Boxing Day

It's Boxing Day! I didn't get a chance to post for Christmas so I'm posting for Boxing Day, not an American Holiday but a holiday all the same.

First, pictures of the Christmas Pageant at DD's school.

Set: Maria Regina School Christmas Pageant 2007

Little DD sang in her Christmas Pageant and made me cry. What could be cuter than my little four year old, up there on the stage, hamming it up with the other cuties, singing her heart out?
And, sucking her thumb, right there on the stage, in front of countless hundreds.

She was great, sang, wasn't shy, a natural. She was also really tired!

Well, she's decided to kick the habit of thumb sucking. She sucks her thumb every 10-12 minutes and wants an American Girl doll. I told her I would take her to the store to get one if she would stop sucking her thumb. After 30 days of no thumb, we'll go. Much to my surprise....well, let's say it's been 2 days and I better start saving. She must really want this doll. Oh well, if it costs me $200 now, it's cheaper than a few grand for braces later!

Let's talk about my sewing and decorating projects:

I am planning a trip to Joann's to buy some holiday fabric, which is now on sale, for a tablecloth for the new table. That should be a quick and easy project for me to do on my sewing machine. Can't wait. Maybe I will stop there tomorrow on my way to work. I'll be late anyway, being I have a dentist's appointment in the morning....it's ALMOST on the way...sorta...

I don't HATE my downstairs bath, it's just the wrong color. Everything downstairs is a different theme. You see, when we bought this house, it had it's very own decor: 1980's beauty salon. There were aluminum, (chrome that is!) blinds. They matched nothing I like or have other than the mag wheels on my sports car which I don't have any longer being I'm wife and mother. I now have a minivan and a Chevy Equinox. ANYWHO, the living room was pink, baby pink. The house exterior was cloud gray. The windows were vintage 1950 single pane originals. The kitchen, yellow. The master bedroom had one wall entirely covered with...cork. Yes, one large bulletin board! The downstairs bath, baby blue. Floor, walls, everything. It had been done in 1999 and was functional and acceptable although poorly and cheaply done.

We painted the living room terra cotta, the kitchen, cream, the master bedroom, marshmellow. We painted the second downstairs bedroom mint and yellow with a Snoopy border on the walls for the baby. (DS who is now nearly 6). We added a room off the kitchen and painted that cream as well. AH, Benjamin Moore take me away.

The bath stayed. It's time to upgrade. DS tried to remove the border a bit and it looked ugly, I removed it a 'lotta bit'. The bathroom is a new WIP. More pictures to come. We had to make it acceptable for Christmas. Maybe I can make it a new shower curtain and a new curtain for the window when I get good at sewing?

This is going, so here's some eye candy for you....

Set: Punkin's Bathroom. Vintage light fixture circa 1999. 1980 Beauty Salon Collection

In knitting news: I have been working on Iris Afghan and Monkey Socks. BUT, I don't have any pictures. Things have been hectic around here. That's why this post is all over the place. Just a quick catch up.

Baa Baa Brown Sheep

Thursday night was Knit Nite at the Village Knitter. They are celebrating their one year anniversary and gave out 25% off coupons. Being there was a major storm here (tornado warnings and everything!) and roads were flooded...and I almost have to pass there on my way home from the rockpile...and I had my coupon...and knitting in tow...how could I not stop in?

At knit nite, I worked on my Tofutsies. In fact, I will probably finish them this weekend depending on my other workload and ambition. I'm up to the toes!! I shopped and shopped for new yarn...plus, the Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece came in. I had my 25% off coupon and I can never resist a sale. So, I got 6 skeins of that plus some Cascade Superwash for a scarf to be gifted and some sock yarn. There are two of those red ones but one didn't make the picture. It's not on the needles and won't be for awhile, just in another bag. The sock yarn is Wildfoote and the colors were gorgeous. Plus, relatively inexpensive and feels really, really nice. I can't wait to try it out.

I started the Iris Afghan which I adapted for worsted weight. (remember: I have a passion for itty bitty stitches) I casted on a multiple of 20 + 12 (132) and I'm using the cotton fleece on a size 6 needle. I just started this morning and here's what it looks like so far:

This is an easy pattern, great for a beginner, in fact. It's not quite mindless and the results are going to be lovely. You can't really see the texture yet but you will by the next picture. I am thoroughly enjoying this yarn! It's 80% cotton 20% wool and is available in a multitude of beautiful colors. It's much nicer than the Cotton-Ease, which I also like, but costs more. Cotton-Ease is great for its washability and for kid's knits but it's choice of colors is very limited. Cotton Fleece would be for some special projects. Perhaps I will make myself a Wallaby out of this. With my leftovers, I'll make a swatch like 6x6 inches, wash it and see how I like it. My Wallaby won't be white though. Maybe in Teddy Bear or Putty....(as if i don't have enough to knit..)

Well, time to go to the dojo and fetch DD from Karate! Tofutsie and Brown Sheep update next time! Plus, we could talk about my latest endeavor..........

You only live once, you know. I have to learn how to sew. I have three bedrooms upstairs in my abode and only one of them (DD's) has nice curtains. It would be nice if I could decorate things myself. Maybe whip up matching curtains, duvet cover and dust ruffle, coordinating pillows. These are books which show exactly such things. (remember: I cannot sew a lick).

Husband has also informed me that I need to whip out my violin and kick it up a notch as we are playing a christening in November. HA HA HA!! He's funny. I think I sound like a fourth grader. More time needs to be spent there.

I suppose I should just win the lottery so I could have time to clean my house, knit, sew, practice violin and piano. I could also fill my bathtub with my stash and wallow in it.

By Janome, I think I've Got it!

Back to the game show.....

Today, I bought something that I've been meaning to buy for a very, very long time. One of those things you think about and never get around to doing. Then, one day, you're old and you say, "Drat, never did do that".

Fortunately, I have lost the desire to skydive. No, I didn't buy four years worth of tuition at a college in a college town. I bought: A Sewing Machine.

I never really owned one before. Back in the day, my mom didn't sew. She really didn't know how and said that sewing on a machine was a difficult task for lefties. In fact, she complained about being a leftie in a right-handed world all the time. She would iron and bowl with her right hand. I grew up in a house with a backwards refrigerator. I always had to switch the loaf of italian bread around to cut it. Once, she bought meat scissors and took them back to the store and told the lady that they don't cut meat. They don't work. I loved them...! So, she never learned to sew. I believe that she knitted in the same direction that I did but she didn't knit continental, which is weird. She crochetted leftie and I taught her to do that by facing her. She claimed you couldn't sew leftie, all the controls were made for the right hand. Surely, there must've been left-handed seamstresses, no? My sister sewed a bit and we had a Kenmore in the house that I used often. She and the machine live in FL now.

Being a musician, albeit former musician, I know the importance of buying an instrument from a store that is an expert in the field. Off to find a machine, I went to an expert. I went to Mr. Vac and Mrs. Sew. A mom and pop shop, a blast from the past these days! Located in a double store front only a few miles from my house. A expert. Not to mention, Mr. Vac and Mrs. Sew are very, very nice people. Guess what? They're really married to each other (I guess she kept her maiden name.) and they have SEVEN children! Seven children in 19 years. Oh my! They're not two little old people, you know, they're hopping! They are busy! They run the lovely store and they have to run a house with SEVEN children.

Mr. Vac and I sat down and chatted over the Singers in the little room he has set up dedicated to Singers. I walked in pretty set on the Singer Touch N Sew. He recommended a computerized sewing machine. Hmmn..Let's see, the last one I had was a Kenmore and it was fancy because it did zigzag, had a free arm and had a four-step buttonholer. Before that, Home Ec, Mrs. Kelly. She was a meanie but she could really sew. That machine didn't do anything either. He did a nice demo. He then showed me the Janome DC2007LE. It was great and was even cheaper than the Singer. He also showed me two Brother machines that were very, very nice but were really for someone much more advanced than I. I need this to make curtains, do hems, sew patches on my kids karate uniforms, help DD when she becomes a Daisy / Girl Scout, etc. I would love for her to learn crafts and music, too. The Janome DC2007LE seemed to be a great buy, was on sale and was my favorite color: green. (and white!)

Not knowing a Janome from anything, I did a little research on the web and found out that this machine was actually given to Rosie O'Donnell and the studio audience on The View. You can see the clip here. Being it's the end of 2007, Mr. Vac had marked these machines down and I paid way less than the list of $650. It has a lot of nice features found in higher end machines.

Ok, now, I have to take it out of the box and use it! Today, I will. I guess those socks are going to sit some more.....

DD and DS have been enrolled in Karate. They have these uniforms that are huge and the pants have an inseam of like 50. I will need to hem and take them down as needed. DS got his yesterday and DD's should be in this week. She was a little too small for the size 0 and needs the 00. They've gone to two lessons so far and they love it. I want them exercising and this is so good. DD loves to do "FIGHTING STANCE" and "JAM JAM" instead of Jab Jab. They're too little and inexperienced to spar so this is fine. They'll have to do that to get belts later on.

Well, I have to go and play with my new toys. Pictures coming! I can't wait to take it out of the box. My new, Janome DC2007LE...ah....toys!