A whole lotta nothing

Crafting this week = a whole lotta nothing. I've started a few things, but haven't completed anything. Total crafty ADD lately. But the weather was so nice this weekend, that I didn't mind my lack of focus too much.

We spent most of the weekend outside. On Saturday, Piper earned her water safety badge with girl scouts. Sadly, we weren't allowed to take pictures, but it was a trip watching all the girls "rescue" each other in the pool. I'm fairly convinced that at least half of the girls were vying for an Oscar. The way they screamed "HELP!" was drama-worthy indeed.

Sunday was all about family time. We went to see Alice in Wonderland in 3D. I thought the previews looked a little too dark, but Pi has been asking about it. After checking the reviews, it didn't seem like there was anything too bad, so we went to see it.

I enjoyed it and Pi really liked it. It wasn't as great as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but still well done. The one thing that really stood out were Alice's dresses. They were all gorgeous... very couture.


Notice hubby's hands in the background, eating all the nachos.

After the movie we went for a stroll in the park and watched the geese for awhile.



Look how tall the spawn is getting!



This church is right next to the park walkway. Not sure what religion it is, but I think its neat because its so old school. My town was "discovered" in 1777 so there's lots of old stuff around.

We ended the day on a high note... with ice cream from Coldstone. Mmmmm!!

Baby Binky Bunnies

After falling in love with the Molly Monkey pattern by Mmmcrafts, I just had to try the Baby Binky Bunny pattern too. Considering I know so many people who are having babies this year, it was a perfect excuse to give it a go.

The pattern is so well written, that I was able to complete two bunnies in one day. I'm a sewing slowpoke, so this was no small feat.


Excuse the dark pics. Rainy days = bad light

Yarn tails are the cutest little detail.



Each bunny was made with lightweight corduroy that I got on clearance. Their bellies and eyes are made from felt and the details are embroidered. The diapers are made from scrap fabric (the same I used for the first Molly Monkey's body).



The next day, I made the little patchwork blankies that go with each bunny. The ears and blankies were made with one charm pack that I bought at Joanns.



Shhh, they're sleeping!



The pink bunny is already living with its new owner, my cousin Bella, who just turned 2. The purple bunny will go to my cousin Nikki (not to be confused with my friend Nikki who just gave birth). She's due to have a baby girl in early July. With all the babies coming, I'm getting a head start.

P.S. - My neighbor Maddie loved her Monkey. Hubby and Pi saw her carrying it to school. That makes it totally worth it!

P.P.S. - Pi had her first physical therapy session yesterday and loved it. Like loved loved. She's such a little weirdo!

Snuggies for Seniors

Do you love Snuggies?

Do you love old people?

Do you love old people IN snuggies?

If so, please check out the Snuggies for Seniors fundraiser over Pulsipher Predilections.



While you're there, take a peek at Kristina's other posts. She's the queen of hilarity!

Good news!

I'm going to dub 2010 "The Year of the Baby." Sorry in advance if you get sick of seeing baby stuff, but so many people have procreated, that I don't have much choice, haha!


This is the bib that went to Lil Bean along with the Noah's Ark blanket. Lil Bean, aka Julian, was born last Monday. Congrats Nikki!





One side of the bib is leftover flannel in my stash from a ribbon teether I made last year. The back is a blue plaid flannel scrap that was given to me by a friend.





Using a velcro closure makes the bib reversible! The pattern is a freebie from Chickpea Sewing Studio.




Now for the good news! My biopsy came back totally clean! Yay! The only downside to that is that they still don't know what's wrong with me. But I'm very relieved there isn't anything very serious going on. Thanks for the prayers and good thoughts. It means the world to me!

Rainy Day

Its wet and windy today. Definitely the kind of day that you want to stay indoors and under the covers. When the weather is like this, I also get the urge to cook something a little special.

Remember the challah bread I made awhile ago? Three loaves was too much, so we gave one away and froze one. I defrosted that loaf last night so that it would be ready for french toast this morning. I love challah french toast...so much better than regular bread.

Rather than go the regular route, I gave THIS recipe a whirl.

Gather your ingredients.



Slice up your bread.



Mix it all up. You'll want to give the mixture a quick whisk between each slice to keep the cinnamon evenly distributed.



Dip.



Cook.

Add fruit and eat!

Mmmmm!

Happy Saturday peeps!

Randomness

A bunch of random type stuff...

- Piper has been having hip pain that the doc thinks is a slightly torn muscle. She's got physical therapy 2 times a week for 8 weeks.

- That will cost me $480.

- How old is old enough to walk to school alone? Pi has been asking and it has me pondering this question.

- MIL still in the hospital, but doing better. Yay!

- No biopsy results for me yet. Won't hear back til next week.

- Signs are all pointing to Spring. Birds are chirping in the morning again and its light out, both when I leave for work and when I come home from work. Who knew a little sunlight could feel so blissful?

- The Noah's Ark blanket arrived at my friend Nikki's house 4 days before she gave birth to a healthy baby boy. Glad I didn't procrastinate longer on getting to the post office.

- Lack of coffee hasn't produced any headaches or withdrawal symptoms, but it has resulted in profound forgetfulness.

- I've discovered I love Chai Tea from Dunkin Donuts.

- But I don't love the calories (330!).

- I'm knitting a baby sweater on the bus. Its purple and its purty.

- Quilting blogs have been sucking up my time. Who knew there were so many talented people out there?

- I've finished some projects, but still have to get the pictures from my memory card.

What randomness is going on in your life?

Blankie for Lil Bean

Sorry I've been MIA this week.**

Anyway, my good friend Nikki is due to give birth to her first baby in mid-March. She's been calling him Lil Bean, which is the cutest thing ever.

I know how incredible special this is for Nikki, so I wanted to make something a little extra awesome for her. The Noah's Ark blanket seemed like the perfect thing.


excuse the bad winter light


Since Lil Bean is a boy, I tried to use boy-friendly colors and stayed away from pink and purple. That was so hard to do because I've got loads of girlie colors in my stash.

I love how the turtle shell puffs up a little. The legs and tail weren't sewn down, so that bean can tug on them.



Hubby suggested a deep orange for the elephant. I was really hesitant at first, but I'm glad I listened to him. Its just right.

The giraffe is my favorite because of the variegated horns and spots. Love him!

The body of the blanket is made with pound of love in cream and baby blue and an I hook. There's easily enough left over to make another one.

The animals were made with stash yarn. There's caron pounder (the light orange, dark and light green of the ark), red heart super saver (blue and black details), TLC heathers (blue in the turtle), and some unknown stuff (dark orange and variegated blue).

It was fun to make again and I hope Lil Bean enjoys it. I sent a bib with the blanket too, but haven't downloaded that pic yet. Hopefully I'll remember to do it this week.

**Its been a super stressful week. Too much to go into detail about, but I wanted to mention that my MIL (she lives with us) is in the hospital with double pneumonia. Cross our fingers she's better and out of the hospital soon.