Shirts fit for princesses!

October 14, 2015 | Stacy

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.

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.

Seabreeze Day 2015

July 22, 2015 | Stacy

It was a fun day. We did not anticipate a day at Seabreeze this summer. As a matter of fact, as we were driving home from Darien Lake last month the kids asked if we would be going to Seabreeze this summer. I said, and I quote, “Unless some crazy awesome discount rate comes up, I just don’t see us going this year.” The next day I went to work and, lo and behold, employees were being offered a crazy awesome discount rate in lieu of an employee picnic.

Yee. Haw.

“Come Get Your Summer”

June 25, 2015 | Stacy

Okay – so I don’t know if that is still the jingle they use to promote Darien Lake. But that was the phrase when I was in college 100 years ago.
We had AMAZING passes to available to us through a homeschool group locally. I won’t publish the price, but it was insanely low. It also included coupons for popcorn and food.

And.

We. Had. A. Blast.

I liked Darien as kid, but then as a young adult I thought the place was a concrete pit. I’ve only gone a few times in the last dozen years. But the GREAT news is, each visit has been significantly better than the one before. I down right loved our day there today.

We were there for rope drop and moved our way back to MotoSomething – a roller coaster thing we were introduced two on our visit in 2012. We’d remembered that as the one ride we really had to wait for on our previous visit so it seemed as good a place to start as any. Kids rerode and then I *insanely* suggested we hit the ride right next to it… NEVER REALIZING it would treat me and four of my babies like human foosball players.

Mommy fail.

FAIL!

Yowsers.

From there we could only go up. And we did. We had a blast. We rode anything we wanted as often as we liked. We spent hours in the water park after a late lunch and we stayed til just before closing.

We love amusement parks.

Nan had fun on the moose…

Yup – we did it again!

March 29, 2015 | Stacy

In the midst of a vomiting illness that nabbed some of our kids this week, we managed to place The Call to our long-time travel agent friend, Sue. LORD willing, sometime in 2016 (we know the date, but I’m not posting it for obvious reasons) we are heading to Caribbean and Central America on this luxuriant vessel. Waterslides, ropes course, mini-golf, and people who cook and serve dinner.

Psalm 93: 1-5
The Lord reigns; he is robed in majesty; the Lord is robed; he has put on strength as his belt. Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved. Your throne is established from of old; you are from everlasting. The floods have lifted up, O Lord, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring. Mightier than the thunders of many waters, mightier than the waves of the sea, the Lord on high is mighty! Your decrees are very trustworthy; holiness befits your house, O Lord, forevermore.

Yes. I sincerely love the sea.

Dinner wear

November 25, 2014 | Stacy

We decided early on that we were going to (A) dress for dinner each night, and (B) not overpack.
While it is all fine and good to say we did both, the truth of the matter is that even with just 3 bottoms (skirts/shorts) and 5 tops, we still grossly overpacked. In fact, four of the days, we didn’t wear street clothes at all!

There is something to be said from going from pajamas, to work-out clothes, to bathing suits. All by 9 A.M. Good stuff.

I’ll tell you more about our excursions in another post. But for now I just want to tell you how fun it was to pack up our sunning gear, head to the stateroom, and get dressed up for dinner. Five nights in a row. While a lifetime of preening would get really old really quick, a week of being girly was oh-so-fun!

And – without further adieu…

Do you love how my purse is always on the floor just near my feet? LOL.
I don’t know why they are blurry? Maybe all the sunscreen? It is Marie’s new camera, and I may have not had it set properly for low light photos, either. In any case, Emily and I had a grand time dressing up. (And yes – I did only bring one pair of shoes…)

Princess Cruise – Around the ship

November 24, 2014 | Stacy

After landing in Fort Lauderdale on Friday evening, Emily and I checked into our hotel (where the desk clerk asked me to sign for me and my daughter!) and grabbed dinner down the street at Panera. The next morning we had time to exercise, grab breakfast, read, and wander around the area before catching our shuttle to the port.

The 1.5 mile ride took well over an hour. It is the busiest port in the U.S. It is also very unattractive. We finally got to the terminal where we zoomed through and were quickly boarding our ship, the Caribbean Princess. One very nice thing about Princess Cruise Line is that your stateroom is ready as soon as you board. We quickly found Lido 212 (we walked up 8 flights of stairs to avoid the long lines at the elevators) and were quite pleased with our lodging.

Huge closet. Teeny bathroom.

We dumped our stuff, grabbed our first of MANY mocktails (Key West Coolers were our favorites) and settled in for a bit of sunning.

I will share that I smashed the top of my head good and hard on the handrail almost immediately after this photo.
It was getting close to sail away, so we wandered around the ship, and iMessaged our last words to our families.

We soaked in the warmth for a while longer, and then headed back to our cabin to get ready for dinner.

Here are more photos of and around the ship. I hope to do three other posts about the cruise. One of us in our dinner wear, one of excursions, and one of the FOOD!
This is the Piazza. We spent very little time here, although there was always a lot going on in this area. It was at least three stories tall and lined by food and shops.

This is a huge movie screen mid-ship over the Calypso Pool. This was our main pool hang out, with or without movies. It was quieter than the Neptune Pool and had the highest rising sun decks. They show movies at night called MUTS – Movies Under the Stars. I watched Maleficent one night.

During the day when we’d be sunning ourselves.

Secure your own oxygen mask before assisting others…

November 15, 2014 | Stacy

This past week has been a blur of preparation as I’ve worked to equip John for all the goings-on for our family for the upcoming 7 days. With my cruise-vacation on the horizon, I’ve not only needed to pack my bags and print off itineraries and boarding passes, but I’ve also needed to stock the shelves and document daily homeschool schedules. I generated seven pages of notes, one for each day I was gone. Each included meals and lesson plans (John is maintaining our rigorous school work).

As the first flurries of snow fell this week, I’ve collected sunscreen and sandals for my suitcase.

And somehow, after days of organization, my sweet family dropped me off at the Delta Airlines entrance and my adventure is beginning.

So many emotions have waxed and waned in my heart and mind. As a long time vacation lover it’s not hard to get excited about a cruise. But leaving my family? Have I lost my mind? John and I rarely go out to dinner alone because we don’t like leaving our kids. We’re just not people who need a break from them. So why did I even consider John’s suggestion to enjoy a get-away?

I’ve sort of struggled to even explain it to myself. Now, friends have been overwhelmingly supportive of this trip. Oh, the JOY people have expressed for me. To be sure, some just guess I need a break from my kids. Those people are wrong. I do not. And those happy people don’t really “get” my lifestyle. But the people who know me best and are so excited for me have been a tremendous encouragement to me as I go along this CRAZY path.

I’ve wrestled with why I’ve been keen on this trip. Sure – I’d like a break from dishes, and cleaning, and cooking, and grammar, and dirty floors. But a week away from John and my kids??

We’ve been a bit giddy the last few days as we’ve edged toward my trip. Punchy. Cheerful, but incredulous.

Then today, after jokes about this being my ten-years-of-homeschool-anniversary gift, and John’s joke that “Ten years ago your mom drew the short straw,” and the kids’ concern that dad would fold and quiver in the closet, John made the most astute proclamation: “You need to secure your own oxygen mask before assisting others.”

I’m so grateful John wanted to bless me. I’m glad my kids are so encouraging.

I have 8 books, plus my Bible – mostly young adult literature my kids are assigned that I’ve never gotten to read. I have Chuck Swindoll and John MacArthur podcasts and Adventures in Odyssey loaded on my iPhone. I’m hoping for sunshine. Lots of time to rest, but just enough entertainment to keep me from being homesick.

I know John and the kids will be great. I’ve left some treats & surprises.

I hope to eat well & enjoy sunshine.

I’m hoping to recharge my batteries.

Corning Museum of Glass

November 4, 2014 | Stacy

Almost a two hour drive, including a LooooooG stop for a four-year-old tummy.
Ten people, as Nan and Nene came, too.
A good deal of fun.

Adults were $16, and kids 19 and under are free.
Making glass projects were not free.
Really. Not. Free.
But how could we not?

We learned a lot today. Glass has been around since Nineveh times! Amazing stuff.
And we did a scavenger hunt in the glass history section. It was pretty beautiful, really.
But the demos were our favorite parts.

Nigel was selected from the audience to participate in glass breaking. He said it was fun.
He was given a beautiful glass swan for his participation.

We watched a glass flameworking demo. She made a beautiful fish.

We also watched a fiber optic demo. and a glass blowing demo. I don’t know how I failed to take pictures of that last one. It was fascinating. The artist blew a gorgeous bowl in about 15 minutes.
I was that lady with a 20-month old in a glass museum. When Stewart was a baby I would have been horrified my child was so “busy”. At this stage of the game I was like, “Deal with it people.” 😉

After we ate our packed lunch we headed to the I Make Glass building.

Stewart and Tabitha each made an ornament. ($29 each, plus a total cost of shipping of $18.)

I can’t wait to see them when they arrive later this week. I did not get a good look at either of them.

Marie and Nigel did flamework. Nigel made a bead. Marie made a pendant. I think they both just wanted to work with the flame. I don’t blame them.

Johanna applied stickers all over the outside of a small glass. Then a nice lady sandblasted it.

She was a little perplexed that the stickers were removed.

We left around 3:30 P.M. Johanna wanted to be like the big kids…

And we wanted Katriel to use some big muscles before the long car ride home.

We called in a pizza about half-an-hour out from home.
I remember when a sheet pizza used to last two meals!
They are growing so fast.

A funny thing happened on the way to the school year…

August 7, 2014 | Stacy

See John had to travel to Rhode Island for training for a week a while back. When he told me he was going I grimaced and said I would like “a vacation.” [See – his work trips are a lot like vacation. A typical day at home – he and I would rate with a “stress level” of maybe 7 out of 10. A hectic day at work, maybe a 10/10. These work trips? He concedes the stress level is about a 1½. Therefore – these are actually even MORE relaxing that the average family vacation. Now – back to the story.]

When I grimaced and stated, “I would like a vacation,” he said I should have one. Um. Sure. Whatever. About two weeks later he told me he had to go away another time for training. I grimaced and said I would like a vacation. He said I should have one. Um. Sure. Whatever. Three or four days later I said to him, “Where are you going for the second training?” He looked at me sheepishly and said, “Tucson.” My mouth dropped open and I thought – I would like a vacation. I couldn’t actually SAY it because my mouth was gaping open. He said, “I’m telling you, I think you should take a vacation.” Huh? What are you talking about? We have a big family. Vacations cost a fortune. But a few days after that when we were outlining John’s trips to the kids I said how I would like a week off. NOT a week away from them, but a week away from dishes and cooking, and dirty floors, and emails. John said he thought I should find someone to go away with for a few days.

At first I thought I should go out and visit friends who moved to the Pacific northwest. But honestly, that would feel HORRIBLE without my kids. To see all of their kids would make it so weird. So I dropped the idea. Or so I thought. Out of nowhere a few days later I jokingly texted to Emily how John had work trips. I told her how I wanted to go away for a few days. She said she did, too.

And now she and I are going on a 5-night cruise in November!! For. Real. And I’m giddy. And John is wholly supportive. My mom thinks it is a “Wonderful” idea and is going to help him with the kids. And I am going to go. There are moments when I think I’ve lost my mind. I never do anything without my awesome family. I am going to miss them SO. MUCH.

But – people are going to cook for me ALL DAY LONG. FOR FIVE DAYS! I can sit in a chair and read for hours and hours. And – if the weather is nice I can swim in the OCEAN on a Caribbean Beach. For Real.

The cruise cost $296 including transfers. The air was like $260. The one night hotel was FREE with points.

Princess Cruise line – Caribbean Princess. Cheap inside staterooms. Two days at sea and stops at Ocho Rios and Grand Cayman. They serve cookies and milk daily on the ship. And the Ultimate Soft Drink Package includes MILKSHAKES. And you can watch MUTS. That stands for Movies Under the Stars. (If anything decent is showing.) But I can have milkshakes.

(It doesn’t seem real.)