I was so glad to get this done last night so that the girl could take her new lunch bag to school today, too! I was amazed at how relaxing it was to just work without thinking, since I had already developed the pattern (in my head) for the first lunch bag.

I realized I don’t have as many colored buttons as I would like. Hmmm, must do something about that!

Ok, and my daughter paid me the ultimate compliment today when she said she wanted to be an “ARTIST” when she grew up…. just like me! Wow, me? an artist? I guess having started out my adult life as an art major has made me just jaded enough to feel like the title of “artist” is not one that a person can just claim. For some odd reason, I have this notion that it is a title that others have to choose to bestow upon an individual. I guess it comes from having encountered too many self proclaimed artists that make really crappy art. I am still not sure I would consider myself an artist, but it sure feels good that my daughter thinks of me in those terms! So here is her lunch bag! And if anyone in her class thinks it is weird, she can just say, “My mom made it. She is an ARTIST!!!” Nice!

In an effort to conserve resources by not using paper bags, and reduce my consumerism by not going out to buy something that I could make, I decided to make lunch bags for the kids to take to school. This one is for the boy. I even recycled an unused table runner for the main fabric. I was a little nervous about how he would respond. I love making stuff for the kids, but I want them to be as excited as I am and not dread the fact that they will be seen with all this handmade stuff. My concern probably comes from seeing childhood friends feel embarrassed because they felt that their handmade clothes might make people think they were poor. I hope that my kids grow up in an era where “handmade” is a good thing. So I was delighted when he responded with enthusiasm.

He had to open it up and was excited about how much lunch would fit in there!

He tried out the button closure and inspected all the buttons and the applique. Then he gave me the sweetest smile and a big “thank you, mom!” Wow, that sure makes it worth the effort!

Or “More Things to do with Scarves!”

In preparation for guests I wanted the boy’s room to look just a little more inviting. It only took a few minutes to swap out his very boy curtains for something a little more grown up. I took two long scarves, layered them, and tied them up using a little ribbon. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much I could do about the fact that he is systematically destroying the rest of the room, starting with the window blinds, and the paint on the walls. (We won’t go into detail about the carpet that I had to remove and replace a few weeks ago!) The room could really use a new layer of paint, but it is hard to put any effort into it. Another year or two of grimy hands wiped on the walls and I am sure I will be desperate to repaint no matter what he would do to the new paint. Right now it doesn’t seem worth the effort. I am sure many of you mom’s out there can understand that dilemma. Here are the curtains that go back up this week after I run them through the wash.

On another subject, I can’t stand posts that are “un-comment-able!” I am not always sure what makes a post sound like that, but for an example see my last post. So just for the record, I want to formally invite all my blog friends out there roll your eyes and say a big “whoop-di-doo!”

Do you think it is a hint that I should try some smaller projects?

I am also wondering if someone was paying attention when I said I needed more solid colored fabrics. I am thrilled! The fabric came from Sew, Mama, Sew! along with a gift certificate so that I could buy more fabric. Of course, I just realized that I ordered more patterned fabrics, since that is what I love! There was also a lovely Amy Butler pattern. Such lovely things to make!

Today, we have been working on adding a gallery to my site. It might take some time. Part of the problem is that I don’t really know what I want. So it might mean some experimenting. I have also been trying to figure out how to side step iPhoto altogether and see if that helps my images. I am not sure yet, but I am learning a lot in the meantime.

I will be snug under my down-filled comforter dressed in this new corduroy duvet cover.

I started working on it last winter. I was able to get the top pieced, but lost my motivation when I couldn’t decide whether to quilt it or turn it into a duvet cover. I also couldn’t decide what size to make it. So it sat in a closet for the whole hot summer. It is made from distressed corduroy scraps, left overs from a garment factory that was making pants. I added the satin ribbon randomly throughout the pattern. The corduroy looks so comfortable to me, but the ribbon adds just a little class.

As usual, I didn’t use any sort of pattern for this. I like the interest that comes from not being able to find a repeating pattern. I like to lay things out and move the fabric around until I come up with something that makes me smile. So far I have been very happy with this method even if it makes my mom crazy!

I also just realized that I have five (can you believe FIVE!) quilts to finish this fall. Two of them are nearing completion, so it isn’t as much as it seems. Working on quilts should help keep me toasty as the temperature drops around here.

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Side Note: Does anyone know why my photos suck when I export them from iPhoto, but they look fabulous if I use Picasa on the man’s computer? It is enough to make me trade in my Mac for a PC. I never thought I cared before. I need more control!!! Maybe I have control issues…

My sister and bro-in-law are back in the country! They married in Thailand in January with both sets of parents in attendence. For obvious reasons the rest of the family couldn’t be there, but also can’t pass up the opportunity to celebrate with them. So the big reception was this last weekend. This picture of the bride and groom sums them up beautifully!

It was so wonderful to get the cousins all together for the weekend. This is the chaos and it is so worth it. Here are eight of the cousins in action. The four youngest ones were fortunately not involved in this affray.

Most of the time I feel really odd. I love that getting together with family makes me feel so normal. For two nights I counted that 19 people were sleeping under the roof of our 3 bedroom house. Even though there are quite a few people missing from this photo it best captures what I treasure the most about this weekend—

—hours of laughter with the most precious people in the world echoing off the walls of my home!

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I have have lots of crafty things to show you from my preparations for this wonderful crazy weekend. We still have family staying with us this week, and time with them is precious so I will post sometime at the end of the week.

I thought I would share this for those thrifty types out there. This is thrifting from your own computer… no need to hop in the car and spend hours browsing. Although, that is definitely fun, too! Just in case you haven’t heard of this yet, Lala is a music CD trading site. We have loved passing on some of our music that we no longer listen to and updating with a few things that have been on our wish list that we never got around to purchasing. A portion of the proceeds go back to the artist. A few creative members can’t pass up the opportunity to embellish the envelopes which always makes it fun to see what comes in the mail.

The other sight I have loved this summer is BookMooch. It is a book trading sight. It is totally free, except that you have to be willing to pay the postage to send your book to someone who wants it. Doing that earns you the ability to have someone else send you a book on your wish list. Using “book rate” with the USPS means that each trade costs you about a dollar or two to send out. Besides the obvious joy of getting a book in the mail that I actually want, it has been so fun to mail out books to people who want them instead of dumping them at the used bookstore wondering if anyone will ever want them. This was the first book that arrived. Score!

The kids poured over this book for a few days before school started. They also announced, “We still like it even though it is only in black in white!” Huh? I suddenly realized I am standing on the other side of a huge generation gap! Anyway, things are calming down around here. The dr. jekyll/mr. hyde that lives in my house was soooo excited to go back to school. He loves routine! So one of the things I have learned is that next summer I will need to start making chore charts and daily schedules in May before school gets out and way before things get out of control. Well, I have a busy week ahead. My sister and brother-in-law have a wedding reception on Saturday. They “eloped” in Thailand at the end of January, but are now back in the country so it is time for the rest of us to celebrate with them. We are busy turning our house into a hotel for all the family coming into town. I can’t wait to see all my nieces and nephews together! Fun! Fun!