Fabric Flower Hair Clips

We had our family photos taken at the beginning of the month. After stressing over it, I found the perfect wardrobe for all of us. Then, I decided to make some hair bows for the girls. I’m so bad about making things for my own family that I knew family photos would give me just the amount of motivation (not to mention a deadline) that I needed.

After having pictures taken, I had to give the girls a “cooling off” period before I would even try to get them to model their new hair bows. So, the other day when we were a few minutes early getting ready for church and their hair was already done, I knew it was one of those “If I don’t do it now, I never will” moments. They aren’t wearing what they wore for family photos, and it doesn’t really match the bows, but I had to take the opportunity while it was there.

These are the bows I made for my little tootsie. I found a tutorial HERE, and I modified it a bit. I made the flowers smaller so the bows wouldn’t be so big that they took attention away from her adorable face, and I also added an extra layer of the top flowers so the bows ended up a little thicker. I really like how they turned out.

Here are the bows that are the actual size of the tutorial. I made these first, but I thought they were a bit big for little toots. She was done cooperating after I took pictures of the little ones, so I let big tootsie model these. I added the extra layer of top flowers on these bows just like the ones above.

And here’s the bow big tootsie wore for family photos. I used this tutorial from the amazing V&Co. If you’re curious, we had our photos taken by Shonda Barlow, who is also a friend from college. She is so talented! She is who I think of when I think of how I want my photography to look when I’m “all grown up.” She is also responsible for my profile picture, which has received many compliments. I’m so glad she was willing to make time for us even while she’s nearing the end of her pregnancy and after experiencing a series of unfortunate events. She posted a preview of two of our pictures on her blog (our photos are the 7th and 8th in line), and I’m so excited to see the rest. Maybe I’ll have to post some once we get them.

Ha! And maybe then you’ll see my face. I just realized any pictures you might have seen of me don’t show my face. Oh well, maybe we’re all better off ;)

I had to get a picture of my girls while I had the chance. Personally, I think they’re adorable, but that’s my right as their mommy.

I’m sharing this post with . . .

IHF: Smirk

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Crochet Bunny Blankets

 At last, I get to share something crafty with you! I got into making these snuggly little critters because of a gift. My husband always tries to get something for his girls when he goes out of town. He usually gets something functional that signifies the place he visited. Last year, he went to Omaha, and he just couldn’t find anything that fit that description for our one-year-old. So he got her a bunny blanket that was hand-made in Omaha.

When I realized it was crochet, I kept thinking I should try to make one of my own. I was going to attempt to count stitches and figure out a pattern by looking at the one we have, but that would have been pretty difficult as I have never written a crochet pattern. Before I started, it occurred to me that I might search online for a pattern for something similar. As luck would have it, I found a pattern that turned out exactly like the one my husband bought! The timing couldn’t have been better since I have so many pregnant friends right now.

The bunnies look cute sitting on my couch, but what really gets me is to see them drooped over a child’s arm:

My daughters were anxious to model the bunnies, jammies, bed-head, and all!

I took pictures of this bunny on a different day, and I barely got a shot of it sitting alone before my little thumb-sucker swiped it.

She had me wondering for a while if I would ever get it back!

Want to try to make one? I found the pattern HERE on the Lion Brand website. (You have to sign up for a free account, but then you have full access to all their free patterns.) If you make one, I’d love to see how it turns out. Please e-mail me or leave me a comment with a link.

I’m sharing this post with . . .

 

For my own personal record keeping (because my memory refuses to do it all), I gave these to Shonda B. (blue), Maria B. (pink), and Carrie H. (green).

Thanks for stopping by!

IHF: Vroom, Vroom!

This week’s challenge over at I Heart Faces is “vroom, vroom!” While Grandma wasn’t moving very fast, she sure had a nice set of wheels!

Every year, we have a big family reunion out at my husband’s grandma’s house. This year, we did a family parade down the lane so all the kids could ride their bikes. The littler kids were piled into a trailer pulled by the riding lawn mower; several of them were asleep by the end of the ride. We all wore silly food preparation hats and decorated ourselves with streamers. Grandma, who is 88 now, led the parade that included her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. The cord that you see in front is a stretch-leash attached to Grandma’s fluffy little dog, not included in this photo.

To see all the I Heart Faces entries, click on the link below. Feel free to leave people encouraging comments!

I’m Finished

I just finished reading Mockingjay yesterday, the third book in the Hunger Games series. If you haven’t read them, you must. I’m not going to post my review here because I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone. I hate spoilers. I basically lived with blinders on until I finished this book (amazing, reading with blinders on) so I wouldn’t have anything spoiled.

I am curious to know what others thought of it now that I’m done, though. Did you like it, love it? Were you disappointed, surprised? Leave me a comment, and tell me what you thought. And if you haven’t read it, you can avoid reading the comments on this post. But you can also leave me a comment if you want to say, “hey.” I’m equal opportunity like that!

Book Review: A Girl of the Limberlost

A Girl Of The Limberlost by Gene Stratton-Porter
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the third book I have read by Gene Stratton-Porter, and for me, she never disappoints. Her stories have quirky, loveable characters, and there’s always at least one with a good deal of spunk. She put much of herself in her books, filling them with information about plants, birds, and bugs that she studied near her home and using her books to instill a love of God and good values. Stratton-Porter’s books have ideal characters that are often very exemplary in their decisions.

A Girl of the Limberlost is a delightful tale about Elnora, a young girl who starts school in town in her search for more education. She faces many challenges, among which is the harsh treatment she receives from her mother who is still bitterly mourning Elnora’s father who died the day she was born. I liked the kind neighbors and people in town Elnora met, along with one mischievous orphan. I loved the detail about gathering moths in the swamp. I loved the themes of forgiveness, hard work, and patience.

While I wished I had read Freckles before reading this because it seems to be a companion book based on a previous time period, I still really enjoyed it. I would suggest getting a copy by a different publisher than this one. I started out with a paperback by Indiana Press from the library. The formatting was great, but the spine was broken which drove me crazy to try to hold the book together and read it at the same time. So I switched to this version by Kessinger Publishing, and it just felt like a textbook. While all the words are the same, the font and format of the paragraphs and chapters just felt very detached. I never knew there would be so much difference between publishers, but it felt like the difference between a web version in print compared to the original book.

I would think that anyone who enjoyed books like Anne of Green Gables would like A Girl of the Limberlost. I look forward to reading it with my girls when they are older.


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V and Co. Giveaway!

I just love all the crafty things I find on the blog V and Co. I’ve had my eye on the pattern for “the favorite bag” for a while. And now we all have a chance to win three of her patterns on from Lee La La. Just follow this link to enter.