7 Quick Takes: March 12, 2010 (Vol. 33)

~ 1 ~

I got to have the loveliest experience this week.  I sat for two hours in the waiting room of an occupational therapy/physical therapy clinic while Jack had two different appointments.

That may sound like I'm being sarcastic, but, the beauty in it was that Eric had taken the afternoon off of work.  So, it was just me and my iPod.  I listened to some of my playlists while I did things like cutting out little books for my preschool co-op class and making felt cookies (and text messaging Eric from time to time).

It was just the kind of break I needed.  Not just from the kids, but from the computer too.  It was nice to just be.

~ 2 ~

This week, we had not only our first thunderstorm of the year, but also the first time that we ate at a restaurant and sat outside too.  I keep thinking that it's going to suddenly snow again, because this just seems too good to be true.  It's been an awfully long winter.

What are some of your signs of Spring?

~ 3 ~

I am already in the mood for the chocolate molten lava cakes again.  That is not such a good choice for working on eating better and losing weight.  I think I just need to wait until we have my parents over for dinner again, that way there is less of them to go around.

~ 4 ~

On Saturday, we went to Home Depot for their monthly kids workshop.  We made rain gauges, and they are so cool! (This was more fun than the time we went and they ran out of the project, so we had to make a project with paint stirring sticks.)

It was so fun to see the kids working on projects.  And, even more fun was watching Eric show them how to do it.  I love that man.

If you have kids in the target age for Home Depot's kids workshops, they are the first Saturday of each month from 9 am until noon.  You don't have to register -- just show up!  (And it's free!)

April's project will be a butterfly house and May's project will be a picket fence planter.

~ 5 ~

After we whipped up some rain gauges, we went to a furniture store that we have never been to before.  They have a lot of discounted new furniture, as well as used furniture.  It was just about the coolest thing ever!

One of my favorite parts was that they give a discount for cash.  And, I'm not talking about a tiny discount either.  It made me absolutely giddy for some reason.

We left with a child size desk (Molly sized) that has five drawers, is made of real wood, and was too cute.  It looks like it has been painted at least five times -- so it has obviously seen a lot of use.  It was $45.  Or, for cash, it was $30.  That little girl has been using it constantly.  That is best $30 I have spent in quite a while.

~ 6 ~

While we were at the furniture store, we also saved about $40 by paying cash for a (new in box) bunk bed!  It was one of their most expensive bunk beds they had, but it was still far below what bunk beds cost elsewhere.

Do you know my favorite part?

No, you're wrong -- it wasn't the $40 cash discount.  It's stairs.  This bunk bed doesn't have a ladder -- it has stairs!  And the stairs each have a drawer in them.  So cool!

~ 7 ~

If you're Catholic, you absolutely must go check out one of my new favorite sites -- Catholic Icing.  Not only does it feature the coolest Catholic projects and crafts, but Lacy (the gal that runs it) is super sweet.




The only thing I don't like about Catholic Icing is that I get hungry every time I go visit the blog.  Be warned, you might get hungry too.







This post is linked to 7 Quick Takes and Weekly Wrap Up.

Using Only Craft Supplies That You Already Own

As a scrapbooker (or any kind of crafter), it's easy to feel like you always need to buy more supplies.  This becomes especially true when you are working on a specific project.  I, however, have been working on buying less supplies (a whole lot less!) and using what I already have in my craft room.

This whole idea was tested this Christmas when I realized that after having made eight Christmas albums to give out to family, I realized that I had accidentally given an album to someone I hadn't meant to.  This, of course, meant that I didn't have an album for the person that I was going to give that one to.  So, in just a couple of hours and with supplies that I had on hand (save for a couple of embellishments from my Mom, as well as the chipboard album I bought from her as well, which she had on hand), I was able to create a baby girl album for Eric's sister and her husband, as they are expecting a baby girl in February.

It was an amazing feeling to know that I used things that I had on hand, and didn't have to feel the need to go buy, buy, buy.

The baby girl album:

 

Not only was I thrilled to use up supplies (some that I had been holding on to from quite some time), but I was also happy knowing that my sister-in-law would have an easy way in those busy first few months to have a handmade album without having to do all the work herself.

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday and Frugal Friday.

Fun Christmas Craft: Paint Stirring Stick Christmas Trees

At the beginning of December, we went to Home Depot for one of their kid workshops.  We were very bummed that instead of getting to make a small wagon (like for stuffed animals), they said they had run out of kits more than an hour before the workshop was ending. 

I thought about just leaving, but they gave an alternate craft to make.  I saw what their idea was -- a Christmas tree out of five paint stirring sticks.  I'll be honest here, that made me come pretty close to turning around and walking out.  But, we were there and I figured, "Well, why not?"

We used three small nails (should have used four though), a hammer, and five paint stirring sticks.  It's probably hard to see, but there are actually two sticks running horizontally on the bottom, with all of the other sticks sandwiched in between them at the bottom.  This craft was super easy to make and very quick.  The cool thing was that we also got to decorate them at home (as a school art project).  Quite frankly, the craft would have been incomplete without what we did next.

We got out our already assembled paint stick Christmas trees, craft paints, sponge brushes, cotton swabs, and Sharpie markers (which we didn't end up using, except for to write the kids names and the date on the back of the trees).

Each of the kids picked their own shade of green and painted the tree with the sponge brushes.  They also used brown paint to paint the small bit of tree stump at the bottom.  (I assisted with painting the edges for those that needed help.)

 

 

I let each of the kids pick five to seven different colors of paint and put them on their own personal paint trays (or leftover baby shower plates, if you want to be technical about it).  They then painted with cotton swabs.  It was fun to see that although I had a preconceived notion of how these would look, the kids each came up with their own designs.

I just loved the way that these came out!  The kids had a fabulous time working on these, and I got a lesson in not being so quick to dismiss an alternative idea.  Who knew they would turn out so cute?  In the end, I was glad they ran out of wagons -- these will be Christmas decorations we will cherish for a long time to come.

This post is linked to Frugal Friday.

7 Quick Takes: December 11, 2009 (Volume 24)

~ 1 ~

I have recently read about a lot of people doing more relaxed schooling during December (or some portion of December).  I thought this sounded like a great idea, and so we started doing just that this week.  Of course, with having had a busy week, it was an easy decision.

While we have continued with math lessons and practicing piano each day (and social studies read alouds for the week), our days this week having also been filled with activities like: games, Legos, problem solving at the grocery store, going to Mass, a science lesson of watching someone's heart on an echocardiogram (thanks for taking one for the team, Jack), some video/TV watching (MythBusters one afternoon, and The Nativity Story one night after a Reconciliation Service), lots of free reading time, crafts, and whatever else pops into our head that has educational merit that is something we don't normally do.  Can I just tell you how fun it has been?

Next week, we are looking forward to doing some baking as part of school, as well as Christmas "party" school day with one of our favorite homeschooling families.

~ 2 ~

Happy Birthday today to one of the best men I know -- my Dad.  We love you like crazy!

~ 3 ~

 Why is it that my kids all name jobs that they want to do when they grow up that have nothing to do with going to college?  It's not that I'm a snob about it, but darn it -- I want those kids to all go to college.  When I was their age, I was saying that I wanted to be a teacher.

What do my kids want to be?

1. A Walmart employee (or maybe a hotel owner -- so there may be some hope for college there!)

2. A Build-a-Bear Workshop employee

3. A hair stylist, ballerina, tap dancer who works at Noah's hotel (see number one)

Good thing you aren't allowed to pick your profession when you're five years old, huh?

~ 4 ~

I love kids books that crack me up.  This week, we read Falling For Rapunzel by Leah Wilcox, and that's exactly what happened.  Everyone in the house laughed about it.  It is such a cute story, works on rhyming, and is just down right hilarious.  (It would seem that Rapunzel just can't hear what Prince Charming is saying while she is high in her tower.)

If you haven't read it, be sure to either pick it up or check it out from the library.  Too cute!

"Rapunzel, do you have any rope?"

Rapunzel dropped a cantaloupe. 

~ 5 ~

 Just love the new Dockers "Wear the Pants" campaign that they started.  If you haven't seen it yet, go check it out.

~ 6 ~

 The baby shower that I threw for my sister-in-law last weekend went really well!  It was nice to have so many people over, and she and her husband got a lot of great things.

And, as a side bonus -- we got our house so clean!  Thanks to everyone in the house (and my Mom too!) for helping to clean the house and get food ready.

~ 7 ~

I've been working on knitting (with my loom) a blanket for Christmas.  Christmas is now two weeks away, and while it is the correct width, it is only about nine inches long right now.  I'm either going to have to get to work or I'm going to end up wrapping it still attached to the loom with an IOU with it.

Wish me luck! 

This post is linked to 7 Quick Takes Friday at Conversion Diary.

Photos by: yarn shop - missteee / manipulatives -  jimmiehomeschoolmom

A Non-Knitter Makes Knitted Christmas Gifts!

I'm so excited to read the Works for Me Wednesday posts this week, as the theme this week is all about Christmas gifts!  Although I'm trying to finish up my shopping (within the next week, I hope!), I still love getting ideas, especially since I'm sure many of them will be handmade goodies.

Speaking of handmade goodies, be sure to check out my ideas for baking goodies to give out as gifts, as well as making not so edible cookies (felt ones, actually) for Christmas as well.

Here's my offering for this edition -- knitting Christmas gifts for the knitting-challenged.

Just a year and a half ago, I had never used a sewing machine, and I had absolutely no idea how to do any needlework types of crafts (like embroidery or knitting).  I'm still far, far, far from being a pro, and I have to use some aids at times, but I'm happy to say that not only am I making and giving those handmade felt cookies, but I am also giving some knitted (on a loom) gifts this year too!  So, take heart, if you have always wished you could be more crafty, there definitely is hope for you!

I used the Knifty Knitter round looms to make the two completed hats shown, and am working on another one that is still on the loom.  I used super soft yarns for all of those projects -- the pinks are bamboo and the brown is alpaca.  As far as I'm concerned, nothing makes knitting better than using wonderful yarn.  And my big challenge for this Christmas?  On the long loom (also by Knifty Knitter) is a blanket!  It's taking a lot longer than a hat, but I'm keeping at it!

So, if you're like I was just not too long ago and you long to create but think you're hopeless, maybe try something like the kit I used for learning embroidery or the looms sets (round would be easiest to start with, but the long ones are a great addition).  Another major help to me was having my Mom around to help me (and Eric to help me with figuring out loom directions), but YouTube videos can help too.

Making handmade things for Christmas not only blesses the receiver, but as far as I'm concerned, it really can bless the giver too.  It's really hard for me to be in a bad mood while I'm using bamboo yarn.  I'm hoping that at least one of my bamboo hat receivers (who lives in my house) will also find it hard to be in a bad mood wearing it! 








This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday and Finer Things Friday.

Felt Cookies for Christmas

This year, I really wanted to try to figure out some handmade gifts to give to our children for Christmas.  Oh sure, there are still going to be things like Wii games and iPods, but I also wanted to give them each something handmade.

I have to admit, I'm still not sure if I can come up with something to give the boys.  But, I was thrilled to start working on a gift for Molly the other day.  For quite a while, I had admired felt food.  I kept thinking, "Surely I can do that, right?"  But, still, I put it off.

Finally, I used this guide on how to make a blanket stitch, along with help from my Mom to start off.  She joined in and made a few cookies.  Mom also had a sweet Raggedy Ann and Andy heart shaped box to hold our sweet creations:

I'll still make some more cookies for the gift.  I plan to make her a dozen cookies total.  I was originally going to make a variety of foods, but decided to just stick with a greater quantity of cookies instead.

This was such a fun project, and I really hope that she likes them as much as I do!  It makes me giggle every time I open the box (which I have hidden until Christmas).  This was a very easy and frugal gift -- I just hope that it brings her the same joy that it is already bringing me.

Now...if I can just figure out something handmade for the boys, I'll be set.








This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday, Frugal Friday, and Finer Things Friday.

I Actually Accomplished Some Things This Weekend!

I have felt like I am falling so far behind in so many things lately.  The past month has just been one thing after another, and it has really left me overwhelmed.  Finally, however, I feel like I have had a pretty productive weekend, and I'm pretty psyched about that!

Oh sure, I still have to work on Christmas stuff for the first time we'll celebrate Christmas with extended family (which is coming up pretty soon).  I need to work on baby shower invitations for a shower I am hosting for Eric's sister.  I have to work on a large correspondence training project for the therapy that I do part time. 

Sigh.

Okay, happy thoughts.  Let me tell you what I actually did accomplish though. 

1. Got caught up on quite a few emails that I had been putting off, as well as a variety of other computer related tasks.

2. Watched half of season two of The Big Bang Theory with Eric.  (And, in what truly shows my ADHD tendencies, I stopped writing this post to go send him Big Bang Theory flair on Facebook and forgot I was writing this.  But, maybe it was on my to do list, right?)

3. Cooked three pounds of ground beef and made it into Sloppy Joes.  I froze it into two meals, in order to allow that everyone gets to have as much as they want and Eric will still have leftovers for work.

4. Separated a three pound log of ground beef (yeah, I had another one) into four portions to use for meals.  Then I froze each of those portions for later use.  It would have been easy to freeze it into three portions, but I like that with four portions (3/4 of a pound), we'll eat a little less meat and then it brings down the per meal cost of the package of ground beef.

5. Cooked a whole chicken (purchased on sale) in the crock pot, and then picked all of the meat off to freeze (after Eric had dinner).  I also picked all the meat off of a store prepared rotisserie chicken (it was on sale too).

6. Had a crafting evening with my Mom where I started working on a handmade Christmas gift for Molly.  I'll show you some of what I worked on soon. 

7. Learned to do a blanket stitch to work on #6.

In addition to the listed things, I worked on laundry, went to Mass, and a variety of other things.  Sure, I still have a lot to do, but it's nice to look at a list of things I have completed.

What do you really need to do this week?  What are you proud of having completed lately?

Photo by limonada

Cleaning My Itty Bitty Craft Room...Once Again

Do you have a room or area of your house that always seems to get messy?  I would like to say that my craft room is that area in our house, but I would be overlooking my desk and the counter.  (I will admit, however, that I did notice that two of the most problem areas are my areas in the house.)

Since I am having a group of women over this weekend for a mixed media painting class, I figured that I better get my craft room in order.  Since it's a mere 35 square feet, we won't use it for the class, of course.  But, I suspect everyone will see it at some point, so I have to be prepared.

Brace yourself -- this is what the room looked like right before I started to clean:

Unsettling, isn't it?

It's true -- I couldn't even walk into the room.  Every surface had something on it, and it kind of freaked me out every time I walked past it.  This was definitely not something that I wanted to show off to my friends.

After a couple hours of clean up, one bag of stuff to give away, and one bag of stuff to throw away, here is what I ended up with:

 

It's not as beautiful as the craft studios that I see in books and around the Internet, but I have to admit that I am pretty pleased with how it looks right now.  If it can just stay looking like this until the end of this week, then I'll be set!

What are the most problem areas in your house?

 

This post is linked to Tackle it Tuesday.

7 Quick Takes: October 23, 2009 (Vol. 19)

~ 1 ~

Right now, I have orange star-shaped Post It notes all over my house.  They are stuck to the walls and to many surfaces.  Many, many surfaces.  Some have pictures on them, and some have labels of whatever they are stuck to.

Molly and Jack did this yesterday.  They did one, and then asked if they could do more.  It would have been easy to say, "Don't make a mess, guys.  Let's not do that."

Instead, I said, "Sure," just about every time they asked about a new area of the house.  Not only did they have fun, but I am actually enjoying being able to see happy stars each time I look around.

~ 2 ~

I have been at a bit of a loss lately about what to write about on my blog.  The funny thing is, I feel busier than ever.  Isn't it amazing how you can be so busy sometimes, but have so little to say?

Does this happen to anyone else, or is it just me?

~ 3 ~

Are you planning on going to Blissdom 2010?

Registration will be opening next week for those that have not attended before.  This looks like such a good time!

~ 4 ~

I was so thrilled earlier this week to have officially finished a set of eight (mostly) identical handmade Christmas gifts that I had been working on!

I bought all of the materials last December, and then left them sitting around until late summer.  I even kept thinking, "I don't really want to work on this anymore."  But, of course, I had already invested the money into the project, and decided that I needed to stop being wasteful, and just suck it up and make them.

So, on Sunday of this week, after having spent four all day crops working only on this project, they are all done!  I'm so thrilled.  I would show pictures (I will after Christmas), but some people that will be getting them also read this blog.

I just hope that those receiving the gifts will like them!

~ 5 ~

This week, there were several days where I canceled things that we had planned.  Not only did Eric and I skip out on a class that we were supposed to go to (we still did our reading and homework though) in order to have dinner together instead, but I also canceled things throughout the week.  Things that it wasn't a big deal if we canceled or didn't attend, of course.

It was just what we needed!  I realized that sometimes a person just really needs to be a lot less committed, and it's not a sign of weakness.  Sometimes, it's just a sanity saver.

~ 6 ~

One thing that Eric and I did find time to do this past week was to watch the Netflix movies that we had received.  We watched The Proposal last weekend.  We both really enjoyed it, and I would recommend it. 

We also watched the first disc of season one of The Big Bang Theory, since we only began watching that show several months ago.  We agreed that we would only watch one episode before Eric went to bed.  Instead, seven episodes later, he had been up way too late (on a weeknight!), but we definitely enjoyed it!

~ 7 ~

Why do I have to consistently have such a hard time finding a science homeschooling program that I like for the kids?  Last year, we did Catholic Heritage Curricula's Behold and See 3, and I did like that.  But, now I'm at a loss.  We have tried a couple of things, and it's not working.

I will be continuing my science quest soon, I suspect.  Wish me luck.

 

Be sure to check out both 7 Quick Takes and Weekly Wrap-up!

photos by: google images (post it notes) / Image Editor (science)/ hannahspanna (writer's block) / creativeFlutter AKA MazerDesign (handmade gift box)

Soda Bottle Recycled Into a Bird Feeder

My kids have a great love for birds.  (I have even written about using bird feeders as a homeschooling tool before.)  The kids just can't get enough of watching birds in our backyard at our bird feeder.  So, when I saw a small contraption that would allow us to turn a soda bottle into a bird feeder, I knew that the kids would really love that!

This project was easy for the kids to primarily work on by themselves, with a bit of help from me (specifically when making holes in the top of the "bird feeder" aka the bottom of the two liter bottle).  And, with the actual feeder costing only a few dollars, this was a fun and frugal way to recycle an old bottle.

Not only were the kids able to enjoy watching the birds, but the birds seemed to enjoy it as well!

What are some inexpensive utilitarian crafts that you enjoy with your family?
 






This post is linked to Thirsty Thursday and Frugal Friday.