Tuesday, April 09, 2013

When you love your children....

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You do things you don't always plan, you do things you never thought you would do.

And all because of the love you have for your children.

My kids mean the world to me, so I try as hard as I can, and in every possible way, to be the most mother I can be to them, to go the extra mile, to do whatever they want (within means of course).

For the longest time, birthdays meant, a simple cake baked by mommy, and merely store bought gifts.

And then a few years ago I realized that even though they like those things, they love things made by mom, especially if it's something they've seen and know that mom can make.  You know, the special things that no other kid will have?

It kind of frightens me at times because ever so often they'll have a request that leaves me wondering if they think I'm some sort of superwoman.  Ha!

Thankfully I love sewing and cooking and baking, so when I can, I go out of the way to fulfill those special requests.

The past two days have seen me at my kitchen table, sewing.

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This is what I was making, and though his birthday is not until Thursday, he already knew I was making this, so no sense in waiting until then.

When I handed him the Enderman, he actually started crying, that's how much he loved it, and as a mom I think that is the best reward for taking time out to make something.

We had the craziest of weather yesterday, high winds and a dust storm started at 10am and lasted until 8pm last night. It was HORRIBLE. I'm not a fan of dust storms to begin with, but this one caused some damage and left everything just nasty in it's path. UGH!

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This morning I woke up to yard items thrown around, the patio umbrella upside down and off the table, the cars in a layer of dust and odds and ends strewn about.

We've also had cloudy skies and just dreary weather, so it was a good day to stay inside, sew a little more and take it easy.

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Perfect for another day of sewing. I had 3 more things I wanted to make to go with his Enderman. By the way, if you don't know what the Enderman is, he is a character from the Minecraft game, which my children love.

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Here he is, the Enderman and some blocks, I'm sure Minecraft fans will know what they are.

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He is one happy boy.

And in keeping with the theme of going the extra mile, I also made the fondant for his cake, which will be a Creeper cake.

I made a batch of Marshmallow Fondant, way cheaper than store bought and works just as well. Check out the recipe here.

Marshmallow Fondant

Now it will sit in the fridge until Thursday morning. It actually keeps in the refrigerator for a few weeks :)

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Soon as I was done with the birthday stuff, I got a little sewing going on my newest quilt. Some fabric is actually from a very sweet friend of mine, Tamy. I love it, I'll always think of her when I see this quilt, and isn't that what quilting is all about, that special something that will remind you of someone for years to come?

And that is basically what my day has been.

I did throw chili in the crockpot this morning, with this weather, it will be the perfect dinner.  I'll make Fluffy Dinner Rolls to go with it :)



Fluffy Dinner rolls

While I was sewing, I had the Little House Mini Series playing on my laptop, it keeps me company and it's usually when I get most of my tv watching done, because otherwise between housework and homeschooling and children, there really aren't many hours left in the day :)

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I do always find some time to work on my crochet. Tends to be at night while I'm watching TV with the family or just chatting in the living room.

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Well, it's time to get started on dinner preparations and switch over the last load of laundry.

Do hope you're all having a fantastic Tuesday :)

8 comments:

Wendi said...

I have never been through a dust storm but I know when my husband came home from Kuwait there was sand in everything. I can only imagine the mess that a dust storm makes. Yuck!

What a special gift for N. Made with love... something money can't buy.

Have a great evening!

Anita Philipps said...

I can relate to going the extra mile for our kids birthdays. Four years ago when our middle daughter turned 1 we were not in a good place financially. So instead of buying her birthday decorations and cake I made them. I fell in love with it.

Now I look forward to their birthdays even more every year. They pick a theme and we go from there.

Judy said...

I can't imagine being in a dust storm. Awe, he turned out great, my granddaughter loves to play minecraft, and she would love him.

Debby said...

What a WONDERFUL gift!! I know your little guy will treasure it always. My hubby is still working in AZ, he was (blown away)by your storm yesterday. We couldn't even talk on the cell phone for all the wind in the background.

Suellen Roley said...

It amazes me how much we are alike, even though I have no children and am considerably older than you. I have been working on a quilt made of old t-shirts, as well as one made of blocks cut from old sheets. I am still too scared of that darn vintage sewing machine to turn it on, so far I have hand sewn everything, and boy do my fingers show that!

As for crocheting, I have crocheted since I was old enough to pick up a crochet hook. Made a sweater for my mother in 2 days, I kid you not (of course my arms hurt for 2 weeks afterwards!), another sweater with a hood for my grandmother, and I've also made afghans, gloves, and scarves. I love when a plan comes together and I rarely use a pattern (well, for the sweaters I did cos I ain't that talented to freehand sweaters!). But I love love love being creative just like you. And it's also a way to show love, with handmade things.

Elisha said...

That is so cute!

Kathy Skinner (Kat) said...

What a fun birthday gift! And handmade! Good job! I look forward to seeing the cake!

Sarah said...

I look forward to seeing the picture of Nicholas's cake. His toy is amazing, you're so clever.

I'd hate to go through a dust storm, I bet it takes ages to clear up after.

Hugs. x