Oh So Cute Fabric Tutu!

Snooping around Pinterest I ran across these EVER SO cute fabric tutus that everyone was making (or buying on Etsy!)

They were so adorable that I HAD to have one for Willow, but I wasn't sure I wanted to spend that kind of money on something that I thought I could easily make for less than half the price.

I did a quick Google and came across the AdelynStone Blog that has a DIY tutorial for making a toddler fabric tutu.
(LOVE the site!  Check out the Repurpose page for some really cool ideas with ladders and suitcases!)

Since I have made tutu's before, I kind of had the basic idea of how to do this, but being the Google addict I am, I had to do some research before beginning.

I didn't have enough scrap fabric on hand for the project so I went to JoAnn Fabrics with my iphone in hand (I have a JoAnn Fabrics app that gives me coupons because I always forget the ones I have saved at home) and began looking for the things I needed.  I was really excited to find a roll of coordinated fabric pieces already cut to 2- 1/2 x 42 inches!  The fabrics were so cute and cost me, with the use of my 40% off coupon, around $8.00!

I wanted the skirt to last awhile (and because I like to keep things SIMPLE) I used a brown 1 1/2" wide satin ribbon instead of sewing the elastic waistband like KristanLynn did in her tutorial.  I took my precut fabric strips  (Another benefit to having bought the precut fabric was that they were cut to the perfect length already. No cutting at all was required for this project EXCEPT for cutting the ribbon to the perfect length to go around Wee One's waist and with enough left over to tie a sweet little bow. ) and started tying them around the ribbon, putting it around Willows waist every once in a while until I got it nice and full and the perfect size.

E-A-S-Y!! Even the uncrafty can handle this project! Here is how mine turned out...

Cute, huh?!  Willow loves it!  She
                                        twirls and dances 
and it really does look adorable on her.  

Well, she looks adorable no matter what she is wearing.

Let me know if you decide to take on this easy project!  I'd love to see your wee one twirling in your creation!

Please don't look at me that way.

I guess I have always been a pretty open minded person.
  
Don't get me wrong, I have my moments of being judgmental, "holier than thou", and moments when I should be tugging at the log in my own eye instead of pointing out the twig in theirs.  
But I have been through a lot in my life and I know that on days when I am not at my best because of some trauma (or drama??) or pain that has presented itself, I appreciate the grace that the smile a person I have been crabby with gives.  

Since my kids were little, when they would complain to me about how mean a teacher had been, or how rude a friend was being, 
I would say, 
                      "Well, maybe their dog died." 

Now you may be asking yourself, why would she say that?  
Let me put it simply for you....
                            Life is hard, and life just happens.  
Yep.  That's all I have for you, but it pretty much sums it up, right?

You never know if that lady that cuts in front of you in line at the store is just distracted because she recently found out she was losing her job, 

or the person that loses their temper with you over something that seems silly has a husband that was just diagnosed with cancer, 

or the teacher that is being short tempered has just had to put her dog to sleep after 15 years...  you just never know.  
                           Life is hard, and life just happens....to all of us.  

I need this grace more than anyone.

             
I am often wrapped up in my own little world, worried and and overwhelmed, just trying to make it through the day.  
I may not notice that I cut in front of you--  I'm sorry.  

I may not even notice you at all.  
                                        I am sorry. 

          
My head is busy trying to rationalize what my heart is feeling, and sometimes that takes all I have.

This is not an excuse for rude people, what it is 
              is an excuse for people that don't mean to be rude.  
We all have our moments, so please, smile at the man that frowns at you, pray for that teacher that has been losing her temper, and try to remember...

                I don't mean to be rude- It's just that  life is hard, and sometimes it just happens.  

---

What Would I Have Done Differently? (Part One...)

Raising a baby at this time in my life has made me ask that question a lot.

AND THE ANSWER IS...(Drum roll, please!):   
A few BIG things sprinkled with a lot of little things.   

When we bring a child into the world we aren't given a manual, a step-by-step checklist, or a written plan on how to turn that helpless, precious baby into a productive, positive, faith filled adult.  

And if we were given the luxury of such a plan, each child's would be significantly different,  because that's the way God made us-- all different.  (Why, Oh Why, couldn't it be simple??) 

Having raised all of our kids so far into their teenage years I am able to look back and see the positive (and sometimes negative) results of my parenting choices. 

I don't have enough time, nor enough courage, to lay it all out right here and now, but this is what I will share...

I would take care of ME more.  
Now I know that sounds self-centered, and you are thinking, How could that possibly make life better for a child you are raising?  Let me tell you- It makes life better for everyone!

In the process of taking care of my family, I forgot to take care of me.  

Selfless, loving, giving...  All of the things I thought I was being.  Exhausted, impatient, and sometimes bitter were what I had become.
  

What do I mean by taking care of me?  I mean taking time for myself...time to exercise, time to be alone, time to be with friends, time (and money) to get my hair or nails done... I always put myself last.  
Isn't that what any good Mom would do?  
                      Nope.  I know that now.

The healthier I am spiritually, physically, emotionally, and mentally- the better Mom I am.  This doesn't mean that I spend most of my day at the spa or at the gym.  
It means that I TRY to schedule time for me....sometimes...instead of never.

Expect More.   
I guess you could say I felt sorry for my kids.  I mean, they watched their Dad battle brain cancer for 5 years, only to lose him at a young age.  Throw some ADD, Anxiety, and Learning Disabilities into the mix and, well, it left me wanting to make life easier for them sometimes.  

BAD MISTAKE.

If our parents have high expectations for us that are placed with love, we tend grow into them.  If our parents have low expectations of us,  we tend to settle for good enough.   At times I set my expectations for my kids too low, mostly because I didn't want them to ever feel like they had failed me, or that they weren't good enough.  

I wish in more situations I had pushed them to not just settle for good enough, but instead to push the limit.

That's all the confession you get from me today! I take comfort in knowing that God knew my heart during those years, as He still does now, and that I did and continue to place my children at His feet through prayer.  We all do the best we can based on what we know.  

Oh, if I only knew then 
                                   what I think I know now... 

A new room for wee one.

I know.... It's been a long time since i've checked in.  I've been busy! 
Boyfriend has been in Japan on a business trip for the last three weeks (And i am missing him like crazy!!)

so...I have been busy finishing up some projects around here- like Willow's room!  

What do you think?  

So I already shared the bedding with you (Thanks Chella and Brian!) that the room was designed around.

I started by painting the walls soft yellow and green, matching the bedding.  
I then started painting the tree.  
This was A LOT harder than I thought it would be...that is until I decided I was making it too hard!  
Yep, I was trying to make it perfect, 
but after I just relaxed and let my creative energy flowww, It turned out great!
  

I was going to cut out leaves from scrapbook paper for the tree, but on a trip to my local Kohls I found these cool wall decals that had not only leaves that matched perfectly, but some ADORABLE owls and birds to boot! 

(What does "to boot" mean ?!)  

I hung a little birdhouse, and I must say it adds just the right touch to the adorableness!

I put a brown beanbag chair and a basket of books
              at the bottom of the tree,
                 you know, for those times when she just feels like                       sitting under a tree                              
       and reading a book :)

Next was an idea I got from Family Fun.  
A clothesline to hold Wee One's cute little hats and coats!  
I just painted the posts and the line, added a bird from the Kohl's find, and a few drawer pulls for hooks!  

Cute, cute, cute!

   

Add the growth chart and mobile I made for Willow's first birthday...

      

and some special items, like the bird painting her BM (Bio Momma) painted and a chest that my late husband made
for me, and we have a room that Wee One LOVES! 

       

I have a few small (But too cute not to share!) projects to do before I consider the room done.  Stay tuned for more!

Time to come out of the closet...

(No, these photos don't have anything to do with the post...They are just really cute!)

Not me, silly!  Willow.
  
We have 7 children - 2 boys and 5 girls.  We have 7 bedrooms in our home. 
(No, we are NOT millionaires and we don't live in a mansion.)  Our house is around 2800 sq. ft.  One of the bedrooms came from a transformed office, and two others were built into our 3 car garage - after much debate we decided it was more important for our kids to have their own room than our cars. 

As the kids have grown and moved out, another moves into their own room.  Right now there are "No Rooms at the Inn," but this will change soon as one more heads off to college in the Fall.  
Time to reorganize and rearrange sleeping spaces!

When Willow first came to live with us we had a little portable playpen that we put into our master bathroom.  This was fine as long as we didn't have to get up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night.  (Have I mentioned that I have had FOUR babies and my last was almost 10 lb.?!  Did I mention that I am not a big person?  Put those two thoughts together and you might figure out why those night time potty trips are not bound to stop.)   

Willow in the bathroom was not necessarily the best situation when Boyfriend needed to get up and get ready for work, either.  
Time to get creative!  
We happened to be all out of bedrooms, but we did have a big walk in closet in our room.  
Unfortunately it was full. 
(Yes, I do have a little shoe problem, but we all have our vices, right?!)  

First things first.  All of my clothes got transferred into the persons closet with the most space, which happened to be Uncle T's.  What would a 15 year old guy have hanging in is closet other than a few dress shirts and a jacket or two? There was a ton of room for my clothes.   I hadn't really thought about what  his friends might think when they looked into his closet and saw a lot of cute dresses and even cuter shoes!  I think I handle it pretty well by not bringing up the fact that when he was 2, he used to think his sisters tutu was his.  Self control, yep.  Sometimes I have it, sometimes I don't.  It is nice to know I have good blackmail material on him -- just in case!

The next steps were to tear out the shelves and paint the walls so it was  cleaner and cozier. 

Add a crib,  a mobile,  a cute painting

                  and we had ourselves a mini-nursery! 

This has worked out great for the past 9 months, but it is time to come out of the closet.  
I want my shoes closer to me.  

So now the fun begins!  I get to plan how to decorate her bedroom!  Being that her favorite thing in the world is being outside, I am thinking about a nature theme-- birds, trees, flowers, bees!  Up there is the bedding we have for her crib.  The crib is brown, not white as shown in the photo.  

Do you have any great ideas?  I'd love to hear 'em!