She read it, I read it and You should too!

I loved this book! Ricki suggested it to me and I finally got my hands on it...and once I did I couldn't put it down. I know the movie is coming out, but I am betting the book is better!

A Great Gift Idea!

Ricki, remember when you sent me this link http://eighteen25.blogspot.com/2011/01/you-gotta-see-this_28.html?
Well for a birthday gift I recreated it with some $$$! A really easy gift and Wyatt thought it was a great idea too! Thanks Ricki!

For Your Consideration and Inspiration

Here are some examples of design boards, sometimes called inspiration or mood boards.

Bedroom Design Board
Bedroom Design Board 2
Bedroom #4: Soft Grays & Whites

West Elm: Amethyst Duvet Cover/Room Inspiration

And this is my amateurish attempt at making a design board for your bedroom, Sherece. I think the whites are really pretty and feminine and then the gray makes it a little more masculine, while still feeling light and airy. I like the rosy colored lamp because it's a subtle way to bring in more pink. The silver pillow is a funky take on gray. I would try to bring in more shades of that purple so it doesn't look out of place, being the only really dark thing in the room, but I had a hard time finding more purple stuff. I think texture makes things more interesting: ruffles in the pillows, frilly white throw blanket, tucks in the duvet, linen curtains, sheepskin, etc. I dunno, what do you think?

White Duvet Cover

Gray Duvet Cover

Personal Shopper

Sorry for the quality, taken with my camera phone.

 Today I picked up that pillow you wanted from Ross, Sherece. I hope this is the right one??? Let me know if you want me to look for anything else.

Have you guys seen those cool decorating pages designers put together for their clients using the internet? It's like a clothes look-book, but for your house. I will research it and try to put one together to show you. I think it would be really helpful if you needed ideas and sources to shop for home decor.

Advice for Simple...er...

Task: Get pictures of my kids for Christmas cards and Christmas gifts!

Pros: Save $$$, Lots of Money!

Cons: The pictures turn out like this!

Next Year: Hire Professional Photographer!

Felt Cupcakes

What planet have I been on? Did you know felt food was, like, a huge thing? Maybe it's not a fad anymore, but there are a ton of online tutorials on how to make all kinds of felt food. I combined several to make these for a little girl's birthday we just went to. I wish I could have found a cupcake pan with only 4 cups! Making 6 of these took a long time, but it was fun to design each one and try to come up with something unique for each.

I had all the materials except for the ivory felt, I bought some of that because I really wanted some "vanilla" cupcakes! So it was a very inexpensive gift, it just took some time. Levi sat next to me most of the time entertaining himself by pretending to eat the ones I had finished, playing with the beads, and learning to sew big thread through felt.

I looked at these to get ideas and to figure out a pattern that I liked:
http://hoogliart.wordpress.com/2007/09/07/how-to-make-a-felt-cupcake-tutorial/ 
http://lbbsideas.blogspot.com/2008/09/my-felt-cupcake-lid-dont-fit.html 
http://maedchenmitherz.wordpress.com/2009/05/15/felt-cupcake-tutorial/
http://softiescentral.typepad.com/blog/cupcake_wars/index.html
http://www.deepfriedkudzu.com/2006/02/felt-cupcakes-with-sprinkles.html
http://sewhipmama.wordpress.com/2010/02/02/felt-cupcakes/
I ended up making the basic form using the first two links, I didn't cut a triangle out of the top circle, instead I did a loose stitch around the circle to gather it a little before sewing it to the base.

Granola Bars

I was really pleased with how these turned out. I combined several recipes I found online to make them. They were really delicious and I felt like it was the perfect snack to have for a boost of energy and not need to eat anything else between meals.

Some more praise for these granola bars:
-easily modified to be more healthy (cut out the chocolate chips, add more dried fruit, etc.)
-filling for such a small portion
-natural ingredients that you can pronounce and know what they are

Also, I feel like if I go to the trouble of making something like this I am less likely to eat a whole lot of it because I don't want to have to make it again the next day. With something like Quaker granola bars I feel like I could eat 5 of them, they're not filling, they don't have good ingredients, and it's easy to buy several boxes for the pantry and just plow through them. Maybe these aren't that much work? I guess I feel like they are because the first time I made them I forgot to take them out of the oven while I was talking to a neighbor outside, they cooked for about an hour and were totally black!

Granola Bars
3 c rolled oats
1 c whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 c sunflower seeds
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 c Craisins
1/2 c white chocolate chips
-Mix together.

1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 c olive oil
1/4 c butter, melted
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
-Mix these ingredients, then add to the dry mixture until moistened. Press into greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350' for 25-30 minutes. Cool, cut and keep in sealed container.

Alternatives:
-You could use 3/4 cup butter as some recipes suggested, but I wanted to try it with EVOO. The little butter I added gave it a faint buttery taste without being too much.
-Try a variety of nuts and seeds, chopped dried fruit, candy chips.
-Instead of brown sugar, use honey or agave.

Dear Sisters...

Dear Ricki and Sherece,

Well, I've started working out and I've been trying to eat healthier since I've had Jonah. I feel frustrated that I weigh so much, but also I feel like kicking butt. Mine in particular. I'd like to kick it off! So I've been working out REALLY HARD. I've decided that why should I go to the gym and spend an hour away from my kiddos and not work out as hard as I can.

While I'm enjoying this time, it's also hard to stay motivated. Do you guys want to keep me updated and I'll keep you updated on any fun exercises or healthy meals you make? I'd love it if you would! I want to get back to the old me as quickly as I can and I could use all the help I can get.

Love you!

Love, Katie

Remember This?

We should do it again soon! Maybe at Ricki's??? Steve is riding again in September!!! It has been too long and I miss my sisters!!!

One day it will look something like this and we can go to fun and exotic places...just the three of us!



Have your people call my people and we'll make plans!

Felt Flourishes

My smile (smirk?) looks weird, but you can see the semi-matching Mother's Day corsages I made for V and me. Mine was basically a sleeping face in the middle of a rose, inspiration from The Farm's button I found on my Cathy's (Levi's midwife) blog. And then Vivian kept chewing on hers while it was pinned to her dress, so I put it on her headband instead. I thought it might be a fun tradition, to make something for us to celebrate the spark of motherhood we share.

 

My rose reminded me of the birthing books I read when I was pregnant with Levi. A lot of times they used the visual of a flower blooming, opening its petals, to help you open your cervix and prepare it for birth. I tried thinking of that during Levi's labor, but I remember thinking that a flower doesn't feel like it's on fire. I was able to go there a little better with Vivian's labor. I wonder if anyone at church noticed my flower was symbolic of a vajango with a crowning baby? Ha!

In case you want to know how I made them:

Fertile Rose

3 rough circles with wavy edges in small, medium & large

1 tan circle

stitch around each rose circle

stitch face onto tan circle

Hearty Botanical

2 leaves

1 heart

1 flower

1 circle

stitch around heart

pin all pieces together and attach by stitching all over top circle