My camera battery died. Kelly took photos but I never saw them. I did get a picture of the cake earlier in the day….
Hop Hop
Mama: “Katriel, that is a beautiful picture.”
Katriel: “It’s a bunny.”
Number 83
Do you see that smile?
She was granted permission by the orthopedic PA to play soccer again. The toe she broke June 8th was finally ok. PRAISE THE LORD!!!!!!
All season long she donned her uniform when she went to cheer on the other players. Today she donned it, as well as her cleats, with a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, the coach would let her play a bit in the first play off game.
I hate to admit it, but I was skeptical. Why, I reasoned, would a coach put in a player he had never seen play or practice in a PLAY-OFF game?
I dropped her off, and headed back to the house to pay the Spanish teacher and get up the baby. I then headed back to the field.
Many fields were in use as a number of games were going on. I couldn’t figure out which field was hers because I couldn’t see her on the sidelines anywhere.
That’s because SHE WAS PLAYING!!!
Why would the coach let her play? I’m not 100% sure, but I think it has a lot to do with him caring more about GRACE than goals.
First day of work
Today was Stewart’s first day of work. He’s put in 21 hours of in class instruction, as well as many hours of computer training and studying at home. Today he got his uniform, and of course, his whistle.
This Mama’s prayer? “In the world, but not of it.”
Six of us went to pick him up. I went in to grab a few photos. (Of course I did.)
This is the facility. The lap pool and hot tub.
The activity pool, slide, and walking lanes (vortex?).
And there is Stewart in his uniform closing up shop at the end of the shift.
Ba’s and Poppy’s birthdays
We got to celebrate Ba and Poppy’s birthdays tonight. Dinner wasn’t fancy, but it was really good. Marie made the cake. 
Happy birthday, Ba and Poppy!!!
Fall Fun with Friends
This fun day came about in two ways.
First – we live about half a mile from a small farm market which offers produce-picking much of the year, and some fall activities in season. We pass by it with tremendous frequency and the kids often ask if we can go see it. Well, on our way somewhere is NEVER a good time to stop, nor is on the way home. And once it is out of sight, it is out of mind. Last year, on what was the LAST day of their season, it dawned on me that my girls in particular, have had almost ZERO exposure to fall activities. I loaded them in the car and we went up the road. It was cold, desolate, and they had a good time. I decided that the upcoming year I would make every effort to get them to a fall-fun-farm market thingy.
As soon as I saw such a field trip offered with our homeschool group I jumped on it.
Second – we have some friends we NEVER get to see. We live just far enough apart that it really requires an effort to get together. As this activity was somewhat out their way it dawned on me to see if they were available.
They were.
And we had a blast.
I left the boys at home to do school work. Nan joined us. It was cool, but not cold. Bright sunshine. Moderate wind. And – no one got hurt.
We were SO tired when we got home. It was a great kind of tired!
Shirts fit for princesses!
We have a trip planned for Walt Disney World in Florida next spring. We very much enjoy wearing matchy-shirts, and the homemade kind are especially up our alley.
While we have some plans to make Mickey-head tie-dyes for the whole family, I wanted to make these crown shirts for the ladies in our traveling part: me, my sister, my mom, and all four girls. The day we wear these, the gentlemen will all wear their GM/Chevrolet t-shirts. My mom and sister found their own tanks at Kohls.
I started with picking up white t-shirts at the end of the summer whenever I saw them. I managed to get nicely made shirts for Marie, John, the boys, and I at JCP for $4 each. I found the younger girls’ shirts at WalMart for $3 and $4 a piece, depending on the size. I stored them in my closet until the timing was right. And as Columbus Day found my sister with the day off AND a forecast of 70○, we decided to squeeze in an art project!
I found a crown shape online. I picked this one because it wasn’t too delicate or detailed, but it definitely conveyed “crown.”
I printed it on cardstock and cut it out. I did a slightly smaller version for the two youngest girls.
I traced it onto contact paper.
And cut them out.
When we were ready to make the shirt I laid them down on a clean, dry surface (not always easy to find in our house!) and adhered the crowns as straight as I could. (They look great.)
The girls and my sister and I went to town with hundreds of little star stickers.
We set up two folding tables in the grass and put down tablecloths for the Dollar Tree to protect them
We stuffed the shirts with plastic bags.
We stuffed the shirts with plastic bags.
Now – I have to take the time to talk about the product we used.
When I made the same style shirt in 2007, I used this product:
It worked GREAT. These days, they go for about $8.00 each at Michael’s. I couldn’t find them any cheaper on Amazon, either. I estimated I’d need about 8 of them. Now, if I had time to visit Michael’s 8 times, I could have saved 50% on each bottle. However, I don’t have that kind of time (who does?) and I didn’t want to spend $60+ on dye.
I saw this product while I was visiting the store. It was $30. With my 50% off coupon I got it for $15. Problem solved!
Except there were issues. Plenty of them. Reviews on Amazon are mixed, but some folks said as long as you are careful to unlock the bottles properly they would work fine. So, as I prepared the bottles by adding in water I was careful to unlock each bottle carefully.
We took the dye outside where the plan was I would do the first shirt and we’d see how it went.
Well – problem A was that blue didn’t work even though I unlocked it properly. We found an old spray bottle in the house and used that for green.
Marie left hers to me, and Tabitha did her own. It was way too messy for Johanna. The bottles leaked EVERYWHERE, and it wasn’t long before another color bit the dust. I switched out the sprayers and that worked for a few minutes, and then when I went to switch it back it broke, as well.
Problem B came up when I read the directions that could only be accessed by ripping OPEN the box. The dyes were only most active for 45 minutes. Um… how then were we to do the backs?
Kelly kept the girls busy as I finished up.
Problem C was they were more than a little messy.
The boys helped us carry the tables into the garage. I forgot to take a photo of that. I went to Michael’s with another 50% coupon and bought another package.
The next day I flipped them all over and did the backs myself. I also bought a handful of spray bottles for $1 each to use if/when the sprayers broke. Well, they broke alright. But the problem with the sprayers I bought was they sprayed too wide or too fast. The too fast mode saturated the fabric and the dye went UNDER our star stickers. Problem 4 (although not related directly to the product, it only happened because the product stunk.)
Wednesday, Marie and I worked for well over an hour removing the stickers.
I think they came out really well.
There is an extra one a size between Tabitha and Johanna so Hanny could grow into it, potentially, if we wanted to wear them another time in a later year.
If I do these again I will either use the original product, or try this new one I saw the second time I went to Michael’s.
Silly Hair Night at Pioneer Girls
It was a busy week… but having visited Pioneer Girls the week before, Johanna and Tabitha were eager to go again. I persuaded Marie to give it a try, too.
It was silly hair night. Johanna and Tabitha were eager to participate. I failed to get a picture of Hanny. But I think we nailed it with Tab.
$5 movie treat
Since the Spanish teacher was out of town, we had a Tuesday afternoon free.
Since the theater on the other side of town shows $5 movies on Tuedays, we decided to venture out for a flick.
Kelly met us there.
Pan was okay. Being out for a movie was fun.
Dayspring Disciples 