It’s just easier with the iPhone. Bing. New e-mail. Mid-day inspiration while my children are fighting over light sabers in the backyard. What’s not to love?

Since I cleared my reader, I found a few projects I love that you might as well, so I’m dumping them here. Seriously, it’s my blog, I can do post what I like, even if it’s just for my own convenience. <wink>

First up, for those who love embroidery or want to learn. I firmly believe anyone can pick up this skill and should. Lots of tutorials online, lots of free patterns, lots of uses for this skill. On to the find…

From my internet friends over at Sibling Craftery, a quirky wedding present, embroidered tea-towels of LOVE.

There are three images in the FREE set, but the macaroni and cheese is my favorite. Click over to see ‘frosting on my cupcake’ and ‘cookie to my milk’. Who doesn’t love embroidered food with faces?

For those who crochet, check out these adorable and not too kitschy Fruity Trivets and Pot Holders from The Purl Bee.

I love that it’s the same pattern for all 3 fruit, and they give you the exact colors used on each. The photos are beautiful and easy to follow, especially the demonstration of how to create the seeds.

Make sure if you plan on making these you read the instructions carefully. To be practical and actually protect you from heat, the yarn is doubled and the pattern uses a size K crochet hook.

Please don’t forget your crafty internet etiquette. If you download or use these patterns, leave the creators some comment love and if they have Flickr groups, upload images of your finished project to their group. They are sharing their hard work for free, so it’s a nice way to say “Thanks”.

The pattern is called The Empty Tomb and you can find it at Made By Lindy. Can you believe she designed this pattern when she was only 16 years old?! You can see what other colors and yarns have been used on this project at Ravelry. She has several other nice spring cloth patterns if you are interested in a non-Christian themed pattern. The Bloom and Daisy patterns would be great for this time of year.

It knits up quickly and if you cast on today, I’m sure you can have it finished by Sunday. It’s a perfect hostess gift if you are celebrating in someone else’s home. A great reminder for the real reason for all those marshmallow chicks and chocolate eggs. Have a fantastic weekend!

This year, I chose my own valentine. I chose this beautiful print from artist Jennifer Katherine. I stumbled across her blog more than a year ago and began following her. I loved her style, I loved her use of digital, graphic tools and yet, she made things with buttons. Then, after following her a few months, I saw her delve into sewing. This was a girl after my own heart. Although I’ve put my digital art days behind me (for now), I have a great appreciation for the blend of technical with traditional arts and crafts.

I recall when Jennifer put the early sketches of this piece on her blog, and then a while later when she showed a glimpse of it with color. I was in love. It was one of those moments where art spoke directly to my heart. I went months without catching up on my blog reader, and wouldn’t you know, the evening I finally caught up, Jennifer had posted just days before that she opened an Etsy shop. And guess what was for sale?! The surprising thing was that she had a note on her shop about a portion of proceeds going to one of my favorite charities. I just HAD to have it. I sent Mr. T the e-mail with the link to purchase. Then I became impatient and just asked him one night if I could buy it, since I have an Etsy account and he doesn’t. A few clicks for me, a journey through a snowstorm for Jennifer and a few days later, it was in my hands!

One of the best parts of the piece for me is what’s happened behind the scenes. I shared through the Etsy convo feature why I was so excited to purchase it, she shared some of her heart and personal story of why she made the piece. It’s truly amazing how the whole thing is stitched together. I almost didn’t share with you on here on my blog, because it’s so unconventional to have a broken heart as a valentine’s gift. But, it’s the truth, my heart is being mended, our marriage is being mended, life right now is a season of healing and restoration. Nothing could better represent this season of life. Even down to the part where it arrived in the midst of my medical testing for those chest pains! Literally and metaphorically, this speaks to me in so many ways. I love passing by it multiple times a day, and am surprised by the variety of emotions and thoughts is produces. This piece of paper speaks to my soul. That is truly the best kind of art!

If you love it too, Jennifer has placed another print for sale in her Etsy shop. Be sure to stop by and leave her some love on her blog: Elegant Journey as well.

If you have a piece of art that speaks to your soul as well, I’d love to read about it. Share the story in the comments or a link if you’ve already blogged about it.

My kids have been using JumpStart online for a while now. We first started when we won a free 3 month subscription from a contest over at A Mom Blog. It was in the early stages and while the kids liked it, I had a few issues with it. I was pleasantly surprised when I received positive interactions from the crew over at JumpStart to my concerns. Since that time, we’ve continued to use it and I am really amazed at how they continue to roll out new “worlds” which are new sections of games. I am amazed that it continues to captivate my first grader. He frequently chooses JumpStart over other television network websites for games.

If you are a family with multiple children like ours, you’ll like that each child can have their own sub account to save their own game. We can even have more than one child playing on our account on different computers at the same time. Because the virtual world remains the same, I’ve discovered the older children helping the younger ones navigate the world and the games. Hop on over to JumpStart.com to try a subscription membership for yourself to see how well it works for your family. It’s a great way to keep their minds busy on snow days!

I love to read. Sadly, with four children swirling around nearly non-stop, that’s a difficult venture. I have to admit, I’ve had this book for a while. There are two major reasons it’s taken me so long to write this review. The first is, I have four children and I can barely sneak through a paragraph, much less an entire page without interruption. Unless I’m sitting behind the locked bathroom door, then the full page is an actual possibility.

The second reason it took me so long to finish this book and write the review is that Kathy Buckworth is just so darn convincing as she insists that every mother should have a smartphone. So, about mid-way through the book, after the previously mentioned phone debacles, I upgraded to my very own smartphone. Of course, if you’ve been reading this blog very long, you’d guess I didn’t get the Blackberry. But despite the differences in brands, The Blackberry Diaries: Adventures in Modern Motherhood shares the joys and trials of owning a toddler and a smartphone.

When I received the invitation to review this book, Kathy’s biography read like a checklist for a possible new best friend. Mother of four children – Check. Loves Technology – Check. Canadian – oh wait, so maybe not a perfect match, since I live in Missouri, but you get the idea. How could I not love a book that I might, if I could find the time, write myself?

The book is written like a blog. Instead of traditional chapters, each entry has a date, title and ranges from one to five pages. It makes it ideal reading for the interrupted mother. Not to mention the tags at the end of each entry are their own little punchlines, often eliciting a louder outburst of laughter than the actual entry. Warning: don’t read this book in the presence of your children unless you repeatedly want to hear, “What’s so funny, Mom?”

Kathy takes us on a year-long journey beginning when Seamus (yes, she named her Blackberry) arrived on Christmas day. From there, she weaves the intriguing illustrations about how owning a BlackBerry and parenting a toddler are quite similar. She even offers insightful, humorous tips on how to wade through those tricky mommy situations like PTO meetings and bus stop gossip.

My favorite parts of the book are when Kathy shares about the struggles of being a work at home mom, or even just a technically savvy mom, while dealing with the more traditional stay at home mom types. A few weeks ago, my iPhone fell out of my pocket during a “Read to your parent” activity at my son’s school and a mom politely said, “I think that’s your phone, or, uh… whatever that gadget is, on the floor. I can’t keep up with all those things.” While I can’t call Kathy up (she doesn’t give her cell number in the book), reading her experiences at least made me feel a little less freakish. I may be the only first grade stay at home mom at our school who totes a smartphone, but I am not alone!

There are two major drawbacks to this book. Number one, it’s only in print. If they offered it in an electronic version (hello: Kindle for iPhone) I would have finished the book and my review much sooner. The second drawback to the book is that although it is moderately prices (currently under $12 on Amazon.com) it comes with a high hidden cost. As you might notice if you read the Amazon reviews, my experience was not an isolated one. Kathy leaves her readers with the electronic version of baby lust. So if you purchase this book for yourself or as a gift, make sure you are prepared to upgrade to a smartphone immediately. Otherwise, well, that’s just torture.

This book is fantastic. I highly recommend it (you know I don’t recommend everything I try). I think it is an essential read for any thoroughly modern mother, Millie, or mommy blogger.

Can’t wait another minute? You can follow @KathyBuckworth on Twitter or @BBDiaries for tour dates. Also, Kathy is a scheduled guest for Nov. 5th on this BlogTalkRadio show.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book to read and review from Weber Shandwick, after receiving an invitation via TwitterMoms.
For more information please see my Disclosure Policy.

Another bonus of Swaptree is their software will automatically generate the postage for you to print from your home computer – SCORE! All I had to do was dig around my house to find some old bubble wrap envelopes or brown paper envelopes, shipping tape, scissors and I was ready to go. If you choose to use the Swaptree shipping system, they will charge you $2-4 for shipping (depending on item type & weight). They calculate charges a month at a time and bill your credit card on the 7th day of each month. You do have the choice to send ship you item on your own. I personally find the convenience of it well worth the small price difference. Who wants to drag four children into the post office every few days? Swaptree also recommends reusing packing materials whenever possible, how very green of them! Lazy me is not going to complain one bit… lol

The system for listing your items couldn’t be easier, simply key in the UPC or ISBN code and it does the rest. You select the condition of the item, and there is an optional field for fine details. I should note that users are happier and will leave positive feedback if you leave as many details about the condition as you can.

You can then initiate trades with a couple of short clicks, the other user(s) then have 48 hours to respond. This is kind of an important thing to know, it’s best for people who check their e-mail at the very least daily. If you’re not that person, Swaptree is probably not for you. They do allow you to put your account on hold for a period of time, say for vacations or travel.

Swaptree does allow you to reject trades initiated by other users. It gives you a line about it negatively affecting your account if you reject too many, but don’t let the stern wording discourage you. I’ve rejected several trades and have a positive user rating. I suspect you’d have to reject quite a few with little to no reason to have your account suspended. It does allow you to state your reason for rejecting the trade, and says that all rejected trades are reviewed. I rejected one that wanted me to send a “high value” Wii game for a paperback novel in the first week of trading, haven’t received another similar request since.

To date, my family has traded several Wii games, books and DVDs. If your a mom, it’s fantastic for when you children grow tired of a DVD or video game and want a new one.  For crafters, it’s a great way to trade that book you bought for a single pattern for a new one you are interested in! We’ve participated in 18 trades in the last month receiving items like Tinker Bell, Brain Age 2, Wii Music, Mario Party 8, The Creative Family, 2-at-a-Time Socks and more! According to Swaptree we’ve saved $141 and decreased our carbon footprint by 71 pounds!

If you have a stack of DVDs you haven’t watched in years, craft books you wish you hadn’t purchased on impulse, or video games that are collecting dust, check out Swaptree.com!

No really, I mean again. Make sure you log in so that you can access all the free patterns.
In case you aren’t signed up for their newsletter, a few days ago Lion Brand Yarn released this statement:

In these tough economic times, we know that every dollar counts.

So in order to help you make the most with your yarn crafts, we have made all of the patterns that Lion Brand owns FREE.

That’s over 2,700 patterns including amazing items like the Tree of Life Afghan, the Cable Luxe Tunic, the Argyle Crochet Afghan, and so many more!

We hope you enjoy these patterns and that you get even more enjoyment out of your yarncrafts!

Now, it’s not all the patterns, but it is quite a few. This Heirloom Baby Blanket was featured in the recent catalog with a pattern price of $3.95. Now it’s listed as free. So try some searches, it’s a great time to start thinking about holiday gifts!

Don’t know how to knit yet? Stay posted, more information is coming in the next few weeks about my online class with MomTV where I’ll teach you how to knit. It’s interactive via chat and webcam (if you choose) so it’s a great way to learn!

My first Vlog to share with you how much I *LOVE* my new Nintendo DSi. Thanks to Melody and all the ladies at Nintendo’s Girlfriend’s Guide to Gaming for changing my opinion of this gaming system!

By now you should know I LOVE TWITTER. I’ve been tweeting for a long time, so I recall the good old days when Fail Whale would show up several times a day. I wouldn’t want to leave out my crochet friends, so here’s an adorable WhaleBoy Toy for your Friday Find. Again, click the photo to go to the page, leave some love for Catcro in comment form, and download the pattern. Don’t forget if you make either of these patterns to let the designers know when you blog or add them to your own Flickr account. We all love a “Good Job” pat on the back, even in cyber form.

Today’s find is Feed Your Soul: the free art project. I think it’s an incredible idea, who doesn’t love a free sample or a place where you can discover new artists to love? I recommend cruising the free downloads, then making sure to visit the artists’ blogs and shops of those you download. Make sure to share the love in return for their free gift of a piece of their creativity.

I think I may consider using some of these prints, as well as other great Etsy prints to decorate my very bland walls a little something like this:

Gallery Originally uploaded by anamh