Posts by Nat

Back in {one} saddle again

Posted by Nat on Oct 21, 2011 | 1 comment

Right about the time I had my son, Jack (my second child), I remember thinking to myself, “I can’t wait to have my body back.”   I think that’s something that sneaks up on you in mothering and parenting in general- it’s a physically demanding task.  It’s one I love with all of my heart, but it’s taxing and strenuous, just the same.  Breastfeeding alone is enough to make me want to cup my hands over my chest and say, “Mine!” from time to time (though I haven’t acted on it…)

My wonderful husband, Michael, has really payed attention to me.  Well, he pays attention to me regardless of the situation- I’m lucky like that.  But he really listened when I would toss comments left and right, sprinkling them into conversations here and there.  I’d say things like, “When I’m done having kids, I want to set some fitness goals.”  Or, “How in the he** am I going to exercise when we have 3 kids?”  Recently, near our home, a new YMCA has opened up.  That alone is cool, but then we found out that the Y has FREE “child watch” with a family membership.  Meaning I can take my kids with me, drop them off in a cute playroom with an outdoor, fenced in playground attached, and waltz on over to the gym and workout.  Try a class.   Do some Zumba.  Run a 5K on the treadmill.  All things I can’t do quite yet because my rear is so out of shape.

Michael listened.  We signed up.  We can’t necessarily afford it 100%, but we’re doing it.

So I’ve started.  The mission has begun.  I am going to workout three times a week.  That’s my goal.  A hefty one for our lifestyle and what we’re used to.  It’s a total pain to get there- Jack cries when I drop them off, the Child Watch girls can already hear us coming and I can see them bracing for at least 10 minutes of crying, but once I hop on a machine and start sweating, feeling 3-babies-worth of belly jiggling and (hopefully) melting away (slowly, I’m sure), I’m happy knowing that I’m at least doing something active for myself.  Last week the schedule I tried did not work, so I’m going to try a different one this week- still some stuff to figure out, but I’m exercising.  Yay for me!

My goals?  I’m not one to get caught up in numbers.  It’s not so much how much do I weigh, it’s what clothes can I fit into next?  What (relative) size am I?  Can I put on my favorite old jeans?  That cute skirt?  Will my thighs stop rubbing together so I can wear skirts and be comfortable again?  Can I do without Spanx?  This is where I’d like to be. Aside from that, I’d like to start by running a 5K, and work up to a half marathon.  And I have always wanted to do a mud run.  We’ll see.  Yes indeed- we will see!

Microcrafts: Halloween Bunting

Posted by Nat on Oct 20, 2011 | 1 comment

I am so excited to tell you about a new book, “Microcrafts,” by Margaret McGuire, Alicia Kachmar, Katie Hatz, and Friends.  I was sent this book by Eric at Quirk Books, the publisher.  The book itself is very nice- quality paper, great photos and instructions.  If you Google it you’ll find lots of lovely reviews with photos from the book, but I’m more into showing you what I’ve made from the book.  I’m new to the world of microcrafting, and after looking at this book I’ll be trying several things from it.  Having a little girl obsessed with tiny things helps.

The first and most accessible project for me (given when it arrived with family and friends in town) was bunting.  I guess one would call it “micro-bunting” because the little flags are only 3/4″ across!  It was super easy to slice up the paper. I dug into my crafting stash and found an angle guide for my paper cutter (which is broken- I need a new one).

I decided to add to our Halloween decor, so I chose the paper, and cut it into a few 1-inch strips.

Then it was just time to make triangles:

 As I was slicing I gained an assistant.  Often I have to tell Anna that she can only watch with my projects, but she is totally into using scissors right now, so I just gave her a few strips and traced the triangles on for her- she loved helping, and she actually did a great job.  She also helped me sort the triangles after slicing them so that I could load them into the sewing machine in a pattern.

I got lots of “awesome mommy” points that afternoon- she was so happy.

The only problem I had (please share if you know a solution) is that they won’t lay flat like they do in the book.  My first attempt was too embarrassing to post, so I tried again, lengthening the stitch, and that helped a little.  I tried flattening them overnight with a magazine or two (hot doctors can always help, right?)…

…But they still don’t look as nice as in the book.  Oh well- they are still super cute.

I’m going to make some more for our laundry room, which will be updated soon, so I’ll post more about them if I figure out what helps them lay flat. Maybe something to do with the tension in my thread…  There will definitely be more microcrafting posts coming up!

Disclosure:  While I was not paid for this post, I was sent the book for free with the expectation that I’d do a review.  Thanks, Quirkbooks!  If you’d like to get your own copy, it’s available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Wordless Wednesday #1

Posted by Nat on Oct 19, 2011 | 1 comment

I’m going to start doing Wordless Wednesday- these flowers need no description- just look!

A Month of Easy Dinners at Crafting Crazy

Posted by Nat on Oct 18, 2011 | 1 comment

Dinner time.  Such a dreaded time for so many mothers out there- what to make, what to make?  It was never a challenge for us before kids- it was an adventure.  Stop at the store on the way home from work- grab amazing ingredients, and spend the evening cooking up a storm, making a mess in the kitchen, and enjoying the fruits (and meats and cheeses, maybe a few veggies) of our labor whilst watching the latest episode of Grey’s Anatomy on DVR.  Those were the days…

Now we’re knee-deep in picky eaters who turn up their noses at the most awesome stuff.  We offer them home made mac’n’cheese and they dubiously push it away saying, “No, Mommy, no mac’n’teese.  No like it.”  (That would be Jack.)

A few things have helped me and Michael.  One is to plan our meals on the weekend for the upcoming week.  Even if we don’t stick to the plan, we can at least modify it and know that we have ingredients in the fridge to make something. But we get stuck in ruts left and right, staring at the list of the days of the week as if we’re grasping at straws.  We’re bored in the cuisine department.

Last month, however, Real Simple magazine came out with an issue that really caught my eye.  The cover boasts “A Month of Easy Dinners” (October) and shows some lovely shrimp tacos with black beans.  You had me at shrimp…

I was intrigued on many levels.  One is that even as a recipe-seeker I tend to stay in my comfort zone.  I do not wander from my box.  I think my box is pretty big, mind you- I like a variety of foods, and don’t consider myself picky.  I will try anything aside from the obvious cow brain, etc.  But I do tend to look at recipes I’ve never tried before that don’t sound amazing or delicious and I just skip them over.  I like the idea that Real Simple proposes- they give you a grocery list for everything you need for the week, and *pow* you head to the store once, get everything on the list, and you’re set for the week with 5 easy dinners to make for your family.

There are lots of things listed that I have either never tried to make or have never cooked at all.  For example: beets.  I have no idea if I like roasted beets, but I’ll be trying them soon.

So, next week I will let you know how Week 1 went.  Here’s what we’ll be eating for dinner:

Monday: Salmon with Gingery Green Beans and Bok Choy

Tuesday:  Tomato Soup with Roast Beef, Cheddar and Horseradish Panini

Wednesday: Pork Chops with Roasted Beets and Oranges

Thursday:  Chicken with Potatoes, Bacon and Cabbage

Friday:  Tortellini with Butternut Squash, Mushrooms and Fontina

You can read about other people trying RS’s Month of Easy Dinners here.

Halloween Decor

Posted by Nat on Oct 17, 2011 | 2 comments

I am so excited for Halloween this year!  I really hate that it’s on a Monday.  I think that we should petition the powers-that-be and just make Halloween the last Saturday of October every year. So much easier.  Just sayin’.

Anyhoo, I thought I’d share our Halloween decorations that we have up.  I am not a “theme” person, nor do I have the time or money to invest in new decorations every year, but I do love to add a few things each year.  I’m an “orange & black with hints of green and purple” person for colors.  Someday I’ll get fancy, but for now, with three little ones, simple is best.

Here’s our mantel/mantle (I can never decide how to spell it).

(Oh, how I long for a new fireplace….)

I love the little pumpkins in our vase- they are the only thing I bought (at Vons!) aside from our squashes and one other thing below.  This is not my favorite part of our decor, but it’s fun to have in this room- we spend lots of time in here playing and (gasp!) watching TV.

This is our entryway.  I used the Martha Stewart transfers, purchased at Michael’s, for the pumpkins (they are fake). Unfortunately they are not holding up too well because the sun sets on this side of the house, so they are getting tired already- but maybe they’ll wash off and I can do something else next year.  I love all the pumpkins I’m seeing on Pinterest this year- just haven’t had time to do my own.

I also made this sign.  I got the idea from this post, which I found on Pinterest (oh, how I love me some Pinterest!).  I thought it would make a cute entry/welcome sign, so I got out the Mod Podge and got to work.  Turned out pretty cute, eh?

Also, here’s a quick tip:  whenever you need to paint a canvas on the edges, if it’s a wrap around canvas, it can be tricky.  I have started doing this, and I’m sure I’m not the first to think of it, but just in case… I put the canvas up on some books that are smaller than the canvas so that you have easy access to the edges, and they don’t stick to anything.  Make sense?

I find it a bit hilarious that I have “The Cake Bible” and “You- On a Diet” together on my bookshelf.

I found this garland and printed it out.  It was super easy to assemble and put together.  Definitely a keeper.  Here is where I found it (also via Pinterest).

In our hallway we have these things hanging.  I just love preschool decorations- they are too cute.  The bats are actually a Papyrus Halloween card.  I bought it a few years ago on clearance- I think it’s much cuter as a decoration.

My favorite part of our Halloween decor is in our kitchen.  I downloaded all of these prints FREE from different blogs (see below for links).  I printed them out on matte photo paper.  Usually these frames just have generic flower photos from IKEA in them, and it’s so nice to see something seasonal in them- I’m going to switch them out with Thanksgiving ones, too, I think.

(This is a tricky part of our house to photograph- it’s broken up by the kitchen cabinets and it’s a very narrow pass-through.  Sorry for the weird angle.)    Here they are straight on:

Download them for yourself:  Left, Middle, Right

Happy Halloween!  I’ll be doing another post about something else I made for these prints soon, so I’m not done yet. 🙂

If you’d like to see my Halloween board on Pinterest, click here.  If you follow me, I’ll follow you!