Fabulous SoCal

So.  The trip.  It was amazing, and I think I’m getting over my exhaustion. Finally. It’s hard work traveling all over the place with 4 kids, and don’t let anyone ever tell you different, son.

The highlights: seeing my mother.  Oh dear.  I missed her so, and the girls could not get enough of her.

Also: Sea World.  The beluga whales, and the girls feeding the seals.

Disneyland.  Ugh, it sucked for the adults, but the kids had fun.  They got to go on all the kiddie rides, and Nanny spoiled the shit out of them by buying them princess dresses at the Bibbity Bobbity Boo store.  I just about DIED.

We also hit up the LA Fashion district, and I did some damage there buy a) buying a suitcase for the trip home, and then b) accidentally filling it with fabric as we went shopping for, you know, fabric.  Oops.

Sidenote: although we did have 2 tons of shit to bring home, we only had 3 checked bags (for 6 people) that included about 30 pounds of fabric.  AND.  The 3rd suitcase? Stuffed full of fabric and notions?  Was only 2 pounds over the weight limit.  The sweet, sweet lady at the Continental counter didn’t charge me extra.  I’m pretty sure I should win a prize for that shit.  I’m like a magical packer.

Another highlight: getting to meet up with friends that Bryan and I haven’t seen in about 6 years (since before Charlie turned 1!).  Thea is older now than Charlie was when we moved.  Mind blowing, right?

The last day our flight didn’t take off until 9:30pm, which was actually pretty sweet.  We got to hang out with my mom and step-dad all day at Balboa park, got some (delicious!) food and gelato at Pappalecco, and then took our sweet ass time checking in for the flight and going through security.

Funny little story: when we went through security, Thea and I were flagged for additional inspection.  The agents looked at me, looked at my herd of kids, looked at each other, and stood there with their mouths hanging open.  I may have yelled.  A lot.  About dumb shit security flagging a mother of four and WHERE ARE MY KIDS GOING TO GO?   A very nice agent came over, apologized for the dumbness, and had me “additionally screened” in two minutes flat.  I guess having 47 kids with you *can* be a good thing.

I had such a good time.  So did Bryan, and so did the girls.  Such fun, and just a ton of experiences that we were so blessed to share with our girls.  I haven’t even pulled all the pictures off my camera yet.  FOR SHAME.  Guess what I’ll be doing this weekend?

Want to see the pics I do have?  Click here for the Flickr gallery. <3

Exhausted

Early Sunday morning we got back from our week-long trip to San Diego/SoCal.  It was an absolutely amazing experience: Squarespace sent the entire family for a vacation.  We got to hang out with friends and family that we haven’t seen in far too long, and go on some incredible adventures.

Of course, we got up early every morning and stayed up late to make the most of our days.  We’re terribly tired, but I can’t wait to share our pictures here, once I’ve had a bit of time to recover.

I didn’t realize how fiercely I miss my mother, those blue skies and palm trees, and the long freeway drives.  Sweet memories.

School Photo Dresses

Awhile ago Oliver + S was having a pattern sale, so I snatched up the School Photo Dress pattern. I love the detail in this dress: the collar, the sleeve bands, and the hidden kangaroo pocket.

It calls for an invisible zipper, which seemed very daunting.  After some consideration though, I figured it wouldn’t get any easier if I didn’t try it at least once, so I pushed onward.  You guys, I am so brave.

I bought some corduroy prints in two color ways, some white lining material, and 2 invisible zippers.  Then I got to work.

I made Charlie’s first, and had to re-do the pocket 3 damn times.  I couldn’t wrap my brain around it, for some reason.  Once I figured it out, though, it was so easy.  And then I smacked myself.

Charlie’s zipper turned out *ok.*  Not great.  It’s not truly invisible.  It went in just fine, no fuss, but I really wanted it to be completely invisible.

When I made Phoebe’s, I really took my time on the zipper part, and I nailed it.  I am so proud of the back of her dress that I might just make her wear it backwards.  For realsies.

I think these dresses will be great through spring, since they can be work with or without tights, and the sleeve length is great for warmer or cooler weather (with a sweater).

I even hand-stitched the lining, just like the pattern told me to.  I’m so good at following directions.

Anyway, I’m really proud of these, and again, I can’t stop raving about Oliver + S. The instructions made it so damn simple, and here I have two beautifully constructed garments.  I feel like a real sewist.

Fair Weather Jacket (again!)

Oh yes.  I made another jacket, this time for Thea.  The pattern is the Fair Weather Jacket from SweetShop on Etsy.  It’s seriously the best jacket pattern ever, and when Lincoln is big enough he’s going to get one, too.

I thought maybe I wouldn’t, but then I decided it would be too cute if they all had little matchy-matchy jackets.  So I ordered some super effing adorable flannel and some purple baby-wale corduroy, and got to work.

This was the easiest jacket, since I’ve done it twice already.  Also, I added a little loop for hanging it up.  Very smart of me.

I actually didn’t buy buttons for the jacket, and just used what I had in my stash.  Because I did this (read: did not plan properly) I didn’t have a total of 6 matching buttons.  The 4 front buttons match, and the 2 back buttons are different.  Whatever.  She doesn’t care, and neither do I.

I did add interfacing again to the back straps, like I did for Phoebe’s.  Phoebe’s washes up so much better with the stiffer straps, so I don’t have to iron the damn things every time it comes out of the wash.  I stopped ironing Charlie’s, so they just get wrinkled.  Interfacing = winning.

I just love it on her, and I love the 3 matchy sisters.  She loves the hood and the pockets.

So, so, so, so cute.

DIY Laundry soap

So, I already blogged about how I made some dishwashing soap.  I know, it totally blows your mind.  I’ve made 2 batches so far: tea tree and lemongrass.  I have plans to also make Orange, using (super cheap!) essential oils from here.  I also ordered more lye from there, for quite cheap.

Shortly after both batches cured, I decided to try to use my soap to make some laundry soap.  Previously I had used Fels Naptha, and while it worked fine I just didn’t like the smell.

The Fels Naptha bars are 5.5oz, so I used 7 ounces of my soap, just for a little more cleaning power.  I grated it up just the same, and essentially followed this recipe.  I use 1 cup of borax and 1 cup of washing soda, though, and I no longer dilute it with water — I just it full strength right from the bucket.

My laundry soap turned out white and creamy, instead of separated and chunky.  It has more of a laundry-soap consistency, which I think is interesting.  As far as cleaning power goes, it works exactly the same IMO.  What I love is that I can make it for pretty cheap, scent it to my liking, and use it both for dishes and for laundry.

Even if you don’t make your own soap, you should totally make your own detergent.  I can’t believe how easy it is, and it makes a whopping 5 gallons at a time.  For a family our size, we go through it pretty quickly, but I can’t imagine buying commercial detergents anymore.

So satisfying, and really thrifty.  Yay!