A Farewell Gift . . .

 

We had friends moving. We wanted to get them something, but what do you get someone, who usually is trying to downsize their stuff, so they can move cross-country?


When we moved away to Montana years ago (we since have returned back). It was 12 hour drive to get to get to our new home, my good friend, made goodie bags for each of my kids. My oldest at the time was 5. In the bags she had 6 or 7 wrapped gifts. Some were treats, some toys, it varied & the were all wrapped. Most of the items were picked up at the dollar store. For every 2 hours we drove, the boys were then allowed to open a gift. It was awesome because of their little attention spans. They would unwrap their gift & play with it & after a while they would get bored, but soon they had something new.

  I thought about doing something similar for this family, but for various reasons I wasn't able to make it happen.

 So after much contemplating this is what we ended up with.

     


      In the first pile is coloring & activities pads, one for each kids. Something to keep the kids occupied while traveling that far. Our friends kids are 5, 8, 11 so these should be able to keep their attention span hopefully awhile.

   In the second pile is stuff to keep in contact with. There is a  writing pad, envelopes, stickers, pens, A book of postage stamps & of course address labels with our address pre-printed, so they can always keep in contact with us. The last thing, that wasn't added at the time was a mini-photo book. Pictures I have taken over the years of our kids together.
 
And of course in the bag we tossed in treats & candy, to eat on the road. We wrapped it all up in a bag along with our farewell card & gave it to them. We miss them, but wish them the best in their new adventure!  

Now we are just waiting on a letter . . .

Blessed

I had a wonderful thanksgiving & hope you did as well. We ate way too much yummy food & pie. We played, took naps & visited & I didn't take a single picture!

I am so frustrated with myself for not taking pictures. I am going to have to beg some off everyone else. :0)

I was especially grateful for the safe return of my hubby & our amazing neighbors who braved the blizzard to get him & his hunting buddies. He finally got home about 2:30 am on Thursday.

So I have started to think of Christmas gifts. I have a tradition of a handmade present to my kids. I am really hoping to get those started later today. It always takes me awhile to make something.

I hope you are able to continue to enjoy your weekend. Before I go here is a hint to what I will be making this year.

Giving Thanks

I have an amazing mom. She does so much I really have no idea how she accomplishes all she does.
She gave us a present to open & boy were my boys excited!

She gave us the present a few weeks early. So I had to intially hide it for while so my kids wouldn't open it sooner. Finally the big day arrived. 

Thanks Grandma! 

It is an awesome Thanksgiving Countdown. So every day we open a present & thought, with something to be grateful for & an activity to go with it. It has reminded us we have a lot to be grateful for & my boys have loved it.

Yep, my mom is amazing. Thanks again. 

Learning to Crochet & some ideas

           So I have set a few goals for this new year. Mostly it is just one word goal, but then after seeing this post on U-Create Crafts, I decided to add one more to the list. I have always loved people that can knit/crochet. One of our good friends, Jodie, can knit, and she makes the cutest stuff. She has tried to teach me over & over again, but for some reason I struggle. I even started with something simple, like a washcloth. She told me she can make one in about 2 hours if she takes her time, it took me about 2 weeks to finish it, and it wasn't very relaxing. It also didn't turn out very square.  I was rather frustrated.  So I decided after seeing this post, maybe I should try to crochet again. I have learned enough every couple of years  to crochet each of my boys a blanket (square, no design), right before they were born. But the last one I did was four years ago.    But now I am determined to try again. There are such cute things that are crocheted. I must say this go around it makes me a lot happier. Thanks to these awesome videos that give an entire school to learning to crochet.  I am very much a visual learner, so these help me a ton & if I don't get it or forget it, instead of calling someone up, I just re-watch the one I want to. 
                    
   The best part, I started with something simple like washcloths. This time I finished it in an less than two hours. Yea!! 

                                          (my 1st washcloths) 


   I love when I can make something, & it is relaxing to me instead of stressing. So if I am watching hulu at night with my hubby, I can crochet something, feel like I am still being semi-productive & it is relaxes me too. I made my 1st wash cloth last Wednesday, I have made 3 more since. They all were square too. That is a first. I also finished my 1st little boy beanie Saturday night. The best part, it actually looks like a hat. I am starting to catch the bug & have a couple more projects I want to try. I did promise my older 2 boys that I would make them a beanie. I am hoping to have those done by the end of the week & then make this cute hat for me.
                

                          ( It is called the City Girl Cap, I found the pattern off of Raverly. )

Or I think these headbands are quite cute as well. 


               

Or since I am having a boy & the rest of my kids are cowboys I should learn to make these:

                                

       Or I found this pattern on etsy from Two Girls Patterns Shop & though they might be fun to try one day.
         
http://www.etsy.com/listing/80050108/womens-house-slipper-crochet-pattern-for

And one of my last favorites I have found in the last week: This pattern from Brookes Little Stitch. on Etsy too.!!  There is only one word for this hat. ADORABLE!! 




  So yeah, I am getting excited about the possibilities once I figure out the basics. Cute, fun, & relaxing. 

Leave a comment & let me know if you have a crafty goal for this year! I would love to hear. Also the menu Monday post should be up later today, or maybe tomorrow, who knows. We will see how the next few hours go. Have a great Monday though!! 

Handmade Christmas part #1

So I promised to show of  we made for my boys for Christmas. Here is the first set of pictures. I tried to get my boys to be "models" but it's not really their thing, so what we see is what we have.  

What we did, is I  made all three of my boys Wool vests.  I couldn't get my little dude to pose for anything, so I will have to try again. I had been thinking about making them for quite some time, but I was hesitant. I am a quilter more than a seamstress, but my husband was sold on the idea.   He was so excited, that one night when I just wanted to crawl into bed due to morning sickness. Yes, . . . I am one of those blessed people that have morning sickness for my whole pregnancy. I spend 10 months sick daily, throwing up, & dry heaving. It's awesome, but it is how pregnancy & my body get along. ( Or not get along).


 So one evening, my husband convinced me he would cut them all out if I would just lay on the bed & tell him what to do, & he did. Bless his heart. The coolest part of these wool vests is that we made them out of old    
 army blankets like these: 

          

They are made from 70% Virigin Wool, & the fabric is naturally fire retardant. Not because being Fire Retardant is really necessary, but it just makes them sound that much more tough. Vests that you could walk through fire in (not recommended) but it sounds tough. We had a piece of one lying around & cut them, dyed them & lined them with a black flannel. The boys are in love with them & are wearing them everywhere. Well except for my little dude, that is convinced his is a CAMPING only wool vest & won't wear it until we make it camping. It might be awhile, but I will keep on trying to convince him. So I am actually thrilled how they turned out & have had several people ask about them. So  I am considering making a few some similar ones, maybe more wool ones  & putting them in my Etsy shop. I will let you know if I do. Here is a slightly better look. The blanket we used had a slight pattern in it & you can faintly notice them.

   


Anyways, I am linking up to the Polkadot Chair Homemade Christmas linky Party.  


  So go check it out & I will try to get my other homemade present on here later this week. 

A Lifetime of Memories.

Grandma's 84 Birthday!!

  So last Thursday we were lucky enough to be able to spend time with my Grandma & help her celebrate her 84th. Birthday.  My grandma is amazing. One thing I love about where we live, is we live close enough to see her frequently & she is apart of my boys lives. She has celebrated Easter & Christmas & other holidays with us. We have spent hours visiting with her in her kitchen & my boys love her so much. As do I.   I have so many wonderful memories of her house, from the time I was little to now. She is my mom's mom & well their personalities are a lot a like. Grandma is easy going, sweet, loving & very active.  Still at 84 she is canning, planting her own garden & still on the go. I feel so lucky we have gotten to have her around so long & hope she sticks around a lot longer. 

  So for her birthday we made chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting. (She is where my sweet tooth originates.) And headed over to her home. She had just had lunch with my mother, so ice cream & cupcakes were perfect.   

Eating Cake & Ice Cream with Great-Grandma  

The boys with Grandma on her 84th birthday. 

  This year I wanted to give Grandma something special for her birthday.  I saw this a while ago on Pinterest, & then a week before her birthday as I contemplated what we could give her. I remembered it. 

           So I wrote this letter:

Hello everyone!

If you're receiving this email, you probably know that my grandma, Marilyn , is turning 84 December 8th (much as she would hate us to be reminding everyone, I'm sure.) To celebrate her birthday, I'd like to put together a little surprise for her to let her know that her nearest and dearest are thinking of her. I'm going to try and create "84 Years of Memories" by filling 84 envelopes with a memory her friends and family have of her.

And this is where you come in! 

If you have a spare moment in the next few days (as soon as possible, there isn't much time), we would be so grateful if you'd jot down a favorite memory you have of our favorite woman and put it in the post. It doesn't have to be anything fancy -- you can just write it down on a piece of paper and sign your name. You can mention anything you like -- although the more nostalgic the better! Please absolutely feel free to send more than one memory (in fact, we welcome it -- we've got 84 envelopes to fill!), but make sure you write them on different pieces of paper (and sign your name to each) so we can split them up. You can mail them to me at my address . Or if it is easier for you, you can e-mail them to me at myaddress@someaccount.com

Thank you so, so, so much for participating -- I know everyone is busy with their own lives, and I do appreciate you taking a few minutes to do this; it will be so worth it when she reads all the memories people have of her! And she knows how much she is loved from near & far. (Please don't forget to keep it a surprise until then, though!) But please respond quickly as we only have a few days for this miracle birthday present to happen. 

Thank you so much again. 

-- Me 



P.S. Please pass, forward this to anyone who knows my grandma, as I have a limited number of address & e-mail. Or pass it along word of mouth, to anyone who has had the pleasure of meeting my lovely grandma.

  

 So after a few phone calls & some mass e-mails to family & friends of my dear Grandmother, we started collecting memories of her. Not just some, 84, to be exact. A memory for every year of her life.   This is has to me one of my favorite gifts of all time to have every given someone. 

 I was nervous that we wouldn't be able to pull it off, with such little time. But everyone came through for me & in fact I am still receiving memories of her & have more than 84. 

   It turned out to be quite a few. Here is the stack of  "A lifetime of Memories." 84 envelopes each filled with a memory of my Grandma.   

My monkey was so excited to give it to her & he wanted to make sure that his was read 1st. So he kept it out, I made my 84 envelopes & then when we got there he gave his to her 1st.

It was such a wonderful day to spend with my Grandma & to all those that helped. Thank you, it was greatly appreciated. To grandma who will check this as well. We love you so much & thanks for all the wonderful memories!


And to anyone who is a looking for an amazing gift to give to someone, though I would start this a month or 2 prior. That way you can get some from all places they lived. (One weeks was a little too short). But i would recommend it. It was a amazing.

Home made Gifts

  Christmas is just around the corner.  It seemed so far away & now it is coming so fast! Which brings me to one of my favorite questions. Do you make home made gifts.  The answer at this house, is yes.  Not everything, but when I was growing up & I think to this day my mom has always made me at least one thing. Home made. She is amazing. It is a tradition that I am trying to keep alive today.


In the past I  have made some things, like pajamas, blankets, one year I made this car mat:

This year,   I have ideas & haven't even started. . .  I am starting to push it I  realize. Only 18 days left.   So my goal for everyday until Christmas, is to give at least 15 minutes a day on working on them. I will let you know how it goes & maybe even give you sneak peek if I can.  But for now if you are want to make something, but not sure what. Here are a few cute gift ideas I have found on the web.

Click on the picture or this text & it should take you there. 

Click on Picture or these words & it should take you there.

  Or The Crafting Chicks has this adorable Family Memory Game

     

or A Family Photo "Go-FISH Game" 

Or you can See 25 Gift Ideas for Little Dudes over here:

So there are a few just to get you started. I know most of them are boy gifts, but that is what runs in this house. I will keep posting more ideas as I find them on here.  For now . ..  happy gift giving, & go make something.  It is really quite nice, & pass a tradition on to your kids. Or if it is already a tradition of yours, please leave a comment & tell me some of the things you have made. I am always on the lookout for more ideas!! Thanks.