Those Days – Special Edu-Crafter

For those of you have caught my post where I was raving about my new calendar app, Those Days, I’ve mentioned that a random pic from an exact year ago will appear when you open that app. So, when I opened up that app today to check how my day would look, what should pop up, but a pic of a “Semi-homemade” outfit I created as part of my then 1-year-old daughter’s Disney World wardrobe. Now, those of you who are Disney fans will understand that my daughter could not just go to Disney World wearing just anything. Oh nooooo! She has to be all “Disney-ed” out. But what’s more – it can’t just be any Disney outfit that you can find at the Disney Store – it has to be more unique, but recognizable! So, off I go on a mission…

Phase 1: Brainstorm outfits that are unique, but recognizable, and fit for wearing in 100 degree whether.

Phase 2: Look through any of her existing clothes to see if I can convert regular wear into Disney wear ( hence the Semi-Homemade label!)

Phase 3: Search through thrift stores for anything else I can use ( the less I have to sew, the better!)

Phase 4: Begin creations!

Phase 5: Hear the oohs and ahhs from the Disney Cast!

So worth it!

My favorite! Cinderella’s pink dress created by the mice ( before her stepsisters tear the dress apart!)

Fairy Godmother seemed to recognize “Cinderella” once we arrived at Disney! (We tried to get this Cinderella to place her head on Fairy Godmother’s lap, just like in the Disney animated movie, but this is as close as we got!)

i-m8fB9XF-L — And, here’s Cinderella’s stepmother, and stepsisters making her cry, just like the real Cinderella!

To make, simply find a pink dress and add on pink ribbon and lace for the shoulders and bottom of the dress ( hot glue it on if you don’t want to sew).

Ariel's blue On-the-Town Dress — Ariel’s blue On-the-Town Dress.

For this dress, I took a toddler tank top in dark blue and cut off the bottom of it to use. Then I took one of my daughter’s blue t-shirts and attached the cut tank top to the bottom half of the t-shirt. Then I cut off the bottom part of the blue t-shirt, just so she wouldn’t die in the Florida heat. I found a light denim-like dress at a thrift shop. I cut off the top and replaced it with the t-shirt/tanktop combination. Finally, I added white leftover material that I had lying around for the final touches and VOILA! Ariel’s dress!

Cinderella's work dress — Cinderella’s work dress

For this dress, I found a cream colored tutu skirt at the thrift shop. I used a brown t-shirt with the sleeves cut off and replaced with the blue sleeves of a onesie. The apron took a bit of work because I sewed it together. If you would rather not sew, just cut white material into a rectangle. Use a fray glue, such as Fray Check on three sides of the rectangle. On the last side, that plain white ribbon, and glue it on using a hot glue gun, and the apron is done, and Cinderella’s work dress is complete! If you’re daughter will stand for it, and if it’s not sweltering outside, go ahead and throw on a white hair kerchief too!

So being a mom, or just anyone with a life, I’m sure that you can agree that it can get hectic. So calendar apps and smartphones can really save us and help us maintain or appointments or what-have-you. Well, I came across this really great calendar app, and since I have discovered it, I have been showing it to absolutely everyone! It’s called Those Days ( +Journal/Calendar) and its available for iPhones. It works similarly like the iPhone default calendar, but with several other bonuses. For one, it has, what they call the “event calendar”. I love that view because instead of having a just some sort of marker on the calendar to note that you have something scheduled that day, it actually shows what you have scheduled for the entire month, without having to tap on a specific day. So, with just a quick glance, you are able to see what is coming up. But that’s not the best feature for me – there’s something else that I REALLY love about this calendar app. This feature, I feel, works exceptionally well for mothers, whose children get tons of notices from school (or birthday invitations, etc). Now, if you’re like me, you don’t want papers all over your house. But sometimes, we have no choice and we just need those paper to refer back to. So, what’s the solution? Add a picture feature to a calendar app! So, simply, add the event to your calendar via this app, and then take a pic of the notice, invitation, etc., throw out that paper, and when you tap on a certain day, that pic of that paper you need is right there! No more papers all around your house, no hunting for where you placed that invitation, no more sifting through tons of photos on your iPhone – it’s right there, on the day that you need it! Oh, and did I mention that it’s a free app?

And, there are other features, as well!