…the sound of silence…

Some weeks, like last week, I don’t feel like I achieve a lot, just going through the motions of the day. Sometimes I feel unproductive but actually have been doing stuff, but this wasn’t that. It was a lack of mojo, so much so I didn’t even have anything to share on instagram. Part of the problem was I had a pattern test project I needed to get finished, and it took up a lot of my time. There was a large section on the tail end of the pattern that was just row after row of a stitch I didn’t particularly enjoy, so I put it off. Put it off, but also wouldn’t allow myself to pick up anything fun until it was done.

Then, my husband took the children to his mothers for the weekend. Like the last time we attempted such a run, and were thwarted by floods, I once again had commitments that couldn’t be shifted. Turns out I don’t have a productivity problem. I have kids. Four of ’em. And surprisingly enough, when they aren’t around? I can actually get a whole lot done in a relative hurry.

The very first thing I did was get hooked into an Ida Blouse. I’ve been wanting to make this one since…possibly since Me Made May last year? It’s such a pretty design, and super versatile for my lifestyle. I can pair it with a skirt for church. With my fave dark wash wranglers for the town run. Under a tunic for homeschool group. Over a pretty crop & teamed with skinny jeans and heels for date night… can you tell I’m excited by this make?

I used a fabulous cotton lawn I picked up as a remnant from Pitt Trading a while back for this exact project. It worked perfectly. The drape is amazing, and it is so nice to wear. I had cut it out a couple of weeks back, so was technically started and thus didn’t break my Lent resolution to not start anything new.

Once I got going on it, it came together really quite quickly. Amazing, isn’t it, what you can achieve when there are no longer any distraction around? I even took myself into town to pick up lunch, and got four loads of washing done, and hung. And even with all that, the cut pieces I started with at 10.30am had become a finished blouse by 5pm. Just in time for a dinner of champions. If you can’t get away with chips & mocktails for dinner when there are no children around demanding you share, when can you??

While I sewed, I popped an audiobook on. I have to be in the right mood for an audiobook, and have a decent chunk of quiet time so I can keep up with the storylines. A whole day to myself? Yeah. It was made for audiobook binging! I listened to about 75%, and only turned it off when I hit the couch ready for #saturdaynightcraftalong. In between chatting on insta, I started a new book on BorrowBox, and flicked on the flood relief telethon for company while I read. Without the need to get up and be a parent the next day, I could stay up as late as I wanted to, reading. That’s exactly what I did, and next thing I knew it was 1.30am and my book was finished!! I also managed to sneak in some more sewing and got a slip & a camisole made up as well.

Sunday wasn’t quite as productive. I did manage to have a small sleep-in, then it was straight off to church, and by the time the service finished, as well as a meeting afterward plus a couple of town errands, it was close to lunchtime, and the clock was ticking rather quickly towards the arrival of the family home again. Lunch and chores took a solid bite out of what time I had left. Sadly, adulting can be paused for a bit but not delayed forever! To kick off the afternoon, I decided to settle in to finish my audio book and darn some socks, having borrowed a mushroom from a friend. With those fixed, we were into the final stretch, so I popped on a movie for company while I did some knitting on my restarted Golden Wheat cardigan. Really, for a day with not a lot of spare time, I was still pretty productive.

By 5pm they were home and full of chatter, and within minutes it had been like they had never left. The kids left a trail of noise and mess in their wake. The husband and I sat on the couch moaning about the necessity of dinner needing to be cooked every darn night. My quiet, productive weekend was done and over, and as fabulous as it was to recharge the batteries, I am ever so glad to have all my people home with me again.

FINAL WEEKEND TALLY:
The Fig Tree – Goran Vojnovic (IndyReads)
Dial A For Aunties – Jesse Suntanto (BorrowBox)
The Midnight Library – Matt Haig (Audible)
Ida Blouse – iKatee
Slip – self drafted dupe of a target rtw slip
Cami – self drafted as above
Hermione’s Everyday Socks – darned
The Adam Project – Netflix
Progress on Golden Wheat cardigan