Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Little Boy Blue

One of my co-workers is expecting a baby boy in September and we showered her with love and gifts last week. I got the task of purchasing the joint gift. It allowed me to put together a basket of goodies which I love to do! Included in her basket were these Inchbug Rings. I have them for Abby Lu and just love them! They are like the rubber LiveSTRONG bracelets and have your childs' name pressed into them. They then fit around bottles, sippy cups, etc. for church, school, or playdates. We received them as a gift and bought a second set recently. Very inexpensive, too!
This little boy will have a rodeo/western nursery so my Mom and I made him a little blanket. It is brown minky on the back side. These are super simple blankets to make. We do a 1 yard by 1 yard square with minky on one side and printed cotton on the other. I found this fabric on etsy, but fabric.com has some great prints and a huge minky selection!

The new parents registered for a 10 pack of white bibs. I decided to add a letter "b" on two of them for fun. Just a little fabric scrap, some Steam-a-Seam and the sewing machine.

The rest of the items are fun things from Babies R Us and her registry. I was amazed at how much cute baby stuff they have coming out. The rolled up onesie in the front has a tractor on it! Plus, they had some really fun guitar and rocker type clothes in stock.

Happy Shopping!


Sunday, August 29, 2010

The Edge of Motherhood

I can kill an insane amount of time and money at a Hallmark store. I love stationery like no other. Today while visiting Hallmark at lunch, I came across this new line of cards called The Edge of Motherhood. These aren't your grandmother's cards... they are so true and funny!
Here are a few samples I found online:
inside: Happy Mother's Day.

inside: hang in there. you're doing fine.



inside: these are not the kind of hangovers I want to have





inside: Get a bob, throw on some sweats and just go with it



Friday, August 27, 2010

Friday's Foot Fetish: Pretend it is Winter

I want to wear these with my most comfortable jeans and a black loose sweater while watching a riveting football game with friends. We can all pretend we are past the heat of August and it is a chilly Saturday in November, right?

Madden Girl Brilee- $49.95 at Zappos

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Beef Cubes and Rice Recipe

This is my friend Heather's recipe. She shared it with me about 6 years ago at a slumber party. I make it on Sunday afternoons. My husband and I love it! Here is the recipe in pictures:

Heather's Beef Cubes
Put 1 - 1.5 pounds of beef stew meatinto a loaf pan like this.
Pour on top of meat, 1 can of this
and 1 can of this.
Cover in foil and bake at 350 degrees for 2.5 hours.
Pour on top of cooked rice and enjoy!

I know- super duper easy and really flavorful. We've made it over egg noodles as well and it is just as yummy!

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Kids Clothing

I received a random catalog in the mail this week from CWD Kids. I have never heard of them. I assume they bought my name from another catalog I ordered from... isn't that how our mailboxes get full of catalogs begging for our money?
At any rate, I really like this one! It has super cute kids clothing in simple styles that I like. The prices aren't great, so I won't order often, but I'll be watching for sales.
This dog shirt cracks me up! He is funny!
Rock on- I love their pajamas. I always like to have one pair of super cute pajamas for those late night occasions where we switch my 20 month old into her pajamas before we drive home. These are precious and on sale!

Some of their jammies come with matching eye masks. ha!
I love love this pink ruffle coat! I may have to sale stalk it for next winter. It comes in brown too and has a matching hat!
They have a great selection of super cute swimsuits on clearance like this precious giraffe set!
I love all of the colors in this one- brown leggings for fall and if it still fits, lime green for early Spring! Really cute pumpkins to wear in October or for Halloween Day
Thanksgiving Day outfits for your son or daughterWhat a cute website- happy shopping!

Monday, August 23, 2010

Scrapbook a Wall

I loved decorating my daughter's nursery, but after having it in place for 2 years, I am getting the itch to redecorate! She'll be moving to a toddler bed soon and I am already starting to envision color palettes, wall art and accessories.

I think I want to cover one whole wall in her room in scrapbook paper. I've seen it other places and it gives a quilted effect in a BIG WAY! This is the paper I am currently liking. You can attach the paper with wallpaper paste or even glue dots for a temporary adherence.
Here are two examples from the blogosphere

Life Sweet Life
Smart Bottom Enterprises
What do you think?
It seems perfect for a toddler's room- if she writes on the walls or hits them too hard, you just remove that sheet and attach a new one. It is also pretty inexpensive and add a real punch of color and personality allowing much of the rest of the room to be more simple.


Friday, August 20, 2010

Friday's Foot Fetish: Slippers

Oh how I wish it was slipper weather! I'll be ready with these when it comes.Kate Spade Chime- $60 in green, pink or black

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

3 Ingredient Key Lime Pie

I have this obsession with always having a homemade dessert ready when we have company over. We don't eat dessert after dinner during the week, but if we have company, we must have a dessert. I show love through sweet food. :) So, I am always on the lookout for an easy dessert. This super simple key lime pie is made with this key lime juice, sweetened condensed milk and eggs. No joke, nothing more.
Here is the recipe from the lime juice. It you don't see this juice in your grocery store, it can be bought online or I bet plain ol' lime juice will work, too!

Happy Cooking!


Tuesday, August 17, 2010

If I Had One Million Dollars...

If I had one million dollars, I would wear Eliza J dresses from Nordstroms all the live long day! My garden party dress is made by her and it just fit really well and makes you feel pretty! Her dresses come in petite, regular and plus size. They are classic, well made, and most have pockets! They are typically $100 - $180, but Nordstroms has them on sale and as low as $46. If you are looking to order one, I think they run a little big. I went down one size for mine!
This royal blue is so pretty with red hair! A favorite color of mine when my hair is freshly colored. I love the colors in this one. Pair it with some pink heels for a business meeting or dinner.
Here is a plus size option- so pretty for a Spring function and with the pops of black, you won't have to find your awful white shoes in the back of the closet.
Love the pockets and the orange!

This is a great church or Easter dress. Perfect even for a more conservative girl.

I am tempted to buy this one- it is on sale and I just love the color! I think the belt would be flattering on almost everyone!

I'm not fond of my upper arms, so this one appeals to me! To have a dress with short sleeves is a tough find!

More sleeves, yea! I've heard navy is a great option for weddings. You are formal, but not in mourning.
And, this one says sexy business which I love! It is only $46!Happy Dress Shopping!


Sunday, August 15, 2010

Fabric Flowers Tutorial

I love all the feminine touches of flowers, pins, hairclips, and lace right now. Add some ruffles and I am sold. I bought these flower pins last fall as gifts (okay, I kept a few for myself!) and love wearing them. This past week, with my Mom in town, we sat down and figured out how to make them! Every good craft project starts with a list of supplies. Oh, and a big sweet tea from Sonic.
Here are the directions we loosely followed and a template to print out the flower sizes. Each posie pin takes 6 flowers- 2 large and 4 small. I selected 1 fabric for the large flowers and 2 for the smaller ones. You could do all the same or really mix it up.

To give them a more shabby chic look, after cutting out my flowers, I wet them, placed them in a lingerie bag and ran them through the dryer. It frayed them perfectly.

You'll also need something for the center- a button or a fabric covered button. These are super easy to do and the supplies can be found at most craft or fabric stores. I made my cover the same as the fabric on the large flower base.

With a needle and thread, you literally fold your small circle in half and then fold it over a little to give your posey seom dimension. You will end up overlapping these folded flowers to place 4 of them on the base.

This one has 3 sewn on and it just waiting for one more yellow gal to join in.

Once all 4 sections are folded and sewn on, you sewn on the fabulous button you have covered.
Here is the back of the flower. It doesn't have to be pretty since it will not show.

Take a pin (from the craft store) and sew it onto a felt circle smaller than your base circle.

Using E-6000 glue, cover your pin back and then glue the complete circle onto your pin's back.

We ended up making 6 flowers, 2 of each of the fabric sets I had purchased. They take a little longer than I had expected, but I know exactly what to do when I see fabric I can't live without. You can make a ton of these with just 1/4 yard of fabric, so splurge on the pretty stuff.
This one has peace signs, flowers, and butterflys. It is from Michael Miller.

And this little pretty is probably my favorite- I love the colors together!


It folded nicely and is so fluffy!

Posie pins are fun and there are lots of options out there! Let me know if you have a tutorial online, I'd love to see more ways to do them!