Alex Haralson: January 2014

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Repost: Mom Heart Shirt

Reposting this shirt from a couple years ago with an updated picture with #3 in the shirt too!

Today I'll share one of my favorite crafts from the past. The 'Mom' shirt I made for my oldest is perfect for my little Valentine.

I'm sorry I don't have a tutorial for it, but basically I just cut out the felt and hand stitched it on. You can print out the shapes off from Microsoft Word and cut them out to use as a pattern on the felt. Then just sew in layers; the heart first, the banner, and then the letters.

It's so cute to see pictures of them at the same age side by side.

Friday, January 24, 2014

Spice Rack Book Shelves

This has been a long week. Actually a long couple of weeks. My husband is a CPA and is working his tail off right now. He was out of town last week and the week before, luckily we got to see him on the weekend. Anyway, by the end of the day, I'm exhausted so that's why I've been a little irregular blogging my projects. I do have an awesome tutorial coming soon, just putting the finishing touches on it. I think you'll LOVE it!

Today I have a simple update for you that has made a huge difference in keeping my boys' room clean and orderly.

I can't tell you how much I love these book shelves. They're inexpensive, easy to hang, and manage the mess so well!

As an added bonus, they fit perfectly behind the door.

Prior to hanging these spice racks, books were all over the ground and under the boy's beds. The boys love their bedtime stories, but they aren't always kind to their books.

So all you need is

-spice racks

-nails/screws

-a level

-a tape measure

I measured the distance between the holes on the back of the spice rack and marked one spot on the wall. I put my laser level in the hole and measured the distance to where the next hole should be. Hammered in two nails and it was done. Super simple and it is so nice to have the books stored away behind the door.

What simple organizing ideas have made a big difference for you?

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Alex

Sunday, January 19, 2014

How to Clean Baby Poop without Harsh Chemicals (or when disposable diapers fail, big time!)

Alright mommies, I know I’m not the only one who has had to deal with this. You’re feeding your baby when you hear the distinct tummy rumble…Queue the wetness. Or maybe your baby was in their carseat and your hand met an unpleasant surprise when you go to take them out.

No matter how it happens, it just plain sucks when baby has a blow out. Normally my baby is in cloth diapers and in my experience, cloth doesn’t blow out as much. But in an effort to get baby to sleep longer, we use disposables at night.

So what do you do, you strip the clothes off baby, get the baby cleaned up and changed. Do you have to start a wash right away to make sure the poop doesn’t stain? I don’t.

I don’t enjoy doing laundry so I usually just rinse the poop a little, then leave it in the sink until I’m going to do laundry.

When I get around to washing this is what I do.

First I wet the area and sprinkle it with Nature Bright (or Get Clean Laundry Powder). Then I add a couple drops of Basic H2, I’m not kidding when I say I use this for everything – cleaning the house, cleaning my pack and play, washing my produce, and bathing my kids!

Next I rub the mixture into a paste and rub into the stain. Sometimes I let it sit for a while, sometimes I don’t.

Throw it in the wash and be amazed!

I have yet to come across a stain that I can’t get out, grease, blueberry, blood, chocolate etc. The BEST part? The products are all natural, non-toxic, and safe around you and your little ones. No fumes or residue to seep into your skin!

If you want to make a small change with a big impact this year, change brands! Changing brands can change your life! Shaklee has a full line of cleaning and household products that are safe for you, your family, and the planet!

So there you have it, I don’t worry about baby poop. Although annoying, I don’t worry about it staining and ruining clothes. I just pull out the Shaklee cleaners and let them do their work.

And all Shaklee products have 100% satisfaction guarantee so there's no risk in trying them! Go HERE to order!

Friday, January 17, 2014

Blue-Ribbon Pecan Pie

When we were growing up, my brother got a pecan pie every year for Christmas from a great family friend.

Well he grew up, got married, and the pies stopped coming. haha! So I thought it would be a nice addition to his gift to make him a pie.

I’ve never made pecan pie before. And I’m not much of a baker, but he said it turned out really well.

Adapted from recipe at Saveur.com

Pecan Pie

1 cup light corn syrup
¾ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup packed light brown sugar
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 tsp. vanilla extract
½ tsp. kosher salt
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 ¼ cups roughly chopped pecans, plus ½ cup halves

Crust – either store bought or homemade

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. In a large bowl whisk together corn syrup, sugars, butter, vanilla, salt, and eggs in a bowl then fold in the chopped pecans.

3. Pour the filling evenly over dough and if you want arrange the pecan halves decoratively around the inside edge of the pie crust. I totally forgot to make it all pretty.

4.Bake until crust is golden brown and filling is set, about 1 hour. Let cool completely before serving.

What’s your favorite kind of pie?

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

One Little Word: Organize

So I'm sure you've seen other bloggers doing it, choosing a word to be the theme for the new year. I have tons of goal for the year, so at first I didn't think I needed a word as well, but I was wrong. As I've looked over my goals and thought about them more and more there is a definite theme - Organization

I want to have a better schedule to my day, I want to be more prepared with my lessons each Sunday, I want to stick to the monthly budget, I want to grow my business etc, etc,etc. Basically I need to organize everything to have an awesome 2014.

So that is what I'm going to do - organize!

Organize my house
Organize my life
Organize my time
Organize my priorities
Organize my thoughts
Organize my learning
Organize my business

I'm excited that I've boiled all my goals down to one little word, it feels so much more achievable than this list of goals on the page.

I'm also excited to be sharing my organizing journey with you and hopefully help you find more balance, peace, and satisfaction this year!

So here's to an organized 2014! Who's with me?

Monday, January 6, 2014

DIY Custom Printed Mugs

Just before Christmas, my husband told me he wanted to give a gift to his boss at work. I was going through my Pinterest boards (come follow me!) and came across a mug I had pinned from Café Press that had a fun saying on it. He totally loved it, but it was only a couple days before Christmas and the mug was $15. I offered to try making one and this craft was born.

Here’s what you’ll need if you would like to make some custom mugs of your own…

-Mugs (check the dollar store)

-Oil based paint markers or Sharpie

-sticker or cut vinyl

-cotton swabs

-nail polish remover

I started by designing and cutting the sayings on my neighbor’s Silhouette…still don’t have one of my own. The sayings are accountant jokes – if you didn’t get them. I still have no idea what accrual is, but my husband thinks it’s a fun play on words.

Apply the sticker or vinyl to the mugs. The mug on the left got a little crooked with the curve of the mug, I should have cut each of the words apart to prevent the vinyl from wrinkling.

Then use your paint marker or Sharpie to color in the saying. A paint marker will hold up better, but if you only have a Sharpie it should hold up ok, but only hand wash.