Double the Birthdays Double the Digits

Whew.  

Two birthdays were celebrated this week.  Our very first double digit dill daughter, Divine, turned 10!

She asked to skip the breakfast-in-bed tradition…she didn't want to be late for school.  Divine likes routine and punctuality.  

And her birthday cake request was chocolate chocolate chip mint cookies.  No cake this round.

She asked for a pogo stick for her gift.  Ever since Divine was little, she hasn't cared too much for toys.  We thought buying toys was just a waste of money until we had more kids who actually played with them.  Divine prefers to do and make.  Hmm.  Like someone else I know.

She was thrilled.  And yes, those giant calendar pages come in handy for over-sized gift wrapping ;)

Olive put in her breakfast request the night before, and we got to school on time.

Her only birthday dinner requests were artichokes, Ferrero Rochet Chocolates and then crème brûlée for dessert.  My little gourmand.

I found this sweet little necklace for her here.  She's our little baker.

One of Olive's endearing qualities is that she gets absolutely ecstatic about anything given to her.  Pearl made her a fabric snake and Divine gave her a clay turtle she made at school.  Loved them both.

We named Olive with the symbolism of the Olive tree, or peace.  She truly is a happy soul which brings peace to our family.

We are blessed to have her part of this Dill stew chaos.

By the end of the second birthday celebration I thought this baby was going to come.  I was tired, the baby was low, and I was having lots of abdominal cramping.  But then I awoke the next morning…still pregnant.  Again.  And again.  Of course having a September baby after all these August birthdays wouldn't be such a bad thing.  In a few years.

Divine Grace

 "My darling, simply elegant . . .  you are ever, Graceful"

 "Blossoming, beautiful, . . . you are Divine"

Divine is wearing a Grace Kelly inspired gown, but with added youth. 

Baby piping around the petal 3/4 sleeves,

fire treated blooms,

 and the boat neckline, for a modest, but retro look.

Spring green checked dupioni silk on the bias for the waistband and "stems"

No big dill inscribed on the back, for whimsy.

This was quite the labor intensive dress.  I admit that I even had Divine sewing flowers on last minute and cutting the little circles for them in preparation.  We barely made the deadline, getting photos just before the sun went down.  Whew! 

The competition is grueling and narrowing.

Go over to Project Run and Play to vote for your favorite retro-inspired look!

An Out

I don't know about your kids, but my baby dills can be Stuuuubborn. 

When Divine was a toddler she would guzzle milk like it was better than cookies or flourless chocolate cake [although it does go nicely with either.]  We would have to limit her intake, eventually, as we worried she was getting too much.  Is that possible?

Once she graduated from the sippy cup, however, she wouldn't touch the stuff.

Lately we've been trying to up her calcium intake and have requested she drink milk again.

Not a happy girl.  First there would be a loud howl of protest, then she would collapse in a heap, as though she had no bones [ironic, no?]  Next would come the pout and the cheek resting on a clenched fist, like she was coaxing her skin to mold over and around her hand.

In short: drama.  Every single time.  Even with cookies.  Or flourless chocolate cake with a side of raspberry sauce and maybe a lightly sweetened dollop of whipped cream.  I digress.

One evening at dinner I said to her, you know, Divine, when I was your age, I really liked to put ice in my milk to make it really REALLY cold.  Some people think it's strange, but I liked it that way.

Chirp. Chirp.

Would you like to try it that way?  Sure.

She drank it without pulling vomit face or major protest.

Sometimes we dig ourselves into a hole.

And sometimes we all just need an out,
because stubbornness might be genetic.

photos of our weekend, out getting fish tacos and onion rings

How Lucky is She.

 I took Divine to get her cast put on. She was visibly [and audibly] nervous.

 Once she got the splint taken off she couldn't stop scratching her arm. The first doctor told her to stop. I thought, "this is the last time she'll be able to scratch her arm for 5 weeks!"

 I had some time to work on a bracelet.  Divine commented, "You're still making those?" like it was a crime.  Or maybe she just meant it's been such a long time since I've worked on one.  Either way, the waiting I anticipated was rather unexpectedly truncated, so it didn't progress as much as I had hoped.

 I was more impressed with the cast tech than anyone else we met that day [and there were quite a few].  He even made Divine giggle, something about not doing anything to break her other arm, or just think about having to use the bathroom with two casts instead of just one.

 He did an absolutely impeccable job at both the cast and putting Divine at ease.

 The best part?  They have black. and. white. striped.

 I did not even tell Divine what to get. I think I've already engrained on my children the drastic nature of color themes in our family.

 And that arm just might fit into her dress now.  Plus she can bend it.

We are happy.

Cruise Control Not Included

Just when I thought I had everything under control.  A couple dozen finger sandwiches for Azure's class plus a book for a book exchange, 5 containers of frosting as well as a box of Kleenex for those less fortunate, grapes for Divine's class, washed and cut, a book for Pearl's class exchange, a can of white frosting and red plus green mints for Olive's class gingerbread house decorating, and don't forget the respective class parties for each as well as teacher gifts.  Everything was in check with the third black and white outfit finished, I was feeling, in control.  

Ryan took this morning off to take his mom to an angiogram appointment.  He was excited because he has an affinity for hospital food.  [This I did know before we got married].  We were sitting around last night discussing the details of my baby sister's baby she had after a quick 2 1/2 hour labor[!], all natural.  We were talking about his weight and length and dark hair that would be so foreign to us, wondering what they named the sweet thing [Clark Vaughn Jones] when Divine returned from ice skating.  Her first time, and she had been talking about it for weeks, maybe months.  I almost didn't let her go, but I knew she might hold that grudge for weeks, maybe months.  She returned in the middle of our celebratory conversation with a cup of hot chocolate and a sad face.  She fell after 5 minutes of skating and was supporting her wrist. I convinced Ryan to take her to the hospital in the morning, you know, since he would already be there.

So, turns out, I really don't have control at all.  This arm.  Broken.  And with two abdominal ultrasounds for the UTI frequenters scheduled for Friday, it seems I am anything but in control.  The frailties of life are just that: life.  I may not finish my black and white Clad Christmas series, I may just end up getting gift cards for all those teachers who care for my baby dills many hours a week, and I will be spending more time at the hospital than packing and decking the halls than planned, but it all highlights and bolds the genuine reason for the singing, the gifts, the baking, the traveling, and the lights.  I may not have my color coordinated photo op, but that certainly won't diminish the glory and hope that shines especially bright this time of year through the birth and life of our Save-ior.  I am grateful for these reminders that the fragility of life and lack of control is balanced by the promise of one day being perfected through Him.

Divine says she's getting a green cast.  Do you think she'll let me paint it black and white?

B/W Christmas Dress One

Is it fair to say that this dress is my favorite out of all 5....4 of which I've yet to make?  It began with a pattern from Ottobre [yes!  I finally have my very own subscription!].  The purple dress is the one I used as my starting point.

You'll recognize the sleeves, but I changed everything else.  Divine's dress is made from a cotton with a bit of a stretch.  I don't recall where I purchased it, but I've had it sitting around for some time now, waiting for the perfect project, of course. I took out the gathered waist and just made an a-line silhouette.  There are no closures, as the neck is plenty big for easy in and out.

The hood began as an oversized collar that draped down the back.  Ryan suggested I just make it into a hood--so glad that man is here to throw ideas around with.  I took a basic hood pattern and altered it with a section in the front to go across the entire neckline, made it into three pieces instead of two, and added more fullness in the back. Get this.  It's made from a stretch. pleated. satin.  The most voluptuous fabric I have worked with [the kind you want to bathe in].  It was just as difficult as it was beautiful.  In fact my sewing machine almost refused to recognize it as fabric.  I had to basically feed it through the foot myself and there were one-inch gaps where it was not sewn [stubborn machine, though normally so easy-going].  DIFF! IH! CULT! Butohsobeautiful.  I lined it with a black sheer.

Did you recognize the mini-Girdy Belt?!  I took an inch off the thickness of the belt and the top piece so it is just 2" finished instead of 3" for an adult.  I did learn something making it: all pleather is not created equal.  This was half the price of other faux-leather I've purchase and it was not cooperative at all.  It was almost stretchy and contorted instead of staying still.  I almost scrapped the belt, but it did conform a bit more once it was wrapped around Divine's waist.  It might be useful to have a more fluid faux-leather in a different project, but the belt needs a very solid, thick piece of fabric.

A side note: little girl's full-length slips are not so easy to find.  I finally found a cheap one at Burlington.  Cheap in price and quality--I fully expected Divine to complain that it was too itchy and hurt, but she didn't.  Still on the lookout for a soft, silky one.  Any suggestions?

Divine was completely in love with the outfit.  She kept repeating, "cool!"

I couldn't decide if I like the belt with the bow in the front or the back.  I'll leave it up to Divine how she wants to wear it.

Did you know they still make crimpers?  That might have been Divine's favorite part ;)

one down.