Party decorations!

My sister coordinated a table decorating contest and dinner fundraiser for her church this past weekend. Since we were going and chances were the only children that would be in attendance would be my two and her two, I decided to help her out by decorating the kids table. The theme? How did you guess? Yes, Dr. Seuss...Cat in the Hat, to be exact!

Thing 1 and Thing 2 plates, complete with blue spiky napkin hair, fish in the fish bowl (complete with blue water!), shrink a dink fish, nose and whiskers courtesy of my kids, and a balancing act centerpiece. Simple, quick, and definitely loved by the kids! We had fun, kept the kids from breaking someone else's heirloom china, and helped raise funds for a great cause. We had to have a place for votes, too...so notice the cat in the hat hand!

Happy birthday, Dr. Seuss!

As you may have realized from our Seuss-inspired play room and our Cat in the Hat themed bake sale treats, we have a deep love for the master of imagination and his literary works. I hope to someday own the entire collection. Until then, thank you Dr. Seuss for the inspiration in so many ways!
We celebrated the day with brinner (breakfast at dinner) of Seuss type biscuits ( a Cat, a sock, a truffula tree, a fish and a foot...see the corresponding books minus the Lorax reference). "Ham" which was really a sausage at the request of the kids, and of course green scrambled eggs! We drank milk in cat in the hat cups (clear cups and red electrical tape) and had barbaloot fruit salad. We read Dr. Seuss books throughout the day-a favorite is "Oh Say Can You Say" a book of tongue twisters sure to get us laughing!
Thank you, Dr. Seuss for your literary contributions to the world!

Cute custom sleeping gown!

I made this for my cousin and her sweet baby girl for a long-distance baby shower. It would make a great gift for a new mom and baby in the hospital!

Christmas Pajamas for the whole family

I had the privilege of making custom coordinating pajamas for a family for Christmas this year. After ordering from someplace online last year with limited options, they decided they wanted to choose exactly what they got--and this is it! I love the way they turned out and hope that they do, too. Mom and daughter will sport matching top and pants with ruffles on the bottom hems, while dad wears a more manly version with straight pants and a split hem on the shirt. I hope they have fun cozying up during this Christmas season in their family pjs!

Getting ready for snow

Inspired by how much my boy loved his hat and cheek/neckwarmer combo last year, I just hat to make more before winter sets in! Children's hats are my new favorite. This hat/neck warmer combo is a favorite at our house. We love the book/movie that inspired this adorable orange creature, and was a starting point for many other hats and combos (pictures of those to come soon). I welcome custom requests and ideas for your little person!

Pumpkin Patch 2012

These pics were taken about 1/2 way through the day on the first day, so already a lot of stuff picked over! I am still in awe about Pumpkin Patch and what an amazing weekend it was...the weather was perfect, the sales were great, the friends and family helping me out made the days so much better...all the vendors I spoke with agreed it was an exceptional weekend!

The displays were an added bonus this year. I borrowed them from my in-laws who own a mercantile. Meant for DVDs, they were great for showcasing the 120+ reusable sandwich bags (which sold out) as well as the embroidered onesies and infant beanies. The taller displays in the back were perfect for tablet/e-reader clutches and the children's hats.

Thanks to all who came out and helped, shopped, and enjoyed the weekend!

Teacher gifts

Since school has started again, thought this would be an appropriate post. These were end-of-the-year teacher gifts for G's preschool teachers, but wouldn't these be fun anytime?

Thanks to Family Fun magazine for the inspiration. We made our own sugar cookie recipe that calls for jello powder to make them colored and flavorful. Cut out a flower shape, then cut a circle in the middle. Lay on a sheet of parchment paper on a cookie sheet, and tuck a lollipop/cake pop stick under the cookie so that it shows in the middle of the cut out flower. Place a hard, not gummy, lifesaver in the middle of the hole and bake. As it bakes, the lifesaver melts and fills the hole. Cool and you have a beautiful flower!

We then painted pots with chalkboard paint and wrote the teachers' names on them...they could also be used later to mark what is planted in each pot! We put baseball ribbon around the rim of the pot--with G, everything needs to be baseball. Filled the pot with dried beans, taped a packet of wildflower seeds to a stick to add to the bouquet, and there you have it--very cute, yummy teacher gift! We will be making these frequently I am sure!

Farm blanket for the senses

I made a blanket like this for my son several years ago. As a displaced farm girl, I felt like he should learn about the farm at an early age! The best thing about this farm though is that his clothes didn't get dirty!

Actually the best thing is the many textures on this blanket. The one pictured, along with the soft tractors, are ideal for my nephew who is turning one this week. The softness of the fabrics, the rows to resemble corn or freshly planted wheat, the slight terraces, and even a farm pond that is silky to the touch! Happy birthday, T! And sis, hopefully this Labor Day is much easier but equally as joyful as last years'!

Weekend projects

We got RAIN here this weekend...and lots of it! Good thing I bought vinyl on one of my frequent trips to the fabric store. Why have an umbrella when you can hold a roll of vinyl over your head while ushering your two small children, each with their own full- sized umbrella, through pouring rain? Ha! Let's just say we were quite a sight!

So I bought vinyl because I couldn't find an over-the-door shoe organizer at my first stop and didn't want to play out the above scenario at too many other stops, so I decided to buy vinyl and make my own! Pretty quick, used up some fabric and bias tape I had around, and much heavier duty than a purchased one!

Previously we had used muffin tins and magnets in the bottom of plastic cups to organize the ridiculous numbers of pens, pencils, crayons, glue sticks, etc. The cups were always falling over, I worried about someone swallowing one too many magnets, etc. I had found this idea somewhere and decided to give it a whirl! I think we may have finally found a solution that works!

The other project was blackout curtains for the kiddos room. We have been doing bedtime about 7 to accommodate an early school day, so needed something s bit more sleep-friendly. Will probably end up with a second panel on each window, but we will see! Sorry if the pics aren't in order...my preview isn't working so I can't see what order they are in!

School time!

I am testing out my new toy. An iPad! I am so excited to take pictures and blog all in one step! And It has this great dictation feature so I can tell it what to write. There are so many possibilities for my sewing business, such as credit cards at craft fairs, showing customers my work on the go, and taking photos and blogging without plugging in a camera or memory card and waiting on an upload. I have been saving up and it is so worth the wait! So please excuse mistakes as I go through this learning process.

Anyway, on to the blog. School is just around the corner, and for those of us with kindergarteners (shedding a tear here), that includes a nap mat. Who wants a boring, used nap mat that my sweaty little boy will stick to?

So of course I had to make our own. First a comfy cotton cover.



And of course a coordinating personalized blanket.



Elastic straps keep it secure to the mat and double as a carrying handle.