October's Dress

No, this project didn't die, and yes, I did actually sew all these dresses last year.  I'm just super lazy.  Anyway, with Halloween and Johnny being out of town for a week, October's dress was crazy.  

This was by far my most conservative dress.  Okay, maybe my only conservative dress.  I tried to think of something ironic to do with the fabric, but in the end, this pattern was what I bought it for, and it refused to become anything else.

 I bought this fabric to figure out how to make a flare-y/flippy skirt like that, and after learning it just basically a gored skirt with huge triangles on the bottom, I think the romance has gone out with the mystery.  Add to that the fact that it looks more exaggerated than the photo, and I won't be making a skirt from this pattern any time soon.  That's not to say that I won't make something similar, though ;)

Things I learned making this dress:

• I'm much more conservative than I think.  And despite the fact that conservative is much less fun, this was the dress that I wore out last winter.  I think it jives more closely with my idea of a seminary teacher than my other creations.  Also, it's much easier to create an outfit when you can just throw on a dress and boots.  And at 6 am, easiness wins out 9 times out of 10.  

The front 

 The back

 The flippy skirt

I added sleeves.  They are very comfortable. 

Halloween

Sorry everyone, I could have sworn I already posted about Halloween, but I guess these are the dangers of sleep-deprivation combined with a busy routine.  Some days I ask myself "did I shower?" and I honestly have no idea.  TMI, I'm sure.  Anyway, we had a really fun Halloween this year.  The Captain is finally old enough that he's interested in and capable of doing toddler crafts, so we did.

We painted pumpkins.  The Captain's was a ghost.

We decorated the front porch with our painted pumpkins and a ghost line The Captain made, and some "foy yeeps" (spider webs)

We did a family theme this Halloween.  

Johnny is a pipe.  He made his costume himself.  Mario and Luigi got to go down.

The Captain loved being Luigi.  He asked me the other day if he could dress up and go trick-or-treating.  It was so cute.  How do you explain just one time to a toddler?

The Captain surprised me this year.  He still doesn't really like wearing hats, but I didn't think he'd like wearing gloves, or having me put a mustache on him.  And he loved both.     

To be honest, we picked this year's theme based on putting a mustache on a pacifier.  But Joy made a really cute Mario.  It's never too early to start cross-dressing.

What's in the question block?  No one knows, but we hope it's not a star.  This boy has enough energy without being invincible and extra fast. 

Joy's Blessing

This little sweetie was almost two months old when Grandma and Grandpa came to visit bringing this beautiful dress and lots of love.

Don't know why I love this picture so much.  Something about the contrast of leather and lace appeals to my artistic side, I guess.

 Mommy and Daddy love

My kiddos.  This is usually what goes on in our house, and although this picture didn't end in tears, most would.  We tell The Captain to be kind so Joy won't be scared of him.

Smile!

Just a word while you wait with baited breath for blessing and Halloween pictures.

The Captain has started asking me to "do yike this, Mommy" (do like this), usually when he's been naughty, or I'm mad at him.  He knows how to work the system.

So then I put my cheezy smile on, too.

And Miss Joy has taken up the game.  Smiling and pre-giggling at nothing at all.

We're having fun enjoying the cuteness.