we meet again.

I have no excuse.
Just the fact I'm awful at blogging.
I'm going to get better
( I know I say this every 3 months when I reappear.)
But really I am.
This post is going to be short and sweet and of course photos included.
Here is the happenings around the Martin house recently.

1. Maiken is on spring break - keeping a very active 5 year old entertained for a week while allergies and sewing are consuming my life is exhausting.. So exhausting.

2. Marlo is done with a paci!! Hallelujah!! I'm honestly incredibly proud of Andrew and myself for putting our feet down! (small things people.)

3. I applied to be in a local crafting group called Make:Tulsa. AND I got in. It's a lot of fun and good to meet other little crafting businesses. make sure to check out the blog- everyone posts fun ideas and tutorials and they keep you posted on the fun classes that they have at the indie emporium store, made. downtown at 5th & boston. (which.. some of my dolls and crowns are sold at.)

4. I also applied for a fun craft show in dallas coming up in May, called Etsy Dallas Spring Bash. AND I got in. WOO! this will be my FIRST craft show and I am super excited. I will be sharing a booth with the lovely Maryam of Pamplemousse. (If you don't follow her blog you should. she is the best with such a cute family.)

So if you want a fun mini vacation OR are in Dallas.. you should come see us!
I'll have dolls and crowns and all sorts of fun.

5. Have you seen my new logo? No seriously, have you seen it? It could NOT BE MORE PERFECT. the ever so lovely and talented Don Naylor created this little gem for me. he nailed it. I could not be more in love with it. ;)

6. OK. So have you seen this post from AshleyAnn about my dolls?  GO LOOK!!

Or this one from the lovely Shannon with ImagoVita about my dolls? Look HERE too!

OR.. this one from Madison with Madison Vining Photography? Her daughter is modeling a flower crown.. and I mean really, can a baby get any more perfect than her?   GO LOOK!!!!!!!!!

OK!! so.. that is what is going on currently.

I have been getting quite a bit of custom doll family orders. 

WHICH I LOVE!! I am so excited to make all these little families.

I will keep posting photos of them as they come along.

It's so fun to read everyone's little descriptions about their kids and family.

Here are two families I finished the other day.

 

So. I will be back. Probably Monday.. well.. I don't want to get ahead of myself. So, I'll shoot for Tuesday. I'll be back Tuesday.

 

momma's christmas.. to Dallas we go!

Christmas was amazing.
My family and I are blessed beyond the moon.
we had such a wonderful Christmas.

we had tons of family time, great food, and Christmas activities.
SO SO fun.
Andrew and I every year say no presents for each other.
HA.
that never works.
we always end up buying each other stuff.
And this year he surprised me with a mini vacation.. just the two of us!!

 

That is right. We are going on a little weekend trip..

without the babies.

to Dallas, Texas!

I am incredibly excited.

(not to mention: panicked, worried..etc. 

This will be a first time leaving Marlo overnight..

and I will be out of state! AHH!)

Andrew also got us tickets to the Mason Jennings concert.

We have had him on our concert to-go list for several years.

SOOO EXCITED.

We are staying downtown at the Joule Hotel..and want to go eat at some of the fun restaurants around there. Any suggestions or ideas??

Once again.. I am so excited.

we leave this Friday! 

AH!! 

wish me luck on leaving my babes and keeping my cool!

I know it will be good for all of us to enjoy a little "mini" vacation.

The kids LOVE staying with their Mimi and I know they will have so much fun..

Also-

Andrew's Aunt Linda got me an amazing something special.

She has been antiquing before antiquing was ever a "thing"

She is a complete Antiquing All-Star.

Look what she found me this year....

Aren't they fantastic?

Marlo Beauty Treatment..

Pretty rad huh?

French Toast Biscuits.

Sounds weird huh?
I was unsure at first also.
But seriously.............
SO GOOD.

I also wish I could take credit for these bad boys.
But I can't.
It was ALL Andrew.
(Love that man.)
They taste like a delicious combination of cinnamon roll meets french toast.
I asked if he'd share his recipe. To which he proudly agreed.
(which he completely made up.. so bare with us on measurements and what not.)
Without further ado..
Another breakfast food so good yet so bad for your thighs..

What you need:
.. 1 can of biscuits (he used the regular Pilsbury Grand)
.. 2 large eggs.
.. Ground cinnamon
.. Sugar
.. Milk
.. Real butter

First follow the biscuit directions on oven temperature to pre-heat your oven.
Whisk your eggs and "splash" of milk together in a bowl.
Separate your biscuits and roll each biscuit around in your mix until they are well coated.
Line the biscuits on a pan, add a "tiny sliver" of butter and sprinkle each with your cinnamon and sugar.
Bake accordingly to the biscuit package.
Serve with syrup..........
And that's it.
so easy. soooo good. both my kids loved them also.

Added bonus to the biscuits!!!
They go great with a mimosa..

or two..

 

Happy Baking Lovelies!

Pearl's handmade Christmas

This has become a joke in my family.
That I am the crazy crafting mom who doesn't buy toys.
whatever. I don't mind that title..
(I think?)
My problem is I would buy things I LOVED..
but if I found things I LOVED.
I always get these "grand" visions and ideas in my mind and can never find
anything close to what I have pictured..
so I must take matters into my own hands!
(side note: I do find things I LOVE.. problem is it would cost more than I would be willing to admit to Andrew how much I spent.. I always hate when he asks prices. ha)
Marlo doesn't care if I make her presents anyways..

(for now that is.)
She has become RATHER fond of baby dolls.
loves on them and totes them around wherever we go.

I knew I wanted to get her some stuff for her babies.
Luckily, I didn't have to look hard.
I found her a baby doll bed & a mini rocking chair Pearl size at a little flea market in Mannford the first time I even started looking!
Also, My sister had an old baby doll high chair in her garage she let me take off her hands!
Perfect things.. I was pumped.
And so.. Marlo Pearl's handmade Christmas was in the works.
I didn't do many before photos.
(basically the only one I have.. in the midst of spray painting)

I sorta forgot in all my excitement.
But I do LOVE how they all turned out!
Her very own rocking chair:
(so cute how much she loves it. she sits in it with her babies and rocks like a little grandma.)

Her new baby doll bed
(she throws babies inside of it and rocks it as fast as she can.. urg...)

 

AND LAST.. her new baby highchair

mainly used like a stroller.. minus the wheels.

And just to be clear.. I did "buy" her some toys..
(I think I did? I actually don't remember)
BUT my favorite thing I bought here were
THESE leggings from eBay.
I saw them on Modern Kiddo and knew we needed lots!

SO cheap. SO cute. Very much worth it for a cute booty like this.

superhero bedroom

so here's the deal.
I have realized that when I say I am going to catch up... I never do.
and I am ok with that.
SO here is something new!
Maiken got a new room for Christmas.
Basically, I wanted to paint his room and make it a bit more "big boy"
what ended up happening is we made the kids swap rooms.
(which in the end made it THAT much more cool for Maiken because he really did get a whole new room.)
It was a lot more work that I had planned on.
(thankfully I had such great helpers.. ha!)

Packing and moving all of their things, painting one room, organizing, decorating, and cleaning... sheesh.
(I know that was only 2 rooms.. DO NOT even want to think about if it was my whole house.)
I am happy with how both rooms turned out.
and so are my kids.
soo.. I suppose all the work was worth it.
what was so fun is Maiken knew he was getting his knew room.. but that was all.

we surprised him with the decorations.

welcome all superheros!

A superhero room isn't complete without its bat signal

little details

the super hero himself

 

it's rare seeing this boy outside of his room now.

it's his very own batcave.

halloween in december

SO.. I am a little behind the times.
yeah yeah. I am not good with this.
BUT, I am trying to play catch up..
(again. for about the 100th time)
It's just so crazy every day around here.
SO. I am going to talk about our Halloween!
It was fun. My kids were super cuties.

I am the biggest sucker for dress up.
any opportunity that is in front of me
that can lead to dressing myself or the kids up..
I am all over it.
We had several activities and parties this year for Halloween.
pretty sure we went to every pumpkin patch within a 45 mile radius from us.
My mother-in-law is a wild woman behind the sewing machine
and makes all her grandkids costumes herself.
THEY ARE INCREDIBLE.
(she made all of these costumes expect scooby doo!)

I'm sure you've noticed this year the kids were :

Captain Jack Sparrow (thanks to Michael Bolton)

and the lovely Mary Poppins:

 

Andrew and I had dressed up for my inlaws Halloween party too.

that's right. a tree and a lumberjack.
(I was low on resources this year. ha!)
So there is a little taste of Halloween in December.
As for November.. I will be working hard to play catch up
this whole week. Now that it is Christmas break and Maiken
is not going to school, I should have a bit more free time.