Happy New Year - And last minute DIY craft disaster

Happy New Year all.

Where have I been? I don't even know to tell you the truth. I think I pass myself coming and going 90% of the time. Mostly I've been working, mommying, and crafting after the kids bedtime. Unfortunately I couldn't share any of the crafts until after Christmas. So my goal is for this blog to see more action in January. Only time will tell (in every sense of that phrase)...

For the last day of 2011 Sugarbritches land did some serious last-minute everything. Last minute Oyster ordering. Last minute text invites. Last minute cleaning. And in true Sugarbritches fashion - last minute crafting.

Once we decided to host a get-together for New Year's I realized I had no bling for the house. And I am being WAY too frugal right now to go buy decorations, so I picked up some inexpensive glitter at the store and decided to see what I could come up with.

My vision would have produced an epic piece of art. Instead, I got epic fail.

I have 3 large photo frames that I used to display fun, seasonal phrases.

I just started this (because I reclaimed the frames from another room in October). So first we had Trick-or-Treat. Then Joy. Then I really wanted to do Auld Lange Syne.

So Here's a terrible tutorial on last-minute glitter signs.

Print your desired phrase in very light ink using word.art or whatever program you so choose. I recommend printing on cardstock. Just saying.


Gather your glue (I used mod podge because that's what I had on hand), paintbrush, and glitter.
Paint the glue into the letter shapes you conveniently printed off onto cardstock. Paint just outside the line to hide it under the glue.

Then make sure your kid stops screaming.


Add glitter. This is what you should end up with.



Then quickly replace the existing letters with your trimmed up masterpieces. And Voila.
A pathetic excuse for House Bling for the New Year.
Several lessons learned. I really want to do this again for Valentines Day (if I can keep E's hands out of the glitter - oh.my.word the amount of glitter that was on that child when we finally finished - unbelievable.

Next time I will use the cricut to make my words, then work with the glue and glitter for a cleaner finish. If that works better , I'll post a tutorial worth following.

Here's to a 2012 that is not as much of an epic fail.

We Love Fall

There is just something about fall that I absolutely love. Maybe it's because the southern summer is finally over. Maybe it's because I love fall colors. Maybe its because I love hokie little festivals with hay rides, bounce houses, and artisan crafts. Whatever it is... I hope my kids love it too.

To get them in the spirit I let them go pick out our pumpkin.

Two little ones. Erin picked out Wyatt's. Naturally. She's pretty much Queen Bee around here.

Wyatt mostly eyed the goods. Ya know... holding things down.

And after about 10 minutes of running around chasing one giant crocheted-flower-hat child, we found a pumpkin and loaded it up.


So Hubs and Erin did the honors. Wyatt and I decided to supervise and document the event. In fact, this was Hub's first pumpkin carving experience. Ever. They were both kinda excited, but not so sure about the actually texture of pumpkin goo. Allie (da pup) was still pretty sure she could get something to eat out of eat, so she stayed close by.
And when it was all over we lit up our little dirt road, buck-toothed pumpkin. I tried to get my little pumpkin carvers to take a photo, but one of them was really worried about the candles inside.

She kept taking the lid off and sticking her head in..making sure everything was still ok, and telling me"those are hot mommy, we can't touch." My little family enjoyed the heck out of our first pumpkin extravaganza. Erin even did her "so eeekcited dance."

Maybe this is why I love fall.

What a weekend...

It was a crazy fun weekend in Sugarbritches world. A little recap -

We almost died hung out at the mud run...Were so dirty when we were done we couldn't even touch our camera to take an after pic. Meanwhile, the kids and grandparents fed the pigeons and squirrels down at the South Carolina state capitol.
Some pizza, a UGA win, and a hard-earned night's sleep later we headed out to the Riverbanks Zoo. We saw a huge tortoise...
A baby giraffe....
A baby brother...
Some fish...

A really sweet pony that took E for a ride and hubs on a nature walk...


A great little goat who like to eat out of our hands...


Some birds that wanted to eat all your sugars (seriously, there is nectar in that cup)...

and a real life sleeping baby and pooped out Poppy....

Highly recommend the Riverbanks Zoo, though maybe not after a mud run. If you'll excuse me, I have to go bathe, yet again, since I am still finding dirt in places where... well... ya know...

It's offcial...

I've lost my mind.

Someone backed out of Hubs team and in a lapse of judgement I volunteered to fill the slot.

Now if I could find someone to watch the kids.

Game time

Corn Hole is quite the phenomenon around these parts. So when it came time to throw one of my BFFs a co-ed tailgate shower, what better gift for the newlyweds than their own corn hole set?

There isn't one, I know. So here is what I came up with. Unfortunately, they will be a house divided so each got their own special board. One UGA for the bride and one UT for the groom.



Yes, I painted them. But before you go getting all impressed here's a little secret. I used a projector and projected the image onto the boards so I trace the logos and paint-by-number basically. It was a great project and a HUGE hit at the tailgating shower.

Now, if only cornhole could cause you to drop the 20lbs of baby weight before you have to be in a bridesmaids dress that would be a lot more helpful than the side effects of the beer consumed while playing cornhole.

On that note,

Dear personal trainer,
See you Thursday.

Love (Hate),
Sugarbritches

Playing Catch-Up

Remember I joined that quilting bee? In the midst of having a child I am a little off, but here's some catch up to show you what we've been creating in the Twice As Nice Bee.

Flying Geese in July...

Traditional Quilt Squares in August (Antique Tile, top; Quilt Box, bottom)



And Hot off the presses, the September block...


And guess what!? October is my month! So I get to choose the square and the fabrics and have other people make them. Which means a bunch of snail-mail. Which is SO EXCITING!

Last Days of Summer

We FINALLY had a small cold front creep in to our neck of the woods today. I am so thankful the heat of the summer may be on its way out. But it made me realize what a fast, eventful summer we've had here at the Sugarbritches house. So we took a little weekend trip to celebrate our last days of summer.... and mourn my return to "working motherhood." That's right, this is my last week home with my babies. CRINGE!

A fun day on the water...
Little W.W. equally as excited to be out on the boat...


My little water babies taking a break from the sun and fun...


A little night cruise to end the day with E pushing the throttle full speed ahead. She only knows two speeds, fast and faster. Just like Hubs for the world!


Which leaves me and Wyatt holding on for dear life. (Yes. He is awake sometimes!)

Happy Summer's End to everyone. If I liked dealing with other kid's attitudes, I'd become a teacher just so I could feel like this every labor day. But I don't, so farewell Maternity Leave and Thanks for all the sweet loving I got to soak up this time around.