Becoming a Homemaker

What a week!

2009-06-13T09:56:00.003-04:00

Sorry I've been a bit MIA this week, my poor hubby severely sprained his ankle and wasn't able to walk for several days. This was not easy for him because he is very active and does not sit still well at all :) So he decided to keep me busy instead :) However while doing my wifely duties keeping hubby entertained and fed I really didn't get much of a chance to clean anything, my nice little book of schedules went right out the window this week, and my happy little plans of sewing ha forget about it. But yesterday just as my house was falling down around me, my daddy showed up to see if he could take all four of my children for the whole weekend. Ya know I just love my dad. Then icing on the cake, my brother just called and said he was taking my hubby out for a while to get him out of the house. If you listen very carefully right at this moment you can actually hear a choir of angels singing hehe So now I must get off my rear end and clean this place from top to bottom then I'm gonna pull all my sewing right in the middle of the living room, turn on "Gone with the Wind" and spend the rest of the day and tomorrow too sewing, I have a stack of fabric just waiting to be made into aprons I'm just so happy right now. Yea me!! hehe I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

And the winner is....

2009-06-07T16:05:00.005-04:00

Well you've waited all week and here it is the winner of my very first ever giveaway is....."Katie" Congradulations Katie and thank you to all who played along. Don't worry if you didn't win this time, I've already got plans in mind for another apron giveaway. So there's always next time! Untill then have a great Sunday and God bless.

Apron Give Away

2009-06-05T13:26:00.004-04:00

Just two more days till I open the candy dish and pull out a winner, guess I had better finish the apron up huh?! hehe don't you worry come Monday morning it'll be in the mail going out to some lucky winner, all you have to do is get your name in the candy dish here -> http://becomingahomemaker.blogspot.com/2009/06/apron-give-away.html And leave me a comment. Good luck!!

Sew Mama Sew, Sewing Machine Meme

2009-06-05T11:44:00.004-04:00

What brand and model do you have? Brother LS-2125
How long have you had it? 3 years
How much does that machine cost (approximately)? 90-100 dollars
What types of things do you sew (i.e. quilting, clothing, handbags, home dec projects, etc.)? Aprons from cotton and denim, quilting, costumes, curtains, anything that comes up.
How much do you sew? How much wear and tear does the machine get? About 5 hours a week. Not as much as some full time sewers, but around Christmas it runs full time.
Do you like/love/hate your machine? Are you ambivalent? Passionate? Does she have a name? I love my machine because it always works, no issues or constant adjusting, however it only has basic stitches, I do wish it had more.
What features does your machine have that work well for you? No features but sews like a dream.
Is there anything that drives you nuts about your machine? It does not have any fancy stitches like other machines. So it limits some of the things I'd like to do or I have to do it by hand.
Do you have a great story to share about your machine (i.e., Found it under the Christmas tree? Dropped it on the kitchen floor? Sewed your fingernail to your zipper?, Got it from your Great Grandma?, etc.!)? We want to hear it! I hate to admit I've dropped it a few times but it still works perfect!
Would you recommend the machine to others? Why? Yes because it works faithfully, but no because it has no features.
What factors do you think are important to consider when looking for a new machine? I want to hear from others that it works well and doesn't need constant adjusting.
Do you have a dream machine? Not just yet I'm still looking into it I know I want a Singer, mom swears by them and Grandma too. But I will always keep my Brother as my work horse machine. Oh I'd also like one with Auto button holes I've heard about.

Vintage Thingies Thursday

2009-06-04T09:06:00.003-04:00

Well hello out there in blog land!! I don't think I've ever been excited for a Thursday before, but I have been waiting all week for this one :) Can you say knick knacks? I can't wait to show you all some of my favorite old things. It was hard choosing what to show but I had to save some back for next Thursday. And just to let you know this is hosted by http://coloradolady.blogspot.com/ there is a whole list of blogs participating so run on over and check it out! (After you look at mine of course :p )

Oh and don't forget to check out my Apron Giveaway! http://becomingahomemaker.blogspot.com/2009/06/apron-give-away.html

So without further adu, here is my collection of lace diolies I bought these at a yard sale about 5 years ago the lady who sold them to me had inhereted them from her grandmother, they are just sooo pretty!

This table runner belonged to my hubby's grandmother, it is hand made and so lovely, isn't it? :)

These desert dishes also belonged to my hubby's grandmother (however I feel the need to say the past tense is only because she gave them to my mother in law when she got married and then MIL passed them to me when I married her son, grandmother is still alive and well :)

This is just one of a whole set of dishes that belonged to my grandmother, back in the mid 60's my mother worked in a small china shop in Bar Harbor Maine and with each pay check she bought her mother this lovely set. Hope it's vintage enough. I just love them.

And now my oldest and favorite of all, this is my great grandmothers Pitcher n' Bowl it used to sit on a little stand in (hmm that's funny I can see the stand in my mind clear as a bell but can't think for the life of me what room it was lol)

And now on another note I'd like to say... That Butter Milk Pie I made a few days ago, mmm! So good really you should try out that recipe. Also Cindy over at "Busy Hands" has a recipe for a Strawberry pie that makes my mouth water just reading it, I can't wait to try it, by the way I love pie and anyone who gives a pie recipe. Ooh maybe that'll be my next give away theme woo hoo oh my mind it racing now (I could use that pie applique I've been saving, on an apron for the prize) ooh I should finish the first give away before I plan the second one right? hehe By the way I am just lovin' reading all your wonderful comments, I'm feeling the love :)

A "Grab a Button" How To

2009-06-03T19:52:00.000-04:00

This took me two hours of searching trying to follow directions from many different posts and not quite getting it to work. (There might have been a bit of yelling and name calling going on between me and my poor computer. hehe) Any who I finally found a blog with not great directions but a really great picture (I'm hoping it's okay to share the picture with you as long as I give the site link along with it.) So here we go, my attempt at a tutorial.

Create a picture you want to use for your button I don't have any fancy programs on my computer so I just used "Paint"
Get an account at http://www.photobucket.com/ and up load your picture.

On the top left of the screen you will see a bar with your pictures HTML code, copy it.

Back at your blog click "customize" on the top right of your screen, then click "layout"

Click "Add a Gadget" then choose HTML/Java Script

Enter the code just like it is in this picture making all the necessary changes with your info, if it doesn't work go back and make sure you have it exactly the same.

This picture came from: http://accidentalmommies.com/blog-buttons/how-to-add-a-grab-our-button-section-to-your-sidebar/ If you don't understand my instructions maybe theirs will be helpful, they also have lots of other good stuff, definitely worth giving them a looksy.

Keeping things organized

2009-06-03T11:32:00.001-04:00

The life of a homemaker can be a very busy one, there are just so many things to get done and keep track of, just like any other full time job. However we have an added danger we are at home with so many distractions, Oh there's a great show on, or ooh I should see whats new over at my fave blog, maybe I'll just finish sewing that new apron, etc, etc. If we are not careful half the day can pass us by, then the kids are home, dinner needs cooked and hubby will be wondering what you've been doing all day while he is hard at work. So then, how does one stay on track but still find time for life's simple pleasures. (like blogging hehe) How about a "Home Management Binder" I have been working on mine for almost a year now. I down sized to a much smaller binder 6"x9" or (something like that) even found sheet covers at "Staples" I filled it with the following sections;

Calender
Cleaning Schedules (Including daily, monthly and laundry schedules)
Menus & Grocery Lists (these are blank I like to make new each week)
Bills & Budgets (this has monthly forms I made so I never forget to pay, or what I paid to whom or when)
Things to make our house a home (this is a section of wants and needs for the home so when there is extra money in the budget I know where to spend it)
Recipes (this is just for the recipes most used so I can get my hands on them quickly)
Cleaning recipes (for cleaning the dishwasher or washing machine, even recipes for detergents should I run out and need some quick from house hold stuff)
Books and projects ( this is a running list. I tend to start soo many books and projects that I loose track of what needs to be finished next)
Child, Health & emergency Information (this is a section of all really important info and numbers should something happen when I'm not around hubby will know all that I know)
Pet Information (this section is small but has important info, like Vet #'s and Rabies Certificates, God forbid the dog ever bites someone etc.)
Addresses (I think you know what this one is for :)
And then a small section just for me for the things I find and think, I should print that out so I do and then never find it again lol Now I can find them.

So as long as I write everything in this book and look at it every day, I stay completely on track and have time for fun stuff like computer time and sewing, Hello I'm Sophie and I have an apron addiction hehe

And now just for fun here are pictures of my boys, when they saw I had the camera out this morning to take a pic of my binder they immediately grabbed their favorite things and yelled take a picture of this mom!!!!

Matthew and his beloved Buzz LightyearElijah and his best friend "Lou Lou baby" She was Lilly but he renamed her. Not really sure how he thought up that name but it's hers none the less :)

Apron Give Away

2009-06-02T12:04:00.001-04:00

Woo hoo!!! The techno moron that I am finally managed to get my "grab a button" to work, this is truly reason to celebrate. (Yes, I am dancing around my kitchen) Anywho Here is my plan for the give away.

Leave me a comment and your name will go in the candy dish (You must be a follower of my blog to get your name in.)

Grabbing' a button and puttin' it on your blog gets your name in "3" more times. (Just leave me a comment and let me know)

And/or mentioning my give away in one of your blog posts, gets your name in "3" more times. (Again, just leave me a comment and let me know)

I will have my daughter pull a name this Sunday, June 7th at 3:00 o'clock-ish

Now, just 'cause I wanna share, looky what I just pulled out of the oven. I found this recipe on http://www.sugarpiefarmhouse.com/ This used to be a really great blog that turned into a whole really great web site I love it!! Anywho this is my "Butter Milk Pie" mmm! Now that desert is done I'm off to sew a bit before I have to start dinner "Summer Beef Stew" mmm is your mouth watering? I know mine is. If it makes you all feel better I still have a "mountain" of laundry to fold, but I'm not gonna show you a picture of that! :)

What a weekend!

2009-06-01T22:34:00.000-04:00

Sorry this post is a bit late I had such a crazy weekend, I had to play a bit of catch up today. And now I feel compelled to share my story with you. I was dog sitting for my Sister-in-law Saturday, when my hubby went to their house (3 houses down from us) he found that the dogs had, had a bit of fun. So of course he came straight home to tell me about the mess down their (at HIS brothers house) so I went down to clean up a little mess, only to find it wasn't so little. It took me over two hours to clean their mess. Try and picture this, if you can... The dogs ripped up a large teddy bear so there were beads and stuffing everywhere, got hold of my nieces purse full of makeup so there was eye shadow and mascara all in the rug, got hold of my other nieces binder and text book and tore them to shreds from one end of the house to the other. He even got her batting helmet and ate all the foam padding out of the inside,(still not sure how he managed that one) not to mention clothes dragged throughout and then to top it all off, they piled as much up as they could in the play room and went to the bathroom on it, yes both numbers ugh!! This is how I started off my weekend. I finished cleaning this mess just in time to rush out the door to a teachers meeting for Vacation Bible School, then back to pick up my Daughter from a baby sitting class at the YMCA. However, there was one moment of happiness in my day. I was lucky enough to make it to a craft fair down the street from my house just before they closed and looky what I got This little number was hand made in the early 60's by the mother of the lady who sold it to me. It is soo cute and the best part... I got it for a buck yeah, you read it right one whole dollar, I also got some very nice cotton knitted dish cloths. I am lovin' them, let me tell you, they are the best! (I really need to learn to knit) Soooo anywho that night I slept at SIL's house with the dogs so I wouldn't have another mess to clean up, and the 100 pound puppy wanted to snuggle. He woke me up about every 20 minutes pressing his nose to mine, tired as I was, it was still really sweet (yes I am an animal lover) So that was Saturday, then Sunday the rain stopped and the sun shined down on my little plot of soon to be garden, and I got to plant all my little seedlings. Of course my hubby, children and even BIL all gave me their sympathy for my little garden that is most likely going to die, if for no other reason than it's mine. I just ignored them. I am determined to make this garden grow. I'll be doin' alot of praying, that's for certain :) While I was doing all of this my darling children were making as many messes as possible, this of course means I spent my whole day today cleaning up from the weekend and now here I sit trying to catch up on something I enjoy. (My silly little blog) So if I haven't bored you to death, here is a sneak peek at the almost apron I plan on giving away very soon. As you can see I have not sewn anything together yet or embellished it at all, but I promise when it's done it'll be super cute! I spent the little time I could have been sewing today trying to figure out how to make that darn "Grab a Button" thing and it still isn't right. If anyone can offer help I would love you forever :) And that folks is the end of my ramblings for the day.

Good night all!!

Sew Mama Sew's May give away!!

2009-05-30T08:09:00.000-04:00

OOh boy until yesterday I didn't even know this existed, you see I'm rather new to the blogging world, there were only two blogs I ever followed; "Civilla's Cyber Cafe" (She told all sorts of great stories about her life in the 50's, sooo much fun to read!!) then there was "The Sassy Apron Swap" (I think the name says it all :p) but yesterday I hit the jackpot! I found a site called "Sew Mama Sew" Talk about your win, win situations! Just think about it an entire list of great blogs, you visit them all (or as many as you can 400+) and you 1) get a chance to win something awesome and 2) find a mess load of awesome blogs to follow, and as I said a minute ago, I hit the jackpot woo hoo!! I found soo many, you really must check out my profile and see the blogs I'm following although I did have a hard time on quite a few of them finding the "follow me" button so, those are saved in my faves. But another good thing about this give away day is, it has inspired me to do my own give away... of course I've got to drum up some followers let people know I'm here, but I have a plan for that too! So maybe your wondering, Sophie what ever will you give away??? I'll give you a hint, it starts with an "A", ties around your waist and it's pretty. Ooh fine I'll just tell you, it's my latest apron creation I hope you like purple :) I'll post more details of how to win, and a picture tomorrow. Till then have a fantastical day :)

Gardening

2009-05-28T15:24:00.000-04:00

I am starting my first garden, it's so tiny it's cute :) I'm a little afraid to put a lot into it, I tend to kill every plant I touch :) Hopefully if all goes well this year, I'll be able to plant much more next year. I have dreams of a great big garden full of fruits and veggies, I want to spend my Autumn harvesting, canning and freezing all my garden goodies. My little garden won't do that for me this year but I'll be happy if I get a few tomatoes and cucumbers for sandwiches. I will post some pictures of my little plot when it's done. Oh and the best part is, now I have a good reason to make a gardening apron yea me!! :p

Starting small

2009-03-27T00:39:00.000-04:00

Okay where to start in my mission to take this job seriously? Well the obvious place would be with the uniform, one simply must be dresses for the job. lol Now I'm not talking about June Cleaver in high heals and pearls, as much as I LOVE her and her clothes, she is NOT real and ladies as long as we try and be her we are never going to succeed at the real task at hand. So then what is a homemakers uniform you are wondering... well an Apron of course (silly rabbit) here's the thing, what you wear really does effect the way you act and think. So with your apron on you feel cute to start with and that's always good but even better you are ready to get into the nitty gritty of homemaking without any fear of messes, bleach from the laundry...not a problem, food splatter while cooking...not a problem, junior just wiped his nose on you...well icky lol Anywho I find that I jump right into what needs to be done when I put my uniform on, it just makes me feel so feminine and mommyish I love the big pockets on mine, as I find missing toys belonging to my youngest I stick them in my pocket and when we have a snuggle he checks my pockets knowing something good will be in there sometimes I even stick some candy in there, he never knows what he'll get but he loves momma's apron. Ladies, women have been wearing aprons of one form or another since forever, it's only been the last forty years at most that they have gone out of fashion hmm that's also when dresses and skirts were replaced by pants and woman left their children and went to work oh and the feminist movement swept the country but that's a whole other story... anywho if they lasted that long maybe they were good for something???

Becoming a Homemaker

2009-03-27T00:05:00.000-04:00

I am a wife, a mother... a Homemaker. However I haven't always been a homemaker and though I have had some lessons and experience as to how to cook and clean and even care for children, I am very new to "Managing" my home, treating it like the very important job it is. Being on time, keeping track of things, you know like paying the light bill before they shut you off or showing up to a doctors appointment on the right day (hehe I have shown up on the wrong day before) or how about something as simple as having clean socks for your husband, or showing his hard work some respect and being frugal with the family income. I am on a journey to change the way I think about and do homemaking. To start seeing it as the most important job there is. After all we who are staying home and raising our families, we are raising up the next generation, we are molding the future. We have a most important job and don't let anyone tell you other wise, no more listening to nay sayers who try and tell you you're not contributing to your family or society these are lies! We are contributing more than anyone, but it is time we start taking this job seriously, and that is where I am in my journey. I am ready to take this job seriously. I will be seeking out all sorts of good old fashioned homemaking skills trying them out and posting them here. I hope some of you will join me in this journey to reclaim our homes, our children and our loving husbands, and stand proud of the job and title we carry... Homemakers. (Okay I'm jumping off the soap box now someone else can use it lol)