Adventures-In-Mommy-Land: March 2012

Thursday, March 29, 2012

fun...fun...fun

have you taken a peek at my etsy shop yet?

I know it's a bit rough around the edges, because I'm still learning the ropes.

But, I am having so much fun sewing these aprons...

I think eventually I will branch out and make different things

but for now, why mess with a good thing.

Some aprons are a little more time consuming than others to make.

the more I make and sew, the better they get and the cuter they look.

Aqua and Red Floral Print for little girls

this one is a size medium - fits most girls ages 7-10

the pink/red/blue flower print on the bottom is actually pockets.

Isn't it just the cutest.....I wish I would have made this one in my size - because I would keep it!

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this is another one of my favorites...such a cute pattern and the ruffles just make it even better

it's a little girls size small (fits most 3-5 yr olds)

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I love the fabric on this one and the yellow ruffles on the bottom, but I'm not as thrilled with the apron strings...it's a different type of ribbon, thinner or something - I don't know, maybe a different ribbon next time, hmmmm...

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I love the print on this fabric too...so cute, bright and colorful....I think I have more fun making children's aprons, at least that's they way it appears haha.

this one is for girls too.

did you notice the little pom poms on the bottom?

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although, I still make some for women too....

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And did I mention that I actually made my first sell???

this cute little yellow apron for girls.

It was a custom order from my cousin for her little niece.

Hopefully this never gets old and I always find it as fun as I do right now.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Moms That Blog (The Interviews)

Introducing......Jenni - She's a stay at home mother of one gorgeous little girl. She not only shares her super awesome, yummy recipes on her blog, but she lets you take a peek inside her recipe box as well and that's what makes her a great Mom That Blogs!

Tell us a bit about yourself.....My husband and I met in college, where we were both Biology/Chemistry double majors, so we had a lot of classes together. One thing led to another, and now we are married! My husband went on to Medical School, and is in his first year of Residency for Internal Medicine. We have one beautiful daughter, who will be 2 in June. We also have two "furry kids" Peanut and Scout, our dogs, who are 5 and 7 and have just as much personality as our daughter! I have really enjoyed being a stay at home mom the last year! I think it is so amazing being able to watch my daughter grow and learn, and I feel so blessed to be able to share my days with her, even if our beds don't get made or the floor isn't swept, I try to make sure our days are full of laughter, hugs, and plenty of books!!

Name 3 fun facts we may be surprised to learn about you......1. I love to read a good book, and if I am not playing with Ladybug or playing in the kitchen, you can often find me curled up somewhere reading. I also have a weak spot for buying books (which means I always have a giant pile of "to read" books! 2. I love to be outdoors (as long as I have a good SPF on, being a red-head means I burn!) whether hiking, camping, or just sitting outside on the porch. 3 Before our cross-country move and becoming a stay at home mom, I used to work at a Crime Lab (yup, a real life CSI!). I worked in the Firearms Sections, so I got to play with guns all day long. It was a lot of fun, but not nearly as glamorous as TV makes it seems (even if I did wear high heels everyday). 4. (You said three, but I thought of one more! Haha) While in college, my goal was to become a veterinarian, and I worked with quite a few large animal vets where I got to help do everything from pulling calves to bottle feeding foals to assisting in surgeries. It was fun, and hard, and I came home every day really really needing to take a shower!

When did you first start blogging.....I started blogging in June of 2009. My husband was in med-school, and I was bored. My husband suggested I start it as a creative outlet for me while he was studying.

What is your blog about........Mostly it is about the food that I make, but I also use it as a sort of journal and a way to keep family and friends around the country (and world) abreast of what is going on with our lives.

Why do you blog......There are several reasons why I continue to blog. The first is that I love the community of friends that I have built. Even though I have never met these people, I have met some truly wonderful and special people who I am so glad to call my friend! I also use this as a kind of journal, to talk about what we are doing in our lives, and to help give me a few moments each day when I can actually formulate an adult conversation in my head. And lastly, I also keep this blog as a way to record and store all the great recipes that I have tried. I tend to scribble recipes down on random scraps of paper, which rarely ever have a title, and invariably get lost somewhere, so it is great to be able to have everything written down in one place.

Must read blogs that you visit daily.....I am really bad about visiting other blogs on a daily basis, as my limited amount of "me" time must be devoted to maintaining my own blog, attempting to actually finish a book for my book club, spending what tiny bit of time with my husband that I can each day, and, well, showering. Haha But when I have the time, I always visit these blogs on a regular basis: C Mom Cook for her down to earth personality and great recipes, Willow Bird Baking for her beautiful photography and thought provoking writing and her ability to make any complicated recipe seem do-able, and Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Linedrives, for her awesome jaw-dropping creations. I also tend to do quite a bit of food stalking at Annie's Eats, Smitten Kitchen, and Joy the Baker.

What inspires you.....What doesn't?! I try to find inspiration everyday - things to remind myself to love deeply, give freely, live simply, and be happy. To make the most out of my life without being attached to things, and make the most of what I have. Some days are better than others, of course, but there is never a day that passes that you can't find something beautiful.

Do you have a bucket list - name a few things on it.....Yes! I would desperately love to go to Egypt one day and meander through all the ancient ruins. And not on a guided tour, either - I want to stroll on my own schedule, touch something, and dig in the dirt. I also think it would be awesome to learn to make cheese, the kind I imagine some habit wearing monk making in a dark cold cavern somewhere! In my heart and soul I am a traveling adventurer, so I would love to see more of the world, and to have some very tiny adventures (but nothing too dangerous!)

Do you have any blogging advice that you would like to share.....Be yourself. I think it is so easy to get caught up in what you think others expect of you, or what other bloggers are doing, or how to get a cookbook deal that you forget why you started it in the first place. Remember that it is a hobby, not a job, and you can do with it what you want, and I think you will be much happier with the result (even if you never do get a cookbook deal! But hey, who wants to do all that work?!)

To learn more about Jenni - check out her blog The Gingered Whisk. You can also find her on facebook.

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Hey Mom, Look What I Did (#24)

Welcome to the 24th Edition of Hey Mom, Look What I Did!!

here are a few of my faves from last week...

"Sun" Catcher

Spring Learning

St Patrick's Day Ideas

Now, it's your turn to show us what you've been working on and

I can't wait to see what you all have been doing this week!!

Please share your craft projects, baking activities and other fun kid friendly adventures. Grab the link button and put it on your blog, if you like, so that others can find us and share in the fun too.

There are no requirements, but I would love if you would follow this blog via GFC, linky tools, facebook and twitter...to keep up with our latest activities.

Thanks for joining us....Hope to see you again soon!!

Sorry about the "text only" links....Somebody forgot to pay their inlinkz bill. Hmmmm, wonder who that was? :)

Friday, March 23, 2012

Girl's Easter/Spring Apron Giveaway ~ CLOSED!!

Who wants a chance to win this cute little girl's Spring apron?

Just in time to put in someone special's Easter basket....or to wear while helping Mommy in the kitchen this holiday season.

Purple floral fabric with green ruffle trim and purple and green grosgrain ribbon apron strings.

To enter:

Sponsor Spotlight

One of my biggest (ok, only sponsor at this point - but I'm hoping for more)...is The Fat Quarter Shop.

I totally love the store.

The fabric is incredible and there are so many choices...it's so hard shopping there sometimes, because I literally want everything!

Take a look at some of my recent faves....

The Fat Quarter Shop is well known for their fat quarter bundles of quilting fabric.

Some features of the shop include:

Same Day Shipping

Excellent Customer Service

Free Shipping on U.S. Orders Over $200

Exclusive Kits and Products

and

All the Newest Collections

Their fabrics come in several different cuts such as:

Layer Cakes

Jelly Rolls

Fat Eighth Bundles

Charm Packs

and

Fat Quarter Bundles

They also sell patterns, threads, notions, quilt kits and more.

And did you know that if you place your order before 3:00 p.m. cst that your order will be placed and shipped that very same day?

The Fat Quarter Shop is seriously turning me into a fabric hoarder.....

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Vintage Doll House Furniture

I can't believe that something I played with when I was a child is now called vintage - Yikes....kill me now!

When did I grow up?

I'm wondering if vintage sounds better than retro - Hmmm?

Either way, they both just sound...OLD!

This is doll house furniture that my grandfather made by hand for me when I was a little girl.

One year for Christmas, my father built a dollhouse for me.

My mother decorated it with some of my favorite clothes that she cut up to make "wallpaper", "carpet" , matching bedding for the bedrooms, etc.

She also made little planters with beads and yarn.

My grandfather handmade all the furniture for the house.

There was a kitchen, a dining room, a living room, a bedroom and a den, all full of furniture.

He made little serving bowls and vases (using a pit from a peach).

My aunt even got in on the act and knitted some doiles to use as tablecloths.

Don't you just love the attention to details that he made?

the rockers actually rock

the sink faucet actually moved back and forth and was made from little nails

if you look closely, you will see the stove top has burners painted on top

Sadly, I no longer have the doll house.

But, I have kept this furniture in a storage box all these years later.

My kids have literally begged to play with it and I won't let them, unless I'm sitting right there.

It is a treasure.

A true family heirloom.

One day, I hope to gift it to a grandchild and my hopes are that they will love and treasure it as much as I do.

Do you have something from your childhood that you have kept in hopes of one day passing down to your children or grandchildren?

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Cherry Blossom Crafts

Did you know that this week marks the start of the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C.?

Not only that, but this year is the 100th anniversary. In 1912, Tokyo, Japan gifted our nation's capital with 3,000 cherry blossom trees.

To celebrate, Nathan and I made two cherry blossom crafts.

The first one we made was a Soda Bottle Cherry Tree, that I found on Pinterest (their version was much neater than ours haha).

We took a large sheet of paper, a 2 liter soda bottle and paint.

Paint a branch on the paper and dip the soda bottle into the pink paint and press it to the paper.

The soda bottle makes a really cute "flower" design

I have to tell you this looks alot easier than it is....the bottle is hard to handle for little hands.

In fact, Nathan got mad at me, because he had a hard time and just started smearing the paint every where

and he said mine was nicer and that wasn't "fair" hahaha

Our paintings...

The next craft we made was one we made before.

Our popcorn cherry blossom trees

You will need a cherry jello packet (dry), popcorn, a large ziploc bag, paper, glue and a brown marker.

Make some popcorn and put it in the ziploc bag with the dry packet of cherry jello and shake it up

Draw a tree with the brown marker

And glue the popcorn to the tree

Nathan said the popcorn tasted sour and gross lol!

Hope your first day of Spring was as lovely and beautiful as the cherry blossoms.