A Toddler Nativity

I have been looking for a super kid-friendly nativity set that can be played with by my 1 1/2 year old.  I had looked at this wooden one and several stuffed sewn options, but didn't find one that fit into my very limited price range and my aesthetic requirements.

I was wandering through Hobby Lobby (as much wandering as can be done with a toddler kicking me and the cart) and spotted this felt sticker nativity set on sale for about $3.  That fit in the budget!

I also picked up a large piece of brown felt; folded in half and cut, it makes a great stable. 

I wanted to make this somewhat interactive, yet not so much fun that poor baby Jesus will end up under the couch like so many other toys.  So I settled on buttons and ribbon loops so that we can hang each character up in the stable together and then hopefully he'll leave them alone.

I auditioned the placement of each button and added a few extra buttons so that my son can be creative about where he puts each one.  I sewed on buttons to the stable as securely as possible, and then cut ribbons and hot glued a piece to each piece. I just left the back of the sticker in place since we won't be sticking them to anything.

It's true that this would be more fun with some animals or shephards or things, maybe next year.  I packaged each part up (angel, Mary & Joseph, the star & the wise men, Jesus) separately and am having him open each one up on a different day like a mini Advent calendar.  Then I plan on talking a bit or doing a little activity about each one.  He's only a year and a half old, so I think only a few days worth of activities and advent calendar is enough.

I taped it up to the back side of our door with a lot of washi tape.  If that isn't secure enough I'll use our bulletin board and lots of staples. 

So far it's a big hit! 

A Very Scandinavian Christmas

I have been working to decorate our house for Christmas a little bit every day this year, while simultaneously preparing for my sister's baby shower and a week at my mom's house.  Busy Busy!

I've always loved Scandinavian decor- so much white and bright and cozy and minimal- and thought I'd see what Scandinavian christmas decor I could find on Pinterest.  Lo and behold, I've already got Scandinavian Christmas decorations all over the place!  Here's what I found:

Natural branch stars:

Theirs: Wabi Sabi

Mine: wrapped in fluffy white yarn

Swagged/Pom pom garland:

Theirs: my Scandinavian Home

Mine: Pom poms and felt circles leftover from last year

Branches in jars:

Theirs: Christmas Ideas with Scandinavian Flair 

Mine

Small Christmas Trees:

Theirs: www.digsdigs.com

Mine: Short tree on a box

At any rate, I think I'm done decorating for the year!  Now all that's left is to purge purge purge and paint everything I own white and this will be a true Scandinavian decor blog.

Leftover Cranberries

I know some of you will laugh at me because of how much I've been talking about cranberries lately.  They've been my pregnancy obsession.  I had never even liked cranberries until last year's day-after Thanksgiving, when my Grandma introduced me to the glorious concept of cranberries on top of turkey.  Why had I never tried it before??  SO GOOD.  Try it. 

Well after that, I started having pregnancy cravings for cranberries and even made an entire "Thanksgiving" meal on October because it would all go so well with cranberries.

I use the queen of domesticity, Martha's, recipe.  (Although I'm starting to doubt Martha a bit after receiving an email that promised "10 Laundry Tips to Change My Life".  Really?  Life Changing?  Hmmm).  In an effort to use less sugar in these, I have used 1/2 the sugar and made it with apple juice instead of water and been successful. 

The prettiest color there is!

Now that I have you convinced about how amazing cranberries are (they last practically forever in the fridge, dontchaknow!), I thought I'd tell you the best ways to eat leftovers.  Yes.  Control freak Lindsey is telling you how to eat cranberries.

First, try them on some turkey.  I know I missed Thanksgiving to tell you this, but even a chicken breast would give the same effect.  I think many people are scared to try it but be brave!

The next morning, top your pancakes with it.  Hot pancakes+cold cranberries...mmmm

The NEXT morning, make some oatmeal.  I make steel-cut oats with half apple juice and half water, and then add a big spoonful of cranberries to the top. 

Do you think I've said the word "cranberry" too much yet?  Anyone have any other leftover cranberry ideas to feed my obsession?


P.S. I would have taken more pictures but I heard that Thanksgiving pictures are awful.  Thanksgiving food tastes the best, but stuffing isn't so photogenic.

Bathtime Genius

Do you ever have a brilliant idea and think yourself a true genius--only to google your idea and discover that it's been done before?  Almost as bad as googling your future child's potential name only to discover a woman who murdered her family was named the same thing.  Disappointing.

Anyhoo, here's my brilliant, genius, breathtaking idea that's all over the internet already.

Hanging Bath Toy Storage

We have a little boy who LOVES the bathtub.  We have quite a few bathtub toys that I try to rotate through to keep things interesting, but there seems to be so many all the time.  We didn't have a good storage system for them (plastic bags that I feared would mold or the shower floor were the big ones) because I was living in denial that it was a problem. I also refuse to spend $15 on a scoop that suctions to the wall of the tub because 1. my grandma would say that's a ridiculous product to own and 2. I like to keep as much room in the shower as possible, so I wanted a more flat option.

"AHA!" I said to myself, "I'll make a hanging toy bag out of a lingerie bag!"  A lingerie bag would solve all the dilemmas, it'll hang flat against the wall of the shower, it has holes and will drain properly to avoid mold, and it's meant to be washed so that it'll hold up over time in the shower.  Plus they were $1.50 at Target.  This is the one I got:

It didn't have a hook to hang (many other brands do, if you look around) so I took a small piece of ribbon and sewed it into a loop at the top.  I still need to pick up a suction cup hook, but in the meantime it's hanging from Dillon's shaving mirror in the tub and works perfectly. 

A Very Spooky Halloween Costume

My absence was due to a nauseating first trimester and a lack of projects to share with the world; I'm back and have done some fun crafty things.  And that's all I'm saying about that!

My son will hate me when he's fourteen and realizes that I dressed him up as a cloud for his 2nd Halloween.  Too bad, kiddo.  I make the costume, I make the rules. 

I followed this tutorial to make a cloud for him to wear on top.  The only difference was that I didn't stuff it with poly-fill, as my stash disappeared.  Instead, I cut three layers, two of white fabric and one of basic cheap batting.  I sewed the perimeter (two pieces of fabric, right sides facing, and the piece of batting on top).  I'm sure it's not technically correct to sew right on top of batting but my machine handled it without any issues at all.  I turned it right side out and hand stitched it closed, then added the inner line of stitching for the snazzy 3-D effect. 

I also didn't follow the tutorial for the raindrop pants, mostly because I didn't want a pair of raindrop painted pants hanging around after Halloween.  Instead, I consulted my fabric stash for several shades of blue/white and cut out a basic teardrop shape.  I tacked them on to a pair of blue sweatpants that we already owned, figuring out that after this costume is over I'll just snip each stitch off and he'll still be able to wear the pants.  I didn't even switch thread colors, I just tried to make a tidy X stitch.  It was somewhat time consuming.  Another option would be to use removable iron-on interfacing to attach them.  Or fabric paint.  Whatever.

The best part is that my kid LOVED wearing this.  He would grab onto the cloud (making it somewhat difficult to tell what he was dressed as) and run through the house with a huge smile on his face.  Who am I to deny my son the delight of dressing as an inanimate object for Halloween? 

The second best part is that this whole costume was F.R.E.E. Pants he wears (and will be able to again), the white fabric was from a sheet set handed down from my Gramma, batting and raindrop fabric from my stash.  And this, Dillon, is why I never throw anything out. 

Literally the best photo I could get because there was so much excitable running to do instead.

Real Food Recipe {Sloppy Joes}

I cook every meal my family eats (except Dillon packs his lunch for work, I didn't do it correctly at the start of our marriage and he took that responsibility back after a few days).  We VERY rarely eat out.  Does this mean I am a cook?  I don't really know about that.  I don't particularly enjoy cooking.  I enjoy baking, particularly the terribly putzy stuff that my mother hates that takes 207 steps to assemble. But I've been doing much more from scratch cooking lately and have found some tasty recipes I thought deserved sharing. Baking I like to be putzy, cooking I like to go on the table in 30 minutes or less (extra credit if I don't have to remember to thaw anything the day before). 

The first recipe I want to share is a quick and super easy recipe for sloppy joes.  I started with this recipe, and adapted it to be Whole 30 compliant while I was doing it.  I didn't own Whole 30 ketchup and I still don't know what coconut aminos are.  Growing up on sloppy joe from a can, this tastes awesome and is really easy, and still very affordable.  Why eat the canned stuff?

Here's a bonus tip: this uses a portion of a can of tomato paste.  Throw the other half in a jar or plastic bag in the freezer until next time.  No need to buy one of those fancy resealable tubes of tomato paste. 

A hit with the "under two" crowd as well

Sloppy Joes
1 lb ground beef
1 yellow pepper, diced (I used green in the photo)
1 red onion, diced
2 T coconut or olive oil
6 T tomato paste
2-3 T apple cider vinegar
1 t ground mustard
1 t garlic powder
Salt & pepper

Saute the onion and pepper in the oil until soft.  Add the beef and brown.  Then, add the tomato paste, apple cider vinegar, garlic, mustard and salt and pepper, add a touch of water or broth if it seems dry.  Let those flavors meld on med/low heat for 10-30 minutes and enjoy on a bun, baked potato (WHOLE 30), sweet potato, or fries. Bonus points if you want to add a different kind of hot pepper, some crushed red pepper or other little kick of heat!

MAN-tiquing

I don't recall where I first heard the phrase "mantique" but I love it.  You must know the manly antiques it refers to: old telephones, beer signs, LIFE magazines, mysterious tools.  I love to go to antique stores, and inevitably Dillon spends his time in the "mantique" section.  His long-time favorite is old ads, maps, and plat books.

I made a costly mistake yesterday.  I had been to THE ONLY antique store in town and found a plat map, which I gave to Dillon for his birthday.  This is the plat map he's been searching years for: a map with the family farm on it.  Actually, it was a surprise to me yesterday because he found the other farm from his mom's side on it too!  Double score! 

I love that we have it now, it'll find it's home on our dining room wall.  But now, what will Dillon look for in the mantique section? 

p.s. we also celebrated with this summer berry pudding which was surprisingly easy and super refreshing on a hot day!