no change here.

well except for my hair. which is SHORT! perhaps a tad shorter than i thought, but it is really funny because the hairstyle i am not sporting, is one that i have always wanted and tried to get, but it never truly laid or styled quite right. and as i type this with messy-i've been up all night with sick kids hair- i realize, hey- it was finally cut perfect to fit the style!

well, it did just happen yesterday, let's see how i feel after i shower.

and sadly i really don't have a good before and after picture- well maybe i do, but i have been sporting an all attractive pony tail knot for the last week (hence the haircut)

but still no change with the kids. and no, it isn't swine flu. they are only sick in the middle of the night, which is just lovely for me and sam- more un-lovely for sam, as he has to work at 4 am.

the house is a mess, it doesn't smell well in here, there is sewing and such to be done.

but it will be ok.

i wish i had a picture to share. not of the mess or the sewing that isn't done. but i realized that i only take pictures of my kids or my sewing. how boring is that? really boring. i think i ought to change that up!

i went and saw julie/julia. i liked it. although it makes me come back to this little blog and of course dream of the different things i could do.

the problem- i never have just one idea. even when i try to think about the things i could only focus on and write about, well never does one thing just apply.

i truly am generally wondering about so many things, and generally trying of lots of things- not that i always follow through, but i have ideas.

are to many focuses in one blog exhausting? not for me at least- its nice to get them out of the brain and onto a surface.

well, on a side note, i think i am going to be deleting some of my labels in an attempt to reorganize my thoughts, ideas and this blog. so try hard and not be lost or shocked if this happens.

and on a completely other note:

weighed in yesterday, all the pregnancy weight with henry is gone. i'd post my weight, but my sister will kill me. this isn't a brag, i feel proud and happy.

goal weight=new hair.

now hopefully i can stay not pregnant for awhile and enjoy it!

weariness.

it has been a long week. and it is only thursday. however, every single day this week has felt like a saturday. why? because we have been watching so many movies, in fact i think the kids have watched a years worth of movies this week alone.

well mary, why are you allowing your family to become horrid lazy bums? because we have been suffering from a horrid stomach flu that has not gone away. i think somewhere in blog literature it indicates that to many details on such a matter aren't undesirable for your readers- so i won't enlighten you.

but it has been awful. and just when you think it is over, one more child gets sick.

if i disappear for awhile- my body has let me down, and i am sick.

i am letting my body down. queasiness and tyring to bounce up and down during a work out don't quite go hand in hand. so my uber dedication to my firm videos has taken a hit, and it makes me sad. after all, exercise releases endorphins right? (quoting Elle here from Legally Blonde)

sewing has been done in little spurts. and i did finish jess's bag. and i am pretty happy with the results (but will never ever sew on home decor fabric again... well, at least not without researching needles).

anyways, that is life right now. messy and a little bit of of a pause.

i am getting my hair cut tomorrow, and the thought of a tiny escape from this place sounds amazing- especially when it will feel like a bit of glamour, being pampered and all.

now off to find my camera so i can share photos from the new creation!

** i am still a momma, but i have decided to drop down to just plain old simple mary.

although i am not too plain, and i refuse to say i am old, and simple? hardly.

the dorothy bag.

finally posting about sewing, and by the way- i should NOT be posting, i should be sewing... this procrastinator is feeling the pressure of gifts that have not been made.

however behind i am, i felt the urge to share a little project that i not only made, but technically designed myself. i am starting to believe that bag design is not my forte at all (which is an incredibly ironic statement to make seeing that another new design is laying on my ironing board right now)

anyhoo- here she is:

i have named her "the dorothy bag".

for no other reason than when i thought "she needs a name" the wizard of oz just shot into my brain. maybe it's the gingham. not quite sure.

the pockets are a little different- they are longer, and one side is 2 pockets, the other side is 3, perfect for your cell phone, keys- those things i am constantly digging in my purse for.

i couldn't make this picture flip, but that's the loop i made.

and here is said loop around the button.

and the bag.

she isn't to tough, i used a little bit of interfacing, and probably should have used more because the fabric was very light weight. originally she was much longer, but when i attempted a new move on the sides, it didn't turn out well. so i improvised. and this is what we got.

i like the handle especially, nice and over the shoulder.

this dorothy bag was given off as a gift. perhaps with better fabric choices (because i tend to salvage pieces together when making a new project) she would be worth a price? a very small price that is.

i am pretty impressed that my sides all matched up- something you cannot see in the pictures, but they did all add up.

well, i should probably go off and start sewing. but (and without giving to much information here) i have really sick kids, one who is currently sleeping on the floor in the living room in case any new sickness comes um... up.

so, i guess i might be really leaving this gift to the last minute (funny, since it is already 1o days late).

little bits.

home and trying to settle back in. it is so hard. cranky children, messy home, and endless projects that need to be started.

however my brain is a tad foggy. maybe its from being gone for so many days, and having so many things on the horizon, i am just struggling to find my focus, and get started.

and the screaming baby i hear in the background does not make anything easier.

but, you have to love new fabric, right?

i'm particularly in love with the cotton knit- the white with blue and brown flowers (?)

not sure what i will do with it, other than drape it around myself and pray for sanity, focus, and motivation to get off the couch!

interruption.

i am not quite sure what i was planning on blogging about, but any thoughts that may have been floating around inside my mind are officially put on hold, because i have to share exciting news about the two new loves in my life.

ms. baby blue.

this is why i cannot boldly put the buy handmade button on my blog.

i love to make handmade, and i love buying handmade... but i cannot take the pledge. why? because i am addicted to red stickers. red clearance stickers that is, and i happen to have some kind of super power that allows me to find them everywhere!

ms. baby blue was a fantastic target find while shopping with my sister last night. i was spending some money that my momma gave me... you see it would have been $1300 for the kids and i to fly up to washington, so i drove us all up. my mom decided i might need a little spending spree after the drive... she was right, i had way to much fun shopping last night with my sis. and by the end of the night i was a giggly mess (perhaps it was because my children were at home snuggled in their beds-all 3- or i think the starbucks lady put a little something extra in my latte).

anyways, ms. baby blue here was only $7.88

now i love making bags, one of my favorite things to make... but i really doubt i could have made this for $7.88

at least i know it wouldn't have turned out this way!

and ms. brown fancy.

now ms. brown fancy here was purchased with the mindset that i would use her as my camera bag. now she is quite girlie, i don't know if sam will approve.... so she may be used as a camera bag some days, and an everything else bag other days.

bff, i searched long and hard for another one, and alas, i could not find a sister to this.

and at a whopping $4.88- believe me i searched really hard!

.

remember how i feel about journals? well that sentiment is also shared on bags.

in all fairness- i only buy bags that are ridiculous deals. and try and only make bags out of fabric i adore...

and i never buy shoes. so it kinda evens out right?

ok, back to admire my new bags.

it really is love.

mobility

terrible pic, but not truley terrible if you take into account it was shot via my phone.

isn't it wonderful that just because you are "gone" from your home, you never truly have to gone from your blog? i mean, unless you really want to be gone. i am a self-admitted blog addict. and with 3 blogs going, i understand i have a problem. but i don't care.

i just love to blog. and i am hoping that one day i will consistently have wonderful things to say.

or interesting things to say.

or helpful.

funny?

meaningful?

for today it is crafty/inventive. no, i am not sewing while away (for those of you who didn't see my last cryptic post placed via my snazzy new cell phone, i am currently residing in the slightly cooler whereabouts of puyallup, wa). however i did bring a slab of sewing stuff with me, and my sister wants to attempt to make flower clips.... so hopefully i will for once do something that i have brought.

how many of us do that? i over bring everything. 4 journals for this, 5 books that sound interesting, 6 sewing projects to start, exercise stuff if inspired.

i need to narrow it down! which should really be my new motto, and for today it is.

instead of the above listed, it should really be 1 journal, a traveling journal- for all vacationing, not that it needs to be filled with thoughts about trips, but thoughts formed while vacationing.

boom. i just created more room in the car- for fabric.

and instead of doing 5 books that i haven't started- just bring one book. and if i really plan on reading, it should be one either i am desperate to start, desiring to re-read, or am almost finished.

sewing. hmmm. it should really be hand projects only, which really shouldn't be a problem, because i think i have a nifty idea for the etsy store, and it really requires 80% embroidering, and seeing that i am not super good yet- i need the practice.

look at all the room i am creating.

and as far as my exercise stuff. who am i kidding? i am always inspired. i have become a exercise addict (same with blogging) and got a ton of enjoyment out of co-firming it up with my sis today.

well, not a particularly crafty or inventive post of anything crafting related.

but crafty and inventive with space is something i am always thriving for!

and now (hypothetically) i have created all more space for fabric.

swoon.

impromptu

Bravery, deciding in 2 short hours that I would be gone for 6 days with my kids. Not impressed? I had to drive 10 hours to get to my first destinatiion- with 2 and a half hours still to go. Nothing quite like traveling till 3 am with 3 tired babies. I will have to reward myself with some new fabric....