Needlebooks With the Bitty

Madelynn has lost SO many needles. She has one left out of all the needles I have bought her. I decided to do a search on pinterest for needlebooks to solve her problem and found one that I thought she could do with just a little help from me. I also found one that I would like to make. Since I am new to sewing myself, I thought it would be fun to do this needlebook that was like a teeny tiny quilt. Today, while the boys (except Logan) were out shooting Carson's birthday present, the Bitty and I made our needlebooks! So, we are both so proud of ourselves and I wanted to post the pictures of them. :)

 Madelynn did a great job! I cut out the felt for her, she sewed the petals on, sewed on the button, backstitched the stem and leaves, sewed the felt button flap and pocket on the inside and then blanket stitched the entire thing! Wow! Not bad for a four year old, huh? :)

 Here is mine! This is the embellished inside which looks so cute thanks to kind of copying how she did it on the tutorial. I'm so glad that other people share their creativity! :) My needles are on the pages behind these.

 Tim's Nana gave me 2 yards of old Holly Hobbie fabric with different pictures on it. I thought this was perfect for a little needlebook! My edges are a bit sloppy, I think if I make another one, I will cut the cover bigger to make sure it gets stitched down.

 The pieced and quilted back. My first time doing that, it was super fun! I got a fat quarter bundle on clearance at Joann's for five bucks and it matched the Holly Hobbie fabric nicely. :) I even used the ribbon that the fat quarters were tied together with for the ribbon ties. Ha!

Small House & Camping

I have been feeling bummed for awhile about still being in a two bedroom house with three kids and no prospective buyers. The other day, the kids and I did a little rearranging in their bedroom to get Logan's toy box in there. It has been taking up space in my laundry room and the toys have been in baskets in my living room. So, it gave me back a lot of space in the house and really didn't take up too much in the kids' bedroom. In fact, they were pretty excited about it and we snapped a picture to send to daddy so he could see how our morning project turned out.

Last night, after we put the kids to bed, I had to smile. Carson was telling Madelynn a story. They lay in there laughing and being goofy and enjoying one another and I had to see how I was blessed by our small home. If we had an extra bedroom, they would never had shared a room and while it may have cut down on a lot of fighting, it has allowed them an opportunity to bond in a way they wouldn't have been able to otherwise. So, I am really feeling happy about our situation right now, even though the logical side of me thinks it is absurd to have three children in one bedroom. Until we are able to add on or buy a new house, I am going to continue focusing on being content with where we are.

Also, we returned from our fall camp trip yesterday! The weekend went by all too quickly and I think we are considering an extra day next year. I enjoyed the peace and quiet and time with my family. I was able to enjoy a quiet time reading while Tim and Carson were out on the canoe, Madelynn was otherwise occupied and Logan was napping.

We are starting this 31 seek series at church. Kind of nice to read about creation while sitting out by the woods and next to the lake. Sigh.... A few more pictures from our fall camping trip for all my family members who look at my blog and enjoy such things. :)

The annual picture on the stump...with a new kid this year! :)

 Our campsite, taken from the popup.

 Taking a walk in the woods with the kids.

 A canoe ride with Daddy...

 ...while Mommy hangs with Logan. :)

 I'm not sure why this picture came up sideways, it was not like that when I loaded it and I can't fix it. Oh well, turn your head and see how cute he is. ;)

 Daddy with his boys.

 Daddy and his kids. :)

 I love this picture. :)

 Now here they are, all in the 'attic' (as Madelynn calls it) and being very goofy.

Co-op & Crochet

Our homeschool group's co-op started last month. I had been preparing Madelynn for it for like two months. She was determined that she would not go and would not like it. I was pretty stressed about it. I was able to take her to her class and stay for a few minutes and she did fine! So, we are halfway through and she really does like it! Whew! I have noticed a lot of changes in her lately. She is definitely starting to be more obedient and is a lot more pleasant to be around! It was funny, after the first day of co-op, her behavior was so much better and I commented on it. She said, "I learned about obeying at co-op." I'm thinking, you have got to be kidding me! I'm sure she never learned anything about obedience at home. ;) Haha! I'm thinking that she was very stressed about co-op and was very happy that it wasn't as bad as she thought it would be.

That is from the first day of co-op. Carson is taking gym, geology and medieval times. He is really enjoying all of his classes and has a ton of things to tell me about on the way home. I'm helping out in the nursery this time around since I have my little guy with me. This year of homeschooling so far has been going great, with the exception of our sick week last week. I think that the difference is that I am not an exhausted pregnant lady this year. Haha!

I started this owl bag for Madelynn before co-op last year and finished the whole thing with the exception of sewing the felt on and putting it all together. So, it kinda sat around as a ufo for a year and I pulled it out and finished it before her first day this time. It is from the Crochet Today magazine, which I really love.

I will have to post again soon about Madelynn's sewing progress. That little girl is doing great, I'm so proud of her!