Finley and Oliver

London Bound

2012-02-13T05:00:00.000-08:00

My best friend and I are leaving for a trip to London in three weeks.

Leslie and I adore London and have always talked about taking a girls trip there together. It was during the Royal Wedding (maybe it was the hats?) this past year when we called each other up and decided to make it happen.

Image via Racey Tay

I've been to London several times but haven't been back since we started our family five years ago. We've both seen the touristy stuff and want to get more of an insiders/off the beaten path view of London this time.

Image via Stuck in Customs

We will only be there for five days (staying in Kensington) and aside from a mandatory visit to the Tate Modern and the theater, we don't have any set in stone plans. So I'm appealing to any of you who are lucky enough to be familiar with my favorite place ever...what are your must sees/dos in London? Fabulous restaurants? Pubs? Markets? Places to have a drink? Favorite place to shop or window shop? Parks? Galleries?

Image via Kezzi Rose

I would be forever grateful for any of your tips and will have a pint (or two) in your honor while there.

DIY Mini Crowns

2012-02-10T05:00:00.000-08:00

I first stumbled upon toilet paper roll crowns on Lilla a's blog and immediately became smitten. So easy, so clever, so tiny, so cute. I thought I'd put my own spin on them and dress them up a bit with things I had laying around my house.

These are so fun and quick to make. They make cute photography props, party favors, decorations, and little crowns for dolls.

What you'll need:

Toilet paper rolls

Scrap felt, fabric, or paper (surprise, surprise - I used felt for mine)

Scissors

Elastic cord
Glue (if you're using fabric or felt, make sure your glue adheres accordingly)

Scraps of trim (ribbon, pom poms, ric rac, etc)

Getting Started:

Cut our your felt (or fabric or paper) to 4" x 6" pieces - one piece for each crown you plan to make.

Glue over the entire piece of felt (fabric or paper) getting pretty close to the edges.

Roll your felt (fabric or paper) around the toilet paper roll. Wait for it to dry completely.

When the covered rolls are dry, cut your crown points from the top. I just free handed these. They are uneven and totally imperfect - I pretend it adds that whimsical touch.

Glue on your trim however you like and wait for it to dry.

Poke little holes in either side of the crown towards the bottom and thread your cord through. I used the pointy end of my small scissors to poke my holes.

That's it. Super easy. I'm so taken by these I think I'll create a whole little collection. Maybe I can convince the fam to wear them at our next Tuesday dinner or holiday party?

What He Wore: boy style

2012-02-09T11:38:00.000-08:00

Please ignore the nasty yellow bruise on Oliver's forehead and around his eyes. It looks a zillion times better than it did last week. Poor guy.

Hat: Crewcuts

Darth Vader T-shirt: DIY freezer paper stencil on American Apparel tee

Jeans: Old Navy

Shoes: Vans
Cookie the Chicken: My Pet Chicken

22 weeks and counting...

2012-02-07T05:56:00.000-08:00

Egg Watch 2012 has officially begun.

Now that I'm a bit more seasoned in raising chickens, I didn't think I'd get so excited for the new girls to start laying. I'm not hanging around and giving them performance anxiety like I did with our original hens, but I'm still out there more than usual. Chickens typically start laying anywhere between four to six months and our older girls all started laying at 22 weeks. It could be several weeks still but I'm thinking my sweet Francie (yes, she is supposed to look like that - she is a naked neck) may start laying soon since she's been spending a lot of time around the nesting boxes. Anytime now chickies...we need more eggs.

2/7/11 Update: It looks like the chickens got the message because I found these in one of the nesting boxes today:

The light green egg on the right is Lucy's and the little brown egg on the left is from one of the new girls. I'm thinking it's from Minnie because her comb and waddles are super red today. I am a proud chicken mama!

DIY Mustache Love Applique

2012-02-05T09:11:00.000-08:00

A few readers asked me where I got Oliver's t-shirt that he's wearing in the photos from my valentine's banner tutorial. When I explained that it was a tee I designed back when I was still selling children's clothes, they asked for a tutorial. So... here you go!

(For those of you who are cursing me for perpetuating the never ending mustache craze, you can easily swap out the mustache for a heart or something else - heck, you can even put a bird on it.)

Like my other applique tutorials, this one is pretty easy - it follows all the same steps as the others.

Materials

Blank one piece, t-shirt, tank, etc. (pre-washed for shrinkage)
Sheet of felt in the color(s) of your choice - for kids' projects, I strongly recommend eco-fi felt by Kunin. It's made from recycled bottles and holds up really well in the wash.
Heat n Bond or other fusible webbing
Scissors (small pointy ones are best - I use these)
Embroidery floss and needle
Template - download here

Getting Started
(Since I use Heat n Bond, my instructions will follow Heat n Bond's instructions. If you are using a different fusible web, simply change out my instructions with the instructions on the package.)

Print out your template and place it underneath your fusible webbing. Trace the design onto your fusible webbing.

Next you'll want to iron your mustache love webbing onto your felt or fabric. For Heat n Bond, set it on the "wool" setting (NO STEAM). Iron the design onto the felt or fabric for about 3 or so seconds so it looks like this:

Carefully cut out your letters and mustache.

Take your appliques and peel off the wax paper layer from the back. Place the pieces exactly where you want them on the t-shirt with the glossy/fusible webbing side face down. Iron the appliques on to the t-shirt pressing for about 10 seconds. I like to use a scrap piece of fabric over the applique when I press it just to be safe. Again be sure to use the wool setting with no steam. Check to be sure that the appliques are firmly adhered to the shirt.

Now that your love is attached to the t-shirt, you're ready to start the applique process. You can do this with a machine or by hand. If I have the time, I prefer to stitch by hand - it adds a cool element to the applique. To stitch by hand, cut about 3-4 feet of your embroidery thread. Your skein of thread will have six strands. Separate two of the strands from the piece you've cut and thread them through your needle.

For this t-shirt, I use a straight stitch. It's a basic stitch and great for a beginner. You basically bring the needle up through the t-shirt and back down making straight little stitches about a 2 cm in from the edge of your applique.

A great video tutorial for the straight stitch is available here. The nice thing about sewing coordinating thread (floss) on felt or fabric is that it's hard to see so it's very forgiving if you're a beginning stitcher. If you're an experienced hand stitcher, it is fun to experiment with contrasting threads and different stitches.

Once you've finished the stitching, you are done!

You've made a fun little piece that is easy to care for - machine wash cold inside out/tumble dry low.

As always, if you get stuck or have any questions, comment here or message me at finleyandoliver@gmail.com. Happy stitching!

What He Wore: boy style

2012-02-01T09:38:00.000-08:00

I am so excited to introduce you to my new feature!

We've all seen the "What I Wore Wednesday" posts. I love peeking into someone else's closet and getting to know their personal style but thought I'd put a spin on it and feature style for the little guys. Anyone with boys knows that it's tricky to find affordable, unique, and functional clothing when there are racks upon racks of adorable clothes for little girls staring us down.

Back when I was making clothes for boys, people would ask me for advice all the time on what types of things their boys should wear or where I shopped for my boys. I like my boys to look cute but it's also important for them to be comfortable. They are rough and tumble guys and are hard on their clothes - one of their favorite games is to fun as fast as they can and then see how far they can slide on their knees. Drives me nuts. Anyhow, couple that with the fact that they grow like weeds and I've had to find clothes that won't break the bank but will still allow them to express their own personal style. It's been a fun challenge. Dressing boys doesn't have to be boring - even when there's only a rack or two to choose from ;)

So without further ado, here is Oliver (the reluctant model) showing off his duds for my inaugural {What He Wore: boy style} post.

Beanie: The Tiny Hiney

Scarf: Zara

Sweater: Zara

Jeans: The Children's Place (woo-hoo for hand me downs!)

Shoes: Converse

Local AZ Friends: Run for Broxton

2012-02-01T06:08:00.000-08:00

Meet Broxton. The darling little guy has batten disease and has recently been put on hospice care. He lives next door to my friend Laura and she has been sharing his heartbreaking story with me. Broxton and his family desperately need our help. If you have a minute today, please visit Laura's post to learn more about Broxton and his family and the different ways we can help, which include the Run for Broxton at Freestone Park in Gilbert (hope to see you there).

DIY Chevron Stripes Applique

2012-01-30T09:21:00.000-08:00

A couple of months back, my friend Kim from The TomKat Studio asked me if I could create some little chevron one pieces for a shower she was working on for a friend. I love being able to contribute to Kim's amazing projects so I was stoked to help her out with this.

I created a fun little trio to coordinate with her darling collection (available in her shop soon!) and thought I'd document the process so you all can make your own. If you've already tried some of my applique tutorials, this one will be a breeze!

What you'll need:

Blank one piece, t-shirt, tank, etc. (pre-washed for shrinkage)
Sheet of felt in the color(s) of your choice - for kids' projects, I strongly recommend eco-fi felt by Kunin. It's made from recycled bottles and holds up really well in the wash.
Heat n Bond Lite or other fusible webbing
Scissors
Sewing machine *or* embroidery floss and needle
Chevron template (available here)

Getting Started:

Since I use Heat n Bond, my instructions will follow Heat n Bond's instructions. If you are using a different fusible web, simply change out my instructions with the instructions on the package.

Print out your template and place it under your fusible webbing. Trace the pattern with a pencil. You can make the pattern as wide as you like. Since this is a small one piece, I traced the pattern twice (putting it side by side). See below:

Next you'll want to iron your chevron webbing onto your felt or fabric. For Heat n Bond, set it on the "wool" setting (NO STEAM). Iron the design onto the felt or fabric for about 3 or so seconds so it looks like this:

Carefully cut out your chevron stripes.

Take the stripes and peel off the wax paper layer from the back. Place the stripes exactly where you want them on the t-shirt with the glossy/fusible webbing side face down. Iron the appliques on to the t-shirt pressing for about 10 seconds. I like to place a scrap piece of fabric over the appliques while pressing just to be safe. Again be sure to use the wool setting with no steam. Check to be sure that the appliques are firmly adhered to the shirt.

At this point, you can either hand stitch the stripes using a basic straight stitch (great tutorial here) or you can use a sewing machine. I usually prefer to hand stitch but for this project I used my machine. If you use your machine, you'll do a running stitch about 1/8th of an inch inside the border of each chevron stripe.

Once you've finished sewing the stripes, you're finished! You can sew up a sweet trio of these for a really cute gift or make some fun little pieces for your own kiddos. The little one piece below also coordinates with the The TomKat Studio's collection coming out soon. I simply drew the design with a ruler right onto the fusible webbing and appliqued a heart on top.

I loved how these turned out so much that I decided to make some for my little guys. Oliver calls this his Charlie Brown shirt.

As always, if you get stuck or have any questions, don't hesitate to comment here or send me a message at finleyandoliver@gmail.com and be sure to check back in with The TomKat Studio soon for the debut of the shower and the new collection.

DIY Puffy Hearts {+ a mustache}

2012-01-24T11:18:00.000-08:00

When I heard that my friend Laura of Laura Winslow Photography was doing Valentine's mini sessions, I asked her if she would like me to make her some props that she could use. I'm always looking for an excuse to create something so I was stoked when she gave me an enthusiastic *yes* and requested that I do something in felt. Like I'd use anything else - I have a major love affair with felt.

Image via Laura Winslow Photography

I know Laura's style and I knew where she'd be shooting so I whipped up some fun, festive, and bright puffy hearts on a stick. I know, I know - not another (fill in the blank) on a stick. But seriously, these are pretty cute and are really easy to make. Not only do they make great photo props, but they'd also make super cute (sugar free) Valentine's with a fun little note or printable tied around it. My boys think they make great swords.

Here's what you'll need:

Scissors

Sewing Machine

Sheets of felt in the colors of your choice (One sheet of felt will make two puffy hearts)

Thin wooden dowels (available at your local hardware or craft stores)

Fiberfill

Coordinating thread

Hot glue gun

Sewing Machine
Heart template- download here

Getting Started:

Cut out the heart template.

Fold your sheet of felt in half and pin the heart template to your felt. Cut out the heart (you'll have two felt hearts).

Take the two sides of your heart and pin them together. (The two red pins at the bottom of the heart mark where I start and stop sewing with the machine).

Sew your hearts together but leave the bottom part of the heart open so that you have enough room to turn your heart.

Turn your heart inside out. You can use scissors, a chop stick, or a knitting needle to make sure it's completely pushed out in the corners.

Stuff your heart with fiberfill. You want it full but not so full that you won't be able to stitch it closed.

Take your dowel and place it in the center of the heart. Be sure it's pushed up far enough so you don't have a wobbly heart. Wobbly hearts aren't any fun.

Place a dab of hot glue inside of the heart on the dowel so that it won't slip out.

Take your embroidery floss (I use two strands for this) and thread your needle. Starting on one side of the dowel, do a simple whip stitch to close up one side of the heart. (If you're wondering what the heck a whip stitch is, click here.)

Then start on the other side of the dowel and stitch up the other side.

Voila! A puffy heart on a stick! As always, please don't hesitate to message me at finleyandoliver@gmail.com if you get stuck on something.

For the little guys who may not be into hearts, here is a template you can use to make a puffy mustache on a stick. I know that mustaches are so 2010 and I should let the trend fade away, but Finley and Oliver think they are a blast to play with and I couldn't resist. Just follow the same directions as you would for the heart but cut out the mustache instead.

Annual Garden Party for the Chickens

2012-01-24T08:30:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again when our beautiful fall/winter garden has gone to seed and we need to start preparing for our spring/summer garden. We usually keep our garden covered with netting to keep the girls out but once a year, we take the net off and let them go to town.

We salvaged what we could of the veggies and gave the girls access to the rest.

They'll have a few weeks to prepare our soil for us (by pooping and scratching) and then we'll start getting our transplants ready to plant. Because of our climate, we are able to plant our spring garden earlier than most regions.

The older hens were in the garden too but they are a bit camera shy these days.

The best part of the upcoming garden season is that we now have two of these beauties! My mom recently celebrated her 70th birthday and for her gift, my siblings all got together (along with the grand kids) and built my mom another raised bed - pretty much identical to this one. I'm considering myself very lucky that my mom lives with us and loves to spend her time outdoors with her garden. I did not inherit the green thumb that runs in our family so I am happy to reap mom's rewards.

Is anyone else making plans for their spring garden yet?

DIY Valentine's Banner

2012-01-19T12:22:00.000-08:00

I never really got into Valentine's Day until I had kids. Once I had my little guys, it was on.

This year I thought it would be fun to have little photo shoot so I could send some Valentine's cards to the family. And of course a shoot wouldn't be fun without some cool props to go along with it so I whipped up this ridiculously easy little Valentine's Banner. It took me less than 30 minutes and cost around $5.00.

What you'll need:

1/3 yard of burlap (I picked it up on sale at Joann's for $2.99 per yard)

One sheet of felt in color of your choice (I prefer eco-fi which is about $0.30)

Heat n Bond Ultra (or other fusible webbing)

Yarn or Twine (2 to 3 yards)

Tapestry Needle (or any needle with an eye big enough for yarn or twine)

Scissors

Pencil and one sheet of paper for triangle template

Ruler

**Since I use Heat n Bond, my instructions will follow Heat n Bond's instructions. If you are using a different fusible web, simply change out my instructions with the instructions on the package.

Getting Started:

Using your ruler, draw out a triangle template for your banner on the piece of paper. My triangle is 6 inches on the long sides and 4 inches on the short side. Cut it out and pin it to your burlap.

Cut out how ever many triangles you'll need from the burlap. My banner has five triangles.

Next you'll want to draw your heart on the heat & bond. You can free hand the hearts on with a pencil. I prefer to draw a heart on a piece of paper and then place it under my Heat & Bond to trace it. Doing it that way ensures that my hearts are all the same.

Next you'll want to iron your heart webbing onto your felt or fabric. For Heat n Bond, set it on the "wool" setting (NO STEAM). Iron the design onto the felt or fabric for about 3 or so seconds so it looks like this:

Cut out the hearts. They will be felt on one side and have a paper backing on the other.

Take the hearts and peel off the wax paper layer from the back. Place the hearts exactly where you want them on the triangles with the glossy/fusible webbing side face down. Iron the hearts on to the triangles pressing for about 10 seconds. Again be sure to use the wool setting with no steam. Check to be sure that the hearts are firmly adhered.

Take your yarn or twine and cut off three times the length that you want your banner to be. If you want your banner to be 3 feet wide, cut off 9 feet. Be sure to leave a long enough tail so that you will end up with enough length at each end of the banner to hang it or hold it. Thread your needle and do a simple straight stitch along the top of the burlap (leave about a half an inch clearance from the top). My stitches are about half an inch long and since my yarn matches my burlap, it is *very* forgiving.

Stitch all of your triangles on to your yarn or twine and you are finished!

Using this exact same technique, you could make a banner with other shapes or even letters. (If you do this with letters or numbers, you'll need to trace them onto your fusible webbing in reverse.)

If you get stuck or have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me (finleyandoliver@gmail.com) and I'll do my best to help.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Shattered Circus Dreams

2012-01-16T12:58:00.000-08:00

Do you all remember when my husband gave me a certificate for trapeze lessons for my birthday? Well six months later, I finally got up the courage to do it. I was scared out of my mind.

Once we arrived at Trapeze U, they got my belt on and gave me a quick rundown of what I was expected to do. Hook my knees over the bar and let go? I was the monkey bar queen in elementary school. I had this.

I got to the top and stood on what seemed like the world's tiniest platform where they clipped me in and gave me another quick rundown of what to do. (Look how high I am!).

Ready, set, go! (or "hep" as they say in trapeze speak). The following picture is terrible but I think the hilarious expression on my face says it all. Black Swan I am not.

I tried with every ounce of strength I could muster but I couldn't get my legs up and get my knees hooked over the bar. After hoofin' it up that ladder three more times and still not getting it, I was feeling super spent and super defeated.

My dear friends Laura and Jill were planning to show up and give me support (you gals rule!) but I quickly texted them both and told them to stay home. There is absolutely no way I'd want anyone to witness my lack of trapeze talent. I mean seriously - look at what a mess I was.

At this point, I was ready to quit and quietly watch the other flyers.

Coach Dylan wasn't having that. He gave me a much needed pep talk and pointed out that I was making a simple mistake. I was trying to lift my legs at the wrong moment and the momentum wasn't working to my advantage.

So...I decided to give it one last shot.

And I did it!

Taking Dylan's advice made the knee hook (or whatever the heck it's called) so much easier. There was a small crowd at the class and I could literally hear the ladies on the side breathe an audible sigh of relief followed by cheers when I got my knees hooked. I was pretty pathetic and I'm sure they felt sorry for me.

I did it a couple more times and each time I was able to get my knees up. I can't say that I did it with any style or grace but I was just stoked to finally be doing it! Towards the end of the class, they thought that I would be able to attempt another trick. (A little ambitious of them, maybe?). They explained that I would be doing the whole knee hook thing again but when I let go with my hands, I'd swing over to the other instructor and he would catch me. Seriously!?! If I can barely hook my knees how on earth am I going to pull this off?

So I climbed up to the top of the world's teeniest platform for the 10th time (I was wiped) and went for it.

I DID IT!!! I seriously did it. Such an incredible, amazing feeling. I had to sit down and take it all in.

While I'm pretty sure I'm not going to run off with the circus anytime soon, I would take more classes through Trapeze U in a heartbeat and am looking forward to signing up again soon. Dylan and the rest of the staff were amazing - they could clearly sense my fear and self defeatist attitude and gave me the encouragement and tools I needed to accomplish something I never thought I'd be able to do.

Trapeze U

888.872.7101

A splash of vermilion

2012-01-12T12:09:00.000-08:00

On a dreary winter day, it was a rare treat to spot this little vermilion flycatcher in my backyard. I saw him yesterday (but didn't have my camera on me) and had to look up what type of bird he was as I'd never seen one so striking in our area before. Fortunately, the little guy decided to come back and hunt for bugs from our compost pile this morning so I was able to get a few shots.

Ringing in 2012!

2012-01-01T08:57:00.000-08:00

We had a pretty low key NYE. We started off at the Zoppe Family Circus - a quaint, little Italian family circus that comes to Arizona each December. We went last year and decided that we would make it a yearly tradition. So incredibly fun. After the circus, we came home and had a nice dinner, lit off some fireworks, caught a few episodes of Portlandia, and hit the hay (at 10:00). Not exactly wild and crazy but completely perfect.

Happy New Year, friends! Here's wishing you all joy, peace, good health, and happiness for 2012.

From Our Flock to Yours

2011-12-22T13:13:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays!

One Little Egg...

2011-12-21T12:48:00.000-08:00

I found an egg in the coop today. An egg!! We have six chickens (only three are mature enough to lay) and haven't seen any eggs in a few months. I about flipped when I saw this baby and of course had to run inside and take a picture of it. (Crazy chicken lady, I know).

The hens all molted at the end of summer and with the shortened day light hours, they just haven't been producing. Hens generally need 12-14 hours of light to produce and lay eggs and they are only getting about 10 or so. We'll be putting a light in their coop this weekend set on a timer to turn on at 4am. Hopefully that will entice the girls to start getting back to business. It's either that or we'll be having some really good chicken dinners soon. Totally kidding.

Egg Watch 2012 will be starting soon as the newest additions will be getting ready to start laying in just a couple of months. Thank goodness - we need some eggs here, chickens!

This is new to us as our hens were in their egg laying prime last fall and barely decreased in their production. Those of you with chickens, do you notice a huge decrease in egg production during winter/fall? If so, do you let the girls rest or supplement with light? Would love to hear your experiences and how you handle things.

Renegade Road Trip

2011-12-07T13:22:00.001-08:00

My friend Erica (of Parkside Harmony) and I are hitting the road bright and early on Friday for the Renegade LA Holiday Craft Fair.

(image source)

From the Renegade folks: The 2nd Annual Renegade Craft Fair Holiday Market in Los Angeles returns to Los Angeles State Park on December 10 + 11, from 10am – 5pm, to supply all your handmade holiday shopping needs! Always free-to-attend and featuring over 200 artists, shoppers are sure to find something for everybody on their lists or can craft a special gift themselves at one of our terrific hands-on crafting workshops! A handful of LA’s best independent food trucks will be on site serving up delicious dishes and our bar will have many holiday libations!

At the Renegade Craft Fair you can expect to find only the best indie-craft and DIY artisans! Featuring both local and national talent, shoppers can anticipate a vast arrayof independently designed jewelry, clothing, paper goods, home + garden goods, posters, artwork, plush objects, bath + body products, and so much more!!

I'll be working at the Parkside Harmony booth with Erica. Stop by, say "hi," pick up some of her gorgeous handmade books - they make the perfect gift!

Full list of vendors here

Little Snowy Getaway

2011-12-06T09:16:00.001-08:00

We took the boys up to Prescott this past weekend so they could have some fun in the snow. The timing was perfect as a storm rolled in just before we got in to town. I'm not sure why we haven't taken them before - it only took us an hour and a half to get there.

The second we checked in to the hotel the boys were begging to go outside and throw snowballs. I don't like being cold and having snowballs hurled at my head so I volunteered to take pictures (no throwing snowballs at the person with the camera).

Finley was so stoked to be in the snow. He had this excited little grin on his face the. entire. time.

Unfortunately, Oliver came down with a fever shortly after we arrived so he spent all afternoon in Jason's arms.

He perked up the next morning.

And managed to tag Jason with a snowball.

Jason tagged him right back and Oliver was not a happy camper.

The sun was shining and the snow was melting fast so we went back to the town square to try and scrape together some little snowmen.

Clearly we are not experienced snowmen builders.

It was a quick trip but we had a blast (despite the fact that I am a cold weather idiot and had the kids in their Vans and Converse the entire time. I'm lucky they still have their toes. ;)

Slowly but Surely...

2011-12-05T07:45:00.001-08:00

it's beginning to look a *bit* like Christmas. I have been sick the past two weeks (boo!) and am super behind on my holiday preparations but I have managed to whip out some new Christmas decor to give the house a festive feel.

I had a million grand ideas for a new advent calendar this year. On November 30th and nothing done, I ran to Target to buy one. Oh my - so ugly and overpriced. Ran back home, busted out my felt stash and an old bulletin board I had laying around to create this one. Inside each little stocking are two treats for the boys and a Christmas related activity to do for each day. It has been a blast so far and the boys love to peek inside each morning to see what we get to do.

Do you see these adorable trees?!?! I found them on the Anthropologie website (pictured on left) and pinned them a few weeks ago. However, we are really cutting back this year and they are totally out of my budget. Bless my sweet mom for figuring out how to make something similar and helping me with them! I think they turned out great and cost us just $17 to make six of them.

Speaking of my awesome mom, she put together these little *globes* from some trees, mason jars, and salt. Love them.

Again, keeping the budget in mind I made this little peace banner for the fireplace out of linen and some leftover felt. It cost me a a few dollars and I love it.

Since we used mellow neutrals to decorate the family room, I figured the boys needed new stockings to match. These are nothing fancy and I was able to use fabric and felt that I had on hand.

(Please ignore the ugly black TV). We kept the decor simple and understated this year but I really like it.

And of course it wouldn't be the holidays without our cheeky little elf, Cooper. This is Cooper's third year with us but thanks to Pinterest and some creative bloggers, Cooper is far more clever than before.

Although I'm feeling frazzled and behind, my little guys are enjoying every bit of this joyous season. I hope you are too!

(I'm a little too scattered to come up with proper tutorials on these right now but if you have any questions as to how I made anything, please message me at finleyandoliver@gmail.com - I'd love to help.)

Frances & Smeeks Crafeteria

2011-11-28T11:44:00.001-08:00

It's almost here!! The best indie craft show in the valley, Crafeteria, is this Friday, December 2nd starting at 6pm. I have attended and sold at numerous craft shows/boutiques and this my absolute favorite. Crazy talented vendors, live music, super fun crowd, and an overall awesome vibe.

Sadly, I won't be able to attend this year. I am seeing Iron and Wine with Marketa Irglova at the Crescent Ballroom. (It's okay to be jealous - I would be too). Just because I have to miss out doesn't mean you have to. Bust out your Christmas list and plan on some picking up some unique, handmade gifts for friends and family. What better way is there to support small business and our amazing local talent?

Our Yearly Photos...

2011-11-21T08:04:00.001-08:00

We had our annual family shoot last month with my dear friend Laura of Laura Winslow Photography and it was a blast! Many of you are familiar with her incredible work but if you haven't had the chance to meet her in person, I have to tell you that she absolutely rules. We met a few years back and became fast friends. She is one of the most genuine, loyal, and selfless women I've ever met.

I received the photos a few days ago and was blown away. As usual, Laura absolutely nailed it. Here are some of my favorites that we will definitely treasure for years to come.

Speaking of Laura, she is hosting an amazing giveaway valued at over $10,000 (!!!) on her blog starting today. Crazy awesome. Pop on over to check it out.

Laura Winslow Photography

Website

Blog

Facebook

Arizona Balloon Classic

2011-11-20T09:46:00.001-08:00

We spent the better part of the weekend at the inaugural Arizona Balloon Classic and it was amazing!

My nephew and I arrived early Saturday morning armed with our cameras hoping to get up close and get some fun shots. We weren't disappointed.

My nephew and I had so much fun that I decided to drag Jason and the boys out of bed at the crack of dawn and do it all over again on Sunday morning. Totally worth it.

Definitely a new yearly tradition for us.

Update: I just got back from dropping Finley off at school and heard that his teacher and several of my mom friends were angry at how this event was pulled off - like letter writing and phone call angry. They all went on Saturday night, and like the commenter below, were super disappointed at the lack of fulfilled promises from the Arizona Balloon Classic website. They had to wait in crazy long lines just to see five balloons. Their facebook page reflects the same feedback from those who went on Saturday night. Although there were definitely some glitches (which I expect from a first year event), we had the opposite experience by going early in the morning. Hopefully, the ABC folks will take a serious listen to the feedback so they can improve and make this a more successful event for *all* attendees next year.

Update on the New Girls

2011-11-18T08:23:00.001-08:00

I have some sad news. We lost one of the new chickens a couple weeks ago. Lottie (the buff orpington) got underneath the fence and into the front yard. Our neighbor's dog spotted her, ran over, and killed her. I was devastated and our poor neighbor felt terrible. Ultimately, it was my fault for not securing the fence better (which has since been rectified by Jason).

The other chicks are doing great. They are now free ranging during the day with the bigger girls and for the most part, they all get along nicely. Flo continues to be a bit of a bully but they know to steer clear of her. Anytime she comes within 10 feet of them, they panic and run away.

Francie, our naked neck, is still awkward looking but in the cutest way possible, right? (I don't want to give her a complex.)

The big girls love the chick feed and are forever trying to figure out a way to get into the pullets' coop. We use a plastic boat to prop the door open just enough for the little ones to fit in and keep the others out. Speaking of the coop, this crazy old coop we bought is such a nightmare - I spend at least 30 minutes a day trying to help the doves get out of it. And I'll be honest, the doves scare the hell out of me when they're flying around in a mad panic and going straight for my hair and face. When the girls are bigger and on layer feed with the rest of the chickens, we will move them into the big coop and use this coop for new chickens.

Lucy has just finished molting and loves to show off her bright white tail feathers. She was looking super ragged so we are happy that she's back to her lovely self.

Our fall/winter garden is amazing this year!! There is nothing better than fresh produce straight from the garden (and this is coming from a girl who is not a huge fan of veggies). A bonus is that we've managed to keep all chickens and dogs out of the garden so far.

With the gorgeous weather we've been having in the desert, we've been spending a ton of time outdoors. I love this little moment that I captured between Finley and sock monkey...

and Oliver, piggy, and his "old lady."

Enjoy the weekend!

Quick Weekend Getaway

2011-11-11T16:07:00.001-08:00

We took a quick trip to Southern California this past weekend for a wedding in San Diego. Since we were so close, we decided to surprise the boys with a trip to LEGOLAND. I wasn't all that impressed with the place (aside from Mini Land) but the boys were in heaven and their reactions to everything were priceless.

After that, we headed to San Pedro. My parents lived in San Pedro for several years before they moved to Arizona (we lived there for a short time too) and I absolutely adore it. Nothing like watching the sun rise over the Port of Los Angeles to start your morning.

Our hotel room looked out directly over the port. I thought the boys would have loved it but they were too busy checking out their Lego loot.

Finley had me take a zillion pictures of his Legos but I'll spare you with just these.

I did manage to break them away from the toys for some adventuring around the marina.

Between the wedding, LEGOLAND, and some business in the South Bay, it was a whirlwind of a trip but it was nice to go back "home" and get my ocean fix for a while.

Homespun Craft Fair at Art Intersection

2011-11-01T20:19:00.000-07:00

The holiday boutique/craft fair season unofficially launches this weekend and there is no shortage of great events here in the metro Phoenix area. If you're like me and find yourself gravitating towards unique handmade gifts, you won't want to miss out on the Homespun Craft Fair at Art Intersection in downtown Gilbert this Saturday, November 5th from 10am - 4pm.

This is not your grandma's craft fair. Art Intersection is supporting local handmade DIY endeavors by opening up their gallery for a one-day event at their first annual craft fair. Get a head start on gift shopping for friends and family by supporting some of the amazing local artisans that Arizona has to offer including Parkside Harmony, Hazel & Violet INK, Lurly, and Against the Grain (to name just a few).

If you haven't already had a chance to stop by and check out Art Intersection, this is the perfect excuse. Having opened this last year, Art Intersection provides a space for learning, creating, and exhibiting photographic art. They are committed to providing the photographic community with a place to meet and grow while embracing the intersection of related art forms. Cool, right? Come by, check it out, shop local, support handmade.

Dem' Bones

2011-10-23T22:56:00.000-07:00

The boys decided they wanted to be skeletons this year. I figured it would be easy enough but let me tell you, these costumes were a serious labor of love. I decided I'd hand stitch each of the bones to give them more character and it took forever. The boys could care less about this detail but I think it was definitely worth it.

Our New {old} Coop

2011-10-13T07:26:00.000-07:00

We've been going back and forth trying to decide whether to build a new coop for the chicks or to put together something smaller and temporary until they are old enough to move in with the big girls. I figure the lumber and time alone would get a little pricey so I scoured Craigslist last weekend and found what we thought was a pretty cool coop at a steal of a price. We could tell by the picture that it was a pretty wonky coop but we loved the character.

Once we got it home and had a closer look, I could tell that we overpaid for this coop. It was literally staple gunned together! A strong gust of wind would have taken this thing down. Lucky for me I have a very handy husband who was able to give it a little TLC.

It's a lot smaller than our existing coop so it fits nicely in the chicken yard. Once we got it to a state where we felt it was livable, we moved the chicks out and they have been in heaven ever since. The coop has three levels, four levels, and all kinds of little ramps up and down for them to run across. It reminds me of a dollhouse (I'm not sure how functional it will be for full grown hens though).

The boys literally spend hours each day sitting next to the coop and watching the chicks.

The older hens didn't notice the new girls at first but once they finally did, they've been keeping a close eye on them.

We will keep them in their new coop until they are big enough to meet the older girls. At that time, they'll be able to free range during the day and go in to roost at night. Until then, they seem perfectly content in their new, if a little awkward, digs.

DIY Appliqued Ghost Tee

2011-10-05T13:36:00.000-07:00

Photo courtesy of Laura Winslow Photography

With Halloween just around the corner, I thought I'd share my super easy tutorial to make an appliqued ghost t-shirt (or sweatshirt). This tee was a huge hit when I sold it in my shop.

My design aesthetic is really simple and clean so my designs are never complicated or fussy. If you prefer, you can just as easily draw out your own ghost or other Halloween character and follow the same instructions. If this is your first time appliqueing, this project will take you about an hour. (If you are familiar with my applique tutorials, the instructions are the same so you can just grab the template and run with it.)

You'll need the following:

blank t-shirt, one piece, or tank

felt or fabric piece for the applique (I prefer to use eco-fi felt)

embroidery floss

scissors (small scissors with a pointy tip work best)

fusible webbing (I prefer to use heat 'n bond)

template for the applique (download here)

Since I use Heat n Bond, my instructions will follow Heat n Bond's instructions. If you are using a different fusible web, simply change out my instructions with the instructions on the package. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me and I can help you.

The first thing you'll want to do is take your ghost template and place it under a sheet of your fusible webbing. Take your pencil and trace the ghost on to the webbing so it looks something like this:

Next you'll want to iron your "ghost" webbing onto your felt or fabric. For Heat n Bond, set it on the "wool" setting (NO STEAM). Iron the design onto the felt or fabric for about 3 or so seconds so it looks like this:

Carefully cut the applique out. Small scissors with a pointy tip work best.

Take the applique and peel off the wax paper layer from the back. Place the applique exactly where you want it on the t-shirt with the glossy/fusible webbing side face down. Iron the applique on to the t-shirt pressing for about 10 seconds. Again be sure to use the wool setting with no steam. Check to be sure that the applique is firmly adhered to the shirt.

Now that your ghost is attached to the t-shirt, you're ready to start the applique process. You can do this with a machine or by hand. I'm a hand stitcher - I find it very relaxing and therapeutic. To stitch by hand, cut about 3-4 feet of your black embroidery thread. Your skein of thread will have six strands. Separate two of the strands from the piece you've cut and thread them through your needle.

For the ghost, I use a straight stitch. It's a basic stitch and great for a beginner. You basically bring the needle up through the t-shirt and back down making straight little stitches about a 2 cm in from the edge of your applique.

Once you've finished with the stitching, you're done! You can take these same principles and make a ton of other spooky creations - ghosts, bats, witches, etc.

If you give this a shot, I'd love to see the results! Please take a picture and email me at finleyandoliver@gmail.com. And again, if any of you get stuck, please don't hesitate to email me for help.

A Little Camera Practice

2011-10-04T09:32:00.000-07:00

My sweet niece who is expecting a baby girl this month with her husband (yes, I am that old) was kind enough to let me practice taking some pictures of her and her gorgeous bump. It's been a pretty hot summer so I haven't had too many chances to get outside and practice the skills I learned at this photography workshop until now. I've got a long way to go but am having a blast with my new hobby and was thrilled to spend a late afternoon taking pictures of some of my favorite people. Thank you Brittney & Jeff for letting me play.

We can't wait to meet and love on the newest baby girl in the family!

Week 3 With the Chicks

2011-09-29T10:42:00.000-07:00

The chicks are three weeks old now and are starting to enter the awkward phase. They are quickly losing their fuzz and feathering out. Although they are still a ton of fun, they are getting louder and smellier and I'm anxious to move them outside in a couple of weeks.

Minnie

Lottie

And Francie.

And speaking of chickens...Phoenix area locals who raise chickens, are interested in raising chickens, or just like to chat with fun and friendly folks, mark your calendars! This year's Phoenix Tour de Coops is going to be held on December 3rd.

Keep an eye on the Valley Permaculture Alliance website for more information.

DIY Appliqued Love Tee

2011-09-19T11:27:00.000-07:00

One of my most popular Finley and Oliver tees was my little love tee. I'm making a love one piece for a friend's baby and thought I'd document the process and turn it into a tutorial.

With a little practice and patience, making this little one piece (or tee or tank, etc.) is super easy. It makes a precious gift or cute little piece of clothing for your kiddos. If this is your first time appliqueing, this project will take you about an hour.

You'll need the following:

blank t-shirt, one piece, or tank

felt or fabric piece for the applique (I prefer to use eco-fi felt by Kunin - it holds up great in the wash)

embroidery floss

scissors (small scissors with a pointy tip work best)

fusible webbing (I prefer to use heat 'n bond)

template for the applique (download here)

(The template is backwards because the image will be reversed once you've put your applique together. This is important to remember any time you are appliqueing numbers and letters - not so much when you're appliqueing other things.)

The first thing you'll want to do is take your love template and place it under a sheet of your fusible webbing. Take your pencil and trace love on to the webbing so it looks something like this:

Next you'll want to iron your "love" webbing onto your felt or fabric. For Heat n Bond, set it on the "wool" setting (NO STEAM). Iron the design onto the felt or fabric for about 3 or so seconds so it looks like this:

Carefully cut the applique out. This applique is a bit detailed so having small, pointy tip scissors will come in handy here.

Take the applique and peel off the wax paper layer from the back.

Place the applique exactly where you want it on the t-shirt with the glossy/fusible webbing side face down. Iron the applique on to the t-shirt pressing for about 10 seconds. Again be sure to use the wool setting with no steam. Check to be sure that the applique is firmly adhered to the shirt.

Now that your love is attached to the t-shirt, you're ready to start the applique process. You can do this with a machine or by hand. I'm a hand stitcher - I find it very relaxing and therapeutic. To stitch by hand, cut about 3-4 feet of your embroidery thread. Your skein of thread will have six strands. Separate two of the strands from the piece you've cut and thread them through your needle.

Once you've finished stitching, you are done! Super easy, right?? Sky is the limit now! You can take these same principles and try out different fonts, words, animals, etc.

Jonas & Treat Photography

If you give this a shot, I'd love to see the results! Please take a picture and email me at finleyandoliver@gmail.com. And again, if any of you get stuck, please don't hesitate to email me for help.

Baby Chicks - Day 2

2011-09-08T13:28:00.000-07:00

The chicks survived their first day with us and are fitting in nicely. Aside from a little pasting up for Francie (poor thing was traumatized when I cleaned her up), things have been smooth. Since they will start feathering and going through an awkward phase in just a couple of days, Oliver and I had a little photo shoot with them while they are still fluffy and adorable.

So incredibly cute! Aren't they?

Francie is still my favorite. She is the friendliest (so far) and I absolutely love her little neck. Finley likes her too but he's afraid to hold her because of her feathers (or lack thereof). ;)

The chicks have arrived!

2011-09-07T15:31:00.000-07:00

I got a call early this morning from the post office that a box had arrived for me that was marked "live animals" and was making noises. Oliver and I high tailed it over to pick our special delivery up. The chicks came all the way to Arizona from Connecticut (1 day express) which seems like a pretty hefty trip for these tiny things. Because of this, I'm always a little apprehensive opening the box in case one or more didn't make it. Fortunately, the box was very loud and I could feel the girls moving around inside.

We carefully opened the box and found our newest little pets all snuggly and sweet inside.

Meet Lottie the buff orpington

And Cookie the black australorp

And Minnie the silver laced wyandotte (Can you tell Finley named this one? Although I'm sure I don't spell it the way he'd want me to)

And my personal favorite...Francie the naked neck.

Once we got the girls unpacked, we carefully placed them into the brooder which will be their home until they are fully feathered (around 6 or 7 weeks) and ready to move outside.

They immediately dove into their food and water and filled their little bellies until they could hardly stand up. These girls are pooped out! Francie (the naked neck) could hardly hold her head up she was so exhausted.

The girls have a heat lamp in their brooder (which is why the photos have a red tinge) that will keep them at a warm 95 degrees for their first week. They all huddled together and had a nice, well deserved snooze. Again, poor Francie is face down in the pine shavings.

So far, they seem to be adjusting really well. They are well protected under the watchful eye of Sodapop. She won't get her first (supervised) face to face meeting with them until they are older and bigger. She's great friends with the big girls but these little ones might be a bit too tempting.

We are excited to have little chickies around again. I forgot how cute and tiny they are! My next task is to do some more research and come up with a plan of action for introducing them to the existing flock when the time comes. That part makes me really nervous... if anyone has any experience with that, I'd love some tips.

Unofficial Chick Week

2011-09-06T11:17:00.000-07:00

We are celebrating chick week at our house. Our newest girls should be hatching sometime today or tomorrow and will arrive all bundled up in the mail on Thursday or Friday. We've spent the past few days getting the brooder and all of the supplies ready for them.

In honor of their upcoming arrival, I'm sharing my latest and greatest pins from my Fowl Friends board on Pinterest.

fresh eggs sign (I'm definitely getting this!) by William Dohman

brown eggs photo via hindolbettern

basket of eggs and wellies via meggielynne

chicken and bunting via dottie angel

Will update with pictures when the newest flock members arrive.

Dobbs Ferry Cowl

2011-08-30T10:04:00.000-07:00

What does one do when it's 115+ degrees out? Hunker down inside and knit cowls that you can't wear for several months because it's so blasting hot. At least that's what I do. Since I'm not busy stitching up little tees anymore, I decided to break out the knitting needles and work on some fun little projects. Starting with this {free} pattern by Lion Brand :

Admittedly, I'm a little late on the cowl train. Because I'm obsessed with all things "sweatery" (you should see my closet - doesn't work well for a desert dweller) and because I have a winter trip to London scheduled with my BFF, I decided to give this a try.

My mom taught me to knit when I was a little girl but because I've always got my hands in a thousand other projects, I've never advanced past that beginner stage. Now that I've taken a break from my little business, I decided to bust out the needles again. This cowl took me just a few hours to make and it was so easy. If I can do it, anyone can.

Because the pattern calls for three strands of chunky yarn knit together, it is rather heavy and bulky. I like it though. It creates some nice warmth and of course some added flair to a basic outfit.

I'm a little proud of how it turned out (please excuse the dorky pictures). Since I have a ton of this yarn left, I'm currently working on this cowl (longer and lighter). I'll let you know how it turns out.

PS - baby chicks arrive next week!! Stay tuned...

Back to School

2011-08-18T10:57:00.000-07:00

Both boys are back in school now. Finley started pre-K last week and Oliver started preschool today. It's really bittersweet for me. They are growing up so fast - it breaks my heart.

I'm not going to lie though, it's very nice to have a little time to myself and the boys *really* need the break from each other. When Finley started school last week, they immediately started to get along better and my sanity was somewhat restored. We'll see how long that lasts ;)

Have your kids started back to school yet?

(Oliver's super cool little airplane shirt is from Lil Blue Boo)

Super Simple Play Dough

2011-08-17T11:30:00.000-07:00

Although play dough recipes have been around forever, I recently discovered how easy it is to make and am constantly whipping up new batches in cool colors for the boys. Just in case you live under a rock like I do and don't know how easy it is, I thought I'd share the recipe.

1 cup white flour
1/2 cup salt
2 tablespoons cream of tartar
1 tablespoon oil
1 cup water
food coloring

Put the first four ingredients in a sauce pan (it's good to have a cute little helper for this part). Add the water and mix well. Add your food coloring and mix. Place the saucepan on the stove over medium heat. Stir for 3-5 minutes until the play dough forms a clump. I know it's done when there are no wet/shiny spots left on the dough. Set it on the counter to cool. Once it's cooled enough to handle it, knead it for a minute or so until it's nice and smooth. (I usually make up two pans of at a time so we can have two different colors). You can store the play dough in ziploc bags or tupperware.

Voila! At least a good hour of entertainment for your kiddos! (You're welcome).

Clearly, Oliver *really* gets into the play dough.

Wildflowers Photography Workshop for Parents

2011-08-08T20:20:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I had the pleasure of taking a beginning photography workshop for parents by Joy of Wildflowers Photography. I somehow stumbled upon Joy's website a few months back and literally spent hours pouring over her blog posts. Her photos are absolutely unbelievable - they are so rich and full of stories and emotions.

Joy happens to live in the town that I grew up in so I left the boys at home with my husband and made the drive out to California.

{These are some of the photos I took at the workshop}

If you want to know how to get into manual mode on your camera and you happen to live in Southern California, you should jump at the chance to attend if she offers this workshop again. I've been shooting in manual mode since I got the camera but I learned so many things that I need to work on.

For part of the workshop, we went into Joy's backyard where she has a zillion little areas that I'm sure are a photographer's dream. There were about 20 of us crammed in and shooting in this little corner of her backyard but the set up was so fun. Joy and her husband were on hand the entire time to help us with exposure issues and answer questions.

As if the day weren't perfect enough, they had baby chicks on hand for us to photograph! Perfect practice for our new little girls coming in a few weeks. The darling little models were so fun to watch with the chicks and they handled them remarkably well.

Clearly, I have a lot of work to do but this workshop gave me fabulous tools to help me get started as well as loads of inspiration and an important reminder as to why I want to document the special, fleeting moments in Finley and Oliver's lives.

If you have a chance, be sure to check out Wildflowers Photography. Give yourself plenty of time... you'll thank me, I promise.

Hanging up my Needle and Thread

2011-08-03T13:41:00.000-07:00

I am hanging up my needle and thread and putting out the "closed" sign on my Finley and Oliver shop. It's been an amazing few years but it's time for me to move on. As my boys are getting older and business is growing, I'm finding that the struggle for balance is becoming too overwhelming.

This was a tough decision but I'm looking forward to creating for creativity's sake and spending more time around the house and garden (stay tuned for details on an upcoming bee hive and hopefully a pair of goats!). I will be more active here on the blog and am looking forward to sharing some fun tutorials and even some of my original designs (Mr. Cupcake, anyone?).

Print by Sarah Abbott

A HUGE and heartfelt thank you to all of my wonderful customers. Your support, encouragement, and loyalty has been extraordinary and I am honored to have your kiddos sporting my little tees.

In the meantime, everything in the shop is marked way down and ready to ship. Once it's gone it's gone. (I also have a pretty big inventory of American Apparel blanks that I'm willing to sell below wholesale pricing. If anyone is interested in them, email me at finleyandoliver@gmail.com and I can send you a list of my inventory).

Coop Envy

2011-08-01T15:19:00.000-07:00

I have a major case of coop envy. Don't get me wrong. Our current coop is great. It's got plenty of space and is more than adequate to keep the girls happy. However, I've been doing a bit of chicken coop window shopping online and am absolutely blown away at some of the designs out there. If money were no object and I could have the coop of my dreams (I mean my chickens' dreams), I'd probably choose one of these...

I am completely in love with this roof top garden chicken coop by Kippen House. Not only is the design modern and fresh, the coop is completely functional and has several features that I wish we had incorporated into the coop we built.

Next up we have the Nogg chicken coop. Don't be fooled - it looks tiny but can house 2-4 chickens quite comfortably. I love the beautiful (and slightly humorous), clean design of this.

The Breed Retreat by Frederik Roije absolutely blows me away. Seriously? If my chickens lived in a coop like this, they'd have to make room for me because I'd be moving in.

And how cool is this coop designed by Mitchell Snyder and Shelley Martin? I adore everything about it. The modern design, cool colors, and roof top garden.

A chicken can dream, right?

New chickens coming soon!

2011-07-28T15:07:00.000-07:00

You might remember that we had to cancel our order for new chicks last spring due to a poor hatch rate. We were planning to wait until next spring to order again but we changed our minds. 2 of our 3 chickens have started molting which means they won't be laying eggs for quite some time. Having only 1 chicken laying has us itching to get our hands on some more girls.

I spent most of yesterday afternoon researching and ultimately choosing our four newest flock members that will arrive in early September. I had been hoping to get some ornamental breeds but our need for more eggs and dependable layers won out.

I'm not really sure how Lucy, Effie, and Flo will feel about their news friends and honestly, I'm pretty nervous about the introductions. I've been doing a lot of research on introducing new flock members so hopefully things will go as smoothly as possible.

Free ranging chickens don't have a very strong pecking order in general and that is true of our sweet girls. However, I'm not sure what they'll think of their new friend, the Turken (otherwise known as the Naked Neck).

Image source

Look at that chicken!! This is the only chicken I ordered that isn't a regular layer (they average about 2 eggs a week) but I couldn't resist. I don't know what color ours will be but I'm hoping for a white one like this. The other three chickens we ordered are an Australorp, a Buff Orpington, and a Silver Laced Wyandotte. All four of these breeds are readily available so I'm not worried about a poor hatch rate this time.

We've got a few weeks to get ready for the new little chicks (crossing fingers they are all females) and I'm lucky I have a little farmer who is eager to help me out. He's even suggested some names for them: Jabba the Hut, Cad Bain, Storm trooper, and General Grievous. (Umm...yeah, no.)

The Trapeze Swinger

2011-07-20T11:33:00.000-07:00

Image source

Today is my 35th birthday. I don't usually draw attention to it but I had to share with you guys the super random and very cool present that my husband gave me.

Trapeze lessons. True story.

(I promise a write up complete with ridiculous pictures once I take the lessons. Absolutely can't wait!)

Our Nothern Arizona Getaway

2011-07-18T18:14:00.000-07:00

My sister in law's family has several cabins up in Williams, AZ and each summer they are gracious enough to let my family use them. We've gone up there for the past several years and it is always a blast (not to mention a relief from the crazy summer temps here in Phoenix) - this year was no exception.

We had a fabulous time getting away from it all spending time together.

The kids had an amazing time with their cousins.

And even managed to squeeze in some good wrestling matches.

We went to the Deer Farm and became fast friends with the animals there. The deer freaked Oliver out last year but this time, he couldn't get enough of them. He kept walking next to them with his arm around their neck as if they were old buddies.

We had fun exploring and spotting the wild life.

We went and checked out the trains at the Grand Canyon Rail Station. I love this place. The Grand Canyon Rail Station is a major draw for the little town of Williams and draws visitors from all over the world each summer. My favorite thing to do is walk around town and try to figure out how many different languages I can hear. So fun.

We even managed to lose power (blown transformer) and run out of water (for a day and a half!). Fortunately, we were in good company and didn't mind the minor inconveniences all that much. (HUGE shout out to my sister and her husband who rented a room at Motel 6 just so we could all go and take showers there ;)

Hope you are all enjoying your summer too! I can't believe how fast it's flying by (the boys go back to school in just a few weeks!).

Give.A.Way. for a Safe House

2011-07-17T11:31:00.000-07:00

I am excited to share with you about an amazing opportunity. An opportunity to donate to an incredible organization and an opportunity to win some incredible loot!!

My friend Sarah from Ground Swell has put together a giveaway to benefit Feeding the Orphans. Feeding the Orphans is an organization started by a young girl and her family to help raise funds for orphans in Ghana and Togo. They are currently seeking to raise enough funds to build a safe house for Ghanian children rescued from the fishing slave trade. You can read more about their efforts here.

This is where you come in. For a $20 donation, you have the opportunity to win an AMAZING prize package valued at over $1500. In addition, you will know that your donation will make an incredible impact on children who so desperately need it.

To enter and read more about the Give.A.Way, please visit Ground Swell. A HUGE thanks to those of you who donate and spread the word.

Cave Springs Camping

2011-07-08T15:42:00.000-07:00

We took the boys camping up north last weekend. We went to a beautiful campground just north of Sedona along side Oak Creek called Cave Springs. It was the first time we've taken the boys camping and they did great. As you can see in the following pictures, they especially loved the dirt.

Tomorrow we're heading up to Williams, AZ for our annual family trip. I am so looking forward to getting up in the woods and escaping the heat. After 110+ degree weather, it was exciting to be able to pack my jeans and hoodies!

The Great Haboob

2011-07-06T12:29:00.000-07:00

I was working in the office last night when my husband told me to come out in the backyard. This is what I saw.

Dust storms, technically known as haboobs (no joke), are pretty common during the monsoon season in Arizona but I've never seen anything like this one.

This dust cloud which has been estimated to be 3000 feet tall and 60-100 miles wide was barreling straight towards the metro Phoenix area. It was incredible to watch.

Once we secured things in the backyard (including the chickens), we went inside to hunker down and watch from the windows. We don't get very exciting weather in Arizona so when it's this dramatic, it's pretty exciting for us.

About 2 minutes after I took the picture above, everything went pitch black. Literally. It went from being light outside to being completely and totally black out - zero light and zero visibility. Strangest thing ever. And a bit freaky.

This video shows an amazing progression of the haboob swallowing up downtown Phoenix. Check it out - it's incredible.

Aside from a major layer of dirt everywhere and a torn shade cloth on the garden, we are fine if not a little dusty.

Our New Digs

2011-06-29T19:43:00.000-07:00

Without fail, the second the mercury reaches 115 degrees here in Phoenix, our air conditioner craps out. This has happened to us the past three years in a row. A/C repair guys are in high demand and the soonest one can get to our house is this upcoming Friday morning. Fortunately for us, we have a separate air conditioner for our living room and dining room so for the past two days, we have been camping out on the other side of the house.

We set up sleeping bags for the boys underneath the dining room table and they are in heaven. Jason and I set up our bed in the adjoining living room. We do not think this little adventure is nearly as fun as they do.

Oliver has been busy entertaining us with his singing. The kid is obsessed with Adele and sings songs from her "21" album all. day. long. We noticed him singing like this (below) in the backseat of the car last week. We thought he was falling asleep so we kept bugging him to stay awake. He finally replied, "this is how Adele sings." True story.

My sweet mom took the kids out to Bass Pro Shops today to get them out of the house and out of our hair. She bought them some goodies which have entertained them for most of the afternoon. Let's just hope they are still entertained by these toys when Friday rolls around.

Crossing our fingers that it is an easy fix and that the repair guy doesn't need to order out some part that will take another few days to get here. Five days of sharing a small space with these guys 24/7 is more than enough for me.

Good thing they're cute.

Enjoying the Fruits

2011-06-27T07:20:00.000-07:00

My mom has been a canning machine (never wants to see even a single piece of fruit go to waste) and we have been enjoying the fruits of her labor. She has spent the last two months canning peaches, plums, and now apples. We've got enough jams, butters, and sauces to carry us through to the next fruit season and them some.

The chickens have been enjoying the fruits too...

Keeping the Chickens Cool

2011-06-20T06:00:00.000-07:00

One of my readers who raises chickens and also lives in the metro Phoenix area, asked if I could write up a blog post about my chicken coop set up and how we keep our chickens cool. We are well into the triple digit temps here and will be until October or November so the timing of this post is perfect. This is only our second summer with chickens but I have learned a lot about keeping chickens comfortable in the summer heat. You might remember reading that we lost dear Ramona last summer so we're taking even more precautions this time around.

We have three areas of focus in keeping our girls cool: plenty of shade, ventilation, and fresh water at all times. Our coop is set up under three giant shade trees so the coop is never in direct sunlight at any time of the day. Although the chickens free range, their "chicken yard" also has plenty of shade should they choose to hang out there. If you are thinking of keeping chickens yourself and live in a hot climate, it's a good idea to ensure that the coop area will be well shaded during the warmer months.

Our coop was made out of a shed. When we built it, we left off one side and put up chicken wire (as you can see from the first picture). We also built a screen door out of chicken wire as well so that the coop has plenty of ventilation. Even with the ventilation, it still gets crazy hot and stuffy in there during the summer so my husband ran electrical and installed a fan in the coop. It's set on a timer and will run from about 11am to 3am. This should really get the air moving and keep the girls comfortable when they're laying during the day or coming in to roost at night.

We also make sure that girls have plenty of fresh, cool water at all times. We have three sources available to them - in the coop, in the chicken yard, and on the back porch where they like to hang out (and stare at us through the sliding glass doors - which is totally odd). I was told that when it's hot, chickens won't walk through direct, bright sunlight to get to their water source so it's important to have a few sources available to them.

One of the best chicken investments we ever made was this 8 or so dollars portable mister from the local hardware store. It hooks right up to the hose in the chicken yard next to the coop. Whenever it's 100+ degrees, we turn the mister on in the morning and shut it off at night when they go in to roost. The second I turn it on every morning, the girls run over and sit under it. They spend the majority of their day there. If you live in a hot climate, I highly recommend getting one of these suckers.

A recent email that I received from the Valley Permaculture Alliance suggested setting out shallow dishes (terra cotta pot saucers work great) and filling them with a couple of inches of water for the chickens to stand in on those insanely hot days. I definitely plan to give this a try. If you have any tips or tricks that you all use to keep your chickens cool, please share them with me. I'm not a big fan of fried chicken and want to keep the girls as comfortable as possible this summer.

ETA 7/18/11: Since I wrote this post I have discovered a couple of other ways to keep the girls cool that are very helpful. We have been trying the frozen water bottle in a plant saucer trick that I mentioned above and it's been great. Occasionally the girls will stand in the water but more often than not, they drink from it and the water is always fresh and cold for them. They love it.

Another thing we've done is to make veggie pops. We have an abundance of veggies in our garden and always have a bit extra to share with the girls. We chop them up (usually cucumbers) and put them in a large tupperware container and then add water. We freeze these overnight and put one out for the girls during the hottest part of the day. They will spend a good chunk of time pecking at the ice block to get the veggies out.

Fowl Friends on Pinterest

2011-06-13T20:13:00.000-07:00

I held out from Pinterest for as long as I possibly could. I figured it would either be a total bore or wildly addictive - neither option sounded good. However, I caved and requested an invite from a friend. I.am.hooked. Talk about loads of eye candy and inspiration. Where else could I collect all of my favorite chicken ideas, photos, and finds in one place to share with you all? ;)

Beautiful polish via dailysquee.com

via thefancyfarmgirl.com (check out the rest of the pictures of the coop on her blog - unreal!)

You can see my pin boards here (including Fowl Friends). If you have no clue what I'm talking about and what Pinterest is, check it out. It is definitely worth while (especially for blogging). If you need an invite, leave your email address in the comments and I'll be happy to send you one. You can thank me later.

Summer 2011 Collection

2011-06-07T21:27:00.000-07:00

We had our highly anticipated photo shoot a week ago with Laura Winslow for my collaboration with Noah and Lilah. Holy smokes! The shoot was amazing. Our little models had the best time and did such a remarkable job. Here's a little sneak peek for you.

A huge thank you to Laura for the amazing photos and to Sherri of Noah and Lilah for working on this collection with me. It has been a blast and her work and craftsmanship are truly impeccable. (Finley and Oliver have been living in their new shorts ever since the shoot.)

To see all of the photos (serious eye candy!), check out Laura's blog post on our little adventure.

PS - Professional and aspiring photographers....you *must* check out Confessions of a Prop Junkie if you haven't already. It's an amazing new blog jam packed with tips, tricks, props, features, and giveaways including one from yours truly. Hop over to this post for a chance to win a shop credit to Finley and Oliver - you might just score some goodies from the summer line for your little one.

101 bits of Summer Fun

2011-05-26T07:18:00.000-07:00

I always get a little anxious and panicky in the middle of May when the temperature starts creeping up to the 100 degree mark (knowing it will go well beyond that). Living in Phoenix, we spend the majority of our summer indoors. It is a huge challenge keeping the kiddos entertained with fun things to do when they can't run around outside as much as they'd like. Thank goodness my super creative, awesome friend Laura of Laura Winslow Photography saved me with this {FREE} download she created.

How fun is this? I'm going to print it out, frame it, and hang it up in the house so we'll always have fresh ideas when the kids start to get antsy during summer. I'm hoping this will save me from at least some of the crying, whining, and fighting ;)

Download your free copy here.

dream BIG

2011-05-24T12:20:00.000-07:00

I recently received these ridiculously awesome photos from Laura of Laura Winslow Photography. Couldn't you just strap on your own cape and run along with little J for some crazy adventures? So stinking fun!! Laura is a pro at capturing the imaginative and adventurous spirit of childhood.

I am loving his little cape and mask from Peanut Pop. I may have to pick up a couple for Finley and Oliver.

A HUGE thanks to Laura and little J for these fun images!! Laura and I are working on a crazy fun shoot this weekend... can't wait to share the details with you when we're finished.

Laura Winslow Photography

Cape and Mask - Peanut Pop

dream BIG tee - Finley and Oliver

Three Different Colors!

2011-05-17T14:08:00.000-07:00

Do you see these eggs? Notice that they are three different colors! Do you know what that means? It means that Effie, who hasn't laid an egg since she started molting last September, is laying eggs again. I'm so stinking happy about this. I have no intentions of eating my chickens (they have names!), even when they stop laying. However, I was not happy about the fact that Effie may live another 6-7 years without producing anything for us. So stoked to see her pretty blue eggs again.

It also means that Flo is laying eggs in the coop again. I posted a few weeks back that we couldn't find her eggs. Last week I was in the coop and saw both Effie and Flo in their nesting boxes. Effie popped out, walked over to Flo and proceeded to peck the crap out of her until Flo flew the coop so to speak. I'm guessing this is why Flo started laying other places. She now waits until Effie is out of the way and busy in another part of the yard before she lays in the coop. Now we know who's on top of the pecking order. We've got eggs coming out of our ears again and it's definitely a good thing.

We've got lettuce coming out of our ears too and I have the cutest little helper who likes to pick it with me.

Introducing Noah and Lilah

2011-05-04T10:31:00.000-07:00

I've been sitting on my hands keeping this a secret but now I finally get to tell you all that I'm collaborating on an amazing summer collection with Sherri of the fabulous Noah and Lilah. I absolutely adore the style of Noah and Lilah clothing - fresh, modern, and not over designed - so when Sherri mentioned the idea of a collaboration, I was all over it!

Here's a little peak of some of the awesomeness of Noah and Lilah (all of these cutie clothes are available here). You'll have to wait to see the new collection which will be available in June. ;)

Sherri is an amazing seamstress and creates some of the most adorable little twirl skirts, dresses, and shorts that I've seen. Every time I see one of her new creations, I wish I had a little girl. I mean seriously, how cute is the little red polka skirt??

We are both working hard on the new collection and I thought it would be fun to take a break and introduce you all to the incredibly talented, sweet, and down to earth, Sherri.

What were you doing before Noah and Lilah?
Wow - it seems so long ago! I actually never had any plans to stay home with kids when I was pregnant, and I worked as a Director of Finance for a large international finance company. But one look at Noah when he was born and that was it - I just couldn't go back. I did work for one year part time after Noah was two, but then Lilah was born, and then the shop Noah and Lilah was born, and the rest is history. Now I'm content to spend my days with them, sew like mad when they're sleeping, and see where this takes me.

How did Noah and Lilah get started?
I actually didn't start sewing until I was pregnant with Lilah. I have a few (not local) friends who sewed/knit and I wanted to learn how. I started knitting but it didn't give me the immediate gratification that I wanted (I'm not that fast!). But then I took one sewing class at Joann's, we made a pillowcase, and I was hooked! That same week I went out and bought a machine, fabric and patterns, and just started playing around with stuff. My first pair of pants probably took me four hours, but I did it completely on my own and that taught me *so* much. I learn by doing, and am mostly self-taught. After Lilah was born I started doing more sewing, opened the shop, was contacted by some photogs to shoot my items, and here we are!

How would you describe your design style/aesthetic?
Simple is the key word that comes to mind. I'm totally not into frilly things, and am for the most part a jeans and t-shirt kinda gal. But simple doesn't mean clothes can't be cute! I think this new line shows that best. How to take a few simple pieces, make a few changes, be really modern and stylish, but still not overly fussy or frilly. Grace here...this is one of the reasons why Sherri and I totally connect. We have a very similar design aesthetic.

When you're not busy with your clothing line, what do you like to do?
We're big DIYers around our house, so we're always working on something (currently finishing our basement). We also have a garden that keeps us busy in the warmer months. I also recently started CrossFit and am loving it! But give me a warm sunny day, sitting on the deck while my kids play around my husband and I with a good meal and some wine, and I'm a happy girl!

What inspires your designs?
That's a hard one - can be so many things. More often than not - it's fabric. Sometimes I go searching for fabric - not even knowing what I plan to/want to make, and once I find the fabric I just know. This collection was that way. We talked theme and color - I went in search of the fabrics based on that criteria, and the pieces were born after seeing the fabrics.

Favorite piece of the new collection?

Oh my gosh - so many! I love the all navy tiered skirt. I've been wanting to add a tiered skirt to my shop for a while, and this was the perfect one.

Thanks so much to Sherri for answering these questions and sharing with us. Be sure to stop by and swoon over her Noah and Lilah line. I promise, you will fall in love just as quickly as I did.

Website

Facebook Page

Our summer collection is being photographed by the fabulous Laura of Laura Winslow Photography and will be available in June. So excited!

Photographs courtesy of:

Rena Durham Photography

Kelly Anderson Photography

Laura Winslow Photography

Clinging to Spring

2011-04-28T15:18:00.000-07:00

My fellow desert dwellers totally know what I'm talking about when I say that I'm clinging to spring. In just a few short weeks, it will be scorching and barely inhabitable (maybe I'm being a bit dramatic) here so we are spending all of our waking hours outdoors. While hanging outside with the boys yesterday, I took some pictures to give you all an update on our garden.

Isn't she gorgeous!? We have an abundance of goodies crammed into there including several different varieties of lettuce, spinach, herbs, strawberries, tomatoes, cucumbers, corn, and I'm sure a ton of other stuff that I'm leaving out. For full disclosure, I'm not responsible for any of this organic goodness - credit goes to my mom and my husband. I'm a lousy gardener which is why I tend to the chickens.

Each night before dinner, we go outside and pick whatever we'd like to make a fresh salad. So amazingly delicious. Since we are obviously running out of room, we're going to add another raised bed in the next few weeks.

In addition to the veggies and fruits in the garden, our apple, peach, plum, and almond trees are just about ripe for the picking. My Sodapop can't get enough of the apples. She picks them right off and helps herself.

And I had to share this cute little hummer. It's not the best picture but we have a ton of these guys in our yard every spring and they are freakishly friendly. They love to hover around and check out what we are doing.

I tried to get the boys to pretend that they were "working" in the garden so I could snap a shot of them but even jelly bean bribery didn't work this time. They decided they'd rather stab each other with their new swords. Actually it's just one sword - Oliver is using the sheath but he doesn't know it ;)

Missing eggs?

2011-04-22T13:34:00.000-07:00

Flo is a serious egg layer. She gives us a fresh egg about 6 days a week. The last egg we found of hers was over a week ago.

I came out to collect the eggs early last week and found Flo in the nesting box on top of Lucy. Don't ask me why, but chickens generally like to lay only where the other chickens have laid. Even with 6 perfectly clean and soft nesting boxes, the girls will only lay in the box on the left.

Usually Flo stands in front of the box and squawks at Lucy while she is laying so I was surprised to see her in the box on top of her. Flo is a pretty big bird so I tried to move her to the next box over but she popped right out and jumped back on top of Lucy.

Look how miserable poor Lucy was. I stayed to make sure that she was okay and not being suffocated by old Flo. Once Flo popped her egg out (narrowly missing Lucy's head), she left the box leaving Lucy to lay in peace. As I said, this was over a week ago and that was the last egg we've seen of Flo's. I'm not sure if she's just stopped laying for some reason or if she's found a new place to lay.

Since it's been warming up out here, the girls have been spending most of their time in a shade structure my husband has on the side of our house. It is soft and lush with dichondra and long grass. It's also filled with ladders, coils of wire, and tons of other stuff. I have a feeling she might be laying somewhere in there but I have no clue where. I can't find her eggs anywhere and it's making me crazy.

Hopefully she just needed a break and will either start laying again or we'll find her hidden stash somewhere. Of our 3 chickens, we're only getting eggs from Lucy right now (Effie hasn't laid since she molted in the fall). I really don't want to go buy eggs since that is one of the main reasons we have chickens. I'm secretly hoping that the kids will find her eggs during our Easter egg hunt this Sunday.

ETA: We have found the missing eggs. It seems old Flo thought the compost pile was a better place to lay than the nesting boxes in the coop.

I've got to figure out how to get her to start laying in the coop again. Those eggs will bake in a matter of minutes if she keeps it up in the summer. Silly chicken.

Mutant Pinata Show

2011-04-18T08:03:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, I participated in Coffee, Cookies, and Crafts 4 at Bragg's Pie Factory in downtown Phoenix. In conjunction with CCC4 was the Mutant Pinata Show also being held at Bragg's. What a treat to see so many odd, beautiful, funny, and quirky creations.

Just a few of my favorites...

This photo doesn't do it justice at all but this was the most beautiful pinata. It was hanging above my booth and I couldn't stop staring at it.

Loved this Jackalope.

Even the pinatas carry guns in Arizona.

And of course it's not a proper pinata show without a mutant poop.

If they bring back the Mutant Pinata show next year, mark it on your calendars. Definitely a must see!

Coffee, Cookies, and Crafts 4

2011-04-13T07:25:00.000-07:00

Come see me this weekend at Coffee, Cookies, and Crafts 4 at Bragg's Pie Factory this Saturday from 12-5. I'll be setting up there with some of my favorite local vendors. And the best part about the whole thing... free cookies!

LOVE for Japan

2011-04-11T13:26:00.000-07:00

After the tragedy happened in Japan a few weeks ago, I was watching the footage feeling absolutely helpless (like everyone else, I'm sure.) I decided to design a {LOVE for Japan} t-shirt and donate the proceeds to the American Red Cross. My dear friend Laura of Laura Winslow Photography immediately hopped on board with my idea and shot some amazing pictures that I could use.

Laura is one of the busiest women I know but she dropped everything to take these pictures. I had the files from her just a few hours after she received the t-shirt.

When I created the tee, I thought that I might sell about 20-30 of them. I was so wrong. You folks are amazingly generous and giving!! I sold well over 100 of these little tees in just two days and was able to donate over $1,300 to the American Red Cross. I am still blown away by everyone's generosity.

Because I applique these tees by myself and have sold so many, I closed the sale of the tees on my site. However, if anyone is still interested, send me a message at finleyandoliver@gmail.com and I would be happy to make a few more (100% of the proceeds will go to the American Red Cross).

Image from Jennifer at Z's the Day Photography and Photo Design

Chick Chat with 202 Magazine

2011-04-01T12:04:00.000-07:00

You all know I love to talk about my chickens. (Yes, I know it can be a bit extreme). Imagine my excitement when I had the opportunity to share my girls with 202 Magazine - a local magazine for the East Valley (Phoenix) area.

202 Magazine did a feature on raising urban chickens for their April issue. Doesn't Flo look beautiful on the cover? The editor, Sondra Barr, and photographer Mark Susan spent a morning at our house getting to know our girls. We had such a great time! However, my normally friendly chickens were super camera shy and it was quite the ordeal which involved my tackling Flo (no chickens were harmed during the photo shoot) just to get her in the cover shot. Dirt and chicken poop all over my jeans - so embarrassing.

Raising backyard chickens has become quite popular in the past few years, especially here in the East Valley so we were excited to share our experiences with others who may have an interest in taking the chicken plunge.

You can view the entire April issue here.

Meet the Carters

2011-03-30T07:36:00.000-07:00

I recently had the honor of designing some t-shirts for the lovely Carter family. The Carters are in the process of adopting a little boy from Ghana and are selling the t-shirts in an effort to raise funds for the adoption fees. You can read more about their adoption journey here.

I have a soft spot in my heart for adoption and have really enjoyed getting to know the Carters and following along on their journey.

How adorable is this little guy? He is the big brother to be and recently got together with his buddies to show off their Ghana tees with this fun photo shoot. The tees have been a hit and I am sending off a second shipment to the Carters tomorrow. They will likely go fast so if you'd like to support this sweet family and score a stylin' tee for your little one, click here.

Be sure to follow the Carter's blog for updates on their journey as well as a massive dose of inspiration and creativity (did I mention that Sarah Carter is an amazing artist?).

Photos by Trevor Hoehne Photography

LGO Indie Shop Fest

2011-03-28T13:54:00.000-07:00

I have fallen off of the face of blogging earth and I apologize. I have been busy with so many things but promise to be back more often with a brand new look to my blog (hopefully in the next day or two!).

Those of you who live in the Phoenix area must check out LGO Indie Shop Fest on April 6th. This shopping & socializing event will feature more than 30 Local Artists, Crafters, and Designers featuring Unique Handmade Art and Treasures.

If you are working all day, break for lunch, visit La Grande Orange Grocery or Postino Wine Cafe, and then stop by for worthwhile browsing & shopping.

They Didn't Hatch

2011-02-24T21:16:00.000-08:00

This was the week we've been waiting for! Our little chicks should have arrived in the mail today. But they didn't.

The folks over at My Pet Chicken called to let me know that the four breeds we chose didn't all hatch on the same day as they had hoped. (You can read about the breeds we chose and why we chose them here). If we want to wait on the four breeds we picked out, they won't ship until May 2nd. And even that is iffy. We need them much sooner than that so we can have them out of their brooder and into the coop before the scorching summer heat sets in.

I'm going to call the helpful people at My Pet Chicken tomorrow to see if we can switch our order around a bit so we can get our newest girls in the next couple of weeks. Keeping my fingers crossed because I am so ready for my chick fix!

The Chicken Bath. Seriously.

2011-02-15T08:11:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I did something I never thought I'd do. I bathed my chicken. Seriously.

My dear Flo has really fluffy tail feathers and I noticed that they were getting dirty (I'll spare you the details). I did some googling and found that it was possible and recommended to give the chicken a bath in this case. It was a gorgeous 80 degree day so I figured it was a good time to tackle it.

I was super nervous. I assembled a small army to help me thinking that bathing a chicken would be like bathing a cat. I fully expected chicken claws and beaks to be flying. Flo seriously surprised me. As soon as I put her in the warm water, she relaxed and didn't fight it at all. (The water looks especially dirty as she had given herself a dust bath right before her "real" bath.) Once we washed her up, we put her in another bucket of clean, warm water to rinse her.

The bath was only the first part of the challenge. I had to blow dry her feathers so she wouldn't get a chill and get herself all dirty again. This part made me nervous as well but the sweet girl just sat in my lap and let me dry her. I think she actually enjoyed it.

It took forever to get her dry but we finally did. She seemed to be happy with her newer, cleaner self and I was relieved that I didn't completely traumatize her. The other girls were filled with curiosity and I think maybe a little jealous that Flo looked so sparkly clean.

(PS - our baby chicks arrive in the mail next week! Stay tuned...)

Some Valentine's Love with The Savvy Mom's Guide

2011-02-13T06:12:00.000-08:00

If you haven't visited The Savvy Mom's Guide yet, you absolutely must head over there. Bri and Amy are the super fun and sweet mama's behind TSMG. They have found that spray paint, scrapbook paper and fabric can give anything a face lift. The dollar bin at Target is better than a sale rack at Nordstrom's (well maybe not, but that is what they tell their husbands). Pictures of family are priceless compared to framed art (and cheaper). And nothing is better than Starbucks......but you can live without it, as long as you have a good coffee creamer.

These savvy mamas recently coordinated an adorable Valentine's Day candy shoppe themed photo shoot with the incredibly talented Christine of Racz Photography.

I was thrilled when they asked me to send some clothes over for the shoot. Seriously, how flipping cute are these little kiddos?

You can see where the kids get it from because their mamas are gorgeous! And incredibly sweet too. To see more photos from their shoot and to learn how to be a savvy mama yourself, be sure to stop by and pay them a visit.

The Savvy Mom's Guide

Will You Be Mine? (and a giveaway!)

2011-02-02T10:39:00.000-08:00

Jennifer of Jlyn Photography sent these adorable photos over and in the spirit of Valentine's Day, I had to share them. What a little heart breaker this guy is!

I am in love with her little setup. From the LOVE banner to the lollipop. So cute.

And how sweet is this little girl? She is rockin' that fedora.

Thanks so much for the sweet pictures, Jennifer! If any of you are in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and looking for a photographer, be sure to check out Jlyn Photography. You can also see more of her work here and here.

On a totally unrelated note... Stacy from The InkSpot Workshop is hosting a giveaway for a $50 shop credit to Finley and Oliver. Giveaway ends this Friday. Go here to enter.

Thanks to Stacy for hosting such a fun giveaway! (Stacy and I are collaborating on a fun project - stay tuned for details!).

A Garden Party for the Girls

2011-01-30T12:27:00.000-08:00

Our fall/winter vegetable garden has pretty much gone to seed so it's time to start preparing the soil for our spring garden. We thought we'd enlist the help of our girls and let them have a little garden party while doing some work for us at the same time.

We normally keep the chickens out of the garden with some netting so they were hesitant at first but quickly jumped in and went to town! We will let them work the soil for us for a few weeks with their pecking, scratching, and pooping. After they've had some time to nibble on them, we'll pull the old plants to make room for our spring plants.

Our baby chicks will be arriving in a few weeks so we figure this could be one last hurrah for the girls before they have to be nice and responsible again.

All You Need is Love...

2011-01-25T13:06:00.000-08:00

A while back, Stefanie of Anna and Blue Paperie asked if she could use my {love} t-shirts for a Valentine's party she was planning. Her goal was to create a party that was affordable and easy to recreate. She blogged about the party styling here and holy heck, it turned out so incredibly cute.

I've mentioned before that I definitely don't have my act together enough to pull off such a coordinated party but this one has me thinking I should at least try it. I mean seriously, how adorable is this?

Maybe it's the fact that I have two boys or maybe it's because there isn't a lick of pink in my house, but I could just eat these girls up. Look at their little outfits! Perfect.

To see the full blog post including several more photos and some upcoming tutorials on how she pulled it all together, visit Anna and Blue Paperie's blog.

All You Need is Love printables - Anna and Blue Paperie (50% off until January 30th!)

Felt Treats - Ooh La Lollipop

Hair Accessories - Petit Fleurs by Bellasma

Cupcakes and Photos!

2011-01-11T12:10:00.000-08:00

I have to apologize that I've been seriously lacking on my blogging lately. I don't know what it is but I feel like I'm still recovering from the holidays. In addition, the shop has been really busy so I'm sewing up a storm. Things should be slowing down soon so I will be back in full force - especially because I'm expecting my newest chicks (in the mail) next month and I'll want to share them with you. (Can't wait!)

Anyhow, I have to say that I am so ridiculously lucky to have such amazing customers. I cannot begin to tell you how much I appreciate them and the support they give me. A while back, I shipped off a Mr. Cupcake tee to Kate of Kate Bogot Photography. To my excitement and surprise, she sent me these super fun pictures that she took of her little guy. Isn't he so handsome? And a totally good sport - my boys would never cooperate for pictures like this.

Kate is such a sweet person and I am in love with her photography. It is absolutely stunning. I have spent a lot of time clicking through her website and admiring her work.

To see more of Kate's work, including the hilarious outtakes from the cupcake photo shoot, you can visit her here. Thanks again for these adorable pictures, Kate!

End of Year Recap {2010}

2011-01-05T21:06:00.000-08:00

The last few months of 2010 were such a crazy whirl wind! I don't know about the rest of you, but things seemed to go by so fast that I never really got into the holiday spirit. Things just felt different this year and I never really caught up with things...anyway, here's the recap to the end of our year.

We got to spend Christmas with these amazing cuties who were hands down, the best gift for all of us this year. They pretty much slept through the whole thing but man oh man, were they the stars of the day.

We were delighted to give my mom her "papa" gift. My dad passed away a few years ago so each year my siblings and I get my mom a gift on behalf of my dad. This year, we got my mom two apricot trees and planted them for her. My mom LOVES her some apricots and she was so excited about her new trees. So was Finley (please ignore his weird hair - I have no idea what that was about).

Finley and Oliver were in heaven with their cousins around for Christmas. They are so blessed to have such a big family full of cousins who love them to pieces. It is so sweet to watch them all interact.

We celebrated Finley's 4th birthday a few days after Christmas. I'm not one of those moms who has it all together to throw a picture perfect party complete with a sweets table and coordinated photos. However, I know that my little guy loves Mini Coopers and he went absolutely crazy over his amazing cake by Melissa at Decadent Delights. He didn't even want to eat the cake - he preferred to eat the fondant Mini on the top (makes my teeth hurt just thinking about it!).

And...we went to the circus for New Year's Eve! We had so much fun but I have to tell you...I froze my arse off. Remember that I live in the desert and we have had some icy, icy weather that doesn't bode well with my thin blood.

Fortunately the show was truly amazing and boys were in heaven.

After the circus, my husband went all pyro on us. Our town recently legalized fireworks for NYE so we had our own little light show at home. So. ridiculously. fun. After our light show, we tucked the kids in bed, popped a bottle of champagne and did a puzzle. A puzzle!! And to top it off, we had "Fellowship of the Rings" on in the background. If you had told me five years ago that I would be spending future holidays with puzzles and LOTR, I would have never believed you. But now, I wouldn't have it any other way. It was perfect.

Happy New Year to you, friends! Wishing you peace, love and joy this new year!

New Year + New Line equals {Sale!}

2011-01-03T08:24:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year, friends! I promise to write up a recap of our Christmas, birthday, and New Year's celebrations this week. But until then, I wanted to let you all know that I am having a sale in my shop. Use the code NEWYEAR11 at checkout and get 20% off your entire order including already marked down items and the brand new circus collection (half of the collection is up in the shop - the other half will be up soon!)

Finley and Oliver

Our Morning at the Circus

2010-12-28T06:20:00.000-08:00

I have been hard at work finishing the Finley and Oliver Spring 2011 line. Originally, I had scheduled to shoot the line in February with my dear friend Laura of Laura Winslow Photography. However, the line is inspired by the circus so when we heard that the Zoppe Italian Family Circus was in town, we were all over it.

We packed up our kids early yesterday morning and headed over to the circus. I had emailed the circus folks to ask for permission but we never heard back so we had no idea if we'd be allowed to shoot or not. We were fully prepared to sneak around and take photographs under the radar.

However, as soon as we arrived a woman came up to our cars and invited us inside for a little performance that they were putting on for our local news channel. We were so stoked and the kids were in heaven. After the performance, Laura asked the folks in charge if we could take some shots in their circus tent. They were happy to give us permission and let us have free reign. This tent is the coolest little circus tent I have ever seen. So intimate, charming, and vintage - it really transported us to a different time.

Once we finished up shooting inside, we moved outside and were honored with the presence of Nino the Clown. Nino is played by Giovanni Zoppe who is a 6th generation circus performer and runs the circus with his siblings. I used to have major clown phobia until I met Nino.

Giovanni was so incredibly gracious and actually brought me back to his trailer to meet his wife Amy who did an incredible performance up on some crazy high ropes that morning. We also got to meet his son Julian who is just 14 months old and the cutest little clown ever. The fact that I got to go into the trailer of a family of circus performers is probably the highlight of my year. I read "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen this past summer so I'm a bit circus obsessed lately.

They even offered to have us back to shoot some more photos with the kids on ponies and on tight rope platforms. Unfortunately, none of us have the time to make it back as the circus leaves at the end of the week.

If you are local to the Metro Phoenix area, you should definitely check out the Zoppe Italian Family Circus in Chandler. They have performances twice a day through January 2nd. We have tickets for the New Year's Eve performance and can't wait! (And a note to other animal friendly folks like myself, the only animals involved are some very lucky dogs and a happy little pony).

A huge thank you to Laura Winslow for being so amazing to work with - not to mention up for anything! Thank you also to the Zoppe family for allowing us to shoot and creating some really fun memories for our kids! Lastly, thank you to Mia of Dolce Vita Mia for letting me borrow your little model :)

We still have several more pieces to shoot so these will be available in the shop in a few weeks.

Photography - Laura Winslow Photography

Flower Headband - Dolce Vita Mia

Pink Hat - Gracylu Originals

Circus - Zoppe Italian Family Circus

Choosing Our Newest Flock Members

2010-12-11T12:34:00.000-08:00

The crazy chicken lady in me has emerged again so you might be seeing a lot of chicken posts in the near future. Apologies in advance. Anyhow, we have decided to add four more chickens into our little backyard flock. Orders for the February hatch through My Pet Chicken will open up any day now so I've been busy reading up on different breeds and determining which would be a good fit for our family. I think we've narrowed it down to these four breeds.


image via mypetchicken.com

We knew without a doubt that we would want another Buff Orpington. We had the sweetest Buff named Ramona but sadly we lost her this past August. She was the friendliest chicken, a great layer, and was wonderful around the kids.


image via mypetchicken.com

I've always been captivated by the gorgeous feathers on Wyandottes so we've chosen to add a Silver Laced Wyandotte to the family. They are good layers, friendly birds, and are hardy to the heat.

Buff Orpingtons and Wyandottes are good layers. Add those to the three layers we have now and we will be rolling in the eggs. As it is, we get plenty for our household of five. Because we'll be getting more than enough eggs with these breeds, I've decided that it would be fun to add chickens of the ornamental variety to the flock.

via mypetchicken.com

This little fluff ball is a White Cochin. While not the best layers, these little chickens are easily handled, friendly, and super docile. Not too mention they are crazy cute and get fuller and fluffier as they get older (the one in this picture is a pullet - female chicken under a year old)


via mypetchicken.com

I saved the best for last. This ornamental oddity is called a Polish. I haven't decided which variety of Polish we'll get but I promise you that they all have that fabulous crest of feathers. Never a bad hair day with these girls.

Once we place our order, I'll have to impatiently wait until the chicks hatch sometime in February. Once they have hatched, they'll be packaged up at a day old and sent via USPS to us.

This is how our girls arrived last February. So cute, right? I can't wait to have little chicks in the house again!

On Sale and Ready to Ship!

2010-12-10T11:19:00.000-08:00

I've just added a bunch of my most popular items to the sale section in my shop. I've adjusted the inventory listed to stock on hand. All items in that section are already made and will ship within 24 hours of purchase. Just in time for Christmas!

Here are some of the items I've added:

If you're still looking for a unique gift for a baby or toddler, pop on over to my shop to see all the items I've included in the sale. Once the sale is over, some items will go back to the original price and others will be discontinued to make room for my spring/summer 2011 line.