Coley's Corner

Noah's New AFOs

2012-02-08T02:01:00.000-05:00

Back before Christmas, Noah was fitted for new AFOs. (AFO stands for ankle foot orthosis and is basically a brace that goes on over the socks and supports the ankle and foot.) Children can get decorative AFOs that have a pattern (clouds with butterflies, camouflage, etc) on them or you can get AFOs with "tattoos" that have an image on the back of the AFO.

Noah got to choose the design for his AFOs and of course his eyes went straight to the Clemson designs. He couldn't choose between the orange tiger paw or the tiger so he ended up with this........

One of each!

Linked to 5 Minutes for Special Needs

and

5 Minutes for Moms

Valentine's Tree

2012-02-06T21:38:00.000-05:00

I wanted to add something a little different to my Valentine's Day decor this year so I decided to make a little Valentine's tree.

Let me tell you what I did......

I started off with one of the little trees that the Dollar Tree currently has in their Easter section. I also bought two packages of Valentine's foam stickers at WalMart for 97 cents each. I also used red, pink, and white ribbon which I already had.

Making the "ornaments" was super complicated. (Picture me saying that dripping with sarcasm.) I simply found two stickers in the package that were alike and peeled off the backing, looped a ribbon and placed it on the back of the sticker, and then stuck the two stickers together. I told ya - super complicated!

The base of the tree (it was in a pink pot) looked kind of plain. I remembered a little box I had leftover from last year and thought it might work if the pot would fit inside it. It fit perfectly! Then I just added some red paper shreds.

Love how cute it turned out!

(Linking up to the parties listed in my sidebar)

Quote of the Week: Love

2012-02-05T20:52:00.000-05:00

"Let all that you do be done in love."
1 Corinthians 16:14

Weekend Wonders: Valentine's Day Printables

2012-02-04T14:52:00.002-05:00

I've seen so many cute Valentine's Day themed printables lately. Some can be printed, framed, and used as decor while others are actual Valentine's that can be given to friends or family.

Valentine's Day Subway Art

I love subway art because you just simply print and frame it. This cute subway art was created by Pink Polka Dot Creations.

Love Grows Bookmarks

Ella Emmet shares these cute bookmarks that say "Love Grows." Simply print on cardstock, then cut them a part.

Valentine's Day Word Search and Coloring Pages

A Creative Mamma shares some cute activity cards for kids.

A True Love Story Printable

The gals at Eighteen25 share this cute printable. Pop it in a frame for instant decor.

Cupcake Toppers

These festive cupcake toppers at Anna and Blue Paperie are adorable.

Being Real

2012-02-03T17:49:00.000-05:00

It’s Friday – the day where I join other bloggers and take five short minutes to just write from the heart. Five Minute Friday is hosted by Gypsy Mama and this week’s prompt is REAL.

The first thing I thought of when I saw that this week's prompt was the word real is a song called What if we were Real by one of my favorite {Christian} artists, Mandisa.

The chorus says,
“We keep tryin to make it look so nice
And we keep hidin' what's goin on inside
But what if I share my brokenness
What if you share how you feel
And what if we weren't afraid of this crazy mess
What if we were real?”

I think sometimes as women, wives, and Moms we are afraid to be 100 percent real. We feel like we are supposed to be multi-tasking with a smile on our faces and have it all together but truthfully, no one has it all together all the time. But this song reminds me that it is OK to be real, that we should be real. It's OK to hurt, cry, and be afraid.

I have tried really hard in the past couple of years to be real on this blog especially in regards to Noah and the trials and triumphs of raising a child with special needs. I’ve shared good times and bad, laughter and tears, and fears as dreams. It’s not always easy to be real and admit that things aren’t perfect or even near perfect all the time but I feel in being real I will be able to connect with others on a deeper level and will gain healing through my writings.

What if we were all real and transparent? Then no one would have a reason to feel bad because they’d see not everyone has it all together all the time!

In closing, I invite you to listen to Mandisa’s song, What if we Were Real?

Love Candles

2012-02-02T23:43:00.011-05:00

I finally got some mojo and crafted a little something. This is the first crafting I have done since before Christmas! Shocking isn't it?

So I created something new for my Valentine's Day decor.

This was a simple and quick project. Seriously, it took me about 15 minutes (if that long).

I started with 4 battery operated pillar sized candles, scrapbooking paper, red cardstock, and regular old tape. (I prefer to use the battery operated candles instead of regular candles as I just feel they are safer with children and pets but you could of course use real candles although I wouldn't suggest lighting them.)

Using a candle as a guide, I cut my scrapbook paper to the size of the candle. I wrapped the paper around the candle and secured it in the back with tape so I can use the candles again. I cut the letters out of red cardstock using my Silhouette machine but you could always use stickers if you don't have a cutting machine. I ran the letters through my Xyron Sticker Machine and stuck one on each candle and called it done!

Linking up to the parties listed in my sidebar

Cutie in the Orange Hoodie

2012-02-01T07:35:00.000-05:00

My sweet boy in his favorite hoodie sporting the angel choir boy pose.

Linked to 5 Minutes for Special Needs

and

5 Minutes for Moms

One Little Word: January

2012-01-31T21:35:00.001-05:00

As I mentioned before I am taking the One Little Word 2012 class at Big Picture Classes. Our prompts this month involved digging deeper and exploring our word with definitions, synonyms, and quotes. Below is my January layout.....

(click to enlarge)

Creating this layout and the class thus far has been fun and some really good "me" time.

I'm excited to see what February brings!

Credits: Feathers Digital Scrapooking Kit by Just So Scrappy Too

Quote of the Week: Good in Everyday

2012-01-30T23:56:00.001-05:00

"Everyday may not be good but there is good in everyday."

- Author Unknown

Weekend Wonders: The One with Valentine's

2012-01-29T21:59:00.000-05:00

I've been thinking about what kind of Valentine's Noah will make for his classmates at school. Of course, I turned to blogs for inspiration. There are tons of cute and creative ideas out there. Below are some of my faves.

Stitched Heart Bookmark

I love this little Valentine with a simple felt heart bookmark from Thirty Handmade Days. The "Your tops in my book" card is available on her site for free download. I think this would be great for tween girls who still want to give their friends a little something.

I Dig You

How adorable are these little shovels filled with candy over at The Fry Family blog.

Popcorn Valentines

These popcorn Valentine's at Duncan Team Blog are fun and cute! You can download the free printable label to make your very own.

Love is a Battlefield

This little toy army guy Valentine at Jacolyn Murphy had me chuckling.

Pillow Box Valentines

Kristi at I Should be Mopping the Floor shares two (a boy version and a girl version) cute free pillow box Valentines. Simply download them, cut them out, and fill them with treats.

Bubble Gum Valentines

Living with Three Moon Babies shares a free printable and a how to for these cute bumble gum machine Valentines.

Sucker for You

Shindig Parties shares this adorable (free) printable card.

Write One Valentine

Purple Sage Creations shares this adorable Valentine. Just print the tags, tie it to a cute pencil, and you have a great Valentine for your child's classmates.

100 Valentine Sayings

Still need some inspiration? Check out this post at the C.R.A.F.T. blog. Jamie shares a list of 100 clever Valentine sayings.

I seriously could keep on going and going but will make myself stop before this turns into the longest post ever!

Tender Moments

2012-01-27T16:20:00.001-05:00

It’s Friday – the day where I join other bloggers and take five short minutes to just write from the heart. Five Minute Friday is hosted by Gypsy Mama and this week’s prompt is TENDER.

As a Momma I experience many tender moments and for each one I am so thankful.

Noah is often very sweet and tender hearted. He has this innocence and love about him that is just indescribable and qualities I really hope he never loses. He worries about other people a lot, so much so that we watch what we say in front of him. For example, awhile back my Mom and I were talking on speaker phone and I asked something about a friend of hers that was about to have surgery. Noah had never met this friend of hers but instantly became concerned about her and then insisted that my Mom make her a blanket. (My Mom makes no sew fleece blankets and have given Noah many and he associates blankets with feeling bad, hospital stays, and surgery.)

I pulled a muscle in my back lifting Noah and he knows that my back is bothering me and I went to the doctor about it. Yesterday, he was being so sweet and tender with me. He kept gently rubbing my back, giving me “ouchie kisses,” and telling me to get under the covers.

I love these tender moments with my boy and tuck the memories away in my heart for safe keeping.

Easy No Sew Curtains

2012-01-26T21:33:00.002-05:00

I made these curtains last summer when I was working on my creative studio but never got around to posting the pictures. Since the challenge is window treatments this week at The CSI Project I thought I'd take pictures and share.

So these curtains actually started with two top/flat sheets that I bought individually at WalMart for about 5 bucks each. They have a great selection of colors that are perfect for various projects and I obviously chose teal since the color scheme in my creative studio is teal, black, and white.

So to create a hole to run the curtain rod through, I just turned the sheets over and made a small slit on each side of the wide seam at the top of the sheets careful just to cut the back side and not all the way through to the front. Then you just run the rod through and hang it! It should look something like this......

It's seriously THAT simple!

They looked a little plain though and I wanted to tie in some black and white to match the rest of my creative studio so I had some black and white damask fabric left over from another project that I thought would work great to create a valance of sorts. I also grabbed some Stitch Witchery, black ribbon, and my iron and got to work.

First, I traced a bowl on to some cardstock. Then I cut it in half. I then traced a bunch of those on to my fabric and cut them all out. Following the instructions on the Stitch Witchery, I adhered the half circles to the black ribbon just slightly overlapping them and then I attached them to the curtain rods.

It was a pretty easy project and inexpensive and I'm pleased with how they turned out.

Linking to the parties listed in my sidebar

and

Looking out the Window

2012-01-25T13:44:00.000-05:00

I love how every morning my sweet boy heads to the window when it's too cold to go on the front porch to watch for the school bus.

Linked to 5 Minutes for Special Needs

and

5 Minutes for Moms

It's a Hard Life

2012-01-24T19:13:00.000-05:00

The first time I heard the song Hard Life by Brad Paisley tears welled up in my eyes. It felt like the song was written for my Noahie. I made J listen to it the next day and he immediately felt it too.

The chorus says:
"Yeah, it's a hard life
But I'm okay
If I didn't have this, I wouldn't be who I am today
And I have lots of friends
Oh, and I have love
And yeah, I have a hard life but in some ways everybody does"

The part about having lots of friends and love just about makes me do the ugly cry Oprah loathes. J and I have always said that although Noah may not be able to run a marathon or be the CEO of a huge corporation, he has already in his short life touched many people lives and he has SO many people that love him. Every time something big happens in our lives, like Noah's Scoliosis surgery last year or the recent grand mal seizure emergency J and I are always humbled at the amount of prayers, thoughts, and love shown to Noah and our family. People who have never even met me or my child in person have shown him tremendous love.

Not every person is lucky enough to receive the amount of love that Noah has in his life and I think love and kindness from others can make living a hard life just a little bit easier.

Quote of the Week: Creative Life

2012-01-23T22:13:00.000-05:00

"To live a create life,

we must lose our fear of being wrong."

- Joesph Dearce

Weekend Wonders: The One with Valentine's Day Decor

2012-01-22T21:29:00.000-05:00

Do you decorate for Valentine's Day? In the past few years, I have started doing a little Valentine's Day themed decorating. It's fun as Valentine's Day is also my man's birthday. I had planned to make a few new things this year but have been a bit under the weather lately with a cold and haven't had the energy to craft but am feeling better and think I will be able to do some crafting soon! In the meantime, I've been looking at the many Valentine's Day decor projects that are popping up all over the blogosphere lately.

Here are a few of my faves....

Love Blocks

I love these fun, cute blocks over at Six Sisters' Stuff.

Love Candles

These love candles at In the Loop are so pretty and elegant.

Paint Chip Banner

How cute and fun is this paint chip banner at Twigs and Twirls!

Red Wreath

I love this vibrant red wreath at A Little Tipsy. And would you believe it's made out of crepe paper!

Love Sign

I think this simple sign at Thrifty Decorating makes a big impact.

Love Note Pillows

Days of Chalk and Chocolate created adorable Valentine pillows with a hand written "love note."

Framed XO

Momma D and Da Boyz created this cute framed "XO" seed bead art.

Heart Wreath

I love this heart wreath made out of red burlap at I Heart My Glue Gun.

Conversation Heart Art

While I think they taste like chalk, I had to include something with those quintessential Valentine's candy, conversation hearts and this convo heart art at Wonderfully Made Pursuits is too cute.

Vivid Memories

2012-01-20T21:09:00.000-05:00

It’s Friday – the day where I join other bloggers and take five short minutes to just write from the heart. Five Minute Friday is hosted by Gypsy Mama and this week’s prompt is VIVID.

I have vivid memories of my childhood. Although it took me growing up to realize it, I was blessed with two amazing parents who gave my brother and I every opportunity they could.

I remember summers at my Grandparents house, trips to Disney World, football games, birthday parties with amazing cakes made by Momma, slumber parties, movies on Christmas Eve, astronomy club meetings with my Dad, and so much more. I carry those memories with me now.

I hope that I’m providing Noah with the same type of childhood my parents provided me with. I hope he has vivid memories to carry with him as he grows.

Crafty Goals for the New Year

2012-01-18T21:57:00.000-05:00

I was laying in bed the other night trying to sleep but my brain wouldn’t stop thinking of projects that I wanted to accomplish. I thought it would be a good idea to get them down on paper.

Gallery Wall – I want to create a gallery wall on a wall in our living room. I’ve been pinning different gallery walls (like this one or that one) that I like for ideas of placement and I’ve been collecting frames for a good 6 months now. Now, I just need to choose photos for the frames (that’s the really hard part!) and paint all the frames the same color then enlist my darling husband’s help to get them all hung up.

Old Window turned Picture Frame or Coat Rack – My Mom’s sweet friend, Miss Lainey, gave me an old window. I have wanted one for awhile so when Miss Lainey asked my Mom if she had any use for an old window, my Mom told her I had mentioned wanting when so it became mine. It is now sitting on my back porch waiting for me to show it some attention. I haven’t decided if I will turn it into a coat rack similar to this or use it as a picture frame similar to that. If I turned it in to a coat rack, then I’d have to rearrange some furniture in order to hang it near the front door and that seems like a lot of trouble just to have a spot to hang something but we shall see what I eventually decide.

Re-Vamp an Old Mirror – My Mom recently told me I could have this gorgeous old mirror that is hanging in one of the spare bedrooms at her house. It originally belonged to my Grandmother and was green. When my Mom acquired it years ago, she painted it dark brown. It does need some love, like a fresh coat of paint but it has some beautiful scrollwork at the top. I am thinking of hanging it in our bedroom and painting it a light shade of teal that matches some of the other things in my bedroom. Although my Grandmother hated blue so I don’t think she’d be happy to see her old mirror painted teal so I’m also considering cream which an accent color I have used in our bedroom. Either way, I may attempt to distress it a bit. I have never distressed anything before and I personally don’t typically like the look of distressing but thought it might be nice on this mirror since it is old. And if I do distress it and don’t like the end result I could always start over.

Faux Organic Bloom Frames - I love the look of Organic Bloom frames but do not love the price. I want to create some similar for my studio.

What crafty goals do you have for 2012?

Quote of the Week: Story of Your Life

2012-01-16T07:02:00.000-05:00

"When writing the story of your life, don't let anyone else hold the pen."

~ Unknown

Weekend Wonders: The One with Organizational Stuff

2012-01-15T22:13:00.001-05:00

Was it about the New Year that makes everyone want to organize? I guess it's something about starting a fresh. I know I'm not the only one because organizational projects are a plenty in blog land. Here are a few of my favorites.

Add Buckets to Cabinets

I love how Jen at Tatertots and Jello added buckets to her cabinets to add more storage space.

Greeting Card Organizer

Christine at So I Saw this Tutorial shows us how to organize our greeting cards by occasion and organize birthday cards by month.

Label Your Chargers

Do you have a million different chargers like I do? Cathe at The Craft, Design, and Inspiration Journal of Cathe shares a simple tip; label your charges so you know what goes for what.

Command Center

This "command center" at Lovely Crafty Home looks helpful complete with monthly calendars, menu plans, and a folder for each person in the household.

DIY Chalkboard Labels

I think labels make everything look better and more organized and these DIY chalkboard labels at Little Blue Boo are perfect for organization.

Laundry Basket Stacker

I love this laundry basket stacker at Ana White and she even shares dimensions and instructions on how to build it.

What are you doing to get organized this year?

Christmas Toys

2012-01-13T19:18:00.001-05:00

I got two nifty and neat new crafty toys for Christmas and sadly with everything that has been going on I just haven’t had the time or energy to play with them yet.

I received the Silhouette Rhinestone starter kit. It comes with rhinestone template material as well as some heat set rhinestones. There are different template patterns (like butterflies, flowers, even letters) that you can cut out with the Silhouette and then set the rhinestones on a shirt or bag or whatever your little heart desires using an iron. I’m excited to give it a try and not sure what I will create first.

Secondly, I received a Bind it All Machine! I’ve wanted this for a couple of years now but other things (like the Silhouette) took precedence over it. With the Bind it All, I’ll be able to bind anything I want and make my own little notebook and albums. I can’t wait to give it a try. I'm planning to bind a calendar I printed in the next few days.

Did you receive any fun crafty toys for Christmas?

First Night Alone

2012-01-12T00:01:00.001-05:00

It is my first night alone with Noah since the grand mal seizure aka the scariest night ever. In fact, he is all snuggly in bed with his puppy at the moment. J was off work for a week during Christmas and New Year’s and then I was still at my parents’ house until today.

I would be lying if I told you that I wasn’t a bit nervous because I am. The grand mal seizure happened while Noah was sound asleep. The myoclonic seizures he has had since the grand mal have been mostly at night as well. So nights make me nervous. I worry that I wouldn’t handle the situation very well all alone. Yes, I have the emergency syringe now but what if I don’t get it fast enough or I mess up somehow? I just have to keep reminding myself that I was made for this. I can do this.

I have had a hard time sleeping at night since the grand mal seizure. I would prefer to just watch Noah sleep. I asked a friend whose son had seizures how she slept at night and she said it was difficult but she had to remind herself that although she couldn’t be with her son 24/7, God could and it was in his hands.

So I’m reminding myself of that as well. God made me for this – he made me to be Noah’s Mom and he is watching over and with us 24/7.

It reminds me of one of my favorite verses.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
~ Jeremiah 29:11

Loyal Fan

2012-01-11T00:14:00.001-05:00

Noah asked for a Clemson jersey and hat for Christmas and as you can see Santa obliged. He was all decked out for the Orange Bowl and although they lost, Noah doesn't care. He's a loyal fan whether they win or not.

Linked to 5 Minutes for Special Needs

and

5 Minutes for Moms

Chalkboard Tins

2012-01-09T00:01:00.002-05:00

I guest posted this project over at The CSI Project blog last week for their weekly challenge which last week was creating something useful out of leftover Christmas items.

These Activity Chalkboard Tins are created using tins that you may receive over the holiday season filled with treats. By revamping these tins using chalkboard paint, you will create a useful activity tin that you can keep in the car for road trips, grab and bring in a restraunt, or even pull it out and take it in church to occupy your little ones - and since I used chalkboard paint, they can even draw (with chalk of course) on the lid of the tin!

To get started, you will need:

leftover Christmas tins (or look for some on super clearance)
chalkboard spray paint
chalk
stickers and/or ribbon to embellish the tin
crayons, paper, stickers, small toys, and tissues to fill the tin and occupy your kiddos

What You'll Do:
1. Clean the inside and outside of your tin. I was a bad spray painter and did not prime this first because I was short on time. Typically, I try and prime all projects first. Once you've primed, spray paint the tin with your chalkboard paint. You need two coats to create the chalkboard finish.

2. Let your paint dry and then follow the instructions on the bottle to "break in" the paint. I just rubbed the side of a piece of chalk all over the tin, wiped it off, and it was good to go!

3. Next comes embellishing! My son loves all things baseball so I used baseball stickers on the side of the tin. I did a girly tin using rock star and diva themed stickers. I did not have any problems with the stickers adhering to the tin as is but if you do, you could add a little glue to the back of the stickers. On the girly tin, I also glued ribbon on the edge of the lid of the tin.

I purposely did not embellish the lids of the tins so that kids can use the chalk and draw on the lid.

3. Fill the tins with fun things for your kiddos such as small toys, bubbles, stickers, crayons, chalk, etc. Don't forget some tissues so they can wipe off their drawings and draw again later!

I hope you enjoy making this project and that your kiddos enjoy playing with it!

(linking up to the parties listed in my sidebar)

Quote of the Week: Words

2012-01-08T21:42:00.000-05:00

"Words are the voice of the heart."

- Confucius