Saturday, November 28, 2009

Sweet and Simple Mobiles

For the crafty mama. A little felt, a bit of thread, some color inspiration and voila! You've got yourself a mobile!



Oh....my aunt's name is Nancy

{originally posted on my other blog}

More often than not, whenever I introduce myself to someone new, I get that response. Yup, it seems everyone either has a mom named Nancy or an aunt with my moniker. Do I mind? Not one bit. I love my name. It's not very common because as you've figured, people with my name tend to be much older than me. It's good in both English and Spanish;which is important because I'm Brown. Thank goodness my name isn't something that would be impossible to pronounce in English.

On a slightly different side of the name topic. Some of my cool colleagues and I spent most of last week at a conference in sunny southern California. More than once, the subject of names came up (This is the kind of stuff girls talk about). Girls like to imagine what we'll name our future kiddies...yes, you know you have/did. So, when I came upon this super cutie name selection website, I couldn't resist sharing. Especially because I have two friends that are preggers.


This adorable website gives you the opportunity to search for names based on a large selection of categories like: traditional names for different cultures, celebrity baby names, and dispositions. You can also just search for a name you have in mind. It will provide you with a cutie little graphic you can change and then purchase random thingers from. LOVE IT! I love names and monograms and this just drives me gaga.

Logo for NancyLogo for Olivia
Umm....the hubby knows I want a baby girl named Olivia. He's down. I call it!

Give it a looksie...I'm sure you'll like it.

Any baby names you wanna call dibs on?

Is it a boy or a girl??

I was perusing thebump.com when I came upon this baby gender predictor. It's supposed to be over 90% accurate. I input my brother's girlfriends info (that is due in March) and found that it definitely gave the correct gender. They're having a BOY! We can't wait to meet little Corbin Ryder.

Give it a try and let me know if it's right.

Now I'm only wondering if it's the actual date of conception. I mean, what if the time frame was over the span of two months??

Friday, November 27, 2009

A Birdie for Your Birdie

How cute is this?! Something for the files...



Tools and Materials

-Bird template
-Heavyweight paper
-Craft knife
-Screw punch
-White glue
-Embroidery floss
-1/8-inch armature wire
-Wire clippers
-Brown floral tape
-Pink and green card stock
-Flower craft punch
-Leaf craft punch
-Hot-glue gun and hot-glue sticks
-Monofilament

1. Print bird templates onto heavyweight paper. Cut out shapes with a craft knife. Punch holes where marked.

2. Assemble birds, running white glue along the slits to secure pieces in place. Thread a 6- to 12-inch (depending on how low/high you want your bird to hang) length of embroidery floss through each hole.

3. Cut 12- to 18-inch lengths of 1/8-inch armature wire with wire clippers. Wrap with brown floral tape. Repeat with a couple different lengths of armature wire. Attach 3 to 4 lengths together to form branches.
4. Punch flowers from pink card stock. Punch leaves from green card stock. Punch a hole in the center of each flower and bend petals upwards.
5. Double-knot embroidery floss a quarter inch from one end, then cut 2 inches down from knot, creating a stamen (knot and above) and a stem (below the knot). To stiffen embroidery floss, dip it into glue and run through your fingers to spread glue down floss; let dry.
6. Feed the "stems" through the holes in the center of the petals to create small flowers. Hold a flower upside-down by stem, put a dab of hot glue onto the underside of the hole, and add a leaf. Repeat with all punched flowers.
7. Use floral tape to attach flowers to branches. Tie birds to branches, balancing against each other, to finish mobile. Tie a length of embroidery floss or monofilament to the center of the mobile to hang.

Friday, November 20, 2009

Rice and Beans...oh, yumm...

Here we are! A hubby, a wifey, and a frijolito on the way!




Enough said.