My Brother My Friend Subway Art

Last week I was in some kind of funk and just couldn't motivate myself to do much of anything. But I was feeling bad for my boys. We just weren't doing all the usual stuff. I decided that we needed to do something creative. I've been seeing some cool subway art around the internet lately and thought maybe we could make our own. I got so excited that I skipped a step I should have done, then payed for it later on.  I will tell you how I made this and include the step I should have done!

1. I used a plain old 16x20 stretched canvas from Michaels. This had been sitting in my basement forever, with grand plans in my head of what I might do with it. But, plans are better carried out and I decided that my brain was taking too long for those other plans!

2. PREP YOUR CANVAS. Okay, so I didn't do this and had to go back later to touch up the letters because the paint bled under the vinyl letters! So. Very important to prep - use white paint, gesso, whatever. Just don't skip this step!

3. Cut vinyl letters (or get them cut). The bold letters I printed off my computer, then cut them into the vinyl with an exacto, the fun font I cut with my cricut. Stick the letters on your canvas how you want them. Make sure they are well sealed.

4. This is the fun part. Let your kids have free reign with paint, brushes, fingers, and hands! If they are littles like mine are, point out all the "white parts" to cover.

 This is what it looked like when the boys were finished.

 Atlas: "My work here is done."

5. Allow to dry. When paint is dry, you can spray the whole thing with a lacquer spray for more of a sheen. I used acrylic paint, and I thought it ended up looking a little dull, but the lacquer gives it just enough of a shine. 

6. Carefully peel off your vinyl letters. You can do this before step 5 if you want to spray everything, letters and all.

 As you can see here, there was a bit of bleeding. I ended up touching up the bold letters, but not the names. The letters would have been much crisper had I only been a little more patient and did #2!

So there you go. Totally easy, Totally do-able, Totally Cool art for your home.

He's 3! With a Rainbow Party!

 Otto turned 3 last week and he couldn't be more excited. He's been talking for months about his "Rainbow Birthday" and it finally happened! A little back story: Around the supper table, my parents ask everyone what their thankful thing for the day is. Since my niece and nephew have been staying with them since January, they've gotten into the habit too. So even when they come to my house, they always ask, "What is your thankful thing?" For months, every time Otto is asked what his thankful thing is, he replies, "I'm thankful for my RAINBOW BIRTHDAY.", the last part usually said in the most awesome way possible. After he says it, his cousins will always say, "NOT AGAIN!" because he says it every. single. time. Needless to say, he was excited for what was to come. And come it did, in all its glory!

 

We had RAINBOW everything! Rainbow games - a rainbow relay where the kids had to run to assemble the pieces of the rainbow, and rainbow bean bag toss (not pictured). Everything on the food table was rainbow too: rainbow jello, rainbow Skittles and Twizzlers,  rainbow fruit, and the Super Epic Rainbow Cake I made myself thanks to Whisk Kid. I made the loot bags myself: personalized vinyl pouches, coloring book with pictures of Otto's favorite characters, crayons, and of course, some rainbow Skittles!

 

On Otto's actual birth day, we spent some time at Gramma and Grandpa's, where they gave him his gifts. The best gift in Otto's eyes is the dinosaur quilt Gramma made for him. He LOVED it! As soon as he got over the shock of how awesome it is, he immediately started pointing at each of the dinosaurs, naming them by name, "That one triceratops. That one a brachiasaurus. That one T-Rex. That one stegasaurus!" He was over the moon! Then Gramma and Grandpa took us all out for ice cream and the cousins all played in the playland.

When Pappy got home for the weekend, he brought one more gift for Otto - a balance bike, which Otto just loves!

 

Happy Birthday, Otto!

40 Weeks Today

I know that only about 5% of births happen exactly on the due date. Is it wrong to hope like heck that we're one of the 5%?

I want this baby out! I'm terrified that the longer this baby stays in, the bigger this baby will be and I might not be able to get baby out!

Today I put together a little ABC book with my Zutter machine. It's so cute, and the animals in it are adorable. Colors are great too. I'll post a pic another time. I also made cookies. Tonight we went to Okotoks for a walk by the river and out for supper. Andy swears he was trying to make me giggle, but I think he's trying to bear-claw the baby right out of my belly in this pic!

This past week the baby room has really come together. I mod-podged some paper onto a bookshelf and cut some vinyl shapes for the wall with my CriCut. Andy finished the drapery rod so we hung the drapes. There are only a few things left to do for the completion of the room, but Andy insists he will need something to do when the baby actually does arrive. So, here is one picture to whet your appetite, and I will show more when things are finally together.

Waiting Time

I've been busy.

Last week we prayed that the baby wouldn't come until after the recital. Baby listened and hung out for awhile longer.

Saturday came and still no baby (even after some intense contractions Friday night). So then I got to thinking, Hey, I could stand a little more time to get some things done. Time is good. Time is nice. So this is what I've been up to:

Sock Creatures. I've made three. Just finished the last one today. We've got the twins, Max & Millie, and little Percy. They're kind of fun and a bit ridiculous. Check out their awesome tails!





















On Monday, I made this piece of artwork for the wall. I sewed fabric and also added paper and buttons. The tree and the birds are all templates I made from Maya Road chipboard shapes. I'm sure I could have come up with something more original, but I really loved these shapes, so I just drew them on my own and adapted them for this project.












I love the sewing on the bottom with the little round logs.





















Andy finished the set of drawers. It is BEAUTIFUL! I love the look of the grain.

Over the Easter holiday, I made this slip cover for the chair.

















I've been getting the baby's room more together and it's looking great! I've been cleaning and tidying spaces around the house and tomorrow I will do some baking. I'm really enjoying this TIME!

But... I am getting bigger. Can you believe I've gained almost exactly what the midwives hoped I'd gain: 40 POUNDS! I'm out to HERE!!! Mostly I'm feeling pretty good. I've got Braxton Hicks contractions, constant kidney pain, and now swelled legs, ankles, and feet because I have to spend a good portion of the day (and sometimes middle of the night) standing to alleviate some of the kidney pain. Other than that, I'm happy. I'll be much happier when I get to cuddle this wee babe in my arms. Although by the time he or she makes her grand entrance, she might not be so "wee". One of our midwives thinks this one is going to have a long body with long legs.
And here's one of Andy. I think he feels a little left out with all these pictures of me and my belly.

Preparations for Babe/24 Weeks

I'm posting this picture a bit late. This is me at 24 weeks. I'm now almost 25 weeks. Wow, does time fly! Especially when you're going by weeks.









Here's Andy, plugging away at the baby room. Two coats of primer and this is the first coat of paint. I love it! It is a happy green, that's for sure, and it looks so cheerful in the daylight! You're doing an awesome job, Andy!