Yo Ho Yo Ho

Thumbelina recently told me of her desire to design and custom-create her own dress. I saw this as an opportunity to dust off my sewing machine and agreed to help her in this pursuit.

She has a notebook that she likes to sketch in and it was filled with all sorts of different dress designs. She chose her favorite and we searched until finding a pattern to match it as well as a fabric that she felt good about.

We began to cut out the pattern pieces we would need and Hubba watched, interested in the whole production. As we laid the pattern out to determine placement on the fabric, Hubba asked what we were doing.

"Thumbelina's making a dress," I told him.

"Oh," he casually replied. "But when is she making the pirate hat?"

I looked quizzically at Thumbelina. She shrugged.

"She's not making a pirate hat. She's making a dress," I repeated.

"Oh," he answered again.

We pinned the pattern pieces to the fabric, ensuring that they all lay in the same direction. Hubba continued to watch with interest. When Thumbelina began to cut the fabric he asked again, "When are you gonna make that pirate hat?"

"What pirate hat, Hubba?" I asked.

"This one," he showed me, pointing.


Well, shiver me timbers. I have never noticed that a short-sleeve pattern piece looked like a pirate hat.

Good call, Matey.

Service (With a Smile): Tuesday

I know, you're thinking I wasn't going to follow through on my promise to report to you daily this week. Well, it's not my fault, it's my computer's. So without any further ado, here is Tuesday's post:

First of all I would like to say that I am never going to do this again. Blogging about the service I perform is difficult because I prefer to do it without tooting my own horn (so to speak. I can't actually play a horn and don't own one). BUT a promise is a promise, hasty or not, so here's Tuesday's report...

I had a plan, and it did not come together. I ended up taking elemenoB to her eye appointment and then at D.I. to drop off our donation from yesterday. Of course, we went inside to hunt for treasures (and school clothes). And then we went to the grocery store and the bank. I was looking for someone I could perform some act of kindness for the whole day, but no opportunities arose. As I began to make dinner I felt panicky. It was almost 7:00 p.m. and no service! I started to justify reporting things like "I drove elemenoB to the eye doctor" and "I let the kids have an Otterpop after dinner" but I am not a cheater. In the middle of a sewing project my brain had an AHA! moment. I did do service! First of all, I found these 2 things at D.I. that I would love to display in my home, but they don't "fit". I bought them anyway and plan to give them to a friend who I think will enjoy them:

(Someone sewed this thing by hand, people! I saved it from it's wrongful imprisonment at D.I.)

And the sewing project I was working on...hello! It was for someone else. The teenagers at our church are going on a reenactment of a Pioneer Trek and are dressing the part. All of the young ladies are wearing bonnets as part of their pioneer garb. One young lady does not like girly things, but is going to dress the part of a pioneer chick because she is a good sport. And she does not sew, she plays sports and does not have time (nor desire) to make a bonnet. I happily volunteered to make her one, mostly because I am dying to see her actually wear it. Instead of the typical flowery bonnet, I gathered the supplies for a less froo-froo bonnet last night:
and set to work. Here is the final result:
And there you have it! (TOOT! TOOT! TOOT!) Let's see what opportunities I encounter today...