On Having it All

March 27, 2013 in On a Personal Note... with 16 Comments

I’ve seen a couple of posts around the internet here and there lately about Pinterest and blogs and how women today, especially moms, are expected to do it all. Great career, happy kids, clean and stylishly decorated house, adorable homemade crafts, rocking body, perfect marriage, etc. This kind of thing has always been perpetuated in magazines but I think it’s harder to ignore on the internet because behind all those blog posts and genius pins are real women, and if I can do it then you should be able to do it too, right? In fact if you’re not churning out five blog posts a week about your adorable family and all your crafty projects and the gourmet dinner you cooked for your über-successful husband last night you might just be sucking at life.

Spoiler alert–I’m not doing it. I don’t have it all. I’m pretty honest about that here on the blog but in case you’ve been too busy beating yourself up to notice, most of my projects don’t go as planned, I barely maintain a basic level of home cleanliness, my personal hygiene leaves something to be desired, and I could stand to lose a few pounds. I am so very lucky to have a wonderful husband and an amazing little baby and at the same time our family is far from “perfect.” I question whether I’m a good mother, whether I nag Nick too much, why some of his friends’ wives don’t like me. I struggle with depression and in fact just recently started taking an anti-depressant again (it’s working!). I haven’t really done too many projects lately because I’ve been busy and Nick wants me to cut back on my spending a bit, but the reason I enjoy crafts and DIY so much is not only because I’m cheap or I want to show off on my blog, but because it’s seriously, seriously good for my mental health.

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amy rubin flett

I enjoy making things the way some folks enjoy running (bleh!). I feel the same way about writing, which makes blogging about crafts and DIY projects a pretty perfect hobby for me. I’m not sure I would enjoy being a mostly stay at home mom as much without it. Nick’s not perfect either, but it’s not my place to share his flaws with the masses. And as for Jack, it’s not easy being a baby and some days are better than others. Sometimes he’s clingy and cries for no reason and bites me while nursing. And sometimes he gives me the sweetest smiles and cuddles and cracks me up with his silly self. It’s all so worth it but so, so hard sometimes.

So don’t beat yourself up, because we’re all fighting some sort of battle. But do try to find something that makes you as happy as creating and blogging make me. Maybe that’s exercise, maybe it’s chocolate. Maybe it’s reality TV. Maybe it’s spending time outside or having a glass of wine with a good friend or keeping your home impeccably clean. It doesn’t have to be pin-worthy. It just has to make you happy.

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DIY Baby Toy and Photo Prop

March 26, 2013 in Crafty Goodness, Jack, On a Personal Note... with 3 Comments

I’ve never been big on fancy photo shoots for Jack. Every month on his birthday I lay him down on an attractive surface and snap away until I get a good smiling shot, but this month with the 29th being Good Friday I feel like I really want to do an Easter-themed photo session. And what fun is a themed photo shoot without a few props? I got inspired by these linen bunnies yesterday morning and whipped something similar up in no time for zero dollars. I’m not planning on taking Jack’s Easter photo until later this week, but I thought I’d go ahead and post about the bunny now in case any of you mamas out there want to try making one yourself.

I started by freehanding a bunny silhouette with pencil and paper. The tutorial linked above included a template but it required some sort of premium membership to somewhere to print it out so I just drew my own.

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Then I cut it out and traced it onto some canvas (painter’s drop cloth left over from any one of a number of projects). Notice how I had the fabric folded in two layers so that when I cut it out in the next step I’d be cutting both sides of the bunny at once.

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Next I cut out Mr. Bunny and sandwiched him between two layers of plastic (an empty cereal bag). This ensures Mr. Bunny is delightfully crinkly, pretty much guaranteeing that Jack will love him forever. I used a few pins to fasten the layers together, then sewed around the edges and cut off the excess.

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Looking pretty sharp, Mr. Bunny.

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Unfortunately it all went downhill once I tried to turn him right side out. I should have just sewn him right side out and let the edges be funky. It’s how things ended up anyway. The ears were way too skinny to turn gracefully so I ended up having to open them up, then I filled them each with a little stuffing and sewed them back shut. I stuffed the rest of Sir Bunny from the hole I’d left in the bottom (I used tissue paper as stuffing. I had some in my gift wrap stash and it added extra crinkle fun), then sewed back up the bottom and bam, Mr. Bunny was complete in all his imperfect homemade glory.

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Jack doesn’t care if it looks extra rustic. It crinkles and I let him eat it, and those are the only two things that really matter.

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If I had it to do all over again I’d cut my fabric much more generously and use the shape that I traced onto the fabric as a guide for my stitches instead of cutting along it. Or I would have just sewn it right-side-out and let it have rough edges. It’s definitely not an heirloom quality toy and it may or may not look cute in his pictures later this week (I’m thinking carrots may make an appearance as well, btw), but Jack likes it so I’m happy.

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Spring Cleaning

March 25, 2013 in Cleaning and Organizing with 5 Comments

Even though it doesn’t look much like spring for most of the country this morning, I’ve been plagued these last few days with an urgent need to clean, purge, sort, and organize. Of course it always looks worse before it looks better so I don’t have any stunning “after” photos to show off–none of it is really amazing transformative work anyway, just the kind of stuff that makes me happy. There’s something about a well-organized drawer that just fills my heart with a sense of peace.

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I am not the kind of girl to be flipping my mattress and wiping out my washing machine each spring–it’s more like catching up on all the basic stuff I slack on the rest of the year. My kitchen counters are completely clear for the first time in months, outgrown baby gear is stowed away, and there’s a growing pile of items I no longer want, need, or love ready to head off to the Goodwill (as well as a box of barely used baby accoutrement I’ve listed for sale on my local buy/sell/swap group–mama needs some spending money!). Sometimes I beat myself up about my lackluster housekeeping habits, but the truth is that I just really am not cut out for it. I’m not detail oriented and I get overwhelmed by the magnitude of it. The truth is that I fantasize regularly about hiring a cleaning lady. I would have totally mocked a stay at home mom who hired a cleaning lady before I actually had a child–now I realize that just because I’m home most of the day doesn’t mean I have time to clean (or despise it any less!). I’m much better about keeping things tidy and organized than I am about the actual cleaning–you know, the mopping of floors and wiping of baseboards, etc. Don’t even ask me about dusting. I haven’t done it in years.

So that’s what we’re up to this week. Clearing out, sorting, donating, and reorganizing, one shelf/drawer/box at a time. It’s a constant effort, but one that’s so worth it to have a home with room to grow.

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Vintage Brass Cloche

March 22, 2013 in Dining Room, On a Personal Note... with 4 Comments

Nick’s parents came up to visit last weekend and my mother in law, Alden, brought me this lovely piece that belonged to her mother. It’s been sitting in storage since Grandma Joan passed away years ago, but Alden saw something (on my blog, I think?) that made her think I might like it. And she was right! I love it!

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I cleaned it up and put it on top of the blue dresser in our dining room. (speaking of cleaning, looks like I need to polish those silver pieces on the wall! That one on top is so tarnished it looks black!)

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It’s filled with seashells that Grandma Joan collected and I left them in there for now, but what I’d really love is to use it as a little mini greenhouse for something capable of surviving my black thumb. I just think a pop of green would look so pretty in there. How perfect is that tarnished brass? And the little feet! I don’t even know if “cloche” is the right word for it, but it seemed to fit. I supposed “beautiful brass and glass box” would be more descriptive, haha.

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I hope you all are having a lovely Friday! It’s a little dreary here but everything is so green outside that I can’t help but feel energized. Spring is my absolute favorite time of the year. Could have something to do with my April birthday, I suppose! Have a great weekend!

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