Kid Art

After a weekend away from my kiddos I decided to do a special project with them not only to spend a little quality time but to focus on the importance of family!

I gave each kiddo a piece of white card stock and some crayons and asked them to make a family portrait.  They could draw each member however they wanted but I wanted them to make something that represented us all.  I have to admit- their ideas exceeded my expectations!

Corinne drew us all as birds...

Connor thought we's look good as hearts...

and Lleyton decided he should be sporting a football helmet while holding my hand :)

It was a lot of fun to see them so excited to create and now we have some original artwork to remember this time in their lives- it's a win/win :)

GIVEAWAY!!!

What's better then getting free stuff??  How about getting something homemade just for you?!

Once I reach 25 followers I will choose one of those names at random to get a little gift... homemade by me!  It could be a quilt- maybe a painting- or a framed print!

Let your friends know!

Thanks for following! :)

Tree Art!

Anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE trees!  So, when I saw this adorable idea on two girls being crafty I knew I had to try it!  (Their tutorial is great so check it out for further instructions!)

The dots are smaller on the first then I would have liked but....

I really liked the way the second one turned out.

I hung them together on my bedroom wall  :)  I see a third and fourth joining them soon- maybe one for each season?

Play with colors and size and layout to fit your tastes/decor.  Have fun with it!

Hand Print Monsters!

After a night of freezing rain the kiddos had an unexpected snow day- I didn't panic (too much) though because I had seen this adorable project on Pinterest that I had wanted to make for art for their rooms.

This project is so simple!  All you need is...
acrylic paint in your choice of colors
canvas (any size)
2 paint brushes (large for painting the hands a smaller detail brush for the mouths)
googley eyes
tacky glue
a sharpie (I used it for the mouths because it looked cleaner)

Paint your child's hand the first color- you can omit different fingers to get different looks like we did here-

Next, place their hand on the canvas where you want to put the monster.  I'd press down on their hand to make sure it covers well but you can also go over it with the same brush you painted their hand with to fill in any gaps

This is what they look like before we added their faces...

Next add whatever eyes you choose with the tacky glue.  You can paint the mouths on (tongues sticking out, fangs for teeth) and/or use the sharpie marker.

My daughter Corinne's monster- we loved the eye lashes!

Connor's monsters- I love that he wanted the one to be upside down :)

and Lleyton's monsters- you can play with the placements 

The kids had a lot of fun making these little monsters!  We hope you do, too! :)

Quote Love Part II

I loved the two I made yesterday so much I decided to make two more today!

They are my kids <3

A mother's love.

Now that they all have matching frames I'll have to find a place to hang them all together :)

Quote Love

For fun I thought I'd pull out my scrapbook supplies and make some framed art for my house.

All I did was use Microsoft Word for the quote- you can play with fonts and colors and layout.  Once you're happy with the design, print it off (I like a little white space around the quote which I didn't plan for with the second image so keep that in mind when you're playing with the layout.)  Next I cut out the birds and hearts and sun from my favorite scrapbook papers and glued them to the page with my quote.  You can use any quote and any image- the options are limitless!  All that's left is framing it...

For my babies <3

My hubby and I

I'll have to make more in the future as gifts for baby showers, weddings, Christmas and just because :)

Making Memories

I'm learning that an important part of creating a joyful life is making lasting memories with those I love the most- especially my kids.  As a mother I try to give my children opportunities to explore and experience the world around them so this weeks unseasonably warm temperatures were a perfect excuse to get outside and enjoy the beach- in January!  

Each of the kiddos took turns showing me their king (or queen) of the mountain pose!

Holding his imaginary sword- I love their creativity!

"Someday my kids will see this and they'll know it's me."  How cute is that?!

All three of my "babies"- not really babies anymore.

The four of us :)

Exploring a tree on the beach- one of my favorites.

Run!!!

I'm always aware of just how short life is and I never want to look back regret the things I've done.  I hope I've instilled that same sort of zest for life in my kids because if there is one thing I know for sure it's that we have to make time for the little things because in the end those are the moments that matter most and the moments that bring us closest to our bliss :)

Button Love

As a family we decided to do a mostly homemade Christmas this year.  We all had a great time coming up with and creating gifts for all the people we love.  One of my favorites though was inspired by a project I saw on Pinterest- the button art I made for each of my sisters and 2 of my nephews.

The project is fairly simple.  Take a canvas, any size, and staple fabric to it (i used a staple gun for power and speed but a heavy duty stapler would also work.  I found that a simple pattern such as a polka dot usually worked best- if the fabric is too busy it will take away from the buttons.

The fabric for this one was a little too busy and the button turtle got a little lost.

Now the fun part- the buttons!  You can get them at any craft store and they come in tons of different sizes and colors.  I like to lay out the buttons on the canvas before I start sewing them down just to get a feel for how it will look.

 Once you're happy with the layout take a photo (I did on my phone) to use as reference- it won't turn out exactly the same but it will help with positioning and spacing.  I always start at the bottom and work up sewing each button next each other so that there are no gaps but the options are endless.

laying out the buttons...

finished project

After all the buttons are sewn on I take a piece of ribbon long enough to tie a bow in and staple it to the back of the canvas- you don't have to do this step but i like how it looks hanging on the wall from the ribbon.

Voila!  This project also works well with a simple initial as well...

 I loved them so much I made one for myself :)

Welcome!

Welcome!

This blog is all about my quest to create joy in my life and nothing makes me happier then creating- especially when it's for the people I love!  I hope to share projects I'm working on, recipes I love, and anything else I find along the way!

Recently a good friend of mine gave birth to a 10 1/2 pound bundle of love named Archer.  It was the perfect excuse to pull out my quilting supplies and play with some really fun fabrics.  I'm the first to admit that my sewing skills are less then desirable but I like to think that adds to the charm :).   The end result has to be one of my most favorite creations to date- simple but fun.  

To add a more personal touch I added an "a" to the bottom using an iron, double stick fusible web, and some fun fabric.  To finish it off I simply hand-stitched around the border with a fun green thread.

Next time I'll try to remember to take pictures of the process!  

A few hours after seeing them I received this photo,  mama and baby wrapped up in the blanket.  It definitely made my heart smile :)   Mission Accomplished!