The Handmade Dress

That's what it feels like I have done since I got back! Hit the ground running! When we got back in town it was a days work just to unpack and wash up from a two week trip. Then I remembered the kids had a costume ball (their first ball!!) with their ball room dancing Friday night. We hit the thrift stores the very next day, Thursday, looking for something quick and easy! Here we have Taylor Swift, a ninja, and a hippie. :) They had a blast! By this morning I was needing some down-time, big-time! So we all pitched in, straightened up the house, and I got to knitting. Ahhh...this is just the kind of day I needed.  I can't wait to show you guys the whole trip! I am going to upload a few slide shows to Flickr and tell a few stories next week. We had such a good time that we are already planning next years trip! I miss you guys! What have y'all been up to the last two weeks? Sewing, knitting, crocheting, crafting? xo, Sam

We are having the time of our lives! Right now we are in town (Charlottesville, VA) at a laundromat washing our dirty duds. We started out on the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina, our first stop to camp was Mount Pisgah National Park. It was a really nice place (with a shower!!) to camp. That is where we discovered how much Claire likes hiking. Who wouldn't like to hike like that? They also had quite a few beautiful waterfalls. LOVE. Monday we visited Biltmore. AMAZING! Did you know that kids 9 and under get in free? Yep, all of our kids got in free. Score! We made a day of it and the kids loved it! When we got back to camp Monday night we decided to move on, we packed up camp, like ninjas, and within an hour we were on the road Headed for Shenandoah National Forest. We pulled in sometime between 3 and 4 Tuesday morning.  Our home for the next day or so is Loft Mountain National Park, our camp is just a few yards from the Appalachian Trail! I have ...

I decided that if I, the world's biggest home-body, was going to live in a camper (with no electricity) for the next two weeks, that it was going to have to feel a little like home. I needed some color and character before I could call it home for two weeks. I took pictures so that you guys could see the before and afters! Before: During:  After: Ben and I made an awning... I made new slipcovers for the seats... ....and I made curtains from my stash. I didn't have the time or money to go buy a bunch of fabric for this project, so every thing just got patched together wherever it would fit. I usually love the way these type of projects turn out! It's like a surprise ending! In the end, I did love it! And I totally think I can live here for two weeks...maybe even a month next fall when we head to the Grand Canyon and Yosemite (that's the plan anyway). We have decided that we will be campers from here on out, because there ...

...but I didn't make it past lunch! All is well in the Caffe house once again, thank goodness! Friday was my 32nd birthday and I wanted to document it. We started out pretty early for us, at 8:30, headed to ball room dancing class.  I stopped and got another load of Caffee kids. :)   This month is swing dancing! The kids loved it and Molly and Adam caught on pretty quick!  This is what seems like every homeschooler in Birmingham doing the last "fun" dance before class is over....I sing "The Cha Cha Slide" every Friday for hours after class! After that I fell off the wagon with the picture taking. Bummer, I really wanted to succeed in one of these posts at least once. I'll just give you a run down of the rest of the day though (every Friday is about the same). From dance class we loaded up as fast as we could and headed to eat Pizza with Paw-Paw for Paw-Paw day. The kids and I hung out for a few hours and then we headed to the health food stor...

Hey friends! I've got a huge case of cabin fever right now! Claire has been sick since Thursday. Friday night she took a major turn for the worst and Saturday morning they had to put her on an antibiotic for a respiratory infection. Sooo stressful and scary! She had to be held almost constantly, even when she took naps. She is feeling better now, thank goodness, and we are a little more rested today. We have been without internet for days (and at times even the phone has been out). My computer is getting enough signal now to get on, but not enough to upload a picture, I hope this will post! On top of it all my husband is pulling double shifts at work to get some extra time for vacation. I may be going crazy people! How weird is it that one or two things can be disrupted in your life (sleep, health, connection to the outside world, your husband's moral support) and it can knock off your equilibrium? It's not like there has been a family tragedy! But that's how it fee...