Wee Ones Wednesday: Halloweeny Playdate

Monday, Iris and I hosted and Halloween crafty play date for some of her girlfriends. She was so very excited to be the oldest girl, and thoroughly enjoyed being a helper. They bowled with mini pumpkins, made bats and spider hats, ate theme-y treats, played, and watched the Sophia the First Halloween episode. Hendricks even cooperated by taking a nap, and the mommies had a chance to catch up, giggle, and eat a couple of cupcakes while drinking coffee. Mornings like that one make me feel truly blessed to work part time. 

Misc. Monday: Fall Festival

Fall is in full swing! Friday, the girls went to the fall festival at Lilly's school where we:

smiled for the camera,

pretended to be farmers,

won scary teeth,

played games,

and more games,

won goldfish,

played more games,

and still more games,

got our faces painted,

ate tons of junk food,

enjoyed our sisters and cousins,

smiled some more,

and saved the boy some kettle corn!

Sew Crafty Saturday: Hop Hop, Squawk

I am completely finished with Iris' pink bunny Halloween costume request. I am loving the new glitter tulle that Michaels is now carrying, except that it was all over the house and kids for days! I supersized a tutorial on how to make a pom pom for the tail, and love how it turned out. She wants to wear the pink ears of course, while I prefer the white ones... We'll see who wins out on the 31st.
I perused a few peacock costumes on Pinterest for Lilly to get some ideas. She loves the felt feathers and was so impressed that I didn't use a pattern. Haha. Real feathers were way too expensive, so I'm going to take apart some earrings that Dan bought me years ago, but I was never brave enough to wear, to make her a head piece. I have plans to turn the teal tulle into a cascading tail feather, but am not quite sure how I'm going to attach it to the skirt, so her costume is still a work in progress. It's been really fun making the girls' costume dreams come to life. They are so excited and are making me feel pretty cool right now! I'm sure it's only a matter of time before they let me know just how uncool I really am.

Wee Ones Wednesday: Dog Washing Turned Kid Washing

This weekend the kids helped Dan wash the dogs. Isn't it funny how a little water can bring so much joy? Their laughter was infectious. Since they were already soaked to the bone, Dan decided to give them outdoor showers. I could not stop laughing and snapping pictures. It was such a fun and silly moment. I'm sure we'll be talking about it for awhile. "Hey Dad, remember the time you washed us outside like the dogs?"

Sew Crafty Saturday: October

print on my holiday pinterest board.

their 1st Halloweens.

couldn't part with this 12 month baby tee, so it became decor

1 of 2 new buntings

Target memory game I found on clearance after Halloween last year, stitched it together with a needle and thread.

boo-tiful ghost of iris' foot from last crafty playdate. print from pinterest.

love our seasonal typewriter

letters from pinterest. 3 grey honeycomb balls on clearance from Target's wedding section

October is here and Halloween is fast approaching. I say "fast approaching" because I'm making part of the girls costumes this year. Iris wants to be a pink bunny, with a pink tutu. Since when do bunnies wear tutus? And out of no where, Lilly says she wants to be a peacock. I'm a little excited because it's been quite awhile since I made them anything, and they asked me to make their costumes which means they don't think I'm a nerd yet. 
They are so excited for another holiday, that we took out the Halloween tubs last week and started decorating. The girls love to get involved and did a great job helping this year.
I had a few hours last Tuesday when everyone was getting along and happy, so I had a chance to whip up a few new buntings with some old fabric I found in a tub of decorations. It was so fun to hear my sewing machine run. After some time, all three kiddos showed up in my room. Iris and Hendricks rode the exercise bike, Lilly read, and they let me sew until I was done. It was a small miracle, I tell you!
The year before last, I hosted a small crafty, preschool playdate for Halloween. It was so much fun and the littles were super cute! Realizing that Iris is going into kindergarten next year, I really want to do it again before it's too late... Whoohoo. Let Octoberfest begin!

Wee Ones Wednesday: Our Little Daisy

**Caution: This is not the post I intended on writing when I sat down at the computer...

We have a daisy in our house! This is so special to me because my sister and I never got to do extracurricular activities when we were growing up. The first time we bought Lilly ballet slippers for dance class, I cried. I was so happy for her. Our children will never know what it means to come from a "broken home," staying at Day Care until closing time. They have no idea how hard other kids' lives can be, and how truly blessed they are. Their parents love each other. They know Jesus loves them. Their grandparents love them. Their bellies are full and their schools are awesome. In relation to the world, they are spoiled. And you know what? I'm OK with that. It means we are doing a good job. They will learn soon enough about this harsh world. For now, I will cherish my  innocently ungrateful kids. Their eyes will be opened soon enough. Dan and will make sure that our kids do not become ungrateful adults. They will give back. They will do good. You can count on it!

Sew Crafty Saturday: Whew!

Where did September go, or even summer for that matter? Work has been very hectic, days filled with crying, running, goofy kindergarteners, and meetings galore. Home is not much calmer, and I don't see anything slowing down in the near future.
Crafting and being creative has definitely been put on the back burner, but is not forgotten. I still have grand plans of finishing Henry's baby scrapbook, binding the giant quilt I worked on this summer, and sewing new kitchen curtains. Fabric and supplies have been purchased, only to sit and wait for me to have a moment to get to them.
Yet, when I have a free moment, I choose playing with my littles, hang out with my handsome hubby, or read a good book. I've been doing a lot of reading lately, and it's been wonderful!
I am proud to announce that I am caught up on all three of my babies' birthday books. They bring me such joy to look through and I used free Shutterfly coupons for every one of them, paying only shipping cost. Whoohoo! I also completed our 2012 giant photo scrapbook, using Shutterfly. It is awesome, and I'm now only 9 months behind on our 2013 album!

Sew Crafty Saturday: Hot Days

 

 

It has been soooo hot here that being outside is practically unbearable. Because of this, we have had to be creative to beat the boredom inside. We have made oobleck or quicksand (cornstarch and water), homemade play dough, and crafted our hearts out. The oobleck is an old school standby. Iris played with it for well over an hour. Just be sure to dispose of it outside. You never want to put the mixture down the drain.
The homemade play dough was way easier than I thought. The consistency is amazing, and I even found myself playing with it. I would honestly never buy playdo again. We made a pink batch and a blue batch, and mixed half of these to have some purple too. We've played with both more than once, so I'm pretty impressed.
Play dough recipe:
1 cup flour
1/4 cup salt
1 cup water
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 teaspoons white vinegar
food coloring
Mix all the ingredients together in a saucepan and stir constantly over medium heat until it clumps together. Let it cool and have fun. It should keep fresh for a month.