I had my camera on the highest ISO setting for these (i.e. they’re super grainy), but I didn’t want to risk waking her by turning on the lights. Oh, I love those little fingers…

She’s nearing 1.5 years and I thought this rainy day would be perfect for some more sweet, sleepy baby photos for the family album. I waited until the end of her nap, and tried to sneak into her room without disturbing her. Turns out, she was already awake, just rubbing her sheepish eyes…

…And playing with her mobil. She’s learned how to turn it on herself, but cranking the knob…

…But she has to do some maneuvering to reach it…

…And, quite frankly, it often results in this – The collapse of the mobil…

…But, she’s happy! And she wiggles her rear end to the music, feeling content that she accomplished it on her own.

What a silly girl! I hope you’re having a fun week. Does anyone know about crafts you can do with a 1.5 year old? I am just chomping at the bit to start having crafty time with her, but I’m not sure if I know of any supplies that are really “safe” at this age. I’d love any suggestions. Thanks for reading and have a great weekend!

The headband was a very generous surprise, tucked in with my clothing order from JJDesigns. And it is one of my new favorites! If you’ve followed this blog at all, you may notice that Baby O is almost always wearing a headband, hat, or hair clip. Her Mama just looves handmade accessories! And she’s been very tolerant of them as well. Until recently…

…She now takes them off right away and then immediately tries to put them on again. She nudges you away if you try to help her. She wants to figure it out herself. She’s so determined…

I should mention that she also only wants to feed herself, and she wants to take on and off the lids of every jar or container in the house. As you can imagine, these are messy days. 

She tries to put in on herself and then throws a little pity party…Quite the diva.

I’m pretty excited because I think these little temper tantrums mean that she’s really asserting her independence, and striving to be capable of doing so much more on her own. I try to redirect her when she gets burned out on something, rather than show her an easy way out. I’m not sure if this is the “right” method, but it is working well at the moment.

So, on to the drum set! One of my favorite toys, by the way. It is so clever and gets her to really enjoy music even more, which I think is quite valuable.

Oh, so soo happy!…

…until she gets her arm “stuck” and has another little pity party…

Poor baby! Well, I think this is just the stage she’s at. She tries so many new things every day, and as soon as she gets tired, her patience for learning wanes. It’s the same for me actually! I just don’t look as cute when I’m fussy.

…You can tell from her facial expressions that it was a bit too cold for comfort, so we didn’t stay too long…still, what a trooper. I rather love this girl….

Know who else I love? My awesome little sister! She is, among other wonderful things, a Stella & Dot Independent Stylist. She sells gorgeous jewelry and loves explaining the ins-and-outs to her customers…what piece goes with what, and how to maximize your purchase. This week she is doing a super cool giveaway here on the blog…

One reader will win $25 Credit to Stella & Dot jewelry. The winner will be announced in next Monday morning’s post…Curious what $25 will get you at Stella & Dot? Well, a few of my very favorite items are near the price range…Birthstone charms for you or your babies are $19 each, and what about a “MOM” or “SISTER” charm? They’re $34 each. Perhaps best of all is the dress-up jewelry that packs a huge statement in one classy little box.

To enter the drawing, simply;

1.) Check out the website here and email Independent Stylist, Carolyn Holden (annacarolina@comcast.net), to join her mailing list.

2.) “Like” my page on facebook or leave a comment here.

Winner will be chosen on Sunday evening and announced in next Monday morning’s post.

Simple as that….It’s Valentine’s Day (almost)….And you deserve something nice (If you’re a guy…Seriously, it’s a great way to get a gift for the lady in your life as well…).

XOXO

{Post Update: Also from Stella & Dot, sign up with Carolyn in the month of February to host a Stella & Dot party and be entered in a drawing to win a free bracelet. Hosts earn an average of $250-worth of Stella & Dot products simply by hosting the party. Email Carolyn for the details.}

{Resources: Headband by A Little Lady, Jean Jacket by Baby Gap, Skirt by Me, Tights & Shoes from Target, Twig Cupid’s Arrow made with twig & felt, Sweet & Snuggly Afghan Blanket from His Pearl}

I love the hippie-style of this headband. I think it would be really, really cute for a girl to wear in a child and family portrait session. IF you live in the area and are considering booking a session with me, keep in mind that I love being a part of the styling process for your shoot. Don’t be surprised if I offer to make one of these crocheted headbands to go with your family’s ensembles for our photo session!

We hopped over to the park yesterday afternoon to take a few quick photos of this headband. Baby O was in a good mood; Just not in the mood for photos. She enjoyed eating goldfish out of her cool new “big girl” cup. And, when the “Big Kids” (a group of 7 year old boys) came running by, she was just completely intrigued…

Then she started doing this and I laughed, thinking about what a full-fledged “toddler” she’s become lately. She’s no longer a Baby, that’s for sure. She’s got spunk and personality.

Only a few moments more of good will before we had to take off to the playground, to see what the Big Kids were up to. Her pink stuffed animal came with of course.

I’m very interested in photo styling. I indeed think this headband would be adorable for a photo session. I also think it’s fun to look at examples of coordinating family wardrobes, not for the purpose of trying to match someone else’s style (No, Sir!), but for the sake of getting some overall inspiration. Want a sneak peek of the “What to Wear” page I am putting together? It will soon be easy to find, under the “Information” tab of the main menu. But, for now, I’m working on adding images and making it faster (it takes a while to load the page). Anyway, here it is, if you’d like to check it out. Fun photo-friendly clothing ideas abound!

(Note: I would love feedback on the What to Wear page, if you have any thoughts, particularly in terms of the speed and user-friendliness of it.)

I hope you’re having an awesome week. I’m really looking forward to my photo sessions this weekend…If all goes well, I’m photographing a Cupid & a Cowboy…How fun is that? Sneak Peeks next week! XOXO

Well, I thought I’d do a fun little post here with links to some of the cute Valentine’s Day ideas I’ve seen on the web. They are somewhat low-key and fun. I hope you’ll enjoy them (links below).

Top to Bottom & Left to Right:

1. Eat Drink Chic‘s super sweet idea for a “Couch  Picnic” date. The link includes free printables.

2. Pass the Pizza! What a cute idea…perhaps for your Couch Picnic date! You can cut your vegetables into the shape of hearts instead. Want a great homemade pizza crust recipe? I love this one.

3. Sweet saying, especially coming from an artist.

4. Heart-shaped pancakes? Yes please!

5. Bouquet of giant yellow flags? Oh, that would totally make me smile.

6. Yum Yum!…This cupcake looks deelicious.

7. Naturally Sweet Valentines…perfectly healthy.

8. Don’t these cookies look awesome? I thought they would be really difficult to make, but the tutorial makes it look rather straight-forward.

9. These heart-shaped pillows would be a great prop for Engagement or Wedding Photos. They would also look cute on a guest bed.

Some fun ideas, all around. Hope you’re having a great Monday!

I wanted to take a moment to post about these hat patterns, in the event that there are any readers out there who think it would be fun to crochet something simple, but are a tad intimidated to start. Enter…Adrienne Engar. Her instructions are SO easy to follow. The patterns I bought from her were the first hats I ever crocheted…and they’re getting a ton of use. (Resources at bottom of post.)

I’ve made her monkey hat pattern:

…her owl hat pattern…

And her monster hat pattern (here and here).

I also really enjoy following a basic earflap hat pattern (Adrienne’s Monkey Hat Pattern is an awesome example) and changing the colors or adding something else…

And what about an easy-peasy pattern for a newborn beanie? I love this free pattern (pictured below):

Patterns:  1. Monkey Hat, 2. Monster Hat, 3. Owl Hat , 4. Newborn Beanie {Hope you enjoy!!}

Post Update: I’ve just learned about a current Project put on by “Craft Hope“, requesting that people make crocheted beanies and tote bags for pediatric oncology patients. The details of where to send any handmade donations are here. If you live in Houston, know how to crochet or sew (or want to learn), send me a message…I’d love to get a small group together to make some things for this wonderful Project.

Have a fantastic weekend!

XOXO

And, I am SOOO excited to tell you about my Little Sister’s newest adventure. She’s a wonderfully talented engineer, but has recently added “Independent Stylist” to her list of credentials as well. She’s become a “Stella & Dot” stylist & seller. Check out her website if you are looking for some beautiful jewelry for yourself or for Holiday gifts! I hope to host a “trunk show” for her products soon as well (want to come over for tea & jewelry?).

Wow, my family is fun. I hope you enjoy the links and get inspired to make or buy some creative Holiday gifts this year!

Hope you’re having a great week.

I wanted to do this post as a how-to in case readers are interested in the food/decorations/theme – aspect of the party, as well as how to keep things budget-friendly. So, here it goes…I’ll try to give price & source information where I can.

Invitations:

Sources:

Completely inspired by this lady’s invites here.

Materials: A2 white paper from PaperSource ($3.25/25, left-over from our wedding invitations!), Scraps of Lecien “Flower Sugar Yellow Tiny Flower Dots” fabric ($2.50 /quarter yard), found here.

Note: If you don’t have a sewing machine, you can use fabricTac glue to adhere the fabric scraps to the invite. You can also experiment with scrapbooking paper in lieu of the fabric. I love the look of mixing patterns (rather than using only one) too.

Kids’ Activities:

Sources:

Sidewalk Chalk ($2.50/pack at Target), Bubbles (left over from our wedding), Handmade “Vintage Coloring Books”* printed on cardstock paper & tied with ribbon from craft store ($2.50/3 yards)

*(Note: Since this was just for personal use, I did a google image search for “Vintage Coloring Books” and “Vintage Coloring Book Pages” and copied ones that looked appropriate and were large enough to print to about 3″x4″. If you are reading this and have any questions, feel free to ask.)

Food & Decorations:

Sources: My amazingly cool, vintage picnic basket was purchased here, for $15.

These adorable stripey straws were purchased here, at $4/25 straws. There are so many colors to choose from!

The pink & white gingham fabric was purchased from JoAnn’s Fabric, on sale for $3.50/yard. I purchased 6 yards, in order to cover two tables. It is a very common print, and you can also purchase something similar online here.

Mmm…Vanilla Cupcakes with Buttercream Icing…Oh, how I loved you!!

I was visually inspired by this cupcake, but didn’t want a jam-filling. So, the cupcake recipe I used was c/o Martha Stewart. It was my first time to make cupcakes from scratch and, I’ve gotta say, I may never use a box mix again…This was easy (the instructions were fool-proof) and I felt oddly proud of myself for making it from scratch, even though it took little know-how.

My Mom helped me with the icing…{1/2 cup shortening + 1/2 cup margarine + 1 teaspoon vanilla extract + 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar}. I made it the night before and kept it in the fridge, in the mixing bowl. The day of, we added some whole milk until it was at the desired consistency. Then, I followed this lady’s cute instructions on icing. I think mine could stand to be cuter, but perhaps it will just take a little practice! Either way, they were deeelicious!!

By the way, the tiny pink and yellow sugar cookies were from my Little Sister. They were amazing! And adorable!

Sources:

Pink Floral Vintage Hankies (above): $2.50/each from this shop

Sources:

Tissue-Paper Pom-Poms are an excellent (easy + affordable!) party decoration! I followed the tutorial here.

I purchased 4 packs of (12 sheets each) colored tissue paper from the craft store, for $2.50/pack.

And, I WISH I had better photos of the food, but it was the last thing on my mind, come party time! I tried to get some photos of the leftovers….

“Caprese Kabobs” were a big hit! To make, simply toss mozzarella & tomatoes in a plastic ziplock bag, with olive oil and chopped fresh basil. You can leave it in the fridge overnight, to season. Or you can go ahead and thread them on the skewers the night before, and leave them in the fridge, assembled. Also, note: I wanted really cute little skewers, but we ended up cutting normal wooden skewers in half and this worked just fine.

Sources:

The wooden basket, above, was from the Target $1 bin, but you can find similar ones online.

Mmm, “Pigs-in-a-Blanket” are one of my Husband’s favorites! We made them with turkey “Lil Smokies” and Crescent Roll dough. Very simple, and a crowd-pleaser.

(Vintage sheets from my Mom and etsy. The best thing about them? They can be cut up and used for tons of craft projects after the party!)

Pink Lemonade…I used the 8oz mason Ball jars, that you can find at most grocery stores or Target/Walmart. This was a cute idea, and a big hit with the guests. I simply used this concentrate, from Minute Maid (below) and put a slice of fresh lemon in. I had all of the filled jars in this aluminum tub, filled with ice. Too bad I didn’t get a “before” photo, but you can see that they certainly didn’t go to waste!

Sources:

Aluminum Ice Tub from Target. I’m a tad embarrassed to say that it was about $20 (I was frugal everywhere else, but for some reason, felt this was a good place to splurge!). Hopefully I’ll find good ways to reuse this.

And, finally, some cute Party Photos!…

This was funny…You know how you have a certain idea in mind how important events will go, like when your daughter eats her first piece of Birthday cake, and you’re there with your camera in hand and everyone is ooing and ahing over how cute and funny she is? Well, I was so caught up visiting that I was no where near my camera at the time. She crawled over to this blanket, where some of her friends had been sitting, and started eating a cupcake off of their plate. She looked like a curious little scavenger….

So, we moved her to her own blanket and gave her her own cupcake, to “re-inact” her first bite, where all of the relatives could watch…

And then, she mostly just wanted the giant red strawberry on top…

Wow, what a cutie. And, lastly….

Party Favors:

My sweet friends came over to help me assemble these, bags filled with oatmeal cookies (with my Grandma’s cookie recipe attached)….

Sources:

Brown Bags from Michael’s Craft Store (a few dollars for a pack of 25), Hole Punch, Yellow Ribbon ($2.50/3 yards) & Fabric cut into strips when I ran out of ribbon (this is actually much more economical, and still looks cute), Free Download of Recipe Cards printed on white cardstock, & yummy homemade goodies, such as these oatmeal cookies, to put inside.

Want the Oatmeal Cookie recipe? Just leave a comment if you do, and I’ll try to post it here soon.

Have a great week!!

And then I came across this ADORABLE DIY plushie creature (is it a cloud perhaps?) perfect for Baby O and {Bonus!} seemingly well within my somewhat limited sewing skill-set. In fact, I love this lady’s blog, and her apparent interest in using repurposed materials. I set out to make my own plushie creature pronto…

…And this is what I ended up with…

Kinda cute! I want to make a dozen more. Here is more or less what Baby O thought about it (at first anyway)…

I’m glad to say she now plays with it quite a bit. She seems to enjoy “studying” the different ribbons. She seems to like the big red one the best…kind of cute! If you have a little one at home, you might want to try this project out when (/if?) you have some relaxing downtime. It was quick and rewarding. Again, the tutorial is here.

Well, that’s all for now…{Happy Monday!!}

I subscribe to a lady who creates these Gap/OldNavy/Piperlime inspiration boards specifically for photographers. They are really clever and so terribly useful! However, I think it’s awesome to dress it up with unique pieces that fit your style. I love recommending Etsy for purchasing handmade. This month I thought it would be fun to throw out a few ideas for actually making some clothing or accessories yourself! Maybe you can pick one of the tutorials I’ve listed and try something that suits your skill level and interest. Fashion something special by hand that will help make your Family Photo or Children’s Photos even more memorable. This may appeal to some of you more than others, but here it goes…

1.) For Mom’s Outfit, consider “re-purposing” an old t-shirt and pairing it with jeans and a cardigan. This one comes with an awesome tutorial. I’ve yet to try it myself (Okay, I’m a little intimidated!), but honestly you can do very simple tricks to get a different ruffle look. This technique could be done to decorate one of your shirts! Momma’s gotta have fun too, right?

2.) I believe the tutorial for this dress & ruffle cardigan combo (love the ruffle!) says “Intermediate” level. Basically, it is waay out of my league, but it really, really makes me smile, so I’ve included it here. I think you could find some similar styles out and about. (Check out the darling striped leggings!) IF you happen to be savvy with the sewing machine, you should really check this tutorial out. And this whole blog altogether. This crafting sister-duo is truly inspiring.

3.) I really enjoy this lady’s tutorial for rosette headbands. I used it when making the headband for my Sister’s Baby Shower, as well as for a Bride-to-Be in an Engagement Session (photos not posted yet). It is so straight forward and simple! If you have a daughter, and want to accessorize, I urge you to check it out! AND if you sew, she has some very clever ideas for repurposing your shirts into dresses for your little girl.

4.) I fell a bit behind on the guys’ ideas because all of my ideas today, for some reason, are centered around bowties or neckties (not that they’re intended to go with these particular shirt + shorts combos of course). There are so many great tutorials on the web for them. I think MAYBE I will try to make my husband a tie at some point. I laugh already thinking about how wonky it might be, and imagining him wearing it any way because he’s so sweet like that. Anyway, these ties would be so fun for little boys too.

Lastly I want to feature a quick shot of handmade sister/brother sets I came across on Etsy the other day. These are by etsy seller, Little Boats. This would be quite cute for a family portrait, or just a portrait of the kids together…There seem to be several etsy shops making sets like this, and they might even take special requests!

Schedule your Children’s/Family Photo early, in order to have photos in time for Holiday Cards!

{Have a Great Day!}