Custodians of Beauty

Noticing that there was a lack of vegetable variety in our play food reserve, I thought it would be a good time to create a few more food items. Potatoes, chicken, and apple slices. Sounds like a good meal. The spuds were made from an old pair of stockings. There was also a lack of meat in our supply, ergo the felted chicken legs. They were super easy to make using the template on the blog, Art Threads.   From this day on, we can serve bacon AND chicken to Oma and Opa when they visit.  My little spud holding a big spud Those dimples - looks like a genuine russet potato!  Chicken legs are not a typical meal for us, so I had to explain to the girls what these were and how to pretend-eat them. Apple slices to accompany the other felted fruits And lastly, the felt apple slices. The girls routinely have apple slices for lunch (sometimes with peanut butter spread on top). It's a favorite in this household. I pred...

The morning of the feast of St. Valentine, the girls and I ate pink heart-shaped pancakes topped with raspberry jam for breakfast. They gobbled them up, I barely had a chance to eat a few myself! For lunch, continuing the heart theme, PB sandwiches and carrots (making good use out of that cookie cutter). Unfortunately, the munchkins didn't have an appetite and only ate half of what was on their plates. Stinkers. Serves me right for making lunch FUN for a change, golly.  I did, however, enjoy creating said themed foods. Bud was snoozin' in the front carrier as I made the lunches. He's so cute when he sleeps.  When he wakes from his nap, I just can't keep myself from kissing those warm and rosy baby cheeks. I hid a few love notes for my husband to discover throughout the day. The Downton Abby printable  valentines from Do Small Things With Love  blog were perfect! We loved that series. I hid one in his drawer, one in his work backpack and one the car. Ap...

To accompany my felted state ornaments , I also created these vintage fabric trivets for Christmas gifts. Making use of the doily template from Stash Happy Felt , I cut out the felt pieces and choose coordinating floral fabrics. I'm devoted to my floral prints, they're just lovely. A simple running stitch outlines the edges of the petals while securing the fabric to the intricate lace top design. I kept the blue one for myself, but the others were gifted to exceptional mothers in my life. They also work great as coasters, too! The trivets bear a resemblance to stained glass windows.

These dull, gray and cold days of winter seem long and unending. Fortunately, our family was able to escape the dreariness and celebrate a birthday this month. For our daughter's second birthday we hosted a moose party themed after the cherished book,  If You Give a Moose a Muffin , by Laura Numeroff. My siblings and I grew up reading this funny story and listening to the book on tape. The silly tale is about a hungry moose who follows the smell of fresh muffins. He enters the house and asks the boy for a muffin, but this is just the beginning of many comical requests. The amusing complications that ensue will entertain youngsters (and adults).  Since I had such a hoot planning last year's caterpillar party , I was eager to start collecting/creating the decor for the moose party. The book was acquired (for free!) when I posted an "ISO" in the local Facebook sale page.  I'm hoping to do another post featuring this book with photos of the illustrations....

Teatime is a must for our household-- play tea, that is. The girls have been using the retro plastic tea set I found for them at a garage sale. They are far from sheepish when it comes to making sound effects for pouring and slurping their tea. It brings this mama, much joy to see them play contently together. You know the morning is going well when you can sit down, sip your coffee (while it's still warm) and watch your little ones play together in peace. I loved the idea of felted tea bags, and had it pinned for quite some time. This morning, I whipped out my sewing machine and cranked a few out, while the girls played at my feet jumping on pillows and tumbling onto piles of blankets (yes, I sew amidst this craziness. Sometimes it is the ONLY time I have to make fun stuff.)    First, I sewed around the outside of the teabag and left the top open to fill with rice. My three year old was baffled as to why I would be putting rice in a tea bag. "Mama, why you put ...

For my crafty gift this year, I made five state ornaments: Arkansas, Minnesota, Michigan, Georgia and Wisconsin. It was fun to customize the individual ornaments by placing a heart over the area where each person is currently living. The ornaments were made with a combination of hand sewing and machine sewing. After cutting out the states, I used the sewing machine to sew right near the edge of the shape. The small hearts were also sewn on by machine. Added some stuffin' and finished them off with a blanket stitch edge which gave them a homey look. I was pleased to find a use for my red and white sting (gotta love the dollar section at Target.) Minneapolis, MN and Saginaw, MI Madison, WI and Savannah, GA My MIL loved her Michigan ornament. She commented that it would be great to have the year sewn onto the backside. Doh! I always forget to do that.  I was so busy getting these finished and wrapped up, that I forgot to make a extra WI or...

On the morning of the Feast of St. Lucy ,  virgin and martyr, in honor of my namesake, the girls and I enjoyed a delicious cherry cheese coffee cake.  This simple recipe was found on  CatholicCuisine . It calls for things that were already in my fridge/pantry. Love that. Crescent rolls, pie filling, cream cheese, an egg, powdered sugar and a little vanilla. I wimped out on making the traditional Luciakatter , a sweet saffron-flavored twisted bread. But this coffee cake recipe was quick and easy. Plus there's always next year! While we waited for the pastry to cool, I read a short story about the life of St. Lucy and then we said a prayer asking for her intercession for our family.  Note: In the future, I hope to up my game a bit and enhance the pastry with dough braids or twists to add some artsy flair. It's such a pretty breakfast treat to eat.  Cherry Cheese Coffee Cake Cake and Filling Ingredients: 1 8 oz. package of refrigerat...