New Unicorn Zoodie and New Color in Shop!

The Hot Pink Unicorn! Only available right now in size 18mo/2T - get it here. 

By far - the biggest holiday seller was these little unicorns - I believe I made 10 of them this month and couldn't keep any to put up in the shop except for this one size 18mo/2T - you mamas of girls need to tell me about what is popular with the little ladies! I had no idea unicorns were the cool thing right now! 

I do have the ability to make it in size 2/3 and 4/5 - so if you are interested (and not wanting it in time for Christmas) - email me and we will make it happen! Otherwise, I am thinking Zoodies is taking a much needed sewing break for the rest of the year! I am so blown away by all the holiday orders - thank you to everyone for helping support Zoodies. They are still fun for me to make and I just love seeing all kinds of monkeys and dinos and ladybugs running around - so fun! Hope you all are enjoying the holiday season!

Cool Kid Places - Wickerd Farms!

Wickerd Farms

my little Indians

The amazing oak tree and one of the swings

The Monterey Pines that you can cut down

Faster Mama!

Our tree!

All put up

Last year our family went to the place where our family got our own Christmas tree every year - Richfield Pines - they are a cut your own tree down place right down the street from where I grew up....in Yorba Linda. It was so fun to go with the boys and pick our tree and watch daddy cut it down...brought back all kinds of memories...then we stuck the tree in the car with us so we wouldnt have to worry about it on the drive home (don't ever do that by the way) bryson was NOT happy about sharing a car with a big old tree on his lap. don't worry...we put it on the roof this year.

I wanted to find another cut down place, but with different options than Monterey Pines...i like firs...but they don't grow in a So Cal climate. We found Wickerd Farms - near my brother's house (i think the place is in Menifee?)

The place is a homestead...which i think means a bunch of hippies bought the land...then raised bees...and decided to also sell Christmas trees. The pull there for my brother is that they also sell (pre-cut) Douglas and Grand Firs (the grand firs were gorgeous too!) plus they grow all kinds of Monterey Pines. The pines are bushier, but they take care of them well with the trimming.

The coolest part of the property was definitely the oak trees with the tire swings. One oak tree was this enclosed amazing tree with all kinds of swings hanging from the branches. we all just hung out in there for about a half an hour admiring the awesome-ness of the tree. I was really happy with the whole experience - the boys got to run through the pine orchard for about an hour just giggling the whole time - plus explore the teepee frame and tire swings and we got an amazing tree...perhaps the prettiest tree we have ever had. I love little mom and pop shops like this and love to support businesses like this - i feel like now in the season is a great way to think about how we spend our money and who we are supporting with that money. I can't always buy local and small business, but when I do when I can. It helps.

It was a bit of drive to get out there, but we loved it and will definitely be going back - they tied up our tree nice and tight and we made it all the way home! I highly recommend the place if you are in the area.
Happy Holidays!

Zoodies Shop Update

Hey there! I just spent the better part of today sewing away...just added a bunch of sizes and styles to my shop - remember - everything on the site is ready to go out via priority mail as soon as you order. If you don't see a size or style you want, or if you have a different color idea for any zoodie- please email me - carlee (at) zoodies (dot) com and we will make it happen!

Find this superhero zoodie (size 6) in the shop!  Just Sold! email if you are interested in ordering.

I LOVE IT!! Holiday Gifts and Links

I have learned from the past years of doing holidays (especially after having kids) that there are always people and parties you don't think at the time to include on your shopping list - plus hostess gifts and big people birthdays...i like to have a little gift stash i can pull from for such events. Luckily, beer and jam save well and are my "go to" gift i can whip out before a party. Here are some ideas and links for you to enjoy...plus a couple of my own... :)

1. FOR THE FRIENDS WHO APPRECIATE HANDMADE - beeswax candles - (photo by A Beautiful Mess - click here for instructions)

2. FOR THE LAST MINUTE GIFT - initial mug - (via DesignMom - click here for instructions)

3. FOR THE BEST FRIEND - wool slippers - (photo via the Estsy store WoolyBaby)

4. FOR THE HARD TO PLEASE - wall art (photo via Caravan)

5. FOR THE TEACHERS - salted caramels (photo and DIY here)

6. FOR YOURSELF - leather leaf necklace (photo and shop here)

7. FOR THE READER - book phone charger by booksi (photo and shop here)

8. TO MAKE FOR KIDDO FRIENDS - ninjabread cookie cutters (photo and link here)

9. FOR THE GUY...WHO GOLFS - Travis Matthews (photo and shop here)

10. FOR THE THIRD CHILD WHO YOU NEVER MAKE ANYTHING FOR - Triangle Quilt - (photo and DIY here)

Custom Cheetah Zoodie

Halloween is over! Bring on the rest of the holidays! I was just at Target and Christmas was happening already. It surprises me every year...i feel like an old fart every time too - "Christmas in October? Pshhhhhh" Anyway...I finished up most of the holiday orders, so i have a little time on my hands!

A looong time ago I had found some remnant cheetah fabric and thought it would be a cute idea for a zoodie - so i went home and whipped it up, but then i mussed up one of the ears a little and couldn't fix it - so it sat for years! now it has a perfect little home with my beautiful niece :) makes me so happy to have a little girl to sew for! Someone today asked me about making a custom cheetah and so my sister sent me these pics. i have been staring at them for like 10 minutes - she is just too precious!!! I am a little obsessed, but Riley really came into my life at a perfect time - that "i no longer have any babies and i need one to snuggle" type of times.

If they pick it...they will eat it...mostly...

We are very new to the whole gardening thing...i am not proclaiming to be any type of expert...my husband is probably laughing at me writing this post since he is the real person behind the success of everything grown. He has quite the green thumb and willing attitude, for which i am ever grateful because i love the idea of a garden and not so much all the work...although i do help out...just not as invested as my husband. Is that a fair disclaimer, dear? okay then...so the other day bryson took a field trip with his first grade class to Tanaka Farms - cute place...a bit pricey...but what do you expect for a farm in O.C.? and anyway - they got to pick a pumpkin and also other vegetables out of the ground. Bryson was so excited because apparently they told him he could only pick 4 carrots, but one that he pulled out had like 5 fingers...you would have thought he won the lottery the way he described how it all went down...love that kid and his enthusiasm!

okay...back to my point. sorry - i am so tangential today...you are just going to have to roll with it...i doubt its going to get better...look i did it again. okay, right, so anyway - my point in it all is that when you get kiddos involved with the whole process they begin to see food differently. bryson has his own garden this past year for the first time and our only stipulation was that he could only grow foods he would eat and that he had to eat anything he picked. to my surprise he planted a bunch of peppers...and ate them all! So when he came home from the field trip with onions and radishes and carrots - i told him...you know what this means? you have to eat them! "oh man, mom...i didn't want the radishes...they told me i had to pick them. i don't really like radishes" Too bad! was my gentle mothering reply.

making a long story a little longer...last night i made a really special dinner for the fam bam...i lit candles and made dessert - the whole deal. part of the dinner was roasted veggies - and all of the veggies he picked were in it. He ate a whole radish and liked it...but loved the onion even more! Now - can i just tell you that Bryson did not start out an adventurous eater? This is only in the last 2 or 3 years (he is 7) that he is eating all this stuff - like spicy things and peppers and onions, etc. and a large part of it is the whole garden experience.


I know many of you may live in apartments or places that are hard to grow food, but even just one plant can open them up to the experience of seeing food grown. It is magical to them and so fun to see Bryson now plan his next year's garden alongside his dad. Even starting with something like this could open it up to them! Happy growing!

P.S. Sorry for the cruddy photos...its all my phone (and me) were capable of at the moment

Grown Ups Love Zoodies Too!

Although they do not have a distinct spot in my new shop - I still do make the zoodies for adults too! Above are some that I managed to get pics of, but there have been more! Every year I get a handful of big kids wanting one too. Such a fun way to have an easy costume, but also functional enough to wear throughout the year (my niece has out-worn her kitty zoodie to the max). If you are interested - just email me: carlee (at) zoodies (dot) com for pricing and availability!

New Zoodie - Purple/Hot Pink Dino

Yay! isnt she a doll? this is a friend's daughter who is totally more into dinos than butterflies or unicorns, so i thought it would be fitting for her to model. There are these girls - i like these girls...i was sort of one...i was the type of girl who could totally keep up with the boys, but also loved dressing up...i guess not much has changed, has it :) So i have been getting more requests for girl dinos and now American Apparel is offering this wonderful purple color, so there you go. 

one of the changes i made when switching to my new store - zoodies.com - is that I took out "girls" and "boys" and changed it to "popular girl styles" and "popular boy styles" - i know it doesnt seem like a huge change, but it made me feel instantly better. I made ladybugs for little boys and pink mice for boys and dinos for girls - i think it is so silly that we make animals gender-fied. bryson LOVED the butterfly when i made it...he knew that if he wore it out it might be weird (which is sad), but he lived in it in our backyard for a week! Anyway - that is my little society/gender dilemma within zoodies. I am just all about pretend play and make believe and dressing up and you know what? childhood is such a short span - why not be a butterfly every day if you can? boy or girl...

I just put this little dino up in the shop - i currently only have size 2 and 18 months available, but email me if you are interested in a different size - carlee (at) zoodies (dot) com

Yay for gender neutral animals!

silly copy cats

the dino and shark by old navy (china)

the original dino zoodie from 3 years ago

the original shark

so several people have been emailing/texting/calling to tell me about the old navy animal hoodies...yes - i know! and no...i am not mad...in fact, this is great! i am going to completely try to get on the curtails of this enterprise, because i personally believe there are consumers who want more than the apparel that is manufactured in a different county - who care about handmade - who like that my product is wear-able in the every day and not just the holiday - so go on old navy! i will pick up your slack :) 

if you support home made, american made products - check us out! www.zoodies.com

Cool Kid Places- Los Rios Racho - Apple Picking

Nature hike

Picnic are at the bottom of the Rancho

magical i tell you!

The hike before the hill

The petting zoo at Los Rios Rancho - they had a llama! 

The view at Los Rios Rancho

Picking away

Gorgeous Granny Smiths

Five faces! Amazing!

the orchard

Beautiful wild sunflowers

Apples for the cider making

i love everything about this picture!

I know we dont need any more people complaining about the heat in so cal right now...but i will contribute anyway...i read posts like this and this and can't help but shake my fists at the 100 degree heat we had this weekend. i have been rather cranky about the weather...our house holds in the heat like its going to store it for the winter...but alas winter comes and our house is freezing...it apparently has no insulation except when keeping insanely hot weather in...ugh...all this to say i was ready to bolt it this weekend. I started looking up hotels with pools and was going to just go full on vacay this weekend...but there was a lot that needed to be done and i couldn't miss out on some events happening, so instead we opted to get out for the day on Saturday.

We headed up to Oak Glen, CA to do some apple picking. Its a little earlier than we usually go and really i would love to go back next month when the weather (fingers crossed) cools down and fall starts to happen-ish. So we usually go to Riley's Apple Farm and had every intention to go there this year too, but when we arrived I wanted to eat our picnic lunch and so Bryan passed Riley's and headed up the street to try to find a park or some benches, or even a clearing we could lay a blanket down and we came across Los Rios Rancho. There was a beautiful grassy area with benches so we pulled over and kept driving down further to a park area. And I dont know what it was about the place...if my brain was a little loopy from finally cooling down and feeling so good from the gentle breeze, or what it was, but i couldnt help thinking there was a majestic quality to the place. definitely gorgeous, but beyond gorgeous the whole area just felt...well a little like magic! we walked around and explored and we were going to go on a mini hike and the whole warning about bears and rattlesnakes and mountain lions and stinging nettles didn't deter us, but the very steep incline did - i did not want to be carrying baby bodies up that big ol' hill...and also...we had some picking to do! but next year maybe we go with more time and older babies to explore that majestic place a little...

you have to walk a bit up a hill along a street and then cross that street to get to the orchard - or you can drive your car, but we didn't want to have to re-park so up we went (it wasn't a deal) and the orchard was so fantastic! it was exactly what i picture when i think of a "you-pick" orchard. the three times i have been to Riley's farm - the first year they didn't have enough apples left when i went in October so we didn't get to pick and the next two years the trees were picked pretty well, so all the picking was left to Bryan with the stick thing getting them from up high. These orchards were so much better for the littles to pick...and we gave bobby the job of picking up the fallen apples and placing them in the wood crates, so everyone had a job! i think i only picked three apples out of the 10lbs we picked. Plus the kids could run through the trees and the view was absolutely breath-takingly beautiful! i just had to keep pausing to look around at how beautiful it is up there...truly.


We went back to press our cider, but they had only one press and one family was doing 4 gallons and there was another family after that and we were needing to get back. the kids did get to help the other family a little, but they missed out on the cider. we think they will live. we got some at the store instead because the stuff is amazing and headed back down the hill.

I love this little "fall" tradition of ours. It is so fun to see the past years and how we have grown - (you can see the post from 2011 here and 2010 here) i hope our boys have the fondest memories of celebrating seasons like this - now i need to go and make something with all these delicious apples! the best part!