Nothing like a birthday party to motivate

It has been a busy couple of weeks - hence no new posts.  Sorry about that.  There was a week to prep for an interview (I didn't get the job - boo to them), a week to prep for the beach, a week at the beach, a week to celebrate Sam & William's birthday and that brings us to now.  I made a booboo on William's party invitation and accidentally bought myself an extra week in getting ready for it!  Yay!!  My subconscious must've know I'd need the extra time...

Anyhow - so in honor of Pepito's birthday party this coming weekend - we decided it was high time we made our screen porch look pretty enough to put some people out there.  Our house isn't THAT big and we are going to have A LOT of people/kids running around, so we need all the space we can squeeze out!!

It has been on the to-do list all along to fix up the porch.  We had already painted the furniture blue for our anniversary but the floor was still ugly.  Super ugly.  And we could've painted it, but yuck.  We hate painting.  Plus, it would still be concrete which is a hassle to clean up pollen, dirt, etc, and it would be less than comfy for the very mobile little boy.  So, we decided on indoor/outdoor carpeting.

Brilliant.  It was super easy to put in, even though we cut the template wrong and had to "make it work".  Luckily we had gotten extra carpet so it's all good.  We just used double sided carpet tape and tacked it down.  Easy cheesey.  And it may not last forever, but since it was way under $100, that's absolutely number one a-ok.  We love it.  William loves it.  And I love that now I can open the doors (when it's not murderously hot/humid) and he can wander out and play and I don't have to worry about anything.  Fall is going to be lovely.

Then Sam woke me up this morning all motivated to plant new plants, and I will never argue with him if it's HIS decision to buy pretty green things, so off we went Lowe's bright and early.  We have a wonderful history of killing flowers, so we thought we'd try greenery this time around.  So far, after 5 hours, they're still alive.  I'm taking it as a good sign.  Ha!  We did get one big flower pot thing for the center of the table, but it's an annual - so it's going to die eventually anyway.

So - if you are coming to the birthday party - I hope you go to the screen porch - we worked hard on it!!  Well, not too hard, but you get the point...!!

Pink All Over

We went out of town this weekend to see my parents and when we got back - we were greeted with a yard full of pink.  The azaleas have bloomed!!!  All of them!!!  Nothing makes me happier! Well, maybe if my daffodils had bloomed I would be happier....oh well.

From the front door

We still have to get more mulch to fill in the rest of the bed...

So pretty to see when we park

By our steps - this was the first one to bloom

AND - my stepmom sent me home with LOTS of flowers to plant!!  Now - she warned me that they will probably be in shock this year and not bloom - but NEXT year - watch out!!  I vow to keep them alive - easier said then done.  I usually kill everything...but maybe this year will be different!!

My new plants waiting for me to find a minute to put them in the ground

Our yard is starting to make me happy...now if we just had grass instead of weeds!

Bring on the Spring

Last weekend I realized that Easter is coming up much sooner than expected and the thought of having to buy a dress put me into a panic. Having to spend money on a dress and the agony of trying to find one that fits - ugh. Not fun. And then, while taking a study break at Hancock Fabrics this weekend, yes, I am THAT dork, their 99 cent pattern sale inspired me. I could MAKE my dress! Save oodles of money, be cutesy spring just like I WANT it to be, and it would fit just right. (or close to just right - I'm not that good yet)

In addition to this pattern, I also came away with five others to try out in the future. How could I resist - saving upwards of $10 on each pattern!! Gold mine!!

So, I wandered the store, looking for the best fabric deal for color that would be flattering and weight that would be appropriate and found the prettiest emeraldy green for $1.95 a yard. Perfection! Light summer weight, slightly stretch, cotton in a color that all redheads look wonderful in. Cannot. Contain. My. Excitement.

As the accent - I couldn't resist navy polka dots. I love navy. I love polka dots. Easy choice. Especially since there was 1/2 yd remnant - 75% off. Seriously - it just keeps getting better.

First thing I did after my final was break into the pattern and start cutting out my size. I'm not sure I was home an hour before I went for it. Wait - first I did P90X with the hubs and THEN I started. So, maybe it was 2 hours. (by the way - Tony is the devil...)

I think I stayed up late sewing that night and it was surprisingly easy to manage. I always have a problem with pattern instructions. They never make a whole lot of sense to me but I figured it out and forged ahead. Got the dress stitched together, but without the right interfacing for the neck and armholes I had to stop. (still don't have the right interfacing...maybe I'll go search it out tomorrow)

And let me just give myself a pat on the back for sewing in the zipper. I have been TERRIFIED of zippers and feel absolutely ridiculous now because it was REALLY easy. Fear - Conquered.

Last night I cut the accent strips and today I stitched them on. And it is adorable.

I'm so proud of myself for (nearly completing) this dress. My wardrobe is a constant source of frustration with the new mommy body (enter P90X) and it's been hard to shop when I have literally tens of totes in the attic with beautiful clothes that used to fit. It's so fun to be excited about clothes again!

Run down of costs, approximately...

Green Fabric: $5

Polka Dot Fabric: $0.75

Zipper: $1.50

TOTAL SO FAR: $7.25

Still need to get the interfacing - but I'm hoping I can keep the total to around $10 - we'll see!

Compared to $40 for a dress from Target - Savings of $32.75!!! Now THAT'S something to be excited about!!