Farm Fresh Fun

Hey, everyone!  Did you have a great weekend?  We sure did...it always goes too quickly though.

I've been on a bit of a "blogging vacation".  I've been busy doing "mom" stuff.  And...truth be told, I hit a "snag" with photos that were for a couple of blog posts and a tutorial...I can't find them anywhere!!!

Here's a bit of the fun we have been up to...

We found a new {new to us...it's been around for a long time} orchard, pumpkin patch, and farm {all in one}.  It is now my kids' favorite place to go.  We will definitely be returning every fall.

They have everything there, and it was such a learning experience for these "city" kids...

Pumpkins...

Little Pigs...

Not so Little Pigs...

Farm animals of all types...

Things to do...

Gathering your own eggs...

The list and the pictures could go on and on...

If you're in the Minneapolis {Minnesota} area, I highly suggest a visit...it's called "Fall Harvest" in Delano, MN.

Best part...it's FREE!  With the exception of any apples, pumpkins, eggs, you want to buy.

Doing it all...

Has anyone noticed that I have been a bit MIA lately?

Maybe?  I would love nothing more than to tell you about an incredibly awesome vacation that I have been on, or all of the great work that I am doing for a charitable organization, or something wonderful along those lines...but I can't, because that's not what I have been doing.

The truth is...I've been trying to be mom, and wife, and somewhere try to fit "me" into it all too.  The lack of blogging might tell you that I'm feeling a bit defeated.

MY passion is in sewing, and crafting, and making "stuff", and a new desire for blogging and bringing it all together.

However, MY first love and commitment is to my family.

And right now I'm trying to make it work with all that we have got going on...

Like...
adjusting to homeschooling two kids this year with two busy "little" ones in tow
dealing with a super fussy one year old that has a mouth full of teeth on the brink of coming through
juggling two nights of soccer practice a week with a hubby that travels
Saturday mornings of soccer games
taking a financial class with my hubby on Sunday evenings

All while...
keeping four growing children fed 
getting laundry done
keeping the house picked up
shall I go on...?

Somehow I have managed to get some sewing done {which I'm excited about}...a couple things are even for myself.

Here's a sneak peak...

a top for myself...{I made my own pattern}...


a cardi/wrap for myself {own pattern from a similar top I have}...


a pair of pants for the little man...


I'm hoping to blog about them soon as well as finish some other posts that I've started...

Thank you for bearing with me through my sporadic blogging while I attempt to "adjust".

Thankful Thursday & Fall Fashion Love

Wow!  If you are new to my blog or visiting for the first time, I just want to say "Welcome" to you and "Thank You" for stopping by!  I am so glad that you are here and would love for you to leave a comment letting me know you stopped by and invite you to follow my blog.

The amount of traffic to my little blog has been crazy lately and I am just so thankful to all of the wonderful bloggers who have been featuring my projects lately!  I am very humbled.

To everyone... THANK YOU!

On to other "stuff"...

There's something about Fall and the cooler weather that gets me excited about new clothes and wanting to update and add to my wardrobe...for some reason clothes always seem cuter in the Fall.

One of my favorites for feminine, sophisticated, and adorable clothes is Shabby Apple.  Ugh...I would gladly fill my closet full of their pieces {if my spending money was unlimited}...

They just launched a new line and it's gorgeous!!! {every time that I think their clothes can't get any cuter, they out do themselves}

The whole line is adorable!  The Estate dress just might be one of my favorites...I love anything black & white!

Seriously you have to go check out the entire collection for yourself!

FYI...they are offering 10% off now through 10/10/2012!  Just enter the code: HIGH at check out.

What are you "crushing on" this Fall?

Apples. Apples. Applesauce!

How quickly does one family consume 15 pounds of apples?

Apparently in this house it only takes approximately three days! OK...so we ate five pounds of Honey Crisp apples, made two 9x9 apple crisps, and turned nearly all the remaining into applesauce.

On Saturday we went to the apple orchard and came home tired from a day of family fun with three five pound bags of apples.

Yesterday the girls and I made homemade applesauce and the house smelled heavenly!

If you follow my blog you know I only do "simple" when it comes to the kitchen, cooking, and baking.

Looking for a simple way to make homemade applesauce?

Here's what we did...Simple Homemade Crockpot Applesauce...

*Wash, Peel, Core, and Slice apples
  {we used 11 apples and it nearly filled 3/4 of the crockpot}

*Throw the apples in the crockpot...

*Add a small amount of water {about 1/4 of a cup}

*Sprinkle with cinnamon...

*Turn crockpot on low and let cook until desired consistency is reached {be sure to stir occasionally}

Sweeten if desired...

And...what you get is a small container of applesauce...it's so much better than any store bought though!

How easy is that?  For me the hardest part was washing the crockpot afterwards {hehe..}.

Mommy's Boot Socks

I never {in a million years could have} imagined these boot socks would be such a hit! It's utterly amazing how many page views they have had, and the amount of times they have been "pinned" since I posted about them last week.

Especially since they came from two scraps of sweater that were headed for the garbage.


The idea to make a pair for my two year old came from a pair I made for myself last year...

The pair I made last year started more as a full leg warmer.

Lesson learned though...it was difficult to keep them "in place" while slipping my boots on. They had a tendency to "creep up" too far above my boots...it just didn't look right.

So this year, I cut them down to be smaller/shorter. I know...NOT a flattering photo, but it's for "visual" purposes.


I found it is much easier to use more of a tighter woven or ribbed sweater for boot socks than a looser cable type sweater.

Happy "Boot Sock" making!  If you make a pair I'd love to see them!!!  Feel free to leave a comment to come see them or to link them up to my Facebook page.

Blog Blessings {featured}

I hope you have been having a great weekend!

Today on this beautiful Sunday, I am feeling so many "blog blessings".

Last week I made "Boot Socks" for my little girl out of sweater sleeves, and they have been featured on the Tip Junkie's Top 10 Crafts to Make This Week!

As well as being featured by a couple of my favorite bloggers...

sweet Mandy at Sugar Bee Crafts...

and Hannah at Young and Crafty...

Thank you ladies for making a girl feel "special"!

Friday Failure {Apple Cider Vinegar}

Wow! What a week.

Between a 2 year old with nasty {seasonal} allergies, a one year old who has been fussy {teething?} crying and not sleeping AT ALL, and two busy big girls, this week has gotten away from me.

Top that off with computer and sewing machine problems, and well...{you get it}.

I thought that sharing a "tried it" Friday failure would be a good post to sum up the week...

The other day I noticed I was getting low on hair conditioner.  Moments later I saw this in the cupboard...

And recalled once reading about how Apple Cider Vinegar is an awesome hair conditioner...

Some of the claims:

      *soft and shiny hair

      *leaves hair manageable

      *easier to detangle

I Googled it and found a number of variations on how to use it as a hair conditioner.  So I decided to try three different "recipes".

First, I chose a method {the one that used the least amount of vinegar in a mixture with water}, and gave it a try...

The next time I washed my hair, I decided to give a different "recipe" a shot {using a little more of the vinegar this time in a 1:3 ratio}...

Trial three...straight up Apple Cider Vinegar worked into my hair starting at the ends...

My results...

      *nearly vomiting in the shower from the smell!

      *hair was not soft 

      *maybe it was the lighting, but I didn't notice any added luster

      *hair was more tangled than ever and looked more like I had tried to fix it with an egg beater!

Have you tried ACV as a hair conditioner?  Did you have any luck?  I can at least say I gave it a try!

Have a beautiful weekend!

Welcome Wednesday Blog Hop {spotlight blog}

Happy Wednesday, everyone!  I hope you are having a wonderful week so far.

I am honored and feeling blessed to be chosen as the "blog spotlight" for this week's Welcome Wednesday blog hop!

If you're not familiar, you can check it out below...and I encourage you to check out the hosts as they all have fantastic blogs!!!

Welcome Wednesday is now open ALL week and will start NEW every Wednesday! 

Welcome to the "Welcome Wednesday" blog hop, hosted by Take It From Me and Happy Hour Projects!  Welcome Wednesday is a great way to meet new people and learn new things as well as increase your blog followers! So let's have some fun!!

If you want to be a part of Welcome Wednesday, just follow these 5 simple steps:

1. Follow us via Google Friend Connect, Google+,LinkyFollowers, Facebook or Twitter, as well as the Spotlighted Blog of the Week!
2. Link up your blog name and URL with our Linky. (You only need to add your info once for it will be seen on all the blog hops) 
3. Grab our Welcome Wednesday button and include it in a post about the event on your blog.
4. Go to as many blogs on the MckLinky as you want and Follow them. Be sure to tell them you are from Welcome Wednesday!
5. Be sure to Follow back any followers you have gained from ourWelcome Wednesday event!

Where's Being Mom{me}...?

Where am I???

Right HERE!!! Blogging from my iPhone.

A little bit about me...I am not what you would call a patient person {at all}!  And I believe that I am currently being taught a lesson in patience.

My mind has been crazy busy with so many creative thoughts, ideas, projects, and more.  There are so many things I want to be doing, making, and blogging about.

BUT...I am currently out of "commission" with a computer until tomorrow or Thursday.  And have been sewing machine-less until today while mine was at the "Sewing Machine Doctor".

So...please stand by as my patience is tested {as it is not very easy or convenient to post from an iPhone and don't have the ability to add the pics from my camera}.

I hope you're having an awesome fall week!  See you soon!!!

Traveling Today...Come See Me!

I'm traveling today...well, kind of, I am in a way.

Today I am guest posting over at Here Comes the Sun.

I am sharing my "Pretty Little Notebooks" as part of Kelly's Back to School series.

Make sure to head over and check out all of the wonderful posts!

Made Fall Fashion {Girls Boot Socks}

Fall is coming!  That means cute boots and cuddly sweaters around here.

I have been trying to squeeze in some sewing projects and crafts a midst our crazy busy schedule lately.

Last week, I refashioned a sweater of mine into a cardigan for my little man.  I had a few good sized pieces of the sweater left over that were just perfect to make a pair of boot socks for my two year old.

They're such a cute little "accessory" to add to her boots.

These pieces were left over from the sleeves of my sweater.  They were just the perfect size for her little legs.

I cut two "tubes from the sleeves.

Zig Zag stitched around each end so they wouldn't unravel.

I then folded the top over and zig zag stitched around creating a finished "hem".

I sewed on a few buttons for "embellishment"...and done!

A quick and easy way to dress up boots for the fall.

Linking Up...

Here Comes the Sun      tatertots & jello      Happy Hour Projects      Nap Time Crafters   
Young & Crafty      Create.Craft.Love.      Keeping It Simple      Destination Craft
Alderberry Hill      Sew Can Do      Just Winging It      Etcetorize      Sugar Bee Crafts
Ladybug Blessings      Sugar and Dots      Lil' Mrs. Tori      Adventures of a DIY Mom
ONE little MOMMA

Mississippi Headwaters {Family Road Trip}

This last weekend {Labor Day weekend} I had lofty goals of finishing some projects that I started...

Instead, what happened was...family fun got in the way.  Family time should always trump crafting, sewing, and blogging...right?  At least for this event anyway...it was our first road trip as a family of six, and our last little "hoorah" to summer.

We {our little family} were sitting around the table for a late breakfast on Sunday morning.  Somehow the Mississippi River became the topic of conversation...with many questions being asked from our two oldest children.  In a whirlwind discussion and a view of an atlas, a crazy decision was made that we should "road trip" up to Itasca State Park {where the Mississippi River begins}.

Within an hour we had packed for our family of six, loaded everyone in the car, and were making our way to see where it all begins...

It was a crazy fun last minute family fun ride that brought us to here about four hours later.

Our two oldest girls crossed the slippery rocks at the start of the mighty Mississippi...

                         

 

While our two year old inspected the scene...

Feeling "defeated" by the large boulders, she jumped right in for a swim...

The kids got all of their Mississippi River questions answered...and then some!  Plus, they got the bonus of staying at a hotel with an indoor water park.

Of course you can't miss a drive by picture opportunity of {one of many} Babe the Blue Ox when traveling in northern MN.

How did you "finish up" your summer?