How to Make Your Own - Bow Holder!

With all these girls, we need bow holders!

They can get expensive to buy and they're not too cute!

Follow along as I make a beautiful bow holder.

They could be made in all different colors etc..

I chose to make these very simple and girly-girly!!  :)

 This one is for Tamara's youngest "berry girl!"

SURPRISE!  ;)  LoL!

OK, here's how I made 3 tonight...

I created this to be one step at a time so you could make your own if you wanted to!  They are fun to make!

I bought the wooden plaque at Michael's.

I screwed in the hardware at the top to hang it by.

Then, I painted the top "layer" in ivory.

It dries very quickly as you only need a thin coat.

It's a bit hard to tell in the picture but I am painting the other layer pink.  If you look to the right side you can see where I am painting the pink and then I continued until I made it all the way around.

 Now it's painted all the way around.  :)

Let it dry but it won't take long.

....so I had bought....

 I had bought a couple other wooden pieces to add to the project to make it just absolutely girly and pretty!

 I wanted to make them different because the tiara one is for another of Tamara's "Berry girls!"  :)  SURPRISE!  lol

 You will need some tacky glue.  It's cheap, no worries!

 After they had dried (maybe 5 minutes) I used the tacky glue to glue on the little wooden pieces.  I think they look so cute.

...then...

You choose what ribbon you want and cut it to the size you would like.  I chose a girly ribbon with little loops.  The ribbon part without the loops is about an inch wide.  You want something about an inch wide so it holds the bows nice and securely.  :)

.......now......

a little "trick" of mine..

Use a lighter or candle lighter to go gently across the bottom of the ribbons.  It's better than fray check and it prevents fray check without the stains that fray check leave behind!  :)

(I had an online boutique for 4 yrs so I learned)

...then another little trick of mine...

makes it easy!

I simply fold the little ribbon at the top over some and just use a thumb tack to hold the ribbons in place!  It's easy and holds better than glue and there's no need for nails!  :)

Wallah!  It's finished!

Now see what they look like when they are hung on the wall and used!

This one is for my Hannah Joy.   I hung it in the bathroom where I fix her hair!  :)  Easy, peasy to see what bows you have and easily access them.  Plus, I think they look cute hung up!

I found out quickly that I need a second one because she has MORE BOWS!!!!  lol  ;)  (I make bows too!  I will add a tutorial here one day on how to do that.  So, check back!)

I think my Hannah Joy's looks cute hanging there!

Tamara, I hope you like the two I made you.

One with the princess for the youngest berry and one with the tiara for the next to youngest berry!  xoxoxo  :)

I hope everyone enjoyed this little tutorial!

Smiles!!!

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Thanksgiving Post #8

I'm thankful for crafts.

They give my girls something productive to do during "down time.  They help the girls and I both to foster our creativity.  I love seeing what the girls make.  It also keeps you from idle hands and boredom.  Crafts are also great gifts.  Grandparents love them as well as Mommy & Daddy.  The girls love to display them in their rooms or see them displayed in our home.

It keeps the girls from fussing as well!

If they are occupied then they are less likely to be fussing.  They are focused in on what they are making and working to do their best so they are not bickering over something silly like whose turn it is to do whatever.

It also brings my girls all together.

All three girls can do the crafts even if on different levels.  So it's something that they can all do .. even with baby sister, Hannah Joy.  They each make something unique and they brag to Hannah Joy on what a great job she is doing.

They feel so successful when they have completed them.

They are proud to show Daddy when he gets home.  They're excited of what I may do to them like for instance, spray gloss over them to make them very shiny.  Or they may get to do more with them such as plant a plant in the planter they make.  When they are done they are proud of what they have made and they feel good about it.

They are keepsakes!

I love to put their name, the year & their age on every thing they make.  It gives them keepsakes on many things.  They can keep them or I can keep them and one day give them to them for their own homes.... for their own children to see and perhaps make something the same or similar.  Teaching the love of crafts is such a blessing because it's a family thing and they can one day teach their children to do some of the same things.  It brings out their talents and shows "what stage they were at" at each age.

Crafting is FUN!!  Even Mommy loves to craft!

BLESSINGS!

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Thankful Post #7

I am thankful for the Library!

I'm thankful because I can go there and not pay for books to read.  I am also using them in my homeschooling and it keeps me from paying for so many books.  I need them for related subjects for more texts about subjects we learn on.  I also love that the library is usually calm and quiet and you can easily find what you are needing.  I love how those unfortunate can go in and read books and check them out so they have books to read at home.

The library saves a lot of money since they are free to check out.

It saves a lot of time because you don't have to wait on books you have ordered to arrive.  And sometimes, it might save your sanity to get over to a quiet place and relax as you choose a book or books to read!  I really am so thankful for the library and will be going there today, in fact.

Smiles!

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Hannah Joy today so far....

She woke up in quite the grumpy mood!  I think she was hurting after being in bed all night and moving around without her sling on.. but there's no way I'm making her sleep with her sling on and we were not told to do that.  In nursing school, we only did that if they were hospitalized therefore sleeping on their backs.  (that would be like after a surgery)  I quickly grabbed the Tylenol and gave her a dose but you can see here she woke up not so happy!

 She's so grumpy she won't look at her waffles but she did end up eating them.  She loves waffles for breakfast!

 She's feeling better and learning how to use one hand to play.  Here she was playing blocks and now she is playing beads.

Thank you, Jesus, that she is adapting easily.

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Chores Yesterday :)

We worked together yesterday on our chores.

I helped Sarah Faith get laundry done.

I helped Madi Grace clean the kitchen.

Plus, of course I have my own chores!!

Here is Madi Grace sweeping.

She's moving the chairs so she can get under the table!

She did a great job!!!

 This was a "catch all" that was catching all kinds of artwork and crayons and papers etc...  Plus I had our curriculum sitting up there.

This was my project yesterday and I found a place for the curriculum and cleared out all the art work and then put a few "pretties" up there so it will be easier to keep spotless.

This was the area Madi and I worked on together!

It turned out to look pretty good.

It's our daily thing to have to do.

 Here is Sarah Faith working on her chores - laundry.

She did a nice job of folding and putting away 2 loads!

Then, here we are, listening to Christian music from my computer.  It doesn't play loudly so we all have to sit nearby to listen.  Despite the looks on their faces? we were all loving it and making requests for certain songs.  It added a refreshing touch to our day!

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I was so nervous....

.......but I got Hannah Joy's arm rewrapped today and her clothes changed.  She's no longer in her Dora & Boots nightgown.

She cried, "owwwwwwwww!" when I took it off to rewrap it and I had left the other stuff on except the ace wraps over it.  So it must be very painful.  I'm still giving her Tylenol to help with her pain.

Please keep her in your prayers still.

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Counting My Blessings #6

I am SO thankful for my MOM!

Here she is, with no make up, so she'd give me issue about this picture, lol, but I think she looks beautiful all the time.

Here she has just finished baking a cake with each girls help.

*My children, that is.. and they call her GiGi*

She is one of the most amazing people I know.

She had an annurism about 4 years ago.. maybe a little longer.

It ruptured and when they rupture people often do not live.

Mom had JESUS on her side and He protected her and healed her.

She is loving, generous, kind, and always nonjudgemental and encouraging to me... and others.  I'm SO thankful to have her in my life.  It would not be the same without her.  I pray God lets her stay with me on Earth til she's 105!  After her brain surgery, a lot changed.  We weren't as close before.  But now, we are very close and we often say to each other we are best friends and mom and daughter.  She has that same desire with one of my sisters.

(other sisters came from dad, not mom)

She is such a wonderful GiGi.  She does stuff with the girls and they have a great time.  While we were staying there for 3 months they had "GiGi Monday" each week and Mom did fun stuff with them like picnics and baking and riding horses or just whatever.  She spent time with all of us daily also.  She and I snuck in a LOT of time together.  Sometimes just laying down watching a movie or sometimes going to eat... you name it.  She comes to visit me once a month here.  (I now live 3 hours away)  There were some laughs that she wouldn't actually follow through with it but she has!  She calls me at least once a week, usually more than that.... and I call her too.  She's just a gift.  I can talk to her about ANYTHING.  Good, bad, ugly, you name it!!  She's there to listen, help me, and never to point a finger or say negatives about me.  If I say a negative about me, she quickly corrects me.  I would be lost without my mother.  I could write a novel on her, I truly could!  She's done amazing things but most importantly to me she is an amazing Mom and GiGi and she loves my Daddy with all her heart!

Who could ask for more?

She'll never read this because she doesn't know much about the computer but if there was a way she could read it.  I would tell her that this doesn't even touch the tip of what I truly have to say about how she is a blessing to me and I am SO THANKFUL!

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Thankfullness Post #5

I am SO thankful for encouragement.  So often we all need it.  I know I do.  I get encouragement from some of my family, many of my friends and lots of beautiful blogs.  I am encouraged to be who *I* am made to be in Jesus..... who HE wants me to be.  I can reach out to others for prayers, ask questions, seek advice.... or just read a blog that I know is from a like-minded lady.  The encouragement is amazing.  It  helps me so much, helps me know I'm not alone and often offers several solutions or reasons why something may be happening.  Encouragement is powerful and something I am so grateful for!!!!!  Thank you to ALL for your encouragement to me.

Blessings!
 

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Light a Beautiful Candle in your Home

http://organizedhomemakingforchrist.blogspot.com/

My friend, Deniece, has this Fall meme on her blog from Women Living Well and it was talking about lighting a candle in your home. 

There's a lot that goes with that.  You add a certain ambience to your home and make it feel warm and cozy.  She said that it also reminded her to pray for her family members every time she passed it throughout the day.  What a great idea.  Even though I do pray for my family every day.. a little reminder each time I pass the candle will be great.

So, tonight, I just put out the candle holder I made with a votive in it.  I want to get a nice jar candle or pillar candle.  But, this works for now.  I like candles in front of a mirror because they mirror themselves and look even more beautiful.  This is the right side of our mantle.  The picture turned out bad as I was doing in with the lights off and using a flash and well...it just didn't do so well.

Consider lighting a candle in your home.... for the smell, for the ambience and for the special reminder.

Blessings!

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A Very Nice Giveaway!

http://walkingoldpaths.blogspot.com/

Walking on Old Paths has a nice give away going.

Click the link above to go there and enter.

All you have to do is blog about it and leave the link in the comments section to be considered.

I hope you will all trek over and see what she has.

I don't want to ruin the surprise... I want you to go see :)

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Hannah Joy is getting spoiled rotten!

Hannah Joy may enjoy having a broken arm before the time is over because her sisters are absolutely spoiling her so much!

The whole day has been focused around her.

Here are a few more pictures..

 Here is the card, paperdolls and flowers Madi Grace made while she was in the hospital last night!

 Here are the beautiful cards and paperdolls Sarah Faith made for her last night while she was in the hospital.

 Hannah Joy's arrival home last night.

The hospital had given her a popcicle!  Mmmm!

We were all up waiting at 1:30 a.m. when she arrived home!!

 Here's this morning when Sarah Faith was feeding her pancakes and Madi Grace was holding her cup of juice to give to in between bites.

Hannah Joy wasn't feeling that well at this time.. but she was sure getting pampered, not even having to hold anything with her "good arm."

Hannah Joy after some Tylenol feeling better.

She's playing with her gifts from her sisters.

They also each gave her a beanie baby.

 Here Hannah Joy is in between the girls as they each make her a new paper doll or accessory for a paper doll and she keeps getting them each time they finish.  She was sure happy about this!!!!

 Sarah Faith is trying to feed her lunch, her pizza.

She was refusing it.  (they don't want me doing it - they want to be "taking care of her" themselves!)  I'm interrupting that a bit here and there because I want my arms around her.

Here she is holding Pawsh the cat.

Since she wouldn't eat.. Sarah Faith got her the cat because she loves to hold and snuggle with Pawsh.

I love this one!  She has on her crown Sarah Faith made so they could be "queens" and she's playing with some of the dolls the girls have both made for her today.  Isn't she adorable?!  Oh, to her Mommy she is absolutely adorable!!!!!!

 They are still making more!  They love that baby sissy!

 Here all 3 girls are playing with the paper dolls and accessories.

We gotta watch her she may be looking for another twin bed to come off of to get this kind of attention.  Just teasing!

I'm so thankful for my babies!!

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