children's art...

i ordered 2 robot prints for my two younger boys.

i LOVED them so much i thought

i would share some of my favourite places to buy

ART work on etsy.

John W. Golden's Shop

Sarah Jane Shop

Dutton Art Shop

what are some of your favourite places to find children's art?

xo

sandra

thanks...

i just wanted to say thank-you to everyone for all

of the birthday wishes!

we had a great weekend eating good food

and relaxing!

this fancy iron was a birthday gift from my

sister. apparently she didn't think that the hand-me-down

iron i was using from my mom was sufficient! thanks JILL!

i LOVE it!!!

i'll have to show you what my mom got me

in another post. if you print out recipes from online,

it's a must have!

xo

sandra

13 going on 30.

today is the day that i was born... 30 years ago.

i've always thought that i had an "old soul" so i guess you could say that my body is just catching up! i'm excited to be 30, i've been reflecting this morning on what has happened in my 20's. when your living it, you don't feel like much is going on. but when you reflect back on your life you realize just how far you have come and how much you have accomplished. here is my list of all the things that have gone on in my 20's:

* i met my husband. actually to tell you the truth he brought me 10 yellow roses and 10 red roses on my 20th birthday.

(should i expect 30 this year??? ; )

* we were married in July that same year.

* i use to make bbq'd chicken and rice for every meal. (thank goodness i'm a better cook!)

* i had my first baby when i was 21. (it's a little scary having your first. your not quite sure what to expect. he was a beautiful, happy baby)

* my second child came almost a year to the day after the first. (i felt more relaxed when he came. he cried for the first 8 months, but he has definitely made up for that in the past 7 years)

* we moved to St. George

* moved back

* moved to Lethbridge

* my third child came when i was 23.

(i know it happened fast but i look back and i wouldn't have wanted it any other way. i had a beautiful red headed baby girl. she was a dream baby. the kind you need when you have a 1 and 2 year old running around the house ; )

* we made a move so that my husband could start up his own Insurance Brokerage.

* my children started school. (not all at once but it happened so fast sometimes it feels like it)

* my 4th came when i was 27. (what a sweet baby he was. i think we realized that kids grow up so fast that we just tried to soak up every moment with him)

* we made a move into a house that we built. (it feels much more like home)

* worked on my sisters online fabric store with her. (i learned a lot, but it got overwhelming for us at the end)

* i bought my first sewing machine not even a year ago. (before then i was borrowing my moms. thanks mom ; )

* i started this blog almost a year ago.

* i am pregnant with my 5th child due to arrive in May. (i always wanted to be finished having children before i was 30, i missed it by a few months but i came pretty dang close! i'm SO excited for this little bundle to arrive!)

TODAY i get to go out to BANFF (national park) and spend a night out there with my husband. he asked me what i wanted for my birthday but i think having a night of relaxation and fun with him is the best present ever! (thanks jess and grandpa tom for watching the kiddo's!)

i look forward to being 30. i feel like it is going to be years full of raising children, working on personal goals and just enjoying life in the moment because what i think you don't really realize in your twenty's (or at least i didn't) is that life can pass you by if your not fully living it.

30 flirty and thriving...

30 feels pretty good : )

grandma's hands

more pictures of the quilt can be found here.

my mother-in-laws 60th birthday was coming up and as a family we all wanted to give her something special. what's more special than a handmade gift????

we decided that a quilt would be best...

luckily i know a couple quilters ; )

the handprints were a family effort. everyone traced their handprints. those that lived farther away faxed in their prints. on a saturday we all got together to make the hands (my little sewing room was packed! ). everyone picked their own fabrics. all the ladies traced, i sewed and my husband cut the prints out. all together there are 23 hands.

after the hands were finished my sister-in-law Jess and i got to work on the rest of the quilt. every family has their own branch starting from the oldest (the lower left branch) to the youngest child (the top branch). T + W (as seen on the trunk) stands for Tom and Wendy. the two red love birds are also to symbolize Tom and Wendy. there are 3 apples on the bottom of the tree symbolizing the 3 soon to be born babies in the family. there is a paw print on the bottom of the tree to symbolize Kano, the family dog. the back has a strip similar to a coin quilt to add some fun to the back. and a memory quilt just wouldn't be the same without a hand written tag to commemorate her birthday. the quilt was quilted by our cousin Sylvie. she did an amazing job and we had it back SO quick! you can see more of Sylvie's work here.

it was fun to be able to design this quilt and work on it with my sister-in-law Jess. it definitely was a labour of love. i hope that Wendy knows how much she is loved by her children, her in-laws and her grandchildren. it couldn't have gone to a more deserving person.

xo

sandra

TUTORIAL: reverse applique hand print

my sister-in-law and i just finished a family tree keepsake quilt for my mother-in-law.

here's a tutorial on the reverse applique hand prints that are on the quilt. we made 23, for all of her kids, their spouses and of course the grand kids!

1. trace hand onto paper and then go around the handprint with a black marker to insure traceability.
2. tape print right side down or towards the window. tape hand fabric right side down.
3. trace around the hand with a pencil on the wrong side of the fabric.
4. find a bowl or something round that fits nicely around the hand print. trace around the bowl onto light weight fusible web.
5. ruffly cut out hand and circle.
6. iron circle onto the fabric you have chosen for the circle portion of your hand print. cut out the circle and remove paper from the back.
7. place the hand print right side down on the back of your circle piece. with your free-hand motion foot, sew around the hand print 2-3 times.

8. carefully cut the circle fabric from the inside of the handprint. trim the hand fabric on the back of the circle to insure as much fusible web is showing as possible.

voila! your completed hand print!

we added names on ours to make sure we could tell who's was who's. we then ironed them onto the quilt and blanket stitched around them.

i think with this extra one i made for the tutorial i might frame it for in my little boys room or make a throw pillow out of it!

oh the possibilities!

UPDATE * here's the post about the quilt and the inspiration behind it!

MORE pic's can be found HERE!

will you be my valentine?

it's getting close to that time of year when your children come home

with their class lists from school.

"Valentine's Day Cards...????"

no need to worry. i found these fun valentines

over at the Bunny Cakes Blog. they are a FREE downloadable PDF

which means you can print off as many as you would like!

she also has an etsy shop where you can personalize your PDF valentines for only $3.75.

the only dilemma you might have is trying to decide which one you like the best.

they are ALL so cute and i think they would be GREAT for any age!

hope this helps you in your valentines search!

xo

sandra

i LOVE...

Belgian Waffles.

here are my 2 favourite recipe's for belgian waffles and a 3rd

recipe that i just found and would LOVE to try!

Waffles

2 1/2 cups flour

3/4 tsp salt

4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp sugar

2 eggs

2 1/4 cups milk

3/4 cups oil

mix dry ingredients together. in a separate bowl, mix wet ingredients together. add wet ingredients to to dry and mix. if a little more moisture is needed add a little extra milk. the batter should be quite thick.

Sour Cream Waffles

1 3/4 cup flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs

1 cup sour cream

1 3/4 cups milk

1/2 cup melted butter

mix dry ingredients together. in a separate bowl, mix wet ingredients together. add wet ingredients to to dry and mix. don't over mix

Authentic Belgian Waffles

here's a link to an authentic Belgium Waffle recipe that i am really excited to try! it sounds a little more difficult to make, but an entirely different taste than an Americanized Belgium waffle. i always find it exciting to try food in it's original form. YUMMM!!

PINK waffles were the order of the morning for my daughters birthday breakfast. they love it when you put some food coloring in there. i've even made green ones for Saint Patty's Day! the colors and toppings are endless!

bon appetit!

xo sandra