Surprise Habits

Surprise! Not too long ago, I realized that I had acquired a new habit. A good habit. A habit that helps me stay sane during the day, helps me stay healthier, starts my day earlier, makes for a happy baby and a habit that put a spark in a coffee addiction.

Any guesses yet?

I eat breakfast every day. 

Every single day.

For the most part it is a healthy breakfast too. 

(Yes, I have sunk to the level of taking a picture of my food.)

I didn't realize that it had become a steadfast habit until this past week when I woke up in the mornings and immediately turned the hot water on the stove for coffee or oatmeal, or started my cast iron warming up for eggs or french toast.

I remember starting to do it when Mr. Sir left and getting out of bed was really hard. We used to take turns getting up to groggily make coffee and feed James. But after Mr. Sir left (gosh it has been about 4 months now) it was all up to me. So, I did it. No complaining, no whining. There was no choice in the matter, breakfast had to be served. The thought of coffee made it a little easier.

I am pretty sure that is a sign of growing up. You know, when you do the dishes not because someone is nagging you to do them because it is your 'chore'. You do them because they need done and you are the only one to do them. You attempt to keep up with them making them easier in the long run. Same thing with me and breakfast. Oh, and I suppose dishes too.

I have found I love breakfast. This week we have eaten egg sandwiches, PBJ and a banana (my quick breakfast when running late), pancakes, oatmeal, regular french toast, and cream cheese stuffed french toast (in the picture above). I am learning how to cook small meals so that there aren't much for left overs because soggy french toast isn't that great.

Habits are hard to form when you don't have the willpower but you know that it is a good habit so you try to buck your way though it for your health. It is a nice feeling though, when you wake up one day and realize that you have formed a great habit without realizing it.

 Almost as good a feeling as seeing this face every morning.

Live and love

New shorts for the little guy

So I have a pair of jeans that give me a saggy butt. Quite the saggy butt too. So I finally cut the legs off and turned them into summer work shorts. That way I am not tempted to wear them in public.

The leg fabric was perfectly good denim though. To use it up I made James a pair of little boy shorts. I whipped them out in about 20 minutes by cutting off a strip  of fabric from an old T-shirt for a soft waistband and adding 1/2 inch elastic. For the shape I just traced a pair of his other pants to get the crotch right. They are a little snug because (not thinking) I used a pair of 12 month pants, and though he is a little on the lean side he is still almost 17 months old and growing.

They are still pretty darn cute on him.

Live and Love

Capes, bruises, and soul-sucking horns.

About 4 times a year my sister and her other half host a LARP (Live Action Role Play) in the woods on their property, appropriately named "The Myth Wood". Essentially there are characters, quests, storylines, and lots of lots of foam weapons to beat each other with. This was just a short explanation.

I was asked to make some capes for the LARP. They wanted something short and loose so that it was possible to fight in them and they most definitely had to be green. The dark green fabric was originally a table cloth and the light green fabric was, once upon a time, window blinds. I was able to get three capes out of the fabric. I made the capes reversible so they are multipurpose.

 

My character is a Succubus. Meaning that I can suck the soul of a living person making them my thrall (ie. throw a ball at them) and then I cannot die until my thrall dies. So I can run into the fray and cause as much chaos as possible. It is awesome. My sister is a Succubus too and she decided that the colors for the succubi should be red and black. So I showed up wearing this.

I made the corset a few years ago and haven't had a chance to wear it yet. So I was really excited to wear it for something. Honestly, I feel a little bit silly wearing it in public. I also made a set of horns to go with the costume. The horns are made out of a headband, red felt, and cardboard from a cereal box. Oh, and sequins to make it glittery. Perfect for a soul-sucking Succubus.

I am sore, covered in bruises, and full of fight stories.

Yes, it was worth it.



Live and Love

Fitted Diapers, with snaps

Here I go, upcycling again.

My snappi's no longer fit James well, they take quite a bit of stretching. I suppose with 17 months of daily use, 5-10 diapers a day they were well worth the money. Time to tuck them away for future babies.

In the meantime though, I needed to find a better, easier way to diaper James. With Mr. Sir gone off to training, cloth diapering has been put on the backburner a bit. Diapering, washing, drying and dealing with rash and ammonia isn't what I really want to deal with. Actually, I still WANT to deal with it, for the environment and the savings. It is just time consuming.

So, for my sanity I am finding other ways. This latest grand idea is to take the thinning prefolds, add a center absorbant strip that isn't sewn to the diaper, that way it has more surface area to help dry it. I bought a plastic snap pliers with some snaps to play with. I also use elastic on the waist, and legs to keep the messes in and for a slimmer fit. So far I have maybe 6 of these fitted diapers. Enough for one full day at home before I wash, dry, and repeat.

I am also upcycling old flannel cloth that I have lying around for the inserts, the flannel is from some shirts, sheets, and old projects. The inserts are also from some really thin diapers that only work as stuffers. I am trying to use up some odd thread colors that I have too, that is why the thread does not math.

Being human, I will admit that I do cheat. We use a disposable overnight because he sleeps better when he doesn't wake up with the urine next to his skin. Which makes momma sleep better, which in turn makes everyone happier. I also use a disposable in the mornings when he is sure to poop. Oh, the ease.

I have been sewing one at a time for a couple of months now. I intend to make a bunch more because I like them that much.

Oh, and the snaps. Amazing. He can pull them off but not as easy as velcro. They are easy to install too. I can add more snaps to them to create girth as he grows into the diaper. I only spaced out the snaps for girth on a few of the diapers because I am still playing around with the sizing.

But here you go, enjoy!

Yes, that is Garfield you see peeking at you from the open one.

Live and Love