how to sell a sandwich

We tend to be creatures of habit in this house when it comes to mealtime, if it aint broke don't fix it, right? I found a really cute piece on "sandwich art" so decided to surprise S with one of her favorite charecters for lunch.
Can you name this face?


I'm not offended if you can't, it is a bit rough, but S loved it! That is my attempt at Winnie the Pooh. The extra two minutes it took was well worth the excitement and the giggles I got as I watched her talk to her sandwich!

bonjour elephant~

One of my summer projects has been at last concluded and nailed to the wall so I can at last share it with you!
When I was designing H's nursery I thought about making one entire wall a world map.. What a great way to both decorate and educate right?! However when it came time to put it all together I became a bit concerned it would be too overwhelming and opted instead for a giant map print of 5'x7' to hang opposite his crib and above his changing table/book shelf combination. It looked really lovely and was a great accent untill he discovered it mid diaper change one day. Because of the large size I hadn't framed it and that was likely my mistake but really, that would cost a fortune! From that day on it became H's mission to slowly rip the edge of the print and eventually he tore one large piece right out of Antartica and the Atlantic and the map was no more.
Since then I have been dissapointed and trying to think of what to replace it with but having a tough time deciding as I really did like the map but what made it interesting was the size and that obviously wouldn't work there..
At last I decided to cut up the map and piece together a new picture from the pieces. Origianally I had a patterned background but wasn't completely sold so I actually recut the pieces (a bit larger this time) and placed them on a simple whit backing. I was thrilled with the results and hopefully created something that can work on his room for many years to come!

how far we've come

This week S will be starting her new preschool and I can't help but reflect on how far we have come in the past year!
This time last year S was about to begin her "Two's" class at a school that I could already tell was a bad fit for us (always ALWAYS listen to your gut!) and I was not only a nervous wreck but 9 months pregnant. I was worried, she was worried, we were both anxious, tearful yet eager.. I worried about how she would make friends, how she might be received by her peers and teachers, what would happen if she got hurt or scared and I wasn't there to comfort her, what if she got lost, or forgotten..
I was sleepless and it didn't help that she was too. She cried any time I said (with a forced smile and way too much enthusiasm) "this is where you will go play with your friends and mommy will come right back and get you when you are done!"- in fact she welled up any time we passed the school which is almost next door so often. And we barely made it through the year. We almost didn't. She was anxious every day, she had night terrors, she cried every single day before school and that was on the good days. We were planning on pulling her out at winter break (due to the advice of our friends, families, pediatrician, child development experts..) but they switched her to a new class and lo and behold she met a wonderful little friend who got her through the rest of the year and she did okay. She never once wanted to go to school but did at least look forward to playing with her friend.
This week, this year, is different. Her new school is already a perfect match and it hasn't even begun yet. The kids had orientation in May and have spent the whole summer doing weekly play dates so by now parents and kids are all familiar, comfortable, friends. The teacher even came for a home visit and S was so excited to show her some of her favorite things (no way- the teacher has a buzz light year doll at her house too?! cool!!).. To top it off I will be in the classroom as a parent volunteer every six weeks or so (as will all of the other parents) and we are both thrilled at that chance to share the experience together.
We smile and wave every time we drive by and she chats endlessly about all the fun she will have there with all of her friends. And I know she will. We are both going into this confident. And comforted. And relaxed, eager, and genuinely enthusiastic.
I know how much we have grown over the last year, how much time and experience has changed each of us. I know it might be rocky the first few days, I expect a few tears from either or both of us, but I also know this will be good. Very good. Today at a play date with two of her future classmates the kids got a bit carried away with the paint, this my child who a year ago would freak out if she had a drip of paint on her fingers and make me stand by with a wash cloth to wipe her clean as she went..

owl hands

I have spent the past several weeks scouring the web, books, and magazines for some new crafts/projects/activities to try with the kids.. Among my very long list (which I can not wait to delve into) are quite a few really sweet handprint projects. Up until recently S wouldn't tolerate messy hands so this is all quite exciting for me!
Since I am a sucker for owls the first hand print activity we tried was this owl print. I cut the body shape out of construction paper, we used stickers for the eyes, the handprints made the wings and then S painted the really cute legs.. Love it! Might have been better with some color control but we were happy enough!

so long to summer

As you might have noticed I took the bulk of August off from writing in..
Well, here we are now officially past labor day and there is definitely a hint of fall in the air and I for one am completely psyched. I am looking forward to cooler days and breaking out our fall clothes, and even more so I look forward to getting back into a routine. I am looking forward to making this blog part of my weekly routine along with our new school schedule, my much needed fitness routine, a babysitter one evening a week, and who knows what else!
I feel like I am on it and excited anticipating everything coming up.. So many fun projects to do with the kids, great fall activities to try, we have scheduled our first ever "crafty girls night out", and there is also H's first birthday party which is already in the works! And I look forward to sharing all of it with you!
It was a wonderful summer but I happily bid farewell and welcome to fall.. xoxo

picture pages

I am running a bit behind on this but I just completed and ordered miss S's 2-3 year photo book. I had been making these books every 6 months but figure once the kids hit 2 we can slow down and do one a year. Not only is this one mammoth photo book but it is just as dear and darling to me as the very first one I made for her (and every one there after)..
I compile all our best photos (several hundred) into a "folder" and then stick them into shutterfly. From there it is a total piece of cake with their storyboard and editing tools- they even have a new feature where they organize them onto the page for you in groupings by date, then you can go ahead and shuffle them around to your liking but really it saves so much time it is fantastic. The best part for me is going through all the pictures, remembering all the moments, and adding little captions for all the great things we never want to forget- this year includes everything from first haircut, first day of preschool, falling in love with buzz lightyear, meeting the "real" Dora in Spain, and becoming a big sister.
I swear working on it has put a smile on my face for days. I can't wait until the bound copies arrive, one for us to thumb through together and the other which gets tucked away in a closet for her to have when she grows up- which is happening way too fast. Now- time to get to work on the 6-12 month book for H!

And we are back!

We have been so busy traveling and gallivanting I've not been keeping up with any of my tech-related activities-- but here we are halfway through August and now anticipating getting back into a routine with fall and preschool etc- so I am at last happy to be back to blogging. We have a few projects to update you with on here and many more in the pipeline, really I can't wait! I've been collecting long lists of ideas for activities with the little ones and one fun surprise I've found along the way is that I have also compiled a huge list of things to make and do myself. Could it be in my mindful parenting I'm getting in touch with my inner artist again? The one I thought was lost in a pile of shoes over the past ten years? I always thought doing something creative for a living would be so satisfying but the truth is after designing shoes so long I soon felt like I didn't know how to design or create anything else. At times this bothered but frankly I was so busy working I couldn't give it much thought. So here it is, coming back to me. Unsolicited, but very very welcome. And exciting. Next up; I think I need to make a monthly craft challenge for myself. Maybe even a craft girls night? Perfect excuse to get together with friends and sink my hands into something fun. Any takers?