Diaper Babies!

Who doesn't love a diaper baby?! Ok, so I basically just made that up...but now I can't help but love them ;-) This was a baby shower gift that I made for a friend, but I had to wait to share this post until after the baby shower. So I didn't ruin the surprise of course!

I wanted to give diapers, but I wanted to jazz it up a little. And I have WAY too much free time on my hands to just wrap a package of diapers! So...I found some "pin-spiration." Unfortunately, the pin was just a picture with no website, so I can't give credit to the original creator, otherwise I would love to do so. Because this is not my original idea - oh to be that creative! But basically, I looked at the picture and then created my own version of it, and here it is!

It was really fun to make! And also allowed for the addition of other small, useful items into the mix. You can probably figure out what to do just by looking at the picture but then what would be the point of writing a blog?! Haha :-) So what follows are the steps that I took. Below is a picture of my supplies. These include: diapers of your choice, a basket, washcloths, socks, and various toiletries (I chose baby powder, Johnson's Baby Head-to-Toe Body Wash, Johnson's Baby Lotion, and Johnson's Baby Bedtime Lotion).

The first thing that I did is take six diapers and roll them up into a tight cylinder. I used a rubber band to hold them together. The rubber band will later be hidden by a washcloth, so this is just to help it keep its shape. I used six diapers because I bought a six-pack of washcloths. So however many babies you want to make, just buy that many washcloths.

Next, take one of your washcloths and fold it into a triangle, and then fold the point of the triangle up to basically match the size of your diaper. I tried to demonstrate in the picture below.

Then, take your washcloth and wrap it around the diaper - much like you would a real baby! And use a safety pin to secure the washcloth. I just made sure the safety pin was in the back so that it wouldn't be noticeable when the babies were in the basket.

Now you need to keep these little babies heads warm! So take one of the socks and cover their head the top of the diaper with it. Do this for all of your diapers.

Ok, the next step is the fun part! Adding eyes :-) I bought the adhesive googly eyes and just very lightly stuck them down. That way they could be taken off of the diaper and the diaper is still intact and useable.

I also thought it would be cute to make some babies sleeping. So I drew closed eyelids, however, I didn't want to draw on the actual diaper. So I took a piece of white paper and drew my closed eyelids on that (basically just half-circles), and then I folded the piece of paper and tucked it into the sock and washcloth and wrapped it around the back of the diaper. Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of just this part - sorry! But you can see it in the finished pic.

And now for a few tips that tied it together. I padded the bottom of my basket with extra diapers and then covered that with tissue paper. I then stood diapers up in the back of the basket to give my babies something to rest upon. My socks came with six pairs, thus I had twelve socks but only six washcloths. So I just placed those extra socks in the basket as well. Add in your toiletries and there you have it!!! And just to note, I bought a 50 pack of diapers and I was only able to fit 25 in this gift (with stuffing the bottom and lining the back) so I just tied some ribbon around the rest of the pack of diapers and gave it all together.

*Unexpected bonus! My friend who I gave this to has a little girl who's about a year and a half and apparently she had fun playing with the babies like dolls :-) So it's a gift for now and later! Hahaha :-)

I hope you enjoy! I thought it was adorable, and I just wish I knew where the idea originally came from so I could give that person credit. Because although I can put it together, I would NEVER have been able to come up with the idea on my own! But hey...that's what Pinterest is all about right?!

Oh, Seasons!

So I am currently working on different projects that I want to blog about. However, the most epic race ever has gotten slightly in the way of progress. That's right, the Tour de France! Every July I'm glued to NBC sports network for three weeks as I ride my way through France - ok as I watch others ride their way through France. 198 riders cycling their way through thousand of kilometers, over some of the steepest mountains in the alps and the pyrenees, working together in an amazing example of teamwork and sportmanship - it's amazing! So all that to say, watch the Tour!!!

Ok, no really, all that to say, I'm just going to share one of my funniest/classic moments teaching Pre-K. And I will start by mentioning that if you want to spice up your life and you have access to young children, just ask some questions. You never know what you're going to get! It was the end of September or the beginning of October (not this most recent school year, but the one before) right around when fall had begun. We were doing a unit in the classroom on fall and we were studying how the earth changes, we were "Going on a Leaf Hunt," and all sorts of fun adventures! However, I realized that I needed to make sure my kids knew what the word "season" meant. It would do no good to talk about seasons and fall/autumn if they didn't have that vocabulary.

So during circle time, I posed this question, "Can somebody tell me what a season is?"
First student answers: "Oh yeah, it's like the thing that you pour. Like you pour into soups and stuff."
Me: "Hmm, ok yes, those are seasonings and you're right, you can use seasonings to flavor food. The word season can also mean something else, does anybody know?"

And before I share with you my second answer of the day, let me give you a little background on the next student, we'll call him Joe. Joe is a precious, hilarious, "all-boy" kind of boy. He wore cowboy boots to school EVERY day. He would spontaneously, and by request, sing you songs such as "Big Green Tractor" and "Rain is a Good Thing." And on the way to a field trip he was able to identify two places - his church and the gun store (Gander Mountain). So Joe was a constant source of entertainment and delight. And he was COUNTRY, and I don't mean a little country!

So back to the seasons. Joe now raises his hand.
Joe: "Uh yeah, it's like where you have a gun and you go into a field, and there's different seasons. Like dove season and deer season and turkeys!"

Why yes! That is actually exactly what I meant! Teaching in Texas...there just really isn't anything like it :-)

T-Shirt Transformations

Summer is without a doubt my favorite season of the year. I have always loved summer! I love relaxing by pools, lakes, or beaches, I love the heat (most days), I love having no school (as a student and as a teacher), and my birthday is in the summer! At least in the Northern Hemisphere anyways... :-)

However, summer brings with it the inevitable boredom of some days. Enter Pinterest! Or as my husband so fondly refers to it "fantasy football for girls." Which probably isn't so far off the mark! And for my friends on facebook - I apologize for the repeat of several pictures. So my starting line-up from pinterest will be my t-shirt transformations. More specifically, a t-shirt into a tank top and a t-shirt headband.

This probably started as a conversation between my mom and I where we lamenting the high-necked collars of t-shirts. She was complaining about the collars of t-shirts and how it bugs her, and I laughed at her slightly obsessive comments only to realize that as she was talking, I too was pulling on the neck of my shirt. In fact, every one of my shirts is distinctly stretched at the neck from my constant tugging. Hmmm...something about the apple and the tree?! So my mom has been giving some of her t-shirts to my grandma (who recently moved close to them, yay!) and Grandma has been converting them into v-necked collars. Can I say LOVE!?! That too is on my list of t-shirt projects, but until I can go visit my grandma for a tutorial, I had to make do with turning a t-shirt into a tank top.

Pinterest saves the day! I found a tutorial from crafterhours that gave excellent step-by-step instructions for the whole process. So if you're interested and want more explanation than I give, go check it out - very helpful! It was a really simple process that took me 30 minutes from start-to-finish. Which included trying to figure it out along the way, so it really was quick. Although, I had a sewing machine which definitely speeds up the process!

I took an old shirt that I no longer wear (in case it didn't work out!) and began cutting.
Before

After 

It worked! And is now a LOT more comfortable! So with a little more confidence, I picked a shirt that I still enjoy wearing and tried again. This time taking pictures along the way :-)

Here is the shirt before I started. Note my dog, Link's paw in the bottom right corner. He just loves to help out with Pinterest projects!

First cut off the sleeves along the inside seam. Then cut a straight line across the top, just underneath the collar. Now, below is where I started the sewing part.

I folded the top edge over and pinned it. Then used my sewing machine to sew a straight seam. I made the seam about a half-inch wide. For the next step, I didn't take a picture, but I cut off the bottom seam of the t-shirt and then used that as the straps for the tank top.

 You have to thread the strap through the seam, so I attached a safety pin to the end of the strap in order to give me something solid to hold onto. And here's the finished product!

And like I mentioned, the original blog that I linked to has a WAY more detailed step-by-step process, so if you're wanting to make one, go check that out for sure! Hahaha, it'll be a lot easier to follow than my half instructions :-)

And when Scott recently got an ink stain on one of his undershirts, I was provided with the material for my second t-shirt project! Oh gee, Scott, I'm sorry about your shirt! But here's my new t-shirt headband ;-) The tutorial for this project can be found here, from the blog Julie Ann Art.

I cut his undershirt into five horizontal strips, and then sewed them together at one end. I then began a five-strand braid. Which is explained really well, with pictures, in the blog tutorial that I linked to. After braiding a sufficient length to wrap around my head, I attached the two ends together, and there you have it! Extremely comfortable and very handy! Just think of all the fun colors you could use from shirts. Now I just need to wait for more to be ruined...

So thanks to my Pinterest first-round draft picks, I now have two t-shirts turned comfortable tank tops and a headband! Next up for t-shirts...a t-shirt quilt. And I promise to share my progress as I go along!

Our not so friendly guests...

So Scott and I are blessed to live in a great duplex with a wonderful dog, great neighbors, and lots of fun people who periodically stay with us when they rotate through temple. However, recently we had so not so friendly guests...

It started out small and innocent as most things do in life. I walked outside a few weeks ago and saw...a wasp. Definitely not my favorite, but also not something I would panic about. "Hmm...oh well," is what I'm pretty sure ran through my head. I also noticed what looked like the stem of a nest starting. "Oh, I guess I need to get a broom and knock that down before it gets bigger." I actually gave this advice to myself - if only I had followed it immediately.

Now fast forward about a week. I was selling something on Craigslist and the person was coming to pick up the item. Gotta love selling stuff you don't use and getting money right?! But there's always that slightly nervous tension when you have a complete stranger coming to your house to exchange money and items. So the lady pulls up, walks to the door and knocks. After wrangling our 80 lb German Shepherd back from the door, I open up to find a lady - looking slightly panicked and standing about 10 feet back from the door. I was a little confused as the dog was safely hidden and I was only selling Nintendo Wii Wheels.

I start to hand to them to her and she says "Do you know that you have wasps out here?"
Without looking up, I just laugh it off, "Hahaha oh yeah. I saw that, I'm planning on getting rid of it soon."

She gives me a look that clearly says "You're CRAZY!', shoves the money in my hands and takes the wheels. At this point it starts to dawn on me that perhaps I should look up. When I do I see this:

What was once a harmless wasp flying around has now become a thriving, wiggling, crawling mess of a hive. (Please note all the white egg sacs that indicate further wasps waiting to be born) It's probably a good thing that people don't leave reviews for sellers on Craigslist.

So another week passes by where Scott and I look up at the roof each time we walk into the house and say "Man! We really need to do something about that!" Hmm...this advice sounds familiar. So naturally I ignore it! A week later, I see this on the other side of the overhang:

Yep, should have learned the first time! Because note the second nest forming, as well as an additional third nest just beginning in the bottom left-hand corner. Our small town may not be much of a hotspot for humans, but apparently it is the place to be if you are a wasp!

So this time, I actually heeded my own advice (never to late to learn) and got out my Beekeepers' outfit. Something I highly suggest that everyone should own.

Featuring: Thick TCU sweatshirt (Go Frogs!) with a hood, rubber dishwashing gloves, white mesh face cover, blue jeans (not pictured), cowboy boots (not pictured)

And let me clarify, contrary to what my husband believed, no that is not my wedding veil! Just plain old white tulle. And to complete the ensemble:

Wasp and Hornet Killer from Home Depot. Actual helpful hint here: buy the foaming kind! One of our friends recommended this to us because the foam weighs down the wasps and kills them instantly, thus hindering their ability to attack you. Another helpful hint: if you have potted flowers and fresh herbs under your nests move those BEFORE spraying. Wish I'd thought of that one...so much for our basil and parsley.

So to summarize...SUCCESS! Although in hindsight, it probably would have been a lot easier to just knock down the start of a nest and kill one wasp.

And since I'm sure my fellow Hunger Games fans were probably concerned about this...at least they weren't Tracker Jackers!!!

If I had a blog...

"Well, if I had a blog - this would go on it." Since the summer has started I've said those exact words to my dear, sweet husband countless times. Enough times in fact to warrant the start of this blog - mostly so that he doesn't have to hear it anymore!

I've often toyed with the idea of starting a blog. But I held back for the same reasons everyone quotes...what will I say, will it be worth reading, what will I write about? No one will read it, I won't have time to keep up with it, etc. etc. However! I'm a teacher. And in being a teacher, I have three glorious months in the summer to recover from the patience, love, and frustration that I pour into my students relax and actually have free time.

So here I am...starting a blog! I make no promises as to how often I will post, and I have no set theme or topic that I'll be writing about. But I like to craft, cook, scrapbook, hang out with friends, and ultimately try and bring glory to God in what I do. And if all else fails, I am a teacher so my students provide me with a never-ending supply of funny/crazy moments!

So for my first post I'm going to leave you with one of these such moments. I taught Pre-K my first two years and will be teaching it again next year. However, this last year, I taught 3rd grade and wow...what a difference! To give a little background, my school had a very high number of economically disadvantaged (I believe 96% of our students were on free or reduced lunch). Our population was mostly Hispanic and African-American students. And let me say that I love this type of school. My heart is truly for at-risk students, and it is why I became a teacher. I love being a stable, consistent person for my students that they can count on to love them and support them. Our school also has a lot of blended families - perfect, I fit right in! So on the first day of school, I like to get to know my students. I try to learn about their lives and I share about mine. In doing so, I shared this picture with my class:

To which the following conversation ensues:
Boy student: "Uhhh Mrs. McCord? Is all your family white?
Me: "No actually they're not. My brothers and sister are black."
Girl student (real matter of fact): "Y'all got different daddies?"