WIP Wednesday #26

Happy Wednesday! It's been a fun week of sewing, so I'm jumping back in with lots to report. (In case you're new around here, I'm following along with Freshly Pieced's W.I.P. (Work In Progress) Wednesday series as a good way for me (and you) to keep track of what's going on around here.)

Completed this week: 

Potholder and kitchen towel set (click the links for lots more about these projects)

 

iPad sleeve for Matt

Coasters for our bedroom

Started this week:

Some friends of ours recently had a new little baby girl, and I'm trying to get my butt in gear to make her gift (in my defense, she came a bit early, but I'm still behind, no doubt). I decided to base the quilt around this fabric I got a few weeks ago.

I love the fun colors and think it'll make a great baby quilt. I also like that it's not too girly. After picking up the coordinating solids I needed from a local sewing store, I washed and ironed everything last night and got started on the cutting while watching Wuthering Heights on Netflix. :)

I'm keeping it simple (this is only my third quilt after all, and I'm still just getting my toes wet) and mostly following this tutorial. The coral-y block fabric will be the backing. What do you think?

On the "to do" list (it just keeps growing!):

Early Bird/Kitchen Window quilt
Coasters for the office and living room
Wall organizer for the office
Christmas tree skirt
Stockings
New pillows for downstairs bed
Coin purse for the car
 A few items to spruce up our new stroller

A sheet for Beckett's pea pod mattress 

A new bag and mug rug for me
T-shirt quilt

Hope everyone has a great rest of the week. And be sure to click on the button to check out other great WIPs for more inspiration!

Coasting along

Yay for more sewing! I'm checking off all the little boxes on my to-do list. I've been wanting to make some new coasters for the living room and our bedroom, and while the living room ones are still on the list, I got to check off the bedroom ones this week.

I used the same Joel Dewberry fabrics I used for our wall hanging.

I also finally tried out the half-square technique I've been wanting to try forever. I know it's nothing fancy, but I'm glad to have another technique under my belt. They're ready for glasses!

A trip to the Arch

A few weeks ago, our friends Will and Jamelia came through town while moving from Seattle to Connecticut with their son Elliott. We had a great weekend of relaxing and showing them around town a bit, most notably with Beckett's first trip to the Gateway Arch.

I love so many of these shots, I'm just going to let them speak for themselves.

On the waterfront of the mighty Mississippi

And just a few more for fun. We tried to take some photos of Beckett and Elliott sitting together on the couch, but B was having none of it. Most of the shots were a complete blur (try getting two babies to sit still at the same time), but these capture B trying to escape and then getting really angry when we put him back. Elliott was so cool; he's just like, "Dude, what's wrong that baby?" We love you Elliott (and Will and Jamelia)!

California folks living the St. Louis life

I'm so behind on posts, but I didn't want to just skip over stuff, so let's see if we can't catch up a bit.

Several weeks ago, Matt's parents came for a visit and brought our niece Jesselyn. Unfortunately, we don't get to make it out to California as often as we'd like, so we only get to see her a few times a year. It was also her first time coming to visit us, and she was so excited!

After a brief crawling lesson from Grandpa, we started the weekend off with a trip to the zoo. Jesselyn just loves animals, so we couldn't have picked a better place to get the ball rolling. Beckett was ready for safari, as always.

The St. Louis Zoo, which is free (as so many wonderful things in STL are), is really wonderful. They've been doing a lot of renovations lately, and it really shows. We started in the "river walk" area, where Jesselyn was entranced by (and a little afraid of) the rhino.

Matt and the kiddos

 Hyenas (as we told Jesselyn, like in The Lion King)

It was SO hot that day, and we all began to wilt pretty quickly. Beckett was baking in his stroller, so we tried to camp out in the buildings for as long as possible to cool down.

 Checking out the alligators

 Family shot!

 Crocodile (or alligator, I forget which) skull inside the reptile house.

 Trying to cool off

The newest exhibit is a vastly improved sea lion habitat, which includes an underwater tunnel. It was so fun to see the very friendly and interactive sea lions swim all around us.

Woosh!

 Playing tricks

 Sea lion fur

Wee!

Jesselyn and Beckett had a great time playing together all week, and I'm pretty sure she showed him a few new tricks.

Plotting their next move

 Learning to share

Aside from the zoo, Jesselyn's favorite spot was at the pool. She's been taking swim lessons lately, and she was excited to show off her skills. She couldn't get enough of the lazy river and water slide, too.

 Showing off the stuffed animals

 More deep discussions

On Sunday, we'd planned to go to Grant's Farm, but the rain steered us toward The Magic House, St. Louis's children's museum, instead. We were not alone. Despite being super loud and crowded, we had a fun time, Jesselyn most of all. Beckett was, well, overwhelmed.

 

Driving the horse cart and making dinner in the children's literature exhibit

Choo-choo!

Matt, his mom, and Beckett taking a break from the chaos

Bubble girl

Exhausted after the Magic House

The best way to recover from exhaustion? A big cup of Ted Drewe's. No trip to the Lou would be complete without it (heck, no week is complete without it), and Jesselyn loved every bite.

Beckett celebrated the weekend by feasting on my mother-in-law's favorite breakfast treat: bagels.

And we took advantage of the cooler evening temperatures by trying out Matt's new toy. Sorry, charcoal grill; gas is so much faster!

After realizing Grant's Farm is closed on Mondays, Jesselyn was more than happy to make a second trip to the zoo (did I mention it's FREE??). This time, we managed to catch one of the sea lion feeding shows.

And the monkeys (both real and bronzed)

All in all, it was a wonderful family weekend and a great reminder of how blessed we are to have such a great family.