Sweeter Than Cupcakes

Bathing Beauties

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 03:08:00 +0000

Todd was off playing basketball with the church group tonight, so I tried to simplify bath time for these two. I’m sure this will be the first of many shared baths. Both girls seemed plenty pleased with the situation.

Bring on the Ruffles

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 02:48:00 +0000

Joy of Snazziedrawers just released a new beauty of a pattern called the Hudson Dress, so I jumped at the chance to test it out. These knit ruffles give this comfy dress some glam as does the wide neckline. Joy’s patterns are well written and include great tips and sources. This one is a must for all those obsessed with ruffles like I am! I’m happy to report that Avery thought it was “just beautiful" too.

Missing Omie

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:24:00 +0000

We had the pleasure of having Omie visit this past week, and in Avery’s words, we miss her so, so much.

Breakfast for Dinner

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 02:54:00 +0000

Do you ever make a meal and before you are finished eating it, you can't wait to make it again? I do. Tonight's meal was one of those experiences for me. We had breakfast for dinner inspired by some recent pinning on pinterest. For the main meal we had these brunch stuffed peppers. Bacon, eggs, hashbrowns, cheese, what's not to love. (Note: Mine took longer to bake than the recipe. It ended up being about 1 hour.)

Source: pauladeen.com via Courtney on Pinterest

Then for dessert, we had cinnamon roll pancakes. Melt in your mouth sugary, buttery sweetness. The cream cheese "syrup" just seals the deal.

Source: recipegirl.com via Courtney on Pinterest

Indulge!!

Crowns and a Cut

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 03:38:00 +0000

It has been so nice to fit in all this sewing lately. It really is a stress reliever for me. I just wish the laundry didn’t pile up in the mean time.

I just had to purchase this purple crown fabric as soon as I found it on sale. Purple + Crowns = Perfection. The crown fabric is from Jessica Levitt’s Kingdom line. I paired it with some Michael Miller Ta dots. The pattern is Farbenmix’s Celina.

I love how the scallop stitching outlines the fun curves in this pattern.

Avery wore her new dress for “beauty shop day.” She had her first real hair cut today, and she had fun I think. She was super excited to go, but hardly spoke a word once we were there. She was an angel for the stylist though.

She’s got some super sweet curly locks.

We did a bit of shopping then stopped by TCBY to round out the day. We were set to go to her first movie today too, but for some reason she wasn’t interested after her nap. We’ll try again another day. I sure enjoyed our special morning though!

Three Months

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 21:46:00 +0000

At three months, I fill my days with coos and smiles. I am fascinated with my big sis, and look around for her as soon as I hear her voice. At my twelve week checkup I was 23 inches (45%) and 12 lbs (53%). I’m already sleeping up to 12 hours at night, so Mom and Dad pretty much think I’m a rock star.

Happy Heart

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 03:12:00 +0000

Jenny Fish of Sew Pretty Dresses gifted these fabrics to me a while ago, but I just couldn’t figure out how to combine them. I really didn’t think they could all go together, but somehow it works.
A friend took me to this fun shop in Memphis the other day where they had these ruffle knit hearts appliqued to adult tees. We loved the idea, so when I got home I rummaged through my Goodwill donation bag and pulled out all the pink shirts to ruffle up my own heart. Adding the pink to this dotted knit brought the rest of the fabrics together. I used the Imke pattern from Sewing Clothes Kids Love for the top, and the skirt comes from Bizzkids Summer 2009. This may be my new favorite skirt pattern. I’m loving all the layers!

I couldn’t leave Tandy out of this mix, so I just fancied up a onsie with a reverse applique heart and …

… ruffles of course!

Party Vote

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 19:49:00 +0000

I know it was a while ago, but I recently posted Avery’s second birthday party over on Project Nursery. Well, our very own Berry Sweet Birthday was selected as one of January’s Party Finalists! I’m obviously thrilled, and here’s were I ask for your help. PLEASE go vote for our party!!! Shameless, I know. I’m thinking that the $50 gift card would be the perfect thing to save up for this year’s party, so it is all for a good cause. Right? Vote here.

If you would like to visit my old posts about this special day click here.

Agnes Tunic

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 02:43:00 +0000

I love the mix of a pretty floral with some zebra stripes, and Jennifer Paganelli does them both so well! The pattern is one of Jennifer’s as well from her book, Girl’s World. The bold neckline with simple gathers creates a unique look.

I experimented with a pleated head band to go with this one. There’s room for improvement, but I’m loving the idea of the coordinated accessories.

Quicky Projects

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:44:00 +0000

I guess since Avery’s hair is finally growing in full and I have a new baby with hair, I’m ready to play around with more bows. I’m loving quick projects these days. Here is a great source for elastic for headbands. Here is the tutorial for the fun ric-rac rose. Let me know if you have found other great tutorials for accessories!

This was another quick project for Tandy’s stocking stuffers. The blank bibs from Target got a whole new look.

Sharing the Love

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 01:45:00 +0000

There is no doubt that this big sis loves her little sis.

Thanks to Brooke

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 03:49:00 +0000

We have more lovely photos of our girls.

New Year’s

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 19:59:00 +0000

Due to some work schedules, we celebrated Christmas with the Davis side of the family over New Year’s. When Gramps visited for Christmas day, he mentioned missing decorated sugar cookies as a tradition for Christmas, so you know what I had to do! I baked up some sugar cookies and brought all the trimmings to their house for New Year’s. Gramps got in on the action, but we didn’t manage to capture it on camera. He’s sneaky like that.

Palmer had some fun shaking some serious sprinkles.

Chillin’ in pj’s is always a good idea.

Gogo has enough kiddy chairs for all her little ones, and a train of chairs gets everyone’s attention.

We had a blast having everyone together!

Two Months

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 21:34:00 +0000

Well, Mommy thought she might have to take the elephant up to the hospital to get this picture, but thankfully we made it home for my two month birthday and Christmas Eve. I gave everyone quite a scare with my coughing, wheezing, and two night stay at the hospital. My illness hasn’t slowed down my growth one bit, and I’m weighing in at 10 lbs 8 oz. I’ve been letting the family get a good night sleep lately which seems to make everyone’s day more pleasant. Hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!

Twas the night before....

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 03:57:00 +0000

Christmas Eve and we're spending our not so silent night in the hospital. Tandy was admitted to the hospital yesterday with concerns about her breathing due to a case of RSV. She has spent 24 hours in this oxygen tent with numerous breathing treatments. Tonight she is free of the tent with hopes that we can go home in the morning if she does well. The packages may not all get wrapped and our road trip to visit family Christmas day may be canceled, but our focus didn't need to be on those things anyway.

Todd reminded me of Avery's first Christmas. Apparently our daughters like to celebrate their first Christmas in unconventional manners. Much like we had to smuggle Avery out of the country for her first Christmas three years ago, we're prepared to smuggle Tandy out of the hospital if needed!

Avery is in great hands with Gogo and Gramps. We are so grateful for all the love and support our family gives us.

Moroccan Elephant Nursery

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 23:13:00 +0000

Are you ready for the full nursery tour? Thankfully, I have Brooke’s beautiful photos to highlight the details. You’ve seen a lot of the process as the pieces of Tandy’s nursery came together, but here it is all assembled. It's a bright, colorful, and fun place that I hope the girls will enjoy!

We enjoy having company visit (especially my family from Texas) so this room has to double as a guest room. Thankfully we had plenty of room for the crib and extra bed. Check back to these previous posts for the before and afters.

Our Mary

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 22:18:00 +0000

Avery was selected to play Mary in the little school performance they held yesterday. At one point her baby Jesus almost took a tumble, but other than that she did a spectacular job. Of course, her only duty was to keep the baby wrapped up and sway back and forth, but for a three year old I’m just glad she didn’t run to mommy and daddy.

She tended to her baby with care. We were so proud of her!

Teacher Gifts

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 20:13:00 +0000

These may be the only handmade gifts other than edibles that I get to make this year, but they sure were fun. Mrs. Jennifer, you need to stop reading now if you want to save the surprise!!!

I spotted these Anthropologie inspired gift tags over on pinterest during one of my late night baby feedings and knew they were just the thing for Avery's lovely teachers. There is a printable and tutorial over on pinterest if you need one. The only thing I did different was to finish off the edges by rubbing them along a chocolate brown stamp pad.

I packed up these pretty little tags in a tub with a red sharpie, ribbon, more store bought tags, and tape. The result is a little gift wrap gift bag. I hope Avery's teachers like keeping things practical!

Hopefully it's not too late for some of you to use this idea, but if so I think it would work for any other time of year as well.

Christmas Kimono Dress

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 21:48:00 +0000

I haven't had a chance to test out the fit yet, but I did get to make a matching kimono style Christmas dress for Tandy. I started with the kimono style pj pattern in Amy Butler's Little Stitches book and made a few adjustment along the way. I'm liking the look, but the true test will be the fit!

Teaser

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 02:11:00 +0000

One more before and after before I post the overall nursery. This elephant was another garage sale snag Todd found. I added a few coats of my favorite watermelon spray paint and topped it with the birdie wall decal. The bird actually came as a test piece with our main wall decal order. It was too cute not to use!

One Down...

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 17:04:00 +0000

One to go. I'm so excited that I was finally able to sew. I've had loads of help around here, so I was able to sit down for an hour or so here and there at my sewing machine. Oh, those creative juices are flowing again and it feels so good. Here is Avery's Christmas dress.

The pattern is Patty Young's Kyoto, and the fabric is Dena Design's Kumari Holiday. This pattern really does come together quickly especially if you were to use ready made bias tape. Patty's patterns are always so well written and easy to follow. Now, I'll just be looking for some time and inspiration for something for Tandy!

One Month

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 16:50:00 +0000

Is it a bad sign that I’m late with the first month’s photo? I’ve got a reminder on my calendar now, so I should do better next time. This month sure flew by. Take it away Tandy….

At one month, I’m a pretty chill girl. My favorite activity is watching people squirm as I spit up all over them. I really love for Mommy and I to go through several outfits a day. My favorite late night feeding time is 3 a.m. Avery keeps me mesmerized. She’s always dancing around me or giving me hugs. I’m growing quickly, so come back next month for more.

Turkey Day 2011

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 16:57:00 +0000

We had an amazing Thanksgiving holiday last week. We opted not to travel with new baby Tandy, so we opened the invitation to my family to come visit us from Texas. Amazingly, they accepted said invitation and traveled the long distance to spend time together.

Aunt Sassy was able to meet Tandy for the first time.

Avery loved playing with cousin Ford.

Uncle Cool is always a big hit with the kiddos.

Avery pitched in with the big meal preparations by grinding the cranberries for the cranberry salad.

She also did some great quality control testing. (Of course, cooking in costumes makes everything taste better.)

I finally set a pretty table with our china plus the silver from Todd’s mother.

We are so thankful for our family, and we truly enjoyed the time we were able to spend together.

Picture Perfect

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 01:46:00 +0000

It’s been weeks since Brooke’s visit and weeks since my last post, but I’m finally here to show off my girls through Brooke’s beautiful photos. We feel so blessed to have a photographer in the family! Brooke was able to get away from her sweet little one and hubby for a few days with us. I can’t tell you how much I enjoy her company!

Thank you so much Brooke for making the super long trip and sharing your talent with us. We love you!

I'm still playing catch up with my blog, so bear with me. I haven't touched my sewing machine in months either. I'm starting to doubt that the girls will have hand made Christmas dresses this year, but I haven't lost all hope yet.

Visitors

noreply@blogger.com (sweeter than cupcakes) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 21:07:00 +0000

Well, it has been 3 weeks since Tandy made her appearance, and I’m already behind when it comes to keeping up with our little adventures on this blog. It seems all I can manage is eating, nursing, and sleeping whenever I can, so I'm keeping this short. We’ve had some wonderful visitors (and helpers) these past few weeks.

Gramps and Gogo

Omie

Opa

Aunt Bebe.

We're loving it! Keep on coming!