Winter 2014 Kids Clothes Week: Day 5

Today's project was a pair of jeans.  These were a little more time consuming!

Fake fly and fake belt loops

Winter 2014 Kids Clothes Week: Day 4

Up today, a dress pair of pants made from the cut off part of an adult pair of pants.  (I used the hem from the original pants)

And yes, once again, single digit temps and no shirt!

Winter 2014 Kids Clothes Week: Day 3

Next up is a pair of brighter blue corduroy pants.  I didn't have a big enough piece of fabric to do the fronts of the pants in one piece, so I made them with a "knee patch".  I also decided to do "hidden" back pockets, which I've never done before, so I took more pictures today!  The pockets didn't turn out as nice as I hoped, but not horrible, either.

Turn pocket lining to back sde

Inside of pocket with corduroy to go behind pocket opening

I sewed around the edge to secure the lining on the sides and bottoms (top comes later)

laying the pocket pieces on

Fold back pants and sew around sides and bottom of pocket

Top stitch the top of pocket opening through all the layers of both pockets.

The top of the pocket gets caught under the waistband when you turn it down.

yay!  a pocket

"Knee patches"

Yes, it's 7° F and he's wearing no shirt!

They are a little too long (Extend their use!)

Winter 2014 Kids Clothes Week: Day 2

All of the pants I am sewing this week are from the same basic pattern that I used for the boys' camo cargo pants and Will's pajama bottoms.  I tried to make them all a little different, mostly in the pockets (not much else to change on a basic pair of pants!)

First up, a dark blue corduroy.

Winter 2014 Kids Clothes Week: Day 1

William has been growing like a weed and is fast growing out of all his pants.  He pulled on a pair of pants that he had worn with no problem at the beginning of the school year and declared, "These are too short!"  So, I decided that I needed to sew Will some pants.  What better time than Winter Kids Clothes Week?

I searched through fabric stashes for fabric and got 6 pairs cut out (1 is actually for Andy since it is from the bottom legs of an adult pair of pants and wasn't big enough for Will).

Book Review: "Claiming Mariah" by Pam Hillman

When I went to request a new book from the Tyndale Blogger Network, the book I wanted wasn't available anymore.  There were two books to choose from, "Claiming Mariah" and one about grandkids.  So I picked "Claiming Mariah" !  I am really glad I did!  It came yesterday, I started it after dinner yesterday and finished it this morning by 9:40 am!

The book is set in Wisdom, Wyoming Territory in late spring, 1882.  I have always liked historical romances, and this was no exception.  Pam Hillman has a way of making you feel transported back in time, you can almost feel the breeze coming off the creek behind the barn.

After Mariah's father dies, she sends a letter which sets in motion events that will change everything she's ever known.  Slade Donovan shows up and informs her that the ranch has been bought with money stolen from his father and demands full ownership.  A neighboring rancher has offered to take care of her financial problems if she agrees to marry him.  But she doesn't love him and finds herself being drawn to Slade instead.  She watches the ranch begin to flourish once again under Slade's direction all the while knowing that as soon as his mother and sister arrive, she is out of a home herself.  How will she support her sister and grandmother with no where to go?

But there is not just the bad blood between Slade's and Mariah's fathers to deal with, the number of cattle is dwindling and they also have to get to the bottom of what is going on.

Will Slade and Mariah be able to get past the past and move forward with their lives, together?

I thought the characters were well developed and real.  You find yourself back in the 1880's and if you just took a stroll down the road, you'd come upon the Lazy M Ranch where Mariah would offer you a biscuit and ham before you went away again.

I also liked how Mariah always turned to pray and God for her answers and relied on Him even in the hard times.

I found myself wanting more story involving Slade's brother Buck and Mariah's sister Amanda.  Surely they would find common interests and maybe even romance?   Maybe another book could tell their story.

Format: Paperback
Vendor: Tyndale House
Publication Date: 2014
Dimensions: 8.25 X 5.50 (inches)
ISBN: 1414389752
ISBN-13: 9781414389752
List Price:  $14.99

This product will be released on 01/28/14

I received a copy of "Claiming Mariah" for free in exchange for my review.  I did not get any other form of compensation.

Book Review: "If You Believed In Love" By Staci Stallings

I was gifted a copy of "If You Believed in Love" by the author, Staci Stallings through CrossReads Reviewers in exchange for my review.   

This is the book description:  

Jonathon Danforth has checked out of life. Stinging from an unimaginable loss, he has withdrawn from life, wanting only to live out his existence with as little interference as possible. However, when his sister talks him into auditing an English Literature class at the local community college, he reluctantly accepts the invitation to abandon his lonely apartment. Intent upon making an appearance for his sister’s sake and then disappearing for his own, Jonathon sulks into class. But when he meets Elizabeth Forester, the professor, Jonathon learns there is more to life and to love than he ever could have imagined.

I found myself very into the story and felt as if I was sitting in Room 103 along with Jonathon and the rest of the students as Elizabeth helped them find the meanings in classics like Browning and Austen.  I thrilled at every advancement and was saddened by every setback.  I found it sort of funny how as I sat there reading the book and feeling like the people were actual people, the characters in the book were discussing the fact that the characters in the books they were reading seemed like real people!   

"If You Believed in Love" was a little more edgy  than I'm used to reading.  It didn't tell anything graphic or vulgar, the characters' back stories just had them "going farther" than they should have in my opinion.  The relationship between Jonathon and Elizabeth was pure and "Victorian", which I liked.  

Staci Stallings has done an excellent job of writing a story that is realistic and entertaining.  I had to keep reading it straight through so I could know how it all worked out!   It also inspired me to keep working on my own novels. 

You can get a copy of "If You Believed in Love" from Amazon for $8.82.

Book Review: "Once-a-Day Country Faith"

I don't listen to Country music now as much as I used to, but I thought that the idea of this book was an interesting one.  They asked country music artists their favorite Bible passage and why.

Synopsis:

Here’s your exclusive backstage pass to experience the faith of today’s top country music stars. From Alan Jackson, Carrie Underwood, Charlie Daniels, Josh Turner, and many others, this hardcover devotional offers a glimpse into the spiritual lives of country’s best and brightest. Each artist comments on a passage of Scripture that has been meaningful in their life. Kick back and settle in for an intimate journey into the heart, soul, and faith of the most beloved artists in country music.

Some of the artists I recognized, some I did not.  Some of the artist's responses were obvious that they had a personal relationship with God and others you just got the impression that they liked the passage or were some how inspired by it, but didn't necessarily truly know God personally.  It made me like some of the artists just a little bit more!

This book is sturdy and well made with nice glossy pages.  I liked how the pages had a lot of variety in how they looked.  Most of the pictures of the artists looked like they were framed.  It lent itself well to the country theme.   I thought this would be a great coffee table book for Country music fans.

Format: Hardcover, Printed Caseside

Language: English

ISBN 13: 9780310422938

UPC: 025986422936

Weight: 0.99 lb

Size: 8.25 × 8.25 × 0 in

Length: 128 Pages

The list price for "Once-a-Day Country Faith" is $12.99.

I received a free copy of this book from Booksneeze in exchange for my honest review.  No other compensation of any form was received.

January Article for Home & School Mosaics

My first article for Home & School Mosaics is up on the website! It is very strange having my writing up for a larger audience than my own blog/Facebook!  If you want to see what I wrote, it is here

2013 Church Christmas Choir Program

Our church choir program was scheduled for Dec. 22nd.  We had an ice storm and church got cancelled (and our pastor rarely does that!) so we rescheduled for Dec. 29th.  Unfortunately, about half of the choir had prior plans for that weekend, so we re-rescheduled for Jan. 5th.  Then we got a huge snow storm!  We decided to brave the weather rather than re-re-reschedule it ☺

That is me just to the right of the choir director  (looking like he is slapping me!)

William, Emily, and cousin, Anna, are at the left end of the back row.  Sarah and cousin, Benjamin, were 2nd and 3rd from the right in the front row.  Andy and his cousin, Peter, lined up next to Will in the back row.  Will tried to get them to go to the front row where they were supposed to be.  The youth pastor waved them down, so they went down to the seats and never went back up.  Andy was singing his songs sitting in the front row.  Maybe next year!