It's full swing Thanksgiving around here.....

We have officially started full on planning for Thanksgiving around here.   Although, I have to admit, because I've been working on Christmas stockings and tree skirts for the business and taking advantage of the amazing Christmas deals out in stores....it is hard for me to not already mentally be on Christmas.  I actually asked my sister-in-law this weekend if it was too early to put my tree up.   Verdict...it can't go up until Black Friday.  So....I might as well focus on adding some decorations and crafts for Thanksgiving!

As I mentioned in my last post, we are working on our thankful tree as our centerpiece...

Ours from last year.....our new one should be done very soon!

And...we are finishing up our Indian corn project as well... and I know my children will come home from school with some great homemade projects as in years past.   

I have found a few other really cute ideas/crafts to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday with your children. Whether you're crafty or not, these are great ways to help your children learn the true meaning of Thanksgiving and are super easy to do!

Here are a few really great ideas from Parents.com that allow your children to express what they are thankful for this Thanksgiving.   Their answers can be so funny!

And since I know some of you will tell me you're not crafty or don't have time to try to be....I have one idea for every level from not-so crafty to super-crafty!

This idea is ridiculously easy, but so cute!   You just take a jar or bowl or any container and lay out markers and paper and each day you and each member of your family can write one thing they are thankful for on that day.   The day before Thanksgiving, you simply clip the ideas or your favs to a string and hang as garland!  Very cute idea!

Or how about this sweet activity for kids of all ages...

You could do one for each child or one for the family as shown here.  Such a great keepsake not only for the things they'll say, but also for their sweet little hands!

And the last great idea that I loved from Parents.com...

This one would definitely take more work, but still not too difficult.  You can use store-bought door hangers (all craft stores carry these in their kid crafting area) and use paint and the eraser on a pencil to create the dots.  Then tie a ribbon and attach sticky notes.  They can hang it on their door and write something each day!  Great reminder to be grateful for what we have!!!

The other really cute idea from 'First Grader at Last' that I am definitely doing for my own is this Thanksgiving poem...

This was done in a school setting, but I think it's a great idea to have little hands busy while the cooking is going on and a great reminder of why we celebrate Thanksgiving!

On the other side of Thanksgiving is everything TuRkEy!

Here are some fun crafts that relate to the turkey himself....

 Here is my all-time favorite from my daughter's class (kindergarten I think) that I have kept because I just think it's so creative!   

He's sitting proudly on our mantle!

I found some other really great ideas that you might want to plan for your kids to work on this upcoming week.   I like to get all the supplies set up when they are not around and then when I'm ready to let them loose to work on it, I can work on something next to them.  I'm planning on having them work on one of these this week so I can menu plan for my early Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday!

What I love about all of these turkey projects is there keepsakeability  (I just made up this word, but it works).   When you use their handprint, it makes it so great to re-visit year to year so that you and they can see how they've grown.

This 1st one is so easy....from 'Meet the Dubiens'.  It's just handprints and some simple cut out shapes.  You could even use simple circle for eyes or let the kids draw them if you don't have googly eyes laying around like some of us freaky types....present party included...lol

The next one is equally as cute and just as simple from 'Busy Bee Kids Crafts.com'.   This one is traced handprints cut from construction paper and glue.  Not too difficult, right.  These could be really cute on the table or on the kids' table.   Or...how about using them as a napkin holder and putting your napkin through the center...super cute, right?

And this last one I just love.  It is so darn sweet and so easy.  It's a great family keepsake!  It's from one of my all-time favs of blogs 'Eighteen25'.

I would add the year to it somewhere and then maybe update every few years.  I just love it!

Just a few ideas to keep your little ones in the spirit and busy!   Happy crafting and planning for the big Turkey Day next week.   I can't wait to share pictures of my table and the kids' table for my early Thanksgiving this weekend.

I'll be sharing tons of great table ideas early next week as well as some great recipes and sweet treats I've saved for this special once a year eating-fest!

Poshed Up

What we've been up to lately.....

A whole week without blogging...yikes!  I missed having the opportunity to update you all on some great ideas and fun things to do.    It has been a CRAZY week and now the kids are off for two days, but I'm determined to share some fun ideas with you.

First an update at the shop....

We have been very busy adding new items for the holidays.  We are in the process of completing some great bags for holiday gift giving that include corduroy...not the wide whale kind, but the oh so beautiful and soft thin corduroy.  I actually made myself a bag and I LOVE the new design and feel.  Here it is....very full!!!!

Of all I've made to date, this one has been the easiest for my lifestyle because it has BIG pockets on the outside.  I don't go anywhere where I am concerned about someone taking something from my bag, so it's easy to find my keys, phone and sunglasses.   

I use mine as my everyday purse, but it's also great as an overnight bag, gym bag, or any other sidekick to your everyday bag.  I just love the corduroy.   And it's totally reversible if you tire of the plain or want to suddenly have pockets on the inside!

And...because it's obviously an inherited love of all things corduroy, my daughter asked me for a bag to use at school when she's carrying her stuff between classes.  She's only 9 and weighs about 40 lbs., but she carries about 43 lbs. of books to and from school each day in her backpack plus a lunchbox.  At her school they switch classes and need to bring a big binder, pencil case and books and she tells me that it is difficult to carry it all.  So....I made one for her in HER choice of fabrics (definitely not my 1st choice) and used interfacing or batting which adds some weight and structure since she is so rough on her things and has a heavy load to carry.

So I pulled it out of her backpack to take a picture for you all and here is the wrinkled mess I found.  I did say she's hard on things.  It was all the way at the bottom of the backpack under a million things, but when ironed, it really doesn't look so bad.

Look for these bags soon.   I have a few more in the works and will definitely take custom orders which color choices.  They make a great gift and will be $35 without batting and $40 with the batting.  What a fun gift, right?

I also have a few cute boy bags to add that resemble this one...

It's a terrible picture, but it's an adorable, cartoon superhero print!  Fun for little boys and only $23 so it could be a fun gift filled with other things.   And while we're on the superhero theme...

Since the capes were such a hit at my son's birthday, I decided to add them to the shop.  They are selling VERY well and if you are interested, please let me know!  I am selling the cape and mask set for $23. 

We're offering the color combination of your choice and our colors include red, blue, yellow, green, orange, black, white and even purple and pink for the little superherettes in your life!

And last but not least, our newest addition that I'm so excited about....

custom-made personalized stockings.

And of course since almost everything we make is reversible, we made these reversible as well.  Just in case you want a different look one year!   Here they are on the opposite side...

We've also lined them to make them look great inside and out!

Go check them out and let me know if you're interested.  They are $25 each, but if you are ordering more than four, they are reduced! I have TONS of gorgeous fabrics!

I'm also just about done with our tree skirt...

This one was made to match the 4 stockings I just showed and it includes ribbon closure and ball fringe on the edge.  It is over-sized at about 55 inches wide.  It also has a fully lined back with matching fabric to the inside of the stockings and includes a layer of interfacing as well so that it will keep it shape and structure.

I'm truly struggling with pricing at this point because it is a lot of work and we really try to keep our prices reasonable.  So I ask you, how much would you pay for a custom-made skirt?

So enough about the shop...

As I know I've mentioned before, Thanksgiving is my favorite of holidays.  Why?  Because it's just about being together and family...and eating of course too.  This year will be interesting for me because I've recently become gluten-free, but I'm going to get creative I guess!

Here are some fun projects we are working on here to get in the spirit.   The first I found on pinterest!  How cute are these from 'The Crafty Crow'...

These could have been decorations for all of Fall, but #1 we already did so many crafts and #2, something about Indian Corn reminds me of the Thanksgiving and the Pilgrims.   So...we have collected our supplies...

and we will share them as soon as they're complete!   

We are also busy collecting our supplies to do this great family tradition again...

This one is from 'Simply Vintage Girl'

Here is ours from last year...

We made leaf shapes for ours and this is before we wrote on ours.  We got this idea from a friend and it was so creative and fun.  Basically, you just collect a few branches and make some paper leaves.  We each took turns saying what we were thankful for this year.  Some of them were quite funny.  I held onto last year's because I thought it would be fun for the kids to read what they wrote last year.  

Here are some of my favorites from my then 8 year old daughter....

And from my then 4 year old son...

Of course they both had their families, friends, etc., but these still make me laugh. My single favorite from my son....

Confidence is priceless!

And I leave you with a gorgeous picture from our backyard this morning.  I think it was that much more beautiful because I captured it with my tea in hand and my kids still sleeping...lol

Oh how I love this time of year!

I have SOOOO many things to share this upcoming week about Thanksgiving ideas, tablescapes, food and some great kick-starts to Christmas.  If you follow me on pinterest, you know I have TONS saved for Christmas!

Poshed Up

Halloween 2011

What a wonderful day and night we had this year.   Despite my son's allergies and inability to eat 90% of what is handed out...it remains his favorite holiday and I'd have to agree for good reason.   It was a day filled with smiles, treats, creative costumes, good friends and a nice fall night outside!

This year my children both picked costumes that really suited their current interests.

My little guy is all about movies with mystical figures, superpowers and anything that he can act out.  He has a particular affinity towards Harry Potter because the character himself is a little boy.  I myself have never been able to sit through the entire movie...guess I don't have the same caliber of imagination as he does.  He, on the other hand, has watched the first Harry Potter movie no less than 100 times (no exaggeration either) and he has a few favorite parts.

So it was very fitting that he chose to be Harry Potter himself...

He really got into the character and even thought that he was unrecognizable with his glasses on.  He kept taking them off to his friends and saying, "it's me, it's Ryan".  Very funny.

Here are a few of him at his class parade...he was filled with pure joy!

He had a HUGE smile the entire time.   He loves costumes and loves everything about Halloween!

My daughter plays soccer 5 days a week and loves everything about the sport. So...it was very fitting when she asked to be a soccer referee...


Here she is at her parade.

Unfortunately I only got 1 picture because she was too afraid to stop for the picture for fear of falling behind.      We did take a few cute ones before trick or treating though...

If you noticed our pumpkin in the pictures...we tried a new idea this year and we used cookie cutters to carve it and I have to say it was soooo much easier than the actual carving method.

First you cut the top and do the traditional digging out part.

That's definitely not one of my favorite parts, but since we love eating the seeds...there's no way around it.

Next we choose our cookie cutters.  We went for metal stars this year.    I don't know if this would work with the plastic kind because they make break.

We then placed them where we wanted them and gave them a tap to anchor them.

Then we just hammered away...

You want to hammer them until they are pretty far in.  You then use needle nose pliers to pull out the cookie cutter.   After that, we needed to use our cutting knife to finish going all the way through the pumpkin.  I guess you may not need this step if you carve more of the inside out, but as I mentioned, I hate that step.

And.....

Voila....we had to clean it up a bit on the inside after so you couldn't see the guts through the opening, but you get the idea.  

Here is our finished product...

I loved the way it came out and it looked great at night.  Of course I forgot to get a picture of it all lit up.

Another great tip I tried that worked....I applied Vaseline to the cut edges after carving it to keep them from rotting and changing shape.  It totally helped!

I hope you all enjoyed your Halloween as much as we did...until next year!

Poshed Up