SEW hard to say "Goodbye"

It's SEW hard to say "Goodbye" sometimes.  Especially when you're saying goodbye to a 40-year-old sewing machine.  Sorry for that little pun, but there's a good story behind it!

My parents got married in 1973...and then in 1974, shortly after my mom graduated from college, she moved to Germany where my dad was stationed with the Army.  Once there, my mom--who loves to sew--purchased a Pfaff sewing machine.  The old school type.  This is a picture of it that my mom took last week:

This little machine has sewn countless things over the years. (See the stickers Beth and I put on it as kids??) Hard to believe?  I'm so excited to tell you all about it!

But let me back up a bit...because I'm sure you're wondering how and when my mom learned to sew. Believe it or not, her father (Granddaddy Sam) taught her how.  I think this will surprise most people, but he was incredibly adept with his hands and from an era when men sewed!  Also, when you couldn't afford certain things, you made them yourself!  In my grandfather's case, his sewing often meant repairing things in order to extend their life.  In my mom's case, she began sewing at a very young age in order to make clothes for her Barbie dolls.  In no time, she was making clothes for herself...like the dress she's wearing below (that's me she's holding) and the rest is history. 

Oh, wait...here's the rest of the history:  Since my mom grew up sewing, when she moved to Germany, she decided to invest in a well-made German sewing machine.  While there, she sewed everything from Halloween costumes for my parents (including Raggedy Ann and Andy) to clothing to everyday repairs.  Then they moved back to the States and my mom took some sewing classes, including a lingerie one...that's how she made me a swimsuit or two in high school!  She actually was taking a sewing class while she was pregnant with me, but had to drop out because of her morning sickness.  Gosh, do I know how that is!

When Beth and I were born, my mom made us baby clothes, blankets and much, much more.  Many of those beautiful, well-made things lasted until my kids could wear them!

When Beth and I were 3 and 6, my mom made us matching clown costumes for Halloween.  Trust me, we were cute!  And that was only the start of many costumes she made for us over the years. The same year we were clowns, Cabbage Patch Kids were all the rage.  Beth and I each had a girl Cabbage Patch Kid, but we wanted boy ones, too.  My mom bought the heads at a sewing/fabric store and sewed the bodies, so we could each have our own boy CPK.  Here's mine (Patrick)...in clothes my mom made just for him.  So special!

Mom also made us matching Jams (remember Jams??).  Here's us on school t-shirt day in 1988! 

Being an Army wife means being flexible and versatile, and my talented mom did a wonderful job of making/adjusting curtains for each of the dozen or more homes we lived in.  She even made curtains for all three of the houses that Tony and I have owned.  Here are a few examples:

And pillows!

When I was in middle school, my school offered a sewing class. I really enjoyed it and used my mom's machine to make part of my "monster" Halloween costume that year.  I also picked out fabric and sewed MC Hammer pants for myself and four friends because we were going to be on "Star Search"!! Well, we were just mediocre dancers, but it's fair to see say we were pretty proud of those pants!  

Here's Wilbur the pig, my final project in that sewing class!

Thanks to my mom's sewing machine, I also have wonderful memories of shopping for fabric for Baby D (we didn't know it would be Sammy)'s baby sheets, crib skirt and quilt with my mother and Grandma Lonia.  Here's us a little over 6 years ago...

My mom has sewn things for the kids over the years, too, including this Yoda hat for Sam's first Halloween!

I asked Beth to share her "all-time favorites" from Mom and her trusty sewing machine.  Here are her top 5:
1) My swimsuit

Which, by the way, Brie wore when she was a baby.

2) Cabbage Patch Kids clothing

3) Blue skirt- modeled from the movie "Clueless"

4) Orange dress- I wore it the first day of school junior year

5) My JUNIOR PROM DRESS :)

After forty years of projects and creations, Mom finally had to retire her Pfaff last week. To say they don't make them like that anymore is a huge understatement.

SEW...here is her new sewing machine...a shiny new Baby Lock.  It has incredibly big shoes to fill...and memories to make!