Victorian Doll House {Part One}

Recipe for a a granddaughter's oooo's and ahhhhh's, as well as a grandmother's, wee girl's, and parents' delight begins with a grandmother's love and desire to build a sweet doll house for her granddaughter.

Add a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law sharing an online search session exploring Victorian doll houses and discovering the details we both enjoyed.

Mix in oodles and oodles of pieces to be cut, trimmed, sanded, and adhered.

Add walls, floors, and stairs.  Mix with great patience and a joyful heart.

Stir in a coating to seal the wood.

Layer on rooftops, the beginnings of a chimney, a bay window, and begin adding paint.

Add essential spices:  window frames, panes, and trim.

Coat with siding and gingerbread rooftops.

Lots of siding and gingerbread rooftops.

Let rest.

And don't forget to check on its progress! 

Come back soon to see what colors Grandma decided to surprise our Princess with, along with a few details!  My absolute favorite detail is what my MIL came up with to create the leading in the window panes.  Can you guess what she might have used??

Oh {MAY}, Oh My!!

I took this last year, about the same time, and I just looked out my rain covered window to see the hydrangeas looking just the same, almost ready to burst out with color. The color changes every year depending on the soil's pH level. I wonder what color they will be this year?

Several years ago, a friend told me that May was busier than December. I have to admit, my eyes popped wide.....because I just didn't believe that was possible. Oh my, how wrong I was. Very wrong.

May holds Mother's Day, two birthdays in our home, an anniversary, school field trips, end of the school year parties, end of the school year meetings, Open House at school, teacher's gifts to make, friends and family visiting from out of town, a kidlet reminding me daily to bring my purse the week of the Book Fair, and squeezed in appointments all meshed and mashed up with the usual day to day agenda (that included loosing two weeks to that Unwanted Houseguest!). I am in that constant, Go! Go! GO! mode right now and am attempting to keep Elise's (Mamacow Creations) space-time continuum from swallowing me whole! (She said it so well, I couldn't possibly explain it any better than that!! :>)

Thankfully, there have been some very smile worthy moments to share so far this month, with more on the calendar to come! 

Hubby's birthday started the night before, with an evening out for dinner, just the two of us and the next day, he enjoyed getting handmade cards from the kids, unwrapping a couple of presents, and watching, smelling, and then eating the birthday cake the kidlets made for him!

Our Princess had oodles of fun for her little Ariel birthday party.  We all wore our tiaras and she wore a special blinged out one that she got last year for her birthday.  Balloons and streamers decorated the house, in purple and pink, of course.  Hubby BBQ'd and while the clouds threatened all day, they did not spill a single drop! :> 

About two years ago, Princesses' grandmother started building her a Victorian doll house and brought it to her for her birthday this year.  It is absolutely darling and I know she is going to get oodles of fun playtime with it!  Her Auntie Jenn made her a precious candy quilt and two little shopping/utility bags for her to carry just like Mama's! :>  Princess got a real mini tea set, that comes in a sweet little wicker basket/purse and she's overjoyed with it.  She tells me, "I never ever got something breakable before."  And I watch her play gingerly with it and imagine away!

I want to share these treasures with you and so I'm in the process of editing pics from my mother-in-law of the doll house (almost done there) and attempting to take pics of the other treasures (with the clouds more than overspilling their rims today, its mighty dark and making it more challenging!! ....yes, I know I'm spoiled being able to take almost all pics outside! :>).  The doll house will be going up first (later tonight or tomorrow morning).  Hope you'll come back and take a look!

Happy Birthday {card} Baby Girl!

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What?! What's that??!! She made a card??!! Really??!!

REALLY!

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Our baby girl is another year older.....sigh.  I do not recall giving her permission for her next birthday to come so fast!  Really, I don't!  Though, watching her grow, learn, and thrive is such a treasure.  And I am truly blessed every day I see the world through her eyes and am amazed at her sweet perspective......thank you, Baby Girl!

A few months back, I tied off some pink ribbon with pink embroidery thread sewn through turquoise buttons and made another handful of the same bows, with the colors reversed.  I think I intended them for a challenge or two.........that I never got around to completing.  But, they have been staring at me....a lot!  And I remembered my sweet girl asking me to use them......a lot!  So, of course, they had to come out an play on a sweet & simple card for her birthday. :>

The card is uber simple.  Twill buttoned bows are adhered with a little Fabri-Tac, the bottom bubbled up with a border punch, and a sweet little bit of polka paper is adhered to the bottom of the inside of the card. 

Our Baby Girl (she might not be a baby anymore, but she'll always be my baby!) has picked out oodles of The Little Mermaid's Ariel to celebrate with this weekend and I'm looking forward to baking her cake (gluten, casein, & soy free, of course), singing to her, and watching her smile from ear to ear!

Supplies:
Paper:  Hawaiian Shores - Papertrey Ink;  Nana's Nursery - Die Cuts With A View
Ribbon:  Hibiscus Burst Twill - Papertrey Ink

Buttons:  Stash
Embroidery Thread:  Making Memories
Punch:  Martha Stewart

Celebrate with Marie!!

Have you met Marie yet?  She's a Mama, quite thoughtful, fun and witty.  I've been visiting her at Emma Calls Me Mama for many months now and am always greeted with the most pleasant posts.  She shares many wonderful diy home dec projects, kidlet tales, her witty & wise thoughts, and she is celebrating her one year blogging anniversary!  Bloggiversaries are a great excuse for a fun giveaway, right?  I think so.  And apparently, so does Marie!  Head over to Marie's Anniversary Giveaway to enter and say "Hello!"

The Unwanted Houseguest

There has been a most unwanted houseguest here for almost two weeks now.  It arrived and knocked my poor boy out, straight to the couch.  And then just to make Its presence better known, It turned the thermostat up on my poor boy.....way up......for almost a week.  My thermometer has never had such a work out! 

I quickly wrote and posted an eviction notice, pounded it into the front door and made quite a bit of noise about it.  It just looked up and smiled at me.  When It got tired of my poor boy's body, I realized why It was smiling at me.  "Don't worry, you and your sweet girl are next."  And we were. 

It has refused to take notice of said eviction notice.  If I weren't so tired, I would get out my markers, colored pencils, paint...........I would even raid my kidlets' crayons and blaze color on the eviction notice in hopes of getting Its attention. 

If I had more energy and maybe a pilots license and a plane, I would sky write my message, "Go Away!!!"  I would tell It to go far far away, maybe Venus where the poisonous gasses could gobble It up.  I would offer It a first class ticket, if I thought It would listen. 

But, no, It seems mighty comfy turning the dial up on my wee girl's thermostat and in my scorching throat.  So, we will ride It out with our zinc, vitamin C, and a little help from a Wall-E movie today.  Hope to come visit you soon, when It takes leave and hopefully, before It finds quarters in Hubby!!

I do want to leave you with something a wee bit fun though.  If you don't already read Pioneer Woman, head over there asap!  It is her four year anniversary blogging and she has giveaways going all week! :>  (Her site keeps crashing this morning.......so you may want to wait a bit....even though I just said 'asap'.....It has made a mess of my brain and severely shaken up my marble jar!  Thankfully, our movie is waiting and my wee girl & I are going to let Disney take us away for a bit! :>)