Sew God's Grace

Almost every Tuesday is "Taco Tuesday" at our house.  I love it because, well, I love tacos.  Also, I don't have to think about what we are going to eat for supper that day! I have adapted my recipe for taco seasoning from this one  here. 1/2 cup chili powder 1/8 cup onion powder 1/8 cup ground cumin 1 tablespoon garlic powder 1 tablespoon paprika 1 tablespoon sea salt 1 1/2 tablespoons oregano 1/8 teaspoon each cayenne pepper and chipotle pepper powder, optional Place all ingredients in mason jar with a lid and shake well. I use a heaping tablespoon per pound of meat and add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water; adjust to your preference! To make chicken for tacos, I place frozen chicken breasts in the crockpot, add seasoning and some coconut oil (about 2 Tablespoons for 3 pounds meat), and cook on high for 3 - 3 1/2 hours.  Then Ishred the chicken in my Kitchenaid mixer and put it back in the crockpot on "warm" until we are ready to eat.  I like to make e...

My kids love to have breakfast for supper.  I usually make breakfast for supper on a Thursday or Friday, and I make a big bunch of pancakes or waffles and some scrambled eggs.  Then I save the leftovers for Sunday breakfast.  This really cuts down on my crazy as we are trying to get ready for church and out the door!  The picture above is a double batch of pancakes.  These freeze great in a ziploc bag.  To serve, thaw overnight in the fridge and then toast. My kids have not loved pancakes until I got this recipe from my good friend Amber.  She brought some over for me when we welcomed little Jack into our family.  Of course, I requested the recipe straightaway!  My kids enjoy these with either peanut butter or chocolate spread in between two pancakes--then they eat them like a sandwich with no syrup.  It's a lot less messy for my three year old! If you like gadgets, you might want to check out this batter dispenser from Amazon. ...

So . . it's been a while since my last post.  After having baby number six, blogging has definitely been on the back burner.  However, when I made Orange Julius for the kids to enjoy during our family "Movie Night" last Sunday, I decided to snap a quick pic so I could add the recipe.  Hope you enjoy! Homemade Orange Julius 6 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate 1 cup milk 1 cup water 1/4 - 1/2 cup sugar (I always use 1/2 cup) 1 - 2 teaspoons vanilla (I always go with 2) About 4 cups ice or to taste Place all ingredients except ice in blender and blend until smooth.  Add ice slowly and blend on high until it is the consistency that you would like.  Note:  when I make this, I almost overflow the blender.  You may need to hold the lid on!  Also, it's easy to get an ice cream headache with this if you drink it too fast, so beware!

I have had the pictures for this post for quite a while, but I knew if was going to take me a long time to type it up.  I have made several of these outfits to sell at a craft fair and also for gifts, and I think they are so cute!  You can make them anywhere from a size 6 month up to about 4T.  I will try to make these instructions as clear as possible.  If you have any questions, please leave them for me in the comments, and I will try to explain the steps better! To start, you will need the following: 1.  Child's T-shirt in the size and color you want 2.  2 bandanas 3.  5.5 to 6.5 inches of border fabric 4.  3/4 inch elastic 5.  Wonder Under or Heat and bond light fusible webbing 6.   Totally Stable iron on stabilizer 7.  Optional but nice, " Over the Back Fusible Interlining " for the back of the applique 8.   Fray Check 9.  Basic sewing skills and tools, ie thread, rotary cutter, etc. All seams ar...

I'm not sure how this little girl is already seven!  We celebrated Anna's birthday last week.  This week, she wanted to wear the dress I made for her birthday, and she wanted her hair curled, and we went to the park.  The result?  I followed her around for a while trying to get a good picture of her.  Thankfully she cooperated with me pretty well.  I kept telling her not to move while I was taking the picture, and at one point she asked exasperatedly, "Can I breathe while you take the picture?"  Oh my, I see a lot of myself in this one! My in laws bought me a serger for Christmas this year.  I was excited to try it, but also intimidated, so it sat in the box for a couple of months.  Well, I finally got brave and took it out of the box and started sewing with knit fabric.  I am falling in love with how fast it is to throw something together! This dress is Greenstyle Creations Regan Dress , and I absolutely love it.  It is a...

So the day is fast approaching for our new little guy to be born.  Which means that I am frantically nesting.  For me, that includes cleaning every nook and cranny and sewing madly on different projects that I think I will never finish once the baby comes!  It's probably a good thing we are having another baby, because I'm pretty sure I hadn't cleaned out our bathroom cabinets since I was pregnant with Grant! I finished up this onesie and pj pants set yesterday.  The pattern for the pants is found here and is really quite simple.  I do cut the front of the pants a little lower than the back--about one inch or less.  Tip:  when you do this,  put the legs pieces right sides together to make sure you are cutting a mirror image (ask me how I know this!) To applique the powercat, I followed my usual steps as outlined in this post .  I also ironed this product on the back so that it won't irritate baby's skin.  His Christmas present ...

I have been feeling the urge to sew this week and have completed a couple of projects.  I needed a gift for my step mom for Mother's Day, so I decided to make her an apron. I used this pattern from the Dating Divas.  One tip I would offer on the ruffle is just to sew one end shut, turn it right side out, press, and then start pleating.  When you get close to the end, cut off the extra fabric and sew the ends shut.  Press and finish pleating.  As per the instructions, I tried several times to get it to come out exactly right, and I about drove myself crazy! I'm planning to make some more of these close to Christmas time with some really cute snowman fabric!