Recycle Reuse Valentine Edition

Here is another purpose for your old sponges. Cut out shapes and make an art project. We are making a Valentine card.

Mardi Gras Tutu

I have seen these tulle tutus all over the internet and I have wanted to make one for a while now. Since Mardi Gras is coming up I thought it only appropriate for Viola to be dressed in Carnival colors. This project was so easy and I was able to finish it in no time.

Get your tulle & elastic.

Cut tulle in strips and fold in half so it is rounded at one end.

Thread the end through the loop.

Pull and repeat.

Add adorable little girl.

Decco Mesh Mardi Gras Wreath

A friend of mine had some extra decco mesh and I was on the hunt join the city in the celebration of Carnival.I have never worked with this material so I wasn't sure if I was going to like it, but it turned out to be pretty easy.

All you need is decco mesh, a wreath frame, and floral wire.

I tied my mesh on (how many times does one get to say that in a lifetime)

I braided my mesh first to get an idea of how much I needed.

I went back and attached each piece with the floral wire so I could give it some volume.

Not too bad for my first attempt.

Mardi Gras Crafts- Coming Your Way!

Christmas Days

Will was off for 5 days over Christmas so we made the most of our time off with family. We headed to Troy to partake in Williams Family Christmas which for the last 2 years has been themed and packed with fun. Will's family decided when all the kids started asking for money that they would need to earn their Christmas. Every year they plan an amazing theme along with teams and challenges. This year it was Hunger Games. We were assigned teams and districts and completed tasks such as: trivia, bonfire lighting (w/o matches) , find the resources (green and red flags), pass the food (a relay), an obstacle course, and archery. It was pretty amazing. 

Hunger Games Christmas

I didn't help my team out in the archery category, but I felt
 pretty bad ass wearing a baby.   

Lit with a 9 volt battery and steel wool.

District 10-Livestock

District 3-Electronics

District 7-Lumber and District 5-Electricity (Vivi's favorite)

Effie and Caesar

An innocent bystander.

District 9-Wheat

We headed to Montgomery the following Monday to see my family. Several of my family members hadn't met Bern and it has been a while since they had seen Viola. It was so fun to open presents and see all the kids play. We packed up on Christmas Day and headed back home so Will could be at work the next day. It was fast, but oh so much fun.

The cousins

Aunt Kim and Uncle Chad

Snuggle Time

Family Photo

Presents!!!

Play Time

Bern's 1st Christmas Ornament

It is crazy to think that Viola was only 9 months old when we made her 1st Christmas Ornament. She is so big now. It took a few tries since Bern's hand is so small and he keeps his fists balled up. His hand print turned out so cute...like when you see a tiny pair of baby shoes. I love seeing it hanging on the tree. 

1 cup of flour, 1/2 cup of salt, and 1/2 cup of water

Mix, Knead, and Roll flat

Wrestle baby hands until it looks like a handprint

Put in the oven on 300 degrees for 40 minutes or until firm and hang.

Happy Epiphany!!

We celebrated Epiphany yesterday since Will was off work. We went for simple and created our king cake from the Pillsbury Cinnabon  cinnamon rolls. The last three years we have celebrated Epiphany we have done it with the Hannons. Since we no longer live in the same town we will have to celebrate when we see them next. We haven't found the baby yet since we were unable to finish the cake ourselves, but trust me we got pretty close.

We also started a new tradiition this year. Since Epiphany is the celebration of when the Wise Men found baby Jesus we finally joined them back with our nativity scene (they had been travelling around all Christmas season..kinda..they got stuck a few days). The Wise Men also bring a gift for the family, but I ran out of time to pick something up. In the future I think we will do a Christmas movie or when they get older a board game. Thankfully the kids are too young and didn't know any different.

Unroll the cinnamon rolls and braid them.

Our baby courtesy of the Hannons. It's legit from New Orleans.

A little glaze and sprinkles.

Tada!