Summer.

It's officially summer!

Doesn't that make you want to run for joy through the IHOP parking lot too?? Okay, maybe not the IHOP part, or the parking lot, but you get the idea. :)

Brace yourselves, there's about to be too many pictures of hydrangeas coming up. They're totally rocking their flowery-ness right now and celebrating summer along with us. Check it out.

See, I told you it was too many pictures but I couldn't help myself...

You know what else I took too many pictures of? My girl with her hair in a ponytail. She finally has enough hair that I can pull most of it back into an itty bitty ponytail and it is way cute.

Never mind the giant stuffed Eeyore photobombing in that last picture.

I hope you're enjoying your summer so far. Have a lovely weekend!

~Stacy

Slow Down

I need a pause button during the week, something that will let me slow down the time a bit. Don't we all? It would be nice.

There's been a lot of work and progress made on setting up my new site that will become my sewing/crafting website. I'm excited about it, but it's not quite ready to go "live" yet. Hopefully in the next week or two I'll be ready to share it. Once that's ready and I can clear a few more work related things off my list I'll be able to blog a little more regularly here as well. And take pictures again. I've pretty much only used my iPhone camera the past couple of weeks and I miss going off and practicing photography with my real camera.

This week we've played dress-up. A lot. She's got a thing for tutus right now, and it all started with these:

Yep, baby ballerina slippers. She calls them her "rina shoes" and last week when she was wearing them   and I asked her what she wanted to do that day she replied "go shopping for a tutu?" So I dug through her clothes and pulled out these two tutu skirts Chad's sister bought her and a Rapunzel costume that came with her doll she got for Christmas. Behold:

My hydrangeas are almost there, just a few more days:

This girl got to go to the zoo with her aunt and uncle, and scored a new stuffed monkey:

And I found this at a garage sale and had to get it:

And yesterday we made the switch over to a toddler bed. She's super excited about her "big girl bed" but the transition is going to take some time...because as excited as she was about having a big girl bed, she was even more excited about her newfound freedom. We only have one night and one nap down with the new bed setup and it's been challenging. But hopefully by this time next week I will be able to report some decent progress. Hopefully.

One area I did make some progress in was painting. Not the out of control, "let's paint the whole house" painting we did last year but just painting one little wall in our bedroom. It's the only wall in the whole house that hasn't been repainted at least once since moving in almost 7 years ago. We painted one accent wall a deep red, which was a nice color but not one that I ever really cared for on a wall...it was just so dark, and when you have a very small space to begin with dark is not the way to go. So last week I pulled out some leftover light-colored, neutral paint out from the basement and repainted.

And finished. Due to the angle I took the photo it appears as if a supernova is directly outside the window. It is much brighter in here but not supernova bright. I didn't realize how much the dark color was weighing down the whole room; painting the wall was like turning on a permanent lamp. Ahh, light and bright. Just the way I like it.

And that's all. Excuse me while I got make a pot of coffee to help out with the lack of sleep, courtesy of the big girl bed and the "big girl" herself.

~Stacy

A Post From the Weekend

I hope you all had a nice Father's Day weekend! We did. On Saturday we went out for breakfast, or as Charlotte said "to the pancake store." She spent the night with my parents so Chad and I could have dinner and go out for an early anniversary celebration (our actual anniversary was yesterday. How has 8 years gone by already??) We went to Pier W, a restaurant that sits right on the water with views of the lake all around it. It was fancy and delicious and not ever the sort of place we would normally eat but perfect for a special date night. And we scored free dessert because they felt badly that they forgot to bring out a crab cake appetizer until the entrees were ready. We didn't even notice (or care) but I'm not one to turn down free dessert. Or paid dessert. I like dessert.

On Sunday we had a cookout at my parents house and afterward Chad got to celebrate even more by doing schoolwork the rest of the evening! Yes, that is to be read in a voice dripping with sarcasm. At least he's far enough along with the program now that the end is in sight. Just a couple more classes and gone will be the days of an extra 35 hours a week of school on top of a full time job. Just typing that sentence makes me feel better :)

And that's all I've got for today. I have a few projects in the works that aren't blog ready yet, and I'm working on thinking of a good blog name that isn't already registered to use for my family/photography/not sewing related blog...any ideas? Once I come up with something I'll move forward and let you know.

In the meantime, here are some photos from the past week that are completely random but like I said, that's all I've got :)

Like my bubble chaser:

This is what happens when you marry a ninja. I wonder how long until she tries to climb up the swing set too? The best part about this is the Winnie blankie that he has in his back pocket. :)

They're blooming! My white ones are still straggling a bit but the blue one is proudly bursting with beautiful flowers.

Remember a few weeks ago when I posted a couple pictures of our neighborhood deer? Well, I thought she was looking a little, ahem, well fed. Turns out there was a reason:

This is one of my new favorite pictures. She got to dig into a strawberry shortcake and the look on her face is priceless.

The big pool isn't quite ready to swim in yet, so why not put your giant float inside the baby pool?

Have a great week.

~Stacy

Summer Reading List

Books. Books. More books. A big part of summer is the reading, don't you think? It seems like so many more books come out in the spring and summer--at least the one's that are on my list. My summer reading list this year is long, somewhat beachy (as in, nothing too high brow or intellectual. Because sometimes you just don't have time for that, you know?).

So here's my list in case you need any ideas...some of these I've read, some are sitting in a pile waiting to be read, and others will be coming as soon as I move my way up the library waiting list for them. Yep, that's how cool I am--I am on waiting lists at the library for a bunch of books :)

The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer

I started this one a few days ago and so far so good. It follows a group of six characters from the age of fifteen, when they meet at a summer camp, all the way through middle age. The characters are all brilliant and clever--traits that they are terribly aware of as teenagers and makes them endearing but obnoxious. Some of them lose their belief in their own "interestingness" over time while others hold onto it too tightly, and yet others were never quite aware of it in the first place. I'm eager to see how they all turn out.

Someday, Someday, Maybe by Lauren Graham
This was written by Lauren Graham the actress--as in the one who was on Gilmore Girls and Parenthood. At first I was skeptical, which was admittedly judgmental to assume that an actress wouldn't be a very good writer (but let's consider other actresses who have penned books and admit that you probably had the same hang-ups. Tori Spelling, anyone?). But after reading several good reviews I decided to give it a shot and was glad I did. I finished it quickly and it was absolutely worth my time. Reinventing the wheel of fiction it does not, but it's everything that a good summer read ought to be.

Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight
I just picked this one up and while I've heard nothing but fantastic reviews about it I'm having a hard time getting motivated to read it. The subject matter is pretty intense, as the story centers around a mother trying to find out what happened after her daughter Amelia allegedly commits suicide. The mother is consumed by grief and soon after received an anonymous message that tells her Amelia didn't die the way everyone has been led to believe, which starts the mother on a journey to figure out the truth. I will read it, I just know I'll need something lighter to read immediately after.

The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messud
This is another title that I can't get away from--the reviews are everywhere and they're all telling me that this is the "must read" book of the summer. This is one of those books that seems hard to summarize in a way that would make you want to read it, so just check out the summary for yourself here. They did a better job than I could. If I tried to explain it the woman upstairs would probably just sound straight up crazy.

The Engagements by J. Courtney Sullivan
J. Courtney Sullivan has quickly become one of my favorite authors. I read her first two books, Commencement and Maine, which came out in the summers of 2010 and 2012, respectively. Both of those books were excellent--I highly recommend if you haven't already read them. I haven't started this one yet but it's already gotten great reviews. The book spans 100 years, telling four separate stories of couples who are all connected by the hopes, failures, and expectations of marriage and symbolic stones that come with them.

No One Could Have Guessed the Weather by Anne-Marie Casey
I stumbled upon this one accidentally when I read a review that started with "If you loved The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing you'll love this." Since I am supposed to love this book, based on that description, I have it in my "to read" pile. This would fall into the more "beach read" category, but it's basically a coming of age story for women who aren't really in the right decade to be coming of age.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
I've actually had this one my list for almost a year now. My sister-in-law read it and then found it at a library book sale and bought it for me last summer but I have yet to pick it up, despite it's almost unanimous glow of reviews and the fact that it's being made into a movie right now. I typically stay away from all titles in the "popular young adult" category (I'm looking at you, Twilight and Hunger Games). But this one sounds much more intriguing and there are no vampires. So there's that. My problem is again the heavy subject matter and the fact that I know this is going to make me sad--the story centers around Hazel, a terminal cancer patient (See? How could this possibly be uplifting at all??) and her unexpected romance with Augustus, a boy she meets in a cancer support group. That's all I know, because I've avoided reading any kind of spoilers or in depth summaries. After I read it and finish crying I'll let you know how it was.

The Potty Mouth at the Table by Laurie Notaro

I discovered Laurie Notaro a few years ago when I picked up one of her books on a whim at the library. It was hysterical, so I ended up requesting just about everything she's ever written. She writes non-fiction stories about her life and the situations she finds herself in--kind of like a female David Sedaris but much less reserved. Her stories are laugh out loud funny and if you need a pick-me-up read anything by her. A good starting place is It Looked Different on the Model or We Thought You Would Be Prettier: True Tales of the Dorkiest Girl Alive.

Exploring Diabetes With Owls by David Sedaris
And speaking of David Sedaris, here's a new one from the man himself. It had been awhile since he wrote anything new and this one does not disappoint. It's not as collectively funny as some of his other stuff, but still worth a read. If you're new to David Sedaris, start with Me Talk Pretty One Day or When You Are Engulfed in Flames.

Life After Life by Jill McCorkle
This one popped up on my Amazon list of recommendations so I requested it from the library. I haven't started it yet, but it is set in a retirement center and, as the summary puts it, "illuminates the possibilities of second chances, hope, and rediscovering life right up to the very end. She has conjured an entire community that reminds us that grace and magic can—and do—appear when we least expect it." (quote taken here, click for full summary).


So that's my list...what are you reading this summer?

~Stacy

Quick Update

Things have been a bit quieter on the 'ol blog this week, though not for lack of anything going on. Quite the opposite, in fact. This is "busy season" for me as an HR consultant since the main company I work with goes through a health insurance renewal process this time of year so it's a time full of meetings with brokers, more meetings and lots of talking and decision making. And lots of discussion and attempts at understanding the new health care laws and...Hey! Wake up! I could tell you were nodding off there for a second. The world of HR consulting can sometimes be so exciting that you have to close your eyes for a second to regroup. 

But in addition to all that fun stuff I'm working on some actually fun stuff-- to me, at least. I've been thinking for a long time about teaching small group and private sewing lessons. I've been doing research on classes offered in the area and gathering all the info I can find about costs, what is taught, class sizes, materials needed, skills and techniques, etc. to come up class ideas I think might work. I'm hoping to get some beginner level classes started by late July and hopefully will be able to continue offering classes on and ongoing basis after that. Right now I'm mostly interested in getting feedback from people who have thought about taking sewing lessons at some point and finding out what they want to learn and how they want to learn it. 

In addition to that, I am also planning on making some changes to this blog over the next several months. The plan is to continue with this blog as a sewing and sewing related blog only and split off any personal and photography related (or really any topic unrelated to sewing or fabric, with few exceptions) to a new blog. Over time this blog will hopefully become more of a business venture for me, and since that venture is centered around all things sewing and fabric it makes the most sense to keep the blog posts related to that. But I also love taking photos and sharing stories of other personal and non sewing related topics, so that's why I will continue to do that on a new blog.

I'll make sure to share all the changes as they happen and nothing will be changing for awhile. I have a lot of things to work on and put in place behind the scenes, but I just wanted to put it out there for those who read and follow along. Stay tuned :)

~Stacy

P.S. I typed this in a hurry on my iPad and am crossing my fingers auto correct hasn't done anything embarrassing that I failed to catch. If so, please kindly overlook.

The Making of a Swing Set

So my girl ended up getting her 2nd birthday present from us a little early. We (and by "we" I mean Chad and my dad) built her a swing set last month. When I say that you probably have images of those swing sets that are sold in toy and home improvement stores that include swings, rings, bars, towers, slides and other playground-scale accessories and cost entirely too much money. Apparently that's what Amazon and every other retailer thinks you should mean when you search for "swing set kit" because that's pretty much all you can find.

So what does one do when they only want a swing set, as in a small wooden structure that just holds two swings? They call my dad.

So I called my dad. I explained what we wanted and he came up with a solution--order the swing set kit bracket set (which you can find online--check Amazon or any home improvement store like Lowe's) and then buy some pre-treated lumber and build it.

Several weekends ago he and Chad went out and bought all the wood and the concrete mix to use to secure it into the holes we (Chad) dug into the ground. Then on a Saturday afternoon they cut and assembled the frame and set it up--start to finish in about 4 hours.

I did not attempt to do a tutorial on this one, but I should have because I was looking for this very thing when we first got the idea to build a swing set. Spending thousands of dollars on something that rivals our city's playground was not something we were in the market for, but it seems like there's a "go big or go home" mentality out there about kid's swing sets...so finding something simple and small was a challenge. But if you put me in charge of making a tutorial on building a swing set we would likely have major issues on our hands since I cannot properly operate a drill, saw, or oftentimes a hammer.

I settled for pictures instead.

And that is my over-simplified version of the swing set building process :)

~Stacy