Baby/Toddler Leg Warmers - on Prudent Baby

As I have mentioned before, I have been sewing. I'm still learning the best techniques for different things, but overall I think I'm doing a great job. I hadn't sat down behind a sewing machine since Freshman year of high school. I just used my Singer Sewing Guide from my new handy dandy sewing machine, added in a lot of common sense and trial & error, and here is the result. Granted, this is an overly easy project, but I was totally happy with the result.

I found the Baby/Toddler Leg Warmer tutorial on Prudent Baby back in the winter. The ladies over there are some of my favorite tutorial posters that I have found and there are TONS of neat things to make. I personally think they are awesome for sharing all these cool DIY projects. 

Also, I need to note that these are not just a ridiculous fashion accessory for babies. I mean, I admit they are darling, as you'll see in the last photos......but they are for function at my home. I like to put them on Magdalen before a nap in the spring/summer when the air conditioner is on full blast. Babies don't pull sheets/blankets up over themselves while sleeping yet, and I feel bad putting her to bed in a cold room wearing just a bubble romper/dress. Seriously. And, I wish I had made them before she started walking. They are perfect on girls (AND boys) when they are crawling in the warm months. Both of my kids only crawled during the colder months when they were wearing pants, so it wasn't a problem, but I can only imagine how red & carpet burned those little knees can get. Not to mention how much faster diaper changes are with these, as opposed to pants!

The project shown above consists of 2 pairs of leg warmers AND a cute fabric flower hair clip. I just tied them both together with the pink/green polka dot ribbon and then clipped the hair clip to the ribbon. Perfect gift for a little friend turning one! This size fit Magdalen when she was just turning one, and now that she's 18 months old I can still fit the same size on her perfectly chubby legs. (You know, the kind of little legs you just want to chew on?)

The ladies over at Prudent Baby love to see what other people are creating with their tutorials, so I submitted my pictures of these and also a swaddling blanket I made with their directions. 

On their Prudent Project Round-Up post for April 18th, 2010, they included my photo of my legwarmers!!! I was so excited! You can click HERE to see it. :)

I definitely recommend trying out their projects! They are so descriptive and give amazing photos to show their process. 

Last, but not least, here are a couple of photos of Miss Magdalen wearing her made-by-mama baby leg warmers this spring. Precious girl!!

Da plane! Da plane! 

Sorry, I couldn't resist. That's all I can think of when I look at the picture above. Maybe I'm the only that gets that. She was actually trying to communicate that she felt & saw the sunshine! This was back in March when we hadn't seen the sun in MONTHS. But how stinking adorable is she here?! 

I'm happy and excited to be making more of these leg warmers for a Silent Auction coming up. They will be raising money for a local church that needs help due to the flooding here in Nashville and surrounding areas. I've been able to help in so many subtle ways, and thankful that I'm able to help, yet again. (Another post on the flooding - including personal photos - will follow soon.)

Room Tour: Sweet Woodlands Nursery

Here it is. What (some of) you have been waiting for. Well, at least a peek.

In the past year and a half, many of you have personally asked me to send you pictures of our newest home. And I think that those of you who asked have either finally visited us here or have given up asking for pictures. I'm so sorry it has taken me so long.

I hesitated to post pictures of our new home for this reason. It seems sort of like "showing off" what you have. But as I look at other sites and blogs and personal friends' pictures of their homes, I realize that it doesn't have to seem like that! I genuinely enjoy seeing where other people live and how they decorate. I realize not everyone cares, but it's something I'm interested in. So now I will share a little snippet for starters.

Also, I AM proud of Chad and what he has worked hard to provide for me and the kids. And I truly, deep, deep down, feel that God has blessed us with the life that we have. We have lived in our dream home (for us) for a year and a half now....here's a peek. :)

My first room tour will be: Magdalen's Sweet Woodlands Nursery

And, oh, how special this room is to me.

And it always will be.

If you have a child, then you know that the first room you had for your baby will always be special in your heart. It's where you learn who your child is, what their cries sound like, maybe their first giggle on the changing table, watch them play on the rug, and where you will quickly wear in that rocking chair with thousands of minutes rocking, back and forth.

This is the room where I nursed my baby for the majority of a year, where I held her when she had night terrors, where I would rock her in my arms as we both cried, where her sweet Brother would lay his head on the rocking chair arm to love on her little head, and where I would go to just sit and enjoy the calm of holding her sweaty, sleeping body to mine.

All the things that we went through to have this child in our arms *almost* vanished from memory when we brought her home to this room. {That will be a post for another day soon.}

And here is a glimpse of what will be engraved in my memory when I always think of my sweet girl as a baby.

Butterfly mobile (Pottery Barn Kids) - baby gift from Mom

Bedding from the Brooke Collection at Pottery Barn Kids - baby gift from my Mom

Lambie from Serena & Lily - from me for her 1st birthday

Crocheted blanket from my Senior English teacher, Miss Conerly 

(She sleeps with both of these items every. single. night.)

Butterflies (PBK) - from Grandma Marlene

Changing table, free from a friend

Green storage totes from PBK

Lamp from Target

Wooden handpainted frame - from my friend, Ashley B.

Random frames from Hobby Lobby 

(Magdalen rips the picture out, so I'll just leave it until she's older.)

Below:

Lamp from Target (pretty cheesy and not my style, but I couldn't help myself with the double layer shade and the owls!)

Piggy bank was mine as a child

Our reading/snuggling corner. :)

Hot pink rocker from Once Upon A Child

Bird pillow from Walmart (who knew?)

Owl pillow, quilt, & rug from the Brooke collection (PBK) - from Mom

Dollhouse bookshelf from Target

Monogrammed bag holding her first soft (fabric) tea set (PBK) - from Dad & Donna

Fabric cupcake set (PBK) - from me

Fabric birdhouse w/ 3 little birds (PBK) from Magdalen's Aunt Heather  - this is one of her favorite toys!

This Little Piggy Went To Prada book from Aunt Heather

Fabric 3 layer cake on the right (PBK) - from Mom

Soft dollhouse with accessories/people inside (PBK) - gift from Mom

Fabric chicken & chicks (PBK) - from us

Felt storage house (PBK) - from us

So, now that I've gone through the list of the things that make this room so special, I see that I should be a walking talking advertisement for Pottery Barn Kids. Sheesh. I don't usually like matchy-matchy rooms, but when you're hugely pregnant & taking care of a 2.5 year old all day, you just pick what you love and roll with it. :) 

I also was very against a pink room. I can (obviously) handle punches of pink, but no way was I going to force it on her. We went with the palest, most feminine blue I could find and I'm in love with the color. I wish I could portray to you how calming this room is because of that. And bright! I have to have bright rooms or I will go insane. (Ask Chad, because he's the EXACT OPPOSITE.) 

Anyway, I'm happy with it. Magdalen is happy with it. And most importantly of all, she has a bed. She has a home. She has many loving arms that have held her. I really couldn't ask for more for her little life right now. 

Our precious, Magdalen, at 4 months old while I was taking her picture for her announcements. Better late than never, right? I miss those chubby rolls and squishy cheeks!!

Here is that sweet boy I talk so much about. Our Maddox. He is the absolute sweetest big brother that I have ever seen in all my life. He loves her so much it truly amazes me. I love pictures like this where they are just snuggling or happy to be together. If my heart could, it would be singing a joyful song!

So there you have it. A look into our home and the smallest bedroom in the house, where our baby girl lays her perfect little head each night. :)

(P.S. My friend, Cindy, told me a few weeks ago that she dreamed that I lived in a huge, huge house. I laughed out loud. And so did my mother. I'm not sure why she pictured that, but now she'll see that we are normal house people.  Haha!)