Wrapped Up in Mommy's Love

Life has been changing around here.  After being home for two years, my husband has decided to go back to work.  That wasn't the original plan.  However, a great opportunity came up and, after a lot of prayer, we decided to embark on life as a two-income household.  (Of course all this came up during my maternity leave and while he was finishing his last few weeks of his Master's program.  Can we say chaos!)

With all the changes I wanted to send the kids to Daycare with something special... something to remind them of Mommy.

Daycare requires a nap mat for the older two, so what better project.  My daughter chose an ice cream fabric for hers.  I chose an animal fabric for her brother.  As a fluke, they both ended up with brown and blue blankets.

Sew 4 Home has a great tutorial.  However, I modified it a bit to incorporate an envelope enclosure in the top for a 12x22 pillow insert rather than additional batting.  I like being able to take the pillow out to wash it.

It's been a hit.  My daughter couldn't wait to use it at home and both kids get excited to use them on weekends when we bring them home.  Turns out, they are also great for family movie nights.

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Sand between my toes

It's summer.  And even though our beach trip is still several weeks away, we are already counting down.  Some years ago we started collecting sand from each new beach we visited.  I love looking at each and being transported back... back to sunset walks on the beach on our honeymoon, back to family travels far away, even back to early sunrise walks with a baby who didn't understand we were on vacation.  Each one is full of memories.

It's sweet and simple, just like vacations.  The supplies are nothing just a spice jar, label maker, and sand.  I used clear tape labels for my jars but you could totally customize it to your own decor.  Bright colors?  Type-written?  So many possibilities. 

Now we just need to visit more beaches and expand the collection.

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How my Husband was Right

My husband wins!  After torturing him with handmade clothes missing any label indicating the back of the garment, I finally had to deal with it myself when dressing my niece in a dress her mother made.  And now that I know what it is like when yo don't just "know," I conceded to adding labels.  And you know what... its fun.

In fact, it may be an addiction.  Some I ironed directly on (particularly garments already made).

But my preference was to make these cute twill tape labels...

Aren't they fun!

There are a lot of tutorials on these.  And they really are simple.  Just design your label on the computer and print it on t-shirt transfer paper.  (Note: Test Print.  After designing it as a mirror image on the computer, I discovered that selecting the t-shirt transfer option in my print settings reversed it by itself, and un-reversed all my hard work.)

Then cut and iron on your twill tape.  Voila!  No more headaches for other people... nor for the kids.

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Gone Fishin'

Warm summer days, refreshing breezes...

Fish in the lake...

Fish in the sea...

Is there a fish I can catch just for me?

This little fishing game was an Easter gift for my son.  It was so popular that I had to make a second pole for big sister so that they could fish together.

I couldn't find a good tutorial at the time, so I kind of winged it.  Unfortunately, I didn't take any photos.

The supplies are pretty simple... fun fabrics, buttons, batting, and metal washers for the fish.  The fishing poles are just dowel rods, magnets, ribbon, strong super glue (don't use hot glue), and colorful electrical tape.  The tricky thing for me was sewing around the metal washer since I wanted it exposed.  It's probably much easier to sew the fish if you put the washer inside.

Now back to fishing...

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Mini Minnie

June in our house means Celebrations!  In this month alone we celebrate birthdays for my husband, daughter and niece, our wedding anniversary, and Father's Day... plus dance recitals and end-of-school-year events.  By the time we reach my birthday in July, I'm partied out.

But for now I am having fun creating special gifts for so many loved ones.  For example, what little girl doesn't need a cute little red and white polka dot skirt... just like Minnie Mouse.

But wait.  What's that peeking out?

A pink Minnie Mouse skirt.  That's right... two skirts in one... a fully reversible skirt.  But I admit, I am partial to the red side.

This is a basic circle skirt.  Dana has a great tutorial on her blog MADE.  I was inspired by You and Mie's Reversible Circle Skirt entry in Project Run & Play.  In fact, I loved her entry so much that it has inspired me to make one for my daughter's Fall wardrobe.  This may be my new favorite way to make a circle skirt.  I love using the bias tape instead of hemming the circle.  And the peep of color underneath is such a fun detail.

I love this gift... paired with a simple white shirt and a little flower for the birthday girl's hair.

Do you have a busy gift season?  What are some of your favorite gifts?


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30 Days of Sundresses & Graduation Day

My little girl just graduated from Preschool.  (sniff sniff)  The kids were asked to wear their class color... Red Fish in our case.  But when I looked at my daughter's wardrobe I found pink, orange, teal, even yellow... but NO red.  I knew I could just buy a red t-shirt, but where's the fun in that.  Plus, every girl could use another sundress.

As a beginner, I am just getting over my fear of patterns.  I have found online tutorials less intimidating.  But seriously, its time to face my fear.  This is Butterick's See & Sew 3889.

Isn't this fabric lovely.  There is something about it that reminds me of a muumuu I had as a little girl while living in Hawaii.

It's a simple design, which I like.  I like kids clothes to be simple and practical.  This leaves plenty of room to move and dance and play... all of which are a necessity in our life.

And a few shots of that graduation day (and proof that she can move).  They had a picnic in the courtyard after the ceremony, which really meant the parents ate and the kids went wild.

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