told you so...

These are the dresses my mom made for the girls....they are beautiful!

We had a great Christmas but are not finished with our celebration yet. Off to Rochester for a few days to see family and friends. Will update you all on our Christmas goodies next week ;o)

So I made these dresses

I thought the girls should wear matching dresses to church on Sunday so I whipped up a few dresses for them to wear.

Yes, I said whipped because it took me all of 30 minutes to make them. Super Super Super easy. One day I will share ;o)

But my mom just sent the girls some Christmas dresses to wear ON Christmas which totally make mine look like rags. I will post more when I get them on them!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Another cute "green" gift or two

Fudge! I love fudge but I hate make it the looonnnggg way. As you know I make everything from scratch these days but fudge is where it take a short cut.

I don't remember where I found this recipe so I am sorry to the person who is not receiving credit for this super easy fudge recipe.

3 cups chocolate
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 Tablespoon vanilla

Melt chocolate in microwave and add other ingredients. Mix until well blended and place in a 9x9 baking dish lined with wax paper. Place in freezer overnight (or until hard). Cut and serve. I wrapped some up for Zach to bring to work this week.

And another tutorial...

Reusable snack bags!


Start with a scrap of fabric in whatever size you wish. I made a smaller one in this tutorial for a little person in my life.

sew right sides together leaving the top open












fold over top so the right side is facing you and sew velcro to the side.












I reinforced the sides after this...

Turn inside out and...wallah..a snack bag.












This took me all of 5 mins a bag ;o)

no more wet sheets

Cooper is potty training...

He is doing a great job during the day but as with all children, the night time is a different story.

Not only does he wet his diaper....he SOAKS his diaper! All the way up to his neck AND the sheets are completely soaked as well.

Needless to say, I am totally sick of doing an extra load of laundry each day and having a 2 year old in my bed at 5:00 each morning.

Someone told me about these pads you can put on your kids beds that absorb all that pee. You can just toss that in the washer instead of crawling under the bunk bed only to hit your head and knees a few times changing the sheets.

Unfortunately, these pads were RIDICULOUSLY expensive so I took it upon myself to make one.

Here it is...


It was super easy to make. All I did was take an old crib mattress pad cover, cut it, and sewed on a piece of super cute flannel.

So if you are in the market for a kids pee pad, let me know ;o)

Babies are a great accessory

.

Cooper wasn't feeling great the other day and wanted mommy to hold him. Mommy had to get some things done so I put him in a wrap on my front while Addy hung out in the ergo on my back! It wasn;t as painful as I anticipate and after a while they switched. I know this isn't the best pic but it works!

I also made this ginormous baby carrier cover today so Addy and I can brave the snow with the kids. I still need to add a hood for her but it is pretty comfy.

That's it for now folks...

a few random thoughts...

1. Your first baby tends to get a bath nightly. With your third, they are lucky to get a bath once a week or two.
2. It is possible to carry all three children at once. I have a picture to prove it. I am only holding two in the picture but you can see where the third could fit.
3. Speaking of pictures, I should probably get those off of the camera...maybe tomorrow.
4. Making Christmas gifts is MUCH more time consuming than buying them. But I will add that it is MUCH more rewarding as well.
5. I changed a total of 10 poopy diapers today between two children...one of which is potty trained but had a tummy bug.
6. I have learned that I can choose to have a good day. Even if EVERYTHING possible goes wrong, it can still be a good day IF I CHOOSE.
7. I am reading a book called, The Simple Christmas, and I was reminded of a phrase I absolutely love. " To love is to see the face of God". I applied that to my children today and it was amazing.
   
8. Cooper and I got to read a bunch of books together today and it was awesome.
9. The lights on my Christmas tree need some work. It seems as those most of the ornaments which were hung by small children and mommy didn't feel like moving them have decided to pull many of the branches down hiding the lights. I guess that is tomorrow's job.
10. Speaking of jobs...I have decided to become more organized. I got a mom's calendar and actually filled it out today. Looking for more organizational tips. I cannot seem to remember anything anymore.
11. and that being said, my baby is crying...again so I must go tend to her. Nighty night folks.
    

Easy Christmas gift idea

Although I am totally ruining the surprise for some of you, I figured I would post an easy Christmas gift I am making to go along with things this holiday.

It's hot chocolate! YUM!

Here is how you do it:

1. Chop up some chocolate (I used bulk chocolate from the Amish store) and add one cup to a mason jar.
2. Add a cup of sugar next
3. Add a cup of coco powder (again I used dutch coco powder from the Amish store)
4. Place some marshmallows on top for decoration and cover

I added this tag to it:

Hot chocolate mix

Directions: set marshmallows aside, mix contents in jar,
Take out 1 cup and mix with 2 cups milk in saucepan until desired temperature is reached.

*Note: if you are a family member or someone who may be receiving a basket, please do not copy this recipe until after Christmas. Thank you!

This is my grown-up Christmas list.

I totally realize this is very juvenile of me but I couldn't resist. Window shopping is my specialty and if you know me, you know I rarely buy things for myself. That being said, the other day, my other half asked what I would like for Christmas. We have agreed (as we have every year) to not spend much money on each and not to buy just to buy.

So I figured I would give him a real list...a list that all my blogger friends can see too ;o) It's so fun to live in virtual world sometimes.

* I just love love love this soap. It's called Lavender, goats, and oats and it is made by Wind Song Acres. Since I have had babies, I am in love with the smell of Lavender. I also love goats milk soap (cause it good for the skin) and the oats act like a mini loofah. ahhhh how I love my lavender, goats, and oats. Oh and did I mention this soap is very reasonably priced and lasts forever. I actually found this seller at the local farmers market this summer and bought from her there. I have gone through about 4 bars since then, so I would have to say it's worth it. Okay enough with the soap....

* There was no picture of the actual LAVENDER, goats, and oats, so I had to use this one.

* A food mill. Yes, I said a food mill. My BFF swears by a food mill and with the amount of sauce I make, I feel it will come in rather handy.

*What mama doesn't want a massage. I have heard some good things about Mezza Luna in Hamilton so I think I will try it out (that is if I get a gift card there). All I can say is I REALLY REALLY need someone to work on these knots of mine.

*SOCKS. The other day I actually pulled out a pair of socks I have owned since middle school. Now they were pretty wholly but I still wear them because I cannot justify spending money on socks for me.

*A bread bowl. I mean a BIG bowl I can mix my bi weekly 3 loafs of bread in.

*The list wouldn't be complete without this.... I just love mint baileys
*And just because it's cute and totally out of my price range.... I am totally into wraps right now.


*Just a note to say THIS IS A WISH LIST...not what I expect Santa to bring me....just a few suggestions.