Happy Halloween

This year ER's official costume is Princess Leia and LB is going to be a little green monster.  What are your little munchin's going to be?

PS: You can see LB's costume in this post.

Credit: Retired Product - Cooky Spooky from Designs by Megan Turnidge

Googly Eye Frame

You may remember that a few weeks ago I featured the Little Monster Mirror by One Artsy Mama on A Crafty Soiree.  I've been thinking of that project ever since and we've finally finished our own version.  ER helped with the painting and the googly eyes.  It's perfect for this picture of LB in his little green monster costume.

Tip: the self stick google eyes we got from Target used really sped up the project.  Credits: Die Cut: K & Company - Spooktacular, Charm: Making Memories, Ribbon: Various

Shared at: Tickled Pink at 504 Main, Inspire Me Fridays at Joyful Stamper, Think Pink Sundays at Flamingo Toes.

Updated 10/28/13: Also added to The Memory Nest's Crafty Creations.

A Crafty Soiree #61

I hope you're all putting the finishing touches on your Halloween projects, we just finished up a frame inspired by one of the link ups to our soiree from a few weeks ago.  I'm looking forward to taking Princess Leia trick or treating and getting our baby all dressed up for his first Halloween on Monday.  Speaking of babies...

One of my bloggy friends Lisa from The Pursuit of Happiness had a baby and made a little pumpkin hat for him.  Isn't he a sweetie pie?  I can't believe how peaceful he looks laying on those leaves!  I tried to put mine down on some and he hollered so much I had to pick him right back up before I could get even one picture.

Lia's at My Craft, Your Craft cousin had twins and she's been busy whipping up twin onesies.  The boy onesies are all ties that coordinate with the girl onesies, each with a different girly accessory.  What a fun idea!  A friend of the family had twins around the time LB was born and I'm very tempted to make up a set for hers.

Okay so far we've got baby's head covered, a cute onesie to wear, but with the temperatures getting cooler we need something to cover up with.  Originate and Renovate has a fun ruffled hoodie that would be perfect for that!  It's so super cute, you'll probably want to steal this idea for yourself, and she's shows you how cute an adult version is too.

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Party Guidelines

1.  Link up to four of your creative projects (No Etsy stores or other linky parties pretty please).  

2.  Add your link to the specific posts not the main URL.

3.  Add a "Crafty Soiree" button to your blog or posts.

4.  Please comment on the post linked up in front of you.  All partygoers love meeting new friends... don't just stop there...if you see something that catches your fancy-- stop by and say hi!

5.  Your hostesses would love it if you'd follow us. You can find Malia here.

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How to Draw a Pumpkin by ER

ER has been working on her drawing skills, a big deal since it's only been recently that she's been interesting in drawing things as opposed to scribbles.  She wanted to show off her new skills and asked me to share this on the blog...so without further ado, here is ER's tutorial.

Easy Peasy, right?  Those were her words after she showed me.  Wonder where she got that phrase from, LOL!  Now that you have a pile of pumpkin drawings, you might be wondering, "What can I do with them?"  Here's ER's solution, use them to make cards!  Can you tell she's my daughter or what!

We glued ours to the front of a simple card I made with some patterned paper.  To complete our fall scene, some grass and curly pumpkin vines have been added too.  I punched a hole and tied it to a little treat she took to her dance teacher yesterday.  And there you have it, ER's simple tutorial on how to draw a pumpkin, not too bad for her first one at five years old!

PS: If you're wondering, the kit Fabulous Fall used for the frames and cluster. It's an oldie but a goodie from Louise Franks Designs.  I'm not sure if it's still available, but you can see my past design team work with it, here.

Giveaway: HALO SleepSack Swaddle

This give away is now closed.  Thank you to everyone who entered and congratulations to Dee, comment #29,and who said, "I learned donate a portion of each sale to First Candle/SIDS Alliance and The Canadian Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths and also offer safe sleep educational materials free of charge.

Like our first child, LB still needs to be swaddled to fall asleep.  Unfortunately, I'm all thumbs when it comes to getting him in one.  I could never master using a regular blanket to do it, that method of folding here and there just results in a swaddle that's so loose it's no use at all.  Brad was a little better at turning one of our receiving blankets into a swaddle but LB is a lot longer than ER was at the same age. We could tell early on, he was going to quickly outgrown the blankets. We needed to look into other options. 

As I looked for swadding products I became aware of the two aspects to swaddling safely: 1) Avoiding suffocation and 2) Preventing Hip Dysplasia.  Prior to this rearch I was mainly worried about suffication from the blanket coming loose and working its way up to covering his mouth as he kicked around.  Here are some tips from Dr. Tanya Altmann, Pediatrician and Mother, provides tips for swaddling safely in this video, specifically about avoiding suffocation.

I'll admit I didn't know that much about Hip Dysplasia but it is one of the most common conditions among newborn babies, affecting about 1% of North American newborns (about 75,000 per year).  To learn more about this condition and how to swaddle safely, here is a video from Dr. Charles Price, Director of the International Hip Dysplasia Institute.

We were having to swaddle the little guy pretty tightly and I read that we shouldn't extend LB's legs straight when swaddling. There’s a temptation to stretch the legs out and that needs to be resisted...but it's oh so hard to because it seems impossible to get him into any kind of swaddle without doing just that! Babies need to be able to straighten themselves out naturally and gradually. There should be room in the swaddle – or sleepsack – for babies to bend at the hips. By now I was getting kinda worried about hip dysplasia!

It's a relief to have a product I can use to ease my concerns and I just love how easy the HALO SleepSack Swaddle is to use!  I'll show you! To start, unzip the garment and place your child on top.  Put the arms through as shown and zip up.  Now your baby is in the sack like design, that's roomy and can't be kicked off.

Pull one side of the swaddle wrap over and tuck under.  Then pull the other side over and press down.  The fastener strips will secure the swaddling.  Sometimes LB struggles a bit at first, but the swaddle wrap has always stayed securely in place. 

Here he is, all swaddled up in HALO SleepSack Swaddle and ready for sleep.  I love its soft fleecy feel and how even the fastener strips are soft, no worries about them brushing against baby and scratching him.  It's getting cold in Michigan, and I was concerned about LB being warm enough.  I don't have those fears any more because I feel this will give him the extra layer he needs.  The sleeveless design will keep him warm but not overheat. The area for his legs and feet is nice and roomy.  He gets the comfort from being gently swaddled but I think he also has more freedom of movement than with a traditional swaddle. 

I also like how the HALO SleepSack Swaddle can be used to transistion him from swaddle to a wearable blanket.  Eventually, we'll be able to position the swaddle wrap so that his arms are out and then into a SleepSack wearable blanket.

Find out more about HALO SleepSack Swaddle:
- Halo website: https://www.halosleep.com/
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/HaloSleepSack?ref=ts
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/HaloSleepSack

Giveaway:

One reader will win a Swaddle size (newborn or small) and in their choice of gender style (girl, boy or neutral)

To Enter:

Leave a comment on this post, I'd love what size and style you'd request if you won and who it would be for!

Extra Entries: Leave an additional comment for each method you choose.

• Tell me something you learned on the Halo website.
• Follow Halo Sleepsack on Twitter.
• Follow me on Twitter.
• Tweet this giveaway on Twitter and use @KTnestingspot in it.
• Follow my blog with Google Friends Connect
• Subscribe to my blog with email.
• Leave a comment on a non giveaway post on my blog.

Giveaway open to US and Canadian residents now through Nov. 7th at midnight EST.  Winner will chosen with random.org, be notified by email, and have 48 hours to respond before a new one is chosen.

Disclaimer: A complimentary review product and press materials were provided for this post.  The opinions and experience related within are personal and unbiased.  No other compensation was received.

A Crafty Soiree #60

So many gorgeous fall crafties and so little time...can't believe October is half over already!  Here are my seasonal features from last week!

Crafting and Creativity made this Fall Leaves Canvas with her four year old, what a fun way to preserve a bit of fall.

CropaCabana used a garage sale frame and her Cricut to fill an empty space in her foyer with this Simple Halloween Typography project.

After those two fun display projects, I thought I'd end on a sweet note :)  It's Overflowing made these yummy looking caramel apples, the treat that always says "Fall" to me! 

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Party Guidelines

1.  Link up to four of your creative projects (No Etsy stores or other linky parties pretty please).  

2.  Add your link to the specific posts not the main URL.

3.  Add a "Crafty Soiree" button to your blog or posts.

4.  Please comment on the post linked up in front of you.  All partygoers love meeting new friends... don't just stop there...if you see something that catches your fancy-- stop by and say hi!

5.  Your hostesses would love it if you'd follow us. You can find Malia here.

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Once Upon A Time Kit: Princess Party

Once Upon A Time from Louise Franks Designs is tailor made for my family. I'm gonna have so much fun using it to document all the dressing up ER does.  I don't ever want to forget how she put on a tutu and princess crown nearly every day the entire time she was three and four! 

As soon as I opened up the files the first thing I thought was, this would be an awesome kit to use to make your own princess themed party.  Unfortunately, ER's birthday was back in July and there was no way I could wait until next summer to try out my ideas.  So we'll just pretend that her birthday is coming up.  

To start with, I popped the beautifully made cluster from the kit on top of a simple paper stack to whip up a quick invite.  It's saved in layers so it would be easy to turn it into a coordinating thank you note afterward. 

I also used Once Upon A Time make my own cupcake toppers.  I think they came out super cute, and yes that icing is really that bright.  The scalloped heart frame came with the kit and really adds detail to them, without any extra work for me.

To finish up, I had to do some scrappin' with it!  Here's a little birthday layout.  I used a template but it was too plain and didn't have enough of the adorable elements from Once Upon A Time.  I had to remedy that with a little cluster and the lace under the dot border.  Now my page ties into the decorations and it would be a fun page to use after the celebration so everything coordinates.

You can get Once Upon A Time from Scrapping Fairytales and Louise's own website.

This post has been shared on my own weekly craft linky A Crafty Soiree, Strut Your Stuff at Somewhat Simple, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage, Show off Your Stuff at Fireflies and Jellybeans, Hookin Up with House of Hepworths, and Tip Me Tuesday at Tip Junkie.



Disclosure: As a member of Louise Franks Design's CT I receive access to kits to create promotional projects.  Template used is Creative Juice #6 by Blograffiti.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey presents Barnum 200

Next month Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey is coming to the Palace of Auburn Hills!

Show Dates - November 9 - 13! 

This year's show sounds like so much fun, I can only imagine how BIG a birthday party thrown by Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey is!  My daughter's favorite part of the show is always the elephants and seeing the beautiful dancers.  Unfortunately for us, we can't make any of the performances this time around but I still have a special discount code for all my readers!

4 Tickets for $44

Use the Code: "MOM"

When purchasing tickets Online, by Phone, or at the Palace Box Office

Not valid on Circus Celebrity, Front Row, or VIP Seats.

When purchasing on the ticketmaster site, enter the code in the 'Advance or Promotion Ticket Selection' area.

(800) 745-3000

www.ringling.com

www.ticketmaster.com

Disclaimer: I am a Feld Family Ambassador, and in exchange for my time and efforts in attending shows and reporting my opinion within this blog, as well as keeping you advised of the latest discount offers, Feld Entertainment has provided me with complimentary tickets to Feld shows and opportunities to attend private Feld pre-Show events.  Even though I receive these benefits, I always give an opinion that is 100% mine. 

Scrapbooking Again: First Baby Boy Page

Gosh it seems like such a long time since I've had the time or energy to do anything creative!  Last weekend I finally had some time at my crafting table and began making some simple pages for LB's newborn pictures.  To simplify things, I've been using the Baby Boy 12X12 paper pad from Martha Stewart, loving that glittery border of animals printed onto this sheet, and the coordinating supplies.  Here's my first page, based on a design on the back of the package.  Two photos down, only a few hundred to go!

A Crafty Soiree #59

Well this party keeps growing and growing. Last week we have over 300 link ups for the first time! Thanks super crafty friends!  Let's kick off with this week's features... 

away we go just put the finishing touches on their baby's room, isn't it adorable?  The wall art is so fun, you've gotta see the picture of it with the Christmas lights on!

Gwenny Penny, who is so fabulous I want to feature her every week...but it's been awhile so here we go - has turned her Halloween Paper Dolls printables into a color your own version.  ER's been happily coloring them all week long.

Can you guess what Angie at Burton Avenue used to make this itty bitty pumpkin for her wall hanging?  Give up, well go check it out, and then look around your own house for the supplies for this low cost project!


<a href="http://www.katiesnestingspot.com/" target="_blank"><img width="150" border="0" alt="A Crafty Soiree" src="http://i679.photobucket.com/albums/vv157/KTnestingspot/Blog%20Buttons/FeaturedOnBlueButtoncopy.jpg" /></a>
Party Guidelines

1.  Link up to four of your creative projects (No Etsy stores or other linky parties pretty please).  

2.  Add your link to the specific posts not the main URL.

3.  Add a "Crafty Soiree" button to your blog or posts.

4.  Please comment on the post linked up in front of you.  All partygoers love meeting new friends... don't just stop there...if you see something that catches your fancy-- stop by and say hi!

5.  Your hostesses would love it if you'd follow us. You can find Malia here.

<a href="http://www.katiesnestingspot.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img width="150" border="0" alt="Katie's Nesting Spot" src="http://i679.photobucket.com/albums/vv157/KTnestingspot/Blog%20Buttons/KatiesNestingSpotButtoncopy.jpg" /></a>Let's Party!