Finish Line

I am embarrassed to say that my latest sewing project I actually started at the end of July! I had very little motivation when it came to working on the project because I wasn't really a big fan of the fabric that I had to use for it! I made it for a girl that works with my little sister. Even though the fabric was YUCK! I still managed to complete the whole order last week. FINALLY!

I like the fabrics separately, but I don't think they go well together

Lots of pieces

Around the Clock

 The last couple of weeks have flown by! I can't believe that we have been back to school for 3 weeks now! We have been so busy that our time passes so quickly!

First, Abi started ice skating lessons, her sport of choice for this year. So far, she is really excited each Saturday morning. Though, I won't count my chickens before they hatch because last year when she started gymnastics she was pumped about it for the first couple of months. It was  downhill after that. So, we will see!

 On her way to her first lesson

 Crystara, an awesome skater and friend, helped Abi find her way around.

My cutie pie

On the ice

Last Friday, September 16, the kids and I started Friday school. Friday school is what we call our co-op through First Class Ministries. We're off to a great start! 

First day of school pics

Austin's 1st day of Destruction! class- taking apart a dishwasher

Sorry this pic is blurry, but the kid's were moving while leading worship

Austin had his first official baseball game with his new team this week. His colors this season are navy blue, silver, and white. That's a big change from red, black, and silver! Kid pitch is also a LOT different from coach pitch...the games move a LOT slower! 

We lost. It was a polar opposite type of game than we are used to...we'll chalk it up to the new team trying to mesh. 

What a daddy's girl

My little ball player

Brazos, here with Austin, played on the Vipers with Austin and is now on his new team

Number 23 like his name sake (Austin Jordan after Michael Jordan)

 We got to hang out with a cutie-patootie, Miss Pacey, a couple of times this week. While we were with her, we took a trip to visit her big brother, Luke. Luke is also Abi's best buddy, so it was really a treat for her!

Luke and Abi



 Abi had a birthday party to attend today for Becca, one of her sweet friends. She was on top of the world!!! The party was at 'Sweet and Sassy'.

After her haid and makeup

Singing on stage

Austin sent a very special, thoughtful gift for Becca.

He gave her a rock 

When you lifted the rock up, he had a special little treat

The card read: "You never know what you'll find when you look under a rock!" SO SWEET!

Becca recently got an American Girl doll. It only seemed fitting to give her a bed for her new pal. Mark and I made her this farmhouse bed (plans from http://www.annawhite.com/) and I made the bedding from my fabric stash. I was quite excited when it all came together...I like pretty things!



What's New

We have a few things going on lately. First, I forgot to post this back with the updates about our cruise. A couple of nights after we returned, we had a 'fancy' dinner with the kids just like the formal night on the boat. So excited about the experience, Austin ran upstairs before we started dinner to grab his book, "The Boys Book: How to Be the Best at Everything". Apparently, the book discusses proper etiquette at a dinner table. The tips include Do's and Don't. Do:Put your napkin on your knees right away.
Start with the outer silverware and work your way in each course.
Finish your mouthful and wipe your mouth with your napkin before sipping water.
Say, "Excuse me" if you need to leave the table.
Don't:
Lean your elbow on the table.
Eat french fries with your fingers.
Eat with your mouth open.
Yell at the waiter.
Say, "YUCK!" if you don't like something.
Mark and I thought that was really cute! As I browse through this book, I find that it covers quite a few VERY cool topics!! Some examples of other articles are: How to get out of quick sand, How to read a compass, and How to get an egg into a bottle. Needless to say, it's a pretty neat book! Austin has informed me that they have one for girls, and we should by that one for Abi! And our dinner was quite nice, in case you were wondering how it turned out!

Austin posted this sign 

Austin and Abi enjoying themselves! 

The Brewer house in the summertime is always full of new adventures! It's amazing what the kids can come up with when the TV is turned off! A few weeks ago, the AJBs decided to do crafts during their downtime and Austin built this really cool dog for Abi out of scraps of paper.

Paper Pup 

My mom, also known as Grammy, came into to town to get her air conditioner fixed in her car. It was an overnight trip, so we got to see her for almost a whole day (she stayed with my sister on the other side of town). We went to our FAVORITE restaurant, Chuy's, for lunch. As usual, absolutely delicious! While waiting for your meal to arrive, you can request dough for the kids to play with. The AJBs love it! Just before we left, Austin came over to me and started speaking in an Italian accent...and looked like this:

Mario and Luigi...and Abi couldn't leave Rebecca out! 

The new school year is quickly approaching. That also means that sports will be starting soon, too. Sadly, Austin's baseball team from the previous two seasons is not staying together for this fall. We started last fall as a Metro team. We signed Austin up through the Cy-fair sports website and he was placed on a team with other kids nearby. The team wanted to stay together for this past Spring, so they formed a Friendship team; which means that they played in the Metro league but brought back all the same players . Or in our case, some of the same players. After a team plays in the Friendship league, in order to stay together, they must move up to the next level. The next level is Select and it is more competitive. The Vipers originally planned to stay together and move up to Select this fall, but things fell apart at the last minute. We had the option of signing Austin up to play in the regular Metro league or letting him try out for another Select team. Austin is a competitive athlete by nature. I remember when he was three he played soccer. All the other kids would be playing in the grass, or standing in the middle of the field crying because they didn't want to play. Not Austin, there were times when he would be the only kid running with the ball...from either team! So, the logical choice for baseball was to let him try out for another team. We are now on the 'Texas Terrors'! Also, one of his teammates from the Vipers will be playing with him this fall! Everyone in the family is stoked about baseball starting back up. Everyone but Abi! She was actually wondering why baseball was ever created the other day!!! With her, she doesn't want to do anything that requires her to sweat! But with them homeschooling, I want to make sure they get proper exercise since they do not have a PE class. This year Abi has been trying to decide what sport she wants to try. She narrowed it down to Jiu-Jitzu (with her best pal, Luke) or ice skating (where she could request an ice skating outfit for her American Girl doll). Ultimately, she has chosen ice skating. At the beginning of September she will take a 7 week class for beginners. We also will be starting our co-op soon!!! I'm teaching possibly two classes this semester, which I am excited about! The classes that I anticipate signing the kids up for are:

Austin- Computer Basics using Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint; Destruction!, they will learn the mechanics of small appliances by taking them apart (which is REALLY awesome because Austin's science for this year is on machines!!); and Colonial America through a pocket storybook.

Abi- Galloping the Globe, learning about new countries and map/atlas skills; Discover Art, learning the colors of the color wheel and different techniques with oil pastels and watercolors; and American Girl Felicity, reading about the historical character, Felicity.

All of us Brewers are really excited to get school started!!!

 Austin, practicing pitching

Austin, practicing catching

Last, but not least, I have been doing a little sewing. Our family doesn't really celebrate Halloween, but I found some really cute fabric and decided to make Abi a Halloween skirt. I also made her a coordinating bow. It all turned out super cute!!!

Back to Life, Back to Reality

I'm not gonna lie. I think about this...

and this...

and this...

and especially this...

A LOT!!!

Life after a cruise is not as much fun as life before the cruise. So many great memories leave you longing to just get in your car and start driving just to see the beautiful world that God has given us! I have always said that I do not want to leave Texas. I take it back. I want to see the world and spend time admiring all of God's creation!!!

But my reality is life as usual and dreaming of the next vacation!!! I am blessed that I have a family to spend each day with. Last weekend Mark and I took the kids to the drive-in movie theater to see a double feature of Transformers 3 and Captain America. It started out very hot, but by 2AM when the movies were finally over, it was pretty chilly outside! We had to get there very early because we knew with those two movies, the good spots at the theater would fill up fast! Both movies were just so-so for me. Austin even mentioned his disappointment for Captain America! Abi talked (as usual!!) through both movies.

Abi, waiting for the movie to start

One of my favorite things to do is have lunch at a restaraunt with Austin and Abi. It's a chance for us to just sit and chat...and I don't have to make lunch! A few days ago, the kids opted for TGI Fridays. They had never eaten there before, but the gorilla from 'Zookeeper' sturred up some curiosity! 

 Ready to eat

Me and Abi

We spend a good chunk of our time at the swimming pool. We have the selection of our neighborhood pool or the YMCA pool. Now we have an additional choice, Mark's dad and Wendy had a salt water pool installed in their backyard. After much anticpation, we got to break it in!!

 Abi

Mark, Abi, and Sluz

Abi and Mark

Austin and Mark

I have been feeling my sewing itch lately too. We took a trip to Joann's recently and bougth material to make a few projects. I completed one project this past week, Abi's tutu. She proudly wore it to church on Sunday, excited to see some of the glitter mark her spot anywhere she sat!! It actually didn't require much sewing. I measured her waist and cut a 1inch thick piece of elastic the same size. I sewed the elastice together and that was all the sewing required. The rest of the tutu making was cutting and tying. I followed the directions in this video (I substituted the elastic for the ribbon):

Here was the finished product:

Abi's tutu

I have some more projects lined up in the weeks to come. I will be making another cowboy vest and chaps this week for an order in my Etsy shop.  I also will be making a Halloween skirt for Abi as well as a pair of pajama pants for Austin. I am working on a few bows too.  Busy, busy...but I wouldn't want it any other way!!

Recovery

I had an order through my etsy shop last week. Not a small one mind you, I had to make 2 dresses, a child's apron, and a doll apron. That's a lot of sewing to do in three days. Not to mention, my machine was throwing a HUGE fit! I couldn't get the tension to adjust where I needed it to. Me and my old machine, a hand-me-down from my mom, pushed through and completed the order. It took longer to ship than I would have liked, but nevertheless it did ship! I sat down on Friday and practically spent the entire day adjusting the tension. No luck. So, I see a new sewing machine in my future! (Maybe a sewing machine that also does embroidery?? Wink, wink!!)

Before I knew my machine was going to have a melt down I purchased some cute fabric to make Abi a summer top. I found a cute pair of denim shorts at a resale shop. Not only were they cute, but they were also Gap brand and only $2.00!!! I always LOVE a great deal!!!!

 Front

Back 

Cute little embroidered butterfly on the front 

 The cute fabric I found to go with the shorts

 The finished product!!!

This year as a homeschooling mom has been a lot of fun. However, there are days when all the AJB's do is fight. ALL. DAY. LONG!!! So, when I catch them getting along, I try to complement them on their behavior and tell them how much I appreciate their kindness to each other. When they are sweet to each other it makes me feel warm and giddy inside. So, you can imagine how Mark and I felt when we went to check on the kids before we went to bed the other night, and found them like this:

A picture is worth a thousand words!

JLB 2011 The Show

I think I have my sewing fix for the next 6 months. I've really been in a sewing funk lately. It's usually this time of year that I'm making all kinds of spring dress and summer tops. I think it has to do with my preoccupation with mine and Mark's anniversary cruise in July. I FINALLY got my passport...exciting! Why am I so excited about a week long cruise with my Love, you ask? Because this will be our first vacation alone! We were married June 9, 2001. Coincidentally, I was also in Phase III of my pharmacy training school for the Air Force. Phases in training school were meant to help new trainees re adapt to civilian life after basic training. I was allowed to wear civilian clothes, but I had to be back in my dorm room by midnight on the night we got married. I wasn't permitted to leave again until 4am. So...no honeymoon. NOW do you understand my excitement?! 

Anyways, I got off topic a little! My sister, Alisha, asked me to make another quilt for another baby shower she is attending. She picked out all of the fabric and showed me what she wanted. I had her draw out a pattern for the lion. I am okay at drawing some things, but animals and people are unrecognizable when I draw them! This is the finished product of our teamwork:

Made of minky and suede 

There was a little left over fabric, so I made a taggie to go along

Since I've been on my all organic cooking kick, there have been a few things that I've made that are mouth watering delicious. But none of them compare to dinner tonight!!! I made tacos for dinner. Plain tacos...except that they were organic with FRESH tortillas!! YUMMY!!! I used this recipe, but doubled the butter requirement and used canola oil cooking spray.  I also ended up making 1 1/2 of the recipe listed because we needed a few more tortillas. The recipe listed yields about 7-8 tortillas. They turned out great. So, if you can't tell...I'm encouraging all of you to give the recipe a run! Unless there is some kind of tortilla crisis, I will not by store bought tortillas again!

The dough 

 Before the big smash, I used just enough dough to fit into the palm of my hand and rolled it on a lightly floured surface

 I wish I had a bigger skillet so that I could cook more than one at a time

The finished product! SO GOOD!!!