MAddiE Lu'S BAbY ShOwER GiFt

I love creating handmade gifts...especially for babies! It was so much fun putting together this little gift for a baby shower I went to today:

This little basket contained two coordinating burp cloths, an embelished newborn onesie, a tiny flower hair clip, a petite stuffed bunny, and a pair of socks with pink pom poms (not pictured because I already wrapped them).

It turned out pretty cute! In fact, I think I will replicate the set for the new Miss McMahon (yet to be named!)

My wonderful Aunt Jayne suggested that I sell similar baskets at Hibernation--and I think I may take her up on it! I currently sell the hair clips and onesies there. (Check out Hibernation's new website...coming soon!!!)

P.S. if anyone needs a unique, handmade baby gift...let me know! And I love doing custom orders!

BAbY SEEdS

Well the wait is finally over! We found out that our "baby seed" is indeed a girl! Here is a lovely profile of our next little princess...

...she totally has the famous "McMahon nose", don't you think? We also got to see her playing with her toes in this next picture...

So amazing to see such a little baby do such a thing! We also caught her yawning. :-o Madelynn will be such a wonderful big sister, and we can't wait to see the sisterly bond they will have. Exciting!!! And now to prepare and decorate!



On to another type of seeds...

My dad and I had so much fun starting our gardens together. The "Man of Plenty" conveniently bought enough seeds and seed-starting pods to supply two gardens! He was more than happy to share the extra with me. So we spent Saturday afternoon selecting seeds, "poking" them into the pods...

...and even making diagrams of our pod garden on graph paper!

It was a wonderful father-daughter project...in a "Cannon" sort of way! Thanks, Dad!

"GoURmEt" BRoWniEs

They're not organic. They're not low-fat. They're not made from scratch.
In fact, these brownies are from a box, and they took me ten minutes to make. Sometimes you just don't feel like putting that much effort into being domestic. But, hey-they look "gourmet", right?

After pouring the Betty Crocker Fudge Brownies into the pan, I melted some peanut butter in a small bowl. (I actually did use all-natural peanut butter) Then I poured it right out of the bowl, going back and forth to make many uneven lines on top of the brownie batter. Then I took a knife (because I didn't have any toothpicks) and drug it through the lines (perpendicular, not parallel), switching directions each time. Then just bake it according to the directions!

And there you go! Husband is happy and wife didn't spend two hours more in the kitchen!

MiXEd MEdiA ARtwORk

Last night I had so much fun creating two mixed media canvases for Madelynn's room.

The best part was getting to use so many different materials-canvas, paint, fabric, wood, stickers, and glue! I used two painter's canvases I had laying around and painted them a pale pink. Then I found a coordinating green fabric and glued it in a strip on the bottom of each canvas.

The tree stems, leaves, and flowers were leftover wall "stickers" that I used to embellish the walls of Madelynn's room. They are removable, so I had so much fun playing around with different designs...they are so goof-proof!

The little owl is actually a thin, wooden, paintable cutout from a craft store-but since I didn't have very many paint colors, I decided to use fabric instead! I cut the fabric shapes just like the pattern that was pre-drawn on each owl, then glued them on. Soooo easy! Then all I had to do was glue the owls to the canvases. it was so much fun!

Madelynn's room is almost done and ready for pictures! Only a few last minute touches!

TuNiC REfAshiON

The other day I did a little refashion for Madelynn. This little tunic dress is a size 6-12 months but still fits Madelynn like a top.

I wanted it to work for spring and summer, so I cut the sleeves shorter and added a little ruffle out of a pale yellow shirt of hers that she has grown out of. You can't tell from the picture, but it's actually a double ruffle. I simply cut off the bottom hem of the yellow shirt and cut the hem open at the bottom (on the fold).

I also cut out a little elephant patch from the same shirt and hand stitched it in the corner of the refashioned shirt.

Instead of packing this tunic away, it now has new life!

And just for kicks....here's a picture of her wearing it when she was about 10 months old:

This picture makes me laugh-that little face is so squishy! (And, yes, that is my belt wrapped around her twice-I had so much fun dressing her up!)

Madelynn has outgrown many of her summer shirts and I hope to refashion some more!

Have a great week!!!

A HoUSEhOld MiRAcLE

My house was beginning to look like it had encountered a natural disaster and a funky smell was starting to come from my neglected sourdough bread starter on the counter. The laundry pile was about to erupt.
If you have kids-you know what happens when they get sick-all your attention is focused on your poor sick little baby. And in our case...NO NAPS. Just when I was about to give up the daily 1:00-3:00 struggle...a miracle occurred. SILENCE. For two whole hours. I scrubbed, I cleaned, and took a deep breath. I even had to wake her because she was sleeping too long! Finally it seems our house is back to normal and Miss Madelynn is feeling herself again. I went to wake her and found this:

That's my girl- if she's not refusing her nap, she at least had to pick WHERE she took her nap :~)
This next picture is what happened one of the days she didn't take a nap:

We went out late in the afternoon and she fell asleep in the car. When we got home I set her down and she laid right there on the carpet next to the kitchen table and kept on sleeping.

On another note, here is a little project I did as a gift for my sister's birthday:

Can you guess what it's made out of???

It's a sheet I found at the Salvation Army for $1.50! I loved it because its so sunny and springy:~) I have a ton left so I want to make Madelynn some summer clothes...maybe even an Easter dress!

Have a wonderful weekend-I will try to blog more now that things are back to normal!

HoUsEWaRMiNg GifT

My Aunt-in-Law recently moved to a new house and I wanted to make her a little something to welcome her home. I found a small stash of vintage keys, a wire hook, and a ribbon in her favorite colors-and came up with this:

I also had an idea to put some buttons (I recently received a rather large jar of buttons my mom and dad won for me at Mother Lode Christian School's annual Jubilee-thanks mom and dad!) in a little glass vase tied with matching ribbon. I mean, who doesn't use buttons, right? This thoughtful little gift cost $0....that's right zero dollars! I found everything at home. I guess that's why my Aunt-in-Law calls me Miss Resourceful! (Jodi should love this...as her gift budget is $5! I love it!)



And here's a little teaser as to the theme I am going with in Madelynn's room:

I have finished her curtains, but am waiting to take the picture until I can raise her curtain rod-the curtains are dragging on the ground right now. Next I'll be working on a truly unique wall decoration that will cover the top 1/3 of her walls (Madelynn proof). And get this-its not going to cost me a dime!