Sew-a-bration of Womanhood: Blog Series

I am so excited to get to participate in the second year of the Sew-a-bration of Womanhood Series with the Shaffer Sisters (last year it was the 'Make for Mom' series and I made the Ariadne Top).

2014 has been my year of Self Care Sewing - of rediscovering the joy in sewing things for myself - and the absolute pleasure of wearing things that I can't afford to buy, but I can afford to MAKE.  Add to that the comfort of actually fitting in my clothing... WOOT!!!!!

Here's a little glimpse of some of what I have made so far this year:

    

   

For today though, I am sharing a great top for summer from Seamingly Smitten.  This is the women's high low tank.  Stylish - check, perfect for lightweight drape-y cotton and cotton blends - check, can be made with just one yard of fabric - check!  Similar tanks can run from $20-50 in stores, and this yard of fabric I scored on sale for $5.  It is a poly cotton blend from Joanns with such a soft hand and an incredible drape.  This pattern would be great in a lightweight knit too.

If you are a mom like me, this is the perfect staple to fill your wardrobe with - it is easy to wear and can be super simple and casual, or easily dressed up with a few accessories.  It works with jeans, or shorts, and I think it would be so cute with a skirt as well!

The top sews up quick, and was the perfect easy thing to wear to a summer cook out.  I can chase after kids, eat too much food, and still feel pulled together - mommy win!

The Jeans are my Named Jamie Jeans that I made during Challenge Create - these are one of my favorite things I have made for me this year!

I am so thankful for the opportunity to encourage more women to sew for themselves - no matter what your size, or style, or sewing level - you CAN sew for yourself and love what you create!
*In that vein, I have been working on something secret and special and very much for women... I'll be able to tell you more later in the month!*

Check out all of the other amazing women participating:

The Life Of A Compulsive Crafter | Serger Pepper | House of Estrela | sewVery | Our Busy Little Bunch

Modern Handmade | Golden Rippy | Sew & Tell with Mama Eggo | Shawnta Sews | Fishsticks Designs
Ali Cat & Co | Paisley Roots | Like a mother | Giggles & Beans | Call Ajaire
Shaffer Sisters | I Married Superman | A Jennuine Life | If Only They Would Nap | Once Upon a Sewing Machine

Naptime Creations | Pattern Revolution | Two Many | Rebel & Malice | Simple Simon and Company

SewingSober | Handmade Dress Haven | Daisy Chain Creations | Swoodson Says | I'm Feelin' Crafty So Cal Sewing Mom | Keep Calm and Carrion | DandelionDrift | The Crazy Tailor | Max California 

Falafel and the Bee | Lexi Made | Winter Wonderings | Kid Approved | Scientific Seamstress
Becca DuVal | Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop | The Berry Bunch | Little Kids Grow | leighlee
Feathers Flights | That's-Sew-Kari

Pee-Palooza - the Journey is just beginning...

So, the long weekend may be over - but our adventures in potty training are really just beginning.

I am so thankful that we have had this time to focus on getting started and figure out some strategies.

Yesterday was my first day home alone with the boys in undies - I was also diagnosed with Strep, but at least that means I am on meds now and starting to feel better.
Yesterday was awesome - only one pee and one poop accident all day.  We took the kiddos to Chick Fil-A for family night and then to go grocery shopping.... they did so great (this was where we had the one poop accident, but it wasn't too big and we had supplies to deal with it.)  I was seriously feeling 'fist-pump-in-the-air' awesome when we put them down to bed.

Then this morning we have had three puddle accidents in less than an hour - sigh, and deflate the ego.

If you are going to potty train twins - resign yourself tot he fact that you will do at least one load of laundry every day just for them!

The truth is that the boys have been doing so great overall, but they are still learning - and I am still learning!  Going forward we will have great days and not so great days, and they are all part of the process.

The things I feel like the boys have grown in:

• A can do the whole process by himself (taking off his underwear, climbing up on the potty, climbing up, and flushing)
• Both boys are waking up dry from naps
• Both boys have started occasionally waking up dry from night
• When they aren't distracted, or uninterested - both boys will tell me they need to go ;op

Thank you for all the prayers and words of encouragement - and keep them coming - I think we'll be at this for a while!

Pee-Palooza: The saga continues

 

Day two felt like an exercises in one step forward, TWO steps back.  I think the novelty of day one started to wear off on day two.  It isn't helping that I am not feeling well - stupid allergies gone haywire.

yes - I do need 2x as many pairs of underwear for one child ;o)  We are keeping all their underwear stacked on the back of the toilet to make for easy access after an accident.  I also have one who seems to dribble a bit more than the other - is this just a boy thing????

stickers from the $1 section at Target make for a great reward and way to track success!

So, day one ended with a bunch of success and pizza for dinner.  All total there were about 6 puddle accidents between the two boys over the course of the day - not bad at all for day one!

Day two started off strong - in the first two hours of the morning the boys were consistently telling me they needed to go, or going when I asked.  We had a fun breakfast, my mom picked up baby girl for some one on one time, and I thought we were moving into another strong day.  I really wasn't feeling well though - so once hubs got a shower in, I left him in control and went to lie down.  Poor guy.... in the next hour and a half before nap time, B pooped in his underwear TWICE, and A had accidents both outside and inside - on the carpet of course ;op

Now accidents are bound to happen, and they are the learning experiences that help kids grow and solidify their new skill, but sheesh - I never meant to abandon my poor hubs for a string of them in a row!

After nap time, we took the kids to the pool - we figured everyone needed a break and some genuine fun!  They each asked to go to the potty once while we were there, I am sure they left a good amount of pee in the pool, but the fact that they each asked to go counts as a check in the positive column in my book.

So far today there has only been on accident... but hey it is only 9am ;op

Morning of day 2 Sticker Charts (*baby girl stole some off of B's chart)

Morning of Day three sticker charts

My biggest struggles are when I ask if they need to go and then they have an accident less than 2 minutes latter, and the fact that I feel like I am nagging non-stop.  I am trying to ask about every 15 minutes... I am also making them pee before getting a drink and within 15 minutes of drinking said drink.

This afternoon we will take them - in underwear - to an outdoor cook out.  I will be bringing 2 spare outfits for each of them, fingers crossed that it can be an enjoyable experience.

Keep praying for patience, endurance, and healing for me!!!!

Pee-palooza: the Great Adventures of Potty Training

So we officially started Potty Bootcamp today, the boys recently turned 3 and finally started giving the signals that they were ready for the real deal.

Proud boys in their brand new underoos!

Our Bootcamp is fairly relaxed, but still organized enough to teach them this new skill in hopefully a little bit of fun in the mix. *They have been peeing on the potty occasionally for the last 6-9 months while still wearing diapers, so this is not a 0-60 situation*

What it looks like:

• We are keeping the boys on our main floor (hardwood and tile for easy clean up)
• We went straight to underwear only for awake hours (for naps and bedtime we will continue to use diapers)
• We are not giving them anything extra to drink or strange to eat... they drink a lot on a regular basis, so have enough opportunities to go is just not an issue for us.
• We are using a sticker chart to track their success - this doesn't earn them anything other than getting to stick a sticker on a colored piece of paper with their name on it - and a High Five, and lots of verbal praise.
• For accidents we are trying to keep it positive, but acknowledge that this was an accident/mistake.  They are immediately taken to sit on the potty.  We use a rhetoric of 'We don't pee in our underwear, we want to keep them nice and dry, we pee in the potty, next time let mommy and daddy know you need to go so we can make it to the potty on time!'
• We purposely picked a three day weekend so that this could be a joint venture between my husband and I and the kids.  We both need a lot of support from each other, and the ability to say 'your turn'.

So far the boys are doing ok.  Between 7am and 1pm there were a total of 3 puddle accidents - one was on carpet, one on hard wood and one on a chair.  The carpet was an accident on all our parts, we put a plastic tarp down in our office so that the boys could watch a show before lunch.  Becket wandered off and up to the desk for a closer view and had an accident in the 3 minutes I was out of the room.  Our chairs I have transformed into 'special' chairs.  A layer of plastic wrap and a thick towel meant that that accident was an easy clean up.  The accident on the floor, I quickly mopped up with a towel and then had my son clean with a Clorox wipe after he sat on the potty.  I think it is important that they participate in clean up but not in a way that makes them feel shame.

I doubt this is a perfect method, and seeing as we are just half a day in I can't say whether it is really working or not yet.  

For reference, this morning A had 7 successes and B had 6 successes.... like I said, our boys don't really need anything extra in their diet to have enough opportunities to succeed. 

high fives abound

If you are the praying kind, pray for us and the boys!  Pee-Palooza is ONNNNNNNNNNNNNN!

Let's GO to the Movies: Matilda

Today I am guest posting back over at Project Run and Play - YAY, I love getting to be over there any time possible.

We got the opportunity to choose a challenge that was not in our season and sew it up - well I chose 'Let's Go to the Movies' - I think my little Matilda looks pretty dang spot on!  Head over to Project Run and Play to check out all the pictures and details.

Thanks to Hayley of Mouse House Creations for the Perfect Pattern - the Caroline Party Dress!