The Hippens moved to Utah today. We miss you Karalenn!

My 3 year old took this picture of Kendyl a month or so ago.

Today he said, " And then kendyl will fly in the airplane to Utah? And we will say 'bye bye'? And we will cry?"

at which point I almost did.

We ran the Saddleback Memorial 1/2 Marathon today! That's Megan in orange, and Robin in blue, and me in the knee brace. Craig took this picture before we got to the 1 mile marker so we were looking pretty fresh (and still capable of smiling). At mile 6 Megan went ahead and left us, and she finished in just over 2 hours. At mile 8 I started having trouble with my knee and ended up run-walking a bit. I think I walked about 2 miles all told. Robin went ahead at mile 11 and then I came in just inside of 3 hours. I managed to run the entire last mile!

My first vintage pattern made! it's a pale stripey print in cotton - very light - with a sea-green satin ribbon. It's plain and summery and i just feel fabulous in it! I think the 50's must have had good dress mojo.

Saturday we left home just before 8 a.m. and headed up to Malibu to walk the beach and search for some seashells.

I was very proud of a few of the pictures I took. That's both of my boys there on the right - although it's a bit hard to see the speck that is Fletcher, retreating swiftly into the distance.

Some flowers were laying in the sand between someone's back porch and the water.

I'm bidding on this dress on Ebay. 9 more hours and it's MINE! After I made this dress, I just got this Urge to Make Things with Big Pockets. And these are just fabulous! I am also a fan of Collared Necklines (don't ask me why, I cannot tell you) and I like the waistline too. I'm half and half on the sleeve cuffs, but since it goes well with the pockets I am willing to say that they are totally cute and not have any 80's flashback qualms.

**15 minutes! I checked on the dress 15 minutes before it closed and then this morning I see I've been outbid! Un. Be. Lievable.

Are you as excited as I am?

We finally saw it last night! I've been trying to think of how to describe it on the blog - how do I write about it in a way that will make it so alluring and irresistable that everyone who reads this will go out and buy tickets right away.

Yes. It's THAT good. It's Better than That Good. Now given, it's the first musical that I have seen onstage and so it was a new experience on top of everything - but I seriously think I could listen to that music every day for the rest of my life and never get sick of it.

When Eden Espinosa (as Elphaba) sang "Defying Gravity" just before the intermission, I thought my heart would stop in my chest. Craig was equally impressed. He is hoping to maybe get tickets again when his mom comes to visit in August. I'm sure she'd rather go with me than with him...... ;)

Connor has been into costumes lately.... again. He used to wear his Harry Potter robe everywhere he went. Every day the year he was 2, I had to draw a new scar on his forehead. This is the Zorro costume he put together, and he's been getting on my case to sew him a costume so he can be Link from "Zelda, Twilight Princess".






Fletcher's new hobby has been laying with his ear on my stomach and listening to it growl. If I lay on the couch or on the bed to rest for a minute I'm stuck until he gets bored of the noises.

Had some beachy fun last week. (it was HOT!) and thought I'd get some pictures up for general viewing joy. Elle and nanette dug a hole and the kids spent much time jumping in and out of it. We saw the dolphins playing again that day - last Tuesday - and found some great seashells.

Craig and the boys went camping last weekend. I watched chick flicks and sewed, and organized some hot spots in my apartment. But next time, Mommy wants to come too! They had a great time together though.

Seth and Karalenn & co. came over Sunday night for some Mother's Day fun. To be honest, the only reason we invite people over to play the wii is so that we can get these great pictures. It has got to be the most entertaining thing, watching a happily married couple box it out.

Geez Kare, I knew you were competitive... :)

NOOOOOOOOOOO! Veronica Mars has been cancelled. I'm wearing black all summer long. *sob*

Here are my last two weeks. On the Left "nature" - and so I used some rose petals from a dozen given me by my husband for our roadtrip. "awwwww". I used reflective paper, a fortune from PF Chang's (we had lunch there before "prom"), and a bit of lace from one of the dresses i made.

and then on the Right "surprise". My surprise is that I'm not dreading the upcoming hot summer. There will be some fun changes in this life over summer, and I'm up for the adventure! the flip flops are from Penelope and then I just added some fun this-and-that.

Look what I got for Mother's Day!

Yay!

I cut out two patterns this weekend. this one by Butterick which I'm making out of a vintage crazy-quilt top, (the black view B on the pattern), and a vintage 50's double-v neck dress that I am making in a pretty white fabric with stripes and vines on it. I'll post pictures when they're done.

Now don't get me wrong. I love kissing pictures. And I love LOVE Star Wars. Really. But this? It's just too much, even for me. However if it strikes a chord in your girly little heart, feel free to head on over to Urban Outfitters dot com and getcherself one. :)

Melissa has already got a great entry up on her blog about our weekend. Go here to read all about it and to see some fun pix!

Season 3 is almost over for Veronica Mars (on the CW at 9, Tuesday. That's tonight people!). Okay, I get that it hasn't been as fabulous as it was for season 1, but still. I love Veronica. I want to watch her snark at people for many years to come.

Praying for renewal.

April 30 was my Craiger's birthday. He's been having some fun. :)

What Would MacGyver Do? - we couldn't resist taking pictures of some random guys jeep. The tire cover was too much.

We went to the Eclipse prom last weekend in Tempe Arizona. We missed the reading of the first chapter of Eclipse, but Melissa and I both bought books so we stopped in the desert on the way home Sunday and read it out loud.

The trip was so great! People kept coming up to Karalenn (that's Penelope Crackers to many of you!) and asking if they could take a picture of her in her dress. She was a celebrity for a night!

I made this days ago and then was pathetically lazy in posting. so for the three of you who will manage to see it - Here's my card! Prompt: Your Bedroom.

My mum gave us an Americana quilt set for Christmas, and it's been on our bed ever since. I grabbed some swatches from my stash and voila! Card! :)