Sand Box Fun

The weather here in Oklahoma has been beautiful lately! The sun has finally been shinning on a regular basis. The mornings are cool and the afternoons are hot.

All of this has been making me CRAVE more time outside!
Thankfully little man LOVES being outside as well...

But we live in an apartment and therefore have no back yard.

We do however have a small porch.

So I started trying to think of some fun things we could do and play with on the back porch.

The first thing I decided to get for him was a sand box. So I started looking around at some stores and on the internet. After some searching I realized that there are not a ton of options for sand boxes out there. They have some cool mixtures of sand and water tables but they are all too tall and a little too mature for Jack. I found the classic green turtle sand box but it was a little too big for our porch and was more than I really wanted to pay.

So I started thinking a little outside the box (pun intended...hehe)
And here is finally what I came up with.....

Jack's new sand box


I used a plastic under the bed container that has an attached lid for the sand box itself. It is perfect for our back porch! It is low enough to the ground so Jack can reach it and long enough that if he wants to actually sit in it to play he can. I also love that it has a lid so when we are finished playing I can close it up...no kitties using this sand box!



Jack wasn't too sure about it at first...this is his 'but mom it is dirty!' look.



...but in no time he was digging right in...



...and trying out how it taste...



GROSS right!?!?



I gave him a shovel and a few of his toys to play with and he had a blast!



Want to know the absolute best part about this sand box?

It cost me...

$7!

Amazing huh!?!

How did I get it for so cheap? I had mentioned to my mom a few weeks ago my idea for Jack's sand box. Well when she came to visit me this past week she brought along the container for me to have...isn't she just wonderful! So all I had to buy for this sand box was the sand. I bought two bags of play sand from Wal-Mart ($3.67 a bag), dumped them into the container and PRESTO! Instant sand box!

Now if you don't just have an extra under the bed tote laying around the house, or a fabulous mother who will give you one; check out your local thrift store. My mom actually originally got this tote at the thrift store for only $1.99! Pretty awesome!

If you still don't have any luck at the thrift store check out wal-mart or target, they usually have them for around $10-$20. Which is still cheaper than the $40-$60(or possibly more) you would spend on a turtle sand box.

The last thing I bought to make Jack's sand box area complete was the mat you see in the pictures. Our back patio is of course concrete- which can be very painful on a baby's knees. So I found this adorable mat at Target for $2.50! What a deal!

Have fun playing outside this summer! I know we will!!!

From Satin To Lace

I so enjoyed having my sisters here with me this past week! It was so wonderful to get to spend time with them, talk with them, and create with them.

While digging through some old clothes my sister Erica spotted this vest which she immediately fell in love with...



The only problem with it...the back of it was black satin that was terribly torn apart.

she immediately handed it to me and said "fix please"

So I dug through my fabric stash and pulled out a couple different options to replace the back of the vest.

Erica looked them over and finally settled on some white lace...

I began by cutting the back off of the vest off to use as a pattern...

Next I took a pen and traced around the satin onto the lace(leaving about 1/2" for the seam)...

then I cut out the lace...

hemmed the sides so it wouldn't fray...

reattached it to the front...

and...

TADA! Good as new :-)

I think the lace actually ended up being a very nice choice. It adds something a little different and unexpected to the vest!

And of course Erica looks fabulous in it!

Fabric Flower Head Band

My little sister Andrea is definitely a very fashionable girl!

No matter what the occasion she always looks adorable and trendy. She can always pull off the cutest outfits, hats, shoes, and scarves that I wish I could!

So I knew I needed to make her something fun and very "Andrea".

A little while back I found this adorable black dress at the thrift store. It had these beautiful black flowers on the top and such a cute skirt with big pockets. Problem- it was just a bit too short and just a tad too tight...

...but it was only $2 so I decided to buy it any way! I figured I could do something with it! (more coming later as to what I did with the rest of the dress).

Since Andrea is always wearing cute hats and things in her hair I knew a "head band" of sorts was just the way to go.

All I did to make this head band was...

cut two of the flowers off of the black dress I purchased...

Then cut three 1" strip of black t-shirt- all the same length (measure them around your head to make sure you cut them long enough)...

Braid the three strips and sew the two ends together...

Finally sew the two flowers directly on to the braided band....

ALL DONE!

Super easy and super quick!

Now if you don't just have some super cute fabric flowers on hand, check out Ruffles and Stuff's post here...she makes this adorable bouquet tank and gives you a step by step tutorial on how to make the flowers, plus gives you links to sites that show you how to make the other flowers. Any of them would look beautiful on a head band!

Have fun making your own fabulous head bands!

T-Shirt Shrug

While my little sisters were in town this past week I also decided to go through my closet and pass down all the clothes that were either too small for me, or that I had not worn in the past year.

While digging through the pile of clothes I found a bunch of t-shirts. They were all too small on me now, but I was looking for old t-shirts to cut the bottom off of after I saw this tutorial on I Am Momma Hear Me Roar. I love the idea of the modesty of an extra layer, but with out the bulkiness. So I went ahead and took a bunch of t-shirts I had and cut the bottoms off to make my self a few.

My sister Erica had mentioned a little earlier that she would love for me to make her a shrug.
So it worked out perfectly that one of the t-shirts I had cut the bottom off of was a pink t-shirt with a deep scoop neck - perfect shape for a shrug.

I also found a gray tank that had buttons down the front of it (I prefer to use pieces that already have buttons and button holes sewed on. I abhor sewing button holes!).

To make the shrug I first cut a straight line up the middle of the pink t-shirt.

Next, I cut off the bottom of the gray tank, folded it in half, and sewed it to the bottom of the pink t-shirt.

Then I cut off the section of the gray tank that had the buttons and holes on it and sewed it to the edges of the front of the pink shirt.

To finish it off I added a little of the gray tank to the sleeves of the pink shirt for a little extra embellishment.

Thankfully my little sis Erica is a skinny minnie and the shrug fit her perfectly!

T-Shirt Braclets

Since I had made Erica a present (Forever 21 Dress), and Emma a present (the bandanna tunic), I decided that I had better not leave my other two sisters out.

So I started looking around at some different blogs for ideas for the girls.

Now Erica and Miranda have been very into the whole rope/friendship/fabric bracelet thing. So after I saw this idea from Lil Blue Boo for recycled t-shirt bracelets I knew I had found the perfect present for Miranda.

She shows you how to make a braided version on her blog and then gives you a site (V&Co) where you can buy a tutorial on how to make the wrapped ones.

I decided that I liked the look of the wrapped ones the best but would just try to figure it out on my own.

and here is what I came up with...



I used four different colors of t-shirt scraps that I had on hand to make these.

It took a little bit of thinking as to how to make them keep their round shape and not just fall apart. So I played around with them for a while and finally got an idea.

I love bangle bracelets! As a result I have one entire drawer of my jewelery box that is devoted to them. Some are very nice, and others are just cheap thin bangles (and I have a ton of the cheap thin ones).

So I decided to take a few of the thin bangles I had to use as a base.

Next I cut two thin strips of t-shirt fabric...preferably two different colors.

Hold both strip of fabric in one hand, and with the other wrap them around the bangle. When you have wrapped the entire bangle simply tie them off....and viola! You are done!

Don't worry about making it perfectly spaced or anything...I think it looks better if it is not perfect. Do make sure that you wrap them tight though so they don't become loose. You may even consider putting a small dab of hot glue under the knot to make sure they don't come undone.



I wasn't surprised to find that Miranda LOVED them!

My First Mother's Day

Mother's day last year was spent with my little baby still growing in my tummy. He still had a good 2 more months to cook!

Now I have taken care of other people's babies, and even my lil sis when she was first born. But I had no idea what it was like to actually take care of my own baby. What it was like to hold a precious little one that was MINE.
To be a mother.

It is crazy how things can completely change in one year!

how some one so tiny and helpless can completely change you!

and being a mother has changed everything.

My son is my entire world. I love him so much! My hearts deepest desire is that I would be the kind of mother that would help Jack to grow into a godly man. That by my example and teaching that he would come to know Christ's love and forgiveness. That he would be convicted daily by the Holy Spirit. And that when he grows up that he becomes a man of true integrity, one that loves God, his future wife, and children.

Being a mother is truly a high calling. Having a baby is "easy", but being a mother requires so much more love, self sacrifice, and dedication! I am so thankful that God has given me the chance to be a mother! I only pray that I can be the mother I know He desires me to be.

Here are a few of my favorite memories of being a mommy from the past year...

I am so blessed be this little boy's mommy!

Bandanna Tunic

I had a wonderful Mother's day this year! It was so nice to not only spend it with my husband and son, but to get to spend it with my four sisters!

My parent's left on friday to go on a cruise to Jamaica for their 25th wedding anniversary. So friday morning they brought the girls and dropped them off with me for a few days.

I have had a bunch of fun girl craft ideas floating around in my head the past few weeks, so I decided to take this opportunity to make a few things for the girls.

One of the first things I made was this bandanna tunic for my littlest sis!

Doesn't she look cute in it?!

Poor thing had to close her eyes...the sun was making them water like crazy!

And this is her striking a model pose....hehehe! I love it!

All I used to make this shirt was two bandannas and a piece of soft rope.

I simply folded the top point down and sewed a straight line across about two inches down to create a hole for the rope to pass through.

Next I took the rope and cut it in half so I would have two pieces.

Then slid one piece through the "tube" in the top of the bandanna,

made sure it was even on both sides,

gathered it slightly,

then sewed the sides of the rope in place so it wouldn't slide out.

Then I did the same thing to the other bandanna.

next I lined up the two bandannas right sides together and sewed down the sides to attach the two (you might want to have your little one try it on first to make sure it won't be too small or too large).

Since bandanna edges are already finished you don't have to hem anything :-)

The last thing I did before having lil sis try it on was to put a knot in the ends of the rope so it wouldn't fray.

Then I had Emma try it on and tied the rope at the top to finish it off.

There are a few tutorials on other types of shirts and clothing you can make out of bandannas
here, here, here, and here. Check them out and give them a try!

FOREVER 21

April 27th was my little sister's 21st birthday!

Isn't she beautiful?!?!


She put in a special request for me to make her something for a present instead of buying something. She mentioned that she loved my purple shrug and wanted something refashioned like it. So I dug through my closet and ended up with...

...this skirt and this dress...

I bought the dress from a thrift store (originally from Forever 21) for $2 about a month ago...I though it was adorable so I went ahead and bought it even though the top was a bit too small on me.

I bought the skirt from Target...on clearance about a year ago for $3...I loved the skirt but decided to go ahead and part with it since it was going toward a worthy cause.

So I began cutting and sewing and piecing together...

...and here is what I came up with...




I cut the bottom off of the skirt and attached it to the bottom of the dress. Then added some trim to the top of the pockets. I replaced the plain yellow ties at the top with fabric from the skirt. Finally I cut out the bust and two side panels and replaced them with skirt fabric. I made the two side panels a little large so that it widened the top of the dress...too tight top...problem solved!

I was really excited that she was going to be visiting me (along with our 3 other sisters) for mother's day so I would be able to give her the dress in person.
And to my delight it fit her perfectly!!! Yeah!!!

Happy 21st Birthday Erica!!! I love you so much and am so extremely proud of you and excited about what God has in store for your future!