A day at the museum

We actually did this several weeks ago, Jared took so many pictures that it's taken me a while to sort through the ones I wanted and get all the editing done. Enjoy!



One thing about living in Dallas is we have about 6 million things we could go do every weekend, unfortunately they all cost money. Usually a LOT of money. Mellie keeps asking me if we can go to the museum and really how many 3 year olds ask to go to the museum? After some searching we found a museum of natural history with a small children's museum downstairs out at the fair grounds. Good news...family of 4, under $20! YAY! My kids ages change depending on where we are :) Don't judge, you know you do it too!



The first thing Mellie asked to look at was the dinosaurs. This kid is obsessed with dinosaurs. They had a really cool digging pit where the kids could get in a wear fancy hats and use their little brushes to uncover bones. Mellie had a ton of fun, Katie mostly covered everyone else in dirt!



Here we're looking at a fossilized dinosaur footprint. Mellie wanted to compare her foot to the dinosaur one.



Next we headed down so they could explore the children's section of the museum. It was pretty cool. The first thing the girls saw was the fire truck and it was all Jared and I could do to keep up with them. Those little kids are agile things when it comes to ducking through adults legs to get to their prize! It seemed like everybody elses kids were very well behaved and then we brought our heathen lot in. It was too near nap time so that's why you see so many binky shots of Katie. I'm such an enabler!



This little boy was so sweet! He kept trying to help Katie put her hat back on.





Next we headed to what I dubbed the 'creature room'. They had ant tunnels in the middle of the room for the kids to pretend they were bugs and what not. I love Katie's face in this one, and check out the kid behind her. Makes you think she just did something she knew she wasn't supposed to and was hauling out of there. Oh I so fondly look forward to her teenage years!





Katie was fascinated by the fish, can you tell?



Melody Kept trying to get me to go look at this 'really cool thing' that turned out to be a tarantula, which is why you don't see to many pics of her in this room. She stayed over by it and I wouldn't go near it!Katie found these cute bug hats to dress up with. I love her face in this one! Such a little character!



Here's the Farm Room. They got to play with all kinds of fake fruits and Veggies. The kids took their little shopping bags and stuffed them as full as they could then dumped them. All in the same bin. Unfortunately they had previously been meticulously sorted into their own little bins! Ah my kids, they are truly mine.

They look so cute on these little horses! I think dad needs to buy them real ones, and while he's at it one for mom with a few acres to keep them on! :) A girl can dream can't she?



And finally, my newly discovered weight loss plan. I intend to carry this mirror around everywhere!
Before:

After:

Who needs to waste time on dieting!

I heart dollar stores!

The other night I had planned to make a run to the craft store for something I needed to finish a fall garland I've been working on. The dollar store is three doors down from Micheal's so I thought I'd go there first and see if they had what I needed. I not only found what I needed, I found what I needed to finish three other projects! I still don't have the fall garland done, but I did finally get these baskets done.

If you remember I posted a while back about the twigs at my local park and how they are completely straight. With the help of my little ones I collected a TON! I made two baskets just by alternately stacking them and hot gluing them in place. Then I used floral foam and spanish moss to fill it, but that was as far as I got. I knew what I wanted them to look like, but I never found the right flowers. Until I looked at the dollar store. You wouldn't think you'd be able to find very good quality flowers at a dollar store, but I was pleasantly surprised! These were PERFECT! I love how they turned out!

This planter I've had for a few years and never managed to get anything in it. These worked out great and it filled the space on top of my entertainment center really well!

If you look in the background of this picture you can see on the wall a montage of pictures. We have a giant wall at the top of our stairs that was in serious need of attention. I have a pencil sketch of the bountiful temple framed in black and thought it would be nice to surround it with black and white candids of the family framed with black frames. Unfortunately all the cheapy frames I found a Wal-mart and Target looked as cheap as they were. Again the dollar store solved my problem. They have a huge selection of frames that are actually nice! I've been buying them a little here and a little there. I'm thinking four or five more and that should be enough to fill the space.

We've lived in this apartment 4 months, and I'm finally being able to get the place put together!

Sewing madness!

Not to long ago I came across a blog, Little Blue Boo , that I now follow religiously. She is quite simply an amazingly talented lady! She is always posting pictures of the latest dress pattern she's come up with and it inspired me. My mom always made clothes for me when I was little and I loved them. With our shortage of funds and two girls that, in spite of never eating anything I make for dinner, never stop growing I needed to get creative with the wardrobe expansion.

This dress pattern that kept popping up on her blog here, here and here got me thinking. It's a really simple, straight forward pattern, but what I saw was an empty canvas just waiting to be made beautiful. There are so many options with this dress. I've actually made two dresses and two shirts out of this by just shortening it. Luckily I can make a dress for Katie and it'll fit Melody as a long shirt, then Katie can just grow into Melody's dresses. These will last for ever!

I've actually had a couple of these done for a while it just takes a little extra effort to get my models to cooperate for pictures. Good thing they're so cute!

This was the first one I made and it was SO easy! The dress made up in under two hours start to finish, and then I added the waist band later. I did a running stitch across the front and then gathered it slightly before I sewed on the waistband. I'm really happy with how it turned out.

This one was tough, I would not suggest doing this with denim unless your accustomed to swearing! Maybe it's just that I'm a rookie, but the thickness of the material made for a well used seam ripper! I think I'm going to either add some belt loops to keep the sash where it's supposed to be, or do the same as I did with Katie's and put in a gather and sew the sash down. I can't decide what would look better, so until I do I'm just going to leave it alone.


I used the 2T size to make this shirt because Melody is such a skinny mini. I really like this one. I would wear this if I could. All we need is some pig tails and cowgirl boots and we'll have a cute little country girl!

I'm not overly fond of this one. I think if the material had been reversed it would've turned out better. I really like how the waist band on this one works. I'm thinking about doing a dress like this only with a dropped waist so the top will be kind of billowy. Also, maybe have the ties come out on both sides instead of just the one. I'm definitely going to make a few more like this one!

Wal-Mart has solid long sleeve shirts for $3.50 right now. I'm going to get a few to go under these so they'll last all winter. Thankfully it won't get cold here for a while longer!

Such a great opportunity

Sometimes I love that we don't live in Utah! Like tonight, for instance, was the General Relief Society Meeting Broadcast. In Utah every other person you meet is LDS, but here you deal largely with non-members, so when the opportunity to come together as sisters comes along it's always a wonderful experience! Our stake is actually not as spread out as it is in other areas. We include two very large cities, but we're still spread out enough that we don't run into each other in the grocery store!

Tonight, when the meeting started and we were all singing 'There is Sunshine in my Soul Today' I had this overwhelming feeling of belonging. Here I was, sitting in this room with all of these other women from all walks of life. Young, old, rich, poor, married, widowed, we all had different circumstances and stories to tell, but here we all had gathered together to listen to our leaders speak, be uplifted, and find a greater sense of peace. I had this realization that I can totally be myself with these women. We all have the same goal. We all are going the same direction, even if our individual paths take us on some twists and turns, we all are striving for the same thing! I'm so grateful for this church and the organization of the Relief Society.

In everyday life I worry about silly things like how my clothes fit and look, how my kids behave, how people perceive me, ect. But tonight all of that trivial, unimportant stuff just lifted off my shoulders and I just felt at ease. I love it when I'm given the opportunity to refocus. To remember what is really important and find a renewed sense of happiness. Happiness to just be who I am and know that my Heavenly Father loves and accepts me for who I am, faults and all. I hope you all had the opportunity to attend this broadcast tonight. If you didn't you can find the video HERE.

Moments that melt my heart.

I got home from a baby shower last night and Jared had already gotten the kids bathed and in bed (so many husband points awarded here) so I went in to check on them. Melody was still awake so I laid down to snuggle with her for a minute. This is the conversation that just melted my heart...

Melody: Did you have fun at your party?

Me: Yeah we had a lot of fun.

Melody: What did you do?

Me: Well a friend of mine has a baby in her tummy and all the mommies got together to give her things she will need to take care of that baby when its ready to come out.

Melody: Oh, so that's why you made the bibs. So her baby could use them.

Me: Yep we all bought or made her things to help her get ready for her baby.

Melody: Mommy, someday, when I get big, I'm going to get a ma-sewing-ma-chene and make things to help people get ready for their little babies.

Even though we don't get along very well sometimes, moments like this really drive home that she watches everything I do and say and it constantly makes me ask myself what kind of example am I setting for her? She's getting so big so fast and has this understanding of life that surpasses her 3 years. I just love her too too much!

Further evidence

To reinforce the claims made in the previous post I thought I would share with you my craft for the day. I don't feel too bad about this one though because it's helping my family. So in my mind that makes it worth it!

I think I inherited more than my share of the Scott gene. My grandfather was forever moving piles from one place to the next and in reality my mom is no better. Those piles all have a purpose, they just don't have a place to be. I find myself continuing in this trend and I really can't take it! You know in Harry Potter 5 when Umbridge is going off the deep end and she yells 'I will have order'? Well that's me. I know I'm a dork for making that comparison, but I feel just like that looking at my house. We have moved so many times that right as I start to get an idea of how I can organize things, we move again! Well this time it's going to be better! I'm hoping to be here a year or two so I have some time.

We have this really great nook in our kitchen that I have dubbed Mellie's craft desk. I'm sure before too much longer it will be the kids craft desk, but for now Mellie is the only one that really uses it. The problem is that we have all of her craft stuff on that desk (pens, markers, crayons, paper, ect...) and no real system of organization.

Early this morning while I was trying to go back to sleep after being dragged out of bed by a teething toddler for the 5th time I had an epiphany. I guess I should really thank Katelynn rather than curse her. Whatever. Here was my thought...

THIS

+ THIS
AND THIS

=Many great and wonderful things!

Throw in a few of those random jars and containers I've been holding onto forever and you get

THIS

Ahhhh. Such sweet satisfaction! I don't think I've seen the top of that desk in more than a month. Now all I need is to 'encourage' Jared to mount that modem to the underside of that cabinet and it will be perfect!

Where did you get such an assortment of jars you ask? Well my dear friends, the answer is my fridge! Salsa, jelly, peanut butter, pickles. Nothing gets thrown out. I'm just weird like that. I'm so convinced that I can use it for something that I refuse to let it go. To be fair I usually do find something to use them for it just takes a while. I used formula cans to make some pretty creative birthday cans last year! Now I've begun to make a dent in my jar collection! The tall one in the back is from my Grandma Carter. She, like me, feels that everything can be reused for something. Especially these sweet things!

So pretty! I have been using them to store noodles, but I still have oodles more!

Now onto the next problem to tackle...

I'm thinking those file thingys you can hang on the wall. Coloring paper in one, coloring books in another, stickers and what not in the other, ect...

And this. *sigh* This is the cabinet above the desk and I'm really not sure where to start. Katie's gonna be teething for a while longer so I guess I can hope for another early morning epiphany!

My confession

I feel like perhaps I was unfair when I displayed all of Jared's computer paraphernalia that is taking over our house. I'm really just as bad. So to be fair I thought I would spill my deep and dirty secret.

I. Am. A. Craft Addict.

There, it's been said. I'm pathetic really. The idea of walking into Micheal's and going through the dollar bins sends tingles down my spine. When I find some new project that I love, I can't do anything else until it has been made. On a few occasions my addiction has led to eating out because not only did I not make dinner, but we couldn't find the table. I am ashamed. I felt that in all fairness I should post pictures of how much room my stuff takes up. Not only does it take a lot of room, but I get into it more frequently than Jared gets into his stuff, so it's also considerably messier! Be prepared...what I'm about to show you is disturbing.

This is in the closet. The huggies box is full of sewing stuff that really just doesn't have a place to be, so it was easier to just keep it in there so at least it all stayed together. The totes under that are fabric. I'm really not that bad, my mom has more, but my Grandma Scott had us all beat! She left quite a legacy for me to live up to...

This is also in the closet. See that monster bunny? I made that for my friends little girl's birthday, but didn't get it finished in time. Her birthday was in April. 'Nuff said.

We got this dresser from a friend of Jared's and while I don't think it's pretty or anything it has been a life saver!
Drawer #1:unfinished projects.(yep it's full!)
Drawer #2:photos and other random scrapbook stuff
Drawer #3:hair bow stuff, glue guns and sticks, and more random scrapbook stuff
Drawer #4:Stuff for kids crafts
To be honest I could really use another one this same size!

This used to be our computer cabinet, but since moving to Texas we have enough room for Jared's desk, so I took it! I really know what's in there and where. Sorta...

And this is the crowning moment of shame! This cabinet sits next to our kitchen table. It started there because we really didn't have a place for it yet and again, I took it! It could really be used more efficiently, I know, I have big plans. However big plans usually require money, and since I'm experiencing a shortage of that we deal with this. Note the sewing machine on the ledge in the top left corner. Jared's pretty sick of it. I know because he made a point of clearing out his computer stuff in hopes of creating a craft space for me in our room. All I can say is good luck love! Good luck!

My sweet scammin' hubby

My dear husband is a total gadget techy geek. He has a list ten miles long of all the techy gadgety stuff he would like. When we first got married I didn't know what half of it was or what it did. Through much patience on his part I have learned a lot. I think his main reason for wanting me to understand is so that I would see the benefit of each new toy and be ok with the money spent in order to acquire it. Recently, however, money has been lean and our hobby's have both suffered. His more than mine because you can craft and what not for pretty cheap. So Jared has found other ways to get the things he wants.

He started working at the Hilton Reservation Center in the IT department in May. Apparently they have a bit of an organizational problem so Jared set himself to the task of fixing that. Through all of the cleaning and sorting he's come across a lot of abandoned, fairly expensive things. For some reason his supervisor likes him and lets him take the things that are no longer being used. Since starting there he has managed to scam:

6 computers

The rest are burried in the closet!

2 servers

2 printers

and last night he brought home the screen mount that he has been coveting.

I can tell you that as each thing came home I was less and less impressed, but really I have 3 cabinets of craft stuff and that doesn't include the stuff that has taken up shop on my kitchen table. He doesn't complain about my stuff so how could I complain about his? Every time he brings home something new I just shake my head and ponder where I could find a job like his. Preferably somewhere they have a surplus of Cricuts and are just dieing to hand them off to someone!

Katie's silly faces

From the day she was born Katelynn has always had the most entertaining facial expressions. There's nothing like watching a 14 month old give a dirty look to another little kid for taking away her toy. We try to capture them when they come around, but usually aren't fast enough. I took about 20 pictures on this day and only got this many worth using!

She's such a silly girl, and I don't think I could adore her more!

Big Fat Liar!

I'm quite simply a big fat liar. I was all set to drop the blog and move on with our website. However, due to Jared's recent acquisition of an xbox 360 (thanks Jerry) I have decided to resurrect the blog. Jared was working on the website pretty regularly, getting it setup and what not, but I think the days of him spending a lot of time on it may be gone. For a while at least! So for the next few months I'll just continue updating here.