Vintage Rose Smocked Natalie Dress In Sew Beautiful Magazine

I squealed with excitement when

I received this in the mail the other day!

That's my name!

You see, I love the "Vintage Natalie" pattern

that Janet Gilbert designed for Sew Beautiful.

You can order the pattern on the Martha Pullen website. 

I made this version for the First Day Of Third Grade.

And I made this version for Ahnalin's 8th birthday.

I love this pattern!!

So, I had the idea to add smocking

to the waist. 

It combined my passion for smocking 

with my love of this amazingly versatile pattern.

I designed the smocking and wrote the instructions

and you can find them in the May/ June issue of Sew Beautiful Magazine.  

You will also receive the pattern for this 

darling romper designed by my favorite designer,

 Janet Gilbert!

This is my favorite part of the whole magazine.

This is the page that made me cry.

You see, I learned how to smock through

reading Sew Beautiful Magazine.

The talented artists on this page, 

and others who have contributed to the magazine,

have been my mentors over the past several years.

They have been encouraging and so willing

to share their knowledge. 

To see my photo next to these photos

was a dream-come-true!

And now, enough of my teary gushing.

I had better get back to setting up my new sewing room

and work on my next designs! 

Happy Sewing!

 

Celebrating 10 Years of India's Diagnosis

Happy Anniversary India.

I am so proud of you my darling.

Ten years ago, 

you

 received a life changing diagnosis. 

You were told that from that moment on,

that you, 

who was afraid of blood,

would have to prick yourself to bleed.

You,

who hated math,

would have to learn the carbohydrate count

of every item you put in your mouth.

You,

who was terrified of needles

 would have to give yourself shots 

many times a day. 

You 

would have to say "no" to things that 

most people take for granted.

You 

would have to learn to read all the subtle,

and not so subtle, 

cues your body would give you.

You

would have to learn to stand up

for your health needs,

even when people called you

"Faker" 

and 

"Drama Queen".

You 

would learn to depend on God

for your every breath. 

You

would grow

and change

and mature

yet still

be the best "you"!

The "you"

that God created you to be.

Never forget the verse that you claimed

as yours when you were a tiny girl.

Jeremiah 29:11

"For I know the plans I have for you,"

declares the Lord,

"plans to prosper you and not to harm you,

plans to give you hope and a future."

You fought the battle.

You struggled. 

You decided to win!
 

I love you my girl. 

Hey there Stranger!

Yes, it has been a long long time since I have checked in.

I know it has been a long time,

because I have been getting some very sweet

emails from concerned bloggy friends,

as well as some phone calls 

and even packages of coffee coming to my door.

So......what I have I been up to?

Well, quite a bit actually.

I will be putting up some posts 

with some of my creations from the

last several months very soon.

But first some newsy stuff.......

The top photo was taken 

by my Hot Rockin' Hubby at Disneyland

last month. 

Yes, we moved India back to the Disney College Program

and managed to get a few days in the parks.

Ahnalin was really sleepy in that picture,

but it was one of the few that shows me.

 

It was FREEZING in Anaheim when we were there!

 I mean, actually in the 30s! 

We were not prepared for cold weather to be sure.

We got to ride "Radiator Springs Racers" in Cars Land

and it is awesome!

We moved India in to her apartment with

her new Disney College Program roommates.

And we are so happy for them all.

They are a great group of girls!

Here is a rather charming bit of irony......

India's boyfriend Nate, 

who played "Gaston" in Santa Rosa's production

of "Beauty And The Beast"

is now in Florida at the Disney College Program

in Disney World. 

They met while being in the show together.

India played a "Silly Girl" 

And they both applied to the DCP before

they started dating. 

And even though thousands

and thousands of students applied for the program,

they were both chosen..........

to OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE COUNTRY!

Oh don't be silly!

Everyone was very sad the day we loaded the van....

AND I DO MEAN LOADED(!!)

to drive India to Anaheim. 

But we did move her in and 

she is now working at Disneyland again,

taking her college classes

both through her college and 

also the Disney classes. 

We miss her. 

But life is changing for us too.

Don has accepted a job to a new company

in the San Francisco Bay Area,

and we will be moving next month!

And I have been sewing and writing

and drafting patterns, 

as well as looking for places to move

and schools for Ahnalin

 and starting to pack, 

and lots of other things.

But I promise I am back to blogging.

Thank you for all the kind emails

and messages and prayers. 

I appreciated them all!

Happy Sewing!

Sivje

 

The Purple Elephant

Ahnalin loves "The Purple Elephant!

I do too!

The "Purple Elephant" is a darling

chapter book that was written by my friend

Donna Gielow McFarland.

Ahnalin loves to read and

has been enjoying Donna's stories.

So Donna sent Ahnalin 

a copy of "The Purple Elephant"

to review. 

So here is Ahnalin's review: 

I think that the book Purple Elephant is a 

very funny book, 

because it is about going on 

adventuring and having fun.

My favorite parts were when the

purple elephant sits on a stack

of hay and the prince is under the hay

and my other favorite is when

they introduced Dianna the dragon. 

So there you have it. 

Ahnalin loves the Purple Elephant!

Ahnalin is 8 and loves

reading fantasy stories

with adventure.

The Purple Elephant fits perfectly

into her taste in reading.

The story is exciting 

and funny and 

the characters really

draw the reader into the story.

You can purchase 

"The Purple Elephant" 

in paperback or

in the Kindle version

at Amazon.com

Donna, thank you 

so much for this book.

We can' wait to read

more about Prince Carmel

and his adventures!

Congratulations To My India!

Do you see this tiny little bug?

She was 3 years old,

on her very first visit to Disneyland.

She fell in love and said she wanted to 

live there when she grew up.

She is now this beautiful woman

who is so excited to be going back

for her second term of the Disney College Program!

India was a student in the Disney College Program

during the Spring and Summer of 2011.

She had the time of her life and learned so much.

India's favorite attraction of all time

is the Storybook Land Canal Boats.

Her dream came true when she was assigned

to the boats for her role in Disneyland.

And she was amazing in this role!

She adored her classes and

learning so much about the business

of show business.

She truly blossomed.

Crowdfunding

And now, India must

raise the money for her program fees

for this next semester of the Disney College Program.

We would be so grateful

for any help or support

so that India can realize her dream.

India has 8 days to raise

the funds for her fees

and we are still dealing with

Don's job search due to his lay off in July. 

Any amount would be such a blessing to our girl!

You can click on the "Go Fund Me" widget

and it will take you to India's fundraising page.

Thank you so much for celebrating with us.

And please keep our family in your prayers.

We are so grateful!

India is Twenty-Wonderful!

Do you have any idea how much I love this girl?

India is the only treasure that I carried under

my heart for 9 months.

And she has been my joy for every day of her

21 years.

I am so grateful that she is mine.

She loves a good adventure!

She is goofy and knows a good cuppa' when she sees one!

She knows how to wield a fry pan when necessary!

And she is completely wonderful in every way.

Today,
as my darling girl is still battling
a nasty cold,
and awaiting news of her (hopefully!!!)
impending acceptance for another
term in the Disney College Program,
I pray peace and health for her.

I pray joy and love.

I pray tenacity and strength.

I pray trust and courage.

I am so grateful that
21 years ago,
God gave me the desire of my heart,
and gave me this jewel.

Happy Birthday Princess India.

I pray all your dreams come true.

Love,
Mommy



(Photo credits go to her darling friends Sigrid Forsythe
and Jayne McKenna)

My Ahnalin Was VERY Blessed!

Ahnalin received a package in the mail last week!

Inside was one of the most beautiful dresses

I have EVER seen!

A wonderful bloggy friend,

Jan Boyd

of Jan's Smocking Blog

had created this amazing dress for Ahnalin!

Ahnalin is crazy about it

and especially loves the sparkly 

crystal beads and tiny lavender pearls

smocked onto the bodice.

The smocking is truly exquisite!

And the fabric has a rich crispness to it

that feels very princessy.

This was one of the

many hand smocked dresses

that Jan entered into the Western Idaho fair

and won prizes!

She is amazing!!

I am so grateful that Jan chose to bless

Ahnalin with this treasure.

It is long and will fit her for a few years,

which makes this mama very happy!

Ahnalin wanted to make sure

this dress was shown off

in her "Classic Ahnalin" pose.

Thank you so much Jan!

WE LOVE THIS DRESS!!!