Bean's Monstrous Nightmares Dragon Costume

Have you ever heard of a vitamin B6 toxicity...? Me neither, 2 degrees later, and one being in nursing, I was always taught water soluble vitamins= excreted out in your urine. Yeah um not that simple, and let me tell you a MRI, a nerve conduction study- (just picture being poked with needles and shocked) and a bunch of other fun tests later, I can assure you a B6 toxicity is a genuine thing and it can make you feel miserable. I spent most of October having horrible nerve pain and so while I forced myself to still make Bean's awesome halloween costume, I didn't have time to blog about it, but I want to share with you all.

See Bean doesn't pick ordinary Halloween costumes. Two years ago, he announced to everyone how he wanted to be a blue poison dart frog. Yeah good luck finding that in the store. If you know Bean, you know he has the sweetest heart, and if I can avoid completely breaking it, I try not to. So, he was a blue poison dart frog two years ago, and Tadpole was a red eye tree frog.

The zoo employees thought he had the coolest costume ever.  So this year, I was prepared, and  asked way ahead of time(think August) what he wanted to be for Halloween. So when he told me he wanted to be a Monstrous Nightmares Dragon from How To Train Your Dragon, I had no idea how I was going to make it, but  I figured I had plenty of time. Then the worst year ever continued to be the worst Fall ever, and I was making this costume last minute as well. 

 However, I really love how it turned out.

 I also made Tadpole's costume and I am very thankful he goes for typical Halloween costumes, like ghosts. I added the googly eyes and the smile to his bandana hat because there was just too much of a KKK feeling going on there.

For Bean's costume I bought white leggings in Walmart and died them orange for the legs.

When the pants were orange, I then cut out circles from the awesome fabric I found at Joann's for the wings to make spots for the legs.  

I purchased a solid black hoodie from Wal-mart and then cut out tan felt for the front to make the belly of the dragon. I painted the stripes on with a bronze acrylic all purpose craft paint.

For the eyes, I cut styrofoam balls in half and drew the eyes onto the styrofoam and then painted them. I glued them to the top of the hoodie and that part was a little tricky so I stuck a plastic pumpkin in the hoodie so they would stay in the right place. 

The horns were where I thought I failed. I didn't know how I was going to make them, or make them stand up. I went through all of my supplies and half a bag of model magic and I love Crayola. light weight, easy to mold into any shape etc. I made them out of model magic, let them dry, painted them, then glued them and sewed them to the top of the hoodie. 

The wings were my favorite part. I had this awesome bronze and black shimmery fabric that I bought ON SALE. I free drew the wings on paper and used the paper as my pattern to cut the wings out of the fabric and then the most awesome stuff ever, Pellon fusible interfacing. It was just stiff enough to make perfect wings and the fabric could be ironed on on both sides!! 

I then used black flat elastic to make straps and there you have awesome dragon wings 

I attached teeth to the hoodie by cutting them out of felt and gluing them on. 

I used a pattern from a dinosaur costume for the tail and attached it to the back of the hoodie.

A very happy Bean on his way into school on Halloween.

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Almost made it out of my twenties...

The first time I  looked into the eyes of Bean, my first child, I had no idea the adventure that was ahead. I have never loved anyone more and my love for my boys just exploded from there. The depths that a mother loves her children were incomprehensible to me until I became a Mother. I feel so blessed to be a Mother, but there are also those days were I find myself wondering "Really... this is how today is going to go.. REALLY????

I had one of these particular "REALLY" moments the other night, when I decided to take both boys down to the pool to swim. It was way too close to bedtime, but with the newness of kindergarten and all of the changes, and wanting to make sure kindergarten didn't equal lack of fun in Bean's brain, we went to the pool anyway. Plus we have been working so hard on his swimming, that I wanted to continue forward with all of his progress. At the pool Bean started complaining about his head hurting really bad. I figured with all the swimming and going underwater, it was a sinus headache and that it would pass. He was screaming and crying and I was trying to pack them all up and get them home.

When we were home, he was complaining less, so I put them both in the tub and bathed them while I was standing in my wet swimsuit. This is how life works as a Mom. After pulling them out of the tub, I left them to put on their pajamas or start to, and I told them I would be back in a minute. All I wanted to do was get out of my wet swimsuit. I went down to my room, undressed and that's when it happened ...

I heard Bean sounding very upset and I ran back down to their room sans clothes. As I walk in I see Bean's face. I can tell he really isn't feeling well, and he starts telling me his stomach hurts, and as I am about to grab his bath towel it happens, vomit, .... all over my naked body.

I was traumatized.  Bean is right at my waist level, and their is vomit GASP all over me.


I was paralyzed for a moment, shocked, and then I didn't even know what to do next. My girl bits have been barfed on, barfed on!


See, I do not drink. I've never been drunk. I have never even attended drunken parties. I avoid vomit as often as I can. As a doula, mother, migraine sufferer, and nursing graduate, this can be difficult. However,  I was seriously convinced I would under no circumstances be thrown up on by a male, and naked NEVER, and six months shy of my thirtieth birthday Bean wanted to make sure I didn't miss out on all the fun. The question next was "WHAT to clean up first?????????????"

TRAUMATIZED 


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My Family Established Sign

Back in June, I blogged about some family established signs I made for wedding gifts for some friends (Family Established Signs ). I finally got around to making one for my family.  I painted the canvas a sea foam blue (my favorite color) and this time instead of stenciling the cavas, I stenciled the letter. 

I glued the R to the canvas and then stenciled our last name and the year Rock and I were married onto the canvas. Now it is hung right by our front door. So simple, so inexpensive to make, and I just love these signs. 

 

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DIY Beach Cottage "Snowmen"

I know I said I was going to post this several days ago, but then the entire family came down with the flu, and I have been too sick to post.  So pin this for next year if you want some awesome little beach "snowmen" for your house. 

 Here is how I made these awesome "snowmen" and everything I would do differently next time:

Supplies 

1. Round styrofoam balls 2 for each snowmen one larger than the other. I used a 10in round and a 7 in round for each. 

2. Spray adhesive- I would buy styrofoam spray adhesive next time.

3. Wooden dowels - I bought a 36in long dowel that was 5/8 inch thick and cut it for my two snowmen

4. Play sand- you can find this at home depot.

5. DecoArt Platercraft Acrylic Matte Spray Finish. 

6.Seashells, glass marbles, sticks, buckets, shovels, pinwheels, or anything else you want to decorate your snowmen with. 

7. Newspaper.

8. Foam board for the surfboard. One made out of wood would be best as I have to bring this one in every night. 

9. Tape- to make the white stripe down the surfboard.

10. Acrylic paint for surfboard.

11. Stencils for the words on the surfboard which you obviously don't need to do this project.
12.X-acto knife.

This is the tacky spray that I used to glue the two styrofoam balls together and to glue the sand to the styrofoam.  It got the job done, but next time I would try styrofoam spray. I would also put the dowel through both styrofoam balls so that the "snowmen" weren't as fragile. As for adhering the sand to the styrofoam, it took many layers of spraying adhesive and sprinkling sand. When I made the first one, I glued the styrofoam balls together before putting the sand on, for the second one, I covered them in sand and then attached them and that worked much better.  I then sprayed them with DecoArt Plastercraft acrylic matte spray finish to protect them against the elements. 

 The styrofoam balls attached to one another. I then sprayed the adhesive in small areas and poured sand over it. This took a long time. I also had to pat the sand down. You have to be patient with this. I am hopeful the styrofoam adhesive would work better. I almost gave up on this project at this point, but if you keep at it, it does work.

After they were dry, I took the wooden dowel and inserted into the bottom of the styrofoam ball to stake them into the ground. I would put this through both styrofoam balls next time. I also sharpened the end so they would stake into the ground easier. 

After they were put together, I staked them into the ground where I wanted them, surrounded them with newspaper and poured play sand on top of the newspaper around the snowmen. I then glued shells, and glass marbles onto them for eyes, noses, and buttons. I also found sticks for their arms and then added beach toys around them. 

For the surfboard, I drew the shape of a surfboard onto foam board and then cut it out with an X-acto knife.  The shape wasn't perfect, and it probably would be smartest to make this out of wood to hold up against the elements as I said earlier I had to take this in every night.

I placed tape down the center of the surfboard to create a white stripe, painted the surfboard red and then placed stencils on it with the words peace, believe, joy to create a Christmas surfboard.

and this is what the finished surfboard looked like.

Bean and I sick 

 

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Beach Cottage Snowmen and Christmas in Florida

I have lived in South Florida for most of my life, but I still find the concept of wrapping palm trees with Christmas lights and covering lawns with deer, sleigh, and snowmen whilst wearing shorts, odd.  So, I decided this year to decorate my lawn  with beach cottage "snowmen."

They were looking a little bored, so this evening I decided to construct them a surfboard.

 I am not in the mood to write a long blog this evening,  so tomorrow I will post a tutorial on how I created them.

Friday was Bean's 6th birthday, on the inside I was fighting back tears as my heart was so heavy with grief after hearing of the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary, but like most Mom's I smiled and consumed myself in a 6 year old's  happiness and excitement. I've been pretty numb all weekend. As a mother of two small boys, what these children's parents are going through is unfathomable. Although there are no words that can ease their pain, I pray that that they feel the love, light, thoughts and prayers being sent to them from around the world. I am hopeful that what will remain in our hearts and what we  will focus on are these innocent children and brave women, their lives, and all the good that was brought into this world because of them.

 I made 20 luminaries in honor of these precious children and will put them out each night through Christmas. 

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Gratitude Day 10 David

 Today is one month since I said goodbye to my dear friend, and I am so grateful for the friendship David freely gave. Goodbyes like this are beyond difficult.

I am so thankful for all the lessons I learned from David, and so blessed to have had him in my life. He taught me a great deal about love and life, even down to the day he died, as I stood there and held his hand, wondering why I deserved to be one of the people present with him.

 He was always willing to listen. He never appeared to be in a hurry, and truly was present in the moment. He loved people and he loved life.

 One really hard lesson that I have learned from this is to always take photos. I knew David for over a decade, and after going through all of my photos, I  discovered that I never took a photo with him. This is a regret I do not want to deal with again. Even if it may seem trivial to some, this really bothered me.  I realized how foolish it is not to take a picture just because you don't like pictures of yourself. Photos aren't just for you, they are also for the people you will one day leave behind. I really wish I had a photo of him and I know and I know I wouldn't care what I looked like.

I was lucky enough to be able to go through all of David's photos of his life as I scanned them into my computer to make a slideshow, and it was so comforting this past month.  Even more comforting, was watching the DVD he recorded of his experiences during WWII. It was an opportunity to spend one more time "talking" with David and I really needed that one late night this past month. David is who I am grateful for today. Thank you for being you, for serving our country, for loving unconditionally, for your smiles, your words,  a friendship I will never forget, and so much more!

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Gratitude Day 6 I Voted

Today I am grateful that I live in a time and place where I can vote and have a voice. Many people have fought and many have died for this freedom I sometimes take for granted. Thank you.

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Gratitude Day 5 Weightlifting

Today I am  grateful for weightlifting. I absolutely love that feeling of walking into the gym and letting go of everything else. I feel strong. I feel empowered. I love competing against myself and challenging myself a little more each workout. I am so grateful for my able body and the ability to workout.Pin It

Gratitude Day 4

Today I am grateful for my yoga practice. Being introduced to yoga at fifteen took me down a very different path in life. The friends I met at the yoga center, including David, have all influenced me to be a better person. Thanks to the giving heart of Bharata, I was able to take the yoga teacher's training at 17 for free. I had no idea at the time that this would provide me with a job during much of my college career.   My yoga practice has completely changed my outlook on life. At this point, it is so ingrained in my life that I am not even sure to what magnitude it has influenced it.  I know because of yoga, I rarely watch tv, I've never been drunk, smoked a cigarette or used any illicit drugs, my natural childbirths were much easier, I am more gentle with the world, I pay attention to my breathing, I walk lighter, I listen to more spiritual music, I breathe better, I have better control over my physical body, I feel more connected to the universe and all the amazing living beings on this planet. Yoga has gotten me through some of the most difficult times in my life and right now I am exceptionally grateful to have yoga to turn to.Pin It

Gratitude Day 3

Photo taken by my awesome Mother 

Today I am grateful for my faith. With it I am finding the strength to live in the uncertainty of the moment.


I am grateful for the time I had today to get the majority of my office organized.


I am extremely grateful for my Mother. She has tried many times to earn the title of World's Meanest Mom, but she is failing because of her awesomeness.  I am pretty sure her ears are quite tired after the month of October, but she keeps listening and for that I am thoroughly blessed.


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Gratitude Day 2

I am grateful for all the beautiful pregnant women who allow me to create art from their gorgeous pregnant bodies. 

 


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