Going Batty!

Since this was our first week of "back to school", I got a little time to sew (yippee!!!).  Just wanted to share a little bat I whipped up with some scrap fabric I received from a friend in the mail a while ago.

I'm thinking about putting together a tutorial for this little guy.  He's cute - if I do say so myself!

I don't know, though.  It seems that every pattern I do I look at the final and think that there is something I want to change about it.

Spunky sure likes him, though.  As a matter of fact, Sunshine and Sprout are quite fond of him too.

(photo taken before I embroidered his face)

One day not long after finishing up the bat, Sunshine walked up to me and said "Where's the kitty?".    "What kitty?" I ask. (We don't have cats, just one great big dog).  "The kitty with wings!" she says.
It finally dawned on me - she thinks that BAT means CAT (with wings).
Toddlers are so funny :)

Have a great weekend!
:) Caren

Button, Button, Who's Got the Button?

I've been so crazy busy with my little ones this summer.  Anyone else out there like me?  Well, I haven't been able to do much sewing, but I did get to subliminally pass my love of sewing on to my toddlers this week with button games.

We put buttons in our toes.  It was great fun, so we continued it to our hands.

Then Sprout woke up from his nap, and he was so excited about the buttons that he climbed onto the table to get at them!  (For safety I use a bucket of super big plastic buttons for these play times - Sprout puts them in his mouth).

It was a great opportunity to teach things like colors, shapes, sharing, and asking for help.

 Calisthenics: reach, stretch, climb!

 Sunshine pretended the buttons were flowers, so we were "sniffing" them.

Can Sprout look any happier?  I tell ya, these little ones are so easy to please (sometimes).  

And I thank God who gives me days of peace like this one, when my kids have fun playing together.  Often they are at odds and its so nice to have a break in the storm.  

Now that the summer is coming to an end I may just have time to get some sewing done!  In the next week or two, my Spunky is going off to 1st grade and Sprout is going to early intervention school (to help him develop his speech/language skills).  And I'll have this little Sunshine all to myself for a couple of hours!

So what are your plans for this fall?  Got any fun projects going?

Cheers!

:) Caren

Kitty Goes to Sweden!

I want to take a moment to thank Brooke for hosting my giveaway, and for letting me do the guest post on her blog last week.  It is so nice to connect with people, even if you've never met them in person.  Brooke is not only a mama, but she has been running her shop (Silly Mama Quilts) for some time now, and she's been a source of great encouragement to me.  I need more friends like her - don't we all?

Kitty Peanut (with full set of Kitty Pocket Peanuts)

Speaking of people I've never met in person, boy was I surprised to find out the winner of the giveaway - Wivi-Anne!  She chose this lovely Kitty Peanut (I tucked orange & yellow kitty finger puppets in her pocket as a fun little surprise).  The real surprise for me was that this kitty got to travel all the way from here in Ohio (USA) to Stockholm (Sweden)!  How cool is that?!!

Hope you all have a great week.  May you be surrounded by friends who bring encouragement!
:) Caren

p.s. - If you're looking for great handmade soft toys, 

please check out my Etsy shop.  :) C

Giveaway & Guest Posting!

Hi friends! I'm guest posting over at my friend Brooke's blog today. Come on over to Silly Mama Quilts and get inspired to add texture and spice to your projects.  Oh - did I mention that I am giving away any item from my shop just for leaving a comment on that post?    
:) Caren

Photo Shoot at the Park

Went to the park last week.

It was a beautiful day!

And I could not help but to take photos of my children.  I'm so blessed!

These little monkeys are so adorable (at times)!

Not to bore you with photos of my family.... I'll share some of my creations with you, too!  (I'm opening up my online shop next month, so keep your eyes peeled for a spectacular giveaway soon!)

Kitty Peanut (14" soft doll) with hand-embroidered face.  I love the butterfly print!

Pirate Peanut (with the same butterfly print fabric).

 And here's another Pirate Peanut, being modeled by my chubby 17 month old Sprout!

 Nana Peanut out for a stroll in the woods.

 Another Nana Peanut - with green hair! (Yes, my Sunshine is saying "Cheese!")

 This one has minky hair - and a tiny stowaway! 

Do you see the three blind mice?  How about baa baa black sheep?  

This one was finished AT the park!

Here's one of my favorites - me, sewing, Sunshine talking my ear off (trying to climb on me), Spunky being noisy and very active in the background, and off to the side (off-camera) being his typical quiet autonomous self, is my Sprout.  This is how I spend my days (though not always at the park).

Pocket Peanuts (3" pocket dolls / finger puppets)

 All of my kiddos LOVE the "peanut people"!!! 

 Pocket Peanuts come in a Kitty Edition, too!

Easy on, easy off - even for toddlers!  

Meow!

Did I mention I've got pirates, too?!!

I'm wondering how many of you got to this far in my post. 

Sometimes I have a difficult time knowing what to leave out.  

So if you've gotten this far, thank you.  

I appreciate you very much.  

Peek-a-boo!

May the peace of God, which passes understanding, be with you this week!

:) Caren

Fear and Peanuts

I pushed myself to go outside of my comfort zone today.  Some people fear public speaking.  Some people fear heights.  I, on the other hand, get a bit (ok, a LOT) anxious meeting new people, especially in places where there are NO familiar faces.  So today I decided to meet that fear head-on and go to a quilt shop open house "sew-in".  It was an informal "meet, greet, sit and sew" event here in town.  I have to admit I had a semi-serious argument with myself on the way over as to whether or not I was going to actually go or not.  In the end I decided that it was important to bust through the fear, and so I did.  I took my most favorite project, my Pocket Peanuts, to sew while I was there.  And lest you think I had forgotten that this is a blog where I share my creative things, here they are!

These are my original Pocket Peanuts.  They are a smash hit with my kids.  They're all shaped like peanuts (similar to Russian stacking dolls), and though they are called peanuts, they are completely peanut free (no allergens here!).  They are approximately 3" tall (1.5" wide) and are stuffed with non-allergenic polyfil stuffing, so they are fun little pocket-sized dolls.  [And in my best announcer voice: "but wait...there's more!"]

These little Pocket Peanuts are finger puppets, too!  They are made with a strip of elastic securely sewn into the seams, so little fingers (and big fingers, too) can wear them.

I have oodles of other things to share with you, but I have to close out this post for now.  I'll be back later with details on my shop opening (!!!!!) and more fun stuff!

Have an amazingly blessed Monday!

:) Caren

New Blog Layout

Testing, 1, 2, 3...

Hey all - I just tried to customize my blog for the very first time.  If you could send me some feedback I'd appreciate it.  I'm no graphic designer, just trying a new look.  Did I do it right?  Can you see all of the header?  HUGE THANKS, friends!!!

:) Caren