Thursday, August 23, 2012

Custom Painted "TOMS" ~ Olivia's Neverland Pandas

Olivia likes pandas and Jake and the Neverland Pirates so I mixed the two for the design. I painted, repainted and repainted because I couldn't decide on the right color scheme. Also, the herringbone texture of the fabric was driving me batty! I struggled to get smooth lines.



When the shoes finally dried and the results looked acceptable, I showed Olivia and she exclaimed,"They're cute-iful!" Ok. With that adorable comment, I can live with the results. Plus, she created a new word for the family lexicon. 







Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Monkey Pudding


Emily has to bring a birthday treat to Pre-K tomorrow. She chose clementines but our household can't seem to hold back on produce so I had to make something else. I rummaged around the pantry and found Jell-o instant chocolate pudding, Nila wafers, Cheerios, red food coloring and clear plastic cups for Monkey Pudding. 

The kiddos helped with this "recipe" but really it's just a matter of mixing and assembling.
First, we put the clear plastic cups in a cupcake pan for a handy pudding carrier. Next, we mixed the instant pudding in a large measuring cup with a spout. Then, we poured it into the cups and put the pan in the fridge so the pudding could set up. In the mean time, the kiddos counted and sorted the Cheerios to make eyes and counted out the number of Nila wafers needed for the mouths. I squirted some red food coloring into a dish and painted smiles on the Nila wafers with a clean craft brush. After the pudding set up and the Nila wafers dried, the little monkeys assembled the monkey pudding. We had fun, it was easy and I saved myself a trip to the store.

AFTERTHOUGHTS: I halved mini cookies for ears but we decided to eat them instead. The cup didn't leave much room. In the future, I think I'll make monkey cookies or cupcakes and add the halved mini cookies for ears and maybe candy bananas from a box of Runts. 

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Custom Painted "TOMS" ~ Grandma's Garden


I'm on a faux TOMS painting kick. 
I made my MIL these and will happily make anyone else a pair too.

Grandma's Garden

COMING SOON:
 Panda Pirate/Panda Mermaid version for Olivia

Friday, August 17, 2012

Custom Painted "TOMS" ~ Emily's Zoo

While out for birthday supplies at Family Dollar, I stumbled upon a pink pair of faux TOMS for Emily. I customized them and now I want to find some more.
Her sisters are already planning their designs. Plus, I want a pair!






Emily wanted an elephant and giraffe. So I played around in Google images until I found a design she liked. These shoes are inspired by the link below.

UPDATE: The hubs suggested I spray the shoes with a waterproof finish. 
He handed me a "clear" lacquer...it turned out to be white spray paint. 
Apparently, our brains had a simultaneous duurrrrr moment. 
Well, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

The shoes now have a worn in, muted look.
The softer colors suit her wardrobe.


Wednesday, August 15, 2012

One Little Girl, One Big Year


One Little Girl, One Big Year
Annie is turning 1 year old on Saturday, August 18th! Where has the time gone? Good times go fast, huh?

She has many nicknames: Annie, Annie Ann Ann, Anna, Anna Banana, Anna Banana Lise, Annalisie, Annalisie-uh, Ann Ann Anderson, Itsy Bitsy, Tiny Hiney, Punkin' Baby, Baby Girl and Lil' Chub Chub Baby (retired due to loss of baby chub). Also, it should be noted that the above nicknames are regularly used; however, her intermediate and extended family often create new ones by mixing them all up. 

Some of Annie's present day activities are: attempting to climb into the dishwasher, attempting to open all locked and unlocked cabinets, hanging onto furniture and walking, climbing into child-sized chairs and standing, dumping toys, dumping food from bowls, spilling open containers, standing confidently then taking 2 steps and slowly lowering herself to the floor, mischievously smiling when we marvel at her walking, exploring food like a champ (She loves everything we've given her except baby food! She whines for bananas, black beans, watermelon and cherry tomatoes), reading books and playing toys with her sisters, giving hugs, pats, kisses and high-fives, mimicking faces (pooching lips, nodding yes and no, panting like a doggie), watching "dawg-dawgs," resting with her sisters while watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and pointing and whining until she gets what she wants.

Her first words are listed in chronological order: punba (Spongebob), hi, papa, dada, mama, sis-sis and dawg-dawg. The list will continue to grow just as she is.

This past year has been filled with hugs, kisses, laughs, smiles, pouts and tears. We are amazed at what a precious person she's become. Happy Birthday to our Annie!