Homeschooling? Class Dismissed.

Good morning all!! I just wanted to pop in and share this video with you all. I know so many of you are homeschooling your kids, and many more plan to (as do I). So naturally, when I heard about this documentary being made all about the benefits of homeschooling I had to share!

Class Dismissed

a documentary about homeschooling

by 3 Story Films

It's so wonderful to see such an honest, practical take on homeschooling with real interviews with actual homeschooling families. I'm sure (as most documentaries do) they will be examining both sides, but I've never seen something with such positive energy representing this lifestyle.

Right now it's still in the development stages and they still need some funding. If you're so inclined, you can visit the 3 Story Films site and leave them a donation. www.3storyfilms.com I'm sure they would appreciate it!

I know everyone has a different take on this subject, especially in the mainstream, but I think it's a wonderful opportunity to provide my children with a diverse and well-rounded education based on truth, creativity, life experiences, and discovery rather than the pre-packaged "one-size-fits-all" method the public school system seems to be pushing these days.

How does your family approach schooling? What brought you to those decisions?

XOXO

P.S. Don't forget to enter our current giveaways before time runs out!! Click the photos to go straight to the entry pages!!

We've got Erica from Bows & Caps by princESS on Etsy giving away 

a custom pack of bottle cap magnets, clips, or push pins. 

Giveaway ends Sunday, so get your entries in soon!

We've also got Mary from Organo Gold coffee giving away an ENTIRE box 

of gourmet, all-natural coffee in your choice of flavor! 

This giveaway ends Sunday 10/23, so spread the word and don't forget to get your entries in, too!

Giveaway Monday!! Who needs a whole box of perk??

Hello friends!! My apologies for the delayed post today, I have been experiencing some serious technical difficulties with my blog today. But no worries, everything seems to finally be working, so we can get down to business!

It's Monday, so you know what that means, right? This week we've got a product I KNOW you're all going to love. I mean, it's the only way to start the day, right?

{brought to you by...}

. . . . . . .

Did you know that coffee is the second most consumed beverage on the planet after water? Wow, right? Maybe not news for those of you who have 6 cups before noon, but still! It's the second most traded commodity after oil. People drink coffee all day every day, in almost every country around the world.

Organo Gold Coffee company is brewing up some of the best coffee out there right now. It's rich, flavorful, and smooth. And, the kicker is... it's healthy! Soak that up for a minute. Organo Gold searches the globe far and wide to procure the best ingredients out there and couples them with Japanese herb Ganoderma to produce some of the most amazingly delicious, healthy coffee you can get. The Gandoderma herb has been used in the Japanese culture for centuries to promote good health, and well-being. Some of it's benefits include:

• Supports and builds the Immune System.
• Oxygenates the Body
• Boosts stamina
• Packed with over 150 all-natural antioxidants that fight free radicals
• Improves blood circulation
• Promotes younger skin
• Promotes cell rejuvenation
• More energy
• A powerful detoxifyer for the body
• Promotes deeper and more enjoyable sleep

But, the benefits aren't just for coffee drinkers. Looking to curl up by the fire this fall with a cozy cup of hot chocolate or tea? No problem! Organo Gold has hot chocolate, tea, herbal supplements and lots of other incredible products as well. Check out the website for for information and other products!!

Now, for the fun part...

{WIN IT!!}

Our lovely Organo Gold Coffee rep, Mary, is generously offering one lucky Little Birdie reader a whole box of your choice of their most popular coffees: Black, Mocha, or Latte, shipping included!! Mary was nice enough to send me one of each, and I'll tell you: you can't go wrong with any of the three!!

Enter to WIN:

• Leave a separate comment for each entry, so they all get counted!
• The giveaway will be open from now until Sunday, October 23rd!
• Winner will be chosen via random.org and posted here Monday, October 24th!!

Mandatory Entry:

• Be or become a follower of The Little Birdie. (Easy, right? I know you already are anyway... wink, wink.)

Extra Entries:

• Be or become a follower of @Mary_ABQ on Twitter
• Subscribe to The Coffee Blog
• Be or become a follower of @lilbirdielady on Twitter (That's me!! And it's a great way to keep up with new giveaways, tutorials, and special offers!)
• Be or become a follower of The Little Birdie on Facebook

Be sure to leave each entry in a separate comment below, 

and good luck to you all!!

XOXO

P.S. If you haven't entered to WIN the custom bottle cap set from Bows & Caps by princESS on Etsy, click HERE and get your entries in before the end of the week!!

Tutorial Tuesday & Linky Party - A Trio of Favorite Recipes

Good morning everyone! I am super-duper busy with a rather large order right now, so you'll have to forgive me for cheating out a little bit this week with recipes rather than sewing, etc. ;)

However, these ARE 3 recipes that I have had earmarked to share with you all since they were ones that I found shortly after moving. Things were hectic, but I knew they would be great ones to share! So here are three of our new favorite recipes from this summer...

Bird's Nest Breakfast Cups

Salad-in-a-Jar

&

Homemade Cheese Crackers (a.k.a. Cheez-Its)

Bird's Nest Breakfast Cups:

These have quickly become a weekend favorite. I make an entire pan full and then the hubby has a yummy, wholesome breakfast to grab and take with him as he's running out the door at the crack of dawn. Yay for cooking once a week!  ;)

1 24 oz. bag of shredded hash browns
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 tbs oil (I use olive oil)
1/3 cup shredded cheddar
Bacon bits or 8=10 pieces of cooked bacon, crumbled
Eggs
Extra shredded cheddar
Muffin tin

1. Take your bag of hash browns and mix in the salt, pepper, oil and 1/3 cup shredded cheese.
2. Divide amongst the cups in your muffin tin, making sure to grease tin beforehand.
3. Bake hash browns at 425 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until toasty.
4. Once they're finished, take them out and lower the temp of the oven to 350 degrees.
5. Crack an egg into each of the cups
6. Top with bacon and a sprinkle of extra cheese
7. Bake at 350 degrees for 13-16 minutes (or until the eggs are as firm as you like them).
8. Slide a knife along the edges to remove from pan when cooled.

Notes:

• I like to break the yolks in my eggs a bit once I put them into the hash brown cups
• When I cheat on these, I use the Oscar Meyer Bacon pieces found in the "salad dressing" section of the grocery store. They're the closest thing to fresh bacon I can find, and all-natural. :)
• You can also experiment with ham, sausage, and veggies to make them your own!

Salad-In-A-Jar:

Now, these aren't so much of a recipe as a technique. I had been seeing this idea all over the place for awhile, and thought I should give it a try for keeping my lettuce fresh. It WORKS.

1 Head (or bag) of lettuce
12 oz. to 16 oz. mason jars (depending on how large you like your salad, or if you like to share!)
Paper towels or paper napkins
Salad toppings of your choice

1. Wash jars and set them out to dry
2. Wash and chop head of lettuce
3. Stuff jars with lettuce (the fuller, the better)
4. Dampen a paper towel and fold it up small enough to fit into the mouth of the jar.
5. Lay paper towel over the top of lettuce and secure lid.
6. Turn upside down and store in the fridge for up to a month!!
7. When you're ready to eat, throw out the paper towel and prep as you like!

Notes:

• If you have enough space in your jars you can top your salad while still in the jar and have an easy lunch to-go, or great solution to salad at parties!

Homemade Cheese Crackers:

From goldfish to cheez-its and everything in between, cheese crackers are always a hit with kids and adults alike. Why not make some fresh that are filled with all-natural ingredients instead of preservatives and chemicals like the store bought kind?

1½ cups (6 oz) grated extra-sharp Cheddar cheese
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened and cut into pieces
¾ cup flour, plus more for dusting
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon milk

1. Preheat oven to 350˚.
2. Put everything except the milk in a food processor. Pulse the processor, 5 seconds at a time, for about 5 or 6 times, until the dough is in coarse crumbs.
3. Add the milk and process until the dough gathers together in a ball.
4. Roll the dough out on a floured board with a rolling pin that has been floured until it is about 1/8 inch thick.
5. Cut the dough into 1-inch squares with a sharp knife or pizza cutter. You can put a bit of flour on the blade of the knife to keep it from sticking. Use a toothpick or skewer to poke a hole in the center of each cracker.
6. Place the crackers at least ¼ inch apart on parchment paper on a baking sheet.
7. Bake for 12 – 15 minutes until the edges are just starting to brown.
8. Put the baking sheet on a rack and let the crackers cool completely.
9. Eat! Or store in a covered container or ziploc to eat within a few days.

Notes:

• Substitute other cheeses for the cheddar for a different snack every time! I've used swiss (Jarlsberg seems to work best) and colby jack, both with great results!
• I have a gas oven and it seems to take a little longer to get them nice and toasty around the edges. Mine usually take about 18 minutes.

Now it's your turn! 

Link up your projects below for this week's linky party!

Linky Guidelines:

1. Please feel free to link up as many projects as you would like!
2. Please link directly to your project post, it makes them much easier for everyone to find.
3. Please no etsy shops, or generic blog links. Specific posts links only.
4. Visit someone else's link and share the bloggy love!
5. Grab yourself a button and post it in your project post or on your blog. Optional of course, but the more we share the party, the more people see your posts! :)
6. Have fun!!

<a href="http://www.littlebirdiebaby.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjybpWehEcQYkr_bcTNwQtjMs-pSV-lbAnKMq0wQAbpkfm8Vn6I1fmUjYtVvzwqfTuazi67qG1Z7SWKRWPfgV3kkRVaYGnhKP7LJ0txiH6AQQj2x8KUcYdEuPtOudXo4oDmxEdFyxqjJ7RO/s800/Tute%20Tues%20LB.png" height="150" width="150" /></a>

Don't forget to enter this week's GIVEAWAY 
brought to you by Bows and Caps by princESS!

CLICK HERE to enter for your chance to win!!

Have a great week!!

XOXO

Merchandise Monday - GIVEAWAY!! Bows and Caps by princESS!

Good morning everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend, and are bright-eyed and ready for a new week! No? Bleary-eyed, hovering over a cup of coffee? Ok, I'll give you that, but I've got something to perk you right up...

brought to you by...

I am excited to introduce to you my friend, Erica who has the cutest bow & bottle cap shop! She is here visiting with us today (mostly because I wanted to show her off) to tell us a little bit about herself and her shop. And because she is such a doll, she has also offered up a GIVEAWAY to all the Little Birdie readers, yay!!

Thanks for being here Erica, I hope you'll bear with me as we're doing something new this week. I wanted to ask you a few questions to let my readers get to know you while they're browsing your shop.

{Erica, her hubby Mike, and their sweet little boy Calin!}

First, tell me a little about your shop:

My shop is a hodgepodge of my crafty ideas. It started with bows and bow holders and now includes my bottle cap crafts - magnets, push pins, headbands, and clips. I also added my hand painted ornaments after friends and family loved them the past two Christmases.

How did you get started crafting?

I started crafting in the summer of 2010 after school let out. I had been going to Hobby Lobby and staring at the ribbon section wanting to buy some, but not knowing exactly what I would do with it. On about my 4th trip of looking at the fun designs a lady asked me "Do you make bows too?" I said "Yes. I sure do", bought 4 rolls of ribbon and came home to figure out how to make some bows. I took my creations to a teacher workshop I was attending the next day and people started passing them around and asked if they could order some. I was totally taken by surprise, but gladly took down the orders and the rest is history :) I made ornaments that Christmas as a "different" gift for my big family. This past summer I got into bottle caps and started my Etsy page after a friend's encouragement.

{Bottle cap bows, headbands, and clips by princESS!
Just tell her your favorite team and she'll make them custom, any way you like!}

What inspires you?

I am inspired by my desire to make pretty things. That may sound kind of silly, but most of my life I have been frustrated by having all these ideas in my head but not being able to actually take them and turn them into the finished product I had pictured. When I started making my bows, they turned out exactly like I pictured them in my head. It was (is) so exciting to look down and think "Hey that is super cute AND I made it!"

How do you handle being a mom with a full-time job AND an Etsy business?

Juggling a full time job, being a wife and mom, and having an Etsy shop is not always the easiest. I am very lucky to have a wonderful mother and husband who help around the house and with my son so I can have "me time." My 3 month old son also goes to bed at 8 and sleeps through the night, which is a big help! Once I had my son, I made the choice to leave my school work at school as much as possible. I have to use my time at work a lot wiser than I have in years past, so when I come home I can spend time with my family. After dinner and bath time, is my "me time" to work on my crafty projects. There tend to be some late nights, but feeding around the clock a few months ago taught me how to run on a lot less sleep than I used to.

{Bows, clips, and CUSTOM bows by princESS!
Need a matching set for the whole team or cheer squad?
Send in your requests and she'll do bulk orders to match your colors!

What has been your biggest eye-opener as a first time mom?

My biggest eye opener as a first time mom has been how much time I used to spend on work. I used to stay late, bring work home, and there still seemed to always be things left to do! I have had to really get my time management under control so that I can balance my family and my work. It is amazing how much more I seem to be accomplishing for school in less time.

Isn't she sweet? And she has such an amazingly supportive husband, who thinks she's a total rock-star, as well as the cutest little baby boy! She has so much cute stuff she's been working on and adding into her Etsy shop every day, so be sure to add her to your favorites or your circle so you can keep up with all the cute stuff she's doing. One of my favorite items in her shop are the bottle caps. She makes magnets, clippies, bows, and headbands and is constantly adding new photos to her Facebook page with her fun new ideas. She can also do custom caps for your favorite high school, college, or pro team, as well as fun and funky combinations, sororities, and more!

{Bottle cap magnets by princESS! You can never have too many of these on your fridge or file cabinet, and with a million custom combinations to choose from, you'll find something for everyone on your shopping list!}

Erica and I go waaaaaay back to the old college days at Texas Tech in Lubbock. :) So, when I ordered some little piggy tail bows for Aubrey from her, she sent me a custom bottle cap clippy and a magnet for my fridge decked out in custom Tech colors! I was so stoked!

PrincESS Erica has been so sweet to offer a five pack 

of custom bottle cap magnets to one lucky Little Birdie reader, 

and there are lots of ways you can win!! 

**Be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry below!!**

Mandatory Entry

1. "Like" Bows & Caps by PrincESS on Facebook! 

Leave a comment below letting me know you did, and feel free to say hello to Erica while you're there!


EXTRA Entries!!

1. Be or become a follower of The Little Birdie. {This one should be easy, you guys already are, right? RIGHT??} ;)
2. Heart Bows and Bottle Caps by princESS on Etsy.
3. Add Bows and Bottle Caps by princESS to your circle on Etsy.
4. Blog/Tweet/Facebook about this giveaway. Leave a separate comment for each.
5. Follow @lilbirdielady on Twitter {that's me, silly}
6. Like The Little Birdie on Facebook

Other Important Info.

• The giveaway will be open from now until Sunday, October 16th, so spread the word!
• Winner will be chosen via random.org and posted here Monday, October 17th!
• Remember to leave a separate comment for each entry, so they all get counted!

There ya go! Lucky number 7 ways to win! Ready? GO!!

XOXO

BONUS tutorial! A don't-miss hair care product!

This post brought to you by TRESemmé. All opinions are 100% mine.

How many of you are busy moms? Haha, okay, like pretty much ALL of you. And how many of you fight with your hair on a regular basis? Probably most of you. I do, daily. We get each other, I know.

Recently, I have come across this lovely little thing called "dry shampoo." It's magic for hair. I'm sure most of you know what it's like to speed-shower while the baby is napping, being as silent at humanly possible if only to stay in long enough to get that hair washed. Nothing like greasy, 3 day old hair to motivate you, right? Well, dry shampoo works with your hair's natural oils and are uniquely formulated to absorb excess oil and remove odor. The full line of dry shampoos rejuvenates hair without even a drop of water.

So basically that means you don't actually have to shampoo your hair to get it back to looking gorgeous. Did you catch that? No water, no soap, and no time at all to revive your hair's look and feel on days when you want (or NEED!) to skip a shampoo.

Dry shampoo can be tricky if you've never used it before, so I've enlisted the help of TRESemme and their dry shampoo experts to help me give you the best tips for working that dry shampoo. how to use

• Shake vigorously before use and between sprays for best coverage.
• Lift sections of dry hair and spray lightly at roots.
• Spray in short bursts, holding 8-12 inches from head.
• Don’t spray it like hair spray (all over and continuously).
• Leave in for 1-2 minutes.
• Use fingertips or a brush to distribute product evenly.
• If clogging occurs, remove nozzle and rinse the nozzle under warm water, then reattach.

While I've been buying dry shampoo for years from my local salon supply store, I have to say that I'm incredibly in love with the TRESemmé Fresh Start Dry Shampoo line. Not only do they have dry shampoo that you can buy right in your local grocery store, but an entire line of dry-use products for a wide range of hair types and styles.

• Strengthening Dry Shampoo: The formula, with B12 vitamins and keratin, helps strengthen hair and leaves it full of healthy body.
• Volumizing Dry Shampoo: The formula, with mineral clay and citrus, removes oil while injecting hair with salon-gorgeous volume.
• Smoothing Dry Shampoo: The formula, with Vitamin H & Silk Proteins, refreshes your straight style by removing excess oil, impurities and odor to ensure your smooth look lasts.
• Moisturizing Waterless Foam Shampoo: The formula, with Witch Hazel, Citrus, and Aloe Vera, refreshes your hair by removing excess oil, impurities and odor while moisturizing hair.

For more tips and tricks, you can check out this awesome TRESemme dry shampoo v-log by Julia Allison:

Good stuff!! AND she's currently holding a giveaway for a $500 gift card to Target, so you don't want to miss out on that either, HELLO!!

Now go enjoy that extra half hour I just gave you now that you don't have to wash your hair, and...

Have a great week!!

XOXO

Tutorial Tuesday & Linky Party - DIY Maxi Dress

Good morning, bloggers! I have a really awesome tutorial to share with you today. I know you're going to be shocked, but it's not something baby-related! It's a full grown sewing project, it's super fast, WAY cheap, and easy enough for anyone to do.

The DIY Maxi Dress

Now, I don't know about you guys but I have had the hardest time letting of my maternity tank tops. I love them. For me, it's comfort and coverage. Being rather, how should I say this... "top heavy" I have always struggled to find tops that can accommodate the load, lol, and offer me some decent coverage without showing my bra straps. Until I got pregnant, I just assumed I would never find this magic tank. Then came the world of maternity clothing. I can't really wear any of it anymore as it all looks funny, but I just couldn't let go of the tanks. So I decided to modify! :)

What makes this project so easy is the fact that you're using an already constructed shirt. No arm holes to sew, no serious measurements, and no trying to pin while wearing. Nice. :)

Materials List

1. Tank top or t-shirt that fits you well. 
2. 1 full yard (at least) of coordinating fabric. I used a jersey knit so it's stretchy and forgiving. ;)
• A note on the skirt fabric: I used an entire yard because I planned to ruffle it to give the dress some fullness and movement, and not have it be too fitted. You can use more or less as you like, and as measurements allow. 
3. Coordinating thread. Though it can really be any color because it doesn't show.
4. The usual suspects: sewing machine, scissors, measuring tape

Here we go... Photos reflect instructions from left to right and top to bottom.

Tutorial Instructions:

1. Choose your shirt and fabric.
2. Try on your shirt and make a mark where you want your skirt to start. Then draw a guide line across the shirt and cut through, removing the bottom half.
3. Since we're using the entire yard, fold the long sides of your fabric together and hem together to make a giant tube. I used a regular running stitch twice, and then serged the ends together for extra sturdiness. You can also use a zig-zag stitch in place of serging.
4. Next, decide which end of the tube will be your at your waist, and sew a single line all the way around, being careful not to overlap at the seam. Pull the ends of the thread to ruffle until it fits your waist measurement.
5. Now, turn your tube inside out (if it's not already), and put your tank inside the tube with the right sides facing each other and the open ends matched up. Pin together securely.
6. Sew together the tank and fabric tube. You can probably use just about any stitch for this, but I used my #9 which is like a slanted zig-zag stitch. This stitch will give you a little stretch, which is good when dealing with knits and jersey fabric.
7. You can see the finished #9 hem in box #7. Now trim your threads, and any errant fabric.
8. Turn right side out and inspect your hems.
9. You can hang and measure for a bottom hem, but it's not necessary. I didn't because for one, jersey doesn't fray so it doesn't need a hem, and secondly, I have such long legs that my whole yard was just about the right length to hit my toes. When it comes to dresses, I like 'em long and swishy!

And that's it! You're finished! How easy was that? Now have fun dressing it up, or wearing it plain... there's nothing this fun maxi dress can't do. 

Now it's your turn! Link up your projects below for this week's linky party!

Linky Guidelines:

1. Please feel free to link up as many projects as you would like!
2. Please link directly to your project post, it makes them much easier for everyone to find.
3. Please no etsy shops, or generic blog links. Specific posts links only.
4. Visit someone else's link and share the bloggy love!
5. Grab yourself a button and post it in your project post or on your blog. Optional of course, but the more we share the party, the more people see your posts! :)
6. Have fun!!

<a href="http://www.littlebirdiebaby.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjybpWehEcQYkr_bcTNwQtjMs-pSV-lbAnKMq0wQAbpkfm8Vn6I1fmUjYtVvzwqfTuazi67qG1Z7SWKRWPfgV3kkRVaYGnhKP7LJ0txiH6AQQj2x8KUcYdEuPtOudXo4oDmxEdFyxqjJ7RO/s800/Tute%20Tues%20LB.png" height="150" width="150" /></a>

Have a great week!!

XOXO

Merchandise Monday - Leather Diaper Clutches!

Good morning, all! I just wanted to take a moment to pop in for a Merchandise Monday post (since we haven't had one in awhile) and let you know about some things going on in my etsy shop.

First of all, due to a huge increase in demand over the past 3 months or so, I've had to do some price adjusting. However, despite these changes I am happy to announce that The Little Birdie Baby Shop is now offering FREE SHIPPING on all orders! Yay!

And even though I have been up to my ears in a huge order, I've also been adding some new stuff! The Little Birdie Baby Shop is now carrying diaper clutches!

These little cuties are the perfect solution for carrying your diaper necessities in your purse. They perfectly hold 2 or 3 diapers (depending on what size) and a small pack of wipes. There's even room for a tube of diaper cream, and a pocket for your other extras!

Each one is made from high-quality upholstery leather in various colors and prints, and then lined with bright, fun, designer fabrics. Each clutch measures 10" wide by 6" tall, with a shiny nickel button stud closure. The great thing about these babies, is that while they're great for diapers, they're also great as a wallet, or for a night out!

Stay tuned to Merchandise Monday, because next week we'll be starting up with some new giveaways!!

Have a great week!

XOXO

Tutorial Tuesday & Linky Party - Pretty as a Pear

Good morning bloggers!! I have a little cutesy tutorial for you today, something quick and easy that you can whip up in no time.

A Pretty Pear Pincushion

This was a little project born of necessity. The little one is now perfectly capable of reaching pretty much everything on my desk. In the aftermath of a huge pin spill, I thought it high time that I make myself a little pin cushion to keep my sharps safe and out of the way.

I found this pattern online, though I can't be sure where it came from. I am constantly downloading patterns and pulling instructions for projects, even though I already have more bookmarked than I could ever complete in my lifetime, haha!!

Anyway, here it is PLUS an extra pattern for an apple pincushion as well! With some fun and funky fabrics, you could have quite the little bushel here. ;)

Click the pattern to enlarge it in another window, then print. 

I'm not sure what the size should be, I just printed as is and went to it!

Materials list:

1. 1, 2, or 3 different fabrics for the body of the pear or apple. You don't need much. I think I used 3 half strips of jelly roll fabric.
2. Sewing machine or needle and thread- this can TOTALLY be done by hand!
3. Felt for the leaves. Again, you could easily get away with using scraps.
4. Poly-fill, sand, or rice for filling.
5. Hot glue or fabric glue
6. Coordinating straight pins (optional)

Tutorial Instructions:

1. Print pattern and cut out pieces.
2. Cut 6 of each shape (pear or apple) from your fabrics, and one or two leaves (I used felt for these).
3. Start sewing together the body pieces by placing them right sides together and sewing along ONE EDGE only.
4. Piece and sew them together this way until you have what looks like an inside-out pear shape.
5. Sew the opening together (again, inside out) leaving a 1" hole for turning.
6. Turn right side out and fill. I used rice so it would have a little weight to it, and even threw in some lavender to keep my sewing table smelling lovely.
7. Sew up your hole and tie off.
8. You can either hot glue the leaves down or use fabric glue. I'm impatient, so I went the hot glue route. Plus I love hot glue. ;)
9. If you found some coordinating straight pins, pop those in right on top of the leaves for a little extra accent and you're done!!

See? Easy, quick, and super cute! Now it's your turn! Link up your projects and visit one another's pages as you go. We all love visitors and comments, so share the love! :)

Linky Guidelines:

1. Please feel free to link up as many projects as you would like!
2. Please link directly to your project post, it makes them much easier for everyone to find.
3. Please no etsy shops, or generic blog links. Specific posts links only.
4. Visit someone else's link and share the bloggy love!
5. Grab yourself a button and post it in your project post or on your blog. Optional of course, but the more we share the party, the more people see your posts! :)
6. Have fun!!

<a href="http://www.littlebirdiebaby.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjybpWehEcQYkr_bcTNwQtjMs-pSV-lbAnKMq0wQAbpkfm8Vn6I1fmUjYtVvzwqfTuazi67qG1Z7SWKRWPfgV3kkRVaYGnhKP7LJ0txiH6AQQj2x8KUcYdEuPtOudXo4oDmxEdFyxqjJ7RO/s800/Tute%20Tues%20LB.png" height="150" width="150" /></a>

Have a great week!!

XOXO

Caught in the Texas Wildfires... reaching out for help!

Good morning everyone, I'm just popping in to touch base and apologize for the lack of posts this week. I'll be working toward getting back on schedule for Tutorial Tuesday and What I Pinned {Wednesday} next week. I appreciate your patience and understanding in the meantime.

As many of you know I live in Texas, just north of the Houston area- and if you have been following the news you've probably heard about the wildfires ravaging our beautiful state right now.

Tens of thousands of homes have been burned to the ground, and millions of acres have been scorched. There have also been several confirmed deaths throughout the state, as well as the loss of hundreds of head of horses, cattle, and other animals. Things are not good.

{animals left defenseless against the oncoming flames}

Many have also been evacuated from their homes in an effort to save lives, but even many of these people have lost everything. When a fire takes a home, it takes everything in it. You don't realize how much irreplaceable "stuff" you have until you risk losing it all. Photos, heirlooms, mementos, toys, clothing, furniture... EVERYTHING is just gone.

{acres and acres of land scorched and still burning...}

{Plumes of smoke behind the Austin (our state capitol) skyline}

The thing about central and southeast Texas is that it is HEAVILY wooded. We've also been in an extreme drought for most of the year, so every time one of these fires sparks up it's like setting a match to a haystack, the whole thing goes up in a matter of seconds. For that reason, these fires are proving difficult to contain, and nearly impossible to squelch as they spread mercilessly throughout our state.

{photos from central Texas, Austin, Bastrop, Magnolia and Montgomery}

My husband and I are uncomfortably close to the fires in our area, but not close enough to be evacuated yet. There are about 50 large fires burning 10-15 miles west of our house, and as long as they don't move much closer we'll be okay. However, you can see the smoke in the air and the sky is hazy with soot so living smack in the middle of 300 acres of forest is not at all comforting.

{that's SMOKE in the sky there folks, not clouds... way too close for comfort}

We have been fortunate so far, but many others have not. Unlike other recent disasters (Irene, flooding, earthquakes, etc.) for some reason, we are not getting any federal funding for this disaster. I'll leave the politics out of it, but let's just say our governor does not have a great relationship with the federal government. Unfortunately, it's our people who are suffering.

So in the true spirit of Texas' neighborly hospitality, we are throwing in together to help those who have lost everything get back on their feet. My husband and his crew is working 'round the clock locally to gather clothes, food, toys, shoes, air mattresses, towels, sheets and other "basics" for those who have lost everything. If you are interested in sending whatever you have, send me an email and I'll give your our mailing address.

I have also created a ChipIn account so those of you who would like to help financially can do so. Even $1 goes a long way to helping such a desperate situation. All proceeds will be donated to the Texas Wildfire Relief Fund based out of Austin, Texas. I will be putting the ChipIn widget up in the sidebar on the right for the foreseeable future, for easy access. It is completely secure, and is protected by Paypal policies and regulations.



Please feel free to share this post as often and wherever you can. Blogger, Facebook, Twitter, wherever. We need help, and those of us who are still standing are working hard to help our neighbors out. There are shelters available to those displaced from their homes, as well as hotels offering their available space for those who might need special assistance, or who have small children. There are also several ranchers offering pasture for displaced animals, or those needing to evacuate their herds. 
If you need more info, or would like a local address to send physical goods to, please email me at:
littlebirdiebaby {at} gmail {dot} com
I will be fielding emails and phone calls 24/7, so don't hesitate to get in touch.
Prayers are also VERY welcome!!!

XOXO