Liz 2.0

Shopping Made Easy–Amazon Prime

2015-11-19T08:54:00.001-05:00

This post may contain affiliate links, where I may make a commission on any sold product. All opinions are my own.

Okay I’m a huge fan of shopping Amazon, because of the convenience. I have the mobile app that makes it dangerously convenient. I’ve been riding in the car and my hubby said he needed something and I ordered it for him right there on the spot. Of course it arrived 2 days later. NICE!

As a busy mom who doesn’t like to take 3 kids to the store (especially stores with toy sections) I love being able to get so many things delivered right to my front door.

One of the things that makes shopping amazon so appealing is our prime membership. Amazon prime gets us free shipping no mater the order amount. We can share it and ship to other addresses and still get free shipping. We can stream video, rent movies, and buy content through amazon’s digital services. I’m sure there are other amazing benefits of an amazon prime account. Do you have Amazon prime? What about giving it as a gift to someone this year?

Bible Journaling

2015-07-22T17:36:00.000-04:00

This post contains some affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll could receive commission.

For a while now I’ve really been missing getting together with crafty friends and had been wanting start up again. My thoughts were that I could host it in my new craft room but alas that is much to messy still and I couldn’t really fit many friends in there. So I put the idea on the back burner and let life move forward. My sister introduced me a few months ago to Bible Journaling. When I checked out the photos of what people are doing I was so impressed and knew that is exactly what I had been wanting to do. It turns out in the 3 fellowships in our branch there were some other believing ladies who were interested in the whole bible journaling idea and were interested in getting together. So far our group has met twice and and have been so inspired and have done a few entries outside of our meetups. We are meeting at a local coffee shop here in Duluth called Espresso Theory I really love getting out of the house and meeting new people and being in an environment that is easy to spread out and work on our works of heART.

Here are some of my pages I’ve done, along with pictures of others in our groups pages.

I thought I’d put together a little bit of a list of what we’ve been using and how one might need to get started, as well as links to resources available online.

I’m not an Artist? Can I do this?

YES!!! Yes you absolutely can. First off I am also far from an “artist” but I have found out some ways to get away around that.

First is TRACING!!

I do not to too much free hand entries into my bible (yet) I rely a lot on tracing. For my first page I did the configuration on my computer using fonts and set the placement and printed it out. I did buy graphite transfer paper in order to trace things too.

Since there was nothing on the other side of my page I was able to just stick my printed lettering and patterns under my page where the blank is and trace it using my markers i bought. (Linda traced an image right off her phone!!! like a portable light box). I am going to try and use my Ipad to trace off of next time. A cool thing about my print out is that mom was able to trace it to her page next, so bonus of multiple uses!! You could also print off images from the internet or use coloring books or other art books to trace from.

Another option is STICKERS!

I’ve actually designed a couple layouts that fit in the margins and printed them out on sticker paper then cut them out to fit right in my bible. My comfort zone is definitely on the computer designing and this lets me incorporate that into my bible journaling.

I have some of these designs available in my etsy shop right now.

Freehand

If you are an artist, doodler, enjoy creative lettering you can easily take all the mediums and methods you currently do your art in and apply them to your bible. There are some amazing artists out there doing lots of great work free hand. My friends Beth & Fran do amazing freehand work.

Mixed Media

In this page I did I used a bunch of different media. Washi tape, cardstock, clear paper, and markers. For me I still like to be able to read all the text in my bible so for the flowers and the clouds I actually doodled and colored on white cardstock and then glued them in at just one point so I could bend them back or to the side and read the text. I also allowed parts of it to go outside the page kind of like a tab when my bible is closed. You could easily add layers of ephemera, stamps, stickers, tapes, paints etc on one page really layering the look. Again there are many examples of mixed media styled pages when you do an image search of bible journaling.

Bible

You can use any bible you might have on hand or you could invest a little bit of money (approx $10+). A bible with a super wide outside margin works really well for bible journaling, especially if you don’t want to cover up any text with your art. When looking, you might find them called Note Taker or Journal Bibles.

My Recommendations:
The bible that checked all the items on my list is: the Mid Size Note Taker Black Vinyl by Local Church Bible Publishers. I really like the 2.5” side margins as well as the large print. It does make for a thicker bible but that works just fine for me. I also love that it is KJV (my preferred version) as well as the price point as a group we ordered a case and with shipping it worked out to be about $13/bible

Things you might want to keep in mind:
The bigger the margins, either the text gets smaller or the bible gets larger.
Paper thickness, thinner papers more bleed through or ghosting.
Do you want to be able to read and use the bible regularly

Art Supplies

Much of what you already have will work in your bible. People are using colored pencils, paints, markers, stamps, watercolors, washi tape, and more.

My Recommendations:
Here are some product either I have used or friends in my group have/are using:

Things you might want to keep in mind:
Markers and inks may bleed through but there are page primers that will help block bleed through. Colored pencils of any quality are producing amazing art in bibles.

More Online Resources, Tips, Tutorials and more!

A bunch of people are sharing their processes and tutorials via Youtube. I even have a video of how I use my tool caddy for to store my bible journaling supplies.
Someone also started a group for kids here. I have a bible journaling group on facebook called Bible Journaling Down South you're welcome to join.
If you enjoy searching pinterest for inspiration my sister and I have a great pinterest board:

Prime Day!

2015-07-08T08:17:00.001-04:00

This post contains affiliate links when clicking or purchases result I may earn a commission.

Anyone else excited about Amazon’s first Prime Day! I’m already a prime member and LOVE it…just ask my UPS driver .

Apparently the mega online retailer didn’t want to wait until black friday to have great sales so they made their own holiday Prime Day!

If you’re not already a prime member or if you want to find out more check out this link:

Mark your calendars for July 15th!! Tell me what do you have on your wishlist?

Showing our #DisneySide and Practicing our Manners

2015-03-19T12:45:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Disney Parks and Mom Select for the opportunity to host a Disney @Home Celebration, and for the goodies that came in our party pack. All opinions expressed here are my own and here is how we showed our #DisneySide.

Last month I received a package in the mail full of goodies and treats. Originally we were going to have a birthday party but my just turned 4 year old was having a hard time recovering from a stomach bug so our party got moved to Valentine's Day which also happened to be the day we were scheduled to have a Children's Fellowship. Part of our topic for the day was learning manners and how we could be kind to others with our good manners.

Is there any better way to have good manners than at a tea party? All the goodies in our party box were just right for a princess tea!

My daughter & her grandma made some super sweet Frozen cupcakes we found at our local Sam’s Club. They were super cute and a big hit with all the kids (and parents).

We had all the boys seat the girls and we all practiced our manners while we ate our snacks and treats.

Even the boys used their manners, they just didn’t use the hats.

After the “tea” party time we played games and activities that were provided in the pack. The favorites were pin the smile on Mickey & Disney Parks Bingo. All the kids participated in the pin the smile on Mickey there were so many laughs and giggles when the blind fold came off.

I loved how classic games like pin the smile on Mickey or Bingo were just as much fun for the kids as if we’d had a video game or something “high tech”. We used goldfish crackers as our bingo markers, I think the kids ate as many as they used on their boards. The bingo games got a bit excited at times and we all cheered for each of the winners.

We all had a great time showing our #DisneySide and playing games and practicing our manners.

The older girls in our group enjoyed making hair barrettes with the craft kit that also came in the box.

The party pack came with a bunch of great goodies to make party favors for all the ladies big and little. The girls were excited to receive the princess goodies and I added a few other treats in there too.

We had boys at the party so I found in my stash a few Disney goodies to make favors that suited the young gentleman in our Children’s Fellowship.

The goodies even covered party favors for the parents. Which they really liked getting a gift too.

Overall we had a great time celebrating and practicing our manners and showing our #DisneySide.

Thanks again to DisneyParks and MomSelect for sending me the party pack.

Usborne Book Party

2014-10-23T10:06:00.000-04:00

Hey Friends & Family!!!

I'm hosting an online book party and would love it if you would come by and check out some of the great kids books available. They have books for the babies in your life all the way to the teens.

Here is my friend Candy giving you some GREAT information about the books and showing you a few of the available books:

I've purchased a few of these book in the past and I've also inherited some from my aunts from when their kids were younger.

While I find most of the non fiction books super helpful in our homeschool classroom the books are not limited to homeschooling families. They are really great resources.

Here are a couple of the and items we have and LOVE:

My 8 year old son loves the The 'Hey Jack!' series, they are perfect for his age as they have a good number of pictures but also they're chapter books. They're at his level and aren't too complicated but still have great content. His favorite right now would probably be "The Winning Goal"

This is a deck of large FULL color cards that have great facts. I especially love the quality of the card they are super thick and large enough to handle and easy to read. The COLORS are amazing and really keep his attention.

Both my daughters 2 & 3 enjoy this book. Now that we’ve almost finished the sticking part we read it each night like a story book.

My family will be going on a road trip soon and I wanted to pick out a few new books for them to have for the trip. Plus I have a baby shower coming up and I think one of the books in the "That's not my..." series might make a great gift. Oh and this is perfect timing for Holiday shopping, a book or two under the tree will definitely bring excitement in our house.

Here are a couple in my shopping cart right now:

If you're interested in chatting or finding more info we have a facebook event set up

The party will be ending Oct 29th, and you'll want to place your orders by then.

Country Living Fair Tickets!

2014-10-03T09:54:00.000-04:00

I absolutely love living in Gwinnett County there is a great mix of people, lots of big towns with small town feel and so very much to do all the time!

Explore Gwinnett is a great site that collects all the things to see and do, hotels, discount coupons in one place I love it!

One of my favorite things to do just for myself is to go treasure hunting, call it antiquing, thrifting, picking...I love it!! So I am especially excited for an upcoming event at Stone Mountain Park, the Country Living Fair, October 24-26!! I've not been to the fair before but after googling all the pictures I am super exited to check out all the food, vendors, presentations, and I hear the fair t-shirts are highly sought after.

Okay so I know you want to get tickets right? You can buy your tickets here. Or you can enter to win 2 tickets in the giveaway widget at the end of this post.

When you get to the Country Living Fair be sure to check out the Explore Gwinnett booth and sign up for their e-newsletter. The first 100 people to sign up for the e-newsletter each day of the event will receive and free jumbo shopping bag.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*I have been compensated admittance to the fair for my promotion of this event. All opinions are my own.

Great Educational Products from Educents

2014-09-29T08:49:00.000-04:00

Howdy all! I'm sharing today again on Educents the daily deal site that I’ve signed up with and have been enjoying saving money on educational books, games, curriculum and more. As a homeschooling mom finding great resources that fit with my kids’ interests and fit our lifestyle is part of the fun. However buying all of that can eat into the budget, so saving money is a big priority.

SIGN UP NOW AND GET $10 CREDIT!! You could take an additional $10 off the LeapPad Ultra!!

The best part are the deals here are a few of my favorites right now:

I am an Educents affiliate and I do receive commission on sales I generate. All opinions and recommendations are genuine and are 100% mine.

Grandparents Day!

2014-09-04T09:19:00.000-04:00

This year Grandparents Day is September 7th.

In our family grandparents play a HUGE role in our lives. My kids have the blessing to have both sets of grandparents living close by. My in-laws live in our home and my parents live 15 minutes down the road. They also have one great grandma living in another state.

I'm so thankful that we get to learn from such amazing people who have great life experiences to share. Celebrating grandparents is a big deal for us too. September 7th is grandparents day this year and we've got to get things together to make gifts and treats for our incredible grandparents.

We like to incorporate our grandparents day crafting into our homeschooling day while we discuss our family tree.

Here are some ideas to make and celebrate grandparents:

Handprint Family Tree Craft	Mini Photo Album


Free Printable Coupon Book	#1 Grandparent Award Craft


Personalized Sharpie Decorated Mugs	PPhoto Bouquet in a Kid Painted Vase

Real Life Notes has a great compilation of 10 Grandparents Day Crafts

Will you be crafting for the grandparents in your life? Do you have grandparents day traditions?

Checkout these Grandparent themed books:

Squish!

2014-08-01T13:33:00.001-04:00

So our family got an opportunity to try out the new Squish: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse App By Disney so far my kids really like it. For my almost two year old it is her go to app.

The concept is that the user gets to play with virtual clay add different premade shapes and accessories. There are a few different tools that can be used to manipulate the virtual clay.

Once you fix your clay sculpture just right there are a few different ways to take it apart, melting, twisting, and popping. My kids go to part of the app is the bubble popping part. The app puts your clay creation into the middle of a bubble when you pop the bubble it splits into smaller bubbles each with a piece of your clay figure in it. Even virtual bubbles are fun to pop!

The app is available in the iTunes store for .99 right now.

We were provide a free copy of the app, however all opinions are my own.

Oops I did it again!

2014-08-01T13:00:00.002-04:00

A couple years ago we accidentally grew a batch of huge pumpkins on our old burn pile, and this year we're doing it again.

Our method for growing pumpkins goes something like this:
In September/October buy a big huge pumpkin at the store or pumpkin patch.
Put it on the front porch along with all your fall decor.
In November toss it out back on the yard clippings pile.
Forget about it.

......
The next summer notice a couple HUGE leaves growing near where you dumped that old pumpkin and do nothing but watch them grow.

And that brings us to today:

This is our first pumpkin growing at this house and I'm excited to see 9 pumpkins on this plant in our backyard. It would be great to get at least 3 super nice big orange pumpkins (one for each kid) harvested for October. I'll try and get an update in a few weeks.

We have another plant going on the front of the property that has grown but we've yet to see any pumpkins forming. I'm guessing this might be a different kind of pumpkin as the vines are not growing out as much as staying clustered together?? But, I'm garden-ignorant really so that's just a guess.

I looked up a little bit about growing pumpkins and read that poor draining soil will cause issues which is what we have on the front part of the property. We cleared up a little bit of the standing water issue around that plant and we'll see if that plant starts producing.

So that's our "garden" right now are you growing anything? Was it accidental or on purpose?

Smart Kids Launchpad

2014-07-10T09:15:00.001-04:00

My soon to be 8 year old is really getting into saving and earning and spending his money. I want to teach him right and know we will incorporate Financial Peace Junior into our homeschooling.

I just learned about this new website from Dave Ramsey called Smart Kids Launchpad. It has activities geared towards building those character traits and core values we want our children to have. For example:

I'm super excited to incorporate the activities from the Smart Kids Launchpad into our homschooling this year. The activities will be fun and educational, and there is a built in rewards system where you earn badges. My kids love earning rewards.

$5 FREE for You at Educents

2014-07-03T10:35:00.002-04:00

We love toys, books, and games in our house but I especially love it when they have an educational value to them also. Educents is a great daily deal site that offers tremendous savings when it comes to purchases for your classrooms and family rooms. Books, games, toys, tools

As an affiliate at Educents I'm able to share with you a FREE $5

We're big into stickers right now at our house I've got my eye on this sticker activity book bundle.

Don't forget to add some of the super cool freebies to your cart too!

As an affiliate at Educents I have the potential to earn an commission on sales resulting from my promotion.

DIY Shaker Ornaments

2013-12-05T19:04:00.007-05:00

For the last 7 years my son and I have been hosting an ornament swap. The catch is we don't buy our ornaments we make them! Really it is an excuse to have some fun crafting time with my kids. Over the years we've worked out a few kinks and now we make about 20 ornaments each year for those who want to swap with us.

This year's ornament has been in my head since last year. I had a bunch of poster tubes that I've ~~collected~~ hoarded over the years and they all had 2 end caps in each one. I really wanted to actually use all the things I've been saving and these caps were on my list. I had an idea to make them into little shakers or snowglobe type things. I figured out a way that used a bunch of my craft supply stash and turned out super cute ornaments.

Here are the supplies I used: poster tube caps, transparency sheets, foam stickers, ribbon, washi tape, hot glue, and sequins (all of which I had in my stash o' stuff)

Use the stickers to make a scene on the inside of the poster tube cap, then add your sequins, glitter, or beads. This is the easy and fun part. My kids loved sticking the stickers and picking just the right ones for their friends.

This is the tricky part. I had a thin rim on the tube cap that I had to run a bead of hot glue along. This is NOT the part to have the kids do. Once you've got your glue move quickly to add a square of transparency film over top of the cap. Use a book to hold the film down so it is flat. You will want to make sure you get glue around the whole edge so when you add the transparency film it will seal the sequins and loose pieces in. The glue doesn't have to look perfect you will cover the glue with the washi tape.

I flipped over the cap and used my scissors to trim away the extra transparency film. Note make sure your glue is cooled before you flip it over or shake it, if you don't your sequins will stick to the edge.

Next up wrapping the edge with a strip of washi tape. The washi tape that I used was a bit thicker and tackier than another roll that I had tried. This kind stuck really well. I covered about half way on the side then folded it over. The tape makes a nice little frame for your shaker.

Last step is to add a hanger on the back. I used ribbon folded over and glued onto the back. Pretty simple and easy.

I'm so excited to send these off to our friends and family who are swapping with us this year. What do you think will they like them?

Thankful Wreath Printable

2013-11-20T15:45:00.000-05:00

Today I'm sharing a little craft I've been working on for our bimonthly Children's Fellowship. I'm sharing on having a thankful heart and thought this craft would be a great compliment to the sharing as well as a visual reminder for our kids. This would also make a great craft to make in your homeschool classroom.

This was a simple craft if you're doing this with one or two kids who can easily handle scissors it might take you about 30 minutes to complete since there is a bit of cutting involved.

I am preparing 15 copies of this craft and the cutting needs to be done ahead of time. So my prep time is much longer. However having all the pieces cut the assembly of this craft took about 10 minutes.

I've designed the craft as a template that you can download here and print out at home.

Supplies needed:
a download of the free printable template

cardstock

construction paper

scissors

glue stick
crayons or markers

yarn, ribbon, or string

_______________________________________________

Instructions:

Print Template onto heavy weight cardstock.
Cut along the solid lines to cut out the Banner, Wreath, & Leaf Template.
Trace the leaf template onto your construction paper & cut out your leaves. (Approximately 20 leaves cover the wreath)
Hole Punch holes in wreath & tie yarn to form a hanger
Color the ‘I am Thankful’ banner
Arrange and glue the leaves onto the wreath.
Glue the ‘I am Thankful!’ banner over the leaves onto the wreath
Write things that you are thankful for on the leaves

Join us at the Georgia State Parks Twitter Party 10/17 from 1-2pm EST! | #GAStateParks

2013-10-17T07:31:00.003-04:00

Join us and other Atlanta blogs as we celebrate all the exciting things that Georgia State Parks has going on at parks this Fall, with a Twitter Party this Thursday from 1-2pm EST.

We invite you to join Georgia State Parks (@gastateparks) and Atlanta Moms® (@atlantamoms) on Twitter to chat about:

upcoming Georgia State Park events
ways to save at Georgia State Parks
where to stay at Georgia State Parks
and win prizes!

Lucky participants will win a Friends of Georgia State Parks Family Membership, a $75 value!

What: Georgia State Parks Twitter Party with @AtlantaMoms

When: Thursday October 17th 1-2pm EST

Where: Use hashtag #GAStateParks to participate on Twitter

Who to follow to be eligible for prizes: @gastateparks & @atlantamoms

Prizes: Family-level Friends of Georgia State Parks memberships ($75 value each)

The winners Family-level membership will be good for 1 year and will include:

2 Annual Park Passes (good for two people/vehicles in your family for one year)
Free Golf or Camping
Overnight Stay Discount
Retail Shop Discount
Annual Historic Site Passes
SAM Shortline Discounts

To be eligible to win, you must tweet with hashtag #GAStateParks (not just retweet) and include @atlantamoms and @gastateparks in your tweets during the party hour (1-2pm EST Oct. 17th) so we know you are participating.

Winners will be announced during the Twitter Party and must respond via a tweet to claim their prize.

If you aren’t already on Twitter, go to Twitter.com to sign up.

RSVP here!

My $.42 Fall Wreath

2013-10-08T17:24:00.003-04:00

Well lookie here two crafty posts in one week! I've still not finished dressing up my front porch but I did want to get a wreath up rather quickly. I also didn't want to spend any money. This wreath accomplished both those goals.

I went to the garage to find stuff to make this wreath. I needed a form of some sort and found one of those foam pool noodles from last summer...PERFECT! I cut the ends at an angle then taped it together. I have a few more noodles in the garage that I think I'll keep using for wreaths they're exactly the right size for our front door.

Now I needed something to cover this pinky/orangy foam I looked for rope but didn't have any but in my recycle bin I a piece of brown packing paper I ripped that up into strips and wrapped the form, securing it every so often with a bit of hot glue.

Looking into my recycle bin and craft stash I found a bunch of other things to use to decorate the wreath. Yep that's right I made the bow using TIGHTS! I picked up these child glitter striped tights at Target one year during the Halloween clearance sale at 90% off. With tax I figure they cost me 42 cents. That was my only "new" item used and the rest of the supplies I had on hand.

I filled the tights with a bunch of plastic grocery sacks to give them some shape. I played around with the stuffed legs and the waist portion of the tights to give it the bow look. Tied it to the form with a pipe cleaner and tacked the sides of the bow with a bit of hot glue.

I asked on my Facebook page which you all liked better, and agreed with keeping the mini pumpkins. They add just a little bit of extra interest and say fall to me. The mini pumpkins were super easy to make just pompoms and a crepe paper covered coffee lid with a snippet of felt ric rac for a stem.

Over all I love how My $0.42 Fall Wreath turned out. I mostly love that it took me less than an hour to complete and it was practically free!

Have you done any fall crafting this season yet?

Princess Pumpkins

2013-10-06T08:31:00.002-04:00

Fall is my favorite time to decorate the house, and my favorite time to be outside. This year I've been a little behind on my decorating efforts especially on the front porch. I got out some of my styrofoam pumpkins from the attic and found that some of them have chipping paint.

Yeah those are pretty embarrassing. So I thought about how I could upcycle them and make them presentable again. The little one I let my 2 year old daughter do and I took on the bigger one.

First things first we sanded all the chipping areas then we primed them with some left over primer I had in the garage.

Looking better already. The tall pumpkin is my son's but his will not be princess and it isn't finished just yet so I'll share that one later. I have a bunch of acrylic paints in our craft stash that I let the kids use to paint their pumpkins however they wanted. My daughter and I went mostly pink!

I used a few printer labels I had on hand to make a pattern. I had wanted to spray paint it gold because I love the pink and gold combination, but when examining my spray paint stash in the garage I only had a shiny silver finish available so I went with that.

After a quick spray painting I had the fun task of pulling all the stickers off. While my pumpkin's final coat dried my daughter and I hot glued gems all over her little pumpkin. In the end we turned out two super cute princess pumkins for our fall decorations.

Once my son' is done with his I'll spray them all with a clear varish to set everything and hopefully protect it for the next season. My daughter absolutely loves her jeweled pumpkin!! She wants to carry it around with her all the time.

I've still got a few chippy pumpkins to deal with any suggestions on the next transformation???

Grandparents Day Family Tree #Craft

2013-08-30T13:27:00.003-04:00

Did you know National Grandparents Day is September 8, 2013. Our kids are blessed to have 2 sets of Grandparents and one Great Grandma to celebrate next week. In our homeschool we worked on our crafts for the grandparents.
We made construction paper family trees.

This craft was super easy and quick. We traced all 3 kids hands and cut them out. Since we were making one for each set of grandparents I cut out the traced hands out of multiple pieces of construction paper at once. I did the same for the tree trunk and branches. All that was left to do was glue and write. Simple easy handprint craft. I'm sure the grands will love it!

Do you have any grandparents you will be celebrating next week?

Checkout these Grandparent themed books:

Duct Tape Covered Frame

2013-08-21T17:42:00.001-04:00

The kiddo has started 2nd grade working on all the usual subjects. We don't get to do art every day but we were able to squeeze it in today. Both the kiddo and myself had some crafting time, he worked on his about me project and I upcycled a hand-me-down frame.

The kiddo cut out and designed the clothes and pasted them onto the paper doll cutout. He then wrote a few sentences about the things he likes right now. He practiced his fine motor skills with cutting and then practiced his handwriting. I used some washi tape to frame the art project and stick it to the matting that came in the frame.

Speaking of the frame, last week a friend of mine had been cleaning out a house and letting me pick through the cast offs before she donated them. So I picked up this dated chipped blue frame that had a restaurant menu framed in it. I had thought I would spray paint it one day and find some use for it. I mean a 2.5' frame for free...yeah I couldn't do better than that.

While the kiddo was crafting I thought this frame would be the perfect size for this project. Since it has been raining so much lately and it still was too damp I didn't want to deal with spray paint and I remembered I had some duct tape out from the other day...Bingo! Bango!

In about 10 minutes, $0, and no clean up I had a completely new art for my walls!

Get Organized with #HomeDepot and #Velcro

2013-08-06T09:45:00.000-04:00

Howdy all! I've been busy lately but wanted to stop in and share about the latest House Party I'm hosting this weekend. The Home Depot has sponsored this party and is featuring Velcro(r) brand products. As with all HouseParty.com parties we are given a supply pack stocked with goodies to share with our partiers.

The goodies:

I had to share the super cute and super easy project we're making. It is a make up holder, designed to hold your little tubes and brushes to keep your things organized.

I love how simple it was and how easy it was to make. I had a couple ladies over to try out the project before I host the big party this Saturday. We chatted and had fun and were able to have a super cute and functional organizer in minutes. There was no glue or mess involved and I liked that part a bunch. Since finishing the project my 2.5 year old has played around with it filling it and emptying it over and over. It definitely is durable enough for a little kid and there are no sharp edges to deal with.

Don't you love going to Home Depot and finding unconventional things to craft with?

If you're interested in making the Stylish Velcro Makeup Organizer download the pdf here. It has a handy shopping list and the cost of the materials is pretty low,

We also got a few more project ideas from the Home Depot using these new Velcro(r) Products. I especially want to try out that letter holder with a decorative tile. It looks super easy and customizable.

What to get Dad for Father's Day?

2013-05-28T10:21:00.002-04:00

I was recently sent a copy of the book 'Because I'm Your Dad' by Ahmet Zappa (son of Frank Zappa) to check out and share with you here.

First let me say this book is terrific! If you're looking for a book that highlights the fun, sweet, funky relationship that a dad has with his kids, look no further, 'Because I'm Your Dad' is that book.

I opened the package and checked out the book first and immediately loved the vibrant colors and illustrations on each page, and I knew my kids would LOVE that too. Then I began to read the words on the page and just loved reading each little interaction of the dad monster with his kid. It was sweet and I teared up during a part but it was still so funky and fresh, unlike other dad books. There was one part that I just knew my 6yo boy would really connect with (you'll know what it is when you read it).

My 2yo daughter saw the cover and just had to hold the book, she really loved the cute monsters.

The book was put on the bedtime reading list that night and has stayed on the kiddo's night stand since. Daddy really loves reading it too. It is definitely a favorite of the whole family.

If you're looking for the perfect gift for the AWESOME, FUN, SPECIAL dad in your family definitely get him this book. You could get it just because he is all those things, or you can get it and give it to him in a couple weeks for father's day.

Go ahead and click through to purchase the book 'Because I'm Your Dad' (affiliate link below)

Wordless Wednesday - Drywall

2013-05-01T08:23:00.000-04:00

Drywall has started in the basement the crew was able to hang all the sheet rock in one day. Today they come back and start taping and mudding. Seeing the walls up and the spaces finally is so exciting!! It makes it more real. There is still so much left to do but it doesn't discount how exciting this stage is!!

Do you have any home improvement projects going on right now?

2013 Atlanta Baby & Child Expo

2013-04-27T11:04:00.001-04:00

Over the last few years I've either been pregnant or have been toting around an infant, and the latest baby gear and trends have been on my radar. This year I have a bunch of friends and relatives having babies.

One of my favorite Atlanta events is the Baby & Child Expo. If you're a new to be mom it is certainly not to be missed. If you're a seasoned mom and love keeping up on the latest and greatest offerings in the baby products and services you definitely want to attend this event.

Desiree the event organizer always finds the best brands and local businesses available in Atlanta. Not to mention there are TONS of prizes to be won.

If you're contemplating the VIP ticket...DO IT! It is worth the $$ and there are so many perks that go along with that ticket.

The Info:
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Atlanta Baby and Child Expo

What: THE premier event for expecting and new parents in the Southeast.
We bring in the ultimate in parenting and baby products and professionals.
It’s an elite experience, intimate in setting and not overwhelming. It’s
a party for YOU, the expectant, the new parent, the grandparent and the
supporting cast of family and friends.

When: May 11th, 11am-3pm (VIP ticket holders get early entry, starting at
10:30am)

Where: Fox Theatre Ballrooms, 660 Peachtree Street, NE, Atlanta, GA 30308

Tickets: www.atlantababyandchildexpo.com has all the details and tickets

This event features a Maternity Fashion Show, Red Carpet Photos of
attendees as they enter, a Stroller Trial Track, Cravings Corner and so
much more!

Country Inns & Suites–Welcome to #MomCountry

2012-11-23T14:51:00.000-05:00

Another treat from the Graco Event thrown by Meghan Cooper, of JaMonkey.com was getting to experience a night’s stay at Country Inns & Suites in Buckhead.

My whole family enjoyed a complimentary one night stay at the hotel. Check in was super simple and our room was very nice. We were greeted with a Country Inn & Suites goodie bag, my 6 year old son claimed the slippers right away. I was super happy to see that the hotel had provided a portable crib for my littlest one.

While I was down at the party my husband and kids enjoyed the free wifi on our tablet and smart phone.

The party was held in a meeting room close to the lobby and breakfast area. The chairs we sat in were super comfy. The food at the party was provided by TGIFridays another company owned by the same parent company as Country Inn & Suites. YUMMY!!

My family also enjoyed the 24 hour cookie bar in the lobby. How genius is that? Cookies anytime – SWEET!

Our stay was pretty short so we didn’t get to enjoy the Read It & Return Lending Library. I absolutely love this feature offered by Country Inns & Suites. If you don’t finish the book during this stay you can return it on your next stay.

Our stay concluded with a super yummy breakfast. Their “Be our Guest Breakfast” offered hot options; like breakfast burritos, eggs, potatoes, and waffles. They had the standard cold options; cereal, fruit and pastries. Everyone in our family could find exactly what they wanted for breakfast, an easier task than breakfast at home that’s for sure. I enjoyed their gourmet coffee bar the most .

Although our hotel had an outdoor pool most Country Inns & Suites have indoor pools. That would have been nice for our 6 year old as he absolutely LOVES swimming. I look forward to future stays where we can experience their pool feature.

Over all I was very impressed with Country Inns & Suites and all they had to offer. Being a family of five and traveling with kids it can be difficult finding a hotel where you feel comfortable as a family. I highly recommend Country Inns & Suites for traveling with your family.

We have a bunch of family events coming up next spring and summer, I will be checking our route for Country Inns & Suites along the way. Good news they have an app for that!

Our one night stay at Country Inns & Suites was complimentary but all the opinions are my own.

Discovering the New Graco SnugRide Click Connect 40

2012-11-01T19:05:00.000-04:00

Last Thursday night I had the opportunity to gather with local Atlanta Mom Bloggers down in Buckhead for a party with Graco. The party was hosted by Meghan of JaMonkey.com. I had so much fun meeting other area blogging mommies (and some of their adorable babies) and chatting all about our kids, blogging, and car seats!

Photo courtesy of party hostess Meghan

Meghan shared with us the all new Graco SnugRide® Click Connect™ 40 car seat. I was super excited to learn more about the only rear facing car seat on the market that is designed for newborn up to two years old (4lbs – 40lbs). I was mostly curious how a two year old could sit rear facing and still have room for their legs.

Graco did an amazing job addressing that issue. Their 8 reclining positions allow you to adjust the seat to best fit your child and allow them to comfortably sit rear facing without their legs being cramped. Adjusting the position of the car seat is super simple just press the buttons on each side and slide to the seat position you want. When their feet do touch the seat they have designed a handy kick plate that pulls up to protect your seat. (This is my husband’s favorite feature!)

That isn’t the only cool feature that I really loved. The harness system, ‘The Simply Safe Adjust ™’, makes it super easy to adjust the height of the shoulder straps and head padding section as your child grows. No more rethreading the straps!! WOOT WOOT I love that it makes it easy to ensure you’re keeping your child as safe as possible at all times! No excuses!

Having two young kids, a 20 month old and a 1 month old, this car seat is amazing. If I’m traveling with only one of my young ones I can easily adjust it to fit either child with the super simple seat & strap adjustments. For that purpose this would be a terrific car seat for my husband’s car, additional bases can be purchased too.

The car seat is exclusively available at Babies R Us and retails for $219.99.

The Graco SnugRide® Click Connect™ 40 – the first and only newborn to two-year infant car seat that actually grows with your baby from four pounds all the way up to 40 pounds. The car seat is designed for a parent on the go. The infant car seat can be easily removed from the base and used as a carrier when the infant is small, providing portability and convenience so you can easily move your infant in and out of the car without disturbing them.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recently made the recommendation to keep all children in rear-facing car seats until the age of 2. Graco set out to make this product so parents can keep infants rear facing longer while still keeping them comfortable.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Graco. The opinions and text are all mine.