Ohio Star

my goal for my hiatus from school {my 6 week christmas break} was to finish this "Ohio Star" quilt i've been chippin' away at. I FINISHED! G's preschool teacher last year showed me this pattern and i thought to myself, "i sure need an ohio star quilt before i leave ohio!" apparently most states have a quilt pattern unique to their state. my quilting friend, wanda, told me that she has a different quilt for her bed for each season. i love this idea and decided to make this one red and white for the christmas through valentine's season. i couldn't resist throw pillows and shams to match. i'm also in love with the polka dots on the back {moda dottie} and my cute striped binding {hobby lobby special}.

here is the tutorial for the flower pillow, courtesy of my talented friend {who showed me the quilting ropes} Allison.

these lovelies i created from an old sheet with my ruffler foot

A Dress

I really do love having an excuse to stay inside and sew {i mean clean..wink}. Hobby Lobby had McCall's patterns on sale for $1 ea. the other day, and so I bought a few to try out. This is pattern # M6157. I also made a summer dress too...

Winter is Here

{Matt took this picture of a bridge by our house}
we've received TONS of snow already this year {and i don't mind}...i think it's kind of beautiful. it's taken 4 years, but i like winter. i love watching the giant snowflakes fall while sitting inside my warm house snuggling with my family by the fire or working on projects.

J & G love making tracks and playing in the snow

Our last Christmas in Ohio

every year my mom gets each of my children an ornament for our tree, and this year this is what they each opened. when we opened it i got that hard-to-swallow-don't-want-to-talk-or-i'll-cry kind of feeling. it really hit me that this is our last christmas in this house, in ohio, and with our good friends that we've made. i imagine i'll get that same feeling every year i hang this ornament on our tree.

we started at 8:30am on christmas morning. it was beautiful. everyone slept in. J & G were little lucky heads from the pile of presents sent to them from their grandparents, from santa, and us. J was the most excited about a remote control helicopter his papa got him on his last trip to china. he has played with it non-stop since. G loved her bee "pillow pet" and new camera. she's been taking pictures of EVERYTHING! good ole' super baby came running out and hopped right into his "cozy coupe" and stayed in it all day long! after a great morning we had a wonderful dinner with good friends. what a wonderful christmas. what a wonderful life.

Christmas Eve

this year for christmas eve we headed over to kirtland, OH to see hundreds of different nativities from all around the world. i snapped a few pictures of my favs. the picture above is one that i love. this truly depicts such a natural/real love for a baby. i love how joseph is kissing the sweet baby Jesus on his head. i love this. there were many nativities. some were large (as tall as J) and some were very, very small (we could only see the images through a magnifying glass). some were even made of unique materials like newspapers and pop cans. each and every one testified of the importance of the birth of a baby boy who came to save us all. each nativity shows how this one moment in time is so very important in every country, in every nation, in every heart.

matt told us to say "merry christmas" and then took the picture. i'm in mid sentence here...oh well, we got the picture! we also had a wonderful "Feliz Navidad" party with homemade tacos, tamales, and beans! yum! we are making this a new tradition, it was too fun and yummy. i learned how to make tamales from a wonderful, seasoned couple from church. this is one of the many wonderful things i've taken from ohio.

Holiday Goodies

we always have to have yummy chocolate around...thanks to my mom {i became addicted in the womb!} however, i think matt is more of a chocoholic than i am!

this year for our neighbors and friends we made cheese balls and i put them in these super cute boxes from hobby lobby {i should buy stock in that store!}

Cheese Ball:
1 block of cream cheese, softened
1 c shredded cheddar cheese
3 green onions, chopped
1/2 pack of Ranch Seasoning
mix with a mixer and roll into a ball
then roll in chopped walnuts

we like it with wheat thins

we like to make suckers too. this year we made cinnamon and strawberry.

Hats

one thing i've loved about ohio is hat weather.
i love making hats.
i love wearing hats.
i love to see my kids chubby cheeks
in hats.

how to make G's hat:
flower
puff stitch hat

how to make super baby's hat:
jenji hat