Mother of Invention

{A problem that requires some creative thinking}

Recently, I realized that two of Mia's favorite pairs of footie pajamas were getting holes in them. I asked for solutions for fixing this problem and was told to cut of the feet (logical I suppose, but this doesn't solve the problem because she loves the pj's because they are footie pj's) or to wear socks underneath, and while that may keep feet from getting cold, it doesn't really solve the problem either. I was feeling discouraged because I am terrible at sewing. It's something I have tried, and I guess if I had help and practiced, I could get better, but for now let's just say I can't sew.

Then Brett suggested that I (yes, I) could sew something into the bottoms of the feet and cover the holes. This supported my best guess for what to do (short of throwing them away, which if you know me is something I hate to do with something that still has plenty of use left), and the fact that he said this made me think I really could do it. So, I found some fabric that I had (remember I said I have tried to sew, and I hate to throw away things that are still useful?), and set to work.

{My "Pattern"}

First, I made a rough outline of the footie onto the fabric using a felt tip pen. I made sure that these were slightly larger to allow for any sewing mishaps when I tried to match up the material. I marked on the backside of the material so that the marker wouldn't show through on the pretty side. I cut out the first footie shape and then traced it two more times and cut those out, too. (There were three altogether for the two pairs of tjammies since three of the four feet had holes in them.)

{The inside after I was done}

Next, I turned the feet of the jammies inside out and then started sewing the footie shapes patches to them so that the pretty side of the material would show through the holes, although I couldn't tell you the name of the stitch I used or even if it counts as an actual stitch given how uneven it is. However, I made sure to get the initial knot of my thread sandwiched between my patches and the original material of the footies so that it wouldn't make an uncomfortable bulge. (I was proud of myself for thinking of that.)

{End Result: A Peekaboo of Pink}

This entire process wasn't too difficult, even with my rudimentary sewing skills, but it was how I spent a decent chunk of time Friday morning while the kids were playing nicely with each other. In the end, the results were enough to convince me that I had found a solution that would work until she outgrows those princess and Tinkerbell jammies that she so loves. My little girl was happy with my work, and admittedly, so was I. It reminded me of a quote by Eleanor Roosevelt, "You must do the thing you think you cannot do." I'm offering this as a little bit of inspiration for other moms who are feeling like they can't solve a problem for their child; it's amazing what we can do when we set our minds to it. And really, what wouldn't we do for our kids?