Easy Monogram Artwork

I love monograms.  Plain and simple.  Over the last year, I've seen photographs of letters taken in all kinds of settings.  I thought they would be wonderful printed and used as monogram artwork.  I searched for royalty free stock photos on Google and found some letters here and some numbers here.

Here are some monogramming suggestions.  If you are doing a married couples monogram there are two variations.  The first option is to place the last initial in the middle, the husband's first initial on the left, and the wife's first initial on the right.  For example, John and Mary Taylor would look like this:

The second option is to place the last initial in the middle, the wife's first initial on the left, and the husband's first initial on the right.  Here is how John and Mary Taylor would look in that format:

I guess there are tons of rules for monogramming, who knew?  Linens are one way, stemware another...
Since most people refer to us as Jeff and Lisa Goforth, I went with the first option.

The hard part is picking the right letter. I looked for letters with colors that would blend with the color scheme in my living room.  I also looked for bold letters for Jeff and more feminine for me.  I really wanted a cursive L, like in Laverne and Shirley, remember that?

I printed out all three letters at Walmart in 5 x 7.  I picked up some frames from Michael's by choosing two black 5 x 7 frames for our first initials and an 8 x 10 floating frame for the middle initial.  The floating frame is set off the wall just a little bit so it gives the middle initial a larger presence.  I also like the extra "floating" space around the middle initial.  Even though all the prints are 5 X 7, the middle initial really stands out.

I have four windows along the back wall of our living room and the space above the windows has been buggin' me.  It just needed something.  So, this is where I decided to place the monogram. I love it!

Not bad for under $20, eh?  Personal, modern, and reasonably priced artwork - love it!!

DIY: A t-shirt scarf for girls

My latest Pinterest find was a t-shirt scarf tutorial.  I made one for me and then decided to modify it a bit and make a smaller one for Kate.

Kim from DIY Dish has a wonderful video tutorial on how to make the adult size scarf.

I followed most of the instructions with a few exceptions.

This is mine with a cute little flower made from a red and white t-shirt.  Isn't it festive?

Here's how I made Kate's:

Supplies for the Girls Scarf: 

T-shirt Large +

7" Paper Plate or smaller

Fabric Glue

Scissors

Pen 

I cut down the side of the shirt to open it up.

Trace between 8-10 circles on the t-shirt

Cut out all the circles

Next up, you're gonna cut all the circles into a spiral starting about 1 inch in from the edge. 

Hold the spiral and run your hand down the fabric.  This will curl the ends and form the ruffle.

I glued four stripes together for each side with a little fabric glue.

Cut a small rectangular piece.

Stretch it out a bit to curl the end also. 

Now I have four ruffles for each side and each side is glued together.

I lightly glue both sides together to form one scarf.

Now tie the rectangular piece over the seams where you glued the two sides together. 

TaDa - finished product!

She loves it!

Mom and daughter in our t-shirt scarves.

In the next post, I'll show you how I made the flower.  Super easy!  Seriously, I made two scarves and a little flower within 30 minutes, and NO sewing.  

A Man in the Making

How does it happen? Seemingly, one minute you're dressing your little boy in overalls with a Gap ball cap and the next thing you know he has outgrown his Superman pjs and then he doesn't even want Superman pjs anymore.  My Zach, who is 13, is now as tall as me, and I'm 5'10"!  I had to shave some random hairs on his chin the other day - so weird for me.  Now our conversations range from school work, video games, and deep conversations about the origins of life, to excitedly talking about his day and the same girls name being mentioned several times...sigh

I was congested yesterday and Zach asked if we should get out the humidifier. I nonchalantly said it was probably a good idea. The next thing I knew, he had gotten it out of the closet, cleaned it, and filled it with fresh water. Then he carefully made sure it was in the right position to reach me. Later in the day, I decided it might help to replace the air filters so we made a trip to Lowe's.  Zach said, "Don't worry about it, Mom, I've got it." He grabbed the ladder, the duster, and the filters and went to work. He not only changed the filters but he dusted the registers too. I didn't ask him to do any of this. He was just taking care of me.

I look at him and see the little boy I once held.  All the trials, struggles, funny moments, and triumphs flash before me.  In my mind, I zoom forward 15 years and think what a wonderful husband he is going to make someday.

What a daunting task it is to be a parent.  God entrusts these little human beings into our care, knowing we are imperfect beings, yet if we are submitted to the Father's will, He will empower us to perform this task.  I have to admit, I've shed many tears over the years, just not knowing what to do or how to handle a situation.  Those times always draw me to my knees where I have poured about my heart to my heavenly Father.  He knows exactly what I'm feeling but it is so comforting to just tell Him anyway.  He's there and I have to remind myself He is just waiting for me to ask for help.  So, I make my petition, and without fail, I feel a fresh wave of hope wash over me.  Through my tears, I feel a renewed sense of courage and a knowing that all will be alright.

I know I have several years until Zach reaches adulthood, but it's days like yesterday that give me a glimpse of what a wonderful young man he is becoming and it makes me all the more humbled to know how much help I need.

Annual Family Christmas Collectible Party!!!

Every year the ladies on my mom's side of the family gather at Christmas time. We have each chosen something to collect.

My Mom has collected snowmen, nativities, and now Christmas teacups.  

My Aunt Laurie collects reindeer.  

My cousin Cindi collects snowflakes and ice skates.  

My cousin Leanna has collected gingerbread people, winter outerwear, and candy cane decor.  She received stockings this year and was so excited she started crying.  We are all emotional!

My sister collects Christmas trees and Father Christmas.  

I've collected snowmen and and now I collect red & white decor and Christmas candy decor. 

My niece collects penguins. 

All the little girls exchanged gifts.  Two of them received stuff animals and two of them received Christmas girls.  So cute!

It's just a fun time when all the girls in our family can gather to munch on goodies, catch up on each other's going-ons, add to our collectibles, and just enjoy each other's company.  I am blessed to have friends who are also family. 

Merry Christmas!