The Red Door Christmas Store

Some lovely ladies that I know are hard at work organizing the most AMAZING store for the holiday season to come!

It will be a magical place to purchase a variety of gifts- all hand crafted by talented ladies (18 of them, I hear) from the Metro Area. Browse, shop, mingle, enjoy some snacks and soak up some Christmas cheer!

Here are the details:
*Friday Dec. 6 & Saturday Dec. 7
*10am to 6pm
*3121 16th Ave. S, Minneapolis

Trust me...you do not want to miss this.

Here's a little sneak peek at some items you will find:

So...WOW! Right? See you there...

The Red Door Christmas Store

Sequins & Sofas: Timeless Beauty

I want to share with you an amazing talent of a woman named Bertha Eleanor Murphy (she was known by most as Bunny). A close family friend from Duluth, I remember as a child her visits to Nana and Papa's house and seeing her at various family functions. From my memory, she was a kind and quiet person, always asked us kids what was going on in our lives and she smelled good (kids memories, right). I honestly didn't know much more about her life at the time other than she lived down the street and she was a sweet lady.

This fall, Bunny passed away and I then learned about her amazing gift. She was an artist. She captured the essence of a sophisticated woman through her drawings....drawings that were purchased by companies who wanted to sell their merchandise. Her hand drawn masterpieces were sent to the printers to be duplicated for the local papers...enticing the ladies of the era to daydream about owning a new fur coat or trying a new lotion sure to preserve the skin of their youth.

I wish I had known as a child about her passion for art and fashion, it would have been such fun to show her my 'drawings' and learn about her experience. In my mind, I was for sure going to be a famous fashion designer someday, really famous:

Ok, maybe not. Either way, I am so thankful that I did learn about her life's work in time...and last month I was lucky enough to be given a few of her original sketches! They are beautiful, just beautiful. And I am honored to have the opportunity to display them for the world to see:

Thank you Bunny for sharing your gift. You were a true talent and a lovely lady.

Toddler Talk: Imagine!

My kiddos are just coming to an age where dramatic play is much more, well, dramatic. They are using their amazing little minds to expand their play from simple exploration to more involved storylines....sometimes I even hear them voicing multiple characters (plastic animals, baby dolls and the like) in conversation with one another.

Currently we have a puppet theater in the classroom and it is a hoot and a half! A majority think it is most hilarious when the puppets 'eat' their hands or spit out things the kids try to feed them. I can see their little minds turning...battling the concepts of pretend and reality all in one play experience!

There are a few kiddos, however, that want nothing to do with the puppet community...it kind of freaks them out- they just can't figure out how that crazy thing is moving and talking to them. Since it is sometimes hard at first for a toddler to realize that the hand inside the puppet is doing all the work, it helps to give away the secret a few times (i.e. taking my hand out and showing them it's ok)! And ya know what else helps:

'Huh...what is that crazy thing?' you may ask. Well, let me show you:

Ha ha ha he he ho ha ha! Isn't this the funniest little guy you have ever seen?? I saw these at Creative Kidstuff a few months ago and had to give them a try. The kids love 'em (and frankly so do I) and the skeptical types seem to have less of a problem chatting with such a friend and giving it a try themselves. Thanks Creative Kidstuff for bridging the gap between pretend and reality...and for less than $1.00!

Crafty Corner: Elephantastic!

My friend 'A' just had a brand new baby boy! (Woo Hoo) She is so in love with her new little prince I am sure...also, she is in love with elephants. Lots of elephants:)

Ding, Ding, Ding....I heard the bell of opportunity ringing and had to try my hand at another stuffed animal creation (see 1st stuffed animal attempt here). So, off I went:

The plan:

The supplies:

The process:

So far so good. Next I had to fashion a tail:

Ok...a little confession. I was totally feeling awesome about myself at this point and marveling at the creation unfolding before me when I pinned the tail....and sewed it into place:

Yeah, that seems about right. Secured to the reverse, it will be SO amazing when I flip it inside out I am sure...

Oh drat! What I failed to work out in my brain was that in order for this plan to be a success, the tail should have been placed in BETWEEN the two pieces of reversed fabric....not on the outside of just one side. Duh! Rookie mistake.

No worries, a few minutes of problem solving and a little careful seam ripping/resewing and I was back on track. And just a little encouragement to you rookie crafters out there...it's ok to make mistakes! Have fun, experiment with different media and just create....even those fancy master crafters you read about on Pinterest have had some not so perfect prototypes before showing the world their favorite works. Back to Mr. Elephant:

Time to stuff and embellish:

Sheesh...it was a long (but fun) afternoon to get this little guy ready for his new home, but here he is:

Welcome to the world little baby boy! I hope this new stuffed friend will establish in your heart a love for all things elephant....just like your beautiful mama!

Sequins & Sofas: 5 Things

First things first...this is my 100th post! Wahoo! I didn't really know how long I was going to keep bloggin' when this adventure began...but I am still having fun! And as long as you are too, I'm going for 100 more!

Things I like:

1. Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion +: I have tried a bunch of lotions in my storied life of skin sagas. A few were fine, some were horrible, and this one is just right. Their newest formula has added a 'plus'...not sure if it is any different than the original but the cute little plus on the bottle makes me feel like it must be true!

2. A cuticle clipper: I think this one is Revlon but any will do. A little over $10 at your local drug store and an essential tool for keeping nails (both finger and toe) looking lovely.

3. Sanita Clogs (Professional Style): These are my go-to fall shoe. So comfortable to wear for an extended period of time on your feet and they look cute with pants or dresses. You can find them on sale if you take a little time to search the internets:)

4. Daniel's Fire Roast Salsa: THE BEST EVER! It's kind of expensive (for salsa)...like 6 bucks a jar. But I splurge every once and awhile because I just have to. It's that good. You can find it at Kowalski's and Lund's type grocery stores....

5. Nubian African Black Soap: My Aunt turned me onto this when we were chatting about our skin woes (common theme it seems with most or all of my beauty product suggestions...oh well). It seems to really help my skin calm down when it's having a toddler sized tantrum. Comes in a bunch of varieties, although I have only tried the one in the black box. You can find it at Whole Foods Co-op in the beauty aisle and it's under $5 a bar.

Toddler Talk: Accentuate the Positive

Sometimes when trying to mold young minds into productive members of society, I find myself giving many directions. Many, many directions.

I get tired of hearing my own voice say the same thing over and over...and I can imagine that my little toddler friends may sometimes feel the same way.

Because it is indeed my job to persevere thru the negative and find creative ways to mold said minds, I (and my awesome teaching team) have worked hard to make a point to give directions to kids in the positive rather than from the mouth of Negative Nancy (NN).

For example, a kid keeps climbing onto the toy shelf (like a lot of times...). My internal NN voice wants to exclaim, "Get off the shelf...stop, don't do that, we don't climb there". But, with a deep breath and gathered thoughts, I can maybe say, "I see that you want to climb! Can I help you find something that is safe to climb on over here? Look at this big stool!"...and maybe later encourage that same kid when I see them choosing a safe climbing option on their own later in the day.

We have had a little issue with friends pushing/hitting each other with their hands lately. We wanted to find a way to talk about this issue in a positive tone with our dear little loves, so what else could I do but make some PICTURE CARDS! A teachers best friend...especially when I get to use the laminator, I love laminating stuff.

We implemented the positive plan and used our picture cards all week to talk about what 'Hands CAN do'. It ended up being an effective tool for discussing the underlying issue of hurtful behavior....in a fun way that didn't make me feel cranky from saying 'NO' and 'STOP' at every infraction.

Now, I understand that sometimes it is necessary to get serious and stern. I am all about consistency and rule following...and saying 'STOP' to serious situations is still a daily part of my teacher vocabulary. But I am working hard to reserve the NN voice for times when someone is in danger of injuring themselves or others. And I am finding that my heart feels more happy as my mouth accentuates the positive!

Crafty Corner: Supergirl!

My new little niece Miss P is so cute:

I finally had my first opportunity to hold her last week on a little afternoon visit to sister TT's. Because it was my first visit, I found it most appropriate to bestow a gift upon niece number three....not like in Sleeping Beauty when the fairies twinkle down and gift Princess Aurora with unmatched beauty and and the voice of a songbird....better! What else but a rockin' superhero cape:

Now this Superhero frock is really something I hope she will enjoy when she is a little older (ie. walking around and zooming her little legs as fast as they will fly), but Halloween is coming! So I added a mini bonus gift:

He He He....What a cutie pie! Pyper Power!!