An after Christmas Christmas Poem

Yup. I wrote a poem. I kind of feel like I'm in elementary school again, trying to figure out which words rhyme with what and yet still have it all make sense. Anyway, I thought I would share with you my attempt at an "After Christmas Christmas Poem". Enjoy!

heehee.
Happy New Year to all! May your year be full of all good things merry and bright! :)

Last Minute Christmas: 6 Ideas to help you finish

Are you a last minute Christmas shopper or crafter? Don't worry, so am I. :) I thought perhaps it would help if I posted a few of my favorite, and quick and easy, tutorials in case you need a few ideas! :)


1. Top pick for anyone that is tech savy - you know, all those people with smart phones, iPods, eReaders (whatever the brand). This would be a great gift! (I know, I made a bunch of these for Christmas last year and it was well received.) :) You can find the original post here with instructions for download.

Materials needed: Fabric (10" by 7.5" - larger for eReaders), thread, filling (I used aquarium rocks. :) They are firm and keep their shape. You could use beans or rice (but if worry about it getting wet?). Or batting or polyfill - but you would want to stuff it REALLY full so it keeps it's shape while holding the device).
Time: ~30 min.




2. How about cute mini tissue covers? Cute, quick, easily personalized. Find the tutorial here.

Materials needed: Fabric.
Time: 10-15 min.



3. Are there kids on your list? What about a fun car mat? These are great for traveling, and easy to throw in your bag for a fun distraction while you're waiting at the doctors or at church. Find the tutorial here. (wow! I don't know what happened to the pictures on that page. I'll fix it, or click on them and you should be able to see them in flickr. Sorry!)

Materials needed: Fabric, thread, ribbon (opt.), velcro,
Time: 1 hour? I don't know.



4. You could also do a fun and easy bag, adding any embellishments or design elements you want. You can find the basic instructions here. I made these for church bags for my boys, but they're a great size for practically anything! (Just big enough to hold a coloring book, or similar items. With two pockets on the inside.

Materials: fabric,
Time: Guessing about an 1 hour. Also pretty quick.



5. Last year I also made these cute message envelopes. You can find the pattern over at Sew, Mama, Sew! here.

Materials: fabric, thread, embroidery floss, buttons,
Time: these really depend on how much detail you put into them.



6. Want something a little more personal? Try a Photo Name book. Simply cut out 2 of each letter, layer, place a photo behind them, and a note on the back of each square. Laminate, or connect in many different ways. :) My boys love looking at old pictures of themselves. :) Find a bit more detailed instructions here.

Material: paper, photos, pen, glue, laminator or rings - someway to link them together.
Time: this could take a while trying to pick out pictures, but it also could go pretty fast!




Hopefully one of these may help get you started. Or look around on my blog, there are some more projects I didn't share here that could be fun too! Thanks for stopping by!

If you decide to make something here, I'd love to see it in my flickr group here! :)

Featured on Sew, Mama, Sew!

Yippy! :)

I was so excited last week when Melanie, from Sew, Mama Sew!, asked me if she could add my Christmas Stars quilt to her article for this week! Uh, YES! :) You can check it out here! It's a great collection of the different colors of Christmas! :)

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas!! 

I am still busy with projects and holiday celebrating, not to mention our 5 year anniversary!! Wow-sers! I'm so lucky to have such a great man in my life. ;) Anyway, I will be hit and miss for a while on the blog... so I wish you safe travels and a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!! :)

Our Story: Adventures in P.T.

Potty training is in progress.... slowly but surely we will get there. (with some fun adventures along the way!)

read more here.

Today

Today I am...

• going to sew ALL day (Christmas gifts!)
• listening to Fleet Foxes, Regina Spektor, Ingrid Michaelson, Jolie Holland, Christmas music on Spotify
• Happy!! :)
• finished with Christmas "shopping" - except for the chocolate. Can't forget the chocolate. :)
• messing up a LOT sewing my HST's. (How many times have I sewn ON the line instead of using it as my 1/4" guide? don't ask.)
• feeling MUCH better than I did the rest of the week.
• eating a lot of chocolate.
• in love.

Source: etsy.com via Diane on Pinterest

I hope you are having a lovely day!

100 Winners!!!

Ok, there are only 2 winners. BUT I have 100 followers! 102 to be exact! That means I am going to do an awesome giveaway come the new year! I am super stoked! So make sure to come back after the new year and check it out! :) Thank you to everyone who stopped by, entered the Sew, Mama, Sew Giveaways, and became a follower! :) I had a BLAST! I hope you did too! :)

Now onto the exciting part!! drumroll please! ;)

The winner for Giveaway #1 is... 

The winner for Giveaway #2 is...

Congrats! I have sent you an email for your addresses.

I have to say that I wish I could send each and everyone of you a gift! I thoroughly enjoyed each comment and feel like now I have so many friends! ;) So, in tribute to you all, here are all the things I loved about your comments! :) (you can stop reading here if you want...) ;)

First of all, I hope all of you have wonderful holidays! I'm so happy for everyone that gets to see missed family members, or new family members (congrats!), or simply more time with those favorite family members (like hubbies! - I'm with you on this one!). :) I also love the lights, the baking, the food, the time to relax! I hope everyone has safe travels! and a quiet and peaceful, or fun and adventurous day!

As to those lovely "New Years Resolutions". What a funny name isn't it? I love how so many prefer to make goals instead. Congrats to EVERYONE who conquered big goals or previous resolutions! That's Awesome!! (I am seriously impressed! I realize that I make resolutions because I like to make lists. My "resolutions" tend to be more a one giant and overwhelming list of things I want to work on, and then based on how I'm feeling that day, or that year, I simply pick and choose. I don't know if I remember any that I've ever made, or ever followed up on my progress, but I like to make lists. Perhaps this year I will actually strive to work on some. ;)  But then again, I also like the idea of monthly goals, or shorter term goals. Do something that is achievable right?!) ;) Maybe we should have a resolution/goal party! Where half way through the year we celebrate our achievements! However large or small they may be! :)

Anyway, Some of my favorites, or perhaps ones that I should put on my list of things to work on, were...

• don't buy supplies unless I *need* them (but really we need everything right?! - as one comment said)
• balance my time better - more purposeful time for my children and hubby
• eat healthier
• exercise more
• more time for sewing/crafting/creating. heehee! I like this one! ;)
• less time waisting - so I have more time for sewing. ;)
• finish more of my WIPs! finish projects before I start more.
• read books that I own (for me it would be finish books I have started! lol)
• loved this: get rid of (trash/recycle/sell) one item a day, or get rid of things I don't want or need
• cook a "new" meal every week! I've thought of this before, but never really stuck with it. I should try it again.
• keep my 'craft' area clean - my hubby would LOVE this one. ;)
• focus on gratitude instead of fear (or worry)
• go on vacation ;) or take one major trip out of the country (this would also be my husbands favorite!)
• use up my stash!
• design some fabric! (my dream!!) :)
• sew some clothes!
• HIKE MORE!!! yes please!
• keep a better handle on finances
• hoard less. ;)
• give more than I receive
• simplify - ha! not with this list! ;)
• a past resolution - never skip flossing! wow! that should be an award winner!
• make my goals specific - actually have a plan for them (this time of day, x amount of times a week, etc.) so they aren't just floating in space. very smart!
• take more pictures, learn to use my camera better
• go on a 100 mile bike ride! - Yes! I would love to get back on my bike. Now I just need to figure out how with three little kids. ;)

See? Didn't I tell you I like to make lists?! :)

I wish everyone the best of luck with all of your resolutions, goals, or whatever you do or don't do! I believe in you! ;)

Happy Holidays!! 

And all the best to you and yours!

p.s. Did you ever want to learn how to add numbers to your comments? I learned how here. Just in time too! ;)

I couldn't wait

Did you see my post from last night? With my idea for a new quilt inspired by this pattern and Rachel's block? Well, I just had to take a break from cleaning this morning and sketch a little something up. What do you think?

This is of course a VERY rough draft, but you get the basic idea. I think I am in love with it. I'm not sure exactly how I would do the details, like the stems and such, but I think it would be so fun for a little girl. Perhaps my little girl?! (I sure wish I didn't have so many other projects that were first in line....) :)

Source: stitchedincolor.com via Diane on Pinterest

Oh, and I really love the fabric that Rachel used, so I would definitely go with a softer pallet. Not too bright, with a cream background (not my usual first choice, but I would like it here. ok, maybe white. I don't know).

It's been Pinned!

Ok, I've pinned SO many things, but this is a must do... or rather an inspiration starting point to a must do.

Source: thesometimescrafter.com via Diane on Pinterest

Retro Flowers by The Sometimes Crafter

Cute isn't it?! Rachel, over at Stitched in Color just made one of these blocks. Of which I LOVE the fabric she used for it. Which led me to this pattern. ($10) Cute, huh?! (maybe I should ask that just one more time. heehee.) Anyway, my first thought was how cute it would be to make a variation of this that would go a little something like this: (thought I was going to add a picture? nope. It's late. Try forming a picture through words...) :)

If you only had one flower per column, but they were staggered in height. Then leading up to them from the bottom you had leaves that were similar in shape, but more leaf shape. So then you would have 4 different flowers.

Anyway, How I picture it, I think it would be cute. How it sounds... maybe not. I'll show you a picture if I get around to trying it sometime. Until then, it's one more project idea that is now filled a page of my gigantic book of things to do. :)

(maybe I'll applique it. That might be faster...)

p.s. I finished my other Dec do. Good Stitches block! Yippy! I'll post pics tomorrow to complete your bee block overload for the week!

and don't forget the giveaway! Just a few more days left (what day is today?!) It ends friday.

do.Good Stitches - Nov Blocks

Finishing up the blocks for this month made me realize I never showed you the blocks for last month. (Maybe because I finished them super late?! idk.) ;) Anyway, they turned out to be a lot of fun! One of the members sent me a pattern for paper piecing. What a life saver. I ended up using Elizabeth's, of Oh Fransson!, freezer paper piecing method. I was really nervous about these blocks, as everyone seemed to be having some difficulty with them. But it ended up turning out really well! :) I am definitely going to use this method again! and again. and again. :)

I can't wait to see how these all come together! :)

p.s. Don't forget to enter the giveaways if you haven't already! They are open until Friday!
Giveaway #1 and #2

So far, so good... - Updated

I think I'll finish this.
maybe.
tomorrow. Today!

 

I'm trying to get all of my do.Good Stitches blocks done before I official start on my Christmas presents. I think if I don't they won't get done until Jan. The boys have been playing together really well today, so I figured I'd be able to whip these out really fast. Not so much. It seems like I sit down and sew one thing, and the next min I'm back up chasing them around. ;) Isn't that how it always goes though?!

I'm using Elizabeth's tutorial for her Mod Mosaic Pillow. I've wanted to make a quilt out of this for a long time, so I'm happy that I finally have an excuse where I don't have a choice but to at least try it out! :) It's probably more that I like to make everything, but this is definitely another one that is a lot of fun! :) I think I could do a whole quilt out of this easy! Maybe for Rachel's Scrap Attack starting in Jan! (Ha! Like I need one more thing right?!) We'll see. I think I'm glad that my husband doesn't read my blog. :) It's probably better for him too. ;) (teehee)

I hope everyone is having a lot more success with their Christmas sewing than me!

p.s. Don't forget to enter my two giveaways!!! for the big Sew, Mama, Sew! Giveaway Day!! :)


Updated: I DID finish it today!! Phew. That was rough! I had it almost done and then it was short on one side about 1/2" and a little more on another side. It was kind of hard to add just that much without making it look awful. Though maybe it does, but I don't want to think about it. ;)

I like it. :) I don't know if I would really want to do a whole quilt of this though. Maybe if I didn't have to get every block exactly 12.5", and could just fit everything together however it fit. Then maybe I'd like it more. It was fun. :) I'll let you know after I make my second block.

Now I am off to bed! I am going to make myself start going to bed earlier! Starting my "new years resolution" a little bit early. ;)

Giveaway's are AWESOME!!!

I cannot believe how much fun I am having reading everyone's comments!!! This has been a blast! And they are still coming in! I think this is going to be the best email week EVER! :) Thank you everyone for your kind words and great comments! I am trying to respond to everyone, but bear with me... it might take a while to get back to everyone. It seems like the comments are coming faster than I have minutes in the day, well minutes available anyway. I'll try to respond to what I can. But please, if I miss someone... I'm sorry! Just know that I love your comment too!

I think asking for resolution ideas was maybe a bad idea. I think with everyone, whether you make resolutions or just goals, or nothing, I totally agree with all of them! (Honestly I don't really make resolutions either. If I do, I end up changing them a week later... and well, they don't work so well for me either.) But I do like to work on goals, and basically I want to work on all the same ones as you. So now I'm afraid my list is going to be SO long!!! But that's ok. Keep them coming!!!

Anyway, I just had to let you know that I am having a blast! And I think I just might have to start planning more giveaways! And guess what? I'm at 90 followers! I think I could definitely do a "100 Follower" giveaway!! (though it will have to wait until after the holidays.) I was hoping to make up some items for this giveaway, but didn't have the time. Perhaps I'll have to do them for that giveaway! :)

Thanks everyone for all the fun!

I hope you have a great day!!

Giveaway Day! Giveaway #1

***This giveaway is now CLOSED! Thank you everyone who entered. The winner will be announced soon***

Yay! It's giveaway day!! I think this is one of the most exciting days in blogland!! :) And I'm super excited to participate this year! I think I got a little too excited, because looking through my stash of supplies, I found a lot of things I want to giveaway! ;)

I have two different giveaways, for two different categories, so make sure to check them both out. And make sure to visit Sew, Mama, Sew! and get in on the action of everyone's giveaways' too!

• Giveaway 1: Fabric, zippers, all supplies needed (except glue) to make 4 mustaches on a stick!
• Giveaway 2: Crafting Supplies: Lots of ribbon, some sticker designs, alphabet letters, and 2 cans of flowers (over 100 flowers)!

Look at all this goodness!!

2 Fat Quarters - Canvas by Jessica Jones

2 Fat Quarters by Joel Dewberry

1 Fat Quarter - I have NO idea what this is. I think it's linen. My neighbor gave it to me and I lOVE it!

all fabrics have been prewashed.

Light blue, Eggplant, Bubble gum, Chatreaus - all 14" long. (the actually zipping part. with the ends they are 16")

Red zipper is 20" long.

And for something fun, I really love these mustaches on a stick...

Aren't these great?! So I decided to throw in some supplies so you could make your own mustaches for four! (I will not be sending the two pictured). They are super easy. All you need are scissors and some glue. These will be a hit for pictures if you are having any kind of holiday party! The tutorial I used was here at Pepper Design Blog, along with the pattern for the different mustaches you can make. I simply cut out the paper mustaches that I printed and traced around them on the felt with chalk and cut.

To enter the giveaway leave a comment telling me:

what you are most looking forward to this Christmas season, 

and/or

what your favorite thing is about the holidays. :)

Personally I am excited to get together with family for Christmas! Back in the day all of my siblings would get together for a family party around Christmas time (there are 8 of us, so usually it's a rare thing to all be in the same room together). It's been a few years since we've been able to do that, but this year just happened to be our lucky year! Although not everyone is coming, I'm really excited to at least get together with a couple of my brothers and their families for Christmas and revisit some old traditions!  I think my favorite thing about the holidays is family! Especially my own little family! Last year we made sure to do something every day to help us get into the Christmas Spirit: read a story, sing a song, do service, etc. It was so much fun! We're a little late jumping in on that this year, but even though we haven't done anything specific, I still feel that the focus on each other is tighter than at other times. :) Lots of love floating around this place!!

This giveaway is open to international entries and closes on Friday December 16th at 6 pm MST. I will choose a winner using random generator.org. Please make sure you leave your email address if you have a no-reply blogger account, if I can't contact you I will pick a new winner. Sorry!

Make sure to check out the other giveaways here on my blog, as well as all the giveaways linked up at Sew, Mama, Sew!

p.s. While being a follower is NOT required to enter the giveaway,
I do LOVE everyone of you! ;)
(and I'll be sure to come follow you too!)

Thanks for stopping by!!!

  

 Merry Christmas!

Giveaway Day! Giveaway #2

***This giveaway is now CLOSED! Thank you everyone who entered! The winner will be announced soon!***

Yay! It's giveaway day!! I think this is one of the most exciting days in blogland!! :) And I'm super excited to participate this year! I think I got a little too excited, because looking through my stash of supplies, I found a lot of things I want to giveaway! ;)

I have two different giveaways, for two different categories, so make sure to check them both out. And make sure to visit Sew, Mama, Sew! and get in on the action of everyone's giveaways' too!

• Giveaway 1: Fabric, zippers, all supplies needed (except glue) to make 4 mustaches on a stick!
• Giveaway 2: Crafting Supplies: Lots of ribbon, some sticker designs, alphabet letters, and 2 cans of flowers (over 100 flowers)!

Look at all this goodness!!

13 rolls of ribbon, each is 4 ft long. 2 cans of flowers (over 50 in each), with 3 shapes and colors in each. And some plastic letters and some crystal sticker designs.

To enter the giveaway leave a comment telling me:

Do you make new years resolutions? If so, what are you planning on working on for next year?

Ok, I think I am asking this more to get ideas on what I should be working on. I haven't thought about this too much. But off the top of my head, I want to be more organized  with my life! And I want to go to bed early!!! (I really need to be better at this one!) :)

This giveaway is open for international entries and closes on Friday December 16th at 6 pm MST. I will then choose a winner using random generator.org. Please make sure you leave your email address if you have a no-reply blogger account, if I can't get ahold of you I will pick a new winner. Sorry!

Make sure to check out the other giveaway here on my blog, as well as all the giveaways linked up at Sew, Mama, Sew!

p.s. While being a follower is NOT required to enter the giveaway,

I do LOVE everyone of you! ;)

(and I'll be sure to come follow you too!)

Thanks for stopping by!!!

  

 Merry Christmas!

Little Quilt - Sew, Vote, Swap! Received!

Look what I received!

Isn't it beautiful?! :) and guess what? It was my first pick (I'm really excited about that too!) But really I just love this mini. It was made by Four Monkey Quilts, and she did a great job with all of these yo-yo's!

the back

I have this hung on my wall right where you enter the living room, so anyone who comes to the door will see it. :) And to be honest... it looks better than my own Christmas tree. ;) (if only it were a little bigger, it'd be our Christmas tree. heehee)

Thank you!!! :)

I feel like a deer in the headlights!

I have to admit that I am having a mini freak-out moment! In the world of crafting and sewing, flickr, blogs, etsy, and all that stuff I am feeling like a deer in headlights right now. so.... the best thing to do? make a list! (though I have to admit I am really nervous about this!) :)

• I need to make up/finish 3 orders I've received in my shop.
• Christmas present(s) for us (since my boys can't read this yet: superhero capes for them, uh. I forgot what else. And no, I have not even started the placemats yet. Maybe I'll have to make those in January for next year. ;) )
• Christmas presents for extended family (I think I'm set on what we're doing. I am sad that I won't be able to do my original idea... maybe later)
• I still need to make up our Christmas cards and letters and send them out
• I have my do.Good Stitches blocks to get out in the mail, plus the blocks for this month
• Make a final decision on which block I am going to use for the [3x6] bee and make up 7 blocks (one for me to practice on) this isn't due until the middle of Jan, but I don't want to wait until the last minute!
• I want to make something for the Giveaway Day on Monday (though it should be quick!)
• I need to figure out what I want to do for our Moody Blues swap that starts in January. My month is February. Luckily we are only making two blocks each month, and it only lasts 6 months.  
• I am also in charge of do.Good Stitches in February, which means I need to figure out what I want to do for that too in case I need to make up a tutorial.
• I need to finish up some alphabet books I'm making for the kiddos - so excited for these!!! :)

ok... that is starting to get pretty far in advance. I will say that I have cleaned our house pretty good! Our kitchen looks AWESOME! I guess there is some good that comes from being overwhelmed in the "other" department - it motivates me to do housework. ;) 

I also have made new buttons for my blog! The new header, all the pinterest, flickr, etc buttons (these are my favorite! Do you want to use them too? You can if you want!). And a new blog badge. :) So fun!

You can even put this on your blog if you want! ;) heehee. (I'm really not trying to be sneaky). :D

<center><a href="http://fromblankpages.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="from blank pages..." style="width:170px" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7146/6480509597_863f8b15f1_m.jpg"  width="200" /></a></center>

and... just because I love my dad, here's a picture of him taking my boys for a ride on his motorcycle.
They loved it!

When I was little we used to ride motorcycles in the mountains as a family ALL the time! I always rode with my dad. It was seriously the best! We'd ride back into the mts a long ways, camp over and play. I love being outdoors! And I love that some of those memories can at least in a small part, be passed down to my own children. :) Thanks Dad!

Btw, I feel much better now. ;)

Thanks!

Our Story: Growing up and getting funnier!

I can't get enough of these cuties... and lately it seems like they are growing like weeds!!!



read more here.