Onesies for the new Babe

My sister-in-law, Amy, just had another baby girl the other day. They live in Texas and we live in Tennessee, so it may be a while before we get to see her. I wanted to send her something super cute to welcome her into the world, however, with my current schedule I knew I wouldn't have a lot of time to create something. These onesies were the perfect antidote!

Again, I don't have a fancy Silhouette, (but I am DYING for one, in case you haven't noticed!!)so I improvised by using the good ole freezer paper method of screen printing. Works like a charm. You can see my tutorial on how to do it here. I perused the internet for some cool pics to use, and went to work. For the "LOVE" onesie, I just cut out two hearts and used embroidery thread to sew them on.






Next week begins Teacher Appreciation around these parts! I can't wait to show you some niffy things I am making Cash's teachers...hope to begin posting them tomorrow.

**Side note: Last night a HUGE set of storms/tornadoes blow through Tn, and up through 6 other states. There was quite a bit of damage, and even deaths here. (I think I heard the last count was around 700 throughout the 6 states.) Please pray for our area! Some families still do not have power after 24 hours, and others have had their homes destroyed. We were out of school today, we will be out again tomorrow, and possibly part of next week. This has become much more than we anticipated. Thanks so much.**

For Moms

Hey folks-

Mother's Day is coming real soon! Here are a few good deals that I couldn't let go by without sharing!

• Shutterfly – FREE 5×7 personalized greeting card with code MOMCARD at checkout. (expires 4/28)

• Tiny Prints – FREE personalized Mother’s Day card with code MDGIFT at checkout. Plus, get FREE shipping when you ship it to yourself. That makes it completely free (expires 5/3)

• Canvas People – FREE 8×10 canvas or $50 off a larger canvas. You only pay shipping at $14.95.

I have already taken advantage of the Tiny Prints and the Canvas People offer! Check them out!

Isn't this a fun card for all those moms who love "Mad Men?" :)

Happy Easter!

He has risen, risen indeed!!

I truly hope you and your family had a wonderful day celebrating all that we are in Christ!

Happy Easter!-
The Crosbys

Tiny Easter Goodie Baskets

I almost forgot to post these little cuties! I made these for Cash's teachers at school. She's {kinda} Crafty via I [heart] Naptime gave me the idea and tutorial. Anything but Perfect is where I printed these particular tags for the front. Really easy and really really budget friendly. Peeeeeerrrrrrrrfect!

Easter Pails

Until now, I hadn't actually bought/made any kind of Easter basket for the boys. I just tied some ribbon on some random baskets that were in the attic. I wanted to get them their own, but really wasn't interested in spending a lot. Brown Paper Packages found some little pails at Target, and she, brilliantly, realized that these pails would be easily stored because they could be stacked. The light bulb went off! Yes! Pails! Cute cute without being toooo girlie, and great for storing!
I ran out to Target to search for these pails, but was disappointed when I saw how small they were. With Cash turning 5 this summer, and getting taller and taller EVERYDAY(!) the boys would need something a little larger to keep for years to come. Hobby Lobby, however, had what I needed, and had the price I needed. Hobby Lobby did have pails that were already painted, like the ones at Target, but they were more expensive. I already had everything I needed to paint them myself, so I figured getting pails for me to paint would be more budget friendly.
First, I taped off the pail with painter's tape, and primed the part of the pail I wanted to paint. I then painted the primed area of the pail using multiple coats. After it was completely dry, I hot glued some coordinating ribbon to the top of the painted area, placed stickers around the pail, and added ribbon to the sides.
They aren't perfect(I am not the most awesome at straight lines), but I think they turned out pretty cute. The boys like them, and can't wait to use them tomorrow at the Easter Egg hunt!

Happy Egg Hunting!-
TRACY

New "vintage" Tray

I bought this unfinished wooden tray from Hobby Lobby months ago after seeing it in the clearance aisle. I figured I would use it for something, but really didn't have anything in mind. It's been sitting in my dressing room waiting for me to make up my mind. Finally!, I decided to use it on my coffee table in my living room.
I am so in love with this blue color right now...can you tell? Anyway, I had some paint from my mantle projects left, so I painted the tray right up. I wanted to add some red to help all this blend into the already existing decor, and I thought a stencil would add some character. Of course, I then took some sandpaper to it in order to "distress" the tray. Finishing the project, I lightly coated the tray in a very very very watered down brown/black mixture.
There you have it. Quick and simple. Perfect!

Hodge Podge Spring Mantle

Here it is folks. My hodge podge mantle. A nice little mix of a few of my fav. projects from other people, and some of my own old standby stuff. :)

It doesn't really look like it, but I have been working on this mantle for weeks. That shows you just how busy my life has been. BUSY. Really, I guess the pennant is really what took the longest, and that's because I had to cut the chevron stripes out by hand...Ohhh to have a Silhouette... How I long for the beauty of the Silhouette.... ok, anywaaaaayyyyyyy, I saw this pennant on Tatertots and Jello, and instantly fell in love with the colors and how the chevron pattern was being used. You can find the tutorial here.
I pretty much followed her tutorial, except I cut my pattern out by hand and I didn't sew the pattern on to the flags. The flags are made with canvas, and the stripe pattern with cotton fabric.Next up... the bird houses. I know I saw some like these, but larger maybe (?) somewhere out there in blog land. I seriously can't remember where! I found these at Michael's for $1.00 each, so I couldn't pass them up. I painted them, then sanded them to give a distressed look. Topped it off by using a very watered down brown paint coating to really show the "distress." The houses were followed by this butterfly wall hanging that I found over at Stay-at-Home Artist
I thought it was really pretty, springy, an unique. Again, I followed the tutorial, except I distressed my old frame just as I did the bird houses.Now, this precious little fat bird :) is straight from Hobby Lobby. (%50 off!) Too cute, and (if you couldn't tell) I am totally crushing on blue right now. The candle I just topped off with a little rosette made from leftover fabric for good measure.
There you have it. Nothing too fancy, but it does make me smile. And think of warm sun. And cool breezes. And baby green leaves growing in the trees.

Hope you are smiling this week- T

Family Calendar

I finally had a chance to finish my family calendar! Really, I should say that Andre finally had a chance to finish the calendar because he did most of the work....THANKS, ANDRE!! :)

Ever since last May,when the fam. and I visited Erin in KY and saw hers, I have wanted to make one of these! However, my sad sad reality is that I do not own a Silhouette or any other awesome machine that can cut vinyl.

After seeing it on Somewhat Simple, via Brown Paper Packages, my love and NEED for this project heightened!Plus, I found out that I could purchase (for a low low fee) the vinyl words I needed for the project! YAY! Straight lines are not my forte, so I asked Andre to draw them on the glass of my frame for me. So sweet of him...especially when I asked him to "go ahead and place the stickers while you are at it..." :) Husband of the week!

Anyhoo- It's much prettier than the calendar we had on the fridge, and BIGGER. The vinyl is on the back side, so you can write with a dry erase marker on the front of the glass. At the end of the month, you just wipe it clean and start over! Brilliant. Plus, you can leave the back of the frame open (as I did) and just let the wall color come through. Or you can cover the back with scrapbook paper...up to you!

Soooo....I now have a "Our {busy} Family" board, and I love it!
**Sorry for such a glare on the pics...they are night shots!**

Check out the tutorial here.

Bird and a Bean Give Away!

If you've read my blog once or twice, I dare say you've heard me mention Erin from A Bird and A Bean. Essentially, she's the KY chapter of me, but with a lot more talent! Anyway, she's giving a set of these super cute garden markers away, so head over and check it out!

A New Easter Countdown

Last year I made Cash an Easter countdown. You can see it here. I decided to do it pretty last minute, so it wasn't super cute...but it worked. This year, I knew I wanted to up the fun/cuteness factor, so I started from scratch.

First I bought these connected planters. Super cheap. I think they were about $2 for a set of 4 trays. Buy a pack and split them with a friend. I wanted to countdown from 12 since there are 12 in a dozen, but my planters were in trays of 10. I decided to cut the trays and hot glue them together so I would have 3 rows of 4.
Ric rac is one of my fav's, so I used it to decorate the top of my "basket." Then I added some flowers for a little extra spring-iness. I knew I wanted my basket to have a handle, but had forgotten to buy some wire. (You will see how I use the wire in another project in a few days.) It was kind of late, and the kids were in bed, so I couldn't go snooping around for supplies. ( A lot of my craft stuff is stored in my youngest's room. Lucky me.) Scanning the kitchen, aka my craft spot, I laid eyes on a girl sized headband. PERFECT! After covering it with some ribbon, I hot glued it to the basket. It turned out really sturdy. Not bad for "on the fly."
This year, instead of writing the numbers myself with a sharpie (NOT A GOOD IDEA) I used left over stickers from another project. Much neater.

Each egg has a little message for the boys in it. The message tells how many days until Easter, and sends them on a treasure hunt to find a treat. I printed off all kinds of fun stuff for them....Easter mazes, Easter storybooks to put together, Easter verses to memorize, Easter puzzles, Easter memory game.... some eggs have a little candy treat, too.
Cash is crazy excited to start! Last year he kept sneaking and opening the eggs early. Little frog! Hopefully, since he is sharing with Luc, he will be patient.... :)

Have a fantastic week everyone!-
Tracy

Playing in the Yard

I have a lot of things that I am almost ready to post, but not quite....be on the look out...these projects are coming around the bend:
Spring banner
spring mantle decor
family calendar
Sweater refashon
twine decorative balls

For today, here are some pics of my sweet little guys playing in the yard last week....

Aren't they the sweetest little boys ever???
Hope you all are having a fabulous day!