I meet Seth, Seth meets whale.

This weekend one of my best friends flew to Virginia for the first time since her little baby was born. I was so excited to see him in person and not just on a computer screen. I wanted to make him something special, so I attempted one of my first stuffed animals ever. I decided on a whale (so trendy i know) and picked out some great "feeling" fabrics to make him the perfect playmate and pillow.

And here is what I came up with! I learned some tricks along the way that will help make the next attempt a little less stressful, but all in all I was really happy with the outcome. Torri's family lived in Italy a few years back and they always speak so fondly of their time there, so I named him "Balena" which is whale in Italian.

Here are a few snaps of Seth and his new whale, Balena. (translated: whale, whale) Look at that little guy (!) , he is so precious.

Even though Tor and Seth couldn't stay too long, I am so thankful for my sweet time with them. Seeing Tor as a mom first hand, was a surreal thing because we all used to talk about being moms "one day." I am blessed to have had these two girls in my life for so many years, and thankful for the blessing of watching friends becoming wives and mothers.

Love you (three)!

meg

Tiny terrariums

I love terrariums. I think I especially love them in this season of life because we don’t really have anywhere we could garden around our apartment. Sure, I could plant a tulip or two in a vacant plot somewhere but who knows how long they'd last. So last weekend it was beautiful outside and I was finally inspired to go out and get some supplies to make a terrarium of my own. There are so many plants to choose from, ways to pot them, and things to pot them in (hello decision overload) that it took me awhile to decide on what I wanted. But after a good 30 minutes or so at the store I made my way out with everything I needed. If you are looking into making one of your own, just decide on what plant you want first and then do a little research to find out the environment your plant will need to stay alive and kickin’.

I decided this time to use a variety of succulent plants (a form of cacti) because they retain water and are pretty low maintenance overall. I used succulent & cactus soil to pot them as advised by my good friend Janine, thanks nine. It is apparently “quick drying” so you can avoid any of mold from growing in your pots. Finally, to add a little character I used some dried moss, a few rocks, and a cute dinosaur.

Here are a few snaps of the process:

And of course a close up of the little dino.

It's really pretty easy! Now you can celebrate warmer weather by making your own tiny terrarium.

meg

Spring & Sun

Spring is finally here and I couldn't be happier. All of the trees downtown are blooming, the weather is warmer (yes, I consider 70's warm), and our days are finally longer! I know they aren't actually longer, but we get more sunlight after work and I am thrilled. There was a time this past fall when I would get off work at 7 and walk to my car in complete darkness. I missed the whole day, or at least it felt that way. So I think this spring I have a new appreciation for my week-day sunlight hours and I am going to enjoy every minute of them.

meg

Guest Blogger DIY: Kristi Taylor

[ Kristi is one of my oldest and best friends. We spent many weekends in high school coming up with the newest crafts and doing anything and everything we could with modge podge. She is fun and super crafty, so I asked her to share one of her latest projects here. You can also keep up with her on her cute little blog, here. Enjoy! ]

So, in my blogging addiction I noticed that these yarn letters are all the rage at weddings and in nurseries. I've made a handful as gifts and wanted to post the world's easiest DIY project! Ere goes one of the easiest crafts you'll do this year!

Supplies needed:

1. Chipboard letters. (I get mine from Hobby Lobby for about $2 a piece.)
2. Yarn. (I use Vanna brand, mostly, but I also really enjoy Caron.)
3. Some Mod Podge.

1. Start with your letter. I made this one for my godson, Seth. I think it will go great in his room!

2. Grab the end of your yarn and and start wrapping! I keep the end loose and then wrap the yarn around it in order to keep it in place. It's really quite easy.

3. For the ends of the S, it's best to wrap horizontally, and then go back and wrap vertically. You want to make sure that your yarn, for the most part, is all going in the same direction over the entire letter.

4. Keep doing this until the entire letter is covered! Some parts, like the end curves of the 'S' will be thicker- to fix that all you need to do is keep looping/wrapping the yarn around the thinner parts of the letter. Do this until the letter is even thickness (if that matters to you). Then, snip the end and grab your mod podge. Hold the yarn in place and glob the glue to the loose end and to the yarn that is already secured. You can also trim it longer and knot it, if you like. If you choose the Mod Podge method, this is what you will end up with.

5. Wait for it to dry, flip it over and admire your finished product. It should look like this.

HOORAY! It's really that easy. It takes about 20 minutes, depending on your letter. A's, B's, D's and other letters with an opening in the middle are a bit more difficult- but are still very simple. You could spell your whole name, write a word, some letters, or, like I plan on doing for my godson, the whole alphabet!

KT

Happy 24!

Birthdays are so fun. I love the intentional time you get to spend with those around you. This year mine was mid-week so the girls were sweet and planned a day the weekend before doing things I love like painting pottery(!) together. My actual birthday was pretty busy which happens to those of us in the 8-5 club, but some friends came over late that night and we had a little shin-dig to celebrate the big 2-4. My friend Lu (not to be confused with my pup Lou, although she is just as great) took this video and it makes me laugh because Kel had no idea she bought me trick candles. Or maybe she did, I’ll never know.

My favorite thing about birthdays in my community here though is the tradition we started almost 3 years ago that on your birthday everyone takes time to tell you something about you they are thankful for. So often those things are never said out loud and it is just a great opportunity to encourage one another. Sometimes they are pretty light hearted and sometimes, they make you tear up. But not only was I thankful to receive that this week but I am always blessed to share on someone else’s birthday as well. I would encourage you to add this tradition to your own families or communities this year too! It really is great.

This party in a box arrived on my birthday, thanks mom.

Here’s to making year 24 full of joyful things, passionate pursuits and many, many adventures.

meg

Lou Haiku

My little pup Lou

makes friends downtown all day long

she is cute, but poops.

meg

Currently reading: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

I am in a current book void. I love the feeling you have when you are so connected to a story that you find yourself somehow involved in what’s going on. The pages come alive and often, we (okay, I) lose my ability to reason that the story isn’t actually my reality. Well right now, I am at a loss because I have finished all the books I was so invested in. So lately I have been writing titles down that I hear people talking about and decided to start a few of them and see how it goes. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close was actually one that my little sister said she was about to start reading. So of course anything cool enough for her is cool enough for me, right? So a couple clicks later (thanks, Kindle) I had the book in hand and started the story. I really enjoy the perspective that the author writes from as you read the thoughts of a little boy who lost his Father in 9-11. He is on a journey to find some kind of closure while in an attempt to be strong for the people around him. I am only a few chapters in but so far I have really enjoyed it. I think I’ll need to read some kind of series next though, 300 pages just isn’t enough.

What books have you been reading lately, or would you recommend?

meg