Big man, Little man

Here are the after and after pictures of my latest refashioning project.  Paul grabbed the scraps while I was cooking dinner and had us all cracking up imitating poses from the Brooks Brothers catalog.  

Even clothes that are too small for him are still big enough to cut out more than one baby/toddler outfit. I'm not sure what it will be but the scraps are going back into my bins and the buttons are going into my button tin.

The wrinkle free fabric is nice for men but I'm finding the propertites of such do not work well with a teething baby. That picture was taken just minutes after I dressed him, fifteen minutes later the drool was beading across the whole front of the kimono so I reversed it.

 

reversible baby outfit

Here is Henry's new go to church outfit.  It is a reversible kimono top with reversible pants just like I made for Clara in 2007.  Sticking to my challenge, I cut up some old pants, a t-shirt, and wrinkle free dress shirt of Paul's.

I like reversible clothes for several reasons.
-assuming you use soft fabric they are more comfortable
-you can turn them around if they get messy (2 outfits in 1)
-it is a clean finish

One problem I ran into was figuring out the appropriate closure opening for little boys.  Did you know girls are always right over left but boys are left over right?  So on the reverse side Henry will be dressed like a girl but it will only bother me if I let it - most people don't know right?

Clothes for a growing baby

Henry is growing and there wasn't much available for him in my baby boy storage bin.  Either the older boys wore them all out or he is off season for this size.

I traced 7 patterns from various Japanese pattern books and have them all cut out.  I challenged myself to use only what I have; that means I was even cutting into some of Paul's old clothes.

This little jacket was made from the denim I picked up at NPS and lined with some green sweatshirt fleece that I picked up on my second trip to NPS. I would have liked to use corduroy and a more neutral color lining but I stuck to the challenge and am pleased with the result. It is actually reversible but I think he'll wear the denim side out more.     

Kids in action

Today we joined up with Cathy and other moms at the State Capitol in a rally for clean air. You can see Cathy and Phillip on ksl wearing face masks. My boys made signs which read:

"Keep us Healthy
Think Green with fresh air"

"Keep our air clean"

Unfortunately we missed half the rally because it took us quite some time to climb all those steps up to the Capitol (I had one in the back pack was also dragging both our stroller and a reluctant climber). But the kids enjoyed this outing and have requested we go back when there are less people so they can see more of the actual building.

History lesson?

We've been planning to clean out our "spider room" (storage room) for months.  Last week as we begun pulling everything out we came upon this box containing Paul's old Nintendo from 1993.  It was complete with Super Mario Bros., Zelda, Super Punch Out, Super Tennis, Madden '94, NHL '94, and Rad Racer.

The spider room clean out was once again put on hold and the kids gathered all around cheering as we cleared 1-1, 1-2...... up until 8-4. It is amazing the way it all comes back, kind of like playing the piano or riding a bike, I knew just where to jump and when.

We actually don't own any other game console in our home.  Christmas 2005 Santa brought a Gamecube which was fun for a while but with it came many challenges for our family.  There was increased contention between siblings and homeschool became a constant battle so we gave it away.  

For now we are enjoying the old school games and that is only late in the evening when Daddy is home and after all other responsibilities have been met with cooperation.  Perhaps we can call it history because these games certainly were a big part of our youth.  

Tortilla Soup

There were no leftovers.  Even my pickiest of eaters declared "this has good flavor".  

The original recipe comes from Suz who is able to use her skills as a scientist in the kitchen to perfect just about any recipe.  I think the original recipe (posted below) is great but after living in Mexico for a couple of months she said her tortilla soup is now perfect and I may be able to replicate it if I make a trip to the Mexican market.

Here it is:

2 dried ancho chilies or 1 Tbsp Ancho chili powder
2 Tbsp canola oil
6 corn tortillas (blue or yellow)
1 Onion; chopped
4 Garlic cloves; minced
8 cups chicken stock (reduced-fat) or veg stock
2 cups tomato puree
1 Tbsp cumin powder
1 tsp oregano
¾ tsp. salt
2 limes, juiced

Optional Garnishes:
Grated Monterey jack cheese,
Avocado, diced
Sour cream
Minced cilantro
Diced cooked chicken

Remove stems and seeds from ancho chilies. Place chilies in a saucepan, cover with water and cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Drain chilies, let cool, then puree in a food processor or blender. While chilies cook, cut up two tortillas into small pieces. In a large saucepan, sauté tortillas, onion and garlic in 2 teaspoons canola oil until onions are soft. Add ancho pepper puree or chili powder, chicken stock, tomato puree, cumin, oregano and salt to saucepan. Bring soup to boil, reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes. Puree soup in a food processor and return it to saucepan. Stir in lime juice and reheat. Slice remaining tortillas into ¼ in x 2 in strips. Heat remaining oil in a medium skillet. When oil is hot, add tortilla strips and sauté until crisp, about 2 minutes. Transfer tortilla strips to a paper towel to drain. Ladle soup into bowls and top with tortilla strips, cheese and garnishes, as desired.

I could not find Ancho chilies so I used dried California ones instead. Reading about chilies I discovered that ancho chilies are mild, dark and pungent. The California ones are a bit spicier and are red. I think they were an okay substitute but I'm not going to make it again until I find ancho chilies or whatever other secret ingredient that Suz suggests.

Also I did my stock in the pressure cooker and was quite pleased with the flavor and the ease of it all. The meat just fell off the bone and I didn't have to sit long picking the bones like I usually do when I make stove top stock.

One more tip - the soup is suppose to taste better after one day but I don't know because ours didn't last past dinner. Next time I'll double it.

Messing Up and Cleaning UP

Messing up and cleaning up seems to be our daily routine and what keeps me from not only blogging but also conquering the laundry.

The messy project of the week goes to Maryanna's new Calico Critters house that William and I worked on together.  First we cut a box and spray painted it white.  Next we glued down the wall paper and rugs.  Meanwhile, James was cooking up some Jell-o (which was also very messy) so William made a bed out of the box and used some scrap cardboard for the table.  He also created an oval mirror for the bathroom.  The other items, except for the bedding which I sewed, were $.25 purchases collected from garage sales last summer - I knew we would enjoy them but I just forgot about them until now. 

Now Maryanna has her own little house to mess up and clean up.  She has enjoyed it so much I wish I would have thought of this earlier, it would have been a perfect homemade Christmas gift.  She is also still enjoying the movie Annie and requests to watch it frequently.  If you are wondering what she is wearing it is an undershirt and bloomers because she wanted to be "just like Annie".

Since the completion of the Calico Critters house the boys have been building and painting airplanes, boats and cars.  I don't think they'll let me throw away or even recycle any boxes for awhile now - each one is a new creation.

As for less messy projects James has been working on his new blog:  toyboxnews.blogspot.com

   

Tender Moments

It is with tender heart I announce the passing of our furry friend Cookie Dough.  She was amongst the greatest of a pets (and there were countless pets from my childhood), she had a special gift for connecting with humans just like a few others I remember, Mandy the cat, Elvis the parrot,  Kiwi the pocket parrot, Tequila the dog, and even Freddy the sheep.  I took Cookie Dough in as a favor to my sister, I never thought I could love a rodent but I did, I even shed tears at her passing and miss her presence in our home.

This however offered great moments with my children who were in complete denial for at least a day.  It has been almost two weeks and though they still struggle with the loss, I believe they learned much from this experience.  Here are some of my favorite memories of Cookie Dough:

-I first met Cookie Dough when visiting Suz's home in AZ.  We were having a BBQ and Cookie Dough crawled out of an empty cheetos bag, I was disgusted.       

-Suz brought her to Ut hoping someone would keep her.  She convinced me by saying "I'll list her on craig's list and she'll end up as rat food".  We took Cookie Dough in but no one showed much interest in playing with her that first week.

-Cookie Dough was great at escaping from her cage though.  We were singing during family night and this friendly little rat wanted to join so she climbed out of her cage.  No one wanted to touch her but William who was then assigned as Cookie Dough's official handler - they immediately connected.

-Since then Cookie Dough was the center of play at once a day.  Every child that entered our home wished to hold her and play with her.  I am happy we have many written stories and photos documenting their adventures.  

-Cookie Dough captured my heart on the desperate day she escaped from her cage into the garage just before a house showing.  She was faithful and gentle and crawled right into my hands when I called out to her.

-She enjoyed Christmas eve rolling around in a giant ball at Oma and Opa's and was passed among the cousins and the chaos.

-We only had her 6 months but Suz has many more funny memories from the previous two years that her family cared for her.

This experience has taught me how great it is for kids to have pets.  The kids are already requesting we now adopt a bunny, parakeet, snake, and iguana - maybe when we finally settle and only one at a time.  In the meantime though I have promised them they may start another blog only this time featuring only stuffed animals.

An Early Start

I threw this breakfast porridge together in the crockpot last night and was happy to wake up to an already cooked breakfast.  I was also very pleased that all my children liked it and requested that I make it "at least twice every three weeks".  

Even more funny is this:  today is Friday the 13th but the kids insisted "Friday the 13th is not unlucky at all - we were so lucky to have such a yummy breakfast"

I got the idea out of the Super Baby Food book. Here it is:

Whole Grain Crockpot Breakfast

2 cups whole grains (I used 1/2 cup sweet brown rice, 1/2 cup barley, and 1 cup Kamut)

2 peeled and chopped apples

1/2 cup chopped dried fruit or raisins

5 cups water

1/4 tsp cinnamon

Cook overnight on low and serve with a little honey (or other sweetener - we used coconut flakes) and milk.  

E.E.E. - The Boys Room

This wasn't easy nor was it fun, but it was worth the effort.  It took us all day to sort through the massive heaps of tiny lego and playmobil pieces, if I was at it on my own though I may have just thrown half of it out but the boys insisted on saving every piece even the .5 cm watch, knife, and compass for their playmobil figures.  The boys were discussing different inventions that could have helped us through the process like a vacuum that sucks everything up and then sorts it.  That may have been helpful but so would have a magnifying glass.    

Other found treasures included a dried up avocado pit, dried up turkey bone, bag of juniper berries, homemade paper bag puppets, army men with tissue parachutes, sculpted paper clips, coins from around the world, a train schedule from the California Zephyr, box of toothpicks and much much more.

 

We followed the same E.E.E. plan from my last year's visit with Marie Ricks.  The boys ended up with one bucket for their own toys, one mini suitcase (picked up at garage sales) for their treasures, and one plastic bin for all their sentimental things (including photos, artwork and schoolwork).  What was left over was sorted back in to the toy closet, thrown in a box for cousins, or put in the trash.   

Birthday Sewing Party

I'm just about a 1/3 of a century now and to celebrate I invited my sisters and older nieces over for a sewing party.  Most of us worked on aprons but Becca started a birthday banner and Cathy made bibs.  It was a fun and productive evening and when my Dad stopped by and saw all the machines at the table he asked if there was another "arms race" going on.

I kind of skipped on the treats and refreshments because in my mind sewing and eating don't mix.  That may not have been the best party plan because Cathy joked that for her birthday she was going to invite us all over to eat junk food and watch T.V.

For me though there is nothing more enjoyable than doing projects with my sisters so that's how we celebrated.  

Mom Wear

My sisters are planning a trip back to NPS so I had to get working on my recently purchased fabric stash.  The fabric was so cheap that I just went at it with a piece of chalk and some scissors using my favorite hoodie as a guide.  Instead of a hood though I added a wide standing collar with an offset button closure.   

I call it "mom wear" because it's not lounge wear or active wear but fills the semi-stylish functional gap in my wardrobe.  In order for something to be considered mom wear it must fit into at least a few of these categories:

-machine washable

-pockets

-absorbent

-wrinkle free

-stain resistant

-stretchy

-won't irritate baby skin

-does not look like pajamas

Why didn't anyone take me here before?

Cheryl finally convinced me to go with her to the NPS store here in Salt Lake.  I was resisting the trip because I'm not really in need of anything and since we still plan to move (as soon as our house sells) I should be doing the opposite of shopping and start cleaning out.  But she got me by saying "come on, it will be like a winter garage sale - who knows what we'll find".

And yes I found!  There was a whole section of roll ends from clothing manufacturers all priced below $3 a yard.  On this particular day there was an additional 50% off so I ended up with 20 yards for less than $40.  

From left to right here's what I selected:  pink sweatshirt fleece, dark stretch denim, novelty print cotton batiste (I'm thinking 4th of July dresses for the girls), plaid flannel (I bought all 11 1/2 yards and hope to make next year's Christmas jammies),  cotton home dec print (another apron), orange silky print.  

Sometimes I know what I'm going to make and sometimes I need to play with the fabric before the project comes to me.  Either way Cheryl said she found my shopping weakness and yes it is fabric.  An old BYU professor once told us instead of going to movies she would buy fabric because even if she didn't sew it up it provided a lot of entertainment just thinking about all the things she could make with it.  I don't intend on becoming a fabric collector so I'll be sure to sew up a few projects before I allow myself to go back there again.