a look back

Looking back on 2010 I have so much to be grateful for and a lot of reasons I am truly blessed! 

It was a year filled with many 'firsts' for the Little Miss which were so fun to watch and I fell in love with being a mom more than ever before.

I couldn't ask for a better stay-at-home job than my etsy shop - I've never had more fun 'working' and appreciate all the support I've received, especially from Husband. 

I checked a goal off my list and learned how to crochet granny squares.

I loved being able to spend many afternoon nap times sewing fun clothes from vintage patterns.

We announced that we're expecting baby #2 and couldn't be happier about it!

We celebrated the Little Miss' 2nd birthday...

 ...with a music themed party - she is growing up so fast!

I started documenting my baby bump progress.

We found out we are having another sweet little girl! Yay!

I had a slight obsession with felt which I used for handmade Christmas gifts (more to come on that).

I am also grateful for the creative outlet this blog gives me (thanks for stopping by and being a part of it and welcome if you're new!).  I'm looking forward to sharing our happenings in 2011 - Happy New Year!

gifted

...for her...

...and for me...

I am looking forward to the day we can actually wear these. She is currently too little, and I am currently too big. 

(vintage dress for her found on ebay, for me thrifted)

holiday highlights

Hello! We just got back from our holiday travels which were so nice. I hope you had a lovely Christmas this year, ours was wonderful! I didn't end up taking many pictures but here are a few of the highlights I did manage to capture...

On Christmas Eve we opened our traditional family game. This year it was Chutes and Ladders which was fun. (However, locking the keys in the car while doing last minute stocking stuffer shopping and picking up dinner, not as much fun. Let's hope that doesn't become a tradition!)

On Christmas morning the Little Miss unveiled her big surprise, a play kitchen equipped with lots of food and pots and pans.  Now there is finally a proper home for her melamine dishes, yay! This was a big hit - she spent the rest of the morning cooking us meals and making us sip pretend cups of juice.

I got the Le Creuset pot of my dreams and Husband unexpectedly got the gaming headset of his dreams. That was actually a gift for both of us as now when he plays his games I get some peace and quiet instead of war background noises. Much better.

Then we headed down to be with the in-laws for some more Christmas fun. The Little Miss made her first graham cracker gingerbread house with her cousins. She did such a good job! We also got to spend a lot of time playing outside since it was much warmer there and that was a present in and of itself. All in all we were spoiled and loved, what more could you ask for? :)

I have just a bit more to finish up on her doll gift and then I'll share that with you too!

Did you get what you asked for this year?

merry christmas!

I was way too optimistic in what I could get done this weekend with a cold. It especially hit me hard yesterday. Be glad you can't hear my voice right now. It reminds me of the time I lost my voice in college. I went to my physics class and it just so happened to be the day that the cutest boy in class sat right next to me! He started talking to me and when I opened my mouth to reply a scary raspy old man voice came out. I was so mortified! Needless to say I didn't make a lasting impression on him, ha!

So, in light of the fact that the Little Miss and I are still in recovery mode, and I am still hoping to get a few more things done before we travel this week (like actually wrapping our presents) I will be signing off early for the holidays. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas! :)

the sick bug paid us a visit

The past few days we've been tucked away at home since the Little Miss woke up with a fever and congestion mid-week. It snuck up on us and put a hold on life, but I'm not complaining since I don't mind snuggling on the couch and rubbing her cute little feet (she's just like her mama). And now I am starting to feel a tickle in my throat so the weekend might turn out to be just as quiet as the week has been - I'm hoping not though since we have two Christmas parties to attend.

Thankfully her fever broke this morning. We are still taking it easy, but rather than stay inside one more day we did make it out for a short fat quarter run this morning. If I am going to be sick I wanted to be surrounded with everything I need to finish up her doll gift.

And buying fabric always seems to make me feel better so it was therapeutic!

While laying on the couch this week I spent some time sketching up wardrobe ideas. Some of them I already have finished in felt, but this weekend I'll be taking time to sew up the rest of Dolly's wardrobe using fabric, that and I need to start on her home sweet home.

Seems like everyone is sick right now, but if you are not I hope the sick bug skips your house! I better get a move on since for us Christmas is only 7 days away! We are celebrating on Christmas Eve since we will be traveling on Christmas Day. Have a lovely weekend!

dolly

Hopefully she will have a face soon, and hopefully the Little Miss will want to call her Dolly because I sort of love that name for her :)

 I am working on finishing up the last handmade gift I am giving the Little Miss for Christmas this year - a doll. I woke up at 6 am with my mind brim full of ideas of what I could do to give her a smashing wardrobe and even a place to call home. By the time I am finished I think it will end up being more of a gift for me than for her since I am having so much fun making everything!

Other than that I only have a couple more gifts to buy and then my Christmas shopping will be done! I am doing pretty well with not stressing this holiday season. Hope you are too!

family picture and baby bump

After church today we tried to get a good family photo for our Christmas card. Only problem - the sun was going down and fast! I hate how early it gets dark this time of year. So most of the shots were a little blurry since the Little Miss wouldn't sit still for the long exposure. I'm glad a few turned out okay, but I might try again  (earlier in the day) next week.

I bought her this cute plaid vintage dress especially for Christmas this year. I love it so much, but it smelled like it had been in storage for a long time so I washed and dried it and it shrunk at least three inches shorter! I almost cried, I couldn't believe I had put it in the drier! I am usually more careful with vintage clothes and let them air dry. But at least I know another baby girl is on the way who can wear it once her older sister grows out of it (which will probably be next week).

And here is my 27 1/2 week baby bump picture. I feel like I really grew these past couple of weeks. It's getting hard to put on my boots and I am always out of breath after climbing the stairs even though I am exercising regularly. But even though life is getting a bit more uncomfortable I am happy and so excited to meet this baby girl! Picking out a name is proving to be harder than I thought though...have any suggestions for me?

shop update and happy weekend!

I'm in charge of our immediate family Christmas party this year and since our schedules are so busy closer to Christmas, it's tomorrow! I thought I was pretty on top of the planning, but this morning I am finding myself super busy and crossing my fingers that I won't forget to bring anything (my sister is hosting since her house is bigger). It should be really fun though, the festivities include making baby blankets to donate, a silly talent show, gift exchange, yummy food, and games. It's nice to have an excuse to spend the day with family, we should do it more often!

I was able to add a few new items to the shop if you want to check them out. Hope you have a lovely weekend!

make believe - animal ear headbands

The Little Miss is in need of more play things that help her use her imagination and promote pretend play. We don't have a lot of room for toys around our house so we don't have very many and I'm sorry to say that most of them are for babies, not toddlers. So I thought I'd whip up some make believe/dress up gifts to give her for Christmas this year.

 

(L to R: fox, monkey, cow, deer, lion, rabbit, pig, mouse, horse)

Ever since Halloween she frequently asks me to draw a dog nose on her with my eyeliner, so what better to go with a little black nose than animal ears? We tried them on today before they get wrapped up and she had a lot of fun!

I used freezer paper to more easily cut the felt shapes (just draw the shape on the freezer paper and lightly iron it waxy side down onto the felt, cut around it, and then peel it off - you can reuse the same freezer paper shape several times), and double stick fusible to adhere the fabric to the felt, then embroidered around the parts I wanted, and finally used the sewing machine to stitch around the outside edges. 

Then I used a glue gun to stick them to the headbands and I was really surprised how well they stuck! You have to pull really hard to get them off (I had to re-do a couple and ended up cutting them off because it was so hard to get them off). But, I was still a little paranoid that little hands would find a way, so I ended up using embroidery thread to secure them even more and also help hide the glue.

I hope we will make many fun memories playing with these! (And as an added bonus last minute Halloween costumes will be easy to come up with!)

Here are the materials I used:

- headbands (from Walmart)

- wool felt

- freezer paper

- vintage and scrap fabric

- feather boa for lion/horse mane

- double stick fusible

- embroidery floss

- glue gun

this season

Lately I've been thinking about how I would like this busy Christmas season to be one full of love, service, fun, and the spirit of Christ. I want to find the balance between the spiritual side of Christmas and the sparkly commercial side - at least I want to try. So, I swiped the long list of projects/activities piling up in my head and instead I wrote down a short mandatory to-do list:

- make baby blankets to donate to the hospital (we are doing this with my family on Saturday)

- have a blast at our family Christmas party and let the Little Miss stay up as late as she wants playing with her cousins

- finish the handmade gifts I am giving and don't start any new ones

- take time to renew my faith and love for Christ and help the Little Miss understand why we are celebrating in the first place

- enjoy time with family and be thankful for them

And that's it. No pressure to do anything else for the rest of the month. I'm sure I'll end up getting more than my list done (like finishing that little project pictured) but it's nice to have given myself the okay if I don't. I already feel less stressed :)

shop update: shoes

It's been awhile since I've done a shoe update, so I've loaded the shop up with lots of choices!

Have a great weekend!

happy december

When it comes to Christmas I have a penchant for kitschy and in Husbands words 'creepy' decor. He teases me, but I can't help it - I just love little elf faces (so ugly they are cute, right?)! I'm still kicking myself for not snatching up this beauty to add to my Christmas collection. Oh, those Christmas tree hats! If it's old and smiling it catches my heart. Ha! These and more will be trimming the tree this year well out of reach of little hands. 

Do you have any Christmas collections?

cozy inside

I love the first snowfall that sticks. It makes me feel like the whole world is wrapped up in a cozy blanket. A homebody like me doesn't need much more of an excuse to stay tucked inside keeping nice and warm with a cup of tea and something to keep my hands busy.

Last year that was crocheting, this year my sister has given me full access to her wool felt stash and I couldn't be more giddy about it! The colors are perfection and I have so many ideas brewing that I could probably use it all up - but I won't. I will, however, be making some Christmas gifts for the Little Miss.

I've already started, but I have a lot more work to go... 

...and only 24 more days to do it!

baby bump: week 25

Stuffed full of baby and turkey. And very thankful for both.

Hope you all had a yummy Thanksgiving and are enjoying the holiday weekend with loved ones.

black friday

I had a little fun tonight on picnik making my logo festive for the holidays! :)

 I thought I'd show you a preview of some of the dresses and clothes I am currently working on adding to the shop. I hope to have all of these and much more available no later than the morning of Black Friday. And to make your holidays sweeter enter the coupon code GIVETHANKS for 20% off your entire order now through Monday (11/24-11/29)!

Want to be the first to know when these and other new items are added? Subscribe to my shop feed!

And to those of you celebrating tomorrow - have a Happy, Happy Thanksgiving!

giving thanks

(picture from when we were dating, he looks so young without his beard!)

I am thankful for my good husband. He makes me feel loved and he is easy to love in return. He is a wonderful father and I feel extremely lucky to call him my own. I'm so glad we get to spend so much time with him the rest of this week - in my opinion the best part of the holidays!

giving thanks

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I am grateful that my mother taught me to sew. When I was younger I never thought it would turn out to be a skill that would be so valuable to me, but now I look forward to a quiet afternoon, an inspired project, and the hum of my machine. Thanks for passing on your knowledge mom, hopefully I can do the same. 

giving thanks

(photo taken this summer pre-big baby belly)

 I am so grateful to be a momma. I get to watch this sweet little girl explore the world and witness her personality blossoming. I get to help mold her into the person she will become which is a huge responsibility, but more so a huge blessing in my life. Because by helping her learn and grow I am learning and growing myself in ways I never could have otherwise. And it is challenging and wonderful.

And I can't wait to double that blessing in my life soon.

little style

A lot of the time my favorite pictures are the ones where she pouts.

Hairclips - handmade gift from my sister

Blouse - vintage

Under the blouse - ballerina tutu leotard, Old Navy

Pants - Jeggings, Target

Shoes - vintage

She is off to have a slumber party with Grann and some cousins. We are free to have a date night :)

Have a great weekend!

shop update: holiday part 3

Here is a look at the last round of my holiday inspired shop updates - these clothes are now added to the shop!

smile list

Some peeks into my newly clean and organized craft room. All of these things make me smile...

1. This poster

2. My Grandmother's earrings

3. Wooden spools of thread

4. New old thrifted dresser (which now hides most of my mess)

5. Fabric and yarn

6. Beautiful wedding ring quilt given to me by my mother

7. Vintage children's clothes

What do you surround yourself with that makes you smile?

it's beginning to feel a lot like...

This weekend I held my brand new cute little nephew (my sister was due exactly 5 months before me and you better believe I got so scared and excited that it's officially my turn next), spent time cleaning and organizing my craft room which was in total chaos, acquired a bunch of the cutest vintage toddler party dresses that I adore for the shop, started on the third book of the Hunger Games series - I love a good read, and most importantly, I spent a lot of time with the Little Miss without feeling like a frustrated mother. It was nice. I feel like I'm back on my game.

This week my sister Shelly and I are planning to start on some handmade Christmas presents for our little girls. Here are some of my inspiration photos...

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I'm excited to get started, especially since it snowed last night which gets me in the Christmas spirit! Are you making any handmade gifts this year?