And back to our regularly scheduled program...

Or in my case, IR-regularly scheduled program, since I cannot seem to blog on a daily basis! LOL

Back oh in the early part of Spring my friend April over at April's Sea of Dollie Sweetness sent me this picture and asked if I could recreate the outfit for her Minifee Raine.  I of course agreed provided I could find the polka dot knit material.  I figured how hard could finding a small scale black polka dot on white background me.  Famous last words!!!  It took me stopping at about 6 different fabric and clothing stores before I finally found something that worked.  As crazy as it sounds at the time the only black polka dot on white knit material I could find was at Wal-mart... in the ladies lingerie section!!!  Yep the ONLY fabric that I could find that worked was panties!  So I bought a couple pair so I would have enough material to work with.

Fast forward through the summer and the moving-not moving debacle, then almost 3 months of just being out of touch and not feeling in the mood to sew... well it was starting to itch at me.  I am a creative person by nature and being out of my studio for that long had me going a bit crazy.  BUT at the same time, my studio was a disaster, as I had 'started' packing in there in May when we thought we were moving in July.  So the mess was like a train wreck and I just avoided it because I couldn't even figure out where to start.

Two weeks ago I made a stop into Wal-mart for milk, and was walking past the baby section to get there, when what did my wandering eyes see... tiny black polka dots on white fabric!  Needless to say I veered to the right to investigate!  It was a fabulous stretch knit baby blanket!!!  WITH a cute hot pink floral on the other side.  A quick tug at the material revealed that there were 2 separate fabrics used, so for a cheap $7 I got almost a yard of the perfect material AND an adorable 2nd print as well!

That was just the motivation I needed to make some headway in my studio (mainly by shoving everything on my desk in front of my sewing machine and computer into a box...) and finally get back to work!

April and I decided that instead of a t-shirt I would create a 3/4 sleeve bodysuit, which would look sleeker under the skirt.

I'd never made this pattern before and there was a bit of a learning curve to it, but I can happily say that I didn't have to re-cut any of the pieces and I am in LOVE with the way it fits.

Lena here modeled it with a pair of her jeans. (Made by the fabulous Belle De Jour of Belle's Doll Fashions  The jeans are currently out of stock but I HIGHLY recommend contacting Belle if you are interested in a pair...or 3! )

The bodysuit was so sleek under Lena's jeans and just looks so polished! I will DEFINITELY be making more bodysuits in the future!

The next piece in the ensemble was the lace skirt.  April always gives me some creative leeway when she asks me to recreate a piece for her.  Which is good because sometimes the vision in my head of how to do something doesn't always work the way I think it should.  Case in point the layered lace skirt. 

April and I both felt that there was a waistband above the 2 layers on lace, so I sewed a black knit mini skirt and sewed the bottom layer of lace to the hem.  Then I added the 2nd layer of lace above that so that the bottom of the 2nd layer was just touching the top of the 1st layer.  The end result didn't really look like the inspiration piece though. :-(  BUT April loved it, as Raine is a bit shy and preferred the longer look!

So in the end it all worked out.  I also sewed a pair of biking short that the original outfit had, but the skirt just covered them up, so Raine will have those and a pair of matching polka dot socks to go with her outfit!

Tomorrow, I'll show you a few of the other pieces I sewed up!

Hello again

After nearly 3 months I am finally back working in my studio again.  After the moving/not moving debacle back in July, and then losing our dog at the same time...  Um well I guess I should explain that as well.

 When we adopted Scruffy (our golden retriever) 2 years ago, we thought he was in good health.  We were not told of any health issues he had.  But 2 months later he had the first seizure that we were aware of.  Over the course of the next 2 years the seizures continued to come closer and closer together.  We tried changing his diet as well and medications.  Some things worked better than others, but everything eventually stopped working and the seizures continued.

When we went on vacation in July he had been seizure free for almost 6 weeks (and considering before that, he'd been having clusters of them every week, that was a God-send for him), we returned home and that first night back he had a seizure.  But unlike all of his previous episodes over the past 2 years, this one didn't stop!  In the months prior to this episode, we as a family had talked about what was the bet thing to do for HIM, and we all agreed that if things got worse then we would make the tough decision to stop his suffering.  If you've never had an animal suffer from seizures, know that they are painful to watch, often painful for the animal not to mention the disorientation that follows for hours afterwards.  Medications may 'control' the seizures, but often lead to nasty side effects of their own like sluggishness, confusion, weight gain despite lack of appetite, and other side effects that are nearly as bad as the after effects of the seizure itself.

It was 2 o'clock in the morning when his last seizure started.  As we always did we sat with him, petted him and talked to him.  At around 3am he lifted his head and looked at me and just let our this mournful heart-wrenching howl.  My husband and I looked at each other and just knew.  He was hurting and it was time to make the call.  I called a local emergency vet and through my tears I made the appointment.  It was about 6am by the time he had settled down enough that we could move him without hurting him and got to the vet.  By that time we knew that mentally he was already gone, but the pain of letting him go physically is STILL painful to me (and I crying as I type this).  But we knew it was the right thing to do, and it was the only way to truly do what was best for him.

We were blessed to have Scruffy in our lives for 2 years and will ALWAYS remember him fondly!

*sniffles*

Ok sorry, I had intended this post to be about the most recent crafting I've done, but at this point, well I just can't today.  I am sorry this post ended up being so sad, but when I realized that I never let you guys know about our buddy, I knew I had to.  Thanks for bearing with me, while I relived this.  I promise to come back tomorrow (or later today) and share something fun!

Love,
Deborah

A gift from Raine

Last week a package arrive for Lena from her BFF Raine.

Lena was very careful with the box cutter... the blade was half as long as she is tall!!

We moved the Fairyland box over so she could open her envelope a little easier.

"I wonder what's inside?"

 "A Pedometer? o_O Hmm are you sure this package is for me?  I think this is more YOUR size, Mom!'

"Yes Lena, April assured me that the package was for you!  A birthday gift from Raine. I guess she forgot to write a note."

"No biggie!  Well I better open up the box and see what's in there!"

"Well Mom, you were right, there is DEFINITELY not a pedometer in here! You should see the cute tape Raine used!!!"

"So show me!"

"Angry Birds!!!  I love the green Piggy! heeheehee"
"So what's in there Lena?"

"Oh... Mom!!!!  Raine sent me a pair of THE shoes... THOSE gorgeous gold sandals I've been drooling over ever since I came home!!!"

"I am the luckiest girl in the whole wide world, and I have the most amazing Bestie ever!!

RAINE!!!  I am sending you the biggest cyber HUG ever!!! Thank you SO much!!!"

"Don't they look amazing Mom!!!  These are my new favorite shoes for sure!!
OOOH Can you make me a dress to go with them?  Maybe something strapless and navy, and polka dotted?"
"Not until I get my studio cleaned and organized!  I can't find anything right now!
"Well you best get to work then. These shoes NEED a gorgeous dress!"

*mumble, grumble*
"Although I must admit, these ARE some of the most gorgeous sandals I have ever seen!  Thank you so much Raine and April!"

When last I left you...

The sellers had accepted our offering on a cute little house in a town not to far from my Mom's place.  We were excited and very optimistic that things would progress quickly and easily forward and by this time we would be moving into our new house.
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Well, let's just say that things did NOT move forward either quickly or easily, and in the end the issues we had with the bank totally turned us off the sale and we ended up backing out.  But in the end we truly feel that it worked out for the best, as we have returned to our original plan of purchasing my FIL's place when he moves in the early part of next year.

 This is a much better plan for several reasons. 1.)  This is the area that my husband spent much of his youth and truly feels connected to.  It's "home" to him!
2.)  It's centrally located to not just my Mom, but also my Dad, and Donnie's step-dad and sister as well!
3.) It's rural enough that we aren't stacked on top of the neighbors (we'll have about a third of an acre!) but close enough to an good sized urban area that shopping is just 10 minutes either way. (where as the other house would have been at least a 30 minute drive)
and lastly 4.) it allows us to stay together as a family for the last few months that Donnie is recruiting before he heads to school in VA, then to Korea for a year!!!

So while we are not buying a house now, we aren't too upset as everything happens for a reason! :-)

Happy Dancing!!!!

I feel like Snoopy right now!!!  The seller's accepted our offer!!!! :-)


Now we move onto the next step of finalizing the paper work.  But we hope to be able to start moving by the middle of July at the latest.

Our plan is for our sons (13 &9) and I to take several trips back and forth from NY to OH over the summer, taking small loads and doing things like painting while Donnie is working.  Then we will make a couple large trips with all of us to move furniture and things like that.  The end goal is to be completely moved before the 2014-2015 school year starts.

 This is most of our backyard, there is a little stream there in the back too!  I am planning to put several raised garden beds back here to start growing a lot of our fruits and vegetables!

I'm even thinking about possibly putting in a small water feature too! :-)

The front porch!  I cannot wait to find the perfect little bistro patio set.  I think this will be the perfect place to enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the morning!

This is the view out into the side-back yard from the 3-season room at the back of the house.

There is a nice large 2 level deck, a big driveway, plus the big garage!


To say I am excited is an understatement!!!  I can't wait to make this great little place ours! <3 br="">

Our New House... hopefully!

Sorry I didn't post this the other day like I planned, the weekend was a bit crazy, and heck so was this morning.    Lots of running around going on, phone calls being made and plans being formed!

My husband's time as a recruiter is coming to an end later this year.  His next assignment will take him out of the country for a year or so.  We have decided that now is the time for us to look into truly settling down.  Once he returns from this next assignment he will only have a few short years left until he is able to retire.

We both are originally from Ohio and my family is still there.  We settled on a town mid-way between my mom and my dad.  We found the most perfect little house while we were there over the Memorial Day weekend!

It's a cute little 2 story house built in the 40s, that sits on just under half an acre.  It's on Main St... how cool is that! :-)

It is in wonderful shape, and aside from a few cosmetic things I'd like to change (IE the pumpkin orange dining room! LOL) it's perfect!

The porch is big enough for me to put a small seating area there.  Perfect for enjoying a cup of tea or coffee in the mornings!

There is a fabulous 2 level deck on the bag porch that will be great for entertaining as the back yard is big enough to put in several good sized raised beds for fruits, veggies and flowers!  There is even a small stream at the back of the property!  We are ALL super excited about having running water right nearby!  The current front flower beds are very nice, but I cannot wait to be able to fill them with all the pretty flowers I like too.

There is also a large 2 car garage that has a built in workshop with a wood burning stove, plus enough space in the drive to park several cars.  We are thinking about converting the garage into an entertainment 'room' for when we host parties and get togethers! 

Hopefully we will know more this week! *fingers crossed*

Penpals

Hey Y'all, it's Lena!  Abbie and I are here to give you a heads up on some cool news!  Our friends Raine and Zoey, plus their mom April over at April's Sea of Dollie Sweetness have decided to become penpals! Raine and I have chatted via email several times already, but after the 6 of us got to meet in person a few weeks ago, we thought it'd be fun to post our chats in our blogs!  (Mom says maybe THIS will get her blogging again!)

If you click the link above it will take you to their blog to read the first messages.


Oh and the other big news... We might be moving!!!  And soon too!  Mom and Dad went to Ohio last weekend to look at a couple of houses and totally fell in love with one!  If all goes well we will be making the big move from New York to Ohio by August!!! :-)  (Mom said she will try and post about that tomorrow!

Ok, I'm gonna pass the computer over to Abbie so she can send her message to Zoey!
BYE,
Lena

Hi Zoey, it's Abbie!

Good to hear from you, I had an awesome time getting to see you and your sister a couple weeks ago too! I can't believe we are moving so soon either!  I mean I knew a move was coming, but it wasn't supposed to happen until the end of the year!  But c'est la vie.  It's all good.  Mom says that while we probably won't get a big doll room/craft studio yet, she WILL be making us our own rooms! YAY!!  Not that I mind sharing with Lena and Nance, but it'd be nice to have a place all to myself!

I can't wait to get to explore Ohio, Mom grew up there and says that there should be lots of places to see and neat things to do!  The town we are moving to has a water resevoir and there is a BALD EAGLE that lives there too!  How cool is that!

I'm so glad you liked all the tees that your mom bought for you and Raine... heck there were a couple I wanted to steal for myself!  Sorry Raine is hogging all the good stuff!  Sometimes I feel like Lena gets the good stuff here too, but I try not to complain too loudly especially since I can always rub it in her face that I was here first!  lol  Well I better run, as I know Lena wants to message your sister and then Mom needs the computer back to get back to work.

HUGS
Abbie

Hi Raine!  HUGSIES!!! :-)

Life has been pretty good here, kinda crazy with all this moving stuff going on.  I know Mom is going kinda nuts trying to finish up her outstanding orders so she can start packing.  Packing and moving!!!  How crazy is that?  I feel like I just got here and now we are leaving!  I'm bummed that we only got to meet once *which was AWESOME, BTW*  But I am hoping we can get together at least once more before we move.  I would LOVE to try and get to one of the doll meets you go to. That sounds like so much fun!

Sorry to hear that Zoey is being a pain and trying to steal all the good clothes!  I don't have any sisters (or brothers for that matter) but sometimes Abbie and I butt heads, but I love her like a sister so we always make up in the end!

I am so glad you liked the Fluttershy shirt!  I picked out the color for that one! :-)    Did you notice I'm wearing the hot pink shirt I got from YOU! :-)  I love the color and it's super comfy too. Oh and I am glad you liked the seashell jar, I have a matching one on my bedside table too! We're kinda like twinsies! *giggles*

Ok, well I better get going, Mom says she needs her computer back!  Talk to you soon!
Lena