Baby Time

As most of you know, Jodi is expecting a little girl in April. Well, when I found out it was going to be a girl, my craft wheels started turning. I finally managed to secure some time for crafting today while the kids tried to conquer a new game.

I started with something simple. I took an old dress of Breckyn's and cut it into strips for a ruffle. I secured the ruffles to one of those unbelievable soft materials for babies. Then, I took one of the pockets from the dress and turned it into a passy keeper. Super simple and quick with cutie results. (Tip: because I used knit for the ruffle. It won't fray and I didn't have to do a lot of sewing to make it work.)

Next, I found a pack of onesies in colors on clearance at Target. Oh the potential! I cut out a fuzzy yellow material to create a bird and I embellished it with a few scrapes. If you notice I also gave her feet with my sewing machine.

What's a girlie outfit without some ruffles on the butt? I just had to!

This one was easy. I just cut out some felt circles and sewed them on the front.

Then I used the same technique from my headband and made it into a ruffle butt. (If you missed that post-- I just cut out a circle and folded it into fourths to create a little ruffle. Then you sew a few together and it looks pretty cool.)

This one was super easy because again, I used knit material. I took Zoey's old dress this time and cut it up to create this cutie onesie.

This is my signature piece. This baby is going to need some spice in her life. (besides Chloe) I think I might need to buy her a tighty jean skirt to go with this one.

This one took me forever because the material I used was cotton. It was way more complicated than the knit because I had to sew so many seams to make it work. (I even ironed it Mom! Now you know I was desperate-- I actually picked up an iron, really I did!) If you look closely I added a little bling to the flower. I loved this print so much it was worth the trouble.

I had a little extra time so I used some scrapes for a few new clips for the girlies. I have so many good ideas-- this is just the start for this new little girl. I've still want to sew a few burp clothes, bibs, more blankets, and I have to do a wipes case! I'm passing the torch and challenging you Cheri! I did 0-3 now it's your turn to spice it up with a few 3-6. I know you're itching to do it now that you've seen what I did. Game on Cheri! (Yes, those onesies are on clearance right now at Target. I just bought mine yesterday.)

More Holiday Break

We just returned from our adventure at the Dells with the Barlows. I didn't get any pictures inside the water park because of all the water and kids but this is the drive up. They were a little anxious to get going.

We had our fair share of drama in the car. You can tell just how things were going by this picture.
Rusty liked to sit with our fearless leader and pretend like he was in charge.

We found a proper helmet online for Rugs.

He also insisted on the matching boots. He cracks me up! I love that he has yet to be separated from this new found love.

Rugs had just gotten up from a nap (you can still see the sleep in his eyes). I thought Cass would enjoy a picture of him in his new favorite tie that she made. He was stylin' for church. Thanks again.

Merry Christmas!

This year was our first Christmas alone as a family. We've opened presents alone before but we've never had the entire day open to play with everything. It was fun. The kids were so excited and exhausted from staying up to see if Santa was really real.

We had lots of hand-made gifts this year. This is one of Rugby's famous stories.

"One day there were two enemies and they fighted." He is going to be an amazing writer some day.

I found a really cool astronaut suit on clearance from Halloween so I bought it for Rugs to dress up with. When he opened it his first question was, "Where is the helmet?" Well, um.... it didn't come with a helmet and I didn't think of that. So he ran to the craft closet and started cutting. Seriously, all present opening stopped until this travesty was corrected. So staples, tape and a few sheets of paper later, this is what he came up with. Now my astronaut has a helmet-- I will sleep better tonight for sure.

This is the finished product. Very cute.

So much scarier armed with a few Nerf guns.

This is Em with his new rapid fire Nerf gun. This is serious stuff people...

Breckyn had "the best Christmas EVER!" She claimed to have gotten everything she wanted.

Zoey really wanted some matching slippers with me. These fuzzy pink numbers are pretty comfy and so stylish.

Even Rusty made a haul. He got this stuffed bunny and a plastic donut. He was a happy puppy.

Rugs made Tim this calendar and drew a picture for each month. It is so cute. He basically drew what he wanted to do with Tim for every month. (It's going to be a busy year according to Rugs.)

Em got a muscle man costume. I love love love when kids dress-up.

Don't mess with these muscles!

B and Z got these Barbie things that you can change out their hair. It was a real hit!

Zoey wanted DDR like nobodies business. It will make for entertaining posts later.

The kids were trying to find a way to know if Santa was real. Zoey decided the best way to do this was with weird requests and a signature. It totally worked.

Rugs loved this new Nerf gun. The look on his face is, "my parents are idiots-- they don't even know the trouble I'm going to cause with this thing!" He has a little Timmy spice in him that makes him think of too many schemes. It's entertaining to say the least.

He loved LOVED his new Nerf gun.

Z left this with the cookies and milk. I love it!

Merry Christmas to all! We hope you had as much fun and excitement as we did.

Christmas with the Barlows

We got to spend Christmas eve and a pinch of Christmas day with the Barlows. The kids made lots of stuff for each other and they were bursting with excitement to see each other open it.

Em loved his Lego haul from Aunt Jo.
Major excitement from everyone as they figured out how everything worked.

Breckyn made Caleb a flying snowman. She thought of it all by herself.

This is the moment of total chaos when all the kids started opening at the same time before the adults could stop them.

We didn't have a fondue pot this year. (It's located somewhere in all of Mom and Dad's storage.) So we improvised. It didn't work so well. You needed serious protection to even get near it.

We also rocked out to "rock band." (my new all time favorite game) We were loving it!

Little Miss scored some ballet stuff that she promptly put on.

Zoey wanted to make something for everyone. She couldn't think of something to make for the boys so I suggested that she write them a note of all the things she liked about them. This one is Maxs' note. It turned out pretty cute.

She also drew a coloring book for Max. It's filled with drawings of cars. It's just what he wanted!

Merry Christmas! We hope to see more of you next year. Christmas just isn't Christmas without a boat load of family.

Thank you Utah Sisters!

We received two wonderful packages this week from Utah. Cheri and Cassie crafted their hearts out for our kids. They were thrilled. They were so excited to wear every thing to school and show it off to their friends-- they put it all right on.

All made by Cheri-- so cool. Thank you! We got lots of compliments all day long. I can't wait for you to show me how to make the scarfs.
Rusty is grateful-- even though he looks annoyed. He really does like it. Thank you for helping him keep his cool edge while staying warm. How sensitive of you.

Cassie made these cool hair pieces to help the girls make the transition from kids to little ladies. I know, I'm slowly phasing out the bows for more grown up things. (slooooowly) I didn't get a picture of the boys because they got wet from being in the snow and had to change. They love their stuff too. Thank you for being so good to us. We adore the home-made love. There is nothing better than a hand-made gift. Merry Christmas!

Icy

Last night we got a few inches of snow and then some freezing rain and a whole lot of wind. The end result is an icy glazed snow that makes driving a little complicated. But it makes the trees look like magic. It is perhaps my favorite winter time phenomenon.

Here is a small sample of what I mean. The ice glazes the trees and branches creating a clear glow to the trees.
It took over our Christmas lights. (Don't worry, they still work.)

This little guy just loved the "crispy" snow. He was trying to walk on the surface without going through.

This is his favorite set of hat and gloves this year. He calls it his monster hat. It makes me giggle every time I see him in it.

There is something magical about icicles.

Alright, one more just to make sure you were paying attention.

Everything was covered in ice and icicles. It's pretty amazing.

Here it is all stuck in the trees.

Amazing right?