T-shirt Transformation

My last project of 2009 (of course, watch, next time I write the date, I'll put 2009 instead of 2010 and I've been so good!) was something I've wanted to try for awhile......but wasn't quite sure of........ repurposing a tshirt.

I'm a sucker for t-shirts on clearance........and you know, with 5 kids, I'll use it sooner or later ..... someone's good tshirt will get one of those mysterious stains that won't come out or I'll need a last minute birthday present. So, I had a short sleeve, boring, grey t-shirt just hanging around....... begging to be refashioned.........waiting for a child to wear it.......no, really, my 9 year old just needed some more long sleeve shirts for winter. I remembered, a while back, Ashley at Make It and Love It took a short sleeve shirt and showed how to change it into a long sleeve shirt -awesome and easy!! Great idea and so many, many possiblilities!!!

I used a pink t-shirt of mine -I never wore it because it was too long- for the sleeves and the ruffle on the front. Very satisfying to use something that you probably would have gotten rid of any way. I'm looking at t-shirts in a whole new light now. I think the toughest part was measuring the short sleeve to see how wide to cut the longer sleeve. I ended up having to cut the long sleeve smaller and pinning it a couple times until it fit.

I wasn't sure what to put on the front because I've seen so many neat ideas. My daughter picked ruffles on the front. I gathered my strip first though, right down the middle, and then sewed it on to the t-shirt right along the gather stitch. I may add one on each side of the current one, we haven't decided. Another thought was for a flower on the front of the shirt like this or a bunch of flowers like this.

Great project-quick, easy and fun!!

edited to add I linked up with Today's Creative Blog Get Your Craft On

and Blue Cricket Design's Show and Tell Wednesday

and Somewhat Simple's Strut Your Stuff Thursday and

Round Robin at Keeping up with The Schultz Family

Check out all these blogs for some great, creative ideas! Thanks to all who share their wonderful ideas with the rest of us!!!

Happy New Year!!

We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day.

~Edith Lovejoy Pierce

Wishes for a happy, healthy New Year!

Christmas Fun.......

What a busy, fun, happy weekend!!

After lots of Christmas Eve baking and dinner made by hubby, we had a special Christmas Eve snack....yummy vanilla ice cream with pieces of peppermint candy we crushed ourselves....a wonderful idea from Heidi at Blue Eyed Blessings!

We put out our cookies and milk for Santa and carrots and reindeer food for the reindeer and soon, all the children were nestled all snug in their beds and fast asleep-except the baby, who didn't feel too well on Christmas, he had a tough Christmas Eve night.

(yes, I know the reindeer food is in the house, my husband and I obviously didn't think that one through when we did it the first time with my oldest and then couldn't change it the following year, newbie mistake)

Since then, it's been lots of opening, eating, visiting, eating, playing, eating........the kids are having a ball and I'm in chocolate heaven!

Rocking out with the Barbie guitar my two youngest girls got from their cousins.

Love these paper dolls-I ordered them for my mom to give to my 6 year old-great present!

My 12 year old's favorite gift-this was a tough one for us but she loves it and while I'm in chocolate heaven, she's in texting heaven!

Trucks-need I say more.......

Not a present but she loved the wrapping paper-she was easy to shop for!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday!

Merry Christmas....

Merry Christmas!

Many wishes for a peaceful Merry Christmas!

Enjoy!

Teachers' Gifts...check, check, check, check, check

2 days until Christmas!!!

(as my girls keep reminding me and reminding me and reminding me.......)

I've been checking my list and checking it twice.......

and last night I finished the girls' teachers' gifts-

and then packed up my sewing machine for a few days because unfortunately the dining room is for dining and we need to eat on Christmas Day!

I made each of the girls' teachers a fabric notebook cover from Skip To My Lou.

I had the fabric on hand and they were quick and easy to put together.

I'm going to make them some chocolate/peanut candy to go with each one and for the aides and send them to school tomorrow. My girls have to go to school all day tomorrow which they think is horrible!

(I, on the other hand, think of it as a blessing and my last 2 free hours to get some stuff done before Christmas!)

Off to cross some more things off my mega huge list of things to do-my week's been a bit crazy with an unplanned trip to the doctor yesterday-all my kids have colds and my 6 year old started complaining Saturday night of an ear ache....first ear infection of the winter. My 4 year old told me the other night her sniff was blocked up and then proceeded to demonstrate for me a few hundred times.

Have a great day!!

Hat Day

It's crunch time.....and I'm not talking Nestle Crunch!!

Just like all of you..... there's lots to do and there never seems to be enough time in the day.

Our school PTO is sponsoring a performance for the kids today-a wonderful singer who is great with the kids and brings tons of hats-he changes hats all the way through his performance. In honor of him, today was hat day at school.

I thought I had the girls convinced to wear Santa hats for the season.....but that would have been too easy. My 9 year old wanted to make a hat and as soon as my 6 year old saw her..........Santa hats weren't going to work.

My 9 year old started off with a black fleece hat. I suggested sewing small ornaments to it and then remembered we had a green hat. I sewed and she made a paper star to go on top. Very cute!!

Check-One happy child!

I then remembered seeing a cute tutorial for Easy Fairy Crowns over at 4 Crazy Kings this week and quickly suggested it to my 4 and 6 year olds. They loved the idea and we got started. I didn't have any headbands so I used some thin, pretty flexible wire my husband had in the cellar. I wrapped it around each child's head to measure and then looped it around 3-4 times. I cut and then taped the ends. I followed the rest of the tutorial and let the girls pick out the colors and ribbons they wanted. I sewed through the tulle and ribbon when I was done to make sure it wouldn't pull out-I forgot to tie a knot with the ribbon when I was done wrapping and just finished wrapping, put the tulle and ribbon in and then tied the knot. Note to self.....tie the knot next time! Very cute!

Check-Two Very Happy Twirly Children!

Quick, Easy, Yummy Baking......

or, at my house yesterday, Plan Number 3 due to lack of ingredients!

Due to a couple of recent Bake Sales, the tree lighting and my oldest daughter's huge paper mache project........

I was out of flour!!!!

The girls and I went to make snickerdoodles for another bake sale during the snow storm yesterday and I realized I had no flour. I usually don't go through a bag quite so fast and usually have another bag in the closet, but not yesterday.

I quickly moved on to Plan Number 2 and decided to make cupcakes. Can you believe-I had no cake mixes either!!! All I had were brownie mixes but I didn't want to make just plain brownies. I knew you could make cookies using cake mixes so I searched for cookies made out of brownie mix.

BINGO!

I found this recipe for Brownie Chip Cookies
All you need is 1/3 cup of oil, chocolate chips and 2 eggs-sigh....I had all the ingredients!

Quick, easy to mix up, yummy! My 4 year and I made another batch today because the girls loved them and only got 1 each yesterday.

So, if you're running short on flour or time, this is a great recipe. I think it also would be yummy with some m & m's thrown in..........

Now I just have to make sure I keep eggs in the house-I always seem to run out of those too!!