I have always wanted to have a small Etsy or Hyenacart shop, but I have been playing around over the last year trying to find out is what it is I am good at and enjoy making. I also wanted to do something where I could incorporate inspiration from anywhere and be completely unique.

When I made my yarn wreath for L's nursery, I think a struck a chord within myself. The process was super fun (and oddly relaxing) for me and I so enjoyed having those few quite hours to focus on a project.  I loved it so much that I decided to make another one!

Now I am toying around with the idea of opening an Etsy shop and selling my wreaths. But first, I'd like to keep it small and stick to making them exclusively for readers of Our Growing Garden :) This would be a great outlet for my creative energy and would help with all the expenses of a new baby coming in less than four months (what?!)

Here is my first creation! It's a robin's egg blue yarn wreath with yellow yarn lattice all the way around. The two felt rosettes are hot pink and  the big flower is bright yellow and orange with button detail. The felt hanger has a slit on the back to hang onto a hook. The yarn is reinforced with hot glue throughout so this baby is sturdy! I had so much fun making this wreath! Now it just needs find a home.

Please email me at ourgrowinggarden@gmail.com if you are interested in purchasing or placing an order for   a custom wreath. I love, love, love having an excuse to craft!

Robin's egg blue and yellow wreath $30 shipped. Payment processed via paypal.

I have been itching to get started on something for the new nursery ever since I decided on a nursery theme. So I decided to do a simple project and learn how to make a yarn wreath for his hospital door.


First, I hot glued down one end of the yarn onto the straw wreath and began wrapping. I left the wreath in the packaging so I wouldn't have to deal with the pokey straw.

Well, this week my appetite has exploded. I am hungry. And I am hungry all the time and I want to eat everything. Sour and peanut butter are my best friends right now. It's pretty sad. I ate so many salt and vingear chips in one sitting that the coating on my tongue BURNED OFF. Who does that?? And, I may have eaten about 5 pounds of Reese's eggs since last Friday. You think I'm joking.


I'm going to mourn the loss (gain?) of my thighs now.

As you probably know by now, we are quite the children's book enthusiasts in this house. One of the things I long to teach James is a love for reading. Reading to toddlers builds vocabulary and strengthens relationship between the reader and child by giving your undivided attention. Reading can also be an interactive activity with your toddler. Frequently pause and ask your child what they see, what sound does that animal make?, and let them "read" to you too.


I love children's books that teach about courage and ambition. We had the opportunity to review the children's book It's a Big World, Little Pig! by figure skating legend Kristi Yamaguchi. 

Poppy is nervous about meeting so many new people in a new place. But, ever courageous and supported by her family (and best friend Emma, too!), Poppy embarks upon this exciting adventure head on. She meets a snowboarding Panda, a Maltese who skies, and two fellow skaters, a Crane and a Kangaroo. Poppy begins to realize that although these animals look different, act different, and are from different places, they are all the same at heart. They all smile in the same language! -Sourcebooks Press Release

I love that Yamaguchi not only teaches about courage and bravery in this book, but also teaches children that though they might not all look alike on the outside or even speak the same language, we can all communicate universally through kindness. The book touches on a few different cultures- Chinese, Italian, Japanese, and Australian, and highlights a fact or two from each country throughout the book. This provides a great starting point to teach your child about different countries and cultures.

Artist Tim Bowers provides whimsical and enchanting illustrations. I think little girls especially would appreciate the fanciful flourishes throughout the book from the glitter on the cover page to the sparkles that emanate from the ice skaters feet.

It's a Big World, Little Pig! would make a great addition to any child's home library or classroom! And the best part about this book? One hundred percent of Kristi's profits from It's a Big World, Little Pig! will benefit early childhood literacy programs supported by her Always Dream Foundation.

It's a Big World, Little Pig! will be available for purchase March 6, 2012.

Oh James, it has finally started. You have turned a cornerstone in toddlerhood. You have learned the infamous "no." You have been shaking your head no for a few months when something displeases your delicate sensibilities (food, diaper changes, food). And this weekend, you started saying "no" to me when I asked "do you want a bite?" It is the cutest, smallest, and a tad bit demanding "no" I have ever heard. I know I'll eat these words later, but I look forward to hearing your new word now. I've been trying to get you to say it the past few days just so I can giggle in your cuteness. You are learning to communicate to so well and this word will help me understand your needs so much better.


You also learned another new word the same day. We always point out objects to you and say their name and this time? You repeated it. We were eating a nice dinner in the formal dining room and you were gazing and smiling at the chandelier. I said "light" to you and you happily repeated "LIGH!" and you have been saying it since.

You can point out most objects in your picture book. You know SO many things and it is very rewarding to hear you say them outloud. You are so smart, little buddy. I wonder what your next word will be?

don't I look great? ;)

Last night I had the most vivid dream of a gray horse sitting its fat butt down on my head while I was laying down. I was laying in the grass on my back and then this giant gray horse walked up to me backwards, swished his tail around, and then proceeded to sit its butt directly on my face. I'm pretty sure I was about to die from suffocation by horse buttocks.

This is exactly what was sitting on me. I am fairly certain this is an image taken from my brain:

source

And then I woke up and my husband was laying on my face.

So what does that mean? I dreamt my husband was a horse's ass. Let me interpret this dream along with the help of dreammoods.com.

Yeah, none of those.

Here's what my husband thinks what happened in his words:

I woke up and I was doing that thing where I think it's late and I have missed something, so it seems like it's brighter outside than it should be. So I roll over to look at the clock and realize that it is only 4:30 am and then realize that I am completely on top of your head.

Like I said, horse's ass ;) Happy Friday!

James usually wakes up crying whether it be from a nap or waking in the morning. Does the crying self awake ever stop? I mean, sometimes I want to cry too that I am simply awake, James, but it's really not necesary. So I get him up and he is attached to me. Like, if I dare put him down, he will get very upset. We sit on the couch and he lies against my chest and watches tv for at least 30-45 minutes before he can will himself to move without having a world class tantrum. That primarily began when I was newly pregnant and moving would make me toss my guts.

He is getting enough sleep at 12 hours through the night and a two hour nap. He usually picks on whatever I give him for breakfast at this point too. There is no way he will eat in his highchair or booster for breakfast. I can hardly get him to eat in the living room as it is. He has dropped the morning nursing session, thank God, so that's a major positive for me because my boobs just can't take it anymore with the pregnancy induced breast tenderness. But after some serious Mickey and Chuggington therapy, he hops off the couch and happily goes to rearrange the DVDs or to "play"
the xbox (he thinks it's great fun to press the buttons for 20 minutes).

Does this mean he's just not a morning person, like mommy? Am I setting up bad habits with the tv and breakfast on the couch? Wait, don't answer that one. How is your toddler's mood in the morning? What's your routine?