It's scientific!

I found this article pretty awesome today!  A scientific explanation for my perpetually messy house. 
Ever notice how when you do a project, something has to give?  For example, a few years ago, I painted my front room.  Seems like an easy enough task right?  Well, look what happened....

Let's play Where's Waldo.  Can you find the baby?

 

There he is!

 

  My favorite quote of the article:

Go ahead: clean and scrub, sort and organize, produce spectacular order in one area of your home; just understand and accept the fact that there will certainly be order decreasing, every bit as spectacularly, somewhere else in your home — especially if you have children or pets, or maybe even a husband (bless his heart).
 

Any house project, craft project, anything really seems to destroy the house! It's so frustrating! But thanks to this article, maybe I can relax a little about it?  Probably not but the theory still made me laugh today.

 

Limited Number of Wood Behold Kits Ready to Ship

I have a limited number of wood kits available and ready to ship!  Sold out!  Thank you! 

These are the last wood kits that I will have available before Christmas.  First come, first served!   Kits can be purchased through my Etsy shop or with the Paypal button located on the left side of my blog.  Paper kits are still available and ready to ship as well. 

Thank you for all of your support! 

Big squeezy hugs!

Megan

Vintage Elf on the Shelf

Out of all of my grandparents, I only knew my Grandma Reta. I remember going to visit her at the farm house and loving to play in her daughters old room and look through the pretty dresses kept in the closet.  Or the photo albums that were in the old front porch converted to a sitting room.  She kept the best brownies with frosting in the freezer that we got if we were lucky.  That or Keebler cookies.  Yum, yum, yum!   Oh the things that a child remembers about her Gram. 

She passed away when I was 12.  We got to choose a few things of hers to keep.  I picked out a Mr. & Mrs. Santa Claus salt and pepper shaker and her elves on the shelf.  These things are precious to me and I love seeing them come out of the box at Christmas time.  I've always displayed the elves on a little Christmas tree but this year when one of the elf's came out of the box, my daughter was explaining to her little brother about how the elf is in a different place every day so he can watch what they do during the day.  Then the elf was placed carefully on the armoire.   I decided it wasn't too late to play the elf on the shelf game with them. 

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This guy is kind of mischievous.  He was found hanging from the ceiling this morning.  My kids had a good laugh about it.  I wonder what he'll do tomorrow? 

What about you?  Do you have an mischievious elf hanging around your house?

Missed Fall

Ya'll.  I feel like I missed Fall.  (Hey, that rhymes!)  It's been interesting finding our new normal around these parts.  It's been a while since we've had a baby around so she's been very entertaining to us.  She's a good little babe and she's getting very spoiled!  There is always at someone who wants to hold her.  It's nice for when she's fussy but not so nice when she's been sleeping nicely. 

My neices husband took some pictures of baby for us when she was two weeks.  Love little squishy baby bits.  Thank you Jason McGrew Photography!

I've been slowly working on some Thanksgiving blocks.  Yesterday, I realized that Thanksgiving is this week.  Oooooooohh.  (Didn't the kids just go back to school?  I'm pretty sure someone is playing a trick on me.)  My goal is to finish these blocks today.  It's always fun to craft, but I've been surprised at how little time I have for it right now.  I forgot that everything takes longer with a baby! 

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"Behold Him" kits orders are all caught up!  If you have ordered a paper kit between Nov. 1st - Nov. 17th, they are in the mail.  Woot, woot!  Paper kits are now ready to ship and will be shipping daily.  Wood kits will be ordered on Nov. 21st and will ship 7-14 days after depending when I get my order back.  This may be my last order before Christmas.  Remember, you must pre-pay to be guaranteed a kit and it is first come, first served.  Thank you for your business and patience!  I've been so thrilled and blessed with the response to the kits.  I'm so honestly happy to provide you with the kits.

I'm looking forward to a good Thanksgiving this week!  I hope you are too.  And, I admit, I'm kind of excited to do some Christmas decorating too.  I even have a few Christmas presents to put under the tree!  Hope you have a great Thanksgiving too!

Hallows' Eve

"Behold Him" kits available for pre-order.  Paypal button located on the left side of blog <--------- Please note that kits will start shipping Nov. 1st as I am on maternity leave.  Update Nov. 2nd - orders are being processed now.  If you order between Oct.1st - Nov. 1st your orders have been shipped. 



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While I was waiting for little sweetness to be born, I decided to make some new Halloween blocks. I needed a distraction as the days ticked past her "due" date.  Plus, I'm embarrasingly fickle and seem to change my decor every year. 

 

I really like the fresh and graphic look this one has. There were some really great papers out this year.  A friend and I sat in the middle of the scrapbook isle deciding on papers.  It was quite a site with my huge 9 month pregnant belly!  I'm not quite sold on that ribbon over there.  I think I'll do some tweaking today. 

This spider is kindof creepy.  And glittery. 

And I had a lot of fun adding jewels to everything.  See the black jewels on the buttons and the little jewels on the shoes?  I tried to give the kitty a little something too, but she wasn't liking it. 

See last years blocks here. 

Paypal Link For "Behold Him" Kits

**Limited number of the original paper kits are available as of August 2013.  More info on this post here or use the Paypal link located  on the left side of blog to order your kit.**  

Hello folks!  Response to the "Behold Him" kits have been wonderful!  I'm so flattered and happy to get you a kit so you can have this in your home. Your words have been so kind to me!  After taking the Paypal button off of my website to go on maternity leave, I've since realized that it would be best to leave it up.   Kits are off the site right now.  Email me if you would like more info at megitys@gmail.com.  I'm so flattered and happy to get you a kit so you can have this in your home.  Your words have been so kind to me! 

You will find the Paypal buttons on the left side of my blog.  <-------------------------- 

There is a Paypal link for the paper only kits and the full wood kits.  Please note that I will not be ordering wood or shipping kits until November 1st.  Next wood order date Nov. 21st.  Pre-ordering now will guarantee your a kit of your choice.  I'm always happy to combine shipping costs whenever possible!  Email me at megitys@gmail.com for a customized invoice or send me a note on your order and I will adjust it for you. 

Here is a refresher of what is available in your kits: 

Option 1: A Complete Kit

This kit comes with wood, pre-cut paper, letters and embellishments. All you need to finish the kit is craft paint, Mod Podge, sponge brushes, dry adhesive (Glue Dots and/or hot glue works great!) and brown distress ink. Kits must be pre-payed and are $28 + $10.95 shipping through USPS flat rate shipping. If more then one kit is needed, shipping will be consolidated for the best price I can find for you.

Option 2: A Paper Kit

Have the ability to cut your own wood? I contract my wood out so I'll be happy to pass along the savings to you. This kit will include pre-cut papers, letters and embellishments. The wood block dimensions will be included with your order. What you need to finish the kit is craft paint, Mod Podge, sponge brushes, dry adhesive (Glue Dots and/or hot glue works great!) and brown distress ink. Kits must be pre-payed and are $15 plus shipping and handling of $3.50. If more then one kit is needed, I will be happy to combine shipping charges to find the best rate for you.

Payment options:

Kits available for purchase with the Paypal button located on the left hand side of blog. Need more than one kit, I'm always happy to combine shipping. Either contact me or leave me a message with your purchase and I will adjust the difference.

Other details:

• The set measures roughly 17 1/2 W x 8 3/4 H.
• Due to the handmade nature of the product, please note that some substitutions may apply. 
• Ribbon rings are sold out. Not able to find anymore but a simple knot of the ribbons will give you a similar look.
• Pine cone embellishment shown with picture has been sold out. Substitute jingle bell embellishment will be included in your kit.  Pinecones were sold at Hobby Lobby in the Christmas craft section.  They came in either gold or snow flocked and were $3.99. 

poinsettia with jingle bell embellishment

Again, thank you for all of your support! It's been such a blessing in our lives. 

Sincerely,
Megan

Welcome Baby!

We welcomed our daughter into our family Sunday, October 7th at 1:05am shocking us all with her speedy entrance into the world!  7 pounds 13 ounces, 20 1/2 inches long with blond hair, fat cheeks and a set of lungs that let you know of her disapproval.  We are all in love! 

I've received many emails regarding "Behold Him" kits.  Please understand I'm learning all about babys' needs and working on several events for October.  I will be offering the kits again after November 1st.  Thank you for all your support and understanding!

Self Binding Minky Baby Blanket

*UPDATE:  Limited number of Behold Him full wood kits available in my Etsy shop.  Going on maternity leave soon.  Sold out!  That was fast.  Thank you for your support!

I can officially check off making a blanket for the baby!  I actually added this project. I was going to make a carseat canopy but found the perfect corally pink minky that was begging to be a soft blanket. I thought I'd try my hand at self binding. It took me a while, but I do like how it turned out.

instagram photo

I learned that this is a pretty fun technique for a cute result. It's not very hard to put together but I think that this technique would be much easier on flannel.

A few things that I learned along the way....

• I did customize the size since I wanted it to last longer. I made a rectangle, but feel it would be better both visually and when sewing, as a square.
• I found this tutorial helpful for measurements, watched this video  that was the best for me and this video to get an idea on how to sew it with minky.
• Since I didn't have the ruler to measure the angle of the corners, I folded them over to make the angle using these instructions. But be sure to check that it's the right way before you cut! I folded two right and two wrong. Nothing a little un-picking will fix if you haven't cut off the extra fabric.
• You can never pin enough with Minky.  I placed pins no more than an inch apart.  Pin, pin, pin away! 
• I bought too much minky.  Minky is usually 56"-60" wide.  I bought 1 1/4 yards to fit my 1 yard of fabric.    I easily fit the yard onto the blanket with the extra ten inches needed for the self binding leaving 1/2 yard of minky left over looking to be another project.  Minky is expensive!  I bought it on the spur of the moment because I fell in love with it.  My cost was roughly $14ish using a coupon. 
• And finally, don't start your project just before dinner.  If you're like me, you will become obsessed with finishing it making your family wait for a quick dinner of boxed mac n' cheese a couple of hours after dinnertime.  Good thing they are forgiving! 

My Baby Bucket List is looking better already.  Good thing, since I'm now 39 weeks! 

 

 Baby Bucket List

Home Organization: 

• find an arrangement for the girls room/nursery to accommodate the crib and extra baby things Done!
• decorate the girls room on a budget of "making what I have work for us"- making good progress!
• wash, sort and figure out storage for baby clothing   Done!
• paint girls closet
• organize girls closet - Done but would like to eventually add a closet organizer to closet
• re-arrange our bedroom to accommodate co-sleeper  Sort of done.  It's good enough for now.
• pack hospital bag
• clean house from head to toe (never endingly tricky to do)
• purge like I've never purged before!  I have been doing this like crazy.   It will never stop so I'm checking it off the list for now and keeping up the purging habit.

Sewing:

• sew a car seat canopy (where did I put that fabric?)
• sew a baby blanket
• sew burp cloths

Buy:

• nursing necessities - Done!
• postpartum necessities - Done!
• fresh, white onsies - Done!
• baby wash cloths - Done!
• stock up on diapers and wipes
• stock the freezer and pantry
• a coming home outfit for baby

To Primp:

• haircuts for the boys - Done!
• get a haircut myself
• treat myself to a pedicure - Done!
• wash all my comfy clothes to wear postpartum - Done!  It was easy since I've been wearing them all pregnancy anyway.  :)

To Do:

• send thank you notes
• finish kits for October - Done!
• list kits on Etsy - Done! Limited number of kits now available on Etsy!

Baby Bucket List

Yikes!  Where has September gone?  What used to feel like an eternity is quickly coming up!  I've officially have 10 DAYS until my "due" date and of course, I feel like I have a list that is 17 miles long.  It might be a good thing that my babies tend to come a bit after the "due" date.  (Can you tell that I don't like the term "due" date?  It's hard to wait when baby comes after the self imposed deadline.)

Of course, my husband thinks that I'm crazy and that there is really nothing more that I need to have done before our baby girl gets here.  "Diapers, car seat, clothing, done!" he says.   Silly boy.  I've been mentally keeping a list of things that I want to do, but finally sat down and let it all dump out on paper.  When finished, I laughed at my crazy self and edited that list to the things that are really the most important to me to come up with my Baby Bucket list.  Here is what I have left to do: 

Baby Bucket List

Home Organization:  

• find an arrangement for the girls room/nursery to accommodate the crib and extra baby things
• decorate the girls room on a budget of "making what I have work for us"
• wash, sort and figure out storage for baby clothing
• paint girls closet
• organize girls closet
• re-arrange our bedroom to accommodate co-sleeper
• pack hospital bag
• clean house from head to toe (never endingly tricky to do)
• purge like I've never purged before!

Sewing:

• sew a car seat canopy
• sew a baby blanket
• sew burp cloths

Buy:

• nursing necessities
• postpartum necessities
• fresh, white onsies
• baby wash cloths
• stock up on diapers and wipes
• stock the freezer and pantry
• purchase a coming home outfit for baby

To Primp:

• haircuts for the boys
• get a haircut myself
• treat myself to a pedicure
• wash all my comfy clothes to wear postpartum

To Do:

• send thank you notes
• finish kits for October - Done!
• list kits on Etsy - Done! Limited number of kits now available on Etsy!

I'm sure that I'm forgetting something majorly important!  Hopefully, this list being done will help me concentrate on the most important tasks after birth - nursing, recovering, sleeping, and family!   Do you have any tips and tricks for me?  Having been so long since I've had a baby, I feel a little bit like a first time mom all over again! 

First Day of School

The first day of school came late this year.  I thought it would be great to have the extra summertime, but unfortunately, my internal school clock kicked in right when school should of started so the last ten days of Summer seems to drag a bit.  The kids felt it too!  They were very excited to go and meet their new teachers, see old friends, make new friends and enjoy themselves.   And it was a success!  They all LOVE their new teachers and classes.  Such a wonderful relief of the anticipation that is felt leading up to it. 

First out the door was this guy.  He's getting too old for my likings!  Can't believe he's already in 7th grade.  He was so excited to start Jr. High that he left before I could snap a picture.  We got him back, but not for long.

Soon, it was time for the elementary kids to head out.  This cutie is headed to 4th grade.
 

And this excited little friend is heading to Kindergarten!

 



They were so excited to meet their teachers!  My daughter was so excited to take her brother to Kindergarten this year.  She's pretty good to him.  I loved listening to her tell him all about his Kindergarten teacher and how she is the best Kindergarten teacher there is. 

We had some extra time since everyone jumped out of bed so early so I got to indulge her with some poses that she had in mind.  Her outfits crack me up.  She's such a fashionista!  We had a great time picking out her school clothes and came out with some great pieces that she loves to mix and match. 

All in all, it was a success!  Kids LOVED everything about school and are still going strong with the excitement!  I'm thankful that I have a wonderful husband who gave a great lesson and father's blessing to each child the night before.  You could feel the warmth and spirit in our home which I always appreciate.  I always loved going back to school so I'm glad that the kids are following in my footsteps.