Merry Christmas

12.27.2010
It's a little late, but here's to a wonderful Christmas and wishing you all a Happy New Year as well........Cheers!

tags & bags

12.17.2010
Want a fun gift wrapping idea? Burlap. It's super cheap (like $3/yd at JoAnn's) and I love the rough texture.
The gift tags I made by cutting out several small pieces of fabric about 2 x 3 1/2 inches. I sewed small bits & pieces of lace or ribbon onto the tags. The strawberry one is my fave. I hot glued ric rac around the edges of the wrong side. Then I decided it needed something more. I found a little strawberry that had fallen off of a pincushion and I hot glued it to the corner. These would be cute with buttons, velvet ribbon, bakers twine and other random stuff you find around the house. And if you don't sew, everything can be hot glued on.

I had some extra fabric, so I decided to make a gift bag. I tied the tag on with one of the fibers that I yanked off of the burlap.

If you're wondering how to get the tag on, just take the tip of a sharp pencil (or a needle) and shove it into one of the holes in the burlap. This will widen it so you can insert your string.

Oh....and the whole to and from thing - I printed onto paper and cut into strips. I then took one of the small strips and fastened it to the back of the tag. For all you scrapbookers out there who have a bajillion stamps.....it would be fun to see these stamped with the small individual letters. That was my original plan, except I was too cheap to buy the rubber stamp set. ;)
Wishing you all a fun, Christmas light filled, hot cocoa drinking, snow angel making, gingerbread baking kind of weekend!!! ♥

cookies & milk

12.15.2010
Every year our family looks forward to the Holidays and the different traditions that go along with it. Leaving cookies and milk for Santa is a must. Now that the boys are getting older they've started thinking about the reindeer too. So in addition to leaving a bowl of carrots for them, we have started the tradition of reindeer food as well. It was a hit last year and we will definately be doing it again this year.
If you would like to make your own reindeer food, simply fill a ziplock baggie with oats (& gold glitter if you want to go all out). Print these toppers, cut, then staple to the top of your baggies. Have the kids sprinkle the "reindeer food" on the front lawn before bed. You can also make reindeer track marks on the tops of your cars, in the front yard...for a finishing touch to be found the next morning. Such a fun idea....but I'm always looking for more. What are some of your favorite Christmas traditions?

hey there

12.07.2010
Delilah. The newest collection of fabric by Tanya. These are only a handful from the collection. Can you tell the pink and red colorways are my faves? I can't wait to get my hands on some of this. Can you just see Delilah being made into sweet ruffle pants, vintage looking pillows, buntings, aprons and more? Love!

monday

12.06.2010
What started out to be this kind of day.......you know the one where it's overcast, everything goes your way, the kids get home from school just as you are pulling the pumpkin bread out of the oven. You ice it and make hot cocoa to go with it, turn on the tree lights, cue up the holiday music. Well, today was not that day. That day was called Friday.

Today is the day where I am finally trying to get some blogging done, crafting done...etc. and all I can hear during naptime is MAMA...MAMA.........MAMA! This I am actually used to. Trying to get Lola to nap these days has proven quite tricky. So I let her talk/whine it out for a while and go in to check on her a few times, and then finally commit the mama no-no...I gave her a bottle of milk. (I know, I know all about bottle rot. The 4th child is the only one we have done this with. And we make sure to take it away after she falls asleep and we usually brush her teeth after.) Well, today I went through all the usual steps of getting her to sleep (check on her, check on her, give bottle, wait, take it away, wait) and finally, after a prolonged period of this whining I went in to check on her. By the way, my definition of whining- making any one syllable word into two. With Mo-om being the top contender.

When I walk in, she is standing up saying "I poop"! (I'll spare you the pictorial) Diaper is off and planted dirty side down onto her pillow and it looks as if this pint size Picasso has fingerpainted the crib, bedding, clothes....etc. So I take the soiled clothes off and run her to the tub. I start the bathwater and say "hold on" to the side of the tub while I get the wipes. I am gone only a few seconds and upon my return, I hear a soft little voice say "oh no" as I look down to see her riverdancing in a puddle of urine. I clean her up and the floor up and get her settled in to her bubble bath and against my better judgement utter the words "I'll be right back" as I dash down the hall to her room to grab the soiled items and throw them in the wash. Poke my head in the door to check on Lola again. She smiles and says "hi". I start the laundry then return for operation: clean up baby. As I'm going to pour the shampoo/bodywash into my hand nothing comes out but some water which someone has tried replacing the real deal with. "What happened to the shampoo?" I ask. This cute little munchkin face looks up at me with a great big smile and says as she points "Down there". Lovely.

RE-punzel

11.05.2010
"RE-punzel, re-punzel, let down your hair! Okay pince!"

No, that was not a typo. That is the pronunciation here in this house. I love it when this girl uses her imagination and plays with her dolls and toys. I love seeing the stuff she comes up with. My favorite is hiding around the corner and taking pics when she doesn't know I'm there.

We are anxiously anticipating Disney's newest masterpiece "Tangled". Or "Re-punzel" as Luci would say. Excited that this is one the whole family will want to see. Getting 8 and 6 year old boys wanting to see the same movie as a 3 year old girl......now that is an accomplishment! (Go Disney!)
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend! Ours involves finishing up birthday preparations for our oldest son who will be turning 8 on Sunday. My how time flies.

rainbow legs

10.19.2010
If rainbow leggings could solve the world's problems it would be a more colorful place. Thankful today that they solve this little girl's. If she is grumpy, fussy or tired, I'll reach in my bag of tricks for this instant pick-me-up. I am rewarded with a great big smile every time.

While solving the world's problems would be nice, today I am content with solving this one year old's.

spotted & hearted

10.13.2010
Are these not the cutest picnic boxes you have ever seen? Boxsal picnic boxes are eco friendly, modern day, reusable picnic boxes. I'm crushin' on the Todays Date (shown above). I have just added fall picnic to the top of my to do list!

Halloween felt banner

10.12.2010
Still decorating for Halloween? Here's a simple inexpensive banner tutorial that will have your house looking festive in no time at all. Don't sew? Omit thread for hot glue and and you can join in the fun too!
Supplies needed:
felt (various colors)
thread or hot glue gun
ribbon
stuffing
First make a template for each of the shapes you want. I made a pumpkin, candy corn, bat and ghost. If you don't want to freehand it, you can find many templates on the web.
Second cut out the shapes by tracing around your template with a pen. Make sure to cut two at a time so you have a front and back. Sew eyes on, then sew together, making sure to leave a 1 inch opening to stuff.

Third stuff your shapes then sew closed.

Fourth sew your shapes to your ribbon. You can glue on little bows to up the cuteness and cover up your seams.

Now step back and enjoy your handiwork. You are finished!

I will be linking this project to these rad blogs:

weekend snapshots

10.11.2010
This weekend flew by much too fast, but I made sure to bring the camera to remember the awesomeness. The boys spent the weekend with their cousin which left two little girlies, Karl and I. Wow! We had forgotten how quiet is is with 2 out of 4. It was almost like we were on a date. Almost! Well....since the movies were out of the question, we decided what to do with ourselves. Since we all adore shopping (I am lucky to be married to a man who loves to shop as much as I do) we decided to hit the mall.
Luci gets the glazed over look with the big wide smile when you mention "shop-piiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing!" (as she pronounces it)
Lunch, bookstore, frozen yogurt...and then one of our faves....Urban Outfitters. I find something new to love everytime I go. Today it was these cute little cupcake molds that look like a teacup. Adorable! Also gotta love the paper liners in an assortment of cute prints. If you've never been to this store you really must. I get inspiration with every visit. Just make sure you don't bring along any reading children. If you've been there, you know what I'm talking about!

Esther's

9.20.2010
Esther's cupcakes are my fave. All the yummy frosting and the way they melt in your mouth. But of course my absolute fave's are the cocoa velvet. And I would gladly make a cupcake run because no matter how hard I could try, mine would never taste this good. It must be the special magic sprinkles they put into them. (the same kind that go into restaurant hamburgers and steak......oh, and Chinese food)

Karl surprised me last month with a special date to a Michael Buble concert. The day of the concert he came home on his lunch break with 1/2 dozen of these babies (all for me- he didn't even eat one) and a bouquet of white flowers. Now that's love!

long time coming

9.17.2010
You know when things have been out of sorts for a while and little by little they start falling back into place (no matter how significant the circumstance) a return to familiarity/normalacy feels good. You can sit back, relax and say...."it's been a long time coming".

Such as this blog post. Having to deal with a dead computer, rehabilitating a spare and fixing blog issues, this blog is finally appearing back to normal on my monitor so I feel as if I can once again get my groove on.
Such as this new business venture I have been wanting to do (and placed in the back of my mind) for the past year. I'm an independant stylist now for Stella & Dot....only the cutest (not to mention celeb and editor endorsed) jewelry on the planet right now! **Shameless plug alert**
Don't you just love their gorgeous couture pieces such as the Musette necklace above and the delicate pieces like the Love script necklace in silver? I could see either piece worn with jeans and a tank or dressed up. What would you wear it with?
Also loving their little girls line (in the top pic). Luci has claimed one of the catalogs for herself and has let it be known that she wants one of everything in pink. I think my first customer may be a 3 year old with big brown eyes. Too bad she doesn't have a credit card, because I know she'd place a generous order!
Such as this sneak peek of an upcoming tutorial I am wrapping up and will be sharing with you all shortly. It involves a cheap tank and some scrap fabric. So.....cheers to crafting and jewelry! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend filled with cupcakes! See ya on Monday.

footprints

8.26.2010
When looking through our beach photo's, I came across this one which reminded me of my favorite poem.

Footprints in the Sand

One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky. In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, other times there was one only.

This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life, when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints, so I said to the Lord,
“You promised me Lord, that if I followed you, you would walk with me always. But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life there has only been one set of footprints in the sand. Why, when I needed you most, have you not been there for me?”

The Lord replied, “The years when you have seen only one set of footprints, my child, is when I carried you.”


Such a beautiful inspiring poem to end our week. It's not hard to see why it's a classic.

Hope you all have a blissful weekend! Happy Friday!

ferris wheels

8.13.2010
Happy Friday!! Here's to hoping your weekend is filled with ferris wheels and cotton candy.

just beachy

8.12.2010

Although the water was cold, that didn't stop them from enjoying the beach. Something about the waves crashing against the shore beckoning you to come play. Just thought I would post a few quick pics and also let you know that I will be having some more craftiness to share with you all coming up soon!

bundtinis

8.11.2010
Last weekend we went on a mini getaway before the kids start school. Driving around town was easy peasy now that we don't have to mapquest everything ahead of time.....thanks to GPS! We can be spontaneous on the fly! One of our favorite finds was this little place in Los Gatos, CA. "Nothing bundt Cakes". Hmmm....can you guess what they sell? The little tiny ones above are called bundtinis. I want a whole dozen of them on top of a cake stand on my desk. I could eat them at my leisure all day long with a cold frosty glass of milk.

And with flavors like white chocolate raspberry and my personal favorite....red velvet, it's a good thing there is some distance between us, otherwise I might end up being another "Biggest Loser" success story waiting to happen.

On our way to the beach one day, Karl stopped by and got me a personal one to go. Not wanting the littles to see, I slipped it into my beach bag while devising a way to eat it inconspicuously. Well, the pefect moment never came and after a long day at the beach, dinner, pool and spa, Karl walks in to find me in the hotel bathroom (fan on) sitting on the toilet (the lid was closed by the way), crumb covered face and all, devouring this thing entirely with my hands, which were now covered in frosting. He started laughing uncontrollably and says " boy, I wish I had a picture of you right now". Feeling like such a binger on a binge-fest who gets caught (which I am not by the way, this was my "me time" plus there were no forks) I lamely reply...."Oh.....I saved you some" as I held up the container offering up the last bite.

fair + polaroids

7.28.2010
Thought I would share a few shots from the fair last night. Then I thought I would turn them into polaroids. I found the perfect polaroid frame here. So fun! It even adds a slight discoloration to the photo to make it more polaroid-y! It's a zip file, so you'll have to use WinZip to open it. You can get a free trial version on their site. Then you open the unlocked version with photoshop. Sounds complicated......this is where a techie husband comes in handy. If you don't have one of those, check out this site.

Here's a few of the shots that are makin' me happy today.

craftiness on hold

7.27.2010
We have been moving the past week, so all craftiness has been on hold. Now that we're getting settled in, I'm looking forward to decorating the new house, coming up with new color schemes, sharing new tutorials with you all.........but for now I am still trying to locate my blow dryer, make up, glue gun, dishes..................well, you get the point. I am really excited, however, about my new work space which is going to be a formal dining room (who uses those anymore....right? well at least when it's carpeted..and you have 4 kids) converted to art studio. I'll have to share before and after pics once the project is completed.

For now it's off to find a charger to charge a camera battery for tonights trip to the State Fair! Yay! Better make sure to find the camera while I'm at it!
p.s. lovin this pic of Luci with the "oh my" look on her face....perfectly describes me this week. ♥

guesting today

7.20.2010
Hi everyone. A Happy Circus is sharing a tutorial today over at Blue Cricket Design. If you've never been to Blue Cricket Design you will want to peruse all of Becca's awesome tutorials. Go check it out!!



Also linking up here today:

denim

7.16.2010
I wanted to have a go at this belt again and found the perfect neutral material just lying around my house. An old pair of blue jeans! I just love to be able to repurpose something old to make something new. And denim goes with everything right? I cut down the leg of one and then another and sewed them together to make my long strip. When I was finished with the belt part it looked like it needed something more, so I cut off the tab front of one side of the jeans. The belt loop then became the perfect center for the bow. Soo cute! My to do list this week consists of shopping my closet for more blue jeans to repurpose. I've got big plans for these. Happy Friday!!!

guest posting

7.15.2010
Hi everyone. I'm sharing one of my tutorials today on Blue Cricket Design (an awesome site with lot's of tutorials). The hair pretty organizer. So stop by, visit Becca and check it out when you get a chance.

ruched rosette belt

7.09.2010
Happy Friday everyone! I am guest posting over at Tatertots and Jello today so stop on by and learn how to make one of these while you're at it. The ruched rosette belt. Super cute, super simple.....okay, I know I say that about every project, but seriously (sewing-wise) it's nothing but straight lines.
Not sure what this weekend will consist of, but I know that I'll be off to Chic-fil-A today (probably all 3 times) for the free food day. All you have to do is dress like a cow. And in this economy, my pride is definately for sale! Check out the details here. Nothing like free food to brighten up your day!

thrifted finds

7.06.2010
Apparently our trip to the thrift store this weekend was quite successful. Not only did we score tons of books, practically brand new for the kiddos (at only 38 cents each), but I also became the proud owner of all of this trim goodness, pretty vases and lovely little pedestal dishes. I already have plans for some of that trim. And the dishes would be cute for holding scrapbooking thingies such as colored paperclips, brads and embellishments.

The best part was the price. Because it was a 1/2 off sale the dishes were 99 cents, the vases were 49 cents and the trim was $2.49! I also scored a cute yellow purse for $2.49, boxed puzzles for the boys .25 cents/each, movies for the kids .50 cents/ each, silk Ann Taylor head scarf for under $2, and a cool chair for $2.50. (Next time, I'll have to check for vintage linens.) How exciting! Who knew you could find such cool stuff at your local thrift store.

ps. Hope you all had an awesome 4th of July! There was supposed to be this fun, patriotic food related dessert picture on here yesterday... with a little note from me to you wishing you a wonderful holiday. Unfortunately, I never got around to making that dessert.....after all, it is the thought that counts. ♥