Busy Day

I have been bitten by the sewing bug again - rather, I finally unearthed all of my fabric from the storage unit! I have been wanting to sew, but I really couldn't justify buying new fabric just because I have so much junk that we had to rent a storage space and now, 5 months later, still have not cleared it out. Anyway, I sewed like crazy, starting yesterday with these slippers I made for Eva . . .

They are just like Robeez. I tried to find the link to the free pattern I got, but it isn't coming up tonight - so I'll have to post it later. I lined them with fleece. These are actually my second attempt - the first ones didn't exactly come together. I added a few extra steps to the free directions, like basting the edges of all the pieces so that I didn't have to worry about catching all the layers.

Then, today, I finally made myself a wristlet - I've been wanting to make one for ages, but again, hard to sew with fabric packed in boxes! I made up my own design, and I think it turned out really well. It's about 8"x7" and has two interior pockets - and all my stuff, including my cell phone, easily fits in. I love having a wristlet because I can toss it in my kid bag, my work bag, or just take it on it's own, and I don't have to keep switching out my stuff.

Next, since my kids were still sleeping (Daniel) or playing really well by themselves (Eva), I decided to finish a few projects up. Eva has a really cute outfit, but it came with a onesie. Has anyone ever tried balancing a 20+ lb. almost one-year-old on one hip in a public bathroom while trying to help a girl sit on the potty without dropping her in? Definitely don't need snaps in the crotch of the outfit added to that equation! So, I cut off the snaps and added this really cute ribbon. Again, I have to admit this isn't my first try at changing onesies into shirts - the first couple of attempts turned out completely ugly. But, I think this looks good - now, I just have to figure out what I can do for boys - even if I found a camo print, I'm pretty sure John wouldn't let me dress Daniel up in at outfit that had been be-ribboned!

Finally, I have a ton of satiny remnants, and Eva (as detailed in a previous blog) has really gotten into dress-up lately. Unfortunately, her eczema has gotten bad the past couple days, and most of her dress-up clothes are not made for comfort. I also have a ton of fleece remnants, so I made her this sparkly, hot pink skirt with a fleece waist band. I've never made anything with elastic before, but it wasn't as hard as I thought it might be. She tried it on for me and did a lot of spinning and dancing - wish I'd had my camera handy then!

We had a very productive day - at least, I did!! Daniel is getting more and more mobile - if he gets much braver he'll be walking on his own. He can truck behind a variety of push-toys - Eva's shopping cart (to her dismay), or his own new fire truck or Tonka truck. He's my smart boy - today I put his shoes and coat on and he crawled over to the door, stood up and started hitting it, yelling "AH, AH, AH!" while I got Eva ready. I would like to count that as his first words - sounds like 'out, out, out!" right? That's when I took him outside - walking while I held on to ONLY one hand. He's getting to be a pretty big guy. Eva has been growing up this week, too - today she told me she wanted to go potty all by herself - and she did it! It involved getting completely naked (she was wearing footie pajamas), but hey, I think taking oneself to the bathroom is a huge milestone. Of course, I still have to help her wipe, but that's quick and easy. Now, if only public restrooms could come equipped with a small but clean step stool for her to use to get up to the potty. Then, I'd really be set!