Wednesday, June 11th, 2025 11:17 pm
I'm not sure I'm going to finish them, but I sewed the soles for bathing shoes tonight. I pinned the mockup I made last year on top of them, and they turned out surprisingly close to good. If I feel like it, I'll make another mockup tomorrow.

This morning my mom's seven month old phone was totally dead. Not battery wise, but just dead. It had randomly turned off a few times in the last few days. It was a 2023 Motorola Razr--the foldable one. So this morning was spent setting up her new Pixel 9a. I have the Pixel 9 pro XL, so it's familiar to me.

This afternoon one plug on my power strip lost power. That was weird. And I guess I'm getting muscle memory for my new automatic, because when I was setting up Bluetooth in my mom's car, it wouldn't start because I forgot to clutch. I still really miss shifting, so it's probably a good thing I'm at least adjusting.

I also went to the boardgame cafe with a teacher friend. So it was a very full day!
Wednesday, June 11th, 2025 09:00 am
Fairly low-key night at home. The baby was slightly nutso when I first came home from work, but some cuddle time seemed to even her out. I made her some mini sausages for dinner, which she devoured, and then she happily played by herself while I cooked dinner. 

Which was fast and easy, thankfully. Made a garlic lemon cream sauce and simmered the leftover chicken breasts in it for a few minutes for them to warm up, heated up leftover potatoes, and voila, a satisfactory dinner.

Tried to get to sleep early so I could get up and do petticoat stuff, but the baby didn't really go down until around 9:30, so I didn't get to bed until after ten, and then she was up multiple times during the night, so I did not get up early at all. I had a terrible time getting back to sleep, so I set my alarm for as late as I could push it. Blobbed out of bed around 7, had just enough time to get ready and make the baby's breakfast plate, and then was off to work. 

No idea what to cook for dinner. The plan had been the last of the sausages, but when I went home for lunch, M said that he'd thrown them out because they had gone bad. -_- Guess I'm winging it tonight.
Wednesday, June 11th, 2025 07:37 am
Absolutely nothing of note. Findings should be here tomorrow to finish up the bodice. I've left the rickrack pinned in place and when I see it on the hem I have a little <3 moment. I need to measure what's left, the packet says 7 yards (which would be a little short, if I've calculated the hem correctly) but I don't know what's actually in it. Both ends have been floating free for years.

But tomorrow is game night, and it's the one M and I are going to watch at the arena. On Friday we have a local event to attend. It'll be Saturday before I have a chance to sew anything again. Last night I had a writing event that the kittens let me have a whole HOUR to myself for. Tonight I just really need to get my butt into the shower bc that's another thing that will be delayed until the weekend if I don't. None of this is even remotely stressful and yet it feels like a lot. I think my body is gearing up for its regular evacuation. Do I always feel more overwhelmed a few days out? Something to keep track of.
Tuesday, June 10th, 2025 10:16 pm
Unless I decide to finish the belt or to shorten the straps, the bathing suit is done! I just have to block it and weave in the ends by the straps if I decide not to shorten them.

I never want to duplicate stitch another polka dot...
Tuesday, June 10th, 2025 06:50 pm
It took months to get around to sewing the soles on my new slippers, but I finally did it over the weekend.

1901 Slippers

1901 Slippers

Even though I traced a pair of shoes that are pretty close-fitting, they still seem quite big. Oh, well. They'll do. The pattern was published in 1901. Here's the Ravelry page: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/MCBurbage/ladies-bedroom-slippers
Tuesday, June 10th, 2025 08:41 am
Yesterday was a rough one for me. I endured terrible stomach pains all day long, which I blame on the ODR's lunch nachos since it all started not long after I ate a plate of them. I spent the better part of the day dealing with all of that nonsense.

Left work a bit early so I could make it to LabCorp before they closed and get my latest bloodwork done. 

The baby was completely feral when I got home, but she calmed down after some cuddles on the couch. She wants to go outside and run around so badly, but it's too damned hot by the time I get home. I've suggested to M that he take her outside first thing in the morning, but he never does. 

Dinner was chicken alfredo. Last time I made it was a disaster and the sauce broke no matter what I tried, but this time everything came together perfectly, thank Zod. We have two breaded chicken breasts left over from it, which will either be consumed for lunch or used for dinner. We have a fridge full of leftovers that need consuming, which is rather a nice change from having nothing on hand at all.

M's dark cloud seems to have dissipated, because he was in a fine mood last night with no undercurrent of negativity or glumness. We chatted about goth music and movies while we laid in bed, and then had an early night to escape the heat.

Since we were asleep so early, I woke up around 5. There aren't many chores to catch up on, so I let myself drift in and out of sleep until my alarm went off at 6:30. Got up, cleaned what dishes there were, took out the trash, and made the baby's breakfast plate. 

Hoping to get back to work on 1830s stuff this week. I dug out the unfinished stays and glared at the petticoat for a bit. If I wake up early tomorrow, I may give the petticoat another hand-wash in the tub to get the last of the cornstarch residue out of it and prepare it for chemical starching. Once the stays and corded petticoat are finished, I'll just need sleeve plumpers and a plain petticoat, and I'll be done with the undies. I'd like to start on the dress before the end of the month, but I will have to order more tarlatan for my hem and sleeve stiffening before that can happen. Since I have until next year to get this thing done, there's really no rush, and I have visions of a whitework embroidered canezou or pelerine to wear with it. If I can sneak the embroidery into work, anyway, which is difficult these days with Lt. Busybody constantly up in my business. -_-
Tuesday, June 10th, 2025 07:42 am
The game was painful. After Florida's fifth goal, the Oilers pulled the goalie. The radio guys opined "this is not a reflection on him at all, this is a mercy." Penalties galore, lots of pushing and shoving, a fight that the radio guys commentated just as enthusiastically as any other part of the game ("what a terrific fight!") and then finally, mercifully, it was over.

I imagined the coaches giving the team a talking-to in the intermission, and remembered that while I was eating lunch one of the TVs was showing "coaches gone wild". Coaches trash talking players and other teams in interviews, a scroll bar of particularly egregious events (of note, a coach who tried to storm the other team's dressing room), and a whole lot of angry white men screaming in players' and referees' faces. Yikes.

ANYWAY. I put a row of rickrack on the two tiers of the skirt and then doubted design choices for more. Do I put it on the hem? On the bodice edge even though the top has a gathered area that will not necessarily lie nicely? Pinned some lines in place and then pinned it all on the dressform and I think I'm gonna go for it. Would that I had enough for multiple lines, that was very popular on many of the images I looked up.
Monday, June 9th, 2025 10:21 pm
I have four and a half polka dots left. The ones near increases and decreases were weird to go and have a few blips, but I'm happy with my dots! I wanted to finish today, but was tired and realized I wanted something to work on during my window tinting appointment tomorrow, so didn't rush.

Tinting came with my car. I want to get the lightest tinting with the most UV/heat blocking. That's probably an upgrade.

And at last, my new glasses work! I'm still adjusting, but it's normal adjusting. Whew.
Monday, June 9th, 2025 09:50 am
Internet went out again on Friday. I couldn't do anything about it until I got home, and customer service ended up calling out an actual tech to fix it since our router was truly borked. Again.

Baby was up early on Saturday, around 5:45, which I was not prepared for, ugh. We got up, had some cuddles, brushed our teeth together, then had breakfast. Since it was early and cool, I decided to take her to the park so she could run around before the heat set in. It was practically deserted when we arrived, save for one very early dog walker and a couple of middle-aged dudes on One Wheels zipping around the walking paths.

She ignored the woods this time and went straight for the playground. I pushed her on the swing, which she thought was amazing for about 30 seconds and then wanted back down. The merry-go-round was a huge hit, and we actually spent most of our time sitting on that. We spent a good hour at the park before I could tell that she was getting too sleepy and I packed her back up.

On the way home we stopped at Walmart for a few things. It was her first trip inside a grocery store, and it went pretty smoothly. It was also pretty deserted, save for about two dozen employees who were picking items for online orders. 

Home, second breakfast, and then she went down for a loooong nap. I made myself breakfast once she was down and then tried to nap on the couch, but only got maybe 20 minutes of sleep before the internet tech knocked on the door. He did many mysterious things with cables and such, replaced the router again, and voila, the return of internet.

M got up when the tech knocked. The baby woke up just before the tech finished, and once he was gone, M started packing up for a trip to the range. His friend came to pick him up, and they spent the rest of the day out shooting, coming home right as I was starting to cook dinner.

Hamburgers for dinner.

Saturday was the only decent day of the weekend, because the rest of the time it was just a series of fights between me and M. He's going through one of his depressive periods, and he always gets really agitated and combative, and we had a major row on Friday night, and another on Sunday night. I'm hoping it's done now and things will calm down again, because I am exhausted.

Sun-dried tomato pesto chicken with mashed potatoes for dinner on Sunday. The baby learned to give High Fives, and spent a lot of time running around the house high-fiving everyone, which was pretty adorable. 

M's vacation is over and he's back to work today. I'm entering my slow period at work, so things will be quiet for a while. Captain's out on vacation this week, which also makes things quiet. Hopefully things are just...calm.
Monday, June 9th, 2025 07:52 am
The start of a weekend always feels so hopeful. Most of the time. Boss and coworker wanted to go to the Oilers store near the arena and I tagged along for funsies. It was hopping! But when we got back and I checked my phone, there was a message that my partner in crime N's dad had passed away not long before. He was admitted to the hospital the day before and eventually diagnosed with an obstructed bowel, but the doctor was not hopeful AT ALL that he'd even make it through the night. The family was hoping to buy enough time for a cousin to be able to make it in to say goodbye. He lived about 10 years longer than anyone thought he might, and he will be dearly missed.

Hockey game went to a second overtime period. I fell asleep before the second one started and woke up an hour later to find that the series is now tied. Game 3 tonight in Florida, obviously rooting for my guys! And I won't fall asleep again hahaha. Thursday is game 4 and M and I are going to the watch party at the arena. Gonna be fun.

On Saturday I said YES I am GOING TO CUT OUT TROUSERS. And then cut out a dress instead whoops lol. While opening bins for bottomweight fabrics, I found the massive chunk of chambray and said yes, this is perfect for a swooshy ruffly dress! I got the bodice all assembled but for lack of bra rings/sliders to finish the straps, and ripped all of the panels needed for the skirt. An unfortunate slub in the warp had me rip a long section vertically D: Not a complete waste of time/effort, it was sufficiently almost centered to be used for the back panels. I calculated the length of the hem and then divided by the width of the material to get the panels to be full-width rather than cut and having a loooooooooooooooooooooooooong leftover strip, plus then I didn't have to finish edges by using the selveges.

Aforementioned lack of bra hardware. The straps etc. are of course inset before the lining is done which means I can't really continue on that until I have them. But it was OK because the zippers arrived! So the green dress is now all done minus a hook and eye at the back neck. Photos to come bc so far I've only put it on my dress form and the background items are horrid lol.

Sunday I decided to work on the skirt. It was exactly as boring as 9x 44" wide panels can be. I thought that I'd rather try out the ruffling foot before stitching a gajillion gathering rows, so out came Jenny the Janome and the modern (c. 2011) ruffling foot. First test was quite tight, and second test was inconclusive bc the little blade that controls the ratcheting motion snapped off! GDI! FINE well I have two more, one older than the other. Honestly not sure which one I grabbed, but only one small adjustment had the gathers pretty much perfect. Charm helpfully included the gathering ratio of 2:1, and it was 3 and 6 panels so. Pefect.

Did the lower tier first, and then the second, which got squirrely at the end bc it wasn't gathering anymore. I shortened the stitch length which did work but I wasn't assed to do the entire last panel AGAIN and ehhhh it's fine. I'll fudge it along. That ended up being just as annoying as it sounds, and the gathers (which are tiny pleats, really) still needed some fussing to lay properly even when the foot was working well.

Probably would have been smarter to do the hem before everything was attached but... whatever. That worked out just fine too even if by then I was running low on the main thread colour and could have avoided that entirely by doing it first lol. Would have cared less what colours were in the seams as they wouldn't be visible.

Even busted out the serger to finish raw edges galore, who is she!! I've been wanting to move it from its home to be closer to where I do most of the work, and it still needs some adjustments to the stitch length and ratios as I STILL get skipped stitches, but it was fine for this. Probably needs a new blade too, it's been probably 18 years since it had a new one.

But for the upper gathering, which I WILL do the "regular" way, the skirt is done. I am considering a line of navy rickrack along the seams ala the pattern photos (which is piping) and that would be easier while it's all still separate. Just holding the skirt up against myself, it's delightfully fluffy. Very excited to wear it.

So tonight, being game night, will be the usual round of dishes and dinner while I listen. I need a singular can of coconut milk to make my planned meal, which is a Thai curry soup. I got kale and bok choy in my veggie box this week, plus with the carrot and peppers and onions I've gotten in the previous boxes will make a fine soup indeed! I pulled out a length of teal twill for the trousers but am, of course, doubting that as the best choice. Also waffling on sizing bc trousers don't fit like skirts do! I really ought to make a mock up first and I'm so tempted to just #yolo it but if it's WRONG then its WASTED. Thanks brain, for that unhelpful line of thought. Jury is out on that for the time being.

Speaking of the veggie box, this week's "mystery item" was no less than THREE heads of garlic. WTF am I going to do with three heads of garlic (before they go bad) lol. I recall a recipe of some sort of basically baking them in oil. That shall be a project for my looong day at work doing... not much.
Sunday, June 8th, 2025 05:16 pm
I finished knitting the suit this morning!

I might want the straps an inch shorter, but I'm not sure I want them shorter enough to unravel and redo them.

The first three polka dots are on, and it took wn hour and a half to mark the rest. It's a very hard thing to do if you have no spacial awareness and can't count.

And I decided to go to the beach. I didn't go the last day of school like I did the last two years because I had just gotten back from Catalina and the suit wasn't done.

I've wanted to make bathing slippers instead of boots (which I don't want to wear with this suit--they're too early), but I might get canvas ballet slippers instead. We'll see how fast the embroidery goes and what I feel like.

Everything *gestures broadly* is awful, and planning a trip to Southern California today of all days sounds I don't know, weird somehow. I wish more people could enjoy small things instead of doing whatever hateful things they're doing. Finishing a project makes me happier than they'll ever be. My words aren't coming out right, so I hope that makes some sense. Sigh
Sunday, June 8th, 2025 07:14 pm
I finished the kids' Christmas ornaments early this year. These are the second half of the "Christmas Village Ornaments" kit. Once again I left off the cording so these would match the first three from 2023.

“Christmas Village Ornaments”
Saturday, June 7th, 2025 09:38 pm
I'm still knitting them. I think I'm nearing the end? They're not a lot, but they're annoying to knit. They nine stitches each and tangle since I'm doing both at the same time.

I made smaller buttons last night too.
Saturday, June 7th, 2025 06:27 am
I finished the beading on the skirt of my 1897 satin evening gown yesterday. Now it just needs to have the waist and hem finished. Of course, 1897 takes a lot of work to make a hem.

I also finished the embroidery for this year's crop of Christmas ornaments. I started working on them at home after I finished the "Street Scene."
Friday, June 6th, 2025 09:48 pm
That's all that's left! Unless I want a belt. Or don't like the buttons I just made. I like them, but they're wooden buttons covered in knitting, so large.

I tried it on as much as I could with the side straps, and I think they're the right size. I hope. I wove the ends in because there were so annoying.

I know the straps will be annoying to get the right length. I'll knit them at the same time so I don't have to worry about making them match.
Friday, June 6th, 2025 08:12 am
Finished my book not long after arriving home. I'd started getting a migraine aura literally 5 minutes before I left work, which made getting home fun bc the aura is right in the middle of my eyeball. Got home when it was still going on so I at least managed to drug up before it developed into a full-blown migraine.

But I wasn't feeling great (still get a bit of the hangover), so i took it easy all night. Dinner was a leftover dish from work that wasn't great. Pinned and pressed the hem for the dress, then played a bit with how to trim the hem and ended up going with the same as I'd put on the rest of the dress. But that's basically an edge stitch and I didn't want to trim the hem down, so I started stitching on some lace. Then I ran out of bobbin thread 2x so I decided to open up the machine and oil it bc it was sounding a bit grindy again (there's something in the middle that is also grinding that I can't figure out). Probably need to hand-stitch the lace down but it was "late" (like almost 9) by then so I said nah.

I ordered zippers on Amazon yesterday (thanks work bonus program for the gift cards!) and they should arrive tomorrow and then it will be done!

I also put my green bra that I tried to modify onto Josephine (dress form) to get a better idea of the bust fit. I really need to adjust the form to better reflect me. Perhaps that will be a weekend project.

Game 2 tonight, so tonight, since i don't have a library book to mainline, I will do my dishes while listening, and attempt to make the dinner I didn't make last night. And I guess it's time to decide on a new project since the dress is nearly done!
Friday, June 6th, 2025 08:46 am
I really need to remember not to take the Zofran when I'm nauseous, no matter how bad I feel, because the side effects are not worth it. Ugh. Sat at work yesterday with horrible stomach pains and got out of there as soon as I could so I could wallow at home instead of doubled over at my desk. 

Since I was sick and miserable, M went out and bought us some sausages at the fancy grocery store to cook up for dinner. He got our usual standards (beef and bacon sausage, and a Cajun andouille) plus two of their seasonal ones, a chicken and garlic sausage and a cranberry citrus pork sausage. Both the seasonal ones were excellent, and we plan to get more so we can freeze them for later. Still kicking ourselves that we didn't do that when they had the cherry pecan chicken sausages last Fall, because once they're gone, they don't usually bring them back, and those were amazing.

Cooking put M into a good mood, so we had a pleasant rest of the evening. Until bedtime, anyway. He got miffed that he lost computer time because the baby needed to go to bed and ranted about how he never gets time in the evenings to himself anymore and why'd he even take vacation if he wasn't going to get to do anything, and yadda yadda yadda. I have become more than annoyed at his self-pitying rants because I've had all of two weekends off since the baby was born, and all of my vacation PTO has been used to watch the baby while he has work stuff going on, so yeah, you're barking up the wrong tree, buddy. 

Anyway, we put in an order for a new mattress for the pack & play to see if she'll sleep better with a thicker bed. The one time she managed to get out of the p&p seemed to be a fluke since she hasn't managed to do it again, but she also refuses to sleep in it, throwing out the foam mattress that's in there now, as well as all her blankets and her pacifier. Hopefully once it's comfier she'll just nap instead of destroy, and that way M can have is precious computer time at night. Yeesh.

Went to bed not long after the baby went down. Then M woke me up at 1AM asking if I'd changed the AC settings. I was so pissed off that he'd wake me for something so trivial when I've been so sick all day and just wanted to rest that it took me a while to calm down and go back to sleep.

Alarm went off at 6:30. Got up, cleaned the few dishes in the sink, made the baby's breakfast, had a bit of breakfast myself. He's hoping today is a better day.
Thursday, June 5th, 2025 08:34 pm
The back is almost half done. Then the side straps, then the straps, then embroidery, then decide if I want a belt. I'll need a beach vacation after this!
Thursday, June 5th, 2025 07:55 am
(Post is nothing but excited screaming as Cup finals game 1 was won at 19:29 of overtime by our boy LEON DRAISAITL!!!!!!)

I was reading during the game last night, happily pretzeled on the couch with Calcifer on my legs or feet. And since we had a full overtime period* it was rather late by then and I was already in bed lol.

*regular season hockey is a short break and 5 mins of overtime before going to a shootout. Playoffs overtime is the full 15 minute intermission and full 20 minute period, for as long as it takes. Memorably in 2006, when Edmonton finally won a game in one of the earlier rounds at 1-something in the morning, in OT period 3.

I must finish and expect to finish my book today. Back to regularly waffling about sewing anon.
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Thursday, June 5th, 2025 08:39 am
Headed home from work at noon yesterday, even though my doctor's appointment wasn't until 2. When I got home, M had just managed to get the baby down for a nap, so I heated up some leftover pizza for lunch, he and I chatted a bit while we ate, and then I hopped in the shower for a quick scrub. 

Appointment went fine. It's too early to know the sex, and too early for really much of anything interesting to happen, so it was mostly just "yup, there's still a fetus in there." Next appointment is the beginning of July, and they gave me a referral to the high-risk doc so we can schedule the amnio once I'm at 15 weeks, and that was it. 

Poor Kate was very worried for me the entire visit. As soon as I got up on the exam table she started crying, probably because the exam table at the pediatrician is where she gets her shots and those are the worst thing on the planet and how dare you hurt mommy. Many snoogles were given afterward to assure her that I was fine. 

M had had a bad night's sleep, so he went to bed almost as soon as we got home. I made dinner for the baby and played with her a bit, but her nap had been short and she was a bit grumpy. I tried to get her to go to bed early, but her internal clock is basically atomic with its accuracy, and if you put her in bed a second before 8pm she will absolutely not have it. As soon as it hit 8, she flopped over on her belly, pulled the blankets around her, huffed at me, and went to sleep.

Since I'd been up so early, I was basically a zombie at that point. I tried to relax a bit on the couch, but I was so tired that I couldn't get comfortable, and I just gave in and went to bed. Slept mostly through the night except for a few wakes here and there, but I was determined to get as much sleep as possible. Body tried to wake up at 5 again, but I really wanted that extra hour and a half.

M was awake when my alarm went off, and he hadn't been in bed most of the night, so he's going to have a rough day today, I tell you what.