A Year in the Making

About a year ago while at Joann Fabric I found a pattern for a tent that was on sale for $1. I thought it would make a great reading tent and that Ava would love it. Since I don't really know how to sew I had to enlist the help of my mom. As we looked at the pattern we realized it was going to be a lot of work and take a lot of fabric. So, for the past year we have been working on it.

First I had to buy all the fabric. The main part of the tent took 10 yards alone, so I had to buy the different fabrics overtime using coupons. It took several months before I purchased all the fabric and other pieces.

Then it was on to cutting it out. I went to my parents for a visit and started this process. My mom helped me lay out the pieces and I started cutting. It took a while because the tent had several long panels and some tricky pieces for the canopy. After this visit the pieces were cut out.

The sewing part of this project lasted for many months and was done a little bit at a time. My mom helped me do some of the easier parts, but she sowed the majority of it. Since my mom has a lot of other (quilting) projects going on and I have a energetic 2 year old it took close to 6 months to finish sowing.

This past weekend the project was completed and hung in Ava's new bedroom. It was so exciting to see the tent go up. Ava was excited too and couldn't wait to get inside. We placed a pillow, small bean bag, book basket, and a kid's camping light inside. Ava got right in and settled down in the bean bag. She enjoys having us read to her or reading to herself . She has also taken her naps for the last two days in her tent. It is great to see something I had a part in making bring Ava so much joy.

Thanks mom for your hard work and patience with me. We Love You!

The tent hangs from the ceiling. The canopy is African animal print and the doors are zebra print. In this picture Ava is napping inside.

Ava and I hanging out in the tent. While making room for the tent we found Ava's ukelele from Hawaii. She has been singing and playing ever since.

Ava and Nona Carole. We made sure to put it up before they left, so Nona could see Ava enjoy it.Ava taking a nap in her tent.