O Holy Night

O holy night, the stars are brightly shining;
It is the night of the dear Savior's birth!
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope, the weary soul rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born!
O night, O holy night, O night divine!

Led by the light of faith serenely beaming,
With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand.
So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming,
Here came the wise men from Orient land.
The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger,
In all our trials born to be our friend!

Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born!
O night, O holy night, O night divine!

Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His Gospel is peace.
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother
And in His Name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy Name!

Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born!
O night, O holy night, O night divine!

May all of you have a wonderful, blessed Christmas

with those you love!

May you experience love, joy and peace as we celebrate the most precious gift of all!

Are you ready?

I'm not. I have a million goodies to bake, a dress to sew for my niece, and ALL of the giftwrapping to do.

So, in an effort to save time and make my husband do more than just pay for the Christmas gifts ;) I ever-so-nicely asked him to start the wrapping for me.

You see, he is a shift worker, and has been on the afternoon shift for the past 2 weeks. This means the kids and I leave the house at 9am, while he is sleeping, and he is alone in the house until he leaves for work at 2pm.

THAT IS PRIME CHILD-FREE WRAPPING TIME!!!

Just like most of you (women), I am the wrapper in the family, but haven't had the chance to do it this week. The kids have been sick with nasty colds, and have been light sleepers and get up with every cough, so I'm not able to sneak to the basement in the evenings. So, as I type this, Mac is fighting with scotch tape, and probably constantly moving the cat off the wrapping paper as he wrestles with the task of wrapping. I told him he could do all the "easy" wrapping a.k.a only the square boxes. (What nowadays is wrapped in a perfectly square or rectangular box without any hang tags or holes in the front to try out the toy?) Needless to say, he'll probably only wrap maybe 2 things. AND... they may just end up looking like this:

Oh well, any help is better than nothing, and I love him just for trying!

I think I should print some of these off to afix to anything he has attempted to wrap:

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF YOU, and....... .......HAPPY WRAPPING!!!

FREE HomeSpun Threads Shoppe patterns!

I've discovered a new online pattern shop, and all the patterns in the HomeSpun Threads Shoppe are FREE. You'll need to click the link to go there and begin ordering your free downloads.

29 Patterns and pattern combinations to choose from...how?

All they simply ask is that you become a follower of HomeSpun-Threads blog and help spread the word. Seems fair enough to me!!! I ordered about 6 of their patterns, and they were available for immediate download. No waiting for an e-mail or anything!

Here are just a few favorites...

Pleated Ballerina Slippers


Make Up Bag Pattern


Even the HUGE Baby Shoe Pattern Set is FREE! and many more...


If you're in need of some supercute patterns, get over there soon, who knows how long they'll be free!

Amber H is the WINNER!!!

I absolutely LOVE the Sew Mama Sew giveaway days!!! This year, I was so worried I wouldn't be able to find the time to visit the hundreds of blogs to enter their great giveaways.
...But what do you know.... we got hit with a RECORD-BREAKING BLIZZARD!
It made international news, so some of you may have heard of it. I live in Lambton County, Ontario Canada. The closest large city in Lambton County is Sarnia (on the Michigan border). The storm started on Sunday night, and finally subsided Wednesday. A state of emergency was called, and the Canadian Army was brought in to help evacuate stranded motorists on our major highway and the country roads. It was very cool to see and hear rescue choppers and airplanes overhead, bringing people to safety. Many people were stranded in an area spanning 100 km's from east to west, many of whom stayed in our small community. It was an interesting 3 days of being snowed in, which gave me LOTS of time for blog surfing! I made it through the whole list, and entered millions of giveaways(at least it seems like millions!). I hope you were able to make it through the list too!
I am genuinely honoured that so many of you visited my little blog and commented! When the giveaway started, I had 91 followers. I now have 125!!!! Wow!!! I'm so happy to have 34 new friends!!!

Let's get to the good stuff, shall we...... I embedded the Random Number Generator in my post, and I could see the result, but it wouldn't show for me in the preview when I looked at my blog post, so I deleted it. You'll just have to trust me that I counted out the comments, and it ends up the winner is:

Amber H. , who said...
I'm now follower number 101! I hope you're ok with new followers...

of course I'm ok with new followers!!! It turns out her favourite colours are teal and turquoise - she knew how to win me over!!!!

I'll be contacting you this afternoon Amber to get your mailing address, and I'll get it off to you as soon as I get your details!

I hope all of you hear from at least one blogger that you have won something in this flurry of giveaways. Have a wonderful weekend, as we scurry to finish preparations 1 week before Jesus' birthday!

Giveaway day!!!

****THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED****

I thank all of you for your lovely comments!!!

Stay tuned for the winner post!

Welcome to the missbossypants giveaway!!!!!

This day could not have come at a better time! 2 weeks ago, I had my one year blogiversary. I wanted to comemorate the occasion by doing a giveaway, but didn't know what to give away, or how I would execute the whole thing. THEN... I found out Sew, Mama, Sew was going to do their twice yearly giveaway!!!

When thinking and thinking and thinking.....and thinking....... of what to give away, I was thinking I should pay homage to my favourite colour: TURQUOISE

Yeah, I know, it's a really popular colour right now, so I feel the need to clarify that I liked it before it was "in". So n.o.t. a follower! lol, just had to throw that one out there. okay, so....... yeah, let's get on with the goods....

To one of you lucky readers, you'll win 3 missbossypants creations:

The cup cozy protects your hands from hot drinks, insulates your drink from getting cold, AND makes a statement!!! Quilter's cotton one one side, turquoise flannel on the other, and fastened by velcro.

This little birdie would love to grace your Christmas tree! It has a fabric-covered button at the neck and a clear thread for hanging on that perfect branch.

Ok, ok, you caught me, I don't have the third prize made just yet, but imagine one of these felt dahlia pins in turquoise, and there you have it!!! It will be made this week, and maybe I'll even be able to photograph it and get it on this post in time before the giveaway ends! (this picture is of the pins I made for my son's pre-school teachers at the end of the "school year" last June - they loved their teacher gifts!)

So, I bet you guys are just waiting to find out how you can win the loot.... Ok, here are the rules...

1. Leave a comment below, telling me what your favourite colour is.

2. If you are a follower of my blog, congratulations, you get one more entry!!!! Please leave a message telling me you follow this crazy hairbrained blog!

The giveaway will be open until this friday at noon, EST. I'll use the online random number picker doo-hicky to pick the winner. PLEASE MAKE SURE I CAN CONTACT YOU!!! If your e-mail is not public in your profile, please leave your contact info at the end of your comment.

If you are the winner, I will contact you by e-mail to get your mailing address. I will ship internationally. All entrants from all corners of the world are welcome! The prize will be sent out on Monday, December 20th (provided I have been able to reach you to get your home address).

Once you're done entering this giveaway, visit the main listing of all giveaways on the Sew, Mama, Sew Blog. Good luck, and happy blog surfing!

Giveaway day is coming!!!

How convenient!!! I was trying to think of a giveaway to do to comemorate my 1 year blogiversary, when I came across the Sew, Mama, Sew blogpost, announcing their next giveaway day!!!

On Monday, December 13th, come back here to see what I've got up my sleeve! I'll be having TWO GIVEAWAYS!!! I'll have something from the missbossypants sewing room, as well as something from my sister-in-law's Etsy shop: Avery's Garden!!! Check out her shop here and have a little look around!

On Monday, don't forget to visit the Sew, Mama, Sew blog to check out the lists of other giveaways going on. There are so many, it usually takes me 3 days to get through them all! So, book some time off work, make some hot cocoa, get that lap blanket on, and lounge with your laptop. Feel free to surround yourself with good luck charms to win the giveaways you're lusting over, but it's not necessary - I even won something last May!

Off I go to my sewing sweatshop to decide just what I'd like to create and give away. Shall I cut into some of my most loved fabric to make something extra special??? You'll just have to wait and see.... :)

My belated Blogiversary

I suck. I can't keep track of other people's anniversaries (well at least I sent a facebook message to my bestie at 11:55pm on the day of her 13th wedding anniversary), let alone one of mine I should have remembered!!!



Saturday was my Blogiversary!!!! Yep, one whole year of you guys reading up on what's going on in my sweatshop (aka basement sewing room), and what my crazy family has been up to.

I really appreciate all of you who read, stalk, and even leave a comment or two. It's flattering to know that people actually read this crazy blog (although it's not really all that hard - I don't blog as much as I should!)

It's been one year..... 91 followers and about 60 posts (there may be one or two in there that never got posted though - I may have been too embarrassed of the picture, or the content - I am known to get on the computer after a good night with a few drinks in me!)

People usually do something to comemorate special days like these.... I'm just thinking of doing a little giveaway. Ok, keep that under your hat, and keep an eye out for a post from me announcing a giveaway.

It'll be a little after the fact, but, hey, it already is!

Halloween costumes

Halloween has come and gone, and now we are left with a MOUNTAIN of candy, chocolate and chips to deal with (ie: pilfer from the kids' bags while they sleep!)

It was a crazy weekend, filled with parties, events and trick-or-treating.

Sweetie had a Halloween party at a classmate's house Saturday afternoon, and the local "Purple Pumpkin Party" was held on Saturday night. The Purple Pumpkin Party is an event hosted by the churches in our small town. They fill our local hall with game booths, treats and halloween decor, all for a donation to the local foodbank. It is usually held on Halloween night, but since Halloween was on Sunday, they moved it to Saturday night. The classmate's party and the Purple Pumpkin Party meant both kids would be dressed up and busy both nights on Halloween weekend!

Sweetie decided a short time ago that she wanted to be Frankenstein's bride for Halloween. She had never seen any of the movies, so she was not aware of what Frankenstein's bride should look like. She had it in her head that she would be green (like Frankenstein), with wild hair and some sort of formal dress suitable for a monster wedding.

I think we pulled it off quite well.....

Our local Salvation Army store had racks of costume ideas, so it wasn't hard to find what we were looking for! This dress was probably made in the late 70's for a short, plump lady attending a wedding or "classy" New Year's eve party. It was a sparkly gold-ish fabric, with a black chiffon overlay, and black chiffon batwing sleeves. It was the perfect find! The second hand store had it matched with a fake flower bouquet, featuring white and black roses. PERFECT!!! The dress had been enlarged with black panels added at the side seams, and had been taken up at least 5 inches (hence the reason why I feel it was for a short, plump lady!) I pinched the panels and sewed a quick seam back where it had originally been. I was unable to make the dress any narrower because the chiffon batwings were in the old seams. It would have been far too much work to fit it perfectly. Besides, Sweetie had no qualms about it being a bit big. Rather than create a perfect hem at the bottom, I just took my rotary cutter and hacked off the bottom of the dress at the right length we needed. Sweetie was happy with it, because it frayed and made it look more "monster-ish". A few minutes of hairspraying, back-combing and
applying face makeup completed the look. She loved it!

Monkey has an overabundance of superhero play costumes, so I was hoping he would just choose one and make things easy for us. OF COURSE NOT. He decided he wanted to be a mummy. Bring on more sewing for mommy!

I remembered an old white sheet that I had worn as a toga at a Halloween party about 13 years ago. Good thing I'm a "saver" (nice word for "hoarder"), and I still had it. I ripped the whole sheet up into strips, and then went on the hunt for white clothing to attach them to. Do you think I could find a pair of white or off-white pants at the second hand store? Ummmmm, no. So, being the resourceful mom I am, I bought an off-white men's sweatshirt and MADE some pants for him! I bought a white turtleneck (that miraculously had no stains on it - SCORE!), and went to work. I tacked the strips onto the clothing, planning to take the strips off later and use the pants for pyjamas and the turtleneck in his regular clothing rotation. It took no time at all, and only used about 5-6 strips of the sheet! I felt the outfit needed a hat of some sort, so I made up a quick beanie-style hat with extended sides and back, and put a strip of sheet on it as well. It kind of turned out conehead-ish, but he thought it was perfect. Some white paint on his face, and black to outline his eyes (to look super creepy), and he was done, and super comfy.

The next day, we pulled out the outfits for a second wearing, only this time with multiple warm layers of clothing underneath. Fall has taken hold lately, with temperatures in the evening around 5 degrees celcius. Pretty chilly!

They weren't up for as much makeup this time around, so we opted out of the black around their eyes. They still looked spooky and scary, and were wonderful trick-or-treaters!

I went to a Halloween dance Saturday night with some friends (sans the hubby - he was fulfilling firefighter duties for Devil's night). I wanted a costume that was comfortable enough to dance the night away, and not be too hot or bulky. I came across this awesome idea:
Instant Ghost costume by Laura Koniver

I dug out what tulle I had left from our wedding (8 years ago), borrowed some more from my sister-in-law, used up some of the leftover mummy sheet strips, and concocted my own version of Laura Koniver's witch costume. I wore a white flowy skirt and white t-shirt underneath, and had a great time dancing. BUT DO YOU THINK I GOT A PICTURE OF IT? Ha, ha, not a chance (always the picture taker, never in the pics!) The local reporter took a picture of Monkey and I at the Purple Pumpkin Party, I'll have to see if she'll e-mail it to me.

So, that's my round up of what went on in our family over Halloween weekend.

Did you enjoy your spooky Halloween?

Halloween preparations

I've been ripping white bedsheets,

looking for the green face makeup,

and digging out some old tulle from my wedding 8 years ago.


Any guesses what Halloween costumes I'm prepping for?

Hint: There are 3 costumes in the making, one each for Monkey, Sweetie and I (Mac will be fulfilling his firefighter duties on Devil's night and Halloween, so the only costume he gets to wear is his bunker gear.
That's him holding the hose at the local fair demolition derby a month ago. Very cool, eh?

Western wedding attire

My mom was married to a wonderful man 10 days ago, in a laid-back, country themed wedding. The invitation stated "casual western attire encouraged". I don't do western, it just isn't my style. But that doesn't mean my kids won't wear it! Mom said denim was a-ok, but as family of the bride, I still felt the need to dress up a little. Almost a year ago, I won a great book called Absolutely A Line from Sew Mama Sew. It has a pattern for a basic a-line dress, with a million variations on the same basic dress to make it different. I found this great dressy variation in the book, and couldn't wait to try it out. I bought this great lightweight denim with a turquoise dot (have I mentioned turquoise is my favourite colour?). This variation on the main pattern seemed like the best of both worlds: a fancy tuxedo-style bib on a denim dress. This variation includes facings, which worked out quite well. I love the look of no visible stitching around the neck and arms! While finishing this dress, I remembered my hatred for ruffles!!! Really, I don't hate them, I just hate working with them! It takes forever to equally disperse the fabric, pinning all along. But after all the work, I must admit that it worked out, and looks pretty good!
When it came to Monkey's outfit, I knew I had seen a great tutorial to "westernize" a plain shirt. (Cheri from I am Momma, Hear Me Roar has one here) So, off I went, in search of a plain shirt. WalMart had just what I was looking for: can't beat $7! By the time I started to plan his shirt, I had already ordered my dress, and planned out Sweetie's, so I had an idea of what the colour theme should be: turquoise and green. Off I went to the fabric store, and came home with some super fun paisley! I even branched out and brought home some lime green piping to jazz it all up. I had all that I needed, but was a little scared to give it a try. I put it off until 2 days before the wedding (I had a plain old plaid shirt waiting in the sidelines in case I had to fall back on it). I did it my way, a bit different from Cheri's method: I traced out the front and back shoulder sections of the plain shirt, and tried to make a template. The first template was a bit small, but luckily, it was done on scrap fabric. I adjusted it, and began cutting away. I made the embellishment of 2 layers: 1 layer of white twill (leftover from sweetie's dress), and 1 layer of the paisley fabric. (it turns out the twill is too heavy, I wish I had just used white shirting or something lighter) I cut both, then sewed them, right sides together. I trimmed the corners and edges, and turned it right side out. Pinned it all on, with piping behind it. I wish I had a zipper foot because it would have made sewing it all on with the piping much easier, but, all in all, it worked pretty well. Here's a detail of the back of the shirt (please ignore the LOVELY haircut - that's what happens when Daddy takes him for a cut - he comes home with a fauxhawk!)

And this sweet pic gives a bit of a peek at the front of the shirt. This pic was taken during the ceremony. It was in a chicken barn - very laid-back, yet the decorations were so nice, you almost forgot where you were!

...as for Mac's outfit - he doesn't do western either, so it was a nice, neutral gray striped shirt. It was basically down to whatever shirt we could find in the store that fit him correctly (all the "stylish" shirts are cut so close to the body!) Mac nearly ripped a few shirts in the shoulders as he tried them on!

So, there you have it, the story of my feverish, frantic sewing preparations for my mom's wedding. I'm so happy the way it all turned out. More importantly, so happy with how the wedding as a whole turned out! It was a lovely day for a lovely couple, and we couldn't be more happy for them!

I'll leave you with a family photo taken on the lovely day.....

Why not donate?

I am a healthy woman who has never had a debilitating disease, I've only ever had one surgery in my life (for an ectopic pregnancy), and don't have a family history of any diseases or cancers. I am very lucky for the life that I lead in good health.

Because of that, I feel there should be no reason for me not to do what I can for those who don't enjoy perfect health. My body continually makes and maintains a healthy blood supply, so why not capitalize on that?

Canadian Blood Services has mobile blood donor clinics that come even to my small town, so it's convenient and easy to donate. Tonight after dinner, I walked out my back door, out the gate, and to the community hall behind my house. For me, a 1 minute walk. For others, it could be a 10-15 minute drive, but still not all that far. The employees welcomed and thanked me for coming in. The nurses were gentle, professional and very nice! I walked in, and after the questionnaire, the donation, and the refreshment, I was out within one hour. I donated one unit of whole blood, and although it didn't look like a lot in the bag, it's actually enough for a coronary artery bypass operation!

Read below to see what your blood can do for your fellow neighbour....

How do you feel about donating blood and blood products?

This sums up how I feel: Luke 6:31 - Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

missbossypants crafts now at UP THE STREET!

I am SO EXCITED! I was a vendor at the Bellies, Babies and Beyond show this past spring, and did some great networking. I met a scrapbooking supplies vendor who ran her own online store called UP THE STREET. Tara's creations are beautiful! She uses the newest, cutting-edge supplies and techniques, and sells them too!

Tara told me in the spring that she would soon be opening an actual bricks and mortar store, and was interested in selling some of my products on consignment. I immediately agreed. Are you kidding me!?! Of course I would LOVE to have my products showcased in an actual store, let alone one full of beautiful things!

Well, that store has been built and is now open. It is GORGEOUS!!! It is located in an historic building at the main crossroads in Strathroy (my hometown!). This building was originally one of the Hotels in town, back when people travelled by stagecoach and steam train. It eventually morphed into The Derby Inn... home of Strathroy's Rock & Roll. It was the bar in town that had live bands, cold beer, dirty old men, equally dirty carpet, and equally old furniture. It was much loved, and finally closed down about 2 years ago. The facade had been horrendously ruined with porthole-style windows with 70's style tinted and textured glass, as well as a brick veneer on the exterior walls. It was not a pretty sight. It was believed that the place was so rundown, it would be next to impossible to renovate and reuse the building. It was bought by a local antique and art dealer/picture framer who had the vision to revitalize this old building.

Here's how Tara's portion of the building looks now:

Its neat, clean lines are beautiful, while the architecture and form of the original building was retained. It seems to have been a successful revitalization project for both the building owner, as well as the Municipality (funds were provided by the Town to aid in the revitalization of this downtown building).

Tara's store is bright and attractive, and has a million things to look at (and purchase!)

Scrapbooking supplies are intermingled with antiques, old-fashioned sweets and products made from vintage supplies. Glassware is soon to be added to the great mix of products!

The most exciting part.... (for me, anyways!)..... I dropped off my wares today, and they will be set out in the store, ready for purchase as early as tomorrow!!! That's right, you can now stroll downtown Strathroy, and purchase some missbossypants goodies! Some items that will be available at UP THE STREET include: Flaxseed Ouchie Bags, Women's scarves, Kid's aprons, Baby Bibs, and Felt Food! Cup Cozies will be added soon, once I can add more to my inventory (i.e. pump out some more in my basement "sweat shop").

UP THE STREET is located at 2 Front St. West, Strathroy, and here online.

Stop by, check out the store, and tell Tara I sent you!

So Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Here in Canada, we celebrate Thanksgiving early-mid October, during the traditional harvest time. (I never understood the American Thanksgiving in late November - by then, it may already be snowing!!!) The farmers are in the field, harvesting the last of the fruits of their labour, and preparing the fields for the next crop, which in our area, is usually winter wheat (or the field is given a little rest until spring).

The apples in nearby orchards are crisp, sweet and ripe and VERY delicious! Within the last 2 weeks we've enjoyed fresh apples, homemade apple sauce, apple crisp, and apple cider. It's a wonderful treat every autumn to eat fresh apples, and enjoy them at their peak of freshness!

I am truly thankful to God for all His blessings. I have a great family, solid marriage, good job, wonderful friends, and a safe country. My family is not in need of anything, and we are all happy and healthy. I could not ask for any more in this life.

We got together with my side of the family today for a huge feast. The day was absolutely gorgeous - higher than normal temperatures allowed us to sit and enjoy the sunshine, wearing only t-shirts and shorts! You never know what weather to expect this time of year.... This year was the first for us to enjoy the day with our soon to be step family as well! My mom found an absolutely wonderful man through ChristianMingle.com, and is getting married next Saturday! I will finally have sisters! I have 2 younger brothers, and as the only daughter in the family, always wondered what it would be like to have a sister. Now I will have two!!! It was a great day. We enjoyed a great meal, finished up the wedding programs for next week, and had some great laughs. Like I said, I couldn't ask for any more in this life!

Wishing you God's greatest blessings today and always. What are you most thankful for?

Fall harvest

About a week ago, I was in the backyard with the kids, and I sauntered over to the garden. My garden didn't do well at all this year, with the super-high temperatures, and lack of rainfall throughout the summer. I will not confirm, nor deny the fact that my laissez-faire style of gardening may not have helped the outcome of the harvest. Let me say.... ummmm, that I hate to weed a garden. It seems to be the most useless thing to do, since the weeds just keep growing! I pick my tomatoes and check on my gladiolus growing in amongst the odd tall-growing weed.

So, with that admitted and out of the way, I'll show you what I discovered that day when I sauntered over to check on the garden.
My row of carrots had nice, green tops, so I thought I'd just pull one to check on them. When I pulled on the carrot top, a small, yet perfectly formed little carrot followed. It was the cutest, sweetest thing I'd ever seen! The carrot so orange, the top so green, and the cutest little wrinkles all around. (Yes, this was my first season growing carrots, can you tell?)
Once I pulled up one cute little carrot, I just had to keep going..... Sweetie helped me out, and before we knew it, we had a nice little bunch of carrots. LITTLE being the operative word. The largest was about 4 inches long, the smallest being just a tiny little orange hair on the end of the greens.

The carrots were boiled and coated with honey and cinnamon with dinner, where Sweetie didn't care for the intense, fresh carrot flavour, while Monkey savoured every bite and finished off Sweetie's as well! Mac was on the afternoon shift, so he enjoyed his meal while we all slept, cozy in our beds, so I didn't hear the verdict from him on our carrot success (or failure?).

While it was exciting to have a bundle of carrots, it was a little disappointing to have them end up so small. I'm no super gardener, so I turn it over to you: Did I harvest too early? Or did I harvest on time, but the end result was less than stellar due to the weather (and weed) conditions? Your input is greatly appreciated!

Now to visit the garden to harvest the mystery squash growing where I planted my green beans.....

Deal of all Deals!!!

I have ALWAYS wanted tall, high-heeled boots. But, those of you who join me in the "beefy calf club" probably share the same problem: most of the time, the boots don't even zip over my calves! I have admired many a pair, only to be disappointed when I tried them on.
I took a little evening shopping trip sans children last friday - it was pure bliss. I went to the local Sears, hoping to find a dress that I had seen in the catalogue (more on that below), and ran across these in the shoe department:

I've gotten to the point where I don't even bother trying on this type of boot anymore, since they don't usually fit my calves. BUT, there was a super sale! as you can see, they were 1/2 price!!! They obviously aren't top of the line, leather boots, but for that price, they were worth taking a shot......... THEY ZIPPED UP!!!!! It took a little prodding and tucking of the calf area, but it all closed and didn't look ridiculous once they were on (you, know, "muffin top" of the legs is NOT pretty!). The ones I tried on were the LAST size 9's in black, BUT, they had a couple marks on them. Not sure what it is, but it's not super noticeable, and may come out if I buff it with a soft cloth. So, since they had a defect, they were an extra 10% off! BONUS!!! In all, I got 60% off these great boots. After taxes, I paid $40 and change for them. I'd say that's a good find!
My mom is getting married in 3 weeks. (aren't they cute? It makes you just want to start singing, "a little ditty about Jack and Diana..... ) It is a casual event where "casual western wear" is encouraged. I.don't.do.western. Sorry. I know cowboy boots are in style, but they have just never been my style. So, I'm looking for an outfit that is casual, yet somewhat dressy, but not too dressy, since my mom will be wearing a peasant shirt and skirt with cowboy boots. I must not outdress the bride! I've ordered a dress from Sears that I think would be super cool (Yeah, Sears, again, they should be compensating me for this blog post!). I was leafing through one of their smaller catalogues that came that other day, and I just STOPPED and STARED when I saw it. I can't find it online right now, so a picture will have to wait... I'll let you know what I think of it - it will be delivered tomorrow!

*******UPDATE************** ok, so it's not a great picture, I ended up having to scan the page from the catalogue. It's all folded and crinkly because I've been carrying it around in my coat pocket to ask people's opinions on whether I should order it or not. Here it is: Those of you who know me personally, and have seen my wardrobe, it's a no-brainer which one I chose..... of course the teal one!!! It will be available for pick-up at the Sears location today, but I can't get it today!!! Stupid late meetings!!!! So, I'll have to wait one more day to pick it up and try it on. Wish me luck! My next purchase may be some foundation garments (aka girdle of steel) to make it all look good on me!

(By the way - I'm wearing the boots today to break them in! Oh, who am I kidding, breaking them in, I just couldn't wait! I'm like a kid wearing new clothes the second they get home and out of the bag!)

***************update concluded.... continue on.......********************

Plans are underway for the rest of the family's wedding attire. I'll be sewing Sweetie's dress, and putting a western touch on a plain white dress shirt for Monkey. Mac and I need to go shopping for his outfit - we'll see what we can find for him, since he normally doesn't do western either!

Have a wonderful day!

Flip Flop Refashion

A little late in the season to be finally showing this off, I know..... but it's just so COOL!!! (if I do say so myself!)

I can't take the credit for this great idea, I found it here at Make it and Love it

Basically, you start with a plain old pair of flip-flops, and pretty them up! For full information on how to make them, I recommend you to visit Ashley's tutorial, since she did such a great job!

Velcro is one of the greatest inventions in the whole world! It's the oh-so-important behind-the-scenes player in this refashion!

I bought some ribbon that really caught my eye at the local Wal-Mart (blue with polka-dots and the damask-ish brown one). The fabrics came from my stash, as well as the pink and green ribbons. I'm not so sure about the pink and green set, I haven't even worn them yet, but I'm sure I'll find just the right outfit to wear them with!

I'm sure by the beginning of next summer, I'll have a MILLION more options. Maybe one for each day? :)

My baby's gone to school!

This year, my 4-year old Monkey started Junior Kindergarten. He was so excited to go to "big school", as he had been attending a full day pre-school previously(which he used to call "school" when he didn't know any better!). Kindergarten at our local school is full days, every other day, so he was very excited to pack a lunch and have recess. He had heard so much about school from Sweetie, that he had no reservations whatsoever to just jump in and become a "big boy". I love this Rose of Sharon bush so much, it makes a beautiful background for our first day of school picture! Here he's putting on his "cheese" smile face for the obligatory picture. Not a great picture, but at least we have one to document the day!

Since school lasts the entire day from 9:05 to 3:25, kindergarten has a nap or quiet time worked into the schedule. Each child is required to bring a blanket or towel to lie on during quiet time. Monkey had one of his old cozy blankets all picked out, but little did he know, I had other plans!

My dino-crazed Monkey MUST have a cuddly dinosaur blanket for his first year of school! I bought this fabric at our local fabric store months ago, but just didn't know what to do with it. Monkey had just asked me (again) the week before if I could make something for him out of it, so I really got brainstorming. The local discount store had cozy, snuggly throws on sale, so I thought I'd check them out. And what do you know, PERFECT COLOURS! Right that moment, I knew this blanket would come together with ease!

It's not super fancy, and doesn't use any impressive techniques, but it made him so happy! All I did was cut long strips of the fabric, folded the edges in, pinned to each blanket, and stitched around the edges. Then I cut out some individual dinosaurs and appliqued them on with a zig-zag stitch. Once both blankets were finished, then I stitched them together all around the edges. It's pretty rudimentary, but OH SO SOFT! Why didn't they have these cuddly soft fabrics around when I was a kid?

I finished the blanket the day before Monkey's first day of school, and when it came time to present it to him, Sweetie felt she should do it, since she KNEW he would love it so much.

Well.... his little eyes widened, lit up, and a smile adorned his face so wide that he looked like the happiest kid on earth. It was absolutely heartwarming to see such a happy kid, and to see his super proud sister so delighted to bring him pleasure.

The blanket is now in use in his classroom, and he has reported that all of his friends think it's "pretty cool".

Do you sew? Did you make something special for your little one when they started school?

Really, I'm here, I've just been BUSY!!!

I'm baaaaaaaack!!!! Actually, I've been here all along, but I was just sucked into the excitement of summer.

This summer was a HOT one!!! Here in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, our summer was full of record breaking temperatures with very long stretches between any rains. It was a great year for the beach, splashpads and vacations, but not so good for our garden and flower pots (doesn't help when I'm not so diligent about watering the poor plants!)

I don't think I'll be winning any prizes for vegetables and flowers at our upcoming fall fair, but there's still hope for my sewing, scrapbooking, photography and baking entries!

On to the real reason for this post: SUMMER VACATION!!!

The first week of August, we made the trek to this island oasis:

Surf City, Topsail Island, NC a.k.a my favourite vacation destination!

This was the first time the kids had ever been to the "real beach" (the ocean), so it was very exciting! Sweetie took to the ocean like a dolphin, not minding the salty spray in the least. She practiced a lot and became a great boogie boarder:

I worked on perfecting my tan...... ha ha ha hee hee hee hooooooooo, yeah, that's a funny one. I should rephrase that: I perfected my BURN.

True Sonya style, I went from virgin skin to red, crispy and painful. This lovely, serene, Corona commercial-like scene looks great, but I know the outcome of this beach day. My skin has since bubbled, peeled and healed, and deep down, I know I'd do it all again just to smell the lovely beach air, hear the happy shrieks of the kids as they run into the water, and feel the refreshing water lapping on my feet.

A LOT of seafood was consumed in those 7 days......

Including some SCRUMPTIOUS shrimp omelettes. mmmmmmmmmm!!!!! Mac and I have been unable to consume any seafood at home, since it is not freshly caught on shrimp boats we spotted out our kitchen window. A grocery store shrimp ring is definitely NOT our idea of good seafood! Once you've had the good stuff, you can't go back to frozen!

Monkey had a wonderful time on the beach, never venturing far into the water, but having a great time all the while.

....and well, Sweetie took full advantage of the beach, even the great lighting and ambiance for a modelling session :) She practically had a different bathing suit for every day.

A well-dressed diva can't be caught wearing the same thing twice!

All in all, it was a wonderful family vacation. Mac and I hadn't been to the beach since our honeymoon almost 8 years ago, so we definitely were due to come back! Now that the kids have grown a love for the place, we will be back more often.

Our goofy family pic on the first day of vacation - so happy to be in the ocean!

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More frequent posting will resume, I PROMISE!!!