And the Winners Are . . .

We were off vacationing by the ocean this weekend so I'm a little late posting the winners of the poodle apron giveaway. That's right I say winners because Nature Girl pulled both Christy and Madelyn. Madelyn wins the poodle skirt apron and I have another special goody for Christy. I'll get the prizes mailed out this week.

Art and Love

Sometimes art and love go hand in hand. Nature Girl loves her stuffed animals. As an only child they are often her playmates and friends. She's never been one to dress and diaper dolls but her stuffed animals have all seen a lot of love! When we went on our Disney cruise her grandmother took her to the Disney shop on board and let her pick out anything she wanted. She chose this Webkin armadillo that she named Dilly. Dilly has travel with us this summer and has been on many adventures both real and those imagined by Nature Girl as she plays. She loves him so much that she drew this picture of him. You know he's loved when he starts showing up in her artwork. She accidentally ripped the page after it was drawn so part of his tail is missing but I still thought this picture was so cute! It makes me smile.

Then again what's there not to love about a rainbow armadillo?

First Day of School

It was back to school for Miss Nature Girl last week. She started first grade on Wednesday. She made this cute picture frame on her first day. I'm happy to report that Nature Girl likes her teacher and says that she has a sweet voice.

I was lucky that Nature Girl's school started the day before my teacher workshop days so I got to be the one to take her to school the first day. Here's our self portrait. Daddy was out of the house and on his way to the office so we snapped our own picture. It's a little crooked but I like it.

Nature Girl wanted to wear all black like a ninja for the first day of school. I think her back pack is almost as big as she is!
She had a great first day though the pick up line was beyond crazy. I had to wait in traffic for 30 minutes to pick her up. The poor thing was standing in the rain in a little black sweater the whole time. I felt bad!
Today my students start school. Like every year I'm nervous! I know most of the kids I'll be working with. Last year they worked with the special educator I share a room with so they were in the room with me. I do have two brand new students and two others that will be new to me. I hope we have a great year!

Crafty Goodness Swap = Happiness!

Today was my first official day of school. I got home after a day of teacher workshops and meetings to find swap mail. I joined the Crafty Goodness Swap over at the Magical Bean this summer. As a matter of fact, I just mailed my package out yesterday. It has a ways to travel but I'll try to post some pictures of what I sent later. When this package arrived today, I knew it was from the Crafty Goodness Swap and couldn't wait to see what was in it. Nature Girl was my official package opener. She was excited when she found this sweet owl book. It turned out to be a little cookbook with hand written recipe cards and more blank cards that can be filled out and attached to the pages in the book. Nature Girl called it as her very own since I have one she says. She was very happy and can't wait to add more recipes. Nature Girl got the recipe book but that's okay because look what I got. . . .

This amazing little quilt was made by Maria from Maria's Secret Garden. I just about screamed when I saw this! Maria chose these special photos from our blog and created this amazing keepsake quilt. I can't even begin to express how much this means to me. I immediately hung it up in the hall where I can see it and enjoy it everyday. Thank you so much Maria!! You put a lot of thought and energy into it and created something so special for us! We really LOVE it!

Of course Nature Girl got into the picture. Life wouldn't be the same without that sweet little face!

Apron Give Away

I've had a great summer with Nature Girl & my husband, but sadly summer is coming to an end. I've been a little apron crazy sewing lots of aprons this summer. As a matter of fact I made this poodle apron for the Back to the Future Swap over at the Flirty Apron Swap. At the time, I knew the theme but hadn't gotten my partner's information yet. I couldn't help myself I started sewing and created this. After getting my partner's info I've re-done the poodle apron for my partner but I still have the original. It could use a good home, so I've decided to give it away. If you'd like it please leave a comment and we'll choose at winner by the end of next week(September 3rd.)

A Pick Up & A Toy Drop

We went to NY this weekend to pick up Nature Girl. Despite the fact that she didn't want to talk on the phone to us while she was gone I think she actually missed us. We tried to wake her up when we arrived at 11:30 pm on Friday, as she had requested we do, but she was zonked out and didn't even open an eye. When she woke up Saturday morning I was treated to lots of hugs, kisses, chats and snuggles. She stuck by my side for at least the first hour, so I think even though she had a great time she did miss us just like we missed her!

On the way home from NY we decided to do a toy drop. Meet Deloris, Amy, Arnold and Aurthur. This little hedgehog family was stitched and sewn by me then stuffed by Nature Girl and three of her cousins. Here they are riding with us on a deary rainy day. We left them on a bench inside a rest stop on the VT/NH border. We didn't stick around to see if they were picked up but we hope they found a good home.

Strawberry cake - yum!

A few weeks ago Val from Yarnigras posted a recipe for a strawberry cake she likes to make for her family. Both Nature Girl and my husband love strawberries so I tucked that recipe away for later. When my in-laws came to visit last week I decided to make the cake for desert. I didn't layer my cake so it's not as pretty as Val's, but it was absolutely delicious!!! My husband loved it. Me too, I have to admit I ate a piece for breakfast one morning. Yummmy!
Nature Girl like the frosting but didn't eat much because it wasn't ice cream cake. I should have remembered this. I made birthday cakes for the first 4 years of her life decorating entire cakes with little stars of frosting to create pretty cakes. Despite getting claw hand each time from the hours of decorating she would only eat ice cream and not a single piece of cake. For her 5th birthday she got an ice cream cake and her 6th birthday was a cheesecake. It takes me a while to catch on but eventually I learn! Anyway, when I asked her if she liked it she said it was missing something. I asked what and she said it needed chocolate sauce all over it. I think it was perfect as it was and didn't last long before it was all eaten. That's a sure sign it's good! I think the frosting would be delicious on cupcakes too. Click here to see Val's post and get the recipe.