Busy Books

I set a goal for myself to get all of my Christmas presents done by October this year.
Well, OBVIOUSLY, that didn't happen.
I have managed to finish a few though, and these are what I am most proud of so far.

I have wanted to make these for my kids for years, and had "plans" drawn as how to do it, but never managed to find the time, or the bravery to start such a long project.

They are finished now, thank goodness, and I really hope that they like them!

The Covers:







The Pages:


Zipper Skills (Couldn't rotate this one...sorry)


Shape Skills


Numbers, Colors and Counting


Button Skills


Telling Time


Hair Fun


Tic-Tac-Toe




Fun with Baking and Numbers


Locks and keys


Some Car fun


Letters


Tying and Lacing


Decorating a Christmas Tree


Picking apples


Fall Leaves




Clothes and a Clothesline to pin them to




Notes and a Mailbox to "mail" them in

Beachy Blanket

I bought this material a few years ago, and in the midst of prepping for baby #4 I found it, and decided to finally do something with it. (I never, ever, ever buy material without a purpose, but the purpose for this one somehow got lost....)
It turned out HUGE! Way bigger than I planned, but it will be a perfect gift for a family member with a new little girl. They spend a TON of time at the lake.... It couldn't be a better fit!

Busy Bags

We recently took a long car ride. (Long by our standards - 3 hours)

I found these canvas tote bags at Joann's on clearance for 97 cents, and added a little bit of material to make personal "busy bags" for the kids. Then, because the bags were so cheap, I had a little extra money to fill them up with new and old toys to make the car ride and the trip a little bit more special for them.

I think they enjoyed them!



For my oldest... turquoise blue with some sparkle....



For the Middle one... A "C" for his name, and for all the cars that will fill that bag...



And for the little one... her favorite color pink, and a bonus...whimsical butterflies!

Fancy Hair Bows

I had some extra tulle and thought I would use some to "fancy" up some felt hair flowers. I think they turned out cute for that special little girl out there!

Birthday Deals!

I was perusing the aisles at Joann's the other day, and they were clearancing out all their canvas goodies, so I snagged a couple for some upcoming birthdays. With a little ribbon, and some felt flowers, they are perfect! A little bag for a princess, and an apron for Mommy's Little Kitchen Helper!



(excuse the wrinkles, there is no ironing going on at my house right now...)

Homade Gifts

This fabric bracelet is a new obsession of mine.
I saw it somewhere and had to try it, and couldn't quite get it right, so I ordered the pattern and whipped up a few for some girlfriends' birthdays. This was one of my favorites!



She even wrote me a thank you that said something to the effect...."you are making homemade gifts 'cool' again"....ha! That made me laugh! Who knew?

Why Not????

Yeah, I had to try it!

This was a belated gift for my daughters sweet kindergarten teacher who got married on Valentines Day this year! I love the teacher, and wanted to make her something from the heart...





I was sooooooo nervous to give it to her, you know how jewelry is...such a matter of personal taste...but every time that I see her wear it I smile knowing that she likes it!

Eat, Play, Sleep, Repeat....

This was a new kind of blanket for me, but I fell in love with it when I saw it and had to give it a try! I found the free pattern via V & Co. (a blog that is AWESOME!!!).
I made this for my cousins little girl, due to arrive any day, and although I had many moments of frustration with my machine, and the applique technique that I chose to use, it was worth it!



Don't mind the wrinkles...I had already folded and wrapped this bad boy before I realized that I never snapped a picture of the finished product....oh well...



Note: next time...yeah, I will probably attempt this one again...I will choose a better fabric for the last word. Its hard to read on the polka dot background.

Cute Clips for Girly Girls!

I saw this on a crafty blog and had to try them out! I love making them! I love giving them away too!
I would let my girls wear them everyday....if they would let me near their hair!









Also, for some reason I can't post this, but here is a link to another of those adorable girly girls wearing a clip that I made!

Touching Taggies

I never knew the fascination with these until I had a kid who loves silky things. He loved to rub his fingers on the silky ribbon, and really liked all the textures that one of these little blankets had to offer! This is one that I made for a little girl in Illinois! Funny to think that something I have made has travelled over the US!

Baby Boy on the Way

A good friend is having her first boy. I didn't have a lot of time to make a blanket, but I saw this perfect flannel material and had to do it! Makes me want another one just so that I can wrap him up in a soft blanket with friendly animals all over it!
The backing is chenille, so it is cuddly all over!

Coloring to Go!

This is not a new idea by any means, but a fun one!
This little crayon holder fits regular or chubby crayons in it, and is perfect to throw into the diaper bag, or restaurant kit to keep little ones busy with a semi-quiet activity. This little holder, paired with a coloring book makes a cute, cheap fun gift to give away as well.



Unwrapped and ready...



Rolled and ready to travel.