And A Happy Valentines Day To You!

The girls had so much fun making and getting Valentines! (Didn't they make lovely ones?) What are you doing for those that you love?

Happy Easter To You!

I absolutely love holiday traditions. No, more accurately, I love pretty much any traditions! Coloring eggs may be one of the more nonsensical of the bunch (rating slightly below, say, hanging tree fungus in your house at Christmas so that people can kiss underneath it) but, you throw a tradition and an art project together and we're all over it! No mere dyeing of eggs at this house, nosiree! We dye them, paint them, glitter them, bead them, color on them, add some stickers...I'm actually a little bit sad we have to keep them in the fridge and that tomorrow they'll be deviled eggs. (And egg salad the day after that, and the day after that.....and this relates to Jesus how, exactly?)  All of that aside, we had so much fun decorating eggs with the girls this year.  I love to watch them create. I love to see their own individual style present itself in something so seemingly simple. (I love to watch Joel act like he doesn't want to do it every year and then really get into it, and possibly have more fun than anyone else.) Above all I love to celebrate with my family. Happy Easter!  He Is Risen!!

Little Wood Sprite

For Miss Cordelia's fabulous fifth birthday, I made a no-sew tutu out of 8 yards of tulle, some silk flower garland, and an elastic headband. (Elora Kay, after modeling the finished product here for us has decided that she needs one for her upcoming birthday as well.)
To make your own, you need 2 yards each of four different colors of nylon tulle in complimentary colors. Keeping the tulle folded in half lengthwise, cut it widthwise in to 3 inch strips. Working with one color at a time (the darkest first) knot the strips around the headband, which  will now be the waistband of your skirt. Knot by pulling the cut ends through the folded ends and pulling tight around the elastic.  When all four layers of tulle have been added, trim your garland into desired lengths and knot on to the front of the skirt using either tulle or a coordinating ribbon. If desired, take any leftover garland and make a matching headband (or necklace, or waistband!) by simply tying either ribbon or a few strips of tulle to the ends. Let your little fairy try it on and dance around like the princess that she is. Voila!

Fat Quarter Napkins

One of the easiest ways I know of to cut down on both waste and expenses is definitely cloth napkins! With a family of six, napkins are in high demand at our house! The napkins themselves, however, tend to be expensive (ten dollars for one napkin? I don't think so!) and are often of poor quality...they shrink and mutate in the wash or slide off of your lap in the middle of dinner. A quick and easy solution? Fat Quarters! I'm not a quilter but I love to look at all of the lovely fat quarters every time I go to the fabric store. When they go on sale for 99 cents each I grab a few (I stick to a black and white theme to jazz up my plain white plates. They are all different fabrics but coordinate beautifully.) and head home to sew! Each napkin can be made in about 10 minutes!! They are already cut out for you, so simply fold the edges over about 1/4 inch and press. As you sew, simply fold the edges over a second time for a clean and sturdy hem around the edge. Fat quarters are 100% cotton, so they launder beautifully. And an added bonus? The girls love to pick out their favorite napkins as they set the table. When was the last time your napkins were fun?

Kid's Workshop

This weekend, our very own little elves got to make picture frames in Santa's workshop! After working hard on their creations, everyone got a little chat with Santa about their Christmas wishes, and got a candy cane to boot.  Ah, the magic of Christmas!