DIY Pinterest Projects

Im trying to be more of a "Do It Yourselfer" and since I discovered Pinterest, I've gotten a lot of good ideas. Here are a couple I've seemed to pull off.

Jesse and I don't have a headboard on our bed so the wall behind it is a little bare. I've been wanting to find something that would help and found this idea. Hobby Lobby had their frames and vinyl wall quotes on sale 50% off so this ended up being around $25. It's a little crooked on the bottom but oh well. It stays! 

This is in our living room. I grabbed another vinyl wall quote from Hobby Lobby for $9.99 and I already had these pictures framed. Please excuse the smudges on the pictures, Avery had to "give the baby kisses."

I found this idea on Pinterest too. The original idea was for a birth announcement but I thought it would make a great wall decoration in Avery's room. I printed it on $0.99 canvas texture paper from Jo-Ann Craft Store and the frame I got at Fred Meyer $9.99

I was also on Pinterest when I discovered Water Beads. Since Avery doesn't attend daycare she has the wonderful pleasure of playing with me all day. She's getting pretty bored with her toys and with the winter weather, trips to the park are pretty limited.

So, I've been wanting to find craft projects suitable for a toddler. That's when I came across Water Beads. I found them at Jo-Ann's for $4.99. These have been a big hit with Avery. They're little beads that grow when you put them in water.

I first put them in her bath water which was ok. She liked to move them around but I didn't realize they took about 30 minutes to fully grow so she didn't get the full effect of the beads.

Plus, I had to fish them out of the bath tub after she was done with her bath. It only took about 10 minutes but it wasn't really something I wanted to do.

The next day, after I put them in a mason jar and let them grow a little, I put them in one of our glass Pyrex bowls. She really loved sinking her hands in them. Jesse and I had to play with them too. They look like marbles but feel like slippery rubber.

We've also discovered Crayola Window Markers which is another activity Avery loves but she doesn't quite understand yet that regular crayons aren't for the windows and the window markers aren't for the walls :o/

Luckily, they're washable and I haven't found anything that they don't come off of.

Fun At The Park (With Shoes)

Avery loves to be outside. She would spend every waking moment outdoors if we let her. Now that the cold weather is setting in, days at the park are few and far between. Which really stinks because the Tri Cities really doesn't have any indoor playgrounds for toddlers. Jesse and I usually take Avery on a stroll through the mall when running around outdoors is out of the question.

The other day it was almost like spring weather so I grabbed Avery's jacket and shoes (which is another story) and we went to the park. 

The story behind Avery's shoes is, since she's was born, there has only been 1 pair of shoes that she's been able to wear which were soft sole crib shoes. I've bought about 12 different pairs total; some I've returned (numerous times) because they wouldn't fit and some she flat out refused to wear and now they don't fit.

Now that she's a toddler (and in a size 5) I really wanted to get her into a REAL pair of shoes. Pretty simple task right? Wrong! Avery has the widest feet EVER!!! Jesse and I went into Journey's and tried to find shoes that fit her and nothing worked. Her feet are shaped like upside down teardrops; even extra wide shoes wouldn't fit.

Then we were strolling through WalMart where I saw a pair of Garanimals that looked like they might work so I grabbed her foot and they slipped right on (with a few tugs, pulls and wiggles)

So back to the park story, I thought this would be a great time to try out her new shoes! At first she walked like a cat with tape on their paws; which was kinda cute hearing her "clomp" through the kitchen. When we got to the park though, her feet hit the dirt and she was off!!

Posing for a pic

Taking a 1 second break

I wish I would have had the video camera to record her running and playing. Sometimes she looks like a total train wreck about to happen when she really gets moving but somehow she pulls it off and stays on her feet! She makes me laugh.