{The Magic of Christmas}

I don't know about you - but we have been watching the movie Elf in our house since...July. One of my most favorite things about having little children is being able to experience Christmas with them. I can't really explain it, but children have such a special way of making the Christmas season magical all over again.

It seems like my kids are always asking me if they can get in touch with Santa. I remember asking to write Santa when I was little - my four year old asks me if he can text him.

Last year, my dear sister Courtney introduced me to one of my favorite websites - The Portable North Pole. For any of you who have a small child or who want to send a somewhat naughty message to an adult, you HAVE to go to this website and create a video. This site personalizes the video and speaks directly to your child, shows a picture of them in his special book and addresses an issue that they have been working on this year - i.e...going potty in the toilet, being nice to a sibling...etc. You can also add photos of their birthday, vacation, special day, etc.

I made a video tonight for my boys and their faces absolutely LIT up when they heard Santa call them by name and tell them that they were on his nice list this year. It shocks them to see their own little face in his book and they just can't figure out how Santa has a picture of them from our beach trip this summer - so magical!

The best part about this site is that they will email you the video for FREE - fabuless!

If you make a video for your kids, leave us a comment and let us know what you think! We would LOVE to hear your child's reaction when they see their personalized email from Santa.

Happy Holidays!

sincerely fabuless, las vegas.

{Rapunzel, Rapunzel, Let Down Your Hair!}

I am the mother (of two boys) who dreams of one day dressing up a little girl. I love my little boys and the dirt that surrounds them, and am grateful to have such cute little neices that I can make/buy things for and fill that little girl void (for now).

At our church Halloween Trunk or Treat this year, my good friend Nicole had dressed her little girl as Rapunzel from the movie tangled and she made her the cutest hair piece! I knew I had to make one and make my son wear it for three seconds before he yells at me and tells me that he doesn't want to look like a girl.

My husband was in the middle of block week exams, aka MIA for three weeks in a row. So, to keep myself busy, I was going to make my Rapunzel hair piece.

I went to my fav, Hobby Lobby, and bought yellow yarn - best news was that it was 50 percent off so I spent about three dollars on the yarn. You really won't even use a whole ball of yarn for one hair piece so don't buy more than one unless you are making multiple hair pieces (great as a Christmas gift for the little girls in your life!).

I then went over to the flower stem section and bought a bundle of flower stems (also on sale) and spent about two dollars on the flowers. Next, I bought some purple ribbon to braid into my hair piece.

The longest part of this project is the actual cutting of the yarn, it went pretty fast surprisingly, but I would say that I cut yarn for about an hour. If this is for your own daughter, the best way to decide how much yarn to do is to hold it up to her head and measure how far you want it to drop to the floor - my strands were quite long but I am not sure of the exact length. I used my four year old BOY for my measurements:)

I cut yarn and pre-divided into three sections which I then planned to use for my braid. If you have worked with yarn before then you know that it can get tangled up so it was just easier to pre-divide my piles as I was cutting. They didn't have the same number of strands per section, but they looked close enough (again, I am not a perfectionist and love projects that don't have to be perfect!)

Once all of my yarn was cut, I used a cut three strands of the purple ribbon that were the length of my yellow yarn and added one ribbon strand to each section. I then took a hair tie (out of my hair) and tied it to the end and then tied yarn over it to cover the hair band. I saw online that some people just tied ribbon around the three sections but I thought a real hair tie would have a better hold on the braid.

Once divided and tied together, start braiding, and braiding, and braiding.

Once it was all braided together - I finished it off with another hair tie, and then tied ribbon over it to add a little pretty touch:) I then pulled the flowers off of my flower stem and hot glued them to the hair piece.

While I was making this project - my husband kept walking in the kitchen and said "I know you want to wear that and that is why you are making it.." - he was right, I did want to wear it, and I did wear it, probably about 10 times before giving it over to my sweet little neice Holly.

Moving on - one the hair piece was done, I cut more yellow yarn and hot glued it over one of my stretchy Goody brand headbands. I then glued the headband to the hair braid. This makes the hair piece flexible so that it can fit different size heads and people. I have seen other projects where they make the hair piece wrap around the head as a braid, but heaven forbid you accidentally braid it to small and it doesn't fit after all that work! I didn't want to risk that (although the braid version is super cute) - so I just did the attachable headband.

I made my four year old model the headband for a photo - his face says it all! He told me "I'm not saying cheese and don't show that picture to ANYONE! They will think I'm a girl!" [so this is me not showing it to anyone ;)]

P.S. - if the little girl in your life doesn't have blonde hair, change the color of your yarn - I have seen it made in brown and it's super cute! Remember, these would make great Christmas gifts and are VERY affordable - fabuless!

sincerely fabuless, Las Vegas.

{We Need Your Vote. . . Again}

We made it to the next round! Click the link below and vote for Living Life Fabulessly - voting ends Friday at 9pm so don't delay!

If you enjoy reading our blog - post a comment on Facebook and/or Twitter and encourage your friends to vote for us too!

Thanks so much - we appreciate the love!

Blog Guidebook Round Two Voting

vote: Living Life Fabulessly

sincerely fabuless, Las Vegas AND the windy city.

{The City Life: a Must Have Product}

three words.. ERGO. BABY. CARRIER.

My sister Courtney recommended that I purchase an Ergo Baby Carrier when I first had my little girl back in March. I took her advice and picked out a really cute Organic model from the Ergo Baby website. Since moving to Chicago in September, my Ergo Baby has become my best friend. I use it just about every day! It is truly the only way I can successfully get around using public transportation (without my husband to haul the stroller up and down stairs..) I am so glad there is a product out there for us Mom's who need to strap our kids on and go!

It's funny..using public transportation is a great way to meet and chat with lots of new people each day. And, I cannot count the number of times people have noticed my awesome carrier and asked about it. As I was riding the El train this afternoon..with a sleeping Cora nestled in the carrier, a girl asked who made the carrier and where she could get one..online? store? etc. I gave her all the information as well as my highest recommendation! City goers and livers..you need an Ergo! It is just smart. I like smart products.

For those not living the city life, the Ergo Baby is great for visits to museums, the park, beach, camping..basically any indoor/outdoor adventures that would go more smoothly with your hands free. Check out a couple of pictures of me styling my Ergo below:

The Ergo Baby Carrier is a very worthwhile purchase. There are some less expensive carriers out there, but you will most likely end up with lots of back pain and discomfort as a result. If you have little ones and are in need of a carrier..look no more! The Ergo Baby is the ONE. They have tons of great colors and options, so be sure to check out the website!

**Oh, and it looks like they are running a holiday special right now..a free infant insert with carrier purchase! Get yours now!

sincerely fabuless, the windy city.

{Vote Now! Top Blog 2011}

Hello readers! Our blog has been nominated for Top Blog of 2011!

Visit the Blog Guidebook and vote for us.."Living Life Fabulessly"
{voting ends Friday}

Thanks and have an amazing day!


Post a comment after you vote and be entered to win a special giveaway from us to you! (include your name/email)

{Zip It . . Button It . .}

About a month ago, my sweet little girl Cora..started sucking on every button and zipper she could get her hands on! Soon after, I had an idea to create something to satisfy her new craving for metal and plastic :). Yes, although many of my new projects at home or in the kitchen have been coming from Pinterest these days...this idea was all mine! (maybe my husband helped a little).

I initially planned to create what I would call a 'button board'. I thought about using cardboard and wrapping it with batting..then covering it with fabric..and attaching buttons/zippers to the fabric. As I was excitedly telling my husband about my genius idea..he suggested that I make it a pillow! Makes perfect sense..my initial idea was kind of getting there..with the batting and fabric..haha. My husband just has a way of refining my ideas, and that's just one of the many reasons I love him.

So, a button and zipper pillow! Yes! It took me a few weeks to actually sit down and make it happen, but yesterday was the day..and the night..it took a little while. I'm sure other moms know how it is when you're itching to finish something so you stay up late to work on it (while baby is sleeping)..knowing you'll pay the price the next day. :) It was worth it!

I was so pumped and focused that I forgot to take pictures of the whole process..but you will get to see the finished product.

Directions..

1. Find your material of choice and cut out the amount you'd like to use for your pillow. I used about a 24 inch by 14 inch piece of fabric (folded it in half, so the pillow ended up being 12 inches by 14 inches). **It's fabuless when you have material left over from other projects..I have previously used this same material for a car seat cover, a book cover, a headband, and wall art..fabuless!

2. If you're like me, you'll need to iron your fabric.

3. Organize the buttons and other items that you'd like to use for your pillow. I set everything out to get an idea of where I'd like to place what. It's fun to use lots of different colors, so keep that in mind!

4. Start attaching whatever your heart desires by hand sewing the items on to the right side of your fabric. I used a zipper going diagonally down through the center of the pillow and started by sewing the sides of that down with my sewing machine. I also unzipped it a little ways and turned the sides out to create a heart on one side :). So fun! It's fun to use colorful string for attaching your items, and it's more sturdy (craft string).

5. Once all of your items are attached..fold your fabric so the right sides are facing each other and pin around the edges.

6. Sew about a quarter of an inch in from the edge and go around the pillow...but leave about 2-3 inches open for the stuffing process. :) Be sure to reinforce all of your corners (I just stitch and backstitch and stitch again) Your sewing needle should never have to come up out of the fabric..when you get to the corner, just lift up the foot and turn your fabric around the needle (for those that aren't super savvy with a sewing machine).

7. Turn out your fabric using the space you left open..then use the handle of a spatula to push your fabric out along the edges and corners (unless you have an actual tool for that, haha).

8. Stuff your pillow! I actually had a basic bed pillow that was losing some of its body, so I decided to take it apart and re-purpose the stuffing! You can always buy a bag of this at the store, but I'm almost thinking it'd be cheaper just to buy an inexpensive pillow and take it apart..because you get a lot of stuffing from one pillow! *Use your spatula to push the stuffing in and around the pillow..get the corners really good. :)

9. Hand sew the space you left open.

Here's how mine turned out...

Oh, and maybe I should mention..it's important to watch your little ones with their pillows just to be sure they aren't getting any of the buttons off and putting them in their mouths. Even though the buttons should be sewn on very tightly..just be aware. :)

I think she likes it..




Happy pillow making!

sincerely fabuless, the windy city.

{Operation: Learn to LOVE the Bath}

It is block (two) weeks around my house right now which means I am a single mother of two little boys who are lost without their daddy. Yes, this is the life of a medical student's wife. Every six weeks, my Bri has ohhh between 9-10 exams over the course of 6 class days which means studying around the clock for about two weeks straight. To be honest, I am amazed and proud of how hard he is working, but it does get lonely around the house and the boys and I miss him. This block week has been extra special - our water heater went out and had to be replaced, my little Owen has been up at night coughing like crazy, and Brian's car is now leaking oil and has to be taken to the shop tomorrow - yes, life is fabuless!:)

During block week exams, I try to think of things to do with the kids to keep all three of us happy with each other. Pinterest has been a life saver for this! Recently while browsing, I found an idea for making your own bath paint - genius! I always pass by the bath crayons and bath paint when I'm at Target, Wal-mart, the grocery store - and I have probably picked them up a dozen times and then put them back - just not sure they were worth the price. BUT make my own bath paint - yes, please.

My family has laughed at me my whole life because I LOVE to take baths - I know there are a lot of people who hate to sit in the bath, but I just don't understand that. I could take a bath every day and when I am sick or pregnant (no, I'm not pregnant), I usually take 2-3 baths a day. Yes, call me crazy, but its my go to place. Recently, my four year old decided he hates the bath - that just isn't going to fly in this house. When I saw the bath paint, I was convinced that this was going to make my little man learn to appreciate my beloved tub time.

What you need:

- Muffin tin (not the mini muffins - regular size)
- Foaming shaving cream
- Food coloring
- Paint brushes

How to:

I used my regular muffin tin - but the original instructions suggest using a silicon muffin tray - which I think would be lovely, I just don't have one. Using your muffin tray, take your food coloring and put a few drops of each color into each of the muffin dividers. Once your food coloring is in, take your foaming shaving cream (thank goodness we bought it at Costco because hopefully the hubby hasn't noticed we went through one of his bottles already - whoops) and fill each muffin tin with the shaving cream. Next, take one of the paint brushes and mix the coloring into the foam and HELLO fabuless! The "paint" looks like colorful whipped cream - kind of like the food fight scene in the movie Hook (always wanted to re-create that BTW). More importantly, it lasts a long time - my little bath hater stayed in the bath for an hour and half the other night and practiced writing his name and other letters all over my tub - fun and educational - a win-win!

More importantly - this type of bath paint doesn't leave any annoying residue on your tub - it's easy to clean. How many of you remember cleaning your classroom desks with shaving cream in elementary school? If we used it to clean our desk, its got to be good for the tub, right? (P.S. - totally loved cleaning my desk with shaving cream - if you are a teacher, you need to let your students experience it..it's kind of magical).

To answer a question I got about this project - no, it didn't leave dye on my kids skin - the water turned quite green from the paint hitting the water but it didn't stay on my kids skin - they were squeaky clean :)

If you have little ones - TRY this - you will NOT be disappointed - it is so much fun! We did it for the first time last week and have probably painted in the bath five times since then. I am starting to think I need to put a chair in my bathroom because they stay in the bath so long it hurts my back to just sit on the floor and watch.

And most importantly - thank you Jill Dubien at meetthedubiens.blogspot.com for sharing this great idea!

(photo compliment of Jill Dubien)

sincerely fabuless, Las Vegas.

{"Running, Cheaper Than Therapy"}

I'm sure many of you have seen the in my opinion perfect phrase "Running, Cheaper Than Therapy". In our search to live the fabuless life, my sister Candace and I both enjoy running and participating in races! Not only are we not spending lots of money on the therapy we'd need without running, we are having a meaningful 'me' experience, which let's be honest...ALL moms need.

I have officially been in Chicago for 2 months! Time sure does fly...most days. :) Those windy and cold days seem to drag on and on and on when my little girl and I are stuck inside (once again, moms know how that goes). This past weekend was the Hot Chocolate 5K/15K in downtown Chicago! I registered for the 15K race back in July when Candace found the race and encouraged me to set the goal and do it. So, for the past few months, I've been that mom you see out running with her jogging stroller constantly grabbing toys and handing them around to the front of the stroller..sometimes pulling over to peak in at Cora, etc. It's been interesting, but also SO good! As I said, the race was this past weekend, and it was the absolute best running experience I've had up to this point! I felt like I was flying!..(maybe because I was a free woman without the jogging stroller to push, just a theory). My shoes felt great, it was a beautiful day, and I was running through downtown Chicago! What more could you ask for?!

For those who are looking for a fabuless way to stay sane through the day to day adventures of life, try running! And, take it one step further by registering for a 5K (3.1 miles) in your area. If you're really ambitious, sign up for a half marathon! Go Crazy! It's nice to have something for yourself as a mom..and working towards a goal of accomplishing a race is a great way to do that!

Check out a picture of me after the race!

Have a fabuless day!

sincerely fabuless, the windy city.




{Let There Be Lamps!}

Guest Blogger: {Allyson Drake, Re-vamping Lamps!}

Hey there. Allyson again. Hoping to light up your life with this next post.

A few years ago I fell in love with the classy glassy look and, as fate would have it, found this little beauty at TJ Maxx {yes, I’m a Maxxinista} and convinced the Huz to let me buy it. I believe I used the argument that if in the future I decided I liked something better and wanted to replace it, this would be pretty in a little girl’s room.

Then we had a boy.

BUT it’s ok, because I STILL love it. In fact, I am obsessed with glassy lamps. But this would be the last lamp I buy at {semi} full price.

After this purchase I began looking at thrift stores for glass lamps to make over and found this one… {sorry I realized half way through that I forgot to take a before pic}


Then while thrifting on a visit to Idaho I found these beauts for $5 each.

Lampshade from Ikea As-Is for $2, plus trim I had already. Easy schmeezy.
And just recently these lovely ladies appeared in the lobby of our apartment building
{the designated spot for unwanted, discarded items that need a loving home}


So I bought two $13 lampshades at Target and found these lamps a home in our bedroom. Which, I must exclaim… $26 for TWO lamps?! Let alone CLASSY GLASSY lamps?!
Welcome to the family.

Now, as seen in the first few lamps of this post, I always disassemble and give them a coat of spray paint.
Also, I often give them new, more reliable wiring {sometimes the peace of mind is worth the $10 for a new cord kit at Home Depot. To find a how-to I just Googled rewiring lamps, or check out this video}. But I like the soft brass look of these… at least for now. They might be a little Grandma-Chic, but I think with the more updated shade they look pretty sweet.

So next time you’re thrifting, or yard-sale-ing {real words around our house}, don’t pass up the lamps to re-vamp!

sincerely fabuless, Allyson in Philly.

{Cinnamon Roll. . .Pancakes!}

If you love homemade cinnamon rolls as much as I do, then you will LOVE THIS recipe for Cinnamon Roll Pancakes! I found it on Pinterest (must join this site if you haven't already) and immediately added it to my MUST make list.

With a husband busy at a new advertising job, we don't get much time together during the week, which makes weekends a breath of fresh air. Yes, there are the occasional errands and cleaning up shop, but we also make time for some fun! I consider weekends an opportunity to make some fun treats and snacks, so I'm always on the lookout for recipes I can try out for a fun Saturday breakfast, movie night treat, Sunday night football snack, etc! My experiment from this past weekend was Cinnamon Roll Pancakes! I was so, so excited to try this out, and was definitely happy with the results! Take a look...





Just so you know, it's okay to not swirl your cinnamon perfectly or drizzle the icing just right..every pancake I made looked a little different because I'm not the best cinnamon swirler around, BUT they tasted equally delicious! Impress friends and family with this 'better than IHOP' breakfast this coming weekend! Thank you RecipeGirl for this fun and tasty idea!

sincerely fabuless, the windy city.

{And the Winner is. . .}

Thank you to everyone who participated in our first giveaway by Luv Luv Designs by Madiescrafts. We appreciate everyone's feedback and entries! The winner of the giveaway is...

Melissa Wilkerson Modarressi

Congratulations Melissa! - I think it will look just perfect on your baby that will soon be arriving! Thank you Luv Luv Designs for partnering with us!