Fabric Covered Notecards (Don't Peek, MOM!)

A couple weeks ago, I saw some fabric covered notecards being given away on MADE. They were really beautiful. And it struck me that they were something that my mom would probably enjoy.

Good thing Mother's Day was coming! I don't REALLY think ya'll need a tutorial for this, but I took the pictures anyway.

You need:
Pre-cut Cards (or just hack down some cardstock to the size you want)

Fabric Scraps (mmm... I love me some fabric scraps.)

Heat N Bond (or Wonder Under, etc)
Rotary Cutter, Mat & Ruler - though... your mat will probably be in better condition than mine.. oy.

IRON
Sewing Maching (could totally be optional)

Step One:
Put on a good movie. I recommend this one.

Step Two (aka the real first step):
Cut your Wonder Under to the same size as the front of the card you'll be making. Mine was 4"x 5.5". Evs.

Step the Third:
Cut (or tear!) your fabric into random widths and play around with the layout.

Step Foursies:
Pretend you know how to quilt and sew them together all pretty like. Iron. Notice how I added an extra strip from the previous picture? As I was sewing it together, I realized it wouldn't be wide enough, so I improvised. I give you permission to do the same.

Step Five:
With your ruler & rotary cutter, cut down your mini quilt into the dimensions of the front of your card (and the piece of Wonder Under you've pre-cut. 

Step Sixaholic:
Iron your Wonder Under (sticky side down unless you WANT to ruin your iron) to the wrong side of your fabric. Follow the directions on your particular brand of sticky stuffs. Peel the paper backing off. You should be left with the back of your mini-quilt looking shiny. 

Step VII:
Flip it over and iron it onto the front of your card. The adhesive on the back of the fabric will fuse it to the paper. I do, however, recommend doing a better job at lining up your fabric than I did on this particular card. Duh. I had to pull it off quickly and re-iron. I'm a genius. 

Step Eight is Great:
You're done if you want to be. You could add some embellishment in the form of buttons, ribbons, etc etc.

I added a little heart shape that I cut out on my Cricut (yes! it cuts fabric too!).

Some other tips and ideas:

• I mentioned before that you don't NEED a sewing machine. True story. I made two without using mine. I simply laid my fabric strips (overlapped slightly) carefully on top of the Wonder Under and ironed them right to it. They stuck together. 

• You could add some decorative stitching after the whole thing is sewn together... I recommend doing it after you've applied the Wonder Under and peeled the paper off and before you iron it to the card. 

 That's it, mostly. Feel free to ask any questions. I had fun making them for my mom, and now I need some for myself.

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For FREEEEEE!

What movie is that from? Anyone remember?

While I don't love everything about my husband's job, they do treat us, as a family well.  A couple times a year, they hire a company called SuperSitters to babysit everyone's kids so they can have a date night. They have a fabulous family Christmas Party with Santa, they do Trick or Treating around the office (6 floors of cubicles!) and they have a wonderful company picnic during the summer.

Except this year. Instead of doing a picnic/carnival like they did last year, they opted instead to pay for everyone to go to Universal Studios. They even paid for parking and a catered lunch. Sounds like a blast, eh?

Well, I'm sure it would if you didn't have 5 children ages 8 and under. We decided to brave it anyway. The kids will enjoy the memories, right? Well, those that are old enough to have memories of it. We're TRYING to be good parents over here.

So, we headed off with our bags packed full of snacks and water. We weren't about to buy any food. No sir.

We arrived at the park and it was already crowded and hot. This is the first picture we took just inside the gates. Kids = Sweaty. Matt = Already Irritable.

We headed to play in Seussland. And that was fun. I think. Matt was REALLY paranoid about losing one of the kids. And rightly so, Lucas loves to wonder and we know he's just so darned cute that someone's bound to take him, right? Note: Please only take him if you promise to keep him. No Returns Allowed. I'm serious.

We rode the (NO WAIT) Carousel and Matt and the older three kids stood in line for 30ish minutes to ride some other ride in the Seuss area.  Then we marched over past the new Harry Potter Area to the Jurassic Park play area. It involved a lot of shade. Wahoo!

Then we headed back OUT OF THE PARK (read: 1 mile) to eat our catered lunch at Universal CityWalk. Lunch was all the chaos of eating out with 5 kids, one of whom pooped all over me. Can you tell this is headed downward, and quickly? Do I look amused?

At that point, I was totally ready to LEAVE. But I was trying to be a good sport. My feet were tired, Libby was tired but wouldn't sleep and it was HOT. We marched back the mile into the park and ran into their SuperHero Parade. Those dudes were HUGE. Cyclops was probably 6'9" or taller and Captain America was quite the hunk. Lucas was terrified. Hence, his absence. He was gripping my side in utter terror. Poor kid. He didn't get the memo about them being the good guys.

We made our way to what would prove to be our final destination... a splash pad. A tiny one. Our kids couldn't have cared less how big it was. They were in heaven. After they'd been thoroughly soaked, we started to head for the gate. I could sense our freedom. It was within my grasp. As we neared the entrance, Matt said to me, "Let's just take the kids over to the Seuss play area one more time."

Folks, I started to cry. I couldn't walk anymore... I was done. In desperation, I turned to my right where I noticed an ice cream shop and quickly said, "Kids, do you want ice cream, or do you want to go play?" It was a risky venture but I won. We, in an intensely cheap move, shared a single ice cream cone.

And left. Phew.
So yes, we went to Universal Studios where my children rode exactly two rides, ate one $4 ice cream cone, and walked ALL OVER. I couldn't be more glad that it was FREE.

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My Cup Runneth Over

Full. Complete.

Blessed. Abundance.

Matt has a game that he plays with our kids.  Tickle Time. He lines them all up like this, and tickles them mercilessly. This was Libby's first experience. She didn't really enjoy it. Apparently, it was too loud for her. She's just going to have to toughen up.

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Printed. Or the lack thereof.

I have to admit something embarassing.

I have never had pictures of Lucas printed for our home. Gah! Can you believe that?! What kind of mother am I?

Since he's now 2, I'm guessing we'll be keeping him, and I think it might be time. And while I'm at it, I might as well get some printed of the other kids, too.  Maybe I'll even try to get a family picture... maybe.

Either way, I'm having this one printed at least an 11x14. Love this crazy kid. And his big teeth too.

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So Proud.

My husband was recently informed that he has high cholesterol. While we don't eat SUPER healthy, we also don't own our own deep fryer, either. I blame genetics. However, since we don't want him to die, we're all trying to eat a little better and get more exercise. A step in the right direction.

Or a lot of steps, if you're my husband (his name is Matt). Matt's decided to run. I hate running, so it is highly unlikely that I will be joining him. However, we are SO proud of him.  He ran his first 5k last week.  The kids and I wanted to let him know how proud we were, so we employed the use of my good friend, Mr. Cricut (yes, it's a man... who else could wield a blade so adeptly).

In no time flat we had cut the letters, the shapes, glued, punched and strung up this sweet little banner for Matt to find when he got home.

My kids loved being allowed to push the buttons on the machine and to peel the letters off. I'm a little concerned about finding them using it without permission now...

In other news, Matt's signed up for another 5k next month. Go Matt! Love you!

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I Made This

Actually, I made it before Christmas. I make my kids each a handmade gift from Mom every Christmas. It's my tradition. This year, Lucas got a Felt Mr. Potato Head. Abbie got some crocheted fingerless gloves. Anna received a Sewn Drawing Pad/Marker holder dealy. And Miles got a tie. He wore it this past Sunday for the first time since Christmas. 

 It certainly involved a lot of ironing and hand sewing, but it really wasn't that hard.

And you know, every girl's crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man!

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The Cradle

I mentioned the cradle that my dad made for us, a couple of weeks ago. I finally got around to taking some proper pictures of my dad's amazing handiwork and I wanted to show everyone how lucky I am. (This is MY blog. I'm allowed to brag!)

I wanted to add that Libby sleeps in it every night and it makes me so happy knowing that she's got a bed of her own (Lucas still occupies the crib, and will till the end of time if I have my say).

And finally, the picture that my dad has requested.

And if any of you feel like you must absolutely have one too, I believe he sells them.

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