Dress Alterations

A few weeks ago I found this dress at our local MCC thrift store. I loved the fabric, but I didn't really like the style of the dress. It was, however, only three dollars, so I decided to get it and see if I could turn it into a dress that I did like!

The part of the dress that I especially didn't like was the top. I don't like how that style looks on me, and I tend to avoid strapless dresses, especially with little kids who are constantly tugging on my clothes! The dress was also a size too big for me.

The first step was to remove the smocking. I figured that this would be a time-consuming process, but it turns out that if you pull the stitching in just the right way, it unravels and comes out without much fuss at all! I also took apart the top six inches or so of the side seams.

I decided to hand-sew this project instead of using my sewing machine. The fabric of the dress is quite slippery and I was concerned that I might run into difficulties if I used the machine. Hand-sewing is more time consuming, but that didn't really matter because there wasn't much sewing I needed to do. Also, there is something about sewing by hand that makes me feel like I'm pioneering like a boss, even if I don't live in a little house on the prairie.

First, I sewed shoulder seams along the top of the dress, turning what had been the top six inches of the side seams into armholes. Then I had to hem the armholes. And that was it! I decided that I wouldn't worry about a waistline, and instead just wear it with a belt.

I am quite pleased with the final result!

Rain!

Fall weather is here, and we are loving it! These kiddos love water in any form, and they have been having a blast making giant splashes in their pool, "watering the garden", and making mud pies. For the last few days, our times outside have involved getting thoroughly soaked, then going back inside for hot chocolate. Give us wind and rain over a sweltering summer day anytime!

Mother

Gentle arms embrace
Reassuring presence
Banishes nightmares back into
The dream world, untouchable
Haven of safety
This lap, these arms
Bathed in warm light pushing
Back the darkness and fear
The old couch
Worn, but oh so
Comfortable, that is how
I remember it,
Legs curled up inside
Flannel nightie
A soft lullaby
Sends me back
To sleep.

Mine the arms now
Grown larger to embrace
These smaller ones
My lips now give
Healing kisses
And sing lullabies.
I hold my sleeping child
Soft breathing in
My ear, my heart
Overflowing
Still cold fear wraps
Its cord around
My heart, I know
My lips are not
Magic, my presence alone
Cannot banish all pain
The world is so much
Bigger, and scarier
Than I thought.
And so I crawl
Into the lap
That is bigger than mine
Held by arms that
Truly banish fear and pain
Never letting go
My fear is stilled
I sleep.

Feedback

As you may have noticed, my posts have been much more sporadic lately, but now that the summer is over I'd like to get back into some kind of routine for my writing. Before I decide what that is going to look like, I'd appreciate your feedback!

The schedule I have (generally) been following for the past couple of years has been posting twice per week, with Tuesday posts generally being poetry, musings, and thoughts on life, and Thursday posts generally being recipes, crafts, and other things I have been up to.

If you have a minute or two, please leave a comment below! I've included some possible responses that you can refer to by number, or write your own!


1. I enjoy reading your poetry and musings. I would like there to be more reflective, thoughtful content.

2. I prefer the recipes and crafts. I would enjoy more hands-on content.

3. I follow your blog to hear about your life. I want more family updates and "Mommy Moments".

4. There is something else I enjoy that I would like to see more of: _______

5. I have a new idea for something that you haven't tried before: _______

6. I think you should post more frequently. I would like having more to look through when I visit your blog.

7. Less posting would be fine with me. I don't visit your blog very often.

8. I like it when you post links to your blog on Facebook. It reminds me to check out what you've been writing.

9. I don't like it when you post links on Facebook. It's kind of annoying.

10. I think that what you have been doing works really well. Keep it up!

Summer 2017

The kids have been keeping me busy this summer. Kenneth learned to walk and climb! If I turn my back on him for a minute I'll find him up on the couch or on his brother's bed. Kenneth's new found independence means that the kids have been playing together (and fighting!) a lot more. Steven runs through life at full speed and full enthusiasm. He has lots to say, and loves singing and reading stories. He has started to play pretend with his stuffed animals, which is so cute. We didn't get away from home much this summer, but we've had lots of visitors from out of town, and we were able to go for a family hike up Needle Peak and do some canyoneering down Fire Creek (without the kids). Here are a few pictures from our summer:

Keeping cool in the summer heat

Checking out the solar eclipse

Holding the eclipse in our hands

Posing for a photo

Exploring Fire Creek

Chillin' in a waterfall

Steven leading the way up Needle Peak

Lunch break!

At the summit

Journal

I just finished filling the last page in my journal. It feels like a momentous occasion. This is the journal that I started using on my first day at Columbia Bible College, six and a half years ago!

I went back and read the first few entries in my journal. They are a window into the person I was back then. They describe the struggles of starting at a new school. They describe the classes I was in and what I was learning about. They describe making friends and hanging out with people like Lisi and Josh and Vicky. They describe meeting a guy named Jesse. They describe finding out that my mom had cancer.

There it is, for the record—the day I met Jesse.

So much has changed in those six and a half years. I fell in love and got married. I completed my degree with the highest GPA in my graduating class. We had two kids. Our family has grown in other ways too—we've had eight different people live with us at one time or another, and most of them we still consider to be part of our family. Over these past six and a half years I grew in my understanding of God and the importance of community, peace, and creation care. I started blogging, started going to a new church, started leading a worship team, and started my own garden. I found freedom from a lot of the fear that used to paralyze me. I'm not the same girl I was back then, but at the same time I am the same girl. I love the wind. I love writing and playing piano. I love hiking and hot chocolate and deep conversations. I'm still a nerd. I've grown up a little, but I don't think I've grown up too much.

Looking back through my journal, I see that there have been seasons when I wrote a lot, and seasons when I wrote very little. It appears that I generally end up journaling either when there is something going on that I am very excited about, or when I am really struggling. (So if you ever notice me journaling, have fun guessing which one it is at the moment!) Going back over my journal is a very interesting journey, as it highlights some of my most enthusiastic obsessions and deepest lows. Those pages contain tears and prayers and hopes and dreams, angry ranting and excited gushing.

I have a new journal now. It's one that Jesse gave me quite a while ago. I am excited to start using it, but almost a little intimidated. Its pages are so white and clean and new. I guess we'll see what the next six and a half years have in store!

Mommy Moments: The Sound Of Music

Toddler: *listening to Jacob play electric guitar*

Jacob: *turns on the distortion*

Toddler: That's a song!

So it begins.