Tutorial: Homemade Maternity Pillow

Last night I had my first good night's sleep in weeks. Trying to arrange pillows comfortably around a pregnant body and not push the husband out of the bed in the process is something I have yet to master.

I was not willing to buy a big, expensive maternity pillow, though I am sure they work great. Instead I took two old flatty pillows that were hanging around my linen closet, sat down at my sewing machine, and this project was born. Here's how I did it.

You will need: 

• 2 old flat pillows.
• A sewing machine and heavy duty thread, or a good needle, thread,  and some patience.
• A jersey knit pillowcase(great because it stretches) or other large pillowcase/sham,  or sew yourself a case if you are crafty!  Whichever you choose, you just need room for your two pillow rolls to fit in and leave a gap in the middle for you.

Step 1
Select pillows.  You could use one big fluffier pillow or just a bunch of batting in a pinch, but that requires more sewing, splitting the stuffing and making them their own pillow forms.  It worked for me to get out thin old pillows that no one wanted to use. They were the perfect size for this as well.

Step 2
Fold in half the long way, to form a skinny roll, and pin the edges. This may get a bit tough in places, try to push the batting away from the seam and then pin it.

Step 3
Thread your machine with heavy duty thread. Mine may have been a bit too thick, I had a tough time getting the machine threaded, not to mention the fun it gave me while sewing. You could give it two passes with regular thread.

Sew down your new seam, removing the pins as you go.  I ended up pulling my fabric taught from each side of the machine to help smooth the fabric and direct it under the foot.  It still looks a little rough, but it will certainly do!

Step 4
Repeat with second pillow.

 Get your pillowcase and put those babies in there!  I put the seams facing each other

 See how there is a good bit of slack between the two pillow rolls?

 Enough that I could fold it up like this:

 I couldn't model the pillow and take a picture at the same time, so I substituted two pillows for the pregnant body. Just lay on the center space and let the rolls support your back and belly. Plus, they won't shift in the night, because you are laying on the pillowcase and holding them right in place. 

Enjoy your good nights rest and tell me how it worked for you!

Christmas Shopping Links

If you love to shop online, these are some good resources I have been using:

 

with their trials to prime shipping, and the even better trial through the Amazon Mom promotion, this has been a handy resource. Even better next week when the good Lightning Deals start. 

If you are gearing up for the Black Friday madness, BFADS.NET shows all the ads that are out early.  A great resource for planning ahead.

I also check the deal sites, that list the best deals:

http://slickdeals.net/

http://www.zappdeals.com/

http://www.utahshoppingsecrets.com

And to verify I am getting a good price I often search the item by name here:

Google.com

thefind.com

See my post from last year with more links to Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals.

An important note! Sometimes you can deal search all day and still find a far better deal at the big box store in person.  Example: I was shopping for a certain item that was cheapest on the web at $24.50 on Amazon with free shipping.  I couldn't find it online in any box stores. So I ordered it at this price. It is due to arrive today, so of course, this morning while at Wally I found the item for $10.  The kicker? It rang up at $8! If only it didn't cost me to ship the other one back. 

Christmas Crafting Links

Keep checking back with the I heart naptime blog, where there is a month long Christmas Crafting Event going on! Keep your eye on the Saturday link parties, there is sure to be something you love!


Tip Junkie has nearly endless collections of ideas here.



Skip To My Lou has a great set of tutorials for homemade gifts
 

I will be adding to this post as I come across other posts & blogs with fabulous Christmas ideas. Check back!

Halloween Dinner

 Our Halloween traditions take place on the Monday night before Halloween.  We have a spooky dinner and carve our pumpkins.  This is what we served this year.

 

A Spooky Meatloaf with blood dipping sauce

 Mashed Potato Ghosts

 and Slimey Bog Punch

Happy Haunting!

BOO your neighbors!

 This is a fun neighborhood tradition. We were "Boo"ed tonight. The hard part is finding a copy of the poem/ghost that you like. So here is the one I made up.

Click to enlarge and print. It is a Jpeg, so take care to preview before printing to make sure it is the size you want.  I just insert my boo gram into a Word Document to make sure it fits one whole page.

UPDATE:  I made a new version this year with simple instructions instead of a poem.  If you would like it, go here 
 

Time for a Fire Drill

Today I ran out to the mailbox, stopped to pick a few long-ignored weeds, and came right back inside. My little three year old told me, "Mom, I heard a beep. I heard the phone."  I showed no missed calls and dismissed her announcement. That is until my CO2/Smoke Detector went off 30 seconds later.  I love that it talks, but I didn't understand what it said from the other room.  Don't make the mistake of waiting underneath it if it has a high decibel output, my ears are still ringing from the next alarm.  It was time to change the batteries. 

Here are some tricks I have learned from today:
1- Keep the manual nearby! We have a hall closet just a few feet away from our main floor alarm.  It was so nice to be able to pull it out and get right to the solution.  I would not have known how to remove the alarm without it. My alarm also asked for a specific brand of battery, so that was good to know.

2- Keep some earplugs with the manual! I wish I had put these in before I waited below the blasted thing.  They were very handy while changing and testing the batteries. (Plus, you are supposed to test often, weekly or monthly depending on the model.)
3- Bring a sturdy step stool. Luckily I had one nearby, I didn't have to learn this one the hard way!
4- A pen. My manual has to blank pages in the back that are a perfect place to write down the date I changed the batteries last. 
5- Put it on your calendar.  I had it on mine for last week but ignored it. Next time I hope to change them before they run out.
6- Make sure you have them in all the proper places. At least one per level of your home and one near or in all sleeping areas. Specific instructions can be found in the manual.

If you are interested in knowing more about fire alarms, including the latest recall information, go to the U.S. Fire Administration Website

We will be holding a fire drill sometime soon. We will make a fun night of it with activities from the US Fire Administration's Website for Kids. 

What do you do to practice fire safety in your home?

Chocolate Hutch

I have been hankering for a hutch. I found this one on the local online classifieds and had to have it. We got it for a screaming deal at $50.  Used paint leftover from other projects, as well as spare lumber to remodel the top.  Add to that new lighting in the top and it cost us about $75.

Here is the before- the actual picture from the online ad

And the After - still waiting for cute knobs, but hey, it keeps the kiddo's out!  I have a fabulous hubby who busted out his tools and lumber and gave the top a makeover.  We added beadboard to the back, gave it a stronger top to support the lights,  removed the doors, and added supports to the shelves. I love how it turned out.