WhiMSy love

DIY: Bob Ross Trunk-or-Treat

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Thu, 02 Nov 2017 09:10:00 +0000

This year my church hosted a Trunk-or-Treat. (A Trunk-or-Treat is where trick-or-treating is done from parked car to parked car, in a parking lot, usually at a school or church. Totally sounds creepy when I type it out. But it's not. I promise.) This was my first time decorating our car for a Trunk-or-Treat. My original plan was to have a pumpkin theme. Like, pumpkin everything. Orange everywhere.
But then. BUT THEN...
Pazely & I stumbled across a Bob Ross costume at a local retail store--& it was over.
Pumpkin WHAT?! Orange WHO?!
Pazely, a huge Bob Ross fan, immediately volunteered to play dress-up for our event.

The costume only included a white paint palette, a paint brush, a wig & a beard. (You could certainly save yourself some money & put this kit together piece-by-piece on your own, or even use things you might already have around your house.) The beard was quite a bit more full than shown in the picture. So I gave it a haircut. But it still wasn't right. I might have gotten a little scissor happy.
So we just painted on a beard. No biggie. Bob would've wanted it that way anyway.

We thrifted a pair of mens jeans, along with a perfect light blue long-sleeved dress shirt. A belt was borrowed from the Mr. I didn't want to spend money on ugly mens shoes she might not ever wear again. So we bought some womens moccasin slippers that she'll wear every day. They worked! (Unfortunately, the only photo I snapped was when Pazely had a coat on. It was quite a cold evening!)
And funny thing: without the beard, Pazely could almost pull off Napoleon Dynamite. Which was bonus, because Napoleon Dynamite is ANOTHER one of Pazely's faves.

I needed something large enough to cover the opening of our trunk, so I decided to create a large "canvas". I scoured Netflix for the perfect Bob Ross painting episode. I wanted something wintery, yet warm. I found "A Copper Winter", Season 30 Episode 5, & it was perfect!

I purchased an inexpensive white bedsheet & cut it to fit a good size for hanging in the opening of my minivan trunk. (Mine was cut to 50" x 50" & then hemmed about 1/2" on each side.)
For painting prep, I taped the bedsheet to a large piece of wood. Then I spent the next day & a half in 40 degree (F) weather painting happy trees with numb fingers & toes. Bob takes 30 minutes. THIRTY MINUTES to paint his masterpieces. You are magic, Bob. (RIP)
Bob says "There are no mistakes, only happy accidents". Well, I made a lot of those.

Acrylics on bedsheet don't blend as well as Bob's oils on canvas. But I hope I did Bob proud anyway. He is the man. He makes it look so easy. I watched the Copper Winter episode twice. And took notes. Bob makes me think I can do anything.

Pazely has claimed the painting for her own & has it currently hanging in her bedroom. Which made me super proud. How sweet! And what a compliment--especially since this was the first landscape I've ever painted.

Pazely cut out a giant palette shape from moving boxes we had lying around. The moving boxes were fairly limp, so I reinforced the back with more cardboard + duct tape. I'm Super Budget Girl, so I didn't want to purchase anything we didn't HAVE to purchase. If I did it again though, I'd use something different. I've always wanted to try using large sheets of insulation foam for prop making. So I might give that a go in the future.
We painted the palette white.
(The photo shows two palettes. We only used one because we didn't have time to get a second one put together. Plus, our space wasn't really big enough for two.)

Pazely also cut out a giant paintbrush from moving boxes. We reinforced it as well, & painted it up.

The speech bubble was cut out of foam core board. I printed out the words & traced them onto the speech bubble using carbon paper. The final step was filling in the words with a sharpie. I used a 500 size font in Freestyle Script.

Balloons were attached to the palette to resemble different colors of paint. Inside the balloons were hidden treats & prizes! Kids would walk up to a balloon & "pop" it with a real paintbrush. (The paintbrush had a pin attached to the end.)
This is where things got tricky. And looking back I'd do it differently. I originally poked holes in the palette & "threaded" the knotted portion of the balloon through, holding it in the back with a clothespin. And that worked great at first.
But things got busy & it was hard to refill the palette fast enough. So then we started clothes-pinning balloons all around the edge just to keep up with the trunk-or-treaters stopping by. Which gave me an idea: I could have adhered clothespins to the front of the palette. DUH! It would've been so much more easy-peasy to change out balloons in a jiffy! There's always next year...

We had a lot of fun & I think the kids did too! Several costumed characters kept coming back for more. Each balloon was filled with either a piece of candy (the miniature chocolate bar kind) or toys & prizes I purchased from the party aisle of Walmart. A mixture of squishy eyeballs, glow-in-the-dark lizards, bubbles, stickers, fake mustaches, coin purses, bouncy balls, silly glasses, springy slinky-type toys, noisemakers, candy bracelets, toy cars, & ink stampers were stuffed into the balloons before blowing them up.

I do miss The Dollar Tree. There are no such things as dollar stores up here in Alaska. *sigh*

Anyway, it was a simple setup. If I had more time I would've cut out paint splotch shapes from colored paper & scattered them around the car. And maybe added a real easel with a small painting on it + tubes of paint & a dropcloth...

I hope this inspires you to get creative! Bob Ross is one of our faves. The 13-year old & I had a blast putting it together. She's my little artistic buddy, so it was a theme close to our hearts.

Trunk-or-Treats are a great way to interact with your neighbors & community. It was a cold night, but we had a nice fire going outside. And inside the church we offered bounce houses for the kids + free gourmet hot cocoa. Pumpkin spice hot chocolate? Come to mama. (It was delicious!)

We had 13 vehicles participate in the Trunk-or-Treat: Hunters, Pioneers, a Mermaid Lagoon, Lego Ninjas, Spiderman, Cheerleaders, Pirates, a Magic School Bus, an Under the Sea theme, a Shark, Candyland, & the cutest family of camping lumberjacks. We're guessing about 175 kids came through.

We can't wait to do it even bigger & better for Halloween of 2018!

Click HERE for a quick little video of our trunk in action.

(Here's Bob, warming his happy little buns by the fire.)

“Mix up a little more shadow color here, then we can put us a little shadow right in there. See how you can move things around? You have unlimited power on this canvas -- can literally, literally move mountains."

-Bob Ross

Here are 50 more Bob Ross quotes to make you smile.

♥

DIY: Mushroom Pancake Art

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Sat, 27 May 2017 02:16:00 +0000

Google "pancake art" & be prepared to be amazed. And mezmerized. No, seriously, time will mysteriously fly by as you gaze, like one entranced, at the soothing videos of these foodie artists doing their creative thing. I am so intrigued by this art form!

And, yesterday, on the first day of summer break, I thought I'd spend some extra time over the hot griddle to cook up some fun. I am a lover of all things fungi, so I thought I'd give a go at some mushroom flapjacks.

I have not done any research on this topic of "pancake art". I just grabbed my batter & went for it.

I don't have any of those fancy squeeze bottles with multiple sized tips like the pancake art pros do. But I have a bowl & a spoon. And that'll do just fine for what we're cooking up today. You'll also need: a hot griddle, cooking spray, paper towels, cookie cutter(s), your favorite pancake batter, food coloring, a spatula, & maybe a book for photo reference (or other media for picture inspiration).

First, heat up your griddle. And while it's warming up, mix up your batter. I divided my batter into two bowls. One bowl of batter I left as is. The other bowl I colored with blue food coloring. Make it as dark or as light as you want, & use as many colors as you want.

To make things super easy on myself, I used a metal cookie cutter. This is so much less intimidating. (And cooking spray is your best friend.) Before you set your metal cookie cutter onto your hot griddle, you are going to spray the inside of the cookie cutter with non-stick cooking spray. Spraying a paper towel first, & then wiping it on the inside of the cookie cutter works well, as does spraying your {clean & freshly washed} finger & wiping it around the inside. Each time you use your cookie cutter, you'll want to wipe it clean & respray.

Next, you'll use the regular pancake batter &, with your spoon, sprinkle dots for the mushroom top + fill in the stem.

Now you'll use the other color to fill in the top of the mushroom.

Let that set until the underside has cooked. (The edges will start to appear dry. That's a good hint it's done.) Carefully --it will be hot!-- use a paper towel or pot holder to lift the cookie cutter off.

Flip your mushroom pancake over to finish cooking. And that's it!

After I played around with the cookie cutter for a while, I was ready to branch out on my own.

Now, your creations don't have to be perfect. Mine were definitely not. My girls ate the pancakes no matter what they looked like. The pretty ones taste the same as the ugly ones.

I decided to use just one color of batter, & let the cooking times change the color of the batter for me: The batter that goes on first will cook longer, so remember that. Anything that you want to be "shaded" or set apart, or darker, will need to be drizzled on first.

So, firstly, I created a stem + the little underside fringes + the polka dots on top. I let those cook for several minutes. You'll start to see them turn brown on the edges. You'll want these things to be the darkest.

Then, I filled in the little area where the underside fringe was. I let that cook for a couple more minutes.

And, finally, I filled in the top of the mushroom with a curved shape. Cook that until it's not soupy anymore & flip it over.

The more I played, the better I got. I whipped up the pink ones yesterday, & gave a second attempt with the blue pancakes today.

The girls were pretty impressed. Pazely, 12, said, "Five stars!" I'm not sure if her scale was from 1 to 10? But I'm gonna pretend it was from 1 to 5.

So, have some fun, try something new, & get ready to make a happy, pancakey mess!

Some of you have asked if I'll be doing anything on the blog this summer...

Summer is the most amazing, freeing time to wander, explore & create. Summer invigorates me! It's when I find all these random, unstructured, unoccupied moments to get creative. Although I won't be involved with anything as detailed as my past Summer Fun Diary Series or even last year's Summer School, I will be sure to share with you any interesting tidbits I find myself getting involved in.

To keep the girls & I from falling into too much of a lazy rut this summer, I have printed out copies of these "Summer Rules" I spied on Thirty Handmade Days blog. I changed the list up a little to make room for daily "Devotions/Quiet Time with Jesus". I plan on following these same rules too ---the girls were giddy about that!

I'm hoping to do a lot of adventuring here in Alaska this summer, in my own little neighborhood. I hope to have lots of fun, try new things, experience as much as I can in this new world of mine.

To catch me in real-time, be sure to follow me on Instagram!

And for a peek into my journey in Alaska, follow my other blog Nikki from Nikiski.

♥

Finally, the Fairy Garden!

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Sun, 14 May 2017 01:35:00 +0000

Hello out there! Let me blow the dust off this 'ol blog & put some new happy on here!

In case you've wondered where I've been, & you're not following me on social media, & you're not subscribed to my new blog called Nikki from Nikiski, I'll tell you in one word exactly where I've been: Alaska. The fam & I moved up one week before Christmas to pastor at a church in Nikiski, on the Kenai Peninsula. And we are loving it here!

I am busy, busy, busy, which takes me away from a lot of the fun little craftty projects I used to do, & obviously this blog. I'm {slowly} learning to divide my days into ministry days or home improvement days or Nikki days, etc. And that's helping. I am trying to intentionally pause, every once in a while, to do something fun, something that brings a smile to my face.

And this Fairy Garden project is JUST that!

If you recall, the girls & I (who will be done with school in a week & a half!!) created a bunch of items for a non-existent fairy garden last summer, during our Summer School series. We had every intention of construction beginning on our fairy neighborhood during summer break. But that didn't happen.

{Almost} one year later...

I finally gathered up a couple containers this week & decided it was time to begin building.

Here's a view of the garden so far. I'm telling you, this is an addictive activity. Expansions are inevitable. If you let them, these fairies will put you in the poorhouse. For reals.

I rounded up some logs from around my yard to create little vignettes on either side of some stairs leading up to our front door. That one log covered in moss spoke to me the most. It practically yelled out to me in the wood pile. And I was like, "How long have you been sitting there? You are gorgeous. Come here, you pretty little thing." *gasp* I love me some moss. And it's, like, real moss. Not that craft store moss.

Oh! And those flowers? It is spring, but I have YET to see any flowers growing here in Alaska. I decided I needed some color therapy, so I made a beeline for a nearby garden center. Doing happy dances down the flowered aisles. And probably causing concern in any customers in my vicinity.

The flowers still need to be potted. I don't know where my pots are. Maybe still packed away? Did I get rid of them before I moved? I don't know. I DO know I'm afraid the neighborhood bunnies (& maybe the moose) will eat all the flowers. Hopefully the fairies have installed a good security system.

This first Fairy garden was made from a shallow drawer I've had lying around for YEARS. I once used it as a hanging shelf in Zoey's room when she was a baby. She's 14 now.

I found an awesome square flat of sedum at Home Depot that I cut into thin strips & lined around the border of this fairy garden, like a hedge.

(And, by the way, this post is super duper packed with pics. Like, overload. If your computer hasn't crashed by now, give yourself a high-5.)

The fairy house was made with a tin can + clay. The roof was made with foil covered in plaster paper-mache strips, then painted. Clay vines & leaves were added last.

The fairy garden guard dog was a gift. The mushrooms are from a craft store.

This sweet little guy was made by Pazely last year in 6th grade at school. It was glazed & fired.

The bistro set was purchased at Beaver Bark in Richland, WA, as were the tiny grey pebbles marking the walkway & courtyard. I lined these light grey pebbles with slightly bigger pebbles gathered from my yard. The clay book & cupcake were handmade by me.

The tiny hedgie & hedgehog house were handmade by Pazely & I. I'm pretty sure I found the idea for the house online. There are OODLES of fairy garden tutorials online. From garden plans to DIY accessories. We used clay in a lot of our crafty projects. Clay goes a long way!

That tire swing tho! Cutest ever. It was our first purchase toward the fairy garden. So long ago. From Beaver Bark, in Richland WA.

And those heart rocks were here at the house when we arrived. They fit in perfectly!

A twine nest (twine dipped in Mod Podge & then twisted into a nest shape) + itty bitty clay eggs.

The base of our second Fairy Garden is a plastic rectangular container I purchased from Home Depot. It was actually the final missing piece that sparked yesterday's decision to get this thing going. We still need to complete this garden. We think maybe a picnic table in the center? Or something else garden-y? We'll be on the lookout...

This tiny fairy house is my favorite. It's a small mason jar covered in clay. The roof comes on & off. I kept the lid, shaped a dome roof out of foil over it, covered the foil in clay, & baked it in the oven. I added a giant battery-operated tea light inside. It flickers & it is MAGIC!

Here's a quick 15-second video of the light in action while I was outside this morning listening to the birds & the quiet, enjoying some fresh air...

We've got bunnies in the basil. I LOVE how my fairy garden is also my herb garden.

We HAD to purchase the green hose for our "garden" theme. I think we got it at a craft store. Also, when shopping for accessories, don't forget about the dollhouse sections at craft & hobby stores.

The watering can was from Beaver Bark, in Richland WA. The clay pots were a gift. And, look! More birdie eggs!

Clay owl, handmade. The girls & I found a tutorial online for the acorn birdhouses. Drilling through acorns ain't no joke. Be ready to almost say cuss words. Almost.

We had tons of fun sculpting veggies for our garden. We've got potatoes, carrots, eggplant, pumpkins & lettuce.

Because ALL the things grow at ALL the same time in fairy land!

We spread out some sand on top of the potting soil to designate our vegetable garden area, & lined it with pebbles collected from the yard.

The hanging birdhouse was a gift. So sunny & yellow! And a great addition in helping to create different levels of height throughout our garden.

I think this is pretty much my favorite spot in the fairy gardens. It sits on the opposite side of the stairs as the other fairy houses just shown. This fairy door (store-bought) is nestled among some logs. You might not notice it at first glance. I made a walkway with twigs, & planted some more of that sedum on either side of the door.

So, that's it! For ALL the pictures of our fairy garden, click HERE to view our Fairy Garden Flickr album. There are even a few tour videos in there, saved from my Instagram Stories for you to take a peek at!

I hope this inspired you to get started on your own little fairy garden!

Toodles!

♥

Name Calling

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Mon, 14 Nov 2016 19:45:00 +0000

I don't know why, but I have a hard time giving myself any sort of creative label.
If you love taking pictures, wouldn't that make you a photographer? Yes. Or if hula-hooping is your hobby, can't I call you a hula-hooper? Yes, I can. And I will.
Singing & playing the piano is a passion of mine. Yet it feels awkward to call myself a musician.

Maybe it's just me. It probably is. (I know it's not.) I can't help it. It's just some odd thing I deal with, I guess.

I live for creating. It fuels me & feeds me to be painting or drawing or writing or crafting: To be making art. I don't just live for it, I "LIVE FOR IT". (Supposed to be said with a deep growly/unintimidating monster voice.) Yet "artist" seems too grand a tag for me.

Other people have called me these names.
"She's an artist," they say. I bow my head in embarrassment. "No, I'm not," I think to myself.
"She's a photographer."
"Stop it," I silently whisper, while diverting my eyes from anyone's gaze.
"She's a writer."
"Stahpit."

Why can't I call myself these things? I don't know. We all have our own silly little personal trivial things. This is mine.

With some recent encouragement this year I stepped out of my comfort zone. I peeked from my hiding spot to publicly share my art, share my poems, share my color, share my voice.
And eventually I felt ok with calling myself "artist". Seriously, it all clicked today. Today! I was in the kitchen toasting a pumpkin bagel & suddenly I was like, "Oh my gosh. I'm an artist--& a poet. A REAL...LIVE...POET!!!!!!!!!"
And then there was some giggling & a little feet-shuffle-dance-thing going on & then my youngest daughter was like "You're a weirdo, mom." & then my bagel popped up & I had to spread the cream cheese fast because I hate eating cold toasted things...BUT, it clicked.
"Artist".
And now I can't stop saying it. I can't stop thinking it. I feel all legit &, like, with big shoulder pads on, walking around as if I own this place. Ok, not really. The shoulder pads are outta here...

Sometimes it takes time to realize who you are, to be ok with seeing yourself in the positive way others see you, to let the name calling really sink in.
I'm thankful for the process. I'm thankful for all the times I've been called those names in the past because it took that many times of hearing it to equal believing it.

Summer School: Week 10 (The finale)

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Mon, 22 Aug 2016 21:15:00 +0000

This was our last week of Summer School! It is SO much fun to look back at all we did. Be sure to visit all of our posts in the 2016 Summer School series HERE. To see all our pictures from this year's Summer School adventures, click HERE.

MAKE SOMETHING MONDAY

It was all about the jam-making. I had an AWFUL experience of buying $30 worth of raspberries at the local Farmer's Market & then discovering the next day they were FILLED with worms. Fruit fly larvae, to be exact. G-R-O-S-S! I cried so hard. Making jam is connected to memories of my grandmother. So I was a mess. *sigh* But the next day a sweet friend gifted me with some non-worm-filled raspberries! I now have lovely jars of jam to enjoy through the winter. And I'm a happy girl.

TIME TO READ TUESDAY

Currently reading...

Pazely: The Diary of Anne Frank

Zoey: Harry Potter & The Cursed Child *Parts 1 & 2*

Me: On Grief & Grieving by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, M.D. & David Kessler

WHAT'S COOKIN' WEDNESDAY

I can't get enough of that raspberry jam. I made thumbprint jam cookies. The girls ate them. Except Pazely. She ate around the jam part. Haha! I've never made these kind of cookies before. I know they're usually seen around the holidays. But I was craving them now.

After I baked them I saw this recipe for Peanut Butter & Jelly Thumbprint cookies. Wish I would have seen this before! So fun!

THINKING THURSDAY

I've been seeing these exploding watermelons on the internet & wanted to give it a try.

HERE is a video of our experience. I was afraid. (Haha!)

SOMEWHERE FUN FRIDAY

The girls & I had a picnic (Wendy's 4 for $4 in the car at the Howard Amon Park parking lot. To avoid the seagulls.) + we chilled at the river & a made a sandcastle. We celebrated the ending of a fun-filled summer!

I'm really glad I tried something new this summer. Less stressful, & feeling more productive than in past summers. Overall, we enjoyed the experience.

Pazely's top 3 faves were:

1. Making milkshakes

2. Visiting the giant Adirondack chair

3. Making the cinnamon roll waffles

Zoey's top 3 faves were:

1. Going to the outdoor movie in the park

2. Making milkshakes

3. A picnic with her mom

My top 3 faves were:

1. Toe painting

2. Giant cardboard postcards

3. All the fairy garden crafts

Though we set a routine for our weeks this summer, I realized that I ended up losing my own personal routine. I can only do so much. So, needless to say, I am looking forward to school starting next week! Woohoo!

♥

Summer School: Week 9

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Fri, 19 Aug 2016 06:03:00 +0000

MAKE SOMETHING MONDAY

I was nervous to make these, because I didn't have a clear direction, but I'm so happy with this project! Fairy Houses were on the menu for today. I was originally going to buy a little wooden birdhouse & fix it up for our Fairy Garden. But then I loved the idea of using what we already have on hand. I was totally inspired, & pretty much copied the concept of THIS fairy house made from a jar. I used a tiny jar you would use for making jam or canning---the kind with the lid + ring. I used THIS idea from YouTube for making the rooftop, which is made with clay covering foil that has been shaped into a mushroom.

TIME TO READ TUESDAY

We skipped the library this week. Still devouring our last library haul: Dogs, drawing, The Diary of Anne Frank... (And, oh my gosh, it feels so amazing to have a zero balance library fine. Woohoo!)

WHAT'S COOKIN' WEDNESDAY

Wednesday was National S'mores Day. So I found a recipe for S'mores Whoopie Pies. The graham cracker cookie part was to die for. I could seriously just eat a whole batch of those. The recipe I used is from Easy Peazy Mealz. Not sure why, but I had TONS of marshmallow fluff buttercream frosting left over. And I messed up on the chocolate---heated it a tad too much so it turned a weird muddy consistency. But, no one complained + the whoopie pies were eaten up lickety split.

THINKING THURSDAY

I got to check something off my Summer Bucket List today: Set up a recycling station. Which is basically a box the girls & I recycled. We slapped some paint on it & it sits in our kitchen where we toss in recyclables & will take them to the community recycle dumpsters every couple weeks. The city has free pamphlets & information about recycling, so we feel pretty educated on the subject.

SOMEWHERE FUN FRIDAY

This week the fun had us heading over to Goodwill thrift store. I let the girls go wild with $5 each. Pazely shared some of her cash with Zoey, who found a penny skateboard. Pazely found a locker shelf, which was cool because she was JUST talking about wanting one for her school locker.

The girls & I have decided that, though there are two full weeks left of summer break before school starts, our last week of summer school will be next week. I am not sad at all. Our weekday Summer School activities have been simple, but everyone is fading. Not as excited as they were when we started. It'll be perfect. We can get back into a routine of normal bedtimes & wake times, get all the little details of school situated before it actually starts.
So, we'll see you Monday for our final Summer School weekly recap!

To view all posts in our 2016 Summer School series, follow along HERE.

To see the pictures from our Summer School adventures so far, click HERE.
♥

Summer School: Week 8

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 18:50:00 +0000

Ok, it's official. I've had a moment. And by "moment" I mean I had an almost-breakdown about the constant interaction with my children & getting zero breaks during the summer. *sigh* Does that make me sound like a bad mom? If so, oh well. It was a good reminder that mama's need to take care of themselves too.

Here's a recap of our week at Summer School...

MAKE SOMETHING MONDAY

The girls & I made some more accessories for our soon-to-be fairy garden. This time, we used clay as our medium to create little vegetables. We love Sculpey III. Oh, & look at the adorable potted seedling!! *Squee!*

TIME TO READ TUESDAY

The girls & I have begun a new series: The Incorrugible Children of Ashton Place. We recently learned that the last book in the series (book #6) is expected to be published next year (2017). It's an easy read, until we can figure out what we want to read next. Any favorites you can suggest for my 12 & {almost} 14-year old?

WHAT'S COOKIN' WEDNESDAY

Salted Caramel Apple Hand Pies. This is about the 3rd time I've made these. They are so delicious! It's a bit of work, but worth it. I used my grandmother's pie dough recipe. The hand pie recipe is from Just a Taste.

THINKING THURSDAY

The girls took an E-Textiles class at the library this week. They used felt & LED lights to make little creations. Pazely worked on a polka dotted bowtie, & Zoey made a heart-eyed emoji. It was challenging, but I'm so proud of them!

SOMEWHERE FUN FRIDAY

I took the girls to the Dollar Tree where we had some fun. First, I gave them each a dollar to hide somewhere in the store for somebody to find. (My friend Susan & I did this as part of 37 Random Acts of Kindness the year I turned 37. So much fun!)

Zoey hid her dollar in a piggy bank in the toy aisle. Pazely hid hers in a little plastic Minion container. They saw a mother find that dollar & turn it in to store management who said, "Wow, that's interesting. Hopefully someone claims it!" (Are you serious, people?!?! Please, just let us succeed at being kind!!) Next time we will have to attach some paperwork to the dollar bill explaining the fact that this is a "finders keepers" situation & to please not involve management in the discovery of this item. Lesson learned, I guess? Never in a million years would I think someone wouldn't just keep the darn thing.

I even posted that photo on Instagram & used the hashtag #randomactsofkindessfail. Mine is the only photo pictured under that hashtag. Haha!

We aren't even done with all the fun! I then handed the girls a list + an inkpen. Time for a scavenger hunt! The list had them find items like: baby socks, frozen mac-n-cheese, tiny paper drink umbrellas, a flashlight... + they had to spray perfume on themselves, & yell their sister's name loudly while adding "I love you!" It was a close race, but Zoey won.

And lastly, it was time for a shopping spree. I gave the girls a few dollars each so they could buy themselves one item & their sister one item. They decided to buy each other three items & themselves zero items! So sweet. We put the items in a dollar store bag & had a gift exchange in the store. Then we ditched the gift bags & bought the items. Ha!

Three weeks left of Summer School! I can honestly say my girls seem like they are fading with this whole Summer School business. (Mostly Pazely.) If they had their own way, they'd be on electronics 24/7. Thankfully they don't get their own way when digital devices are concerned. I know this is good stuff for them. I'm trying to hang on. I've even threatened to cancel Summer School a time or two. But it doesn't help when Pazely's response to that is "Yay!!!!!!"

To view all posts in our 2016 Summer School series, follow along HERE.

To see the pictures from our Summer School adventures so far, click HERE.

♥

Summer School: Week 7

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Mon, 01 Aug 2016 13:00:00 +0000

It was a hot week here! Like, a suffocating hot. Not my favorite.

These weeks of summer school are so much fun. In a way, it's kind of like a countdown. The summer days are going by too quickly though. Public school starts in one month!

As I write this, I am enjoying a rare summer day moment alone. The Mr. has taken the girls to see the latest Star Trek movie. And it's nice to have some quiet. Some "me" time. I sit in my chair. I sip tea. I blog. I edit photos. I draw. I play my music too loud.

MAKE SOMETHING MONDAY

The girls & I changed "Make Something Monday" to "Makeover Monday" this week. We gave each other makeovers. And, although there was a grumble or two from the smallest among us, we had a great time. (In fact, the little one had the most fun of all + ended up wearing the outfit I picked out for her *that she said SHE HATED & almost refused to put on* for 3 days in a row + didn't take out her French braids *complate with yarn accents* for even longer.)

We did it all: hair, makeup, clothes.

Zoey started officially wearing makeup at the beginning of 7th grade last year. (That's when my mom let me wear makeup.) She had JUST turned 13. And now little Pazely wants that same advantage as she enters 7th grade this year. I am freaking out. Because she is my little girl. And their comparison in ages entering 7th grade is quite different. Pazely will only barely be 12. I just can't handle that.

But we did come up with a simple makeup application that is so sweet & simple, & Pazely loves it: a pale peachy eyeshadow on her lower lids + mascara + a bit of rosy blush on the cheeks + colored lipgloss in a sparkly nudey peach.

TIME TO READ TUESDAY

The girls checked out ALL the dog books at the library. Well, practically. They are very serious about wanting to get a pet. In fact, the girls prepared a PowerPoint presentation titled "Why you should let us adopt a puppy". They worked hard all week researching for HOURS in their makeshift (& un-airconditioned) closet/office, keeping it as secret as they could. They also crafted a piggy bank from an ice cream carton to hold funds, they watched videos, they found information from local shelters, & they made lists & charts. They have been asking for a dog since they were little. Always the Mr. said, "No." (And mommy, too, who would prefer a cat.) But after all their hard work on this presentation (which the Mr. & I viewed on the weekend) they were thrilled to hear these words from daddy: "Maybe."

WHAT'S COOKIN' WEDNESDAY

I've had this pin on my Pinterest board from Lady Behind the Curtain for a while.

So easy.

So fun.
So yummy.

I used regular Pillsbury cinnamon rolls (not the Grands size). And my waffle maker (which is a vintage hand-me-down & I love it!) did not have a lock on it. I just pushed down for several seconds & then let it do its thing. But we DID spray the heck out of the waffle-maker with non-stick cooking spray as suggested in the blog post & we had zero trouble with the cinnamon rolls sticking.

A couple days after our yummy breakfast, I saw a link on the Pillsbury website that suggested adding 1 CUP of powdered sugar + 3 TABLESPOONS milk + 1 TEASPOON vanilla to the icing that comes in the cinnamon roll tube so you'll have a bigger batch of glaze to drizzle over the waffles. Loved that idea!

THINKING THURSDAY

We experimented with making a rainbow in a jar from the blog Playdough to Plato. Lots of the ideas for our "Thinking Thursdays" are geared toward younger kids. But I don't care. We are having fun. And I like how simple a lot of them are. Sometimes I need simple. And all of them have been quick. Sometimes I need quick.

SOMEWHERE FUN FRIDAY

It was 105 degrees (F). My girls deserved a cool treat.

I originally planned on taking them to get a treat at one of our local food trucks, which we've never been to before. But the trucks were all blocked off & trapped in chain link fencing in preparation for an upcoming concert later in the evening. Boo. So, at the girls' request, we splurged at Baskin Robbins. Two scoops each in a chocolate covered + sprinkled waffle cup.

To view all posts in our 2016 Summer School series, follow along HERE.

To see the pictures from our Summer School adventures so far, click HERE.
♥

Summer School: Week 6

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Wed, 27 Jul 2016 20:33:00 +0000

Ack! I'm late getting last week's Summer School recap put together. We continue to fill our days with learning & fun –& everything we do is so, so simple. Just adding a tiny bit of "something" to our weekdays so we feel like we're making the most of summer. We refuse to let another wasted summer pass us by! I really wish I had thought to do something like this YEARS ago. That "Summer Fun Diary" I did for a few years when the girls were younger was a LOT of work. This Summer School? Not so much. (Again, we use the word "school" loosely". It's kind of a joke between us, really.)

I'm trying to come up with a format for these weekly Summer School blog posts that is interesting. I should have thought about that before I started. Oh well. Nothing like stumbling around in the middle of it all in a public forum until you get it just right.

MAKE SOMETHING MONDAY
Giant. Cheeseburger. Postcard.
So cool, right?
I got the idea from My Poppet Makes. Pazely wanted to make a giant slice of red velvet cake. We have not mailed them yet. Gonna do that soon. I'll let you know the cost. 'Cause...I'm kinda scared of what the postage will be.
UPDATE: Each postcard cost $2.45 to send. Not bad at all!

TIME TO READ TUESDAY
Ok, confession: Our library fees are almost at $20.00. Should I be ashamed? I don't know. With all our fees over the years, I'm pretty sure we have financed some of the new improvements the library has made. I'm surprised there's not a new wing especially built in our honor. Or at least a plaque with our names engraved.
I went in last week to pay our fees, & THE COOLEST THING HAPPENED! Somehow the expiration date on my debit card is too far in the future &, for whatever reason, their antiquated machines weren't able to process the transaction. So the staff decided to wipe our fees away! Gone. Poof. Zero balance.
YEEHAAAAAWWWW!!!!

WHAT'S COOKIN' WEDNESDAY
Milkshakes were on the menu. My girls are opposites when it comes to flavor. Zoey made a strawberry banana milkshake. (I was happily surprised to find a combo package of strawberries + bananas in the freezer aisle at the grocery store.) Pazely made a chocolatey chocolate chocolate milkshake with chocolate syrup, cool whip, & chocolate sprinkles. (And if we had chocolate chips, she would have added that too.)

THINKING THURSDAY
We made plastic from milk. So weird & cool & fun! We learned the how-to from Steam Powered Family. The girls will use acrylic paints to decorate them when they're all dried.

SOMEWHERE FUN FRIDAY
I surprised the girls with bowling. I LOVE bowling. (Unfortunately I cannot bowl because of my bum foot all wrapped in this dumb medical boot thingie.) We bowled for free, too! Just visit http://kidsbowlfree.com to sign up your littles (age 18 & under). You still have to pay for shoe rentals. But I happen to have a pair of bowling shoes from when I was in high school that Pazely can wear, so we only paid for one pair of shoes. $2.72 for 2 games each of bowling? That's a steal! (And we are currently on the lookout for a size 9 for Zoey so we can REALLY bowl the rest of the summer for free!)

Hope your summer is full of happy!
See you Monday for the Week #7 recap of Summer School!

To view all posts in our 2016 Summer School series, follow along HERE.

To see the pictures from our Summer School adventures so far, click HERE.
♥

Summer School: Week 5

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Wed, 20 Jul 2016 13:00:00 +0000

MAKE SOMETHING MONDAY

The girls & I are hoping to have a Fairy Garden before summer's end. We've been collecting & making stuff over the last several months. We just made THE cutest acorn birdhouse for our soon-to-be fairy home. There is so much fairy garden goodness on Pinterest! Find out how to make the birdhouse HERE.

TIME TO READ TUESDAY

The girls & I were introduced to zines at the library this week.

We have also started reading aloud the final book in The Wrinkle in Time quintet. (Drawing to a close on a book series is a feeling of mixed emotions! But I can't wait to decide what we'll read together next.)

WHAT'S COOKIN' WEDNESDAY

I kept seeing a recipe floating around on Facebook about making bread in a bag. I thought it sounded fun. The hyperlapse video showed all the ingredients being mixed in a bag & it looked like you just plopped it in a bread pan & baked it. But, no. You still have to dump that gooey mess onto a floured surface & knead it for several minutes.

The girls were SO PROUD that they actually made a loaf of bread.

THINKING THURSDAY

The girls & I conducted an experiment to see how strong a piece of paper was. Particularly, we compared 3 different columns constructed {each} from a piece of paper.

A triangle. A square. And a circle. We then stacked books on top of each column, predicting first which column we thought would support the most books. I found the idea HERE, including the simple explanation of the science behind it all.

SOMEWHERE FUN FRIDAY

Zoey & I brought a blanket + camping chairs + popcorn + candy to see the movie "Inside Out" outdoors as part of our city's Family Movie Series on Friday Nights. (Sadly, Pazely wasn't feeling well, so she stayed home.)

To view all posts in our 2016 Summer School series, follow along HERE.

To see the pictures from our Summer School adventures so far, click HERE.
♥

Summer School: Week 4

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Tue, 12 Jul 2016 07:25:00 +0000

I can't believe we've completed a month of summer! Sheesh. I couldn't be more happy with our weekly Summer Fun Schedule! It's been easy, breezy. No stress at all.
And this picture has nothing to do with our Summer School, but I had to share. The girls were in bed, supposed to be sleeping. But then I had to find a magnifying glass to get a splinter out of my finger. And, well, this happened. We laughed so hard--& couldn't stop laughing. We all made faces & took selfies & then it was for real bedtime.
Here's our recap of Summer School last week...

MAKE SOMETHING MONDAY

The girls are pen-pals with three of their cousins. (They live 20 minutes away. But, hey, it's still fun.) We decided to do some fun snail mail. I found the balloon idea on Pinterest. And we also added a fun questionnaire for them to exchange with their pen-pals. The one pictured is HERE. Another fun one is HERE.

TIME TO READ TUESDAY

I am so sad because our walks to the library have had to stop. I broke a little bone under my big toe &, though the major pain has subsided, I am required to wear a boot for the next few weeks so the bone can heal. That doesn't stop our reading. And I can still drive to the library. But aren't you sad for me? (Haha!)

WHAT'S COOKIN' WEDNESDAY

Watermelon Water.
So good.
Fill a pitcher with ice cubes & small slices of watermelon. (Clean the watermelon rind before cutting.) Crush a little bit of the watermelon in the water to intensify the flavor just a wee bit.

THINKING THURSDAY

Experiment: Fit an egg inside a bottle.
I found a video on YouTube HERE that explains the how-to AND the why. If you can do the experiment outside, I would recommend that.

SOMEWHERE FUN FRIDAY

I surprised the girls with a morning out yard sale-ing. At first, we had trouble finding sales. But we continued on & finally had some success. We each had $7 to spend. Pazely spent $4 on a new case for her Kindle. I found a vintage apron, a vintage pitcher/vase, & a vintage-inspired napkin holder for $3. Zoey was empty-handed at the end of our excursion. We had fun making fun of other people's junk & stopped by the library cafe so the girls could spend the rest of their money on Italian sodas & sweets.

♥

To view all posts in our 2016 Summer School series, follow along HERE.

To see the pictures from our Summer School adventures so far, click HERE.

Summer School: Week 3

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Wed, 06 Jul 2016 07:24:00 +0000

So, this little one turned twelve years old last week. And, yes, that's whipped cream on her breakfast cereal. I tried to make this week's Summer School as much about Pazely as I could...

MAKE SOMETHING MONDAY

I had seen an Instagram friend post a picture of her toddler painting with her feet. And I thought, "I gotta do that!!" Because tiny humans inspire me. And sometimes kids get to do the most fun things, & why can't I, ya know?

I set up garbage bags outside (for protecting the ground + preventing a mess + easy cleanup) with rocks in the corners to keep the breeze from blowing our work space away. I gave the girls the option to paint acrylic paint with their toes onto cardstock that was taped onto the garbage bag, OR use watercolors while holding the paintbrush with their toes. (I taped watercolor paper to the garbage bags for that.) It was so much fun! But really challenging, too. The girls struggled a bit with accepting the fact that their painting would probably be a bit abstract. They pooped out before I did. In fact I loved it so much, I think I might make toe painting a regular habit. It stretched me artistically & pushed the boundaries of my creativity.

Pazely had this project on her Summer Bucket List too. Score!

Here is a short video of our toe painting fun, with pictures of our creations...

TIME TO READ TUESDAY

Our weekly walk to the library was put on pause this week. But we continue to read, of course. I am currently reading aloud the Wrinkle in Time quintet. We are on book #4, entitled "Many Waters". It's my summer goal to finish the series before school starts.

WHAT'S COOKIN' WEDNESDAY

My birthday girl/chocolate lover was in heaven when the Summer Fun Schedule revealed this recipe! It's a recipe for hot fudge sauce I got from a friend when we lived in North Platte, Nebraska. My family literally fights over this stuff. And I couldn't find the recipe, so I had to send an urgent text for help all the way to the Midwest. I'm giving you the recipe here, so I never have to lose it again:

Melt together 1/4 CUP butter + 3/4 CUP sugar + 1/4 CUP unsweetened cocoa powder in a pot on the stove over medium-high heat. Once melted & mixed, add 1/3 CUP milk or half-n-half. Bring to a boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Cool & store in a container in the refrigerator. To use: Warm up in the microwave in a heat-proof container, & then pour over ice cream. Or just dump spoonfuls in your mouth. Because you're gonna want to.

THINKING THURSDAY

Pazely has a wee obsession with Pokemon. And she had a few questions she wanted answered: Who invented Pokemon? {AND} Why does each Pokemon character only says its name over & over? These are things I could care less about. But, it's HER birthday week & I will make her dreams come true. I turned to the interwebs for help.

Although we did find out who created Pokemon, all the links online were only opinion about the characters & their language. There are no solid facts on that subject. Bummer. I was hoping to sleuth my way to a quick finale on the whole thing.

So then I stumble onto a list of 300 facts about Pokemon. Pazely asked me to read them out loud to her. And I realized that it was like reading a foreign language textbook. I had no idea what I was saying or what any of it meant. (Pazely even laughed at the way I pronounced some of the characters names.) To her it all made perfect sense. So then she thought she'd be helpful by trying to explain things to me. In detail. But that made it worse. She kept talking & talking about Pokemon powers & skills & other things I didn't understand. Things I didn't want to understand. I started getting sweaty. I couldn't focus. She wouldn't stop. This was as bad as getting a tour of one of her Minecraft houses.

"Jesus help me," I begged.

SOMEWHERE FUN FRIDAY

A friend told me about a neighborhood nearby where I could find a giant purple Adirondack chair. The nice people that have put the chair in their yard have welcomed anyone to sit in it & take pictures. So we did! We were only there a few minutes but had so much fun! A definite random pick for "Somewhere Fun Friday", but one my girls are sure to not forget too soon.

To view all posts in our 2016 Summer School series, follow along HERE.

To see the pictures from our Summer School adventures so far, click HERE.

♥

Summer School: Week 2

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Tue, 28 Jun 2016 00:15:00 +0000

This week it was just the Zoey girl & me hanging out, while little sister was on vacation with my parents during a special vacation they take every time one of their grandchildren turns 12. (Pazely got to cheat. She turns twelve this Thursday.) I focused all our activities & outings this week on my teenage daughter's interests & likes.

MAKE SOMETHING MONDAY

I found (& tried) several origami smartphone stands on Pinterest, but THIS was the one we liked best.

TIME TO READ TUESDAY

Our weekly Tuesday walk to the library was timed around a summer class series about journaling that the library is teaching. In part 2 of 4 we made a mess with some different techniques on our newly decorated found object woven journals.

(I say this all the time: check out your library for some FREE summer fun activities + summer reading programs for kids & teens!)

WHAT'S COOKIN' WEDNESDAY

My girl with a love for lemon flavored anything made THESE Lemon Buddies all by herself. She can't stop eating them.

THINKING THURSDAY

Miss Zoey was curious about how World War 1 started. So I got some books from the library & we continue, even after the week has passed, to look at pictures & read stories about the first world war. And if giant adult non-fiction books scare you when researching a topic, check out the children's section! I'm serious. Sometimes I can't handle all those words. Give me pictures & simplicity any day.

I even found an online publication on hoopla with over 100 facts on WW1, which proved to be an excellent way to learn about this subject.

SOMEWHERE FUN FRIDAY

I packed a picnic & we headed to the river for a quick lunch. The seagulls encircled us at one time (I'm not joking people: a perfect circle.) & so we feared for our lives a wee bit. And then there was that bloated diaper at the river's edge which just sat there, all bloated, looking at us. But then we were visited by a random pelican & the world seemed right.

We also stopped by a local art gallery, but our timing couldn't have been more imperfect: The walls were bare. Oh well. I tried. We still had fun!

To view all posts in our 2016 Summer School series, follow along HERE.

♥

Summer School: Week 1

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Tue, 21 Jun 2016 20:01:00 +0000

Have your printed out your Summer Fun Schedule yet?

Here's a peek at what our first week looked like:

MAKE SOMETHING MONDAY

A couple years ago a friend gave me a Thankful Journal, along with the book entitled "One Thousand Gifts" by Anne Voskamp. That book really was a life-changer. And I've been wanting to help grow my kids with hearts of gratitude & joy. So they each decorated their own Thankful Journal. I picked up inexpensive composition books & then pulled out all my stickers & crafty doo-dads & tid-bits while they made a happy crazy mess decorating the covers & adding things on scattered pages inside. Finding thankfulness in everything makes the heart extremely happy.

TIME TO READ TUESDAY

Tuesdays are almost like a free day for me. Nothing to plan or organize. It's our "Go to the library" day. The library is less than a mile walk from our house. So we've added some physical exercise by walking there every Tuesday. I think I'm really gonna like our Tuesday walks. We bring backpacks & library cards-- & we are set!

WHAT'S COOKIN' WEDNESDAY

I am SUPER excited about Wednesdays. I love to cook & bake. And I'm thrilled that the girls will be learning (without realize they're learning) basic stuff that will help them as they get older. We made a breakfast casserole. They are so easy to put together. And they sit in the fridge overnight so you can pop them in the oven for breakfast the next morning. We actually had ours for dinner the next day. And how proud they were that THEY made it! I swapped dish duty with them on that night. The recipe we used is HERE &, though we went basic with just turkey sausage & cheese, you can add things like feta cheese & artichoke hearts. YUM!

THINKING THURSDAY

I have a sheet of paper with a giant question mark in the center hanging in the girls' bedroom. Whatever they have been or are curious about, I ask that they jot it down on that paper. This helps me come up with themes for Thursday. I took the reins this first week though & chose the topic of "Composting". We have a compost heap in the backyard, which we share with my parents. We read about composting & I found some fun infographics on Pinterest to show them. We also made a countertop compost bin out of a coffee can. Making two of them cost me $5.00. It beats our sad little bowl filled with scraps staring at us all day. (Why must my children argue about who drilled more holes in the top of the coffee lid?!) I also found a 25-minute video called "Perfect Compost" via http://hoopladigital.com I'm not gonna lie. Zoey & I couldn't stop laughing about how the Master Gardener in the video uses animal parts to prepare certain biodynamic processes of compost---which made us think of animal sacrifice, which made us think of demonic rituals, which had us not paying attention. I know, we are horrible.

SOMEWHERE FUN FRIDAY

The girls LOVE going to Farmer's Market. We made an early afternoon visit of it, each choosing a treat. Zoey chose a half-dozen freshly made mini powdered sugar donuts, Pazely (who was being very selfie-self-conscious in the photo) picked a giant chocolate chip cookie, & I purchased a miniature bundle of sweet peas to put in a vase at home. We even brought home a gyro to share for lunch. We hardly ever come home from Farmer's Market with actual produce. Haha!

So that's our first week all wrapped up! Zoey said her favorite thing was walking to the library. Pazely loved decorating the journals best. I especially liked the compost bin craft.

To view all posts in our 2016 Summer School series, follow along HERE.

♥

Summer Fun Schedule

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Tue, 21 Jun 2016 18:13:00 +0000

The girls & I have begun our second week of summer break. And, if you've been keeping up with our goings-on over on Instagram & Facebook, you'll know that I have gotten super organized this year. The last two years were a doozy of disappointment. I had no energy to coral the littles (who, I know, are not technically little at almost 12 + nearly 14) away from their electronics. I was tired of being their maid. And the girls looked back & felt like they had wasted a potentially fun summer. Which they did. We all did.

So this summer, things are a-changin'. I browsed Pinterest for inspiration, & I found several weekly schedules with catchy themes for each day. I loved that idea, so I printed out my own version. (Using Picmonkey & importing it into Word.)

Every weekend I plan the next week's activities. And on Monday morning, I display my organized work of art next to the fridge. The girls have requested that I hide each day's theme, so they'll be surprised when they take turns revealing our project or venture of the day. There's an anticipation & excitement. So far, one week + one day in, the girls LOVE it! This might be too organized for some--it's not for everyone. But I needed guidance. And this plan gives me just enough of a general theme to run with it & personalize it. And, really, some of the day's items only take minutes. Others can linger for however long we wish to hang out with them.

The girls also have a small checklist of items they HAVE to do every day. It's so I can combat bedhead & fuzzy teeth all week long. You understand. But it also includes reading, several minutes of writing + math, morning devotions with Jesus, & a minor chore or two. It hasn't killed them to have responsibility. In fact, my youngest wakes up before anyone else in the morning & gets her checklist done lickety-split. And then she naps after lunch because she's so tired from waking up so early. Haha!

Zoey noted that it appears we are homeschooling. It definitely does look that way. Which is why I jokingly call it "Summer School". But remember what I said earlier? The girls LOVE it! And I'm having so much fun planning our weeks. And here is what each week looks like (some of them are self explanatory):

MONDAY = Make Something Monday

TUESDAY = Time to Read Tuesday (this simply means "go to the library")

WEDNESDAY = What's Cookin' Wednesday

THURSDAY = Thinking Thursday (whatever we are curious about, we will research that, or do a S.T.E.M. themed project: Science Technology Engineering Math)

FRIDAY = Somewhere Fun Friday (as many free &/or cheap local places I can come up with!)

Ok, so this schedule I created is as plain & boring as can be. But I thought I'd make it available to print your own anyway. (Click the "pop-out" icon in the top right corner for an option to print.) You can jazz it up with markers & whatnot.

I'll be posting a weekly recap of our Summer Fun Schedule shenanigans, so stay tuned! Hopefully it will inspire you. (Maybe it'll also help me get back into this blogging game.)

I'm adding our Summer School 2016 photos to an album, so you can always pop over HERE to take a peeksie at all our Monday through Friday Summer School adventures.

Happy summer, friends!

To view all posts in our 2016 Summer School series, follow along HERE.
♥

Week in Review: May 2-8

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Mon, 09 May 2016 20:39:00 +0000

I don't know what got into me last week, but I had a major cleaning bug one day. Just one. And it centered around the kitchen. Just the kitchen. I cleared out the shelves & cupboards, did some major wiping down & scrubbing, & even donated lots of items. The Mr. saw me & said, "You'll be out for the next 2 weeks now." He's right. He knows I hate cleaning. And he knows how much it poops me out. Like, sure, my feet hurt. But, emotionally I just can't handle it. Haha!

Once a year-ish I do like to go through the house & declutter. It feels good to lighten the load. I still have the dream that was planted in my mind after seeing THIS photo 5 years ago. I want to live in a tiny home. I figure that will be after the girls are grown & moved out of the house. So I've got some time to shed all this house weight. And to convince the Mr. of this idea. He's a tall human, so I'm not sure how he'll feel about all the tinyness. But, really, it's not about the size per se. For me, it's about the lack of burden. I look forward to that. Just the simple necessities. And a few items I adore. And the Mr.

It really is hard to give up stuff. I've talked about this before. I'm a sentimental sap, with a touch of packrat. Blah. I'll get through this. One box to charity at a time.

* * * * * * * * *

Oh, man. Spring is so much fun! Every day (on several occasions) I make a trek around the yard to see what seedlings have sprouted, spy what veggies are growing, peek at the wildflower patch, pick some weeds, smell some roses. The 11-year old & I even found half of a bird's egg in the grass while collecting mushrooms in the yard one afternoon. And then we brought out some acrylic paint & dobbed polka dots on the mushrooms. Just because.

* * * * * * * * *

I am totally getting into this weaving thing. It is so much fun! I've only made two mini tapestries so far, but am already taking orders...from my daughters. Ha! I am seriously thinking of putting some in the shop when I reopen one of these days. It's a bit of texture, a bit of happy, a bit of handmade. I love color mixing & am pretty sure I'm in trouble, more than ever, when it comes to this yarn collecting thing: I see it. I want it. I can't help it.

* * * * * * * * *

In addition to the weaving, I've been filling my days with completing my goal of making something every day for 2016: writing & sketching mostly. This year feels so different to me. I don't know if I can explain it. I'm definitely on a journey of discovery. My morning times with Jesus have opened all kinds of senses in me. I am creating for the joy of creating, & sharing my efforts, no matter how great or small I think they are, no matter how much of a novice I may be in the things I pursue.
I'm also in a season of waiting. I'm trying to be OK with not knowing, I'm trying to enjoy the mystery of what's next.

Click HERE for a photo play-by-play.
♥

DIY: Rock Flower Border

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Fri, 06 May 2016 16:37:00 +0000

My mother & I had a giant dirt pile in one corner of our shared backyard, leftover from a recent construction project. As we wondered & pondered what to do with it, I came up with the idea to just level out the dirt & plant wildflower seeds. Hours & hours of de-rocking later (two BIG bucket-fulls we couldn't even lift!), we finally had a decent plot. We sprinkled viola seeds + poppy AND double poppy seeds (oh my! I LOVE poppies!), plus a packet of wildflower seeds my dad had picked up—claiming 15 varieties of different flowers, yet not listing which ones. (We are excited to document & count each one. Ooh, think of the lovely collection of flowers I can sketch!)

I decided we needed some sort of cute flowerbed border, so I went to "The Pinterest". I immediately spied THIS pin, but it only led to a photo. No link. So I have no idea who to give the original credit to. But isn't it SO AWESOME?! I pared down the design to fit my space & came up with a simple row of flowers to create a border.

First, the girls & I gathered rocks from around the yard. We have a stockpile to choose from in all the flower beds around the house. Is it river rock? I don't know. They are smooth stones in varying sizes. We picked the roundest shapes we could find for the center of the flowers, & oblong stones for the petals.

Next, we created the flowers, matching similar sized petals with centers. Our flowers ranged in size from about 6"- 11" across, with each flower holding between 7-9 petals. The larger the stones you have (within reason) the better. The bigger the size, the more weight they will have to sit firm in the dirt.

After you mark the shape of your border (we lined bricks along the edge at first) all that's left to do is place your flowers onto the dirt, one at a time. After arranging it, press the flower firmly into the dirt with your hands. Then carefully use your foot to sink the stones a bit more into the soil.

This photo shows the border only half done. I think we had about 20 flowers total. We will need to do continued maintenance, especially as the grass begins to grow around the outside edge. And, after a while, if the stones begin to sink too deeply, just add more dirt underneath & re-position them.

I'm so anxious for that corner of the yard to be full of a crazy mess of color. I've already spotted several seedlings that have sprouted. Can't wait to take photos of it in full bloom!

Hope you enjoyed this simple DIY, which is SUPER easy, TOTALLY kid-friendly, & EXTREMELY charming as well!

Happy rock collecting!

Week in Review: April 11-17

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Mon, 18 Apr 2016 17:32:00 +0000

What a bright beautiful morning I woke up to today. Warm & happy enough to soothe some of my "I hate Monday" glumness. Poor Monday. So many of us have a distaste for her. It's true. I have the same pep-talk with my girls every Sunday night as I tuck them into bed: "After a weekend filled with fun & relaxation, Mondays are hard. It WILL be difficult to wake up tomorrow morning. But we can DO this! We GOT this! Goodnight, girls..."

After almost a week of feeling sickly, I finally feel the cloud in my head starting to lift. That foggy feeling in your brain is the worst when you're ill. Maybe all of my constant going-going-going the last two weekends was too much. Maybe my body had enough & is now forcing me to rest.

Two weeks ago I visited the Skagit Valley tulips with my mom for a joint birthday road trip. We took along my dad & my oldest daughter too. We visited RoozenGaarde + Tulip Town. I have been wanting to do this for many years, but kept putting it off. Not this year! I actually wrote it down as a goal for 2016. So I was determined to make it happen. As we drove around, scouting out where the fields were, I spied a massive blur of red in the distance. And as we approached all that intense color, my breath left me. It is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. Tulips for days. This is where rainbows are made. (I'm pretty sure.) On our road trip, I also had a chance to take the ferry to Guemes Island to visit grandmother's grave for the first time since her memorial service there, almost two years ago. We cleaned up her gravestone, left some potted tulips in her favorite color (purple), & even had a brief moment in the breezy, breezy, chilly day for some beach time, where I hunted for agates & listened to the waves on the rocky shore. My happy tank was refilled.

The very next weekend I helped drive & chaperone 13 middle school & high school youth to Fine Arts in Bothell, where they performed skits, song, & dance for adjudicators, along with oodles of other church kids across the northwest. It was so much fun getting to be a part of all these youth sharing their gifts & talents. (One of our own even qualified to go to Nationals. So proud!) Spending an entire day surrounded by all that music & art definitely awakened something in me. Bonus: we stayed at Camp Sambica. I love Camp Sambica! A bonfire at the lake shore at sunset was my favorite. Sharing a cabin with crazy girls was another favorite. Oh, & attending church service at Mt. Calvary Christian Center in Seattle was a third favorite. I visited once before &, oh, how I was giddy to go again! You know worship is good when your thighs are on fire.

So, yeah, I'm on the mend after a blurry time away from home. I have been pacifying myself with things like ginger + lemon tea with honey, a heating pad on my achy bones, cozy covers, & lots of doodling & writing in the sketchbook.

I felt well enough yesterday to putter around the house more. I made a fresh double batch of hummus, folded a tiny mound of laundry, & even helped the teenager with vocals for a local production of Annie Get Your Gun. Apparently I'm her voice coach now. I love that she is chasing her dreams. She doesn't care that she's not the best or the greatest. She has found something that makes her heart hum. And that is always my prayer for my girls: whatever it is that makes their heart full of joy, that they would pursue that. She is so much more of a go-getter than I ever was or ever will be. Watching her makes me wish I could re-do my own childhood.

Speaking of childhood, I'm reading Peter Pan aloud to Pazely. I have never read this book. Mr. Darling is more intense in the book than in the Disney movie. And Tinkerbell is more of a foul-mouthed imp than I realized! Sheesh. The girls & I also took a break from the 3rd book in the Wrinkle In Time quintet so I could read aloud "Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children". And, actually, we finished that last night & have started the 2nd book, "Hollow City". Really good books! But there ARE naughty words throughout & some inappropriate phrases. So I get to change things around as I read.

Well, it's time for me to reheat my cup of tea. (It's my thing.)

Hope your week is filled with lovely things!

If you'd like, follow me on Instagram to keep up with my daily doings.

First thing.

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Fri, 18 Mar 2016 17:53:00 +0000

That first sip of hot tea in the morning.

It is ceremony.

It is sacrament.

It is where I, with bedhead & foul breath, settle back in expectancy.

It is the commencement of a daily ritual, where my restless disposition encounters Your holy stillness.

I take another sip, drink slowly.

Our dialogue is the same:

Me: Oh, holy God, only You can satisfy.

You: Take me, take all of me.

Always You extend your hand.

Always You manifest yourself as tender.

In ragged hoodie & worn-out socks, I am filled.

Me: Oh, powerful & compassionate God, only You can carry this heavy load.

You: Let me take it, all of it.

I am saturated, awash with choice gifts.

I am disencumbered, free of grievous constraints.

Your generosity swirls about me as I sip...& sip...& sip...

-Nikki Mans

*******

I once dreaded "having" to pray—my list of needs was becoming so long, I was boring myself.

Blah, blah, blah... Is anyone even listening to this?

I once groaned at the thought of "having" to read the Bible—it was too difficult to understand. I didn't have time for all that confusion.

But I knew that spending quality time with God every day was something I should value. I was disappointed that my heart wasn't in it. I was definitely missing something.

So I went on an exploration.

Isn't that what you do when you've lost something— you search until you find it?

To give it to you simply, do you know what I found?

I found that I was doing it wrong.

Dreading & groaning was okay as long as I just showed up.

But I continued to dread & groan, even as I continued the morning routine.

So here came my next step: Do it differently, girlfriend.

I began keeping a Thankful Journal. (After reading Anne Voskamp's book "One Thousand Gifts".) This journal is life-changing for me. It forces me to acknowledge the things that make my heart happy, which are, ultimately, gifts from God. And, in case you didn't know it, being thankful on a regular basis makes for a joyful heart. True story. My list grows daily. I started 5 1/2 months ago & am at #388. When I get to #1000 I will keep going. How can one stop being thankful??

#244: My 2 dads meeting for the first time

#380: Breakfast cereal that tastes like birthday cake

#108: Street artists who make balloon animals

#112: The snooze button

#176: God's love–especially on those days when I feel tiny & unimportant in this world

#227: Chilling at a coffee shop

#47: Taking a bath in a mansion

I started writing. I found an AMAZING book entitled "Writing to God: 40 Days of Praying With My Pen" by Rachel G. Hackenberg. The daily prayer prompts in the book have launched my morning quiet time into a different dimension. The book combines a brief daily scripture with praying to God in a way I never thought of: using my written words, prayer writing.
(P.S. She has a version for kids, too!)

I started reading inspirational books. One chapter every morning. Every month I choose a new book. My journal is filled with quotes I want to keep. And the words I read often spur new ideas in my heart, which is exciting.

The Mr. initiated us reading one chapter of scripture every day, & then discussing it together. I like the wisdom he has when I have questions. He likes my random thoughts & perspectives.

I realized that this morning routine didn't have to be a chore. It SHOULDN'T be a chore. I could integrate the things I love, the things I enjoy doing, into my daily worship time with Him.

How fun & cool is that????

And if I ever feel so inclined, I will leave my usual cozy spot on the couch & spend my quiet time in new surroundings: In the backyard under the vine-covered gazebo, at the river by my trees, in my cool, dark basement bedroom.

Getting a new perspective every once in a while is really a breath of healthy, much-needed, life-giving air. (One morning, I sat at the piano for an hour & just sang. That was my quiet time that day. That was it. Another time I just sat in silence. *That was so hard to do!* But it was so fulfilling. My heart let it all out. He heard, I know He did. And I waited & listened & it was perfect.)

I now anticipate this morning ritual every day. It has become a spiritual adventure. One day I may sketch while listening to worship music, another day I might pull out my ukulele & present a song in adoration to Him.

Combine scripture & prayer in a way that fuses with the things you're passionate about in your daily quiet time with God.
And I promise you won't dread it anymore.

4 Months Later...

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Tue, 15 Mar 2016 17:48:00 +0000

Pardon me while I wipe the dust off this ol' thing...

To say that I have been absent is true.

But don't let the cobwebs in the corner fool you. It has actually been a creatively fantastic 2016 thus far. I'm having an amazing journey & I decided to not sit in it in silence anymore. I mean, I needed to be silent with it for a while.
But now I'm ready to be social.

During the very first week of January this year, the Mr. & I stepped down from our roles as pastor & worship leader at the little church we were ministering at. It was bittersweet to say goodbye. I have never been gifted with such a blank canvas as that. And I poured my everything into it. Art & music, which are such a big part of who I am, were at the core of what I did there.
So, so, so grateful for the past year there.

I sang every week. I played the piano every week. I constantly learned new music. I created digital graphics. I designed & dreamed & planned & painted. I saw my sketches on paper literally come to life before me. It was awesome.

All my energies were directed toward that one institution. And when that connection between me & that thing no longer existed, I felt lost for a moment.
What do I do now?
Well, if you're me, you make a list.
In giant letters, at the top of the lined pages of my journal I wrote:
"2016 GOALS"
And though this list includes things like:
•finish reading Moby Dick
&
•get my camera repaired & cleaned

...it also includes stuff like:
•draw more
•write more
•maintain a daily "quiet time"
•learn to make pasta
•and macaroons

I also made a goal to create something every single day. Be it a sketch, or a painting, or a craft, or a song, or a video, or a new memory with my family. And I've been sticking to it.
(Follow me on Instagram to see my daily MAKE STUFF updates.)

Oh my goodness, my favorite thing is waking up & getting my usual quiet time with Jesus. And I've kicked it up a notch. I've started writing more. But I'll just have to save that for another blog post. Because I could go on & on about it...

And I didn't know how much I loved to draw! Every day I try to practice, to get better. I've met some cool artistic peeps online, simply through our shared love of pen-to-paper + a #MakeWithMe sketch challenge I joined for the month of January.

I got a guitar for Christmas & am ever-so-slowly trying to teach myself to play. I've always wanted to play guitar. I'm not sure I can do it. But I'm gonna try!

And this year I can't wait to learn to make pasta & macaroons.

And guide Pazely along in completing her first sewing project.

And help Zoey learn to film & edit videos for her YouTube channel.

I'm also continuing a challenge I completed last year of reading one spiritual/inspiring book a month.

Right now I get to create for me. For myself. It feels really cool. My creative efforts have been slightly refocused. I feel like I get to wander more. Peek around new corners. My handiwork involves using different parts of my imagination. It seems to be that way in every major event that has happened in my life: Minor variations on my creative adventures.
And I'm ok with that. I used to not be ok with it though. I used to fight the fact that things changed. No matter how much I tried to keep things the same, I couldn't hold it all in place, I couldn't combat it.
Now I almost don't even notice the transitions. I definitely don't protest anymore.

I'm not gonna lie: Losing my grandmother changed me forever. (It'll be 2 years in June.) I'm afraid to admit that I think I'm struggling to accept the change that made in me. It's the hardest I've ever been hit in life. This last year, especially, has really been a lot of bumbling around, putting on a happy face, finding where I fit now.

All that aside, my heart feels big, & I wake up each day, glad.
Ready to share what's in my heart.
Ready to be more vulnerable.
Ready to share pictures of a macaroon-making mess in the kitchen.
And songs sung off-key.
And poetry made from a morning of prayer-writing.

DIY: Reindeer Pipe Cleaner Gift Card Holder + GIVEAWAY!

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Fri, 13 Nov 2015 01:56:00 +0000

I am a HUGE believer in giving gift cards for Christmas. And so is my local mall, Columbia Center Mall, a Simon Mall Shopping Center. You see, they're kind enough to share the love & are letting me give away a $100 VISA gift card to one of my readers. Woohoo! Get your shopping shoes on my friends!

Gift cards are my fave. When you choose to give a gift card as a gift, there's never the usual questions floating about concerning the fit, the color, the size. I promise you: it fits, it matches, & it looks good on me. Or you. Or whoever.

But, first!

I thought it would be fun to share a little gift card wrapping D.I.Y. idea. I wrapped this nifty Simon Malls Gift Card all naked-like. But you could certainly cover the gift card in brown paper (to match the body of the deer) or other gift wrap, to keep the contents more of a mystery to the recipient.
(Read on for the tutorial, or scroll to the bottom if you want to enter the giveaway!)

Now...I get to give away a $100 Simon Mall VISA gift card!

(Gift card is good wherever VISA debit cards are accepted.)

Enter to win by leaving a comment on this blog post, answering this question:

Who is the most difficult person on your Christmas list to shop for?
(I'll give you my short answer: The Mr.! Gah. Difficult with a capital "D". I think I'll just give him a gift card.)

>>Please leave your email addy too, so I can contact you if you win!<<

Winner will be chosen Monday, November 16th!

For a list of Simon Malls, click HERE.

*Contest for U.S. residents only.*

Enjoy this little stop motion video I made with our little reindeer gift card friend...

For local peeps, check out some of the short-term retailers that are new to Columbia Center Mall:

Country Wreath: Shoppers seeking homemade holiday décor from large festive signs to decorated wreaths will love the selection at Country Wreath.

·       Fuego: At the mall through January, Fuego is a Pacific Northwest based company selling an eclectic mix of jewelry, accessories, novelty items and apparel great for distinctive gifts.

·       Glass Gallery: The Glass Gallery product line features crystal collectables ranging from hand made miniatures figurines from Santa and nativity scenes to exotic animals.

·        Go! Calendars Games & Toys: Shoppers can visit Go! Calendars Games & Toys to stock up on calendars, games, toys, puzzles, and gifts for both children and adults on their shopping list.

·       Hickory Farms: A staple in many holiday traditions, visit Hickory Farms to pick-up delicious meats, wine, cheeses and sweets. Whether customers are looking for a great gift or picking up some goodies for their own holiday get-together, their first stop should be at Hickory Farms.

·       Inka's Peruvian Fashion: This shop offers unique cultural clothing inspired by the Inca Empire that once ruled in Peru with rich textiles such as Alpaca wool.

·       PolarX Ornaments: Shoppers will enjoy the festive products at PolarX Ornaments like stockings, picture frames, tree ornaments and decorative table toppers to help make the most of the season.

·       Sportula: This is a fabulous shopping destination for the sports fans on your holiday list with cooking and grilling gear emblazoned with the logos of their favorite sports teams.

·       See's Candies: For quality candy and chocolates, visit See’s Candies, which features holiday gift packs perfect for host gifts and stocking stuffers.

·       Toyland: This is a one-stop shop for children’s gifts or for the kid in all of us, including toys for building and learning, hobbies and crafts, games, sports and action toys or dolls and stuffed animals.

♥
UPDATE:
Congrats to Mary (mami2jcn)! You're the winner of the gift card, as chosen by The Random Number Generator.

I wrote this post as part of a paid promotion with Columbia Center Mall.

The opinions in this post are my own.

Annual Refresher Course

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Mon, 26 Oct 2015 17:02:00 +0000

Yesterday I returned from a weekend away at Bozarth Mansion in Spokane. I was lucky enough to be part of a Women's Retreat with the ladies of Grace United Reformed Church. My friend Julie invited me for the second year in a row. Such an amazing group of women. I looked back at comments I made on my first venture there last October:

"I would descend the grand staircase every morning, hot drink in hand, ready for a relaxing day of teaching & worship & the chit-chatter of friendly new faces. I lived a few days of freedom... I got lots of tasty nuggets for my soul. And worshiping in a setting like that with all of our soft pretty voices was a special sound...It was hard to leave the mansion. And the atmosphere of not needing to be needed all the time, of duty & responsibility. Escaping reality for a brief moment is a good thing. A necessary thing. Sometimes you don't realize you need something until you receive it. This weekend was just that for me."

All those words remain true even this year.

Worshiping with other believers, in their way, in their circle, is something I want to practice all the time. At one point this weekend I almost said, "It feels like I'm with family." But then I stopped. Because I WAS with family. And that made my heart so happy. Show me, sisters, how you choose to display your sacred praise to our God. And I will join you.

Some other highlights from my weekend:

bathing in a mansion

spying a family of five deer feeding in the lawn

white bean chicken chili in the crockpot + homemade pumpkin pudding

seeing familiar faces

road trip silliness, which included researching mythical creatures (did you know there is a mythical being that is shaped like an umbrella, & another that will lure you into its cave & tickle you to death?) + translating words into Japanese (I now know how to say "chocolate mushroom" & "squirrel")

shopping at Cost Plus World Market

spontaneous leaf selfies

giggles with friends

welcome home hugs from the littles

This trip was SO last minute. Like, I found out I was going only 4 hours before Julie picked me up. I almost declined the invitation. (The sniffles & sneezies have been attacking me.) But then I thought, "I love spontaneity. I always want to be a part of it, to force myself out of my little introverted comfort zone."

And I'm so glad I did.

♥

DIY: 2 Monster Fur Crafts

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Tue, 20 Oct 2015 16:40:00 +0000

Earlier this year I saw the most adorable gift bags at Target. (See photo below.) They are American Greetings products & I absolutely died when I saw them. MUST HAVE. But I wasn't willing to spend the $10-$14 that they cost. EEK. So I decided to make my own. For about 2 DOLLARS.

Not only is this a super fun bag for packaging a gift, but it also makes a unique Halloween bag for holding all that candy as you go Trick-or-Treating!

SUPPLIES:

•faux fur

•gift bag (Doesn't everyone have piles of used gift bags stored in plastic tubs under their bed too?)

•felt (I only used black. But add whatever details/colors you want.)

•spray glue

•hot glue gun

•scissors

•ruler

•marker

•googly eyes (These are 1.5", but I even saw 6" googly eyes!!)

I had all the supplies on hand--except the faux fur & the GIANT googly eyes. I was disappointed to not have a great colorful selection of fur at my local fabric shops. Such a crafty bummer. But it still looks cute all the same. (TIP: Be sure to use coupons when buying fabric! Check online, too. I was able to save 50%!)

After measuring your gift bag & marking the measurements on the backside of the fur, it's time to cut. Cut a tiny bit extra on both edges. One tip I learned from the lady at the fabric store: use a vacuum to clean up the loose fur. Otherwise, you'll have a major fuzzy mess. Just vacuum all the cut edges of fabric.

Take your fabric piece outside, along with your spray glue. I love this stuff. Works amazingly. My bag was about 9" tall. A medium-ish size. This step would be helpful with an assistant. After you spray the backside of the fabric with the glue, you'll want to CAREFULLY lay the bag on top of fur, lining the bottom of the bag with one edge of the fabric & CAREFULLY wrap the piece around the bag. It was an awkward process doing it on my own.

You'll have some excess on the top of your bag, but that's ok. Wrap it over the top edge of the bag.

Before gluing on the eyes with the hot glue gun, I cut out a black felt circle a little bit larger than the googly eyes. I didn't want to glue it down to a flat area of fur, so I roughed it up a bit with my fingers & nestled the circle into the fur. Glue the googly eyes on top of the felt circle. Add other felt details, if desired: teeth, moustache, eyebrows, etc.

And that's it!

Here's another quick craft using monster fur, & almost the exact same supplies.

Simply substitute the gift bag with empty cans!

These would be great as party favors, filled with candy & prizes. My daughter even swiped one & is using it as a desk accessory to hold pens & pencils.

The steps are the same as the monster bag craft:

Measure can.

Cut fabric.

Spray glue fabric.

Wrap fabric around can.

Remember to add a bit to your measurement so you can overlap the excess around the rim of the can.

Your blank furry can canvas is ready for monster details!

♥

DIY: Martha Stewart Crafts: Tiny Aluminum Dish

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Tue, 22 Sep 2015 19:25:00 +0000

I was recently sent some Martha Stewart crafty supplies, & when I opened the box my heart went *pitter-patter* at the sight of her Metalworking Alphabet Stamp Set. I immediately went into brainstorm mode. I LOVE brainstorm mode: Notepads filled with scribbles & doodles....hot cups of tea...plus, candles + music to help expel the crafty joo joo. And so I came up with these sweet little lightweight dishes, celebrating & welcoming my favorite season. But this craft can totally be customized & personalized for anyone, any day of the year.

This supply list might look cray-cray. I'll explain...

• Martha Stewart Metalworking Alphabet Stamp Set

• Aluminum (I purchased a 12" x 30" roll that is .005 thick/36 guage. As an option, you could recycle a pop can. There are loads of tutorials on YouTube to show you how to properly cut a can.)

• Embossing pad (A cutting mat would work too. Just not a hard surface. Something with "give".)

• Small round shape to trace (My cup is 2 3/4" in diameter. Because of the lightweight nature of the dish you'll be making, I would keep the maximum measurement of the item you trace at 2 3/4".)

• Small round bowl for shaping (My bowl of choice is that metal egg poacher. But any heavy duty metal/plastic/wood/glass bowl would work, as long as the base is shallow & will shape your aluminum into a nice shallow dish/bowl shape.)

• Scissors

• Shaping tool (I used the round knobby end of that knitting needle. You want something that is small with rounded edges. I even experimented by using the back handle of those green scissors & it did the trick too.)

• Small hole punch. (1/8" is best!)

• Embroidery thread in your color(s) of choice

• Needle (small enough to go through holes you punch into the metal)

• Permanent marker

• Paintbrush

• Black paint

• Small paper towel or cloth/rag

Ok, now that all your weird supplies are gathered, let's DO this.

Trace your round shape onto the metal using the permanent black marker. Cut out this shape. As an option, you could wear gloves in this step, because the aluminum COULD cut you. I lived dangerously & didn't wear gloves.

These next steps involve the shaping of your flat piece of aluminum.

1. Center your aluminum circle shape above your shaping bowl.

2. With both hands, carefully + evenly push this shape into the bowl. It will buckle & fold all over. That's normal. Don't worry.

3. Again, with both hands, flatten those buckles & folds against the sides of the bowl with your fingers as much as you can.

4. Use your rounded shaping tool to smooth out the buckles & folds. Do this by holding the bowl with one hand on one side, & use the other hand with your shaping tool on the other side. Push & slide the tool all over. I found it easiest to start in the middle & rub the tool to the outside. I went side to side, up & down, in circles, just all over. The longer your work, the more smooth it will become.

Now you can punch holes evenly around the edge of your bowl. My small hole punch (pictured) actually broke. Not because of the aluminum. It was just headed in that direction. So I went out & bought a smaller punch---the 1/8" size. And I LOVE it!! So much better.

We can now personalize our bowl. Think of a word or a letter or something very short (this is a small dish afterall) that you want to stamp on your metal. It is so easy to slide letters onto the Metalworking Alphabet Stamp Set. The little notches make sure you're lining things up perfectly. Just remember: slide your letters in backwards so that they appear in the proper direction when you stamp them.

I actually had trouble using the stamp set at first. I couldn't get it to stamp a full word onto my metal. I even tried using lighter/softer metals, but it still didn't work. After playing a while, I DID have success stamping one letter at a time. Maybe it's just me. I don't know. I saw other crafty bloggers using the tool with no problem. It's me, isn't it? *sigh*

When you're stamping, use your embossing pad. Apply a lot of pressure, with a slight rocking motion.

At this point, your dish will be a crunchy mess.

All you have to do to remedy that is to insert it BACK into your shaping bowl. Use your shaping tool to smooth out the edge you just punched & any other place on the dish that needs flattening. JUST BE CAREFUL NOT TO SMOOTH OVER YOUR WORDS. Go around the letters you just stamped.

There. It's all smooth & awesome now.

Ready for the details?

Cut 3–3.5 feet of embroidery floss. (The amount you'll use depends on the number of holes you punched & how big or small your bowl is.) I used the full amount of threads in the floss. Double up your floss, bringing the ends together, so you're left with a loop at one end. This is how I secure my first stitch (as seen in 1). I used the blanket stitch all around the edge of my dish, as seen in the photos.

When you've stitched all around the dish, knot the end, Slide it under a nearby stitch & cut the floss.

You could also stitch it this way. It's more simple: just in one hole, around & through the other, etc.

I wanted the words on my bowl to stand out a bit more, so I smeared black paint all over the letters.

(You could use any color of paint. Ooh, you could even coordinate with your floss color, too!)

With a flat paper towel, carefully wipe away the paint. The paint on the flat surface will disappear, but the paint that got into all the grooves & dents & crevices of your letters will remain.

On some dishes, I had to do this a couple times because I either wiped away too much paint, or my initial stamping didn't get deep enough into the aluminum.

And...done!

This stamping set is super awesome & I love it. It's made of sturdy plastic & comes with multiple letters, numbers & symbols.

Here's a sideview to give you a different perspective.

Use your nifty little dishes on a dresser or side-table to hold spare change, special treasures, or rings & things.

Hello Cozy Fall! I have missed you.

Welcome back! We're gonna have a splendid time together...

♥

This post was written as part of a campaign with Martha Stewarts Crafts & their new fall & Halloween crafts + products. I was compensated with free crafty supplies. The opinions expressed in this post are my own.

Rock Balancing & Things

noreply@blogger.com (nikki/WhiMSy love) — Tue, 01 Sep 2015 04:44:00 +0000

The girls & I enjoyed a few hours at the river on Friday, in celebration of the last weekend before school starts. The Mr. dropped us at the Farmer's Market where, before venturing to the sandy shores near our shady tree, we spied the fruits & vegetables of the season all pretty on display. We also saw many species of doggy, too, which meant Pazely was in heaven! And Zoey got a giant watermelon-flavored sno-cone, which meant she was in heaven. And there was live music & samples, so I was, you know. Heaven.

We ventured down to the river & made a comfortable mess of things, setting up a temporary chill-out zone near our tree. We call a particular tree at the park "our" tree. Or sometimes I refer to it as "my" tree. It's actually two trees, side by side. But we always sit to the left side, near our tree, not the other one. It's funny because sometimes we'll arrive at the park, making the usual beeline for our tree, & there will often be people sitting under our tree. I'm like, "Why are they sitting at our tree?" You know, like no one else is allowed to park themselves at these particular coordinates except us.
While we were at the park this weekend, Zoey took me directly under our tree & told me to look up. So I did. There were spiderwebs, no, spiderblankets & spidervillages all up inside it. Like, everywhere. Just thick, thick, all over.
I thought, "Ew. My tree is gross." So now I sit BESIDE it.

We were lucky enough to be the only ones at the river on this overcast day. Pazely wondered why we were the only ones. I told her it's because nobody else was crazy enough to step foot in that cold water. Pazely thought it was neat how her legs & knees felt numb.

—•—

Have you seen stacked rocks before? I just think they're so cool. I tried to explain to the girls that stacking rocks is actually "a thing."

"It is?" they asked.

If you're unfamiliar with it all, you should look up images of stacked rocks or rock balancing sometime. There are even such things as rock balancing artists, & a Rock Stacking World Championship held annually in Texas. Who knew?

I'm definitely not on my way to the championship, but stacking rocks sure is fun to do. Pazely had a hard time getting her wobbly stones to stay put. So she made some mortar to aid in the wigglyness. That's pretty much against the official rules.
She's fired.

Here's a video I took of our afternoon at the river. I love the Cameo app for my iphone, by the way. But, golly, I need to pay more attention to the horizon. Crooked city! Haha! *sigh* If I had more time in my days, I'd devote them to learning about film-making. It's a secret/not-so-secret passion of mine.

HAPPY PLACE from Nikki/WhiMSy love on Vimeo.

Pazely started school today. The 6th graders got the whole school to themselves a day early. I love that. So now Pazely gets to join her sister in the middle school ranks this year. Just wait until the halls get crowded tomorrow though. God be with you, little one.

The girls have had their first-day-of-school outfits picked out (& laid carefully out) for 2 weeks now. They even had a practice run trying on their outfits. Is that normal? They've never done that before. But they are both SO excited to go back to school.
My big 7th grader (who is taller than me, & I'm 5'8") gets to wear makeup for the first time. I remember my mom taking me to the store & picking out makeup before I entered 7th grade. It's a rite of passage, so to speak. I can clearly picture the Cover Girl palette of eye shadow my mom & I picked out, in shades of grey & pink & blue.

Pazely's ensemble included a mix of this & that. But she loved it. A Peanuts cartoon shirt AND Peanuts cartoon pants AND lion earrings AND flip-flops AND rainbow colored sunglasses. And she rocked it all with a messy bun on top of her cute freckled head.

Just so you know, Pazely's first day at school was pretty much a success. She only got lost once &, unfortunately, dealt with a crabby teacher who couldn't seem to give slack to a newbie middle schooler. Shame on that woman.
Pazely has already picked out her two favorite teachers, she met a new girl (which was her goal this year, & the new girl happens to be her locker partner), she squeals nonstop when she thinks about going to school, & she has declared school lunches to be officially disgusting.

ME: Who did you sit with at lunch, Pazely?
PAZELY: I couldn't find my friends at lunch, so I just rolled down the hill.
*she pauses to pull a piece of grass out of her hair*
ME: Is that from rolling down the hill?
PAZELY: No. It's probably from when I was making grass angels.

I love that girl.

It feels good, once again, to get back to routine. In fact, I'm looking forward to putting the house back in order this first week the girls are at school. This summer I have become an expert pile-maker. There are piles everywhere, strategically balanced like those rocks. Nothing artsy about it. Just a big ol' tall mess.

♥