Sunday, March 11, 2012

In which I prepare for spring, a season that Seattle normally skips completely, going straight to summer sometime in late June

So we finally took down our Christmas wreath a couple of weeks ago (lazy, I know, shush). The wall it was on has been bare and white since, save for a lone nail sticking out of it. So since spring is coming (kind of...not so much in the Pacific Northwest) I decided to start on a little spring-themed wall hanging.

I am generally an apathetic fan of flowers, but I have a soft spot for tulips. If that guy in 11th grade had put tulips in my locker instead of red roses, he might have had a chance. Though I still would have been creeped out about how he broke into my locker in the first place.


The thing about having a baby who only takes 20 minute naps is that you have to cram as many things into 20 minutes every couple of hours that you can. Baby's eyes flutter shut? Cram those scrambled eggs down your throat while chugging coffee while running to the bathroom while tossing food at the cats at the same time and wondering if you can set up a little table in the bathroom so you can rotary-cut fabric while on the toilet. Baby wakes up. Entertain baby for 2 hours, baby falls asleep, repeat. It's like a reality game show of Multitasking XXXtreme!

But the whole thing has inadvertently made me slightly (and I do mean slightly) more organized with sewing. With pieced blocks I have a bad habit of doing only one or two blocks at a time. I'll cut enough fabric for a couple of blocks, piece them together, then start work on the next one or two, leaving all the fabric on the table or floor or whatever while I go eat dinner or whatever. It's fine when you have hours to sit around and sew, but that method was not working for me any more. So with this wall hanging I'm working on, I actually sat and pre-cut all my blocks, then sorted them into little baggies labeled with their dimensions and everything.  When I have my 20 minutes to sew, all I do is grab the right color fabric from each little baggie and sew and bam, a block is done. I am sure other people have figured out this method a LONG, LONG time ago, but I'm slow and lazy and all that. Also, Orange Kitty and Gray Kitty recently decided that Fabric On The Floor was the best place to fall asleep and promptly eject huge tufts of fur on. That huge cat tree in the corner just isn't good enough for them because the moral of owning cats is that nothing you put effort into is good enough for them; however, that cardboard box sitting by the door waiting to be recycled is the BEST CAT TOY EVER. Every time.
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6 comments:

  1. Kristy QPMarch 11, 2012 at 8:00 PM

    Isn't it amazing how your multi-tasking skills quadruple once you add in a little kidlet?

    Loving the way you've adapted so you can still get some sanity sewing in! I'm looking forward to when my kids are old enough to use the machine properly and I can make them do some of the boring sewing parts. ;)

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  2. KleepMarch 11, 2012 at 9:37 PM

    I bet the tulips will turn out great. Good to hear you've learned multitasking to the extreme, wouldn't hear from you for a while otherwise! Good luck with the toilet rotary cutting station :-)

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  3. Krista SchneiderMarch 12, 2012 at 9:46 PM

    You are so funny. And so spot on about all of it, especially the kitty tree in the corner. What a waste of time an money, my cat knows which things I want him to play on and thus refuses, choosing to lay on clean clothes or atop my keyboard mid-typing. So does my dog... I buy her bones and toys, but they go untouched while she chews on plastic disposable razors and plastic cups and beer bottle caps.

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  4. Benta AtSLIKstitchesMarch 13, 2012 at 12:24 AM

    The tulips are great, and I love that they are not symmetrical! And cats - I quite understand, ours only seem to want to sit on my lap if I am hand sewing! I used the theory that maching sewing was white noise and therefore soporific, and even now (20 years later) it doesn't keep them awake or wake them up!

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  5. Sana SarotiMarch 13, 2012 at 7:47 AM

    I love your humor! That 2nd paragraph made me laugh out loud, but probably only because I dont have kid's, yet (you can laugh with me later ;-)
    To make up for it though, I have given you the Liebster Blog award!
    Cats and cardboard boxes - a never ending love story!

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  6. Finding FifthMarch 19, 2012 at 4:09 AM

    Nice to find your blog Natalie and even better to have a good old laugh at your current 20 minute craft cycle. I agree that the toilet rotary fabric cutting station is a winner! I have heaps of empathy for you and the 20 min intruder (not my words but from 'Baby Wise' I think). My firstborn would only do the 20 min thing for a few months and it was exhausting. From what I read, it is basically HALF a sleep cycle and they don't know how to put themselves back to sleep because the conditions they fell asleep under have changed. In my son's case that meant he'd fallen asleep in my arms and I'd transferred him to the cot. But by my baby #3 I just put her in the cot fully awake and let her put herself to sleep. No walking around on eggshells or 20 min Intruders. My SIL used to play a CD of baby 'white noise' like vacuums, dishwashers and static. That seemed to work for her. I wish you and your tiny window of opportunity well and may your wee bairn learn the art of falling back to sleep on her own.

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