mer mag

[random...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 19:58:00 +0000

I've had a magazine clipping of an advent calendar in my Christmas "genious files" that I have adored for some time. This year I decided that it was time to make one of my own. I also wanted to do something a little different to count down the days. Instead of just goodies (which will definitely be in there on some days) I wanted to add a few small token gifts.

Some of these would be physical gifts, but most would be gifts of self. This year I really wanted us to try to bring the Christmas spirit into our home by giving of ourselves and our time. Each day a member of our family will get something. Most will be simple things, such a kiss under the mistle toe or cuddle on the couch with hot chocolate and How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Others will be more involved such as foot rubs and a trip to the Marina del Ray Holiday Boat Parade.

I made little cards that fit into each pocket, waiting to deliver an act designed to bring a smile to the face and a bit of holiday cheer.

If you too are interested in doing something similar I've made these cards available for you to download. Just click here and get started. (You can of course also use these for gift tags, address labels, etc).

I'll let you know how this little idea turns out. Hopefully our month will be bursting with love, magic, excitement and adventure.

[Cyber Monday Sale! Now let's...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 07:10:00 +0000

I've been a busy bee bringing to life evie, camilla, beth, ella, jane, elanor, milla, izzy, anna, and elsa. These thoroughly modern gals are just the right size to slip into a little one's stocking and more importantly, right into their heart. They will be available to you this week in my little shop.

Each mod rag doll has her name sewn onto the back and fabrics range from vintage/vintage inspired to personally hand drawn, such as on elanor and milla, posing below.

And as for more shop news, I've recently added a new print, Love is Spoken Here, in a variety of colors into the shop. I created this little poster back in September of 2008. It's been such a joy to have in my home so I thought I'd share it all with you.

And for the final Cyber Monday fun, I'm having a little shop sale

Buy any print (or a custom portrait, etc.) and receive a print of your choice for free. And get, this...this sale is not just for Cyber Monday, but will be going on all week!! So get your holiday orders in now. Just enter promo code: CYBERSALE and I'll be sure to reimburse you for your free print. Happy holiday shopping!

[gobble, gobble, strut, strut...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 07:23:00 +0000

Meet Abe (as Little A has dubbed him). Perhaps he's not that proud - he is a little awkward around the feathers after all. But we're happy about it as it saved him from the chopping block and has allowed him to come and live with us. I do believe Abe will be the only stuffed turkey at our Thanksgiving table who will not be eaten. Phew.

OK, so this is my first time creating a softie in three dimensional form (as in not just two pieces of fabric sewn back to back). I wasn't at all sure of what I was doing but I stole a few tricks from the hat I made for A's sailor costume and then just tried to "wing" it from there.

Speaking of wings, I had a hard time getting Abe's feathers to stand up straight so I ended up sewing them closer to his body. As I mentioned earlier, it's a bit awkward, but we're fine with it. I was also able to use some of that hand-drawn fabric I created a while back which is very fun to see in action.

One stuffed turkey down, one to go. Well on my way to making way for Christmas.

[jumping ship for a...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 04:49:00 +0000

This year we did things a little different for Halloween. Little Captain A and baby O-ctopus and the rest of the crew sailed away from the warm shores and green palms of California for the drizzily chills and bright fall leaves of Tennessee, and we had the time of our lives.

Jon had a graduate acting reunion/presentation of sorts that was being held on Halloween day. We were thrilled as this gave us a chance to see dear friends, frolic through fallen leaves, and trick-or-treat on a chilly autumn night. Perfect.

After some serious late nights I managed to get the costumes finished before the trip (only some last minute fish stuffing for Captain A's trick-or-treat bag). Phew. It was difficult pulling together baby O's costume but I'm pleased with how it turned (I used a pattern for the hood but made up the rest). He was so stinkin' cute. He calmed down about the tentacles and hood once he realized he had a built in chew toy. Awesome.

I couldn't get Cap'n A to sport the beard but Jon ended up wearing it so it worked out great. Little A had a mustache as an alternative that he wore for tricks or treats but not for the photo shoot. It was to die for.

I knew with little A I had to make a costume that was more or less like wearing every day clothes. He has never been into wearing elaborate costumes with too many things going on, and if it had a zipper or Velcro, you can forget about it. That thing would be off in seconds. He eventually warmed up to his ensemble and was very proud to be a "Sailor Man!".

This year was especially magic for all of us as Little A really got it. When we were getting ready to leave for trick-0r-treating he kept running for the door in a panic holding his hat and mustache crying for me to put it on so that he could go. And once we were out (in the rain) going from house to house he went crazy trying to keep up with his older friends. He didn't understand that he couldn't eat a piece of candy after each house and still be able to keep speed. It was priceless chaos. Ahh...I love Halloween. And now, I love that it's over. I'm ready for Christmas baby. I'm ready Christmas.

[Go batty...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 04:02:00 +0000

It's no secret that we all love security envelope patterns, right? And like many of you, I collect them, waiting for that perfect moment for when I just might come up with something to do with them. It actually makes receiving those bills not all that bad - almost exciting and somewhat suspenseful waiting to see what special pattern is hidden within.

It just so happens that most of our "important documents" come wrapped in black security splendor. Initially this made me a little disappointed, as I favor the classic blue look. However, it seems that black has come in quite handy for the occasions at hand, and as a result, I have now grown rather fond of it.

Because security envelope patterns are "hindered" a bit by their intended layout, I find that bite sized projects, such as cupcake or sandwich toppers, work best for me. So in honor of the fabulously spooky holiday at hand, I had to make little bats to top off some scrumptious pumpkin shaped sandwiches.

And let me tell you, nothing dresses up an ordinary ham and cheese sandwich better than a cookie cutter and a toothpick topper.

Little A went batty for these and couldn't wait for me to finish the photo shoot before gobbling up a bite or two.

Trust me, these babies with fly off the plate, before you can say BOO!

[Baby O]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 20:52:00 +0000

We took it easy this year for baby O's first birthday. Thanks to last year's Target post-Halloween sales we were good to go with decor/invite/the works. The only thing I made was the Pumpkin spice cake with my favorite Williams Sonoma pumpkin cake mold that I break out every year. Pretty low key. Pretty great.

After gobbling his first cake bites and opening a few gifts from grandma, Little A and friends, Baby O was ready for a nice long nap. As were the rest of us.

Happy Birthday my little baby! (now please feel free to stop growing...seriously...you can slow it down any time you like).

[inspiration overload and feeling rawther...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 06:51:00 +0000

Ahh...fall. The dreamiest of seasons, set apart to usher in the delight of holidays magically stacked upon one another in just a way to get us through the drizzly and dreary months of winter. OK, so I live in California, but it has been unusually cold this past week and equally drippy (skipee!) and I have strived to enjoy every minute of the (sadly brief) sweater lovin', boot sportin' weather. Unfortunately, along with draftiness, fall brings with her a most bothersome flu bug. And yes, the little beast found me, and got me good.

So this past week was spent sipping hot herbal teas, lounging with lozenges and tissues while deliriously dreaming about a courageous orphaned daughter of a knight...and somehow trying to keep track of my little knights throughout it all (and relying heavily on our good fried DJ Lance for a little down time).

Of course this little spell couldn't have come at a "better" time. I mean, I only have two costumes to sew before the end of the week, baby O's first birthday to plan and prep for (please say my oven will work by then), and kajillion other Halloweeny creations boiling over in my brain. In fact, this time of year, so beloved by all all in our house, can often get a little congested (in more ways than one). I love the holidays (any excuse to celebrate and throw a party, right?) so much so that I often get a bit of inspiration overload. I have SO many ideas that I start to get stressed and saddened (of my own accord) when I realize that time is slipping by and there is no plausible way I'm going to be able to do it all. So one by one I have to eliminate and prioritize and of course get back to the spirit of it all (but left a little heartbroken for all that I was not able to do). Does this ever happen to you? What's your secret remedy? Please do share! I'd love to curl up with it and let it steam out all my early holiday congestion.

[costume prep and the...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 03:35:00 +0000

Having a three year old for Halloween this year is an entirely new adventure for me. Little A is actually starting to get it and is very excited about tricks and treats, The Great Pumpkin and any and all Halloween themed story books we can find (he's like his mama in this way). However, I was counting on this being a year I could still, ahem, "greatly influence" my son as far as what sort of costume he will be wearing alongside his brother (yeah, I'm one of those moms). Well, he's really been into Kung Fu tigers (ala Tai Lung from Kung Fu Panda) so I toyed around with the idea of having him being a tiger/snow leopard and baby O being a panda but it just wasn't inspiring for me. So I waited. Waited for that "Ah Ha!" moment when I knew I had the perfect costume idea for the littles. Well it came...and I'm SO into it now (which I'll keep under wraps for now, and no, it's not Santa Claus). Little A still needed some convincing. So I started off with the beard to see how that would go.

Well, for 1, 2, 3 seconds we had a bearded man. I was prepare for this and therefore wasn't too discouraged. So we are doing all we can do to talk up this costume idea and on some days he's really jazzed, and on other days he wants to be what is little brother is going to be (and I'll admit, baby O's costume is kind of cooler). So we'll see how it goes. I might just have to have a back up plan...and hey, the more costumes on Halloween the better right?

[more fun with scissors...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 08:42:00 +0000

So I mentioned that I was hooked on this paper cutting thing right? Well after our Halloween snowstorm of paper pumpkin snowflakes. the scissors just kept on wanting to cut. Anything they could get their shears on...so many ideas...no paper was safe.

No Halloween is complete without a little black cat mask right? So one had to be made.

And we couldn't just stop there. So a little fox was born for little A. He loved it...and promptly ripped it. But fun was had so Mr. Fox's short life was not in vain.

In fact I like him so much that I might just have to make him again...and only let him run free under more constant supervision.

Hmm...so I wonder what is next for the old scissors?...I have a feeling we aren't done with them yet over here...

[Jon's super stellar...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 09:27:00 +0000

The other afternoon while unpacking I came across our Halloween decorations and couldn't resist getting into the spooky spirit right away. So I called little A and Jon over to start the festive adorning. While setting up trick-or-treaters and pumpkin treat bowls with little A I see Jon across the room with some paper and scissors, cutting out what looks to be a snowflake. No sooner does he see my quizzical look when, voila, he unfolds this super stellar pumpkin. Yeah, I was wowed. And hooked. So he showed me his methods and I went to town.

The best part, it's easy. And brilliant. And fun. (And something kids can join in on!)

Step 1: Grab any old sheet of paper, rectangle, square...mix it up
Step 2: Fold it in half
Step 3: and then fold it in half again
Step 4: Now make sure the fold is on your left hand side
Step 5: Cut scallops on right hand side ending with the stem at the top
Step 6: Open up the fold once and then cut off the bottom stem
Step 7: Cut out a mouth
Step 8: Then a nose
Step 9: Use an x-acto to cut out the eyes
Step 10: Now unfold and enjoy your new creation!

Once you start, the possibilities are endless. And you might go a little crazy...

cutting out new creations for the rest of the night...

Happy cutting!

[sniffles, sleepless nights and...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 08:23:00 +0000

Thank you all for you kind wishes for our little move across town. We are slowly unpacking everything and trying to settle in a bit. It's been a crazy week of preschool starting for little A, sniffles that are keeping baby O up (for far too many hours of the night) and a whole lot of sorting and arranging (and then rearranging) going on around here.

I'm happy to have the dining area slowly come together. This room was what sold me on the apartment (along with the cute little kitchen). It's been my respite for when all the boxes, sorting and finding a place for that one random thing that doesn't seem to belong anymore, starts to get to me. And I've enjoyed using the left over lemony tea party candy as bribery for little A's help (or an incentive to stop pestering his brother, to be more to the point.)

Hopefully I'll be getting my act together here soon so that I can start fun holiday projects and keep the posts rolling. Right now I better catch some Z's before baby O wakes for the first round of midnight tossing and turning.

[packing? or a....]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 22:07:00 +0000

So, yeah...we are moving....tomorrow. And you would think packing would have been my main priority this past weekend. Well, my good sport of a husband no doubt wishes it were. But when you are moving into an apartment, and only have a backyard for one more weekend, sometimes an end-of-the-summer tea party just has to take precedence over packing. And in my opinion...it was entirely worth it.

We enjoyed a wonderful time of sipping delicious herbal teas in dainty cups and consuming delectable edibles such as Swedish meatballs, cucumber sandwiches on rye bread, deviled eggs, rosemary lemon sandwich cookies (these are to die for, truly), devils food trifle, magnolia cupcakes and lots of lemony candies.

It was my first time hosting a tea party of my own and I do believe I'm quite addicted. In fact I think I'm rather hooked on parties in general. They seem to encompass all things I love: design, decor, fashion, art, craft, food, and great company. And speaking of great company, I had a wonderful time with all the fabulously talented ladies that joined me for tea. Thanks so much for humoring me! It was great fancy fun.

If your interested in anything in the above pics, I'll try to break it down for you here:

Table cloths: Ikea fabric
Fabric banners: I made these from vintage fabrics (an easy and quick sew)
Tea pots and cups: from various antique/vintage vendors on ebay and etsy
Yellow and black silhouette china: from a local antique store
Yellow and white striped dress: I made this from umbrella awning fabric (it was the only kind I could find!) using this Butterick See & Sew B5339 pattern

[easy peezy]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 14:51:00 +0000

If you haven't noticed, I like making things. Simple things. Easy things. I admire those that can spend hours on a just the right stitch, or those that do things over and over again just to get it right. I'm trying to work up to that...but let's be honest, I'm so not there. That is why I love little bit projects like these super easy pennant tea party invites. I made these by simply cutting decorative tape into triangles and a then sewing a stitch across the top.

Add a little hand written note, and voila! you are done.

Now that is my kind of afternoon project.

Done, and done.

[It's a jolly holiday...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 18:40:00 +0000

Little girls have dresses. Little boys have vintage (or at least that's how it plays out in my mind). I love having little boys but I can't deny wishing for dresses and dollies every now and then. Well, after dressing up my little dandies in the most adorable vintage attire, found at heart and sew, my throat swelled up and I got all mushy and mommy like. Jon thought the boys were adorable too and proceeded to tell Little A how handsome he was. Little A quickly retorted "NO! I"m not handsome! I'm like Mary Poppins!" The little guy had a point. He did indeed look just like Bert on Mary Poppins.

So of course we needed to have a little photo shoot and Spidey came along for the fun.

It's fitting that Little A brought Mary Poppins up because I've been crazy about the wardrobe and nursery styling of Jane and Michael Banks for as long as I can remember. I have a secret dream of living in a brown stone in London similar to that of the Banks or the Darlings (and one day flying off with an umbrella to Neverland). (I also want to live in a modern industrial renovated barn...so I'm a bit bipolar when it comes to dreaming).

I did forget that vintage runs a lot smaller than sizes today so I think the boys will grow out of these very quickly...but I'm enjoying them while they fit (barely).

[Come take a look at a few of my...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 18:22:00 +0000

Catch me over at decor8 today and see a few of my favorite nook/spots/things in my home.

Thanks Holly for inviting me to be a part of such a wonderful and inspiring series!

[bringing up boys, and...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 05:42:00 +0000

So here I am, having a lovely Saturday afternoon painting some dainty little tea party plates.

Jon gets home. Little A: "Dad! Mom made you a plate!". No sooner do I turn around when I see this mischievousness going on.

I see pennants. Apparently my boys see something entirely different. Something along the lines of scary, sharp teeth...

Guess I'll have to do a customized set just for my little monsters.

*addendum: Jon drew the face and put it together initially. When I went to photograph the before and after Little A refused to let me take the eyes and nose off and kept putting them back on...so I caught him in the act. And yes, that is a chocolate smear on his arm.

**If you are wanting to make your own custom plates, I used black Ceramcoat paint (instructions on bottle). The plates I found at a local thrift store (they only had two).

[a kind of, sort of, tutorial of sorts...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 06:06:00 +0000

So I thought it might be nice to get you all that travel desk tutorial I promised you before the summer was over. Maybe you can squeeze in some sewing time right before your last road trip of the summer. This might seem pretty extensive but I promise that it's easier than it looks! My sewing skills/vocabulary/etc. are still novice so I apologize if some of the steps don't make sense. Hopefully the pictures will help.

1. Start with a board (any size you like). I used masonite but if you are intending to use this in the car it might be a better idea to go with a thick cardboard of sorts, or something softer than masonite, for safety reasons.
2. Measure the fabric so that when folded there is just enough room on the top and bottom of the board for seam allowance. Leave as much room on the sides as you like for folding over pockets.
3. Make loops for pocket closures (you can use bias tape or ribbon if you like) and sew them on the inside of the folded fabric.
4. You'll laugh but I can't remember what 4 is for. I say just ignore it.
5. Sew around fabric leaving opening for turning.
6. Turn fabric inside out.
7. Baste or mark area where board will be. Sew handle on to whichever side you want the top to be (you can also do this earlier like the loops in step three). I just realized that my drawing has the handles in different spots but I'm too lazy to fix it. Just play around and put it where you want it.
8&9. Sew on pockets (turning and sewing edges under ahead of time). I used large coat size zippers and sewed them straight onto the pocket fabric. You can also add a pencil pocket to the side.
10. Sew on pocket for board leaving opening for board to slide in and out.

11. Hand embroider initial to lower right corner (or wherever you like).
12. Fold up pockets and sew shut.
13. Sew buttons on for loops to close.
14. Sew pillow pocket. You can make this as deep or as shallow as you like. Sew sides at an angle.
15. Turn inside out.

16. Sew pillow pocket onto desk leaving opening for stuffing. Stuff pillow. Sew closed.
17. Insert board. You are done now ready to use your new desk!

*I also keep coloring and activity books under the board for storage. You can also add a metal sheet on top of the board for magnetic activities. Another variation would be to sew plastic on top to make it easy to wipe clean if used for eating. This is something I might do later.

I hope this was helpful. If you have any specific questions along the way I'll do my best to help you out. Happy sewing and last minute traveling!

**Oh and a big thanks to Ohdeedoh and Cafe Mom (and any other kind bloggers) for posting about Little A's desk!

[my new little obsession]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 06:31:00 +0000

Move over permanent marker, I now have a new, legit fabric doodle buddy. In the past I've been know to draw on sheets with permanent marker (for little A's first birthday I drew characters on sheets for the children to color in with chalk. It worked really well. When I washed the sheets the chalk came off but the marker stayed, ready for another afternoon of playful coloring). As great as this was, it was time to step it up. That's when I found these babies. Score. My head is spinning with options, ideas, and patterns.

I'm not sure what I'll do with this little pattern I'm creating (a table cloth? if I have the stamina...) but what I do know is that I'll have plenty of directed doodle time while on hold. Kenny G, bring it on, because I'm pulling up a chair and staying for a while.

(Oh and if you are wondering about the random yellow N, well little A's wooden alphabet was encroaching on my photo shoot so, being the visually obsessed mother that I am, I insisted that he choose letters that color coordinated. Makes perfect sense, right?)

[sew your own vintage swim suit]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 20:27:00 +0000

I'm not sure my sewing skills are up for the challenge of this Burda Style vintage swim pattern but I might give it a go anyhow. Is this not the cutest suit ever?

[Vintage Americana part II]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 06:10:00 +0000

My talented little sister managed to squeeze in some digital processing between morning sickness, birthdays and the usual busy mom schedule so that I could show you all the rest of these photos she took of our little family. Thanks LJ!

***for those of you who asked-I used the Project Runway Simplicity pattern 2725 for my dress and added the ruffle myself (very easy to do btw).

[blueberry muffins and...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 08:08:00 +0000

On Monday we celebrated Jon's birthday. We started the day off with blueberry spice muffins, bacon and eggs and then proceeded on to gifts. Little A was very excited about this. I asked him what he wanted to give daddy and he said, "A big box! and then we can say Happy Birthday!"

So a big red box it was - complete with finger print cards from the littles (littla A turned his into a monster).

I made Jon a custom Shakespeare poster cataloging the Shakespeare roles Jon has played as well as a few famous Shakespeare quotes. After a wonderful morning we drove up the coast and found ourselves in Santa Barbara. What a marvelous day it was. Thanks Jon for having a birthday and for sharing it with us!

*Oh and thanks for all the hair advice. You guys are awesome!

[What my hair is supposed to look like...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 05:50:00 +0000

Isn't the hair on this Keller NY model just heavenly? But believe you me...to get that messy, soft and tousled look, with a good bang sweep, is a whole lot harder than just waking up. After having the two littles my hair has become much more curly...or I should say "wavy" (used to be pretty much straight pre-kiddos). I like the idea of tousled hair but it is so hard to get it to look right. It either goes frizzy & poofy (too little product) or ramen noodle crunchy (too much product). The perfect balance is somewhere in between with the appropriate, magical product and styling combo. Gals with curls...give me some love. What products/styling tips do you suggest? And something a working mama could actually perform on a daily basis would be choice.

[school portraits and...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 06:16:00 +0000

Things are slowing down a bit over here as we enjoy our lazy days of summer.

Just the other day little A and I had fun making and eating homemade Cookies 'n' Cream in an effort to cool off a bit.

As you can see everything melted all over the upper lip...right where it belongs. We have also been trying to incorporate some water color painting, swimming and Montessori play time in between mom's busy illustration schedule.

And yet...as we enjoy our sunny days we find ourselves preparing for the upcoming school year...pictures need to be taken for cubbies and birthdays in anticipation for the first preschool year little A has ever had (sigh)...my oh my how they grow. So we are slowing things down...trying to savor as much as we can.

I do however have a few fun things in store such as a travel desk instructional/pattern of sorts, more forth of July photos, etc. So keep on dropping in. I'll be sure to say hi as much as I can!

xo

Mer

[sharing with you a little slice of our...]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 18:03:00 +0000

I thought I'd better share with you a few snapshots of our splendid Fourth of July celebration before the month was actually over. I'm still waiting on a few photos that my little sis took of us that I will of course post later.

I was so happy with how all the boys ensembles turned out. I managed to throw something on the sewing machine for myself the day before festivities began. It never got a zipper so I had to layer a bit but it all worked out...more or less.

and of course we can't forget the much talked about m&m display. It was all worth it, right?

We had a delicious time munching on ears of barbecued corn, dipping bread in various olive oil concoctions, sampling delectable slices of razzleberry, lemon meringue, strawberry and apple pie, and of course scooping up chocolatey crunchy goodness that most definitely melted in our hands as well as our mouths. The littles played rounds of miniature golf (the course of which was handmade by the sweat of Grandfather and father's brows), swam in pools, competed in chalkboard tic-tac-toe tournaments and most of all enjoyed eachother's company. Later there were of fire works, rocket launches, serenades and pj parties.

It was a grand ole time and the perfect way to kick off the summer.

[home again, home again]

merrilee.liddiard@gmail.com (mer) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 05:52:00 +0000

Hello friends. I'm finally back from my lovely trip. Finally back in my own glorious bed and slowly getting back into my dependable routine. When I get my act completely together and my head on straight I'll have pictures to share of the festivities, so stay tuned.

In the mean time I wanted to share with you my latest custom sewing project that I made for the car ride back home.

The day before we left to come back home I had the idea of sewing my own version of travel desk for little A. On the way out he was kept occupied with activity books, mazes and drawing pads with nothing but his little legs to rest them on. Everything I found in stores was lacking in either design or functionality so when my mother just happened to have the perfect size of masonite available, the wheels in my head started turning.

So off to JoAnn's I went (no time for fancy online fabric purchases...so I made do with what I could find locally). I have to give a nod to my sisters who were of great help in figuring out how to make this little creation come to life. Thank you D-lyn for all your sewing help and insight! It's thanks to you that I can now take the masonite board out and wash the entire thing! Something I wouldn't have figured out (or even thought of) if I had done it all on my own.

And of course Little A was happy with his desk and used it quite a bit for not only paper work but matching, fishing and magnet games. I'm so happy with it and even more pleased with how helpful it was for my little guy...something you can't put a price on for an 18 hr drive across the US.