Books I Love - Beyonders

Do you guys remember when I wrote a post last year entitled "Books I Want to Read this Summer?" (I know it might be hard to remember; it was like a year and a half ago.) Well I did, in fact, read those books. And I planned on writing blog posts on them. And…now it's been so long that another summer has passed and I've actually read their sequels. So! You are lucky enough to be able to read my reviews of the original books and the sequels. Woot!

Today I want to talk to you about Brandon Mull's series "Beyonders." In "Beyonders: A World Without Heroes," a regular boy named Jason is, through a crazy twist of fate, transported to a different world he's never had an inkling existed. People in this new world, though, know about us. Sometimes, like Jason, people from our world end up over there. They're called "Beyonders," because they're from the "Beyond" (our world). Jason learns that this world is almost entirely ruled by an evil lord named Maldor, and also stumbles upon the secret that Maldor can be destroyed by a magic word which brave adventurers have to collect syllable by syllable. He's joined by another beyonder named Rachel, and the two of them set out to find the entire word, destroy Maldor, and return home to our world.

I have to admit that when I read the first book in the series last year, I liked it, but I knew that I still liked Fablehaven more. Beyonders was good, but (I felt) lacking some of the originality of Fablehaven. It seemed to me to be a more typical/regular fantasy plot. With that being said, though, the writing was good, the characters were good, and the story was entertaining. It was a good book and I enjoyed it, and I was very interested to see where the series would go.

(Side note: Have any of you noticed that Brandon Mull seems to have some sort of fixation on betrayal? In Fablehaven, it was one of the major themes, and it's carried over into this story as well. Thoughts?)

Now that I've read the second book, "Beyonders: Seeds of Rebellion," I fully endorse the series as a "Books I Love" series. Brandon Mull is just so creative, and his creativity really shines through in this book. I won't tell you what happens, because I don't want to spoil anything, but the book is awesome. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I can't wait for the next one. (Which, by the way, comes out next March. Sigh. I wish books came out faster.  But I'm patient. Mostly.)

So, yeah! Beyonders is great. If you're looking for some fun books, definitely try them.

Awesome Jean Tote Bag

All right, last day of this batch of crafts. Like I mentioned in the onesie post, I cleaned out my closet. This left me with not just a bunch of shirts to donate, but a bunch of old, worn-out or ill-fitting jeans as well. Some were so old and so patched that I didn't think even DI would want them. So, I used them to create my very favorite project out of all these.

I made a bag.

An awesome bag.

Jason and I go to the library all the time, and we use these cottony-type of tote bags to haul all of our books back and forth. Bags of this size are particularly helpful, so I decided to make another one using a couple pairs of my old jeans. As soon as I started planning it, I could visualize exactly what I wanted it to look like in my head, and so I just made it based on that. I used our cotton tot bags for a size-reference.

I used two pairs of jeans - a light one and a dark one - for the alternating strips and for the edge at the top. For the inner lining and the strap, I used this faux-jean cotton dress that I was also getting rid of. It was perfect because it's soft and a much lighter fabric than the jeans, so the inside is nice and soft and finished and the strap is soft as well.

By cutting the pieces of fabric carefully, I was able to utilize the dresses's already existing pockets without having to do any extra sewing. So, the bag has two pockets in the inside (you see them in the upper left part of the bag, one on each side).

This bag is by far my favorite of the projects I made last week. It's so soft and yet durable-feeling and I just really really like it.

And that's the jean tote bag!

Adult T-shirts to Baby Onesies

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I've been on a sewing kick this week. There's actually two factors that worked together to create this perfect storm: One, we're moving. Two, I discovered that What Not to Wear has a bunch of full episodes on Youtube.  Both things motivated me to clean out my closet and left me with a bunch of old clothes that I felt I could reuse for Baby.

(Side note about What Not to Wear before moving on to the sewing project: I love that show. I don't know if you've ever watched it, but it's great. If you've never seen it, you might think that it's kind of a judgmental show because it's telling people that what they're currently wearing isn't so great. But it's actually completely the opposite. Yes, they do come and tell people that their current wardrobe is bad. But, the whole show is about building up the people's confidence and self-esteem, and showing them that they're beautiful and that they can and should wear clothes that reflect that. Anyway, I just really love it.)

One of the main thing I cleared from my closet this week was all those free t-shirts I accumulated at BYU. As Stacy and Clinton (the hosts of What Not to Wear) explain, those free t-shirts have no real shape. They are rectangles. I am not a rectangle. Therefore, they are not very flattering on my body. (Another side note: I did save my "stylish" t-shirts; you know, they ones that are actually made for girls. Not the unisex kind.)

Now, although I logically know that these t-shirts don't flatter me as much as other shirts could, I am still sentimentally attached to them. Some I've had for years, like my girls camp shirts, and others I just like, like my free BYU ones. So, what to do? Make them into onesies for Baby, of course! That way, they get to stick around. I don't have to deal with the emotional trauma of giving them away and never seeing them again, and she has some new clothes for when she grows out of her current onesies.

I've made two so far. Both of these were "test" onesies using shirts I wasn't that sentimentally attached to. This blue one I decided to just entirely wing and see how it turned out. I used a onesie that Baby hasn't grown into yet to get a good idea of what size to make and what shapes to cut. I laid it on top of the shirt, cut the the pieces out, and, like I said, just went for it. Here's before:

And after:

(I used the back of the original t-shirt to make the onesie's front. I should have taken a picture of the back so you could see, but oh well.)

I used buttons at the neck to make the neck opening bigger when putting it on:

And buttons at the bottom for the diaper opening:

This second onesie I did very differently. I followed the tutorial here, using her templates and instructions. (I have to admit, I found the instructions somewhat hard to follow at times; I had to think about each step for a while to get what she was saying. But, I figured it out. And I'm grateful that she made the tutorial.)

For this one, I used snaps at the bottom.

I really like how it turned out. It fits well in the shoulders, though it is a bit long so I will shorten it next time. I think for the next one I'll try making the leg openings like a regular onesie rather than a "shortall," either with a regular hem or possibly using elastic to make a ruffle leg? We'll see. I'll definitely show you once I make more, but it might be a while since we're moving. If I get a chance in the next couple weeks to make more, I will, but if I don't it might be a month or so.

Anyway, those are the first t-shirt onesies!

Sleeves, but more awesomely Rufflebums

Day two of the craft round up! Today is all about altering onesies.

Several months ago, Jason and I were at the Gap outlet store and saw a bunch of long-sleeved onesies on sale. It was spring, and Gap was getting rid of its winter inventory. The onesies were really cheap, and I figured that I could probably alter the sleeves so that they would be more appropriate for the weather when baby could fit in them. So, we got our two favorites.

Baby's finally almost big enough to start wearing them, and I've been on a sewing kick this week, so I finally got around to altering them.  I followed this tutorial here pretty much exactly. (Have you guys noticed how much I love that site, by the way? I love that site.)

They turned out great! Here's before:

And after:

She came.

I added the ruffle bum too, which I love:

 

I should add ruffle bums to everything.

I really like how they turned out. I definitely won't be afraid to do this in the future, if I find more deals on long-sleeved onesies. If you have any that you want to alter, you should try it!

Jason's Handiwork

Over the next couple of days I'll be posting the various things that Jason and I have been making lately. We're going to start off with Jason today, because he's awesome.

About a two months ago Jason saw this piano bench/side table thing by our dumpster:

He grabbed it because it's the perfect size and height to go right next to our couch, and he set about fixing it up. It was in pretty bad condition.

The top (which lifts up, like a piano bench), was broken off its hinges:

And the whole table was covered in this rough, almost sticky layer of old varnish. In this next picture, Jason's already sanded like a third of the top and you can see the difference:

After sanding the whole thing by hand, he used black wood stain to transform it.

Before:

 After:

It is so much better now, all nice and smooth and black. It's been right next to our couch ever since he fixed it up, and it's perfect.

Another project that he did was for Baby. She loves to play with our computers (especially the keyboards), which we like to prevent. We had this old, broken laptop in one of our closets, so we pulled it out for her to play with. It was pretty heavy, though, and she couldn't move it very well. So, Jason took the laptop apart, removed most of its guts, and filled it with cotton. He also removed the old black screen (which was pretty heavy itself), took an old white binder apart, and used the binder cover as the new screen. Since it's white plastic, Baby will be able to use whiteboard markers on it in the future. Jason also left the clear plastic sheet on the cover, so we can slide pictures in the side. Here it is:

Ta-da!

Now it's "Baby's computer." And she does indeed like to play with it.

Jason is so talented and creative.

Why I believe what I do on Gay Marriage

With all that's going on, I figure it is about time that I tell you what I believe about gay marriage, and why.

First of all - and I want to emphasize this - I completely understand if you have a different opinion. I completely see how people would think differently than me. I just want to explain why I believe what I do.

As you probably know, I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I believe that there is a God, and that he cares deeply about each of us.

I believe that we have modern prophets on the earth today, just as there were prophets in the old and new testament times.

I believe that God speaks through his prophets. In the Doctrine and Covenants (modern revelation that, if you want to, you can read here) he says, "What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same."

These modern prophets have said (in The Family: A Proclamation to the World) that "We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.  All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose."

Since I believe that God lives, and he speaks through his prophets, I believe that it is God that declares "Marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God."

Now, I want you to know - and this is the biggest thing I want to emphasize in what I'm writing today - I know that God loves us. I know that he wants us to be happy. Do I understand each and every reason behind certain commandments? No. But I know that they are given because God wants us to be happy, and they are the way to happiness. In the Book of Mormon, Nephi, a prophet, is asked, "Knowest thou the condescension of God?"  Nephi explains, "And I said unto him: I know that he loveth his children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things."

And that's what I'd like to tell you. God loves his children. All of his children. He wants us to be happy. If we follow him, we will be. Satan is the father of lies. He can make bad things look good, and good things looks bad. But if we have faith in God, and what he says, we'll be happy.

That's why I believe what I do. I believe God lives, I believe he speaks to us through his prophets, and his prophets have told us that God has said marriage should be between a man and a woman.

Again, I completely understand if you believe differently. I understand if you don't believe in God. I understand if you do believe in God, but you believe that he feels differently than I have explained here. I understand. I respect you. And I just want you to understand why I believe what I do.