a little bit of sewing

I am still trying to squeeze in a bit of sewing here and there these days- these are some of the things I've sewn recently...

new camera straps

headbands

foxy

a couple toddler skirt and top outfits

and some aprons I dropped off at Kitsch last month

I'm hoping to find some time soon to make a pair of these for myself.  What are you making?

new storage shelves

Grandpa and Grandma Bev came down over the weekend and installed storage shelves in our garage/boys room/laundry room/pantry.  The kids were really hoping they could use them as lofts, so grandpa gave them a chance to climb up there, just this once...

We had no problem filling the shelved almost completely.

A good bit of those boxes used to be stacked on the floor in the boys "bedroom", so they are very glad to have them up and out of their way!

Thanks Grandpa and Grandma Bev!  We LOVE our new shelves and extra space!!!

so many things i want to post...

but I just can't right now, so instead I leave you with this image from our weekend.

Yes, that is a bike hanging from the zip line. Yes, the children have been riding it down the line.  I know, stupid-crazy. Don't judge me- I was doing lesson planning when it happened.

finishing up some WIP's

Yesterday Micah asked if we could please work on his quilt- which really translated into, "Mom, will you please finish my quilt."  He's waited so patiently and I have been saying "no" to so many things lately with all the last minute tutor prep that I had to oblige...

And while I was at it, I figured I might as well sew Regan's backing on since that was all she had left to do.

Two WIP's off my shelves and into someone else's space, yay!

craft camp wrap up

I missed posting pictures last week (and taking them too, apparently, as these first 2 shots are the only ones I got from the whole morning!) but the girls made these flower mobiles.  Honestly this was probably the least favorite craft we did.  Those felt flowers were a bit tedious and it took us the whole 3 hours (with a short break for snack) to finish them up.  I also did these with Tallulah and the other student in my hand sewing class this summer- not sure if I ever posted pictures or not...

Today was our last class and we did freeze paper stencils.  The girls picked their designs last week and I had them all cut and ready to be ironed on to the t-shirts when they got here this morning.

They turned out super cute (sorry for the dark photo!)

We dipped marshmallows in chocolate and sprinkles for snack- these ones got a little messy, but tasty :)

And for our final project the girls did crayon canvases.  Now is a great time to stock up on 50 cent crayons at Walmart for more of these.  This project is always a big hit, if you haven't tried it yet you should!

I had such a great time crafting with these girls this month!

catch up

Since my last post I have buried myself in school prep.  Lesson plans for CC...

Science notebooks for the kids in my class.

All bound and ready to pass out next week!

Making a tri-fold dry erase board for my classroom.

Copying, dividing by week, and putting the kids work into binders so I can easily pull it out at the beginning of each week.

Updating our weekly checklists.

And drinking lots of this (recipe below) as a pick me up to...

give me the energy to get through this mess! (this picture is from last night. I almost had the table clean this morning when Regan started a craft project and covered half the table with paper scraps!)

In a 24 oz cup mix:
2 tsp Braggs raw apple cider vinegar
juice from 1 lemon (or about 1 TBSP lemon juice)
2 packets of Stevia

Add 1/2 cup frozen fruit and 1/2 lime
Fill with ice
Add water and shake.
I got this recipe from one of the directors at tutor training and have been drinking it every day since- it's really tasty (The first time I sipped at it, getting used to the apple cider vinegar taste, but I quickly grew to love it!) 

I'll be back soon with pictures from the last two craft camps and our school lineup for this year!

stepping outside my comfort zone

Earlier this week I got a phone call from my good friend (who also happens to be my CC director).  When I had seen her earlier that day she had been having a one of those days where you just want to crawl back into bed so that nothing else "bad" can happen. The first thing she said when I answered the phone was "this day just got a little bit longer".  She then asked if I was busy on Saturday (today). Sadly, one of our tutor's had to step down last minute b/c of some health issues. There was going to be one last tutor training today in Richmond.  "Do you want to tutor, and can you go to the training?" She asked.  The idea of me tutoring wasn't a totally new topic for us- I had told her I would be a substitute this year and honestly I think she has asked me every year for the last 4 if I wanted to tutor, but up to this point the answer had always been no- either from me or my husband or both.  I was caught so off guard by the whole conversation all I could do was say we would talk/pray about it and let her know in the morning.  Of course I had to call her back 30 minutes later and ask all the questions that I was too shocked to even think of when she called. :)
Before I go any further, let me back up just a bit. The last few months I have been feeling God prompting me to slow down and let go of a lot of the things that occupy my time.  I have been so busy trying to juggle being a wife and mother,  homeschooling my kids, teaching sewing,  expanding my business, sewing/product development... (the list goes on) and the truth is, I never have been able to juggle.  The one thing that should be most important to me, my relationship with God, seems to suffer most, closely followed by my commitment to homeschooling.  That said, I have been quietly contemplating what things need to change and how to implement those changes- although I will say, I have not done the best job of actually implementing them, but God is gracious.
You might at first think that adding in another pretty significant commitment doesn't seem to make much sense, but instead I felt like God had been prompting this desire to simplify exactly for this purpose.  I could have never considered tutoring if I was still determined to be expanding my business, sewing more, teaching more sewing classes etc.  And today, as I sat in training God just solidified something in my heart that has been a long time coming- when I was younger, I always though I would spend my life in another country on the mission field- I was ready to give up everything and go where ever God led me.  The reality is though- I have my mission field right here, but I have been unwilling to fully give up myself and serve God right were he has planted me.  Sometimes the big sacrifices are easier to make then the small ones.
So, this fall I will be tutoring Foundations.  This is a big step outside my comfort zone, but I am excited to see how God uses this in my life and in our family and the CC community.
More about our plans for this home school year are forthcoming :)