Sleep Mask for Two

Meet Macy.

Macy is a stuffed monkey I designed and made, about 2 years ago.  She has sat nearly forgotten about, until recently.

Grace rediscovered Macy, this past weekend.

Grace then insisted that Macy needed a sleep mask.  Why?

Apparently no child or stuffed monkey is able to sleep without one.

To oblige Grace, I grabbed some felt, fold over elastic, embroidery thread and I made Macy a sleep mask.

Grace then decided that Macy needed to have jammies.

Sigh.

Though I do dabble when it comes to sewing, and though I did succeed in making a coat for Grace last year (the one and only article of clothing I have ever made).

That coat was made from a pattern...and believe it or not, the pattern was super easy.

What I did not have, in this situation, was a jammie pattern for a custom made monkey.

But, who was I to deny the request of a girl and her monkey.

 I took a tank top Grace had outgrown...

channeled my inner Sews N Bows and made Macy a custom nightgown.

As I was custom tailoring the nightgown, one of the discarded pieces of tank top, about to be thrown away, spoke to me and insisted it needed to be made into undies.  So, again, I obliged.

Macy used to be modest about her undies but with Grace proudly showing them off any chance she can, Macy was happy to model them for the blog.

Now Macy can sleep peacefully. 

The things we do for our kids...and their stuffed monkeys!

Put your shoes on...the right foot

If the shoe fits, wear it.

And, hopefully, when you wear it, you wear it on the correct foot.

Of course, sometimes that's easier said than done. 

Especially if you are 5.

Sometimes, you need some help figuring out which shoe goes on which foot...especially when mom isn't around.

So, inside of these little shoes, an extra little reminder.  An arrow drawn in permanent marker inside of each shoe so when lined up they point to each other...

OR a heart shaped sticker cut in half inside of each shoe so when lined up next to each other, they make a whole heart.

And, now, hopefully the shoes will fit better...on the right foot.

Say Cheese

This past month has been a big month for me. 

I'm slowly learning how to let go, just a little bit, as I send Grace off to kindergarten.

Grace is enjoying herself.  She comes home every day sharing her adventures and all the new things she is learning.

When I see her at pick up, my heart fills with even more love for her.  I feel a new appreciation for the time we do have together.

And, when she asks for a couple extra minutes of snuggling before bed, I relish the extra time.

So, this month, get in front of the camera and share you own story...whatever it might be.

<div align="center"> <a href="http://whilewearingheels.blogspot.com/" title="While Wearing Heels" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfnvvORsnwZfgA2wSfHxHbZ1YPUtCcVTVHuV01cKBzTC-q7ERQeucbVGOcFsjFcAtjm3K8GUu6_VHmUFDcl_Rp0DR4RigPdpuol1szkGPIEJbOUcZ3QGN_D9yOxbbuIXg5z_F-aQb7Hq2i/s1600/This+is+ME+-210.jpg" alt="While Wearing Heels" style="border:none;" /></a></div>
Come back Friday September 27th and share your own story in self portrait form.

Take a book, leave a book.

Have you heard of Little Free Library?

They are tiny lending libraries, built by the community.  The concept, you take a book, you leave a book. 

You can either build your own 'library' or buy a box through the Little Free Library.  Of course, the blogger in me would love to build one of my own.

My favorite, bringing a bit of the UK to my own community, a Little Free Library inside of a red telephone booth.  

And, fortunately, in our community, the Little Free Library is also stocked with children's books.

The book lover in me would love to to see what books were left and loaned.

The only problem.

Riley, the Gladys Cravitz of the neighborhood, would scare everyone away with her barking.

To find out more information, visit Little Free Library on Facebook. 

*I am NOT being compensated by the Little Free Library.  I just discovered it and believe in it and wanted to share.

DIY Toilet Paper Roll Washi Crown

A few months ago, I asked if I could be evicted from blogging.  One of my many offenses that I worried might cause my eviction, never having used washi tape to make a craft.

Thanks to Craft and Creativity, I can now say I have (finally) created a fun and easy craft using washi tape.

You can find the detailed tutorial at Craft and Creativity, just grab the following supplies and head on over there.

This crown was so easy, Grace was able to do most of it herself.

Of course, when it came time to getting a picture of her wearing her new crown, she was uninterested.  So, I sought out the other princess in our house.

Suddenly, the having her picture taken in the crown became important to Grace.

And, then I spent all weekend trying to get her to take it off!

Toilet paper roll tiaras, the newest must have accessory.

DIY Pin The Tail Party Games - Tutorial

When it comes to planning a party for kids...Party games are essential. And what better way to keep the kids entertained and occupied than the classic party game, "pin the tail on the donkey"?

Pin the tail on the donkey can be tailored to fit just about any party theme. And, believe it or not, it's easy and inexpensive to make!

For Grace's Bunny Themed Birthday Party, pin the tail on the donkey became pin the tail on the bunny.

You'll need between 1/2 a yard to a yard of felt, depending on the size of the shape you want to make.  I found an image I liked (Wazzyjump), imported it into Block Posters, blew it up to the size I liked and used it as a pattern.  Trace or draw your image onto the felt using chalk, which can be easily erased or wiped off.

Cut your image out and then pin to fabric.  I knew I would hang the pin the tail on the bunny in a door frame, so I needed fabric wide enough to span the door frame.  If you don't want to buy fabric, a frugal option would be using an old bed sheet.

Pin your image into place and sew around the perimeter.

The view from the back illustrates how the bunny was sewn into place.

To finish, sew a hem around the length and width of your fabric background.  *If hanging from a door frame, create a pocket to slide a curtain rod into by folding the top over approximately an inch and a half and sewing the edge down.

I used a similar technique to create the doorway puppet theater.

Decide on a tail.

I used a large white pom pom and double sided tape. 

Hang, give your party goers a spin and watch as they try and pin the tail on the bunny.

Want a no-sew version?  I've got you covered there as well.

For Grace's circus themed birthday party, I made a no-sew pin the fez hat on the elephant.

Cut your details out of felt and glue them into place.

*Ok, so I did sew the curtain rod pocket on the top but you could just pin it up and omit sewing altogether.

For the fez hat, I cut out fez hat shapes out of brightly colored felt, made a slit in the top of the hat and knotted the end of some yard through the hat.  To make them stick, I applied some no sew velcro, the hook side or scratchy side, to the back of the fez hats.  The hook or scratchy side should stick to the felt when your party goers attempt to pin it into place.

You can customize the traditional pin the tail game to just about any party theme.  Pin the head lights on to the car.  Pin the tiara on the princess.  Pin the superhero mask onto the superhero.  Pin the bow onto Hello Kitty.

What version of pin the tail would you make?

Originally shared at One Artsy Mama.

This is Me August Self Portrait Link Party

The optional self portrait theme for August was recreating a picture you love.

For me, I recreated a picture I loved of my Grandma cooking in the kitchen.

Last month, the theme was 'the great outdoors'.

Who wouldn't like spending some time in the great outdoors riding a swan or a flamingo?

Rea from Home 4 for Sweet Home

The best part of spending time outside, for me, is spending it with my family (especially Grace).  This picture from Janiene at A Bunch of Bishops captured such a sweet moment with her daughter.

And, the only thing better than spending time outside with family (while riding a swan) is spending time with family outside while on vacation!

Katherine at Kat's Almost Purrfect World

So, now it's your turn, come out from behind the camera and share your self portraits.

<div align="center"> <a href="http://whilewearingheels.blogspot.com/" title="While Wearing Heels" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfnvvORsnwZfgA2wSfHxHbZ1YPUtCcVTVHuV01cKBzTC-q7ERQeucbVGOcFsjFcAtjm3K8GUu6_VHmUFDcl_Rp0DR4RigPdpuol1szkGPIEJbOUcZ3QGN_D9yOxbbuIXg5z_F-aQb7Hq2i/s1600/This+is+ME+-210.jpg" alt="While Wearing Heels" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Let's get this party started...here are our linky rules:

• There will be a link up here on the last Friday of every month this year, and the linky tool will remain open to your submissions until the last Friday of the next month.
• Please link back to the permalink for your *This Is ME* blog post or flickr image, not just the general url for your blog or flickr stream.
• Linked entries must be to a blog post or flickr image of your recent self-portraits, not just any old photo. Your photo does not have to relate to the optional monthly theme, but it does need to be a self-portrait.
• Please do link back here to my blog either through a text link, or with my button found below to help encourage others to participate and grow our community.
• And most importantly, be the encouragement you hope to receive and help build our self-portrait community! Please try to visit a few of the links of your fellow *This Is ME* participants and leave a nice comment--it only takes a few minutes and you may be inspired by what you see.

Well, that's it...now get linking everyone! I'll see you back here on Friday, August 2nd, for our August theme announcement, but in the meantime, keep showing us your stuff in the flickr pool.