Remaking a Skirt!

I've been following Marisa Lynch's New Dress a Day blog for over a year now. Her book, by the same title, just came out last month. When she lost her job several years ago, she decided to purchase her clothing from thrift stores & remake them. Her original goal was to spend just one dollar a day on clothing to remake. I don't always like everything she's redone, but she has made over MANY great outfits. She's also been an inspiration to women all over the world, including me. I've made over some denim dresses that had torn or just didn't look right on me anymore & I fixed up a couple of tops that were too low-cut on The Princess.

A couple of months ago, we had some family photos taken & we were originally going to have everyone in khaki pants or skirts. At Goodwill, I couldn't find anything in The Princess' size. In the women's section, I found what would be too short (IMO) for a woman. However, it was the perfect length for The Princess, w/ a little bit of adjustment on the width. So, I bought it.

I cut it right down the middle in the front, taking off about eight inches of the width. Then, using HelpfulGrammy's sewing machine (which she'd given to me earlier in the year) I sewed it back together & VOILA! a new skirt! 

Snip, Snip...off go about eight inches (not sure why the photo is sideways!)

The finished product

The Princess...modeling her new skirt

Tuesday's Ten - The Princess (2nd post today)

In honor of The Princess' 7th birthday today, I am dedicating Tuesday's Ten to her & sharing w/ you her love, beauty, & uniqueness.

1) She loves to be creative. Just this school year, she has learned to finger knit, crochet, make potholders using a loom, latch hook, & started scrapbooking. She also loves to draw & sketch, make up her own crafts, & so much more.

2) Her favorite stores are craft stores...Hobby Lobby, JoAnn's, Michaels...and usually will head straight to the yarn section.

3) She's a very faith-filled child & loves to hear stories of Jesus, Mary, & the saints.

4) She loves to pray the rosary & go to Mass.

5) She collects rosaries & all kinds of Christian items (books, statues, photos, etc.) For Christmas a couple years ago, when asked what she wanted, she said, "Stuff for my Catholic room!"

6) She would like to be a nun when she grows up.

7) She's tough...of course, she has to be w/ two older brothers & one younger one.

8) While she is tough, she can also be extremely loving & gentle, esp. w/ her 3 yo brother & cousin. She's just like a little momma when the three of them play together.

9) She's always been inquisitive. As a toddler, she got into HelpfulGrammy's spices in the basement & poured many of them all over the floor, eating several whole peppercorns. She once got into our dish soap & squirted a bunch on our front room carpet...the same w/ some of my makeup! (Now, The Saint has taken over & shows his curious side!)

10) Overall, she's been a wonderful, loveable blessing to us & we can't imagine how our lives would be if God had not entrusted her in our care.

HAPPY 7th BIRTHDAY, DEAR PRINCESS!
WE LOVE YOU VERY MUCH!

Our Nighttime Adventures from Last Night

I think I've mentioned before that The Princess sometimes has bad dreams & will walk in her sleep. She will whimper & cry while pacing around in circles. So that she doesn't wake The Saint, who sleeps in her room, we will take her into our room & try to rouse her from her sleep. If we don't calm her down, she'll just keep getting up & pacing. We know that she's alert enough to go back to bed when she can tell us who we are & what her name is. It usually only takes about five minutes to calm her.

Well, last night, she got up while Casinodad & I were downstairs watching Smallville on the computer. (We're trying to catch up since we got three seasons behind!) Casinodad thought he heard footsteps upstairs in our room. He went to the stairs & there was The Princess walking down. He held her hand & brought her over to me. She sat in the chair next to me & gave me the most precious, innocent smile I've ever seen. Her eyes were wide & bright...it was as if she had just woken from the best night's sleep, refreshed & ready to start the day (at 10:30pm!)

I talked to her & asked who we were. She answered correctly, all the while w/ that precious grin on her face. She looked sooooo sweet! Casinodad took her back up to bed & she went right to sleep again.

Shortly after we went to bed, The Saint woke up & came into bed w/ us. He usually does this every night & we've given up trying to get him back to sleep in his bed for now. It's just not worth the loss of sleep on our part...we're picking out battles!

Around 2am, he woke up terrified. He was crying & staring at the corner near my side of the bed w/ a frightened look on his face. Neither of us could calm him down. He kept saying something that sounded like scapular. Finally I asked if he wanted me to take him back to his room. He nodded yes. It tucked him in & sat in his room for a bit to make sure he was okay. He was still saying that word & I asked him if he meant caterpillar. Yep, that was it. Apparently he'd had a scary dream about one.

This morning, he, The Archangel, & The Princess were sitting on my bed w/ me. He started telling them about the caterpillar, pointing to the same corner by the bed. The Archangel held his hands about 6 in. apart & asked if it was that long. The Saint held his arms out as far as he could & said, "No, it was dis big!" For the rest of the morning, the caterpillar's size got bigger & bigger, and it kept changing color! Such an imagination.

I did explain that caterpillars can't hurt him & that they turn into beautiful butterflies. Of course tonight he'll probably dream about huge butterflies chasing him...LOL!

A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings

My dear blogging friend, Judy, over at A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings, hosts this meme every Wednesday. Simply list five things (or a prayer or any thoughts) for which you are truly thankful this week. Voicing my thanks helps put my life in perspective & realize that, no matter how bad things might be, there is still MUCH good surrounding me.

As I was getting ready to come up w/ my list this morning, The Princess woke up & came downstairs to greet me. I decided to let her come up w/ a list today.

So here we go...five things The Princess is thankful for:

1) I'm thankful for God.

2) I'm thankful for my mom & dad.

3) I'm thankful for the Manger I have.

4) I'm thankful for my brothers.

5) I'm thankful for my clothes to wear.

Thank you, dear Princess for this wonderful list! I LOVE YOU!

Towards The Princess' Catholic Room

A few weeks ago, I mentioned in this post that The Princess wanted a Catholic room for Christmas. I decided to help her out by decorating some boxes w/ Catholic images. That way, she could still keep her regular toys in her room, but they could be "hidden" in the boxes.

My dad gave us four empty boxes from his church's bulletins.

I took each box & cut off the flaps.

Next, I covered them w/ wrapping paper. Michael's had their Christmas wrapping paper on clearance. I let The Princess decide between a solid red or a checkered, green one. As you can see, she chose the green.

I took our 2010 Marian calendar & let her choose eight images that she liked. I then cut them out & taped them to the shorter ends of the boxes. This way, she can rotate them when she wants to see a different image.

Finally, onto her new bookshelf they went.

She is VERY happy w/ her new storage for her bedroom.

A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings

My dear blogging friend, Judy over at A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings, hosts this meme every Wednesday. Simply list five things (or a prayer or any thoughts) for which you are truly thankful this week. Voicing my thanks helps put my life in perspective & realize that, no matter how bad things might be, there is still MUCH good surrounding me.

1) I'm thankful that we're starting to see some positive results from The Archangel's new ADHD medicine. There's not a big change & we still have a ways to go, but after negative results from previous meds, this is somewhat encouraging.

2) I'm thankful for the wonderful homilies by our pastor & deacons. On Sunday, I was brought to tears by our pastor's words & last night, at the Holy Day Vigil Mass, he brought laughter.

3) Following up on #2, I'm thankful that The Prophet is learning from the homilies. I know it's tough for him to focus sometimes, so it's AWESOME when he can tell us what he's learned.

4) I'm thankful for the strong faith I see developing in The Princess. Whenever we ask her what she'd like for Christmas, she says she wants a Catholic room...books, statues, pictures, rosaries, etc. Every couple of days, she'll disappear up in her room for a while, then come downstairs w/ toys & books that she wants to give away...all in an effort to make room for her Catholic items.

5) This final one I type w/ a heavy heart...last night, my best friend's mom (who was like a second mother to me) passed away. My thanks in this sad time is that she is no longer suffering. I'm also thankful for having her in my life. She was truly a wonderful woman & will be greatly missed.

A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings

Judy over at A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings, hosts this meme every Wednesday. Simply list five things (or a prayer or any thoughts) for which you are truly thankful this week. Voicing my thanks helps put my life in perspective & realize that, no matter how bad things might be, there is still MUCH good surrounding me.

1) I'm SO thankful to have our computer back! It caught a virus last week & has been in the shop since last week. I took it as God's answer to my prayer...to not spend so much time on the computer. He really took me seriously!

2) I'm thankful that I finally went to the doctor for my lower back. It's been bothering me for at least a year & has been getting worse the past couple months. I tried not going for so long to avoid co-pays, prescriptions, toughing it out, etc. but just couldn't wait any longer. Thankfully the X-ray showed nothing. I was given a two week prescription & I start physical therapy this morning.

3) I'm thankful for The Prophet's motivated self yesterday! He was done w/ the majority of his school work by 8:30am. We usually don't even start until 9am!

4) I'm thankful that I was blessed in knowing a very sweet lady at the nursing home where I work on Saturdays. She was 97 years old, blind, going deaf, & I really enjoyed talking to her. She passed away a week & a half ago and while it hit me hard, I celebrate that she is now w/ God in Heaven.

5) I'm thankful that The Princess is really enjoying the Little Flower's Girls Club. They only meet once a month, but she is so motivated to go through her tasks here at home to earn her badges. She's even going to be St. Therese of Lisieux for Halloween & is VERY excited about it! I love that she has such a strong love of our faith!

The Princess Received Her Rose from St. Therese of Liseux

Last Friday was the Feast of St. Therese of Liseux. For school, we had a lesson about her including reading about her life & a scrapbook-type craft. (By the end of the school year, each of the munchkins will have their own handmade saint book.) We did our lesson on Thursday because we had plans to go to Wright Patterson Air Force Museum in Dayton w/ my parents, my sister, & her family on Friday.

On Friday, we decided to meet at our house & head to Dayton in two vans. My parents arrived first...bringing along a few things (as parents like to do!) My mom handed The Princess a small lap quilt that belonged to my great aunt when she was in a nursing home. After she died, my mom kept it then thought The Princess might like it. Because I was busy getting last minute things together, I didn't really take more than a glance at the quilt.

When we got home, she brought the quilt over to me so that I could see it. The first thing I noticed was the large pink rose in one of the squares. There were other flowers on the quilt, but it was the only square of its kind. Immediately I reminded her of what St. Therese said about sending a shower of roses from Heaven. She was absolutely thrilled! I told her that if she wanted, she could have St. Therese be her patron saint & she said, "YES!" w/ a big grin on her face. She slept under that quilt all that night.

And BTW - my great aunt's name? ROSE. She'd been ill as a child & her mind never grew beyond that of a young child. We always called her Rosie & she was an absolute sweetheart. We have a picture from the funeral home of The Prophet (about age 3) kneeling in front of her casket, with his eyes closed in prayer. The Archangel (about 18 months) is standing on the kneeler, next to The Prophet.

A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings (2nd Post Today)

Judy over at A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings, hosts this meme every Wednesday. Simply list five things (or a prayer or any thoughts) for which you are truly thankful this week. Voicing my thanks helps put my life in perspective & realize that, no matter how bad things might be, there is still MUCH good surrounding me.

1) I am thankful for the bountiful apples from my parents' trees & for my parents' generosity in giving us a BUNCH of them. So far, I've made several batches of Crockpot Applesauce that is easy & DELICIOUS!

2) I am thankful for my dear college friend who sent me the Crockpot Applesauce recipe at the PERFECT time & for Judy who sent me an Apple Butter recipe that I plan on using very soon.

3) I am thankful that Casinodad's car ONLY needed a new battery & it was not the alternator or something horribly expensive. It wouldn't start for me on Friday afternoon & when we tried to jump it, it wouldn't start. AAA came out, tested the battery, & jumped it enough to get to the battery store.

4) I am thankful that The Princess has emerged from the shyness shell she's been in the past few years...just in time to start Kindergarten PSR & to join the Little Flowers program. She LOVES both. Almost every day she asks how many days until Sunday for PSR or for the next Little Flowers meeting.

5) I am thankful Casinodad has this whole week off of work. Originally he was only taking off Wed.-Fri., but then found that he had extra vacation time & took off Mon. & Tues. too. So, we're having a fall break from school this week while we spend quality family time together.

Wordless Wednesday - The Princess on Two Wheels

A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings

Judy over at A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings, hosts this meme every Wednesday. Simply list five things (or a prayer or any thoughts) for which you are truly thankful this week. Voicing my thanks helps put my life in perspective & realize that, no matter how bad things might be, there is still MUCH good surrounding me.

1) I'm thankful & honored that my best friend's daughter has asked me to be her Confirmation sponsor. Several years ago, I probably would have declined because I was not very strong in my faith. Thankfully, I've grown so much in the last few years that I had no hesitation when she asked me. Perhaps God was leading me to this moment!

2) I'm thankful for the 30 Day Meme I've been doing lately. Some of the posts are fun, but some are quite reflective. I'm really enjoying it. Let me know if you give it a go. I'd love to read your daily thoughts!

3) I'm thankful that The Princess' hair is finally growing out. (Remember THIS POST?) We can now put it into two little pigtails...that look absolutely adorable on her!










4) I'm thankful for a GREAT visit to northern Ohio to visit Casinodad's family. His aunt / godmother has Stage 4 pancreatic cancer & was given only 5-6 months. We were able to spend some time w/ her on Sunday. She looks great & has such a positive outlook. I am simply amazed at the peace she has.

5) I'm thankful that The Saint's injury toward the end of his birthday party on Friday was not as serious as we thought it might have been. While standing at the back patio door taking pictures of The Princess & my best friend's daughter twirling flags, The Saint fell out the door. He landed on the concrete patio head first, receiving a big bump on his forehead. Of course it had to be right about his bedtime, so I sat in the back of the van w/ him to keep him awake. Thankfully, my sister had given him a bag of lollipops for his birthday, so I kept popping one of them in his mouth when it looked like he might doze off. Also, the new children's urgent care is only 10 minutes away!

A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings

Judy over at A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings, hosts this meme every Wednesday. Simply list five things (or a prayer or any thoughts) for which you are truly thankful this week. Voicing my thanks helps put my life in perspective & realize that, no matter how bad things might be, there is still MUCH good surrounding me.

1) I'm thankful for the time spent w/ The Saint in the evenings, putting him to bed. He is now out of the Pack & Play, sleeping in The Princess' bed for now w/ her & doing quite well (& he's sleeping most of the night now...a BIG accomplishment!) I will sit in the rocker, praying the Rosary, while he goes back & forth between the bed & me.

2) I'm thankful for the kindness of the greeter at Walmart last evening. While he was getting the sticker printed for my return, he asked about my day & also gave me a great thought that someone passed on to him..."Every day is a good one, some are just better than others!" What a positive thought!

3) I'm thankful The Princess has been so helpful around the house lately. Each day she practically begs to wash dishes for me & for a five year old, she does a great job! (It probably doesn't hurt that we keep a credited account for her...she's saving up for a couple of the miniature American Girl dolls.)

4) I'm thankful for The Archangel's thirst for knowledge. At the library yesterday, he went straight to the science section & picked out books on all but 2 planets & a big pictorial book on weather. As he was reading a couple of the planet books, he was so excited to share some of the things he learned w/ me.

5) I'm thankful for The Prophet's growth & some of the great conversations we have together.

6) And a bonus for this week...I'm so thankful that on this day, two years ago, I gave birth to a wonderful blessing. The Saint has brought so much love & joy into our lives, drawing our family even closer together.

Kids Say the Darndest Things

NOTE: Just to let my readers know...after today, I'm going to take a couple weeks off for a computer break. I need to replenish my spiritual well & reconnect w/ my family. Please keep us in our prayers & I'll "see" you when I return!

Join Us for Kids say the Darndest things

Every once in a while, The Princess will get up in the middle of the night, not quite awake. She'll pace around her room, whimpering & crying. Since The Saint sleeps in her room, I usually rush in there & take her to my room until she's calmed down. I know she's calm when I ask who she is & who I am. If she answers correctly, I lead her back to bed & she's good for the rest of the night.

The other night, she had one of these little episodes. When I asked who she was, she answered correctly. However, when I asked who I was, she said (w/out pause), "Spiderman!" I'm guessing she had a dream about Spiderman since the munchkins had watched one of the movies earlier in the day.

A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings

Judy over at A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings, hosts this meme every Wednesday. Simply list five things (or a prayer or any thoughts) for which you are truly thankful this week. Voicing my thanks helps put my life in perspective & realize that, no matter how bad things might be, there is still MUCH good surrounding me.

1) I'm SOOOOOO thankful to be able to open the house this week! As I'm typing this, there is a wonderful breeze blowing through our NEW patio door & back windows. AAAAHHHHH! I LOVE FRESH AIR!

2) Because of the cooler weather, I'm thankful I've been able to finally do some gardening. Monday I planted squash & green bean seeds, Tuesday I planted some flowers, & today I'm hoping to get my tomato plants & parsley in.

3) I'm thankful there are finally some girls in the neighborhood for The Princess to play with. It's tough enough being the only girl in the house, but there are mostly boys in the neighborhood, too.

4) I'm thankful for summer reading programs. In addition to the one at our library, the munchkins are participating in the one at Half Price Books too. Each week, if they read for at least 15 minutes for five days, they receive a $3 coupon. They can't combine the coupons, but there is plenty of reasonably priced stuff there that they're able to get something each week.

5) I'm thankful for music. I like a wide variety, so I can always seem to find something to fit the mood I'm in.

Kids Say the Darndest Things

Join Us for Kids say the Darndest things

The other night, my best friend's husband came over to take a look at our van. I had already changed into my PJ's, so I went to put my other clothes back on before he arrived. The Princess was upstairs w/ me & was wondering why she & her brothers didn't have to change back into their day clothes. I told her it was one thing for adults to see kids in their jammies, but it was another story for adults to see each other in theirs. Her response, "We're not a story, we're just plain people!"

(Mostly) Wordless Wednesday - The Munchkins in Spring

Thankfully, no plants were harmed in the taking of this photo!

I really wish The Princess liked to have her picture taken!

The Archangel taught himself to ride his bike last fall.

The sidewalk was getting a little overgrown, so The Saint decided to tackle it!

Kids Say the Darndest Things

Join Us for Kids say the Darndest things

When we were visiting my parents last weekend, my mom was flipping through the kids' TV stations to find something for all nine of her grandkids to watch. She stopped at one & The Princess said she couldn't watch that show. (I don't remember what it was.) When my mom asked why, The Princess said, "Because it will affect me."

Have your kids said anything memorable lately? Click on the graphic above to join in this weekly blog hop & share. Have a great weekend!

Small Successes

"It’s important for moms to recognize that all the small successes in our days can add up to one big triumph. So on Thursday of each week, we do exactly that."

1) I finally finished a book I've been reading for several months...My Life with the Saints, by James Martin, SJ. Taking some saints & other famous holy people, he compiled this book to share how each of them had an effect on his life. It was an easy read. I think it took me longer between regular mother/household stuff & wanting to take time to absorb it.

2) We've had a great week in catching up on The Prophet's schoolwork. We'd gotten quite behind due to illnesses, doctor appointments, & life in general. His K12 teacher set us up on a schedule to catch up. While I didn't use hers exactly, we have managed to make a huge dent in his lessons.

3) The Princess & I hosted a very nice tea party on Saturday to celebrate her 5th birthday. It was just her grandmothers, aunts, & the two of us. She was such a little lady, daintily drinking her tea & opening her gifts. We dressed up, listened to Baroque music (Vivaldi's Four Seasons), had three different types of tea, & had a small luncheon of finger sandwiches, veggies, & fruit.

Check out the ladies at Faith & Family Live for more successes.

Small Successes

"It’s important for moms to recognize that all the small successes in our days can add up to one big triumph. So on Thursday of each week, we do exactly that."

1) This past week was one of those when we had numerous doctor, dental, eye, & vehicle repair appointments. I felt like we were CONSTANTLY on the go with no time to breathe. My success is that I did manage to survive & have lived to tell about it! I really think it helps that I have been sticking w/ getting up by 6:15 each morning to have some peaceful prayer & reading time to myself.

2) Casinodad had Monday off for Presidents' Day. We had nothing planned & nowhere to go (& probably couldn't have w/ all the snow, anyway!) We spent the day straightening some of the house, did a couple loads of laundry, had a little school w/ the munchkins, & just enjoyed each other's company. This day was definitely needed after the previous week.

3) This success is bittersweet for me...The Saint has been weaned. Out of all four munchkins, he has gone the longest (18 months). The Prophet & The Princess self-weaned at 6 months & The Archangel (who was never a stronger nurser) stopped himself at 10 months. This was a tough decision, but needed to be done. He wasn't nursing much during the day, maybe once or twice, but he was still waking several times a night. The only way to get him back to sleep was to nurse him. He's now sleeping better (not perfect) & so are we.

So, how's your life been this past week? Inquiring minds want to know over at Faith & Family Live! Check it out & share your successes!

More for This Mother's Pride

Yesterday was truly a blessed day for our family. The Prophet was an altar server for the first time. A couple years ago, he helped my dad (a deacon at his parish) with the Stations of the Cross because Dad wasn't able to find any servers for that night. The Prophet really liked helping & couldn't wait until he could be a full-fledged server. We attended that parish at the time & there, students have to be in the fifth grade before they're able to serve. At our new parish, they can start in the second half of their third grade year. The Prophet was very excited to start. There hasn't been an official training session for new servers yet, so we just showed up early for our parish's deacon to run through the duties with him.

He did so well. I could tell he was a little nervous, but the other two servers were very supportive & helped him along. My parents & Casinodad's parents were there to support him, too. I had tears in my eyes when I saw him processing in, carrying one of the candles. He looked so grown up & pious. I had tears in my eyes several other times, too. I asked my dad if it was normal for a mother to cry when her son serves the first time & he (ever the jokester) said only if he messes up! We wanted to get a picture of him after Mass in his server robe w/ Monsignor & our deacon, but he de-robed before we had a chance.

On another note of pride in my children...the other three were very well-behaved in Mass yesterday, especially The Saint. This was the first Sunday since he was an infant, that we've been able to stay in the church through the whole Mass. Now, all of our munchkins are usually pretty good during Mass, but yesterday was the best they've been in a long time. I think they understood how special the occasion of their brother's first serving was (plus the fact that their grandparents were there!)