Publisher: CailaMade – sewing, crafts, photography

About Hi! My name is Caila and this is my family. I’m the mother of three littles, the wife of one hottie of a husband, and a writer-turned-sewing enthusiast. Welcome to my space! In case you haven’t noticed, I LOVE to sew. I always have a million projects going on and more hobbies than I know what to do with. Yes, sometimes I go a little crazy, but I’d rather be busy than bored. (And yes, I say that to myself a lot when I’m going a little nuts). I’m also a freelance writer, a reader, a runner, a coffee-drinker, a Believer, a wife and a mommy. I like to talk about all of these things here in this space. Why I blog I taught myself to sew using the internet, which is why I blog about sewing today. If it weren’t for the YouTube videos, blog posts and sewing patterns put out there by so many talented sewists, I wouldn’t know a darn thing about cutting along the grain, bias tape or rotary cutters. Now they are such a huge part of my life. I want to pass that along in some way. My Family You see this picture? This is pretty typical of my family. I’m making a funny face because I like to be a bit of a goof. My husband is smiling at me with a look that says, “I love my wife, but she’s a bit of a goof.” My baby boy is sucking his thumb, Hudson is laughing, and Abby is saying “cheeeeese!” If given the chance, we all like to ham it up. The Littles This is Hudson and he is just about to turn five. He knows more about Space than you and I ever dreamed of, loves to build with legos and is a great swimmer. His laugh is contagious and he likes to drive his little sister crazy. His defining characteristic is his smile. I love my big Hudson-boy. This is Abby and she is two. She’s always the girl running through the field in a dress with leaves in her hair and dirt on her face. She loves to pose for pictures, wears necklaces and pretends to be shy when she meets new people. She might be developing a lisp and I love her all the more for it. Her defining characteristic is her dimple. This is Stryder and at the writing of this he is 8 months old. He is my most docile baby so far, but he likes to yell at his sister when she takes a toy away from him. He’s in love with his thumb, loves to clap and has recently started pulling himself up on all the furniture. He will be walking soon, this boy! His defining characteristic is his hair and I love to kiss his cheeks. If he was a WWF wrestler, his name would be The Hair. Check it out in this picture: My Work Occasionally I take on freelance writing projects and work from home. Right now you are thinking that’s really cool and wishing you, too, could work from home in your pajamas with a full pot of coffee just down stairs. But before you get too jealous, believe me when I say it’s not all glamour and pajamas. Working from home just means I have to somehow pull off a professional job (with phone conferences) while there are children crying and talking in the background. YOU try keeping a professional conversation going while a little someone is pulling on your shirt, saying, “Mamma I needa go POOPOO, I needa POOP.” Yep. That said, I am very thankful that I can bring in a little cash for fun projects (or fixing up a house!) or whatever. It feels good to use my talents and I have a very helpful husband who watches the kids in the mornings when I work. Oh yeah, did I mention that I start at 5:30 in the morning so I can get as much done as possible before the kids get up? Envy me now, I dare you. Daily Life Life is full of the usual ups and downs around here. Sometimes we bump into each other a bit too much and the kids fight and I just want to hide in the library and remember what it was like to read a good book. But my babes won’t stay young forever. So I hold each one close, look in their little eyes, and ask to hear their thoughts. I am chasing joy through the crazy of life. Here is something I wrote awhile ago about the life we’re building as a family, and I still stand by it today: [Our] life is filled with children, and diapers, and sun, and trips to the beach, and whole roasted chickens for dinner, and the smell of laundry in the drier, and folded clothes on the red chair, and toys on the floor, and Brian’s stories from the ER, and medical tape in the top drawer instead of masking tape like normal families, and Abby saying “nooo” to everything in her adorable way, and Hudson looking at me with those big, gray-blue eyes, and Stryder waving his little arms and Brian still loving me so much I want to cry and me gathering it all up into my heart and breathing it deep. That’s a little glimpse into our daily life for you. Patterns and Tutorials I love sewing everything under the sun. However, designing patterns is quickly becoming my passion. I haven’t done a lot of this yet, compared with the many, many amazing pattern designers out there. But it’s something I love to do and plan on doing more from here on out. You can download two of my patterns for free here. Education and Professional Experience Just in case anyone cares about these details (c’mon, if you’re anything like me we are all eating cheerios right now and reading blogs before our kids get up), I graduated with a B.A. in Communications with a Minor in Writing and Literature from Oregon State University. Go Beavers! I’ve worked as a journalist, a marketing copywriter, an office manager to a State Representative, a communication specialist and am currently writing an online driver’s education program. So, no, I don’t text and drive. Thanks for visiting CailaMade! I’m so glad you stopped by. Please feel free to email me any time at cailamade@gmail.com. I also love receiving comments and I read and respond to each one. If you’re interested in seeing more, take a look at my Tutorials and Patterns page for projects and inspiration. Thanks again for stopping by! Caila