Misc. Monday: Garden

I love spring. We have four raised beds in the garden behind our house and the flowers are in full bloom. I love to bring them indoors. We just went to the giant tomato and pepper sale at the the arboretum too, so our summer veggies are now in the ground. I can't wait until Lilly is old enough to have her own bed in the garden. She loves going in there, but mostly to play in the dirt and throw rocks!

Sew Crafty Saturday: Owls

I now know that I really don't like reading sewing patterns or directions. My mom always said she could never teach me anything and I always wanted to "do it myself." I bought some new sewing project books and I love to look at the pictures, but want to try to make things my own way, even though the directions and measurements are right there. Now don't get me wrong, I am an avid reader, but fiction is my thing. What's crazy is that Lilly is already showing signs of my independent spirit. I am in for it! My mother also said, "I hope you have a kid just like you!" Well, it looks like I did. Anyway, here is an owl I made without a pattern. I saw it on a shirt of Lilly's and just drew out the body and beak on a piece of paper and traced it. The owl's body is made from left over bedroom curtains, and her legs are an old pair of my jeans. I have made 4 and given 3 away so far.

Wee-One Wednesday: Easter Sunday

Thank you all for voting on Lilly's Easter dress. I can't believe there were 21 votes! I had so much fun checking on the results. There were 7 votes for the polka dot dress, and 14 votes for the dress with the puffy sleeves. Here are some pictures of Lilly in the winning dress. We had a wonderful day: she danced to the music at church, ate yummy food, spent time with her family, and threw some eggs around. Who could ask for a better Easter Sunday?

Misc. Monday: Egg Party

Saturday was our first annual Easter egg decorating and egg hunt party. The day ran very smoothly. First, we decorated the eggs. (Lilly threw 3 on the floor and spilled some dye). Then we went inside for a snack and to change clothes, while the dads hid the eggs. The hunt was a hit. Next year, we will need twice as many eggs and if we a feeling brave - a few more kids! Thanks to all our friends who came! Everyone brought such wonderful and yummy treats to share!

Sew Crafty Saturday: Bunnies

We had a small Easter egg decorating party today, with five young children. It was our first attempt, and I am glad it was a small gathering. One-year-olds are not the best at dying eggs! I made these little bunnies as a party favor, using a pattern from http://www.mylittlemoochie.tpyepad.com/ We took a ton of pictures, but I haven't had a chance to look through them yet, so I will post a few of the kids on Monday. Have a Happy Easter!

Wee-One Wednesday: Arboretum

Here is Lilly having a blast at the Arboretum at Cal State Fullerton. It is one of our favorite places to go. She loves to feed (and yell at) the ducks, run through the children's garden, and touch the "flows" or as we call them, flowers.

Misc. Monday: Easter Dresses

I have a dilemma that I need your help with...I bought Lilly 2 adorable dresses for Easter and I don't know which one to have her wear, so i"ll let you decide. Please vote for the dress you think is the cutest and I'll post pics of Lilly wearing it next Wednesday.

I love Easter, all the decorations, springtime, and images of new life. I even told Dan that I think I like it more than Christmas. It's less hectic, the kids are just as excited, Jesus has risen, and red and green are not my favorite colors. He says he'll ask me again in December.

Sew Crafty Saturday: Birthdays

We went to Lilly's friend Quentin's 3rd birthday party today. I made him a cape because my husband said every child needs a cape, so I am showing you Dan in his now "vintage" cape, as well as the new cape I made for Q. Dan still has his, so I used it as a template for Quentin's. I also made his mom a scrapbooking tote that can hold a scrapbook or a spread she is working on. I hope she likes it! Their whole family has March birthdays - go figure!

Wee-One Wednesday: Guitar

It seems like Daddy isn't the only one around here who has an ear for music. Every time Lilly steps into the office, she wants us to take the guitar down for her. Her face lights up as she strums and beats on it. Lilly is also a great dancer. Let's just hope she does not get her singing voice from her mother!

Misc. Monday

I have purchased two new books in the last couple of months on my quest to be a creative crafter: Softies by Therese Laskey and Simple Sewing by Lotta Jansdotter. I have made a few

"treeling" trees from the Softies book, and I am working on the whale shown on the cover and a little cupcake inside the book. I have not attempted any projects in the book by Jansdotter yet, but can't wait to get started. Both books are beautiful to look at, and include patterns in a little pocket found the back of each book, so handy! Although, I am noticing that I don't really like to follow the directions and seem to be using the books more as inspiration. Like some children I know, I just like to look at the pictures.

Sew Crafty Saturday

I have been practicing some sewing lately; here are some pillows I made for the couch last Saturday (all by myself & with no pattern). I made an apron for my friend Heather's birthday (with the help of my seamstress friend Amy & a pattern). That's why these simple pillows are such a success for me.

Wee-One Wednesday

If you haven't figured it out yet, Lilly is our "wee-one," so Wednesdays will be devoted to her. She is 15 months old now. She can tell you where her head, shoulders, knees, toes, eyes, nose, mouth, belly, and ears are. She knows what a handful of animals say and says about 2 dozen words of her own. Here she is in Big Bear in January.

Miscellaneous Monday

To stay organized, I am going to try to update this blog 3 times a week on the following schedule: Miscellaneous Mondays, Wee-One Wednesdays, & Sew Crafty Saturdays.

So, here's my first Misc. Monday. This is a picture of the sillouette of Lilly I did last Monday during her nap. I was planning on paying for one once Lilly got some hair, but was tired of waiting, so I tried one myself. I think it turned out well. It's now hanging up in our bedroom.

I can't believe I'm doing this!

I'm certain a lot of "bloggers" out there never thought they would be doing this either. This is how it all started...Lately, I have decided to start crafting. I bought a Craft magazine at Michael's because I didn't need anything (yet I NEEDED to spend my 40% off coupon). I was intrigued, so I visited their website: http://www.craftzine.com/ Once I was there, I was amazed by the blogs and references to other so-called crafters. I had a brand new sewing machine in my closet that I had asked for from my mom as a b.day gift 2 years ago. I always knew I liked to make things. I teach, scrapbook, painted a mural in my daughter's nursery and some silly wall art hanging in our living room, and love decorating magazines... Once I started visiting blogs of other moms and crafters, I was hooked. They are soo inspiring. My goal for this year is to give some sort of handmade birthday gift to the special people in our lives.

Another big part of this blog will of course be my lovely daughter, Lilly. She is my true inspiration, a gift from GOD. As the song goes, He has my whole world in His hands. She makes me see just how beautiful this world really is, just by smiling in my direction and running my way. There is no one I'd rather look at. Although, her father is a close runner-up.