My little girl has arrived!!

Well friends, my little lady decided she wanted to stay put! Not sure how long she would have stayed if we didn't force her out!! I was induced on October 15th at 41 weeks and 1 day pregnant.  She was born after a GRUELING hour of drug free labor, not because I'm some kind of wonder mom or super hero but because the epidural DID NOT WORK! ugh! It was the most pain I've ever been in...but it was only an hour and it was totally worth it. I am so in love with my sweet little lady! 

Abi Grace is 7lbs 10oz and 20 inches of sweet baby girl!!

Recovery this time around is taking a lot longer than I hoped it would. But I'm enjoying snuggling with my little lady and watching the big kids play from the recliner. So blessed to have my parents here too, they have been incredibly helpful and I'm not sure how we would have done this without them! I'm also super thankful for the friends who have made us dinner and offered their help in so many ways. Sweet little Abi will be baptized tomorrow morning and we're so excited to have our family and friends here to witness her being welcomed into God's family!

Can't wait to share with you all the shirts I made for the kids!

Hopefully I'll have that post ready for you next Saturday (if not before!).

This little lady loves to sleep and I love to take her picture so it works out pretty well!!

You can see a few more photos on my photography website...some the same, some different.

Continue Reading ...

Guest Post - Pumpkin on my Bumkin

Hi, I'm Tricia from Made By Me. Shared With You, a little sewing blog that I try to keep up.  I'm excited to be here sharing one of my favorite projects, the Lil' Pumpkin appliqued bodysuit.  Being a mother of two little ones, I like projects that are quick, simple, and easy on the budget.  This little appliqued bodysuit can be made up during a nap time, and will have your little bundle of joy ready for Fall.

I call it the "There's a pumpkin on my bumkin applique".  There are very few times in life when it's okay to have pictures or words plastered on your bottom, but the baby stage is one (if not the only) acceptable stage. Having boys, I don't get to indulge in ruffled bottom tights and bloomers, so an appliqued onesie will have to work.

It's a simple little applique that I designed.  I'll share the file with you so long as you respect that it is for personal use only.  The template is designed to fit a pre-washed Carter's 0-3 month onesie.  You can feel free to adjust it to different sizes.

My applique is done with some scrap knit fabric that I have had stashed away, heat and bond fusible adhesive,  some embroidery thread, and lightweight fusible interfacing.

Begin by applying the heat and bond to the wrong side of the fabric.  

Next transfer the image to the front side of the fabric using pattern marking/transfer paper. Cut out your pieces.

Adhere the applique pieces to the onesie.  I had the small pumpkin in the front, and the large pumpkin on the behind.  It should fit right in line with the seams and snaps on the onesie.

 I used my embroidery thread to do some hand stitching.  I feel that it adds some visual interest to the applique.  You could do some machine stitching around the images if you prefer.  If you are using a fabric that frays (knits generally won't) you will want to ensure that you either satin stitch (tight zig zag) around the image, or apply some sort of fray check or fray block to the raw edges.

Once I was done with the applique and hand stitching I used some fusible interfacing to secure the embroidery threads, and prevent the thread from irritating babies chest.

That's it.

A fun little applique for the season.

You can find the template here.  Once again, the template is for personal use only.

Thank you so much Tricia for sharing this adorable lil bumkin with us today! We loved having you.

Please make sure you stop by and thank Tricia for sharing this with you. You can find her HERE.

Continue Reading ...

freezer paper stenciled shirts, and other random goodies!

We've had a busy week around here...how are the rest of you doing?! Monday we celebrated our oldest daughters sixth birthday! She had an awesome day...Dunkin Donuts for breakfast with dad, school, lunch at Red Lobster with the family (including grammy and papa), presents, cake and a classmates birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese! She had a great day and declared "I'm a grown up now".

Yesterday my husband and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary! Can't believe it's been ten years already!! We were able to have lunch at my parents house and then they watched the kiddos so we could go out for dinner and a movie! It's been almost a YEAR since we've been in a theatre! Crazy! We saw "Trouble with the Curve" and I thought it was a pretty good movie! 

No baby yet...but I've been nesting that's for sure. Thursday night I spent a few hours cleaning up the MESS in my bedroom...my craft area. I blogged about the craft area clean up on my blog because I'm joining a couple of others with the great October Overhaul....it's not too late to join if you need a craft area overhaul too!! I can't wait to share my after photos!! My daughter came into my room the next morning and did a double take...and my mom was wondering if she was in the right house when she stepped foot into my bedroom last night! So I guess that means that my cleaning has an impact. It does on me as well because now I know where my supplies are! I have also cleaned things that have probably only been cleaned once or twice since we moved into this house! My house thanks me for nesting ;)

Next Friday my little girl turns 2!! It's a crazy, busy, fun month for all of us here...well, except for Micah, he can't understand why everyone else gets presents and he gets none!

I made an outfit for Naomi's birthday, and I also made shirts for her classmate and Micah's whose birthday party we went to on Monday. Freezer paper stenciling is amazing and I love doing it. The six die on Naomi's shirt was all my husbands idea!! He's pretty creative too ;)

Well, I'm going to go and think baby thoughts and see what we can do to get things moving along!! And it's not too late to enter the giveaway (by guessing baby's birthDAY and other stats) that I posted about last week!!!! I will keep you posted on her arrival!!

Continue Reading ...

Guess my babies birthDAY and other stats

Alright friends the time for guessing is here...

The baby clothes are washed, the crib is put together, hanging bassinet is in my room, the maternity photos are done, the potty break filled nights are in full swing, the feet are swelling, the breaths are shorter, the contractions are painful (but not consistent) the only thing we need now is a new baby to fill our arms!!

So, that's where you come in. Time to take your best guess as to when this baby girl will arrive and how big she'll be. Leave a comment with your best guess and whomever comes closest will win a little prize pack. I have a lovely little fashion bracelet set, and a feather trinket box kit from Creativity for Kids and maybe some other little goodies to give to the winner. Check below for some stats on my other kids just to give you a leg up on the competition!!

And just because I love these photos and want to share them with everyone...here are some of the photos our awesome photographer Tracye got of all of us last Sunday night.

Silly kids!!

And I took this one of myself this morning at the Free Smithsonian Museum Day (did anyone else take advantage of that?)

Naomi was born 9 days before her due date at 7lbs 12oz and 20inches
Micah was born 7 days before his due date and was 7lbs 12oz and 19 3/4 inches
Hannah was born 1 day before her due date and was 7lbs 5oz and 20 inches
This babies due date is October 7th.

First person to guess the closest will get the prize pack!! Good luck and make sure to leave an email address so I can contact you to get your mailing address!! (and if you don't have little girls to win these prizes for I'm sure you can find someone to give them to for Christmas!!)

Continue Reading ...

A moving intermission

*pushes boxes out of the way* Hey there friends, surprise, it's me!! When you read this we will be in full swing of moving...and hopefully almost done. Boxes are packed. Furniture is being moved. Toilets are being cleaned. Foreheads are being wiped. Eyi. eyi. eyi. moving is not fun! But the change will be good and we're so excited to finally have our own place to call home again. The kids are excited and we can't wait to show them the new house...that's right they haven't even seen the inside yet. But we've driven past the house a couple times a week since we put in our offer and they are super excited.

I don't have lots of time to chat and fill you in on everything that's been going on but I've got a few camera phone photos to share! It's been a WHIRLWIND, crazy month that I never want to relive...but GOD IS GOOD!

My little climber...nothing can stop her!

This box packed itself! Better make sure it doesn't get lost in the move!

Naomi has been invited to a few birthday parties lately and I've made these little t-shirt capes for the little boys. They are easy to make and the boys LOVE them. This one was for Nash...now I need to work on Micah's since his birthday is on Monday and since he's asked me for one everytime he sees me make one I figured I better make him one!

And one for little John, one of Naomi's classmates.

My friend asked me to make some shirts for her twins first birthday!

This was a SUPER easy dress to make and I can't wait to make more. I bought the pattern here.

And I made two other ones in the same night...seriously the easiest dress I've ever made...and super cute!

Oh and our other piece of BIG NEWS! We're going to be adding a new little one to the family in early October! We are SOOOO excited and can't wait to meet this little blessing!!

The other big change that I alluded to earlier this month is that I am taking a BIG step back from my photography business. You can read more about it on my website if you care too.

Hopefully I'll be able to post more regularily again soon! I can't wait to show you the new house...but first gotta get things looking liveable!

Continue Reading ...

Minky Couture Review and Giveaway

You will undoubtedly enjoy the irresistible softness and luxury of your very own Minky Couture blanket.  We are proud to offer you an original creative product that speaks highly for itself.  Whether you're snuggling with your new born infant, off to grandma's for the weekend, packing your bags for college, or just cuddling by the fire with your favorite book, a Minky Couture blanket is your escape to luxury.

... Info taken from Minky Couture Website...

Recently our family received a Minky Couture blanket for review. I loved that we were able to go online and pick out colors and patterns that we wanted. We just clicked on Custom Blankets and selected a print, solid and then the ruffle. It was super easy and it even showed me what it would look like. That is always a plus. We picked out the Elle print, hot pink solid and a dark brown ruffle. We couldn't be happier. It is beautiful and so cuddly. The week we got it, we were babysitting a friends granddaughter. She loved it so much, she wanted to take it home. ;o) And she is a little lover of blankets and has 4 favorites she keeps with her all the time. She wanted to make this her 5th. These blankets would make the perfect gift for someone who loves soft, cuddly blankets. I know a few people that we can buy them for. LOL 

Get 20% off your entire purchase of minkys today!  Now is a great time to get a minky for the cool breeze that is right around the corner, and the upcoming football season! Enter the coupon code MC062011 at checkout.

Don't forget to go by and see all the great gift ideas that Minky Couture has!

Head on over to Minky Couture and check out all their adorable blankets. Here are just a few blankets that you will fall in love with.

There are so many adorable combinations that are either pre-made or to customize. And its great to include the kids when picking out the colors and prints.

You can win a Minky Couture for yourself! 

They have generously offered an Infant size (36x30) blanket for one of my readers.

... How to enter ...

GIVEAWAY CLOSED
Winner STEPHD

You will have until  Oct 14 @ 9:00 p.m. Pacific Standard time to enter this giveaway. The winner will be chosen by random.org and announced here. If the winner has provided an email address I will contact you. If you don't provide your email, you will want to check back here and see if you are the winner. The winner will have 48 hours to contact me or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is open to those living in the US. You must be 18 years or older to enter. Thanks for entering at Trendy Treehouse. Good Luck and Have Fun!

The featured product {s} in this post were provided to me free of charge by the manufacturer or pr company representing the company. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by anyone. By entering this giveaway you agree to Trendy Treehouse Disclaimer/Terms of use.


...Don't forget to enter our other giveaways below too!...

Continue Reading ...

Gifts for twins

Quick post today...busy time, as I'm sure you all understand.

Just wanted to share some photos of a gift I just sent to a good friend of mine who had twins about two months ago. I'm finally getting around to getting their gift done. I hope she sends me pics of them wearing their outfits.

I also made this for one of my etsy clients. It was fun to make but a little challenging to get the burp rags just right on top!

What do you make for twins? I think it would be fun to have twins...but then again, I think I'm made to only handle one baby at a time, and I can obviously dress my kids alike even if they weren't born on the same day! :) Have a great weekend!

Continue Reading ...