HOT

Still 100 degrees at 7pm!




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

latest sewing project - ottoman slipcover

After going to countless stores to find the perfect ottoman/coffee table and coming up empty-handed, I decided to reuse an ottoman we had in storage. The fabric wasn't the best, so I took on the task of making a slipcover for it. No pattern, custom-fit. It took me a couple days of naptimes and bedtimes, but I finally finished it. Not bad for an amateur's first time at making one, I think. And now our boy won't hit his head on a corner every time he stumbles at the coffee table. The process:

Here is the original ottoman with the pieces cut out of the new slipcover:

Making the piping:

The top fitted part is done:

Sewing on the second row of piping:

Hemming it:

Finished!:

Broken

So, we went for a swim today, and as I was getting out of the pool, I grabbed the nearest towel, which unknowingly was protecting our camera. It tumbled out of the towel and splashed into the pool. After retrievimg my water-logged Sony, and then checking for a miracle, it indeed did not turn on, so my inquisitive mind got the best of me. I took it apart. I should interject here that my daddy and I had great success earlier this year in taking apart his old laptop in order to replace the hinges in it. So, I had grand hopes for my camera. See picture:


However, while I was able to get it taken apart, dried out, put back together, and powered on, it was never quite the same. The buttons have a mind of their own now and no longer respond to my demands. Oh well, at least I got to take something apart. That's always fun. :)

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Fun with our fridge

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Living life

We're living life here in Richmond and really enjoying it. It's busy, intense, & hectic, but it's also fun, adventurous, and new every day. Sean and I have really loved this traveling lifestyle, and now that our little man has been with us these past 15 + months, we've grown to enjoy it in new ways. Some things have definitely changed. Some things are gone, never to be picked up again; others have found a new life with a team of 3. One thing we still enjoy is being outdoors. Our present home allows us the opportunity to be within walking distance of quite a few spots - dining, shopping, and playing. We try to walk around every day, and tonight we made a simple trip to one of the local joints and ate outside. I packed a meal for the shortest one of us, and Sean and I marveled at a restaurant that actually doesn't specialize in kid's meals. The food was fine, but the memories we made were spectacular. Ordinary days can be amazing.

A storm is a'brewin

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Girl time

Living this life, Sean and I spend a whole lot of time together. It's a fortunate blessing that we not only love each other, we truly like each other too, so this works out well. However, one thing we gave up in traveling as we do is the development of consistent relationships with friends. We are fortunate to have some patient friends who are willing to make trips to see us in our random homes, or at the homes of our parents when we happen to be there. But those visits never come quite often enough, it seems. Today I got to go shopping at some local outlets (one of my fave places to shop) with a friend of over 10 years. We both got to know each other when we were single, and we eventually developed a great friendship over swing dancing, beach going, and closet sharing. Now we both are happily married with sons still in diapers, and while the topics of conversation have changed, the friendship remains so good. To many more days of hanging out..

Supper at Whole Foods

Meatloaf. Basmati rice. Mixed berries. Silas loved it.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Sewing project

I got this book organizer at Target for $12, and I went to the fabric store today and got this material to take the place of the red canvas it came with. My sewing passion is slowly but surely coming back...

Sent from my iPhone

#3 is here!

Lydia Suzanne was welcomed into the world early yesterday morning by my (Shannon's) cousin Jim and wife Abby. We are once again thankful for a healthy delivery and pray that these next days and weeks bring lots of sleep and kisses. Congrats!

Welcome to the world, Audrey

The second baby in our family has come, and we couldn't be more excited. My sister gave birth yesterday morning to a gorgeous little girl, Audrey Christine. She was about a month premature, but we are thanking the Lord that she and Momma are healthy and thriving. I can't wait to get my hands on that little sweet thing, so we are planning a trip very soon, I hope. Pictures to come!

Babies

When we found out we were having our son, beyond being thrilled at the news, there was a part of me that was bummed that he wouldn't have any siblings or cousins his age to play with, as all of his current cousins are 10 -15 years older than he (even though they are all completely smitten with him and think he's the greatest). However, little did we know that we would soon find out that not one, not two, not three, but four of our family members would soon be expecting, all within 1 month of each other. My (Shannon) sister and 2 of my cousins, and 1 of Sean's cousins are all due soon. We're expecting 3 girls and 1 boy from this mix.

In fact, my eldest cousin, Anna, just became the first in line to give birth, about a week early. She had a beautiful girl, Ryan Isabella, and they are both happy and healthy. The countdown continues as we wait for word from these other three. Our boy is going to have such fun!

Snow, snow, snow

Think Bing Crosby and Rosemary Clooney. We got about a foot of snow dumped on us a couple of days ago, and it is still knee-high out there. While I'm usually not a big fan, it is awfully pretty out there. Now, it can feel free to melt anytime...

it is here

We got completely settled in Richmond just in time.  The big one, too, is now here.  The big winter storm--the one that started showing up on the radar several days ago--is still pouring out the snow on us.  My guess is that we now have about 8 or 9 inches.  And there is more on the way.  Actually, it is a good day for us to be inside as we are getting ready for the big day tomorrow.  Our little buddy will be 1 year old.

While he is taking his nap, Shannon is on the floor sewing a present for him, and I am catching up on some work.  In some respects, it is hard to believe we have been in Richmond for only two weeks.  It already feels so right to us, and we have greatly enjoyed embracing the city I was born in and grew up not too far from.       

Goodbye North Carolina

I am sitting on a lone chair with my laptop perched on a couple of stacked boxes in front of me. There are mass voids of space around me as Sean already made a trip to Richmond and back today to take our Penske truck full of our belongings to our new place. All that is left here are a few odds and ends that will get put in our 2 vehicles in the morning when we leave Fayetteville for the last time. Once again, it is hard to believe it is already over. Seems like we just moved in, and I guess for the average person, that is understandable since we've only been here barely over 6 months. But for us, it is another project under our belts, come and gone.

Tomorrow holds the begining of the next several months in Richmond. We never really know what these projects are going to hold for us. No matter how much research, conversations, googling, and planning we do, we are learning to expect the unexpected. Where will we visit? What pictures will we take? Who will we meet? Will we make friends who will become a part of our Christmas list in the years to come?

It's a big unknown, but we're ready for it. Let the fun begin...