Easter Project

  We found this cute and easy Easter project from a friend on Pinterest. Since we had everything on hand (except the grass seed) we decided to put it together ourselves.  Here are a few pictures of the fun.

Making an American Girl Doll Sleeping Bag

  Mama and I made a sleeping bag for my American Girl doll.  We followed the directions from this website to make our own pattern that we can use a lot.

I helped Mama iron and cut the material and pin it together. We put little blue markings on the fabric so we knew where to start and finish.

It didn't really take a long time to make the sleeping bag.

Now Sara can go camping in the backyard with Mama and me! 

Rummage Sale

There is a church we pass every week on the way home from the grocery store. Recently, we saw a sign posted near their driveway advertisng a rummage sale they would be holding.  Sammy and I have never been to one of those before so we decided we would get up early the day of the sale to check it out together.

Sam worked extra hard that week volunteering for any paid job that she saw needed to be done around the house in order to have some pocket money for the sale.  She made sure not to neglect her "just because I live here" chores, so that she would not be fined.  (Because we can't just be diligent only when we're getting paid to be)!

There were a lot of different things for sale and they all had super low prices.  We meant to take a few pictures while we were there, but our hands were full of all the fun stuff we found.  Instead, we ended up taking pctures when we got home.

We found this pretty wreath that still had the store tag on it.  It also had pacifiers, pins, and "It's a girl!" ribbons on it.  But we both thought it would be nice for spring, so we just cut the baby decorations off when we got home and saved them with our gift wrap and ribbons.

I also found an unused Toddy Cold Brew System, including the instructions manual and 2 extra filters, for only a dollar!  A dollar people!  I snagged that for one of my sisters (you're welcome, Becky), since I love the one that was given to me a few years ago.

All of my other finds were Christmas related. I found an old cotton table cloth that I LOVE, for $1.  It has a wee coffee or gravy stain in the center, but it's so small that a candle could easily cover it.  I also found a Christmas table runner for 50 cents that would do the job just as well.

We both loved these two little pails and Sammy is already planning to fill them with cookies next Christmas.

My final pick was a bag of small wooden ornaments that reminded me of some we had on our tree when I was little. Sammy and I both agree, the snowman on the shooting star is the best!

Sammy came home with an armful of goodies herself.  And best of all, she got it all for less than $1!

Her favorite find was the pink bunny, but she also really likes the fairy palace pop up book and the little red striped vase which she uses as a tumbler.  It only cost her a nickel.

That was definitely a fun morning!

Taming The Wild (Part 2)

  Finally, the day to begin Sammy's Secret Garden had arrived! First we went to Lowe's to pick out the plants she wanted, as well as some fruits and vegetables for our garden.

Here's what we came home with.

 

Before we could do anything else, we had to finish weeding.

Monster weed!!!

Our faithful watchdog, Hershey, kept on the lookout for spiders.  We did not touch a single one (that we know of).

Later, Sammy and Daddy planted some of the veggies.

The "Keep Right" sign back by the sink amuses me. ;) (Also, great job clearing the cactus back there, Daddy!)

That's right, our backyard came with a giant turquoise bathtub full of dirt. I know. Be jealous. :) And now it's full of tomatoes (pronounced "tommy-toes" if you are Sammy and recently read every Ramona Quimby book you could get your hands on).

I had told Sammy about how her amazing Uncle Bobby had once used the old corn stalks in our garden to make me a tee-pee when we were little.  We had planned to put stakes in the ground and have beans or some other vine grow to cover them like this idea we saw on Pinterest, to give her her own tee-pee. But as we were weeding we realized there was plenty of ivy already trying to take over one corner of her garden and there were two pieces of trellis left over from when Daddy repaired the gate of the garden.  So with help from Daddy, his staple gun, and the muscles to pound those stakes deep into the ground for us, we made our own little shelter and wove the ivy into it.

Hopefully that ivy keeps growing quickly and covers her little house soon. :)

We still need to pot or plant all of Sammy's choices.  But that's a post for another day.

Taming The Wild (part 1)

We moved to our new home this past Fall.  The backyard sold us every bit as much as any other part of the house.  There were two seperate gardens as well as several fruit trees, not to mention a swing for Sam and a workshop for Daddy!  

The gardens, however, were a tad overgrown. 

Oh, yeah, that's cactus in the corner.

But cold nights and 2 dogs soon got rid of some of the plants.  Then Daddy came and got rid of a whole lot more. (Including the cactus!)

This half of the garden was promised to Sammy for her very own Secret Garden.  Yesterday, we worked all day, until the last bit of sun was gone (almost 8pm! Thank you, DLS).

Stay tuned for photos of all the fun!

Sew, What Did You Do This Weekend?

This weekend we had a Pinteresting idea.  Sammy was recently allowed to choose her own American Girl Doll, after having borrowed Mama's for several years.  Saige Copeland was the doll she chose and she just arrived this past week.  So we decided to make the girls matching dresses.

We followed this easy tutorial to make 2 doll size pillowcase dresses from cute little kitchen towels that I purchased at Target.

Sam helped with the cutting and pinning, while Mama made a few quick seams.  After that, Sam threaded the ribbon through the tops of the dresses and voila!

Sara and Saige are very happy with their fun new dresses!

That's what we did.  What fun things have you been up to?