Year of color: pink + orange

Tagged!

I've been tagged by Amy at Happy Things to do the 8 random things meme. I've done this meme in all of its various forms at My Many Colored Days already. But for my little creative spot, I am going to put a spin on it and name 8 random favorite books:

Gotta love a little Martha:

Sark is all about self undulgence:

fun stuff for what's going on with your yard:

great coffee table book:


LOVE this children's book, it's a gem!:

I was shabby before I even knew the queen of shabby... a match made in heaven:

the only way I can tolerate country (title is "modern country"):

good read for all women:

covered diaper wipes containers

I rock!

Lara, The Lazy Organizer, has kindly awarded me the Rockin' Girl Blogger award. I am so happy about that... because I agree. I do rock. ;)

In all seriousness, I rarely expect much gain from this blog. I spend most of my time at My Many Colored Days (and, coincidentally, have been awarded this over there already). So, it especially means something when this little corner of my life gets noticed! And Lara has noticed it a few times. I'm honored. :)

So I get to pick from a whole different arena of readers, which is cool. I'd like to extend this award to:

Design Mom - who, let's face it, does not have time to come and accept this, but is well deserving.
Tongue in Cheek - where I get my dose of poise and grace.
Smart Mama - just check out her art link in my sidebar.
24-7-365 - who's link I need to put in my sidebar, because I just swoon over her photography.
Happy Things - love her Year of Color project!

picture books

There are so many fun things you can do with photos for your children. I've made and received a few books/albums that have become cherished, prized possessions. Below are some of the layouts from those books.

The first was made for my now 5 year old. His transition to becoming a big brother was not a smooth one. This is one of the many ways that I tried to make that change easier for him. We talked a lot about what it was like when he was a baby, and he loved to look at pictures of himself as a baby- eating, crying, sleeping. It really helped him understand his new baby brother a little better.





I made this book for Sasha and gave it to her on her first birthday. If she's anything like her siblings, she'll love looking at these pictures of herself and seeing how fast she's grown.





I just love this book that my sister-in-law made. She used the text from a children's book called "I Love You Through and Through" by Bernadette Rossetti-Shustak, and inserted very apropos pictures of my son as illustrations.

easy made bibs

The one on the left is made from oilcloth. I drew the scalloped edge and cut by hand. The one on the right is similar to oilcoth, with a much smoother texture. I used crimping sheers on that one. Both are water repellant. Punched two holes at the top of each, and knotted some cute ribbon through them. Voila! Simple tie-on bibs that your baby won't yank off so easily. Let me know what you think, these may be the next summer give-away!

Good news!

I won a font contest at http://www.fontologie.com/! My fonts will be featured in September and October. Don't worry, I'll remind you. :)