More recent PROJECTS

Here is my cute little boy playing with some file folders. I made almost 30 file folders, and it felt like it took a year of my life. Now that I'm done, I'm glad I did it because he really loves them. But boy! those are extremely time consuming! You have to copy the pictures, color them, cut them out, laminate them, cut them out again, and then apply magnets so they stick to the folder. Hmmm, that description just made the process seem pretty easy and quick, but it WASN'T!

I did a lot of the finishing work in Montana, while Benjamin was playing with his cousins or taking naps. The process went much quicker that way. If it weren't for our stay in Montana, I would still be tediously cutting them out of their lamination...

While I was in Montana, Michel helped me sew some aprons. I used her pattern and she guided me through the process. She also gave me therapy for being a compulsive perfectionist... At one point, one of the ties wasn't sewing straight and it was driving me NUTS. I finished sewing it (for the 2nd time already) and announced that I was NOT going to use it. Luckily Michel pried the scissors from my hands before I could snip it into a million little pieces out of frustration. :) It's a good thing too, because we didn't have any more fabric left, and besides, after she ironed it, it really looked fine.

Sewing can be enjoyable at times, but at other times it can also make me so frustrated!!

I've crocheted a few baby blankets in the past month, and I just finished this one last week. If you click on the picture you can see the edging better. I've been experimenting with different edging patterns.

Some Recent Craft Projects

This is Benjamin's Felt Board. I made a bird/birdhouse matching game that he really likes. I also made a snowman (we sing 'Once there was a Snowman' when he puts it together), a little boy with different clothes, and a bunch of animals (we sing 'Old McDonald' as we put them up). Benjamin loves playing with his Felt Board. I made the board by glueing felt onto the back of a framed dry erase board.

This is a little baby 'lovey' blanket. It is also just the right size to use as a carseat blanky.

I made a bunch of them to give to my many friends who are having babies. :)

I made this shelf and put it up a few days ago. I startedwith four square pieces of wood, and with the help of Blanche and Melody, I completed my first woodworking project! Melody and I picked up the rusty hooks at a local antique store, and cleaned them up a bit.

I just hung this up in our house. I made it from a board of white pine that some Amish people cut locally. I had to route the edges, sand it down, then I applied a layer of base paint and stenciled on the words. Finally, I antiqued the edges and stained it, and then I was finally finished!