Babytime Sewing: Pouch Sling

Rhodes practically lives in my sling. It goes everywhere with me. It's a life saver. I'm not quite sure I could accomplish anything outside of the house without it, actually.

Good thing he loves it too.

I make my own slings. (You know those things run upward of $80!?!?!?! Umm...no thanks.) They are just a piece of fabric sewn together at a curve. No offense to people who pay that kind of $$ for them, I'd just rather find a way to do it myself. :-)

So here is a little tutorial on how to make your own.


First, hire a cute little 2 year old to be your assistant. She's pretending to take pictures using my camera lens cap. Oh, and she verbally requests 2 rubber bands and insists on bows in them by 7:30 every morning. What can I say...she knows what she wants! I like decisiveness!



Ok, seriously, start with 2 pieces of fabric. I used good quality 100% cotton "designer" prints from a boutique down the street. I bought 2 pieces 1 and 5/8 yards of each.

PRE WASH!

Put right sides together and lay it all flat.


Measure the width to be about 24". I like my pouch a wee bit deeper. Most slings are around 22". So somewhere between there is good. My theory is, it can always be taken in, but not let out!


Cut it so you have a piece of fabric (well, 2...right sides together) that is 24" wide by 1 and 5/8 yards long. And cut the excess off. From this you can make some kids slings...or throw it away. Totally up to you!


Then fold it in half width wise, and then fold it in have length wise. So you have a rectangle.

Now you will measure yourself to get the next measurements. I loosely measured from my shoulder to my hip. I added 4 inches for baby and seam allowances.



So my longest measurement was 28" on the fold of the fabric.



Then for the selvages side (edges) Subtract 3-4". I subtracted 4" - and I would say for most, it should be more like 3". I marked it at 24" on the other side.


Then you just cut a curve from one mark to the other. So that when you open it up, you have a smile! ;-)



Next you will unfold the fabrics keeping the right sides together and hem the sides all the way down. Not the curved side...leave that open. Be sure to check your machine and make sure your bobbin is full.... :-)

You will have what looks like an long oval.


Then you will flip the right sides out. And fold in half, matching up the curved edges again.


I press them to have nice, crisp seams.



Now for that curve. Well, remember the French Seam Tutorial I did last summer? Well, you will be making a French Seam along this curve.

Sew through all four layers of fabric exposing the raw edges.


Then flip it on the other side (again I press here to make it easier), to enclose the first hem you just made. You should have no raw edges anymore!


Then you want to pin that flap down with a zig zag stitch to really reinforce the seam.

You ARE carrying precious cargo that you DON'T want falling out.


You gotta put a little elbow grease into this part, because you're fighting the curve while sewing. Just keep pressing the seam down as flat as you can while helping the machine through all these layers by pulling it through a little.


And voila! Fold the sling in half (into itself) and you now have a strong, cute, reversible baby sling!



Then you scoop up your sweet little munchkin and lovingly squish him down in it!

And, oh boy, will he love it!!!

This project should take under an hour (even if it's your first time) once you're fabrics are washed! It is SO easy!


Doesn't he look cute...and sweet...and edible....and squishy....and kissy....and lovey....and snug....yes....

He's as snug as a bug!! And lovin' it!!



I'm hoping to make one for a friend who is expecting a new baby boy and a kids sling for her 2 sweet girls but we keep playin' telephone tag! So, girl...you know who you are! :-) CALL ME!! And we can talk fabrics! :-) I have learned a lot about fabric lately and if you are willing to trust me, I'd love to do it all myself!!! :-) But I know we'll connect soon....I haven't given up yet!!! :-)

If You're Wondering...

....how I get anything done around here, this is how I do it.


I wait until 2 of the kids are at school. Which is only for a few hours 3 days a week.

Then, I decide if I want to shower, sleep, or clean.


And about every other day, showering wins. And I do this with the other two.



One takes his morning nap while the other one watches Sesame Street with a baggie of graham crackers - in my bed. And yes, there are crumbs. But that's a trade off!! ;-)


Hey, a mom's gotta do, what a mom's gotta do.

I'm also VERY grateful for a go-with-the-flow baby that is just happy wherever he is!!!

Thumbs

Thumbs are very nice.

Yes, I like my thumbs. I use them a lot. Especially the top part.


And when I was trying to roast some chicken and have a nice home cooked, candle-lit dinner for my family in our new dining area, this little friend....




...chopped the tip of my thumb off. Well, not completely, but it would have if it hadn't been a 7 year old, never been sharpened, bottom of the line knife.

(don't judge my nails...i was a piano player growing up and have never had nice nails!)


Oh the throbbing. My whole arm throbbed. So bad, I called Robert (who thankfully was on his way home) and cried! It hurt. And I'm not a baby when it comes to stuff like this! But I've NEVER cut my finger this bad.


So Robert gets home and helps me get it semi cleaned up. And since our kids are band aid-obsessed, there were not enough for me and my gushing thumb. Ok, not gushing, but let's just say it bled through lots of toilet paper. :-)

So me, (yes me, my throbbing thumb and all) and Rhodes rode (haha, that was funny to type) down the road to pick up some bandages. It throbbed the whole.way.there.

So I get my band aids and head home to finish dinner - with my gimpy thumb.

But I walk into kids gone wild.

Finger painting was the activity of choice for the girls while I was gone for all of 10.3 minutes.

Olivia was smart and cleaned herself up by the time I got upstairs.

Lillian, well, not so much. It was everywhere...on her coat, arms, face, etc. And here I am not supposed to get my thumb wet. It's amazing what you can do one handed when you have to!



Where was Robert?

Oh, glad you asked. In the garage supervising the kids while sanding some furniture.



Luckily, my dad brought some steri-strips and glue to help my thumb heal.


Moral of the story -

Don't cut the tip of your thumb off. Because you can't play your kids Mario nintendo games with a chopped up thumb!

On another note, say a little prayer for this sweet baby. He isn't feeling well and it's hard to see him so puny! He had a horrible night last night (I think I was up 7 times with him) and he's just plain pitiful!

We want him better QUICK!!!

A.F.V.

There is one pretty cool thing going on around here that I haven't told you guys about yet.


America's Funniest Home Videos and I have been in talks.

In talks to air one of our home videos.

Shocker!? Kinda......unless you know my family.


And actually, it's more like the family I married in to. :-) Considering my brother-in-law is the one flying through the air off of one of my kid's flying turtles........


Yes, I submitted a video to AVF a few months ago. Heck, we thought it was funny....at least funnier than the ones we sometimes see on the show every Sunday night.

But then I came across the 19+ pages of paperwork/release forms that came along with uploading videos. And the whole process kinda fizzled out. I tried printing them, but it was too confusing and overwhelming for me. So I let it go.


Until....

...I get a phone call. On my cell phone. One with a crazy area code that makes me think, "this has GOT to be a wrong number or some annoying telemarketer"....

But on this day (lucky for him), I decided to happily answer the phone and not send it directly to voice mail.

And whatdoyaknow....I'm glad I answered it.

Because it was America's Funniest Home Videos....calling to tell me they're interested in airing our video and needed all the confusing release forms to move forward with it's scheduled appearance.


And I'm happy to tell you that ALL and every signature (you wouldn't believe all they need) that was needed for the forms was faxed to them and our video is up for final review......with a tentative airing date of March 15th.

To my understanding, it will be airing unless something crazy falls through.


I would REALLY love to show you the video. And some of you may have been lucky enough to already have viewed it on utube.com. BUT, unfortunately, since I signed the rights over to AFV, I had to remove it from the utube community.

But I do plan on letting everyone I know when my son and crazy brother-in-law will be having their 15 minutes of fame....March 15th.


Did I mention it was March 15th???


Ok.


And then, once it airs, I plan on putting it back on UTUBE....so that I can brag about it share it with every one I possible know. :-)


Wish us luck!!!

Very Proud To Announce....

....that I am 100%, positively, NOT PREGNANT! :-)

First....I'm SHOCKED by how many of you thought I was pregnant again. I even received some texts and emails asking me if I was housing another little human being. So I hope I'm not disappointing anyone too much by clearing that rumor up.

SHOP IS CLOSED UP! For a while. Sheesh. Can't a girl catch a break! :-)


No, truthfully, life caught up with me. I realized I can't do it all - and keep it together. I'm not supermom. The whirlwind of the holidays, lack of schedule/school, the bitter cold temps that kept us inside for 10 days - not to mention FOUR KIDS. My emotions and hormones got the best of me. Flat wore me out. It was bad. And I learned a lot. But I don't want to bore you all with that right now.

Being in a fog the past 2 weeks, I didn't take many pics. But here are a few updating you on what's going on around here.


This little man...all 13 1/2 lbs of him...well, he's about to give us a run for our money. Boy, as soon as he learns to get around, life will be upside down. Not to mention when the other kids figure out he can get to their stuff and eat/break/tear it up! It's going to be hard to keep an eye on everything in the house!

He's doing the usual cute things 4 months old do. Squeal, laugh, coo, try and sit up, stare at his hand, grab on to whatever he can and put it in his mouth.


I've found him in a few awkward predicaments lately. Mainly ones that involve him playing "house" against his will. And what-do-ya-know....he plays the part of baby.

Olivia had him all set up in her room.

Bless his heart.

Just wait until they dress you up, my little man! I will surely have the camera ready.

This reminds me of when Olivia and Landon did THIS to Lillian.


He's also working on some hair. And it's always sticking up. I think it's going to be wavy. Kinda like Robert's hair. But I guess it's still too early to tell. At least it's looking like he won't be bald for 18 months like Lillian! This picture makes me want to nickname him "Fuzz".



This little lady is still hilarious as usual. Her vocabulary is getting bigger and bigger! She says some pretty funny things.

Oh, and she is staying drier than EVER!!! Talk about a breeze to potty train! Hardly any accidents since STARTING. And not ANY #2 accidents! :-) Though she does like to do it everywhere we go - Publix, pediatrician's office, Target, friend's houses.....I mean seriously, of all places to go! Ok, no more potty talk. BUT, she loves her Cinderella panties and WILL ask you if YOU are wearing panties too. And just may, or may not, ask to see them. Just sayin'.



She's also still wearing a lot of these. Mainly because the static is so bad around here, her hair goes wild!


Landon is just chuggin' along! Loving school and sports. Duh. I think we're gearing up for baseball this season. Lord, help me now.




Most of all, I'm SOO thankful for the sunny days we are getting lately. I'm not sure how people do it in dreary states. Seriously.....that vitamin D makes a HUGE difference in my attitude!

We've been soaking up a lot of that lately. We even revisited the MOTHERLAND. So much fun, and much better with kids a year older!



And on one of those sunny and warm days, me in my delirious state took my dog from this:



to this:

I'll spare you what the rest of her body looks like. Let's just say I am NOT a dog groomer and thank goodness my dog could care less what she looks like. But we refuse to pay $45 for poodle cuts every 3 months.


Sadly, I don't have a pic of Olivia recently! :-( I'm a bad mommy photog.....

But I do have a pic of her current obsession.



And I am completely, utterly, 100% over them. They are EVERYWHERE IN MY HOUSE - vacuum, washer, dryer, floors, etc. I told her that if I find one more on the ground, I will throw it away. And throw away I do. The only thing is, they keep finding their way back into my house When will it END!!



Well, friends, sorry for my absence. I just had to unplug for a while. But plan to be back. :-)

Here's to hoping my kids do some crazy things so that I have something to tell you about!


And again...sorry for getting y'all all worked up. Well, not really. It was secretly fun to watch my counter go crazy! The best guess was from Elizabeth - "Hope it's because you went on a surprise vacay with Robert or somehthing fun like that!"

Because, OH, that would have been GREAT!!! One day...one day....the kids are just passing through....we'll have plenty of time for that soon...well, a couple of dozen years give or take.