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Albion Fit

June 16, 2014 By Erica Deuel 20 Comments

the prefect mom swimsuitSummer is in full swing and we are living at the neighborhood pool. How about you? Are you hitting the pool? Getting ready for the summer beach trip? Are you a mom with young kids?

If you are anything like me this is always that time of year that I stress about finding a good bathing suit for the season. For me I prefer something modest, that I feel good in, and can’t be pulled down while kids are climbing all over me… It’s a pretty daunting combination to find. I have purchased and taken back no less than four bathing suits already this year. 🙁

But don’t worry, there’s hope! I found the most amazing bathing suit from Albion Fit. It is absolutely my favorite suit in a very long time. It is modest yet beautiful, and the best part is I don’t feel like an old mom in it! As I now have my first suit from Albion, my love for this company is just growing as is my wish list. Their pieces are fashionable and unique, but more importantly practical and technical. There are so many cute suits, but they also carry workout gear. Here are a few of my favorite suits. Note: click each image to be taken to that suit on their site.icon_red2

bigpolka_front

rashfloral

blousy-black-back1

gidge2Do you see the cuteness I’m talking about?! I know if you browse their site, you too will fall in love with their products. I’m excited today to give you have a chance to win a $25 gift card to put towards one of your own! To enter, let the rafflecopter load and enter away!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

albion GIVEAWAYThank you so much for entering my giveaway! Good luck and I hope you have a great week!

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DIY Little Tote Bag

December 20, 2013 By Erica Deuel 2 Comments

DIY_little_girl_bagOne thing that I don’t think is really communicated to a first time mom is the bag you will need AFTER the diaper bag.

The diaper bag fits a great season where you have lots of diapers, wipes, bibs, bottles, baby food, and rattles that need to be carted around. It is crucial to a mom’s ability to leave the house. There is a phase afterwards where you don’t need to carry as much, but you certainly don’t want your purse to weigh a 100 pounds either. I think of this phase as the little tote bag stage. Reagan is currently there, and I made her a few for Christmas. In this bag I can throw her favorite little toys that she wants to carry at all times, her favorite blankie for long errand times in the van, and even an extra set of underwear and leggings…just in case she has a potty training accident.

The bag is cute. It is almost like a purse to her, but it is multi functional for me too. I think this bag is an essential. I made Reagan a few by embellishing an existing canvas bag. You can do the same to personalize yours in a way to customize it for your child.

Start with getting a canvas bag that you like the size and shape. I found mine at Hobby Lobby, but I think this bag
is pretty cute too with the closure feature.

I found a bunch of scrap fabric that I liked and I started just cutting to make some fun embellishments.

Girls_toy_bagHandmade_Girls_toy_bagOnce I had my embellished pieces, I simply stuffed it all through my sewing machine to attach them to my bag. One thing to be careful is you don’t sew through both sides of your bag, otherwise you wont be able to open it! You can applique your embellished pieces on with fusible web, if you want. This step would help make it much easier. I was too impatient to do it the right way. 🙂

embellishging_toy_bagI ended up adding some fun ribbon for another texture and look to one of my bags. I had a little gap open space at one end of this design so I sewed on a button to make it prettier. Also, I used a lighter and slightly burned the ends of my ribbon to keep them from fraying.

Toddler_bag

stop_ribbon_frayMy bags were then done! They were so simple to embellish and create something fun and useful while still looking cute. Reagan loves to draw so I have one set up with art supplies to go and the other has her spare little travel size blanket.

handmande_bag

DIY_diaper_bagI know these bags will get a lot of use, and I am excited to give them to her! If you saw my Handmade Gift Guide, we can add this little project to that list. I think this is a great, meaning full gift to give a child. Sticking in it something they love doesn’t hurt either ;).

Toddler__girl_bagThank you so much for checking in! I am so excited to let you know that registration for my January Spoonful Tribe membership opens tomorrow! If you are just checking in, you can find more information on this system here. I will be announcing the craft and you can check out my creations of it to inspire you as you order yours!!

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Failing at “Super Mom”

May 18, 2012 By Erica Deuel 3 Comments

(Note:  Congratulations to Amanda Huyser for winning my hair bow this week!)

Life is changing again for us.  I was so sad about Caleb starting preschool this year, but in the last few weeks I have also been so sad about it ending.  It’s funny how that changed this year.

I have been so excited to get my boy back and to start attacking the list on our fridge of all the fun things we want to do this summer.  I have been so excited about our schedule being freed up and creating lots of memories together!

On the other hand, Roswell Presbyterian Preschool has been such a sweet “routine” for Caleb.  He had the two best teachers.  I literally believe God placed our boy in their room this year.  It wasn’t an accident or by chance.  They love my Caleb and were so patient with my questions and endless emails at the beginning of the year when I was learning to “let go”.  Caleb and his classmates bonded this year, and I am sad for this sweet season to end because of the friendships he has made and the influence of his teachers in his life.

Caleb had mixed feelings about school ending too.  He has been so excited about summer and swimming in “Grammy Pammy’s pool”, yet He’s been sad to say goodbye to his school, friends, and teachers.  I watch his sweet innocence and am trying to help him grasp and process this change in his life.

I think part of why this is a hard change for me is knowing I am keeping him home next year.  He wont see his friends in a few short months back at school.  After our best friends moving, Matt’s job having a different look and routine, my boys not taking naps or even doing “quiet time” anymore, and now this change…I think I’m just kind of emotional!?  In my opinion, one of the hardest parts of being a stay at home mom to three little ones is having changes and being too busy and tired to process it all.  There are all these emotions not sorted out and just kind of on the edge of your heart and soul, so they ooze out the first chance they are “allowed” to.  

On Friday, he had his last day of preschool.

In hopes of trying to boost both our hurting hearts, I tried to prep a fun “Welcome to Summer” activity.  After rushing home from dropping Caleb off at school, I hurriedly started creating a banner for him. I filled up a bucket of water balloons and all of our water guns.  My goal was to get home and to have a huge water war.  In the midst of this preparation, I had a slight melt down.  I forgot to follow through on J’s potty training routine when we got home and the result started my unraveling.

I was annoyed that I couldn’t do everything I wanted without being “interrupted” with my other two children.  I was snippy and edgy with them as I was rushing to do MY tasks.  My mind was busily trying to plan a special day for Caleb, and I wasn’t as sharp with J’s needs. Not staying on it with him caused a step backwards in his potty training and  I lost it.

I started crying and got so frustrated.  I was frustrated with myself.  It was all my fault.  I put all this pressure on myself to make today special for Caleb…I was failing my other two.  After such an emotional high of “miracles coming in the form of poop” literally the day before, I was so discouraged with myself that I wasn’t more on my game with J.  I can’t do it all.

I just cried and hugged my sweet husband.  As I was crying, it all came out.  Hence, my emotions oozed :).  I’m tired and going to bed too late.  I struggle to go to bed earlier because if I don’t stay up late and have some me time, I fail at hanging on to parts of “Erica”.  I’ve been sick and can’t run, so I am failing at holding onto one hobby I have worked so hard to keep up.  I can’t look cute and prepped everyday, so I fail at being the “hot mom”.  My house is always a mess, so I fail at being a good “home maker”.  Most of my meals are decided after my husband is home and the kids are beyond ready to eat, so I fail at another level of “home maker”. I cant please each of my three kids at the same time, all day, everyday, so I fail at being “super mom”.  In my mind, I am always letting someone or something down.  It’s so hard.

The day before this melt down, I had celebrated the heck out of J’s first poop in the toilet, and now I was letting him down by trying to make a special day for Caleb.

Matt held me, let me cry, helped fill my water balloons, and brought me back to reality.  What matters is loving my kids and not all the “tasks” I want to do for/or with them.  I put this pressure on my self to be “super ____”, but no one expects me to be that way.  He is God’s gift to me.

I wiped my tears and went to enjoy the end of the school year picnic with my kids, Caleb’s classmates, their moms, and his teachers.

After a good cry with my husband and a laugh with a sweet friend at Caleb’s last day of school picnic.  I was feeling a little better. I can’t be super mom all the time. This is my season.  My special, quick season of having three little blessings to care for everyday.

The water war was a blast!  The kids loved it!  There is nothing like a little skirt gun war and water balloon chasing to make you laugh and feel like a kid.

My cute girl was pretty much big eyed and sat in this chair taking it all in.

The giggles and shrieks of laughter in these moments, do so much for my tired soul.  This is what my season is about.  Enjoying and delighting in my kids is my priority.  I will fail in moments of not being able to be “super mom”, but I just need to keep loving them and being humble in moments of weakness.

So, to all the tired mamas out there, embrace that you wont always be a “super mom”, because it does not mean you are failing at being a GOOD mom!!

Part TWO of this processing is in my next post: Caleb’s Graduation Ceremony.

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Sweet, Childhood, Boy Bliss

April 26, 2012 By Erica Deuel Leave a Comment

I love having boys!  Here are my cute boys…being…well BOYS!

In order…

1.  Enjoying being superheros

2.  J excitedly about to pounce Caleb with his superhero powers

3.  Caleb taking J on with his superhero powers

You may ask “does this usually end in tears at some point?”  I would say, “why yes, yes it does.”  But I allow it anyway.  🙂  Boys will be boys and you can only do so much to contain their instincts.  (Granted, there usually is a “point” when we have to intervene, and have to throw “be careful!” and “ok, let him up!” out there occasionally.  We surely don’t want to go to Scottish Rite regularly!)

I love them.

Usually, two seconds after their tears comes laughs and then a repeat scenario of above.  There has to be something to learn from this sweet childhood, boy bliss.  Maybe the lesson to learn is do what you love, even if it gets you hurt.  Pick yourself up and keep doing it.  Enjoy it.  You will be better for it.  You don’t want to miss the adventure of it.  I don’t know if that’s a lesson, but it has me pondering and savoring every moment of this thing called being a ‘MOM’.

I love these boys!  They teach me so much about life and love.

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