Muga & Grandma Mothers Day Blocks

I know, I'm SO behind. That's what happens when you have a baby... over 6 months ago. :) I saw these adorable blocks on somebody elses blog. (Please tell me if it's yours. I want to give you credit.) I just tried searching for it with no such luck. They were super easy and really cheap! My husband said we didn't need to do anything for his mom for mother's day. I went ahead and made this for my mom and showed him. His response was, "Oh, my mom Would Love something like that." So I whipped out another one that morning for her. And of course, she did Love it!

I took 2 square blocks (some my dad had out in his wood shop.) And 1 larger block, the same width as the squares. Painted them an antique white. Sanded and stained them. Then Mod Podged 2 of my favorite pictures of my baby on the front of the squares. Cut the vinyl lettering with my fabulous Cricut. (Can't live without it.) And stuck that on the front of the larger block. I Mod Podged over the vinyl just to make sure it stayed on there. I finished it off by tying a wire lined ribbon (that was tied around a baby gift) around it and tied it in a bow on top. What do you think?

My mom had a great idea, that I'm still planning on doing for her... maybe for Christmas. :) Get 12 more blocks and put all the grand kids picture on each block. Then you can stack them around the saying block. Just an idea.

Car Seat Canopy Tutorial

This is a car seat canopy I made for my friend. These are super simple to make.

What will you need?

2 1/4 yards of coordinating fabrics

Velcro (Be sure its not the kind of the sticky back)

Matching thread for your decorative finishing.

• Simply pin 2 coordinating fabrics measuring 35x43 (or whatever the width of the fabric is). You can make it as wide or long as you'd like, really.
• Using a kitchenaide mixer (nice measurement huh?), trace a rounded edge on all 4 corners. Cut the fabric and pin together.
• Beginning on the TOP edge, about 3 inches from the center, begin sewing 2 pieces (right sides together) about 1/4 inch seem AWAY from the center point all the way around the fabric. Be sure to stop about 3 inches away from center on the top edge where you started. (You need a hole to turn the fabric right side out.)
• Turn the Fabric right sides out.
• Finish off the opening, either by a technical blind stitch (that people claim is easy) or a simple top stich close to the edge. If you want it just for fun, this technique works great, but if you are professional, you will want to hide the stitch. :)
• Finish the canopy by picking a fun stitch and sew about 1/4-1/2 inch from the edge, depending on your stitch and your style. If you dont want a fun stitch, or dont have the capability, just sew a straight line about 1/4 inch from the edge all the way around.

Now, on to the Straps. Besides the cutting, this is the hardest part. This is usually just made out of the bottom fabric. I like to use both. You want more of the bottom fabric showing than the top to get the contrast.

• With the remaining fabric, cut 2 pieces of the bottom fabric about 2" x 6".
• Cut 2 pieces of the top fabric about 1/2" x 6".
• Take 1 piece of the 2x6 and 1 piece of the 1/2 x6 and sew right sides together to make a tube.
• Before turning right side out, iron the tube flat so it has equal sides of the bottom fabric on top.
• Sew one end of the tube and turn right side out.
• Fold the other end in to give it a finished look. (It might be easier to work with if you iron this fold down.)
• Take the rough side of your velcro and sew it on the top of the strap on the side that needs to be sewn together. (The side that you can see both fabrics)
• Take the fuzzy side of the velcro (The side that only has the bottom fabric) and sew it on the bottom of the same strap on the end that is already finished the same distance away as you did the other piece. This is the top of the strap that will attach to the car seat handle.
• Repeat each step above for the 2nd strap.
• Once both straps are completed, sew them to the canopy 2 inches from the center point. The longer half will be your front side.

Baby Nursery

I had this done before my little man came. I have been a little... pre-occupied for the last several weeks. I started by painting the walls with the blue and brown stripes around the whole room. I used the Martha Stewart brand for the blue and a cheaper Walmart kind for the brown. (In case you were wondering, I wouldnt recommend walmart paint for thin strips like this. Even with the green Frog Tape, it still blead down in to the tape. We had to go around the whole room and touch up the main wall color.) My sister-in-law gave me the "Baby" vinyl lettering on the wall, purchased from Roberts. I didn't quite know what I wanted to do there so this worked perfectly. The bedding is the Jackson by the CoCaLo Collection. I just hung the bedding quilt above the glider the other night when we moved little man in there at night. The last thing I need to do is curtains.

Below is the view when you first walk in the room.

 Below is the view looking at the crib from the wall with the window.

Below is the vinyl frame that is above his crib that I cut on my cricut. I found a frame outline online and used the fabulous SCAL to cut it along with his name in the center (blocked out in the center.)