Just a litle seersucker dress for Nug. My first creation without a pattern. Oh yeah!

New house, playroom makeover

The thing about having a blog (worth reading) is that you must actually write something about something on a somewhat regularish basis. Huh. Fail.

Any who, here I am. Over four months later. A lot has happened in 4 months. Nug turned 1. We bought a house. I graduated with my Masters degree (thank you very much). And now I resume my post as a full-time stay-at-home-mama.

Back to the house. I'm in LOVE with our new pad. And I use the word new loosely. It's new to us. The house was built in 1948, though. It is brick, and charming, with a killer yard. And were thrilled. So thrilled, in fact, that I've mentally (and beautifully, I might add) decorated every room in the place. Now if only I could afford to make those lovely mental images a reality.

Up first is the playroom/ guest room. Notice how playroom comes first in the title because, let's be honest, it will be used as a playroom every day and as a guest room maybe 10 days all year. It's the 4th bedroom, and it's quite small, but I'm determined to make it suit our needs. After all, we did buy the house, we kind of HAVE to make it suit our needs.

Here's what the room looks like now. (side note: my camera is still broken and I took these pictures with my iPad).

And here's what I've got planned:
-paint walls with blue stripes
-fabric covered cornice boards
-chalkboard and magnet walls
-paint futon white
-dye futon cover to match decor (and if that doesnt work, buy a new one)
-make throw pillows
-new rug, light fixture, and storage pieces
-add shelving to closet for big toy storage
-commission the hubby to paint some pictures and nag hubby until said pictures are finished
-shop ikea for fun things to add to the space (love ikea and any excuse to shop there)

I'm giving myself three weeks and three hundred dollars for this project. Here we go.

Warhol Dress: My First Refashion

First, for months now I've been thinking that I really need to learn the basics of refashioning. I see all these adorable shirts and dresses in blogland that have been refashioned from thrifted items. So, last weekend, I attended the Move It On Garage Sale which is for a great cause in my hometown. Anyways, I saw a cute striped shirt that was in great condition and I thought I could certainly turn it into something for Nug. I'm into strips right now, and grey, so it was perfect. 

Second, I've been in l.o.v.e with the Warhol Dress from MADE since I saw it. So, today the two worlds met and I used this shirt....

to make this dress...

I'm pretty thrilled with out it turned out. Dana's pattern is for 3-4 year old or 6-12 month, and since I wanted this to fit my little love this summer (when she'll be 13+ months), I just made the 6-12 month pattern a little larger. It was super easy to work with (even for me who is kind of scared of knits) and the directions were clear as a bell (clear as a bell? is that it?).  

And as a bonus, I can now make another dress because I bought two t-shirts thinking that I would surely mess the first one up! 

 

From the Archives

I made this bow board a few month ago, but never put it up on the blog. So, here it is. I got the inspiration from Samster Mommy, which just so happens to be the first craft blog I ever stumbled across and I've been hooked ever since. (I blame you, Samster Mommy, for hours I've spent scouring craft blogs when I should be doing other things like cleaning my house or reading to my kid!) :)


Anywho, the bow board was a quick 'n easy solution to this problem.

The top of the dresser was not the permanent residence of all the bow goodness, but that particular day I got frustrated that they were getting smooshed in the drawer, so I pulled them all out. Then, I made this...

And now Nug's bow are neatly (and I use the word neatly very loosely here) organized like so...

And the funny part is that I never put a headband or bow on her head anymore. We're all about the little clippies these days. Now the beautiful bow board is simply decoration. And I'm OK with that.

Carmen Tunic

Remember way back when I posted that I won my first giveaway? I was so excited. I won a Carmen Tunic pattern from Lille Skapet. It was emailed to be quickly, and then there it sat, in my inbox. Until tonight, that is. It was time to finally make the Carmen Tunic for Nug. Nevermind that I've had the fabric for three months. I haven't really been sewing much lately due to the crazy demands of finishing up my Master's degree. It sure felt good to sew something tonight. It is doens't hurt that it turned out super cute and my little love is going to look darling in it (nothing humble about that statement!). 

The pattern was a little tricky, but I muscled my way through it and I'm happy with the overall results.

I think my favorite part is the cuff around the sleeve. I like it so much more than having a flared out sleeve, especially for a babe. 

Hopefully I'm back on the sewing/crafting/blogging bandwagon because it's such a great outlet for me. But, in all honesty, it will probably be sparse until I finish up with school. Oh well.

UPDATE: Turns out, she does look totally adorable wearing this tunic :)

Inspiration

There is no lack of inspiration in blog land. A little too much and at times it's overwhelming. I want to make it ALL. So much to do, so little time. 

Here are two of my favorite project finds this week that I'm dying to make. 

I'm in love with this Valentine Hand Print Canvas from Clean & Scentsible.

I can't wait to make these Sweater Bracelets from Organize Your Stuff Now.

 

Baked Jambalaya

Camera's still broken. Drats! But, I do want to share with you one of our fave recipes. So yummy, so easy.

Baked Jambalaya

3 tbsp. bacon bits
1/2 c. celery, chopped
1/2 c. green pepper, chopped
2 tbsp. green onions, chopped
1/2 lb. kielbasa, sliced
1/2 lb. cooked ham, diced
1/2 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. cajun seasoning
1 - 28 oz. can crushed tomato
1 - 14.5 oz. can beef broth
1 1/2 c. uncooked white rice


O.k. are you ready for how easy this is?


Mix all ingredients together in large bowl. Pour into greased 9x13-inch baking dish. Cover and back at 375 for 1 hour. Uncover and stir before serving. 


I mean, c'mon! That's easy. Enjoy :)

Mama Madness Monday

Since my camera is still broken, I can't include any fun pictures with this post, but since I was already planning to blog about "life" on Mondays, here goes...

Today sucked. Plain and simple. 

In order to make the long story about why today sucked make sense, you need some background information.

I am a full-time stay-at-home mom and part-time student. I'm working on my Masters in Teaching and part of my education consists of interning in a local elementary school. I haven't had to intern since fall, therefore I haven't had to deal with any childcare for Nug for awhile. Today was supposed to be my first day back at the school and I was planning to bring Nug back to the nanny that we used back in September. 

Last night I was a mess. I was crying. I didn't want to go to school. I didn't want to leave Nug. I just felt horrible, uneasy, sad. Around 8 p.m. last night I got an email from the Nanny answering a question that I had about a tax form. I asked her for her tax i.d. number so I could finish filing out that 1099-misc to give to her this morning (we had previously agreed on this). She emailed me back and said "if you need to take the deduction, and it will help you financially..." WOW! I felt like she was totally belittling me for wanting to get the tax credit for childcare. It's 20%...of course I want the credit!

So, I emailed her back and reminded her of our original agreement. She emailed me back about 10 p.m. and said that she forget, but she wanted to talk to me and my husband about "next year's taxes" so to please give her a call. It's 10 p.m. at this point and I'm supposed to be bring Eva over at 8 a.m. today, so I find it a little weird that she's asking us to call her. I didn't even get her email until this morning. 

After talking with my husband about the email, we both just felt uneasy. She's been doing weird things like calling us late on a Friday night to make sure we're still bringing Nug to her, asking us for letters of recommendation even though we've only used her for a few weeks, asking if her husband can watch Nug instead of her one day a week so she can go work for another family. Just weird stuff. And I'd been going along with it this whole time because I thought I was just being a sensitive first time mom.

Well, this morning, I just couldn't take it anymore. I just had a bad feeling about her and the whole situation. My heart was racing, my hands were shaking. I thought to myself "I can't drop my daughter off at this lady's house while I'm feeling like this!" So, the hubs called in sick and we planned to spend the day finding other arrangements for Nug during the day while I have to be at school.

My husband called the nanny this morning to explain to her that we were just feeling uneasy and that we wouldn't be taking Nug to her after all. Now, I understand that we gave her zero notice. But, what happened next I did not expect. To make a long story short, she got very nasty with us, making false accusations, demanding severance pay, telling us how she was "doing us a favor" by watching our daughter, and just being demeaning. It was horrible. My husband kept trying to explain to her that it was not a personal attack, but our daughter is our utmost priority and we have to trust our gut feeling when it comes to her well-being. 

After hanging up, we felt so much better. We didn't enjoy the verbal attack, but we both knew we made the right decision. Then, the emails started pouring in. She was continuing her rant over email. Unbelievable. She just continued to confirm our suspicions that she is a crazy person! Now, I can't believe I took my daughter there in the first place :(

So, after much consideration today, we found a great child care facility down the street from our home. It's actually part of a retirement community (or nursing home, I suppose) which I think it awesome. They incorporate the children into some activities with the residents. It's a win-win for the children and for the residents. We got such a wonderful, warm feeling with the staff members and the facility and I think Nug will really enjoy it there (although I'd like to believe her favorite place to be is with her mama!). 

Moral of the story: trust your gut! I wish I'd listened to my instincts earlier and avoided this whole mess. When it comes to being a mom, no one knows more about your child than you. You might not always be right, but it's your baby, and you have to be confident in your decision. 

You're Not Gonna Believe This

Like I mentioned before, we returned home from a trip to the east coast last week. Luckily, flying with an 8-month-old was pretty uneventful. She did great on the plane. No ear popping issues to be "heard" of. It was rather pleasent, actually, which was a great relief since getting to the east coast was a nightmare. Some of our travel highlights that day include seven hours in the airport before even leaving, an overtired baby, running out of diapers, Nug crawling around on the nasty airport floor and the airline loosing my car seat. With that said, I was so thankful that coming home was a breeze.

We made it to Seattle with no problems. Flights were on time, baby was happy, mama was happy. Then, my heart was broken. While waiting for our baggage, and juggling a baby, diaper bag, purse, and camera bag something terrible happened. I dropped my camera bag. Ahh! I was too scared to open and see if anything broke, so I just picked it up and put it back on my shoulder. Then, I actually kind of forgot about it. 

The next day, when I went to get my memory card to upload pictures from our trip, I noticed that the lens cover was sort of crooked. Then it dawned on me that I had dropped it the night before and I thought that was the extent of the damage. Oh no! I took the lens cap of to find a shattered lens. (Insert gasp here!). It quickly became a sad, sad day. No camera = no pictures of Nug, no pictures to upload to my blog. Crap. 

I started checking online for replacement lens' and since I've never bought one before (my camera is only one year old), I didn't really know exactly how much they were. The cheapest I found one for is $166! Now I'm realizing that actually might be a steal, but it's still hard to cough up that kind of dough. So, I'm currently without a lens until I either a) stop being cheap or b) o.k. I guess a is the only option. Double crap. 

My beautiful plan of becoming a more regular blogger this week is shattered by life. I will continue to post, not sure about what yet, but I will. And hopefully soon I'll have a new lens so I can take pictures. Maybe in the meanwhile I'll do some research on taking better pictures, because I kind of suck. 

We're Back

Nug and I took a 10 day trip to visit my new niece and just arrived home late last night. It was a great time, but it's so nice to be home, in our own beds, with our own stuff. I plan to forge ahead with my blogging schedule next week, so please come back and visit. Don't forget to become a follower so you get updates on the happenings over here at Nug Buns. 

Until then, here's the sweetest little face I've ever seen :)

The Perfect Little Party Dress #2

I had so much fun making The Perfect Little Party Dress with the Heidi & Finn pattern that I decided to make another one. The first one that I made was size 12 months and it is too big for Nug to wear now. It will, however, fit perfectly this spring! 

I wanted to make her a dress that she can wear to my niece's baptism this week, so I trimmed the pattern now and made another dress. I actually like the fabric of the first dress better, but this one is cute none the less. How could it not be cute? It's a baby dress. Little people clothes are always cute, right? :)  

After Christmas Goods

Nug Buns and I go to the library every Friday morning. Across the street from the library is Goodwill. Last Friday, I decided to stop in and see what we could find. And here's what I've decided: I'm going to try my darndest to never buy "new" toys for Nug Buns. Goodwill was chalked full of toys that were in practically new condition. I guess they are all the toys that people dumped after their kids' got piles of new toys for Christmas. 

I also found a cute little mail sorter and candle stick holder. They both need a little (o.k. a lot) of TLC. Luckily I am no longer afraid of bronze after perusing Centsational Girl. There is some serious de-bronzing going on over there and it's amazing! And as for the mail older, I think I'm going to try my hand at giving it a distressed look and then it's going up on the wall in my kitchen to help with the pile of mail the always seems to find it's way to my counter.

Pin Problem Solved

I don't have a dedicated sewing area in my home. I have set up shop on my dining room table. It works out fine most of the time. Until late one night, with limited light, I dropped my entire box of pins on the floor. And my floor is carpeted. What a nightmare that was! 

So, off I set to make a  pin cushion in hopes of avoiding finding myself of my hands and knees with a flashlight picking pins out of the carpet at 11 p.m.

I found a tutorial (which I can't seem to locate now) for a yo-yo pincushion and loved the look (and functionality) of it.

I used the left over fabric from Nug's Perfect Little Party Dress. Here's what I came up with...

Cute and funtional. Perfect.

Winter Wreath

I've seen some beautiful winter-y wreaths in blog land link ups this week. I love them! I still had my Christmas wreath (you know, traditional green wreath with Christmas ribbon) hanging on my door. I was feeling like it was about time to take it down, but wanted a wreath on my door still. 

Armed with a can white spray paint, I painted my green wreath. Then, added a light blue with snowflakes ribbon. Now I've got a more winter-y look which should hold my front door over until spring. 


I forgot to take a before picture, but you all know what a Christmas wreath looks light, right? 

I think it needs a little "something" else. But, I'm going on vacation, so that will have to wait. 

Why Blogging Is Great

Jumping on the blogging band wagon over the past few months has been so fun. I've probably spent a little too much time scouring craft blogs for ideas, inspiration, or just to simple drool over the amazing creativity that some people have. 

I started linking my projects up and get so excited when I would see how many people visited my blog. I think one day I had over 40! HA! That's big time for me. Then, I got my very first follower. And let me tell you, I was pretty excited about that! I'm feel like I'm slowly becoming a real blogger. Like someone out there reads this mama babble and relates to me. 

Anyways, today I had my Perfect Little Party Dress featured on someone else's blog. Say what?! I still can't believe that someone thinks what I made is worthy of sharing with others. Woohoo! 

I was featured on It's Sew For You. It looks as though this blog is fairly new, just like Nug Buns, which is so fun to see. It's like were all in this together. There is certainly no shortage of crafty inspiration goodness out there on the ol' internet. It's awesome.

So, if you stumble upon this little new blog of mine, say hello, become a follower, tell me how to find you out there. I hope that you can enjoy something I've posted, or get inspiration from something I've made. There's plenty more to come, too!  Stay tuned, friends :)

New Years (Blog) Resolutions

Starting this blog has been a blast. I've blogged before, mostly for out-of-town family members to keep up with the happenings of my family. That kind of blogging felt more like a chore, to be honest. I love blogging about what I've been making, doing, cooking, etc. It's fun to write about these things. And it's even more fun to check of all of your blogs to inspiration. So, this year, I'm resolving to keep blogging. It's my thing, and we all know us Mama's need something that is all ours.

My goal for 2011 is to continue blogging about whatever it is that I feel good about and continue to share it with all of you. 

Maybe get a few more followers reading along every day. Let's shoot for 100. That seems doable. 100 followers in 2011. Deal.

While we're at it, let's set some writing goals, too.

Here's what I'm thinking...

Mama Madness Monday - I'll share a moment from my sometimes chaotic life

Tutorial Tuesday - I'll share something I've made and show you how I made it... if it was an original idea, that is! Otherwise, I'll provide the link to the tutorial I used.

Whatever Goes Wednesday - I'll share a recipe, project, good read, whatever pops up...

Treasure Find Thursday - I'll share with you a few projects that I've stumbled across that I'm dying to make (and then hopefully share a picture with you of said project actually being made!)

Fabulous Finds Friday - I'll share with you something great that I've found thrifty or sale shopping, on the side of the road or at a garage sale

Sleepin' In Saturday - O.K. not really, I go to school for 8 hours every Saturday (working on my Masters in Teaching), so I won't be blogging on Saturdays 


Surprise Sunday - Well, I guess you'll just have to read and find out ;)

Now that I've got your attention, go ahead and become a follower. Come back and read, chat, and enjoy. Oh yeah, and one more thing, this blogging goodness officially starts on Monday, January 24th! In the meantime, I'll keep writing about, well, whatever comes to mind.

The Perfect Little Party Dress

A few months ago I came across Heidi & Finn patterns. One word... adorable. I've had my eye on the Perfect Little Party Dress pattern and finally got around to making one for Nug Buns last night. 

I absolutely adore it and love how simple it was to make. Heidi & Finn provided awesome step-by-step instructions with pictures which made making this baby a breeze! I think my favorite part is the bow. It can be tied in the front, or the back, but I think I love the tied-in-the-front look the best. Although, I'm thinking that Nug Buns will be able to untie it all day if it's in the front. Hmmm... I may have to re-think that one. I made this in size 12 months, which is actually really huge for Nug Buns right now. She's 8 months, and although she wears 9 month, or sometimes 12 month, size clothes right now, I forgot that hand-made items generally run more true to size. I'm thinking about trimming up the pattern to make a smaller version that she can wear to my niece's upcoming baptism. 

If you haven't checked out Heidi & Finn on etsy you should. You'll love the patterns. I promise.

Happy New Year!