How to Replace and Sew a Button

Have you ever lost a button in the washing machine? Or have you ever wanted to simply add a cute button to an apron or shirt? Follow this step-by-step tutorial and you will want to sew buttons onto all of your fabrics!! 

Ironically, the week before I had planned to post about sewing on a button, my husband just so happened to lose a button on one of his favorite shirts while we were in Hawaii. We'll use his shirt as an example...

Step 1: Grab your supplies: seam ripper, a button, a needle, matching thread, and a pair of scissors. If you will be replacing a button on a shirt or jacket, look for the replacement button inside of the shirt material, specifically along the seam around the bottom. Then use your seam ripper to release the button from the shirt (see below).

Step 2: Find the original spot for the button or decide on the place you want to add a new embellishment button. How do you find that spot? Glad you asked. There should be either some broken thread or a couple of itty-bitty holes from where the thread was before. Still not able to figure it out? Easy sauce. Fasten up the other buttons and pass a pin through the hole of the missing button. Whichever way you do it, make sure you mark the replacement button spot with chalk.

Step 3: Thread the needle. (See below for thorough photographic instructions.) Pull one end of the thread through the eye of the needle. Pull that end of thread to meet the other. Knot the ends together by making a loop and pulling the tails through. Knot once more, and trim off any excess.

Step 4: Let's get stitchin'. First, push your needle up through the back of the fabric to the front, pulling the thread all the way through. Slide your button on down the thread to meet the fabric. Are your holes lined up with the button in place? 

Perfect. 

Now you can push your needle down through the opposite hole and out the back of the fabric. Make sure your stitching matches the pattern of your other buttons. Repeat this four or five times per hole. The thread should be tight enough as to where the button doesn't dangle. At the same time, it should be loose enough as to where your fabric doesn't bunch up. Whew! 

Step 5: Shank and Snip... Push your needle up through the back of the fabric to the shank (which is the thread located between the fabric and button). See the needle in the top two photos below? Pull the button away from the fabric and wrap your thread tightly around the shank. Simply slip the needle through the shank twice and trim the leftover thread.

Step 6: Sport that button with pride. Boo-yah.

Week 3 : Expect Great Things from a Great God

Parents... your daughters are amazing!! I was blown away by their responses to the exercise "this is who I desire to become, according to the Gospel." God is doing a mighty work in each of their lives and I am humbled so deeply at the fact I get to see His growth come to fruition in their hearts. If you helped guide them through scripture in order to complete the homework, thank you!! I encourage you to sit with them throughout the semester and discuss whether or not they are seeking and achieving the goals they have set to become more like Christ.

We discussed the contrast between our perception of ourselves vs. God's perception of ourselves, and how our perception of ourselves should be replaced by how God views us... as a Princess of the King, a lady who is cherished and adored by our Savior. 

This concept is merely impossible for me to wrap my head around every day, so I can only imagine their little cabezas were pretty baffled as well! It's a lot to take in. :)

I gave them each a magnet with our class info and the verse Psalm 139:13-14. This is a reminder to each student that God created her inmost being, knitted her intricately in her mother's womb, that she is fearfully and wonderfully made... and for that (among many other reasons), we should be confident in who He has created us to be and to PRAISE HIM!

At some point in the class, we began talking about purity. This was totally not in the plans for class, but when the Holy Spirit leads, you gotta follow His direction!!

I didn't go in depth for this conversation, as the girls range from ages 12 to 17 years old, but we did talk briefly about dating (don't date anyone you can't see yourself marrying one day) as well as praying for their future husbands. As the Lord has done a miraculous work in my life through praying for my husband (years and years before knowing who he would be), I get super excited about speaking to young ladies about the importance of praying for their future husbands and setting the non-negotiables prior to dating. The girls seemed to be pretty pumped about a few of the ways I prepared for my future husband, so we will be tweaking the syllabus a little and spend one class session on the topic of: Praying and Waiting for My Future Husband. 

In class this week, the girls filled out "My Lifetime List" (a similar idea to a bucket list). I made one of these in high school and have completed almost everything on the list - thanks to opportunities the Lord has opened to me... and to my parents for giving me a "Travel Jar" to save my pennies after I told them I had put traveling to Australia on my list. The purpose of this exercise is for the girls to DREAM BIG!! Set goals that seem unattainable and watch God unfold them if they are seeking His will. 

Parents, I encourage you to go through the lists your daughters came up with and discuss ways they can reach those goals... even if that means giving them a "Vacation Jar" to save their pennies for that big trip to Hawaii, Japan or tour around Europe they're wanting to venture on. Find creative ways to challenge them in reaching for those goals. Once again, the Lord humbled me in a mighty way when I saw students writing, "Go on a mission trip" or "Serve somebody". Your daughters are precious. Take comfort in knowing God is using you, parents, in a mighty way!!

Final Note: I will not be teaching for the next four weeks. If you need me, I will still be fully accessible (via phone or email). The wonderful Mrs. Amy Miller will be taking over! Thank you, Amy!!

Week 2 : Toffee-Almond Popcorn Balls

Are you ready to make this savory, semi-healthy snack?

Well, the girls of our Life Skills were definitely ready this afternoon. They tackled this toffee task fearlessly!! Now you can too... if you dare.

Warning: This project has the potential of becoming overwhelmingly messy, so layer those countertops with the necessary protection (tarps, maybe?).

As my students would say, the first thing you do in the kitchen is.... 
Read the directions. They are wonderful listeners (I explained that reading the directions is vital, as the creators of those directions spent countless hours trying to come up with the perfect recipe and instructions).

Obviously, the "other"first thing you do in the kitchen is...
Wash your hands. Whew! One of my students got this one correct. :)

Now.

Let's get cooking...

One could easily skip this next tasty step, but it's one of the few things that sets this snack apart as "healthy". We popped our own popcorn, thanks to Pop-Secret Corn Kernels and Extra Virgin Coconut Oil.

Coconut Oil, though a couple of the girls showed a bit of distaste towards it in the beginning, is super healthy for you. In fact, it's one of the healthiest oils you can use when cooking. Unlike all of the unnecessary additives microwavable popcorn includes, the popcorn kernels only have one ingredient: Premium Jumbo Popping Corn. Compare those nutrition labels! Plus, it's much more fun to make. :)

P.S.: You can't taste the coconut oil in these popcorn balls when they're finished. 

Step 1: Scoop a teaspoon of coconut oil into a heavy 3 quart or larger pan with a lid. 

Step 2: Place a few kernels in the oil, cover pan and turn heat to medium high. When you hear that first kernel pop, that's your cue to add the remaining popcorn. (We used 2/3 cup of kernels.)

Step 3: Shake pan gently over the heat with lid slightly ajar to allow steam to escape.

Step 4: When popping slows to 2-3 seconds apart, remove pan from heat and carefully pour into a separate large bowl. Sprinkle it with a dash of salt, if you'd like.

Ok. Now that step is out of the way. Reward yourself for your hard work by sneaking in a few bites of popcorn. 

For the Toffee-Almond Popcorn Balls, you will need the following ingredients stacked along your counter for easy access:

• 2 Tbl unsalted butter, plus more for shaping (yes, we'll be getting our hands buttered up)
• 1 bag (10 oz.) mini marshmallows
• 16 cups popped popcorn (from 2/3 cup kernels)
• 1/2 cup toffee pieces
• 1/2 cup chopped almonds
• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

I broke the girls up into teams of 2 or 3, as each team was assigned a separate task. I have arranged the teams in order of the steps we made the recipe:

Team 1 Butterers: In a large pot (or it can be the same one you used to pop your kernels), melt butter over medium heat. 

Team 2 Mini Mallows: Add the mini marshmallows and cook, stirring, until melted. This should take about 5 to 6 minutes.

Team 3 The Almondeers: Pound the slivered almonds to make them "chopped almonds", measure out 3/4 cup and mix them into the marshmallow mix.

Team 4 The Toffee Gals: Measure out 3/4 cup of the toffee chips and mix them into the marshmallow-almond mix.

Team 5 The Chocolate Chips: Measure out 3/4 cup of the chocolate chips and mix the tasty treats into the marshmallow-toffee-almond mix.

Team 2 continues to stir the marshmallow mix.

In the meantime, we spread out three pieces of parchment paper along the countertops. Each girl got about 1/2 cup of popcorn placed on their corner of parchment. By this time, the marshmallow mix was ready.

The girls stood in line as I smeared a sliver of butter on each of their hands. {Messy, messy!!} This will help the shaping process.

I placed a spoonful of the yummy mix on top of each girl's bundle of popcorn and they began to form the popcorn into the shape of a perfect 4-inch ball. 

Before I knew it, they were chowing down!!

According to the original recipe, you are actually supposed to fold the popcorn into the mix so it looks a little something like this...

But we didn't do that because (1) it would be way too hot for the girls to form into balls and (2) it was a lot more fun and messy to do it the way we did in class. You may choose to fold in the ingredients if you're trying this on your own though. Place the perfectly rounded popcorn balls onto the parchment paper to cool. 

Here's the end result:

Delicious.

A huge thank you to the wonderful folks at Everyday Food for this recipe. :)
Makes 16 
Total Time: 30 min + cooling
per popcorn ball: 168 cal; 6 g fat (3 g sat fat); 3 g protein; 28 g carb; 2 g fiber

Week 1 : Introduction to Life Skills

Oh. Yes. We will be learning how to be a woman this semester. More importantly, we will be learning how to be a true woman of God's heart - one who is in a constant search for becoming who God wants her to become. 

One way we will begin that process is to know who we are; whose we are; and who we should aim to become, according to the Gospel. 

In class, we will fill in these sheets...

Maybe you'll notice that "this is who i am..." is a smaller box than "this is who God says i am...", and "this is who God says i am..." is smaller than "this is who i desire to become, according to the Gospel..." - There is an intentional reason for that. ;)

It should end up looking something like this:

For homework, I've asked the gals to complete the final page of the assignment: 

"This is who i want to become, according to the Gospel..."

Girls, ask for your parents' input on this one! They have a lot of wisdom on this subject, so soak it in. :)

Parents, if your daughters don't ask for help... offer it. Once again, you most likely have a lot of wisdom on this (share stories of Christ's redemption plan in your life, verses that God has used to speak to you and mold your heart). 

I'm so excited to see what the girls write down for this! We will save these in our binders and re-visit them throughout the semester in order to see the way Christ is transforming our lives into a clearer picture of who He is.