Lace Leggings (KCWC)

After seeing lace leggings around on Pinterest, I was completely smitten and decided almost instantly that my sweet little girlies need some too.  Well, if we're seriously considering needs and wants then no, my girls do not need me to drop $40 on leggings but how about $2?  What if I could use some lace that I already have - that I picked up at Michael Levine's Loft for $2 a pound - and make them myself?  In that case, yes, I needed to at least try.  I have been spending a little bit of time this week sewing for my kids as a part of kid's clothing week challenge and this was a perfect project.

And you know what?  Surprise, surprise.  Leggings are very easy to make.  Maybe even easier than pajama pants since they have no faux fly.  I've made one pair so far and they look pretty good.  The lace that I was working with was not especially stretchy so, of necessity, I made them a little bit loose fitting so they could be easily pulled off and on.

I used an existing pair of well-fitting leggings to draw out a pattern and I read through these tutorials for some valuable advice.  

MADE's Ruched Leggings 

Make it and Love It's Super Simple Leggings

No Big Dill's Ruffled Leggings

The verdict?  I would happily make more.  My girls both love wearing dresses so we practically hoard leggings for the winter and little shorts and capris for the summer.  I wouldn't give up on store bought leggings for solid colors - I could wax poetic about the fit, durability and superior quality of Hanna Andersson's leggings - but for interesting patterns and styles (ruffles!), making them myself is a great option.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Now that it's finally starting to feel like fall, I whipped up a batch of yummy pumpkin chocolate chip muffins.  They're loosely based on this recipe for Taste of Home's Country Pumpkin Muffins that I found a year or two ago on Allrecipes.com but I've changed them up more than a couple of times to fit our family's tastes (ahem, my tastes).  I love these muffins because they seem to have a better texture than most.  I've found that some pumpkin baked goods have a weird, almost gummy feel that is missing in these.  Originally, I'd sprinkle a few chocolate chips on top to trick the kids ("Look!  It's chocolate!") but this time, I incorporated a cup of chocolate chips into the batter and I'm happier with them this way.

Ingredients:

• 1 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 c. vegetable oil
• 3 eggs
• 1 15 oz. can of canned pumpkin
• 1/4 cup water
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. allspice
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl beat together sugar, brown sugar, vegetable oil, eggs, pumpkin and water.  Add the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice and salt) to the pumpkin mixture and mix until incorporated.  Fold in chocolate chips.  Scoop into baking cup lined muffin tins.  Bake about 15 minutes at 400 F.  I usually get about 2 dozen muffins.

Quinoa Black Bean Patties

I made these tonight for the family and they were a hit.  Well, two of the three kids liked them and the third didn't pitch a fit so I call that success.  We ate these with hummus and I think it was a good pairing since Nick pointed out that they taste a lot like falafel.  I based the recipe on this one from AllRecipes.com but ended up making quite a few changes based on reviewer comments (and what I had on hand) so I thought that I'd post my modified recipe here.

Quinoa Black Bean Patties

 Ingredients:

• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained.
• 1 cup of cooked quinoa
• 1/2 cup quick oats
• 1/4 cup shredded carrots
• 1/8 tsp. onion powder
• 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 2 tbsp. salsa
• 1 egg, lightly beaten

Directions:

Pour rinsed and drained black beans into a mixing bowl.  Mash them until they form a paste, leaving some black beans whole.

Add quinoa, oats, carrots, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, salsa and egg.  Mix together and form into patties.  

Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in the bottom of a skillet and, once hot, add patties.  Cook for a few minutes on each side or until each side is lightly browned (like a hash brown!).  This made about 7 medium-sized patties.

KCWC 2012

Tomorrow marks the beginning of KCWC, Elsie Marley's Kid's Clothing Week Challenge, an entire week dedicated to sewing children's clothing.  And the 'challenge' part?  Setting aside one hour a day to do it.  

I've always wanted to participate but have never actually succeeded so maybe this year I'll be able to pull it off.  I have a board full of ideas on Pinterest and some stockpiled fabric so we'll see what happens!  At the very least, I'll finish Abby's Halloween costume and post a sneak peek!

Lucky.

So, I've been doing this whole mom thing for a while now and there are still things that completely baffle me as a parent.  Oliver (and Abby) got to kick-off an Angel's game last week by announcing, "Play ball!" to the entire stadium.  They were on the jumbotron and everything - it was so crazy!  And I simply didn't know how to impress upon them the 'once-in-a-lifetime' nature of that kind of an opportunity without completely freaking them out.  Don't get me wrong - both kids had the best time - but is that the essence of "youth is wasted on the young"?  Don't they know that you usually have to be really sick or a victim of tragedy for those kinds of things?  Sheesh.

  

Well, I know we're super (duper) lucky.  I'm extremely grateful for my wonderful family and humbled by our good fortune:  three beautiful, healthy children; loving family; a safe and comfortable home and dedicated teachers both in church and school.

Anyhow, before the game started, Nick, Oliver, Abby and I were all able to take a mini behind-the-scenes tour of the stadium and then walk onto the field.  Did you know that there is an actual batting cage IN the stadium for the players?  I do now.

Oliver's grandpa won the opportunity for Oliver at a charity event and, if anything, we tried to downplay it a bit beforehand so that Oliver wouldn't get cold feet.  When it was explained to him that thousands of people would have their eyes and (and ears) on him he became more than a little anxious.  He loved the idea of standing on the field but was nervous leading up to the actual moment.  I was too. You have to be very good on the field as they sweep the dirt, chalk the lines, and brush the plate and it was hard to keep two very excited kids in line as we waited, especially when they rolled a couple of baseballs to them.  Heaven.

Minutes away from game start, it was determined that Oliver would not be standing on the field alone.  He was too nervous.  Abby was willing to go it alone which made Oliver change his mind immediately - his little sister wasn't going to show him up!  Ultimately, Oliver and Abby did it together with Dad standing by and holding the mic.  It was a memorable night.  I was so nervous/anxious/excited that I completely goofed up on the camera.  They cued the kids and I instinctively hit the on button . . . . only the camera was already rolling and it turned it OFF.  Duh.  Groan.  I turned it back on but it was too late.  Two words go by really fast.  I felt so sick about it that I thought I was going to throw up for about ten minutes but then I pulled it together and enjoyed the rest of the night.

When we were walking back to our seats, a couple shouted "Good job out there!" and Oliver just beamed.  He told me that he felt famous.  Pizza, popcorn and hot dogs rounded out an unforgettable evening.

 

Our view of the suite from the field.

The view of us from the suite.  We look so tiny!

P.S.  Evelyn LOOOOOVES popcorn.  So much so that she will pick it up off the floor and and eat it or share it with you (yuck!).  Watch out for that one!