she loves art

The little pumpkin is cRazY about art. All kinds of art...drawing, painting, dancing, performing...anything creative. She definitely marches to her own beat and that's just fine by me.Last week was a tough week for us. The littles took turns being sick...colds, sore throats, coughing fits, pink eye - yes, just to name a few! - thank goodness they are both doing better. Grace missed a couple of days of school...this was on her first day back. I love that cute tiger! And I know I'm biased, but I think it's really good for a 4 year old!What a difference a year makes! This was during zoo week...funny how she picked a giraffe to draw last year and this year. Giraffes always make me think of my grandpa - they were his absolute favorite animal.They've been studying about space and constellations and what can I say, she is all about cats these days! HA!Thankfully by the weekend Grace was feeling much better and was able to make it to McKinley's birthday party.
Happy 6th Birthday, McKinley!She thought this "puppy" was the funniest thing ever. What a hoot! And you see that balloon the clown was making for Lovi?? It was supposed to be a cootie. Grace's answer: It's an amoeba! Where does she get this stuff??! he he heAfter last week, I was so glad to have a girls night out Saturday with two of my favorite people while we celebrated Bridgette's birthday...29, of course, right Segi? ;)Happy Birthday, B!And today we took advantage of some downtime to finish off valentines for her classmates...I think they turned out so sweet...and I was glad to put all the leftover mason jars from our Christmas projects to good use!I was going to bake chocolate chip cookies to go in them, but we ended up just filling them up with some of the little pumpkin's favorite {tart} candy...decided I didn't want to be up all night baking the night before her class party.Hope you are having a great week - can't believe February is just right around the corner!!

etsy...projects...easter...sewing...birthday...

I'm always on the lookout for sweet vintage cards, but they have to be unused since I like to write little love notes to the littles. I was super excited when I found both of these
{on etsy} in one day!

For the little pumpkin's easter basket...For my always-on-the-go sweet boy's easter basket...
{the stock pics are both kind of fuzzy - sorry!}A fun find...super sweet vintage inspired fabric for a couple of special projects coming up...Just as soon as I get my sewing maching back {yes, STILL not back!!!}, I'm making the gorgeous Nelle, Brownie Goose's newest release.Hmmm...how about this sweet {and a bit shy} little kitten... yes, part of my birthday projects, but not in the usual way...he he.And then there's this vintage child's hankie that I just couldn't pass up...Eeeek...the colors!In all this kitty-cat birthday talk, have I mentioned I'm a dog person - Ha! It's true! But who can resist some sweet vintage kittens??? I am having such fun planning a sweet celebration for the little pumpkin, that's for sure!

And finally, a couple of sneak peaks...

For B's little boy~For A's daughter~One last thing...Since I know a lot of you are really creative, can you help me come up with some fun party favor ideas for Grace's vintage kitten birthday party??? I have about 30 kids, split pretty evenly between boys and girls, most of them 3-6 years old.

Thanks!

You can fly! {vintage Dumbo party planning}

Some time ago, I saw {this} adorable dress that a blogger friend Amanda had custom made for her daughter by my friend Angel. I almost did a double take because not only was it full of vintage charm, but I had the same out of print fabric in my stash waiting for just the right project!

Some time later, I asked Angel if I could send her my fabric and have her turn it into a similar dress for Grace. We added more pink because the little pumpkin can't get enough of the girly shade.

I love Dumbo and I love the dainty embroidered pocket she came up with. Initially I had a different phrase for the pocket but wasn't 100% sure, so when Angel suggested, "You can fly!" it sounded just right. I wasn't sure what occasion Grace would wear the dress for but I knew it would be perfect come Spring.
Fast forward some months and when I found out "Kite Day" was scheduled for Friday, March 9th...the day before Grace's birthday and the day I would be sending treats to share with her school friends...I knew the dress would be just perfect!

Noonie and I made the coordinating head wrap out of little scraps of fabric I had...coordinating but not too matchy-matchy...love how it turned out and Grace loves wearing these nowadays so it was win-win!And then, of course, she needed a birthday hat. *wink*I love how dainty and sweet it all looks together. And I love how excited she was when I finished her hat and she saw it all together for the first time.So excited about Kite Day and the treats we're sharing with Grace's school friends.
I'm ready for Spring! he he

birthdayholics anonymous

Is there such a group? Please sign me up.

So it's not enough that I'm planning the little pumpkin's 5th, working on the class valentine party, thinking about a valentine playdate (the hubby brought down my v-day box from the attic and hello, I had forgotten I had bought all kinds of party stuff last year including VINTAGE invites - woo hoo!), and planning an easter egg hunt & party, but........................................ I *think* we've stumbled upon the perfect party theme for Hudson's birthday. His June birthday ;)

You see it all started yesterday while we were at Target. We went down the party aisle and he went cRaZy over {this} big green monster pinata. I had not seen it and had no clue what he was talking about until a super nice Target employee pointed to it and gave Hudson a high-five (I love Target, but I digress). I'm not sure how I walked out of the store without that monster because let me tell you, he was in L-O-V-E (oh, yeah, I remember - the promise of gummy bears from the checkout aisle...yes, I'm not against bribes...pick your battles, pick your battles).

And then, it hit me. He LOVES monsters and dragons, his favorite colors are orange and brown, and he's a wild little thing and well, the rumpus that comes along with that is just inevitable. {source}

Lance and I had already decided to have his party at the same farm we had Grace's 2nd, but this is no ordinary farm, they have a camel, and kangaroos and several other wild animals. So.............................are you with me?.............................. Where the Wild Things Are it is! Hudson loves the book too, who doesn't?{source}

And I think a version of these may just be the perfect party favors because I don't know about you, but both of my littles are wiLD about living room forts. And I'm all for a party favor that sparks creative play.And totally off topic, but I'm so excited!!! Noonie came through in a big way for me by hunting down Grace's birthday gift that I had not been able to find locally. Loopsies...fairy tales collection...enough said. tHanK yoU, NooNiE!Hi, my name is Jessica and I'm a birthdayholic.
{there are worse things, right?}

wild, WILD I tell ya!

My littles have been w.i.l.d today. I don't say this often, but I was ever so thankful for 8:00 p.m. to get here because it meant one thing and one thing only: bedtime!

We've had two almost-broken-nose incidents the past two days. Three water-soaked-couch incidents. Four time-outs in a row. No less than five you-apologize-to-your-sister/brother-now lectures. At least six melt-downs and on and on. You get the picture.

But let's talk about the fun things because my whining is
b-o-r-i-n-g.Today was Solomon's birthday, one of Grace's buddies from school. I have to say Solomon is such a sweet child. He always runs to me and gives me a hug in the mornings when I drop off Grace and he has such a fun accent.I have a love-affair with egg races. Something about simpler times...I hope all your wishes come true, Solomon!Happy 5th Birthday!And then to try and burn some energy to improve the overall mood in our house today, when Grace and I got back from the party, we took the littles outside. It was in the 60s/70s and perfect for a spin around the block.Did it help? I think I'll go with if you don't have anything nice to say...

Fingers crossed for a smoother Sunday.
{That or an extra heaping of patience. Please God. Amen}

mama's turn {sewing}

It's about time someone other than the littles benefitted from my {read: Noonie's!} sewing skills, don't you think???

I'm giving this a try...

...yes, just as soon as the sewing machine hospital lets go of my machine, which they've held captive for oh, 3 weeks now..........aaaaaaaaaaaaah! please get it right, already!!

I'm thinking like the picture but in a longer length in a fun vintage-y print for Easter....some ladylike pumps, a cardi, and a prim & proper handbag. Hmmm...maybe I'll start with the shoes and go from there. Yes, shoes first.

{source}

How about you? Have you made anything out of Amy Butler's Anna Tunic pattern?? I'd love to see it!

pinwheels never looked so cute! {Lulu & Co.}

There's nothing that makes me smile bigger than when sweet customers send me pics of their littles wearing party hats I made. If you do send me pics, please be sure and let me know if it's okay to share the pic here on the blog, otherwise I'll just gush all about it and tuck it away as inspiration for late nights when I'm burning the midnight oil making sweet creations - ha!

Do you remember this hat? I made this one as a gift for a sweet friend.

I haven't added hand-embroidered hats to my regular Lulu & Co. repertoire because the hand stitching on the applique' takes quite a bit of time and I just haven't found a way to make the hat more economical just yet. But maybe soon, who knows? *wink*Here is sweet little E in all her 2 year old splendor.
{that cupcake is serious business, ya know?!} Oh my, is she a.d.o.r.a.b.l.e or what???Her mom, my friend Ashleigh, set up the cutest pinwheel dessert table......and you know what?.......she made all the pinwheels herself!! I just love the bright, fun colors. I think I have an orange crush ;)Speaking of brights...here are some more fun hats I've made recently.Pink & Black and Oh, so chic!And some super sweet and girly ones too...This one is for a Winter ONEderland party...no doubt she'll be so pretty in her girly, sparkly hat!Want to see more? Click {here}!

I promise to share more boy hats next time!

One last more<-----he he, that's what Hudson always says! Look at the sweet vintage {unused!} card I found for the little pumpkin's birthday!!! Isn't it perfect??! And I'll definitely be adding a "5" in that little square!