Just In The Nick of Time

I'll just apologize now for the crappy nature of these photos. I used the laptop to take pics of myself and it's after 1 in the morning...so this is what I get :)

I worked on this tonight while watching the Top Chef finale and just finished it up...the deadline is midnight PST. I was really inspired by the fabulous Shari of Soren Lorensen Design for my last entry in the Lil Blue Boo & Dharma Trading Co Design Challenge. I have a whole new appreciation for Shari for the patchwork dresses and shirts that she creates. Sewing all of those patches together and getting all the seams to line up is a lot of work!

I am pretty happy with the way it turned out. I will definitely be keeping this for myself to wear this summer.

The Forgotten Dress

I made this dress a few weeks ago for the Lil Blue Boo / Dharma Trading Design Challenge and then promptly forgot about it and moved on to other projects. Thanks Mom for the reminder!!! I wanted to make a more summery sleeveless style for the coming summer.

I made this one with a drawstring neck so you can lengthen the straps as your child grows. This is also great layered over a long sleeve shirt. I'll have to try to get a picture of it styled like that tomorrow.

This idea for the applique has been floating around in my head since last year. I tried drawing it with a marker on a t-shirt but the marker ran all over the place. Then I thought to carve a stamp with the image.
I messed up carving the little details of the face so I just drew them on with a fabric marker afterward. After I stamped it I cut out the dress of the coordinating fabric and appliqued that on.

Carving stamps are really fun and SUPER easy if you have the right tools. I really like the Speedball Speedy-Stamp Blocks and the Speedball Linoleum Cutter Set from Dharma Trading Co. I've carved the harder linoleum blocks before but the Speedball Speedy-Stamp blocks are much easier to carve and I think you can get a crisper image. Try it, you'll like it!

At Least Someone Gets Excited About the Things I Make

I made this little smocked romper for August for the Lil Blue Boo / Dharma Trading Design Challenge that ends tonight. I made rompers similar to this last summer for Augie and for my niece. I did them a little different this time around.

For this year's version I did a braided strap that is knotted in the back.

When picking the embellishment I was really stumped but then I saw this super cute stamp over on one of my favorite blogs, Jezze Prints, that looked like cross stitch and a light bulb went off.
I freehand cross-stitched little hearts and the border around where the blue meets the floral print.

Felted Sweater Coat

I am such a bad blogger. I have made so many things that I just haven't taken the time to blog about. Like this little sweater coat I made for August out of some of my old sweaters that I had felted. Pulling heavily from inspiration from The Cottage Mama's sweater coat I whipped this up for Augie one night. If anyone is interested I'll try to put together a tutorial for how to do this.

My Review of Endless Adventures Easy Store Jr. Playslide

5out of 5

When CSN offered me the chance to review one of their products I didn't hesitate in ordering the Little Tikes Endless Adventure Slide. This was by far the best Christmas gift under the tree. It was a gift for August but Luke and my 1 year old niece, Averie, had fun using it too! We could barely get the kids off the slide to open their other presents! And the entire time we were skyping my dad Augie was going up and down the slide. It was so funny! And don't worry....her head injury did not come from the slide! Notice the blankets at the bottom....my brother-in-law was getting nervouse since Augie will only go down head first.

It is super sturdy. I haven't had an issues with it even coming close to tipping over. It's already assembled when you get it so no frustration with taking hours to put it together. And living in a city apartment we LOVE that it folds for storage. We are so happy to have this now that it's been cold and we can't get to the park as often as we usually do.

Cyber Monday Coupon Code

Always Thankful for my Most Awesome Family

I will always be so incredibly thankful that I have these 2 in my life. They are my world and every day no matter how hard it is they make me smile and laugh. They make each day worth getting up for.
Lucas is just such a ray of sunshine. Augie and I went to his class the other day for their Thanksgiving party. We stayed in the classroom and Luke went down to the cafeteria to get his lunch. When he came back he had bought an extra milk for his sister. He is an incredibly thoughtful kid and the best big brother.August......my sweet little honey girl. In the last month or so she has FINALLY started saying Mama and I can't tell you how much it warms my heart to hear her follow me around all day saying Mama! And those sweet baby kisses....thankful for those too!

(My Mom and Dad)

(My Dad and Step-Mom)

I couldn't ask for better more supportive parents. I am such a lucky girl to have 2 sets of parents who I know that I can always count on. And even better they are all 4 the greatest grandparents to the munchkins. These are the kind of grandparents that will actually get down on the floor and play with the kids and make it all about them when we get to visit.

(My sister, my gorgeous niece and my brother-in-law)

I am so happy that my kids and I have my little sis and her family pretty close. We weren't BFF growing up but now I couldn't ask for a better best friend. And her hubs is so cool, he's even offered to keep all the kids so that I could go out with my sis. Brave man! Our girls are only 6 months apart and Lucas adores both of the girls. Honestly one of my dreams was to have my kids and their cousins get to grow up close together. I am so thankful that it is happening.

(My brother and my sis-in-law)

I wish I could pick up San Diego and move it closer to VA. I hate that my little bro and his wife live all the way across the country. It sucks! But I know how happy they are out there. My sis-in-law is my sounding board for all things creative. We plot and plan our joint business venture and they keep trying to get us to move out there. I am so thankful that they found each other because a more perfect couple can not be found.