smokin' the singer

so if you've read my nov 1 post, you saw the halloween party pic. yeah, it was an 80's themed party and jonathan and i took awhile to decide what to be (mostly because things were so darn hectic for us both professionally and personally). the "duh" moment we experienced together came when we both entertained the thought of dressing up as 2 characters from {plug in jonathan's overly enthused voice here} "only the greatest film that started it all..." if you know my husband, even if just for a brief moment, you know of course we're talking about star wars. i mean, this is the guy who excitedly told my pal julie (whom hadn't yet seen star wars: episode 2 vs. the umpteenth times he's seen it) "oh man, i wish i were you right now" as the opening preface started to roll accompanied by that infamous tune. yes, we are *passionate* about star wars. anyways...

so we basically decided on han solo and leia less than a week until the party. halloween costume stores were slim pickins and ordering online was pushing a timely delivery as well as laying down some serious cash. so i came across this website that showed how to make leia's white dress. i thought to myself, "hmph, doesn't seem that hard. i think i'll just sew it!" that sunday we took a trip to joann's and boy what a learning experience that was. found the pattern (which was 40% off-cool) and all the supplies noted on the back of the pattern envelope. on the drive home i studied the picture of the dress. suddenly i started feeling nervous. what if this was way more complex than i was telling myself? have i bitten off more than i can chew? jonathan reassured me and said that he thought i could pull it off. glad one of us was confident about it. so i'm reading directions and man are they complicated. i mean, there were sewing words that i had *no idea* what they meant. i had to look stuff up online. i felt like such a bumbler, but just like the turtle in the race was known for...slow and steady always wins, right? :) i immediately gave "mental props" to both my sister and mom for being the master sewers they are. 6 nights of cutting, pinning and sewing later, my leia costume was finished. the singer sewing machine passed on to me from jonathan's mom sure got the shock of its life since joining our house. i'm sure it was thinking, "holy crap, is she really using me to make something other than a simple curtain for her classroom or scrapbook page? i think my motor might start smokin' from the sudden intense use."

all kidding aside, i was pretty pleased with the way it came out. i even added my own touches to the belt! :) jonathan told me it came out awesome. when i put it on and got my "cinnamon buns" made, he got "that look" on his face. as i told one of my teacher friends (whose husband is also a star wars freak), i don't normally indulge jonathan's obsession with star wars to this extent but when jonathan saw me fully made up, i instantly felt like we were on the verge of one of his fantasies being played out (ever see the episode of friends where rachael wears leia's gold bikini?). he kept going after my cinnamon buns, which i immediately told him were off limits at the party. but then, i digress...

i got a lot of compliments on my costume at the party, which was cool to hear after accomplishing such a feat. so, the lesson learned is (yes, there must be a lesson damn it, i'm not only chinese but a teacher as well)... "she who puts her mind to it can conquer the most ambitious endeavor."