Handmade Cards

My daughter and I got a little crafty recently and made some handmade cards.  She loved painting this project and I loved the finished look.  I can't remember who actually received these cute cards, but I liked them so much, I made sure I scanned a few into the computer for reprints before the originals left our hands.  We made two and it was really simple and a quick project (since I used the handy dandy hair dryer to speed up the drying of the watercolors).

Here's the first one we attempted.

Simple and abstract, I simply used masking tape to "white out the areas" I didn't want her to paint, then gave her the watercolors.  She could have done this all day.  She loved it.  Then, I decided to get a little extra creative and use round stickers. 

This one I really love, it may get framed on my new walls soon!

After painting and taping, I outlined for her using glittery gel pens.  She did the grass.  Instant art and all we needed were supplies we already had all over the house!

Ok, so I actually realized we didn't just do this "recently".  I just saw her little artists' autograph and realized it was actually LAST year!?  OMG, where does the time go?!  I swear I thought we did this last week.....

In the Sewing Room

I have been one busy body in the sewing room lately.  A friend let me borrow their sewing machine and I've gone nuts making tees.  Here's a little of what I've been up to!

Remember those bleached out tees we made this past summer?  This one didn't turn out so well, so a little plaid applique was the perfect solution!

For back to school, a custom-designed art smock from mom!  This "i heart art" one was a larger project than I would normally tackle myself, but it turned out well.  I'll share a tutorial and a story about the sharpie incident in the future!

Are you ready for some football?  We are in this house!  We've got our his and hers spirit wear ready for the season.  I also made a tee for my daughter in the colors for the local high school team (which also happens to be big bro's team colors).  I haven't taken a pic of that one yet, but will post when I do!

And of course, we're gearing up for Halloween with our witch boots and black kitty tees!  I also made two ghosts tees which I love, again...just haven't taken pics yet!

So, if you've been wondering where ole' lizard rae has been.....now you know!  

On top of these tees, I've made some more for an upcoming family wedding, got crafty for a wedding shower, and am working on a halloween costume.  We've also been on the football fields almost every day and have spent our weekends at the pumpkin patches and apple orchards.  I've got plenty of goodies and pictures to share.....just very little time to share it.  For now, packing for a trip to VA BEACH for this weekend!  I'm off to shoot (my first wedding) with my husband (screeeech).  Yes, I'm a nervous wreck.  Good thing he knows what he's doing and will re-take a picture of everything I try and get.  I am really hoping we won't have to rely on anything I shoot.  Maybe I'll just get a few bonus goody shots and will be happily surprised!

I would love to sit here in my pjs on the computer all day and blog away, but in my glamorous real life, the dog has thrown up again (a daily thing for the past week) and I have to go clean it up and give him another bath.

Wish me luck!

First Day of School 2011

This is the first year both of my babies are in big school.  Real school.  K-12 commitment school.  We all (mom included) had a great first day.  My oldest is just like his mama and can never sleep the night before school.  There's too much excitement about seeing old friends, meeting a new teacher, anxiety over how hard the schoolwork and homework might be.  My youngest, ever the carefree type, was snoring by 8pm, no problem.  She handled the first day of kindergarten the same way.  She just breezed right through it.  Maybe it helped that big brother was up way too late the night before, penning her a letter.  He brought it down to us to leave for her at breakfast.  These were tips lil' sis just had to know before her adventure into kindergarten.

I think he summed it up just right. Try your best, don't do anything that will get you in trouble, stop talking when the teacher says stop (he even knows this will be her most challenging skill to learn)...and have fun!  What else could you possibly need to know to be ready for kindergarten!?  I guess I could have spent the past 5 years teaching her to read early, write her name perfectly, memorizing her address, phone number, social security number, how to do suduko puzzles, tying her shoes, riding her bike (check), learning the violin, playing the piano, scoring soccer goals, becoming a master swimmer, and perfecting a backhandspring (cartwheels, she's got)...but I didn't.  I'm leaving all that for the tiger moms.  Instead, I just enjoyed our time together, reading books or going to the library whenever we felt like it, enjoying a breeze at the park, listening to radio disney, taking naps, being shopping and lunch buddies, painting her nails, playing barbies, making crafts.  She's got all the rest of her life to learn the rest, if she chooses to do so.  But the past 5 years, they were ours and ours alone.  I was blessed to give that gift of "mom" for both of my kids for their preschool years.  Now, I feel blessed knowing that in their school years, they have been given their wings, and they're ready to soar.

Of course, I'm still right under them with the safety net in case they need it and ocassionally, I have to pull out the fans to blow them in the right direction.  But they don't need to know that.  They only need to know their abc's, 123's and multipication tables for now.  For now, they only need to be trying their best, staying out of trouble, listening, and having fun and even a 9 year old knows that's the best advice!  I think they're going to do just fine.  And, so is their mom (and dad).

Big brother "allowed" us to follow him to his classroom.  Of course, we had instructions to stay about 10 feet behind and to NOT under any circumstances talk to him or embarrass him.  Shucks.  Dad was only allowed to snap one pic, from a distance, and this is the one he got.  I call it the "Psst, Dad!!!  Get outta' here already!"  

 

So, we bolted for the Kindergarten wing with little one tow.  I could have predicted that she wouldn't really need us around either and she was much less camera-shy.  We walk up and one little boy had the audacity, the nerve, to make the mistake of sitting down smack dab next to B.F.F.  I held back a giggle when I saw my little one stand straight in front of him, wait about 10 seconds with him just staring up at her, then with a tiny little flick of the wrist...she said it all.  The kid totally understand her hand-speak for scoot the heck over kid and get outta' my spot!  I knew she was NOT going to sit anywhere but next to B.F.F and I made sure teacher knew if she wanted any "listening ears" outta' my daughter, they'd be better off at different tables...but I'm pretty sure she'd already heard that through the grapevine.  It wasn't 5 seconds and the girls were pulling stuff out of backpacks to share and giggle and whisper over.  

Pretty soon, it was time to head inside the classroom and I braced myself, for this was the moment.  The moment every mom waits for before sending their baaayyy-beee into kindergarten, the "No Moooommmm, I want to stay with yooooou, you're soooo much more fun, let me stay with you, Mom!"...in which I would leave the building in tears.  But nope, I got monkey face...and the little stinker didn't even look back!

Yep, she's going to be just fine.  Mom is going to be just fine, too.  Dad, on the either hand......

And yes, we kept our piggy pancake tradition.

And...They're Back!

Back to School, that is!!

So we decided to try out a few photography ideas.  My husband is not only a great & involved dad and hard worker at a real day job, he also manages to squeeze in being a photographer and yes, we experiment for session ideas with our own children.  Better to practice on them than on a paying client, no?  We have a lot of fun with shadow pics and we wondered what would happen with silhouette cut-outs.  Now we know.  I think this will come in extra handy in the future.  It's easy to do.  I just grabbed poster board and printed out the letters I wanted using my printer.  The BTS (for back to school) was sized 6x8 each and the 2011 was sized at 5x7 each.  I printed, cut them out, then arranged them onto the poster board.  I taped them down, traced around them and cut them out with an exacto knife.  Then, we handed it over to the kids to hold and hubby snapped away! You have to practice with flipping the poster around properly. I believe it was upside and backwards...that's what made it "read-able" left to right once the pic was snapped.  The possibilities are endless and I'd to see any examples if some readers give it a try!

Then, we grabbed an apple (the most needed accessory for back to school, of course).  We also grabbed books that the kids are really into now, and some chalkboards.  The idea is to "remember" through photos what they were reading at the time.  For my daughter, it's Barbie, Barbie, Barbie and more Barbie.  So, her books were...you guessed it, Barbie!  My son's tastes are a little more eclectic, and he's very into series books right now.  His favorites are Harry Potter, Geronimo Stilton, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid.  We wanted to remember this years from now, so we included it in the shot.  We sat them on a bench and hubby snapped away.  I love how it turned out.  It's the perfect little "scrapbook page" to remember the start of kindergarten and 4th grade!

The chalkboards were included to remember what year we snapped these.  It's also a great way to see what their handwriting looks like each year.  For example, 4th grade is an "all-cursive" year and he's been practicing all summer his best John Hancock.  I know my kindergarten's signature will lose it's baby look in a year or two and I want to remember how cute it is that her dotted i's are still sticks with swirly circles.  I'm not a big fan of keeping every little scrap of paper they've ever written on, so this was a great way in one shot to capture everything I want to remember about this year!

Oh...and we totally gave ourselves permission NOT to try and capture the back to school shots ON the first day of school.  We did this the day before.  If I've learned anything by having a 4th grader, it's to forget getting great shots on the first morning of school.  It's just too hectic and crazy.  We still took the camera in hand on the first day to make sure the moment was captured for their scrapbooks...but these shots!?  These were for mama's scrapbook, and I know I'll treasure them.

I hope you have a chance to capture some nice BTS photos of your kiddos too!  And go ahead, I give you permission to snap them a week late!

Happy Snapping & Happy Learning!

PS - If you'd like to see more of hubby's passion for photography, you can do so over at www.eidenphotography.com.  Be sure to come say "hi" on Facebook, too!

Linked Up Here:

 

Show Daddy Some Love

I see all of these cute little boy onesies and tees with a necktie everywhere.  Why not make a one for the little girls so the little ladies can show daddy some love!?  Who says girls can't wear ties, or suspenders!? 

I had purchased this tank last year for a family fun magazine craft idea for my daughter, but I never got around to making it before she outgrew it.  Luckily, she has a younger cousin.  Last week, I visited my family in SC and my mom, sis-in-law and I got a little crazy with the sewing machine.  We made tie tanks, crabs, anchors, seahorses....you name it.  I'll share them all, promise.  But for now, here's how we did the tie tank.

You'll need:

1 Tank or T-shirt
Scrap fabric, I chose pink with white polka dots
Heat n Bond
Fusible Webbing
Tie Template
Copier
Sewing Machine (Which I don't have.  So do as I do, and find a mom, aunt, or sister that sews and beg them to do it for you!  BTW, thanks Mom)


I am absolutely amateur, so if you're like me and have no clue what Heat n Bond or Fusible Webbing is click HERE and HERE.  I bought mine at my local Wally-World (Wal-Mart).  You could also find it at Jo-Ann's, Hobby Lobby, or plan ahead and purchase from www.createforless.com for a good price.

For the tie template, I had one leftover from some father's days card and paper projects.  I found it HERE.

Here's how:

Print and Cut the template, then enlarge it to fit your tank using your copier.  Cut a rectangle of fusible webbing 1" larger than your tie template and iron it to the inside of the tank.  Also cut a rectangle of Heat n' Bond 1" larger than your template and iron onto your scrap of fabric, following package instructions.  Then, using your paper template as a guide, trace and cut out tie shapes.  Peel back the Heat n' Bond and iron your two necktie pieces onto the front of the tank.  Then, sew the edges using a zig zag stitch.  That's it!

Project Time: 1 hour Max!

She's working it, no!?

This project linked up here:

Boredom Buster

 

Got some cranky little ones around?  Here's something fun to do when they tire of swimming at the pool.  It would also be great for VBS, at a party, or for a classroom or Sunday School class.

How To Make Your Own Colored Sand

Here's what you need:

*Large bucket of sidewalk chalk
*Salt

Here's what you do:

Using plastic containers, take one piece of chalk and pour about a cup of salt over it.  With your fingers, roll and rub the chalk into the salt.  Eventually, the chalk turns into colored sand.  Experiment with 2 pieces of chalk for darker colors, more salt to lighten colors, etc.  We used the bottoms of old milk jugs and poured the extra into ziploc bags.  But if you're the more tidy and organized type, you could also buy ziploc or tupperware style containers to make and store your colored sand in.

Tip:  
I found the best bang for your buck for sidewalk chalk was at Michael's for $4.  Use one of their 40% off coupons, even better.  Best price I found for salt was forty cents (!!!) at the Dollar General.  Just to help you estimate, 1 container of salt will fill one large bottle.  Or, you can buy one container of salt per color of chalk and have plenty of extra made for future projects.

How To Make Layered Sand Art

You need:

*Funnel

*Plastic bottles with lids

*DIY colored sand

*Small measuring scoops

Here's how:

Using the scoop (the extras from  powdered oxy clean work well), add colored sand to the clear plastic bottle, layering as much or as little as the child likes. Each child's will be different as they decide what colors to use where.  Fill to the top and screw on the plastic lid.  Be careful to keep the bottle upright, as shaking it or turning it from side to side will mix all the colors and ruin the layered effect.  Kids can then add stickers, labels, tags, ribbons, etc. to their bottle if they want to!  Any plastic bottle will work and kids can experiment with different shapes and sizes.  Basically, just use whatever is in the recycling bin...once you've washed & dried it, of course.

You can easily fill an afternoon just making the sand, and the next afternoon making the bottles.  My kids were easily occupied for an hour or more rolling chalk into salt.  Cousins and grandparents got in on the action too, and we took pics of all the fun we were having! Only, now I can't find them.  Which brings me to this request, please don't judge the quick Iphone pic.  Sometimes, that's all I've got around.  Actually, I just couldn't find the first pics we took of this project and today, I was just too lazy to get the big camera and go through all the fancy editing.  But!!  This is a super fun activity and I wanted to share - So....enjoy!

Bleached out Tee's!

I recently stumbled on a new magazine in Barnes & Noble and fell in love.  I was inspried by the custom bleached shirts I saw and decided to give it a go myself.  Here's what I did.  Using my computer, I printed numbers and anchors from clip art images I have on a print shop program.  You could also use clip art from Word or Google images.  With my copier, I enlarged and/or reduced the images as needed to fit on the tees.  I used card stock so that once I cut the images out, I had a template ready to go.

 Using my templates, I then traced the shapes onto freezer paper.  I cut the shape from freezer paper and ironed them onto my shirts, following the instructions listed directly on the freezer paper box.  Be sure to iron the edges down really well.  I didn't do that on a few shirts and the bleached leaked under the stencil.

 
Make sure you have an area outside prepped for business.  We put black plastic sheeting down to protect the landscape and everyone wore gloves, aprons and art smocks.  The kids also wore protective googles (aka swim goggles).  We inserted cardboard squares inside the shirts.  We filled squirt guns and spray bottles with bleach, undiluted.  We liked the spray bottles best, and liked changing the nozzle for a streamlined or full spray.  The squirt guns were harder to fill and leaked a bit too much.

Once the kiddos had sprayed down the shirt with their preferred spray pattern, I took a hose and washed down the shirt.  The water also released the freezer paper pattern.  We then took the shirts inside to machine launder and dry.

Instant Custom Tees!!

Tips:  Some colors worked great.  We had great luck with red, navy, and teal.  Grey and pink did not turn out as well.  Don't be afraid to let the clorox sit long enough to see the color start to change.  I was nervous about burning holes into the shirts and didn't leave the bleach on long enough for some of the tees.

To find out more about the magazine that inspired this project, check out this post.

This project is linked up here:

Design Dazzle's Summer Camp

Tip Junkie Tip Me Tuesday
Creation Corner's Friday Link Party 

Freckled Laundry's Air Your Laundry Friday

Just Beachy!

Need a fun, cute & quick idea for picnics this weekend?  I thought these would inspire you. I made them a couple of years ago for the fourth.  Just any old box recipe muffin or cupcake mix will do.  Cover 2/3 of the top of the cupcake with white icing (again, store bought for convenience) and top with "sand" (aka brown sugar).  Fill in the remaining top of the cupcake with blue icing in wavy patterns.  Top with an umbrella (a little hard to find, so buy them when you see them and keep them on hand).  And top with a "lifesaver" candy.  Instant cute cupcake!

Now, ain't that just BEACHY!?

For other beach and fourth inspired fun, check last year's post here.

This post linked up here:

How to Make Your Own Display Wall

Several times, I've flipped through the Pottery Barn Kids catalog and "dog-eared" this star cable idea.  At $39 plus s&h, I've never actually purchased it.  But with a little creativity and about $10 worth of supplies, I now have one!

Here's the inspiration pic from Pottery Barn Kids website:

After spending the month of January helping clear out a basement, I saw these:

There was 1 large white star and two medium sized blue stars.  I stashed the white one away for decoration and starting scouting out something to use to make the blue stars into pegs.  I found old-fashioned clothespins.  Hubby used a hand saw to shorten the clothespins into pegs.  Then he hammered them into the center of the stars and rubbed a little white paint on them.  Once the paint dried, I distressed them a bit with sandpaper.

We still needed hardward to actually hang them on the wall.  After a quick trip to Michael's, I found D-ring hangers and FrameStraight Nails.  Both are made by a company called Ooks and you can check out their product line at www.ooks.com.  I spent less than $10.  Here's a close-up of the D-ring:

 

I simply fastened the screw straight into the wooden peg, then attached the star to the wall using standard screws and anchors.  I attached the FrameStraight Nail into the back of the star and pushed it into the wall.  This helps the star stay put!  They work great on picture frames too.  

Once the stars were in place, I tied a piece of grosgrain ribbon (I already had) onto each star peg.  Instant "art line"!  I placed the "art line" over a built in bench in the basement.  Here's the room view:

The fun part is deciding what to actually hang on it.  Of course, the kids art work was a no brainer.

But, I also think seasonal or vintage cards are cute!

Or you could hang favorite photographs, vintage vinyl and/or storybooks, doll clothes, play clothes....

Seriously, I could come up with ideas all day.  BUT...the kids are starting to jump into every shot.

Like THIS!

 

So that's it for today.  And yes, my son got caught by the camera in his "wife-beater". Sheesh.

Happy crafting!

This project linked up here:

Valentine Explosion

It's been quite the little Valentine explosion over here today. Baking, crafting, making paper valentine's and packaging them up into goody baskets. Filled in the day with a quick trip to the store (Target, of course) to pick up a few extra supplies. Then, we were off to take school pics of classroom parties. Now, I'm squeaking in a few minutes to get a special dinner made of breaded & baked chicken, ranch noodles and a salad. Wow, I'm getting hungry. I'll share recipes tomorrow and I'd throw in a few pics too...only been burning out the camera lately and it's as dead as a doorknob. Must charge. Instead, I'll be spending the evening in the kitchen...then sitting on my booty to enjoy all the yummy goodies.

Oh! And there's a contest going on over at Eiden Photography, which you can check out the details here. But!!! You must enter by uploading a picture onto the facebook fan page (here) and you must do it by midnight. There's a prize for the winner!!

hearts,
Leah

More Quick & Easy Valentine Ideas

This is a special treat I made last year. I wrapped them up in clear basket wrap and tied them off with a bow to hand out to teachers. You could also take them in to share with co-workers. Brownies are the ultimate indulgence for me, so this year I'm keeping one for myself! Have one of these ready for dessert on Monday that's all you'll need to pull of something "special" for the day.

Hugs & Kisses Brownie

I got the recipe and idea here and added my own touch with the hand-piped rosettes, leaves and script. Although, I think it would be just as cute sprinkled with powdered sugar, if you're really short on time.

Last Minute Valentine Ideas

Need something quick and easy this Valentine's Day? It doesn't get any easier than Rice Krispies. It's my stand-by. If you have butter, marshmallows, rice krispies, clear baggies and a few snippets of ribbon...there's not one holiday/event that you can't whip up something cute for. I had huge intentions of creating candy cane heart filled with chocolate and bought the supplies for them. But my hearts were a flop. I don't know what happened, but my candy would not mold around the sticks. So, I switched to plan b....and here's what I've got.

Heart Pops

Make the rice krispie treats as usual...super easy with the recipe right on the box. Press them tightly (TIGHTLY) into a casserole dish. Let them cool, them flip the treats over onto a large cutting board covered in wax paper. Meanwhile, melt chocolate (I use Wilton's candy chocolates, they taste the best). Drizzle the chocolate with a spoon onto the treats then sprinkle with nonpareils. Let cool completely. Take a 1" heart cookie cutter and start cutting, pressing tightly into the mold. Then, add a candy stick, bag it, tie it, and you're done. Really....that easy.

And you end up with this...

Because these are super yummy and the pops are "bite-sized", and I wanted something bigger for the "big kids"...and besides, I had the double heart cutter. So I cut out a few of these too and tied them up. I'll probably give them to hubby and the kiddos...maybe slip them into lunch boxes on V-day. I'll probably slip myself one too :o)


This can easily be done in less than an hour. I whipped them up while "cooking" dinner (aka watching it warm up for 20 minutes in the oven). I ended up with 6 double hearts bagged up, and about 25 heart pops. Hello...anyone else thinking teacher/class V-day gifts!?

Or....place them in a basket and keep it near the front door. I think it's a great idea to pass along a little love to the mailman, UPS guy, a neighbor you see grabbing their mail, or any other friend stopping by. I especially like the idea of taking the time to pass a few out to others who may not otherwise get a Valentine...like the elderly down the street, the "Mr. Wilson" of your street, the naughty kid nobody wants to play with at school, the teacher nobody likes, someone you dislike, disagree with at work, etc etc. For one day, you can show someone a little "goodness"...even if it's only for the sake of toleration.

Happy St. Valentine's!!! Now get busy...you've only got 2 more days!

As promised...

Celery Art! My daughter and I recently tried some vegetable stamping. I've seen TV shows and craft magazines that show how to make stamp art using potatoes and apples, so I was inspired the other day when I starting cutting celery sticks for lunch. It was a brand new bunch of celery, and as I sliced right through, I noticed how what I was left with looked like a rose....or at least like some kind of flower. Needing something to do to occupy a 4 year old, I decided we would paint after lunch. So we had our healthy lunch, and grabbed a couple of supplies.

Here's what we needed:
construction paper
acrylic paints
paper plates and/or plastic trays
smock
do-a-dot stampers
celery stamp
paper towels

And here's how we did it...After covering up with a smock, we started to get messy. We put a little acrylic paint (2-3 colors) in a plastic tray. Then, we started "stamping" the celery down into the paint, rotating it to get several colors blending together on the bottom. Then, we dabbed it once onto paper towel to remove excess paint. My daughter then used to the do-a-dot stampers to mark the center of the flower. This became her "target" for where to stamp with the celery. Then, we did this over and over and over and over!

She loved it!! And I thought it was pretty fun too. When we had over-used it too much and were getting globby flowers, we just sliced through the celery again for a fresh stamp. I think this would make a great girly wrapping paper, fun greeting cards, or a colorful mat for a photo. When I get around to giving those ideas a try, I'll post.

Until then, enjoy this
(horrible) picture (taken with an iPhone)
of the celery stamping we did.