Vintage Love

I love parties.  

I love weddings.  

I love vintage.  

Honestly, I love LOVE. 

Especially vintage love.  

As fitting for a self proclaimed lover of love, I was super excited to be asked to decorate for a vintage style wedding shower.  The bride is a classic beauty who looks as if she was plucked from the movie "The Notebook."  Her taste is nothing less than vintage-class. 

We are big Brittany and Josh fans here at the Lewis house-- making this event very important to me.  My kids go crazy over those two-- and they spoil them in return. 

Here are a few snaps of the party...

This chalkboard hangs in my kitchen and usually sports the kids' schedule for the week.  After the shower I put it back in its place without changing the message.  You'd think that after 5 different people have asked "What's in 62 days?" I'd change the message...  Maybe tomorrow.  

And dontcha just love that picture in the lower right corner...

I love the photo in this shot, too...  So fun...  Such love.  Young, fresh love!

I didn't make the veggie bouquet, cake pops, or the strawberries, but they turned out lovely so I wanted to share.  The strawberries were amazing- and I was happy to see the leaves left on.  I adore the pop of natural on the platter.  

I did make the cupcakes and they were yummy!  The bottom tier is a yellow cake with a cream cheese frosting.  It's my own little concoction of the moistest cake you'll ever eat and I rarely share my recipe.  I took the best advice from several seasoned cooks and smushed them all together (yielding one amazing cake).

I also whipped up a batch of chocolate mint cakes that were yumm-o.  They were okay the day I cooked them, but after sitting for a few days... oh my!  You can find the recipe here.  I did not fill these cupcakes, and there was no need--- they would have been too good.  Like shoot yourself in the head good.  

On a side note--- it may be the recipes, but my cupcakes taste their very best when they are 2-3 days old.  

I adore the drink table!!  It was such fun.  Piled in the old suitcase are jelly jars wrapped in a vintage style ribbon.  And the lemon-mint water was just beautiful, if I do say so myself...  I love a pitcher of beauty.

As a gift, my sister in law and I teamed together and filled a huge galvanized container with cleaning supplies.  We threw in a straw broom and a mop and set Ms. Brittany up to clean like a pro.  We also threw a few things in there for Josh...  a pair of leather work gloves, a hammer and screw driver.  That bucket must have weighed 60 pounds!  

We told her this was the most spiritual gift of the day.  The Bible instructs us in Titus to be "busy about the home" and if Brit uses half of the stuff in that bucket, she'll succeed!

Here she is...  Beautiful Brittany...

I do love a good party.

And Brittany, I love you, too.

Congratulations! 

20 years and Only One Crash

I am proud to announce that I have been driving for 20 years today and have only totaled one vehicle.  Thankfully, it wasn't mine.  

Yup, 20 years ago was one of the most exciting days of my life...  I turned 16 and headed out with my dad to make myself an honest, law-abiding gal.  Sopchoppy was the place to grow up when it came to driving.  As long as you drove slow, stayed in your lane, and didn't run over any thing alive, you could pretty much drive when your legs were long enough to reach the pedals.  My best friend and I would steel her sister's mustang convertible and cruise the streets of Sopchoppy like we were hot stuff.  And for 13 year olds, we pretty much were; at least by Sopchoppy standards.  

Waking up today wasn't quite so exciting, but it was wonderful nonetheless.  Lee slowed his routine a good bit and took the kids to school.  Old friends and new sent birthday wishes via text and email.  I even got a phone call from a friend who is drastically under-the-weather.  

My dad took me to lunch and I ate some of the best fried shrimp in the world!  Living minutes from the Gulf Coast has its advantages...  

Henry accompanied us to lunch today and was soooo excited to eat with his Papa.  On our way out, as my dad was paying the bill, Henry and I were chatting with another family like ours (there's always a sense of "family" when we meet other inter-racial, adoptive families).  The conversation went like this:

Him: Is your husband a pastor?

Me: (choking/almost throwing up in my mouth) Uhmmm, no.  That's my dad.

Him:  Oh, I'm sorry.

Me:  (turning to my dad who was walking up) Hey dad, he thought you were my husband.  (Chuckle, chuckle) Like I married some old man who couldn't have kids and we had to adopt.  

We all laughed, especially my dad who was standing a bit taller after the honest mistake.  If only the guy could have laid eyes on my mom...  She's the epitome of class- always prim for the moment!

He was right, my dad is a pastor and I invited his family to our church.  River of Life is an inter-denominational, inter-racial church that loves Jesus.

I love my church.  My family is a mini-prototype of River of Life.  We have whites, blacks, latinos, and a few asians (adopt from China?  Sure!! Sign me up!).  I feel so blessed to be a part of a church where my family fits in.

Getting back to my birthday, some girl friends and I got together over the weekend and had a sewing party.  We sewed and laughed and ate and laughed and then laughed some more.  We had the best time!!  

They cooked me an amazing, organic, gourmet meal and gave me some amazing fabric.  Oh, you'd like to see...  Thought you'd never ask!!

I adore it!!!!  Maybe one day I'll bring myself to actually cut it.  

And here's what I bought for myself...  (I do give the best gifts!)

(On a side note... how in the heck do I make these pictures stay the right way?  I rotate them in photoshop, but they don't stay.  Errrrr...)

And from my family...

(and before you feel absolutely sorry for me, this is EXACTLY what I wanted...)

Yep!  I'm a clothes washing woman!!  For my special day, my husband bought and installed that new set of magic on the left hand side of the picture.  Clothes go in dirty and come out clean.  How awesome is that?!  And now, I can do all my laundry in half the time.  That, my friend, is a good gift.  Happy birthday to me!!

I would like to tell my parents "thanks!"

 For having me... for choosing LIFE for me... for choosing not to kill me between the ages of 11 and 17... for loving and supporting me... for making me laugh... for giving me great memories.

And dad, I'm sorry I called you an old man today.  And I'm sorry I single handedly turned your truck into a tiny tin can back in 95.  On a happy note, I haven't had a crash since.  1 crash in 20 years is pretty good, don'tcha think?

"My Name is Karolyn and I'm addicted to..."

Quilting.  It's more exciting than it sounds, trust me.  

OK, so I was truly flattered when Ryan Gosling called and said, 

"Hey Girl, I hear you're making quilts.  I like quilts. Need someone to hold them up so you can snap a few pictures?"

"No, Ryan Gosling," I replied, "Lee Lewis is the only quilt holder I need." 

I heard a dejected sigh on the other end of the line, but I think he'll live.  He's probably "Hey Girl-ed" at least 3 other people by now.   

So here they are: the first fruits of my insanely addictive new hobby...

This is my first quilt.  I am in utter love with the colors.  It's what we quilters (ha!) call a Plus Quilt.  

Here's the back...

I decided to make my mom a quilt for her birthday and ended up making the same exact one for her, but in colors more her speed. She LOVED it and made me feel super special and talented.  She's always had a knack for that. 

 

And here's a close up of the binding...  It looks so nice!

Don't expect to see either of these in a quilt contest... they're full of imperfections, but as a friend says, "China don't make 'em perfect, either, Sister."

Just picked up these fabrics today... they look amazing in real life...  I LOVE them...

EDITOR'S NOTE:

Special thanks to my buddy M.R. for all the patience, J.W. for all the encouragement, and my husband Lee for holdin' those quilts up in the blistering January heat.  Take that Ryan!

2011 Holiday House Tour

This year, I've done several new things, but it was all on the cheap.  I think I spent less than $40 this year on decorations and that's really good for me.  Really good.  

My favorite tree this year is what we call our Jesus Tree.  Normally, there are no presents under this tree, just a hay-filled manger and a burlap tree skirt.  This year I decide to use this tree as our present tree.  And I'm glad I did.  As we open presents this year, we'll sit around the tree that reminds us that Jesus was the greatest gift of all, and that we give because He gave.  

My favorite tree ever boasts a simple decor of pinecones, birds' nests, and birds.

It has a single star that sits close to the manger.  See it?

I've never wrapped presents this way before but I just LOVE them!!  

I wanted them to be simple and natural looking so I used earthy colors and textures.  For the main paper, I used a roll of craft paper I bought for the kids at Ikea.  It was less than $5 and will wrap a ton of presents.  I remembered that I had a roll of thin, brown paper that painters use to tape off trim.  It's sold with the painters tape (this kind does NOT have the adhesive on it; it's meant to be used with a roll of scotch tape and a gun looking thing). I embellished the packages with the brown paper and added twine and strips of canvas. The canvas is actually a painter's drop cloth left over from another project.  

And I'm dying over the stamped initials!!  

This is our white tree.  It has a few birds on it, some big snowballs, and fat white lights.  Before the season is over, it will be covered with TONS of that white flaky snow that sticks with ya til spring.  

This is the Kid Tree and Liliana is pointing to her favorite ornament!  Each year, the kids get a Hallmark ornament and we put them here.  It's a lot of fun pulling them out and remembering what each one was "into" at the time.  There's lots of Dora on this tree.  Lots of Dora.  And super heroes.  And High School Musical.  

Last year, Henry was in Ethiopia and we were waiting to go get him.  We bought this ornament and the kids each recorded something into it.  It was so special to hear their "last year" voices saying, "Merry Chritmas.  Come home soon.  We love you."  That precious message lasted about ten minutes this year.  Liliana tried to re-create it, but it just aint the same.  That was Henry's referral picture.  The first picture we ever saw of him!

This year a great friend made this ornament for Henry and we LOVE it!!  She also made one for Colombia and the USA to celebrate the other kiddos.  What a fun (and sweet) addition to our tree!

 Michal started a village collection a few years back and it's growing.  Truth be told, $30 of the $40 I spent on decorations was to add to her village.  It was part of her Christmas.  Kind of.  

Each year, we pull out the kids' pictures from Christmas Past and put them on the piano.  We're getting cramped, so next year they'll go somewhere else.  I love seeing my babies so little and chubby!

Isn't this the cutest?  My photographer said we could bring props.  She nearly fell out when I showed up with a Nativity.  I think she still has hay in her studio!  My super sonic niece and nephew joined in for this photo shoot.  

Even though there is nothing uniform or normal about our family, all of our stocking HAVE to be the SAME!!  No ifs, ands, or buts!  So this year I made my own stockings and they are fabulous, dontcha think?  I used a painter's drop cloth for the fabric-- a great way to get that grain sack look for really cheap.  

I'm in total envy of a friend who owns a Silhouette cutting machine.  She made these stencils for me and I drooled even more.  I need one of those babies BAD!  I used the cheapest acrylic craft paint that walmart sells for the stenciling (apple blossoms, maybe?) and they turned out sooo cute!! And they're big.  

Hopefully, I'll get 'round to stenciling mine and Lee's before next Christmas!  Actually, I'm thinking I may just leave all the decorations out and then next year it will be already done.  Then maybe I can get lights on more than just one piddly tree outside!  

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Wishing you and yours a Very Merry Christmas!!!

As of late...

Looks like I won't be getting goats for Christmas after all...  Michal beat me to it!

Meet Ms. Brown (left) and Parker (right).

And Olive, our 3 week, old baby girl.

These are "fainting goats."  When they get scared or spooked, they faint.  And it's funny.  (Don't believe me?  Google it.)

Since they're new to the family, we've made every effort to make them feel safe and secure.  We were doing pretty well, until Michal "fainted" Parker on accident.  She tried to feel bad about it, but it was too darn funny.  I think that's the only faint so far, but I'm probably blissfully unaware.  

If little Olive survives, it'll be a miracle...

Liliana won't let her go!

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My cousin and his wife are having a baby boy and I made him these adorable onesies.  You can find the tutorial (complete with templet) HERE!  I just LOVE these, I tell ya! 

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In celebration of mediocrity, one of Liliana's art pieces is on display at her school.  I am extremely proud, if I do say so myself.  So is she...

Since this might possibly be the only piece of her art that is ever on display outside of our home, I had to take a few pictures and share it with the world.  Ahhh...

I'm not quite sure what it is, but it looks like a picture of Henry hang gliding. Or sitting on a bus.

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And Zeb got a hair cut...

Yep, it's an extreme mohawk created by yours-truly.

He's 10 and it makes him happy.  Why do I allow such a monstrosity on my son's head?  

I HAVE NO CLUE!!!!  

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Henry's doing really well.  Everyone is always curious about his language.  It's amazing how fast he's picked up English.  I'm a little sad that he no longer remembers Sidama or Amharic, but this is typical.   He's growing and laughing and playing and learning just like any other kid.  This month will be 9 months that he's been home.  My heart just swells with pride when I look at him.  He's ours and we're his!  I love how this kid became such an integral part of "us."

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I've just finished decorating the house for Christmas, and my next post will be a Holiday Home Tour!!  I can't wait to share with you what I've done around here.

And with Christmas in mind...  here's a super cute video the kids made last year for their homeschool project.  It starts kinda slow, but when Mary goes into labor, things pick up...

Checkin' it twice...

Dear Lee  Santa,  

A wonderful Thanksgiving has passed and it's time to bring on the holiday cheer!  And since it's officially Christmas (absolutely NO Christmas until after Thanksgiving, people!), let the shopping begin! 

Here is my list... safely placed where it can't be lost, stolen, or colored on.  I sure hope it helps.

#1:

Slap on a big red bow and call it a day!  Or don't, and just keep reading.  A girl can dream, right?

#2:

A set of African Pygmy Goats? What a great idea!! And since we're a farm family now, stocked with pigs and chickens, they'll feel right at home. 

I wish I had a user-friendly link from which to order this cutie (and a friend), but I do not. (sigh...)

#3:

And peafowl...  Every girl needs a couple of these beautiful birds.  I hear they're loud and obnoxious, so they'll fit in just fine 'round here.  Sorry, no handy link for the birds, either. 

Alright, moving along to presents that can be boxed, wrapped, and stowed safely under the ol' tree...  

#4:

I need this carry case for my sewing machine.  Then, I can take it with me wherever I wander and wherever I roam.  I'm thinking the best place to order it from is here.  I'm vascilating between the pink, lime, and black.  Err. Decisions, decisions... 

#5:

Or... you could treat me to a travel machine.  Then I could leave my Pfaff on its pedestal at home.  I do love my Pfaff, though; so it's iffy if I'd even like this machine or not.  Aww, shux, just buy the machine and the case, then I'll have the best of both worlds.  Anywho... this handy-dandy machine can be purchased here! Or you can go to Sears and buy it.

#6:

This book would make me smile.  Ahhh.... ideas to fuel my new obsession.  It can be ordered here!

#7:

And another book...  check it our here!


Just thought I'd help ya out, Santa Baby.  After all, Christmas, Anniversary and muhburrrday are all just around the corner...   And since these gifts range anywhere from... say... ten dollars to... forty thousand, I'm sure you'll have no problems choosing the perfect one for each occasion!

With much love,

Karo

Adoption? Me? UPDATE!!!

Henry has been home for almost 8 months and he is doing fabulous!!  His language is spot on... his enunciation superb.  He's turned into a normal, everyday Lewis kid.  

At a physical last week, we learned that he's gained 5 1/2 pounds and grown 4 1/2 inches since he's been home!!  He's landed dead center on the growth chart at the 50th percentile.  A year ago today, he was in less than the 3rd percentile; suffering from malnutrition.  Now, he's as healthy and smart as they come!  For this, we are truly thankful!

Everyone loves Henry... and how could we not?  He's a happy kid that likes to play and laugh and joke.  This morning he crawled in bed with me, burrowed under the covers and tickled my feet!  

  

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If you missed Adoption? Me?, a post from earlier this year, take a second and read it.  Then meet me back here for an amazing update...

The lady that I met and prayed with in Dillard's is now Mama to a beautiful, healthy, newborn little boy.  He's the cutest thing ever!!  She and her husband adopted domestically and their process was less than a year long.  That, my friend, is miraculous!!  If you joined me in praying for her, I thank you.

I also mentioned a nine year old little boy named Matewos.  My husband and I had the extreme privilege of meeting him in Ethiopia in March of this year.  He has been matched with a family and will meet them for the first time in about 2 weeks!  I've made contact with his new Mom and they are so excited!  And why wouldn't they be?  He is an amazing young man.  If you called his name out in prayer, even just once, I thank you.

Today, I encourage you to:

Pray for the orphan.  Pray for the hungry.  Pray for the needy.  

Pray that God will bless couples trying to adopt with the resources they need.

Pray that God will lead you to take action in a cause for the destitute.