I've Reeled Mike In!!

After 4 years of marriage, I have finally reeled Mike into my crafts and projects!  He has always been into DIY stuff...just not the same kind as me.  He is always making something for hiking, camping, or jeeping.  And usually it involves stuff I have no interest in using or making.  

But ladies and gentlemen....he is now obsessed with my new Silhouette machine.  Him and my parents got me the machine and some vinyl as a graduation gift.  I have used the Silhouette for other things, but hadn't gotten around to trying out the vinyl.

Last night I decided to break it out and play around and Mike all but stole the machine away from me.  When he realized he could use it to make stickers for his jeep, there was no stopping him.  

I'm pretty sure there are going to be stickers all over his and my dad's jeeps now!  Here are some of the creations he has made so far:

I'm not sure if I'm ever going to get to use my machine again.  I went to workout yesterday morning and when I came home, he was already cutting out new designs.

The Pinterest Challenge was so much fun!  There were so many great ideas and I was very inspired.  I absolutely loved the gallery wall that Amber did over at Wills Casa.  I have gathered up some old frames and pictures that I want to use and starting to work on a wall for our craft room.  I am also going to use the Mini Pallet Sign from The Junk House.  I am very excited about this project.

Pinterest Challenge

Well here it is...my first major attempt at one of my pins on Pinterest!  We made more trips to Home Depot than we really wanted to, but all in all it went pretty smooth for the first time.  

Here was my inspiration:

Materials Needed:

4 Crates - We got them at Joann's.  They were $12, but we used a coupon and got them for $7.

Wood for the base - You will need to measure the crates to decide on length of cuts for the window frame base

4 L Brackets 

Wooden Dowels 

Wood Glue

Stain

Wood Screws

First we set the crates together to stage them and take measurements for the base.  We got 2 long boards cut  at 27 inches, 3 at 21 inches, 2 at 9.5 inches.  We got 1x3 pine boards, but what we didn't realize was that its not actually 3 inches wide.  So our base isn't perfect but we learned for next time.  Apparently there is a chart at Home Depot that explains this.

So we were off to Home Depot for all (well we thought all) the supplies.  Peyton was with us so it was definitely an event!  We had some very nice guys help us out with the cutting and give some helpful tips.

Next we mixed some wood putty to cover up the holes from the staples on the sides of the crate and set them to the side to dry.

We used wooden dowels to attach the boards for the base to each other.  This was definitely the most challenging step of the whole process!  We did not perfect it and need more practice with this for sure.  We lined the boards up with each other and marked where to drill our holes.  When we put it all together we realized we got off somewhere so the base isn't squared up.  We added L brackets to the corners to make it more secure.

The wood putty had dried and the crates were ready to be sanded and stained.  We just lightly sanded the wood putty areas and to make sure there weren't any areas with splinters.  This was mine and my mom's first attempt at ever staining something.  Its a lot easier than what I thought it would be.  Besides the mess, I think I like it better than painting.  We really loved the way the color turned out.  

After the stain has dried we put the crates back together to screw them in.  We used a ratchet to make sure they stayed still while we were drilling.

After talking with the guy at Home Depot, we decided to countersink the screws so that it looked a little more professional. That means that the screw will be sunk into the wood so that you can putty it and hide the screw.  This was very intimidating because it required a new tool.  But again we found out it was not hard at all.  We used the countersink tool to drill a hole and then put the screw in.  Ta-da...we know how to countersink!

Next to fill in that hole....this was another difficult part.  You definitely need to measure twice (or 4 times) and cut once.  We had to cut twice.  Measure the inside and then simply put the screws in the same way we did before on the sides then screw the bottom pieces on.  Next we attached the base to the crates and stained the box.  Then we polyurethaned the whole thing.

And here is our final product!  My inspiration had more sophisticated things in the crates, but we liked this coffee table because it would give us some more space for all of Peyton's things.  Help us keep it off the floor easily.

Ok so maybe the stuff isn't going to stay off the floor for very long....but we have a place to put it when she goes to bed!!

I am in love with doing wood projects now!!  My next project is another coffee table I found on Pinterest, but I want to turn it into a craft table for Peyton with a paper roll attached!

What a Summer So Far

 I have had an AMAZING summer so far and can't believe there's only a month and a half left!  My friend  over at Wills Casa reviews her goals each month and I felt inspired to do the same (her blog is amazing by the way and you should definitely check it out).

I had several things that I wanted to do over the summer.  Some have happened.....others will hopefully happen soon!

1. Read lots of books for fun since all of my Master's classes are done.  I have done pretty good with this one so far.  I read all of the 50 Shades of Grey books and I just started book 5 of the Sookie Stackhouse series.

               

It has been so great to just read what I want to read!  Any other good book suggestions?

2.  Get together with friends more often and have our kids play together------This one has been a little difficult with everyone's different schedules.  Peyton did get to hang out with Ramona (from Wills Casa) and they had a blast.  We need to have more play dates :)  We also have a playdate planned with another friend next week.  

3. Plan some fun projects with Peyton------Another that needs to be worked on.  We have been out of town and then I had a school conference to go to last week.  I have pinned several things on Pinterest that I want to do and will plan better so that they can actually happen!

4. Work on adding more items to Little Bunny SueSue------I have done pretty good at this one as well.  We have been pretty consistent with adding new items each week and I think this has really helped keep a steady stream of traffic to the shop.  

          

5.  Try some of the DIY things I have on Pinterest--------Haven't done this one at all but I have a plan.  I found this pin though and I am going to try and make it this weekend!  I am very excited about it.  We will see how much it looks like the picture ;)  Wills Casa (I know I seem like a stalker) also had a link to a Pinterest Challenge and I think I may have to join in to help give me a push to actually make it!  Anyone else want to join in?

Peyton's First Trip to Disney World

Animal Kingdom 

My What a Big Cookie

Magic Kingdom

Peyton's First Ride

 Fun at the Pool

 Keeping Busy....But Stopping to Smell the Flowers

Lego Fun!!

Plane Ride to Disney

The Princesses

Rain Rain Go Away

Safari Ride

Seeing Mickey and Friends 

Completely Worn Out

Our Newest Shop Addition

Our first craftshow is over;  Peyton's 2nd Birthday Party is over;  Peyton's first trip to Disney is over... So we decided it was finally time to get to work.   We've just finished the cutest dress ever and Peyton looks so darling in it!  It's called the Aubrey and came from a great shop on Etsy called Ruby Jean's Closet.   If you are a sewer, I highly recommend that you check out her shop.    

Did I tell you that we've also decided to start ordering fabric to sell?   We've got a new shop - Little Bunny Supplies with 6 bolts of fabric.   Not much yet, but we hope to steadily add to the supply and sell at a very reasonable price.     The dress is made from 2 of the fabrics we have in stock from Riley Blake, called Indian Summer.    I just love it!!  What do you think?    

Minnie Mouse Party - Part 2

Now lets look at all the delicious food that we made for the party.  And of course everything had to be named especially for Mickey Mouse Clubhouse since that's Peyton's favorite show!

We decided to have both cupcakes and a cake because to get the cake I wanted was way too expensive to get it big enough for everyone.  Plus I have recently become addicted to the new cupcake place by our house :)

The cake turned out absolutely fantastic!  I got the idea for the cupcake here.  Sweet Crumbs Bakery did great with the picture.

The cupcakes were from Kristen's Cupcakery.  They were strawberry lemonade and so delicious.  They were definitely the hit of the party.  I had originally ordered 1 dozen I thought, but when I went to pick them up there were 2 dozen.  I was very happy about that by the end of the party because there were only 3 left!  

For lunch we decided to have hot dogs because of the song on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and because they are one of Peyton's favorites.  We called them "Hot Diggity Dogs".  They were so simple and delicious, just hot dogs wrapped in crescent rolls.

For the drink we had pink lemonade.  I found the straws and milk bottles on Etsy and then I made the labels.  Vwry simple and the kids loved drinking out of them.  They especially loved that they could take them home.  I overheard several kids saying they were going to use cups like these at their parties ;)

We also had some little smokies wrapped in bacon that we called "Pete's Little Smokies".  Also another hit.   I think I could have stood by this bowl the whole party and been happy!

Another one of Peyton's favorites is a plain old sandwich so we decided to have "Clubhouse Sandwiches".  Very simple....simply lay out all the fixins for a sandwich and you're good to go.  

We also had "Minnie Mac and Cheese" but somehow I forgot to take a picture.  

Stay Tuned for Part 3 

To see all the fun activities we had for the kids!

Peyton is 2 - Minnie Mouse Birthday Party Part 1

Last year, Peyton did not get to enjoy a party on her first birthday.  She was very sick on the day she was suppose to have her party so we had to cancel.  So this we year I just had to go all out.  She is obsessed with all things Minnie and Mickey and we are heading to Disney World later this week, so we thought it was very appropriate to have a Minnie Mouse birthday party.  In part 1 I will show all of the decorations that we did.  Then in part 2 and 3 I will show you the foods we ate and the activities we had for the kiddos.

On the mantle I put a banner that I made that said "Happy Birthday".  I got the idea from the pin.  I used my awesome Silhouette Cameo that I got as a graduation gift when I finished my Master's.  Then I tied strips of hot pink tulle between each banner piece.  On top of the mantle I put a vase and flowers that I found at Hobby Lobby.

I wanted to make special bags for the boys and girls so the girls got a Minnie bag and the boys got a Mickey bag.  Inside there were several Mickey Mouse Clubhouse goodies.  And I locked out and got them from the Dollar Tree.  They had a great selection of stuff for the kids.  Originally I had gone to Party City, but I was able to get more stuff for the kids at Dollar Tree.

I got this little sign from Hobby Lobby as well.  I found this play on words somewhere on pinterest and loved it.

We decided to spruce up the kitchen with these lovely curtains.  Also found this fabric at Hobby Lobby and at the last minute.  We saw it and just had to get it.  They were absolutely perfect for the party and super easy to make.  2 quick straight stitches across the top and bottom.

I loved the banner so much that I made one for the table too.  This one said "Peyton is 2".  I also made some black, hot pink, and light pink tissue pom poms.  You can find the tutorial for making these here.  In the back we have special Minnie Mouse and Mickey Mouse plates that we got from Target for only $3 each.  We also made a styrofoam Minnie head to put in a planter.  I got the idea for this here.  It was pretty simple to make and pretty cheap.  We already had the planter sitting around the house so all we needed were the styrofoam balls, a wooden dowel, and we used modeling clay to stick the big dowel into the planter with.  We then stuck the styrofoam balls together with the dowels and spray painted them black.  Then we spray painted the planter hot pink, let it all dry, and added the bow.

Stay tuned for Part 2!