The Great Pumpkin Scarecrow

Every year my niece and I make a scarecrow for a local competition. This year she wanted to do something from "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown."

Here is what we came up with.

I had some wooden pilgrims I got from DI we painted and used for the bodies. The heads are embroidery hoops with fabric and their clothes are fabric scraps from some of my old clothes. The moon is a hula hoop with a baby sheet sewn around it. The pumpkins are a mix of wooden, styrofoam, and real. We had a wonderful time. We used LOTS of hot glue. My sister got to join us in the fun this year. Thanks for the memories!

Star Wars Cookie Crumb Cake and Party

My husband and I have a tradition where we make each other's birthday cakes. It is so much fun! With the upcoming movie in December Christopher just couldn't escape his very own Star Wars themed birthday...and birthday cake:)

I frosted a chocolate cake white, poured on a pile of blended Oreo cookie crumbs, and used a knife to move the crumbs until it was good enough to be identified:) (I looked at a picture I took at Wal-Mart of a decal for a reference)

I found a sticker packet for .50 which made the title simple and also turned our plane yellow cups into Star Wars cups.

Binna and I printed off a bunch of logo pictures and coloring pages for decorations.

We ended the birthday with a new lightsaber for dad(and Eli) and a very happy father-son duel:)

I couldn't be more grateful for this wonderful man in my life. He is my hero and motivates me each day to fight honorably in the real war of good and evil, standing firmly in my faith in Christ. I love you sweetheart. Happy 28.

Rope Swings

Visiting my Grandma and Grandpa May's home growing up they had the best rope swing. We spent hours on that wonderful thing. The kids have (or I have) been dying for a swing set, so we made our own swings! They were SUPER easy and the kids love them! And we do too!

How we did it:

I first bought two stools from DI for $4 each and 30 feet of rope from Home Depot (58 cents a foot)

Then we borrowed a drill from our kind neighbor and drilled a nice hole in the middle of the tops

We popped the tops off the stools, used a nice knot around the tree and under the seat. We burnt and duct taped the rope so it wouldn't fray and here they are! They were about $13 each, and they are way more durable then a similar item I found for $20.

Happy Wednesday!

Creation Overload around here

So I feel really bad that I haven't posted in over four months...

but I also feel so grateful that this is the reason...

This is Danny. We love him.

I am so humbled and amazed that our Heavenly Father allows us to take part in 

His most magnificent creative work and glory...His children.

We also bought our first house...a million creative projects just waiting for me to dive in and swim for hours:) I hope to do a few catch-up posts on our many fun projects around here. We sure feel blessed to be here and we love it so much.

I think I finally blogged today because it felt like more of a "normal" day since baby arrived....and... this morning as we watched "Wishenpoof" on Amazon Prime I had the overpowering urge to make the crafts they were making. The kids had no complaints either:) 

Here is what we created.

Mini hats out of egg carton parts.

So easy and the kids loved it. We just colored them with markers, and then glued pieces of my old broken jewelry, buttons, and feathers.

Dress-up Capes

We used some fabric scraps and one of my old shirts:)

 Eli wanted a "hooper-man" and Binzy wanted "Belle".

Eli's "this is the real Superman cape" face :) And Binna's princess pose, well-practiced :)

Happy Wednesday! 

Bridal Shower Fun!

So my amazing cousin Celeste is getting married today. Unfortunately, she is getting married in California and with our home/car saving I couldn't fly out there.

I love her...and her husband-to-be is wonderful too! She is an INCREDIBLE singer/musician, you can listen to some of her songs here: Celeste's Music

It was so fun to put on a bridal shower for her last week with my Mom, who planned it all, and my aunts and sisters:)

It was also so joyful to be with family. I am so grateful for families and Heavenly Father's plan for them!

Celeste and some others are gluten-free eaters so all of our food was gluten-free:)

Happy Wedding Day Celeste!!! Wish we were there!!

Made a wedding dress today....haha

I can't say I have ever made a wedding dress before...here is why I did it today:)

We updated our toddler chart to "Captain Hook" for some variety. We have had to add some toy-taking-away to our discipline as well just because she is testing the limits of the chart:)

Today she did so awesome with her behavior so our new Captain Hook made it to Never Land!! Sabrina chose from her treasure box the paper that said "Make a Dress"

She wanted a princess dress...Giselle's wedding dress...haha.

So we looked in my fabric odds and ends box and found an old white fitted bed-sheet, old white robe, and an unused tulle curtain and this is what we came up with today:)

Cost: $5.00

Time Spent: 3 1/2 hours

and a fun photo shoot for a girl who loves a picture of herself:)

Happy Friday!

Tried something new...Faux Stained Glass...SOOOO Fun!! Try it!!!!

So my wonderful Church - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hosts an "International Art Competition" every three years. It has been one of my life goals to enter this competition...and I did it!


I don't feel very "expert" in any art medium so I determined to try something new. I want to learn how to do stained glass someday...but it takes a lot of special tools and such so I tried another way this time around. It is called Faux Stained Glass, with stick-on leading and "fake glass" paint. If you want a fun project you should try it!
The theme for the competition was "Tell me the Stories of Jesus." I love the Savior and had a very difficult time choosing one of His stories to portray, but this one really stuck with me...do you know it?

Why I chose this story --During the October 2014 General Conference President Monson spoke about how we can walk with the Savior as we come to know Him better. In my mind and heart I know that I surely want to know Him better. I began a more in-depth study of the New Testament and have since discovered many rich and treasured teachings and experiences from the Savior’s life that I had not recognized before.  

One such experience is that of a Fig Tree in Mark 11. Upon seeing the beautiful leaf-filled fig tree, the Savior sought “haply” to partake of the fruit thereon only to find it bare. On a fig tree the fruit buds always come before the leaves, so the leaves should have been a clear sign of a fig-filled tree. Because of its barrenness the Savior “cursed” the tree and the disciples observed the next day that it had “withered away” and “dried up from the roots.” 

As I have considered this story, I have been touched by the Savior’s reasoning, His symbolism, and the response of the disciples witnessing the seemingly healthy-to-withered tree. I have come to know three things from this fig tree. First, I know the Savior has power over all things, for He is our creator. Second, I know I do not ever want to be like the fig tree. I want the Savior to know me by my righteous fruits as I live up to both my purpose and potential. Lastly, I am so grateful for the Fig Tree, with both its leaves and its withered branches, because it helps me to know my Savior better. 

I will post about the process soon...you really should try it:)

Toddler Behavior Plan...is working!!!!

We created a plan to help our Sabrina, and it is working great so far! :) She is bright, happy, and so driven and determined in all she does. With this strong spirit and will, our daily challenge has been to curb severe fits and whining and help her to learn that she is the master of her own soul. It has been really HARD.

Lets just say we have all cried a lot about it.

We feel like we have tried so many things, and just when we seem like we have a few good days we sometimes feel like we are back to square one. It has been a matter of prayer and struggle and I know that as we continue to turn to Heavenly Father we will keep making progress. We have seen a lot of progress this week!

The Actual Plan

We made this for the fridge (Sabrina LOVES Peter Pan right now)

It is a very simple magnet Peter Pan and Jane who follow the stars all the way to Never Land. When we see Sabrina choosing to happily obey, serve at home, be positive, play kind with her brother, help without being asked, etc. then we move them a star forward. If she whines, hits, or has a fit, they move a star backwards. Once they make it to the green star in Never Land then she gets to choose something from her treasure box we made together (out of some boxes:).

We have a discussion about what things she would really like to earn from the box. (We want to keep it simple and cheap, but exciting enough for her to want to earn it) 

She chose some actual "things" along with things "to do" such as:

-Plant a seed

-Make cupcakes

-Make a dress

-Get a Wendy's frosty

-Peter Pan Book

-Tangled Book

-Stuffed animal

-Magnifying glass

-Make a pie

-Make a fort

We plan on adding variety by changing the magnet out, and then eventually changing the actual charts pictures depending on what she is most interested in. 

She chose "plant a seed" the first time she got Peter Pan to Never Land...and here is its progress :) 

The biggest key I knew was for both My Man and I was to be super, super consistent in our implementation of the plan. So far we have done two solid weeks and Sabrina is showing a deeper understanding of her own ability to control herself:) The other night she sincerely wept because she "did not be obey to dad"...it was sad and soooooo happy!

It is exhausting to be consistent but I know it is a quality that I need to work on in other aspects of my own life so it is such a blessing too.

I am so grateful to be a Mom. Along with the endless exhaustion and steady hard improvement of my character there also are so many treasured moments and hours where I thank our Father in Heaven as I feel ever so much closer to Him through the spirits of these little ones, and through our time as a whole family. The family is of God.

I feel so blessed, and so thankful that Heavenly Father created the perfect "behavior plan" for us to follow. I am ever grateful for his patient and perfect consistency as He helps me stop whining and throwing fits ;) He is so good. His Son is my perfect example. I love them. 

Have a beautiful day. 

Lessons of Love

Happy Valentine's!!

I wanted to make something "Love-ish" this Valentines Day because...

I LOVE love.

I especially love

 our Savior Jesus Christ 

My Family

You

&

our Latter-Day Prophets

So here is a little video I put together today to sum that all up and to share my hope and desire to grow in love and testimony.

 Lets fill the whole world with love!!!

Love you!!!!

So we are so excited to announce that baby number 3 will join our family this July!

We are so happy.

I have been soooo sick.

Now I am finally starting to feel better and thus determined to update the blog.

The couch has been my best friend the last few months, and food has not. I have been happy to complete a few projects with the baby creating my body has been working hard at. It sure is a miracle. My Man has been a champ, getting us through the holidays with his cooking, cleaning, and endless laundry. I am so blessed to have him:) It has also been really neat to see our Sabrina step up and help with things. She is so excited too...and she is sure it's a girl. We'll find out in two weeks.

Here is how Sabrina has looked for the last few weeks (we whipped this together during an afternoon, she has been obsessed since she saw my brother perform as Captain Hook in his high school production)

Did I mention My Man is the Bread-winner and Bread-maker!!! He makes THE BEST homemade bread almost every week...and we love it.  He even uses our wheat grinder for fresh wheat flour! We have a few favorite recipes.

My other creations have mainly included toddler entertainment devices, such as gallon bags filled with paint -duct-taped to the floor, and piles of shaving cream with food coloring...and lots of muffins and banana bread (Binna LOVES to make those!)

I know there was more...but I can't remember right now...but we are in the process of creating a very organized house so maybe I will post some before/after pictures...maybe :)

Have a beautiful week!