Food and Resolutions

I have stopped and started this post a couple of times now.  First it was going to be just a Happy New Year post.  Then it was going to be a post reflecting on the passage of time.  But what I REALLY want to talk about is food.  

And a little about Resolutions. 

I usually don't make "New Year's Resolutions". I figure if I can't make a change in June I'm not going to make it in January either.  I'm either committed to making a change or I am not.  I either have a compelling reason to make a change or I do not.  Just knowing that making the change (whatever it might be) is or would be good for me doesn't convince me to follow through with it.  I have to have decided deep down in my mind and will that it needs to be made.

I think I'm there.

I have a lot of things not functioning properly in my body and for the first time I'm going to get really specific right here in writing.  

#1 - I have recently come to understand that the chronic condition I have struggled with since I was 8 years old is an auto-immune disease.  That is psoriasis.  NO ONE, EVER, suggested that diet could help. NO.ONE. In my recent reading I have learned that people with auto-immune conditions should avoid nuts, nightshades, eggs and dairy.

 

Huh. 

Have I ever mentioned my favorite sandwich is fresh tomato and cheese slathered with mayonnaise?

#2 - and on that note...about a year ago I learned that I have non-celiac gluten intolerance. 

Yeah.

Scratch the favorite sandwich off the list.

#3 - Since last December, when I had surgery on my nose, I have been struggling mightily with fatigue issues.  It was finally determined that due to the anesthesia and subsequent use of pain killers that my adrenal function was...well...not functioning. In other words I simply do not produce an adequate amount of cortisol to function optimally.

#4 - I also, while technically in the "normal" range on lab tests, have a low functioning thyroid.

Yeah...that will make you tired too...and fat.

#5 - and let's just top it all off with a little IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome). 

I take vitamin B supplements, probiotics, natural thyroid medication, vitamin D, 5-HTP, Milk Thistle,  iron and Beta-Carotene.  I've known for awhile that what I really need to address is my diet.  And so I have been reading and implementing little changes here and there.  

I've read about the GAPS diet.  

Very briefly it is very restrictive but has been shown to be a way of healing the gut.

I'm just not mentally ready to go there...or I'm not quite desperate enough yet.  Though I probably should be.

I've done the "Candida Diet" in the past.  Because that is something I struggle with too. 

I just bought The 21 Day Sugar Detox book and recipe book.  

This is definitely a direction I want to head but I'm not ready yet. 

So.

So what is it I am going to do? 

Yep that's the question I have been asking myself.  

Because I'm not the only one in the family that needs to address gut and dietary issues.

Well, at this point, a Paleo path looks do-able.  I can eliminate most of the foods I need to and still eat tasty, healthy food in satisfying quantities. And I can prepare food the rest of my family will enjoy.

Because if there is one thing I have learned in the past it is that cooking two separate ways for every meal is daunting and discouraging.

And then there is coffee. 

I love the comfort of it in the morning.  I love sharing it with a friend or loved one.  

I love to think of it as my treat and the end of a big grocery shopping trip.

But.

But I also like to load it with creamy sweetness.

So it ends up being two drugs rolled into one....sugar and caffeine.

Two drugs I need to get out of my life.

So pray for me if you think of it.  This is a struggle that I am going to be working on this year to not be struggling with.  

My "resolution" is to get healthy this year.

Wishes

Needlework

This is what I wish I was doing.  I wish I could ignore all the dusting, vacuuming, laundry, dusting and cooking.  I wish I could just sit by the fire and embroider or crochet or practice knitting.  I also wouldn't mind doing some sewing.  I want to hibernate...by myself.

I love my family and I really would not want to go a day without them.  I just wish I had a housekeeper to do all the stuff I don't want to do.  All the stuff I feel like I need to do BEFORE I can sit down and do the stuff I want to do. 

{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{sigh}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

Back to reality with the broom, duster and vacuum.

Ordinariness

~The true test of a person's spiritual life and character is not what he does in the extraordinary moments of life, but what he does during ordinary times when there is nothing tremendous or exiting happening.  ~Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest

Ordinariness is where life is lived. It is the day to day of life. It is the getting up each morning, doing one's loving duty and the sweetness of the evening with those we love. 

There are always events in life in which one's character is revealed.  We (I) often think that it's the big events of life that test our (my) character, but I think maybe not always.  Might it be that the true testing is in the day to day of life?  In the ordinary times?

An event, good or bad, may be the beginning of a time of trial and testing, but I think that it's not the event that is the test.

Paul says in Romans 5:3-5, "And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance, and perseverance, character; and character, hope.  Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

In my own walk with the Lord it has been the day to day of life after an "event" where I am tested.  Can I still get up in the morning?  Can I still make the bed?  Can I still do the laundry, the dishes, prepare meals, teach my children, love my husband, clean the bathroom, vacuum the floor, do the grocery shopping, teach my children and love my husband?

It is in the ordinariness of life that I lean on Jesus because I have learned that in my own strength I can not carry on.  In the ordinariness of life I learn that God is to be trusted and that His burden is light.  In the ordinariness of life I learn to walk with God. 

And in the ordinariness of life God transforms me (Romans 12:2).

Oswald Chambers says in My Utmost for His Highest (October 12th),  [God] has different ways of doing things, and we have to be trained and disciplined in His ways.   It was said of Jesus - "He will not fail nor be discouraged..." (Isaiah 42:4) because He never worked from His own individual standpoint, but always worked from the standpoint of His Father.  And we must learn to do the same.  Spiritual truth is learned through the atmosphere that surrounds us, not through intellectual reasoning.  It is God's Spirit that changes the atmosphere of our way of looking at things, and then things begin to be possible which before were impossible."

It is in the day to day things of life that God begins and continues to work in me through His Holy Spirit, changing the atmosphere of my heart and mind, renewing and transforming me.  Changing my "me" centeredness to Him centeredness.  Changing my dependence on myself to dependence on Him, ultimately leading me to hope in Him, joy in spite of circumstances and a peace that passes understanding.

A Little Walk Down Memory Lane

My Mom loves to sew. When I was younger she did a lot more clothes sewing than she does now. Now she is a quilter mainly. Though she has been known to make some clothes for Daughter.

My Mom is also a saver. I think she has saved every pattern she ever bought and the fabric as well. As I dug through boxes under the stairs at my folks house this past Thanksgiving, I was taken on a trip down memory lane. There were fabric scraps that I distinctly remembered from various clothing items either my Mom or I wore.

And let me tell you there were boxes...as in multiple boxes. One could almost classify them by decade, based on the print styles. It was...amusing, because that "I can't believe I wore that" thing comes up.

But, you know, there are styles that are classic...they don't suffer too much in the translation. Especially now when people dress not to conform so much as they do to define who they are. And since I'm kind of a traditional sort of retro sort of girl, and the patterns my Mom had are in my size so I thought, why not use them!

So without further ado let me show you what I found. And this isn't everything. Blogger would only let me post five pictures.

The blouse on the left reminded me of some of the tops you see in the stores right now. Made in a knit fabric I don't think anyone would know the pattern was from 1964. My Mom and I had matching dresses made from the pattern on the right...well her dress was made from that pattern...mine was from a smaller pattern I didn't find. I do remember they were a light pink, double knit polyester fabric. Somewhere there is a picture of us...but that was another hunt.

I don't think my Mom ever made either of the above patterns. The contents to both are still in tact. I could probably make a killing with them on e-bay! They are priced .75 and .85 cents. My how things have changed!

Now the pattern on the right above is one of those classic ones. McCall's classifies it as "Easy, Recommended For Beginners". It is priced at .50 cents U.S., .60 cents in Canada. I think I will actually be using that one. I might even be brave enough to make the one on the right as well...it's not that outdated is it?

More classics, the pants make me think of Laura Petrie (aka: Mary Tyler Moore) in The Dick Van Dyke Show.

I think I will be making both of these as well. The drawings make look dated but really, the styles are simple and, once again, classic.

So there you have it. Well, not ALL of it. Like I said I could only post five pictures on this post. These are just the sewing patterns. I still have to show you the knitting and crocheting stuff I found! But I'm going to save it for another post. :D

You know there are draw backs to saving everything, but in this case I'm really glad my Mom didn't get rid of anything. And she was glad that I will be able to make use of them again. Ooooo, it just makes me all frugally and warm inside!

It's Not A Lot, But It's My Life

There are so many inspirational blogs out there. Just look at my blog-list and you will see some of the blogs that inspire me. They are blogs about home keeping, child-rearing and walking with the Lord. I love them all. They all are encouraging to me. Sometimes they are sad, sometimes funny and sometimes just, you know, everyday. I love that too. Because sometimes there is really nothing all that exciting to share about life.

You get up, get dressed, take care of what ever your day holds, and go to bed. That may be an over simplification, but you know what I mean.

And I love reading about it. Because there is joy to be found in the everyday things of life. Because that is mostly what life is made of. The everyday.

I mean, let's face it. Cleaning out a chicken coop isn't exactly earth shattering. Stinky maybe, but not earth shattering. Yet that was a part of my otherwise completely ordinary day yesterday. And I loved it.

In it's own way it was fun. Not the kind of fun I imagined when I was sixteen and seventeen years old, but fun in finding out our chickens were stealth. Fun in figuring out how to thwart their egg-hiding efforts. Fun watching them get excited about the new layer of straw we put down in their coop.

Taking joy in the everyday things of life can be hard sometimes, especially if you find yourself yearning for something more seemingly vibrant and exciting. But I have found that when I stopped looking over the fence at my neighbors lawn, or life, or whatever, I am much more content with my own life. Comparing my life to someone elses gets me no-where but depressed.

Jesus had an answer for this sort of thing. This comparing we do. In John 21:21 Peter asks Jesus about the future of John's (the disciple whom Jesus loved) life. Jesus says to Peter in verse 22, "...what is that to you? You follow Me." I just need to do what God has put before me. I don't need to be worrying about or comparing myself to anyone else.

And therein lies the secret to contentment and, dare I say, happiness.

So to quote a famous ant, "It's our lot in life...it's not a lot, but it's our life!"

And as if I don't have enough to do....

I started another blog.

Yeah call me crazy. Call me nuts. Call me a spendthrift reforming her ways and wanting to blog about it.

I didn't want to make this blog about being frugal, a tightwad...whatever...and I have a lot of ideas about what to post on the frugal subject. I want to keep this place what it is...just a little spot in blog world.

Not that I'm expecting my new blog to light the blog world on fire. It's only one of many blogs out there on the subject of being frugal.

But hey...if I can add anything of value...well at least I'm gonna give it a try.

Soooo, if you would like to you can go over and check things out at Walking Frugally. Yeah I know, it's a brilliant name! HA! Either that or I'm trying to franchise myself...ummm...not. Let's just say, "it came to me."

Simple Thoughts

FOR TODAY Monday, October 20, 2008...

Outside my Window...
…it is overcast (okay, partially cloudy) and the trees are turning gorgeous shades of yellow, orange and red.

I am thinking...
… a lot about how we can spend less money and get our debts paid off. I must admit to being slightly obsessed by this at the moment.

From the learning rooms...
…the kiddos actually got going before 9:00 this morning so it was a much less stressful day than usual. I also insisted that written work be done first before reading. This made the day go a lot more smoothly…this made me happy…and when Mama is happy, everyone is happy!

I am thankful for...
…the fact that today is the. last. soccer. game. of. the. season. The last one friends!!! Do you hear my elation? Do you hear the joy in my voice? Hallelujah!!!!

From the kitchen...
…beef barley soup and homemade bread. I think I will also make an apple crisp. We picked the last of our Granny Smith’s on Friday and I need to start using them. I think this will be a perfect meal after our last soccer game.

I am wearing...
…my new jeans rolled up to be capris, a blue floral t-shirt over a long-sleeved white t-shirt, socks and my favorite pair of slippers.

I am reading...
…I have moved on to James Herriott’s Every Living Thing. Did I mention before that I love these books? Tina at Red Wellies, Rainbows and Cinnamon Whirls left me a note telling me she had actually gotten to go see the real Skeldale House. Did I mention I’m a little jealous Tina?

I am hoping...
…that we can have a nice family evening, maybe even play a board game or something after we get home from the last soccer game of the season.

I am creating...
…not much right now.

I am hearing...
…the dishwasher running and my son chopping fat wood for the fire.

Around the house...
…we are still working on finishing up the painting on the outside of the house. Praise God that it has been warm and dry this October, I think if the weather holds we will actually be able to finish it next weekend!

One of my favorite things...
…is time with my hubby. We have been making much more of a concerted effort lately to make sure we get more time alone together.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week...
…I think I now have enough ripe tomatoes to finally make some stewed tomatoes. They are holding up remarkably well in the frig. On Wednesday we will head to the “nearest large town” for some serious grocery shopping, so on Tuesday I will be making my list and checking it twice.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you...

Welcome to my home.

For more entries in the Simple Woman's Daybook head over to The Simple Woman.

Too Many Receipts

This, my friends, is two months worth of debit receipts which have been hiding out either in my purse, my husband's wallet or a manila envelope I use for storing them until I record them in my check register.

Now please, for those of you who balance your checkbook every month down to the penny, please don't think any less of me because I don't. I have never been able to do that, no matter how hard I tried. I do keep track of my balance by viewing my account regularly on-line and checking what has cleared against what has been hiding out in my purse.

And today, I entered all the receipts into my check register. We have Quicken which also can help you with a budget and generate spending reports for you. I know I do not use this software to it's full potential but one of these days, very soon, I hope to be able to.

Because....today after entering all debits and credits I generated a spending report for groceries and auto fuel.

ouch.

First of all, we have been spending about twice what I thought we were on gas. Of course, these days that's not hard to do. But the reason it surprised me was because I stay home. A lot. However, when I do go out, it's usually to our nearest large town to do grocery shopping. Said large town is approximately 60 miles away. We have a Ford Focus and get anywhere from 28 to 32 miles to the gallon but when gas is close to $4.00 a gallon it all adds up quickly. I am going to start thinking twice about quick trips around the town we live in though. Those miles can add up quickly too.

Our grocery spending was also more than I originally thought. During the Spring and Summer months I wasn't able to make as many trips to "our nearest large town" and so I bought groceries in small quantities from our local markets. Let's just say that while we are blessed to have three supermarkets in a town of 7500 people, they aren't exactly discount markets. We do have a W*lM*rt in town but it's not a Super one and judging from the Super ones I have been in I don't know that I would be inclined to shop for my groceries there anyway.

So how am I going to tackle these two areas? Well that there my friends is a good question. We have pretty well stripped all other areas down to bare bones but we can do some good work in these areas I think.

#1 - less trips anywhere. Period. There are places we can walk to easily and to our health's benefit. Time to get out the walking shoes. (I need to lose ten pounds anyway.)

#2 - make more food from scratch. I have already started to do this. Bread in particular. I haven't done an actual cost breakdown of how much a loaf of homemade bread costs compared to a store bought loaf but I'm willing to wager it's less than the $3.00 a loaf I can expect to pay locally.

#3 - some friends and I are going to start some "co-op" buying. We have yet to work out all the details but when we do I'll let you know how we do. Some things we have considered co-oping include flour, sugar, meat, paper products and other staples. We are also working on a plan to coordinate our garden produce.

#4 - eliminate as many "in between" trips to the local grocery store as possible. This will take a considerable bit more planning on my part to make sure I purchase all that we will need when I make my trip to "the nearest large town".

These are just some initial steps to stem the flow of blood cash from our wallet. Some other resources I plan on utilizing are The Tightwad Gazette, borrowed from the library, of course. And I'm going to be reading a lot more over at this gentleman's blog, The Simple Dollar. I've only just begun to do some reading over there but what I've read so far seems practical and useful.

So what I'm thinking is...if I do less spending (always a good thing) I will have less receipts to enter in my check register. If I have less receipts to enter I might be more inclined to get them entered in a timely fashion and then there will not be a pile like the one in the picture.

Some Simple Thoughts

I think that this little meme is normally to be done on Mondays. But I was about 400 miles away from my computer on Monday so…well…anyway…I needed something to spur on my thinking and I’m doing it today…



FOR TODAY Thursday, October 16th...

Outside My Window...
…it is dark right now. But the trees are beginning to turn to shades of gold and there is a crispness in the air that makes me think of apples and cinnamon.

I am thinking...
…that there is a lot I’m thinking about these days. More than I can possibly put into words. I think that there is a stage in life when you look all around you and things and people are changing. Children are getting older, parents are getting older, suddenly you realize you aren’t as young as you used to be. This causes me to reflect a lot. What is next in my life? Am I doing a good job raising my children? How can I be a help to my parents?

I am thankful for...
…the fact that I don’t have figure all this out on my own. I have my husband who God has gifted with steadiness and clear thinking. I have my Lord who will guide and direct us both.

From the kitchen...
…ummm, not much too exciting lately. I did make an apple crisp last week. The weather is prompting me to make lots of soups, stews and chili lately. I hope my family doesn’t get tired of them!

I am wearing...
...my yoga pants (can I just say I love these things…they are so comfortable…and I don’t even do yoga!), a t-shirt, a fleece sweatshirt and some socks. Yep. You could definitely call me comfy.

I am creating...
…ideas lately. I hope to be making some Christmas gifts soon.

I am going...
…to hopefully stay home for awhile, at least until Thanksgiving.

I am reading...
…James Herriott’s The Lord God Made Them All. Again. For like the umpteenth time. I first read this series in the ‘80’s when I worked the swing shift as a PBX (switchboard) operator at a hospital.

I am hoping...
…that we will be able finish painting our house before it gets too cold.

I am hearing...
…Jon Courson doing his Wednesday night teaching on-line at KAPL. He is going through Proverbs.

Around the house...
…things are pretty snug for the winter. We have been lighting a fire in the wood stove in the morning to take the chill off.

One of my favorite things...
…is sitting by the woodstove in the morning and doing my devotions and having my coffee. So cozy, such a special time for me.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week…
…mainly to get our schooling caught up and make a batch of stewed tomatoes.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

...it makes me think of warm family times to come this holiday season and reminds me to be thankful.

Just Thinking Out Loud

For the last few mornings I've gotten up and made my way to my kitchen only to be faced with three large bowls of tomatoes.

Daunting.

Every day Husband asks me, "Are you going to take care of the tomatoes today?"

I go through my mental list of to-do's and say, "I don't know...depends on how things go."

The bowls of green tomatoes have me less worried than that bowl of red ones. The green ones will take a couple of days to ripen but the red one wants taking care of now.

I have contemplated inviting my dear, pregnant friend over, who currently is having tomato cravings and sitting her down with the bowl and letting her have at it.

This afternoon there will also be grapes and Granny Smith apples joining the entourage of produce.

Now don't get me wrong. I am in no way complaining about my good fortune. I know that later this winter I will be ever so grateful for the "free" produce sitting in lovely jars in my pantry. It's just the energy I know it will require to get it all into those jars AND trying to do school with the kiddos as well.

I think it's the combination of the two, canning and schooling, that I'm finding daunting.

We are also going to celebrate my Father-in-law's 80th birthday this weekend. So that means Saturday is shot as is Sunday. (We will be traveling 8 hours to his home, thank God that gas prices have gone down some this week.)

So here is what I think I will do. We will be traveling home on Monday. I think we will have a "recovery" day on Tuesday and I'll get some of that produce taken care of and then back to school on Wednesday.

Yes...I think that is what I will do.

Thanks so much for coming by and listening to be babble about my tomatoes.

I think I need a nap.

I'm tired.

I mean to say...it's the middle of the afternoon and I really want to take a nap. However, I have a list of things that I need to get done or nearly done today. Mostly they involve getting things reading for next school year. Specifically they involve getting my carpet in our schoolroom/family room clean.

Monday I rented one of those machines they have at the grocery store and in the time I had allotted I ran the thing over our carpet as many times as I could. However, by the time I was done it was still pulling some pretty dirty water. I quit and hoped for the best. At $28.00 a day I didn't want to rent the machine a second day....besides that I couldn't as I had to make a shopping trek on Tuesday.

I woke up Tuesday morning and saw these awful rusty sort of stains in the high traffic areas of the carpet.

Groooaan....

What to do, what to do?

Buy one of the above. Also known as a Bissell Quicksteamer Model No. 1970. Small but affordable.

I don't need to do the entire floor, just the areas that have that rusty brown stain which hopefully isn't a permanent sort of stain.

Alas...it makes me tired just thinking about it.

Soooooo, instead of doing that today. I ordered our school curriculum. It felt really good to get that task done. It also is a motivator to get the carpet clean and get furniture back into the schoolroom/family room.

Which brings me back to my need for a nap.

Think I'll go take one and see what I can get done after that!

YAAAWWWN....

As if chickens weren't enough....

...we bought a pig.

(Okay, I'll let that sink in for a minute.)

Well, we actually bought half a pig.

(I'll let you cogitate on that a moment.)

Alright...let me do some 'splainin.

We went in with another family on a weaner (as in a baby pig that has just been weaned...it has nothing to do with what it might become later) which they are housing. We are helping pay for the feed (they're doing the feeding), and in the fall my husband (not I) will help with the butchering.

For an investment of about $50 or $60 we should end up with about 125 pounds of meat. We will still have to pay the local butcher to smoke some ham and bacon but I'm pretty certain it will still be A LOT less than we would pay for all that meat at the grocer's.

So why would we buy a pig? Well I had to think about that for awhile myself. I am not a big pork eater. However, when an opportunity presents itself for inexpensive food, sometimes you have to take it.

With prices on nearly everything taking such incredible leaps I'm looking for all kinds of ways to save money. Raising our own food seems like a no brainer. In the past what that meant for me was growing a garden. And this year we do have two tomato plants and two struggling squash plants (I think we will be lucky to get anything off of them) but we are already making plans for a much larger and more productive garden next year. And we are now raising animals.

Honestly we are doing more than just planning a garden and raising chickens and a pig, we are rethinking our lifestyle.

It's very easy to go to the grocery store with a list of things I need and pluck them off a shelf , put them in a cart and pay for them. It's somewhat harder to dig around in the dirt...er...soil, make sure everything gets water, isn't eaten by a bug, harvest the produce and find a way to store it for future months (ie. can, freeze or dry it). However, I think it is more satisfying and much less expensive to do so.

The same goes for the pig and the chickens. (Besides that the chickens add a lot of entertainment value.)

Some friends of mine and I have also begun looking at the things we buy out of convenience that we could be making ourselves at home. Soaps and cleaning products have become our target. We are a little bit surprised to find that they are easy to make and much less expensive. Did you know that you can make your own laundry detergent that cleans your clothes just as well as the name brand products for a fraction of the cost? Check it out here at The Family Homestead.

I like the thought that I can stretch our ever shrinking dollar by learning how to make some things myself and also by growing some of our own food. I also think that in many ways it is much more wholesome. I like knowing where my food is coming from and how it has been raised.

I know I've seen this question asked on other blogs but I'm going to go ahead and ask it again. What kinds of things are you doing to stretch your dollar (or pound for my friends across the pond)? Are you making lifestyle changes? Have you bought a pig?

By the way, the picture of the chicken at the beginning of the post is one of our newest editions. Her name is Nellie.

...because making something makes you feel like you've really done something.

So I've been home for almost a week. Somehow there always seems to be twice as much to do when I get home from a trip than I ever had before the trip.

One of the things I've been doing is sewing. Sewing an apron to be specific. I mentioned in my last (brief) post that my sister and I have been learning how to draft our own skirt patterns. (That went really well by the way, I just have to complete a few finishing touches to the skirt and then I'll post about it.) Learning how to do that gave me the confidence to make an apron by making a pattern from an apron I already have. I basically gave the old apron a good ironing, folded it in half, layed it out on some freezer paper and traced around it.

Anyway here are the results...
A front view....
A back view....hopefully it gives you an idea of how it ties in the back...
Here is a close up of the tie.....
And what it looks like not tied, layed out flat. The ties go through loops at the side and that is what "cinches" it in at the waste. I love this apron because, believe it or not, it is very flattering to the figure. I also love the scalloped bottom.

Here is a detail of the pocket and the fabric.

And the story behind the fabric is this. It's vintage fabric. I bought it at a yard sale some years ago and there is about five yards of it. (Or at least there was until I made the apron.) It was (until I washed it) a highly polished cotton and only 36" wide. I think the person who originally purchased the fabric must have passed away because there were a lot of household items at this sale. You know, kitchen utensils, linens, table clothes, cloth napkins, serving dishes, that sort of thing. I bought another five yards of material along with this that is of the same vintage. I wish I knew what that vintage was. And I've always wondered what the original owner of the fabric had intended to make with it. A dress perhaps? For herself? For a child?

Well anyway, I made an apron with it. This particular apron is intended for a door prize at a homeschooling mom's retreat I'm going to this weekend. I like it so much though that I think I'm going to make myself one out of the same fabric.