Winter Delights and Shabby Apple Dresses

Hallelujah, I have a computer again! I've been going through some serious withdrawals. Even worst than no computer, we had a big snowstorm and had no power for 36 hours. Dang, was it cold. Little E slept between us, with at least 10 blankets stacked on us.

I have been loving the stay-inside, cold-weather fun E and I have been having. Last night she helped carve her first pumpkin!

With fabulous Pinterest as our inspiration, here are some fun things we've been doing:

** This Jello Playdough was easy to make and the smell.... YUM. We made some cherry that smells just like Poptarts! This creamy Tortellini Soup is a perfect cold-weather food.

These ooey-gooey smores bars were delightful too!

On another note, I've been looking at the brightly colored, fabulous dresses on Shabby Apple. Ahhh... isn't this Fushia Aloha dress beautiful? These dresses are top quality, and I love that they're all so different. If you live near Holiday, UT, they're having a trunk sale next week on the 3rd. Too bad I can't teleport. I'll have to save my pennies and buy it for spring. Get ready for a blogging overload next week!

No-Sew Adorable Owl Costume

My little gal isn't a fan of anything restricting, so I knew her costume this year would have to be simple and adorable. She loves birds, so a whimsical owl is very appropriate. Plus, a glue gun is all you need to piece it together!
I used:
*A hoodie I got on clearance last year. ** Check thrift stores or walmart for a cheap one
* About 1/4 yd each of three coordinating fleece solids to go with the purple hoodie. (Joanns has them on sale all the time)
* A small square of felt in white, black and yellow, for the eyes, stomach, and beak.
* A glue gun with lots of glue 1. Here comes the cutting! Out of the white felt, cut an oval for the belly, as well as two circles, and small half-moon shapes for the eyes. Cut smaller eye circles from the black felt, and a beak from the yellow. (It is not shown in the picture, but I also cut out some feet shapes, with holes just big enough to slip around her ankles)
Make a feather template from paper (my feathers are 5" tip to tip, and 3 1/2" across.) Start cutting out feathers till you have enough. ** I used 20-25 of each color for a toddler-size costume.
I cut the stomach oval in half and glued one to each side, keeping space open for the zipper. Then starting at the bottom, glue one color of feathers in a row, their sides barely overlapping. Make sure to only apply glue to the top half of the feathers, so they can flutter about as your cutie is moving. Continue layering up, in different colors, making sure each new row is placed adjacently, filling in the spaces between the feathers underneath it.

When you are finished with the body, start at the bottom of each arm and work your way up. Then, finish the back the same way. Fill in additional feathers wherever needed.

Lastly, glue on the eyes and beak.

Your little one is sure to be cozy warm and flying in style the Halloween.

**Although she didn't mean to do it, the bulk of this costume made little E hold her arms out, just like a soaring birdie! Oh how I love her!

Leopard Skinnies

You better believe that if I could find them in my size, E and I would have matching leopard skinny jeans! Is there anything cuter?!