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Baby Rabies

pregnancy & parenting

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      Photography

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      December 13, 2018

      Photography

      I Wrote A Photography eBook And This Is…

      December 6, 2018

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      Creative Lighting Ideas To Help You Take Great…

      November 27, 2018

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      Learn How To Take And Edit Photos On…

      November 19, 2018

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    • Reviews

      The Answer To Last Minute Holiday Gifting For…

      December 19, 2018

      Reviews

      I Was Never A Barbie Girl Until Now

      October 1, 2018

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      Finally! Jeans For My Jean-Averse Kids!

      August 22, 2018

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      August 13, 2018

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craft

Encourage Acts Of Kindness With a #KindMonsters Jar
Crafty!ParenthoodSchool Age Days

Encourage Acts Of Kindness With a #KindMonsters Jar

by Jill December 27, 2016
written by Jill

We’ve been talking a lot in our family about the importance of kindness toward others lately. This is a time of year when it’s easy to celebrate random acts of kindness, but it’s something I want to be a part of my children’s everyday lives- not just something we do in December.

When Monster High asked me to team up with them to promote their #KindMonsters pledge, which they created in collaboration with the Born This Way Campaign, I enthusiastically said yes because I knew Leyna and I would have a great time working on it together, and it would give us an easy way to talk about kindness every day.

“With a shared vision for a positive and bright future for young people, Monster High and Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation are in a multi-year partnership to inspire empowerment and acceptance. Together we support the well-being of young people and elevate kindness, bravery and acceptance both on and offline.” 

With that mission statement in mind, we worked together and came up with the #KindMonsters Monster High Kindness Jar.
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I’ve talked to you all before about how pleasantly surprised I was to learn about Monster High’s message of kindness and acceptance. The monsters are students who accept their friends for all their unique qualities because that’s what friendship is all about. I love that I’m able to connect with her about this super important topic through the lens of toys and a show that she already enjoys.

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Supplies:

1 glass jar with a lid
Monster High Minis
fine glitter
Mod Podge
Mod Podge sealer (optional)
paper plates
foam brushes
hot glue gun
colored paper or cardstock

The ultimate goal is to fill the whole jar with acts of kindness, either that she did or that she witnessed. She’s in kindergarten and is just now learning to write, so it doubles as a great way to get her to practice putting words on paper. For now, she’s getting a little help from me, but I hope to have her filling them out all on her own by the end of the school year.

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First, brush the Mod Podge onto the outside of the glass jar- wherever you’d like the glitter to stick.

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Sprinkle the glitter onto the Mod Podge while holding the jar over a plate. Later, you can move the jar to dry on a clean paper plate and pour the excess glitter back into the jar.

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Unpackage your Monster High Minis…

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And decide how you want them arranged on the jar lid. Then an adult can hot glue them to the lid.

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While the glitter and lid are drying, cut colored paper into strips or squares that are big enough to write acts of kindness on. You can always fold them to fit inside the jar if needed.

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Write down your first act of kindness! Be sure to put a date on it. It will be fun to look back at what happened when the jar gets full.

img_5932As an optional step, you can spray over the glitter with the Mod Podge sealer. This helps keep the glitter from flaking off. But hey, you could be cool with glitter all over your house! So you do you.

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Set your jar, papers, and a pen/marker/pencil in a place that’s easy to access, and write down your act of kindness every day. Then fill the jar!

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Monster High has partnered with Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation to empower and support young people to spread kindness and compassion in their community. You can learn more about their partnership here, take the pledge, and even nominate someone for a Kind Monster award!

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Thanks to Monster High for sponsoring this post, and for supporting the Born This Way Foundation and #KindMonsters who are spreading kindness, compassion, and bravery. 

 

December 27, 2016 0 comment
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Gold Leaf Coral Frame Tutorial
Crafty!Travel

Gold Leaf Coral Frame Tutorial

by Jill August 6, 2015
written by Jill

Who doesn’t love combing through the soft beach sand, where the shore meets the water, and coming up with hands full of sea treasures?

Leyna and I spent hours doing this on our Carnival cruise excursions.

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Carnival asked me to write about bringing our vacation home with us, and I knew this tutorial was the perfect fit.  Why should those bits of coral and shells be destined to a life in a dark closet (or the trash, honestly)?

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All you need for this are:

A picture frame
*CLEAN pieces of coral that have washed ashore, or shells
Hot glue gun/glue sticks
Mod Podge
Sponge brush
Clean and dry fine bristle brush
Package of gold leaf sheets (don’t let this throw you, it’s not expensive – about $8/package)

*Guys, don’t go breaking off live coral, okay? There’s plenty to be found that’s dead and dried up along the shoreline. 

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Start by arranging all your pieces on your frame how you think they will best fit.

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Then carefully remove a couple pieces, hot glue them back down, and repeat.

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Dilute your Mod Podge with about 40% water, then apply over the pieces, really soaking them. The coral will drink up a lot. It’s probably wise to make sure you’ve removed the backing and glass from the frame by this point.

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Let it dry for about 5 minutes. You want the pieces to be tacky, not wet.
Now rip small pieces of gold leaf and dab it on with your dry, clean, fine bristle brush. Really work it into the crevices, and all that great coral texture.

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The gold leaf is crazy delicate and will flake everywhere. Don’t worry. It wipes up fine. After the gold leaf has had about 10 minutes to dry, you can go back over with a light coat of Mod Podge, then apply another coat of gold leaf if you’d like.

I wound up doing 2 coats of gold leaf, then a final coat of Mod Podge to seal it. I didn’t cover the coral in it’s entirety because I liked the unfinished look. But, with enough time, you could probably get nearly full coverage with just one package of gold leaf, if that’s what you’re going for.

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I started out wanting to frame a picture from our trip in it, but I love the simple look of the coral and the gold so much that I don’t want anything to detract from it.

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So now it’s just a statement piece on our eclectic mantle. A simple reminder of our Carnival cruise, and all the treasures we brought home with us.

This post was created for Away We Go with Carnival, the destination for getting in the getaway state of mind. Head on over.

August 6, 2015 13 comments
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Glue Resist Fabric Painting- DIY Tutorial
Crafty!Videos

Glue Resist Fabric Painting- DIY Tutorial

by Jill August 1, 2014
written by Jill

IntroGlueResist

Awww, yeah. It’s crafty time!

Y’all, I am so freaking excited because the fact that I not only blogged this DIY but also MADE A VIDEO ABOUT IT? I mean, that has to mean that I’m really getting my act together.

I have been writing this idea on my to-blog list for literally half a year.

The good news is it didn’t take me so long to blog it because it’s complicated. It’s so stupid easy. And there’s a very good chance you already have everything you need to do it:

1. Washable glue. Like school glue. Hey! Perfect timing. Go hit up the back-to-school aisles and stock up because you are going to want to do this to everything. It’s addictive for us creative types.

2. Fabric paint. Oh, friends. There is sooooooo much more to fabric paint these days. I found gold spray paint fabric paint! And glitter, and matte, and so much more than neon puffy paint of the days of yore. But I’m not judging if that’s what you choose to decorate with.

3. Fabric to paint on. Any. Thing. Anything that will stand up to some gentle hand washing and mild soap. I’m sleep deprived, and very limited in creativity, so please know that this technique can go so much further than just dressing up linens and shirts. I can’t wait to see what y’all come up with!
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Step 1. Draw or write whatever design or letters you want on your dry fabric with the glue.

Step 2. Let it dry completely. (Probably overnight is best.)

Step 3. Paint over your dried glue and within any areas of the design you want painted.

Step 4. Let it dry completely again. (Overnight or up to 2 days depending on the paint you use.)

Step 5. Soak in a sink of warm water and mild soap.

Step 6. Once the glue has had a chance to soak and get soft – 30ish minutes, it will start dissolving and peeling away from the fabric. You can either help this process along with a gentle cycle in your washing machine at this point (making sure all the glue is removed before throwing it in the dryer), or you can completely remove it all by hand, peeling it back gently.

Step 7. Dry

That’s it!

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I am obsessed with giving muslin swaddling blankets for new-baby gifts, and now I’m obsessed with customizing them. I used a pump spray fabric paint for this, but you could also use an organic vegetable dye in a spray bottle, or dip the corner in it.

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Gold spray paint is a blast, right? I didn’t even know it comes in a fabric formulation. I have half a bottle left and am carefully planning how to use up the remainder of it’s contents.

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This was actually the project that started it all. I wanted to make a personalized baseball shirt for Kendall, and at first I thought I could do a resist with duct tape or a sheet of contact paper. Then I had a moment of simple inspiration when I saw the bottle of glue while digging in the craft supplies.

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I think I love this effect the most. In the video, I look like I rolled the foam roller with my hand. That is not true. I just couldn’t find the handle to the roller in the mess of a garage, and hope people will infer that I had one when I made it.

Watch the video for more details! It’s super short, and fun, and I made it with a GoPro strapped to my head. And if you like the video, I’d love if you’d subscribe to the Baby Rabies Blog YouTube Channel!

Make sure you tag me in any #GlueResist projects you finish, too! I’m @BabyRabies on Twitter and Instagram. Can’t wait to see!

August 1, 2014 26 comments
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ParenthoodStuffThe Story

Just file me under “THAT sappy mom”

by Jill November 30, 2009
written by Jill

I audibly gasped when I opened his miniature back pack upon returning home from a day at Mother’s Day Out, “Awww! Look at how cute that is!” A smile spread across my face from ear to ear. I held it up and turned it around, took in all it’s crafty glory. The poem on the back read,

“This isn’t just a turkey,
As anyone can see.
This very special turkey
was made by hand by me!
Happy Thanksgiving! Love, Kendall”

The sap was oozing out of me like a maple tree. I bounded into the office and shoved the handprint turkey in Scott’s face. “Look at THIS! Isn’t it the cutest thing ever?! Can you believe Kendall’s coming home with little crafts already?!”

“Oh…hmmm.. yeah, that’s nice…. Cool,” he replied in a tone that meant he was merely appeasing me and only barely trying to match my level of excitement by raising his eyebrows for extra emphasis.

I took it back and headed to a wall with a random nail head sticking out of it, a leftover from the previous year’s Christmas decorations. Kendall tugged at my pants, “Goggle, goggle!” he said, pointing to the craft.

“Yes! That’s a turkey, and it’s says gobble, gobble,” I said as I started to hand him the handprint turkey for him to admire his crafty work. He snatched it from my hands and began ripping the yarn from the top.

“*GASP* Oh NO! Let me see that… no… you gave the turkey an owie… let me have it,” I huffed as I pried it from his chubby white knuckles.  I re-tied the yarn and carefully hung it on the nail.

It. was. perfect. You’d have thought I just put a new Pottery Barn sconce on the wall the way I was admiring it.

I showed it off to everyone who stopped by. “Did you see what Kendall made?!” I’d exclaim. I even shared it on my Facebook wall. Judging by everyone’s response, or lack thereof, it became pretty obvious that this is one of those things that only a mom would be so over the moon in love with.

And it’s not that he really “made” it. I’m under no illusion that he had anything to do with this other than allowing them to paint his chubby hand and smoosh it to a paper plate. That, right there, is the reason I pay other people to watch my son once a week. They will do things like craft and paint with him, things that I wouldn’t even dream of doing because it’s such a friggin mess. I’m still questioning how they got him to be still long enough to paint and smoosh his hand, and I haven’t ruled out that they may have done it during naptime.

We put Christmas decorations up on Friday and Saturday, and that random nail head needed to be cleared to hold the card box. I took the handprint turkey down and carefully sat it on the bar. It stayed there until today when I finally had the heart to put it up. I placed it in a box that holds several other small mementos of Kendall’s existence up to this point. Before putting it away, I made sure to write the date, Kendall’s age, and exactly where he made it on the back (could just imagine years from now giving myself credit for being such an amazing, crafty mom, forgetting that this was made at “school” while I was home watching a reality show or trolling TMZ.com).

It is one of my most treasured gifts ever. I tear up just thinking about pulling it out year after year and hanging it on the wall as Thanksgiving approaches. (This is really playing out like an awful Hallmark commercial, I know.) I guess it’s just such a mommy right of passage to get that first little handprint turkey. It’s like a fanciful little parenthood talisman.  Now I feel such incredible pressure to keep it safe and in one piece. We’ve been meaning to get a fireproof safe for a long time for things like, I don’t know, birth certificates and junk. Maybe this will be the extra motivation we need to finally purchase one.

Kendall is almost 19 months old, like just days shy, and that means he’s closer to his 2nd birthday than his 1st. I’m just amazed.

November 30, 2009 5 comments
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