Last Day!

Today is March 31 which means it is the last day for the Cora Paige benefit. So head on over here and pick up any of those last goodies that you've been eyeing.

~

March 31 also means that shamrock shakes at McDonald's will soon be disappearing until next year. I have not had a single one yet this month and don't intend to wait all the way until next March to enjoy one. I will be making a special trip out later today and think you should too!

Two Weeks

I brought my sewing machine in this past week, fully expecting it to spend a night or two at the doctor. My jaw dropped (not literally, that would be rude) when the sweet old lady behind the register told me that it would be at least two WEEKS! I guess that's what happens when Grams and Gramps are running the shop. At least I know they'll do good, quality work.

~

It's tough not having it....of course now I'm finding all sorts of patterns that I want to be trying out. I suppose I could at least start cutting some of them out so once my machine returns home I'm ready to go. One pattern I found was for a sweet little stuffed bird that can either be used as an ornament or door hanger or a pillow. Since I can't make the sewn one now, I'm using the template to make cards with him. Cute, huh?

They're all in the shop as of this morning.

~

Also in the works, some fun matchbook notebooks with the Amy Butler papers I picked up. There's a good chance these will make it to the shop soon. Perfect for party favors, or just to keep in your own purse for those little tidbits you need to remember!

And lastly, a new kind of project that I'm LOVING...sweet pins with button centers! Adorable on your shirt, coat, purse, or in your hair!

Spring Will Come

It may be snowing outside my window today,

but I saw these beauties outside earlier this week which tells me spring really will come.

Picture of the Week

This was Claire's first time playing in sand.

And yes, she filled the entire bucket.....

one...little...shovelful...at...a...time...

Healthy Snacks

In reading my new Parents magazine last night, I spotted an article on smart snacks for kids. While Claire doesn't complain, sometimes I wonder if she ever tires of the goldfish crackers-in-a-cup that I present to her every day, mid-afternoon. So I checked the article out, and to be honest, the snacks actually look pretty tasty! Even if Claire isn't into them, I might have to try them for myself!

~

Here are a few of the recipes:

Confetti Yogurt Pops

Stir together 2 cups low-fat vanilla yogurt and 1 cup assorted chopped berries. Spoon into 4-oz. ice-pop molds; cover with foil. Use a sharp knife to cut a small hole in foil and insert the cut side of a halved pretzel rod. Freeze until firm and remove foil and mold when ready to serve. Store for up to a month. Makes 6.

Nutrition Per Pop (if you care):

99 calories; 1 g fat

~

Strawberry PB Crepes

Spread a 9" store-bought crepe with 2 Tbs. peanut butter and top with 1/4 cup chopped strawberries. Roll up crepe, trim off ends, and cut log into 1" slices. Serves 2.

Nutrition Per Serving:

125 calories; 9g fat

~

No-Bake Peach Crisp

Drain two 4-oz. containers of diced peaches packed in light syrup. Stir 1/8 tsp. cinnamon into peaches and divide between two serving dishes. Sprinkle with 2 Tbs. crushed low-fat granola and top with 2 Tbs. low-fat vanilla yogurt. Sift more spice over yogurt. Serves 2.

Nutrition Per Serving:

101 calories; 1g fat

~

Tasty, enjoy!

I just signed up for a class through our community ed that's all about what to feed your toddler. The class description reads:

Feeding toddlers can be challenging! They are often picky eaters, hesitant to try new things, and seem to think that the major food groups are chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese and apple juice.

Yup, that's about right. So here's to hoping that I come out of that class with some more really tasty, creative and healthy ideas!

Bird Post Cards Revisted

Remember those bird post cards from Thompson Designs that I wrote about earlier?

Oh yeah, they're on my master bath wall.

All matted in yellow and framed in black.

Sweet!

And the Little Audrey dress that I wrote about? My husband asked me in the car the other day when that was going to show up on our doorstep. I told him I had no idea what he was talking about, and should it happen to show up on our doorstep, I would know nothing about how it got there.

"STOP!"

...is what my sewing machine said to me this weekend. I didn't know sewing machines had that right, but apparently mine does.I was just trucking right along, doing my thing, when it completely seized up on me. Done. Not budging one bit.
~

And it really was too bad. I was on a roll with new tissue covers for the shop and a little yellow ruffle purse to go with Claire's Easter dress.

I had no free time this weekend to bring it to the doctor, and I'm all booked today (which doesn't really explain how it is that I'm blogging, but anyway), so now I'm stuck.

~

But, my weekend wasn't all bad. Amy Butler paper packs were on sale, so I splurged and picked one up. Hopefully lots of Amy Butler paper goodies to come!

Patience & Peace

I think God had a message for me this week,

and I'm always glad when its so clear what it is!

~

On Thursday I attended my MOPS group and heard a speaker talk about patience, and on Friday I attended a Laura Story concert for women where she talked about peace. I happen to have a little miss independent one-year old on my hands right now, and these were just the messages I needed to hear! Patience and peace mean praying "Lord, your will be done" instead of "Lord, please just take care of this, and could you do it soon?" It also means then accepting both His plan and His timing, not an easy thing to do!

~

Everyone knows that being a mother is a wonderful, rewarding thing, but its also well-known that it is a tough job! Sometimes I find myself so busy with my daughter, that in the few moments when I do stop and think about the job I've taken on raising her, I think "wow, this really is hard work!" So to hear our speaker at MOPS validate that yes, the work we are doing is good, and yes, the work we are doing is hard really meant a lot to the women in the room. (As was evident by the misty eyes all around!)

~
The speaker read this verse to us:

Isaiah 40:11

He tends his flock like a shepherd:

He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart;

he gently leads those that have young.

~

How comforting that God knows the challenges of raising young, and the Bible says specifically in Isaiah that he leads those who have young.

~

I love the words of the song Perfect Peace by Laura Story. I think you can take the words and interpret them any way that you like, or "attach" them to anything that is relevant for you. I happen to think of motherhood when I hear the lyrics, but that's most likely just because that happens to be the phase of life that I'm in buried in right now. Here are the words:

stay close by my side

keep your eyes on me

though this life is hard

I will give you perfect peace

in this time of trial

pain that no one sees

trust me when I say

that I will give you perfect peace

and you'll never walk alone

and you'll never be in need

though I may not calm the storms around you

you can hide in me

burdens that you bear

offer no relief

let me bear your load

cause I will give you perfect peace

stay close by my side

and you'll never walk alone

keep your eyes on me

you'll never be in need

though this life is hard

know that I will always give you perfect peace

I will give you perfect peace

~

So, I know what I'll be extra intentional about this week.

Patience and Peace.

Paper Wreath

Just how sweet are these paper wreaths from Haru?

I think next time I'm throwing a party or hosting a shower, I might try to make one of these for the front door!

Picture of the Week

More Polka Dots!

Perfect for birthdays, don't you think?!?

Polka Dot Note or Gift Card Holders

Polka Dot Anytime Card

Picture of the Week

Birthday parties are exhausting!

Little Audrey

Right now I am LOVING this
Little Audrey in the City dress
from Rocker Baby
~
I've already stocked Claire up
with dresses for the summer,
so I just have to decide if her
wardrobe could use just one more!
~
Isn't it just fantastic?!?

HELLO Spring!

Cora Anne Designs

Sewin' Scraps Gift Tags

Love these!

~

Just using some odds and ends from a few sewing projects I have going.

The tag front is made with Waverly fabric.

The "ribbon" at the top is made from Amy Butler's Midwest Modern & Lotus fabrics.

~

And the buttons are just a cute finishing touch!

Before & Afters

I LOVE before and afters. It wouldn't be hard for me to watch an entire day of shows on HGTV just for the big reveals. So I really love the Before & After pictures posted on Design Sponge.

Check today's out!

This chair was done by Molly at Chairloom. It's amazing what the new fabric does for the chair...I actually had to look back and forth a few times just to believe it was even the same chair as in the first picture!
~
I have an old armchair that belonged to my Grandma. I absolutely love the chair and have no intention of getting rid of it, but it's currently upholstered in peach fabric. I keep toying with the idea of trying to reupholster it myself, but would hate to get halfway through and realize I'm in over my head. Up to this point, I've only reupholstered chairs that have the "pop-off" seat cushions, and anyone could do that
~
Anyone ever tackle a reupholstery project on their own?
Is it worth it, or should I just pay to have it done?

Forcing Spring

The wind was blowing so strong last night that I'm pretty sure our house shook a few times. And while I would have hoped that the wind was bringing in more warm air, quite the opposite was true. Looking out my window today, I see SNOW. Winter has not yet left. Blah.

~

I must have subconsciously known this was going to happen, because this weekend, I picked up Wheat Grass seeds and planted them in a few containers I had. My plan was to use the grass as a springtime centerpiece. I would rather have spring flowers like tulips or daffodils, but they just don't seem to last, so I'm hoping that the grass carries me through to summer when I can start buying flowers at the farmer's market again.

~

I don't even have the slightest hint of a green thumb, so you can only imagine my excitement when overnight little shoots of grass started appearing. Now I'm about 5 days in, and take a look! Almost time for a little haircut!

So even if the sun is back to refusing to shine, and the snowflakes are flying outside my window, I'll have just this little hint of spring inside to cheer me up!

Eye Candy

Looking for some mindless entertainment?

Just watch this for a little while!

Picture of the Week

The sun actually returned to Michigan today,

it was wonderful!

Happy Birthday Cora!

How A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!

~

Today (March 5) would have been

Cora Paige's first birthday.

~

In honor of this day,

it was decided that all of the Etsy sellers

would make their donations today for the

playground to be built in her honor.

~

It is so exciting to announce that as of mid-afternoon,

the total raised was over $15,000!

And there's more still coming in!

~

Hopefully this let a little sunshine

into what I'm sure

has been a very difficult day

for the McClenahan family.

~

I'm just in awe of what this group

of almost all strangers to each other

has been able to accomplish!

~

There's still more Cora Paige items

out there, so don't stop shopping just yet!

Encouragement

Every other Thursday I get to meet with other moms at my local MOPS group. I love it! It's just a little time for us to get together to grow and support one another while knowing that our kids are in good hands in the nursery.

~

This week's speaker read an excerpt from God's Whisper in a Mother's Chaos by Keri Wyatt Kent which I thought was really encouraging. I hope it encourages all of you as well.

~

Time alone with God can help us grow, but so can serving others. Instead of feeling guilty about how little time alone I get, I need to look at how I can connect with God in the midst of my chaos.

I spend most of my day serving two little cute but very needy people. I have opportunities galore to practice patience and gentleness when they spill, dawdle, forget, spill... I have opportunities to show my love in tangible actions like making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or kissing boo-boos. These moments "count" for spiritual growth.

We tend to think that only deep quiet contemplation or perhaps serving on a mission trip or volunteering in the church office "counts" in God's eyes. Nothing could be further from the truth, and nothing could be more defeating to a mother who finds that taking care of her children feels like almost all she can do.

This is the good news for mothers: the grungy, seemingly insignificant serving you do - cleaning up messes, wiping noses (and other body parts), preparing meals, dressing, undressing and bathing your kids - all of these things count in God's eyes. You are engaging fully in the discipline of service. If you can begin to view it as such, every little part of your day can be a way to connect with God.

And all the parts of mothering that you love, like the way they fly into your arms when you get home from work or cuddling with a bedtime story or drying their tears, those count too. They please the heart of God.

And God is not deducting points on some giant tally sheet in Heaven because you missed your "quiet time." He's watching the way you trim the crust off the peanut butter and jelly sandwich and cut it in triangles because that's how your toddler likes it, and he's saying, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

Fabric Coasters

At the fabric store this past week, I fell in love with this moss green and off-white patterned Waverly fabric. Not knowing what I would make with it, I bought myself just one yard.

Here's what I've made so far,

this set of four fabric coasters!

Cute, huh?

I had them all wrapped up pretty and ready to post on

Cora Anne Designs,

and now I'm thinking that I might just keep them for myself!

Maybe I'll make another set and share those with the Etsy world!

Polka Dots

Aren't polka dots fun?

How can you not just feel happy looking at these fun tags!

I Won!

I never win anything.

~

I'm one of those people who actually does the survey on the bottom of the Target receipts thinking I'll win the $500 gift card. Nope. In fact, I'm not so convinced that they really award anyone the gift card. I'll put my name in for door prizes thinking just maybe I'll win one of those. Nope, not those either. I don't even win the gifts from the games at wedding or baby showers.

~

Until now!

~

I signed up for a drawing off the blog Jamieson's Farrago. The drawing was for one of these custom applique wall monograms which are so sweet.

You can only imagine my excitement when I found out I had actually won! She's making me a monogram of the letter "C" for my daughter Claire. I'll be sure to post a picture once it arrives! In the meantime, be sure to check out her shop!

~

Since I'm feeling kind of lucky now, I'm entering another drawing to win this fabulous shirt dress from Grosgrain.

And why not, I entered to win this great cardigan from Grosgrain as well!

Wish me luck!