Road Trip!

Hi friends!

By the time most of you read this, we will be on the road. We're driving from Chicago to Upstate New York tomorrow, and leaving in the wee hours of the morning.

When we lived in Phoenix we traveled with Abbey all the time. Matt worked for US Airways, and we used the heck out of our flight benefits! I miss those...
I was a rock star at traveling with a baby/toddler. However, since we've been back in Chicago we haven't traveled nearly as much. A few trips to Grand Rapids, that's about it. So, when I found out that we were taking a 13 hour road trip, I started hunting for ways to keep Abbey busy in the car!

I've asked around, and found some great ideas! If you have any travel plans soon, you are going to LOVE these!

Jenni from The Good Long Road shared these busy bags on my facebook page:

The Iowa Farmer's Wife has a great list of 50 travel tips and activities. She also has an entire Pinterest board devoted to travel ideas, so check that out! I wish I had found it weeks ago!

I am totally loving this activity box from Play Dr Mom!

When I get back I will be sharing with you what we did in the car, what worked, and what didn't! I've also got a couple great product reviews coming, so keep an eye out for those!

Do you have more travel ideas? Link up in the comments!

Keep us in your prayers as we travel!

Be blessed.

Heather

Bean Bags

Hi friends!

So, the award for most unoriginal blog post goes to me today. These weren't my idea. Not even a little bit. However, I believe they're a classic toy, and classics should be shared!

This is a perfect project if you are a new sewer. Straight seams, minimal cutting, instant gratification! This is totally a naptime project. Or, in my case, a PopPop took the tiny child to Home Depot and Steak n Shake project. Ha!

I had some leftover fat quarters from a project. I loved the patterns and colors, but didn't have enough of any of them to make anything substantial. Until I remembered bean bags! Woohoo for stash busting!

These could not be any easier. You probably don't even need a tutorial but, just in case, I'm going to give you one anyway!

I started out by cutting 4.5 x 4.5 inch squares from my fabric.

These then get stitched together, right sides facing, leaving about 2/3 of one side open. This will let you turn your bean bag, and fill it.

Fill up your bags. I used rice, but you can use whatever you have on hand. If you use something food based, like rice or beans, these aren't washable. No one wants sprouting bean bags! However, if you use the plastic pellets you can get at craft stores, then these should go in the wash with no problem.

I filled my bags about 1/2-2/3 full. Any more than that and you won't be able to sew around the edges.

Now you close up the bags. There are a few different ways you can do this. If you want, you can hand stitch the opening closed and be done. I chose to pin it closed, and sew a top stitch seam around the entire bean bag.

I've had enough bean bags bust open on me that I thought this way was better. More seams = more strength. At least in my head.

Aren't they pretty?

At first Abbey looked at them like "what am I supposed to do with these things?", but now she loves them. She loves to "build tall towers" and balance them on different parts of her body. There are all sorts of fun ways to play with bean bags!

Here's a fun one:

Line up a few plates and use them as target practice. Have kids aim for a specific plate, or set them out at different distances. There are a million ways to adjust this game for your kids.

Have fun!

Be blessed!

Heather

I'm linking up. Come play!

July Sponsor Love!

Hi friends!

If you typically read this blog in a reader, you may not have noticed that I was blessed to ad some sponsors this month! I was so excited to take that step! All of this month's sponsors have been ad swaps (they have my ad on their blog), so it has been great getting this little ol' blog out there into the big ol' blogiverse!

In case you hadn't had a chance to click on their lovely ads and visit them, I want to highlight them for you today! Go check them out, you'll love them!

From Rebecca: 

I started my bag company three years ago, but never meant for it to get so big!  I just wanted to make a diaper bag for myself as I welcomed my first little boy into the world.  After showing the bag off on Facebook to my friends, the business took off and never stopped.

You can read our mission and see the full story {written by my hubby} here.

Better Life Bags has two purposes. 

1. Involve my customers in the design process.  Each bag is designed by you!  I have basic styles that are customized further by your choice of fabric and add-on options.  Each bag is unique and essentially one of a kind!
2. Give back to those in need.  I loan 10% of every purchase to low income entrepreneurs in developing countries through Kiva.  We’ve been able to loan over $2,000 over the past 3 years to the people you see here.  Incredible.

From Sarah: 

Hi! I'm Sarah So...if you have been reading my blog for any length of time now you will know that I am no means a "professional writer" or any kind of fancy face in the blogging community. If you are new to reading my blog then WELCOME, I am glad that you are here. 

The short version: Why I blog? To catalogue and organize my creative processes. 

It seems that I always have something going on, dinner parties, DIY projects, graphic design work, church activities, community events, new recipes I want to try...my mind is always working! There is not much that I enjoy more then being able to be creative. 

This blog is a place to share ideas, be inspired and (try) to inspire others, no more...no less. 

I love to meet new people and make new friends. I'd love to hear from you, and again thanks for checking me out. 

Side note: Sarah just opened up a new Esty shop full of gorgeous re-done furniture and home decor goodies. RUN over there! 

From Katie:

I am living the dream here in suburbia with my handsome husband Matt and our beautiful kids, Dylan (7), Ella (5) and Mady (2). Life isn't always perfect, but at least we have each other.

Katie has a great linky party every month called Living the Width which she calls "a monthly mash-up of posts centered around intentional living, new experiences, celebrations, community, pushing the limits, glimpses of glory, and aha moments." It just went live today, so go link up your goodies!

From Go To Patterns:

Go To Patterns are designed to be just that—your go to patterns.

Each pattern is designed with function and fashion in mind as well as your pocketbook! You’ll use these again and again.

I am crazy about these patterns! The Go To Signature Dress is so incredibly versatile! I'm dying to get my hands on it! 

From Faith: 

My name is Faith, and this is my life! I am a college student, teacher, writer, kid's ministry director, crafter, cook, and wife to my hubby Jimmy. I stay busy! Phew! It's hard to sum up all of me in one post! I hope as you read through my blog you will get to know me even better! I write about everything from cooking, crafts, dates,and God, to Holidays, giveaways, friends and so much more. I hope you enjoy following me through life and leave me some lovely comments along the way!

From Rachel:

I’m Rachel, wife to an amazing man (who also happens to be a pastor) and mommy to 2 adorable boys. I spend most of my time helping my hubby with church ministries and chasing after my busy little guys. I started seriously blogging in the fall of 2009, and moved to my new online home here at Operation: Simple Life in June 2012.  I hope that my readers can find this to be a place of encouragement and joy as I continue to share!

Rachel has some fantastic ideas about keeping life simple. I know I need all the ideas I can get!

From Laura:

My promise to you…I guarantee I will be honest and authentic. I will post something at least twice a week that pertains to all different areas in my life as well as yours.  I’ll share my inspirations, my hard times, family memories, cooking, exercise, ways to become better at being you and connect with your life purpose, and of course me!

Redomestication has articles on everything from recipes to fashion! Everything is accessible, approachable, and lots of fun. It's a great place to get lost for and hour or five!

Mommy Mondays: The Dream House

Hi friends!

So, apparently when I said "later today", I meant waaaayy later today! Hey, it's still Monday, right? It's all good!

I haven't mentioned it in a while, but Matt, Abbey and I live with my parents (and my brother and sister). We've been here for about a year now, and honestly, it's been fantastic! We've been able to pay down a lot of debt, and being around family after so long is wonderful. We're starting the process of looking for a rental, but it may take us a while to find something. I would love it if you would pray for our housing! Finding something that meets our needs and fits our budget is going to need a serious miracle!

We had to short sell our home in Phoenix, so it's going to be a while until we get to buy again. No worries! This just gives me plenty of time to dream! I thought it might be fun to lay out my dream home for you all here. Each week I'll give you a different area of the home, and all my grand visions for it. Sound like fun? I think so!

So here we go....

Where better to start than the home itself?

I am a serious fan of Craftsman style homes.

                                                                             Source: google.com via Lacy on Pinterest

Seriously. Love!


I mean, just look at that front porch!

                                                                                                                                     Source: google.com via Mandy on Pinterest                       

They're just begging for things like big giant swings...

                                                                     Source: houseofturquoise.com via Heather on Pinterest

And delicious lemonade!

                                                                          Source: ourbestbites.com via Adila on Pinterest

Honestly, I think I would take a small craftsman style home over a larger version of just about anything else!

What does your dream home look like?

Be blessed!

Heather