Ebeanstock.com review . . .

Ebeanstock.com recently sent us a set of Double Dutch skipping ropes from Hot Ropes to review. We've tried them out with the girls, and really like the quality and length of the ropes. Our girls are 7 and 6 and can skip by themselves, but don't have the ability to "double dutch" using both ropes together yet. But they are getting better at skipping with one of the ropes while others control it. The set also came with a Double Dutch instruction book, filled with tips and tricks and some fun rhymes for skipping. This is a toy that the girls will get lots of fun out of next Summer!Ebeanstalk is a toy website that does their best to provide you with the best toys out there. They like to stay informed about the best learning toys and toys by age by having people like me and you tell them about their favorites! What are the perfect baby gifts? Does your child have one toy he/she just won't put down? Head on over to ebeanstalk and tell them what they are!

a REALLY good mail day . . .

So, I follow a lot of blogs ~ blogs of family and friends, sewing/quilting blogs, and some Mommy blogs. And a lot of these bloggers offer very generous giveaways, some out of the goodness of their heart and some sponsored ones. Well, I won a VERY good one recently, probably one of my biggest wins to date, and this was the package that the UPS man delivered yesterday . . .It's Tina Givens new book, 4 yards of fabric, 2 sewing patterns, and two boxes of stationery. THANK-YOU Tina & Lark Crafts and Pink Chalk Studio!

And I'll admit, I have three more giveaway wins on their way to me right now, each one also sure to make a great mail day. I've had some more time with my blog reader and entering giveaways this past month because of a week of tonsilitis and then another week of a virus that knocked me on my butt and gave me vertigo. The vertigo is getting better now, and my energy is thankfully coming back. And I'm sure this will help inspire me back into the sewing room :)

Above All Fabric wishlist . . .

Above All Fabric is doing a giveaway for posting your fabric wishlist from her shop. I thought this was a good opportunity to think about what I want to accomplish in my personal sewing for 2011 . . . I really want to work with some knits and make my girls some of these dresses.

I'm also hoping to get some twin size quilts for my girls finished (the tops have been done FOREVER), but they specifically want SOFT backings ~ this would do nicely.
And I'd like to make a sock monkey rag blanket for Justin ~ perfect for keeping him cozy in the carseat when we go out in the cold.And I'm hoping to get a start on Justin's twin size bedding because I LOVE this fabric line.And I'm still searching for the perfect fabric for a king-size quilt for my bed, but I think my hopes are a little high. This stack would make a nice start though . . .

I'm a guest blogger today . . .

a quilt giveaway and a fabric giveaway. . .

Pink Fig Design is giving away two finished quilts!! Hop over to enter!

and wouldn't these prints make some great Summer skirts and sundresses for my girls? Go to Retromummy to enter this one!

you know you're a crafter when . . .

I was sorting my purse and diaper clutch for an outing the other day and smiled when I realized how many handmade items were laid out on my counter. The purse, diaper clutch, cheque book cover, reuseable shopping bag, and "dirty dipes" wetbag were made by me; the keychain wristlet and tissue case were gifts, and the wipes case was a craft project with my daughter one day. I LOVE handmade :) And here's a pillow my daughter and I made for a birthday girl this week. It's hard to see in the picture, but the birthday girl's name is accross it. The fabric is a super-soft flannel from Moda's Woodland Bloom.

my first knitting project . . . sort of . . .

So a group of friends and I get together for coffee once a week and over the years we've tried to make some of these nights productive ~ scrapbooking, card making, sewing, quilting, and our latest endeavor was knitting. So I picked out a sweater pattern for Justin and got started. I soon came to realize though that this is not my favorite thing to do, and one evening a week was not getting this project done anytime soon, or at least before he'd outgrow it. So when we went to visit my Oma recently, I was thankful for her willingness to take over the sweater for me. I had managed to get the back piece and half an arm done, but in no time at all, my sweet Oma had the whole thing finished and on its' way back to me. Thanks Oma for doing a beautiful job on another sweater for one my kids!

paci leashes . . .

My kids have all used a pacifier, and one thing I always make sure to use is a soother strap. I just don't want to take the chance that they lose it on an outing; or if it falls out of their mouth in the church nursery, the babysitters won't know who it belongs to and my kid will be the one screaming when I come for pick-up because they want it back.

Yes, my kids have all had a soother at one point and been addicted to them ~ but I'm still battling the dental and jaw problems from being a long-time finger-sucker, so my theory is that a soother is an easier habit to break. Plus, I really love being able to quiet them quickly when they hurt themselves or if they start losing it in the middle of the grocery store.

Anyways, the straps at stores are often velcro and I have gone through some of these in less than a month because the velcro wears out, or sewed them closed which created problems when the soother needed replacing. But, my solution came when I discovered how easy it was to order clips online, and make them myself. And I can even buy snaps with engraved images on them like butterflies, cars, and animals and match them up to the fabrics.

Now I've found another way to use up scrap fabric, and make cute straps that are usually only found in boutique kids stores. I've listed a bunch of them in my shop if you need some for a little one in your life.

And if you'd like to win one, I'll be giving some away to fans of my Facebook page.

doll quilts . . .

Doll quilts have become a fun mother/daughter activity around here lately. My two oldest girls are almost as crazy about beautiful fabrics as I am, and sorting through the scraps and small pieces of fabric is a great way to spend some quality time together :) And it's kind of funny how opinionated they are on which ones go together, and how to lay them out. Here's some fun ones that we put in the shop.