So Rusty!

I've been without crafting so long I don't know if I can remember how to do it anymore :) So I'm in awe at my Sis-in-Law Andrea's adorable projects you have to check out on her blog! She's bit me with the bug, but I don't know where to start. We got moved into our new home and my craft stuff was finally put all away. I'm debating on doing a couple craft fairs before the holidays, maybe doing I-spy bags, bows & holders, Lost Socks banners, drawer labels for kids... what do ya' think? Anyway, here's my new craft room and my revolving art gallery for kids!My laundry/craft room.... I LOVE all the drawers :)

I LOVE my peg-board, I got it alley-driving in Phoenix
and it's so handy... I even got my ribbons hung on it this time
with some metal rods and curtain rod brackets...
Every time I walk by I'm drawn in, gotta start crafting!

My revolving art gallery for kids... the perfect place to display the kids school and church art-work... I took 12x12 scrapbook paper, covered it with clear contact paper and taped it to the wall. Now I can tape the kids art on and remove it when it's time for fresh stuff.

Paper Freaks

So Alaura picked out this book at the library, don't remember the name of it, but it had all these paper crafts. The dragon came from it, then we improvised on the pegasus. Really, they may look complex, but it was an hour long craft project in all. Sammie was napping, but we made her a peacock.

Diaper Bag Dilemmas Solved

Thank goodness for all our new tote options, because the last thing in the world I wanted to do was carry around that hideous "Peter Rabbit", powder blue diaper bag we got when our first was born. Now things are even cuter and cuter. I had a friend show me how to make those covered diaper-wipe holders, but I had to customize it and add a pocket for diapers and cream. Now this is really all I need in my purse... good-bye diaper bag :)

Getting it All

So I was at the library, and I totally did that thing where you see someone returning a book and have to hassle the librarian to let you take it :) It had a cute illustration and title, and it was a fun read... The MomsTown Guide to Getting it All. They brought up some good points... like you can have it all, you just can't do it all. Then I saw they had a website and liked the post on Getting organized... my favorite part: "Better done than Perfect". Now ain't that the truth :) Anyway, random post, but like to pass on stuff I find cool.

Window Flashback

Back in the day... ha ha, like it was that long ago... anyway, after I had my 2nd baby I stopped working at the furniture designing store I was at, and started my own business. It startedwith some chair covers and then I figured I'd dive into drapes. I'm insanely fearless when it comes to some things, and one of the first drape jobs I did was a $5000 set of 3 motorized Roman Shades, with the largest being about 15' x 10' and out of fabric that was $40+/yd. And did I mention that I'd never made a single Roman Shade before? Ya, crazy, but miraculously we pulled it off and I ws off from there. I had some amazing connections, and great help and it turned out to be a fun business that kept me pretty busy until we moved away and I decided it was time to put that on hold. So I still reminisce and thought I'd randomly share some of our old projects with you.

My first real draper job:

Can I please have this laundry room? These drapes were so fun to do! I even pulled my mom in on this job. Let me tell you, staple and glue guns ARE your friends.

Shutterfly woes

So I'm working on printing an album with all our family pics from 2007... the first printed one I've done. (I am now totally anti-scrapbooking with paper.) But I guess I'm realizing what a control freak I am. I love the quality of Shutterfly books, but I have issues with the rest... the pre-designed books have the most adorable layouts, but the headings can't change and they don't always work with the pics and get a little redundant. So 4 hours later, start over with a generic one, but sadly, the layouts aren't nearly as cool. So now I'm going back to my pre-shutterfly plan... doing the digital scrapbooking with Photoshop and getting exactly what I want. A TON more work, which I was hoping to avoid, but thank goodness for super cute digital products... if you haven't gotten into digital scrap stuff, you've got to check out the products from DSM. They are really cute, well-priced, and have helpful tutorials. If you're in the Salt Lake City area, their workshops are a must. Look for pics of my book in a few months now :( Ha, hopefully the work will pay off.

Feeling the Love

I love the blogging community! It's nice to be in my cozy little world and still feel a part of so many other people's lives. It's nice to drop in and be inspired by other people too... like Camille, who has the most amazing fabric line and beautiful quilts (see the sneak peak pic). Not to mention adorable family! I'm so glad I stumbled upon her site. I think I'm going to borrow her theme for my new year and Simplify a few things around here too :)

So I just ran across this Nesting blog and I love it... thought you might too. People and their ideas are AMAZING!

(Credit... this photo is from their site... I only wish it were from my family room.)

And check out my side bar for the other cute blogs I found!

Holiday Recovery Under Way

It was a super fun, busy holiday season... a boutique and a wedding on top of all the other holiday events made it a nice crunch... but I like pressure. I keep wondering why I am feeling like a turtle wanting to hide out in its' shell... then I remember, oh ya... maybe I just might need a little breather :) So to let you know what I've been up to, here's my half of a 12 days of Christmas.

6 Teacher Gifts:

5 Flower Girl Dresses:

4 I spy bags:

3 Frame Stitchings:

2 Hand-made Pillows:
1 Holiday Boutique:
Everything seemed to turn out just fine, thank goodness I started in October! Meanwhile, I'm veerrrryyy slooooowwwly getting back into my new year. Trying to get things in order, and adding a little more structure to my anti-structure way of being. I'd rather just wing it, but with 5 kids and a lot of ambitions, I'm realizing that order is the only way I can get things done that I need and want to and end up with some sort of sanity in the end! So these are some of my attempts to get things in order:

The post-it note weekly plan--set yet post-it flexible! Sigh :)My laundry solution--eliminate 1 step to the dreaded event :) Surprisingly, the kids get so excited to put their laundry in the correct basket. How does it go?... "Find the fun, and snap, the jobs a game"... yes, Mary Poppins is my hero, and I want her bag!