Pillowcase Apron Tutorial

pillowcases

Take a sheet, cut or rip(go ahead ripping makes you feel better, lol) into 4-6 inch wide strips, you will fold these 3 times, so however wide you want your ties (X4), it really doesn't matter how wide they are, but I really wouldn't make them smaller than 4 inches.

iron strip in half to find the middle

unfold, and fold top and bottom to the middle crease

fold pillowcase and tie in half to find the middle

Match the middle creases and fold over tie and pin. Make sure you put the side that is open at the top in between the tie.

To make the ends, fold them like a paper airplane, fold over and pin.

Sew the ties as shown. Sew 1 side to the middle and back. I don't know why you only do 1 side then the other, that's just what the tutorial that I saw said to do. Then your done!

Here are all the ones I did! It took me 30 min to do 1. If your opening is in the middle like mine, all I did was do 1 straight stitch across and closed it up. I am also adding a cool gathering gardening thing where you stitch button holes on the sides with a button. Here is that tutorial....

http://www.clevernesting.com/2009/06/pouch-garden-apron-tutorial/

Grandma's Quilt

My Grandma's Quilt
I made it out of all my scraps of flannel. It's a light, but warm blanket she can take any where with her. I even put ribbon ties on the bottom (not in the pic, cause it's not done), so she can roll it up. She travels on the ferry in Alaska alot, because her husband is in a Rehab center in Juneau. The ferry can get pretty cold, especially in the winter. So this will keep her toasty warm!

My 1st pillowcase

Here is 1 pillowcase I made for my cousin!

My 1st Apron!

Yeah! I made my 1st apron! These are made out of a pillowcase and a sheet for the tie. I'm making a whole bunch for Christmas. This 1 is mine, I had to practice on mine 1st, plus I didn't want anyone who might get 1 to see theirs before Christmas. Since I'm making so many, maybe I should make a Tutorial! I am a little electronically challenged and that would intitle actually taking pics then trying to put pics where I want them in the blog, lol. Just like this post (if it actually works, I may be typing for nothing,lol). I wanted to post pics from Facebook, that I took from my phone (which I just learned how to do), so we'll see how this works.

Waiting for Wood

I just want to start by saying I love my Heavenly Father and I know he watches over and takes care of me and my family. I don't own a truck, so every year I have a huge issue with getting wood. So, I asked my neighbors boyfriend and he said "Yeah I can get you some wood." So, he got his friend (that has a truck) and came over, well the problem is they need $50 for gas and the wood. The trusting (nieve and stupid) person that I am gave them the $. 2 weeks later still no wood. He promised it would be cut and split and delivered the day after i gave him the $. We finally have to go get it ourselves and load it in the trunk of my car. The wood is also NOT cut or split (I don't even own an ax). So, now I've spent $50 and 2 trips to town for some crappy wood.

Anyway, couple days before, I was driving on Hwy 160 and drove by a church that had FREE firewood. I already decided that if I didn't get my firewood by Saturday, I would get some from there.

While picking up the crappy wood I paid for, the (lazy good for nothing) guy told me about the church with the firewood and said they can deliver it. So, I decided I would go there the next day and ask them if I could swap out the wood.

OK, next day, I go to the church and they say "No, we don't deliver the wood." Here is the part where I know Heavenly Father watches over me. I am so greatful for people that listen to the promptings of the Lord. When I pulled up to the church a friend from my church was there loading their truck up with wood. I asked him if he could possibly bring me some wood and pick up the wood I couldn't use and bring it there to swap out then get himself some wood. Of course, he said "Yes." I know it wasn't a coincidence, it was the promptings of the Lord. Whether it was me listening or them listening(probably them, lol). I'm also so glad I have an awesome Church family, I know I can call anyone for help. It's kinda funny cause the guy giving out the firewood said, "That was really nice of that guy to help you like that." And I thought to myself, "No, that's just how my church is." If it was me with a truck I wouldn't give it a second thought and I know he didn't either.

No Food

Today I am venting over something that happened today that really bothers me. As I am cooking my dinner (lasagna) and thinking of someone that has nothing. I volunteer at a food bank in Bonham on Tuesdays. Over 400 families a month come and get food. The date you 1st get food is the date you can come back the next month. But this month we will be closed for a week for Thanksgiving, so families can come in before their date. Usually you can't come in any earlier than a week before and I understand rules are important. But when a mother comes in and is told come back in 2 days, it bothered me. She has no car, which means she probably paid someone her last couple $ to get there and get food for her family. I am so sorry. Just the look on her face will haunt me forever. You could tell she was distressed when she walked in the door, and how the tears were in her eyes when she left. I just wish I would have done something. As I am just a person that works in the back and fills orders. I don't think I could ever work in the front office, because I would never turn anyone away, and if I ever did I would feel terrible about it. But rules are rules for a reason.

I saw Jesus today

Zander is in Pre-K and when I pick him up from school he always asks me what I did while he was at school. Maybe because I always ask him what he did in school. I went to the temple that day, so I told him where I went.

He asked, "What do you do at the temple?"

"Oh, I don't know." I said, trying to think of what I could say.

"Did you see Jesus at the temple?" he asked.

"Yes, I saw Jesus at the temple." I replied as a tear escaped my eye.

Later at dinner everyone was talking about what they did that day. And Zander says, "Mommy went to the temple and saw Jesus!" I just smiled and said, "yes, I did."

It's these moment I want to remember forever.

Galveston

We went to Galveston for the weekend! Actually, my mom called me and said my Aunt Joan and cousin Kayla was going to be in Galveston for a National jumprope tournament! So, any excuse to go to the beach is good for me! All the hotels were (of course) booked and if they weren't, they were over $200 a NIGHT! We did find 1 though. Saturday, we went swimming in the ocean then in the pool at the hotel. We were so hungry (from skipping lunch) that we ate at Golden Corral. Of course, you can't go to Galveston without going to Burdocks! By then it was dark, so we went for a walk on the beach. I LOVE to walk on the beach at night! We met a Dad and Son looking for crabs (they come out at night)! Anyway, next day we were eating our Continental Breakfast and we learned about the ferry. It's a FREE 20 min ferry ride to an island. So, we did that and got to see lots of dolphins! We did lots of beach combing, it was sad to see all of the trash that washed up on shore. We did find a couple OLD coconuts, some NICE whole shells, 2 hermit crabs (1 we brought home on accident and is in our aquarium), lots of bamboo, and a plastic bucket to put all our treasures in. When we got back we ate our Super Saver lunch at Wally World, and rented 1 of those cool bikes that our whole family fit on. Watch out while renting those, Michael got hurt twice on the foot, so maybe wear tennis shoes. At the jumprope tournament they were cutting hair for "Locks of Love", I have done this 4 times (I think) and had been wanting to do it, so I got it chopped off. Yup, thats what they did, pony tailed it and CUT! (usually they cut in sections) So, still waiting to go to the salon to get it styled. Then, we met up with my Aunt and cousin to say goodbye. We didn't spend much time with them, because they had to stay at the tournament the whole time, and when they did go anywhere, they had to stay as a group. So, the 1st day we all wore sunscreen, ya know "at the beach", but the 2nd day I did not. I wore my suit under my shirt and when we went over on the ferry, I took my shirt off and stuck it (what I could) in my pocket. When we got on the ferry to go back, I noticed my shirt was not hanging out of my pocket anymore. Bummer! 1 of my favorite shirts too! So, yes, I am very sunburned, but it'll turn into a very nice TAN! eventually, lol.
So, summer is not even half way over and already I'm so ready for school to start. We are going to the Texas Rangers baseball game on July 3rd (FREE Jerseys for kids day), plus it's a night game. We are also doing the summer movie clubhouse program at Cinemark, I'm all for 50 cent movies. We have done alot already like Cub scout camp and in the X-factor audience! But after next week we will be staying home. I'm sure summer will be over before we know it. We need to find a good summer reading program.... (Me just thinking to myself, lol.)

Sickness Brings Seizures

Scott has been having seizures, but it's a combination of a few things. #1 rule - take medication every day. It is summer, so it's harder to be on a set schedule since there is no school. Therefore, Scott didn't have his medicine Sunday morning and Monday morning (he takes it twice a day). But also when he gets sick he has seizures. His body is trying to heal his brain, when he gets sick, part of his body has to stop healing the brain and go heal whatever sickness is attacking his body. So, he has had a fever since Monday, and the little cough started today (for some reason the 1st symptom is always a fever). He had the seizure sometime Monday night while he was sleeping. I know he's had 1 because of his slurred speech, drooling, and weakness on the right side of his face. I feel the seizures are getting worse, because he never had the weakness on the right side (except the 5 min 1 he had in class).

As I kneel by my sons bed, I plead to my Heavenly Father to make my son better (as any mother would do). I realize that maybe I should be praying for strength instead and to be OK with whatever happens. I should accept that this is his life and "yes" it does get easier with every seizure he has. But no mother likes to see their child suffer and I worry about everything. I have a lot of Faith in my Heavenly Father and know everything will be ok and He is with me.

Scott's seizures

This is my boy Scott. He has epilepsy. He had his 1st Grand Maul seizure at school when he was 4 1/2 yrs old. He is now 6 and I am just now understanding his condition. The 1st very important rule is medication. He has to take it!!!! 1st 6 months he took it whenever or not at all, I didn't understand the importance of it. Maybe I was in denial thinking he didn't need it, and this was just a phase. That Heavenly Father would make it all better. His 2nd semester of Pre-K he was on his meds and finally progressing (after the 8 weeks of hell). By the end of the year he finally learned his alphabet! But something still wasn't right. He was still having seizures, even when he took his meds. We would call the doctor and without seeing him, just up his meds. We would go in for his check-up and we would see the nurse (I've never even met the dr.) and she would know nothing about it. The end of summer came and we finally got into Children's Medical Center! By then he was having seizures EVERY DAY! He started Kindergarten and I informed the teacher about what to do if it happens. Well, it happened in class, she said it lasted 5 minutes. So, we went to Children's Hospital and the Dr. says the meds are prescribed wrong! He was taking a liquid every 12 hrs when it's suppose to be taken every 8! So, it totally made sense why he was having them every morning. So, he got on the right meds, but not without consequences. When you change seizure meds, it messes with your behavior for 8 weeks! Even if it changes a little bit, so Scott was not himself for 2 months, and it was hell.

So, now that learned lesson 1 we can talk about lesson 2. When u have a seizure you lose memories. Knowledge is ZAPPED from your brain and is no longer there. So, from all the seizures he had the beginning of Kindergarten, he has forgotten the alphabet. So, Christmas vacation came and they wanted the kids to practice reading words, I was thinking "He just finished learning the alphabet and now u want him to read!?" Anyway, he's graduated from Kindergarten now and it's summer.

He doesn't like rules, and likes to do things his way. But I still have to help him get dressed in the morning and feed him his medicine. He is so sweet and loves to help and learn. He is smart, the knowledge is in there somewhere, he just has to find it 1st. Therefore, he is slow to answer. His handwriting has improved greatly over the last month. He is in Special Ed. and she worked with him twice a week. The Dr. says he will grow out of it by the time he is 14 yrs old. Wow, wouldn't that be great, only 8 more yrs. His appetite is good, he eats and loves everything! He is always exploring, loves the outdoors (even when it's 90 degrees). I think he will be great in sports, we put him in t-ball this year and it was a slow start. I think he might need something more active (too boring for him), so we are going to try football. He's a contact kinda person. I've never even been to a football game before!

I worry about him alot, but I think things are getting better. (or I hope)

The middle man

This morning when I dropped Zander off at CDO, the person in charge had a garbage bag of little boy clothes they offered to me. At 1st, I said "no", which is weird for me to turn down free stuff. I do have 3 boys and a TON of clothes though. But, when they said "are u sure?", I said sure I'll take them. The whole time I'm thinking, do my kids look like they need clothes? and what am I going to do with these clothes? Anyway, so Tuesdays I go to Fannin County Ministries and volunteer in the store room. I got to talking with the person in charge of the back room and she mentions that her grandson who is 3 (same age as Big Z) hardly has any clothes, poor kid. So, after lunch I got the bag out of my trunk and went through it. Half the bag was clothes that fit me (which I can't wait to wear), the other half was 4T (which is the size she needs).

I love being Heavenly Fathers middle man. I was the blessing that her daughter needed. I am greatful for Heavenly Father's promptings and people who follow them. I don't even know who the bag was from, but I know Heavenly Father prompted them to give it to me. We can all be tools for our Heavenly Father, all we have to do is listen.

1st Shiner

This is the reason why catchers wear masks!

Michael got his 1st shiner yesterday, while playing baseball at an unofficial practice. 1 of the coaches (the pitcher) sometimes practices with a couple of the boys on Monday nights. That is the same practice night as Scott's, so we were there anyway. I even got to throw a couple of balls to Michael(which my arm is sorry for today, lol). Michael is not the best player on the team and has trouble catching the ball, so when the coach put him as the catcher I thought that was actually a good idea. The bad idea was not wearing a helmet, OOPS! The ball bounced off the ground and pegged him right in the eye! After only 5 minutes of ice he went right back out there to play ball. He's so proud!

My fabric postcards

These are postcards that I made. The top 1 is a birthday card, I thought a Lion delivering some balloons very cute. We are doing an alphabet swap (we are starting backwards with Z), so here is some of mine. "T" is for tracks. "S" is for so many things (how many can u find?)(yes, those are stars). "R" is for railroads. And the last 1 is a bug swap.
This is what Big "Z" (my 4 yr old) can do to a postcard. His ART! This was supposed to be my "U" for umbrella. I actually worked really hard on this. :(
I signed up for a Yellow/Green/Orange swap. I thought these dinosaurs were very cute. But I think I have finally found my style. I really need to try a little harder, get out of my comfort zone and get those creative juices flowing (what little juices their are). I am a scrappy person.
And these are all my postcards I have received up to date! They are so amazing and creative! They come from all over the world including Australia and Italy!

3rd grade postcard swap!

In my yahoo group trading fabric postcards, we were asked to swap with a 3rd grade class in California. My 1st thought was the awesome summer camp "I spy" fabric that I had! Very cool, ya know a 3rd grader is all about summer vacation and having fun! I then got a message from the person in charge of our group and said they worked very hard and "did not just slap a piece of fabric" on there. Ok, then I really had to change it and do something different. So, I looked at what scraps I had to make a postcard that maybe a 3rd grader would enjoy. I found my outdoor fabric scraps and made a pretty cool postcard, but I didn't really think a 3rd grader would have thought it very cool. So, I thought of BRIGHT colors and got my frog scraps out! Anyway, I hope she likes it.

This is the postcard that I got from my 3rd grader. Her name is Kiowa and this is her ocean scene. Wow! Is all I can say. I wish I was as creative as her.

spring is here!

Well, for the most part, I've been just making fabric postcards. I won the Lotto for February, so that was exciting, and got lots of new ideas. Around here it's been all about baseball and t-ball. The Trenton park is our 2nd home, lol. This week has been the worst: Monday - t-ball practice, Tuesday - 1 bbgame, Wednesday - double hitter bb game, Thursday - 1 t-ball game. Right now it's thundering out side, so Tuesday will have to be made up sometime, but instead of game it's Big Z's Spring program at his preschool, lol. With everything going on this week, Jeremy is in Austin. Did I mention all the Easter parties too? 3 dozen eggs are filled for parties! I will have to squeeze decorating Easter Eggs in somewhere, maybe Friday night?

I have started a garden and I am determined to grow something, lol. We have Zucchini, peppers (all kinds), brussel sprouts, tomato, watermelon, cantalope, strawberries, carrots, and corn. The eggplant, yellow squash, and cucumber have died. Today I bought beans and giant sunflowers to plant. I have 3 little raised beds that I started this year. I am not a gardener, but we had this inspiring lesson from Yo in RS. I am convinced that this is my year and "if I plant it, it will grow."

The boys are doing well. Scott is Scott, and some days I just have to accept that is who he is. I just wish other people would accept him too. I wish our school had more to offer him, but I'm grateful for Mrs. Baugh who is so good with him. I fear for 1st grade....will he continue to learn and get better or act like he's 4? Being a Mom is hard. I sometimes wonder what I did wrong or I should have waited to have Big Z and I could have spent more teaching time with him. How can just 1 of my children be so different? How can I expect more from him when he just RElearned the alphabet? He is learning fast and I need to keep up.

I love the 1 on 1 time I have with my boys. Today I took Michael to his dentist appointment. We went to Carl Jr.'s for lunch and he got a checkers game for a toy. We hung out and played a game, I had to read the instructions, lol, but he knew how to play. We love jamming out to music in the car together, too. Last week, we took Scott to a Dr.'s appointment. He had been getting on Red at school, so we were going to see if he had ADHD, but the pediatrician referred us back to the neurologist. Anyway, Jeremy went and we had a great time, just us. And he stayed on Green for a week after that! I think his body was just exhausted and needed lots of rest. And maybe a day off. Big Z is doing great, he's alot like Michael. Next year he will be in Pre-K, but the school is going through a lot of budget cuts, so we really don't know what's going to happen.

So, right now life is good. I'm getting know more mom's better, and it's good to get out. I will definately have an awesome tan after June as I'm out in it every Saturday for 4 hrs. Maybe, I'll out do my dad this year! Guess that doesnt really compare to every day in Delta Jct. Well, I guess that's it, I'll chat later!

~Trinity

Fabric Postcards

These are fabric postcards I have received in the mail! I think my favorite is the wolf and mountain, but they are all really cool! The different themes are frogs, valentine, Roads, Native American, and the last we had to make 1 with the persons initials.

These are ones that I made! Most of the swaps we do are just 1 postcard, so I've been making 2, so I have an extra! I am also making extra to mail to my friends! The jeans is my favorite. It was made from Michael's old jeans. We are doing an Alphabet Swap "Z", I thought of zipper! Way Cool Huh! The alligator 1 is 1 of my 1st ones I made, so I kinda like to keep it, so I can see how far I have come. The recipe is coffee, I dont drink coffee, but they sure sound good. I obtained this fabric from a swap with a friend, I thought it would make perfect postcards! Frogs are for the frog swap, this 1 I'm sending to my Aunt, who's a quilter, loves frogs, and golf (lol), so I thought of her. The valentine is a pattern from "Block Magic, too".

I am always learning, especially from other swappers. I love making them, because it's fast, easy, and rewarding. It makes me feel so good when I finish a project. My next project is St. Patrick's Day (I signed up), not sure what I'm going to do. Making my postcards I always use from my stash. What I have seen, is you dont have to worry about fraying with applique, I think I'm going to have to try that with a shamrock. In case u havent noticed, I am kinda scared of applique, but would kinda like to learn, I mean u can do so much with it, ya know?

Anyway, back to life.....Scott is doing 100% better! He knows almost all his alphabet and is learning. I am so proud of him. Jeremy is working alot and will finally get a day or 2 off this weekend. It's been a struggle, but I think we might just make it. As for Michael, what's up with him!? He needs an adjustment, I think. Is that normal with 8 yr olds? He has always been my easy child, but he is always complaining and is like pulling teeth to get him to do anything. Ugh, that's life I guess. Scott likes to antagonize him and Michael just cant let it go, so there is alot of fighting and yelling going on. Big Z is normal though, kinda slow to do stuff (like get dressed and put shoes and socks on). He's been watching alot of TV lately and has become a routine, but I guess he is learning, right? Oh, as for me (it is my blog about me), I have officially been put on the volunteer schedule at Fannin County Community Ministries. I go in once a week. I LOVE doing service and helping people. Well, I should get off the computer, as I always have tons to do around the house, especially when my husband is coming home, lol.

New Bright Frog Blocks!

These are the new bright frog blocks I've been working on! They are for Scott. I Fussy cut out 42 frogs and cut a bunch of different sized strips, then sewed them crazy/log cabin style!