Under the Tulip Tree

In 2009, for the Very First Time…

We walked to school in the snow.

I planted seeds.

Michael was laid off.

Perry got in the water for swimming lessons.

Arden discovered Manga.

I did my own taxes.

Michael freelanced full time.

Perry started making his own lunches.

One of our hamsters had babies.

Our bunny, Suma, died.

We went to Chicago as a family.

Perry flew in a plane.

Arden said she didn't like to fly.

The kids waded in Lake Michigan.

Perry's feet were the same size as Arden's.

I drove to the coast to try out for Wheel of Fortune.

Most of Michael's family met Perry.

I started a blog.

Arden did, too.

Perry walked to school without sitting in the bike trailer.

I learned to use a digital camera.

I made jelly.

Arden allowed her teeth to show in pictures.

Perry spent the night away from home, without us.

I bought skinny jeans.

We started to worry that we'd lose our house.

I told myself that everything would be okay.

And for the very first time, I believed that it might be.

Thank you for visiting here this year. Thank you for commenting and thank you for sharing your thoughts. Thank you for reading — and for caring.

Happy New Year, everyone. I wish for you much peace, joy, love, and happiness in 2010!

xox~Julie

Heart-Shaped Snow

It's starting to melt already so we're headed outside for one more go down the hill. Be back later.

Wool (or Flannel) Wonderland Scarf

Okay, we're starting to return to some kind of normalcy around here (our kind of normalcy, anyway) and the gifts have all been given so I thought I'd share what I was working on last week… these scarves!

While waiting in line at the fabric store a few months ago, I picked up the Fall 2009 issue of Stitch magazine and noticed Meg McElwee's adorable pattern for the Wool Wonderland Scarf. There were lots of cute projects in the magazine and this one was my favorite.

The original pattern called for wool but I used a plaid flannel instead because we have sensitive skin in our family and I needed to use something really soft. The other side is made from corduroy (same as the original pattern) and the ruched flower appliqués are made out of cotton and attached to the front. I added the buttons and the contrast stitching for a little detail and to help keep everything in place.

I gave the red scarf to my mom for Christmas (she likes darker earth tones) and my sisters both got the blue-green version here (they like cooler colors). I'm not much of a hand sewer so I was a little unsure about the ruched flowers but the instructions were very easy to follow and they moved along really quickly. If I didn't have to make three scarves in a row (or if I wouldn't have waited until the last minute), I would have made more flowers and had them climb up the scarf like Meg's original pattern.

All in all, a super fun project and scarves that everyone loved.

Helter Skelter

We are in the midst of post-Christmas chaos. Everything has been flung about the house. The adults have taken the Wii hostage playing Beatles Rockband which means no one has eaten and the kids have been in their pajamas since Thursday.

What's it like at your house? Can I come over for a little bit?

Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Night!

Composed Lunch

When I was in high school, I had the same locker for all four years and so did the girl next to me. We got along really well even though we were polar opposites of each other. She was showered, very put together, wore pearls, and came from a family that I imagined wore bathrobes. I was unshowered, half-asleep, and wore the same thing to school as I wore to bed the night before (and would wear later in the afternoon to volleyball practice). One morning, as we both were getting ready to go to homeroom, I complained about how hungry I was. "Didn't you just eat breakfast?" she asked. "No. I never eat breakfast. I always wake up too late in the morning," I said. She told me that every morning her whole family ate a full breakfast together at the table accompanied by classical music. I was impressed. I'd never known anyone so proper!

Yesterday, I believe I made what would be considered a very proper lunch: a Composed Salad of Roasted Broccoli, Romaine, Chickpeas, and Walnuts from Martha. No one ate it with me and there wasn't any classical music playing in the background (just the distant sound of my kids fighting in the back bedroom) but it was fussier than most dinners I make. I thought about my locker neighbor and imagined her going home for lunch (instead of staying in the cafeteria and eating nachos with the rest of us) and having her mother make her a Composed Salad of Roasted Broccoli, Romaine, Chickpeas, and Walnuts. That's what I thought about, anyway. Anything to pass the time in the kitchen. Oh, and the salad was really good, too.

Losing the Will to Sew

This summer, I was on my biggest sewing kick in 14 years. For years I had only been motivated enough to make curtains, and even then I mostly resorted to tearing the fabric on the grain and hanging the curtains (unhemmed) from clips. But this summer, I really needed some sundresses. I'd been wearing the same summer dresses for years and I just couldn't stomach another summer in the things. I unburied my sewing machine from the garage, pulled my JoAnn's coupon out of the recycling, and combed the pattern books for something cute.

The first dress I made? Total potato sack. The second dress? Potato sack's sister. But when I made the third dress? Jackpot! After that winner, I just couldn't stop. I made more dresses and then I made hats and purses and shorts and skorts and Halloween costumes and blouses until…

I lost the will to sew.

And, of course, I lost it after I bought all of the patterns and fabric and notions for all the things I planned to make this winter. Nice!

One of the reasons I started this blog was to create a space to share my sewing projects. I had so many things I wanted to show you and there were so many more things lining up. But when I actually started the blog, all I felt like doing was taking pictures and talking about things other than sewing.

I started to get a little more (okay, a lot more) motivated this weekend, though, when I realized how much I would have to do in order to get my little sister's present out in the mail by Monday, which is now today. I still have much to do for the gifts for my mom and other sister by Christmas Eve but I have Tuesday and Wednesday to panic about that, right?

I'm pretty sure I'll be taking another sewing break after Christmas. Hopefully this one won't last for 14 years because I don't think that the shirt I'm making for Perry (the one that's already been cut out and is now crumpled in a pile on top of a basket next to the markers) will fit him in 14 years.