sh-wow-er

Our weekly Wine-on-Wednesday (W-o-W) gathering this week turned
out to be a surprise shower for Amanda, Daniel and Cedar.
We are blessed to have such good friends.



We were greeted by this cute "Cedar" as we arrived.




A very fun shower activity was for everyone
to decorate varying sizes of onesies.
(while we drank wine and snacked)




He'll look pretty cute in these!



We will be taking this cute PeaPod to Cambodia with us.
What a fun gift!



Thanks fellow W-o-W'ers

simplicity

I have been waiting to sew these cute little shirts for a long time,
actually since I sewed for this baby's mother 20+ years ago.



A perfect little Asian look for a baby
that lives in Cambodia don't you think?



Extra small 7-13 pounds



Aren't they just the cutest?



This one was next.



Oh my, don't look too closely.
This was way beyond my sewing skills!!



I am wondering why a month old baby will need pockets?

it's a boy

Welcome to this adorable baby that has made us Grandparents
We are in love with him already


click for larger image

Cedar James was born yesterday in
Bangkok, Thailand at 12:59 a.m.(our time)
and we were already Skyping with him at 4:30 a.m.

due date

Tomorrow is the day that Amanda will have her baby in Thailand.
She is having a c-section as the baby hasn't yet turned.
Please keep them in your prayers!



I will be back with the details after they
share the news with family and friends.

brother

It was time.
My Singer sewing machine is 43 years old and
although it still works it does have some quirks.


In my research I found out that Singers now have all plastic parts
in them. Even a rep at a JoAnn Fabrics told me Singers won't sew
through seams on denim jeans. What is that about?!
Also, Vicking went bankrupt and Singer bought them so . . .
I suspect they are now essentially Singers.



After much research and exploring I bought a
Brother Innovis from a local sewing center.
Discount Sewing & Jackie Lynn's Fabric Center.



I would have been happy with the Limited Edition Project Runway Innov-ís 40 but upgraded to the Limited Edition Project Runway Innov-ís 80 because it was on sale. It has more embroidery stitches and does sew capital letters.
Both machines have a self threader. Hooray!



Mine was $50 off at the store and had a rebate of $75.
They told me the ones you can get at Walmart or online are not as good.
I do believe them even though it is in their interest to say that.



Also, buying it from a sewing center gives me free,
unlimited one-on-one in-store training and free monthly
classes from this "friendly, knowledgeable staff".
A bargain in itself.



Let me tell you about four great features that new sewing machines have.
Seasoned sewers already know these but to me they are amazing . . .

You can
~ choose from three speeds so pressure on the foot pedal is automatic
~ use the lower button to automatically sew instead of the foot pedal
~ set it to automatically back stitch at the beginning and end of your seam
~ set it to automatically stop with needle up or down



This pile of fabrics is calling me.

spice rack

I bought an ugly brown spice rack at the church rummage sale and
decided to follow some creative blogger ideas and spray paint it white.



My spices were all in a narrow cupboard in my kitchen island
and to see them I had to kneel down. Well . . . since I am
one year away from being old
it was getting harder and harder to get up
after finding the spice I needed.



I have been trying to keep fewer "things" on my counter
but I will make an exception for this spice rack.
It is a pleasure not to kneel down anymore.



Now . . . if you want a more creative way to use
an updated spice rack visit this fun blog
mamie jane's

my clip company

It seems like many blog posts this month are posting about
getting organized. I want share with you a great item we
use that has really helped us over the years.



My Clip is a personalized magnetic clipboard.
It allows you to securely attach all of your
important papers to your refrigerator.



When my kids were at home everyone had a My Clip with their name
on it for schedules, homework, calendars, book orders, etc.



Now that we are empty nesters, I ordered some blank
My Clips and modge podged some pictures on them.

My Clip makes a perfect
birthday or holiday gift.
Guaranteed not to fall down!
Money back if not totally satisfied.

Such a great deal!
$6.00 each
including shipping

We ordered them from our friend's company . . .



www.myclipcompany.com

hoodies

I gave the young ladies in our family (girlfriends and wife)
hoodie sweatshirts but wanted to fancy them up a bit.



So . . . I bought a complimentary fabric to line the hoods.



Here is a view from the front





and the back



I just traced the hood on paper and then used it as a pattern to cut the fabric.



Finally I put a "scrappy looking" name label in the back.



Hmmm . . . I think I'll make one for myself.

bangkok + baby bound

When I saw this photo I just couldn't
resist sharing it with you . . .



As some of you know, my daughter and her husband
are doing humanitarian mission work in Cambodia.
For better medical care, they are moving to Thailand
for two months and will return to Cambodia
after the baby is born and has a passport.

We will welcome baby Talstra on or about January 29th.
we live in all we seek