She's Crafty!

So I've filled my crafting quota for the month and I'm officially done until the new year.

Monday, we made a gingerbread house from one of those kits you can get at Michaels or Bed, Bath, and Beyond.  I can't remember ever making one as a child (My mother disagrees) but it was a fun family project and one that your really can't screw up.  Austin's attention splan was limited to putting candies on the roof and then using his finger to taste test the frosting.

Tuesday, I sat at the kitchen table and constructed a Christmas Card wreath from crafting wire, jingle bells, clothes pins, and a glue gun.  The inspiration came from this pin.

Yesterday, I also put together some reindeer appliqués to sew on shirts for Austin and a few of his 2nd cousins so I can continue to get practice on my sewing machine.  That project took the entirety of Austin's 3 hour nap.  Here is the inspiration for this project.  Tonight was spent hunched over my sewing machine sewing, 3 out of the 4 shirts, and now propped up with a back massager.  ugh.  So tomorrow I'll sew Austin's shirt and then I'll go on a sewing sabbatical :-P

Any holiday projects that you've completed recently?

Limiting Screen Time

Randy, Austin, and I have just finished a whirl wind two weeks of travel.  Over the weekend, we spent more than 13 hours in the car to be a part of my niece Molly's baptism.  How did Austin do on the trips?  Amazing, thanks to the car DVD player and movies like Ice Age, Cars, and Madagascar.  Ugh, needless to say, his screen time has been at an all time high with the constant travel, so we decided that we were going to set a goal to limit his screen time to keep him from becoming a electronics junkie.

I'm the first to say that I'm guilty of indulging Austin's screen time.  He usually gets an hour or two first thing in the morning (sometimes I need a few extra z's in the morning since I've been battling pregnancy insomnia).  He is also a pro at using my IPad and IPhone and is notorious for watching videos of himself as well as finding apps to play. He requests shows after nap (depending on how much he watches in the morning, he may get one show).  Shouldn't I be able to entertain my child without having to resort to using electronic devises and the tv?

I'm happy to say that yesterday I was successful in limiting Austin's screen time to 30 minutes of PBS's Super Why! What did we do to keep busy? Practiced letter recognition and drawing pictures on Austin's new Magna Doodle with  magnet letters, played firetrucks, read books, practiced somersaults, nap time, played with stickers, played with Bananagram tiles, found similar shapes and colors with our Blokus board game, etc.  Needless to say, it was a busy day for me to find new activities to keep him going and there were multiple times throughout the day where I had to turn down his request for more "tb's".  But we did it, and I'm proud of us!  Now that its done do I think I could keep it up every day?  Probably not, especially once the new baby arrives and I have to split my time between newborn baby care and entertaining a toddler.  I do think that it is a worthwhile goal to set.  I think screen time is one of the nasty habits that become ingrained in our daily routines and it can be a hard habit to break, especially when you are staying at home on a daily basis.  My plan is to hopefully break us of the habit before the new baby comes so that Austin doesn't come to expect tv and other electronic devises as entertainment when Mommy is busy with baby.  I'm sure there will be cheat days but we will take it one day at a time.

Here is a link for suggestions on how to limit screen time for you and your family.  Do you have any other suggestions or ideas for how to limit screen time for yourself or your kiddos?  

2nd Week of Mo

Randy has reached his second week of Mo growing efforts in the month of Movember.  To be honest, I think it is growing in thicker this year.  I'm actually impressed.  Here is a pic of his current mo growing efforts.  Donate to the cause!!

 

http://mobro.co/rkimball

If you are growing a moustache, here are some helpful tips from the Movember website!  Enjoy!!

How to grow a Mo:

• Ask yourself the question, who do you want to be? For every style of moustache there is a different personality. You will become that man, you will be treated as that man and you will act like that man. It's important you like who he is.
• Be brave. The first few days, even weeks, can be uncomfortable and a little awkward as your facial goodness grows and your Mo takes shape.
• Ignore the itching. Remind yourself that other men have endured worse in the past; surely you can stand a little face tickle from your Mo.
• Start to shape your moustache using proper grooming techniques. A great Mo comes down to grooming.
• Look after your Mo. Fertilize it, keep it clean and keep it neat.

Foods to approach with caution when sporting a Mo:

Moustache Protecting Mug:  $25

• Cappuccino
• Glass of milk
• Irish Cream Ale, Guinness or any brew served with a fine creamy mousse
• Singapore crab
• Cotton Candy
• Toffee Apples
• Spaghetti Carbonara
• Meat Pie when eaten with your hand
• Souvlaki
• Tacos

Applying Appliqués

I've always been in awe of people who know how to use a sewing machine.  I'm amazed at people who can hem their own pants (a problem I face daily at my staggering 5'1"height), create Christmas gifts, make children's clothing, decorate their homes, etc.  I always thought, I could totally do that.  I took Home-EC (almost 20 years ago) and am sad to say that I don't remember much of our sewing lesson so needless to say, I've been starting from scratch.  A few failed projects later, my friend Katie suggested I try doing a tie applique for Austin.  She works with our friend Jaimee in a company called Preppy T which specializes in making personalized, appliquéd shirts at a reasonable price.  So after watching their routine a few times (Jaimee makes the appliqués and Katie does the sewing) and getting a few verbal lessons, I thought I would give it a go.

I bought my supplies at Wal*Mart because they are close, have a fabric section, and it was cheap which I think is a win/win when you are sure to make mistakes.  

Supplies:

Pellon Wonder Under (1/4 yd-there is extra for me to keep practicing)

Fabric for appliqué (1/4 yd again)

Garanimals white long-sleeved tee ($3.88 per shirt @ Wal*Mart) 

Coordinating thread

Sewing Machine
Iron
Seam Ripper

So first thing I did was wash my fabric and tee shirt to make sure that any later washings wouldn't shrink and potentially ruin the applique.  Then I ironed my fabric and shirt to make sure the surfaces were nice and smooth.  I then made a pattern out of construction paper of the tie for Austin's shirt.  I cut out this shape into the wonder Under and the fabric making sure that the bumpy side (fusible side) of the wonder Under was facing the same direction as the right side of the fabric.  Then I ironed the pieces together and cut away any uneven edges (My friend Jaimee told me its easier to skip the extra step of cutting out the Wonder Under until it has been ironed onto the fabric.  Lesson for next time, yay!).  I then removed the paper backing of the Wonder Under and ironed my fabric directly onto the shirt

Then I changed the settings of my sewing machine to make a zig-zag stitch and stitch width to 1 (All sewing machines are different so its best to try out the settings on scrap fabric before working on the final piece).  I threaded the machine and prepared my bobbin with the coordinating thread.  Then I took a break because nap time was over and there was no way Austin was going to let me sew uninterrupted.  

After Austin went to bed, I started sewing.  I started at the bottom point of the tie and worked my way around the edges.  At first, it took me several attempts to get the needle lined up correctly with the edge of the fabric (seam ripper is my new best friend).  Once I got it, I moved pretty easily around the biggest part of the tie.  I had some major issues at the top with going off the edge of the appliqué and having to back up to do that part again (seam ripper to the rescue again).  Once I did one complete rotation around the tie, I noticed that the stitches were really close together on certain parts and farther apart on other parts.  My solution, go over it again to make it thicker.  This worked until I got back to that top section again and the old seam ripper had to come out again.   After an hour of sewing, I finally finished.  The top right corner was a little worn from all my seam ripping and their was a little hole where I forgot to lift the needle when I was trying to remove the fabric.  All in all, not terrible, just not great.   Below are some pics of the final project. I've already purchased another shirt to try again.   Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Not so bad from far away

Pretty messy up close. 

Eating an apple and picking his butt.  Classy!

I Predict Good Fortune

Growing up in the North Country with parents who didn't eat any Asian cuisine unless it came from a take-out restaurant, I never learned to use chopsticks.  I actually didn't even try until Randy and I had been dating for several years and his parents brought us to a Hibachi restaurant.  I was terrible at it but I gave it my best shot.  Then when everyone else was close to finished with their dinners while using chop sticks, I switched back to my trusty fork.  After lots of practice and many stained shirts, I finally feel like I can competently use chopsticks (with an occasional stain on my shirt).  Now, Randy and I eat stir fry (made by Randy or Trader Joes) at least once a week and occasionally splurge on Chinese food from a take-out restaurant when we are feeling super lazy.  Its easy and delicious.  While we eat Chinese food, Austin usually has his normal toddler fare of macaroni and cheese, pizza, or chicken nuggets (he is super picky).  Sometimes we even give him a set of chopsticks while he eats since he thinks they are fun and it frequently gets him more motivated to take more bites.  Because of this, one of the best gifts he has received in the past were his "trainer" chopsticks.



The Good Fortune Chopsticks made by the company Fred & Friends are great for kids and adults alike who want to use chopsticks but need a little help stabilizing the top of the sticks.  They sell at Amazon for a little over $7 a pair but are washable, reusable, and pretty durable for use by rough handed kids.  I am in no way being asked by Fred to endorse these chopsticks, I just am so impressed with how Austin has picked up on using chopsticks so quickly.  Also as an OT, I feel like so many children with fine motor issues could benefit from using them to help strengthen those small muscles in their hands that help with precision, grasping, and releasing.  There are tons of non food related activities you could do with them too!  (Carry small objects with chopsticks from point A to point B, separate beads into different sizes or colors in an egg carton, move game pieces around for board games using chopsticks).

Success!

Austin practicing (lefty preference?)

Movember Week 1

Randy has completed his first week of growing his mustache for Movember.  This picture isn't great because Randy worked a long day but there it is in all its glory.  People are even beginning to ask Randy if he is participating in Movember.  I take that as a positive sign that more and more people are learning about this movement to increase awareness into men's health.  

Do you know anyone that is participating in Movember?  How does their Mo look after a week of growth?   

http://mobro.co/rkimball

Rock the Vote!

Its Election Day!  Have your rocked the vote yet today?  I brought Austin this morning while I exercised my civic duty.  He was not nearly as excited as I was about it but I'm glad I included him.  I want him to be a part of the process for electing our governing officials and the best way to teach him is through example.

All the excitement has led to nap time here in the Kimball home.  Enjoy your afternoon!