Crafting Mama

Tween Girl Gift Guide

2018-12-07T18:59:00.000-08:00

I have had so much fun shopping for my 10 going on 16 year old this year. Its such a great age because they are right on the cusp of being a teen, yet still a kid. Here is my 2018 gift guide for tweens!

1. Unicorn Slime Kit

I don't know about you, but both of my girls are crazy about slime. They are constantly making up new recipes for different version of slime. I love this kit because it comes with everything you need to make several different kinds of slime AND a nice container to put everything in when they are done. Minimal mess with easy clean up is my kind of thing!

2. Watercolor Crush

My tween is really into art right now. She wants an easel and all sorts of art supplies. I thought this would be a fun addition to that! It has high reviews where people say they bought it as a gift and ended up keeping it for themselves because it is that great!

3. Gumball Machine

This is such a fun gift idea! What tween doesn't love gum, and the thought of having her very own machine makes it even better. Plus, it doubles as a piggy bank, right?

4. Ear Buds

Unfortunately, I think that with the teens comes the inevitable ear buds. If they have to have them, at least make them cute! I absolutely love the case that these come with!

5. Karaoke Microphone

My daughter has this Karaoke microphone and loves it! She and her friends stayed up late into the night playing with it at a recent sleepover. It has been our go to birthday present for her friends recently! Plus, this one is rose gold, which makes it a winner.

6. Razor A5 Scooter

This scooter is bigger than the typical scooter and comes with a kickstand. My tween has outgrown her old scooter and this is at the top of her list.

7. Echo Dot--Alexa

Okay, I know this is on every single tween gift guide out there, but y'all! It's because it is just.that.great! My tween uses it for literally everything! Right now, she is listening to Christmas music on it. She checks her homework, sets her alarm, asks it to tell her a joke, and asks it all sorts of questions that I don't know the answer to. It is amazing.

8. Pineapple Roller Skates

My tween wants to learn to roller skate and has been asking for a new pair. She specifically requested these pineapple ones, which I think are simply adorable! These are also really cute.

9. Nail Art Studio

My daughter loves to paint her nails. I while back I bought her a nail paint pen from Target and she is obsessed with it! I like the fact that this comes with several different options!

10. Sleepover Bag

We have started the age of sleepovers. This bag is absolutely perfect for them! Its cute, its roomy, and can be wiped clean. Its not fabric. We have this brand and love it. There are so many other patterns to choose from, too.

That's it for now! I will be back with a tween boy gift guide and a 6-8 year old girl gift guide very soon. Happy shopping!!

*This post does contain affiliate links.

Giftcard Wreath

2013-12-19T11:18:00.002-08:00

I must have been crazy back in August, because somehow I thought being room mom for both of my older two classes was a great idea. Now that December has hit, I am feeling the pressure! Christmas party number one is done, after a very late night last night. I can breathe a little easier now!

For my son's first grade class, I had to come up with a class gift for the teacher. I love Nathan's teacher. She is so sweet and good with him, so I knew I wanted to do something extra special for her. I asked each parent to donate a gift card to one of her favorite places and then racked my brain to come up with something cute for her.

I ended up making a deco mesh wreath using different tutorials online and then I used red glitter clothespins to clip each giftcard to the wreath. I figure she can easily take the cards off and use the wreath in her classroom or at home. I am loving the way it turned out and cannot wait to give it to her tomorrow!

Stocking Stuffer Ideas

2013-12-11T14:59:00.000-08:00

It is truly a miracle! I am 100% done Christmas shopping and it isn't even Christmas Eve! I think its a first. Wrapping...now that's another story!

When I was a kid, stockings were always one of my favorite parts of Christmas. My brother and I always opened our stockings first, before opening any gifts from my parents. My husband's family always opened their's last. I caved, and now our kiddos open them at the end of the big present extravaganza. I must admit, I like it! So, what do you do? Do your kids go through their stocking before opening all their presents, or after? I'd love to hear!

Since we're talking stockings, I wanted to share with you 50 fun stocking stuffers for the kiddos. I'm including links for some of them, because Lord knows that Amazon Prime has been my best friend this Christmas!

1. Play Doh --what kid doesn't love play doh. One of the only things my 2 year old wants from Santa is pink play doh. I think he can swing that. ;)

2. Disposable Camera

3. Spot It--My kids love this game, and it is small enough to fit in a stocking

4. Glitter or gel pens

5. Bookmark

6. Snake Flashlight--my son has this and LOVES IT! He lays in bed and reads all the time with it.

7. Nerf gun--Love the new pink ones for girls. They have small ones that will fit perfectly in a stocking

8. Nail Polish--Love Piggy Paint

9. Lego Mini figure Mystery Pack

10. Bubbles

11. Dry Erase Window Markers--all three of my kids LOVE these. nbsp; They go to town on my windows, and then clean them. Its a win/win situation. They have fun, and I get clean windows out of it!

12. Movie Theater Gift Card

13. Rainbow Loom Bands--these are all the rage here.

14. Candy, candy, candy--can't go wrong with sugaring them up!

15. Stickers--I just found some scratch and sniff stickers that my daughter is going to go crazy for

16. Super Snow

17. Crayons

18. Bath tablets that change the water different colors--can be found at walmart or target

19. Coloring book

20. Pipsqueak markers

21. watercolor paints

22. Joke Book-- I found this Knock Knock joke book that my son will love

23. Toothbrush

24. Bubblebath

25. Silly String--We have a Silly String Fight every Christmas afternoon. Weird tradition.

26. Hotwheels

27. Glitter Glue--my daughter is obsessed with it.

28. Glow in the Dark stars

29. Fun bandaids--with three kids, I ought to by stock in bandaids!

30. Elastic Hair Ties

31. Felt Clippies for a little one's hair--Etsy is the place to find these!

32. Sun Art Paper--this was a big hit with the kiddos last year

33. Temporary Tattoos

34. Jump Rope

35. Dinosaur Fossil Dig

36. Book Light

37. Silly Putty

38. Baseball

39. GoGo Squeeze Applesauce Pouches

40. Beef Jerkey

41. Jacks

42. Old Maid

43. Fun, wacky socks

44. Christmas Mad Libs

45. Scented Pencils

46. Hexbug--I think the fish would be perfect in the bathtub. No?

47. Brain Quest

48. Toobs--My kids love these.

49. Sippy Cups

50. Disney Princess Clip Dolls and Dresses

Elf On the Shelf Breakfast 2013

2013-12-09T17:14:00.000-08:00

George the Elf brought our annual North Pole Breakfast back on December 1st. We were sick with the flu that week, but I still tried to make it as special and as fun as possible! You can see our past Breakfasts here and here.

First up, the table. I am not sure exactly why I didn't take a picture of the entire table. I blame it on the 104 degree temperature. Each place setting had the matching plate, napkin, and mailbox. Inside the mailbox was a Christmas shirt for each kiddo and a lego mystery minifigure pack. My kids go crazy over those! There was also a cup stuffed with hot chocolate, a Peep Christmas Tree Kabob, and George's note to the kids.

The kabob was super simple. I had some of the little sticks left over from another party. I dipped the tip of the stick in water and the marshmallows slid on super simple. Then I tied on some left over red ric rac. All three kids loved these.

George the Elf was sitting in the middle of the table, watching all the action. He had sparkly sugar cookies sitting in bowl fulls over snowballs (mini marshmallows).

George always leaves a note for each kiddo. I love seeing their faces when they read them/are read to them.

The kiddos all had a blast at their North Pole Breakfast, chowing down on sweets galore.

Thanks George for such a yummy breakfast and wonderful memories!

ABC Family 25 Days of Christmas

2013-11-24T09:09:00.000-08:00

I don't know about you, but on those cold December nights there is nothing more that I love to do than curl up with my kids under a big blanket and watch Christmas movies. There are so many good ones out there, and we each have our favorite. Our go to channel to catch all of our top Christmas movie picks is ABC Family.

I couldn't be more excited that this year they are showing The Little Mermaid!!! I know its not a Christmas movie, but it is probably my absolute favorite Disney movie. I'll be DVR'ing that sucker for sure!

Anyway, check out the full schedule below to find out when your favorite Christmas show comes on this year!

Are You Ready for Some Football??!!

2013-09-03T15:32:00.002-07:00

I have a tiny confession to make. I am not a huge football fan (hiding my face in shame). Yes, I am from Texas, the land of high school and college football. Yes, I am an Aggie, home of the 12th Man, but I just never really got into it. I know, its horrible!

Planning a party around football, now that's another thing! I can do that and I can do that with a smile! This fun party would be great for your smallest tailgaters before an important game or even to celebrate the Super Bowl at the end of the season!

The amazing printables and many of the party supplies were courtesy of Party On! Designs. Amber is simply amazing!

So, without further adieu, I give you my little football party!

The delicious chocolate suckers are courtesy of Suckers by Steph. They were amazing!

Ellie's Elmo Party

2013-07-09T09:29:00.004-07:00

We celebrated Ellie's second birthday last weekend and I am just now finally getting to all the pictures. This mama needed to take a break after all the party business had ended! Ellie had so much fun at her party, so it made all the late nights and hot glue gun burns worth it! ;) So, grab some coffee, sit back, and get ready for a picture overload!

If you've read some of my other blog posts, you know that I love to have something out in the yard to greet the guests. Who better to do the job than a life size, wooden Elmo! My hubby tolerates my crazy ideas and even helps me bring them to life. The kids loved the giant Elmo and even swiped his balloons at the end of the party.

I had three main indoor areas that I decorated. We'll start with my favorite, the dessert table! This was seriously a labor of love. I've always wanted a ruffled tablecloth, but just couldn't bring myself to shell out the money for one. One night when I couldn't sleep, I had this wacky idea to make my own, except with a twist. I ended up sewing velcro to the ruffles so that I can switch them out for each party theme. I have to tell you, it was a lot of work, but I am in LOVE with the final product! And now, I have a ruffle tablecloth that I can make to match every party that I throw!

We had lots of fun sweets for the dessert table, including Elmo cakepops that I made, rice krispie treats on swizzle sticks, push pops filled with matching M&M's, cookies, chocolate Elmo pops, and the most beautiful, delicious cake ever!

The beautiful push pop containers are courtesy of I Have A Favor. I filled them with pink and aqua M&M's and put them in a pretty pink suitcase I bought from Land of Nod. The suitcase is actually a teal inside, but it didn't match my colors perfectly, so I covered the inside with polka dot scrapbook paper. It turned out so cute!

I made the square cookies below myself. I took a print out of one of the printables that Party On! Designs made to my local grocery store bakery. They printed it out on edible paper and I just set that paper onto my royal icing cookies. So pretty and they made a big statement!

These cookies by Kima's Konfections were so delicious and they matched the colors perfectly! There wasn't a crumb left after the party!

My husband made this huge Ellie Street sign to go near the dessert table. Loved it!

I also had these great little bags from Party On! Designs that the guests could use to take home treats from the dessert table. I always seem to have lots of sweets left over after the party, so these ,mwere perfect to get them out of my house

My little birthday girl had a hard time staying away from the dessert table. She may have snuck a treat or two! :) Isn't her shirt the cutest? Its from Sweet Threads Clothing Company and it matched the party perfectly!

Next up comes the food table, yummy! I pulled out my sewing machine again and whipped up some pretty ruffled streamers. I tied them to a thick, red ribbon and then topped it off with a banner that said "Ellie" I bought some plain, white gable boxes and embellished them with a pretty matching sticker. I packed each kid their own little lunch inside, with chicken nuggets (they went inside the little fry containers,but were still in the oven when I took this picture), an applesauce pouch, and goldfish. Next to the boxes were the cutest little Elmo cups ever with matching straws. The kids loved these!

The third station that I set up was for the take home favors. Each child could get their Elmo bucket and fill it with whatever goodies they wanted. I think they loved picking and choosing!

I had a few different activities set up for the kiddos, but the main one was the massive bounce house and waterslide combo, which turned out to be the only frustrating part of the day. They were supposed to deliver the bounce house/waterslide and kid tables and chairs more than an hour before the party. They didn't get there until about 15 minutes AFTER the party started. I didn't get my tables decorated the way I wanted to, which was disappointing. I still think everything turned out pretty, though! Anyway, back to the activities...

The first one I had was the edible beading station. I put Fruit Loops in pretty pink cups courtesy of Party On! Designs and then precut some twine for the kids to make edible necklaces. This was perfect for the kids who wanted to take a bit of a break from the waterslide!

I also set up a little coloring station for the kids who needed a bit of time to warm up. I simply printed out an Elmo I found online and decorated a metal bucket with ric rac and filled it with crayons. Simple fun.

I had an Elmo bean bag toss, but I didn't get a picture of that!

I couldn't have been more thrilled with the printables that Party On! Designs made for me. They were absolutely perfect for the look that I was going for! I printed out a few to stick in the flowers that I put throughout the party. I loved the blue Mason jars, too, and you'll never guess where I found them! My grocery store!!!

I am so happy with all the vendors I used for the party! I just wanted to say thank you very much to everyone who made this party fun and beautiful! Here is a list of my wonderful vendors:

Party Printables, paper straws, party fringe, paper nut cups, and other party supplies: Party On! Designs
Round Cookies: Kima's Konfections
Cake: Mindy May's Cakes
Push Pop Containers: I Have A Favor
Elmo Drink Cups: Signature Avenue
Ellie's Shirt: Sweet Threads
Ellie's Hair Clip: Posies Handmade
Favor Hair Clippies: A Market Collection
Favor Hair Ties: Enchanted Felt

This party has been featured on:
Kara's Party Ideas

This party has been shared on:
Lil Luna
Bloom Designs
Seven Thirty Three
A Glimpse Inside
House of Hepworths
The Girl Creative
Skip to My Lou

A Tease from This Weekend!

2013-06-24T19:23:00.003-07:00

I just had to share a quick sneak peek from Ellie's party this weekend! Stay tuned for all the fun details!

A Little Father's Day Gift for my Hubby

2013-06-13T08:37:00.002-07:00

I was so thrilled to find these fun, sealable Kraft bags from Party On! Designs. Although the possibilities for these babies are seriously endless, I knew exactly what I was going to do with them! Since Father's Day is coming up, I wanted to celebrate what an awesome dad my hubby is and leave a little surprise in his car for his morning commute . This bag was begging to be used!

I have used my printer several times to print on regular paper lunch bags. I figured I could do the same with these, and I was right! Since my husband loves peanuts, I thought it would be cute to print custom-made peanut snack-packs!!! First, I gathered all of my supplies.

Then I simply typed out the phrase "I'm Nuts About You!!" on my computer and sent it to my printer. Remember to do a test print on scrap paper first, just to make sure that everything is where you want it to be. You don't want to waste these pretty little bags!

I used the hole puncher to punch two holes at the top and used my burlap ribbon to tie a little bow. Just because it's for a guy doesn't mean it can't be a bit cuter! Burlap ribbon is manly, right? Right?!?

And voila! The perfect little surprise for my guy on Father's Day, and it helps that I am nuts about him!

Bunny Tails

2013-03-21T14:40:00.002-07:00

I have an exciting announcement to share with you, or at least for me! :) A couple of weeks ago, I volunteered to participate in a fun challenge with Party On Designs where they send me a mystery box filled with a few supplies from their shop. I get to come up with something fun and creative using what they provided in the box. I have had such a great time coming up with fun projects and can't wait to share them all with you, starting with my first project!

My kiddos needed something to hand out to their friends for Easter, so we put our head together and came up with the cutest little treats! With just a few materials and no time at all, we had cute little Bunny Tails to give out!

First, you need to gather all of your materials. You will need cello bags (I love the self sealing ones), some sort of backer cut to fit the cello bags, a cute bag topper, glue dots or a stapler, edible Easter grass, and your bunny tails! There are so many options that you can use for bunny tails, such as marshmallows, sugar cookies with swirly white frosting, or white gumballs.

Place your paper backer into your bag. If you don't have something to back it with, you could skip this step, but I think it just makes the whole thing a bit cuter! Next, stuff your edible Easter grass all the way to the bottom of the bag and top it off with your bunny tails. Seal your bag to keep everything fresh, and then finish it off with your cute little Easter topper!

Super easy and really cute!

If you would love your own super cute Bunny Tails bag topper, you can download it for free here thanks to Party On Designs! While you are there, check out their other amazing printables and party supplies!

Lego Star Wars 6th Birthday

2013-02-20T17:11:00.004-08:00

We celebrated Nathan's 6th birthday back in August and I am just getting around to posting it. A little behind, huh?

So, Nathan is all about Legos. They boy lives and breathes Legos. They are literally ALL OVER MY HOUSE-I have even found some in the fridge! His second favorite thing is Star Wars. Obsessed. What was a mama to do, but combine his two favorite things--hence a Star Wars Lego birthday party!

This post is going to be about the food and decorations. I have a ton of pictures of the action, but can't really post them due to the fact that lots of the kiddos in the pics aren't mind. Only three are, and I wasn't sure if all the mamas out there would want their kids pictures on the www. ;)

My hubby always cuts out and paints a special figure to greet the guests, kinda sets the mood for the whole party. Who is better to say "Hello" to everyone than a Storm Trooper! Of course he needed some silver and black balloons!

When everyone came inside, I had our entryway table all set up. I bought the black buckets from the Target Dollar Spot (that place makes my heart go pitter patter). Then I found a Vader head online and turned it into a SVG file. I used my Silhouette machine to cut out Vader's head in silver vinyl and then put it on each bucket. I tied blue and silver ribbon on the handles. These are the buckets that the kids used for the candy bar.

Also on the table are the bubble light saber wands. The kids loved these, although I should hav bought more pink ones. A lot of the girls were pretty disappointed when they didn't get pink.

I also had a jar of Legos. The guests had to guess how many were in the jar and write it down on the paper that I created in Photoshop.

What party is complete without a ton of sweets??!! Have to sugar those kids up and then send them home! I had a candy buffet set up and made these little signs for each bucket. You can't really tell from the picture, but the candy Lego bricks are in little Vader Easter Eggs.

I also found these cute marshmallow pops at Walgreens of all places! But, if you can't find them there, I also saw them at Toys R Us this weekend, a bit pricier, though. I had yoda ones, too.

Cupcakes with character rings and cookies were on the dessert table, too.

The cute forks I bought for the cake. I found them on Etsy and it was love at first sight!

The banner above the dessert table took me forever to make! The back paper is silver glitter, though you can't really tell from the pic.

I had a ton of food set up in the kitchen for everyone. We had Jabba the Hut Dogs, Sand People wiches, X chicken Wings, and Han burgers.

I made another banner for our mantel, and then N brought down all of his little Lego Star Wars people.

As far as activities go, we had a Jedi Obstacle course that was so much fun. The kids wore their bathing suits, went through a waterslide, a pvc car wash thingy that I found on Pinterest, used their pool noodle foam light sabers to keep balloons up on the trampoline, and shot nerf gun darts and lego minifigures. They also threw water balloons at some more wooden cut outs that my hubby made.

Then they went on a scavenger hunt. Here is an example of two of the clues. There were six.

At the end of the scavenger hunt was a little packet of legos for the kids to put together. My dear, sweet hubby went to the Lego store one day during his lunch hour and stared at the Lego wall. He came up with his very own Star Wars Lego creation, a Storm Trooper Buggy. I love him and the kids loved having their own little set. I loved the price. I put them in a clear baggie with a picture of what it was supposed to look like. All the kids were able to build it without any help!

After all the fun, it was ice cream sundae and cake time! I had a little ice cream sundae bar set up and the kids dove right in!

I love this picture! My little Emma is so, so excited for her big bubba. Pure love. :)

Happy, happy birthday baby boy (6 months late on here). I love you to the moon and back, N!

***** I have gotten many requests for the food/candy cards, signs, Lego guessing sheet, and for the rest of the scavenger hunt. They took me hours to create, but I loved every second of it. If you would like a copy of the everything, I have decided to sell it all together for $15. If you need changes, to it, it will be an extra $5. I hope you understand! If interested, please email at sarahwillig@hotmail.com *****

New Year, New Resolutions, New Decor

2013-01-02T15:05:00.000-08:00

Resolutions...Did you make any yesterday? I swear, this year is going to be the year I accomplish all my resolutions. I probably said the same thing last year, but I really mean it this year. Really.

So, to hold myself accountable, I am going to post them on the blog for all to see. If you want to share your's with me, I would love to hear them. Maybe we can cheer each other on!

My first one will probably be the hardest one. I want to lose weight. I used to be a skinny minny, as in my nickname used to be Stick. I could eat and eat and eat and nothing would happen. I didn't even ever have to work out. Then, I was blessed with three kids and along with those three blessings came a bigger belly and a god awful muffin top. So, something needs to give. I need to learn how to eat better and find some time to actually exercise. Yikes!

My second resolution is to document life a bit more. I want to do my own version of Project 365, an Instagram version. I always have my phone with me, so why not use it! I found these templates that would be perfect to document my Instagram pictures with. I still need to take my pic for today!

My third resolution is to do more with the kids. I feel like we are just getting by each day. I feel stressed, I feel rushed, I feel pulled in four different ways. We need to get out. We need to go on a journey. We need to experience life more. Go to the zoo on a whim or surprise the kids with more park stops on the way home from school. SOMETHING.

And, drum roll please....

My last resolution is to make our new build house into a home. We moved into this new house about three years ago. It is still cold and bare, its just a house. Well, this year, that is all going to change. We are going to tackle one project at a time and warm up our house. I have a ton of design ideas, just haven't had the time or the money to do them all!

So, that leads me to the mood board I have been working on. Emma and Ellie's rooms were both painted pink the year we moved in and when we found out Ellie was a girl. Poor Nathan's room has not been touched! I have been collecting ideas for my little Star Wars loving man, and I think I've come up with a room that he can grow into. Without further adieu, here is the plan for his room.

1. Benjamin Moore paint colors Newburyport Blue and Marina Gray. I want to paint three walls the gray color and then the wall with the window will be blue.

2. Love this shelf from Target, and the price can't be beat!

3. I want to do some sort of big stripe curtain. These are from Land of Nod, but I think I may be able to make them for a lot cheaper.

4. This is going to be another project I will be working on soon.

5. Nathan plays with Legos 99% of the time. The boy can build anything, but his creations usually get crushed because they are left on the floor. I think these two shelves would be perfect for him to put his creations on. I want to hang them up right above his lego table (which is another work in progress project I hope to share with you soon!)

6. LOVE this print for Chatty Nora. I think it is perfect for his room--not too in your face Star Wars, but still cute for the true fan.

7. N has bunkbeds and he usually sleeps on the top bunk. I want to hang this on the wall his bed is up against so he can keep his favorite books and a flashlight right next to him.

8. He needs some sort of baskets for his shelf to keep his stuff if. I love the look of wire baskets. I found these on Amazon for a pretty good price.

9. I think this gray striped rug would help ground things in his room.

I am still on the look out for the perfect bedding. I would love to get the Pottery Barn Star Wars bedding, but since he has bunkbeds and I would need to buy two sets, it just isn't in the budget. I really want just to plain gray, soft quilts. Then I can always add some of the Pottery Barn shams to the beds.

So, there you have it--N's future room. What do you think???

I had so much fun making this design board! If you are interested in one, leave a comment here and we can talk!

Our Annual Elf Breakfast

2012-12-14T15:48:00.000-08:00

George the Elf is back this December and just in the nick of time! I'm not sure my kids would have stayed on the nice list too much longer. I needed the "George is watching you," threat!

So, George celebrated his return with his annual north Pole Breakfast. you can see our last year's breakfast here. Get a cup of hot chocolate because there are a ton of pictures!

Inside each Santa gift bag was a Gymboree Christmas shirt and a pair of Christmas socks.

The kids were so excited about George's return! They were bouncing off the walls after a sugar filled, traditional elf breakfast. The only thing we were missing is syrup. :)

I love this picture because Garett is reading the note George left Nathan, and Nathan is eyeing the elf. "You want be to be nice to my sisters??? All the time???"

Sources:

Reindeer Sippy Cups, cupcake cups, fondant cupcake toppers: Target

Table cloth, Santa gift bags: Walmart

Gasp! I bought white couches!

2012-08-15T16:08:00.000-07:00

Yes, I did it. I am guilty of breaking the cardinal rule for moms with three kids; three young kids who are five and under, who have sticky hands, dirty feet, and holes in their mouths (that is the only way I can explain the amount of food that misses their mouths!!!).

I BOUGHT TWO WHITE COUCHES!!! For my family room! The room that we often eat it, the room that we live in. See, I have wanted that white, shabby chic look for a long time. I drooled over the Pottery Barn couches since my first son was a baby. I thought I'd be old and gray before I could get them.

Then, I went to Ikea and found them--white SLIP COVERED couches and my heart did a little pitter patter right then and there! They were cheap and on sale and SLIP COVERED! That means, if I hate them in a year or two, I won't cry that I spent a fortune on them. My husband and I scooped them up right there and brought them home. We held a moment of silence for our sagging, stained, 8 year old couch and then chucked it to the curb.

This was three months ago, three summer months ago. And guess what, the couches are still in almost perfect condition! There is a spot or two on them, but they wash right out! These couches have been eaten on, jumped on (they became a gymnastics playground during the Olympics for my 3 and 5 year olds), and abused. And I am still in love with them! Sigh...

I have my eye on a beautiful mercury glass lamp at Hobby Lobby to replace my pidly little lamp from the old house. I also bought some curtains from Target that are way too short--see them folded up on the table?? Just haven't mustered up the energy to wait in the return line with three kidlets.

Long Ago, In a Galaxy Far Away...

2012-08-14T16:47:00.002-07:00

A little boy was born, six years ago to be exact. Now this little boy is a little obsessed with Star Wars and legos. And when his Crafting Mama asked him what kind of birthday he wanted, he looked at her like she had just lost her mind and said, "Lego Star Wars, of course!" So, with a little over a month until the party date, I got my booty in gear!

My first project that I started on were for the take home favors. I needed something affordable, cute (Star Wars can be cute, right??), and that matched the theme. So, I hopped in my car with my littlest in tow and headed to good old Wallyworld, where I found these bubble wands for a dollar each. Inspiration struck. They look like light sabers, right???

I rummaged through my garage until I found the black spraypaint and then picked up some silver at Walmart for less than $5.

First, I unscrewed the lid and stood the bubble wand up in a cup. Then, I spray painted the top part black. I used a paper towel to cover the actual white plastic wand part.

When that dried, I put painters tape over the middle and spray painted the two ends silver. I took the tape off while it was still wet.

I let them dry overnight and then added a little red jewel as the on button. I love how they turned out, and most importantly, my son loves how they turned out!

One project done, a million more to go!

Template Love

2012-08-12T15:42:00.000-07:00

Back in my pre third child days, I use to have a bit more time on my hands and became a photographer. I loved taking pictures of everyone, from newborns, to families, and even seniors! My clients would often ask me to design their Christmas cards, birth announcements, and birthday cards. many of them I would design myself, but sometimes it was just easier to buy templates. Why re invent the wheel, huh?

As I was searching for templates made with photographers in mind, I hit GOLD with Birdesign! I think I swooned over their cards for hours and now have many of them in my stash. If you have, oh say lots of time to fall in love, go take a look at their new website! Have your wallet ready, though, because I warn you--you will find so many things you LOVE!

If you're not in the market for a birth announcement, they have a ton of other things to offer : blog banners, accordian style book templates (which make great Christmas gifts to grandma), and storyboards, just to name a few!

Sunshine Lemonade First Birthday

2012-07-20T11:53:00.000-07:00

Well, she went and did it. My very last baby turned one! Gah, why does time have to go by so fast??!! I think it may be time for another baby...Now I just need to convince my hubby.

So, for Ellie's first birthday, I knew I wanted the theme to have something to do with the song, "You are my Sunshine." I sing that song to her while we cuddle. Since she was born in June, I thought the sunshine theme would be perfect. Then, I threw in the lemonade part just to make it a bit cuter. Our colors were pink, yellow, and a pop of aqua.

I am going to have to break this into a couple of posts, because I don't have pictures taken of everything and I really want to share EVERYTHING!

So, let's start with favors. I love sending my guests home with fun things. For this party, I came up with my favorite favor ever--a CD filled with sunshine music. I put some of my favorite songs on the CD for people to listen to on a rainy day. They all had to do with sunshine. But, my favorite part of the CD, was the CD itself. I found this wonderful place that prints on the CD for you for very cheap--less than 50 cents each! I didn't get a great picture of them, but here is an instagram photo of it! My mother in law sewed up little square pouches to put them in. I bought them from NCIMedia and I couldn't be more thrilled with their quality and service! They were easy to order--I just designed the front and uploaded it!

The second favor were these cute little gumball tubes filled with lemonade gum. I have seen these all over and really wanted to make sure that I included them in the party. I didn't really want to pay too much for them and it seems like everywhere I looked, the shipping was outrageous! I ended up buying them at I Heart Papers and was a little nervous about it since I had never ordered from them before. But, I can't praise them enough! The shipping was fast and inexpensive! I will definitely be ordering them again from there! Then I found a cute graphic online and changed the colors of it to match mine, added the polkadot background and had my silhouette cut it out. I tied it on the top with bakers twine. I am in love with baker's twine!

For the third favor (yes I might have gone a bit overboard) I found the CUTEST little candy bins with even cuter tiny scoops! Since we had a lot of younger kids coming to the party, I wanted to make sure they have a favor just for them. So I loaded each little bin up with matching M&M's. I designed a little label to go on top using digital papers that I used throughout the party and on her invites. I loved the way they turned out!

Now, onto other decor. I made this adorable wreath out of yarn, a little banner I made out of the same digital scrapbook paper, and a wooden letter I bought from Hobby Lobby. My E sort of fell over during the party :( It is supposed to be leaning up, tilted facing the right side. Just use your imagination!

Another fun, and perhaps one of my favorite things of the whole party was the lemonade stand my hubby made! I am in love with it and can imagine my kiddos using it a lot for impromptu lemonade sales! We found the tutorial at Lil Luna and followed it very easily. My fabric bunting ended up being a bit too big, but oh well. I just loved the way the whole thing looked

I bought mason jars and wrapped them with left over scrap fabrics that I used for the bunting.

Now, onto inside and the dessert table! I used a long table and butted it up against the fireplace. Since this was at my parents' house, I couldn't really take down their picture over the fireplace, so just pretend that isn't there!

My hubby and I made the Sunshine sign that morning based off of one that I had pinned on pinterest. I love how it turned out and plan on hanging it in her room. Then I added pictures from her one year old shoot on either side and some tissue poms. I had more poms ready to make, but I ran out of time! Imagine that!

I hung her banner on the fireplace and am so disappointed with how it looked. I love the way it turned out, but it was wayyyyy to big. I took a pic of her every day on her monthly birthday in some onesies I had made for my older daughter. They have a number that corresponds with the month. It was really cute, just way too big!

I bought a number 1 chocolate lollipop mold off of ebay and made these the week of her party. They were super easy and the kids loved them!

My sister made these cake pops for me and then I put them in the cutest little paper cups that I bought from Sur La Table. I bought little Martha Stewart bows from Jo Annes and put them on the tip of each stick. I LOVED how these looked!

Her store bought cake.

I made her tiny smash cake. I loved the way it turned out and it was super easy to make!

I scoured Craigslist for months looking for an antique highchair! I finally found one and sprayed it pink, then distressed it. It turned out just like I envisioned and she looked super duper cute in it!

Next week I'll post pictures of the activities that we did, our fingerprint guest tree, her invitation, and some super cute pictures of the birthday girl herself!

Thanks for visiting!

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Mission Impossible

2012-07-03T09:30:00.001-07:00

We made a Bucket List at the beginning of the summer and have been pretty good about crossing things off of it. It is hotter than hot outside right now, so we had to add a lot of inside activities. Thank Heavens for Pinterest!

As my kids were watching Goonies, I set this up in the only hallway we have in our house. They LOVED it! My son is upstairs making up booby traps for it as I type! He keeps humming the mission Impossible theme song.

Besides the fact that it has kept them busy for the last 45 minutes, the best thing about this was that it was free! The worst thing? I can't finish my laundry because streamers are attached to my laundry room door! Darn.

So, what is on your summer bucket list?

Valentine's Day Playdate

2012-02-16T12:13:00.006-08:00

Well, I lost my bet with my husband. We all know he had fun with that...for a few seconds until he realized that his winning the bet wasn't all it was cracked up to be. It just meant I spent more money!

I didn't go too much over my $50 budget, but I did go over. Bleh. I was able to stay under $90, which brought the smile back to my other half's face. See, it all worked out in the end. He won a back rub out of the deal, and I was still able to throw the kind of party I wanted!

Let's start with the decor. I made all of it myself to save money and probably spent about $12 on it all. First up, I made these super easy paper fans using scrapbook paper I bought on sale at Hobby Lobby.. They took me less that 10 minutes to do a piece and I think made a huge statement. You'll be seeing more of these at my parties for sure!

Next up, I bought .99 cent packs of tissue paper from Walmart and made fun tissue poms to hang from my curtains. Again, another super simple project that costs next to nothing to make! I don't know why I didn't get a better picture of them, though. You can sort of see them here.

In between the groupings of tissue poms, I hung this heart banner that I made using coordinating scrapbook paper and string left over from the pirate party.

I made another pennant banner to add to the staircase, just above the dessert table, using more scrapbook paper and left over string.

Speaking of the dessert table... no party is complete without giving the kids a complete sugar high (and then sending them home)!

I used a free Valentine subway art printable and stuck it in a frame I already had. All of the sweets on the table were store bought (gotta love Litte Debbie Valentine cakes and brownies). I also filled a bowl with heart marshmallows, which were a huge hit with the kids.

The glittery pink banner on the bottom of the table was left over from Emma's princess party.

The drinks were red HEB sodas that I made a bit cuter by adding drink labels I whipped up in photoshop. The kids LOVED drinking their Love Potion. And guess what, no spills! My carpet breathed a sigh of relief!

My friend over at Giraffe Doodles & Design monogrammed the aprons for me! She will soon be offering party packs of monogrammed aprons in her store. So much fun for art parties, cupcake parties, and baking parties!

And here are where my pictures end. :( I had my hands full with the party and my baby!

After the kids ate, they each decorated heart sugar cookies that I made with pre bought white and pink icing and sprinkles-- told you I sugared them up!

Each kid was sent homw with a boxf candy hearts that I spent about 10 minutes making a bit cuter. I used a punch I had to cut out scalloped circles and then my three year old put a heart sticker (bought at the Dollar Tree)on each one. I used tulle leftover from the princess party and tied a bow around each box. Then I used a glue dot and stuck the scalloped circle in the middle of the bow.

And that is how I do a party on a budget!

Blowing Kisses

2012-02-13T14:18:00.000-08:00

Since I shared N's Valentine, I thought I'd share E's too! They say, "Blowing Kisses Your Way" and are filled with little bubbles and Hershey Kisses, two of my baby's favorite things! Oh, and don't under estimate how hard it is to get a pic of your kid blowing kisses! That was the only decent picture out of a bunch. She is a silly goose!

May The Force Be With You

2012-02-13T13:50:00.000-08:00

My son is OBSESSED with Star Wars. In fact, I think that may be an understatement. It consumes his life. I think he has a little Lego Star Wars minifigure in his hand during ever waking minute. And don't even get me started on the 3D movie that came out this weekend. He has talked non stop about it!

So, I knew we had to do something that showcased his love. These were inspired by all the Valentine's Day cards out there with the kids holding out lollipops. Instead of lollipops, though, I used glow sticks to look like light sabers.

I took a pic of Nathan against a black blanket. He is holding the base of one of his lightsabers, but it is pushed all the way in so that all you see is the base. I added the text and then printed them out as 4x6 prints. Then I cut a little slit at the top of the light saber handle using an exacto knife, stuck in the glow stick, and taped it down in the back.

My kiddo is so excited to hand these out (and I am, too!)!

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Valentine's Party

2012-01-11T14:19:00.000-08:00

I have given myself a challenge--to throw a SMALL Valentine's Day party for $50. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I can do it, but my husband is betting against me. The nerve!

So, over the next month I am going to show you how I am going to prove the Hubs wrong. Fifty bucks, and not a cent over!

I started out by deciding that this party has to be small. We can't invite everyone, as much as I really, really want to. I told each kid that they can invite three of their friends. This party is going to be on a Friday afternoon, so that already limits who can come. After much deliberation, each kid chose three of their friends.

Next up, I designed my own invites and made them pretty simple. I needed them to be free, so I used clipart and backgrounds that I already had. I came up with two different invitations and let the kids choose which one they wanted to give out. I printed these out on white cardstock and am sticking them in pink envelopes that I had left over from Emma's birth announcement three years ago--see it pays off to be a packrat!

I wanted our party to be sort of like a playdate with friends, so I came up with two fun activities--cookie decorating and painting on canvas, hence the wording on the invites. I'll give you more details about the activities later.

Here are the two invites I created in Photoshop. If you want a copy of them, leave your email address in the comments below and I will send them to you! I blurred out my address and phone number, obviously!

Reindeer Gift Tags

2011-12-05T13:59:00.000-08:00

The weather today is horrible and rainy, so I was trying to come up with something fun for the kids to do. I ran across this idea a while back and can't recall where--It was obviously before my obsession with Pinterest!

All you need are some willing kiddos, brown paint, and gift tags (or even paper will do).

Paint a kiddo's finger and let them press it wherever they want. Don't tell them where, come on step back, I know a few of you want to! Let this be their creations!

After they are done, let them decorate! You could even pull out the glitter, jewels, red fuzz balls, or whatever else you have in your art bins! We weren't able to get too crazy because my llittlest little woke up!

Ta Da! You have the cutest gift tags under the tree!

Elf on the Shelf Breakfast

2011-12-03T12:04:00.000-08:00

George made his first appearence of the year this morning and he brought with him a yummy North Pole Breakfast, complete with snow covered donuts, snowballs, candy canes, and treats for the kiddos. They loved it!

I found the idea for this breakfast over at Little Pumpkin Grace and borrowed the idea from her and put my own little twist on it!

That sneak George the Elf even cut out snowflakes that hung from the ceiling. These took a lot longer than you think, though, because George sort of forgot how to make them! A lot of paper was harmed in the making of these!

George decided to hang out on the sled that was filled with little baggies of snowballs (mini marshmallows) that came straight from the North Pole! I love his little mischievious grin!

He laid out snow covered donuts on his favorite Santa Plate. Apparently, these are one of Santa's favorite treats!

George even brought Nathan and Emma their very own little treat bucket that was filled with a fun Santa Pez dispencer, a Christmas shirt, a North Pole puzzle, and some warm, toasty Christmas socks. Nathan's shirt said, "Jingle Bells, My Sister Smells." That George, he has a funny sense of humor!

He left a little note for each kid, also, letting them know how proud he was of their good behavior. I loved watching their little eyes as I read the letters to them. Christmas is such a magical time of year and it makes me all sappy.

George left little cups of hot chocolate to drink. Ems and Nathan decided to throw some of their snowballs in their cups--floating glaciers!

Our first annual North Pole Breakfast was a success and I can't wait to make this a fun tradition for our family, one that our kids will do with their kids, and that they will remember for years to come. Thanks Little Pumpkin Grace for the inspiration!

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Under the Table and Dreaming

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Princess Storybook Invitation

2011-11-21T15:18:00.000-08:00

I'm still alive, just swamped! We had my daughter's princess birthday party a couple of weekends ago, so I have a lot of projects from there to share. But first, here are her invitation! These were definitely a labor of love, but I couldn't be happier with the way they turned out!

I started out with chunky board books and 5x5 prints. Then, I modgepodged the prints onto the pages and let them dry. I added a bit of pink scrapbooking paper to the spine of each one as a finishing touch. Love.