MAKING PILLOWS, BUILDING TOWERS

Johnnie is learning to build towers with her blocks. I'm proud to say that this tower was not staged; she built it all by herself, and celebrated her achievement every step of the way. I think five is actually the record number of blocks she has stacked up so far... She could go taller, I think, but she just can't resist the temptation of sending it crashing all over the place once it gets tall enough to result in a slightly dramatic collapse. So if you ever come visit us, be sure to watch where you step. There is always a stray block lying somewhere, and believe me, those sharp corners are unforgiving to the bottom of an unsuspecting foot.

Meanwhile, I am trying to learn to sew. The blue floral pillows behind Johnnie on the couch were my first house-related sewing project, completed a few weeks ago. It was so easy I'm embarrassed that I was afraid of the process for so long. They are flawed, I'm sure, but Johnnie has taught me to celebrate the small accomplishments, and I'm very happy with how they turned out. (The color looks a little brighter on my screen than in person; the actual color is a bit closer to navy than royal.)

The best part of this whole pillow endeavor is that I picked up the fabric (four Fabric Quarters, actually) at JoAnn Fabrics for a total of maybe $4 on Black Friday. I was looking for a small, husband-approved floral pattern that would complement the IKEA Alpine Spetsig cushion in the center, and this could not have been more perfect. Including the inserts, which I also bought that day, these pillows cost me a total of $12. Not bad for an experiment, especially one that went so well.

I don't have a lot of other sewing projects planned just yet, but I can see why sewing can be addicting. There are so many pretty fabrics out there... Maybe someday I will learn to turn them into cute clothes for my little future architect.