Backyard Beginnings

We have started the process of fencing in our rather challenging backyard.  Here's some before shots.

Hired some great guys to come help level things out.  It would have taken Doug weeks by hand.  They were done in 3 hours.

After

Stairs going here.

And now the fence posts are up!  We'll continue with the rest after Christmas, can't wait!

Fleece Blanets with Binding

I didn't do a lot of handmade Christmas gifts this year, but I did manage to squeeze in these great blankets.  The baseball one is for my new nephew and the blue one is for Austin's autism preschool teacher.  She is always talking about how each child with autism is a lock and if you can find the right "key" they will begin to open up and be able to live more fully in the world around them.  I saw this key fleece fabric and knew it would be perfect for her.

I saw this tutorial HERE and was blown away by such a simple and great idea.  Just take a piece of double printed fleece and sew a fabric binding around the edge!  I rounded the corners and used fabric that I cut on the bias so it was stretchy.  My strips were 3 and 3/4 inches I believe.  Reminder to self:  next time 3.5 inch strips would probably be perfect.  Rounding the corners and making my bias tape probably took about an hour.  Sewing the binding on one side and hand stitching the other side probably took around 4.5 hours.  I love to hand stitch the binding on the back because it gives me an excuse to sit down and watch a movie or two.  They are really fun to make and much faster than a full pieced quilt, give it a try!

Christmas Bread 2012

I hate ironing, so I use my ironing board for holding all of my Christmas poppy seed bread instead.  Can't iron if I wanted to....oh well.

More on the table.  Did over 50 loaves this year.  We have too many teachers, tutors, therapists, coworkers, and friends apparently.  Not complaining really, I love making this bread and giving it away.  It's probably my favorite part of the holidays.

Use some tags from last year and these "Joyeux Noel" ones from HERE.  Thought they were cute.  Merry Christmas, everyone!

80 Years of Memories Box

My amazing Grandma turned 80 this year.  My mom and siblings threw her a big birthday bash the week of Thanksgiving.  I was unable to attend, but still wanted to do something for her birthday.  I saw this fabulous idea HERE and knew she would love to hear from all of her family and friends on her special day.

So, the planning began.  I wrote a letter and gathered emails and addresses to contact all of her family and friends, asking them to contribute to this gift.  I had a lot of help from my mom and aunts collecting contact information, thank you so much!  Soon, my inbox and mailbox were full of memories and birthday wishes for my Grandma.  It was a lot of fun reading all of the things people remember and admire about her.  I enjoyed making this as much as she did receiving it, I'm sure.

 

I ordered some envelopes online and attached vinyl numbers, 1 through 80.   I also bought a nice box that fit all of the envelopes perfectly.

My aunt took it down to her for me and I heard that she loved it!  I'm hoping to get some pictures of her receiving the gift soon.  Since I wasn't there, I charged others with taking some photos for me.  Happy Birthday, Grandma!  80 years young!

Gryffindor Tie Necklace Charm

I have a couple of friends that are really big Harry Potter fans.  One recently played the piano for me while I sang in church.  The other is a wonderful babysitter to my boys, heading off to college next month.  I saw these amazing Gryffindor tie necklaces HERE and had to make them for gifts.  I followed her directions exactly and found the tie charm at my local Hobby Lobby.  Unless  you have an extremely steady hand, your lines will not be perfect, but once you put the Dimensional Magic on top, it's hard to notice the not so straight lines.

 They both loved them!  And now they have a little Harry Potter magic with them always.  Merry Christmas you two!