finding time to post...

even though i've had a couple of brief posts over the last week or so, i realized it's been a while since i've posted anything of substance. so... here we go!

pirate football. what a beginning of the season it has been. though i haven't been able to attend a game, i've loved watching them on tv and cheering on my pirates! it was particularly tough not to be at the wvu/ecu game yesterday, but i had a photo job (more about that below) and we knew it would cost us big to get tickets--guest tickets were already at $55 a piece! because of the timing of my other photo job and hanna coming through, i wasn't able to take any photos beforehand like i had hoped to. next home game, though, we'll be there! and i just hope that my pirates can continue this great winning streak. to be receiving this national coverage and finally get some recognition is just amazing!

i had to include one of my favorite pics from last weekend--the game-winning football from the blocked punt against VT (with coach holtz in the background!)

by the way, we had a lot of rain and some wind with hanna, but no damage. a few leaves off of our poor little trees, with one of them bent over sideways during some of the wind gusts. i had the work crisis phone for the weekend and was worried that i'd be up all night answering calls, but no calls! we were able to go out to dinner friday night, drive around town to find open grocery stores on nearly empty roads, and by lunchtime on saturday, the storm was gone with minimal damage around town. it looks like ike is going to leave us alone, so hopefully that's it for the storm season.

additionally...

i realized i hadn't posted about my awesome john mayer concert experience. the thing that bugs me about this...i forgot my camera. now, jennifer has a couple of pictures that we took with her little camera that she keeps in her purse--but it's only like 2 or 3 mp and i'm not sure that it will really capture the awesomeness of our seats. jennifer is a member of the john mayer fan club and was able to get first pick of the tickets for this concert. she ended up with.... 11th row, dead center. she had an extra ticket, and since she and i went together a few years ago to see JM and maroon 5, she knew i would enjoy going. we headed out as soon as i got finished with work on a wednesday afternoon and made it to raleigh just as the headliner was finishing up (onerepublic--also a very entertaining band!) when john finally came out...wow. i could read the stickers on his guitar, we were that close! it was one of the best concert experiences i've ever had and i'm still reveling in the musicianship and the inspiration that he put forth.

most people wouldn't see him as being "inspiring"--unfortunately, his social life has gotten more attention that his ability to play the guitar. however, this concert brought back his genuineness, his openness and his desire to share love for MUSIC with his fans. he told such wonderful stories that added so much to the concert, and in a way that true fans would appreciate. i think anyone who calls themselves a musician and feels the music could relate with his anecdotes and the emotion he put forth when performing.

noting halfway through the concert that at that point he had only played a couple of songs that were on the radio, he commented on the depth and the appreciation of fans who loved him for more than the top 40 hits. one of my favorite quotes was about his motivation--that he used to play concerts to hear the screaming fans and to get girls. and he would leave the stage empty and wanting more, and then he learned to play for the love of playing music, for the love of sharing what he loved, and now he's never been happier. and as corny as that sounds (as i now write it out and realize how corny it sounds) in the moment, it was real and honest and just him pouring his heart out. 

my other favorite quote--"we are musicians. we don't think linear or logically. we're like children, finger-painting, playing. and when you have an amazing group of musicians that get to play together like this, then it's like we're painting a beautiful work of art."

sigh...oh, john mayer.

to conclude, it was awesome and ranks up there with the coldplay concert from '05. 

back to the real world. though my reflector jobs have not been as numerous as before (mainly because of an already busy schedule and school hours affecting when i can work with clients) i have been picking up some additional work on the weekends, this time a 5 year old birthday party with one of my former oakwood families. a friend from church and oakwood who is getting into specialty party planning was able to recommend my services as part of the party package, and so i spent yesterday afternoon documenting a "fancy nancy" party for young sydney. i especially loved the colors and frills of the decorations--everything was quite "fancy!"

believe it or not, this is the cake... quite tasty, too.


the dress-up station was a very essential part of this event. i loved all of the shoes, lined up in a row.

some coloring of a "fancy nancy" picture, but with a fairy wand close by...
and once i get some of those up on my pro website, i'll let you know. need to check with the family first :)

my other creative outlet lately... well, it all started with a fabulous pair of linen pants that was 70% off at new york and co. and fit beautifully--except for the length. i couldn't turn them down, so i bought them anyways and said i would get around to hemming them eventually. many of my friends know that i hand-sew when need be, and in the dorms, i would be the go-to girl for patching up a pair of shorts or basting in another hem for pants when it got torn out. my grandmother sewed constantly when i was younger and still does occasionally. i would take old scraps from her sewing room and make doll clothes, pillows, even a Nativity scene that still gets put out at Christmastime. when it looked like i was going to do senior project, she taught me how to use her sewing machine and we made an apron together. the plan had been to make my black concert dress for band concerts as my senior project, but then i dropped out of the global studies program (so i could take ap music theory, if i remember correctly) and that was the end of my sewing experience beyond mending tears and reinforcing buttons by hand using the sewing kit my grandma gave me for graduation.

so--i had the linen pants. then i went shopping for some work-appropriate jeans (yes, i can wear jeans to work!) and absolutely loved a wide-legged pair that i found at jc penneys. again, great fit except for the length. knowing that i had to hem the pair of linen pants, i bought them anyways and figured i would hem those at the same time. 

then i got to thinking--both of these pairs of pants were for work and a more professional looking hem would be appropriate and could i get my hands on a sewing machine...and i remembered that my niece, destiny, received one for her birthday a couple of years ago after she took some sewing classes and wanted to have her own machine to work with. so, long story short, i borrowed a presumed broken sewing machine (minus the manual or any other information that would help in actually using it), watched several youtube videos on how to thread a sewing machine, and worked diligently (albeit quite frustrated at several points) for a few hours to hem both pairs of pants AND finish piecing together my t-shirt quilt that has been a project for probably...three years? it's not quilted yet, but i figure that can be a project for the winter months. i LOVE that it's finally finished. 

then it became a quest to see what else i could do. and the weekend before, when i was out taking pictures during the ecu/vt game, i commented on a cute top a girl was wearing with pirate skulls that looked adorable. she told me that her mom made it, and that got me thinking about what i could make to wear on game days. i was frustrated with the fabric that i found, and i think i might check out some other places in fayetteville the next time we're there to see if i can't find something less...busy? but i had to try it out, so i bought a pattern, the necessary materials, and worked for a few hours several nights this week until i finished my "pirate" top.
now let me say, i'm not thrilled with the shape of the top or how it was cut, so i tried to fit it as much as possible once it was actually pieced together. the fabric pattern was a bit much once i had it made, BUT it's a wearable piece of clothing and not too bad for a first try. and i had to show my pirate spirit after the awesome win last night!

i have some madras print fabric that i'm going to test out with a halter top pattern that came in the same set of patterns. wish me luck! 

alright, i think that's it for now. i've got to get some groceries so we have something to bring to our church small-group picnic this evening.