Projects Around the House

My poor husband! Every time I suggest some "small project" that I want to do (but know that I am physically unable to do it without his help), he shudders! "You know, every project isn't as 'small' as it sounds," he says.
So, some of "my small projects" that he's been roped into have been the following:
Painting the Living Room and Ceiling. Sand and Paint the Trim as well. Mount TV on the wall-check! Build shelves for DVDs-does buying them count?New counter top-check! Securing it to old cabinets-not done yet.Sand and stain old cabinets-um well . . . this project has gone on for at least 2 years. Slowly but surely, it will get done.
Who could live with that awful green inside those cabinets anyway? I (meaning Dale) finally got my new hardware on my cabinets. Now "I " just have to fill the old, existing holes from the previous handles before "I" stain them.
We won't even mention "The List" that is building as we speak.
Of course, my poor husband has lists of his own, but he will never have time to start or finish his, just because mine are "more important". I will tell you though, I did sacrifice a Saturday to help "organize" the garage. Of course, it was my idea and probably made a bigger mess than intended.
Oh well! So goes the cycle!

What a Storm!

Yes, we are still alive.

Though some people may not seem as fortunate, we have been blessed with lots of heavy rainfall. After the storm has gone, we look out and assess the conditions of things. Our gardens are fine. The chickens are good. The dogs are wet but survived.

The way Dale looks at it is our house was built back in 1956, and it is still here. There have been some really bad tornadoes since then too. I have lived in Kansas most of my life and have never experienced any problems from tornadoes.

So, we go about our lives, preparing and planning for whatever disaster will hit us next. Two weeks ago, it was the water heater. Currently, it is a 2 year old boy, sound asleep in his bed. In 6 weeks, it will be a newborn. As those ones are a little more predictable and expected, we hope and pray that all will be safe and cautious in the weeks to come.

Is It Over Yet?!

Less than 7 weeks. That's all.
One would think that I'd be getting nervous. Nope!
Just annoyed at the poking and prodding. I feel almost like cattle!
And yet here we stand near the finish line--I say we like anyone else has had to "suffer". I guess you could say that Dale has suffered the endless complaints, and my kids have suffered with the constant "mood swings". But really, lets face it, when your body can only take so much and yet somehow a little bit more here and then some there, I say "ENOUGH!"
Put a fork in me! I am done!

Allen's Baby Blessing

The same weekend of Charlie's graduation,we drove 4 hours south to " Helotes, TX" to see Dale's baby brother. We spent the night and went to church with them to participate in Bryce's baby blessing. These are the only pictures we got of that half of our trip.

Clara's Siamese twin (cousin Ella).They had so much fun together. We purposefully stayed longer just so these two could play together.We had way too much fun!I think it had to do with Julianna's cookies--secret ingredient perhaps?!There were plenty of hugs to go around.James was surrounded by toys and fun!Even Uncle John couldn't help but play with the cars.We moved the party outside (closer to the cars-thinking that would help us get on the road faster).Cartwheels and twirling!Baby picture taking.Occasional collapsing to the ground.Good ole "tom-foolery"!An hour later, we were on the road, missing everyone and wishing we lived closer (like next door). Still, we are a lot closer than we have been in years. Nobody better move!

Quick Update!

Just a few pictures of Charlie's Graduation that happened nearly a month ago that never made it up. Charlie graduated from Parker College of Chiropractor--apparently, it's called Parker University now. Annie, Will and their family made it from Nebraska. Tina and her boys were there. Tom flew in from Utah. Dan's family came. And of course, we were there with our 2 and mom and dad.Dad was able to take a honorary walk with Charlie across the stage.It was so awesome!Nathan chillin'!Dad and his three boys--of which he is so proud!The proud and devoted wife!Of course, when you are an "Alumni", you need a plastic license plate cover to show it off!Rubbing elbows with the President of the College.Thanks Charlie for graduating so that we all could get together for a "once in a lifetime" family picture!

Love y'all!

So. . . I Cheated!

I didn't actually get to sew on Monday. We had a bad day in the Pratt home. However, I think I made up for it when I spent more than 3 hours Tuesday working on my "little projects". Here is what I ended up with.

3 Ties for James. Well, actually, one completely finished tie and two that still are in need of some hardware.These little buggers!My nursing cape. I gave my original one that looked exactly like this away at a baby shower. Both Dale and I were sadden by the parting, but hey! What do you do when you are invited to a baby shower last minute and you have no money or time to spend? You give them something you have on had. Since the blue nursing cape I made for myself wasn't going to work (my friend's 1st baby girl), I knew I 'd have to part with my pink and chocolate cape.So, here it is again! I love this fabric.Coming up next . . . Clara's "Spring" dress. Looking at the receipt (that is still attached to it), I bought this fabric back on November 17, 2009. Yep! I need to get to work on it. What's really sad is that I made her a "Christmas" dress using this pattern and the other fabric that I bought at the same time as this. You know how people (usually the wise ones) advise that if you are making more than one of the same pattern, that you should layer the fabric on top of each other, thus cutting 2 for the price of 1? Well, would have been nice if I'd listened.By the way, Dale surprised me with a lovely bouquet of flowers for Mother's Day.

I love hydrangea!

To Get Me Motivated

I've decided to join a "challenge". It's called KCWC--"Kid's Clothes Week Challenge". You set aside 1 hour a day to sew something for your kid(s). Well, as you can see from my previous post, I've got my work "cut-out" for me (no pun intended). So, I am off to a great start! With help from my mother, I got 3 styles of fabric cut out for James' ties. Next, I hope to finish my nursing cape (which I can totally do in 1 hour). Then, I will top it off by making Clara her long awaited "Spring"dress. I love to sew, but it's the cutting out the fabric/patterns that drive me crazy!
Wish me luck!
Want to join the fun? Click the "KCWC Button" to the left of the blog for more details.

My Projects

So, I have been on Etsy.com, browsing and searching for things-purchasing a few things here and there. And I came across these patterns which I absolutely love! They were very inexpensive, not to mention I have them down loadable anytime I want.

I have been looking for a simple way to make neckties for James. A girl in my ward has 3 sons and they all have matching, homemade ties that they wear for every kind of holiday. She hasn't gotten around yet to showing me how to make them, so I bought this PDF pattern instead. All, that is stopping me now is fusible interfacing--I need to get some. I am also in this kick of making my own baby things. I may not be venturing into the cloth diaper route (yet), but I am all about making my own nursing capes and baby foods! Both of which I have great websites for anyone who wants to know. I bought these 3 patterns for $12. That's less than one pair of cloth shoes you can buy at Target. Yes, fabric can be expensive, but I can make shoes to match any clothes she will be wearing.
These darling shoes are Reversible Mary Janes. I am so excited to make these! I have seen a few Mary Janes with gorgeous bows and flowers on them. We will see how well they turn out! Aren't these cute! These are called "Retro Baby Sneakers". I love these because I can make them for a boy or a girl simply by changing the color and size of the strap. I am seeing pink, purple, and/or red sneakers in this baby's future!Adorable! Adorable! Adorable! "Angelina Ballerina" are so (shall I say it again?) adorable! the loop at the heel provides a place to attach ribbon to her ankles. This is such a sweet pattern!Now, it's just getting the fabric and making the projects. As soon as I complete these projects, I will post the pictures for all to covet! I just have to keep my energy levels up long enough to start and finish, which will be the real tricky part!

9 Sundays to Go!

I was sitting with my Beehive class yesterday and was explaining to them that I have 9 Sundays to go before I go in for a Major "Extraction" surgery. One of my girls got a real serious look on her face and asked why I was having surgery. With a grin on my face, I reminded her I was having a baby. Her face nearly turned red from embarrassment and replied, "Oh yea. I forgot."

Yep! That's right! I am still counting down. Nine weeks left before Dale and I are outnumbered. I am trying to keep a positive outlook on the whole thing, despite my fear of needles and epidurals. Just describing the epidural to Dale was painful enough, and if you ask him, he never wants to experience one of those EVER!