Lacing Toy

Esther has shown an interest in tying my shoes lately.  Or maybe I should say, untying.  She really likes pulling the laces out of my sneakers entirely.

She also likes trying to tie things.  Here she is with my uncle after she untied his shoes...

So instead of having to re-lace my sneakers every other day, I decided to make Esther a lacing toy.  You've seen them: they're plastic shapes with holes around the edges and they come with shoelaces...

I found some laces in the clearance section of the shoe department at Target, but everything else was stuff I had on hand.

As the mother of a toddler, I have a few diaper boxes laying around.  They're good cardboard!

I have a few old coffee table books that have some great pictures but don't really serve much purpose in my life right now. I've been contemplating ways to upcycle them or their pics...

I tore out two pics and mod-podged (is that a verb?) them to the cardboard. I cut out shapes with a utility knife.

 

Then I used a hole punch to... punch holes (duh) around the edges of the pic.  BONUS: Esther learns about Van Gogh at a young age! 

I finally finished with varnish.  I deliberately painted it thickly on the edges and in the holes, and I applied three or four coats, front and back.

The finished product with laces!

This whole task made me realize that I will someday have to teach Esther how to tie her shoes.  That sounds like a really hard parenting challenge. Props to all you parents whose kids know how to tie shoes!

New favorite nightgown

 I mentioned I'd started sewing... it started with a quilt for my niece, which was supposed to be a day-of-birth present, but which ended up being a first birthday present! In between, I took a sewing class in which I re-learned how to use a machine.
For the class, we were taught how to make a reversible child's dress. It was fun and I learned a lot, but more importantly, it whet my appetite for sewing!

Since my first quilt, this is probably one of my favorite projects. It's a really easy pattern that involves a piece of elastic around the neck.  It's how you finish the top of the front, back, and sleeves, making it super easy to complete.  (The pattern calls for elastic in the arms, too, but I like them fluttery... and it's easier this way.)

The fabric is a cotton knit that I pulled out of the remnant bin at JoAnn's. It's lucky that Esther is still small, because the remnant bin is half off, and the pieces are all less than a yard! I had to work with stripes for the first time, which I found to be helpful-- I'm not always so great at sewing a straight line! The knit of the fabric meant I didn't have to hem the bottom ruffle, either.  Jersey rolls up with just a little tug, making it looked finished-ish enough.

Esther likes this one because it's comfy.  It's her first nightgown. Sometimes when I check in on her at night, it is tangled up around her chest (she is a shifty sleeper!), but I tug it down and she doesn't seem to notice.

Here it is in person, one night while Esther was doing my hair before bed:

Here's the pattern: Simplicity 5695

Sewing

I've been sewing a lot lately!
I bought this machine from a nice lady on Craigslist... It's an old Kenmore, surely older than me!

I'll be sharing some of my sewing projects and some other stuff I've been doing...

Things I never thought I'd say

1. That's enough broccoli.

2. Please take the marker out of your nose.

3. Please put your poop down.

Grandma Pigtail Pals Has Something To Say To Girls Who Are Different

This is an awesome letter from a Grandmother to a granddaughter about her awesomeness. It's good for all of us, too.


Grandma Pigtail Pals Has Something To Say To Girls Who Are Different:

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Spirituality of DFTBA: Surround yourself with Awesome

For Lent this year, I'm trying to make DFTBA (Don't Forget To Be Awesome) my spiritual discipline. Inspired by the Vlogbrothers and Pigtail Pals & Ballcap Buddies, I'm considering what DFTBA looks like for me and for my two-year-old daughter, Esther.

So far my Lenten discipline has included:
1. Remember you're awesome.
2. So is everybody else.

3. Girls are awesome.
4. But don't get ahead of yourself: Humility


Surround yourself with awesome
Let's just say that lately, life has been less than awesome. I'm in the middle of a divorce, I'm unemployed, and I live very far from the majority of my friends. (I do live near family, who are awesome, and my bestie from High School who you met HERE, and who is also awesome.) That's one of the reasons I chose DFTBA to be my Lenten spiritual discipline. I need to try to at least approach awesome if I'm going to get the job I want, survive this divorce, and still be a good mom.

Last week I had the amazing opportunity to spend some time with my girlfriends from seminary.  We are from all over the country, in our mid-thirties, in various stages of family life, and in a wide variety of jobs (in spite of all having gone to school together!). Those who can make it gather annually in a city near one of our homes. We spend the time in food, drink, and usually some nice scenery. But most importantly, we immerse ourselves in each other.  You see, these ladies are awesome. And being around them makes me feel more awesome. They don't hesitate to remind me of my gifts, or tease me (appropriately) about my shortcomings. When we hurt each other's feelings, we discuss, forgive, and move on.  We talked about my job situation (or lack thereof), my family situation, and each of theirs. They reminded me how much I love leading worship and how much I love my little girl, while mixing delicious margaritas, introducing me to kale, making me a mixed tape (ok, CD), and fighting over the last bite of guacamole with me.

My friends from seminary are awesome (and I have an equally awesome group from undergrad). And I tell youth whenever I get the chance: choose your friends wisely. Pick people who have the same values, who will remind you of who you are, but who are different enough from you to challenge your way of thinking every now and then. If your friends don't make you feel more awesome, they're not friends.

How is this the spirituality of DFTBA? The people with whom we spend our time, the people who light up our phones, our facebook newsfeeds, who occupy the space in our brains and our hearts, also influence our spirits. When we're surrounded by negativity, it's hard to see Awesome. When we're surrounded by superficiality, it's hard to see the Image of God within ourselves.  When we're surrounded by voices that make us insecure, we begin to focus on ourselves so much that we forget the awesomeness of everyone else.  On the other hand, awesome friends reflect that divine image back at us, sometimes when it's hardest for us to see.  Awesome friends give us the gift of genuine laughter, but let us cry when we need to as well. Awesome friends celebrate our awesomeness instead of competing with it or downplaying it. Awesome friends help us look out into the world and spread Awesome to our neighbors.

Practical tips for Surrounding yourself with Awesome:

• Take some time to think sincerely about the people with whom you spend time. Do they share awesome with you? Do they increase your awesome?
• If you're in a bad place with any of your friends, consider how you might reconcile with them in a constructive way, a way that might help the relationship come closer to awesome.
• Consider where you make friends and where you might make new ones who could surround you with awesome. A place of worship? A class? At work?

Prayer:
Loving God, you gave us the gift of community-- people to love us and care for us, people we can love and for whom we can care. Thank you. Bless our friendships, and help us to surround one another with awesome.
Amen.

Free knitting patterns: knitted easter egg decoration

I'm getting ready for Easter... pictures to come!


Free knitting patterns: knitted easter egg decoration:

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