Election Day, 1864 Style

There are days when, I do admit, I do not like being a homeschool mom. Days when I wish I could just cheerfully say good-bye to the oldest two in the morning and spend my day cleaning the house without it being systematically dirtied behind me. No arguments between the oldest two children to mediate; just Malachi (who is a very quiet and happy and helpful little boy, for the most part) and the baby to care for. Things would be quiet. Things would be peaceful. Things would not require perpetual motion. How easy things would be!

But then I realize what my kids would miss if they were away from me all day. And what I would miss. The light in their eyes when they learn something new; hearing them sound out their first words. The millions of questions I get asked every day. . .if my boys were gone from me, who would answer them and how would they answer them? "Why does gravity keep us from falling off the earth?" "Mommy, why do things happen?" "When you were a little girl, were there still dinosaurs?" "What happens if I get dehydrated?" "Why do numbers have no end?" "Who made God?"

And then I realize I wouldn't trade these hectic days for anything. They are too precious. The boys' minds are too moldable. These years will be too brief. And so, we continue on here at home. Learning, asking questions, absorbing information. The boys are forming their own opinions and are organizing their own values and beliefs. The foundation is being laid for the adults they are growing into. This is a critical time. I cannot entrust this responsibility to anyone else.

Plus, homeschooling can just be plain fun! We take almost any excuse to make a regular day into a "special day". Election Day was no different. We learned about the election process, the candidates, the role of government and our duties as citizens, but with an 1864 twist.

We dressed up in our 1860's attire, lit the house with candle-light (it was a very dreary and gloomy sort of day) and hung the 13 star flag. The boys helped me with the day-long process of baking an Election Cake (complete with liquor-soaked raisins and candied lemon peel) and we mixed and steamed a round loaf of brown bread and made a big pot of bubbly clam chowder, a nod to the early elections in New England, where I am originally from.

Election Cake - Actually quite good!

When David came home from work we bundled up and headed out to the polls, (little David was disappointed we just went to the local fire station; he thought we were going to the White House!) where the boys watched as we filled the ballot and turned it in. We came home and had dinner, which the boys proudly helped serve up and ate with apparent relish - no leftovers! - while we discussed the election and the various likely outcomes.

I felt a bit of motherly pride when Judah told me he wanted to be president when he grows up. But then he paused and looked at me questioningly. "But how many presents does the present-it get?" he asked. "I want a lot." Perhaps he will make a good politician when he grows up, since even at this tender age it appears he is inspired by greed.

Now on to Thanksgiving! My favorite holiday of the year.

Love,
Sarah

Tis the Season to Stay Warm

Warm weather stayed for a long time this fall, but cold temperatures are inevitable - especially here in Illinois. We were blessed with a long and beautiful Indian summer but last week the month finally remembered it was November and the skies became overcast, the wind picked up and gray flimsy clouds scudded quickly overhead. Precipitation came - some hard icy bits of snow, freezing rain and plain rain.

Thanksgiving weekend was fun for David and I. We rarely get to go out by ourselves and my mother in law came over on Friday afternoon to watch the boys while David and I went to the Yule Ball and she stayed the night so as to watch them again on Saturday when we went Christmas shopping. While we were out, I realized I needed a coat. I have had many coats over the years but currently have a 7-year old denim coat lined with fleece - an old favorite, much worn - and a cream colored fleece coat that zips up the front. I love my denim coat but the fact that it is getting dingy is getting harder and harder to ignore. The cream coat is rather fashionable but it is absolutely not flattering on me and it is rather not warm. . .being made of a single layer of fleece, smooth on the outside and “fleecy” looking on the inside.

Some modern coats are hideous and some are actually pretty cute, but it always seems the cute ones are more than I want to spend. I have had good luck finding like-new things at thrift stores so we stopped at our favorite one on Saturday and I browsed their coat rack. There was a cute green one in my size, but it was way too long waisted. David pulled out a substantial snuff-colored woolen one, straight of the 70’s. . .it definitely looked warm but it was too hideous to wear, even for me. There was a 1980’s styled long black leather coat, embossed all over. It was actually tempting. . .but $17 for a used coat? I left the store feeling a little depressed and as we walked into Wal Mart, our last stop before going home, I shivered and pulled my coat tighter around me. Then I had a brilliant idea. I remembered 5 yards of a dark royal blue sueded moleskin I have been hoarding the past few months. I had no idea what to make with it. . .until then. I knew it was destined to become my new winter coat.

Wal Mart coughed up a few yards of black fleecy fabric for the body lining. . .it was ugly with a flashy zebra print on the right side, but the inside was perfectly good. From my stash I pulled some worsted wool scraps for the sleeve interlinings and cut up a dark red satin sheet for the sleeve lining. Black velvet bits cut from a pre-baby Laura Ashley dress was set aside to be lapels, the collar and cuffs.

I had a few ideas for the design but in the end went with what I knew was best for my needs. It had to be long enough to reach my boot tops. It had to have some feminine shape to it, darn it! I hate ugly coats that are all up and down angles and make one look like a stuffed sausage. It had to have fairly classic styling. I debated making a “real” historic style but tossed the idea. I always make historic things and then rarely wear them. . .this coat can go with modern or historic clothes and still look normal.

I settled on a princess style coat with a double breasted front closure, for extra warmth, with skirts flaring gently from a slightly fitted waist. The sleeves are plain and long. It is very basic, but, I hope, will be very serviceable for many years.

I have been working on it this week, more from necessity than from desire. I am really burned out on sewing right now but I really do need this coat. It is currently about 75% done. I need to hand stitch the lining to the armholes to finish the seams there, even out and make the hem and make buttons and buttonholes for the double breasted closure. I may make some pockets for the front - just welt pockets with a black velvet tab - but I don’t know for sure yet. I should. I use pockets as I rarely like to carry a purse. I need to decide before I do the hem, or else I won’t be able to access the outer layer separately and putting in the pockets will be hard and awkward.

It is hard to believe it is December 1st today! Where has the year gone?! We set up our Christmas tree over the weekend and I made my first batch of Christmas cookies. I want to savor every moment of this Christmas season instead of waking up in a few weeks and realizing “Oh my! Christmas is in three days!” We went to the Festival of Lights parade on Saturday night and the boys enjoyed seeing the huge lighted figures drive by. A very perfect way to kick off the Christmas season, I think. :)

Stay warm! Happiness to all!

Love,

Sarah

Three Little Spirits

I grew up in a home that did not celebrate Halloween. I did, once, when about ten years old, attend a Halloween party. I dressed as a gypsy in a swirly pink dress, sheer shawl and lots of bangle bracelets and jewelry. But that was it, besides the occasion when my brother and I draped ourselves in dark sheets and blankets and crept outside the house, to knock on the front door in hopes of getting some of the candy my parents inevitably bought for potential trick-or-treaters.

David, on the other hand, always celebrated Halloween. When we had children, we didn't really plan on what to do. The last five years we have done nothing. Which was fine with me. This year, though, we thought we'd try trick or treating and dressing up in costumes. If Halloween is a day set aside to honor the dead, why not choose a great person who has left a great legacy to honor? Sure, there are some horrid things people do to celebrate this day. . .but no worse than what some people do to celebrate the holidays of Christmas or Easter.

We decided to portray characters from a great book we all have enjoyed, written by a great man. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens seemed a perfect choice and a great way to kick off the coming holiday season. With a few days to throw some costumes together, I scanned the book for ideas. In the end, we dressed as (of course) Ebenezer Scrooge, Ebenezer Scrooge's one-time fiancee, and the Ghosts of Christmas.

First off, here is our Ebenezer. David wore his flannel nightshirt and wool nightcap and carried around a brass candlestick and beeswax candle. Scrooge likely would not have had a nice candle like this - knowing him, he'd have gone for Cheap - but it gave a nice appearance.

"It would have been in vain for Scrooge to plead that the weather and the hour were not adapted to pedestrian purposes; that bed was warm, and the thermometer a long way below freezing; that he was clad but lightly in his slippers, dressing gown and nightcap. . ."

Wanting an excuse to wear my regency attire (which I rarely get a chance to wear these days) I dressed as the woman whom the young Scrooge was engaged to marry. Those who are familiar with the story will remember that this young lady released Scrooge from their engagement once she realized what the love of money was doing to him.

According to the book, she was a "fair young girl in a mourning dress: in whose eyes there were tears. . ." Since in the Victorian era purple/lavender were considered mourning colors (though I do not know if this holds true for earlier years) I wore my lavedear and gray striped regency gown. I added the circlet of flowers and the sash for a more festive look.

Now, we have our Ghost of Christmas Past. This was Malachi, who wore Judah's white linen tunic, trimmed with yellow roses and with a red taffeta sash with the ends trimmed with gold tassels.

"It wore a tunic of the purest white; and round its waist was bound a lustrous belt, the sheen of which was beautiful. It held a branch of fresh holly in its hand; and, in singular contrast of that wintery emblem, had its dress trimmed with summer flowers."

Next is the Ghost of Christmas Present. This outfit was the really the only one requiring much effort since I didn't have anything else that could be used. David got the position for the reason his hair is the darkest of the three children and the Ghost of Christmas Present is described as having "dark curls".

"It was clothed in one simple, deep green robe, or mantle, bordered with white fur. . .and on its head it wore no other covering than a holly wreathe, set here and there with shining icicles. . . .girded round its middle was an antique scabbard; but no sword was in it." Having to use what was in my stash, I chose a dark green/blue brocade. I made a simple T-tunic garment and trimmed the sleeves and neck with fake white fur cut down from an old Christmas stocking. The wreathe was some wire bent to shape and covered with wound bias tape; I attached a holly flower and some white clear beaded fringe as icicles. He wore a leather belt and an empty knife sheath as his scabbard.

Last is the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, which was portrayed by Judah. I also had to make this costume but it was very easy - a big rectangle with rounded corners with a hole cut in the middle for his head. I used a dark gray sheet, and the pillow case that matched was used for a hood, which I sewed into the head opening.

"It was shrouded in a deep black garment, which concealed its head, its face, its form and left nothing of it visible, save one outstretched hand."

We went trick-or-treating up and down one dead end street in town last night. This evening we took them to a mall where we walked to the different stores. David carried his candle-stick and smiled and greeted passersby with a heartfelt "Merry Christmas!" :P

Suprisingly, many people knew who we were portraying. Last night we even found out that news of our portrayals had preceded us in the neighborhood we visited! The boys got too much candy but with it rationed out to a few pieces per day, it will last a very long time.

Love,
Sarah

Independence Day, 1860's Style

It seems, now, for all festive occasions we have taken to wearing our 1860's clothing. This Independence Day was no different - it was a perfect excuse for dressing up. It was David's idea, actually.

Now, I am a lover of most historic fashion. In fact, the 1860's era I really don't like, fashion-wise. The styles really are not all that flattering and really, compared to other eras, severely plain. Still, I find myself more and more being drawn into it. I feel completely comfortable in my 1860's garb and wearing it is second nature. I actually prefer it to my modern (or semi modern) clothing that I have gone back to wearing on a daily basis. This is not the case, with, say, a regency dress. I guess the feel of other eras is just foreign to me. 1860's fashion is "home". I guess it always will be. I am becoming reconciled. I did not choose the 1860's; rather, it chose me.

Anyway, for the occasion of the 4th we donned our petticoats, tunics, gowns, waistcoats and trousers. David requested I make patriotic cockades for us. Since this was suggested the day before we needed them, my versions are made from modern (poly) grosgrain ribbon. I looked at a few examples of originals in Echoes of Glory and based ours off the least ornate. David contributed two Federal Eagle buttons for the centers. I did not have time to make the boys their cockades but no matter, they would have pulled them off anyway and perhaps done Horrid Things with the straight pins we attached them with!

To make Malachi's gown festive was a simple matter of attaching two red bows at each shoulder.

The older boys wore their blue trousers, their new white-and-black print tunics and caps and a red taffeta necktie. The neckties did not last all day and they did not look extremely well because the tunics lack collars.

I was asked a while ago to do special music at our church for the 4th; and not a common patriotic song. Something a little different. I wracked my brains to think of something but every thought led to a dead end. I looked online, found some incredible very old (mid-to-late 18th century!) patriotic songs but they were chock full of the politics of the day. I tried to write a song of my own but struggled after I got the first verse and chorus down. It just wasn't working. I ended up recruiting David and we gave a rendition of The Battle Cry of Freedom, which was written in 1862 and was Abraham Lincoln's campaign song in 1864 when we he ran for the presidency with Andrew Johnson. David sang it; I accompanied him on my violin.

A very close second in our choice of song though was an old one from my copy of The Sacred Harp. Written in 1798 by Jezaniah Sumner, this song is filled with beautiful imagery and language.

The morning sun shines from the east

and spreads his glories to the west

All nations with his beams are blest

Where'ere the radiant light appears

So science spreads her lucid ray

O'er lands which long in darkness lay

She visits fair Columbia

And sets her sons among the stars

Fair freedom her attendant waits

To bless the portals of her gates

To crown the young and rising States

With laurels of immortal day

The British yoke, the Gallic chain,

Was urged upon our necks in vain

All haughty tyrants we disdain

And shout, Long Live America!

Love,

Sarah

Middle Week

Today it is Wednesday which to me is always a day of reflection and planning. It is a good time in the week to pause and make note of what has been accomplished and to plan what to do for the remaining time before The Weekend. I do not have much planned beyond finishing up my two sheer dresses for our next reenactment and starting Malachi's double pink gown. It is nice to have a slower pace this week after our last few hectic ones - but at least I did get the painting done last week! Time to sit and read books with the boys, have picnics in the yard, weed the flower beds and watch the garden grow. Speaking of our garden, our plants seem to now be established enough to take a picture of. So, here is our little plot of earth:We do not have everything planted yet that we want to plant. The reason? Rain. Abundances of rain. It has been too wet to plant much lately so that is why my green beans and squash are not yet in. Beyond that, we do have sweet corn, two varities of potatoes, peas (which did not all come up) :( tomatoes (Davids passion), peppers, broccoli, onions and cantaloupe. In another spot, we have pumpkins. I also have sunflowers in various spots coming up and doing very well and in the front flower beds I have seven varieties of herbs. Already harvested was our spring crop of lettuce and radishes. We will plant those again in the fall. Our gardening endeavors are not huge, but for us this is the biggest garden venture we've mutally shared. David already has plans for expanding the garden next year and he desires to get some grape vines, raspberry plants and strawberry plants. If he had his way, we'd have no yard left because everything would be taken up for planting! :)

It is pleasant to work in the garden with David and the boys. The boys have seen the plants grow from the very beginning and Judah helped me plant the peas when those went in. Malachi thinks he can hoe and rake in the garden so often does. Judah helps pull weeds (and sometimes plants) :P and little David runs about between the rows singing a little made-up song about it being his garden. From our different places in the garden David and I look at each other and smile, then go back to our work. A mutual striving towards a specific goal. Is not that what marriage and family is? Helping each other, working together, and together seeing the profit of our labors?

Over the weekend we went to a Nature Center and Wildlife Sanctuary just across the river. It is a beautiful little spot and the boys enjoyed the nature displays inside the building there and then hiking the trails in the hills beyond. My twenty-fourth birthday was last Thursday and so David asked me what I wanted to do for it. A pre-1840 rendezvous we had wanted to go to turned out to have been held the previous weekend so I asked if we could go to the Nature Center instead.

So many memories rushed upon me as we walked these dear, familiar trails! This spot was one my father often took my siblings and I to when we were younger. I would imagine that he still takes my younger siblings there as he did when I was still at home. I felt as though the Sarah's of the past were next to every tree, in the shadows of the hills and fallen logs. I could almost hear my brother Jacob's voice as we passed places so full of pleasant times past. How often we pretended we were Civil War-era sharpshooters on those hills! How we ran ahead of the others and hid ourselves in the brush, waiting for them to pass by. :) Those times were really not so long ago at all. This time, my own little ones were wide eyed and wondering. They saw a blue bird, squirrels, wild turkeys and many daddy long-legs. They begged to climb up the hills and go down them. The big boys walked on ahead and I tagged along behind with Malachi, who stopped every few feet to scratch in the gravel with a stick.
How sobering to think that this time of life will go by so fast. What happens today will be our memories for tomorrow. That thought makes me pause often and reflect on how I spend my time and what I say and do - I want my family to have pleasant memories, not sorrowful or painful or bitter ones. I am so thankful to my father for giving me the memories of past trips to this Wildlife Sanctuary. Times when he could have been getting something done at home, but he decided that his family was more important and chores and to-do lists could wait. Would, in future years, we really care if a menial household task was done on a speficic certain day? Would we remember? Or would we remember better times spent as a family enjoying the beauty of nature?
Well I'm off to fix breakfast. I was awake much of last night due to violent storms surging through the area and it always seems that if I am awake at night, I am absolutely starving the next morning. At least the storms have cooled off this area. Everything is wet, but the air is crisp and clean.

Love,

Sarah

Preparations for Christmas

I was startled yesterday to realize it was one week - one week - til Christmas Eve. Where has December gone? It seems like just last week we were looking forward to Thanksgiving. When I was a child, the few weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas seemed to last forever. Now, they are gone in the blink of an eye.

The tree is up, and each day the mailman usually delivers a Christmas card or two from dear friends and beloved family. Each card is duly admired and read and then hung upon our mantle with the others, til Christmas Eve, when they will be taken down and replaced with our stockings.

The boys admire the tree and the lights but have no idea about the presents they will find beneath it on Christmas morning. In some ways, I envy their innocence. They aren't anticipating piles of gifts and when we go to the store they don't even look at the new toys stuffing the shelves. For them, the pretty lights and the fact there is a tree in the house in enthralling and interesting enough. This year, they are old enough to begin to understand about the baby Jesus who was born to save mankind from their sin. We have a sturdy ceramic nativity set that they enjoy playing with very much and the baby Jesus is of course their favorite piece!

As the years of our marriage have brought us children in quick succesion, David and I have not had much time to think about how we want to have Christmas for our family before the babies themselves were in our arms. Some traditions we have done away with (Santa Clause, for example, who is traditional in David's family), some we question and some we embrace. Some we would like to begin but have not done so yet.

This year, we have a tree, though which, perhaps, has it roots in pagan practices, symbolizes to David and I the tree upon which our dear Lord was nailed. His sacrifice was indeed the Greatest Gift, and the Christmas tree, overshadowing all the smaller gifts beneath, is a lovely reminder to us of this fact.

We are not giving slathers of presents to each other. I have mentioned before that Christmas is not my favorite holiday. I do not like the whole modern atmosphere of Christmas because of the focus on finding the "perfect gift", spending large amounts of money and impressing people with hosting grand Christmas parties. So David and I are giving a few toys and gifts to each of the boys and they have gifts from their grandparents as well. For each other, we set a small limit on spending funds and have got each other a few meaningful, useful gifts. We both know what we got for each other but the rule is that we will not be able to see or use our gifts until Christmas day. :)

I have been working on a few homemade gifts for other family members. Here is a sneak peek of a few of them:

"Patchwork"

"Victorian Roses"
"Autumn Colorsplash"
I have also been slowly working on my dress for Christmas Eve. It is going very slowly as I keep having to postpone work on it for some reason or the other. It is an 1820's style and I think this is the last dress I will make in this style for a little while. It is getting - old. I still really like the overall look, I'm just tired of making dresses with this overall look at the the moment. The process gets so monotonous. Here is the bodice. It is made of a cream and cranberry check cotton with a darted bodice, scoop neckline and piping. The sleeves are bishop sleeves, based on a drawing of different sleeve styles in Patterns of Fashion 1.
Here is the point of construction that I am at now. I have the skirt pinned to the waistband but not sewn on yet. The folded up fabric you see laying on the neck will be an 8" wide ruffle all around the hem. The skirt is made from one 45" wide rectangular panel in the back and three gores in the front. To make the gores I folded a 45" wide rectangle, cut to my preferred hem length, in half and drew out a gore that was appx. 15" wide at the top and 35" at the hem. The two pieces left over after I cut out the center gore I used as side gores. This gives maximum fullness at the hem but a smooth line at the top. I did lightly gather the front of the skirt in case I ever wear this if I am pregnant again. Room to grow is always a good thing!
To finish it, I plan to add the ruffle and trim the top of the shoulders with cranberry taffeta bows with perhaps another bow at the center front neckline and a cranberry taffeta sash or belt. I also just got the Sense and Sensibility Regency Underthings pattern and would love to make a turn back collared chemisette to wear with it from some sheer voile I have.

Once I finish my current projects I hope to make David a few suprise gifts for Christmas. He has asked for a nice handkerchief and a woolen night cap so I think I can get those made for him before Christmas Eve. I recently saw a beautifully hemstitched hem on Sarah A's blog that she is working on a ruffled collar edge. I would love to try out that technique on David's handkerchief. I've been reading online about how to do it but it seems there are at least several different ways to construct this stitch. Does anyone have any tips, advice or links? :)

Have a lovely weekend dear ones!

Love,

Sarah

A Petticoat Skirt For a Birthday Girl

David is leaving for Galena tomorrow. In all our life together he has left me to go alone to a reenactment just once, when I was very pregnant with our little David. Quilts are draped about the living room, uniform coats and belts and boots are heaped up into big bundles, ready to be packed. I have been cookie baking and fudge making for him. If I cannot be there in person, at least he will have this and will not Starve.

The reason I am not going? My baby sister is having her birthday party this weekend and I wouldn't miss it for anything! I can't believe how much of a young lady she is now. I looked at my little Malachi today and told him I clearly remembered when his Auntie was his very age. Will the future years go by just as quickly as these last ones have passed? Will Malachi be eleven years old before I blink my eyes, as it seems my little sister has?

This week has been spent sewing for the sweet birthday girl. My mother gave me the suggestion of curtains for her bedroom so after planning the style with the help of my mother I made these little valances. They are very simple and the trim is a single row of zig zagged on blue-green satin ribbon. I hung a finished curtain on one of our porch windows to see how they look. I hope she likes them!
Today I made her a green skirt that is based on this tutorial. I liked the overall look of the skirt but did not follow the original instructions on how to make it. I did not make the top tier a trapezoid shape. The top tier is made of two rectangles 18" x 26" (to give a hem circumference of 50") and the two bottom tiers are each appx. 100" and 200" around the bottom of each. I tacked on a little pink ribbon bow at the bottom of the skirt and used the same pink ribbon to make a tag for the back, so she knows which way is forward! I like the pink and green together. It makes me think of watermelon. :)

I had just enough of the skirt fabric left to make a decent size bag. I still need to make and attach the strap, but that is an easy project for tomorrow. The outside has 3 pockets made of the same green fabric on the outside and lined with pink on the inside. The inside has two pockets made of leftover curtain fabric and trimmed with green ric rac and turquoise bias tape.

Now once a yummy mocha chocolate cake is baked and frosted, we will be all set for a birthday party!

Hopefully I won't miss David too much, but I have my doubts. :) I'll be glad when he is home again. We have not had very many overnight separations since we were married and it will be strange to have such an empty bed at night. I'm glad I have my wee babe to help fill the space.

Lovely weekend to all!

Sarah

An Easter Dress in a Rush

Easter frocks are such sentimental things, at least to me. When I was little I would get a new dress each Easter. When I was very small I loved lacey, frilly, poufy dresses. Beads, ruffles, and delicate colors such as pink and white were very dear to my heart. It was my dream and earthly perseverance to one day be Cinderella and the utmost goal of all was to have a dress as lovely as the one she wore to the ball. As I grew older I decided I'd rather be Laura Ingalls, Anne of Green Gables and, at last, myself - in that order. My wardrobe went through changes reflecting these changes of thought.

I haven't had a new dress, just exactly on purpose for Easter, for a few years. I decided late Friday to try to make one. I wanted to get my late 1830's dress done but that wasn't going to happen since it requires so much handwork and there was no way I could get all that accomplished in one day. Instead, I pulled out the Elegant Ladies Closet pattern, again, and went with the short sleeve drawstring dress. Please forgive my extremely. . .um. . .odd expression.

Despite it being so easy to put together I still didn't get it done until nearly 11:00 p.m. on Saturday night. The finishing stitches were put in by God's help and grace, lots of coffee with cinnamon creamer and The Ten Commandments blasting on the screen of the t.v. I used a silky purple-pink fabric. I don't know the fiber content and it was a red tag deal at Jo Anns. It has a slightly crinkly texture and the stripes on it are one sheer stripe next to one satin stripe, throughout. It was originally intended to become a tiered skirt but I thought it would be ideal for a dress like this. Although the fabric itself certainly isn't authentic, it has many of the qualities fabric used back then would have had. Airy, sheer, light. I ended up lining the entire thing because it was so stretchy it would not hold its shape after I cut it out. The bodice is flat lined with white muslin and the skirt and skirt lining (white muslin) I made up seperately and then attached them together at the waist seam. This makes the skirt nice and flowy and doesn't weigh the outer fabric down. All in all, I was happy with how it came out. (Although those short sleeves certainly don't do much to make my arms appear slimmer!) :) It was so much fun to dress up for Easter again. I didn't feel like Cinderella, but I did feel quite regency heroine-ish and very much in the mood for Little Dorrit, pt. 3, which I watched with David last night! I *need* to get this movie for myself since there are four dresses in it so far that I want to copy! Amy's dresses look more mid-late 1820's (my favorite fashion period!!!) to me and Pet's dresses look even earlier, but there are other ladies wearing what look like early 1830's styles. Although this makes the fashion kind of confusing in the film, it is very inspirational for future projects. I do hope you all had a very blessed Easter! Every year it amazes me more and more how Jesus suffered for us and died for us. This year I was especially struck by the thought of all that God the Father had to go through as Jesus hung on the cross. I think of my own sons and try to imagine them going through great pain. If I had the ability, the power, to take away their pain how hard it would be for me to turn my face away from them! How hard it must have been for God to similiarly turn away from His Son! How can we possibly deserve this Great Gift? It is something I think I will never understand until I reach heaven, but oh, how thankful I am for the salvation that is mine! How thankful I am for love that I do not deserve and for the security of knowing there is a place in heaven for me!

Love,

Sarah