After a nice lunch and antibiotic - I'm being a good girl about those ugh things ! - I started to sort and play with all the stuff I fetched home Friday and Saturday. I sometimes wonder which is my favorite part of Yard Sale Weekends, buying a buncha goodies, or getting it all sorted out at home. I can never decide, I enjoy both when I'm doing ‘em, a lot !

I was surprised to learn that, once brushed out, the Happy Meal ‘Totally Hair' miniature doll had crimped hair, just like the full-size one. Wow. These were very tiny crimps, too, completely in scale. I wonder how they did that. The Ken's hair was neater, but in its own way, even more of a mess. Both sides are brushed back, but one side is brushed down, then back, the other is brushed up. So it always looks lopsided. You could try to brush them both up, or down, but they always reverted to the original set. I tried some small trim work, but I may end up using hair gel on it.

There's Pretty in Plaid, in today's image. Evidently, her hair's been in a high ponytail for quite some time. That yellow thing on her hip is the hair elastic I took off her. If I was trying, I couldn't get her hair to do that. I'll probably give her a boil perm treatment tomorrow. Sorry for the loose hairs all over the photo, I have the fan going in the Lab. She's a lovely doll - to me, she's PiP Midge ! I may call her Pidge, if I can figure out how she got that as a nickname. Can always say she was a huge Lady and the Tramp fan as a kid.

From there, I really went to town. Cleaned up the silver box - turns out, it's a make-up case, with those pop-up shelves on each side ! - and it's now holding ‘shoe feet' from the beach dolls, My Scene girls, and my Catwalk Kitties doll. It also has all the skates and helmets, and some of the larger boots my other boxes didn't have space for. Rounding up all the MS skates meant I had to get all the loose bits and prop pieces together in one place, so I got a few dozen earrings, bracelets, jewelry findings, ‘soda' cans, and ‘grocery' items put away, too. Some of that stuff's been sitting around since last winter !

I also got all the new trims and ribbons together, and later, I'll get ‘em bagged up and stored. The new-to-me patterns are put away, except for the Holly Hobby one. I still wanna scan that one first.

The silver case had a long black shoulder strap that it won't need where it is - on top of two more doll shoe boxes ! - so I detached it. When I'm done making three more ‘bag of bags' for some teachers at Dearest's school, I'm gonna make the tripod carrying case, and sew on D-rings, make the black strap detachable. I may even line it with some leftover fleece, for kicks.

The bag of Barbie clothes I got yesterday was a treasure trove ! I got a Ken shirt, blue gingham with an attached beige vest, and a pair of ‘acid-washed' jeans with a really huge horseshoe buckle. Got a ‘Eating Fun' Kelly doll in there, still in her issue outfit, along with a Matching Styles Fashion Avenue - the white blouse-green skirt-pink jacket one.

All the rest were for Barbie - I got the fluffy pink dress that transforms into a gym bag - it's a weird little piece ! Also the ‘Happenin' Hair's outfit, ‘Pearl Beach's bikini, the pink ‘Hip to Be Square' minidress, a knockoff burgundy Christmas gown, another blue lab coat/ hospital gown, green floral Capri pants, a matching skirt and jacket from the ‘Made In China' toy company, a pretty white ‘leatherette' jacket and pants set that, unfortunately, is already flaking apart, a glittery pair of tights, a lacy set of hosiery, a pair of long pink gloves, a wedding gown that looks like a Dollar Tree special, but is actually from Mattel, a lovely black with pink hearts blouse, star spangled blue shorts, a green and red halter top, a camouflage skirt, a blue corduroy jumper with a red vinyl belt, a Fashion Avenue leopard-print blouse, a weird pair of purple shorts, a Sailor Jupiter costume, ‘Rose Princess's skirt, and several other no-tag blouses and skirts, with a double handful of purses and tote bags. I've pulled about ten pieces - plus most of the purses - to donate, once they've been washed.

Oh ! Just looked up the leopard print blouse - it goes with the flaking white pants and jacket set. What a shame. It's really well-made, and stylish, but if you ever saw a ‘Barbie and the Sensations' letter jacket's sleeves, you know what'll happen eventually. Wish there was a way to save it. Guess I'll take a picture of it instead. 

And I got another pretty blue cardigan, identical to the one I got last month ! This one even had the slightly-too-long cuffs still rolled up !  I'd love to know where that came from. There's no tag at all. I've looked all around, can't find it, not under Barbie or Skipper or even the Olsen Twins, but that's twice now it's shown up in a bag of Barbie stuff.

Come to think of it, that blue lab coat/ hospital gown was in last month's and this weekend's lots, too. I wonder if that's connected. I now have two of each, but not one idea of where either came from.

I then tackled the laundry basket I'd put all the ‘needs more attention' stuff from last week's laundry lollapalooza. Got the newly-washed fabric rolled up, got the clean doll clothes placed, and got down to the repair work. Dearest Son has three t-shirts that are too good to toss, but have developed tiny holes. A fourth, with a Spiderman design on the front, he'd evidently spent most of one summer day picking off. Too small for him to wear, too wrecked to donate - rag time ! By the time I, the scissors, and the seam ripper were done with it, I had six new rags, two doll-size Spiderman patches (tags from the collar and a side seam), one reusable Dearest-size Spidey patch from the sleeve, some neck ribbing, and two strips of belt-like blue trim with a white stripe down the middle.

Then it was time for repair work. I like to edge those tiny knit holes with some Fray-Check first, so they don't expand under the patch. And, doing so used up the last of my second bottle of the stuff. Now I have a fresh new one to break in ! While those dried, I went through my patch stash. The car decal shirt had a small ‘Hot Wheels' tag at the hem - easily removed, the tag is now a patch. The grey sports-themed shirt got a "Varsity Division" patch, complete with gold stars, from a pair of jeans he wrecked years ago. The patriotic flag shirt got a red and white iron-on star that I picked up on markdown from Hobby Lobby a while back. Since Dearest has a tendency to pick at his clothes, even when it irons on, I sew it. More than once he's come home with an iron on peeled off ! To add in the ‘don't fray' hopes, and keep it from moving, I fuse the patch down before I sew it. Several things I've patched have ended up being good enough to donate when Dearest outgrew it.

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:23 PM CDT

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Spent on fabric/crafts : $3.50

Spent on dolls : $5.20

Oh, this is so funny. I found a yard sale ad last week, promising a ‘two story Barbie house' for sale. Intriguing ! I wondered which one. Unfortunately, the ad on Craigslist had one date on it (last Saturday), and the online ad in the local fish-wrap had another (this Saturday). Figured out it was this weekend, and made a point to be up and dressed and there at the start time.

Yup, sale was on. And there was the house. Um...Hmpft. It was the Victorian one, but the trim and one of the support columns was damaged, there was serious sun-fading to the front, and most of it was bright pink. Even the really juvenile sticker sets were peeling and worn. Not really what I wanted, but since I'd made the effort, I asked. $20., I was told. Well, I had $15. on me, so I shrugged. She asked what I'd be willing to pay, and I offered what I had, and she didn't say anything, just wandered away. So I wandered back to the grey truck. Oh, well. Can't get a $130. castle for $5. every week !

The sale down the street was more my speed ! Spent $12., and got a ton of goodies. The kittens now have a plush cat retreat, Dearest Son has a Thomas case and a small TIE fighter waiting for him, and I got a cool silver case (gonna use it for big Barbie shoes, like skates and tall boots), a nice rooted-hair Ken, a lovely Pretty in Plaid redhead Barbie, a gallon bag of Barbie clothes, a doll-size notebook, and a Happy Meal Totally Hair Barbie miniature - I use those as Christmas tree decorations. I also scored a cute ‘Fashion Mall' - inside a Barbie-size case are four small ‘stores' - a pet shop, a candy store, a jewelry boutique, and a Café. There's drawers and shelves to fill, even a cash register, a hanging rack, a fold-down table, a mirror, and an ATM and Mall Directory. I could easily cover over or remove the stickers and make my own single ‘store', and I might just do that. For now, though, it'll be cute to use as-is.

And as the morning continued, I was repeatedly very glad about not buying the dollhouse. I got stamp pads that I can probably sell on eBay for 20 times what I paid for ‘em - they're very nice, and apparently never used. Gleefully, I set upon a box of patterns and selected three brand-new but years-old ones! Simplicity 7018, dated 1975, makes hobo bags and belts. One of my most favorite purses ever was a denim paint-splashed hobo bag, and I always wanted to make one. Sure, ya don't really need a pattern for that style, a cut-up paper grocery sack would do, but I just couldn't refuse a vintage version for 25c !

The other two are Simplicity Crafts, from 1995. 9817 is an ‘At Home With Mary Engelbreit' pattern. It makes all sorts of things, from aprons to chair cushions, curtains to canister covers, but I got it for the ironing board cover. The $8. one I got from Mal-Wart has a lump in the foam layer that just won't flatten out. And I hated to shell $15. for their next grade up one to replace it. Maybe now, I won't have to, and if I make it, I'll get to choose the fabric ! 9825 is mostly cozies - paper towel holders that look like birdhouses, a drawstring tea cozy, watering can and plant pot covers. Snagged it for the sofa and chair tissue box covers that'll probably work as Barbie furniture.

There's a more recent ‘kleenex box sofa' pattern out there, probably by Simplicity, but I figured, if you just made a rectangle to cover the tissue box, then a closed-ended tube to bend around the back, you wouldn't need a pattern to make Barbie a sofa, or a matching chair. You'd just sew tube to rectangle, shaping as ya go. Although, for the chair, I'd cut the height of those cube-type tissue boxes down some, so the sofa and chair are at the same height, but that's just me. Again, I felt powerless to resist the ‘work's already done' version for a quarter.

I also got a yard of cream felt - I have plans for Dearest's class Halloween party for it, and spending 25c instead of $3. makes me happy - as I need three, maybe four more colors. On impulse, I picked up what looked like a drawing surface, with a roll of paper attached. But it wasn't paper - it was Avery sticker paper ! Yaay, instant stickers ! Dearest and I will have fun with that ! I also picked up a set of four blank-inside cards for a dime. I can always use those. I've found that I really enjoy writing notes to people when I have nice stationery.

Hit a couple more on the way home, but I was down to my last dollar, and after three hours, was getting tired, a bit sticky, and thirsty. I must've hit ten sales in that time. And you know me, I'm not a drive-by. If I've made the effort to follow the signs, I get out of the car. Even if it is just to look at the neighbor's Karmann Ghia collection.

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:23 PM CDT

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Spent on fabric/trims : $2.00

Spent on lunch : $4.50

Busy, fun day. I had volunteering at Dearest Son's school this morning...but first, a couple of yard sales ! More fabric has followed me home, but it was ‘Flags of the World', so at least it was educational fabric ! And only a quarter...

Yard sales weren't really that good today. No dolls at all, and the ones I went to advertised toys. I always give those sales priority, in hopes that I can find something good for me or Dearest. Evidently, if you have two Happy Meal toy leftovers, you should say you have toys in your ad, I guess it brings in the guppies like me. Found a few goodies - a pretty candle in a glass star, a CD for Beloved Hubby, some lavender tulle and matching gingham, two small wooden drawer sets, a picture frame I hope to make into a Barbie room screen, an Irish linen and lace handkerchief (needs washing), a bag of various trim, and a 70s bandanna.

Got to chatting with one of the sellers - he was lots of fun to listen to ! - and he gave me a ‘Barbie and the Sensations' audio cassette. Said he wished he had dolls for me, but he'd get a kick out of knowing I had the tape. How sweet ! Haven't had time to listen to it yet, though.

On the way back to the house - wanted to change and grab a bite before school - my poor Molly made an odd sound, and it was all I could do to get her home safely. If my foot wasn't on the clutch to the floor, or the gas, she'd sputter and try to die. Shifted easily, though. Even then, she sputtered a lot and was extremely noisy, like a lawn mower or a go-cart. Still not sure what happened. Beloved Hubby says he'll look at her this weekend. Lucky for me, the grey truck was home, so I took that to the school.

I had such a great time reading to Dearest's class. They're such great kids. Did some other small, but time-consuming, work for his teacher, and then it was lunchtime. I'd skipped breakfast due to Molly trouble, so I was ravenous. Actually spent more on my lunch - taco salad, yum ! - than I did at the yard sales ! Very rare. I would have had lunch at school, too, but Dearest was already expecting me to take him home when I left. I had to tell him he needed to stay, but it was only a couple hours to go ! His teacher has invited me back any Friday I care to read, so I might be there more often...

I visited three other sales and the cross-town GoodWill. Urgh. I shoulda just got lunch, the sales were not good, and GoodWill looks like they haven't had a donation in months. When someone wants $60. for a dinged and slightly scraped TV stand that's $80. brand-new at Mal-Wart... she was one of the ‘toy' sales. She had a shoebox full of baby rattles and stuff I know we got free back when Dearest was a wee one. Wasn't a total loss - I got to see three vintage-being-restored Karmann Ghias in her neighbor's driveway. They looked like the orange one here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkswagen_Karmann_Ghia  . One was orange, one was red, one was aqua. A visual treat !

Tonight, Beloved has his Aikido class, and Dearest is already at his grandparents'. So I finished taking apart that green costume thingie, and it's all bundled up and stored. Got green velveteen, green glitter-dot, sliver glitter-dot, silver and white sequin trim, silver and black sequin trim, and a long green invisible zipper. Not bad for 50c ! Or was that part of the stuff-a-bag sale ? In any case, it was cheap, and I got a lot out of it. And now, I can take apart something new !

I kinda cheated, though. Since the velveteen on the dress body was badly crushed and rumpled at the seams, I just cut it at the seams, instead of carefully picking it apart to save an extra half-inch of already-damaged fabric. At least it's done.

And I have got to put a moratorium on buyin' people clothes for fabric. I got yards of actual fabric followin' me home most weekends, stuff that needs intense prep work to use really isn't necessary ‘round here !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:23 PM CDT

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Kind of a slow day today. I'm still ripping up that green and glitter dot dress/ costume/ thing while waiting for Dearest's afternoon bus. Today, I got the last of the silver and green glitter dot fabric off, as well as the black and silver trim. Material's all folded and tied up in bundles, and in the ‘ready to use' bins. Now I just have the rest of the shimmery green velveteen dress, and some silver and white trim, to pick apart, and then that outfit's ready to use. May even finish it tomorrow. Then I can start taking apart another of the ten or so irresistible ‘people clothes' purchases I have stuffed in a box in Molly's trunk. I'm thinking of those pink and black ‘cat' embroidered blue jeans as my next little project...

Few weeks ago, I learned to make an origami box. I've had so much fun with them, you can find ‘em all over the house. Dearest Son brings me one when he wants a nibble of what I'm munching, and a cardstock one is his stuffed Stuart Little's chair. I even made some from the ‘prescription papers' that came with the new inhaler and antibiotic. I thought the only way to reuse those was to pulp ‘em for recycled paper ! Happy with the success, I tried to learn a different style box - it doesn't have those little handles - but the simple ‘made for Girl Scouts' directions just didn't make sense to me. Gave myself a headache trying.

And then I found the same box, but with different directions - and I got it right this time ! I can even make little boxes with lids. Wheee ! Now I can make doll props from ads and printouts, either fold up the ad or just paste ‘em to the little boxes. I can make whatever size I like !

Here's the directions - it's for a divided box, but the divider part is a separate piece of paper you can omit. You can click on ‘next' when you're ready to go to the next step, and the pictures and text are easy to follow. Nice to know I can do it - it always ranks when the ‘kiddie' directions just don't make sense !  http://stayseemakedo.typepad.com/photos/origami_divided_box/index.html

One of Dearest's fave pairs of sweatpants has been patched twice. I think that's why he likes them, the flame patches ! Well, they developed another hole, just off the biggest one, and now I'm not sure if I should attempt another patch, cut ‘em for shorts, or just say we got our $3. out of them already and let ‘em pass into Clothing Heaven. I'll get a better look at them tomorrow.

I also did another bit of recycling. The light bulb that came with that yard sale Little Mermaid lamp I got a few months back finally died. In a poof and flash, I might add. It was then, when I went to replace it, that I realized the bulb was a 100watt one, but the UL listing on the collar socket said anything over 60w was a fire hazard. So I put in a 40w, and it barely lit up an inch of anything. Upped it to a 60, which was better, but still pretty dim. I looked around a bit, and my eyes caught the Whitman's Sampler box - the remains of a birthday gift from Beloved Hubby. Aha ! Lamp went on top, and now I can see in there. Not sure if I'll decoupage the box later, or just leave it as-is... but it's a sweet way to use it ! And it's finally off the floor. I don't know what it is, but I have the worst time letting go of a decently made box. No matter how big, small, or seemingly useless it may be. Maybe it's the constantly-frustrated organizer in me...

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:22 PM CDT

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Well, volunteering at Dearest Son's school didn't quite work out as planned. Yesterday, when I dropped off the bandanna ‘bag of bags' and a medical form I'd been requested to complete, office lady ‘Kelly' asked if I'd be back today to help count folders, they had stuff ready to go, if so. I responded that I would, it was ‘my week', and already on my calendar, so I was looking forward to it.

So, I got there and... it'd all already been done. Evidently a group of folks swept in at 8am and did it all, then left. I can't even get anyone to answer the phone at his school at that hour. Well, shoot. Guess I should have called anyway, even though I'd talked to Kelly about sixteen hours prior. So I left, and did a bit of shopping, and it was fun, but...

I'm actually a bit miffed. I filled out the ‘hey, we need YOU to volunteer for stuff !' form twice, and no one ever contacted me. Now I don't know if they need me or not, for any of it. I'm trying to not be soured over volunteering, but if this is how they treat the folks they know are already gonna show up - I asked for the third Wednesday on the form, twice ! - I can understand why it's so hard to get anyone. I'm still wheezing, and walking from the south-40 parking lot was a bit of a stretch, but I was glad to do it... now, I don't feel needed. I confess to pouting a bit as I walked to the car...

One good thing, though. I got to see Dearest out on the playground. He was having a great time with some other kids, I think they were playing ‘Pirate Ship' on the equipment. Evidently, it was a group version of ‘king of the hill'. If you knew how much Beloved Hubby and I kvetch over his social skills and worry about his having friends, you'd know exactly how relieved and happy I was at that moment. Nothing bad without some good, I always say.

Since I was out and about already, I hit Community Thrift. Scored a tin DPrincess box, and a Barbie eyeglasses case. It's Barbie pink, and you can see inside, including the mirror and the sticker, in today's image. The top just has the ‘Barbie' signature raised slightly on it. I also got a star-shaped wire basket. I've been wanting one of those for years. It normally has some gift pack assortment of bathing potions and emollients inside, and they sell a ton of ‘em at Mal-Wart every Christmas for about $15. Kinda high, when all you want is the basket. Lucky me, I got what I wanted !

 I also found several doll patterns, but unfortunately, they were all for a kid-size doll and one outfit. Either too small for the My Size Barbie girls, or too big. And thanks to three decades of Doll World back issues, I already have hundreds of soft doll patterns ! Luck was with me still, and I scored a vintage complete Holly Hobby stuffed doll and clothes pattern, Simplicity 6066, dated 1973.  While I'm not a huge HH fan, when I checked the pattern for pieces, she looked to be about the same size as the LDPs ! And you know I can't resist some 70s stuff, just on sheer appearance.

Amazingly, that whole haul was a whoppin' big $2.28 ! I know for a fact that the DP tin is $5. by itself at Hobby Lobby. I'm hoping to have some time to get the pattern scanned later today. Isn't that always the way - soon as you do a backup, you find a new (or new-to-you), irresistible pattern !

I also stopped in to Dollar General. Looks like they got the last of the My Scene dolls. I haven't seen them anywhere else. The one I was in had ‘Club Disco' and ‘Street Sweet' dolls, all the different girls. If I remember correctly, the just-a-doll-inna-box "CD" girls were $8., and the prop-heavy "SS" girls were $12., but I'm not quite sure.

‘CD Chelsea' had a gorgeous star-print blouse, and those cowboy boots have to be seen to be believed. Most of the fabrics used are color-coded-by-doll metallic. ‘SS' dolls came with miniature desserts, with rings still attached for double use as kid jewelry. They had simple candy-hued dresses with cute little jackets. Chelsea again had my attention, with her tiny green jacket. I mean, it was a tiny jacket. The kind of jacket you have to wonder why somebody's bothering to even wear. The look was cute, though. Amazon.com has images, if you're interested. I'm kind of on a doll moratorium right now...although I confess that Chelsea's tiny jacket is still sending out its siren call to me...

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:22 PM CDT

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I was thinking today about what I said yesterday - about being poor. According to some government guidelines, we probably are. But it's hard to feel poor when you have a Wii Fit in the living room, plenty of food in the kitchen, and lots of clean clothes to wear, thanks to marathon laundry today. I've indulged darn near every little whim of mine this summer. I even got the ‘dress form' rubber stamp when it went on sale. I'd been wanting that silly thing for more than a year ! I've been able to be generous when funds were available, and help out when the call came, and I'm surrounded by roughly two parsecs of fabric, the curtain of my dreams over the window, dolls of every description around, and everything I'll ever need to make anything I'll ever want, pretty much. And it's all in a room that's entirely mine.

I have trouble finding space for all the DVDs we've amassed, about half from the $5. bins or second-hand venues, and while we only have one working VCR, there's plenty of tapes for it, too. The Wii has eight games, most of which we've never finished. We've eaten out several times over the weekend, and even the leftovers got gone quick.

In short, if this is ‘poor', I have to wonder how the other half lives ! Sure, we worry about bills, and part of why I got so sick last week was because we don't have health care, and this latest ER visit will cost us big. Groceries and gas are getting ridiculous, but all I can do is make the most of what we do have to spend.

The rest of the day was mostly laundry. I had a short mountain of it to put away. At least now, everyone has socks and shirts where they belong, not in the laundry room in piles !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:22 PM CDT

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Read a news story today – how shocking ! – that American consumers weren’t spending like the resilient little money-tossers we’re known to be. Spending pretty much dried up as soon as the signature on the last $300. incentive check was inked, and the ‘back to school’ wave isn’t expected to hit, but to miss entirely.

Um, a good chunk of the country’s dealing with water where it shouldn’t be. Or houses that aren’t where they were a few days ago. During my little trip to the ER last week, the staff said they’d been besieged by respiratory aliments and worse over the last two weeks, during what’s normally a quiet period for them. So if the news writer didn’t hear about hurricanes, illness, or everything else going on besides Wal-Mart not quite posting the numbers it did last year, there’s not much I can do for ‘em. Yeah, I know the reports they’re feeding from were done last month, before all this bad news, but still…

Besides, I did my part. I spent like a madwoman this summer ! I bet I went to at least 50 yard sales, and hit the thrifts every week ! I probably spent $30. on fabric alone, both new and ‘used’. Not to mention all these cool new-to-me dolls ! So I’m spending all I can, that’s for sure. If anybody wants me to spend more money, I’ll be glad to. They just have to give me whatever they’d like for me to spend !

Why, just today, Dearest Son got to wear his brand-new jacket. Bought it last year on clearance, in a size up from his then-current one. There’s a whole section of his closet, fulla stuff bought on clearance or from yard sales in a size bigger than he takes now. And he’s also well-set from last year, when I did the same thing. Now, I’m not a clever woman. But if I’m doing this, I’m sure others are, too. So there’s your back-to-school spending – it just got done in yard sales and at the clearance racks ! That reminds me, next time I hit the thrifts, I’ve got a bagload of dolls and outgrown Dearest clothes in good shape to donate…

Yeah, things are a bit scary and I’m wryly joking my way out of them. But seriously. I’m considered poor (not how I see things, but…), so I can’t spend what I ain’t got. Actually, we already have spent what we ain’t got, we just can’t do it anymore ! So the economy’s gonna have to chug along without us. Besides, half of what I buy during the summer gets put into various stashes for winter, so we don’t have to go anywhere or buy anything. Problem is, with the fabric, I can never use all of what I already have stashed before I end up bringing more home !

Since Dearest has an after-school activity tomorrow, I got some stuff done today, so I can drop it off at the same time. His teacher needed a bag for the grocery sacks that every classroom uses, so I made her one. Simple tube, elastic at both ends, with the opening bigger on top, and a ribbon to hang it from. Takes about 20 minutes to make one, if you have to cut fabric and change machine thread. Her classroom theme is ‘pirates’, but I didn’t have any swashbuckling material. I found some blue bandanna print fabric, and figured that’d do. Hope she likes it.

But most of my day was spent catching up on all the neglected housework that sat around while I was, being sick. At least the kitchen doesn’t smell anymore, and everyone’s got clean clothes for the next few days. And you can get through the living room without kicking anything. Tomorrow’s a full-on Laundry Day, and I’m hoping that on Wednesday, I can get to the bathrooms. After that, I can sew something more than a tube !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:21 PM CDT

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Gave the scrap fabric box another coat of yellow paint today, and let it dry in the sun. Came out pretty nice. And ya can’t beat the price !

Those darn antibiotics irritate my stomach even when I take ‘em with food. I’ve taken them just before eating and while eating, and I still get a tummy-twister. Tomorrow, I’ll take Beloved’s advice and take one after I’ve polished off breakfast, see if that helps. As it is, I now have 25 more opportunities for body-benders, darn it all.

Right now, I’m resting a bit after pounding down a Happy Meal. They’ve moved on from Star Wars bobbleheads to Batman Lego and Wizard of Oz Madame Alexander toys. Poor counter guy, after showing me the available new dolls, was surprised to see me go for the Flying Monkey, not Dorothy or the Good Witch. I may go back for Dorothy, she has short hair this time ! I was thinking I’d keep an eye out for the Winkie Guard and maybe another Wicked Witch, but I pretty much got the one I really wanted already, so the pressure’s off !

Plus, after driving myself nuts with queries from one restaurant to another in search for last year’s WWitch, only to find it in about every fourth yard sale since, I refuse to do that again. So I’m not gonna go insane this time. Just don’t be surprised when ya see ‘em here ! And they’re just about the right scale for Princess Dorrie and the other LDPs to have ‘em as toys, too.

Read the new Hobby Lobby and Hancock Fabrics ads online today. Evidently the new sale price for Simplicity patterns is $1.99, up from the previous usual 99c. I can only assume those Project Runway licenses don’t come cheap ! No, last month, I kvetched about buying several Simplicity patterns at HF’s $1.99 sale, or waiting for a 99c sale, either later from HF or from HLobby. Well, today’s HLobby ad has a sale on Simplicity, for – you guessed it - $1.99. So does HF, later this month. (sigh) Guess there’s no escaping it, just timing it. Do I want ‘em this week (HLobby) or at month’s end (Hancock Fabrics) ? Decisions, decisions.

Of course, McCalls and Butterick patterns are still on 99c sales at both places…

Beautiful full moon tonight…

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:21 PM CDT

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It kinda wasn't my day today. The yard sale I wanted to go to is actually next week, the newspaper had the dates wrong. Arrrgh. Luckily, they also put a note up on Craigslist. My blasted prescriptions were over $50., even though both were on the ‘$4. Generics' list. My exact prescription strength wasn't available as the cheapie. How annoying. But I'm taking my antibiotics like a good patient, and the new inhaler is...well, to put it succinctly, ‘the good stuff'. It's on par with the Advair ($200.+) for $32., so I can't whine too much.

Beloved Hubby made me promise to take another easy day, so I did. Got groceries when I got prescriptions, and had fun doing so. There were a few other yard sales today, but it's been raining off and on and it's a game day, so I just wasn't inspired enough to go hunt ‘em down. Or go anywhere but Mal-Wart. Got m'self the $3. one-pound bag of cardstock, and that's been a load of inspiration ! I made a couple more of those little origami boxes from it, and filled the orange one with candy and punched-out stars from another piece. It's waiting on Beloved's desk.

Saw an adorable DPrincess storage box, but it was $23. and filled with diapers. Too expensive for decorated cardboard. Sure, I could donate the diapers - or have the ultimate accessory for Baby Chrissy ! - but it still seems pricey to me. So I decided to make my own box. After scanning the last of the doll magazines (more later) and getting them back where they belong, I had an empty shelf in the Lab wire rack. I'd already decided to use it for fabric scraps, but the wire wouldn't hold the tiniest bits.

So I grabbed an empty box from Dearest's ‘Little Hug' drinks and measured it off. Long enough for the shelf, but too wide. So I cut the box down, retaped it to fit, ran tape along the raw edges for a smooth look, then took it to the Shop for a spray paint bath. We had some yellow I didn't use on the cubby boxes, so I decided to go with it. Thought about covering it in fabric, but I never have any luck when I try that. It always comes off, or wrinkles, or something. Spray painting's just easier and faster. Needs about two more coats to cover the blue and red inks of the box's logos, but then it'll be done. I may decorate it a bit more...I just have to resist using the DP stickers I have around here !

One of Dearest's more recent homework assignments was to make a personal collage. Thank Everything we had plenty of printer ink ! It left a lot of paper bits in the Lab, too. So I got those cut up for notepaper. Now the cutting table's free again, and I have no real reason to not sew...except it's bedtime !

Oh, and the patterns. Finally, I got all my magazines scanned and stored, and even got all the Crissy ones downloaded again (for free !) from Beth's site (http://www.crissyandbeth.com/ , look for ‘Sewing for Crissy and Her Friends' on the first drop-down menu on the ‘main' page ). I was ready for a backup.

Unfortunately, my computer wasn't. Locked up for two hours. The CD-R wouldn't even eject. Task Manager was no help. Heck, the on/off switch wasn't working either ! Finally, after two hours of fussing and trying everything short of unplugging it, I unplugged it. Working fine now, and burned a perfect copy of all my patterns.

For it not really being my day, it wasn't a bad one. I'm hoping next Saturday is a bit more fun, though !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:21 PM CDT

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Sorry I had to skip a day, but I was in the hospital. About noon, my breathing darn near shut off, the inhalers weren't doing squat, and I knew if I valued Life as much as I say I do, I'd best do something about preserving mine and fast. Luckily, Beloved Hubby came home for lunch, took one look at me, and half-carried me to the truck. Twenty minutes later - we live less than a mile from the ER - I was tucked away into Room 34, a breathing treatment pipette in my mouth and the sheer joy of breathing beaming on my face. Whoo. That was close.

With my medical record, though, there were a lot of things they had to test me for. I had fluid in my lungs, which is NOT an asthma symptom. It could indicate that my heart is failing again, which is darn scary. They had to review my prescriptions, which I'd luckily thought to grab on the way out, and look up some records. So we were there over six hours, waiting for tests and Xrays to come back. I didn't care - I was joyously, luxuriously, easily breathing ! And we got to see two episodes of Law and Order, most of Baby Boom, part of The Most Dangerous Catch, and another movie. I can't remember what it was, because I fell asleep. I must've been exhausted. I had an arm-breaker of a blood pressure cuff on my arm, inflating every 20 minutes, an oxygen tube in my nose, a buncha stuff beeping, and the usual bustle of a good-sized ER swirling around the always-open door. And I slept through it all.

The lovely nurse, Karen, hated to wake me, but she needed another blood sample and I was getting a second breathing treatment. All the tests came back negative for further heart damage, but positive for a lung infection. Otherwise, I'd responded very well to treatment, and with a round of antibiotics, I'd be back to as normal as I ever am ! Whew ! I was free to go. I could have flown !

I'd had a cuppa coffee that morning - heat and caffeine are good for asthma people ! Seriously. - and a kids' lunch size packet of potato chips. That was all I'd consumed all day. So Beloved, who'd stayed with me the entire time, took me across the street for a tasty Subway sandwich. The Sonic drive-in was just as close, but I was not in a mood for anything fried, and I was sooo hungry ! Ate about ¾ of a regular ham and turkey, and I was stuffed. No chips or anything, just sandwich and Dr. Pepper. My hands and arms were shaking, which is weird. Between all the speed I inhaled - and that's what's in the breathing treatments and inhalers, make no mistake - the lack of food, and worry and exhaustion, I shouldn't have been surprised. But I found myself watching the tremors with amazement, over and over.

Beloved called his parents and arranged for them to be there waiting for Dearest Son's bus. And he let the school know. DFIL picked him up and they went to their house, and Dearest welcomed the change in routine. We thanked them effusively when we picked him up. He was happy to see that Mommy was breathing and calm. He gets so tense when he knows I'm at the hospital, we didn't even tell the school what was going on, just that his grandfather was the contact that day. No sense upsetting him during class time, he'd probably be would up and disruptive for the rest of the day. His teacher sent a sweet ‘get well' card home today - awwww !

And really, that's about where my day ended. Beloved tucked me into bed, and I slept straight through the night. I barely rolled over. It's been a long time since I slept that well ! I woke up about half an hour before I normally do, and just lay there, DC on my hip and Jack behind my knees, one hand on my tummy, feeling my breathing and hearing Beloved's soft snores. Glorious.

It was a wonderful morning, to not be so short with Dearest because I barely have the breath and energy to tell him things more than once. Got my new prescriptions, and talked to some interesting folks waiting for their prescriptions. I'd been waiting quite a while for the pharmacy to open, but the later-arriving lady who still had on her hospital bracelet looked really green around the gills and was in a lot of pain. I traded ‘now serving' numbers with her. After all, I was pretty healthy, I could afford to wait a few more minutes. Didn't find a single yard sale.

Community Thrift was devoid of much of interest, but I did find the very recent Anakin Skywalker bobblehead Happy Meal toy. He didn't have that one. Boba Fett one we got a few weeks ago is still in the Office bathroom. Oh, I forgot, they did have one of the newer Jasmine dolls. If she hadn't have been $4., and the other doll with her in the bag wasn't one I donated, I'd have bought her, just for comparison. The new one has a much larger head. I mean, it's noticeable. And her toothy smile just doesn't suit her character. Like the Jem dolls, the teeth seem to make her seem...well, insipid. Maybe even less intelligent. I'm glad I lucked into this one.

Dearest made me promise to take it easy today, so I helped make our lunch - chicken pasta salad - and not much else. Scanned about half the patterns in the doll magazines that've been sitting around for a couple months, and I may do the rest tonight. That'll free up a second shelf in the wire rack. I think that's where I'll begin storing fabric scraps. It'll be close to the sewing machine, and I want to use that Fabric Leftovers book on some projects soon.

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:20 PM CDT

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