November 20, 2010

Lessons Learned

Lessons I've Learned (so far) As A Mother:
01. No matter what, baby always ends up with the win.
02. Sometimes getting messy is half the fun.
03. Others will always tell you how to raise your baby better. Just smile, nod, and disregard.
04. Teething must hurt like a $!?#%... and it will make you sad that there's very little you can do.
05. They really DO grow-up fast so savor every moment.
06. Just because YOU think baby should take a nap (because she/he is obviously tired) doesn't mean baby agrees.
07. Crawling is the beginning of the end. This inevitably leads to speed-crawling towards objects baby shouldn't play with.
08. Sometimes the laughter from dog licks out-weighs the germ factor. The same applies to friendly cows.
09. Creepy people and/or old ladies will always want to touch your baby. In this department I firmly believe kung fu is appropriate.
10. Your baby will only hate wearing hats when they are actually necessary.
11. Baby kisses are sloppy, slobbery, messy, and wonderful.
12. A good-nights sleep won't happen again until baby is eighteen... or maybe never. I'm still waiting this one out, but that's my current theory.
13. Baby will like the toys that aren't really toys best: tv remotes, hair brushes, spoons, bracelets, packs of wipes, sunglasses, etc.
14. Always pack the diaper bag as if preparing for Armageddon.
15. Diaper explosions ONLY happen at the most inconvenient moments... refer to above lesson.
16. It's okay to be a shutterbug (even when people make fun of you taking 263 pictures of your baby in just the one pose) because you'll love that one perfect later.



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November 10, 2010

Busy Bodies

Granted, I've been described as a "busy body" myself, but some of these other bloggers who do tutorials and handmade gifts every other day for their blogs ARE busy bodies. How you folks get everything done I will never know.

As a (part-time...wannabe...) blogger, I should do SOMETHING for you guys as far as handmade gift tutorials for the impending holidays. Here is what I can offer you: odd-ball tote bag ideas. Yep! That's all I've got.

I have four odd-ball nieces (yes I said four...as in 1,2,3,4) whom I informed could have anything they wanted for Christmas as long as I could sew it. Niece #1 requested a polar bear tote bag, Niece #2 wants a bat tote bag, Niece #3 asked for a rummicub tote bag, and I'm making Niece #4 a horse hand puppet named Buster after the horse she rode this summer.

These handmade gifts don't even include my mother, my grandmother, or the Camsters. You can see why I wont be doing blogs every other day with a variety of creative tutorials. I've got too much to do! Well... honestly, I'm lazy and if you include my tendency to procrastinate, I may barely make all these in time. I'll keep ya all updated on those projects as I get to them though....

Wish me luck.


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Music Moves Us

Music is a powerful thing. It makes us swing side to side, it makes us bob our heads, tap our foot, hum, break out in song, hop up and dance, and get our groove on. Music can make us laugh, can make us cry, give us strength, offer understanding, and create memories. Music is a powerful thing. Especially in this house.

YouTube Video

The Camsters bustin' a move to the radio.




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November 3, 2010

Upcycling Baby Clothes to Beanies

Does everyone call them beanies? I think so. Although sometimes while talking to people from other states it does sound like us Californians have weird names for things. Or maybe it's just my weird family...

Anywho-- since our "big move" the Camsters has grown out of all of her 6 month clothes and the majority of her 6-9 month clothes. It's not that she is hugemoungous (California word?), but she is long. She also needs some beanies to get through the chilly months before snow comes and no local stores seem to have anything lighter than a fleece snow cap.

Before having the guts to cut up a bunch of her cute outgrown clothes, I reminded myself of the 500 pounds of premie to 6 month sized clothes I freely donated. Ok... I think I'm karmicly set to hack up precious baby clothes.

Step 1: hopefully you have one beanie that fits already... if not, cry.
Step 2: take said beanie and trace it's general shape onto a piece of paper being sure to both a) allow a little room for seam allowance, and b) adjust the beanie while tracing to include the 'v' shaped cutout on top that tapers the head. If that made no sense, just draw something like this...
Step 3: sift through and pick out shirts and dresses that are a nice print, stretchy, and have enough space to cut out your pattern.
Step 4: hack 'em up!
Step 5: sew the two sides first
Step 6: then fold the other way and sew the top only going half way down the sides.

Voilà!

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November 2, 2010

Sarah's "Fly By the Seat of Your Pants" Strata

Did I not tell you about my miracle go-to dinner idea? Oh my. How can I ever expect to be a competent blogger without sharing these things? *sigh*

::Sarah's "Fly By the Seat of Your Pants" Strata::


Mix the following ingredients into a casserole dish. Feel free to use more greens and cheese if you like.
- 3/4 of a loaf of French bread, ripped into little pieces (secretly eat the other 1/4 loaf with lots of butter while preparing your strata)
- 5 large eggs, whisked
- 2 cups of milk
- 1 cupish of greens (I like spinach, but you can use broccoli)
- 1 cupish of meat (ham goes well with spinach)
- 1 cup of diced tomatoes
- 1 cupish of cheese (of your choice)
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- a big pinch of salt and pepper
Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes. Let sit for about 5 minutes before serving so it can firm up.

Enjoy!


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Boo!

Hope you all had a spooky and happy Halloween!
We had a great time over here! Saturday we spent the day carving our pumpkins...


...then we roasted the seeds for a snack. Then we saw an ad for a $10 pre-cooked 10lb. turkey, so we had to rush to the store to pick one up for a family dinner on Sunday. We also spotted some cheap-thin-crust-garlic-chicken-pizzas... so two of those made their way into our cart for lunch and dinner. We were exhausted after carving pumpkins. Pity us.

Then I finished up Camster's hat and shoes for her costume and attempted to make popcorn balls. Let's just say bad projects come in threes and I've now payed my dues.

Sunday the three of us headed over to my parent's house with turkey, baby, and sad sad popcorn balls in tow. After lunch the Camsters hopped into her costume and posed for her Halloween photo session.






Yes folks, my daughter was a garden gnome for her first Halloween. There were about 382 more pictures, but I'm learning restraint so I will only post two. You should be so proud of me. It's hard.

Husband was proud that I (slightly) worked down my fabric stash by making this costume from scrap cottons and scrap felt. Honestly, I don't think it made much of a dent, but don't tell him that.

The Camsters was one of maybe five trick-or-treaters at my parent's house so she got all the good candy... which mysteriously disappeared into my belly.


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