Smile And Wave

My Gender Neutral Baby Picks: Part One

 

Gathering things for a baby without knowing it's gender may seem like a daunting task but I've come across more than plenty of things I think would work for this little mystery in it's first few months. While we'll find out the gender as soon as it makes it's appearance, I know all the nursing, napping, and dirty diapers will keep me from hitting the stores to fill in all the holes with gender appropriate clothing and gear. My solution is to go with a lot of black and white, stripes, mint, chartreuse, and any other gear that might work for both a girl or a boy. And then maybe some online shopping during a 3am feeding.

Here are some favorites so far:

1. Pastel Striped Kanga Pocket by Gap.

2. Swadler Blanket in Neutral by Lippy Brand.

3. California State Baby Rattle by Bannor Toys.

4. Organic French Terry Sweatshirt by Mabo Kids.

5. Organic Unisex Baby Leggings by My Moon.

6. Yellow Rattle Ball from Polka Dot Club. 

7. Sea Foam Wind Farm by Crane & Canopy.

8. Balancing Blocks by Fort Standard

9. It's Ok Banner by Secret Holiday Co.

10. Striped Velour One-Piece from Gap.

If this sweet baby is a boy we'll be mostly there. If it's a girl I'll fill in her wardrobe with a little peach and pink for good measure.  

Stay tuned for my Gender Neutral Baby Picks:Part Two coming soon!

-Rachel

p.s. Not a sponsored post. My mom just asked me if we were registered anywhere and for some hints on what to buy for this mystery gender baby. I'm subtle, huh. 

 

Group Giveaway Day

Busy Spinning Thread

Busyspinningthread is a Clothing and Accessories shop based in Mississippi; Geared towards modern mommas and their tots who aren't afraid to express their style! All products are proudly handmade in the USA. 

After many sleepless nights, Rachel (owner of Busyspinningthread) decided that going on alone would not only be bad for her but her business as well.  As Helen Keller so eloquently put it, "Alone we can do so little; Together we can do so much," So starting in January 2014, Busyspinningthread will hire on another seamstress to share the excited of handmade and creating with! This will cut down on turnaround times and leaves more time to create! Yippee!

Giveaway: $50 shop credit

 For extra chances to win:

* Pin Favorite Item from Shop to Pinterest Pinboard using the Pin It button on Etsy Shop then copy link in comments to verify.

* Like Busy Spinning Thread on Facebook.

* Follow on Instagram

 

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 Folding Chair Designs

Folding Chair Designs is a handmade hair accessory shop based out of Portland, OR. The designs are inspired by vintage women's clothing and color, color, color. You'll find styles for yourself and the little ladies in your life. In an effort to keep my designs timeless, I strive for simple, modern style that can easily mix in to your everyday wardrobe. Wool felt, hand embroidered details and big splashes of color are my vices. 

 

Giveaway: $40 shop credit

 

 For extra chances to win:

* Follow @FoldingChairDesigns on Instagram

* Like Folding Chair Designs on Facebook 

 

 

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 Sootie LimeTree

Sootie LimeTree is a toy and illustration shop based in Leeds, UK, crammed full of handmade and cosy toys for little (and occasionally big) people, made to brighten your day. Each item is hand knitted, sewn and stuffed from scratch, and every character can be customised with colors and fabrics to suit your child's favorite color or your very own nursery scheme.

 

To add a little more to the party, we have also recently expanded into illustrations, which make perfect prints for a nursery, or anywhere else around the house - just because you can. 

 

GIVEAWAY: $50 shop credit 

 

For an extra chance to win:

 

* Follow @sootie_limetree on Twitter 

 

 

 

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 Rise Above Life

 

 

 

My blog, Rise Above Life, started during a dark period in my life and is about getting above the trials and chaos in our daily lives. I have been able to share stories about how others have overcome everything from cancer and miscarriage to addiction and depression. It is a place for support without fear of judgement and shame.  

 

I started to make artwork for friends and family who were dealing with tough problems, to have in their homes that provided a reminder to have hope and encouragement everyday. People started to ask where they could get one for themselves. I started to offer printable art that you can conveniently print on your home printer. I also offer physical prints that are mailed to you, ready to frame. There are also several printables that can be personalized for your needs. 

 

I really enjoy making these designs. It helps me feel like I have a purpose for going through all of the trials I have faced. If I can help just one person by offering my designs and writing the blog, it is all worth it. 

 

 

GIVEAWAY ITEM: An 8X10 print or printable of any item from the shop.

(value $20-$40)

 

For an extra chance to win: 

 

* Pin your favorite item from the Etsy shop on Pinterest and come back with a link.

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To win all four giveaway items valued at over $150 leave a comment sharing one of your New Year's Resolutions.

For extra chances to win all four items pick a shop above and see their options to like, follow, or pin and then leave a comment for each action that you take. 

The winner will be chosen by Jan 4th so be sure to leave a way for me to contact you if your link isn't working in the comment section. Too many giveaways this year have been forfeited because the winners have not responded and were unable to be contacted directly. 

Thanks again to all of the wonderful sponsors who shared their work with Smile and Wave readers this month!

-Rachel

Merry Christmas, Friends!

We hope you had a lovely Christmas! We're still on the road visiting all of our family and friends - many of whom we haven't seen since last Christmas - and enjoying lots of down time in order to keep contractions to a minimum. Hoping to be back to a regularly scheduled program soon. Also, thank you for all of your comments on the last post. I so appreciate your encouragement and presence here!

What are you doing with the rest of 2013? Work or play or a bit of both? 

-Rachel

p.s. Joy Banner c/o Jess Judkins. 

It's Been A Long December

It's been about two weeks since I've last blogged. It has to be a record of some sort for Smile and Wave. Here's a little break down of why things have been quiet over here.

Dec 1-4: Stomach flu, my car won't start, snowed in.

Dec 6: Broken couch leg, broken bunk bed slat, broken heater.

Dec 7: Broken starter on Brett's car, heating repair guy has to come back three times to fix heater, both cars get towed to the mechanic. 

Dec 8: Get both car bills and kiss all the savings from Brett's deployment pay goodbye.

Dec 9: Brett's grandpa loses his battle to cancer.

Dec 11: Pack up everything a week early and drive 10 hrs to Wichita, KS.

Dec 12: Drive 8 more hours to Brett's mom's house. Lose my wallet.

Dec 13: Drive 3 hrs for the funeral. Realize I've lost my wallet. Cancel debit card.

Dec 16: Brett's grandma on the other side has a stroke. 

Dec 17: Ruby gets sick. Second day of contractions almost every hour. Lots of water and resting.

18-21st: 4 days of nothing bad happening and getting to hang out with friends in Springfield and Rolla. Woohoo!

Dec 22: My car starts leaking antifreeze. Needs new water hose and two other things.

Dec 23: Car won't get fixed in time for us to drive it to my parents' for Christmas. Another big car bill. 

December has been a few choice words. I've struggled with keeping my positive attitude and focusing on the blessings for most of it.

The blessings are there.

I know we're so lucky to have Brett with us, two healthy kids, a baby to look forward to, and family and friends to help us through all of these frustrations. I know we're fortunate that we'd saved up enough for those car bills not to put us further into a hole and even though we needed that money for a few things to prepare for this baby, we'll still manage. We haven't gone ice skating, built gingerbread houses, or watched Christmas movies but we're getting to spend extra time with family and friends in Missouri which may not have been possible had we not come out a week early for a funeral.

December has been kind of lame on all sides but we've still got so much.

We're hoping to borrow a car to get back to Oklahoma to see my side of the family on Christmas Eve and then Brett will just have to road trip it by himself to switch cars again. Then we're hoping for an uneventful week before we welcome 2014 and head back to Colorado.

Dear January, please be gentle. We need a breather.

-Rachel

Customized Stocking DIY for ABM

 

 

Sharing one way to customize your stockings this Christmas on A Beautiful Mess today. Head over to see how simple and inexpensive this little project was!

-Rachel 

Straw Himmeli Ornament DIY

Last year I ordered Christmas cards from a fabulous company and got almost all of them sent out in early December. This year I wasn't sure if I was going to get a photo of the kids done in time to get them ordered so I went ahead and came up with an idea for making something a little special to go along with printed photos from our home printer. 

I shared how to make a little more complicated straw himmeli mobile earlier this year but wanted to make a simple ornament to include in most of our Christmas cards. We had a lot of support from family and friends this year as we welcomed the excitement and challenge of baby number three on it's way during Brett's four month deployment so I wanted to send out a little thank you in our Christmas cards that they could add to their Christmas trees. 

1. For one ornament you'll need: Three paper or plastic straws, bakers twine or embroidery thread, and scissors. I found my paper straws in the Target dollar spot but most hobby and craft stores carry them. You can find extra special ones on Etsy. 2. Cut three lengths measuring about 2.25" long out of the first two straws and two out of the last straw. Use the leftovers to create four even lengths that measure just under 1". You'll also need four strands of twine or thread measuring about 2' each. 3. Fold the four strands in half and tie a knot in the center. Then spread them out in four directions two threads at a time. String one of the 2" pieces of straw over each of the pairs of thread as shown. Separate the strands at the top of the straws. 4. String one of the shorter pieces of straw over the right strand of thread in each pair. 5.Take the left strand of thread and thread it through the shorter straws to the left of them so that each short straw has a strand entering and exiting on each end. 6. Pull tight to form a 3-D shape. 7. You now have four new pairs of twine/thread. Slip your last four straws over your four pairs of twine/thread. 8. Pull together at the top and adjust your straws. Tie a knot to secure things. 9. Trim the twine/thread about 1-2" from the knot for a little flair. This will be the bottom of your ornament. Attach more twine/thread at the other end to hang.

These ornaments will fold almost flat so they can easily be slipped into an envelope along with a note or photo and given as a little gift or added to a present to dress things up. 

Need more himmelis in your life? Here's another way to crank out some last minute ornaments from sparkly pipe cleaners.

-Rachel

Holiday Ad Sale: Two for One

Buy an ad for December and get an ad in January for free!

Take advantage of the last month in the holiday shopping season to share your shop or blog with Smile and Wave readers and get a month on the house. Pay full price for your ad spot for December and then use the promo code 'BOGO' when it expires for a free ad spot of the same size in January. 

See ad page for pricing.

As always, thank you for supporting Smile and Wave with your readership!

-Rachel 

Pipe Cleaner Himmeli Ornament DIY

I was craving something different for our Christmas decor this year - a break from all of the vintage Shiny Brites in hot pink and teal that we've used the last six years - but didn't want to go out and buy a whole new set of ornaments and decor because, duh, baby on the way. Himmelis have been on my radar all year as seen here, here, and here. I love their shape and that they're new to me but rather traditional if you're Finnish. There's a long history of people making himmeli ornaments for Christmas or mobiles throughout the year from straws and brass but I wanted something sparkly and inexpensive that I could pump out in about an hour. Gold pipe cleaners! Yes!

1. Each ornament takes three pipe cleaners. You will also want yarn or twine to hang them. First, fold two pipe cleaners over each other to form an X. Don't just lay them on top of each other, they need to fold back so that they are two right angles that hook in the middle. 2. About 2" up from the center, fold each end up to the ceiling. 3. Take your third pipe cleaner and fold it around one of the bends about 1/4" as shown and then wrap it all the way around the next bend. Make it as tight as you can without bending everything out of shape. 4. Continue to bend that third pipe cleaner around each bend until you come back to the beginning. Fold over and trim extra if there's any. You'll want to make sure you're leaving an equal amount of space between each of the bends. 5. Take the shorter two pieces at the top of your open himmeli and fold over each other. 6. Then take the next two and fold over. Trim edges. Gently reshape any bends in the lines if you need to. Attach some yarn or twine to the top and hang. 

I really love the way they look against the white tree. I've got no plans to get rid of any Shiny Brites but it's fun to have so many different colors in my collection that I can change things out every year or two. This year I added a finger-knit garland (only one half of it has been hung because I'm still working on the other half!), wrapped the tree in a thrifted afghan instead of fussing with yet another handmade tree skirt, pulled all of the gold bulbs from my stash, and made the tree topper out of leftover pipe cleaners. It was more of the same twisting and folding of pipe cleaners. I'll be sure to share more of our holiday decor in a future post. 

Ruby got in on the pipe cleaner action while I was working and made herself a handful of candy cane pipe cleaner ornaments for the shorter white tree we have. We also made some twisty hearts and she climbed on top of that deer and hung them all near the top. It's quite charming. 

The great thing about this kind of project is how versatile it is. You could string together a dozen or more himmelis to make a garland for your doorway, add them to a wreath, or make mini himmelis and attach them to presents. Feel free to link back to this tutorial to share your own!

-Rachel

Thanksgiving 2013

We had a quiet, slow-paced Thanksgiving this year with just our immediate family and it was pretty great. There was no pressure to get the food on the table by a certain time, no one to see our floor full of dirty laundry as they came in through the back door or the dusty mantle as they settled into the couch after too much turkey. We spent the morning prepping the turkey and cleaning for our own sakes with enough time to spare for me to finish quilting together a bassinet blanket I'd started late the night before and then sat down for a late lunch with plenty of time left in the day to still want leftovers for dinner.

We continued our tradition of watching ELF but I didn't have the energy to bust out the first of the Christmas decorations. All I could muster was some pumpkin pie and ice cream on the couch with my baby belly as a shelf and candles flickering as we laughed through all of our favorite scenes. It was my favorite part. 

This year I DIDN'T ruin the pumpkin pie but I DID forget to drain the canned yams before making my grandmother's candied yam dish. I asked Brett to check them in the oven to see if they were done and he asked me if they were supposed to twerk. Otherwise this was my third time cooking a full spread after eleven plus years of marriage and I'm pretty proud that I only forgot to drain those yams! 

I hope your Thanksgiving was lovely if you celebrated with us in the US. There is always so much to be thankful for and I'm finding myself especially aware of all the ways life is good right now.

-Rachel

Cyber Monday E-Course Sale

Hi friends! In celebration of cyber Monday we're offering 25% off all our e-courses all this week! (Sale ends Friday)

Here's the discount code: LASTCALL (This is case sensitive, and be sure you don't add a space before or after the discount code) 

You can get more info and shop all our e-courses here. 

-Rachel

p.s. Image courtesy of ABM