{New Series} Ask Elizabeth

I'm excited to start this series.
I love answering questions.
It will be fun.

Here's how it will work:

Email, Facebook me, message me, or comment below your questions to me.
I will choose one or a few of your questions to answer and post the answers the following Wednesday.
Your questions can be anything you want answers to- personal questions about my life, questions about my business, my blog, sewing, crafting, nannying, mommyhood, or even advice! If you wish to remain anonymous when I answer your questions, no problem, just please let me know.

You can email me at HootandBumble@gmail.com. Find me on Facebook here

I am REALLY looking forward to answering your questions. Ready? Go :)

Being Mommy

Today is Tuesday, so this is my first parenting post. {Yay!}

I thought it would be fitting to tell all my new readers a bit about motherhood from my view in the world.

//I am the mother of a 3 year old little boy, named Jackson. I'm sure any mother can relate when I say my son is my world. He's my biggest on-going project, and I fully intend to get a good grade on this roller coaster of a project. He is an amazing little boy, full of wonder, and more life than I've ever seen in a person.

//We spend all of our days together, playing, exploring, and learning new things about each other. Jackson is so much fun, and keeps every day different and interesting.

//I never know whether to describe myself as a working mom or a stay at home mom. I work part time as a nanny, but I never have to leave my son. He gets to come to work with me! How cool is that? We really do have the best of both worlds. For now at least.

//During the school year I go to school somewhere in between full time and part time depending on the semester. I major in Elementary Education. Hopefully I will be starting my first year teaching the same year Jackson starts kindergarten. Then we can still enjoy summers together. 

//Some days being a mother is HARD. But I was put on this earth to be a mother. I always knew it & most days I can't get enough of it. It is the hardest, most rewarding job I have ever had. I can't wait to see what kind of person he grows to be. 

I'd love to know what your thoughts on this post are. I'd also love to hear any suggestions for posts you'd like to read about. Please give me you suggestions.

xxxx

Elizabeth

{New Series} Better You Challenge

I feel like I am constantly trying to make myself a better person. In my mind, there is always room for improvement. I hope I am better today than I was yesterday, and that I will be better in 10 years than I am today. Life is about learning, and growth.

I wanted a way to keep track of my thoughts, and hold me accountable, so I thought I'd start a new series. 

Every Monday, I will post my progress from the previous weeks challenge, and introduce the next weeks challenge. I encourage you to leave your comments with your thoughts, and progress in the comments section below. I would love to hear how everyone else did.

To start off the Better You Challenge Series, here is our very first challenge:

I feel like I spend so much time waiting for the weekends to start. Instead of wishing away my weeks, I want to live in the moment more. I want to appreciate each day as it comes. This is how it should be. We are all so blessed to have each and every day. I am not going to take the days for granted. Instead I will love each day for what it is, and find the good each day holds. I will slow down, and remember exactly why I love my life so much.

I challenge you to do the same. Let me know next week how you do!   

Sunshine Sunday- family updates

The countdown to my vacation is down to the final 5 days. I work through Thursday this week and then I'm off for 10 days. To start off my vacation I get an entire girls weekend in Charlottesville,VA with my best friend- kid less! The hubs has the minion to himself all weekend. I've never been away for a weekend, and I'm sooo looking forward to it. We have a lot of amazing things planned for the weekend. I will update when I return :)

My parents went back to Ohio a few days ago, and we are still recovering from spending so much time with them. We miss them so much already, and can't wait to go visit them. {We are anxiously awaiting and counting down until they come home for good in April or May of 2014}.

I am spending my weekend cleaning up the house {to prepare it for a weekend of Daddy and Jackson next weekend}, spending time with family, relaxing, and of course, sewing, sewing, sewing!

In the mean time, I am finishing up the stocking of my shop for launch this Thursday night! Go ahead, be excited! I can't wait to give the grand opening announcement!

{New schedule} Yay!

Hey all! I have decided that in order to bring you great content on a regular basis, I need to come up with a weekly schedule of posts. In the next week or so, I am going to be introducing a few brand new weekly series that I am super excited about. So stay tuned for some new and exciting things!

Here's the new schedule:

Sunday: Sunshine Sunday- Family updates

Monday: Better You Challenge

Tuesday: Being Mommy- parenting tips, activities for kids, reflections on motherhood

Wednesday: Ask Elizabeth Series

Thursday: Craft review, tutorial, or sewing tips. 

Friday: Favorite products, or recipes.

Saturday: Off day- no new posts. Happy weekend everyone :)

I am really happy with where this blog is going so far. It is seeing the growth I had hoped for, and is being received very well. I just want to thank everyone who has been reading. I hope I can keep it interesting enough for you to come back often. Please let me know if there is anything you want more of, and let me know of any questions you have. I love feedback, and it really helps me keep the momentum up ;) Enjoy your weekend! Yeah baby!

{my thoughts for today}

Here are my thoughts for today: 

//One thing I feel like I am constantly being reminded of is to cherish the healthy relationships I have with the people who are there for me, and who are the positive influences in my life, and to spend less time with the negative ones, the people who bring me down, the black clouds.

//I think most everyone has those people in their lives that for some reason or another just have negativity all around them. Distancing yourself from these people is the best thing to do.

//For me, I try to always remember the people who have been there for me unconditionally, throughout the years no matter what. These are the people I put my energy into.

//On that note, I am going to bed tonight thankful for the loving and supportive family and friends we have. We are so blessed to have such great positive people surrounding us and cheering us on. 

Boo Boo Bag Sewing Tutorial

While stocking my online shop, I decided to add one of our family favorites. Then I decided why not make a tutorial out of it?...

I made a few of these when our son was little and just starting to wobble around, getting little bumps and bruises multiple times a day. They are perfect because they are super soft, and flexible, AND they can be used hot or cold- like an ice pack, or a heat pack! My son loves his, and I've used them a few times too! We keep them in the freezer for those unavoidable bumps and falls. But they can easily be heated in the microwave for a few seconds if you need a little hot pack. (Just stick a small cup of water next to the bags in the microwave to prevent the microwave from drying out.) They are filled with rice, so they are completely safe too. (*Disclaimer: The small pieces that are inside this bag may cause a choking hazard. I do not recommend leaving young children alone with these in case of breakage.)

I've also been known to heat up a couple of them in the winter to use as hand warmers! Just stick them in your pockets, or inside your mittens to keep your hands toasty + warm! The kids think these are so fun! Everyone at the bus stop will want a pair!

These little bags are even great for games. They can be used just like bean bags! So versatile!

Looking for an easy beginner sewing project? This is a quick instant gratification project! And if you're not up for making them yourself, you can find them in my shop, here. (Set to open on July 18, 2013).

So, let's get started:

You'll need:

- fabric scraps (I like to use flannel, or even fleece for this project for softness, but cotton would work too)

- rice

- a sewing machine

- scissors

- thread

- ruler

First, you'll want to measure and cut your pieces. I used 3 inch by 4 inch rectangles for my project. You can play around with a size that fits your needs. I like the smaller sizes because they are perfect for little hands, and they fit nicely in my pockets if I'm using them as hand warmers.

Next, place right sides together and sew all the way around using about a 1/4 inch sewing allowance. Make sure to leave a small section open for turning! I usually start about an inch before one corner, and end 1 or 1 1/2 inches away from where I started, leaving a nice gap.

Clip the corners, trim the edges to remove bulk, and turn right side out.

Fill bag about 3/4 of the way full with rice.

Then fold edges in, and sew opening closed. I just use my sewing machine, but for a nicer closing finish you could hand sew it closed. Clip thread, and you're finished!

Enjoy!

Let me know what you think of your Boo Boo Bags, and my tutorial! 

xxxx

Elizabeth