EtsyKids Design Challenge for April: and the winner is....

Posted Tuesday, April 28, 2009

31. SPRING FLING Baby Dots Flower Dress from thenook

Be sure to check out her Etsy shop for lots more adorable baby clothes!

Thanks to all of the other EtsyKids members who entered the April Design Challenge! It was great to see such a colorful array of items, don't you agree?

SAHM is a Four Letter Word

Posted Monday, April 27, 2009

Okay, so it's really a four letter acronym, but whatever, I've got enough going on and I can't be bothered with the

petty details.

You know, boy meets girl, they fall in love, get married and live happily ever after. Until someone has the genius idea that maybe "we should have a baby." We delude ourselves to think we'll be the best parents ever and we won't "raise our kids like that." Of course, we're usually eyeing the frazzled mom of 4 who's two year old is throwing an all out kicking and screaming meltdown, while she holds onto her 4 year old and scolds him for hitting his 6 year old brother, and OMG, what did the baby just put in her mouth?! I don't think that was edible.

It's easy when you have one, though, you don't realize it until you have two and by then, it's too late to realize how good you really had it. Damn hindsight. Once you have two, that's double the daycare and you begin to realize that it really isn't worth going to a job you hate only to squander most of your paycheck to keep your kids at someone else's house while you pretend to give a rats ass about those TPS reports. And so, you decide to *gasp* become a stay-at-home-mom. Ugh. Those four words could not have more vomit inducing meaning for me. I think God may have forgotten to give me a maternal instinct and went a little overboard with honesty and snarkiness.

So yes, I am a {gulp} stay-at-home-mom, technically speaking anyway. And it's by far the hardest worst paying job I've ever had. That includes the time I worked concessions at the local movie theatre for $6.50/hr so that people could complain about candy prices and insist I give them a coronary by adding a gallon of extra butter to their popcorn.

Whoever tried to depict the stay-at-home-mom as some couch sitting, soap opera watching, bon-bon eating laze has clearly never done it. And I wish more than anything they'd been right because I feel a little misled. :oP

Originally posted 2/11/09 here

Sunday Sunday

EtsyKids has some of the cutest hair accessories EVER! Proud mama to a little one myself, NEVER have I seen in a store the quality and character of these wonderful EtsyKids finds! Cheers to EtsyKids!!

...just a small sampling of many wonderful finds...

Find these adorable ponytail holders at baublesnbows ...as well as many cute hair accessories here at jackand jayne:

...check out EtsyKids where you'll find many many more wonderfully cute items for the little ones in your life!

LIVING ORGANIZED

Posted Saturday, April 25, 2009

As I scurry around here today on this beautiful sunny Saturday - going from the computer to the sewing machine to the cutting table to the closets I'm cleaning out - you get the picture... I wonder how many other women/moms there' are running around doing similar activities?

I began reading the book 'living organized' by Sandra Felton, a couple of months ago and the book is truly eye opening. After reading it I realized that I really DON'T have to do every thing. Even small children can do simple things like take a rag and wipe the TV screen or baseboards and my boys LOVE to use those disposable toilet brush thingys and clean the toilet b/c after they get to 'pop' the heads off into the trash - so every Saturday they each get one toilet to clean.

I am, by nature a 'Messie' as opposed to a 'Cleany'. Messies tend to pile things up and deal with them later to postpone being uncomfortable in the present, where as Cleanies deal with things as they come so they are not uncomfortable later.

In the chapter on 'Making Changes' Sandra, offers a set of questions for you to ask yourself just to get your brain to thinking in a new direction, and I'd love to share those with you now - so grab a pen and pad and lets make some changes! :)

1. Describe your thoughts and feelings about the amount of work you do, especially in relation to the amount of work done by others in the family. Is it well balanced?

2. List the names of people in your household. Beside each name list one job you could transfer to them (after proper training - of course)

3. Are there any changes you can make in your life, such as establishing a car pool or dropping an activity?

4. If you hesitate to share activities with others or to simplify, what is the reason you think might contribute to that hesitation? Are you willing to question whether it is a wise reason to keep? Are you willing to abandon it?

5. If someone asks you to help them and you feel it is an imposition you should not participate in, will you be willing to say no when you would previously have said yes? Can you think of an example that might arise?

I hope this helps some of you Fab Divas :D We only have one life - and we don't need to spend 90% of it doing the grunt work - LOL! Enjoy this beautiful Day!

Friday Finds for Earth Day week

Posted Friday, April 24, 2009

We celebrate Earth Day everyday by creating organic, eco-friendly, and recycled items for kids. Since this list is long, I thought I would just give you some examples of what EtsyKids members specialize in. I hope these finds encourage you to shop green in honor of celebrating Earth Day this week!

1. Lil Scribblers (TM) - Redesigned Crayons - Featured Item in Etsy Treasury by lil boo & co.

2. Paisley Park... Recycled Girls Apron Sundress Size 3/4T by Lillipops Designs.

3. The Slate Forest Eco friendly Wash Cloth Collection by A La Mode Fabric.

4. Organic Modern Leaf Bib and Burp Set by Coco + Milkweed.

5. Letterpress stationery birthday card printed on recycled paper - one spinning top by Sweetbeets.

6. Uniquilt - Upcycled Patchwork - Crazy-Quilted by Lizzypops Shop.

Shoe Fetish

Posted Thursday, April 23, 2009

Some great shoes for your little ones footsies, what a talented bunch!

Starting left had corner working around clockwise...

Sweet tart infant mary jane shoes sizes 0-24 months

Big Girl Swarovski Crystal PINK LEOPARD Bling Converse Pink Hi-Top Sneakers

Baby Bling BLACK PRINCESS TIARA Baby Ballet Shoes Swarovski Bling

The Green Delight Shoe - 0-18 months - Girl shoes - Easter - Spring

ENJOY!......

EtsyKids Design Challenge for April: Vote Now!

Posted Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Wow, look at all these fantastic colors!! April's Design Challenge theme was "Rainbow of Colors", and boy do we ever have a rainbow of colors here! Check out all of the entries below, then click on the link at very bottom of this post to vote. Voting will be open through midnight EST on Monday, April 27th.