Melissa

DIY Peasant Belle Peg Doll

DIY Peasant Belle Peg Doll Part of the fun in raising Zoey is making things that delight her; I want to create lasting, meaningful toys for her that are made with love and will be loved! Wooden toys are classic and beautiful, when created and treated right, they can last a lifetime; so let’s make some!

It’s no secret that Cameron and I love Disney. Zoey’s middle name was inspired by one of my favorite Disney princesses, Belle, and that Belle in her name has also led to another Disney nickname, Tinker Bell. I cannot wait to create a whole set of peg dolls for her, but these two characters hold the most significance until she begins watching the classics on her own.

We’ve created a Tinker Bell Peg Doll, check her out!

This week I’ll be sharing the steps I took to create a Belle peg doll in her blue peasant dress for Zoey.

DIY Peasant Belle Peg Doll

SUPPLIES

Blank peg doll (I used a “small angel” or “girl” shape/size)
Small, flat & fine tip paint brushes
Paint palette (or a tray for your paint)
Blue non-toxic acrylic paint
White non-toxic acrylic paint
Light blue non-toxic acrylic paint
Brown non-toxic acrylic paint
Dark brown non-toxic acrylic paint
Black non-toxic acrylic paint
Non-toxic varnish (I used Duraclear Ultra Matte Varnish)

INSTRUCTIONS

DIY Peasant Belle Peg Doll

With a pencil, lightly sketch Belle onto your blank peg doll. Belle wears a dress over a white blouse, I gave her sleeves so more of the blouse can be seen.
Begin painting your peg doll with the base layers first. I started with the blue of her dress and hair bow, the white of her blouse and apron, and the brown of her hair. Allow this paint to dry before moving on to avoid smudging, then apply a few more layers of each until you’re happy with the colors and textures.
Paint the very bottom and edges of the peg doll black to signify her shoes.
After the base layers have dried, paint a border of light blue on the edges of her apron, shirt and hair bow. If you don’t have a lighter shade of blue, you can create some by adding a small amount of white paint to the original blue and blending.
Paint dark brown accents on and around the hair, don’t forget her ponytail in the back!
Taking something small and round (I used the opposite end of one of my smaller paint brushes) dip it in black paint and dot the two eyes. Using the finest tipped paintbrush you can find, give her an eyelash or two on each eye.
Once the eye paint has dried, add a highlight dot to each eye with a fine tipped paintbrush and white paint.
Using the same method as the eyes, dip the opposite end of a slightly larger paintbrush into light pink paint and dot the blush under each eye.
With a little white paint, give her a few sparkles of pixie dust on the hem of her dress or wherever else you feel it will look right!
Allow for all paint to completely dry, then apply a varnish and allow it to dry. You can apply as many coats as you want for the finish you want, just allow them to dry in between applications and before handing her over to your child.
Voilà! Belle is done and ready to be played with! Enjoy!

DIY Peasant Belle Peg Doll

Jack Jack’s Num Num Cookie Recipe

INTRODUCTION

Welcome back friends! I hope this post finds you and your loved ones safe and healthy! This week we’ll be baking Jack Jack’s Num Num Chocolate Chip Cookies from Disney and Pixar’s Incredibles 2.

Jack Jack's Num Num Cookie Recipe from Incredibles 2 This recipe is featured when Lucius Best (Frozone) checks in on Bob Parr (Mr. Incredible) in his new homemaking role. Bob is struggling with Jack Jack’s abundant powers, but has discovered he will temporarily settle down for cookies.

Jack Jack's Num Num Cookie Recipe from Incredibles 2 These chocolate chip cookies are slender, soft and scrumptious. Pixar recently released an official recipe for Jack Jack’s cookies that looks and tastes absolutely fantastic, but the cookies come out much thicker-looking than the ones in the film so I decided to create my own independent recipe for the fun of it. I imagine Jack Jack wouldn’t discriminate!

Jack Jack's Num Num Cookie Recipe from Incredibles 2

JACK JACK’S NUM NUM COOKIES

1 cup of butter, softened
1 1/2 cups of packed brown sugar (I used dark)
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 1/4 cups of cake flour
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of salt
2 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips

INSTRUCTIONS (COOKIES)

Using a mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar.
Add the vanilla and then the eggs in one at a time, mixing after each egg.
In a separate bowl, combine the cake flour, baking soda and salt with a whisk.
Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet, mixing well after each addition until a thick fluffy dough forms.
Using a mixing spoon, fold in the 2 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips until well-distributed throughout the dough.
Cover the bowl and place it in the refrigerator for about 24 hours. This step is optional if you’re in a rush for the cookies, but they will spread a little less if chilled.
After the dough has chilled, preheat the oven to 325F and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and using a small ice cream scoop or a regular spoon (I used a spoon), begin portioning out the dough into balls of cookie dough (about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inches in diameter), and placing them on the baking sheet.
Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for about 14 minutes. Baking time may vary depending on your oven so please keep an eye on the cookies and find a time that works for you.
Remove the cookies from the oven when they are golden brown on the edges and allow them to cool on the pan for about 2 minutes. Then remove them from the pan and allow them to completely cool on a wire rack.
Enjoy!

Kingdom Hearts – Visual Trinity Mark Guide

If there’s one thing I do when I play a game (besides trying to relax and enjoy myself), it’s look up information. I get curious or stuck, and I find myself turning to the internet for answers. There are a lot of good guides out there that are super helpful, but what I don’t see are an abundance of simple and clean visual guides that lay out all the information in one place.

I’ve finished playing Kingdom Hearts as I work my way through the entire series and I’ve created a Trinity mark guide for myself and those who may need it.

This infographic is organized by the trinity’s color, it’s location and the reward for triggering it in each world. I’ve also included how to unlock each trinity color at the top of the page.

Please let me know if you would like me to work on a guide for the other collectibles within Concrete Genie or if there are any games you would like to see visual information or guides for in the future! I love helping people, discussing games and organizing information!

DIY Tinker Bell Peg Doll

DIY Tinker Bell Peg Doll Part of the fun in raising Zoey is making things that delight her; I want to create lasting, meaningful toys for her that are made with love and will be loved! Wooden toys are classic and beautiful, when created and treated right, they can last a lifetime; so let’s make some!

We’ve created a Peasant Belle Peg Doll, check her out!

This week I’ll be sharing the steps I took to create a Tinker Bell peg doll for Zoey.

DIY Tinker Bell Peg Doll

SUPPLIES

Blank peg doll (I used a “small angel” or “girl” shape/size)
Small, flat & fine tip paint brushes
Paint palette (or a tray for your paint)
Green non-toxic acrylic paint
Yellow non-toxic acrylic paint
Light brown non-toxic acrylic paint
Light blue non-toxic acrylic paint
Light pink non-toxic acrylic paint
White non-toxic acrylic paint
Black non-toxic acrylic paint
Non-toxic varnish (I used Duraclear Ultra Matte Varnish)

INSTRUCTIONS

With a pencil, lightly sketch Tinker Bell onto your blank peg doll.
Begin painting your peg doll with the base layers first. I started with the green of her dress, the white of her wings and the yellow of her hair. Allow this paint to dry before moving on to avoid smudging, then apply a few more layers of each until you’re happy with the colors and textures.
Paint the very bottom and edges of the peg doll green to signify her slippers.
After the base layers have dried, paint a border of darker green on the edges of her dress. If you don’t have a darker shade of green, you can create some by adding a small amount of black paint to the original green and blending.
Paint an accent of lighter green on the inner layer of the dark green border of her dress. If you don’t have a lighter shade of green, you can create some by adding a small amount of white paint to the original green and blending.
The wings can stay matte white, or you can add a pearly white finish to give them a sheen. Once the wings have dried, border and accent them with light blue paint.
Paint light brown accents on and around the hair.
Once the hair has dried, paint a small light blue ribbon around Tinker Bell’s bun.
Taking something small and round (I used the opposite end of one of my smaller paint brushes) dip it in black paint and dot the two eyes. Using the finest tipped paintbrush you can find, give her an eyelash or two on each eye.
Once the eye paint has dried, add a highlight dot to each eye with a fine tipped paintbrush and white paint.
Using the same method as the eyes, dip the opposite end of a slightly larger paintbrush into light pink paint and dot the blush under each eye.
With a little white paint, give her a few sparkles of pixie dust on the hem of her dress or wherever else you feel it will look right!
Allow for all paint to completely dry, then apply a varnish and allow it to dry. You can apply as many coats as you want for the finish you want, just allow them to dry in between applications and before handing her over to your child.
Voilà! Tinker Bell is done and ready to be played with! Enjoy!

DIY Tinker Bell Peg Doll

The Night of the Rabbit – Sticker Location Guide

The Night of the Rabbit is a beautiful game with peaceful music and relaxingly-paced puzzle solving. There are four types of collectibles in the game; cards, dewdrops, stickers and stories. Last week we focused on a guide for the dewdrops, this week we’ll be focusing on the stickers!

This infographic will let you know what scene each of the 8 collectible stickers are located in, and where to look for them. All of the stickers are located in Mousewood, save for one in Jerry’s world at his home. To view the stickers you’ve collected, open to the game menu, click on bonus collections (the gift icon on the bottom right) and then stickers.

I do not currently have plans to create guides for the cards or stories, but if you would like that, please contact me and let me know! Please let me know if there are any other games you would like to see visual information or guides for in the future! I love helping people, discussing games and organizing information!

Homemade Teething Cookies Recipe

Homemade Teething Cookies Recipe Last week, we brought some of the beach to Zoey with edible “sand” made out of graham crackers and oatmeal. After she was done playing, I could not let good food go to waste so I made her some teething cookies with the remaining “sand”.

Not too sweet, but sweet enough to be called cookies instead of crackers, these treats are a hit! They are springy, yet firm enough to soothe her teething gums and she likes them!…Although so does my husband so I’m going to have to convince him not to eat all of them before she can knaw on a few.

Homemade Teething Cookies Recipe

INGREDIENTS

Edible “sand” (1 box of graham crackers & 2 cups of old-fashioned oats, blended)
3 bananas (the riper the better)
6 tablespoons of coconut oil, melted
2 tablespoons of water (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Grease a baking sheet and preheat the oven to 325 F.
Combine the ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir them with a mixing spoon until a thick dough has formed. You may need to adjust the amount of water or coconut oil you add depending on how juicy your bananas are.
Section the dough into smaller portions and (using a flat surface and a rolling pin) roll out your dough to 1/4 of an inch thick. You will need to use flour to keep the dough from sticking to the rolling pin and surfaces.
With a circular cookie cutter or a drinking glass (I used a drinking glass), cut cookies out of the dough and place them onto the greased baking sheet.
Cook each sheet of cookies for 12 to 15 minutes. Be careful they are hot! Use the spatula or a spoon to test their springiness. They should be firm yet springy when pressed as they are brought out of the oven.
Allow the cookies to cool before serving. These can be stored in the refrigerator for a little more firmness.
Serve and enjoy, but please watch your baby as they eat this to make sure they handle the texture well!

The Night of the Rabbit – Dewdrop Location Guide

The Night of the Rabbit is a beautiful game, with peaceful music and relaxingly-paced puzzle solving. There are four types of collectibles in the game; cards, dewdrops, stickers and stories. This week we are focusing on a guide for the dewdrops, next week we’ll be focusing on a guide for the stickers!

There are two sorts of collectibles in the game, stickers and dewdrops. This week we’ll be focusing on the dewdrops, but check out my guide to the sticker locations!

Dewdrops can only be found in the world of Mousewood and only during daylight hours.This infographic will let you know how many dewdrops are in each scene and where to look for them. Once all the dewdrops are collected, travel back to the passage to the magicians house and click on the stone stele to reveal the portrait of the Marquis de Hoto’s apprentice, prior to Jeremiah.

Please let me know if there are any games you would like to see visual information or guides for in the future! I love helping people, discussing games and organizing information!

DIY Edible “Sand” for Sensory Playtime

DIY Edible Sand for Sensory Play It’s the middle of Summer and I would love to take Zoey to the beach for the first time, but just about everything she picks up is quickly introduced to her mouth! I understand she’s figuring things out (and more power to her), but I’m not super enthusiastic about her ingesting beach sand. So, until she gets a little less eager to put everything in her mouth, why not bring a little beach experience to her?

Part of the fun in raising Zoey is making things that teach and fascinate her. We can make edible “sand” that’s fun to play in and safe to eat out of graham crackers and oatmeal; let’s make it!

Check back next week for the homemade teething cookies I made with the remaining edible “sand”.

DIY Edible Sand for Sensory Play

SUPPLIES

1 box of graham crackers.
2 cups of oatmeal (I used whole grain old-fashioned oats)
A food processor
A mixing bowl
A mixing spoon
A container for playing in the “sand” (I used a heavy casserole dish)
Beach or ocean themed toys (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Open the graham crackers and blend them in the food processor until they are a fine sand-like texture.
Remove the graham crackers from the food processor and pour them into a mixing bowl.
Measure the oatmeal into the food processor and blend it until it is also a fine sand-like texture.
Remove the oatmeal from the food processor and add it to the mixing bowl with the graham crackers.
Using a mixing spoon, stir the graham crackers and oatmeal together until well combined.
Pour the edible “sand” into the container you’ve chosen for your baby to play in. I used a heavy casserole dish since Zoey’s not strong enough to flip it yet. You can always double or triple the graham cracker and oatmeal ratio if you want to fill a larger container.
Arrange beach and/or ocean themed toys in the sand for your little one to play with (optional).
Introduce the edible “sand” to your baby and enjoy!

Randall’s Be My Pal Cupcake Recipe (Monster’s University)

Be My Pal Cupcake Recipe from Disney and Pixar's Monster's University

INTRODUCTION

Welcome back friends! This week we’ll be baking the cupcakes Randall bakes in the hope of making new friends at Monster’s University in Disney and Pixar’s Monster’s University. Be My Pal Cupcake Recipe from Disney and Pixar's Monster's University

These “Be My Pal” cupcakes are featured right before Randall leaves for a campus party. He’s baked them to impress members of the fraternity he’s trying to join and asks Mike to join him, but Mike declines to study instead.

Be My Pal Cupcake Recipe from Disney and Pixar's Monster's University

In all honesty, I feel a little guilty for not making the cupcake portion of this recipe from scratch. I am rationalizing it by an idea that a college student probably wouldn’t want to take the time to bake everything from scratch, but on the flip-side this is Randall we’re talking about; it could go either way! I look forward to revisiting this recipe in the future and re-creating it completely from scratch, but in the meantime, enjoy and substitute butter for a more homemade flavor!

Be My Pal Cupcake Recipe from Disney and Pixar's Monster's University

CUPCAKES

1 box of Devil’s Food Cake Mix (I used Duncan Hines)
1/3 cup butter (or vegetable oil)
3 large eggs
1 cup water
Cooking spray

INSTRUCTIONS (CUPCAKES)

Preheat the oven to 350 F.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan and set it aside to cool.
Line a muffin/cupcake pan with cupcake liners and spray them lightly with cooking spray.
Place the dry cake mix in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the melted butter, eggs and water.
Slowly add the combined wet ingredients to the dry cake mix a little at a time, mixing until smooth.
Distribute the batter into the prepared cupcake liners, filling each liner about about 2/3 full (you can use an ice cream scoop or I used a small measuring cup).
Bake the cupcakes for 18 to 21 minutes, until a toothpick poked into the center of each cupcake comes out clean.
Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool completely before frosting.

FROSTING

1 8 oz. package of cream cheese (room temperature)
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream (cold)
1 1/2 cups powdered confectioners sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS (FROSTING)

Refrigerate or freeze your mixing bowl and whisk attachment(s) for 10-15 minutes before using, then whip the heavy whipping cream on high speed for 1 to 2 minutes until it’s thick, fluffy and spreadable.
In a second mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar slowly until well incorporated, then add the vanilla extract.
Fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture.
Separate out about a third of the frosting out into a small bowl and add red food coloring until it reaches the desired hue for the “Be My Pal” letters.
Spread the white frosting on each cupcake using a butter knife.
Place the red frosting into a piping bag and spell out “Be My Pal” onto 7 (or more) of the cupcakes.
Enjoy!

Chrono Trigger – Sealed Chest and Door Guide

Earlier this year, I participated in playing Chrono Trigger with The MinnMax Show’s Deepest Dive. I had heard so many good things about this game over the years. I’d started it, but never finished, until now!

Everything I’d heard about it was true, it’s a wonderful nostalgic game! My only mistake was opening all the sealed chests in the wrong order and missing out on better and/or extra loot. To counter that, I made this infographic to help players figure out where and when all the sealed chests and doors are located, if they’re upgradeable, and what’s in them. There’s a note at the top with instructions on what to do to receive the upgraded loot.

Please let me know if there are any games you would like to see visual information or guides for in the future! I love helping people, discussing games and organizing information!