Christmas Stocking!

It's hard to believe that Christmas is right around the corner - well, I know there's still Halloween and Thanksgiving first, but still, I need to start thinking about it!  And, most importantly, Ben needs a Stocking.  For our first Christmas together back in 2000, Jake and I exchanged stockings that we'd made for each other - it's still crazy to me that he made me a stocking - ah, the early days of love...Growing up I had a felt stocking with an angel on it that my mom made for me (I think she made it).  I loved that stocking, and the image of the angel stayed with me, creating a love in me for little angel ornaments and other cute felt creatures that reminded me of the stocking.  I'd like to create something easy and fun for Ben that he can use for years and will give him wonderful memories of waking up on Christmas morning, running downstairs, and seeing his stocking full of candy, fruit, and trinkets. 

I Spy Bottle

I Spy Bottles - I think these home-made bottles are so cute and fun!  I experimented over the weekend making one for Ben.  I used rice and black/orange Halloween sprinkles.  I put in plastic spiders and some little plastic pumpkins I had lying around from past years.  Right now Ben is too young to truly enjoy the fun of discovering all the treasures inside the bottle, but he does like the sound the rice makes when he rattles it around.  I'm going to start collecting little things to make more holiday I Spy bottles and get more creative with coloring the rice and using beans and other filler that will be pleasing to both the eyes and ears.  When he's a little older and more sophisticated, I think it would be fun to take photos of the objects in the bottles so he can then be on the look-out for the objects he's supposed to be spying.  Happy Hunting :)

Eco-friendly Nursing Pad

I stumbled on this free tutorial and thought about the nursing pads that Anne purchased while nursing Ben. I wondered if, in fact, this might be a sewing project should another baby arrive.

http://sosewsomething.com/2011/05/20/washable-eco-friendly-nursing-pads-a-free-tutorial/

Country Books

I have a lot of old travel guides lying around - many from trips that Jake and I have taken together, and some from trips that I wish we could have taken!  Used bookstores won't buy the guides because they're outdated, so I've thought about just donating them to Goodwill, but there's the same problem - do people want outdated guides?  So, the other day it dawned on me...I could break the guides up and make little books about various countries.  Down the road when Ben is ready to learn about geography, we could have little lessons on various countries - he could look at the maps and color photos, we could cook food from the country (or get take-out depending on the degree of difficulty)...he could learn about traditional clothing from each place, customs and holidays, and maybe some phrases in new languages.  I figure this project is going to take me awhile, so the first thing to do is figure out what these books are going to look like, and how I'll bind them together.

I'm going to start with the first guide I pulled from my stack:  Puerto Rico.  It will be my test country.

My next step is to search around the internet for book ideas.  I want to be able to include pages for him to write on - maybe questions that he can use the internet or other books to answer.  Maybe a place for him to include his own questions and thoughts about a specific country.  I could just include blank pages, or the book could have rings that open and close for the addition of new pages (like a small binder).  Do I laminate the pages?  Lots to think about here...so I better get started.

Stencils!

I like stencils, but have never really worked much with them...I was thinking I'd like to put some on Ben's clothes...or decorate cloth that he could play with...I'll have to think of something, but in the meantime, I've been looking at this site:  Free Stencils - here are a couple of my favorites:

Car Mat

My mom and I have been designing a car mat for Ben.  I want roads (of course), as well as a water area for his animals and green spaces for houses and trees.  My mom found a number of examples on-line, but this one was truly outstanding.  It's modeled after the town of Santa Barbara - I particularly love the Old Mission-style Courthouse (I've been there in person and it's beautiful).  My mom likes the parking spaces for the matchbox cars in front of the buildings.  The detail is amazing...some people are truly creative - and I have no problem piggy-backing on those efforts.  Here are more pictures of the mat up-close: Car Mat.  I'm looking forward to designing a similar one for Ben and playing with him and his cars for hours.

Playhouse

Like most kids, when I was young, I enjoyed playingunder tables and building forts.  I always wished I had a playhouse out back, a treehouse, or some other special place that I could make my own away from the adults.  I think Ben would also enjoy such a place.  My mom and I found this amazing example of a felt playhouse: Felt Playhouse.  I love the detail.  We were thinking we could drape it over a card table - and then also make the top something that Ben could play with when he wasn't inside the house (under the table).  We'll have to check out the measurements and see what works - but in addition to the creative ideas on this house, I think we could make some pretty cool walls and decorations on each side of the "building."  I'm looking forward to designing this one - and watching my mom implement it!!  Perhaps I could even take on a small sewing project of my own to help out - making the flowers could be fun.