Create-a-Story Books

Create-a-Story Books bring the child into the heart of a specially crafted, handmade just for them quiet book.  It all starts with a name - the child's name - and then builds into a one-of-a-kind story or rhyme.  I work with you to create a story or rhyme befitting of the child who receives the book.  I print the finalized story onto a card and place it in a pocket on the back of the story book; as well as emailing the final story to you.

Some example stories:

Eva's Elephant

Little Miss Eva has an Elephant. 
He's very well-behaved. 
He lives out behind her house
in a little patch of shade.

They play together everyday
in the grass and sun and sand.
He's very kind and gentle. 
He even holds her hand!

They pick flowers in the morning,
sing in the afternoon.
They eat their Vegetables for dinner
then sleep beneath the moon.

Miss Eva loves her elephant,
he keeps her safe from harm.
Her brother has an Alligator,
who always gives alarm!

© 2010 Mama Hoot Designs

Hungry, Hungry Gabriel

Gabriel is a hungry fellow making his way to the kitchen from his room. This is what he finds along the way. (Grown-ups, please use your imagination to see that these are not just "toys" on the floor.)

Hungry, Hungry Gabriel went out for lunch one day
And couldn't quite believe what he found along the way.

First he saw Giraffe so tall, like his friend Mr. Rob.
Next a fearsome Alligator, who some call Smilin' Bob.

Then he found a big ol' Bear who looked a lot like Pooh.
But he kept on walking, not sure what to do.

Just around the corner he found a Rocket ship,
Blue and red and shiny, he thought about a trip.

But no, no time for Mars today, there's Ice Cream up ahead.
He set on about his way, he had to use his head.

Surely he could find his lunch, his tummy started to rumble,
But what a tricky path today - be careful not to tumble!

When all the sudden he spotted now a great big Elephant!
He gave him a pat on the trunk, but onward still he went.

And finally right before his eyes - LUNCH!
© 2010 Mama Hoot Designs

It pains me to have to say this, but I must - please do not steal my stories.  I work hard to create them for the intended child.  If you have interest in using or reprinting one of my stores, please contact me - I'm sure we can work something out.

Baby Sign Language

When Lil Hoot started showing definite signs of a willful personality and frustration at her inability to be articulate, I thought it was time to look into baby signing. I did a bit of looking and the two most popular books seemed to be Baby Signs and The Baby Signing Book.

I checked out both from the library but I definitely prefer The Baby Signing Book. Perhaps it is just my personality (a touch Type A) but the book is laid out in a very organized fashion. I found the break down by age and the suggestions for how to choose signs very helpful. The dictionary in the back can be a tad confusing but any text that tries to show movement can be confusing. I choose the signs using their dictionary as a guide but then look for videos online if I am confused.

Baby Signs was written in more of a prose style that felt disorganized and meandering to me. I was quite overwhelmed by how to choose signs after reading their chapter for Lil Hoot's age group. I found their shameless promotion of their other products to be off-putting. They also completely dismiss the AAP's recommendation of no television for children under the age of two by saying that the AAP meant non-educational TV, not DVDs like theirs. I have read several books that give a scientific backing on the AAP's recommendation and feel that this dismissal is ill-advised and obviously self-serving.

I received The Baby Signing Book for Christmas and am now trying to add a few signs to my vocabulary each week. I found two handed signs very difficult until Lil Hoot reached the age where she could sit up and be mobile for herself - she is obviously in the mobile stage now! She already recognizes "milk" and "all done". We also consistently use "dog", "water", "bath", "want" and "more". I have added "ball", "block" and "fan" this week.

Did you sign with your kiddos? If so, what signs did you find the most helpful? What signs did your kids like the most? Any tips or tricks for remembering to sign consistently?

Banana Nut Muffins

Big Hoot gave me a food processor for Christmas and I am LOVING it. I have only a hand mixer and a blender, both of which seem ready to die, so I am learning to use the food processor instead. This past week, as the title suggests, I made banana nut muffins. We had TONS of bananas on hand from our co-op and I needed to use them up. I thought muffins would be handier as a grab and go snack than a loaf of bread. I used the following recipe from Food Network. My notes are shown in italics.



Banana Nut Muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 overripe bananas

1 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

2 eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup pecans, chopped *I used walnuts instead.

*I added 1/2 t. of cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and lightly butter 2 muffin tins.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside. Mash 2 of the bananas with a fork in a small bowl so they still have a bit of texture. With an electric mixer fitted with a wire whisk, whip the remaining bananas and sugar together like you mean it, for a good 3 minutes. Add the melted butter, eggs, and vanilla and beat well, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice. Mix in the dry ingredients just until incorporated. Fold in the nuts and the mashed bananas with a rubber spatula. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins to fill them about halfway. Give them a rap on the counter to get any air bubbles out.

Bake until a toothpick stuck in the muffins comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes before turning the muffins out. Serve warm or at room temperature.

*I used a food processor rather than a mixer and 'whipped' them together in mere seconds. I used a 1/3 c. measuring cup to ladle the batter more evenly into the tins. My muffin tins made 18 muffins. I had a few larger ones and they didn't set as well in the center. In the future I plan to better mash the bananas they had me set to the side and add some chunkier nuts to the top for 'decoration'. Stored in an airtight container it seems they will last about 5 days, though they are getting a little sticky and are better microwaved a few seconds these last 2 days.

Christmas Clothes

I made matching pajama pants for Lil Hoot and I for Christmas - because I found some great fabric (Smores from Moda Fabrics by Me and My Sister Designs) and had enough to make us both a pair. Nothing fancy and no real 'pattern' - just found some instructions for how to make them based on what I already own. It was a real learning process and next year's pants will be much better, I'm sure. Plus - I hope to not be sewing them up on Christmas Eve.
I also made Lil Hoot a Christmas dress. Poor girl didn't have a single dress in her closet and I wanted something fun and funky, fitting for her personality (and mine) for Christmas. First I searched around here for fabrics in craft and quilting stores but found nothing...and then it dawned on me - duh - search Etsy! So I found some GREAT fabric (Be Merry by Riley Blake from My Mind's Eye) at Fabrics I Love (Gina is great to work with by the way). Lil Hoot's dress is fully lined because I didn't want any seams to show. It was also my first time to make my own piping and bias tape. I did so because I wanted to use the snowflake fabric from the same line.

My Sister's Purse

Much of what I have been working on since November has been for gifts so I haven't been able to post pictures. Now though...I can!

First...my sister's purse. I started off with Made By Rae's Buttercup Bag pattern but quickly made several changes. First, I changed the fold of the pleats. Then, I added the ribbon, omitted the button flap, widened the bag with the addition of the velvet, and lengthened the straps (because my sister is tall). I did the straps how I always do them with the technique I posted previously, added ribbon to the strap and did a decorative stitch on that.