A great weekend with KK!

My mom called a few months ago, when Southwest had super cheap flights, to see if she could come for the weekend. She does this every year, so that Corby and I can get away for a night. Seriously...I have the best, most thoughtful, mom! We had a jam packed weekend of fun!

We started off with a day at the mall on Friday. How cute is my mom in her new outfit?!?!

I convinced her that she needs to get on the bright pants trend, and she thankfully agreed! Her students are going to go nuts when they see how cute she is! If anything, I have hope that I will still dress fairly cute and trendy when I'm 60...thanks to my such a great example!
Speaking of dressing cute, I love this outfit on Harper. Tia got it for her for Christmas, and she loves it. Every time she puts the vest on, she says, "Is this Daisy?"... well, Daisy would be my mom's cat whose fur looks just like that. She now says it as a joke, because she always follows it with a loud laugh! She has a love for mannequins. As in, she has to hug every single one that she sees when we're shopping. She usually tells them that she loves them as well. This time, she made a friend who shares the same interest... and then they both requested a picture!

Friday night, Corby and I went to dinner, a movie, and then spent the night at the Renaissance Hotel. It was so great for us to get away, and just spend time together. I seriously can't thank my mom enough that she thinks of things like that!

We spent most of Saturday out, since that was the request of my mom. She took Harper to Chick-Fil-A, and we ate lunch and shopped a little. That night, we went to I heart yogurt after dinner. I'm pretty sure Harper enjoyed hers... what do you think???

On Sunday, we spent about 5 hours at the zoo. We saw more action than we cared to... and I fully expect a baby Mandrill to be born in the near future after what we saw! Harper had a blast showing KK some of her favorite animals. They rode on the carousel together when we first got there.
And later in the day, Harper rode on Cleo, the pony. She had an absolute blast!!!
Monday came and went quickly, and we had to take KK to the airport. To say that Harper was sad is an understatement. She cried the entire way home and throughout dinner. I eventually told her that if she was going to keep crying, she needed to do it in her room or she needed to stop and eat with us. She NEVER chooses the cry in the room option... but this time, she did. She cried on her bed for about 20 minutes, and then she called for me, saying she was ready to eat. It was heartbreaking to see her so emotional!
We miss you, KK! Thank you so much for coming to visit us and recognizing how important it is for Corby and I to get away for a day! We can't wait to see you soon!!!

Slowly but surely...

The serger and I are becoming fast friends! My sister-in-law suggested this one, and so far, it has been so easy to figure out. I'm just doing a lot on scraps of fabric until I feel comfortable on an actual pair of pants. Thanks to a tutorial I found online, I switched the foot and learned how to make a gathered ruffle...so much easier than doing it by hand! Who knew I'd become such a little seamstress?!? - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Cowboy Day!

Today was cowboy day at school, and Harper had a blast. They ate hotdogs around the "camp fire", played games, and had a stock show. The animal she chose to take was her hippo...not your average stock show animal. We are very proud that the hippo came home with a blue ribbon, winning the "hippest award"! She's been singing a song about camping and saying "yee-haw" all afternoon. I think it's clear she thoroughly enjoyed her day! And she looked pretty darn cute too!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Making time to sew

I've had a sewing machine for a couple of years now, but I haven't learned how to do anything besides make cute burp cloths. I enjoy doing those, but I have wanted to do more. So, I watched a youtube video of a lady making some ruffle pants, and I decided to try it. The first go around, I made them too small. They wouldn't even go up Harper's leg... total bummer when I spent so much time on them! But I made another pair the other night, without the ruffle. I figured I should figure out the actual pants before adding anything else to them. They turned out fairly well... a little baggy on Harper, but I think that's because I was so worried they'd be too tight that I overcompensated when cutting the fabric. I then made a little shirt with an "H" on it to go with them. I think she likes them... what do you think?

Then last night I decided to try to ruffle pants. I forgot that I didn't need to add extra length for the hem, so they are a little long. Harper will need to wear stilts for them to work! I also needed a different color thread, but I didn't have it... so I don't like that you can see the hem so well. But I plan on making a shirt with a heart for Valentine's Day, and then a shirt with Minnie Mouse on it for our trip to Disney World. They turned out much better than I thought they would!
Now, the only bad part about this hobby is that I find myself wanting to add to my collection of sewing stuff. I think having a serger would be nice, and I certainly wouldn't mind an embroidery machine. That's not too much to ask, is it?!?!? They're basically free, right? Oh well, a girl can dream! And speaking of dreaming, I'd love to have my own craft room some day. I have to keep everything in a closet, so dragging it to the dining room each time I want to work on something is a pain! But since none of that will happen, I'll just work on perfecting these pants. I go to a trunk show every year, and I pay a whole lot for clothes I always feel like I can make... it's next week, and I'll have a hard time not going, but we'll save a whole lot of money in the end. Money that can be used on things like sergers.

Christmas 2011

Our Christmas was spent in Little Rock this year, and we had such a great week. My mom, as always, was the best hostess! She made all of our favorite foods, stuffed us with sweets, and allowed us to rest by taking Harper every morning... we were absolutely spoiled! On Christmas day, we had brunch and then opened presents afterward. We let the little girls open one gift when they woke up, to keep them occupied. I got both girls a doctor outfit and kit, and it was a hit! Harper wanted to put it on immediately, and quickly went to work, checking everyone's ears and listening with the "scepascope". After we opened presents, which takes hours in our family. We have a rule that only one gift can be opened at a time... so it can take forever! But I love doing it that way, instead of everyone just ripping open their gifts at the same time. We can enjoy it a little more.

For dinner, Leah wanted us to all dress up... as in dresses and suits. So we all agreed, and although Corby might not agree, it was actually fun. My mom cooked a fabulous meal of brisket, twice baked potatoes, mushrooms, green bean bundles, rolls, and salad.

Harper and I stayed for the rest of the week, but somehow, I didn't get any pictures. She spent a few afternoons at Gran-D's house, and she had a blast. I, too, enjoyed having some time to myself while shopping and going to a movie. We were sad to say goodbye to our family, but we also missed Corby a ton!

Opening her doctor's kit

Dr. Harper

Cheesy grin for her new hippo

Opening the only thing she asked for... 2 dolls

Thanking "Santa" for her fabulous present!

Mom's table all decorated for dinner

Me and Leah

The 3 of us

Sisters, sisters, there were never such devoted sisters!

All the ladies

The boys being ridiculous with their poses

They have so much fun together!

I'm pretty sure this was the next day,

but she fell and needed a bandaid for her chin...

Such a drama queen!!!

And in case you haven't been to my best friend, Mare's, blog or heard the fabulous news, head on over and see how the Lord has chosen to bless them! I've been giddy for weeks about this. I'm so glad it's finally out in the open, because I just knew I was going to accidentally tell someone!