Sew God's Grace

So the day is fast approaching for our new little guy to be born.  Which means that I am frantically nesting.  For me, that includes cleaning every nook and cranny and sewing madly on different projects that I think I will never finish once the baby comes!  It's probably a good thing we are having another baby, because I'm pretty sure I hadn't cleaned out our bathroom cabinets since I was pregnant with Grant! I finished up this onesie and pj pants set yesterday.  The pattern for the pants is found here and is really quite simple.  I do cut the front of the pants a little lower than the back--about one inch or less.  Tip:  when you do this,  put the legs pieces right sides together to make sure you are cutting a mirror image (ask me how I know this!) To applique the powercat, I followed my usual steps as outlined in this post .  I also ironed this product on the back so that it won't irritate baby's skin.  His Christmas present ...

Do any of you remember the cartoon Fat Albert?  "Hey, Hey, Hey. . It's Faaat Albert!"  Probably not too politically correct today.  Anyway, I don't remember much about the cartoon show, but I do remember watching the Halloween special for Fat Albert and eating chocolate peanut butter chip cookies that my mom had made.  I started thinking about that when I was making these cookies.  It's funny how our memories can be tied into food, isn't it? I am still working on fall-themed cookies for the baby shower that I am helping with for this weekend.  I thought these would be a neat addition, and I was really happy with how they turned out.  My littlest, Grant, obviously thought they looked tasty, because he started asking for one as soon as they came out of the oven! Here's the recipe (adapted from  this recipe ): Candy Corn M&M Cookies (Yield:  approximately 20-24 cookies) 1 16.5 ounce box chocolate cake mix  (I used Duncan ...

I was planning to make some cookies for a fall-themed baby shower this weekend, so when I saw some Candy Apple Flavored M&M's, I knew I wanted to try them out in a cookie. Here's the recipe (adapted from this recipe ): Candy Apple M&M Cookies (Yield:  approximately 20-24 cookies) 1 16.5 ounce box yellow cake mix 2 eggs 5 tablespoons butter, melted 1 cup butterscotch chips 1 bag Candy Apple M&M's Beat cake mix, eggs, and butter until blended.  Add butterscotch chips and M&M's.  Refrigerate overnight.  Meanwhile, place remaining M&M's in freezer if you are going to do the optional step below.  Drop by two tablespoon-sized balls on parchment-lined baking sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 12-14 minutes.  Let sit on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely. Optional:  After the cookies have been baking for 8 minutes, remove from oven and press 2-3 M&M's on top.  This is st...

I think that I admitted in a recent blog post that I am not that great at pictures.  However, I am not going to let that stop me from posting this fun and easy recipe. To celebrate Anna's fifth birthday, she requested a tea party with several of her friends.  We have done tea parties in the past, and no matter how much I doctor up the tea with honey, the girls don't drink it.  So, I had the idea to put punch in their tea cups. It was a big success!  I think Anna had at least four cups.  And, despite the picture not showing it very well, it was a beautiful shade of pink. Perfect Party Punch: Raspberry Sherbet Sprite or another lemon-lime soda Pink Lemonade (I used the frozen concentrate and mixed it per the package directions) Pour equal parts of Sprite and Pink Lemonade into punch bowl.  Add small scoops of raspberry sherbet.  Let sit for at least ten minutes so that the sherbet can melt into the liquid a bit and get foamy.  Serve! ...

I made these yummy fruit salads for a brunch recently, and they were a big hit.  The original recipe called for putting them in aluminum muffin liners, but I like the look of these 9 ounce clear Solo cups.  These fruit cups are so versatile--you could serve them at a baby shower or a backyard barbeque.  Best of all, you can make them up to several days in advance!  You can use any combination of fruit you like.  I chose to use strawberries, mandarin oranges, and bananas, but you could use blueberries, pineapple, and even add some chopped nuts.   Creamy Frozen Fruit Cups (Adapted from Taste of Home recipe found  here ) 8 oz. cream cheese, softened (I use light) 1/2 cup sugar 8 oz. Cool Whip, thawed 1 1/2 cups strawberries, cut into small pieces 11 oz. can mandarin oranges, drained 1 - 2 bananas, cut into small pieces (These will brown after a couple of days in the freezer, so you may want to sprinkle some Fruit Fresh on them if you are plann...

I had seen these cute covers for car seats, so I decided that I wanted to make one for Grant.  Sure, I could have just Googled the promo code and paid for the shipping on one, but I wanted to make it.  After finding a tutorial and reading the instructions several times, I thought, "How hard can it be?" So, I went to my local quilt shop and picked out some fabric.  The car seat is gray with lime green accents, so I wanted something that would go with it without being too matchy-matchy.  I used a flannel fabric on the outside and a cotton fabric for the lining fabric on the inside. Turns out, it was fairly easy to make, but it was not what I would call a "quick" project.  It took me quite a while to get the fabric cut and smoothed out before beginning to sew.  Also, I like the extra pop of color that the binding fabric added, but binding the edges did mean spending more time on it.  If I ever make another one, I will simply to...

I found the instructions on Pinterest for making a "survival kit" for new mommies.  My friend, Kim, was scheduled to have her third little boy last week, and I thought it would be fun to put one together for her.  See here for ideas on what to put in your kit along with cute little labels that you can download.  It made me feel very "put together." Since Kim already had little ones that would be visiting at the hospital, I included dinosaur fruit snacks, toy motorcycles, and bug juice to help keep the boys occupied.  You could also put in books, games, coloring books & crayons--there are lots of possibilities!  Children are such a blessing--what a great way to help welcome new little ones!