Meg vs. Maternity Wardrobe: Easy skirt updates

In the interest of getting started on my 30 by 30 list, I tackled a couple of maternity skirts that I rarely wore because I didn't like the fit. I knew they were easy fixes if I just took a little time with the sewing machine, but of course I put it off until 2 months before baby is due! Regardless, it is nice to have a little change in my limited maternity wardrobe, and if I can do this, anyone can.

Makeover #1:

(Note the appearance of toys on my bed in the after shots. It was futile trying to keep them out.) This was technically not a maternity skirt, but when I bought it I needed something quick, it had an elastic waistband, and it was on clearance for about $4 at Target; the perfect storm for buying something I didn't really like and that was really the wrong size. Since the waist fit comfortably, I just decided how far in I wanted the bottom of the skirt taken in, pinned it and made sure that I was taking in the same amount on both sides, and sewed a straight line from the waist to the hem. I also took the opportunity to lengthen the skirt a smidge by letting down the original hem as much as possible--a little over an inch. Serious improvement, right? No more saggy, baggy, shapeless blob skirt here.

Makeover #2:

 

This skirt fit fine, but I was just tired of the shape, and felt like it made me look wider (again, one big, bumpy blob). Plus I had seen lots of maternity pencil skirts and was on the verge of coveting one. This skirt is essentially constructed of a series of triangles, so all I had to do was take in each seam to make the bottom narrower, like this:

Now to tackle the rest of my clothes pile!

Meg vs. Strawberries: What to do with a whole flat!

I couldn't resist a $12 flat of strawberries at our local fresh market, even though we still had strawberries in our freezer from the last time I couldn't resist. They are so delicious! As soon as we got home with them, my boys polished off the first basket in a matter of minutes. After that I had to ration their consumption since they are still in diapers, if you know what I mean. (If you don't know what I mean, be glad.)

When it was clear that we weren't going to eat them all plain, I got to brainstorming on how to use them all and waste none. First I tossed a batch of jam in my breadmaker (when I first saw that it had a jam function, I laughed, but as it turns out, it is awesome). Here is the best picture I could get of the jam being made with no work on my part:

I love that it has only four ingredients: crushed strawberries, lemon juice, a small amount of sugar, and pectin. It is heavenly on toast and pretty good in a pb&j, too. So much more strawberry flavor than the store-bought variety, since there is no corn syrup drowning out that strawberry tartness. Since I'm not yet domesticated enough to can jam, I gave half to my sister and kept half in our fridge for use in the next couple of weeks.

Little brother approved.

Next, I tried to replicate this fabulous find from Pinterest:

Oven-dried strawberries anyone? They seemed like an awesome snack, so I ventured a try.

Before drying:

And after:

I left them in about 45 extra minutes and they were still a soggy mess. Not anything I would want to snack on. Fail! I think any future attempts will require a legitimate dehydrator, and I will forget about this keep-my-oven-going-for-four-hours-during-the-summer business. (P.S. Mom, can I borrow your dehydrator?)

In the interest of avoiding wastefulness, I tossed these in a baggie in the fridge and may try to chop them up and toss them in muffins or something. If they don't gross me out too much when I pull them out again.

My last project was by far the easiest and quickest: popsicles! The boys love them, and the store-bought ones have a surprising amount of junk in them. Here's my recipe: 1 to 1 1/2 cups sliced strawberries, 1 ripe banana, 1 ripe pear (cored). Blend, freeze, and enjoy!

The sweetness of the pear and banana balance out the tart strawberries. Pure, guilt-free, fruity goodness.

 

Only one warning: you or your loved ones may require a bath following consumption.

The remaining strawberries were either eaten or frozen for smoothies, and I am happy to say that not a single one went to waste! I wonder how much the strawberries will be this week...?   =)

Meg vs. Decor: Mini bedroom makeover

My mother-in-law took me shopping for my birthday, and I picked out some new things for our bedroom, since our old bedding was getting pretty dingy (and I was getting pretty sick of it). I realize that white is a dangerous color with my little ones, but I feel like I need to surround myself with bright, clean things if I am going to be in this house all day, every day. I also put up our new blinds. They look SO much better than the old honey-colored ones! Now I just need to get some kind of treatments on the windows and put something on the walls! Here is my work so far:

Before

After

I fell in love with this puzzle piece printable, which I also used to make John's anniversary card. You can find it on this cute blog here.

Meg vs. Myself: 30 by 30

Happy birthday to me! To celebrate my 29th birthday, I decided to come up with 30 things I want to do before I turn 30 in one year. The hubs helped me out with #6 already by taking me to see Les Mis in San Francisco as an early birthday gift last week, so we are off to a good start! Coming up with these goals has made me really grateful for everything that I've been able to do and experience so far in my life, which enables me to focus on a lot of fun things this year. Lucky me! I'll keep up on this list in a new "30 x 30" tab and post about how my plans and projects continue. Wish me luck!

1. Finish up all of our major home repairs.
2. Decorate my house as though I were planning on staying here.
3. Run a ½ marathon.
4. Sew an article of clothing from scratch and wear it.
5. Get a professional pedicure.
6. See Les Miserables on stage.
7. Get life insurance.
8. Read War and Peace.
9. Learn how to hit a golf ball and not look like an idiot (I don’t even aspire to try to get it in the hole).
10. Ride a horse. (Not on a pony ride or guided by someone else.)
11. See Yosemite.
12. Decorate my house for all the major holidays and celebrate with my kids.
13. Grow a successful harvest of something other than zucchini.
14. Catch a fish.
15. Make a pretty makizushi.
16. Have only one child in diapers.
17. Date my husband – plan something every week, no matter how short the time.
18. Do/try at least half of the things I have pinned on Pinterest. (That’s a lot; I’m pushing a thousand pins, though I won’t count things in the category “Dream Home,” etc.)
19. Learn Pachelbel’s Canon in D on the piano.
20. Establish and maintain a routine to keep my house clean and organized.
21. “Upcycle” or purge all the clothes in my pile.
22. Have a yard where I enjoy spending time with my family.
23. Stay on a budget for more than a month.
24. Start accruing real food storage (done on purpose, stuff we can survive on and will actually eat).
25. Learn to cook a palatable steak for my husband.
26. Read one (non-picture) book each in Japanese and Spanish.
27. Write 100 posts for my family history blogs, and get what little I have done in some semblance of order.
28. Finish translating articles for my cleft blog in Spanish, and update both blogs.
29. Learn how to do my makeup for realsies and find products that I like and can afford.
30. Create a wardrobe I am pleased with and get rid of everything else. (Tricky, since I am in the “I am constantly changing sizes” phase of life.)

John vs. The Bathroom: Continuing around the bath

John has been working tirelessly at the tiling. A lot of the time involved is spent figuring out how to do all the things he's never done before--mitering, specialty cuts, balancing shelves, etc. etc. Here again is the progress:

I spent last night taping and plastering around the ceiling joint (until I ran out of plaster, that is) so John can finish the last line around the tub and do the last tub wall. More pictures to come! I am still really happy with how it is turning out. So much better than the old walls! Remember these?

A shudder just went down my spine.

John vs. The Bathroom: First tiles!

John has been hard at work, and he first wall of tiles is done! I love how it is turning out.

 The very first row.

 The first wall! That end cap on the molding tiles was a beast, but I'm really pleased with how it turned out. 

My honey sawing away.

John vs. The Bathroom: Progress

Here is the pictoral account of John's progress over the last two weeks. I was gone one week at my mom's place, and now I am mostly doing damage control trying to keep up with the boys, keep the mess under control, and help out where I can. There have been A LOT of trips to the hardware store!

Ripping out the old green board and the lathe and plaster behind it.

Had to clip the old wire mesh and separate the wall from the ceiling.

The tile border wouldn't come off, and John found mold on the bottom of the wall, so out came the bottom foot of lathe and plaster around the bathroom perimeter.

Vapor barrier went up over the bathtub surround.

Then cement board went up all around.

The tiling has finally begun, so pictures will be forthcoming. John also painted the baby room while we were gone, and little guy is enjoying a much nicer view now. I have the best hubby ever, and he is learning a lot. Thank goodness for a good friend that has been mentoring him through the whole process.