Gingercake

One for the Boy...

My poor boy.  His sisters get new stuff from Mom all the time but the last time we went somewhere, he had to pack his stuff in a reusable grocery bag!  If you have a boy, you will know that they just don't seem to care about that kind of stuff.  At all.  They care a lot if their sisters get more bacon than them on their breakfast plate, but not so much about sisters getting new handmade clothes or duffle bags.  He needed this one though-  Our lake trip is only a week away and now he can pack his bathing suits in a duffle bag instead of a grocery tote!  

The fabric is  AnnKelle's new funbots in royal.  It is so so so cute and fun.  Kelle's fabric makes everything adorable and the kids are always so happy.  I swear, all the favorite kid things are made from AnnKelle fabric.  AND- Cal loves the new bag!

 

Dreaming of Summer Sale!

I don't know about you but I start thinking about summer vacations in January!  Now is the time to sew up!  Two of my summery patterns are on sale are this week!  If you don't already have these 2 favorites, it's a great time to buy them up!

Another Spring Break Adventure

Last year we went down to the Smokey Mountains but this year we stayed a little closer to home and took the educational route.  Washington DC is only about 5 hours away from us and we have friends that live close to the city.  We had a great time!  I will admit that parking is tough and the METRO is super expensive for a subway, but once you get on the Mall, the DC experience is fantastic.

Our ambitions we pretty toned down- Travis and I aimed for only a couple of spots on each of the 2 days we were there.  This strategy made everything less stressful.  It was hard to see all those big and beautiful museums and not even attempt to go inside (we did brave the air and space museum but it was super crowded and we only stayed about an hour), but it would have been a nightmare to try and drag them through the lines and crowds.

One of the reasons for the crowds was it is cherrry blossom season.  Due to the cold weather, the trees were only in bud but we did get to see these beautiful Japanese magnolias in bloom.  They looked like heaven after such a long winter!

When asked what their favorite thing about DC was, the kids all agreed that they loved playing in the reflecting pond at the national scuplture garden.  Travis loved the Lincoln Memorial and although I loved it all, I think my favorite part was watching the kids crawl around on Albert Einstein...

And what about the baby?  It turns out almost 5 months is a great time to travel with a baby!  She was content in her stroller and loved all the sound and action.  I admit I was pretty nervous about how she would fare, but she did really well inspite of the interuption in her routine.

We spent 2 days in DC and then traveled back up to Pennsylvania and went to Hershey Park.  What a great park!

I can't handle roller coasters so I was happy to stroll the baby around while Travis and the "big" kids went on the rides.  Hershey park is only open on the weekends right now and have special springtime rates.  The weather was great and the crowds were pretty minimal.  

Did you go anywhere for Spring break?  Do you have any recommendations for next year?  The kids are hoping we take a little trip each year and I am game!  Hope you all are finally enjoying Springtime!

Beachy Tunic in Voile

Remember when I made this pretty golden tunic for Anne?  While I was at the beach a few weeks ago, I got some pictures of her wearing it.  I love the color on her and she looked so pretty with all her sun kissed freckles (you wouldn't believe the sunscreen we go though with her!)

We had a lovely time in South Carolina.  Lots of time in the pool and just exploring the beach.  We went into Charleston once during the week but it was the rainy day and I didn't get much time to explore.  The beach was much easier for the kids to play in than the Outer Banks, NC beaches we usually go to although not quite as pretty.

While on the beach we found some treasures...

How is your summer vacation?  Hard to believe it is half way over!!  Although I admit the adjustment to summer vacation is hard for me at first, at this point I love having all the kids home and just relaxing into our easy schedule.  The pregnancy is making me less productive but we all seem to like our slow pace!  

Beachy Days

We have had a busy last few weeks.  School is done, Elsie had her 8th birthday (for which I made a pretty dress but still haven't taken pictures!) and now we are at the beach.  Phew!

This guy is loving his new shovel and not sharing it with anyone...

My husband's youngest brother is here from San Francisco with his beautiful girlfriend and all the little girls are in love...

My husband is persistant in his attempts to catch bluefish in the surf...

and these 2 oldest cousins fight and makeup even better friends than they were before...

The Last Hurrah

We just got back from the beach last night.  I am happy to be home- back to our lazy summer routine and relaxed schedule.  Oh wait- school starts the day after tomorrow!!!!  I feel happy and sad about it like most mom's do- more time to yourself but back to the rush of school, preschool, after school sports, etc.  No more swinging on the back porch and playing uno all afternoon.

I made the girls a couple of last minute summery/ beachy items before I left.  

I used the indie tutes peasant blouse tutorial.  The sleeves are left open and shortened almost to the arm hole seam.  I added a few inches in length to make it a bathing suit cover up.  I also used a fabric from the garment fabric section at Joanns.  Remember my pledge not to use my quilting cottons for clothing anymore?  This type of cotton just flows so much better.

The girls knew this was a "photo shoot".  I asked Elsie to go down toward the water and run toward me.  She makes that cute smile and always looks so well arranged.  Here is the picture i got when i asked Anne to do the same thing...

She's hilarious.  I just kinda winged this skirt with fabric that i had left over from this shirt.  I was inspired though by MADE's cute skirt.  I Love how the doily pocket and crocheted lace trim look together on the yellow.  The shirt is just a cute hand me down from Old Navy!

Here they are together.  As soon as this picture was over they tore off these clothes (bathing suits were underneath!), and trampled them into the sand on their way down to the water.

We had a great time at the beach.  We went to the Outer Banks of North Carolina and the week was full of lazy beachy days, playing with cousins, reading, and some nature walks mixed in.  Travis and I took Anne on a short walk early one morning.

The light was so beautiful and she was happy to be alone with both of us.

The live oaks were so beautiful on this walk over to the bay side of the islands.

We found a cicada shell and Anne brought it back to the house to show her cousins.  

Ewww.  But cool too.

We also took a guided trip up to the north end of the islands to see the wild horses.  WE have come to this beach for several years, and I always see the ATV tours heading up the road to the off road beaches.  It was fun to finally go up there ourselves to see these horses.

I know you are missing seeing Cal in all his beachy glory so here is one last picture.  I didn't make him anything cute to take to the beach but he was still happy and as usual, doesn't seem to notice the dis proportionate amount of things I sew for his sisters compared to him.  

I did buy him a $3 toy gun and a bucket at the dollar store and he was very happily entertained all week!  Hope you are enjoying your last few days before school starts too!