Sweet Pod

I think this is my favorite project yet! Introducing....the SweetPod, My soft-structured baby carrier.


About 6 weeks ago, Jessica (one of my homeschool friends) asked me if I would test her pattern to make this handy-dandy little thing. I jumped at the chance after oohing and aahing over hers at many a homeschool activity. She sent me the most amazing pattern and I got to make it! The catch...I only had to look for errors or changes. I think I definitely got the best deal in the bargain.

After getting lost on Jessica's blog and seeing what a talented gal she is (and seeing the other tester's blog and seeing her skill!), I'm amazed that she would ask little ol' me to try it out. Thank you! I feel honored.

So, after working on this amidst Halloween costumes and Craft Fairs, I finished it yesterday and haven't looked back. My only wish is that I would have finished it sooner!


You can put the baby in front...or on your back!

David really likes it. I finished it just in time for our carpet-cleaning project...when the house was in upheaval and no place for him to nap (or even set him down for that matter!).


No problem! He enjoyed a nice little snooze on my back, and thanks to this amazing sleeping hood (my personal favorite part of the Sweet Pod) his head didn't roll all over and he kept pretty cozy.



What a cutie!

I've never been much of a carry-my-baby-around type person, but I foresee the Sweet Pod changing all of that! Today, David helped me mop the kitchen floor--by being content. Now that's worth a lot.

Jessica said she is hoping to post her pattern to her Etsy store by December 5, so if any of you are interested, I can give it a VERY high recommendation of a great easy-to-follow pattern, a fun project, and a wonderful final result!

***Update***
Jessica also asked me to test her second pattern, the SweetPod Saddle Bag. I've blogged about that wonderful thing here. Check it out!


And, my third SweetPod can be seen here.

Back to Business

With the daily "shuffle" of things, it's time to re-focus on our "creating."

We've got 2 craft shows coming up, so if you are in the area, we would love to see you! We will have car seat covers, nursing covers, receiving blankets, burp rags, and all sorts of fun stuff!

Wednesday December 2, 2009, 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Northrop Grumman Building 17455 E Exposition Drive in Aurora (off Alameda close to the Air Force Base), Classrooms 1004 and 1009. This is a reschedule from our October show.

Saturday December 5, 2009, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Grandview High School 20500 E Arapahoe Road, Aurora. I'll be doing a booth with my friend Kim, who does a lot of Stampin' Up stuff. She has a great blog too!

Hope to see you!

How Embarrasing

Yesterday was one of those days that just didn't go as planned. I did learn one thing very valuable though: My husband is VERY patient with me. I knew it before, but it was nice to have a re-iteration.

I was going to my sister-in-law's yesterday to drop off my kids so I could run errands. They live on a 2.5-acre lot in Parker and have a very long, windy driveway (yesterday it was especially long). It snowed last weekend and their driveway was pretty packed, so I thought I could make it up to their house...I thought wrong. I got almost all the way up and couldn't go any farther. So, I tried to back down. Problem #1: I'm a terrible backer-upper. Problem #2: Everything was white, I couldn't tell the driveway from everything else. So, needless to say, I got off the driveway and encountered Problem #3: I couldn't get traction. Somehow I got turned around and was trying to get back on the driveway and to the covert to go over the ditch. Then I made a really dumb decision and ended up in the ditch...very stuck.

I thought about taking a picture, but I'm not very good at taking photos of "non-happy" moments. I'll use the excuse that I didn't have my camera with me.

I tried to call Jeff, but couldn't get a hold of him. Sweet Kaylene let me take her Suburban to run errands and thought we would figure it out when the guys got home from work. Jeff got my message later that afternoon and wasn't too happy, but (of course) he had school until 9, so he told me to get a ride home and he would figure it out when he got done.

We had dinner at Kaylene's and Jared came home. Jared was pretty patient too. He told me I was the 4th person to "ditch" my car there (I was hoping it would never happen to me!). Neighbors came over offering their tractors to help pull it out, and I was just glad they didn't live on a terribly busy road so that not a lot of people saw it.

We eventually got home and Jeff did too. By that time he wasn't upset, he didn't get mad, didn't over-react, he just went and got the job done.

Jared ended up pulling the van out with the excavator and it's just fine except for a minor dent and some scratches under the bumper, which Jeff said he could fix pretty easily. I'm grateful for a patient brother-in-law too. Jeff said Jared's comment was, "We've done dumber things."

So, none the worse for wear. "It's the family car," Jeff said, "we stopped being sentimental over cars a long time ago."

I'm SO grateful Jeff was patient with me. This is my first "car problem" since we've been married (10 years), so I HAVE tried to be good. So now I have a story to tell at the family get-togethers when we all start talking about "dumb things we've done in vehicles." I'm still not at the top :)

All in a Week's Work

It's been a busy week. The days leading up to the craft show, we were sewing, sewing, sewing! We still have been doing school, church work, and piano lessons...but here's a few things we've done since then!


Finished the Halloween Costumes! I've been working on them off and on over the last few weeks. They went pretty smoothly, except for a few glitches....like running out of thread on Sarah's cloak and having Samuel grow while the costume was in progress. I was able to add a few inches into the Dino's crotch so it would be wearable. He barely squoze into it and I think it was still 5 inches too short (Even with the extended hem). Oh well, he loved it and we will have another dino coming up in a few years :)

Eliza's Indian costume was my favorite You know when the pattern comes with sewing and GLUING instructions that it's an easy one. Sarah's (the mid-evil princess) wasn't too bad either, but I must remind myself that sewing with the costume satin is not my favorite thing. I was singing the praises of my rolled hem presser foot though!


No, I didn't sew David's. It's a great bear costume from Babies R Us.


About a month ago we were at the fabric store and Samuel found this fabric. He picked up the bolt and would not let go of it. I bought a yard and a half, thinking I would do something with it...someday. I think every day since then he has asked if I would make his dinosaur blanket (can you tell he loves dinosaurs?). Two days before the craft show I told him I would make it on Friday.

Friday morning Jeff and I were getting ready and Samuel was laying on our bed. I was talking to Jeff and said, "Aren't you glad today is Friday?" A little voice pipes up in the other room and says, "It's Friday! That means you get to make my dinosaur blanket!"

So, the day went by...even though it was late and all the kids were in bed, it was still Friday and I did promise Samuel I would do it. I had some green fleece left over from Samuel's dinosaur costume, so that became the back. Jeff helped me tie it while we watched a movie, and Saturday morning, we had one happy little guy.



So this one wasn't actually crafting, but it counts for a project! I put up our pumpkin. Every year I take our Jack O Lantern and our pumpkin bowls (a Halloween tradition, soup in cleaned out pumpkins for dinner) and bake them, then puree them to freeze. We make all kinds of pumpkin yummies. The bags don't look as pretty as jars would, but freezing is a whole lot easier!


And, the project we finished up today. My mom commissioned me to make car seat covers for our friend who is having twins (yes, one a boy, one a girl) next month. I found this fabric and couldn't resist--I bought the rest of the bolts. But they turned out so cute! I hope she likes them!

Not bad for a week's work...Now I can get started on the project I WANT to do, my baby carrier.