Ends and Beginnings

Gene was asked to preach a funeral of a lady he has know since he was a teenager.
Rest in peace Nanny Martin. Please pray for the family left down here, several of them are seeking answers that only God can provide.

But when I saw him I almost forgot about the funeral. WooHoo! What a good looking man! Just breathtaking!

He finally got to wear the $5 suit I bought him. God provides!



The Preacher Daddy and his wife (sans banbinos)

I've been back at making little things again this week. Waiting on the arrival of two nieces.



For Maggie:

I expect to hear that Miss Maggie is making her
 grand debut any minute now.

For Miss Divinity:

Miss Divinity isn't due to make an appearance for several more
months. This is the cutest little onesie dress!
The pig fabric is soft like felt.
Maybe we'll find some little tights and a sweater to match.

I only got the sewing machine out because Ava said she needs shorts. I still haven't made shorts (they seem way more complicated than skirts) but I did fix 2 or 3 dress up dresses and make cute baby stuff, and make Ava one skirt (which she needs a new top for).

The Mama's Hobby

So, I'm showing off again. But mostly I want my mother to see what I did and I won't see her for a few more days. Plus, I have amazingly cute kids.
I've been pretty crafty and I'm going to have to put all my "toys" up and get back to planning school. (Ugh!)  So here's what I've done the past some days.

The kids always want to sew something, WHILE I'M SEWING SOMETHING! So, I tell them to wait. Last time Wally-world sold me really cheap material I got some extra-specially to make matching skirts for the girls. So, wouldn't it seem like a great idea to let them help make their own? Last Friday (or was it Thursday?) I put my plan in action.
(The little girls helped. Guess who made the others?)

This is what you get when you turn the camera on.
A dirty, stinky, little brother.

Matching skirts -they still need matching shirts.
In my mind I wanted a picture of just the skirts all lined up.
But some short persons are really short while others . . . not so much.
(I was holding Josiah in a headlock to get this)

So, then they needed a headband (cause I found an EASY & FREE pattern here).

four fabrics = double sided headbands SO CUTE!
(I'll talk about the purple on in a minute)

My lovely photography assistant

Our little friends have been back to play with us until they go back to school. And the princess loves purple (my kind of girl)! So, of course, she needed a pillowcase dress. I got a little inventive.

I gathered the top and added elastic shoulder straps

leftovers are great for more headbands and purses
She was more excited about the purse than anything else!

the Princess

and her headband
(and Jorja's arm)

So, naturally, two more princesses need more stuff.

Pretty cute unless you look closely at my stitches - just don't.

"pose Lora." "okay."

"Don't put your hand in front." "Like this?"

 The flip side of the same headband. A little extra forethought and I've had dome something a little differently. But the two dress fabrics are on the stretchy part of the headband - it all matches.

"No, they're NOT twins!"

And here are the latest baby things. I even had a baby in mind when I made them. Still fun.

I found the FREE pattern for this tiny peasant dress here.

A rose for Miss Rosemary

Shhh... this is for my "Maine" baby.
I drew the tie pattern (two pieces, big deal) and just stitched it on.
Not perfect but I think that makes it cuter.
Lots of love in this one.

One more of Josiah playing trucks. (I had something to do with making him too. I'm so crafty!)

What did we learn this week? Mama is NOT excited about school starting back. (she usually is).
Josiah is a camera hog! When I write a blog post it takes a long time because not only to the pictures take a while to load, I also have to look after these short persons (who, today, like to punch one another in the face). The third cup of coffee is just as good as the first (this isn't normal for me but we are grateful for caffeine today).

Getting what done?

So, the baby shower went well. The little mother was afraid that some of her relations would get into a tizzy (not a good one), but it all went well. We started by bathing the little mother and baby girl in prayer - I prayed big! Then CAKE. Really good cake made by Sandi Brock from our church.
The little mother's mama made a cute baby in a watermelon fruit thing and brought lots of goodies.

We had a great turn out. This is some of the ladies (in my VERY clean living room).

 Put her feet up and getting ready to open presents.

Jorja then took lots more pictures. However, she was sitting directly in front of the skirt wearing mama and we could see London and part of France. So we'll not be sharing those.

Makeing the little dresses for this baby has inspired me to make more. I made several more this week - Its relaxing (so long as the sewing machine works right).

Love the flowers.

I think I could sell them - but I may just end up finding babys to "try them on" - I need models.

Some big kids helped finish the project I was working on for the reunion. Only one more day!!!

I've tried finishing the shopping for the food and whatnot several times. Tonight was a great night to go get the rest done. Today my freezer got a little un-froze - so I think I'm changing the reunion menu just a tad. We'll have plenty of roastbeef sandwiches. But we realized it was unfreezing before I took off to Sam's. So Gene and I decided to take advantage of having Papa here this evening and go ALONE together! Woohoo!
BUT - even though July 4th is mostly just another day to us (Gene has to work) Sam's closes early.
I'm so upset. I guess I'll be dragging kids with me tomorrow - right after the bug guy comes and before, pick up sausage, pack, cook more thawed meat, pack somemore, run to the store again b/c you know I'll have forgotten something, pack, put it all in 2 vans and head for Camp Little Light.
Then go to bed so I can get up Friday already there and get busy at whatever needs to be done.
And my Mama is coming to help. HELP!!!!

A little bragging

I've tried to do one blog post a week. But I'm pretty awesome. And I'd like to show off right now. ;)
Wednesday a dear sweet friend told us that Laura Story would be doing chapel at Toccoa Falls College Thursday morning. So some other dear sweet friends thought that was a fantastic thing and we all went to see her.

She was so cute! 8 months prego - I was waiting to hear someone kick the guitar. She's even better (and sweet) in person. Blessings

When that was all done we took "the family" to see Tocca Falls (btw, its $5 for a family of 4 or more to go see the falls, since we were all part of the family of God it was $5 - I think thats the first time I've paid to go there - but worth every penny and more to spend time with these dear sweet people).

This is most of the 21 beautiful kids that went with the 4 mamas

I'm in the middle of planning a family reunion, Cousin Camp,  for next weekend and a project that I'm working on is coming along BEAUTIFULLY - but I'm not going to share it yet.

In the middle of that planning we are also planning a baby shower for a little friend. At our house. Tomorrow.

And what have I been up to this morning?

Well, after I let Zoie out, and she "helped" me sweep the carport - AGAIN!

I've been making the cutest little dresses for that new baby, Miss Rosemary Love.

And I have to show them off! (just don't look to hard at my stained up - well used - little ironing board)

(My darling Gene made breakfast. Thank you, honey).

I got the idea from my head but hit pinterest pretty hard to find something easy enough for me to do.

Here's the link to LP that showed me how.

Even better - I found the onesies at the getting-at-place last night for 75 cents, I had found the pink and green (and some other colors) on sale a month or so ago, and some other precious friend had cleaned out closets getting reading to move and gave me a boat load of fabric - and thats were the white eyelet came from. (Not cheap. Frugal.)

I'm pretty impressed.

And while I'm showing off (and b/c my Mama isn't coming up today- so, Mama, here it is!) this isn't the first time I've been crafty this week. Gene put the little AC back in the recently painted bathroom's window, then he sealed around it with thick plastic and black gorilla tape.

Pretty? NO!

So, that same precious friend had some stuff in all that fabric that was already partly made - and something with a big ruffle. So, TA-DA! Curtains to cover some of the ugly!

 I cut the ruffle just a tad longer than the width of the window and left about 3 or 4 inches at the top for the rod (it was already sewn together). I cut the panels a tad longer than the length of the window and a tad wider than the edge of the window to the AC. I sewed the panels right on the ruffle.
We've only lived here 5 years, it was time to hang a curtain anyway. But I may need a new one if we ever have winter again and that darling man takes the AC out. (maybe I'll just pin the panels up under until it heats back up).

One more picture. This was the temperature yesterday (6/29/12) in Carnesville, GA.

We are VERY grateful to have a van with cold air this summer. AMEN!!!