tutorial: pig pattern

Today is a special post off of my regular schedule. Last Monday, I got the chance to be a guest blogger at Someday Crafts. I did a tutorial on one of my finger puppet patterns that I'm sharing with all of my readers here! I hope you have fun making this pig finger puppet! So, here we go.

Supplies:

felt - I used pink felt for the entire pattern

scissors

needle & coordinating floss or thread

black floss or thread - optional

permanent marker - optional

Directions:

1. Print and cut out pattern.

**NOTE: Open image in a new window and print full-size on a 8.5x11 sheet of paper. 

2. Place pattern on felt and cut out pieces. 

3. Place the nose piece on one of the body pieces. Sew nose to body. You can add nostrils with the marker or with black floss.

4. Use the marker to make eyes right above the nose piece.

**NOTE: Make sure you add all the face features before you sew the body pieces together!

5. Place the ear pieces on the back body piece.

6. Place the front body piece on top of the ear pieces and the back body piece.
7. Pin or hold the ear pieces to the body so the ears are in between the two body pieces.

8. Sew together by hand or with a machine, making sure the ear pieces get attached in between the body pieces.

And there you have it! Easy peasy. Your very own pig finger puppet!

This finger puppet pattern is one of 16 patterns I have for sale in my finger puppet pattern eBook for sale at my etsy shop. Check it out here. For a limited time, and exclusively for Someday Crafts' and Bric-a-Brac's readers, use the coupon code SOMEDAY10 for 10% your purchase!

Happy crafting!

baby blues

Joe and I are/were thinking about expanding our little family. We compromised; I was okay with a family of four, but Joe wanted a bigger family. We decided to make a plan (Joe loves his plans) and try during the summer so I wouldn't be huge pregnant during the hottest part of the summer. Well... things didn't go according to plan (do they ever). I missed my period (TMI?) and took a pregnancy test. It was positive!

And I freaked out.

Sure. We were just a few months early from our family expansion, but I did not feel ready. I love my Jovi, but she is a handful. Just today, she woke up at 6:30 in the AM and was ready for a nap by 10; she couldn't reach the box of cookies so she had a full-blown tantrum, throwing herself backward on the kitchen floor.

Joe did his thing and made things better. I was pregnant! And I was happy about it! I then went about trying to find a OB/GYN and set up our first appointment to hear the heart beat.

That appointment was last week. What they found was the sac with the yolk-looking thing. But no fetus. And no heart beat. I guess I went a little numb and didn't really hear the doctor's opinion. Good thing Joe was there and later explained everything to me again. --I love that man.

So here is what the doc said:
1. I'm not as far along as I thought, which I highly doubt because I am very regular with my periods and was tracking it. Yes. They have an app for that.
2. It's a blighted ovum; I never was pregnant. My body just thinks I am i.e. I still have symptoms.
3. It was a fertilized egg that just stopped growing.

Both Joe and I feel like it is option #2 or #3.

Surprisingly, I've had a couple people ask if I'm relieved. Joe says it's my own fault because I've publicly announced that I didn't want any more kids (he's so compassionate sometimes it kills me a little). But the thing is, I already accepted the idea that I was going to hold baby #3 in my arms around Thanksgiving, that Corban and Jovi were going to have another sibling, this little baby was going to have cousins it's same age on both sides of the family, and planned out how our lives were going to change.

Heartache is never easy. I'm just glad for my faith in a loving and understanding and just God. I'm forever grateful for the covenants I made in the Logan Temple that I can be with my little family forever; that we won't have to say goodbye at the grave.

I've been reading about other women's experiences like this and have grabbed on to a little sliver of hope. We go back in to the doc tomorrow (April 18) to see what we can see.

book review: Finding God in the Dark

Invariably, all of us have felt abandoned at one point in our lives. The darkness that envelopes us at those points are hard: the hopelessness, the fear, the pain. This is the premise of this book from co-authors Ted Kluck and Ronnie Martin. 

This book really surprised me; I liked it. The author's experiences and their clever ways of entwining it with Christian views was entertaining for this short little book. We all belong to Jesus Christ and "he will provide us with joyful reassurance in our darkest times of doubt and wondering." 

crafts: jewelry

I scored a HUGE bag of beads and jewelry making supplies from a lady in my community for $20!!

I added hooks to my jewelry frame and hung it up in my bathroom, out of reach of my 1 year-old. This is all the bracelets, ear rings, and necklaces I've made so far. I've got a few more bags of beads left, but I'm losing interest and need a different craft to start.

craft: flag pallet

I started this project back in Utah before we moved to Arizona, 6 months ago. I found old pallets (I think there was 2 of them) and had my hubby tear them apart. That was incredibly hard! I've heard that if you get the wood a little damp it's not quite so hard to pry the boards loose. Where was that little gem the first time. Dangit. Next time.

I bought spray paint when we moved into our rental and stored the paint for about 6 months before I painted the entire board white. Never. Never. Never buy the cheap spray paint. Not worth it. AT ALL. I didn't have any painters tape, so I improvised. I used duct tape and made stripes.

I had some vinyl stars from a friend back in Utah, but I only had her cut out 5 stars. Five?! Who does that? I cut out more stores out of paper. Glued them to the board and sealed them. The vinyl is coming off already, so I need to figure something else out. Sheesh.

My hubby had a VERY HARD time that the stripes weren't even and there weren't as many stripes as the real flag. He also didn't like that there wasn't 50 stars and that mine were different sizes. I'm super excited to display this and my wreath for the month of July!

building blocks

A friend gave us this wagon and blocks. Jovi kind of likes them. A lot. She'll sit in the bucket and build towers around her. 

april fool's?

UPDATE:** I had a scheduled appointment to hear the baby's heart beat on April 4. Joe and I went to the appointment and the doctor couldn't find it. We go back in 2 weeks to see what we can see.