Back in the Homemaking Saddle

I have been so busy getting ready for the school year and thinking about homeschooling and writing about homeschooling and preparing for homeschooling (repeat...add a different verb each time) that I haven't had time for much else.

Sweetheart celebrated her 9th birthday on Friday and that took a bit of planning and organizing as well. See, she wanted a surprise party. How do you plan a surprise party for someone who has asked for a surprise party and lives with you? Well, I pulled it off. It was really fun and I'm glad it's over.

Now.

I've been reading articles this weekend about homemaking and making our homes lovely. I'm feeling re-inspired about this space we live in. Homeschooling is a part of our day and a part of our life, but we live in this home always. We are in serious need of some cleaning out. I know this because my daughters can only find 50% of the shoes they own. Both of them are missing one shoe each of at least 2 pairs. Each. So, their closet is obviously in need of some work.

And our bedroom? I don't even want to talk about it.

Hey, at least I haven't misplaced 50% of the children!

Anyway, I have been thinking about what a privilege it is to be a homemaker and all the many, many opportunities we have to bless our families. I am determined to learn the skills that I have missed out on in a decade+ of working outside the home. Just imagine what a good cook or seamstress or homemaker I could be by now! I will definitely encourage my daughters to learn the skills they will need as they are growing up. What a blessing to enter marriage already knowing how to do things that I am learning as an adult!

So, tonight I will be writing down some homemaking goals. Just a little list to refer back to so I don't forget what I want to accomplish. I believe I will also write down some homemaking goals for the girls, according to their ages.

I'll go ahead a share one goal with you: I'm trying to learn to sew. Well, I can sew, but as I have shared with you before, I am mostly good at sewing squares and rectangles. You know, curtains, pillows, etc.

But this weekend I sewed this!

I really did! I am so excited about it! I got the idea from Rachel at Huse Blog Is It Anyway? and here is the link where she got the idea. I think the dresses look better made out of a print shirt, but someone passed these shirts to S and they didn't fit so...you use what you have. So basically, the dress was...FREE! You don't even have to make button holes becuase you use the ones from the shirt! And I'll give credit to my sister who helped cut the dress out and figure all the measuring which tends to make my head hurt. She's making one for her little one also.

Next I will try to make a shirt for Sweetheart with this method. I hope to make a shirt long enough to wear over leggings. Is that called a tunic? Or does a tunic have to have sleeves?

I have no idea.

So, on this day in history, Brenda sewed something that was NOT a square or rectangle.

I feel like a better homemaker already.

What have you been learning to do lately?

If you want to know what all you can sew from squares and rectangles, just check out my former successes with these 2 shapes:

jeans skirt

pillowcase dresses

duvet cover (I get more google hits for this post! I so apologize to those who are honestly searching for directions on how make a duvet cover. I'm sorry.)

curtains and valances

I've also made some rag quilts. They were insanely easy but I don't have pictures. Here are the directions I used.