Homemade Nap Mat

Now that everyone is back in school...I wonder how many of you had a nap mat on your child's school supply list?

We are now to that age where we have graduated from the baby bed (only at MDO), to a nap mat....tear :(

Anyway, in preparation for this year at Mother's Day Out, I was looking around the internet for nap mats and was finding prices from $60-100...YIKES!  My grandma knows I've been interested in learning to sew, so she insisted on buying me a sewing machine...even though I had no clue how to even thread the thing.

I am so grateful to Gramme for such a thoughtful and generous gift b/c she is right, I do think I will use it a lot.  Unfortunately, the timing of this gift was right when we found out #2 was on the way.  Needless to say, I was doing good just to get the bare necessities done around here and get our family fed.  Now that I'm in the second trimester...FINALLY...deep sigh...I decided to tackle the sewing machine orientation and nap mat project at the same time.

I know I probably should have started with something smaller but...oh well..I'm a girl who is always up for a challenge.  I was also thinking...how hard can it be, it's just a bunch of strait lines.  And those were her last famous words...

Let's get started...

You will need a few supplies which include: tape measure, ruler, thread (that matches your fabric), strait pins, fabric pen/pencil, 20" of 5/8 velcro, and scissors.

For fabric...because I did a few different colors, I ended up getting:

• 2 yards of tan cotton
• 2 yards of the airplane print (1 for the the mat cover and 1 for the blanket) 
• 1 yard of the brown cotton
•  1 yard of the brown dot minky

Note: you could probably get away with a little less of the cotton fabric, but I wanted to make sure I had enough. And just for the record, I didn't have a ton of scraps leftover.

Then you need whatever you are going to use for your mat.  I went with the Quilter's batting, but some people just buy the kinder-mats.  I wanted my mat to roll and not fold, which is why I went with the batting.  I bought pillow stuffing, but didn't end up making a pillow (because Briggs doesn't use one yet).  So that part is up to you.

 First of all, let's just start off by saying..there is NO WAY this project would have happened without this lovely lady (pictured below).  That's Ms. Timmie from across the street.  She came over to help get me started (she is a very seasoned seamstress).

We started off by deciding what size we wanted the mat.  We just unrolled the batting from the package and left it folding as it came.  We cut it at 45" long (it measured 19.5" wide).

In order to get the front pieces (pictured below), we cut one longer piece 34" by 23" and a shorter piece 15" x 23".  Put them face down, with right sides together, pin and sew together with a 1/2" seam allowance.

To make the two back pieces, measure and cut two pieces 27.5" by 23".  You need to allow for the overlap with the velcro, the thickness of the batting and 1/2" seam.

 Tip: It's best to lay out the fabric with the velcro pinned BEFORE sewing...b/c you will be sewing the velcro, one to the front of the fabric and one to the back of the fabric...so they will close the right way...don't ask how I learned that...just trust me :)

Before pinning the velcro on the fabric, iron down a 1" piece, where you will pin the velcro.

Pin the velro to the ironed edge.  

 And get to sewing...I was trying to act like I knew what I was doing, but I was freaking out on the inside..just a little bit :)

Ms. Timmie was a great teacher and very patient with my 101 questions.  What I appreciated the most is, she just kind of threw me in there.  She didn't do any of the sewing...she helped me prep the fabric, got me on my way and she went home to drink herself a glass of tea :)

I'm an advocate of getting in there and getting your hands dirty...makes you learn better..so that's just what I did.

During my process of learning to sew, my thread got tangled and I had to do surgery on my new  sewing machine.  At one point, Justin walked through the dining room and said..."I sure hope you know what you're doing b/c I'm not watching you so don't know if I can figure out how to put that thing back together"....

It was kind of funny coming from him...because Justin can fix ANYTHING..no joke, so I don't worry too much if I break something something breaks.

To put all of your minds at ease...I did proceed with great caution during this operation and followed the instruction manual to a tee in order to ensure I would be able to put things back together properly.

 

When I FINALLY got the machine back up and running... it was time to work on the straps.

 Cut four pieces of fabric (I used the fabric I had the most leftover).  

Dimensions for the pieces are:  2 pieces 26" by 5" and 2 pieces 16.5" by 5"

Fold in half (right sides together).  I ironed prior to sewing b/c it helped me to have a good edge to sew and made the fabric easier to handle.  Sew down the side and across one end and turn right side out.

Take both big pieces you made (front and back of the cover) and lay right sides together.  Place one short and one long strap together at whichever end you choose to have your straps.  You can also choose how close together or far apart you want your straps, but measure from each end to make them even.

  Sew around the entire perimeter of the fabric with 1/2" seam allowance.  

Last but not least, it's time for the blanket.  

Cut a piece of dot minky 30" by 36" and a coordinating fabric the same size. Turn the fabric right sides facing each other.

Pin around the entire edge.  

Here is my rookie-move...because I'm not that great at sewing a strait line...I used a fabric pencil and made my own little line to follow with the machine.  For all you new sewers out there...this helps..I promise!

Final product (unrolled) with the blanket:

Here is my little model..you can fill in the blank with what he is thinking :)

And we don't quite have the hang of what we are suppose to be doing with this thing...

For my first project...I think it turned out pretty good.  

BUT...for my next project I'm going to stick to throw pillows :)

Busy Box

We travel a good amount and now that Briggs is more active and mobile, it's a challenge to keep him happy in his seat for our frequent 7 hour trip to Baton Rouge.  I came up with this idea of a busy box that I thought might be helpful to share...

I made a trip to the Dollar Tree and spent around $10 for these fun items...

I personally think it's more challenging with boys b/c they aren't in to baby dolls and stuff like that. 

If you can't tell what is in the pic:

flashlight, measuring spoons, calculator,  harmonica, hot wheels, small pkg of ice breakers (something to rattle), back massager, a couple of books and a little container to put the small things in.

I organize things to where we can get to them when traveling...we had two baskets next to Briggs..one with some books in them and one with his busy box and few other toys.  You see the cooler...with drinks and snacks, and then on the floor board, is the snack bag.  I prepackage snacks before a trip so they are easy to get to and hand to him when he is hungry.

Here is the little guy unloading his busy box.  It worked for about 30 minutes..then we could rotate it with a few other activities and he was ready to play with it again. 

This is his "focus face"

 

And here is another picture of my little cutie with all this toys loaded up in his seat :)

I would say overall it was a success.  I kept his "busy box" hidden before the trip and also hid some of his favorite toys and books so he was excited to use them in the car.  That worked pretty well.

So between naps, snacks, playing with books, his busy box, stopping for rest breaks...it made the trip a little less painful with a 15 month old.  I would definitely recommend it for long trips with kids.

Tomatoes for soup

 Many of you know we had our first garden this year.  I had no idea that when our tomatoes ripened, we would have such an abundance.  I love tomatoes on sandwiches, in salad, even in cottage cheese for a snack...but a girl can only eat so many tomatoes...

So, I got some advice from my sweet neighbors across the street to cook them down.  Yeah..I had no idea how to do it at first, but here is my attempt and I think they turned out pretty good.

First stick them in the water whole and let them get good and hot.  

I let mine come to a boil for one minute.

When they are done, I cooled mine off faster by putting them in a colander and running cold water over them.  Then you peel them.  Boiling them is the trick to a fast and easy tomato peeling job.  Here is a pic of before (right) and after (left).  

Next, cut the tomatoes up in to chunks and put them in a pot, juice and all.  Cook them until they are hot all the way through.  It turns into a soupy looking consistency.  

Note: I went ahead and seasoned them with a little bit of salt, but this is optional.

Once they are cooled down, put in a freezer bag and freeze for the winter...

This is gonna make us some yummy soup.

New Shoes

Well folks...it's that time at the Poland house...somebody is FINALLY walking.  We were starting to wonder if this day would ever come, but it definitely has.  In one week Briggs went from walking from the couch to the coffee table...to walking all over the house.

It's the cutest thing I have ever seen.  We had tried getting him shoes a couple of times, but he has a bit of a fat foot, so we had to find a store that carries WIDE shoes.

Here are the pics from our successful shoe shopping trip.  There was a sale so we left with two pair...he was so proud :)

And did I mention that he likes his shoes so much, he pitched some kind of fit when I tried to take them off to pay...so we ended up wearing them home...thanks for working with us Rack Room Shoes associates :)

When we got home, the kid wanted to wear them all day...so we ended up putting them on with our jammers too...

They are good for cutting grass in his swimsuit (we like to start training them up early with these things)...

Pushing the buggy at Hobby Lobby...what a big helper...

And walking around the tire store...

Needless to say, Briggs thinks he is BIG STUFF in his new shoes.  He starts giggling in the mornings when it's time to put them on and I'm pretty sure this kid would sleep in them if we would let him :)

We are thankful for such an easy transition to shoes b/c from what I hear...it doesn't go this smooth with all kiddos.

Organizing Manuals

Thought I would share another organizing tip we have implemented in the Poland household during my season of nesting....if you want to call it that.

You know all those user manuals that come with all your appliances, electronics and, in our case, baby gear?

We had all of ours scattered all over our house in different drawers and folders.  It was a mess and looked a little something like this...

Until I purchased a binder and page protectors...under $10 and got them all in one place, organized by kitchen appliances, electronics and then baby gear.

Note:  You can organize however works for you...I mostly did one manual per page protector, except for a few of the smaller appliances or baby items that could be combined into one.

Then it took me about 2 minutes to print a label on some colored paper...

It makes me happy to look at the small steps of progress we are making around here.  And most importantly, they are things that work well for our family.

Florida Vacation - Part 2

Since there was so much going on during this week in Florida, I decided to make one more post with some more pics that captured our memories.

Briggs and daddy swimming...I think we have us a water bug

Briggs and Poppa in the water

They have a nice bike trail down there.  

My mom arranged for Justin to get a bike and he rode ~14 miles. 

 Briggs wasn't too sure what was on his head.

This is where we fed the boys pretty much all their meals

I had my hands full

Russ and mom at his graduation party

The Hebert family

(minus Dani, she had go back to her mom's house after Disney)

Briggs hanging w Ra-ra and Poppa

The last event of the week was to see Russ graduate.  

It was hotter than...I don't even know what to compare it to...

It was suppose to be the night before but b/c of rain it was moved to the next morning.

Congrats buddy...we are so proud of you!

Here are the original three...

(please disregard all the sweat marks on the clothes...it was HOT!)

He loves it when we take this shot :)

The whole gang...even Gramme and Pa are in this pic

Gramme and Pa made the trip down from Huntsville to see Russ graduate.  

They are very proud.

Mom and dad wanted to make sure Russ got the credit, 

but they earned a little piece of that diploma too

 

And then we all jumped in our vehicles and rushed to get home.  We were all planning to go home the morning graduation was rescheduled for...but none of us wanted to miss seeing Russ graduate.  So, we all tweaked our schedules a bit to be there and witness the event...then we all had to rush home.   Justin and I had to run to the car and head strait to the airport to catch our flight.  Abby and Josh headed home to Louisiana and Gramme and Pa to Alabama.  It was a great trip...busy, but lots of fun!

Strawberry Pie

Take a 9in pie crust.  Brown according to directions and cool.
It should look a little something like this..(I did poke it with a fork a little bit).

Cook on stove top until thick:

1 C suar

1C water

3 T corn starch

Remove from heat and add 1 pkg strawberry jello (can be sugar free)

It takes about 10+ minutes if you do it right...don't want to burn it. You will feel like you're just stirring for fun, but I promise it thickens up eventually.

Pour gelatin, and strawberries into pie crust.

I promise I didn't steal this pic from a magazine...it really was made by me in my own kitchen, but dang that's a pretty yummy lookin pie..if I do say so myself :)

Place in frig to cool and set.  

Serve with cool whip (as pictured) and ENJOY!