Corners

I have been thinking about this post for a long time.  The following are some of my favorite corners of my home right now.  They are special places that lift my spirit every time I see them – even if they are messy (which is very unusual – I mean anything messy lifting my spirit).  So here they are:

This little corner is in our dining room.  I call it our Family Home Evening corner because if there is anything family night related, it gets taped up in that corner. It is full of beautiful pictures reminding us to be better, a gratitude list that we all take turns filling out, Articles of Faith line the area near the ceiling, and the little shelf holds coloring books and flannel board stories (which we have yet to pull out – I have plans).  This corner brings me peace.

This corner makes me smile.  This is just a small space in my closet (the baby is still in our room) that holds all of Alyxandria’s clothing of the moment (she is growing crazy-fast).  I love all the pink hangers in a row, the stacks of hats and onesies and bloomers.  I love the little black patent leather shoe poking out of all the pink.  I love being blessed with another girl to wear all these cute little outfits.  How can I not smile?

 

And this corner is my passion lately.  I cannot seem to get enough time in this corner of my life lately.  I eat, breathe and dream sewing right now.  I love the colors and I love the possibilities.  I love the expression.

 

Another thing I love about this corner is that I can share it with my children – every last one of them.  Lately the kids have come home from school, found me in the studio, grabbed a project and jumped in.  Even though they make messes faster than I can clean them up, I absolutely LOVE having them with me in this space.  I am grateful everyday for this room and all of the happiness that happens in it and comes out of it.

There’s a Sucker Born Every Minute

My baby girl has taken to sleeping all through the very long night recently.  What a blessing.  I feel like I have energy coming out my ears.  It is so nice.  And what, you might ask, is the reason for this marvelous development?

Oh, that blessed thumb!  We have a picture of Alyx in the womb with that little sucker stuffed in her mouth, so we had high hopes when she was born.  It took a couple of months for her little hand to get to her mouth consistently, but she’s practically a pro   now.  She still seems to have to shove the entire fist in her mouth before she can find her thumb, but hey, I’m not complaining. 

Djeryd was my only other thumb-sucker.  He took to it for about two years.  The annoying part of that story is that he didn’t start sucking his thumb until he was four-years-old.  I’m grateful he grew out of that one.  (Man, he’s a cute kid!)

King For An Hour

About a month ago I picked up a gift coupon book at Safeway (I think it’s Hallmark brand).  It has all these great little coupons you can give your kids.  I got it because I have a hard time thinking of fun, sweet things to do for my kids.  The coupons are full of ideas like “good for eating breakfast in bed”, “good for staying up an hour past bedtime”, stuff like that.  Well, the first one Erik got was called “Royal Treatment” and upon redemption we all had to submit to his every request and call him “Your Majesty” or “Your Royal Highness”.  He cashed it in last night.  It was so funny.  He was in heaven.  I would have gotten more pictures, but Alyx chose that hour to totally lose it (which has only happened about three times in her very young life – so it was a little alarming).

Lucky him, we had strawberry shortcake for dessert and when he asked for seconds we could not refuse (I don’t know that he has EVER had seconds on dessert in his life! – at least not with my permission).  It was funny to listen to everyone change their voices and manner of speech to sound “royal”.  I think it was a very good coupon for Erik.  Being the middle child he rarely gets special treatment of any kind.  He is such a sweet, wonderful little boy and it was nice to have a chance to show him how much we love him.

 

P.S. I whipped out those cute jammie bottoms yesterday morning.  Anna was getting way too demanding about her sewing projects so I thought it was time to take a break and let her know that Mommy has more kids than just her.  She was surprisingly agreeable when I explained the situation to her.  And now she is being very nice about compromises on a new skirt (the pants I so desperately want to make have been nixed by her for now – I will try again in the fall).

P.P.S. I know the pictures are not great, but my baby was seriously screaming her head off.  This is, apparently, the best I can do under that kind of pressure.  ;>

Skirt Addendum

I have had many comments, both in person and on the blog, about that green stripe.  Let me just say I was all for the green stripe – I just didn’t like that particular fabric in that particular shade of green.  I found a couple of other green fabrics that I liked much better and felt were more versatile with my current fabric stash.  Alas . . . I should have just picked up a half yard of the stuff I liked as well, and maybe then I would not be so bitter.  ;>

My First Crazy Skirt

All right, everyone, here it is.  Ta-da!  This is the “18 mos.” skirt I started last post.  It is very large and actually fits Annaliese (4-years-old) perfectly.  I love it!  (Thankfully the finished measurements are included in my new little book, so I could make the dress in just the right size for Anna’s measurements regardless of what was supposed to be the right size for her age.)

The top-stitching is one of my favorite elements.

Anna picked out all the fabrics, after she agreed to the pattern I picked out.  I think she did an amazing job coordinating them.  I think there is some serious artistic potential in that girl.

 

Admittedly, the only part I do not like is that green stripe at the bottom.  I tried to talk Anna into a fabric that was a little lighter and a touch yellower.  She would not budge. Grrrr.  I did not buy very much of it (because I secretly hate it) and my original intention was to make a ruffle with it.  Consequently I cut it on the straight grain and not the bias grain.  Valuable lesson learned, although binding tape can be made on the straight grain, it should not be made on the straight grain.  The binding does not lie properly.  I also wish I would have chosen a more decorative stitch for attaching it – like a flower stitch.  I may go back and fix it, but probably not.  Chalk it all up to experience and move on to my new projects.

The bottom line is that it is adorable.  Just don’t look too close at that stupid green trim (look really close at everything else).  I love the ruffles, the contrast stitching, all the colorful fabrics.  It was such a fun skirt to make.  The pattern was very easy and went together quickly.  I want to make about five more, but I’m moving on to try my hand at pants this week.  I have been dreaming about these for a week-and-a-half, and should go together much quicker because I can see every last design detail in my head right this second.  I am so excited!

 

Actually, I guess the real bottom line is that Anna loves it – totally completely loves it.  I have not been able to get it off her and into the wash.  As far as lessons learned go, aside from the bias tape lesson, I learned the power of basting.  I always viewed it as an obnoxious, time-consuming, extra step, but it is not.  Let me tell you, things go together so much smoother with just a little extra basting – definitely a sewer’s friend.  Couture houses baste constantly.  Now I know why.

 

This is the only shot I could get of Anna in that skirt as she was being less than cooperative yesterday.  Love that swing.

My First Crazy Dress

I happened upon an amazing children’s clothing book at Barnes and Noble the other night.  I think it has consumed almost every waking moment since I brought it home and it has revolutionized my approach to children’s clothing.  I will blab about it more later, but right now I wanted to show you a before and after of a dress I have been working on for Anna.  I have been combing through couture sewing books exploring different techniques.  I selected a simple A-line dress to experiment with.  As you can see I used french seaming or bias binding on all of my interior seams (that little tiny hem you see there took me hours, between the hemming of the ruffle, attaching it to the dress, applying the binding – the yellow ruffle alone went through the machine six times before it was even attached to the dress!).

 

The problem was it was boring – at least as far as Anna was concerned.

Enter amazing new book and endless brainstorms.  I spent the entire next day in my studio making ruffles and trims and just playing.  So fun.

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In the end Anna still did not like it because of the sleeves (she complained about the style from day one – and when Anna doesn’t like something that is the end of the discussion.  Period.).  So I gave it to one of my nieces who healed my wounded pride by saying she loved it.  (By the way, that peachy-green thing sticking out is a swim suit, not part of the dress.)  And can I just also add that there is a ton of hand-sewing done on that dress – hours and hours, people – look at that sleeve – I won’t go into all the details but that sleeve alone accrued about 3 hours of hand-stitching.

I think it turned out beautifully.  I learned some very valuable lessons.  The first and most important being if Anna doesn’t like what I propose to her at the beginning she won’t like it in the end, no matter how many ruffles are on it – so change the plans while they’re still on paper.  The second thing I learned is HAVE FUN!  Once I let go of making an article of children’s clothing look classic or timeless I had a lot more fun designing it.  The third thing I learned is the seam ripper is my friend.  Not only does it allow me the freedom to try something out and then remove it or tweak it if it does not work, but it allows me to get my seam or my embellishment or my whatever as perfect as I want.  The fourth thing I learned is to take my time – don’t finish a project just to finish it.  If I need a break for a day or two or three I take it so that every time I sit down to work I love what I’m doing and I can put all of my creative energies into making something amazing and wonderful.

Here’s what’s on the drawing board (actually I finished most of it today – just a few more ribbons and ruffles to add).  I can’t wait to show it to you!

Life

I have been dying to blog lately, but life has been nuts.  I would love to post pictures about my latest projects and my adorable family, but all that is just a little over my head right now.  I am trying to do too many things in too short a time and trying to enjoy it all (seriously, like I am trying to establish a love affair with a never-ending laundry pile – so far the relationship is rather strained).  Summer is fast approaching and the calendar is filling faster than I can schedule.  Two of our kids are giving us a run for our money at the moment.  Yesterday I committed one of my cardinal sins (it is one of my very worst habits – yes, habit, meaning I repeat it constantly): I actually told my daughter cleaning my house was more important to me at that moment than playing a game with her.  Yes, I tried to make up for it, but I still can’t believe the words actually came out of my mouth and into her ears. 

Last night, when all was quiet and peaceful, I was writing in my journal about how much I love my children and love being with them.  Then, this morning, directly after reading half of Elder Ballard’s talk about the power of righteous mothers, I yelled at my son for stuffing all of his beautifully folded laundry into his drawers in total chaos – unfolding many of them in the process.  I’m sure there was a nicer way to handle that one.  I sent my kids out the door this morning with one giant sigh because the negativity of the twenty minutes I spent with my kids this morning was a little overwhelming.  I watched them walk across the field in the rain and almost called them back to drive them to school.  I didn’t.  Instead I went in my room and mourned the morning.  Then, what to my wondering eyes should appear, but two little boys returning home because today is late start (I forgot, like usual).  Yea!  A chance to redeem myself.  A chance to hold my tongue, to say “yes”, to hug them and kiss them again, to say “sorry”, to drive them to school so they won’t get soaked, to listen to them play with one another, to reflect on how much I love being their mother.

I think one of the wonderful things about life and about repentance, about the gospel of Jesus Christ, is second chances.  I know I can always try again.  I can always say “sorry” and start over.  I can always improve.  The potential to be so much more than I am at this moment is always available to me.

Now, I realize in the time I have blogged about the real parts of my life I could have posted some lovely pictures of my baby or a dress I just finished.  But I didn’t.  Instead I shared a piece of me, a deep-down-chocolate-layer piece of me.  Thanks for reading, and still coming back.

My Daughters’ Dress

Before my first daughter was born, I was determined to make a dress for her.  I wanted to have it made in time to make the Christmas-announcement deadline of the coming arrival of a new grand-daughter.  As it turned out, I wound up buying a pink baby dress and wrapping it up under the tree for grandmas and grandpas to open (one of our more creative announcements, if you ask me).  That gave me the last half of my pregnancy to select fabric and a pattern and construct a piece of clothing I had waited seven years to have a reason to make.

We all wait for things in life.  Sometimes those things come before we are ready, and sometimes they come long after we are ready.  Sometimes they come after we stop caring about them at all; then we hardly notice we got what we were waiting for.  This dress, however, and the little baby girl that was going to wear it for the first time, were long-awaited.  Believe me when I say this dress was constructed out of pure mother love.  And they say mother love for a newborn is the purest there is because absolutely nothing is expected in return.  Every stitch was a little message to my daughter: “Mommy loves you”(especially on that hand-stitched rose garland).

Unfortunately, Anna only got to wear it once or twice before her chunk-o-love arms would no longer fit inside the banding at the base of the puffed sleeve.  Alas, all that time, money, energy and love for only two wearings.  I was a little heart broken when that petite dress had to be packed-up in the baby box labeled “baby girl clothes 0-3 mos.”.  Thankfully I had a reason to unpack it, run it through the wash and hang it on a tiny pink hanger about four months ago.  I think the only thing better than making this dress for my first daughter was being able to dress my second daughter in it, as well.  I feel like Job whose blessings were doubled at the end of his trials.  And what beautifully adorned little blessings they are.

Erik’s Shoot

On Mother’s Day Erik grabbed the baby and said, “Mom, take some pictures of me with Alyx.” 

How could a picture-taking mama refuse such a well-intended command?  So I rounded up the camera and put the two of them in my new favorite picture-taking spot and fired away. 

He is such a handsome little boy. 

 

And the baby’s pretty adorable, too.  ;>

Baby Models

I’m sure babies come in an infinite variety of makes and models.  Ours have come in four completely different models.  I wonder if God would ever consider putting together an order form.  You could select the qualities you would like in a baby, or how long certain phases in a child’s life would last.  Of course all of this would only be helpful if the little “filled order” form came with the delivery so you could be reminded that you actually asked for all that stuff.

Here are the four Hawkins family baby models.  None of them are for sale.  You will have to figure out your own makes and models.

Model A:

 

Luckily our first.  We were so excited to simply have this little one that we did not know things could be better.  Model A will not sleep more than two hours at a time for the first three months, or so.  This model must eat every two hours, without fail.  This model must nurse practically 24 hours a day seven days a week because he will not take a bottle or pacifier.  At the age of four (we are talking years here, not months) the concept of thumb-sucking will finally hit home.  At this point, however, it is not a habit one encourages.  Also, this model throws-up constantly for the first five months, or until he can sit up on his own. The perk on this model is that he is the first and could not possibly be more doted upon (at least until the next one comes along).

Model B:

Model B is most easily recognized by an over—active salivary gland.  Unlike Model A, Model B is rarely seen without a bulbous pacifier hanging from his mouth.  His lips never quite manage to wrap themselves all the way around the pacifier to form a complete vacuum, consequently the drool that is constantly being manufactured is not swallowed, but soaking his face and clothing (and you, if you get too close).  This model sleeps for three to four hours at a time.  This is a marked improvement over Model A; however, this sleep pattern continues for the entire first three years of life.  Perks on this model are a winning personality causing perfect strangers to declare “What a darling little baby!  Don’t you just love him?!?”

Model C:

Model C comes out of nowhere and will change your baby model expectations forever.  This is not a good choice for your first baby because no other model will be able to compete with the night sleep schedule.  This little one sleeps twelve solid hours every single night for the first six months!  The term “sleep deprivation” will never enter your consciousness (at least until the baby is  six-months-old and then starts waking once during the middle of every single night for the following six months).  Model C is not the best nurser, but takes a pacifier (and keeps the saliva in check).  She comes with the biggest, brownest, most gorgeous eyes you’ve ever seen (and believe me, she knows how to use them).  This model is also a great choice if you would like to forgo the “terrible-twos”.  A warning, though, this one will start hitting below the belt – and I mean hard – at three-and-a-half. 

Model D:

Our most current and updated baby model is Model D.  This model wakes every four to five hours during the night.  She is an efficient nurser, and (here comes the major perk) is self-burping!  No more endless patting on the back.  No spewing forth an entire feeding because the bubble is at the bottom of all that milk.  Oh, no!  This model has a built- in signal to stop eating as soon as a bubble is detected.  Simply sit her up, bend slightly at the waist, and you will instantly and unmistakably know that bubble has been popped.  Baby Model D is also blissfully calm and content; not one to cry or fuss.  Model D is not a good choice for a first baby.  You will be spoiled, but you won’t realize it until you have a Model A or a Model B and then you will regret that you didn’t appreciate what you had when you had it.  

Wheels

Anna got a “sparkle bike” for her birthday. 

She rode it in the house for a couple of days and on Saturday we took the kids out to the track to get in some serious riding. 

Erik desperately wanted to ride his bike, but then couldn’t find his helmet.  He cannot wait to get his cast off, but so far it is not slowing him down one bit (the stench, however, is another story).  He is very proud of his “pop-a-wheelies”, although after falling off several times he told me that “the fast ones are scary - I don’t want to do those anymore.”  (And they were!  I kept my mouth shut, but I was preparing myself for another broken something.)

My favorite part about our little foray was watching Sean with Anna. 

 

To me these pictures are worth a thousand words.

 

 

If only every little girl had a daddy like that.

Happy Birthday, Dear Annabelle

Our sweet, little Annabelle turned 4 last week.  Oh me, oh my!  I think if I had to describe this little girl in one word it would be Delight.  Not only is she a delightful little spirit, but she takes delight in everything (except her brothers’ singing).  To give you a taste of this little one I thought I would “delight” you with a couple of the things that come out of her mouth.  Oh, and some pictures, we can never forget the pictures.

Anna: Mom, do you know why I very like my teeth like this? (Teeth pressed together in a smile.)

Mom: Why?

Anna: Because I very like happinesses.

One of my favorite things that Anna has taken up is holding her sister’s hand in the car and singing songs to her when she cries.  Anna makes them up, of course, but I so love to listen to her lyrics.  She usually sings about Jesus and how he loves her and Alyx.  Once the baby settles down or falls asleep Anna tells me, “Alyxandria very likes my singing.”  Anna is my daughter through and through.  We hold the exact same position in our families – we are both the third in our family with two older brothers and a younger sister.  I love how, whenever I paint her nails, she insists on a different color for each finger, rarely in a pattern of any kind.  I love to see what outfit she will be sporting when she comes downstairs for the day.  Sometimes I think she has a really good eye for color and design, other days I just have to remind myself that artistic self-expression is critical for a person’s well-being.  I simply love being with her, experiencing life with my sweet Annaliese.

Anna: Mommy, do you like my germs?

A Mother’s Day Tribute

I am the proud owner of a new, I mean old, dining room table.  Our previous table was purchased at a yard sale about seven years ago as we were preparing to move into our first “real” house.  It was the ubiquitous pine kitchen table that it seems everyone owns.  It came to us with its own past, full of scratches and dings and a marred finish.  It served us well and it was nice to not have to worry about all the paint smears and fork-stabbing-pockmarks that accumulated under the busy hands of our children.

But on Tuesday last week we brought home a new table.  An old table. A table from my own past; from my childhood.  My parents are moving to smaller quarters and no longer have need of a large, formal dining room set.  I managed to inherit it thanks to Sean checking his email at 11:30 every night (it was up for grabs among my siblings and I).  We moved it in Tuesday night (the kitchen table was relocated to my studio and upgraded to a craft table (hallelujah!)).  Wednesday night was our first meal around our very own real dining room set.

The silly thing is I started to cry.  Thankfully, not hugely.  I don’t think anyone even knew.  I kept looking out the window to hide my eyes.  I wasn’t crying because our prayer for a dining room set was finally answered (and it truly was an answered prayer – I pray over everything – I think it’s a compulsion).  I was crying because of all the memories that were flooding into my mind as I sat at the table.  You see, before this table became my parents’, it was my grandparents’.  And as I sat there on Wednesday night I could see my grandpa and grandma sitting there with me.  I could see the little bowls of cottage cheese and pineapple and the plates of watered down spaghetti sprinkled with parmesan cheese from a can.  I could hear my grandpa Bible-swearing about the idiots at the donut shop.  I could see the bizarre wooden artichoke candy dish that resided on the table when no one was eating.  I remember my Aunt Vicki’s gingerbread train that covered the table each Christmas Eve.  And oh, do I remember dusting that table!  Every Tuesday and Thursday my sister or I dusted that table.  Admittedly, the table seemed much smaller as I sat there with my own growing family (I was seven years old the summer I lived with my grandmother).  My son was sitting where my grandpa used to sit.

When I went to bed that night I cried some more.  I cried for my grandparents that I miss so much, that I wish I could talk to and visit; grandparents that I wish could hold my sweet children.  Last night I asked Sean what he thought Alyx would say if she could talk.  Without a moment’s hesitation he said, “She would talk about how nice Grandpa Locken is.”  And I know if Sean had had the chance to meet my grandma, he would have included her in the thought.

I know today is Mother’s Day, and I hope my mom won’t mind, but I wish to spend it honoring my grandmother, her mother.  I remember so many things about her, so many things I loved her for.  I think what I love most about her is that I knew she loved me, and my brothers and sister, and my parents.  I knew we were important to her and she would do everything she could to love us and take care of us.  I never doubted we meant the world to her.  I imagine all of her children and grandchildren felt the same way.  I honor her goodness, her love and her motherhood, and her grand-motherhood.  I miss her so very much and I look forward to holding her hand once again.

In the meantime, I will sit at my dining room table and surround it with more memories of love and family.  Until we meet again . . .

Alyx's Blessing

 

Our sweet little Alyxandria Brynn was blessed yesterday. It was such a wonderful, beautiful day. And it was a gift to learn a little bit more about my daughter and the wonderful person she will become. She was blessed in a dress I made in college. So far eight little girls in my family have been blessed in that dress, including Annaliese. I have loved pulling that dress out for each precious one.

 

We had lots of loved ones with us to celebrate the occasion (and Annabelle's birthday, too). The house was full of happy cousins delighted to spend the day together. Sean's aunt and uncle came all the way from Wisconsin to be with us. It was an absolute treat of a weekend to spend so much time with them. If the whole world were made up of such people, what a wonderful place it would be. The only down side was I was virtually sister-less yesterday due to a variety of reasons. Katrina, thank you for filling in. ;> (To the rest of you, I missed you terribly.)

 

Life is so beautiful. I am so in love with this little person; so in love with all four of my little people. What a joy it is to be a mother (on the good days). ;> 

 

(Don't you just want to gobble up that scrumptious baby?!?!?)