Baby Goodies

I went to a baby shower this week, and made these treasures for the mom-to-be. This is the "circus elephant" from More Softies Only A Mother Could Love.


Isn't he a cutie?!


He's a skinny elephant :)


And this cozy swaddling blanket with a hand-stitched "Y" for their last name will be the perfect fit for a boy or a girl, since they don't know yet what they're having.


This adorable flannel animal print is sooo soft! I love it!


What good is a hand-made gift if the wrapping isn't equally pretty? I repurposed a hot pink box I had, covered it with brown craft paper, cut out and glued on part of a card that I actually received for Patrick's baby shower, tied it all up with some lace from the stash and a piece of turquoise paper twine, and slipped in a berry sprig. I think I had as much fun, if not more, with the wrapping as I did with the actual gift.


And a sewing day is never successful until you have made a sufficient mess. Happy sewing and crafting!

Joy To The World!

The "halls" are decked...


The tree is lit...


Prayers for a peaceful, joyous season have been lifted up...


From our family to yours! We wish you all a beautiful CHRISTmas season. May your homes be warm and cozy, your tummies be full of scrumptious goodies, and your hearts be home to the King of Kings!

Love,
All of Us

The Birthday Girl!

Our sweet Olivia turns 1 today! And we had a great birthday brunch with family yesterday!










Daddy's turn!




Not sure what we think of those balloons...


...but the presents are pretty fun!


Olivia is still on a no-wheat, no-dairy, no-egg diet, so I made her this yummy rice crispy treat flower "cake" using vegan "butter". It actually tasted just like regular rice crispies; you'd never know the difference.


The rest of us enjoyed a yummy brunch, thanks to everyone chipping in with a dish!

Some New Stuff

Well, in the past few months, we've had...

A birthday-- Patrick turned 2 in May. This cake was sort of a big deal. I had told Patrick that I was making him a cake (a week before his birthday) so that's all I heard about for a week. It was a homemade 4 layer yellow cake with banana slices and banana pudding in between the layers, iced with homemade fudge frosting. Then, the day of his birthday, we woke up to puking. Pretty soon, we all had it, and I actually ended up in the ER. Needless to say, the cake did not get eaten. It went into the freezer and came back out a week later. At this point, Patrick had been waiting 2 whole weeks to eat this glorious cake. So when he finished opening presents and I said the word "cake", a high-pitched screech unlike anything I have ever heard from him suddenly came blaring out of his mouth as he scampered as fast as his little bare-feet-on-tile would allow into the kitchen. "Caaaaaaaaaake!!!!" LOL


Some new projects-- including this dress for Olivia from one of Anna Maria Horner's pattern books...


...as well as this one.






...A sweet doll for Olivia named "Maisie" from the More Softies Only A Mother Could Love book...


...and these little treasures...




...which now belong to this precious munchkin on the right-- a new cousin! This little guy is actually my first cousin.


...and even the beginnings of potty training. I think that roll of toilet paper has been rolled and unrolled several times. And yes, I realize the potty is pink. It was all they had. I don't think he minds :)


... and just for fun-- some cuteness!














And that about sums up our life for the last few months! Hmmm... maybe I should get this kid some clothes...

Blogging Identity Crisis Solved!

Well, thanks to some blessed counseling from a sweet friend, I have finally come to terms with the fact that this blog no longer has anything to do with being "artfully domestic" in case you haven't noticed. When I started this blog, almost two years ago, it was out of a desire to give myself a creative outlet, and quite honestly to impress others with my oh so dazzling abilities in the kitchen and in front of the sewing machine. It was fun for a while, but about six months into it, I started writing about the things that God was laying on my heart, the things that really mattered, the things that pointed people to God rather than to my talents. At first, I thought I could do both. And maybe I still can, though to be honest, my heart is resonating more and more with the work of the Father, and less and less with the hobbies that once got me so excited. This blog will still be here, and I may still come back from time to time with pictures of the kids, new recipes, or a handcrafted treasure. But I thought it was time I finally admitted that my posts have taken an altogether different path over the last year and a half, and just jump in with both feet.

I hope you continue to follow me on my new blog: When Heaven Shakes...

Check out the first post to see the story behind the name.

All "Artfully Domestic" related posts will remain here. All other posts have been removed and transferred to the new blog.

Box Babies