Cleaning out my closet - The Big switch for Mommy

With the sudden change in temperature I found myself scrambling around trying to find appropriate clothes to wear.  What started as a simple task turned quickly into a big and messy project.  Henry was propped happily in his little bumbo and enjoyed grabbing at the variety of colors and textures that almost drowned him.  But that only lasted about a half hour and now after 3 days I'm finally starting to see the carpet in my closet again.

The big switch for mommy is complicated not just by season but also by a variety of sizes.  This family of six children came upon us quickly, all within 8 years which means to accomodate my body, my wardrobe has been in constant transition.  I wish I could keep it as simple as the kids with only 10 set outfits and one plastic bin as storage for the opposite season.  Instead I have a huge bin of transition/fat clothes, another bin of super pregnant/maternity clothes, and even more piles for what I would like to label "regular me/skinny clothes".  To complicate it even more there are certain items that are specifically designed for easy nursing and others that make nursing almost impossible.  The problem is within each of these categories there are various seasons so if I am looking for something specific (like I was this past weekend), I really have to dig.  I'm still trying to think of ways to simplify this process because in all honesty I certainly hope to be blessed with more children.   And as happy as I am to pretty much be back in my "regular clothes" I wistfully folded and put away my awkward pile of "transition/fat clothes".   I'm not ready to just pass it all on.

As for this current season I feel I have way more clothes than I even need.  In the past I had the habit of picking up one pair of good shoes and at least one outfit but my habit has caught up with me and now I simply can't justify it.  Besides, just being able to pull on the fall/winter "regular me/skinny clothes" is thrill enough- I enjoyed my spring/summer "regular me/skinny clothes" in the summer of '07 but last year's fall/winter clothes were those from the less desirable "transition/fat clothes" pile.     

Now some may be wondering what has happened to my interest in style, fashion, and trends.  Well I have come to believe it is all relative - check out the sartorialist for example.  What makes an individual look great are the simple principles such as fit, color, proportion, quality and condition of the garment, as well as being well groomed.  In fact, I believe current "trends" often confuse people and in return of wasting a lot of money they are led to looking quite staged and often times awkward.  I just want to be me when I dress.  I want to have fun but at the same time be practical.  So for me that means use up, wear out, store away, or re-fashion what I already have.  And don't forget the magic words "machine washable"! 

Well maybe I think too much about clothes.  But thinking about it ahead actually saves me time and money.  I can easily toss aside catalogs and pass up great sales when I know my closet is already full.  

It feels like Christmas!

Look what we woke up to this morning.  We haven't even put out our pumpkins yet and the kids are talking Christmas.  Everyone was so excited - Paul was hitting us with snowballs and Peter bent down and ate the snow fresh from the Church parking lot.  I'm not sure if I'm ready for this though and also wondering if the last remaining watermelon in our garden would taste good in an icy slush.   

Happy Homemade Messes

The Bagel business has been a great success so far.  That is except for a few piles of flour dumped around the kitchen and several flour footprints trailing through our home.  

Peter is not old enough for the mixing, measuring, and forming of bagels so he will start out as a sweeper then work his way up in the business.  He is in line to  begin training in the rolling and forming.  

William heads up advertising and marketing, and also helps with distribution and delivery.  He will soon start his training in weighing out the ingredients.  

James just got promoted as head mixer and ingredient weigher.  He also assists in the rolling and forming and is head of accounting, customer orders and relations.  

Paul graciously took the position as head pan washer and also over sees the distribution and delivery of our goods.  He still serves as our in house consultant.

That leaves me as the sole boiler and baker at 5:30 am.  I actually like the quiet of the morning and if it wasn't for lack of sleep I would offer our bagels more than once a week.  

We are working hard, making messes, cleaning up,  and having fun with the whole process.  But I am tired and told Paul "it is hard to make a buck isn't it"  - he laughed and said "Maybe we should have tried this years ago".

Going Dark

Thought you all should know that I dyed my hair today - just for fun and for some other practical reasons.  When we move I'll be leaving behind not just friends and family but the best hairdresser ever.  So in the spirit of this move to MI and simplifying my life I am officially eliminating any sort of color processing from my hair routine.  After years of highlighting my hair I had no idea how dark my 'natural' color really was.  I don't feel like myself - I look like one of my sisters!  But that is a good thing.  It will take some getting use to but it will be nice to be free from the commitment to highlights.

Den Leader Make-over

Becca was recently called as a Wolf Leader in her ward.  Knowing how much our family loves hands on projects this calling was a perfect fit for Becca.

I'm sorry I couldn't say the same for her required uniform.  BSA has not done much to make these shirts very flattering for women.  So in exchange for some excel accounting help for our Happy Homemade Bagel business I made a few alterations to her uniform.

It was simple.  We turned the two release pleats coming out of the back yoke into back darts, took it in a bit on the side seams and then added two front darts that start just under the pouch pockets.   If we had more time I may have taken a few inches off the bottom and perhaps  reset the sleeves to a more flattering length.  I don't know if that would have been pushing BSA requirements but what we did so far is a great improvement!  

Hope you enjoy all your fun meetings Becca - those boys are lucky to have you as their leader.  You're also getting great experience for your three little boys who will too soon become cub scouts themselves.

While the men are away........

The women and children will play.  Last night I hosted a sort of impromtu kids/sisters party at my house while all the men attended Priesthood meeting.  Suz, Mary, Emily, and Becca all joined this small gathering with their children.  There were 20 children in total to make it especially eventful.

The great thing about sister gatherings is there is a fine line between hostess/guest.  All chip in to make the fun happen.  We had Natalie and Emily prepare the twice baked potatoes, Caroline and I did the homemade ice cream, Mary and Becca served the children, and Suz was the official taste consultant to those preparing the food.  

After all the little ones were feed we sent them to basement where we originally planned to put a movie on for them.  But before we could start a show several of the children had gotten into my dress-up closet and it was too much fun- even more fun than watching a movie.  So it was suggested that they gather together and make their own movies.  The adults were then sent upstairs.

Us sisters just hung out talking and laughing as we nursed our babies.  It was quite surprising how long the kids were occupied, even more surprising is there was not one conflict.  They were happily absorbed in their play.  It didn't seem like there were 20 children downstairs (well actually 19 since Natalie should be counted with us now).

Three shows were performed and recorded and I'm sorry I could not hold the video very still as they were quite entertaining.  Just like the unplanned parties seem to be the most memorable these unplanned performances were remarkably fresh and amusing.

Us moms couldn't resist the fun and grabbed a few costume accessories for both ourselves and babes in arms, put on music and joined in on the kid costume party.  While we were dancing one of the kids picked up the video camera and filmed us this time it being shaken with even more laughter.  It sure doesn't take much to have fun with family.      

Wordfull Wednesday: My Favorite Season

To all those in the Wordfull Wednesday circle I am passing this assignment on to my 8 yr. old James. My favorite season is now - the one I am experiencing. Here's James while I go clean up our bagel mess before we have a visit from a prospective buyer.

In our home there are five seasons Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall, and Football season. My favorite is Football.  Being a Michigan fan makes it especially fun. Pictured here is my little brother Henry on the day of the Michigan/Utah game.  He is wearing the old Halloween costume my mom sewed for me when I was six days old.  He doesn't look happy maybe because the score was 25-23 Utah.  

Besides Utah, Michigan has played Miami (Ohio) 16-6 Michigan, at Notre Dame 38-17 (that game was frustrating because the referee didn't call for a touchdown and Michigan should have had 24)Notre Dame won,  and Michigan vs. Wisconsin.  Michigan won 27-25.

Sometimes it is hard to be a fan when your team loses especially when it is a game they should have won.  What makes it all worth it is winning games like the #9 ranked Wisconsin game.  My Dad and I were jumping around and shouting so loud that Henry was crying.  Maybe when he gets older he will understand how fun it is.