Pee Wee Super Bowl - "Get Fired Up"

Ironman
Wide Receiver
Co-Captain
7 wins
3 losses

Saturday morning the family trekked over to the Hillside stadium to cheer on the Markham Patriots, Pee Wee football team. My nephew, Chris (ironman), is the wide receiver and one of the co-captains. As we approached the parking lot, we saw a few of the teams warming up. There were at least two different divisions (pee wee and junior varsity) playing. The Patriots started to warm up shortly after we arrived. The first game was already underway. Chris's team was up next. They marched onto the field. The cheerleaders took their position and started to chant, "Get Fired Up". These little guys played their hearts out. In the end, the Patriots were only medalled for playing the Super Bowl. Their opponent (East Side Bulldogs) made two touch downs to the Patriots one. After the winner was announced, the Patriots congratulated the Bulldogs and proceeded across the field for the coaches pep talk. Afterwards, the team members turned in their uniforms. The family anxiously awaited for the team to come through the gate. My heart was touched by the sensitivity of Chris's teammates. The quarter back was crying; one of the wide receivers was crying. No tears for Chris though! lol. So we all went back to my sister's home for refreshments. I'm glad that his parents are allowing him to do something that he loves. He is enthusiastic and driven, and a honor-roll student. We are very proud. Next year Chris will move to the next division, junior varsity. The following are a few photos from the game.

Patriots Marching onto the Field

Team Line Up

Cheerleaders taking their place

Roy, Chris's brother

Trice and Mom

Mom and Son

Christopher, the Ironman

Fall 2007 Collection for Me - Muslins and Dresses

It has taken me forever to decide which dresses to make, out of the fabric that I already own. I made muslins for five of the ten patterns selected. Here are my choices:



S3673: I really like view A, will make in a macroon/black chevron patterned wool blend. This pattern runs a little small. I cut a straight 12. When I tried on the muslin, it gave me the caterpillar affect from the bust through the upper hip area. OMG! I couldn't wait to take it off! Alterations: FBA and broad back -- Oh yes, I'll cut it a size and half larger.







M4930: For me this pattern required minimum alterations. I'll make this in a chocolate polyester gaberdine. This is pattern is designed by Palmer/Pletsch the Fit Experts so all of the alteration lines are drawn onto the pattern pieces.








M5269: I'm making view A. After seeing Ann's awesome version on PR, I decided to try it. Fabric: cherry red monece polyester satin. This will probably be my holiday dress ;-). Alterations: FBA, sway back, and add 2 inches to the length.










V8411: I really like this dress (B), my DD says it looks like a night gown and no fabric choice could compensate for the lack of style. I beg to differ. So I'm still contemplating this one. It's very comfortable. What do you think?













M5467: The verdict is still out on this one. The muslin was fine, but...,





Other dresses that I plan to make before Spring

Fall 2007 Collection Fabric

I have an assortment of wool, wool blends, polyester jersey knits, faux suedes, plaids and cotton blends.

The Urban College Girl Collection - Third and Fourth Piece

Last weekend I completed two more pieces to my DD Fall collection. The second pair of jeans are made of a mystery fabric bought at Walmart a few years ago. The total cost of the jeans was about $7.00. Initially I thought about adding some rhinestones, but I didn't have a color that went well with the color of the fabric. Maybe I'll add some to the next pair. I didn't do the final press on these jeans; I had to take pictures when DD was willing.



















New Look 6274 (OOP)

Black Skirt Wardrobe Builder Piece

Description: Unlined straight skirt, mid-knee, waistband, back zipper and hemline vent.

This particular piece was originally cut out for me. It's been in the UFO bin for over thirteen years! For shame! For shame! Thank God the fabric was still in excellent condition. It's a wool blend with a felt-crepey texture. As we were selecting pieces for the collection, I decided to include this skirt. It's a great wardrobe builder for any collection. DD has a few black skirts, but no pencil skirt. So this UFO was a good add to the collection. I had to scale down the size as it was originally cut at size 10. This was easy to do; I just trimmed the sides of the front and back pieces by 3/4 inch. There was no need to move the darts. The placement was fine. I also adjusted the length of the waistband to fit the finished waistline plus seam allowance plus underlap(1 1/4"). This was a simple skirt pattern, only three pieces. I really didn't follow the instructions. It went together easy and took about two hours to complete. I overlocked the edges, sewed it together, pressed, and added hem tape. Done. Quick gratification project.

Pass the Peas, Please

I started this post on Monday, but didn't finish it until Friday night. Umm Here it is...,

The weekend is when I do my major cooking for the week. This is all done in preparation of the work week. There are not enough hours in the day to work, clean, cook, or do what you are passionate about. Last weekend's cook fest yield a mess of blackeye peas, stir fry kale and tomatoes, rice, baked chicken, and cornbread.

Years ago, Martha Stewart featured the "New Year's Day" meal on her Sunday morning show. It included the blackeye peas and the kale/tomatoe recipes. For the most part I follow her recipe, substituting turkey for pork and varying the quantity of some of the ingredients. I'm sure many of you ready have great recipes. Here's mine in case you wanted to try something new.

Blackeye peas

Ingredients:
1 package (1 lb.) frozen black eye peas
2 qts water
½ large onion chopped
2 celery stokes chopped
½ green pepper chopped
Salt and black pepper add to taste
1 ½ teaspoon theme
1 tablespoon parley
½ lb Smoked turkey or ham hocks
4 pcs Okra chopped (optional)
Water as needed

Place meat in a sauce pot; add water to half full mark of the pot. Boil for about 45 minutes. Return water level to the half full mark.




Add peas, vegetables, and seasonings. Bring to boil again, cover and simmer about 30 minutes or until peas are tender. Add okra 10 minutes before the peas are to your desired tenderness. Remove from heat and serve.





Kale and Tomatoes

2 bunches of fresh Kale cleaned and chopped
3 plum tomatoes quartered
1/2 c. onion chopped
1/2 c. celery chopped
1/2 c. green pepper chopped
salt and black pepper to taste
1/4 c. olive oil
2 tblsps butter
4 pcs. okra chopped (optional)

In a large sauce pan, heat olive oil and butter (medium low flame). Add onion, celery, and green pepper. Saute until tender.
Add kale and tomatoes; cover and simmer, carefully stir vegetables until tender. Add okra 10 minutes before desired tenderness of kale.





Add salt and black pepper to taste, serve.

NCURA Meeting in Washington, DC

Well, I decided to take a pass on attending the NCURAmeeting. I've attended four consecutive years. This pass is a welcomed change. Currently, I'm faced with continuous testing of our electronic proposal submission interface, which is designed and programmed by InfoEd customized by us (UI). Various departments have volunteered to test drive this baby. In the long run, it will replace Grants.gov for submission of multiple federal mechanisms. This approach to electronic submission is supposedly the cure for the ills of other federal interfaces. Our portal will serve as one stop shopping for developing and monitoring research support.

This has been a great experience. My team and our sponsors are finally seeing some payoff for many years of planning. It's exhausting. Oh well, kinda missing the opportunity to see DC again, but reliefed of the stress of it all. It's all gravy.

Peace

The Urban College Girl Collection - Jeans V7481

Last night I was able to complete the first pair of pants for DD’s Fall Collection – The Urban College Girl. She has been anxiously waiting for these jeans. This is one of several UFO’s waiting to be finished. Lol



Pattern Description: MISSES' PANTS Close-fitting, below-waist pants have front button waistband, shaped back yokes and fly zipper closing. A: above-ankle, stitched hems. B: narrow hem. A,B: boot-legged, carriers and pockets. C: floor length. Purchased top and contour belt. I made view B

There is a lot of top stitching. So I purchased some bright yellow embroidery thread to accent the dark blue denim. I used a size 16 Jean needle in my sewing machine.

Pattern Sizing: (6, 8, 10), (12, 14, 16), (18, 20, 22)
At upper hip, I tapered from a size 6 to a 8. No other changes were made.

The drawing on the pattern envelope was pretty close to the actual finished garment. The rise appears to be a little lower in the drawing.

The instructions were easy to follow. This pattern is well drafted. No problems in the construction. It took about four hours to make these jeans. The edges were already finished as I overlocked them several months ago.

DD was very pleased with the style and fit. But, I thought there were a little wrinkles just below the butt cheek that may need to be corrected before I use this pattern again.




Fabric Used: Stretch Denim that my dad gave me several years ago. I used some left over cotton from a previous project for the pocket lining. DD loves the soft touch of this fabric. Don’t know the exact fiber content. I did pre-shrink the fabric before cutting the jeans.

I made no alterations.

Conclusion This pattern is a great jean pattern. I will probably use it again making some variations on the style, adding back pockets or maybe a rhinestone here or there.