February birthdays can be kind of a bummer. I know because I have one–and so does my son. So I try to throw parties for him that make people with summer birthdays jealous. There will be no awesome tail gate sledding party for you, Gemini. Ha ha!

This year, my son wanted a winter picnic party on the ice (take that, Cancers). Also requested were, marshmallows, glow sticks, a cake shaped like a 6, and popcorn. All birthday wishes granted! I wasn’t too sure how the cake would turn out, but it seems there is nothing more frosting can’t solve.

I stumbled on these glow swords at Target, and wow! were they a big hit! I had planned to have some sort of balloon game with glowing balloons (a la pinterest), but you need 1. clear balloons (not just white ones), 2. super bright glow sticks (not the skinny, cheapy ones from target), and 3. actual pitch black, not 7pm.   Oh well, you win some, you lose some.

The kids didn’t seem to mind.

Before the epic glow battle, we built a big fire and roasted marshmallows. By the way, roasted marshmallows in your hot chocolate is the best thing ever, which is also how my son described his party.  I have to agree–nothing better than turning 6 with a giant fire on a frozen lake!

My creative process often involves simply staring at all the fabric in my stash. Then after much staring, I make lots of little piles. I am particularly excited about the pile pictured above. Many adorable things are potentially in that pile–if all the sewing goes smoothly, of course.

This pile is for things my children actually need, so it’s less exciting, but I still like it. Look at me making little piles of fabric and then telling the whole internet about them. Don’t call me crazy, I know you do it too :)

We’ve been making this and that for valentine’s day this week: some hearts, some secret grandparent gifts, and some popcorn.

This popcorn falls under the category, “ridiculous things pinterest makes me do.” Also in the category are watermelon stars and temporary tattoos on bananas. Party popcorn–awesome name by the way–is melted white chocolate poured over popcorn and then covered in sprinkles. I added a little crunchy salt too, because it’s aways delicious.

My children were so unbelievably excited about making this and said many times, “this is the best thing you have ever made, ever.” I’m not a fan of popcorn or white chocolate, so I’m not the best judge, but I believe them. You can’t really go wrong when you pouring chocolate on something.  I found a few–printable!–pop-corny puns thanks again to pinterest.  A few staples later, Bob’s your uncle, and you’ve got 18 valentines ready to go!

Did you already do your valentines? Or are you a last minute scrambler? I’ve got a tutorial for a super quick Me Hearty Eye Patch, if you are still searching for ideas. There are so many good ones out there. Got any favorites?

My youngest has recently decided he wants nothing to do with button pants–anything other than elastic and it’s a fight to get him dressed in the morning. I, on the other hand, want nothing to do with the track pants most boys live in (or “fast pants” as my friend’s sons calls them).  Fast pants can be stylish, but are usually not; and they are always made of that slimy, synthetic fabric that gets pill-y and gross when you wash it. Picky mother => picky son.

I haven’t been sewing much lately, but this pants situation has to be remedied somehow. So I’ve been looking for pants I can sew for my sons that are comfortable and stylish. There are surprisingly few clothes out there for boys that fit the bill.  I discovered the Japanese brand, mol and they seem to get it right. The pants pictured above are my absolute favorite: a little stripe action, a random patch, some fuzzy pockets, and boom! your pants are awesome.

They also have pants with pockets that look like bear paws, which any kid is going to love. Often times children’s clothes are just a mini version of boring grown up clothes. But kids are hilarious! and they like to wear hilarious clothes, like snake socks and swan dresses and hoods with teeth and hats with whiskers.

I like the idea of a capri length, comfy, elastic waisted pants with cozy leg warmers attached at the bottom. Is that too weird? There is a pattern in Carefree Clothes for Girls which is exactly what I’m talking about: sweatpants with knitted leg warmers sewn to the bottom. The photo above is a lovely version by Sew Nancy from a few years back. I have been meaning to make this pattern for years–how is my to sew list possibly that long?  I even have one leg warmer crocheted.

Help me out here people! Are my children going to look like crazy people or the most stylish kids on the block?

I have a rather large backlog of projects I want to share with you guys. The deadly cough/fever/will this go on forever? flu visited our house last week. We are all–finally!–crawling out from the sickness wreckage.

There has been much cozy making because of all the illness and I have rediscovered these wrist warmers I made in the fall. I never have been fully on the wrist warmer bandwagon.  When not done right, they tend to resemble arm support braces from walgreens–not really the look I’m going for.

There is no mistaking these colorful guys for medical supply (I hope).  Last summer, a friend of mine was clearing out her yarn stash and I was the lucky recipient of some gorgeous variegated Noro sock yarn. There was only a bit left, so I needed a small project to showcase such awesome yarn.  There are only about a million patterns for fingerless gloves out there, so it took me a while to find something just right. I wanted simple, but not super boring, something that would show off the yarn, and be functional as well.

I’m happy to say these check all the boxes. There are more details about my Noro wrist warmers on Ravelry if you are interested. Sometimes I forget how satisfying it can be to make something for yourself. Have you made anything for yourself recently?