Color

I have forgotten to take pictures of WAY too many projects this past year. But, here is a blanket I did a month ago that is one of my current favorites :)

Minky Giraffe Pants

LOVE these little pants I made for baby B. Super simple, very similar way of making it as the Made tutorial. I added ruffles to the bottom for some kicky flash :)

Valentine Box

A little late is better than never, right?

I found this idea on Pinterest, and ran with it. Well, slowly guided my 4 year old who had her own ideas and vision of what to do with the supplies I gave her...

Connor's Blanket

We have SO many pregnant friends right now...I have a complete inventory of material ready for baby blankets, my go to baby gift :)  I love flannel on one side and minky on the other, it's been a favorite of ours here so that is what I make our friends!

A dump truck for a Construction company owning daddy!

So soft and cozy, makes me want to snuggle in :)

Froggy Cake Pops

My friend's little girl was turning 4, and she asked me to help her make Cake Pops for the party! It is a tedious task, so it's always more fun to make them with a friend :)

My friend had gotten all the supplies, so this was none of my creativity, I just showed up and supplied the labor :) We used the Wilton Markers and were sadly unimpressed with their sticking power on the chocolate.

Valentine's

I loved the "Rocker" Valentine's so much from I am Momma - Hear me Roar, that I had to create my own! We went to Papa's house and borrowed his guitar. They were so fun, but hard to decide on pictures afterwards!

D even drew a picture on the back of hers :)

Usually it is the girls that have too many pictures for me to pick from, this time it was H that had a ton of good pictures!

 I had a sick baby at home, so she missed her photo opportunity.

It's been too cold to go outside again, so I tried inside, this was my third time sitting down with her (which is part of the reason for lack of creativity in outfit) and out of three different "sessions" with B, this was the best we could get. I guess that's what happens with 1 year olds :)

Kids Art

To finish off the "art work" in the kids room, I wanted something fun to make fun of the fact that it is a brother and sister sharing a room.

I made a sign to hang over each kids bed, to show that it is their personal space!

I threw together the signs in Photoshop, uploaded them to Wal-mart and had them printed on canvas. Why Wal-mart? Because it is where I found the cheapest canvas :)

The picture doesn't show it very well, but each child is in a Junior Loft. As much as I would have loved normal bunk beds to make the room feel bigger, I had two concerns 1) they would fight over who got the top bunk, and 2) the ceiling is too low and they would hit themselves on the ceiling fan!

With two beds in there, I wanted additional space, so the junior lofts creates a play area underneath for them. I'm in the works on creating curtains so that they can have "forts" under their beds!

for links on the Reverse Silhouette Art you can check out the Rocket and the Ballerina!

Boys Room Art

Rememeber the Reserve Painting Art I did of the ballerina for my daughter's room? I of course had to make one for my son too :)

Horrible lightin in my whole house = horrible pictures, but you get the idea :)

Both kids with their "cooridinating" artwork! The joys of blending the styles of two VERY oppinionated children. But I must say, I'm happy with the simplistic look that is the brother/sister room they get to share for a few years!

Brownies

My daughter LOVES brownies, she would eat them everyday if I'd let her. I've made this recipe several times, and it is always a winner with anyone who tries them! 

for the first time this week, I added Chocolate Buttercream frosting, per the HALF birthday girl's request, and they were even more fab!

Reverse Painting Kids Room Art

My son and daughter share a room, not ideal, but at 4 and 6 years old they love it! I wanted to come up with a way to show their individual sides yet tie them together to unify the room. I had a simple vision, that we will get to...first in the series will be my daughters picture!

Now, how to get there...

Many moons ago, in house #2 (we are now on house #4), I had painted these canvases to fill our large basement wall. After moving out of that house they never fit in with my design scheme, and the colors were a little off, so they have sat in storage, waiting for the day when they would be used again :)

lay out your canvas and cover it with the paint color of your choice, mine was white. This will be the color of the silhouette in your picture. While your assistant is doing this task for you, you can go ahead and work on the next step :)

Either sketch out your image or use clipart to find what you are looking for. Trace the image on contact paper, and painstakingly cut out the design from the contact paper.

Peel off the contact paper and place it on the Canvas. Then paint the canvas the desired color.

When it is dry, peel of the contact paper carefully to reveal the final artwork!

Chocolate Buttercream

Check out what I've been naughtily eating by the spoonful...

Check out my chocolate Buttercream recipe.

A short Vacation

Last week we were so lucky to be able to line up babysitters and head on vacation!

Ixtapa, Mexico has beautiful sunsets!

They give massages in random buildings that look like this...6 beds lined up in a row ready for you to lay down next to some random stranger to "relax"!

Little hole in the wall taco joints that are too expensive for locals, really do make great tacos and quesadillas. Sadly, this place that was "too expensive" sold 3 tacos and fresh veggies for $4 (US) a plate.

Scary little boats like this take you across the water to visit Ixtapa Island for wonderful snorkeling. When you ask about the safety of the boat, the always optimistic workers tell you, "no worries, you wear life jacket!" Only to get on the boat and unable to find any life jackets on the little boat...

The trip was wonderful, but unfortunately cut short. My mother-in-laws father unexpectedly passed away, my in-laws were with us on the trip, so we all booked tickets to head back home as soon as possible.

To add another kink, the day we flew home, my friend was watching my kids for me, and her father was sent out of town to a heart hospital unexpectedly. My friend felt awful not being able to help, but fortunately my dad was able to take another day off of work to help out! The kids were in good hands the whole time we were gone and were NOT ready for our early return!

I can't wait to go again, until then I have piles of laundry to do :)

Babble

I'm a little slow, but one of my creations made a Babble Round-up in December! yippee!!

For a peek, check out the cute doll clothes I made here.

Laundry Stand

Has anyone ever made one of Ana White's fabulous plans? They are so detailed an dwell layed out, they are awesome! We made the laundry stand, and it turn out perfect!

Isn't it lovely how quickly it "organizes" you! :)  Do note that to add the baskets, this stand is probably 5-6" taller than a standard laundry stand.

Isn't is lovely! We went for a clean look and left off the option trim that was shown in Ana White's plans. My sister-in-law used her cricut to cut the vinyl letters for me.

 And a quick shot of my awful laundry room...really wishing I had a room instead of the utility closet, but I'll take what I get :) and yes, my pictures come complete with dirty laundry in the baskets and clean in the dryer! ha!

More Fun in 2012

Do I dare learn a new trade? I feel like I don't have enough time to sew...but I want to learn to crochet! My daughter received a beautiful blanket when she was born from my best friend, and I want to learn how to make one, too!

I think I'll explore Crochet School....looks fun :)