A Few More Projects

I was racing to get in a few more Etsy shop projects finished before the sewing machines go back onto their shelves. Now I will focus on homeschooling. I get very distracted when my machines are out. I took a few week schooling break with the eight youngest ones. When the Waseca County Fair rolls around, it is hard to want to keep up with school. Every year I think I can fit it all in. One year I will actually learn to not schedule school Mid July to Mid August. As my scheduling goes now, we are three weeks behind. I will just scribble out the past dates and pop in new ones. That will work.

The table is now cleared off. I will spend this week correcting the kids work books, help where they need help, finish putting the rest of my sewing paraphernalia away, and look ahead to my fall schooling plans.

Cyrus, Nolan, and Josiah have a big week head of them with football practice. It is Josiah's Sr year and I want him to soak it all in. Nolan's practices will be more intense than years past because he is in 9th grade now. It is a big deal. Cyrus might get the opportunity to play on the varsity football team with Josiah even though he is in 10th grade. It will be a big football year!!

Did I mention Grant will be moving out at the end of August? Oh, I will miss him SO very much!! Joyce is already out of the house so we will soon be down to only 13 children at home! I bet this coming year Elena will fly the nest,as well. Gee, then with Alan and Josiah graduating high school spring 2015...we could have only ten at home come next fall. The years have flown by. They have not all been easy years with this past year being one of the hardest, but we will look back and think our lives were spent well. I hope we will,at least.

Here are the projects I finished the past few weeks.

I made this bag for myself. I really like it. It is pleather. Good feeling pleather. It actually kind of smells like leather. I wonder if the manufacturers did that on purpose? I plan to offer a made to order one in my shop, because I have enough of the materials to make a duplicate.

I finished these two skirts a few weeks ago.

This dress I finished yesterday. The dress is made from a pattern I purchased from a Hawaiian company. It is a version of a muumuu dress.

Very cute! I wanted Lily to wear a black long sleeve t-shirt under it to make it more Christmas-y because that was the look I was going for but Walmart did not have their long sleeve tops out yet. These pictures are cute, though.

Happy Week!!

Warmly, A Dragonfrye Mommy

A Few Completed Projects

It has been nice to get a little creativity back into my days.

Warmly, A Dragonfrye Mommy

Sleepy and His Forest Friends

I did take out my sewing machines this morning. I worked on a few Etsy shop items. I decided to made a sample of each item and a duplicate for Lily. I am not finished with my new creations but hope to finish as time permits this weekend.

My partially finished skirts

This will be a fall corduroy jacket with a solid beige lining.

It will look great with the Forest Friends skirt!

PS:

Please Lord,

I do not want to sit at the adult table anymore.

Someday I'll wish upon a star
Wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where trouble melts like lemon drops
High above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me


Warmly, A Dragonfrye Mommy

Not My Circus, Not My Monkeys

Have you heard this old Polish proverb?

Not my circus, not my monkeys!

~SIGH~

Umm...

What if it is my circus?

What if it is all happening under my big top?

What if they are all my goofball monkeys?

My circus peanuts?

Well, under this big top, clowns are one of the most popular characters.

That is the part of the apple that fell close to Jeff's side of the tree...

Did I just say that?

I find they are VERY skilled in a variety of circus acts.

Driving me bananas is their most practiced and encored act.

I wish I could say I was the ring master by I find out I am more the juggler, lion tamer, tightrope walker, and flame thrower all rolled into one.

Haha.

I think Jeff would like to be the unicyclist but then again he would like the ring master's top hat.

But instead, fortunate for him, he mostly just arrives when the daytime circus show is wrapping up.

He misses the good stuff.

Jeff did take this old circus-ed out juggler, lion tamer, tightrope walker, and flame thrower to the fabric store when he got home from work.

It has been a little more than three weeks since I left Waseca.

Thank you, Jeff!

I needed the break.

I bought a lot of this Snow White's Seven Dwarfs fabric. I have many plans for this!! I might just unpack my sewing machines today.

I also bought a blender at Kohls.

I was feeling the need to blend stuff.

I tested it out when we got home.

Jeff, Elena, and Alan watched as I blended an old banana I found in the freezer, milk, chocolate syrup, ice and a little oatmeal together. It was not bad. They were my taste testers. I read somewhere that oatmeal adds protein and a little thickness. Next time I will leave the oatmeal out, though. It did not blend very well.

These are pictures I took yesterday. I LOVE my milk weed plants!!

I am wondering if this butterfly escaped from the Butterfly exhibit at the fair this past weekend.

Daisies are also one of my favorite flowers.

Warmly, A Dragonfrye Mommy

A Few Worries and a Few Bags

I put my sewing away in June after our family difficulty. I just lost all my steam and excitement to do much of anything but sit, sleep, and worry. I did remember to pray. Things are still difficult.

Even though a few others have hinted that they have observed a change of heart in the child in question, I have not seen it. I have of late, witnessed the child struggling with circumstances now not to the child's liking. The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence and I guess our side of the fence has become much greener lately. I have observed a child trying to squirm out of current problems.

What I have not seen is a heart of humbleness, of true repentance, or an acceptance of wrong. I still see anger, pride, self justification. I am sad. I lack wisdom. I do not know what to do. I fear making the wrong decision. I fear permanently crushing an already bruised reed. But then I fear not letting the bruised reed heal in God's gentle care by grabbing it away and taping it up myself. I fear the judgments of others. I worry for the other children in Fryeville.

I still have not taken out my sewing yet. I have put my energy into the entryway for a few days. That is me peeking my head out of my shell a little bit. This week is the Waseca County Fair. I'll peek my head out even a little bit more. These are the last things I sewed before the machines were put away.

Warmly, A Dragonfrye Mommy

A Peacefull Friday Evening Spent with Oreos

Jeff took a lot of the kids to the Morristown Dam Days parade this evening. I opted to stay home and have a little down time. I did not get much done but I did enjoy chatting with some of the kids who stayed behind. I also enjoyed a little special snack. I have not dunked Oreos in milk for years!

I have this wonderfully adorable mushroom fabric for sale in my Dragonfrye Supplies Etsy shop so I thought I would make a few things out of it this evening. I made an A-line dress and a bag. It is kind of like fabric shopping for free.

I thought my photos turned out very well so I will show you all of them!

Lucky day for you!!

Here is the dress.

And here is the bag.

Fun stuff!!

Enjoy your Saturday!!

Warmly, A Dragonfrye Mommy

A Wednesday

I thought doing some of the homeschooling outside would be nice.

More accurately, I just corrected their daily work outside today.

It is a very nice day out!!

No mosquitoes yet.

I finished two more little outfits today.

This little top and diaper cover is my favorite of my creations.

Did you notice the neat old chalkboard as my photo prop? Here is the story behind that little gem. This afternoon Josiah had an appointment in town. Lily and I walked him to his appointment. After the Josiah's appointment he ran on home but Lily and I made a visit to the coffee shop in town. The antique store close to the coffee shop is going out of business so Lily and I took a peek around to see what they had left. I got the chalkboard for $10.00! A reasonable price in my mind. I had seen the chalkboard there before and really wanted to buy it but at that time it was way too expensive. I bought it and Lily and I carried it home. I am VERY pleased!! Jeff bought Lily some chalk so she could draw on it. Pretty cool!!

Warmly, A Dragonfrye Mommy

♪♪♪ Because I'm Happy ♪♪♪

♪♪♪ Clap Along ♪♪♪

♪♪♪♪ if you feel like that's what you want to do ♪♪♪♪

♪♪♪ Because I'm Happy ♪♪♪

Guess what song I just put on my IPod?

And guess what I finished up this weekend?

♪♪♪ Clap Along ♪♪♪

Warmly, A Dragonfrye Mommy

The Cute Scotty

What do you think?

Everyone loves little Scotty Dogs, don't they?

Especially the Mary Engelbreit Scotty!!

I am sure they do.

I have an assembly line of sorts consisting of four A-line dresses I was working on this evening.

This Scotty Dog A-line dress is the first of the four fully completed.

I used the collar pattern from another dress and I am pleased it looks this good.

Three more to go!!

I can not wait to finish them up so Lily can model them for us.

Warmly, A Dragonfrye Mommy

Six Legs and More

I am SO tired tonight.

I have an early morning

So

a very fast

My Day in Pictures

Grant's new peeps.

A few of Joel's friends escaped

A jar of pretties

A beautiful dress and a princess

Sorry for having to go when we just said hello.

My eyes are almost pasted shut.

A 75 + degree day tomorrow.

Awesome!!

Warmly, A Dragonfrye Mommy