Happy Easter 2013 from Peachy and Cream

Peachy wanted to set up a little Easter video shoot the other day. Of course, Cream couldn't be left out. Happy Easter to you from the girls.

Easter 2013

While the temps are finally rising in our neck of the woods,

We are still going to have a white Easter!

May you be blessed with a wonderful Easter, white or not!

This and That

This week we are looking forward to a week filled with family and celebrations of our Risen Savior. Since some cousins are on the way today for a visit, I have been coming up with some fun Easter play ideas for us to do together. I will try to take lots of pictures and report back to you.

The view outside is still pretty snowy outside here. No sandals and sleeveless dresses for Easter this year. The girls will be sporting the tights and cardis for sure. And Easter egg hunts will be taking on a whole new dimension with all of the great snow to hide the eggs in.

Well, it is on to getting the house ready for our company. What a happy reason to be cleaning. Hope your weeks are all off to a great start!

Etsy Inspiration

When the going gets snowy, the snow bound go online window shopping. :D Today I turned to Etsy for a healthy dose of spring homemade goodness. I am going to share some of the great finds here.
1) Easter Egg Marble Maze from Cuddlebugkids

2) Easter Egg Sewing Cards from CakeIn TheMorn

3) Happy Easter Banner from Arigigipixel

4) Sweet Goldenrod Brook Earrings from Botny (I have met this shop owner in real life and she is as sweet as can be.)

5) He Is Risen Beautiful Easter Art Print from OvercomersArt

Signs of Spring

Days like the last few that look like this

leave me longing for days that look like this

Taken on at the end of April last year. I have the feeling that our April will not be looking like that this year. Oh well, maybe in May.
And can I just say, look at that baby girl? She is so grown up now! Crazy!!

Foodie Friday: Irish Soda Bread Scones

Later on this weekend we will be enjoying our corned beef and cabbage in honor of St. Patrick's Day. Mmm. I don't know why we only have that meal in March. It is so yummy. Well, maybe I do know why. Corned beef isn't all that healthy for you. All of that fat and the brinning. I guess that is why we balance it out with cabbage and potatoes.

I have made more Irish soda breads other years, but when I saw this recipe on Red Tricycle I knew that I would have to give it a try this year. I love scones. (As seen here, here, here, here, and here. Okay, it might be an obsession.) And I love St. Patrick's Day. Winning!
Jump on over here to see the recipe. And then you can jump over here to Alexandra's amazing blog, the woman behind the recipe. 

Child's Easter Craft: Cut Paper Eggs

Peachy really wanted to do a craft with me on a recent weekend. I had seen this idea for paper Easter eggs and knew that she would love it. She has been into cutting "doilies" since I taught her how to cut snowflakes this winter. So we sat down with construction paper and scissors and got to work.

 I started by cutting out the egg shape for her, but by the end she was doing it all herself. After we each had made a handful, we punched holes in the top, ran some raffia through the holes, and hung them up by the window. It sure does brighten that corner of the room up. And Cream loved seeing it when she got up form her nap.

Peachyisms

Peachy is quite the talker. She can carry on a conversation, express her feelings, and has a very good vocabulary. Here are some of the things that have come out of her mouth as of late.
-After biting into a pickle, she said, "That spiced my ears."

-While explaining why she is shy around boys she said, "But I am not shy with my friends, daddy, and grandpa and grandpa. Oh, and my cousins, they are my best players."

-She was recently singing, "Hosanna, don't you cry for me." And "Sha la la la, what did you say?"

Two Clowns

I have been having a very hard time getting pictures of the girls these days.

Peachy seems to be in a stage where she either hams it up or avoids the camera all together.

And Cream is just a constant ball of motion.

Getting a good picture of either of them is hard, but one of both of them together is down right impossible.

Here are some shots I recently took while they were both sitting in a chair together.

Fail!

Dinosaur Baby Shower

Even though it really isn't spring around these parts yet, it is the season of showers. Baby showers, that is. Last week I shared the Minnie Mouse shower I got to help out with. This week I am back with a dinosaur shower. Once again, I wasn't the mastermind behind the shower, just a willing helper where needed.

 There were darling banners made by my friends with their cutting machines. The top is a line up of dinosaur silhouettes and the bottom is a banner that says "God Bless Our Boys."

 There "dinosaur claws" were a hit. The kiddos loved the Bugles and it brought back yummy memories for the mommas.

 The food was labeled Herbivore and

 Carnivore

 Goodie bags for the kids.

 Some dinosaur onesies.

 A darling scrap fabric banner.

 Who doesn't love some good old prehistoric punch?

And finally some dinosaur egg cake balls.

So much fun! 

Foodie Friday: St. Patrick's Day Rainbow Cupcakes

I have a bit of Scotch Irish blood running through my veins and every year at this time I use that as an excuse to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. It is, after all, honoring my heritage! I came across this fun St. Patrick's Day treat on the blog Hoosier Homemade and decided to give it a whirl. You can jump over there for the exact directions, but it is a fairly simple process. Make cupcake batter, separate it into six different bowls, tint each bowl with a different rainbow color, bake, frost and decorate.

Rather than make the yellow Jello, I decided to make some big cupcakes and frost them as clouds. I also found some great gold mini cupcake liners on Amazon to finish off the look.

Cream: 18 Months Old

Cream up and turned 18 months old at the end of last month. There is something to be said about the second child, at least in my case, of always being the "baby."

And while I still think of her as a baby and refer to her as a baby, she is quickly passing out of that phase. She is an active little ball of fire with new words being added to her vocabulary everyday. I am not sure how big she is at this point, but she has her appointment today, so I will find out.

My guess is that she is over the 50% for height and weight, but I don't think she is as big as Peachy was at this age.

Here are a few of her likes and milestones from the recent months:
*I gave her a first haircut after her bath last week. She really didn't need much cut off. I only cut the tail that was forming in the back. Her hair does look fuller with the straight line across the back. Funny story about the hair. I saved a chunk just like I had after Peachy's first cut. However, I just placed it on a counter and later couldn't find it. Thankfully we did find it after a few days. Such a second child thing for me to do.

*She loves this little finger play that we do in our family class every week. You put three of your fingers into your other palm and say, "Three little fish, swimming in a dish, three little fish, swimming in a dish, one jumps out, oh no!" You continue until they all jump back into the dish. She just loves it and does all of the motions. It is great for when she is getting antsy or worked up about something.

*She also likes to count to three and say, "Yay!" She usually only adds in the two, but it is fun all the same.

*Her sleep patterns are finally worked out. We don't have to go down during the night anymore and she consistently sleeps from around 8 to around 7. It is really, really nice. She also usually naps one nap a day for about 2 hours.

*She has a sudden fascination with kitty cats. She picked out one of the ones I made and ensured that it would always be hers by sucking on it. Whenever she sees a picture of a cat she will say, "Meow, meow."

*She is quite coordinated. I am amazed at what her little body is able to do. (This probably comes from the fact that I am a klutz without much coordination or body awareness. She gets it all from Mr. Cherry.)

*She has started to enjoy using crayons and pencils to scribble on paper.
*She loves, loves, loves babies. When she sees a baby she will talk to it and pat it. She also loves to take care of her baby dolls. Such a little momma.

What Peachy Wore Wednesday (VI)

And here she is again, with her fashion panache, Peachy! On this particular occasion, she decided that a turban was needed. Being that no turban was to be found, she created one with a pair of leggings.

Please also not the unique tutu placement as a collar rather then its usual placement around the waist.

And here it is again in a stunning black and white shot with an accent of pink.

And once again. I just love all that this girl can come up with and bring into our world.

Baby Shower Gift

I have said it many times before on this blog and it still is true. When it is time to give a gift, my first thought is, "What can I make?" I love to create and I love to give one-of-a-kind gifts. For the Disney shower, you can read all about it here, I gave the little princess some clothes. (In fact that is mainly what she got at her shower. That is what happens when you have two older brothers.)

Okay, I admit that I didn't buy the jacket. I couldn't resist it when I found it at Old Navy. And since it was in the baby department, it wouldn't fit either of my girls, so I had to give it away.
However, I did embellish the onesie and make the legwarmers. For the onesie, I cut out the iconic mouse head shape out of heat n bond and fabric, stitched around it and then added a bow. And I used my usual method for turning socks into leg warmers. You can read about it here.
A fun and unique gift.

A Minnie Mouse Baby Shower

My friend Tina is a Disney addict. (Sorry, Tina, but it is true.) So, when it came time to plan a shower for her first daughter, the theme was a given, Minnie Mouse. I wasn't in on much of the planning of this shower, but my friends who planned it did a great job.

There were Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Sandwiches

Served on Minnie Mouse Plates made by putting three black plates together with a bow

Eaten with Mouseketools

And followed by cupcakes topped with Oreo Minnies

There was a fabulous Minnie Mouse Diaper Cake

And Minnie Clips for the girls and Mickey bowties for the boys

I tell you, my friends know how to throw a shower. (And I have a dinosaur one to share with you next!)