That's him holding the hose at the local fair demolition derby a month ago. Very cool, eh?
When it came to Monkey's outfit, I knew I had seen a great tutorial to "westernize" a plain shirt. (Cheri from I am Momma, Hear Me Roar has one here) So, off I went, in search of a plain shirt. WalMart had just what I was looking for: can't beat $7! By the time I started to plan his shirt, I had already ordered my dress, and planned out Sweetie's, so I had an idea of what the colour theme should be: turquoise and green. Off I went to the fabric store, and came home with some super fun paisley! I even branched out and brought home some lime green piping to jazz it all up. I had all that I needed, but was a little scared to give it a try. I put it off until 2 days before the wedding (I had a plain old plaid shirt waiting in the sidelines in case I had to fall back on it). I did it my way, a bit different from Cheri's method: I traced out the front and back shoulder sections of the plain shirt, and tried to make a template. The first template was a bit small, but luckily, it was done on scrap fabric. I adjusted it, and began cutting away. I made the embellishment of 2 layers: 1 layer of white twill (leftover from sweetie's dress), and 1 layer of the paisley fabric. (it turns out the twill is too heavy, I wish I had just used white shirting or something lighter) I cut both, then sewed them, right sides together. I trimmed the corners and edges, and turned it right side out. Pinned it all on, with piping behind it. I wish I had a zipper foot because it would have made sewing it all on with the piping much easier, but, all in all, it worked pretty well. Here's a detail of the back of the shirt (please ignore the LOVELY haircut - that's what happens when Daddy takes him for a cut - he comes home with a fauxhawk!)
And this sweet pic gives a bit of a peek at the front of the shirt. This pic was taken during the ceremony. It was in a chicken barn - very laid-back, yet the decorations were so nice, you almost forgot where you were!
...as for Mac's outfit - he doesn't do western either, so it was a nice, neutral gray striped shirt. It was basically down to whatever shirt we could find in the store that fit him correctly (all the "stylish" shirts are cut so close to the body!) Mac nearly ripped a few shirts in the shoulders as he tried them on! 
How do you feel about donating blood and blood products?
This sums up how I feel: Luke 6:31 - Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Its neat, clean lines are beautiful, while the architecture and form of the original building was retained. It seems to have been a successful revitalization project for both the building owner, as well as the Municipality (funds were provided by the Town to aid in the revitalization of this downtown building).
Tara's store is bright and attractive, and has a million things to look at (and purchase!)
Scrapbooking supplies are intermingled with antiques, old-fashioned sweets and products made from vintage supplies. Glassware is soon to be added to the great mix of products!
The most exciting part.... (for me, anyways!)..... I dropped off my wares today, and they will be set out in the store, ready for purchase as early as tomorrow!!! That's right, you can now stroll downtown Strathroy, and purchase some missbossypants goodies! Some items that will be available at UP THE STREET include: Flaxseed Ouchie Bags, Women's scarves, Kid's aprons, Baby Bibs, and Felt Food! Cup Cozies will be added soon, once I can add more to my inventory (i.e. pump out some more in my basement "sweat shop"). The apples in nearby orchards are crisp, sweet and ripe and VERY delicious! Within the last 2 weeks we've enjoyed fresh apples, homemade apple sauce, apple crisp, and apple cider. It's a wonderful treat every autumn to eat fresh apples, and enjoy them at their peak of freshness!
