Welcome to our Fairy Garden

Welcome to our Fairy Garden!

When I saw the Fairy Garden Contest over at The Magic Onions I knew this would be something the boys and I would enjoy.  We have been making up our own magical stories about different worlds that exist inside the caves at the bottom of trees, so of course this was the perfect place for us to start.

Overview of out Fairy house and garden

Around the front is where we started making some simple furniture of rocks for the fairies we had made a while back.  TJ played here for a number of days before MJ got at the rocks... I found a huge bag of little wooden jars and furniture at a thrift store so we revisited the house and spruced it up.

Top: the whole house. Bottom left: food pantry, jars and bedroom.
Bottom right: chair, table, dresser and flower vase.

Next we made a path around the side of the tree to make a garden/playground for the fairies.  the boys helped by collecting and colouring on the stones.

TJ helps hammer the nail for the tire swing

We had several ideas for the garden.  We had made the arbor a while before and thought it would look nice near the pond (apple sauce container).  The tire swing was a must for boys along with a sand box.  The Teepee was my idea, but I think it needs to be glued as MJ keeps knocking it over.

Fairy Garden with pond, swing, teepee, and sand box

Try to zoom in on the photos for more detail

 As you can see our little project was a lot of fun to make.  I'm sure it will have more additions soon.  The boys added some signs today to welcome the fairies.  We have had a number of different toys come to visit.

Thanks for visiting!

 We look forward to a fun summer in the garden and making his a yearly project!

For more information please check out The Magic Onions Fairy Garden Contest 2012.  You can make your own and enter even if you don't have a blog to post about it.

This post is linked up to the following awesome linky parties:
It's Play Time
Happy Family Times
Enchanted Homeschooling Mom
Sugar & Spice
Tea Rose Home 

Reshaping my vision

I was reading a post yesterday about casting a vision for my boys. I really have gotten into a bad slump, only focusing on the negative. I'm intentionally going to share a bit about my wonderful boys today. Let us work to reshape our vision for our children. I encourage you all to visit the MOB (Mother of Boys) Society to read some uplifting articles. There is the MOD Squad too for daughters!

Proud TJ and cousin baby James

TJ(4years) is very caring. When we were at our garden plot he sat with our droopy little lettus seedling encouraging it to grow. He also decorated the plot so that the butterfly we saw will come and visit again and be happy. TJ is imaginative and playful. He is always making his stuffed toys talk and includes them in our activities. Last night he dressed in his Lightning McQueen costume to go to the grocery store!

MJ (2years) is determined and independent (in a good way). He isn't quite 2 yet but has taught himself to ride his tricycle by watching his brother. He loves to try new things and doesn't give up right away. He will sit for a long time assembling wooden train tracks and playing happily. MJ makes me laugh. Throughout the day I often find he'll do or say something unexpected that makes me laugh. When I put him to bed he often sings silly songs and makes little faces at me.

I love my boys. I could go on for hours about them, and I do to anyone willing to listen. Thank you for the opportunity to share and remind myself of how wonderful they are!


I'd love to hear about the wonderful little people in your lives!

Child's Play

The boys and cousin E were playing with all our bins of objects (magnets, shells, feathers, rocks...).  I had started by making a few magnet pictures for them.  Later when TJ got at the camera he took some interesting photos of their work.

This last one reminds me of an eye spy book.  I think I've got an idea brewing!  We may be making out own eye spy book in the coming months.

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Thank you to all who came by to visit my facebook page.  MeAgain Creations now has 24 likes.  I'd love to get up and over 30 by the end of the week.  I also made 4 sales over the weekend!! Those people got to take advantage of the sale I had on.

Please stop by and visit my store.  I have big plans to add more items.  In the mean time I encourage custom orders and requests for items.

Outdoor Kitchen - revisit

We have had an interesting spring.  The weather has swung between nice and sunny, to quite cool.  These pictures are a bit older but it was such a fun day.  I had unfortunately found some ants in my flour so I figured the boys could have some fun with it instead.

We gathered up some some leaves and other nature items to mix in with the flour.  The boys had so much fun over by the wood pile.  I gave them each their own set of bowls and utensils so there would be less arguments.

TJ decided his mixture was going to be Fairy cake

 After working in the outdoor kitchen the boys needed a good cleaning!!  MJ had a bath because he was completely covered in gooey flour.  TJ faired a little better so he got to play in the kitchen sink.  While we were there he noticed that some items sink and others float.  TJ first thought it was due to size, hen perhaps that there was air trapped in the cups, maybe some were heavier... We discussed this for a bit.  He may not have come to any specific conclusions but it was good to challenge his thinking and experiment for a while.

TJ's sink experiment

You can check out last year's outdoor kitchen here.

Handprint flowers / Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!

Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her, "Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all." Proverbs 31:28-29

The week around Mother's Day is always very busy around here.  My Uncle (May 7), TJ (May 9) and my husband (May 14) all have birthdays.  It is also Mother's Day in there too.  We often have one get together to recognize all the events. The boys and I made these sweet pictures for my mom (for Mother's Day) and my Husband (for his birthday).

To make them I painted the boys hands to make the flowers and the leaves/grass are finger prints.  You can use any paint and paper you like.  Daddy's gift is on a canvas, while Nanny is on card stock.  I have also seen on people use foot prints for the leaves, which is another great idea.

Don't worry about extra little smudges or finger prints.  They make great bugs if you add wings!

 Clean up was a breeze.  We did the craft outside and I let the boys paint themselves.  We got out the kiddy pool and some dish soap.  The boys had a great afternoon playing in the sun!

After the pictures dried I convinced the boys to let me take a photo of them together.  It is hard to get them in the same shot and looking (this was after 5 attempts).  I also added the poem below to the back of the pictures.  I got this poem from a craft we did several years ago at an Ontario Early Years Centre with TJ.

 Fingerprints

Sometimes you get discouraged,

because I am so small

And leave my little fingerprints

On furniture and walls.

But everyday I'm growing

And soon will be so tall

That all these little fingerprints

Will be difficult to recall.

So here's a little handprint

That you can put away

So you will know how my fingers looked

On this special day.

~Author unknown

Hand made party decorations

Over the past few years I have been slowly working towards making some reusable party decorations.  Not only are they beautiful, personal and eco-friendly.  They also create memories as they are used over and over again for many celebrations.

Fabric bunting

We have a reversible fabric bunting that says Happy Birthday on one side and has no words on the other side (can be used for any occasion).  I have material all ready for a fall "give thanks" banner... someday. We also have a smaller version of this bunting that is blues and greens on one side and oranges and pinks on the other.  It can be used in many locations for different occasions.

TJ's birthday hat

I used the tutorial from here to make the hat, only I enlarged the pattern a bit. MJ will be receiving his own hat for his birthday in June. I know many people make crowns but my guys associate party hats with birthdays.

Felt birthday cake

 I used several sites to make this cake.  I got the pattern for the candles from here. I used this great tutorial for the main part of the cake.  I had intended to add the icing but ran out of time and I think it still looks cute.

Simple table cloths made from thrift store fabric.

Next up will be a giant birthday cupcake with sprinkles for MJ.  More bunting and ... feel free to send some inspiration my way and I'll get sewing!

I hope to be adding some of these decorative ideas to my store.  If you are visiting today please be sure to check it out, I am always happy to create custom orders. You can also visit me on Facebook at Me Again Creations


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I will be linking up to some awesome blog parties. Check out the list below:
Bubbly Nature Creations
Magic Onions
Natural Suburbia
Sun Scholars
Kitchen Fun With My 3 Sons

Happy 4th Birthday TJ

My wonderful boy TJ turned 4 years old yesterday.  I can not believe how fast time is going by, and I can not remember life without him.  I wanted to make this day so very special for him so here are some of the things we did to celebrate his birthday.

 The night before his birthday I brought out his baby scrapbook and another one I made while I was pregnant with him.  We looked at all the pictures, talked about how much he had grown and all the new things he learned to do this year.  We also discussed some plans for he next day. Finally before he went to sleep I read this wonderful poem that was passed on to me from a yahoo group.

"When I have said my evening prayer,

And my clothes are folded on the chair,

And mother switches off the light,

I will be ___ years old tonight.

But, from the very break of day,

Before the children rise and play,

Before the greenness turns to gold,

Tomorrow, I'll be ___ years old.

____ kisses when I wake.

____ candles on my cake."

 First I decorated the house while he was asleep.  This made for a very late night for me becuase he didn't fall asleep until after 10pm. I set the kitchen table with a fabric party hat and felt birthday cake I made for him. The fireplace has felt flowers, streamers and some flowers the boys made.  I also hung our fabric birthday banner (forgot to take a picture of that) and some balloons.  On a table I placed his photo albums, some pictures in frames and other baby items for him to look at.

 When TJ woke up he was a bit confused about this whole birthday thing.  He thought it was only the party that you get not a whole day for your birthday.  He loved all the decorations and helped me add a few more.  We made birthday cards (I had expected MJ to wake early and surprise TJ, but he slept later), watched the Signing Time birthday video, and played with balloons.  Next we decided what park TJ really wanted to go to.

 Nanny invited us to her house for lunch so we decided to go to a fun playbround near her house.  Cousins E and J joined us.  TJ wanted to dress like a super hero so he could rescue his cousins and MJ if they needed his help.  At the park TJ started to play with some other kids and had conversations with them (this is new for him).  He loved riding his bike there too.  Lunch was delicious and TJ was thrilled with the cake Nanny bought.  TJ has also taken a liking to baby J and loves to pet him.  He was very proud to be asked to hold him for a photo.

Ater lunch we went home.  I tried to put the boys down for a nap... I told TJ a birthday story I learned from several Waldorf groups, using the fairies we had made. He lay down for a few min and then came to me and said he couldn't sleep because he really wanted to play in the rain.  So out he went to use a paint roller on a stick in the puddles!  MJ of course couldn't sleep either although I tried much longer with him.  After some fun in the rain we came in for a special birthday circle time.  We sang some Signing Time birthday songs.  I had more planed but Daddy coming home was way more exciting.

For dinner TJ asked to go to Boston Pizza.  He wore his little party hat and was so excited.  The boys were too eager to get to the cupcakes we brought so they didn't eat much.  Dessert was a big hit and so was TJ's gift.  He had been asking for a basket to carry his stuffed friends on his bike.  You can't imagine how hard it is to find a non-girly pink basket!  I have never seen someone so excited over a flashlight and some bike accessories.

Of course TJ wanted the optional plastic flowers on his basket!

When we got home we decorated his bicycle and played outside for a while.  we proceeded with our usual bed routine just a little later than usual and everyone (including Daddy) went to be early.  I, on the other hand, stayed up to write to all of you!

Thank you all for the wonderful birthday traditions that were shared with me.  Many thanks also to everyone who passed on special birthday wishes to TJ, he was very happy to hear from each of you.

Flying Kites

I came across this great post about making paper kites over at The Chocolate Muffin Tree.  She used a design from Maya Made.  I know that my boys would love to fly a kite so I saved the idea.

Last week I was babysitting two lovely girls and I thought it would be the perfect craft to make while MJ had his nap (I figured TJ could skip his nap since we had guests).

These kits are super easy to make and the kids were able to do most of it.  The best part was that they actually fly with little effort!!!!  Oh the kids were all so proud of their work.

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HAPPY 4th BIRTHDAY TJ

We have been having such a wonderful day.

I will be sharing all about TJ's special day tomorrow.

Weed or Feed? A Dandelion Adventure

Dandelions can evoke some very different emotions.  Some people hate them and here in Canada with the new pesticide rules, many people are even more annoyed.  There are on the other side many people who love these bright sunny blossoms and will even venture to eat them.

Dandelions are in fact very rich in vitamins and they are eatable.  Since our back yard is a carpet of yellow, we (I) decided to see what they might taste like as part of our May Day celebration.

First we made dandelion fritters from LearningHerbs. com We simply made some pancake batter and dipped the heads of the dandelions in and fried them.  We also used the same batter and mixed in some of the petals.

We also made some delicious cookies from Heartfelt Homemaking. We didn't have all the same ingredients but they did turn out quite tasty.  I do believe the lavender would be a delicious addition next time.

The Results: 
TJ and MJ didn't really like the fritters.  I didn't mind them but felt they tasted better with mustard as they had a bit of a bitter taste.

The boys loved the pancakes, of course they were really after the maple syrup.  I do believe I'd make the pancakes again to get some healthy food into them.

The cookies were pretty good.  I'd like to try them again following the recipe more closely once we get some more ingredients.  We also offered them to some friends at the park and they loved them.  The boys aunt and uncle tried the cookie too without me telling them what was inside.  They both thought that there was some veggies inside.  Overall a very successful experiment with our weeds!

Notes to the reader (ones who are daring enough to eat dandelions)
Please consider where you are getting your dandelions from.  If you live in a subdivision chances are high that they may be covered in pesticide from your neighbours.  We live sort of in the country so I figured our lawn was safe.  You may wish to purchase some dandelions or find a nice field somewhere.

Also if you wish to try the leaves they apparently taste less bitter if they are picked before the flowers bloom.


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I will be linking this post up to some different website throughout the week...

Introducing Me Again- Unique Upcycled Creations

I am very excited to introduce my new Facebook page for Me Again Creations where I will be postings my unique upcycled creations for sale. You can also lick on the store button at the top of the page any time you visit this blog.

Don't forget to click 'like' when you visit my page.  I sincerely appreciate the support.

Some points to consider: 
Shipping costs will apply
Prices are marked in Canadian dollars
If you live locally you can always pick-up your items and avoid shipping costs
I am more than happy to make custom orders on items I make or something you have in mind
I'll be adding more items as they are completed

Meet Our Fairies

We borrowed this book from the library called Felt Wee Folks by Salley Mavor

Inside are the most adorable and easy to make fairies and little felt folks.  They are made of pipe cleaners wrapped in embroidery floss with little wooden beads for heads.  The clothing is made of silk flowers and felt.  At the beginning is a simple pattern for kids.

TJ's fairy Fazooza

Although the projects were too advanced to the boys to do alone, TJ still got quite involved as did cousin E.  TJ painted several wooden beads (orange and purple) for heads.  He helped me to take apart the fake flowers we picked up at the dollar store.  And of course he provided guidance as he picked out the colours to be used.

Mommy's fairy Woodlet

After making one for himself when cousin E was over to play, TJ decided to make one for each of us.  We have been having a wonderful time playing with our fairies for hours this past week.

MJ's fairy Flower

Don't forget to check out Magic Onion's Fairy Garden Contest.  We are currently making some furniture and will be sharing pictures of our space soon.

For more incredible inspirations and activities for kids, please visit the following websites!!! 

This Post is linked to:

It's Play Time!

Happy Family Times

Kitchen Fun with my 3 Sons

Sun Scholars

What are Little Boys Made Of