SURPRISE!

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So, maybe it wasn't such a surprise after all, but it was still great fun.

SWEET 16!

The day dawned drizzly and dreary AGAIN! As a friend of mine said, "Sounds a bit like Oregon!"

But after getting our usual morning stuff and school done, we headed off for the party.

We arrived amidst rain...





Waited sneakily outside the door...





We stuck out like a sore thumb. Ashlee's normal response would have been running away, but this look of real surprise was an obvious giveaway.





Heading down to the barn for the party...





Whoa, this looks cool!





A relay game I made up while at Walmart on the way. Each team member must shoot Silly String into the air, catch it their heads when it comes down, and run back to tag the next person. When your whole team is done, they all pull their party poppers.

















It was a little cool at 50 degrees.





The kids decided to play Airsoft, despite the drizzle.





Birthday girl Ashlee had a fashionista thing goin' on...









Ready for bloodshed, once again.





Hmmmmmmmm... What does Josiah see?





Ah, yes. Four (Correction: six) potential enemy targets, under cover...





Run for it!!!!





But watch out for this sentry.





Is this the sweet babe I gave birth to?





Here are the dead, reloading and getting a new life.





Don't you wish real wars had timeouts?





The upper battlefield.





Rats! Dead again!

















And a barn dance! Complete with live music on some of the songs...





It was a little cold.





Food! Glorious food!









Back to dancing.





















Love these quilts...





Gentlemen always help a lady with a light.





A few dozen voices in a barn, singing happy birthday.





Then we took off for a trip to the corn maze. It was going to be great! But it was raining. Here is our intrepid crew.





So we went back to the home base and played many rounds of spoons.

Cool fun.

~Faith

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Once Upon A Time....

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There was a shy and demure little girl who always wanted to stay home. She loved her mommy and daddy so much and had found that the world outside could be be very mean and nasty.

Then she met a very strange old woman who, despite her odd quirks, could be fairly interesting and likable.

Suddenly, the shy and demure little girl realized that she was already friends with the scariest person on earth, and the world seemed much easier to take after that.

The strange old woman waved pretty fabrics in front of the little girl and told her she would look very pretty.

And before you knew it....





... the little girl grew into a bold and beautiful Amazon woman. In a ballgown. Ready to take over the world. Right after she finishes her bodice.

There! I did it! I made up a story, AS I was typing even, so I get to post the pic. HA!

We were having too much fun last night, trying to get more done. Her skirts are pretty much done, but for hemming. She is on a bench. Don't those fabrics just look so amazing! I always want chocolate after working with them.





I got as much done on my bodice as I knew how to do.





I wanted to work on some underclothing while the rain still was going on. I did not have any fabric that was going to work, so I decided to try my hand at making Michael a Civil War shirt, as his modern dress shirt really does not fit him. Lanky boys; arms longer than shirtsleeves seem to be willing to reach.

I kept trying to tell myself to take pics of the process, but never did. These are the directions for a drop-shouldered shirt; the kind that families would make up and send off to their men fighting in the civil war.





I used an old thin and worn sheet, but doubled it, so it is very soft. Sadly, this will not work for the ball, but it will do for a work shirt or day shirt at battle re-enactments.









And he was not quite sure about my instructions to "Hold your arms up so I can get the cuffs!"





I get to figure out how to put a collar on it next.

~Faith

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Death Pellets.

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That's what these are.









What you can't see is that they went 20 feet in all directions. Michael told me he was going to go outside and take care of the oil in the van (What a man!), and I was putting things away in the house. The bottom fell out of this jug of pellets I was carrying, and life as I had known it was changed in an instant.

You should have seen his face when he came in.

It probably looked a lot like MY face when it happened.

Wednesday, being rainy, gave us another day to have a sewing marathon. Look at this cool little machine. I got the "I want ones".





A bobbin winder. But it did not shut off automatically as it was supposed to. I hope we can get it figured out.





And poly-satin underskirt, all made up, but in need of hemming.





My bodice is coming along.





The taffeta overskirt. Gathering, endless gathering...





These colors are gorgeous! She's going to look like liquid chocolate, flowing across the ball room.





Hmmmmmm... Time for some hot cocoa.

~Faith

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