Norah’s 1 Year Old Pictures

I love having little girls of my own that can model for me to give me some practice at photography! It’s about a month late, but I finally got around to taking some pictures of my sweet Norah. A friend took some pictures a few weeks ago but I like to do some for myself, too for practice. She wasn’t in too much of a mood to have her picture taken but she at least let us change her outfit once lol. Here are two of my favorites:

You can see the rest on my website, here!

Cork Coasters

This was a Pinterest inspired project. I think I can safely say it was a success!

Simply collect a bunch of corks (which was easy for me since we drink lots of wine around here ). Cut them to the thickness you want (I did about 3/4 inch). Hot glue them together in circles then wrap them in any ribbon you desire.
I have enough corks left to make about 2 more coasters but it has become one of those “filler” projects I do between other ones. As I have a few minutes then I go cut some coaster…. till I have another one made.
Now, where’s my glass of wine???

Banana Chocolate Cake

If I have not mentioned this cookbook before, I really need to. It is our absolute favorite dessert book!

This banana chocolate cake came from this book  and it is AMAZING! If you like banana bread and chocolate, this is the cake for you. The only thing I would change is to add some pecans to the batter and maybe a few on top in a pretty design. We brought it to a friends house for dinner last night and they love it too. Pretty sure the whole thing is GONE in less than 24 hours! lol

Rocking Chair Remodel

We received this rocking chair from my husband’s parents. I believe it was originally his great grandma’s chair but I could be wrong on the lineage… either way it is an heirloom and I LOVE furniture that has a history to it! I am actually not a huge antique fan but when it comes from family, I can’t pass it up, especially if it has this much potential in it!
Here is how it came to me. Luckily my father in law sanded it down for me (I hate that part lol). The cushions were very unattractive and smelled REALLY bad! They HAD to go!

Here’s my assistant! She was loads of help

I wanted to darken the wood up just a bit since most of the wood in our house is on the darker side. I added just one coat of Jacobean by Minwax stain and let it dry.

It actually continued to get even darker as it dried. I am glad I only did 1 coat!! Lesson learned that with staining let the product dry for at least 1-2 days between coats to make sure it doesn’t get too dark. Maybe that’s just the case for this project, but it’s better to be safe than sorry!

Next, I added 2 coats of Minwax Polycrylic in Semi Gloss finish. I really like this product because it protects the stain and gives it a nice smooth shinny finish.

Next, came the cushions. This was the trickier part but all in all I just used the original as a guide. I didn’t take the original cushions apart as a pattern but just measured the seat and went from there. The bottom ruffle piece is there to protect the cushion from the springs in the seat. I kind of wish I would have made them just a little bit longer since they have a tendency to stick out funny, but I don’t think it looks bad this way.

The hardest part about the actual cushion was cutting the foam cushion to size. the chair is wider in front than in back and curves, and going around the back legs wasn’t easy. I actually cut the fabric backwards (where the words would be upside down when looking at the chair) so I had to make a few adjustments here and there so that I didn’t have to order new fabric. It was a close call but I was able to fix it! lol Seems like with every project there’s something that goes wrong!

I looked up what the phrase on the fabric says before I ordered it so I could approve of it ha! In French it says, “Faites Comme Chez Vous” which translates to “Make yourself at home”. How perfect!!

Anyways, here it is. I LOVE the way it turned out! Now, to keep the girls off of it! lol

Nap Mat

Avery is starting MDO this fall. My nerves are a wreck! I pray and hope she likes it!!!
Naturally, though I got most excited about getting to make her a nap mat. Here it is! I didn’t have a pattern, just made it up as I went so when I have to make one for Norah I have a few minor details I would do differently. All in all I really like it and Avery does too! Anything to get her excited about starting school!

Norah’s First Birthday

Where does time go?! I know I say that  a lot but I can not keep up with how fast my children grow!!
With that being said, we had a blast at Norah’s party. I did a Dr. Seuss theme and it turned out so cute (if I do say so myself lol).
Here’s the pictures!

Invitation

I baked/cooked for about 12 hours the friday before. It’s a lot of work but I would MUCH rather make everything than buy a cake and food somewhere! (I had lots of help from little hands, too)

These are the sketches I made for decorations throughout the house. The are for sale on my etsy site if you want them!!

I had Dr. Suess quotes hanging throughout the house, too. I just realized I took all of these pictures at the same angle! haha

More decorations

Craft! Cat-in-the-hat masks! they were more of a success than I thought!

Party Favors. Thanks to my M-I-L these were Target dollar section specials!! What are the odds we would find Dr. Suess stuff just before the party?! Best favor bags EVER!

The queen’s throne. Highchair banner.

FOOD!

I got all of the paper designs on Etsy… $5 for everything!! SCORE!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY sweet Norah! We love you!! :)

I think I found the boots I want

Emmitt by Steve Madden!

Source

They look like the perfect color I have been looking for. Tall, skinny, and without a lot of buckles and clips (I don’t like too much going on). I also wanted something that would make my legs and feet look smaller than they are. I think these will do it since it isn’t too big around the leg. Oh! and I also didn’t want to spend a FORTUNE!!
Hopefully I can go try them on soon and I will still love them!!