Halloween 2012

  I love coming up with costume ideas...and making them myself. When I was a kid I thought homemade costumes were less-than-ideal (since most people I knew had fancy store-bought ones). Now that I am an adult, I realize it is (and was) something special to have something handcrafted. And I love the memories that were made putting them together with my mom! (yes, Mom, you were right...homemade is better...and it must be 'someday' because I AM thanking you!)

This year we had a theme. 

We based it all around this dress Elizabeth has...

(and the fact that my sister IS Auntie Em every day of the year)

Before I get to the rest of the post, I think I should take you back to those early years....here's a little peek into my childhood...

Emily, 3.5 (Princess) Amy, 6 (Glenda The Good Witch of the North)

Did you see that caption? 

Now, here is the grown-up me dressed once again as Glenda!

Too bad Dorothy was sleeping ... I really like these pictures. 

We met up with Emily and headed over to the Dickerson Park Zoo in Springfield for their annual Spooktacular. It was a little disappointing, but we made the best of it. And Jonah was such a trooper. He did not complain about all the walking or the cold, not even one time. And he didn't seem to notice any of the things that may have been spooky to him. (it was not truly scary, but there were some big spiders and some weird troll-like characters)

 The whole gang. Glenda, Tin Man, Auntie Em, Cowardly Lion, Dorothy, & Scarecrow

(it's really hard to take good pictures in the dark)

When we were getting ready to trick-or-treat around the neighborhood I COULD NOT find Dorothy's shoes. I called up my sister, and sure enough, we'd left them at her house. She happened to drop by this afternoon, so I snapped one last photo of Dorothy in her homemade slippers. I may have to find a Christmas dress that goes with them, cause those shoes are FABULOUS. 

Fruit Snacks

Yesterday I ventured out on my own with both kids. We made one stop (well, two if you count Sonic drive-thru at happy hour time). 

We hit Michael's for some candy molds. 

I found THIS recipe for fruit snacks and wanted to try it out. I looked at Walmart, but couldn't find candy molds. I thought the regular jello molds would be too big. The candy molds are still a bit bigger than I'd hoped to find, but they work. 

Today we tried it out. 

They were very very easy. 

I'm not sure if I cooked it long enough. They turned out ok, but are very sticky. I've let them cool/dry for about an hour now..same consistency now that they were @ 30 minutes. Maybe I could coat them in something...

Project Day. (aka, the day I got the dishes done)

Today is a big day around here, but I'm going to post more about that later in the week, as I forgot to take a picture of the man of the house before he left this morning. 

In other news, Jonah has been a busy guy today. 

He has been really wanting to make play dough lately. I have resisted play dough for a long while. In fact, he never new it existed until his babysitter brought some over a couple of months ago.  (funny how she hasn't been asked back lately...just kidding, we love her lots)

So, we made play dough. We made it green, per the little guy's request. And it is already put away. And by that I mean it will not be used again anytime soon. Gosh, I dislike that stuff.(rather, I dislike what it does to my rugs)

But, I sure do like making it with my favorite little man. 

Neon Green play dough (with glitter sparkles). 

 Ingredients: 

1 C Flour 

1 C Water 

1/4 C Salt 

1 TBSP Vegetable Oil 

2 tsp Cream of Tarter 

Food Coloring 

Sparkles (optional) 

Sauce Pan and Wooden Spoon 

Little helping hands.
Mix everything (stirring constantly) over medium heat until it balls up in a huge clump. 

Then, since one big project a day is not enough, we tried this new idea. 

We put baking soda in the bottom of a pie pan. Then Jonah used the dropper to drop food-colored vinegar into the pan. FUN! He loved it. I wish I could say it kept him busy for hours, but we ran out of baking soda. (at least we ran out of what I'd allotted for this project).

And THAT is how, on this beautiful sunny day, I got my dishes done. That and a little method we like to call "let the baby cry it out."

A Guitar

One day Jonah was asking to play on the guitar. Jonathan has one that he rarely plays and Jonah thinks it is great. Well, one day when I was on my own with the kids he wanted to play the guitar. I didn't have the ability to supervise him so I suggested we MAKE a guitar. He thought it sounded exciting. 

We created this:

Nice, huh. I was proud of our 15 minute effort. Jonah liked it!

(it looked a little nicer the first day)

Well, then, my amazing husband had another idea.

Did I mention the word AMAZING?!

it's solid wood.

 I came up with the strap for this one...other than that, this is completely an original Jonathan Atkins creation. He sketched it free-hand & everything. 

 While the boys were working on the guitar I was trying to get myself ready to go somewhere. Elizabeth was screaming, so I took her outside (to give myself a break). When I came back out Jonah was singing to her!!!

When I came back home later the guitar was finished and Jonah was giving a concert.

Family Day:Legoland

I recently heard that Branson was host to a temporary Legoland. So, today we went as a family to investigate! 

WE FOUND IT!!
(it is at the Branson Landing...free fun for everyone)

 When we walked in we were greeted by a very friendly guy...and Jonah was given a lego pirate hat. He is wearing it over his ball cap, so it's hard to see in most of the photos. 

 here he is with a lego guy that is as tall as he is. 

 building with Daddy

They constructed vehicles that they raced down this ramp. 

While the boys were playing Elizabeth and I just hung out...

Beautiful Bedding

Would you like to see what I believe to be the most beautiful baby bedding I've ever laid my eyes on?

My mother is a genius with fabric. 

Mom and I don't usually agree on colors/styles. I usually like more colorful things, she usually likes more ruffles. But, when we found the fabrics used in Elizabeth's bedding, we both had love at first sight! And it's even more beautiful all put together. 

We had picked out a quilt pattern a long long time ago. Before I was pregnant, much less knew I was having a girl. We loved the Amy Butler quilt pattern. She took it a step further and made it two sided. I love both sides very much! 

I'm not sure the pictures do it justice. I LOVE it. 

Also pictured: our sweet baby bag (vera bradley, folkloric)

and my latest craft project...I took a wooden letter E for less than $3 and covered it in those pretty beads! 

This baby room is a joy for me to walk into! I'm loving it. 

Weekend Update: Baby Shower

This weekend my mom, aunt, and sister hosted a baby shower for me. We gathered at Emily's house for a Night Owl party! It was very very cute.

(yes, party is spelled wrong...because they reused the sign from my cousin's shower last weekend. It was originally written to match her baby's name, which is Charli Pepper) 

Isn't my cousin, Courtney, creative...she's the one who created this from scratch...chalkboard paint and everything!

The banner with Elizabeth's name will probably be hung in her room when I get it put together. And the cake is another Aunt Caroline masterpiece! It was strawberry on the inside...and just so you know, it was very tasty!

Lots of credit goes to my mom, who orchestrated the whole thing. Where would I be without such a fantastic mom?! I am also grateful my mother-in-law made the trip down for the occasion. I really appreciate my family. They are amazing! 

It was a lovely little gathering! Thanks everyone! 

p.s.... thanks to Auntie Em, Elizabeth may not have to ever wear the same thing twice. 

my great idea.

This morning I had a great idea. Or so it seemed at the time. I'm testing the idea and should have results by the end of the week.

If you have read this blog regularly, you know that bedtime is a struggle at our house. Sometimes he just isn't tired, but most times he goes to bed fine, then starts screaming sometime in the night. It's getting out of hand, happening earlier and more frequently each night. 

Since the sticker chart was such a hit with Jonah for going potty, I thought I'd try making a GOODnight sticker chart for him. We went to Michael's (dangerous store, people) and got some fancy stickers.  

Near the front of the store by the registers Michael's had a display of some really big, really enticing coloring books. Jonah wanted them right away, so on impulse I bought one and deemed it the reward for filling the chart. 

We've had a routine in place for a while now, where I tell him I'll come back and check on him in a while. That usually calms him enough to get to sleep. I thought it was good enough, but this week, he's been screaming for me again. (after about 40 minutes of being in bed). Anyway, the checking on him...I would go back before I headed to bed and I'd leave his door open after checking. SO...the deal is, if his door is closed NO FUSSING. If he can avoid fussing while his door is closed, he earns a sticker in the morning. Once he fills his chart (30 stickers) he will get to have the coloring book. 

I hope he "gets" it. I hope and pray that this works. 

I sat down to type this after putting him in bed. So far, so good. I've been typing in silence! 

Drano Test

Maybe you've heard of the Drano Gender Test. I tried it with my first pregnancy. And now I've tried it with this one. The results?? Rather inconclusive if you ask me. 

If you want the full details/instructions, click HERE.

Basically, you mix a certain amount of drano crystals with a certain amount of first morning urine. If it changes color within a certain time frame, you're having a boy. If it doesn't change, it means a girl. 

You are supposed to base your results on the first 10-15 seconds...of the "reaction."

(yes, there is quite a reaction in that jar...the test MUST be 

done outside)

I did my best to get some video (while avoiding the fumes).

Well, when we did the test, it didn't start reacting right away. I don't know what that means. But, it did end up turning very  dark, which I assume is brown, so I guess it indicates a boy. 

I have no idea at what point I should have started timing the 15-20 seconds. 

When I was expecting Jonah I did this test three times. Each time the end result had a different appearance. I am not going to waste the product/effort on multiple tries anymore. I'll wait to find out in a less crude, more modern way! 

BUT, the GOOD NEWS is we have an ultrasound scheduled for March 16th.

 I am so excited to learn the gender of our little one.  

We already have names picked out. We've had the girl name in mind since we got married. The boy name came to me last summer (before we ever  even anticipated another pregnancy) when a friend was having trouble choosing a name for her boy.  Once we know the gender for certain, we will call the baby by name and let Jonah get to know his sibling more tangibly. 

Homemade Laundry Detergent

I have been meaning to post this for a while. I loaded some pictures over a month ago...to use on a rainy day, when I needed a new post. 

Well, I've been asked about it again, so I thought I'd just go for it. 

I love making my own laundry soap. Before I tried, it felt overwhelming, but then I saw this method that made me so curious I just HAD to try it. Just so I don't plagiarize or steal anything I found the original idea HERE.

These are the only ingredients you will need. They can all be purchased at Walmart. (you can also use a bar soap called Fels Naptha, found on the laundry aisle.)

Powdered Laundry Soap

2 cups borax

2 cups washing soda

1 bar soap

What is the secret? What is the thing that snagged my attention? 

MICROWAVE the soap first. 

Yep. 

Have you ever seen what happens to a regular bar of soap when it gets zapped? 

SO cool! It gets big, fluffy, dry, and brittle. 

I cut it into fourths or sixths before microwaving (so it gets dried all the way through) and put each piece in for one minute on high.

Then, the dry brittle soap goes into the food processor (or some kind of blender) to be ground into powder.  (the powder WILL go up your nose when you open the food processor and you WILL sneeze)

I should say you CAN do it without microwaving. Simply grate the bar soap with a food grater (or zester, to make it really fine). But, really, where is the fun in that? 

The finished product fills a 10lb (120 load) detergent box a bit less than 1/3 full. It would take three or four batches to fill my regular Tide powder box. BUT I use much less. I think I use about 3 Tbsp. of this detergent per large load. If you have a fancy HE washer, you can use ONE Tbsp. 

Growth Chart

I recently created another craft idea I saw on Pinterest. I actually "made it my own" using a few different ideas. 

I didn't take any "before" pictures, but just imagine a very plain straight-from-the-lumber-yard piece of plywood and you can imagine it for yourself.

Here is the after.

After I decided on a layout.

After I painted and sharpied.

After I kept Jonah out of the middle of all of it!

I used foam letters to spell out that quote I found. 

I used a fancy metal yard stick, fancy ink pen/marker, and a plain sharpie for the lines. 

I hung it so that the bottom was 18 inches from the floor, to ensure that the "2ft" mark was in the correct place. 

I plan to always use that orange marker for Jonah. Then, if we have any other children I'll choose a different color for each of them. In 20 years we will have a very colorfully filled  height chart that can move to any house in which we might live. 

I found it on Pinterest.

Have you heard of Pinterest? It's the newest social network that I'm aware of. I am really quite addicted to discovering new things there each day.

For example, just look at all these photography ideas!

Or how about all of these nuggets of wisdom?!

Maybe you're looking for some activities to do with your child.

There are also ideas for home decor and simple crafts that are lots of fun.

I'd like to feature a few of my very favorite things that I'd never have seen otherwise.

Pencil Art by Dalton Ghetti. (seriously...you should google him)

Simple but beautiful Toilet Paper holder. (I actually made one of these and I love it)

And last but not least, these CUPCAKES definitely take the cake. 

(just looking at them makes my mouth water and my tummy hurt all at the same time)

(oh, and if you are on Pinterest and don't already follow my boards...feel free to click the "follow me" button in the right hand column of this blog)

New Shelf

Jonathan has been wanting to add a shelf to our bathroom for a few weeks. (relieve the coutertop of clutter....bet you've never had that problem, have you?...well, sadly, WE do. Or, more correctly, I do.) He had some manly, boring ideas, but I just wasn't sure how to describe what I was envisioning. So, I got on Pinterest and searched for shelf ideas. I found THIS and loved it right away:

it's cute, it's funcional, it's not too complicated!

perfect.

This is our replication:

 we put a back on ours 

...and ours is more "functional" than "decorative"

I like ours even better than the inspiration! 

see how pretty the "frame" is!

(jonathan cut molding and I painted it) 

added bonus...we attached ($0.13 on clearance!!) knobs 

to the side so I can hang my necklaces. 

another Pinterest idea...put screen material in a frame for earrings. 

Big Boy ROOM

You've already seen the bed, but I've done a couple of things to Jonah's Dr. Seuss Room. I tried my hand at some art. I have done a big (more permanent thing) and a smaller (more-in-my-comfort-zone) thing. 

First, the Lorax Tree. 

(well, technically it is a Truffula Tree, which is featured in the book called The Lorax)

How hard could it be?? 

It should just take the right materials, right?

Riiiight. Well, the trunk wasn't all that hard. I was very pleased with how it turned out.

I had a great idea of how to pull off the top part. And, I don't think I would change my plan, but I think it could be better executed. 

I would love to see any examples other people have tried for the top of a Truffula Tree. 

Here's mine:

I used a fluffy feather boa. I stitched it in place on a fabric form (for added depth and security) I think they could use another 2 boas each. They look a little small to me, in relation to the size of the trunk. 

In this shot you can see my other "art."

 and the added touch: