child that you have. I was all about Baby Wise. I don't know if anyone is familiar with this book but it was basically my Bible. I followed all of the rules to a T. Nap time, feeding time and play time were at the same exact time everyday. I would NEVER, EVER deviate. It cracks me up just thinking about it. My own husband called me the milk natzi. As a result of this regimented schedule, it bred a child who is unable to tolerate much change. He likes to know what is going to happen throughout the day and gets upset if plans change! I don't know why I should expect otherwise.

At 8, Jake is very sensitive and self-concious. He will get his feelings hurt fairly easily. He is very intellegent and excels in math. I swear he is smarter in math than me which I guess probably doesn't really surprise anyone! He is very interested in members of the opposite sex which in my opinion is a bit early. The ladies seem to like him as well. He has very good manners when he wants to. He is very skinny and won't eat anything. He won't eat cheese, bread, bologna, or peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches. He will only eat a certain brand of chicken nuggets which are the most expensive ones at the grocery store! He basically lives on chicken nuggets. He informed me the other day that he doesn't like pizza anymore either. I have no clue what to feed that kid. He loves sports and I think he is best at basketball. Maybe its because I just really like basketball and I want him to really like basketball! He does enjoy baseball too. He loves to be a "boy" and say things like weiner and pee pee and laugh hysterically. He is getting interested in music and really wants an ipod. It is really funny to watch him dance (albeit he got his moves from his Dad not his Mom meaning......the boy is white, ALL white)! He loves the Black Eyed Peas and most of the music on the radio. He is VERY stubborn and doesn't like the word no. I'm sure most kids his age are like this too. He is persistent and patient. This is one of my favorite things about Jake. If he doesn't succeed in something he usually just keeps at it until he does. He is very resposible for his age. I believe him to be an old soul. He is very considerate of others and shows great empathy toward people. He loves reading and he loves baseball cards. He LOVES his Nintendo DsiXL and his Wii. I do have to monitor that because he is the type of kid who can get really sucked into hours of video games if I let him. His favorite ice cream is chocolate mint and his favorite dinner is spaghetti which I am making for him tonight. No meatballs though!

I don't want to get all sappy and mushy but.......Jake is the one who turned me into a mother. This is the best "job" I could have ever asked for. I am so thankful and feel so blessed that I get to be home and raise my children and not miss one second of their childhood. Being a mother is kind of scary because you don't really know how you are doing in your "job" until later. Not until your kids are grown and on their own. I hope I am providing what they need to be self-sufficient, functioning adults. I guess time will tell. Anyway.....Happy Birthday to my little man who I am so proud of!

TWINS

I thought I would post some pictures of what I made today. My neighbor asked me to make two onesies for twins. She wanted something coordinating but not identical. The bird fabric is what I came up with. She also gave me free reign on the shirt with the tie. I, of course, chose my favorite brown and blue polka dot fabric. I hope I didn't disappoint!

Jules

1, ONE, O.N.E.

How did he go from this.....

to this.....

in just a short 365 days? The picture below is me exactly 1 year ago. I took this picture the morning that Nick was born. It is super weird to see how HUGE I was just one year ago! There is not greater gift than the gift to be able to watch your children grow and learn. It happens right before our eyes! I really try to not take it for granted. I try to step back from time to time and think about how amazing it is to raise your babies into little functioning people. It is scary! You can really screw up your kids if you aren't careful. Hahaha! You can really see how much he has grown from this picture


compared to this picture

Today is my baby's first birthday. ONE. I know, I know everyone always says how fast time goes but GOOD GOD this year FLEW by. What a joy this child has been! I had no idea what I was in for before he was born. Obviously, now, I can't imagine life without him and I honestly have a hard time remembering life before he was born. How blessed am I to have 3 beautiful, healthy boys? What did I ever do to deserve this life? What a privilege it is to raise 3 boys. God is definitely smiling down on me!

At age one Nick just started walking. He has 7 teeth with one peeking through his gums as I speak. His vocabulary consists of mama, dada, and ba (ball). He is ALWAYS amused by his two older brothers. He is almost always smiling-all you have to do is look at that kid and he flashes the most gorgeous smile. He has beautiful long eyelashes and a beautiful ice blue shade to his eyes. He gets his eyes from his Dad's side of the family not mine. He is done with bottles and formula (thank God)! He LOVES cheese and any fruit. He isn't so fond of meat yet. He thankfully sleeps all night in his own bed! He eats the dog food any chance he gets. I don't know what it is about the dog food but he LOVES it. He shoves it in his mouth and gets two very tight fist fulls of it anytime he can. He LOVES to climb stairs-the only problem is he has no idea how to get down. If I ever accidentally leave the gate on the stairs open he gets a huge grin and practically runs to it. Happy Birthday my sweet baby boy! I can't wait to see how you will change by your second birthday!

RAINBOWS AND SEWING

How cool is this picture?

I took this picture the other evening off of my deck. We had a massive typical Kansas rain storm and then immediate sunny skies. I looked out the window and there was a beautiful double rainbow! God is great!

On a different note........I have been busy in the sewing room. My cousin, Marc, is opening up an antique store in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania next month and wanted to have a few of my items in his store. Thanks Marc! Here is what I have so far

I know it's sort of all of my old "stand by's." I have a few more things that didn't make it in the photo. I will be making a few more things in the next week and ship them off to Pennsylvania. I am not sure if he is going to have a website, but if he does I will let you know. I guess I need to find out the name of his store too!

Jules

SPRINKLER'S AND WATERMELON

I have neglected my little blog for so long. I have been making things but nothing very exciting. Just things that I have already shown to you before! I will post pictures of my things soon. I have been really lazy about photographing them for some reason. I think I have just been preoccupied with other things.

Anyway.....what do you do on a Monday night when your husband is gone...ahem, buying himself a new car and your three kids are restless? You pull out the crazy sprinkler and let them get all messy with watermelon-that's what you do! Oh how I have missed you warm summer nights. The carefree nights when you don't have to worry about bedtime or homework. I had so much fun watching my kids just be plain ol' kids last night. Their faces say it all.
Nothing says summer more that eating a piece of cold, juicy watermelon on a hot night. I swear my kids ate 20 pieces of watermelon last night. It was messy and I had to scrub them down in the tub after but sooooooooo worth it!

Jules

ANOTHER BIRTHDAY!

Another Birthday outfit to share! You all know how much I LOVE doing Birthday outfits! I really didn't get many great pictures though. Oh well...you get the point. This is one of my best friends daughters in her adorable Just Jules outfit. Her big sister even has on a Just Jules t-shirt! They are both precious! I know the big sister's tongue is hanging out but it's the only good shot of the shirt! She's still cute!

I have been in the sewing room all day and I have ALOT of new things to share......stay tuned!

Jules