Wheels for Williams

 I've mentioned before that May is Williams Syndrome awareness month. We've gone to a walk for WS every year since Dallin was diagnosed in 2010. Each walk was in a different location: Utah, Indianapolis and Lafayette, Indiana.

 

This year, May snuck up on us and we hadn't really planned on attending a walk. It's kind of difficult when the closest walk is over 3 hours away, but we still felt like we needed to do something. The night before, we decided to attend a different kind of WS fundraiser: Wheels for Williams.

 

It was a classic car show with all the proceeds going to the Williams Syndrome Association.

 

And it was only 2 hours away. Totally doable! In case you've ever wondered what Losantville, Indiana is like, I'll tell you: It's a tiny town in the middle of nowhere with fewer than 300 people, a fire station, a few houses, ... and that's about it. No stop lights, no stores. Only 8 miles from the birthplace of Wilbur Wright! (Also in the middle of nowhere.) The drive there was quite an experience.

 

This event is a pretty big deal in the area and people drive from near and far to display their cars.

This car was probably my favorite. Flames come out the back when you hit the gas.

 

There were quite a few other WS families there.

 

 We got to meet some new families and see some old friends.

Dallin and Jonah are buds.

I think I get a picture of them "growling" at each other every time we get together.

 

 There was a little pedal car that the kids got to ride around in.

 

We did get to do a little walk around the outer streets of town. The whole loop was less than a mile.

 

And there was food and music.

What more could you ask for?

 

Going to this event reminded me even more that I want to host a walk in Lafayette next year. If I start planning now I can actually pull it off, right? All our friends and family are welcome to come here and walk with us. Mark your calendars for May 2014!

More felt food

A friend of Dallin's had a birthday so I made her some felt food.

It's been a while since I made Dallin's felt food for his 2nd birthday. It was fun to pull out my felt again and make my favorite food items. Most of them are repeats from food I already made Dallin. My sewing skills have come a long way in 2 years and these looked way better than my originals.

 

The brown paper bag was a new attempt. I made it from this tutorial. I was imagining it would be more grocery sack size, but it was more like a paper lunch bag.

Dallin threw his foot in the picture to give some size perspective.

 

I am in love with this felt "paper" bag. It was such a quick, easy sewing project. I want to make a bunch of them and use them for everything: gift bags, party favor bags, actual grocery sacks...

Cinco de Mayo!

We were invited to a Cinco de Mayo celebration hosted by one of Mckay's volleyball league teammates. We were told to dress up, so we did.

 

Our very own little mariachi players!

 

We had so much fun putting these costumes together.

I added the black pompom fringe to Dallin's sombrero. I sewed up two quick black felt vests for both little boys and we decorated with silver ric rac ribbon and fabric paint. Mckay pinned/stapled the silver ribbon to the boys' pants. And Mckay made a card board guitar (technically a vihuela) from an internet image. Top it off with a sticker moustache and you get the cutest little mariachi!

 

 Mckay and I got in on a little moustache fun too.

The moustache may have been the best part of Mckay's costume. He's been growing his beard/moustache for several months and shaved just for this occasion. A few people asked if it was real. It sure is--- real creepy. :) (see what I did there...?)  Mckay's serape was a challenge but a work of art. Trying to make his costume inexpensive, we bought some burlap by the yard (I didn't know you could buy such things at a fabric store and that it came in colors like "Idaho Potato"), trimmed it and painted stripes with craft paint. Cheap and effective. So effective that he won "Best dressed Male." I'm so proud of my mustachioed man.

 

I've now typed "moustache" so many times that the spelling looks weird so lets move on...)

 

The boys each got a turn to hit the piñata.

 

It took the help of several other kids, but they finally made some progress.

Connor found a donkey to ride.

 

The boys (Mckay included) went running when the candy fell out and they collected a pretty nice stash.

 

There was also a lot of great food, including homemade tamales. It was a lot of fun, but we needed a little siesta afterward.