see Jane read. see Jane sleep. {back to school}

The sewing machines sure have been busy around here! Yesterday, Noonie took my first hand-embroidered piece {see HERE}, and turned it into this!Oh my, I am eating it up. It's no secret I love all things vintage + schoolhouse and this little dress top delivers up a sweet dose of school-girl charm. A little close-up...fake smile and all...what can I say, it was dinnertime! :)
I used one of Aunt Grace's feedsacks for the skirt. Love those sweet repro fabrics!
And then there's those cute coco jumbo mary janes that we've had since last summer. They finally fit! Yay! Of course you can't go to preschool without a cute napmat...Noonie made that happen too! I love all the little details she built in to the mat, like the reinforced velcro closures......and the carrying band.I'm pretty crazy about the little red japanese import fabric and I love that it's a canvas weight so it should hold up well. Here it is rolled out...doesn't it look so cozy & cute and ready for a little preschool siesta?We debated whether to attach the blanket or not...her old napmat had an attached fleece blanket. In the end, I decided against it. Her mat comes home every Friday to be washed and after a year's worth of weekly washings, the blanket in her old mat was looking rather raggedy.

Instead, I decided to put the little pumpkin's blanket collection to good use. Every week, she'll get to pick out a special blanket along with a cozy stuffed friend to take in her nap mat. This is one of her faves from when she was a wee little baby...Cute & functional...what could be better?!THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU NOONIE!!Watch out K-4...here we come!

sparkly clean

Today was the little pumpkin's dental visit. She did great. No cavities and she got an A+ during the plaque check...you know where they stain their teeth with the magenta dye and check. Of course she thought her purple teeth & lips were HILARIOUS and she couldn't stop giggling.

Getting to pick out a prize...or two...or three for doing so well. Showing off her sparkly clean "princess" teeth and A+ report card. But what I want to remember from today - and the reason I wrote this post in the first place - is this: Without blinking twice, when she was told she could pick out prizes to take home, she immediately asked if she could pick some out for her brother. She picked three for herself...a sparkly "water glitter" bracelet (pink, of course), a jewel ring, and some stickers. And she picked three for him...a dinosaur, a yellow matchbox car, and a foam airplane.Of course, she talked the girl into giving her "just one more...a rubber ducky...for BOTH me and my brother" :) On days when I feel like all I'm doing is yelling "No, give that back to your brother - he was playing with it first." or "That belongs to your sister, don't take it from her room without asking." or "Who in the world made this mess?"...this is what I want to remember: her kindness...their love for each other...that they really are each other's favorite playmate.

I pray they will always stick up for each other, no matter what.

Grace & Hudson,
Mama loves you two more than words can say.
XOXO,
Mama

sweet clementine {flutter dress love}

Remember {this} little sneak peek???

Well, Noonie worked some of her magic and it now looks like this!
I know it's a bit hard to tell from that picture since the little pumpkin was so excited to put it on she couldn't stay still, but it's the sweetest little flutter sleeve dress. Grace was in love with her "wings" (flutter sleeves)...he he he..."they give you magical powers, mama!" Of course we had to add some signature yo-yos!
Yes, my only contribution to this sweet little dress :) I love how breezy this dress is...perfect for our HOT summers here in the South. But this little button...a vintage keepsake from my grandma...may just be my favorite part.Then there are those sweet shoes...a gift from Noonie at the beginning of summer...that just happened to match perfectly. I ♥ shoes. I have no idea why she was pulling her hair to the sides, but there you have it...my very own Pippi Longstocking in her adorable sweet clementine frock! Thank you, Thank you, Thank you Noonie for sewing sweet little things for the little pumpkin and for tackling her school nap mat all in one day!!The nap mat is off to the monogram shop...can't wait to get it back in a few days and show you Noonie's masterpiece!

I'm getting excited about school!!!

busy bee

I've got lots of sewing projects in the works and I'm hoping I can get them all done before school starts...which is now less than a month away...Eeeek!

First up, a sweet hand-embroidered Goldilocks inspired dress for the little pumpkin. Remember {this} sweet fabric? Well, I'm so happy and so sad I prewashed it. Happy because at least it happened BEFORE the dress was sewn. Sad because it came out of the wash with the background faded in spots...sort of like a tie dye fade. Slight but it's there. Boo hoo.

On to plan b. Lucky for me this sweet collection of Denyse Schmidt fabrics for JoAnn's just happened to work out perfectly and now I'm thinking the skirt portion of the dress will be a stripwork pattern using these gorgeous fabrics I'm in love with.Aren't they so pretty? Love them! And they happen to be 40% off at JoAnn's right now :) Speaking of great deals...our Walmart had these long-sleeve crew neck girly tees on sale for $1, yes $1! They had white, brown and light pink...mixed in with their short-sleeve mini pocket tees. Not sure if this is everywhere but worth checking out if you need some blanks for appliques or layering this Fall.One last project...these sweet fabrics from my stash...will soon become the little pumpkin's new nap mat for school! This one is all up to Noonie and I'm so excited to see the finished product.

And speaking of Grace...errr...Marbry. Yes, this little pumpkin of mine has insisted we call her "Marbry" for the past week. Such silliness! At least it's a cute name - HA!Hope your week is off to a great start!

home from the big easy!

We're home from our little New Orleans adventure. We stayed in the Garden District and it was gorgeous. Love the architecture. Sure wish I would have taken some photos of the beautiful houses but on the day I was ready to do so it poured down like you wouldn't believe.

{photo credit}

New Orleans was fun...more so for the littles and Noonie than for me. While I was attending some business meetings, Noonie took the littles to the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas. My littles LOVE zoos and aquariums so they were over the moon happy.No matter where he's at, this little guy loves carrying around and playing with his little yellow school bus!Scenes from the aquarium...Checking things out near and far...The penguin exhibit and the baby penguin being held were among the favorites that day...Getting a little bite to eat before calling it a day...Dinner at Houston's...check out my new way of keeping Hudson happy while waiting for dinner...choo choo tracks! Yes, hand-drawn train tracks! He LOVED them!Noonie & the little pumpkinThank you Noonie for helping me with the littles on this work trip!

a little Lulu & Co. loveliness...and resells 411

We're on the road again...New Orleans this time!

I'm tickled pink that one of my hats was featured on Hostess with the Mostess yesterday!!! Thank you, Jenn! Check it out {here}. Isn't this Preppy Pink Crab Birthday Party designed by Jess of Party Box Design so fun??!! Love it!
So while we're out mixing a little business with pleasure, let me share with you a few pictures of some
Lulu & Co. creations that shipped yesterday.

I've had several of you email me recently asking for more hat pictures because, like me, you're visual and want to see how different colors mix-n-match together. So I'm going to try and be better about posting pics here and there.

Yo-Yo party hat in candy pink & aqua blue polka dots
($25.00 + $6.00 shipping)Yo-Yo party hat in hot pink & lime green
($25.00 + $6.00 shipping)Basic Party hat in Dr. Seuss inspired red & aqua blue
($20.00 + $6.00 shipping)Basic Party hat in Pink, White & Black
($20.00 + $6.00 shipping)
{sorry for the crummy lighting on this one...I'd forgotten to photograph it for the customer's sneak peek and had to do an impromptu photo session right at the post office with less than stellar lighting or equipment!} You'll find my Q&A on Lulu & Co. hats {HERE} and if you'd like to place an order, please email me at: littlepumpkingrace{at}hotmail.com.

Currently taking orders for August 15th and forward birthdays (lead time is currently 3 weeks). Production calendar for the Fall is filling up - especially for large orders - please order early to ensure delivery in time for pre-party pictures, etc.!

RESELLS...
I've also had some inquiries about more clothing resells. Yes, I have some resells to go through, press & post on my resell blog (some little boy stuff too this time!):

STRAWBERRY WELLIES AND DINOSAURS

but I'm nowhere near ready and it'll probably be some time...not sure I can do it before school starts back...I'm just soaking every minute with my littles this summer. I'm sure you can relate!

BUT in the meantime, I've slashed prices on all remaining inventory that is ready to ship. Check it out HERE and be sure to become a follower of the resell blog so you can get first dibs on new listings.

Now, in honor of New Orleans...laissez les bon temps rouler!

He's wild, He's wild...God is wild about us!

Another first around here...Grace's first time at Vacation Bible School!!!

Last year she went to a 3-day mini version at a local methodist church, but this year she was finally old enough to go and she went to the full week version at our church!! What a fun week this was for the little pumpkin!

The theme was PandaMania...where God is WILD about you!So excited to go on Monday morning! She loves reading bible stories in her picture bible and I love how our VBS crew brought so many of our beloved bible stories to life for the kids.We stopped by to see Noonie and bring her lunch after
Day 1 and Grace was sooooo excited telling Noonie about all the fun activities she did... "Noonie, we got SWALLOWED by a whale just like Jonah!!", the songs she learned..."Noonie, He's wild, He's wild...God is WILD about us...you too, Noonie", and the new friends she made..."My friends from the baby school (MDO) were there... Ava & Nicholas & Charles...and some new friends too...we're in the PINK group, Noonie - can you believe that?!" The spark in her eyes said it all. As a mom, there's nothing sweeter than seeing your littles radiating God's love and being so excited to learn more about Him.

On a lighter note, can I say that rushing to get two littles ready & out the door by 7:45 a.m. is no easy feat. We've got A LOT of work to do before we're ready for August 22nd (Grace's first day of school) and then September 6th (Hudson's first day of MDO). I'm tired just thinking about it... On Friday, there was a program for the parents and lunch for everyone. This was so sweet. As soon as the little pumpkin spotted us......she got up and marched right over to us with this mega smile on her sweet face! Love you so much Grace!What a sweet sight...278 little children learning more about God!The program was so sweet. Lots of songs, stories, and a video montage of the week's activities based on Genesis "...on Day 1-7 God created...". The songs were Grace's favorite part about VBS. She really got into them. Here she is ready to perform...The theme song was the cutest. He's wild, He's wild...God is WILD about us!As a special treat they brought in two wild animal experts from a local animal refuge who brought a possum, a parrot, a baby alligator, a guinea pig, and an orphaned fawn. The kids loved them! Can you spot the little fawn about to drink from a bottle??! Our priest, Fr. Karl, closed the program with a recap and a prayer. I love our priest - he's young & energetic and does an amazing job bringing scripture to life and teaching us how to apply it to modern day situations. He's the same priest that married us and I'm excited that he's the pastor of our church and our littles get to learn from him. All in all a very exciting week! Thank you to all the VBS volunteers and especially to Mrs. Kristi & Mrs. Colleen for leading Grace's K4 group!! And thank you God for the sweetest of all sweet blessings: little children.