Little Celebrations

I find, I have to celebrate where I can. There are always so many things I am NOT celebrating, (for instance my recent haircut by teenage girl who clearly didn't give a flying leap about ensuring that ALL of my ridicuthick hair was layered evenly), that it helps my attitude from totally tanking to stop a moment and say "yay!!" over the smallest of happy moments.

Today, something crazy happened. Something so obscenely crazy I can almost not believe it. My kids asked me to watch tv.... no, no, that is most definitely NOT it, wait for it.... and when I called through the bathroom door, as I tried to attach my post shower towel in order to make eye contact with the beggars while I negotiated, and said "I think you could, but you'll all need to tidy up the basement first. You've left it messy for a couple days now," do you know what happened?

They did it.

Even without the eye contact.

All three.

No complaints.

Done and done in five minutes. I suddenly felt like the tailor from "Fiddler." People, miracles do happen. Proof. For reals.

Also, in less exciting news, last month I sewed. Something of a miraculous feat these days too, it would seem. I took less than thrilling pictures, but I created something cute and useful. Too many salads to too many picnics without a proper lid for my melamine bowl left me cranky so I did something about it.

It's got a hat now. A cheery, vintage gingham cap.

Not my original idea. I saw it all inspiring somewhere at some point, but don't remember. But if you want to do it, here's what I did.

Choose two fabrics (one preferably with some amount of "wipe-ability", but not required)

On the wrong side of the first fabric, flip your bowl upside down and trace.

Now draw another circle around it, but a couple inches bigger. Cut out the bigger circle.

Pin it to the other fabric and cut out another.

Put right sides together and sew a 1/4 inchish seam around the edge, leaving enough room to turn it rightside out.

Turn it and press.

Now sew in again a 1/4 to 1/2 inch (depending on how thick the elastic lying around in your sewing drawer is and what size your safety pin is) topstitch ALL the way around the circle, you should still have a little opening where you originally turned the fabrics.

Put a safety pin in the end of the elastic and use that opening to thread it all the way around the edge of your circle until the there are plenty of gathers, but plenty of stretch in the elastic still.

Sew the elastic together and hand or machine stitch the opening closed.

Add "to go" food.

Easy and quick. But don't ask me when I'll get to the other bowls in the set. I mean, really, how much celebrating of happy miracles can one girl take?