One Step Closer

. . . to getting into some proper sewing!

One of the hardest parts of getting a sewing project started when you live in an apartment can be the inaccessibility of a washing machine. Everyone knows that before cutting anything out you should wash and dry your fabric to prevent shrinkage of the finished item. I admit that I have often skipped this step because laundry was such an event for us. Hauling load after load to the basement, getting quarters, not knowing if the dryer is too full to actually dry anything, or if the washer your clothes are in will even work, have all contributed to my dilemma. Until now...

You know there have been times you wished YOU could roll around in a pile of fabric!

During my search for this apartment I made absolutely positive that all prospective places were equipped with a dish washer (for Ant's sake) and a washer and dryer (for my sanity). Having the forethought to realize that we are going to be cleaning up potty training "accidents" in the near future, I wanted to be able to keep my house clean with out trips to the basement or worse, laundromat, every day or 2.

I wasn't even thinking of the sewing advantages, but man is it pretty to see all my cottons cleaned, folded, and ready to be made into something wonderful. Now I just have to figure out what those "wonderful" things are. Until then I guess I'll just drool over them instead.

Thanks for visiting!

♥Momma Tart

Happy Easter!

Well, it has been one week since I returned from my last Philly adventure and I am proud to say that there are only 4 boxes left to unpack! They contain mostly the knick knacks and breakables that don't have a shelf or cranny well out of Tiny's reach yet, so no big hurry to get them put away.

Even though we I have been in a mad rush to get everything in order, we still had time for a little Easter fun over the weekend. Tiny is big enough this year to take part in some of the outside activities, so we started with the community hunt on Sat. for kids under 4. After the second egg she got the idea and was off by herself looking for every egg in the county! Unfortunately it was only in the 40's so she looked more like a snowman than an Easter bunny.

Of course Sunday was in the 70's so we tossed the empty eggs around the side yard and let her "find" them all over again. (I absolutely love that face!)

Eventually though she figured out that I was emptying her pail back onto the ground and the fun was over.

And even though the candy was the part that I dreaded the most, I have to admit that it was hilarious when she tried to help "clean up" the mini m&m's that burst out of one of the eggs.

(note the chocolate hand print on the sofa)

I thought the candy coating was meant to prevent such a mess! Oh well, it was a nice bit of fun to distract us from the daunting task of cleaning and organization that still awaits. 

On a side note, I know that it is Tuesday and that I should be sharing a recipe, but the banana muffins I made turned out like this...

...so I decided to hold off until I get the hang of the new appliances!

Hopefully I can convince Ant to help me hang my peg board this weekend so I can establish a real craft area and get back in the swing of things. I miss my sewing machine something awful :(

Thanks for visiting. Have a great day!

♥Momma Tart

The Move is Over!!

Well, we made it, and without any terrible incidents this time too. The only real difficulty was the torrential rain that swept down the coast on Saturday and Sunday, but luckily we didn't have any of that while loading and unloading the truck.

Amazing play by play:

-Friday @ 5am Ant leaves Philly for Manassas, Va.
-Around 10am he gets the keys to the new apartment and heads into the office for awhile (in Arlington).
-At 1:30 he leaves the office and goes back to the new apartment. (To change clothes of all things!!)
-He arrives in Hanover, Pa a little after 5pm to pick up my dad and brother. (Bless them for helping with both moves!)
-Dad takes over driving our car and they head back to Philly, making it just in time to pick up the U-haul at 8pm.
-8:30pm The boys get to the Philly apartment with the truck and we decide to load up a little before bedtime.
-1am (Saturday morning) We finish loading EVERYTHING and decide to take a much deserved nap.
-1:30am we look out the window and see someone calling the towing company to move our U-haul! Are you kidding me? It is parked against the back of the building out of everyones way. Why do you need to move it at 2am?
-2:30am Everyone is loaded in the U-haul and car driving down to Manassas. (No I'm not Yes, I am insane!) To my surprise Tiny doesn't fall back asleep until 4am, but doesn't whine the whole trip. How amazing is that?!
-5am we arrive in Manassas and actually start unloading.
-6am The truck in half unloaded and everyone is sleeping on the floor around the new apt.
-By 9am we have somehow managed to make a Walmart run and unload the rest of the truck.
-10am everyone has passed out again.
-Return the U-haul, take another nap, and make 2 more runs to Walmart (no, I can't get it all in 1 trip.)
-6:30pm Dad, Tyler and I get back in the car and head up to Hanover in torrential rain.
-9pm we make it to Hanover and crash dead!
Sunday - I drove back to Philly by myself and spent the evening cleaning the old apartment. I spent the night there and turned the keys in first thing Monday before getting back in the car for one last drive back to Manassas!

Google Maps says my poor little car went more than 1000 miles in 4 days!

Now we are here for good and everything is hooked up and getting put away. Unfortunately my craft boxes are on the lowest priority list since none of us have any clean clothing. Happily, Any has off work this Friday, so we will have a 3 day weekend to get things organized and hopefully find an area just for me and my projects.

I know little girls have lots of clothes, but I could park a car in this closet!

Tiny's closet is huge so maybe I can set up shop in there, though it would be hard to work during prime nap times. Oh well, one box at a time and we'll see what happens. I'm aiming to be back in full force by next week, but maybe I should start with some training wheels!

♥Momma Tart

5 Day Countdown to...

I know I fell off the radar this past week, but  when I last posted on Tuesday, I was under the impression that we would be moving the last week of April. I got a BiG surprise when my husband called and told me that we had to sign the lease on the apartment by the 15th! Then one thing leads to another and "Well, we might as well move that weekend and get it over with."

You're kidding right? A week and a half to pack and move everything! It could take me that long just to run errands, say goodbye to a few people, return library books, etc. Oh, and don't forget that Tiny has somehow managed to get a horrible cold that won't let her get any sleep and has turned her into the Whining Tantrum Queen!

On the bright side everything that isn't essential to the next few days has been packed! (Poor sewing machine) And I have been using my "free time" to hit up every fabric store in town. For those of you not of the Philadelphia area, we have a chain of shores (about 8 in and around Philly) called Jomar, which is essentially a Ross/Marshall's type warehouse store, but they carry fabric!!! It looks like a hot mess most of the time, but if you dig you can find amazing things. My last trip I got pink lace, mint chiffon, and a sheer strawberry print at $1 a yard. Most of the calico prints are $2, and they have everything from upholstery fabric to georgette. Each store has a different selection though, so you feel like you have to go to each one to not miss anything. This must be what thrifting is like, but I find fabric more fun! I really, really, hope they have something similar in Virginia.

I didn't take this picture, but it is from one of the Jomar stores. This is just one small corner it can be 1500+ sqft.

I should have taken a picture before packing everything away, but at this point I might not be able to find the camera. I'm also not sure when Ant will be dismantling the computer, so this may be my last post before the move. If everyone could just cross their fingers that everything goes smoothly I would really appreciate it. Hopefully by this time next week things will be getting back to normal, but I won't hold my breath. LoL.

Everyone have a great week and enjoy the sunshine as much as possible!
See ya soon!
♥Momma Tart

Tasty Tuesday - Broccoli Chicken Divan

I didn't get a picture before Ant dove in so this is borrowed.

I'm not usually the kind of cook to make a casserole, and it isn't often that I make meals involving condensed soup, but with all the craziness, I've made an exception. These recipes are supposed to be things that are new and easy different for me right? So I wandered around the chicken area of my favorite food site {Allrecipes} and found this recipe for Broccoli Chicken Divan. It seemed fast, easy and surprisingly low in calories so I figure "what the hey!" and picked up a can of soup during my shopping trip.

All told it probably took me around a half an hour from start to finish and the only thing I changed was to add some garlic powder and pepper when I was mixing it together. Then I baked it in a 9x9 dish because my pie plate is already packed. I can't say that my chicken and broccoli amounts were exact, but I was using what I had. I usually have everything on hand but the soup which made this extra easy. 

Of course, as is his way, Ant had eaten half of the pan before I even got out the camera! But he said it was great and I thought is was a good base to make changes to. Maybe trying cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup instead, or a different type of cheese and you know I'm not averse to adding bacon to almost any dish out there! 

My only complaint is that I don't think the servings are right. The recipe says it will serve 6, but I think it would be pushing it to feed 3 people, or even 2 if they eat like my husband! lol. But that is something that is easy to fix, so I don't mind. So if you're a busy Mom give it a shot and the kids might actually eat their broccoli!

♥Momma Tart

#84 - Broccoli Chicken Divan

Moving/Blog/Life Update

Well, we are finally back home and settled in after a whirlwind weekend of travel and apartment hunting. After touring 8 apartment complexes in 2 days I am happy to announce that we have made a decision and will be moving to a lovely place in Manassas, Virginia in the next 3 weeks! Now I just have to get everything packed and ready to go. Ant went back to D.C. again today to straighten out some paperwork at his job, and to turn in the application and deposits for the apartment.

I can't even express how happy I am that we are going to finally have a washer and dryer in our apartment! I think that Ant is just thrilled not to have to do dishes by hand anymore, but it is also awesome that we are allowed to paint the walls at the apartment we are moving to. We have never had that option in any place we have lived before, and my mind is full of adorable options for Tiny Tart's bedroom.

I have also been thinking a lot about this blog and how I want it to continue. Lately I feel like I have put too much emphasis on quantity instead of quality. I haven't had enough time to make any tutorials because I've had to move on to the next project so quickly. I'm not exactly sure how I am going to change everything yet, but I think I should take this crazy time around the move to figure it out. Then at the end of the month when we are finished with the move and have gotten everything situated I can have a kind of fresh start.

Until then I'll still be making whatever I can manage between packing and cleaning, but I doubt I will have enough supplies available to make something everyday. This month will have to be a "let's see what happens" kinda time. Thanks in advance to anyone who bothers to stick with me through all this. It promises to be just  another one of my crazy adventures!

♥Momma Tart