Little purse

I made this purse for Nora for Christmas. She has been in love with big bags and I thought it would be fun to make her something her own size. I used Heat N' Bond to adhere the heart to the fabric and then embroidered around it. I used the basic idea to make a tote bag, but cut out my pieces to fit her size. I also rounded it out a little more and only put one strap on it. To see the instructions for a basic tote bag, you can go here.

Pattern: Slouchy Hat

Stumbled upon this free pattern  and thought I would share. It looks like a super quick and easy hat to make and so pretty too! I love the purple color she used. Be sure to check out the copyright rules on the bottom of her post.

Crocheted Amigurumi Owl

I whipped up one of these (pattern can be found on ravelry.com) for my sweet baby girl. She loves it... I have never really made any of the amigurumi animals, but have always wanted to try. It isn't perfect, but Nora doesn't mind and it gave me some practice at something new.

Easy Felt Flower Pins

The night before Aidan last day of schoolI was scrambling to come up with ideas for Christmas gifts for his teachers. I had planned on baking something, but decided last minute to rummage through my craft stuff and see what I could come up with. I remembered this tutorial I pinned on Pinterest. It was very quick and really easy. Mine didn't turn out quite the same, but I think I needed to adjust the size of my petals. I still liked them and the teachers were pleased.

The picture isn't so great because I shot it quickly while I was getting everyone ready to leave for preschool. I don't know why I always do things so last minute, but that's my life right now I guess.

Home for the Holidays

We are spending 16 days in KS over the holidays. We left last Sunday and I won't be blogging much because I don't have access to pictures and other things I need to actually share things I have worked on. I made a lot of gifts this year, but didn't post them due to being much to busy prepping for the trip, and afraid that family might find out about presents before they should.

I have a lot of new ideas I hope to being working on in the new year....hope you'll stick around to see them. :)

Andes Mint Chocolate Cake = Delicious

My mom had her birthday just a few days ago and I wanted to do something special for her, so I baked her a cake...An Andes Mint Chocolate Cake. One word: AH-MAZING.
You want the recipe right? Cause I'm giving it to you.
What you'll need:
1/2 cup butter
2 1/4 cups packed brown sugar
3 eggs
3 squares of unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sour cream
1 cup boiling water

Frosting:
1/2 cup butter
4 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
4-6 Tbs milk

So let's started:

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar

Then, add in the eggs one at a time. Make sure they get beat in well after each addition.

At this point you will need to melt those baking chocolate squares. 

And after this I got so involved in this project I started forgetting to take pictures. After you melt the chocolate you should beat it in with the vanilla. 

Then, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. You will want to add this to the creamed mixture alternately with the sour cream. Boiling water comes next and you whisk it until it is smooth. 

Pour into greased pans.

Bake at 350 for 25-30 mins. Let cool for 10 mins and then place on rack to cool. Make some frosting and decorate that cake. 

Between the layers of the cake I put andes mint chips. I also cover the top with them. They add a really nice touch to the cake. 

TADAH!

I think she had a good birthday. I mean who couldn't with a cake like that. :)

Felt Christmas Tree

So I got this idea from Pinterest and thought it would be a fun way to let the littlest one in our family help decorate a tree. She actually really does like it and it was super easy to make. The only problem I have is that she keeps trying to pull the tree down. :)