I’m still here!!

Sorry I’ve been absent so long! First, there was the craziness of having kids home for the summer, next came my son’s wedding, and, finally, the holidays. The trifecta of death for any personal blog, huh?

Hopefully, life will be a bit more predictable which will translate to more blog posts.

Here’s a few pics for your enjoyment showing what I’ve been doing during my blog “vacation.”

 

My third son completed his Eagle Scout project this summer. He organized a collection drive and filled backpacks for children at local schools. He was able to provide over 200 backpacks!

 

The back of my car was filled to the brim with backpacks!

 

I went to Disneyland with a friend for her birthday.

 

I cut myself with my lovely new knife. No stitches needed, but it hurt!

 

My family and I (including my new daughter-in-law) coordinated Halloween costumes for the very first time.

 

I visited a dear friend to attend her wedding in Utah, and I had to buy warmer clothes to survive!

 

I accidentally took home the wrong crockpot lid from Utah. This one was too small, so I found a way to make do until I can switch back lids!

 

I was planning to have a big gingerbread party with all my friends and their kids, but I got sick. A couple weeks after the planned event, I made a small batch of gingerbread, and my youngest son and I made our choice of gingerbread object. He made a house, and I made a tree.

 

And, finally, we celebrated Christmas. We gave gifts to express our love and to remember the first gift of Christmas, Jesus Christ.

 

I’ll be back soon with a fun food storage related post! I may not have been blogging, but I haven’t stopped preparing!

Advertisement

Where Have I Been? Crazy-Busy Is Where I’ve Been!

Sorry I’ve been conspicuously absent the past few months. It’s been insanely busy in my house. The latest crazy event to take over my life is my oldest son’s wedding. It’s this Saturday, and most of my free time, when I’d normally blog, has been enveloped with making my future daughter-in-law’s wedding dress.  Lest you think I am an incredible seamstress, know that this is a knee-length dress (no train), and it is a simple design.  I’m not allowed to show you the dress itself, but here’s a glimpse of what I’m working on.

I promise to show pictures when I’m done (and after the wedding).  My mother tried to teach me to sew as a teenager, but I wasn’t particularly interested.  I regretted that when my first son (coincidentally the one who is getting married) was born.  I taught myself to sew so I could make him cute clothes, since the ones I really liked were expensive.  It’s much easier to find cute and inexpensive boy clothes now, but 23 years ago, it was not.  While I’m not an avid sewer, I am quite grateful to have developed this skill.  In addition to making my own clothes and decorator items (curtains, blankets, etc.), I can sew on buttons, fix small holes in clothes, and make basic alterations.  It is a big money saver and a worthwhile skill to develop.

While my mind has been filled with thoughts of a perfect wedding dress and stressing over the details of it, I am looking forward to the wedding and am quite busy with preparations, including preparing my home, because the happy couple are taking up residence in my husband’s former office.  That’s the way of the world now, isn’t it?  We moved away from extended family groups to nuclear families to families of all shapes, sizes, and configurations, but now many are heading back to the extended family model.  Not a bad thing in my opinion.  It’s nice to have family around to love and support each other.

Give a hug to those you love and send a note or call those you love who live far away.  They’ll sure appreciate it!

Take care, everyone!

A Penny Saved Is A Penny Earned… Or, In My Case, $270 Saved Is $270 Earned

I just saved $270 in about one hour. Not too shabby, huh?

 

How did I accomplish this amazing feat? I fixed some holes in 3 pairs of my hubby’s jeans.

 

Basic sewing is an incredibly valuable skill. Being able to sew on a button or to fix a broken seam can save quite a bit of money over the years. Not to mention that replacing simple buttons in a basic blouse with unique ones will give you a one of a kind, expensive looking piece to wear.

 

Yes, there are less expensive jeans out there, but my husband has a 28 inch inseam. Did you know that almost no retailers carry jeans for adult men with a 28 inch inseam? It’s true! The Gap sells them online, and occasionally in their stores, but that’s it. And Gap charges $90/pair. (Yes, I know you can hem jeans, but that’s another issue in and of itself, so I’m not going into it here.)

 

Back to my saving money coup, after letting the jeans sit in my closet for a couple of years, I finally bought the thread I needed to fix them. It was quite simple, and I think they turned out well. See?

 

 

Have you ever tried your hand at sewing?

If so, what was your most successful project?

If not, what would you like to learn to sew?