2paws Designs

Bloggy Boot Camp - Charlotte (the after post)

2013-05-20T08:00:00.000-04:00

This is one of those times I'm grateful I finally took action on something I've been putting off for a while. Allison (my good friend & counterpart over at Mom in Chapel Hill) and I nudged each other to get tickets and attend our first blog conference.

We listened to great speakers covering a number of topics were we interested in from details about Google+ (totally still learning it) to SEO to blog design and much more ...

We took a few silly photos ...

Enjoyed a few goodies from the event sponsors (thanks again, Brew Over Ice, Salsaritas, Collective Bias and Mirassou Wine) ...

We came away with lots of notes, ideas flowing and, of course, a lot of business cards from other awesome bloggers that we had a chance to briefly connect with in person (good to know a few online friends face to face now!) ...

That was our day in a very small nutshell. My brain is so full and I'm still sorting through it all. If for a moment you've considered one of these conferences, go for it!

Disney Packed Fun for Less

2013-05-17T08:00:00.001-04:00

The moment we decided to take a family trip to Walt Disney World was the moment my brain started spinning with ideas for what to pack including little things to add to the magic and save our wallet. Here are a few things I made sure to purchase and stash in the weeks ahead ...

Autograph book. This was a lucky find at Target in the dollar section. Literally there were exactly 2 when I stumbled across it. I had planned to just alter a basic notebook (similar to this idea), but with Peter Pan on the cover, blank pages inside and only $1 - it was perfect. Especially since I wasn't 100% sure that Dylan would even be interested in getting too close to characters.

Party favors. I settled on a few small extras during my shopping trip at Party City - Mickey slider puzzle, small toy camera (similar to a View Finder with Mickey scenes but no removable parts), and small packets of Disney themed candy.

Lanyard. I picked up a Mickey Mouse themed lanyard at Party City for 99c in case he took notice of other kids with pins and lanyards. It was perfect to add his "First Visit" button to and the tiny camera also from Party City hooked to the clip on the end.

Glowsticks. Plentiful for $1 at the dollar store and craft stores. We already had some in the house - bracelet style and fun little car shaped ones that we had bought back at Halloween. Super fun for evening parades and fireworks.

Mini Puzzle. Dylan loves puzzles and while we already have a lot, I couldn't resist a Jake and the Neverland Pirates one in a small tin from the Dollar Tree. It was a nice relaxing pre-bedtime activity after our day in the Magic Kingdom.

Magic Washcloth. Admittedly, he already has a couple of these, but a new Mickey & Donald one seemed fun. It ended up being part of a surprise gift he found in our room with a plush Goofy when we returned from Animal Kingdom. (Thanks to Grama for the Goofy! Another big savings there and he loves it.)

Mickey & Friends stickers. Freebie from the periodic DVD club mailer we get. Funny, as much as he loves stickers, he actually left these on the sheet the entire trip!

Mickey Mouse ColorWonder pad. This went into our carry on bags for the airport & plane. As much as he enjoyed a ColorWonder pad during our drive to Great Wolf Lodge in March, we knew this would be a hit. And, of course, what's better for a Disney trip than a Mickey themed pad?

Altered Mini M&M's tubes. I found the idea to create "chocolate mouse ears" tubes on City Bee Studio blog. I simply removed the original label from the tube of mini M&M's and added one that I created in Photoshop (hint: keep an eye out for a free printable later this month). I made a second label to mark the tubes we carried stacked with coins for pressed pennies.

For everything mentioned above - I spent under $10. A huge savings compared to prices in the parks. The only souvenirs we purchased on the trip were a couple postcards (we helped Dylan mail one home to himself - a fun treat to find in the mailbox the week after we returned) and Mickey ears. After showing him one of my pairs, I had promised to buy him his own. The cute pirate ears were adorable, but including personalization cost $20. A huge jump in price compared to the last set I bought about 12 years ago. Those still had a $5 price tag inside.

Have any fun money saving trip treat ideas? Feel free to share in the comments. I'll be on the lookout for future trips. :)

Bloggy Boot Camp - Charlotte #BBCChar

2013-05-15T08:00:00.002-04:00

This weekend, my friend Allison and I are headed to Charlotte for our first blog conference. We've both talked about doing this for some time but kept putting it off for one reason or another. Finally, we nudged each other and bought our tickets a few months ago for Bloggy Boot Camp.

My new business cards I created specifically for the conference arrived yesterday. Minus a slight graininess (maybe I should choose glossy instead of matte next time?), they look great.

I'll be packing those, of course. My MacBook Pro. A notebook and pen. For those that have been there done that - anything else I need? Advice for us?

Disney All Stars Music

2013-05-13T08:00:00.002-04:00

We ended last week with 4 very fun filled days at Walt Disney World. This was our first time staying at one of the All Star resorts.

Supplies: Protectors Set 1 by Karla Dudley; Noted Doodle Stamps by Jen Allyson; Brush Script MT font; scan of resort map.

Friday Freebie: Disney Character Word Search

2013-05-10T08:00:00.000-04:00

In planning for our Disney trip, I decided to create a word search to pack in Dylan's carry on bag. He recently began showing interest in them and it was an easy, customizable project.

I made two versions of the search using the same 10 characters. I matched pictures with the names to help him "read" them himself so he would know what he was searching.

Whether planning your own trip or just looking for a new activity, I saved a PDF of the searches to share. It prints as a single 8.5x11 sheet.

Click here to view & print the Disney Character Word Search on Google Docs

Enjoy!

Wordless Wednesday: Watercolors

2013-05-08T06:30:00.000-04:00

Linking up to Wordless Wednesday

Indoor Mini Golf

2013-05-06T08:00:00.001-04:00

A last minute get together yesterday afternoon equalled lots of fun for Dylan and two friends as we tried out a new indoor golf location. Perfect for an overcast, chilly day (seriously, I've seen the sun once in the last week - crazy!). The boys burned a lot of energy playing all 18 holes multiple times. I definitely see some future playdates here.

Supplies: More or Less collaborative kit from Pixels & Co; Count on Me brushes by Deena Rutter.

Cinco de Mayo

2013-05-03T08:00:00.000-04:00

I finally got around to scrapping photos from last year's Cinco de Mayo party last night. This was the first time Dylan & his friends had seen (experienced?) a piñata. So funny to watch. I think they were quite excited at being allowed to hit this crazy thing with a bat and then weren't quite sure what to do when it broke and treats fell out. They figured it out pretty quickly. ;)

Supplies: PhotoStory templates Set 3 by Mary Moseley; Kraft Fun Day by Robyn Meierotto.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Wordless Wednesday: Bubbles

2013-05-01T07:00:00.000-04:00

Linking up to Wordless Wednesday

DIY Sandbox Lid/Bench

2013-04-29T08:00:00.000-04:00

After adding the sandbox to the playset last week, I starting thinking about a lid to keep out larger leaves & sticks as well as visiting animals when it isn't in use. A quick search of "DIY sandbox lid" and I had my answer - a lid that opens to form a bench on each end.

There is a great tutorial on Ana White's site about how to build a complete sandbox with the lid/bench. We already had the box so I took measurements and worked on a design to fit ours. I drew up a plan in AutoCAD to determine exactly how many pieces of lumber and what sizes we needed.

The entire project from start to finish took just over 3 hours to build.

And Dylan was more than happy to jump in and try it out once complete.

Eventually I plan to stain it to match the rest of the playset. For now, it's built and we're enjoying it!

Friday Freebie: Nature Park

2013-04-26T08:00:00.000-04:00

Last month the three of us had fun exploring a couple of nature parks. The first was a newer one to the area and the larger of the two - Wilkerson Nature Park. We all had fun playing in the natural playground. Afterward, Dylan selected the lake trail for us to walk. A simple Saturday morning of fun outdoors together.

Supplies: Inspired kit by Tia Hoffman; Happy Camper kit by Sara Schmutz; Gill Sans font.

Similarly, I kept the layout simple to focus on 3 of my favorite photos. The template contains 7 layers including 3 masks for photos or papers, journaling and a leaf stamp. It is free for personal use only.

Click here to download the Nature Park template

Enjoy!

Have you missed one of my previous digital freebies? Click HERE to find them. And, don't forget to subscribe to my feeds so you won't miss future freebies!

DIY Mickey Shirt

2013-04-24T08:00:00.001-04:00

In preparation for our Disney trip, I decided to make a t-shirt for myself. Somehow the boys each have Disney tees (ok, so Dylan has enough to outfit him for a week), but I had none. I decided to try a bleach method I had seen on various sites and make my own.

Supplies

T-shirt
freezer paper
Mickey silhouette
spray bottle with 60/40 mix of bleach & water

I google image searched for the Mickey silhouette. I planned to print it and then trace, but quickly took a ~~lazier~~ easier route - I held a piece of freezer paper to the screen and lightly traced it with a Sharpie. Seriously. It looked the right size and was a lot quicker than scaling & printing.

After you have your design, cut it out and iron it onto the shirt. Then place a piece of cardboard inside the shirt to prevent the bleach from going through. Spray with the bleach/water mix and let dry.

After the shirt has dried, rinse it in cold water to help remove any excess bleach. Machine wash and dry. I washed mine alone just in case any bleach was remaining and used hot water intentionally trying to shrink it a tad since it was a little loose.

Then end result ...

a fun and unique t-shirt.

Progress on the Yard

2013-04-22T08:00:00.001-04:00

Our yard received a little needed attention yesterday. As we try to balance out a rather long "to do" list around our new house, the nice 60s temperatures this weekend had me wanting to make progress on at least one of the flower beds I wanted to add. A lot easier to do the digging and planting in cooler weather. I've had my eye on this mailbox garden plan from BHG for several years, but the mailbox at our last house was surrounded on all sides with curb, driveway, sidewalk, and inground telephone cable box - limiting what I could do. Now that I have plenty of space, it's time to play.

The first round of plants - similar to those specified in the plan.

I used the plan for general plant guidelines and layout. I'm adjusting the layout to include the existing crepe myrtle. I still need to buy and add a few of the smaller infill plants and, for now, I've left some existing bulb plants from previous residents (directly in front of mailbox - curious to see exactly what they are).

The "almost complete" flower garden.

Our other completed project that's the favorite of a certain little boy - the new sandbox! We had debated whether or not to add one beneath the playset. Finally decided to give it a go.

A very happy little boy enjoying his new sandbox.

Trent prepped it while I was working on the flowers and all 3 of us added the sand. It was hard to get Dylan to come out of there last night! Hopefully it will help give him additional entertainment while Trent & I work on other yard projects in the coming months.

Crib Teething Rail Cover for 'Little Miss'

2013-04-19T08:00:00.001-04:00

I was honored when I was asked to make the crib rail cover for our playgroup's newest member.

I made a slight change from my previous covers and made bias tape from the fabric to add around the edges. I really like how it looked.

Hopefully 'Little Miss' enjoys it too!

Pink & Pearls Tea Shower

2013-04-17T08:00:00.000-04:00

Expecting the second girl to join our playgroup of 10 little ones soon, we were all pink happy and quickly settled on a shower theme of "pink & pearls."

Afternoon tea at the Washington Duke Inn has become a bit of a tradition. My talented friends decorated the table with a diaper cake and sweet little teapot favors.

I made the invite and failed to get a direct photo (oops!). To finish off our theme, we all wore pink and pearls, of course. It was a wonderful Sunday afternoon and went by entirely too fast! Looking forward to having 'Little Miss' join us on a future tea date.

Disney Countdown!

2013-04-15T08:00:00.001-04:00

For better or worse, we shared the news with Dylan that we're headed to Walt Disney World next month for a much needed family vacation. We figured it wouldn't really ruin the surprise since at 3 and a half, he doesn't begin to comprehend what it means enough to know what we're doing. He does know it's big and exciting. My guess is he's comparing it to his two recent Great Wolf Lodge trips. Before the second trip, we were frequently told that he wanted to go "today" even when it was weeks off. To help him visualize, we marked his calendar with a pawprint sticker leftover from the first trip (so glad I saved that!).

For Disney, we did a bit of the same. I helped him mark the days on his calendar with Disney stickers from a recent DVD club mailer. Easy, free and a good visual. But thanks to too much time spent on Pinterest, I decided to do one more thing - create a paper chain.

It hangs on the side of our fridge next to his chore chart (good reminder to earn those stars!) and I spelled out "Days to Disney" using his Melissa & Doug magnets. He was so excited and, amazingly, has been really good about tearing only one off - at night after dinner with us watching. We all cheer as the chain gets one link shorter.

There are some really clever chains pinned, but this newly fulltime working mama still trying to find that balance between work, family, crafting, etc kept it simple. Next time though, I think I might like to try one with the Mickey ears on the black links. So cute.

Pedaling

2013-04-12T08:00:00.000-04:00

Dylan proudly learning how to pedal his tricycle last summer:

Supplies: Live, Love, Laugh papers by Jennifer Donegan; Tu Es Jolie Vintage Mail Labels by Sara Schmutz; Fly Away with Me elements by Sarah Sullivan; Vanity Fair Cerulean alpha by Jen Allyson.

Seuss Shirt - the layout

2013-04-10T08:00:00.001-04:00

Dylan really hammed it up for me when I wanted photos of his Seuss shirt last month. This one was one of my favorites and worked really well with DHD's April Blueprint Challenge template.

Supplies: DHD April Blueprint Challenge template: Hexes! by Mary Shaw; Linen Line No 3 papers by Agnes Biro; Mellow alpha (stitches) by Robyn Meierotto; 2peas font: Peas & Carrots.

Great Wolf Lodge Photo Book

2013-04-08T08:00:00.000-04:00

One of the perks of staying at Great Wolf Lodge is a code for a free 8x8 Shutterfly book to preserve all those memories. I honestly forgot and even misplaced the one we got in November until we arrived last month in Williamsburg and I found it in a hidden pocket in our suitcase! Thankfully, it hadn't expired.

After our weekend trip, I was quick to upload photos and start my book. While the code is good for any 8x8 book, I decided to use the Great Wolf Lodge themed option. It arrived over Easter weekend and all 3 of us quickly piled together on the sofa to look through it.

Here are a few of the pages ...

We started our weekend with a visit to Historic Jamestowne.

At the end of River Canyon Run - the one big slide Dylan rode.

The wave pool.

The bucket dumping water and a tired boy with his parents.

Glad to have another batch of memories preserved and in our collection of photo books & scrapbooks to enjoy.

How We Sold our House in One Showing

2013-04-05T08:00:00.000-04:00

Since spring means the typical start in the uptick of homes hitting the market (and I forgot to share before now), I thought I'd share how we sold ours late last summer. We had actually originally discussed listing in the spring. Spring a year ago. But, like often happens, life happened and we held off. In the end, it probably worked out for the best.

As the title states, we did in fact sell our house in one showing within just hours of listing. Here are the details that led up to it ...

Staging and Repairs

I mentioned in this post about house hunting how much of a difference staging makes. We started preparing/staging the house in May. Clearing out extra stuff by packing boxes, separating out donations and tossing the rest. We rented a 5x10 storage unit and filled it full with extra furniture and many of the boxes we'd already packed. Doing our best to make our 1350sf home feel as spacious as possible and still comfortably house the 2 of us, 1 toddler and 1 cat.

We did a few obvious repairs, fixes. Fresh caulk and new toilet seats in the bathrooms. New, neutral paint in the master bedroom. Freshening the outdoor flowerbeds with new mulch. Hiring a company to power wash the house, porch, sidewalk and drive as well as clean the gutters.

We actually called the Realtor after we had already completed these things and, I confess, I was relieved when she said we were in great shape. Even to let go of a few of the things that were still on my 'to do' list. Once we actually started touring other houses, I got it. Even in this age of HGTV and shows that stress all the things to do to help improve your selling, it's unbelievable the utter messes you will walk into. One house, truthfully, we were all nervous about walking in because it was so dark and filthy. That's another story, but proof that staging (and even just cleaning up!) before a showing makes a difference.

Professional Photos
We were fortunate that our realty company offered professional photos for free. Also staging assuming you kept your house listed for a certain amount of time (unless it sold faster) but we had made enough progress and our house sold so fast that it was never necessary. When I saw our listing online I saw the difference the professional photographs made. Purely from my hobby I knew they would be better, but when you compared them to listings with standard photographs - those just didn't have the same impact.

Timing
We had been watching the market and knew homes in our neighborhood were selling fast. Simply - price and location, location, location. Both things that originally attracted us to the area.

We finally chose a Monday to list the house. The first Monday in August. We had the house in pretty good shape, but assumed (wrongly) that we wouldn't have requests for showings until the weekend. Nope. Try mid-afternoon. Dylan was napping (do not wake my child!) and, there was a bit of tidying up that I felt needed to be done. I asked to have the showing pushed back 30 minutes. A short time later I received another call (while dripping in sweat from running around in the August heat like a mad woman trying to get every detail inside and out just perfect) that the showing was cancelled. What? And so I admitted my failings to both Trent and our Realtor. Our Realtor was awesome - don't worry about it. You'll be ready for the next one.

The First & Only Showing
After Trent got home, we loaded the car to take more boxes to the storage unit. Barely a mile from home, we had our second call requesting a showing. This time, we accepted immediately as I u-turned it back to the now tidy house to turn on lights and put a sign on the door to please not let out the cat. Then we took our time eating dinner out and dropping off the boxes at the storage unit. Later that night when we returned, we were hopeful it went well and that we would get good feedback.

The next morning, instead of feedback, we had an email from our Realtor sharing the offer. We had a small bit of back and forth, but that was it. One showing, one full price offer and within 48 hours all the paperwork signed. The closing didn't happen until late September to give us time to find a new house, but the showings were over and done.

In the end, it boiled down to three simple things - price, location and inventory. The day we listed, we were the only single family home in our price range in our area. I honestly believe it was key in helping us sell in one showing. And while there was still a good bit of stress in finding our new house in the time frame between the offer and closing, it was a huge relief especially with a toddler, to not have to continue to keep our home in "ready to show" shape for an extended period.

Wordless Wednesday: Wall Painting

2013-04-03T07:00:00.000-04:00

Linking up to Wordless Wednesday

No Foolin'

2013-04-01T21:15:00.001-04:00

Over the weekend we shared the news with Dylan that we have a special trip planned for May ...

As much as Trent & I love Disney, we honestly hadn't planned to take him until he was a bit older. Every once and a while, things just seem to align and this was one of those times. An opportunity arose and we decided to go for it. Let the countdown begin!

Friday Freebie: Easter Chick Craft

2013-03-29T08:00:00.001-04:00

Earlier in the week, I shared a photo on Instagram of an Easter craft Dylan made:

I was asked if there would be a tutorial. Unfortunately, no, as it came from a kit I bought last year at a craft store. I have a habit of picking up little things like this on clearance after holidays and saving them for the following year.

The idea stuck in my head though and I came up with a quick freebie. It's an 8.5x11 PDF printable with my own sketch similar to the chick Dylan made. Print it out. Cut the pieces (or let your child if he/she is old enough). Color, paint, use as a template to trace onto construction paper, etc. Lots of creative options! Draw eyes or add googly ones like Dylan chose (another item I keep in our craft stash).

Click here to download the Easter Chick printable

Enjoy and have a wonderful Easter weekend!

Wordless Wednesday: Jump

2013-03-27T08:00:00.000-04:00

Linking up to Wordless Wednesday

DIY Superhero Costume

2013-03-25T08:00:00.001-04:00

I pinned a tutorial two years ago (yes, 2 years!) from The Southern Institute for making a superhero cape & cuff from an adult's t-shirt. Fast forward to a recent birthday invitation for a superhero party and I finally got around to making one.

I actually picked up the t-shirt at Goodwill so it cost me under $1.50. All other supplies for the cape and cuff I had in my stash. I purchased the blue/silver reversible mask at Target for $3 (purely a luck find as I passed through the toddler section).

My little superhero was more than excited. He had fun checking himself out in the new playroom mirror (finally got it hung!). Super D to the rescue!

Supplies: repurposed t-shirt; cotton fabric; interfacing; iron-on adhesive; velcro; Coats & Clark thread.