Sewing Sewing Sewing!!!!!

I've been in the Advanced Sewing Class in the last semester. I only posted on the skirt I made, and haven't said anything about the other things I made! SO....

First...I made a plaid shirt for my Dad for Christmas this year, and I'm proud to say that he loved it and wore it basically every other day while I was home. I had him pose in it so I could show it on my blog! Note that the plaids match up most of the time!! That was sooooo hard!!

Pencil Skirt!

Ok, so I'm taking Advanced Sewing this semester and I have been working on some really good projects. The last one I got back was the pencil skirt I made. I LOVE IT! It has gathers on the sides and then the back has gathers instead of a slit which allows you to have some moving room without a slit going up your legs...awkward!

It also has a lining and an invisible zipper. I'm just so excited about it!

Day 6 & 7

So, I missed yesterday again, but I was definitely grateful for something.

Day 6:

Yesterday I was so grateful for my roommates. We came home from church together, made dinner, walked to a fireside, and then we baked our hearts out so we could throw a dessert social! It was a blast, but it wouldn't have happened if it hadn't been for my awesome roommates. We all had so much fun just eating and socializing. We all get along so well I just don't know what I'd do without them. I love the relationships we have as an apartment.

Here's a pic of my roomies this semester!

Day 7: Monday

I am grateful for my Mom and Dad. I had a nice long conversation with them tonight and I just love that I get to have that relationship with my parents. It started out as just my Dad and then my mom wanted in on the talk, so she picked up another phone and we had a three way discussion on random things- like jury duty and my teeth and boys...

I realize that most teenagers and young adults don't enjoy talking with their parents that much, but I feel so blessed to have always had understanding and easy communication between us. I think that is really something special. I love my parents. They're so old fashioned an unique.

My Dad is quite a character, and an unmatched one. He randomly speaks in Norwegian, but because he's been doing that my whole life, I pretty much understand what he's saying when he says, "Katelyn would you velsing a denna matten?" OK, I have no idea how you spell that in Norwegian, but it means, Katie would you please bless the food? He's been doing that for years- evidence of this is my older brother in a home video at age 10 trying to speak Norwegian while holding up the flag, but he's saying what my dad always says. Classic. My Dad has also taught me so many life lessons. I've learned the value of doing things yourself from him. I've learned to support the small businesses because someone has to keep the people trying to live the American dream. Being the president of a company my grandpa started, he understands how important it is to help out the little guys in business. He gave me a very sensitive spirit. He'll cry in almost any movie- and so will I. I love it. It's funny how much I realize I'm so much like both of my parents.

My mom is amazing. Pretty much everyday while I was growing up, we had dinner at 6:00. My best friends who lived down the street knew this and would know exactly when they had to go home or when I had to go home because dinner was always at 6:00. This wasn't a rigid schedule rule in my house, but that's the kind of mother she was. My dad would come home from work whistling to the dog and my mom would have dinner on the table when he walked in. Then she would call all of the kids and we'd come in, wash our hands, say a prayer, and eat our dinner. My mom is like the mom in Father Know's Best, or Leave it to Beaver. At least once a week I would come home from school to the smell of cookies in the oven and my mom working in the kitchen happily. The thing is, she doesn't do it just so that we can be fed. She does it because she really truly loves to cook, and bake, and keep the house clean. To me that is everything I want to be. She was always there when I came home from school. Whenever I had a bad day, she would be there to come in my room and spend 1/2 an hour talking it over with me and making me feel better. Mothers have a natural ability to do that, but I think my mom is special in that way. She loves to serve. I don't know how many times she would be cooking two meals- one for us and one for a family in the ward. Usually she gave away the better of the two meals. She raised me on good wholesome music in the car. I love to listen to all of her old tapes and go back to those memories of singing "Born too Late", "Johnny Please Wait for Me", and "You Never Know" in the back of the car in my car seat. She taught me to love the good things in life and to stay away from those things that would weaken my testimony. Looking back now I can see how all of those little moments added up to those major life lessons I needed. Oh and did I mention that she goes to the gym everyday for over an hour and she's old enough to have a grand daughter in college? I hope I'll live up to that!

Anyway, I'm very grateful for my parents!

Dad was a stud!!

Day 4 and 5

Yesterday and today have been so hectic I haven't had a chance to do my gratitude blog, but I did think of these things at the time! So...

Day 4: Veterans

Friday was Veterans Day, so I was thinking a lot about the men and women who have served our country. I'm so grateful for them and their sacrifice. Every time I think of them, I feel a deep sense of gratitude for the things they have to do. I don't think I would ever be brave enough to do some of the things they do. I owe all of my freedoms and rights to soldiers. They have done so much more than I can express gratitude for, but I love them for what they do.

Having had two veteran grandfathers and a father who has instilled a deep sense of patriotism and pride in my country, I can't help but feel a deep emotional connection to the people who have served me without knowing if their lives would make a difference in world.

I hope I can one day instill that kind of gratitude in my own children someday.

Day 5: Modern Medicine

Today was crazy! I woke up, went to the temple, took a shower, went to Idaho Falls to go wedding dress shopping for a friend, and then went to visit my friend's older sister where her husband took a look at my teeth and decided to do a root canal on it right away. So, we ate dinner and then drove to his dentist office and he performed a root canal on me. I was so grateful! He told me that if I hadn't come in at that time I would have had a gray tooth, had to have a crown and spent a lot more on it. I'm so grateful that he caught it in time and that he was able to do that surgery on the spot. I was so amazed at what he could do. I hardly felt a thing, yet he was drilling into my teeth and fiddling with the nerves. How incredible is that? Even 50 years ago something like that would have been a very painful process. Each time I'm sick, injured, or need an operation I'm amazed at what can be done to mitigate the effects and to make me better.

Anyway, I'm thankful for modern medicine.

p.s. I'll post pictures of the operation at a later date...

Day 3: Danville

Ok, I grew up in the best place ever. Danville, California. Just nestled among the green hills of the East Bay, it has a small town feel and an old fashioned- friendly neighbor- Mayberry warmth. My family has lived there for almost 30 years now and I can't imagine calling any other place home. Not only is the setting perfect- no snow (except on Mt Diablo occasionally), but it's no desert. The hills look like Ireland or the English countryside all winter and most of spring. People take care of their houses and yards. Buildings are well kept and aesthetically appealing. The schools are amazing because they prepare kids for life with many different approaches to education. In general it's a very pleasant place to live. It's the kind of town where we joke that the police don't have enough to do so they give out jay walking and parking tickets more than anything. I'll admit, it's not perfect, but it's pretty close.

Not only is Danville amazing in location and value, but the people there are so close. I grew up with a close knit group of friends. Most of the kids in my Kindergarten class were also in my graduating class. People tend to stay there and raise their families there, and when they grow up, they always want to come back to Danville. My friends and I have made some awesome memories among the streets and hills of Danville. Those memories are warm and dear to my heart, but the best part is that I still have all of thos

e close friends. Of course things will never be as they were while we were growing up, but we can all come back together and make more memories and reminisce the old ones. I love that. I know that anytime I go home, there will be someone there with whom I share a deep connection because we share those same memories of Danville and the people we all knew and loved there.

The famous Danville clock tower...it even has a special viewing area behind... :)

This is one of my favorite streets!

Just a glimpse of the beautiful green hills!

Day 2: FOOD.

I LOVE FOOD!!! I'm so lucky to have food to eat each day. Seriously. I have friends who have lived off of Ramen and granola bars in college and it's made me so grateful that I have never had to do that! The last two semesters my roommates and I have done dinner nights where we each pick a night and make dinner just once a week. It's awesome because 1) it saves money and 2) I get to come home to a warm home cooked meal almost everyday! I'm also much healthier than I would be if I just cooked for myself because I get a variety of food this way. Everyone with roommates should try this out.

I love food and I am very thankful for it! Here's just one of our wonderful dinner nights! I made tomato and carrot soup with homemade bread and a salad! It was delicious!!

November: The month of gratitude

It seems funny yet sad that we only dedicate one holiday to gratitude, and we don't even focus on that for the most part. This month I would like to try to focus everyday on being more thankful. Ok, so it's already November 8th, but better late than never right? I will try to post something I am grateful for each day for the rest of this month! I'm excited about this!

For today-- November 8th:

I am grateful for...

Good friends!

I've been thinking a lot the past week or so about good friends. There is a talk by President Henry B. Eyring called True Friends. Go and read

it if you have the chance. Here's a quote I liked from thi

s talk:

" All of us will be tested. And all of us need t

rue friends

to love us, to listen to us, to show us the way, and to testify of truth to us so that we may retain the companionship of the Holy Ghost. You must be su

ch a true friend."

Lately I've felt like I really need to work on being a better friend. I don't deserve the good friends who have been placed in my life. They do so much for me each day. I need to be better at giving back to them! I'm grateful that they

are always there to make me feel better. They always welcome me home with smiles and greetings. I often don't appreciate it enough or respond to it in a similar manner. I've been blessed with go

od friends and so I must be a good friend.

I'm grateful for good friends.