Webcam Fun and Resolutions

Juniper and I had a little too much fun with the webcam tonight ♥ 

(And I got some new glasses! I can see again!)

I'm really not that big into the whole "New Year" thing, I never have been. BUT I am so so so so glad that 2010 is finally over and I can put it all behind me. I was not a fan of 2010. I've got a good feeling about 2011 though! This is going to be a great year. (Because I said so) 

And just for traditions sake, here are my New Year's Resolutions:

Culinary Adventures - Peanut Butter Cups!

Today I was inspired by this post over at The Dainty Squid and this post on The Hungry Mouse, and I decided to make homemade peanut butter cups! Definitely a fun (and messy) way to spend an hour or so! Next time we are going to experiment with fillings. The smores ones look AMAZING.

A few of these will be making their way to a certain someone in Utah as soon as I get my butt to the post office, and the rest will most likely be consumed by a ravenous husband who LOVES chocolate and peanut butter, or a crazy toddler who loves... anything sweet!

Juniper approves ♥

Happy Birthday Sister O' Mine!

Dear Heather,
I am so glad you are my sister. Even though when we were kids you totally took advantage of how gullible I am. But hey, some of my best memories involve you making me believe crazy things! I love you a whole bunch and I love your super adorable little girl. I hope you like your birthday present, I wish I could have given it to you in person! Miss you!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
♥ Your C-Star

I could get used to this.

 

What's this? The Goodwill parking lot? With no kiddo in the car seat?

*big grin*

I've decided once a week to have a friend of mine watch Juniper so I can get things done around the house and have a little 'me time'. Today I finished up all of my freelance work, cleaned up the house some, did a little shopping at the Goodwill. (got a super cute dress and a comfy maternity shirt!)

Today was a good day.

Let's Do This!

I have been trying to get myself out of this lame artistic slump I've been in ever since I lost my job. (How do people take care of toddlers and still make time to be creative? Some tips would be greatly appreciated!) I've got my handmade Christmas list all made up, now let's see if I can live up to my own crazy expectations!

A lot of people on my list are getting drawings this year. (They're the easiest to ship!) I've got the photos all picked out. I've never done this many drawings in one month before.. Heck, I don't think I've this many drawings in a whole year before! So to get me inspired to start working on them, I've been going through some of my old work. Here are some of my favorites.

I Love My Little Family

We got some family pictures done last week and I love them! This is the first time we've ever had photos done, so it is SO nice to finally have some pictures of the three of us together. It's funny, I don't look pregnant in most of the pictures we got back! (Speaking of pregnant... ultrasound is scheduled for Friday!!!)

PS. Thanks Carley for the fantastic pictures ♥

And, my favorite picture ♥

Baby's First Portrait

I just wanted to share this because I'm in love with it. My little sister Tesha drew me this while we were visiting family in CT. I love the little dancing, happy fetus! (And apparently it's a boy!) And I love that Juniper and I are the same size. I love my sister ♥

Life is Good

It seems my life has finally started to slow down some. And I'm loving it. I feel like I'm finally get the hang of this whole stay-at-home mom thing too. (I love my Juniper) So now that I have more free time, I'm going to finally get this house in order and hopefully start creating beautiful things again! And of course, I'll be spending lots of relaxing afternoons at the park with my sweetieface ♥

 

 

My favorite moment of the day. Sitting on the porch eating banana popcicles with my Juniper. Life is good. ♥

Connecticut in the Fall

We spent the last week visiting my family in CT (just me and Juniper, Daddy had to stay home and be Mr. Math Teacher ♥) We had so much fun! It has been YEARS since I've experienced fall, you know, living in FL and all. We had an impromptu trip to the ER because I was having some stomach pains, ended up being a dehydration related problem and the prescription helped a ton AND we got to see a sneak peak of the belly bean! It was a super quick ultrasound, just to make sure everything looked alright in there. All I will say is SO STINKING CUTE!! That baby was dancing all over the place! And I'm so glad my mom was able to be there. I can't wait to schedule our real ultrasound in a couple of weeks. (As soon as I finally get to see a doctor.. I'm glad the insurance thing has cleared up!) Tomorrow I am 19 weeks, almost half way done!!

So here are some photos from our trip. Enjoy!

 

Juniper was Red Fraggle for Halloween ♥

The Ruffler

I should never have started looking at sewing machine accessories tonight... OH MAN! There are so many awesome presser feet out there!! I now have a gathering foot, a rolled hem foot, and a binding foot coming my way and I can NOT wait for them to get here!!!

And just for fun, check out this crazy thing!



Also, on a side note. I've found a project to get me out of my creative slump. I'm going to be making myself a wallet! I bought two patterns last night from NapKitten on Etsy. Now I just need to decide on which one to do.

On Hold

My creative life seems to have been put on hold... This past week has been GO GO GO. Between staying home with my Juniper, freelance work for Obor, babysitting 4 elementary school aged kids in the afternoon, making an extremely lame attempt at keep this house in order, being pregnant (so exhausting..), a bit of tutoring in web design on the side and church responsibilities, I hardly have time to sit down and eat a decent meal. (Chips and salsa for dinner? Again?) And sleep? Right. That. Is that important??

So needless to say, my art room has been pretty lonely... It needs some loving. *sigh* I feel like I just need to lock myself in there for a whole day and make something or I might implode.

Being a stay-at-home mom is tough work..

I'll leave you with yet another picture of the cute little face that gets me through the day. I love this kid ♥

Etsy Love - Lockets

I thought I'd take a break from sewing tonight and share a little Etsy Love. I am obsessed with lockets lately. I just need someone to hint to my husband that I'd love anything from the birdsoforegon shop. SO honey if you're reading this... *cough*mixtape*cough*

1. Enchanted True North by TheEnchantedLocket
2. JE t'AIME Locket bY ManoCelebrates
3. Steampunk Double Dragonfly Locket by chinookhugs
4. Victorian Gnome Door Locket by emylyne
5. Pink Plum Blossoms Vintage Locket by brightasyellow
6. Two little love birds sitting in a tree by birdsoforegon

I Did It!

I signed up for a little last minute craft fair fun! I used to sell my goodies at the Artistree Co-op last year. Things at work were keeping me too busy to stay with it though... But I guess that's one of the bright sides of being laid off! I have been seriously lacking in the motivation department lately though.. (I'm blaming it on the pregnancy) So this could be exactly what I need to get me back into it. Now I've got one week to get some inventory together. Time to unpack the studio!

Long Lost

Has it really been a whole month since I last posted? Does anyone even read this blog anyway?? Things have been crazy. I won't get into it all here... For now I'll just leave all you non-existent blog readers with this adorable picture of my fashionable toddler.

She picked the outfit ♥

Boxes and more boxes...

Moving day is finally almost here!

 Image Source

Wednesday is the day I've been waiting for for months and months. I've been trying to start packing up but I'm having such a hard time getting started... It was just me and Juniper all day today. So that made things just about impossible. Right now I'm taking a break from packing up my craft area. I was cleaning up my sewing table and I started feeling very light headed and cold-sweat-ish. It was a very odd feeling. Being pregnant has also made packing pretty difficult... Every time I have some free time to work on it, I am too tired or nauseous. But regardless of how I'm feeling, we are moving in 4 days so I better get packing! We have babysitters set up for part of Monday, Tuesday, and all of Wednesday so that will help.

SO excited about the new place :) :) :)

♥♥♥

4 Simple Goals

With all of the transitioning going on around here, it's the perfect time to join in Elsie and her 4 Simple Goals challenge.

So here they are...

1. Have a work space that is organized and inspiring to work in.

The organized part may seem a little far fetched, but since I just lost my job I'm going to be spending a lot more time in my studio. I want it to be a space that I enjoy being in. Right now I work in the living room... but our new apartment has a HUGE closet that I've claimed and I can't wait to turn it into my studio.

2. Take weekly pictures of my developing baby bump. 

I always said I would do this when I was preggo with Juniper, but I didn't even come close. As soon as I we move in a couple of weeks, I'm going to pick a cute spot and take a new picture every Saturday.

3. Get back into working out every night.
I used to work out every night and I really enjoyed it. Since I've gotten pregnant, I have been too nauseous and tired to even think about it. But as soon as I get through this stage of the pregnancy I'm going to start back up. I want to be as physically prepared for this baby as I can, and I want to feel healthy and pretty even though soon enough I'll be big as a whale.

4. Read more.

Now that I am not working full-time, I'd like to make the time to read. I've been stressing a lot about how I'm going to make money from home, and I need to take a little time each day to relax and read a good book.

Announcement! ♥

Juniper is going to be a big sister! 

Yay!

Ok, so her shirt is a little big... but at least it'll fit her until the new baby comes! I cut the letters out of felt and sewed them on with embroidery thread. Then I attempted to embroider "I'm Gonna Be A" .. but it turn out so great. Oh well. It's cute ♥

And what's a Big Sister celebratory photo shoot without some tree climbing!! 

I'm linking this here, just for fun :) Go check out all the cool projects!

After all, a girl can never have too many clothes!

I've had this shirt forever, and it's been so hard for me to figure out the perfect use for it. But I had a moment of inspiration the other night and finally just started sewing. I just made it up as I went along, and I love how it turned out! Of course, now I know a lot more about how this type of dress goes together, and next time I'll do a few things different. But Juniper likes her new dress so whose to argue?

Perfect for running around in circles on the bed with mommy's toothbrush.. 

Until you get tired and decide to lay down...

♥ LOVE ♥

Sweater Frogs

This past week I've gone back to working "full time" to help out with a big data import project... Imagine hundreds and hundreds of lines of excel spreadsheet data and LOTS of copying and pasting... Not exactly my idea of a good time. BUT it's Friday! And I intend to make the most of my weekend ♥

I added a new sweater frog to my growing froggy family! (The one on the left) These guys all came from the same green sweater, and I've got enough fabric left over for one or two more. The middle one is Juniper's, and the new one is destined for the shop. I haven't made up my mind on the little guy yet.

In other news, I've got a new tutorial in the works! Just need to photograph the finished product on an ever-so-uncooperative 19 month old.

Recycled Sweater Dolls - Misty

My Recycled Sweater Doll (more like recycled blouse doll actually) Misty, is now available in my new Etsy shop! I decided not to do one big shop update, instead I'll be listing new items all week.  Save myself a little sanity that way :)



I'll be linking this post to the I Made It! blog party over on Everything Etsy.  Go check it out, there's lots of fun posts!

Change is a Good Thing

So much is changing in my life right now. Between halfway losing my job (I'm loving the part-time gig!), moving to a new apartment (counting the days!!!), and a few other pretty exciting things I'm keeping secret for now. It's all good change, and right now I feel like I can do anything.

I'd like to take a minute to introduce my new branding: Sweet Little Moonflower. I'm going to be selling handmade goods made from recycled materials. Things like sweet dresses for little girls from blouses, super cute stuffed animals from old sweaters, toddler backpacks from t-shirts, and all sorts of fun kid stuffs! I am in the process of growing and photographing my inventory and will have my new Etsy Shop open soon!

Dream Home - Kitchen

We are moving into our new apartment next month (!!!) and while we still won't be able to decorate however we want... I sure am having fun thinking about how I WOULD decorate it if I could! One word: COLOR.

 via

 I LOVE this dining area!! I really really love these red chairs and SHELVES! My home is going to have tons of shelves! And the color in the kitchen is great. I'd want a little less brushed steel though..

 via

So if you take the steel pieces from the first photo and replace them with some crazy bright colored cabinets, we're getting closer to my dream kitchen! I love the chandelier, but I would like a white one better. Like this:

via

And here are some sweet Etsy finds that I would love to have in my dream kitchen.

1. vintage serving dish set by leVintageMaison
2. Faerie Tea Cup and Saucer Set - Rose by coyoterose
3. Butterfly lamp by bytinygreenbird
4. Vintage Canisters by pegasusvintage
5. Mid Summer Night's Dream. White Metal Fruit Bowl by RaineStyleHome
6. Spring plaid classic full apron by mamieldesigns

Bobbin Case Cozy

My little Juniper absolutely loves my bobbin case. And even when she's not trying to grab it and play with all the fun goodies inside, that stupid plastic case is always popping open and making it's own messes. So I decided to make a case for it. Ok... I know what you're thinking. I could have used a rubber band... But this is much cuter!

River Jayne

Welcome to the world little River! ♥

Hello my sweet little new niece. Look at your precious little face! Oh how I wish I didn't live 1000 miles away. (1,197 to be precise) Soon enough though I'll come visit and give you lots of mooshy auntie loving. Until then, sleep well through the night and be nice to your mama! Love you ♥♥♥

Wedding Crazyness

My past week has been filled with all sorts of wedding preparations. I altered a wedding dress (turned it into a corset back), made a pretty veil, took in a bride's maid dress, made a flower girl dress for my little cutie, sewed matching shoes and made necklaces for the two flower girls, AND baked a pretty awesome wedding cake! *PHEW!* The wedding was this past Saturday. Congratulations Steve and Iris!!