Our Sick Children...

When I went to nurse Hannah at 4 AM this morning I noticed she was spotted. Her spots were worse when she got up at 8 AM, so off to the doctor with Philip she went. I thought it was a rash from a virus, but that was not the case. It turns out she is allergic to the antibiotic she was on for an ear infection. So now she's getting antihistamine for a couple weeks to get rid of the hives. She looks terrible, but is perfectly happy. No pink medication for Hannah!

We just got Ella out of bed because she is coughing so much. She's pitiful. Her eyes are all watery from coughing. Poor kiddo!

20 Minute Cushions

We got a hall bench/shoe holder and it needed cushions. They were so quick and easy!

Before:


1. Cut NuFoam to size. (I did two smaller cushions instead of one larger cushion because I am cheap and didn't want to pay for the more expensive long foam. I also did a thin foam because it was cheaper. If you wanted you could get thicker foam for a happier tush.)



2. Cut fabric to size by placing the foam in the center. Wrap around over lapping in back by 3-4 inches. (I forgot to take a picture of this step... I am new at this.)

3. Hem ends. (I serged and then sewed.)



4. Wrap around the foam (right sides in), pin one side. Remove the foam. Pin the other side. Sew. (I used my serger, but you can use a sewing machine as well.)



5. Flip right side out, iron, and insert foam. You are done!



You can make pillows the same way. Super easy. Super cute. Just think, you can make different cushions for different holiday seasons! (Yeah, I don't have time for that either... but it's a nice thought.)

My Little Bit Funky Ornaments

I LOVE the blog Little Bit Funky and she had the cutest ornaments this Christmas. So, I made my own and they turned out pretty fun. :) I didn't like sewing with the vinyl because it bunched up/stuck on my machine, but when I put a layer of tissue paper over the top it solved that problem. My friend, Julianna, did the same ornaments and did not have that problem. Perhaps it's because she used a thicker vinyl. Anywho, I can officially show pictures now that everyone has their ornaments! :)

(The photo in the ornament was done by Jen Sides of Four Sides Photography. She got some great shots!) http://www.foursides-photography.com/

Check out the big girl bed...

Today we lofted Ella Bean's big girl bed and she is so excited about it! Philip strung christmas lights and her car lights under the bed in her "fort." She says she'll let Hannie play in her fort, but she can't play on her big girl bed because it's for Ella only. She uses her Oma and Opa mail box as a step stool up to the ladder. We are excited because it opens up the room more. As soon as we get rid of the crib we'll have LOTS of room. :) Hopefully she'll sleep well in her big girl bed tonight. She's got a nasty cough, so we'll see.

Ho Ho Ho and Snow Snow Snow

Bean sporting her new hat and scarf from Liz.

Merry Christmas From Hannah! What a cute little present!

Playing in the Snow with Daddy

For the first time in 60+ years Charlotte had a white Christmas and it was grand! The snow just squeaked in on Christmas Day in the evening, but it counts. Ella and I went out to play for a wee bit and starting building a snow man. I pulled her around in the sled. She was not so excited about the sled. Later she went out with Philip and finished the snow man and made snowballs. Ella is a natural snow ball maker. She made us proud. Hannah stayed inside and didn't get a chance to play in the snow. She is working on kicking an ear infection and I thought snow may not be a good idea.

Christmas was wonderful. On Christmas Eve Hannah got to be Baby Jesus at church. She did a great job. She was all smiles and oh so pleasant. (As I imagine Baby Jesus was, the Christ Child had to be a great baby, right?!) We really enjoyed having Uncle Matt is town. Ella Bean loved playing Legos with him. (Uncle Matt got her Cars Legos for Christmas and she was so excited!) Ella was so much fun to watch on Christmas morning. She was so excited about her presents. She was spoiled by her grandma, grandpa, Oma, & Opa. She got lots of fun presents... books, baby dolls, legos, Little People, a blanket made my mom and dad and other treasures. Hannah really enjoyed the wrapping paper and her talking puppy from PawPaw Jimmy and MawMaw Vickie.

We are enjoying a relaxing break. I am getting lots of sewing done and reading done. The girls are having a grand time playing with their toys. Hannah has enjoyed several naps on daddy. (Her favorite place to nap.)

Merry Christmas From the Holleran Family!

A New Year... Almost

It's almost a New Year so I will again attempt to Blog more. So here it goes!

Christmas break started yesterday at 3:15 PM and I am thrilled! I cleaned my room with Clorox Wipes, which is a contraban cleaner, but my germ infested classroom needed it. I really don't care if it's not approved. Then I quickly darted to downtown Concord to Audry's Fru Fru Boutique. I got Hannah a super cute pair of Pedipad shoes for a great price. She's got them on sale for 35% off, and I used the remainder of a gift certificate. Yippy! They also wrapped them for me. Even better. (I don't wrap well... it's not a skill I have.) Then it was off to get my girls from Liz's house.

Ella Bean did some very cute Christmas crafts with Liz, which are now hanging in our home. I need to find a better way to display her art. I need to do a Julianna style, IKEA art display. If hipsters and idiots can do it, so can I, right?

We had a low key evening at the Holleran house with sloppy joe's for dinner. Once the girls were in bed I cleaned and cleaned some more. We pick Matt up from the airport today and I would like to project the imagine that I keep my home rather clean, not that my brother cares. I did do a good job cleaning the guest/sewing room, so he won't have to sleep on my fabric scraps.

Off to get ready for the day, then pick up Matt! So excited Ella keeps on saying "I am going to play Legos with Uncle Matt. I am going to play blocks with Uncle Matt." She can't wait!

My Beautiful Girls

Ella needs a haircut, but she is still super cute.

Hannah loves her thumb. It makes her very happy to suck.

A New Blog for New Adventures

Instead of sending weekly emails I thought it would be more fun to blog about our adventures!