Bag of Blocks

Jude received some alphabet blocks for Christmas and I've been meaning to make a drawstring bag for them since then. I finally got around to it last week. In fact, I was giving a friend of mine sewing lessons and I decided this would be her first project. So, we sewed identical bags together.

I'm finding that I love to sew with my friends by my side. It might be one of my favorite ways to spend time. In the last couple of years I've now taught four of my friends how to sew. How great is that?

I added some letters to the front of mine and I left the edges raw because I'm lazy.

Does the blue, black, white combo make anyone else think of cookie monster? It's bothering me a little.

Dirty Thirty

Last week Jesse turned the big 3 - 0!

Every year I make his favorite - homemade chocolate cake with homemade white frosting. It's a recipe from his mom or grandma - I can't remember where it originated exactly. It's not my favorite, but he loves it and that's all that matters. I made it into a 9" round double layer and took it to his mom's where we celebrated.

This cake really gave me a run for my money. It's only by the power of a praying wife that it came together in the end - seriously. Both cakes stuck to the bottom of their pans and broke in two. I had to pry them out and glue them back together. I'm tellin' ya . . . it didn't look good.

You can tell it turned out a bit lopsided, but all in all, not so bad especially considering the mess that was on my counter.

This is the very first time that I've decorated a cake - you know, like with a real pastry bag, decorating tips and such. And, surprisingly, it wasn't as hard as it seemed. I might just do it again sometime.

It was a really fun celebration that involved not only that beautiful lopsided cake, but also a surprise iPad 2. Very fun.

Wall of Fame

I have a wall in my house with several family pictures. It's my way of keeping those who we love the most close to us. (And, let's be honest, my way of decorating cheaply.) Every January I pick my favorite photos from the year before and I switch out the pictures. I guess I don't want them to ever feel stale and it's also a fun way to reminisce on the previous year.

My goal is to include at least one picture of every extended family member. I never have space to fit ALL of my favorite photos. But, here are some of my favs from 2010. They all just got hung in my living room yesterday.

They look great! What a beautiful family.

I've also been busy this month putting together a photo book in Snapfish of our photos from 2010. I've been thinking for a long time how I can print our photos so that we can not only have a digital memory of our past, but also a tangible, physical memory for us. I loved flipping through our family photo albums (each of us kids had one of our own) when I was a kid and I guess I want to create the same type of experience for my family too.


I created the book off and on throughout the month and just ordered it today - taking advantage of their 25% off + free shipping on photo books offer! I can't wait for it to arrive in the mail! Our first family photo album. (Insert "awww" here.)

Birthday in the Mail

I sent Emily her birthday gift this year . . . late, as usual. I swear at some point I'll get better at that.

What I like about her birthday (and Marie too) is that I can send something very random and it's always received well. This year was no exception.

I was browsing on Etsy for something handmade, quirky and fun. I ran across this little necklace and knew she had to have it. We were both in Seattle for Christmas this year I was feeling a bit nostalgic for the homeland and I knew she would be too.


It's made by a designer that I can no longer find there. That's weird. Anyway, it's simple and really fun.

The inspiration for the ring came when I ran across this blog (via delia creates) and saw that she had turned a mini fabric rose into a ring. Are you kidding? So cute and so Emily. I don't think I can pull this off, but she totally can.

Gifts at Christmastime

Yep, that's right. Christmas gifts. I've been putzin' around here in Iowa this January. I have been working on a few things here and there, but clearly none of them are blog related.

So, now that I'm getting around to it I figure I should post about Christmas before I move onto anything else. And, nope, I'm not ashamed. So, here goes:

We got to go to Seattle this year to visit my family for Christmas. I loved it. A whole ten days to hang out with my family. It was really good.

We rotate who we buy gifts for at Christmas and this year we had my sister, Marie, and her family. So, of course, I can't help but sew a little something. I lost a couple of pictures (really not sure how that happened), but I can at least just tell you what I made.

photo courtesy of soozs.blogspot.com

Marie got a beach tote - made from this tutorial. For some reason my logical sense didn't coincide with the author's and I had a VERY hard time with this seemingly simple tutorial, but it turned out pretty cute. Seriously, it should have taken about 60 minutes and ended up taking at least 3 hours. Marie's was a blue/brown print with a white linen/canvas on the inside.

Her beautiful new son, Tommy, got a couple of things. First, were a couple of bibs. His were orange polka dot (love that fabric) and another with numbers all over. Really cute, but lost the picture.

He also got this ball. I got my inspiration from house on hill road, and she got the pattern here. This was fun and easy.



Jude, in turn, received a beautiful knitted hat made by his Aunt Marie. It's gorgeous and fleece-lined. I hate to say it, but I think we got the better end of the deal.

Isn't that amazing? You can click on the picture to look at it up close. I'm telling you - wow.

And, last but not least, we gave Tommy a childrens' bible. I must recommend it to you all just in case you're in the market to purchase one for your own child or a child you love. It's seriously the best and everyone should know about it! We received it from some dear friends when Jude was born and every time I read it to him it makes me cry. The words and the pictures capture God's story so well. I'm not kidding. It's fabulous.

Here's an excerpt from the intro:

"No, the Bible isn't a book of rules, or a book of heroes. The Bible is most of all a Story. It's an adventure story about a young Hero who comes from a far country to win back his lost treasure. It's a love story about a brave Prince who leaves his palace, his throne - everything - to rescue the one he loves. It's like the most wonderful of fairy tales that has come true in real life!

You see, the best thing about this Story is - it's true.

There are lots of stories in the Bible, but all the stories are telling on Big Story. The Story of how God loves his children and comes to rescue them . . . "

I'm telling you . . . it's beautiful. You might even want it for yourself. Because everyone should know about a Jesus who loves them and wants to rescue them. Don't you think? I do.

All Those Christmas Cards

I LOVE traditional Christmas cards. Isn't it so fun to receive so many beautiful cards during the month of December? I very much anticipate the mail's arrival in December just to see who I'm going to hear from. There's just something special about receiving updates in an old-fashioned way from those you love.

In the back of my mind I've hoped to find a way to display all of the cards, but I hadn't settled on anything until this year.

I ran across this project on a blog I've really been enjoying recently, delia creates. She got the idea for the wreath here. It's such a simple idea - only requiring a piece of cardboard, x-acto knife, wrapping paper, tape, clothes pins, hot glue and ribbon.

I whipped it together one evening in about an hour while enjoying a movie. It's so easy and so cute.

Jammies for Jude

Each Christmas one of my favorite family traditions was receiving a new pair of jammies to wear the night of Christmas Eve. My mom is quite the seamstress and she would sew all of us a new pair every year. Often times we got to go to the fabric store with her and pick out our fabric and design. We waited with anticipation to see what she created.

I've decided to carry on the tradition at our little house. So, this year, for his first Christmas, Jude received his first pair of homemade jammies.

I made a onesie and a pair of pants, which I felt was the easiest way to avoid a one-piece that either zips or snaps all the way down the front. Too complicated.

I scored at Walmart recently and bought a couple of bolts of fabric for only $5/bolt. Did anyone else score in this deal too? So exciting. Anyway, the red knit is kind of vintage-y, soft and perfect for a long john look. It was a challenge to sew with, but as I struggled with it I kept telling myself it was "good practice". Which, it was. I ended up making two onesies and two pairs of pants until I could get the right fit all the way around.
I used my onesie pattern that I drafted. I also used this pants pattern, which I've used several times before. To add to the long johns look I added cuffs to both the sleeves and legs. Again, these additions were a bit of a challenge, but worth it in the end.

When it was completed I drew the little trees and freezer painted those to the front. I have to say my little guy sports the jammies well, although you might not be able to trust me on that. In this case I'm not only a biased mother but also the biased sewer. The main thing I guess is that I really enjoyed starting this tradition with him. I'm already looking forward to next year.