The Offensive Coat: aka Make your own iron-on

Once upon a time Zurich didn't have a coat. Oh, he had jackets and sweaters, but not a coat to be found. A kind cousin passed along one for him. It was great, and fit perfect. However, Zurich wasn't having it. I couldn't get him to wear it for anything. If I could get it on him he'd have it off the moment I turned away to pick up the baby. We were always in a hurry to get Olea to school so he always won and just ended up wearing his fleece. He'd come home all upset because he was so cold.
Step 1: Obtain object to receive Iron-on
The Offending Coat

The Silly Boy

So I had a thought.

Step 2: Gather materials and choose design
I had embroidery thread and heat and bond. I could make an iron on that would help him to attach to the coat. I set to work, picking an icon he loves but that wasn't branded.
A train.
(You can use and iron on transfer pen to put a design guide on your fabric, which I did at first... but then decided it was too big for my immediate need and just free hand stitched on instead, so that's why there are both in the hoop)
Hand Embroider onto Muslin

He sat and watched Thomas the Train as I stitched and periodically commented on my stitching.
"Train." Oh good, he recognizes it.

Step 3: Make it stick
Then use Heat n' Bond to make it an applique (use instructions on heat and bond)

Trim the extra fabric.

Iron onto the coat


Step 4 (Optional): Secure
...and since I am anal about securing things I took more embroidery thread and stitched around the design. Which I think helps it blend into the coat better anyway. You could use a sewing machine for this step but I didn't want stitches to show on the inside of the coat so that is best done by hand.


Step 5: Feel smart
Finished product.

The little boy and
The cool train coat

FINALLY!
...do you think this would work to help kids KEEP their gloves ON?

I'm linking to Creative Cats

A Christmas Song

Last night for FHE Gary asked Olea to, "Pick a real song, one we all know, a Christmas song."
She'd been making up songs...
So she thinks about it, "I know!" she said, "How about, Jesus Wants Me for a Christmas Sunbeam?"
Gary shrugs, "ok," and starts singing.
I couldn't.
I was laughing.
Through the whole thing.

TADA!

Merry Christmas to me!
You can't tell what's new?!

No, of course not. That's the idea. But it's AWESOME!
Venting our microwave stove hood to the outside of the house rather than it recirculating into the house. It's way quieter and certainly my cabinets will be less greasy.

move stove, take off microwave and cabinet

Zurich helps locate the studs... Which there happens to be one right where we need a hole, so Gary frames around it

puts in the vent, lines everything up, puts it all back


Olea makes pattern breads and Zurich and Genève play together.
The kids were great throughout the hours it took to get it all taken apart, cut out, put in, and cleaned up so we took them to the dinosaur museum after.
Gary is awesome!

Tea Party

It's very important when you go to Grandma's to have a tea party.
Grandma knows all about how to have a proper tea party.

Miss Perriwinkle
Mr. Billington
and Mrs. Frompasia ( I think)

Trick or Treating

Zurich was so cute, running biffing it and going again, at one point he said, "Go, go go. More Candy," as he ran from one house to the other. He would open one thing and get a taste and hand it on back to me or Gary, and always had one treat in hand at least. Often he'd try and trade that treat with a treat at the door he was trick or treating. Olea was so far up ahead with her cousins most of the time I only really got these two pics before we started out.
The kids are not under-dressed.
It was really warm in Idaho where we went Trick or treating.

The costume I ended up wearing was one Gary used in High School in a theatrical production where he played Timone from the Lion King. His mom made his costume. He's a bit bigger than he was in high school so I wore it instead.

Back at home the kids sort out their Halloween candy.