I recently noticed that I hadn't posted a blog post in over a year. I couldn't figure out why I just stopped so abruptly, and then I realized just how much my life has changed in this last year. After 3 moves, a total job change, and a divorce, I guess I can give myself a little slack for not having posted on my blog in a while.
I hope to be back online and posting often from now on!
7.12.2015
3.25.2014
Toddler bed
My daughter has finally outgrown being in a crib. Actually, she still loves her crib, but we are starting to potty train, so she needs to be able to get up! I didn't start with any sort of pattern, just an idea in my head.
Above are the raw materials I used. I probably spent $50 at Lowes for all of the raw materials. The posts are actually old fence posts from my yard. We had about 30 of them, but they had to be prepped to be able to be used for a baby's bed. I sanded them, bleached them, scrubbed them, and repainted them.
I built the main frame of the bed with the intention that I wouldn't need a regular bed rail. The rail portion will stick about 6-7" above the mattress, once inserted. It covers about 1/3 of the bed's length to provide ample room for baby girl to get in and out, while still providing some protection from falls.
I added the slats to create a platform bed. The mattress we have is about 5" thick, so I used a 1x6, then furring strips to create the slats. This made it so that the mattress is about 1/2" above the edge of the bed, which is perfect so that baby girl can get into and out of the bed with ease and without knocking her legs onto the edge.
To make the posts, I had to notch out spaces in the fence posts. Above you can seen the finished platform bed as well as the bed sitting in the notched posts.
Above are a few different angles after I painted everything. I ended up distressing the paint job with sandpaper after I was finished. I figured that the paint would get all scuffed up being a play space for a toddler, so I thought I would make it purposely distressed.
Here is the finished product in the baby's room! I made the posts so that they could be detached by removing two large screws in each post. That way, when baby girl outgrows the bed, we can more easily store it and/or move it. (This bed is solid wood, so it is incredibly heavy.)
I think this baby loves it!
Duct tape armor
Super Cape
For her second birthday, we decided to throw a "Super Second Birthday Party." For this, we needed super-wear! I am going to make a few capes for the attendees, however I had to make one very special one for my little birthday girl!
First, I started with a pattern. I made it based on some I had seen online as well as just sort of common sense about what a cape looks like.
I let baby girl pick out her fabric at the store. I have never worked with this sort of fabric, and it didn't work quite as well as I would have liked, but the construction is solid and she loves it! I chose to do two colors and to make the cape reversible, rather than just one main color and one accent color. I also used some scrap white fabric I had to make the letter I eventually put onto the back of the cape.
Please excuse the extreme messiness of my bedroom, but I had to snap a picture when baby girl decided to put on the unfinished fabric cutout and run around the house!
As you can see above, I had a little bit of trouble with this fabric puckering. I'm sure that if I had more practice and knowledge, I could have done better, but I really don't do much with this special occasion type of fabric, so it isn't a major concern for me. I put baby girl's initial on both sides so that she could wear either a blue or a pink cape, depending on what she may prefer and depending what else she may be wearing.
Here is an iPhone pic of the cape when I first finished it.
Here are a few photos I took for her birthday invites and decorations to show off the cape!
3.17.2013
2.18.2013
Baby Cookies
These are very simple. They can be adapted in so many ways that the combinations are only limited to your imagination!
Below: Uncooked cookies
Ingredients:
3-4oz sweet potato puree
1 cup instant oats
1 tsp cinnamon
Method:
1. Combine all of the ingredients until they begin to stick together. Add more oats if the mixture is runny.
2. Form into 1 " balls
3. After placing the balls onto a baking sheet (I used parchment paper for easy cleanup), press with a fork to flatten some. The cookies really will hold whatever shape they are cooked in and don't expand much.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes. Essentially, you are just heating them so that the oats absorb the liquid and soften. The cookies will be chewy.
5. Store in an airtight container. As there are no preservatives, I recommend keeping them in the fridge. They are totally save to carry in a bag at room temperature for a couple of hours, though!
Some ideas for variations:
• Bananas, applesauce or pureed carrots in place of the sweet potatoes
• Add raisins, dried fruit, coconut, chocolate chips, peanut butter, nuts, or honey to add a little something special! Keep in mind the age of the child who will be eating these cookies as not all ingredients are recommended for all babies (especially nuts and honey).
• Spread in a baking sheet rather than rolling into balls and bake. Then slice after cooling and eat as granola bars.
• Roll into 1/2" balls and do not flatten for small granola bites
What changes did you make to this recipe? Comment below!
Some ideas for variations:
• Bananas, applesauce or pureed carrots in place of the sweet potatoes
• Add raisins, dried fruit, coconut, chocolate chips, peanut butter, nuts, or honey to add a little something special! Keep in mind the age of the child who will be eating these cookies as not all ingredients are recommended for all babies (especially nuts and honey).
• Spread in a baking sheet rather than rolling into balls and bake. Then slice after cooling and eat as granola bars.
• Roll into 1/2" balls and do not flatten for small granola bites
What changes did you make to this recipe? Comment below!
Below: Finished cookies
7.10.2012
Daddy Treats
I made this for my husband for his first Father's Day this year. I got part of the idea off of Pinterest, by putting different things in old bottles, but I added all of the photos and labels to personalize it. I think this project would work well for a great deal of holidays and recipients by changing the ingredients (think of putting in dried herbs for a cook or beading for a crafter). So, here's how I made it!
Step 1: Buy a 6-pack of something in a bottle. I chose these Smirnoff cocktails because I wanted to try them (not a huge fan, though) and I also thought clear bottles would be much nicer than the dark bottles beer usually comes in.
Step 2: Drink all six drinks! Make sure you use twist-off caps and keep them somewhere so that you can re-cap the bottles. Once you've finished all of the bottles, wash them with soap and hot water. I'm sure you could run them through the dishwasher, but I didn't think to do it until I was already done.
Step 3: Dry the bottles. I put this as a separate step because you need to make sure they are VERY dry. I did one bottle before it had dried completely and the candy stuck to the bottom, so I had to re-wash it and get new candy.
Step 4: Color the caps. I did this, simply to remove the smirnoff logo. You could spraypaint the tops, cover them with paper, or color them with a Sharpie, like I did.
Step 5: Cover the cardboard portion of the 6-pack (I used brown craft paper). Glue it either with a spray adhesive, or use Mod Podge, like I did. No matter what you use make sure it is evenly distributed so that there are no bubbles in the paper.
Step 6: Create labels. You would want labels that can cover the labels on the bottle already. I chose to make them as you can see in the photo above. I also created labels to put onto the 6-pack. Even though I could have just printed them at home on my personal printer, I was running low on ink, so I took mine to Staples and had them print it.
Step 1: Buy a 6-pack of something in a bottle. I chose these Smirnoff cocktails because I wanted to try them (not a huge fan, though) and I also thought clear bottles would be much nicer than the dark bottles beer usually comes in.
Step 2: Drink all six drinks! Make sure you use twist-off caps and keep them somewhere so that you can re-cap the bottles. Once you've finished all of the bottles, wash them with soap and hot water. I'm sure you could run them through the dishwasher, but I didn't think to do it until I was already done.
Step 3: Dry the bottles. I put this as a separate step because you need to make sure they are VERY dry. I did one bottle before it had dried completely and the candy stuck to the bottom, so I had to re-wash it and get new candy.
Step 4: Color the caps. I did this, simply to remove the smirnoff logo. You could spraypaint the tops, cover them with paper, or color them with a Sharpie, like I did.
Step 5: Cover the cardboard portion of the 6-pack (I used brown craft paper). Glue it either with a spray adhesive, or use Mod Podge, like I did. No matter what you use make sure it is evenly distributed so that there are no bubbles in the paper.
Step 6: Create labels. You would want labels that can cover the labels on the bottle already. I chose to make them as you can see in the photo above. I also created labels to put onto the 6-pack. Even though I could have just printed them at home on my personal printer, I was running low on ink, so I took mine to Staples and had them print it.
Step 7: Affix all of the labels. Again, I used Mod Podge, but you could use spray adhesive as well. I sealed all of the labels with Mod Podge as well, so that they would be really stuck down. As you can see above, I added some of the scraps of plain white paper over the small label on the neck of the bottles as well as the large labels.
Step 8: Gather your fillings. I did candy for all but one bottle, which I put peanuts in. I had to end up getting extra Good n Plenty and Reese's Pieces, because they seemed to settle more than the others and took up less room. Obviously, I chose treats that I knew my husband would like!
Step 9: Using a funnel (or your hand, like I did), fill the bottles. Twist the caps onto the bottles. They will not make it completely airtight, but they will keep the candies from going stale and they will keep anything from coming out if you have to carry the gift anywhere.
Finally: Place the bottles back into the cardboard 6-pack holder and it is ready to present!
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