Social Crafting

My church has a women’s ministry that is growing increasingly more active. We’ve been trying to do lots to get the ladies together often, including a spring retreat, a Saturday brunch, and last night a craft night. I was so excited for this event!

So several of us toted our sewing machines, others brought their knitting needles, some brought cross-stitch, and everybody else just came to hang out at the church for an evening of fellowship. It was so much fun to see what other people were working on, and to have some company while I sew.

I discovered though, that while I enjoy the company, I get distracted too easily, and end up sewing the wrong stitches, and things backwards. Oops! So perhaps it’s better for me to sew holed up in our little office at home if I actually want to be productive. Nevertheless, we had a great time.


A few ladies sewing on several projects



The back circle was the knitting, etc group, and the front
circle were just hanging out and writing note to our missionaries



Pulling a Fast One

My office offers the wonderful option of a flex-time schedule. This means that I have to work 8 hours (plus 30 minute lunch) everyday, but I can come in whenever I want between the hours of 6 and 9 am. Though this was originally put into practice by the union to accommodate working mothers, I take full advantage of it.

The idea of going in at 6 and getting off at 2:30 is stupendous! Actually doing it is a little rough though. I have never been able to do it. I started trying last winter. But I found that I just can’t get out of bed when it’s still dark outside. My body refuses. Quite frankly, it’s just unnatural. There’s no reason we should be up before the sun. Unless, of course, I want to be home sooner in the afternoons. But how can I make the sun rise earlier?

Ben has been reading this book called Flanagan’s Smart Home: The 98 Essentials for Starting Out, Starting Over, Scaling Back. Basically it narrows down your entire house full of crap to 98 necessary things, as well as provides suggestions on increasing the quality of life. One thing Ben has read about is how to wake up in the morning. Instead of jumping out of bed to a blaring alarm clock that’s sets your adrenaline running, the book suggests using a lamp timer that turns the lamp on about 30 minutes prior to when you want to get up. Your body naturally wakes up to the light – and you’re able to avoid the jarring discord of that god-awful alarm.

So with this tip we have figured out how to trick my body into getting up earlier. I wake up to the light, and it’s not until I walk out of our bedroom that I realize how dark it still is. But then it’s too late! I’m off to the shower, into work early, and back home early! Then it’s like I still have a whole half of the day left to be at home with Ben.

*Ok, so I still haven’t actually made it in by 6 yet. But I’ve gotten in as early as 6:30, and I’m slowly working my way up to 6. Come on, give me a break, it’s 6 AM!

Now you see it...

...now you don't

Tada!

Bursts of Inspiration

I've had a dress design mulling around in my head for a while. I finally had a little money, and Hancock Fabrics was having a great sale, so I went over there to browse for a while. I saw so much I wanted and it was such a good sale, but I restrained myself and only bought a what I needed. Then I found some more on sale at Wal-Mart. I saw some fabric that was just so cute, I bought it on a whim and plan to make a dress with it as well.

The patterned fabric for two dresses, and accent fabrics for lining, ties, and straps

So now I've got two projects to keep me occupied for a while. Oh and I still haven't finished those curtains. But they're slowly coming along...

And Super Hubby has been busy on his own project. Our puppies needed a raised enclosed house, so Ben decided to build them a dog mansion - complete with a porch! It'll be perfect for them when it rains and when it's cold. And hopefully they'll use it other times too. Now we get to paint it! We're thinking bright orange...

With immense concentration of brain power alone, he put this together! (The drill is just a prop)

Jackson enjoying his new mansion

Ok, so he did use some power tools. And I got to help! Well, I was a deadweight to hold wood still while he was cutting. Ben said I'm just as good as any tool in a woodshop. 

Go Team Ratliff!

To Do List

 See all that junk? Yep, instead of cleaning it all up, we're just going to cover it up with a curtain made out of this

That's my next project.

And I'm wanting very much to make a dress...so hopefully soon I'll get started on that.

A Summer Crop

Update on the garden: Our watermelons are dying. Sad

In other news, my hair was super long. I mean loooooong.

This is me with my long hair and my Dad

I probably hadn't cut it in a year or so. I'm rather low-key when it comes to hair, the less I have to do, the better, and I hate paying someone to cut it. I even cut my own bangs cause I'm just that cheap.

But it was time to do something with my unruly mane. The cheapest deal I could find was the cosmetology school around the corner from our house. I realize that schools are cheap because students are cutting your hair, but I figured they can't mess it up that bad. Since I don't care too much about my hair to begin with, I could probably deal with however it turned out.

So I went after work on Thursday afternoon. Because my hair was so long, several of the students asked if I was sure, and why I was cutting it. They couldn't really understand the why, but it didn't matter.

When my stylist asked me what I wanted, I just said I want it short and I want to be able to wear it curly. Besides that, do whatever you like. He got very excited.

3 HOURS LATER I have a new do. Now in that absurdly long amount of time for a hair cut, I did get it washed, cut, blown dry, and straightened. And there were many people ogling at me as well. The stylist kept assuring me that it was cute, though I didn't see it until the end. This didn't actually reassure me at all, but made me rather nervous that he felt like he needed to reassure me.

But after much rough combing over my ears, a sore scalp, and one minor flat iron burn, I was happy with the outcome.

Of course, since I have curly hair, it will never look like this again cause I'm too lazy to straighten my hair. So it will generally look like this

It works. And it's perfect for the summer. Yay!

Trying Out My Green Thumb

We (meaning me, and I roped Ben into it) decided to have a weekend project.

We stopped by Lowe's.

Got some cucumbers, watermelon, cilantro, sweet basil, and Roma tomatoes.

And we made a garden

Keeping our fingers crossed for some successfully homegrown herbs and veggies.

And because that was more physical work than I've done in...I don't remember when, in the 1000 degree Mississippi heat, I'm going to go pass out on my bed now.

My Not-So-Secret Secret: Walk Like a Human

As I grow older, I’m discovering those stubborn areas of my body that like to retain mass more than other areas. Another joy of entering adulthood. It happens to us all, it is a way of life. But I am attempting to delay it.

Thankfully my place of employment offers a gym for use by employees. Thank you, President Obama. But as I muster up the energy for some cardio, I’ve found an easy quick-fix to looking better – stand up straight.

Growing up my sister and I heard the same refrain again and again: “Sit up straight or I’ll make you sit up straight.” My mother had concocted this zany invention that the nebulous They put on kids to correct their posture, and very frequently threatened us with it. It was a back brace with spikes that were just far enough away from your skin that they didn’t touch you as long as you kept perfect posture. But as soon as you slouched…OUCH! Yes, my mother came up with this. At least, I’ve yet to find one in real life. But I’m sure when I have kids I will want one.

Sadly though, her artful deception didn’t work. I still slouch. Ben even tried to fix me by making us keep our car seats sitting absolutely straight up. And now that we have our own vehicles, I lean that seat back as far as I want when I drive. If I think about it and catch myself, I will sit up straight…but that it rarely ever and only lasts about 2 seconds.

However there is hope! I have made a remarkable discovery. Did you know that you actually look better if you stand up straight? Believe it or not, clothes were not made for hunchbacks, but upright humans. When I started sewing, the first thing you learn about is how to fit clothes to your body properly by taking your measurements. One book I have spent a whole page talking about how good posture effects the way clothing fits you.

Perhaps my  mother was on to something with her devilry…

So often in a dressing room I am discouraged that this little dress was so lovely on the rack…but looks so horrid on me. Perhaps it is because I am standing like Quasimodo? After spending so much time sewing and shopping for clothes, I will admit that this is true. I tend to find more clothes I like and that fit me when I stand up.

So I realize that that helps, but I only do it when I am thinking about it…which isn’t that often. Obviously the ominous back brace didn’t work. How else can I just do it without having to think about it all the time?

Buy more expensive clothes. My nicer clothes tend to be less comfortable, so being uncomfortable from sitting up straight just seems to jive with the outfit. Also, I think there’s this subconscious thought that if I spent so much on this dress, I’m not going to look like a gorilla wearing it.

So as I fight the inevitable on the elliptical, I’ve got my strategy.

*Ben, I need some more money*

Yeah, I know that’s not going to work. Anyone interested in working on a prototype of that back brace?

My Genes are Defective

I was born in 1986. I don't like to admit it, but I am a Millenial, or part of Generation Y. As such, technology should be ingrained in my very DNA. I'm not a hacker or software developer, but I can do what needs to be done. I have a MacBook, an iPhone, a Kindle, a Wii. I get my news, books, music, and movies from the internet. I can answer any question anyone could possibly think up with my magic fingers and Google. I'm on Facebook, Gmail, and Blogspot. And just recently, Twitter.

I have just recently gotten a Twitter account. I'm not slow, I've known Twitter was always around. The first time I heard about it was at a magic show in college (Yes, magic show...in college. There was fire. And knives. Just trust me, it was cool.) The guy on stage mentioned he was going to tweet something. When he came back from intermission, he explained that no, that was not a sexual euphemism as someone had accused him of, but was how you post on Twitter.
But I just never saw the point.
Super Hubs told me I should get one, it's just fun, and finally I figured why not? Might as well see what all the hubbub is about. And now perhaps my generation will claim me.

But one interesting thing is I have had to learn how to use Twitter. That's not how it works. I should be able to figure it out because it was made for my brain.
And now I've noticed I'm asking Ben often for help with how to do this on the computer, or how to link this to my Facebook, or how to set this up on my Kindle, or how to change this on my iPhone.
That's not how it's supposed to work! My mom is the one that asks for help with technology, not me.

But I will not be dismayed. I'm going to gladly take it as a sign of adulthood that Ben's ten year old brother is more adept at using technology than I am.

@jxncait  #technogenes