Merry Christmas!! 2017

Merry Christmas!!

It looks like Santa has arrived!! Look at all the goodies he delivered!!

My favorite part of Christmas is getting to see how excited my children are by all their surprises. Which is why that one Christmas that they woke up early and opened EVERYTHING without me was such a bummer of a year, but that's another story.

Look at Baby O's face!! He was so excited to see that giant triceratops!! When we pulled it out he climbed on and took a ride. I think he kind of likes the big fuzzy guy.

For R's 7th birthday he got a Nintendo DS2 or some such thing. All I know is that my kids yell at me every time I call it a "Game Boy" which I may or may not do on purpose now that I know how much it irritates them. This awesome find of Skylanders Giants for the DS made R super excited. Though, I'm pretty sure he is faking his excitement for this picture, not that he doesn't constantly play his DS and loves the Skylander games more then any other game, EVER. He was pretty excited to get this game and others, but I think he likes posing for pictures even more.

Somehow we missed getting pictures of Miss K opening up her MP3 player, alarm clock, or any of her many other gifts. I'm not sure if she just wasn't jumping for joy excited about things this year or if the boys were just more showy with their excitement. But Coby did manage to catch this sweet moment between Miss K and Baby O comparing their crochet kitties from Grandma Red. All three got one, and I got the cutest cow!

All in all I think we had a pretty awesome Christmas! We played games, ate left over ham and rolls and enjoyed Mammie and Papa when they stopped by to play. This Christmas was definitely one to remember!

Merry Christmas!!

From our family to yours!

Merry Christmas Projects

Every Christmas since Miss K was born I stay up late many many nights drafting, sewing and creating matching (or at least coordinating) family pajamas. I rarely get enough sleep and am lucky if I get jammies completed before bedtime Christmas Eve. And this year was different. 

Instead of drafting my own jammie patterns (you know, kids grown every year and I had to redraft EVERY year) I decided to save a ton of time and just use a pattern. Well, back in early October Patterns for Pirates rolled out a FREE pattern for pajama pants for the whole family. I was lucky enough to take part in their giant Next Top Tester competition and test these pjs out before they were available to the general public. It was so much fun! But I was absolutely not even close to being competition for these amazing women. It was a great experience! Anyway, I used the Walk the Plank PJ Bottoms-Adult Unisex and Walk the Plank PJ Bottoms-Youth Unisex for our Christmas jammies. The pattern is simple and the instructions are easy to understand and have great pictures to help with the construction. I will totally be using this pattern ALL THE TIME, especially when Christmas comes around. My life was made so much easier!! 

I don't know about you, but plaid, fleece and jammies are all must haves for Christmas. This adorable red plaid anti-pill fleece from Joann's was so perfect! These WTP Pj's are drafted for a woven fabric, so these jammies are super extra comfy having being made from a knit. 

The kids are all wearing Jolly Roger Raglans, also from Patterns for Pirates with their sleeves lengthened so I could hem instead of adding cuffs.

I am wearing a Patterns for Pirates' Slim Fit Raglan graded out for my mama tummy. I forgot to add length to my sleeves. I didn't think I would need it. I'm so short I kind of figured they would be a tad long even with the hem. I was wrong and am kicking myself for it, but the shirt is still super comfy!

Coby is wearing a Cole's Creations Jerry's Raglan and I couldn't be more pleased with the fit! I did need to grade out one size for his daddy's gut, but it was easy to do and looks so good.

Ho! Ho! Ho! Don't forget the belly shake that goes with the giggle! My big kids were proudly teaching Baby O all about this classic Santa gesture while feeling up their super soft shirts! This fabric was my first purchase of DBP or double-brushed poly from So Sew English Fabrics, and we were so pleased with it. I have had several requests for more of these super soft shirts! I guess we will see what the future brings!

I sure hope your family has a beautiful Christmas and gets to enjoy some of the wonderful traditions that come along with the holiday and the celebration of the birth of Christ.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good and snuggle-y night!

Happy Halloween!!

Happy Halloween!!

We sure hope that you are yours have a safe and fun Halloween!

And the ADVENTURE continues with K. R. O.

Halloween Pattern Round Up #4

This hoodie is my favorite pattern from Pattern for Pirates. I have used the Jolly Roger Raglan pattern to make a ton of different shirts and hoodies. I can't even tell you how many cute shirts my kids have in their closets made from this pattern. The instructions are easy to follow and clearly written. There are so many options, especially with the add-on pack.

For Baby O's costume I added ears and of course all the stripes and a collar. The collar made the neck too tight and O ran around the house screaming every time I tried to put the hoodie on him. It was pretty funny!! So I had to cut down the collar and front of the shirt, lengthen the collar and add a snap. Later I added a name tag that snapped to cover the opening I cut.

I have heavily modified each pattern and make no claims to ownership of these patterns. I am also not receiving any monetary compensation for anything that I share.

R's costume may seem very different, but it is also a very heavily modified JRR with Add-on. I enlarged the hood and gave it a bit of a point in the center front, added the ears and the dreads in the back. I sure wish I had a good picture of them. I also lengthened the sleeves and torso to accommodate for the layers in the sleeves and the rough hem line. This hoodie was so much fun to make and I can only thanks Patterns for Pirates for it!

Here is the link to the patterns - Jolly Roger Raglan
                                            Jolly Roger Raglan Add-On

Check out the other patterns used to make Halloween Costumes this year!

Halloween Pattern Round-Up #1
Halloween Pattern Round-Up #2
Halloween Pattern Round-Up #3

Baby O's Halloween 2017

Baby O was a fun one to dress up this year! We were originally going to make him Miss K's K-9 pup in training, but because of this kid's love of pretending to be a kitty, we changed things up at the last minute and turned him into a kitty. I used all the same patterns, but we can talk about that later, and just had to grab some different colors of fabric (the browns we had planned just didn't seem right so we got grays).

I spent a ridiculously long amount of time planning all the stripes and colors and placements on each piece of his costume so it would all line up. And his costume had a lot of pieces. I was worried about him getting cold. So he had a hat and mittens, a pair of footie pajamas and a hoodie. I wanted everything to line up on all the pieces, so I planned and I drew patterns and pieced things together very carefully. It all turned out exactly as I planned and was so stinking cute!!

He probably loved the mittens the best! I drew little kitty paws on them in blue puffy paint so they would have grip and we could tell which side was right side up.

Check out those stripes!! I had to add a snap to the collar because Baby O wouldn't let us put the hoodie over his head without somehow opening the neck. He was terrified of the jacket until we did that, and then it wasn't nearly so bad. And we had to have pockets, because when you are 2 pockets are life!! 

Here is Baby O in both the jammies and the hoodie, before the tail was added. You can see how the black stripe of the hoodie lines up with the black stripe of the jammies across his little tush. Let me tell you, I was so proud of myself when I got this picture, all my hard work designing out the stripe pattern and tracing them onto both patterns I used and then all the careful measuring and embroidering I did to get everything just right and it turned out! It really did!! I am not always the most careful person, but I was so pleased with out this costume turned out!

Baby O says:

Well, I'm not really sure what he would say about this Halloween. I'm sure his favorite part was the candy. What 2 year old doesn't love CANDY! He doesn't have many other Halloween memories, but if he did, I'm sure they would all revolve around candy. Haha!!

Halloween Pattern Round Up #3

Baby O's Halloween costume was made up of lots of patterns because I made his costume to double up on the layers so we didn't risk him getting cold. A cold baby would make it near impossible to trick-or-treat and that would ruin all our fun. I have heavily modified each pattern and make no claims to ownership of these patterns. I am also not receiving any monetary compensation for anything that I share

Unfortunately, this is the best picture I got. This pattern comes from Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop and is one of my Halloween favorites. I'm certain I would love this pattern for other times, but the only time I have had to sew up this pattern has been at Halloween. I added a round belly to the jammie and embroidered the stripes on. They are so cute!!

I have made several patterns from Peek-a-Boo and I love these patterns! They are quick to sew up and the instructions are clear and enjoyable! This pattern is well worth your time.

Here is the link to the pattern - Classic Footed Pajamas

Check out the other patterns used for Halloween this year by following the links below!

Halloween Pattern Round-Up #1
Halloween Pattern Round-Up #2
Halloween Pattern Round-Up #4

R's Halloween 2017

This kid has a mind of his own and lives in a world where his momma can make ANYTHING. He dreams something up and he is so certain his momma can pull it off. So far, I haven't let him down, which may or may not be a good thing for my future.

R insisted on being a Pokemon this year, and not just any Pokeman. R insisted on becoming Lucario. Locario! Of all the Pokemon to choose from, he picks a dog type with dreads, standing ears, a tail, and spikes! The above picture has him sans spikes, but the did get added, eventually, like Halloween morning! Haha! I had to take some time figuring out how to get them to stand up and be removable because I wanted R to be able to wear the hoodie year round and that wasn't going to happen with permanent spikes.

Image borrowed from https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Lucario_(Pok%C3%A9mon)

R says:

Lucario was my favorite costume ever, because it is one of my favorite Pokemon.

If I could change anything about my Lucario costume it would be that it had a facemask hanging down from the front of the hood.

My favorite memory from this Halloween was having my cousin dress up as Pikachu when we went to our school carnival.

(The above was not written by R, but he answered the questions. He was busy playing Minecraft on the Wii U. We will get there, eventually.)

Halloween Pattern Round Up #2

Baby O was a kitten for Halloween and it is sometimes very cold in October in Idaho. Haha! It is usually quite cold in Idaho in October. So I knew that Baby O needed some mittens because he hates being cold. After an extensive search online of all kinds of mittens and these are the ones I fell in love with! I found them originally on Pintrest and that led me to Instructables and to this perfect toddler mitten pattern.

I have heavily modified each pattern and make no claims to ownership of these patterns. I am also not receiving any monetary compensation for anything that I share.

Once I found this mitten pattern, with a mitten wide thumb hole, so there is a whole lot less fighting to get the thumb in the right place, and if you have a toddler like mine, his fingers HAVE to be in the proper places before he can be happy. You have no idea how grateful I am for this pattern!

It was a little complicated to figure out at first, mostly because I printed out the pattern and forgot where I had found it so I just attempted to wing it and it turned out pretty good actually. Luckily I found the instructions for you!

Can you see how awesome this pattern is? Baby O can't, he is using them to cover his eyes! Haha!

Anyway, I have made several pairs and they are always adorable. I sure hope you can enjoy them as well as my kids and I have.

Here is a link to the pattern - Monster Mittens

Check out the other patterns used this Halloween following the links below.

Halloween Pattern Round Up #1
Halloween Pattern Round Up #3
Halloween Pattern Round Up #4

Miss K's Halloween 2017

Halloween 2017!

For Spirit week, way back in April, the kids got to dress up like the person they wanted to be when they grow up. Miss K chose to be a K-9 officer. This is the shirt I made her. We just grabbed a cute navy t-shirt and added some iron-ons to make the look complete. We also made a quick purchase at the dollar store for a whistle and a fake plastic walkie talkie.

Once the shirt was complete she quickly tried it on over her Super Woman pajamas. We bought those for the Super Hero day for that Spirit Week. We did finish the costume out with an adorable pair of dark jeans and a badge.

For Halloween we decided to take the costume up a notch and added a hat and a pair of cheap aviators and a warm long sleeved shirt to keep her warm in the brisk Idaho October. She looked AWESOME!!

Here Miss K is attempting her tough, I'm-going-to-arrest-you-if-you-don't-behave face.

 Miss K says:

This wasn't my favorite Halloween costume, that was the outlaw that I was two years ago. But my favorite part of this costume was the aviators, because I like those kinds of sunglasses.

If I had to do something different about this costume it would be the badge, because I colored the badge gold and it was supposed to be silver.

My favorite memory from this Halloween was the fake mustache I got from one of my friends while out trick-or-treating. It made the costume so funny!

(The above was not written by Miss K, she was too nervous and didn't know what to say. This was her first blog post and she was a little embarrassed. She will get over it!)

Halloween Pattern Round Up #1

Halloween is such a fun time for my sewing! I am so grateful that this year I had enough practice that I was able to pull of some fairly complicated creations, but I wouldn't have been able to pull it off without some fantastic base patterns! I have heavily modified each pattern and make no claims to ownership of these patterns. I am also not receiving any monetary compensation for anything that I share.

Baby O's kitty hat is from Fleece Fun. There is a HUGE collection of free patterns, most of them made from fleece. They are simple and fun! And most of the patterns have a video included to help you put them together! What a bonus!!

I changed things up a bit by embroidering the stripes on the hat and making the largest ears I could to make the hat look "younger". More kitty-ish and less cat-ish. I think they turned out pretty good!

I was ridiculously pleased with the way this hat turned out and Baby O seemed to enjoy wearing it!

All the hats I have made from Fleece Fun have turned out adorable! It is such a quick and simple pattern. I highly recommend them for all your fun fleece hat needs!

Here is the link to the pattern - Halloween Hat Pack

Check out the other patterns used for Halloween this year!!

Halloween Pattern Round Up #2
Halloween Pattern Round Up #3
Halloween Pattern Round Up #4

Introducing R!

R! He is a super sweet and handsome little man filled with the energy of a typical little boy and a mouth full of words to talk your ear off!

About a year ago this kid decided he was done with his long, surfer-style blonde hair. R had pretty much always had his hair long like this. At the age of two he decided he wanted long hair and we let him grow it out and we LOVE it.

I had a really hard time coping with the idea of R cutting his hair. My little surfer dude was going for a big change. I'm not sure if he was nervous, but I was!

The outcome was delightful! He looked so cute! R was pretty happy with he way his hair looked!

Thank goodness because it was a big change!

It didn't take long for him to decide that long hair suits him better. I'm not really surprised! Long hair really suits his personality. His goofy, Pokemon loving, Minecraft playing, talk your ear off, dance all.the.time. personality. Dang, I love this boy!

This year R will turn 8. It is going to be a very big year for him! He is going to finish up second grade and head into third. Man, I am so excited to see how he grows.

Introducing O!

Baby O! Our sweet little caboose! The child we needed to make us a whole family. O came to us when Miss K was 7 and R was 5. We needed this little guy to make our family complete. He makes a whole.

This kid has more personality then all the rest of us combined. He knows what he wants and what he doesn't want and there is nothing in this world that can change his mind. He is stubborn as a mule but way cuter!

He likes to help. He is the best little helper. From the time he could walk he would stand at the dryer and yell at me to hand him wet clothes that he could toss into the dryer. And if someone leaves their room with hangers they had better be prepared to hand them to him or be yelled at until they give the hangers up! He always has to "ho'd" the lid to every single sippy while it is being filled with whatever drink he had currently begged for.

If Baby O doesn't get his way, which he doesn't always, this is the sadness you end up looking at. Who could say no to that? I know I can't!

For Halloween, Baby O was supposed to be a K-9 dog to go with Miss K's costume, but he insisted that he be a kitty. He loves to pretend to be different animals, usually just a kitty and a puppy, but the occasional frog or snake will happen. So we changed his costume at the last minute and viola, you have Baby O, the kitty!

He sure loved his hat. I should find it again, so he can wear it around the house while he is pretending. This kid! Sure do love him!

Introducing Nellie!

Guess I need to introduce myself. I am the Momma in this house and the one that keeps it running, or so I believe. I am a stay at home mother who loves to write, craft, sew and cook.

Between trying to sew up my own me-made wardrobe for myself and kids (and maybe the hubby if he lets me) and keep my house from looking like a tornado came through and keeping the house stocked with food, I want to try my hand at some basic and fun blogging.

Way back when, before the kids came along, I was busy in collage and Coby was busy helping me earn my degree. Miss K came along before the degree did, but as soon as she did, I knew I needed to be a mom more then I ever needed to be a teacher, so I finished up school with the quickest degree I could find and earned a Bachelor in Arts, in English. Of all things! I kind of scoff at my degree, it was a lot of money spent, and a large amount of debt, just to raise children, but they are worth it.

So here I am, with a love of research and learning (thank you, English degree), out to teach myself, and the kids if they care to learn, how to do all the things I feel I need to know to be a good Momma and a great housewife. Hopefully, I can show you just how grand this adventure of raising K. R. O. really is!

Introducing K!

Miss K! My baby girl! Miss Bug!

She is the first child and definitely acts like it. K is her momma's girl, she talks non-stop and is bossy as all get out. She will be a natural leader someday. Right now, she is a great friend and an amazing big sister. K is still learning how to be herself while still having to be a student and a sister and a daughter and a good friend. She is almost 9 and is a joy and a treasure to our family.

She has her own sense of style, even when I don't like it! But she is herself and that is super important! Because she looks just like her momma, and she needs something to keep us separated.

She is a fantastic little model and loves when I create interesting things for her to wear. The last thing she wants is to look just like everyone else, which is why she enjoys homemade clothes. She loves these pants! They are the second pair I have modified to make more comfortable for her. I love how much she enjoys the little things I create for her.

K Bug has been a treasure in our family and I am excited to show you all that she is and gets up to and let you fall in love with her as well.

Introducing Coby!

Time to introduce ourselves!

We are starting with Coby, because he has an interesting story and pictures to share.

Early Sunday morning, Coby packed the Aztec and drove down to southern Utah to go play in Zion's National Park. The last time he was there was 2004 and we had gone camping with my family over our first anniversary. My family hiked Angel's Landing way back then and Coby chose not to go because I wasn't interested in going on a 5 mile, 5+ hour, 1488 feet elevation gain hike in the middle of July. He has regretted his decision to stay behind every day since. Recently, he has begun hiking a lot more and loves it, so when a random 4 day weekend in the spring popped up he jumped at the chance!

Here are a few pictures to highlight his trip and hike.

Can you see all the switch backs in this picture? All those switch backs. That is one of the reasons I didn't want to make this hike 14 years ago, not to mention that I was in no shape to do any kind of hiking and it was HOT it was July after all.

Look at all that green! You can tell it's been a wet winter and rainy spring, even in the heart of Utah's dessert country. Coby said it looked better with all the clouds and rain and green then it did with all the sun. I love the contrast of the green flora and red cliffs.

The tail goes up this pinnacle. I don't know if I would have been able to make it past this point. But Coby did. He is amazing!

This is a little bit different view on the same picture as above. You can see the same tree in both, the big one on the right of the trail. And that chain railing to help you climb. Yeah, that's a nope from me, but look at how beautiful!!

Panoramic from the top of Angel's Landing. So so so pretty! Maybe that hike might be worth it after all! Wish I could make this photo even larger for you to see. It's so pretty!!

Of course, Coby wasn't alone up on the top. He was joined by his Buddy Bison and a cute chipmunk! The latter beat Coby up to the top (pretty sure he stayed the night up there) and then proceeded to beg for a good share of Coby's trail mix.

Can you see that waterfall? Coby decided to catch this view of that trickle of a waterfall.

And later got this fun view when the switchbacks passed directly over top of the waterfall. It was so cool to have the switchbacks camouflaged well enough to not know they would travel over top of that waterfall.



View of the canyon with the river down below.

Clouds sitting on top of the cliffs.

Another breathtaking view of the canyon taken at the top of Angel's Landing. It was definitely worth the lonely drive down and dealing with all the rain to have this experience.

P.S. Coby may take the pictures, but if it were up to him, he would just list them and that's it. I'm the story teller. So if you wonder why I'm putting so many words in his mouth, it's because if I don't, he wont. I sure love my quite husband. He knew what he was doing when he married me!