Tote Bags!

For the birthday party that we went to on Saturday I ended making this tote bag to give as a gift. I didn't have a pattern, I just kind of had an idea in my head and started making it. I really like the way it turned out!! The fabric is so fun!

I put this fun cookbook in the tote bag and we were set!! The little boy really loves to cook so I think it was a great idea! I had got it at the thrift store a few months ago. You can't beat a $1 book!

I liked the frog tote so much that I decided to make Brandon a tote bag too! I hadn't taken measurements on the frog one, so this one came out smaller, but it's still big enough to carry books and toys in. He took it to church yesterday filled with books and toys! He loved having his own little bag to carry around!

The dang kid fell asleep on the kitchen floor right before church yesterday. Right next to the dog! Needless to say, it wasn't fun waking him up to go to church!

Little Cowpoke

I can't believe that my baby is going to be one this week! It definitely doesn't feel like a whole year has gone by since he was born.



With the left over fabric squares from Brandon's Cowboy quilt, I decided to make Adam his own Cowboy quilt! I started making it yesterday afternoon and this is as far as I've gotten so far. I'm thinking I'll add one more row on the bottom and then a border and the quilt top will be done! Boy, what on earth am I going to do with three quilt tops!! I seriously need my mom to come and help me figure out how to finish them! Good thing she'll be here in a couple of weeks!

Isn't he so cute!? He's such a good baby!

So far he loves his quilt!! I added leftover strips of fabric in between each section of blocks. I think it looks pretty cute and it was a good way to use up that fabric. I don't like waste!! After I'm done with this top it looks like I'll have some extra blocks still. I didn't know how big of a quilt I was going to be making for Brandon, I didn't really have a pattern, I just started sewing, so when I was cutting out my fabric I cut out 4 inch squares out of all of the fabric. So I'll probably just keep those aside to make a scrap quilt to possibly donate. We'll see.

I got a call last night from someone from church he said they are having a potluck party tonight. Now I have to figure out what to bring! When Todd got home from work last night he said that they had told him about it last Sunday at church, but he failed to tell me this!! He also said that it is a birthday party for a 10 year old boy, which they didn't tell me on the phone! So, I guess I have to make something to bring as a gift too. Plus I have to make a treat for the Primary class I have to teach tomorrow. I've got a lots to do today!

Not So Freshcut Quilt

Being highly inspired after a church activity where we decided to start a block of the month quilting group, I came home wanting to make my first quilt. I didn't really want to wait for the quilt of the month group to start, after all, who knows when that will actually be. So, I was looking through all of my fabric and online at a few different websites and decided to make this Heather Bailey Freshcut quilt. If you haven't seen her fabrics before, then you are missing out! I love them all and have a lot of them! Thanks Mom and Beth!! So, I started cutting out all of the fabric the next day. That was last Friday. I finished making all of the rough blocks (pre-sizing them to an actual block) that day! I loved it so far and couldn't wait to see it put together. Then Brandon wanted me to make his Cowboy Quilt, so I took a break from putting together the freshcut quilt to make the top for his quilt. Yesterday I got the freshcut blocks out and my new 12.5 inch square ruler thingy that I got so that I could cut my blocks out the right way. Only to find that my blocks weren't big enough to be cut out to 12.5 inches. Ugh! I followed the directions the way I was supposed to, but I guess I did something wrong. My blocks were only big enough to cut down to 11 inches square. So, that is what I did. They didn't come out perfectly all the same, but they all were 11 inches square. So, as I put them together the seams of the rows didn't match up like they were supposed to, but you know what?! I think I really like the way it turned out, even if it isn't exactly like the pattern. It has more character. So, my top is done and ready for me to figure out how I'm going to finish it. Brandon wanted to be in all of the pictures I was taking of the quilt this morning, so if you see any feet those are his.

Brandon looking oh so cute on the quilt!

The entire quilt top. It is a small lap quilt, it would be the perfect size for a little girl.

This picture didn't come out too well. The light is a little off and Brandon kept standing on the quilt so it was all wrinkly looking. Oh well!

Progress Report ~ Cowboy Quilt

Yesterday I worked on finishing the top of the cowboy quilt. I got the border on and I think it looks pretty dang cute! It isn't big enough for his bed, but he already has a quilt on his bed. An I Spy quilt that my mom made for him! He loves that quilt, he likes to lay and look at all of the different things. Anyhow, this quilt is just a little bigger then lap size. A good size for a 3 year old to lay out on the floor and watch a movie on. I think he'll love it. He actually already does. He keeps wanting me to let him take it away so he can play with it. He doesn't really understand that it isn't done yet. I'm sure he'll be really happy when it's done. Anyhow, now I need to read up on how to finish a quilt. I'm not sure if I'm going to just tie it or if I'm going to attempt machine quilting it. I'm thinking just tie it, since this is my very first quilt, and I don't really know what I'm doing. Maybe I'll make the smaller version for Adam and machine quilt that for practice. Since it will be smaller and easier to control. We'll see.

The cowboy actually took a nap yesterday! Woohoo!!!! This doesn't happen too often, so when it does I'm more then okay with it! He was playing with a pillow and then all of a sudden I looked over at him and he just fell asleep on top of it in the middle of the living room right in front of the fan. I wasn't about to move him, never wake the beast! So, I had to get Adam up off of the floor, so that he didn't wake up his brother by crawling on top of him.

He wasn't too happy about that. haha... I actually had about 2 hours of quiet. Then Adam woke up from his nap, but Brandon slept on the floor without waking up for a little more then 3 hours! I love nap time.

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookies!!!

One of my first loves is baking. I've been baking since I was probably about 12, maybe even earlier. Coming up with recipes is sort of new to me. Here is one that I sell in my etsy shop.

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookies!!

Ingredients:
1 c. butter (no substitutes), softened
¾ c. granulated sugar
¾ c. brown sugar
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1 lg. egg
2 ¼ c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.With an electric mixer cream butter and sugars until nice and creamy. Add cream cheese and continue to mix until all lumps are gone and it is nice and smooth. Add vanilla and egg and mix. Slowly add flour, a little at a time. Add baking soda and salt and mix well, but not too much! Turn off your mixer and add the chocolate chips, folding by hand with a rubber spatula. Scoop cookie dough by the rounded tablespoon onto a cookie sheet; make sure they aren’t too close though! Bake in your oven for 9-11 minutes, I do mine for 10. Cool on a rack and once they are all the way cool put into a plastic bag or container and keep in the fridge! Since they have cream cheese in them you don’t want them to spoil! These are the best chocolate chip cookies ever! They stay nice and moist!

So far, everyone that has tried them has loved them. Let me know if you make them, and how you like them! They are super yummy.

Hi, my name is Cowboy!

This is how my three year old Brandon introduces himself to EVERYONE he meets. Whether we are at the store, at church, at the park, anywhere. He isn't afraid to talk to people, I'm not sure if that is a good thing or not, but he really does like just about everyone. Sometimes he'll say he's "Robot Cowboy" sometimes he is "Brandon Cowboy" it changes daily, but one thing that is always the same is that he is Cowboy. He hates going anywhere with out his boots and hat and even totes around a play gun (although I don't let him take it out of the car). Now that it is getting warm out he wears shorts most of the time and although I put his sandals on him in the morning, by afternoon he is always wearing his boots.

This past weekend, I was working on making some quilt blocks for a Heather Bailey quilt I decided to make on the spur of the moment. I love all of her fabrics and have lots of them, and wanted to make my first quilt without the help of my mom, who lives in California and is the best quilter I know, you can check out her blog http://colorfulquiltingworld.blogspot.com/. Anyhow, I was working on this quilt and Brandon Cowboy comes over and asks me what I'm doing. He loves quilts and pretty much all types of blankets, he has since he was a baby. He is the perfect child to give a quilt to, because he loves them so much. So, he said to me, "Mommy, I want a Cowboy quilt!" hmmm.... I thought, I do have some cowboy fabric, okay! I'll make you a cowboy quilt. So, I've been working on the cowboy quilt since Sunday and I almost have the entire top done. Just a few more rows to be added on and then the border and then I'll have to figure out how to finish it. (Like I said, this is the second quilt top I've worked on by myself. I'm not a quilter, don't know how to quilt, I do know how to piece, but not how to finish them. This is all an experiment for me! We'll see how it works out.)

I decided to do a simple nine patch block for his quilt, I think it looks pretty cute so far. The colors are really bright and the best thing about it is that is a Cowboy Brandon quilt! I have a few extra blocks left, so maybe I'll make a smaller version of this quilt for my almost 1 year old baby boy, Adam!

After all, he's a Cowboy too. "Cowboy Brother" actually.