Visitors!

Sometimes I feel like I'm a lottery winner.

{Not completely of course...there are still 2 sisters not living in Texas....ahem}

In June, my parents moved here.

Then after the reunion....Emily moved to San Antonio, a mere 5 hrs away!

Cha-ching!!!

So, being so close, Em was able to come and visit us 2 weekends ago {and she's coming up again this weekend, yay!}. And she brought her Jed....it was awesome to be able to meet him!

And since it was a special occasion...I talked everyone into PF Changs. Yum.

 Oh James....

Thanks for making these pictures hilarious.

Our baby sister, Hannah, babysat the chirren's for us....so we were able to go out to eat as adults! For those of you with kiddos, you know how NICE it is to enjoy a meal without the kids...no matter how much you LOVE them;)! 

 After dinner....the queen of tie dye helped me make some shirts!

She brought all her cool dye and we had some fun!

 I love this picture....

Passing it down....

I love traditions...like,

OH! I do this because my momma does this....yada yada.

One of the things that was passed to me by my mom is my craftiness. Now, she'll probably deny it...but she really is a craft genius...the woman can make anything. When she was in high school, Grandma bragged that she could sew her own clothes! That would be awesome, wouldn't it?? I wish I could make skirts! {But I've been blessed with this lovely pear-shaped-uber-body and it's just better to wear sweats.}

Where was I?

Oh yes...traditions.

If I was to think of all the lovely things in my life I would want to pass onto my lovely daughters...

tie dying would be like 15th, maybe 17th on the list. Not at the top...buuut....still on there.

You know I love my tie-dye.

Well, a few weeks ago, at Achievement Days {yes, I've added yet another thing to my plate...whoops}, we held it at my house so we could tie-dye on the tile. It's amazing how excited the older girls got to dye their own shirts. And Bella and Aube...when they found out, yes, I would let them do it too...oh my goodness...it was like I let them eat birthday cake for breakfast or something...the best. thing. ever. Ü

The girls all did awesome. I'm so proud!!

My tie-dye guy...

Since, I'm having a ridiculously hard time blogging at the moment :)....mainly because I just want to hold this little boy all day and do NADA. Or if I do manage to put him down, I have to fold the growing mound of laundry that comes with a newborn that likes to pee. Anyways....I plan on writing his birth story one of these days!

But for now, I'll just have to subdue you with pictures.

As most people know, I have a love for tie-dye that is hardcore. So...of course, my newest child has a good-sized stack of onesies in bright colors! And good thing, too...we go thru 2-3 outfits a day on a regular day. Thank heaven's for onesies!

A Tie-Dye Tutorial

*for Christina Ü*
I've had a love affair with tie-dye since I was in high school...learning how to first tie and dye at Young Womens...in the leaders back yard...with buckets. I've went years without wearing it, but consistently have bought clothes for my girls in fabulous color. And lately, I've been lucky enough to be re-taught by Em...the tie-dye tycoon....how to do certain other patterns of tie-ing.

I received a request last week...asking if I could tell her how to tie dye. I thought it would be easiest in Tutorial form. But really...this is more a TIPS post than an actual tutorial...because I buy the kits and they have fantastic directions.
I buy my kits from Walmart. This one has 3 colors and costs $9.98, comes with everything you need...even gloves! There are several different colored kits to pick frm. I bought this one for the red and blue....for examples of tie dye for the 4th! I've had nothing but good results come from these kits. The colors are so vibrant.

You can also buy these packets of dye for $2ish (at WM). These packets are great. You can reuse the bottles from the above kits with the dye and a bit of salt...you could probably get 2-3 bottles worth out of one of these packets.

Gotta cover your work space. The dye will stain like clothes crazy (which is a good thing, but not)....Ive had great luck using a Magic Eraser on the tub and floor. Pick out your shirts....get them damp.

Pick out the style you want. Like I said before...the kits come with inserts with several examples and descriptions.

Fold it from the bottom....

Tie it....

Fold it from the side....

I wanted a white center for the Red, White and Blue shirts...so I hung them and added the dye. Depending on how you fold it....you'll get a different result. It's all in the fold!!
(Note to self: no white middles...unless you can handle splotchy, my OCD self obviously can't) My favorite pattern to do is the swirly one. So...in stead of taking 500 pictures...I did a little video.

After you swirly it....you can do however many sections you can fit. The smaller the shirt, the less sections. Dye each section the color you want it. I put them in plastic baggies for 24 hours (the box says 8 hours, but I think they are brighter colors after 24). And then rinse before throwing them into the washer SEPARATELY in cold. I don't want any ugly bleeding!

I hang them to dry...then wash separately again after wearing for the next couple of times. I absolutely love the color!!! This is Emma's shirt, Bella's friend that had a birthday last week....it was a hit! :) Try it! It's fun! Peace, love and COLOR.

Tie Dye'n

I've got so many little tidbits left to post...so I best get goin'.

One of the (many) things I was excited about during this trip was a chance to tie dye with Emily. Over the last couple of years she's become quite the tshirt artist...her love of color rivals my own Ü. So, before we went to Idaho...we got out the color.

We opted out of using the gloves (seen above)...they kept falling apart on us. The result: Tie Dye Hands. Fun, yet very hard to get rid of Ü.

They just look so purdy....all wrapped up and blending.

The final result (some of them, anyways). Please excuse Dad in the background...though he does give you something to focus on, so your eyes don't go blind from the screaming color in this photo.

Thanks Em!!! You rock!