My Little Gems

Pretzel Chocolate Chip & Butterscotch Cookies

2012-02-06T08:03:00.000-08:00

I found this recipe on Pinterest. Don't you just love the fun things you find on pinterest? I am on a "diet"...as in eating better and not making sweets every night...but making sweets once a week for my family to enjoy, is a good thing. These were definitely a good thing. I like the mixture of sweet and salty together. If you aren't a fan of salt, you probably won't like these. I loved them, my husband- who rarely has salt- did not like them as much. My children loved them.
I made a few changes from the regular recipe, which apparently appeared in the NY Times. You can read more about it at this link:
Original Recipe from Sugar Cooking Blog

Pretzel Chocolate Chip & Butterscotch Cookies

3 cups of all purpose flour (I did 1 cup wheat flour and 2 white)

1 tsp. of salt

1/2 tsp. of baking soda

1/2 cup of butter or margarine at room temperature

1/2 cup or slightly less unsweetened applesauce (I do this instead of more butter)

1 cup of tightly packed light brown sugar

2/3 cup of granulated sugar

2 eggs (beaten)

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups milk chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet)

1 cup butterscotch chips (original recipe uses peanut butter chips)

1 cup broken up pretzel pieces

Course Kosher Salt or Sea Salt

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a larger bowl, beat the butter, applesauce, and sugars together on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). On low speed, slowly add the beaten egg and vanilla extract. Beat to combine, scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Add the flour mixture and beat just until there are no more streaks of flour. Stir in the chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and preztels. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.
Preheat the oven to 350F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or spray with Pam Butter Spray. Scoop out well rounded tablespoonfuls of the dough and sprinkle with pretzel salt. Leave about 2 inches between each ball. Bake for 10 minutes. If you prefer crispier cookies increase the baking time by 1-2 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before removing.

11 Favorite Gems from 2011 {project posts}

2012-01-28T19:32:00.000-08:00

*I started this post a month ago. This has not been the month for "wellness" in our household...Needless to say, I have been busy. Plus I was kind of burned out after Christmas. Let's hope February is a better month!*

One of the reasons I love keeping this little blog, is because it is fun to look back and see what you learned and what you were able to create- among all the craziness of raising children. So -for my sake- and in case you missed it- here are my favorite 11 projects from 2011-in no particular order. HAPPY NEW YEAR!! (I'll share my favorite recipe & food finds later.)

( One of my blog goals for 2012 is to get to know my readers better ! I'd love to see your favorite projects- leave me a comment and I'll come visit :))

1. DIY Pottery Barn Inspired Heirloom Frames

2.Valentine Love Message Blocks

3. Easter Bunnies from Cardboard Tubes

4. Spring Sign using Juice Lids (tutorial)

5. Child's Art Supply Tote (tutorial)

6.DIY Lego Table

7. IKEA Spice Racks turned Bookshelves

8. Lego Birthday Party Ideas and Toy Story Birthday Ideas

9. DIY Star Wars Ornaments

10. My Big Fat Car Play Mat

11. DIY Summer Wreath

New Year, and a New Blog

2012-01-11T16:21:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year- even though we are 11 days into it- it is still new! If my children will all stay well and doctor free for more than a week, I will get some posts up here!

AND- I am going to start up my "weight loss" blog again--- and open it up to anyone who would like to lose some weight along with me. It might take me a while to get it going- but if you want to shed some pounds with me- I'd love to be blog BFF's. Once I get it all "cute" I'll post the link here if you'd like to follow over there too.

And don't worry- I'll still be posting my Sweets on Sunday on here, and all my other fun gems.

Thanks for reading!

My {DIY} Car Play Mat + cute car mat links

2011-12-26T19:40:00.000-08:00

I think I may have finally convinced my husband that I NEED a Silhouette. Here is my big fat sewing project for my boys- which might be a more appropriate title for this post. Drum roll please...

This was seriously a huge undertaking and a labor of love. I had to recruit my husband and my mother-in-law to help me cut out the letters a few days before Christmas. And then I was up until 3:30 A.M. on Christmas Eve working on it. Since I originally started this TWO years ago, I decided it was time to just get it done! I would estimate I spent around 30-40 hours on it, possibly more.
You can see when and where I started on this thing HERE and a shower curtain version I made years ago here.

I orginally intended for this to be much larger, but it ended up being about 60 inches by 50 inches. I made 4 panels, and pieced them together with my road, which is 5 inches wide, finished. I used felt for the panels and flannel for the roads. If I were to do it again, I would use the same fabric for roads and panels but I would probably NOT use felt. Felt is not really washable, so I think I would use a canvas or denim fabric, something washable. Flannel tends to stretch slightly so that is why I would use the same fabric for both the panels and the flannel. Since I already had a lot of it done on felt and flannel, I decided just to keep it the same. It was a learning experience!

I cut out all of the buildings, mostly designing them myself using basic shapes and also looked at some photos when I wanted something more than just a square or rectangle. (Many thanks to the wonderful people who share their great photos- which gave me lots of inspiration.) I also used Wonder Under on just about everything to iron it to the main fabrics, and then I stitched around the buildings after that. To cut out the letters, I printed them off from the computer, then traced them onto Freezer Paper, and then ironed that onto the felt. From here, I cut them out, and then cut them out of Wonder Under. Yep, that is how I do it when I don't own a fancy cutting machine. The freezer paper peels right off the felt when you are done cutting and you don't have any marks on your fabric/felt.

I backed this with the same car fabric that I used over the gas station. I also added a piece of white flannel between the mat and the backing, which acts like a thin batting. I stitched in the ditch around all the roads, after safety pinning the thing together, trying to avoid any wrinkles or bumps in the fabric. Next time, I would use spray adhesive, as in the kind for basting quilts...but I was tired so we just pinned it. I then made some binding and quickly machine stitched it on--so it is far from perfect. When you are up on Christmas Eve sewing in the middle of the night, you just want to finish!

Since my boys spend a large amount of time on the floor pretending with their cars, I knew they would love it. And I think I was right. I love seeing my children so happy about something I created for them. I love seeing them happy, period.

Here are some fun links to some super cute car mats out in blog land. Some of these ladies used glue guns to make theirs. Since I am the queen of glue gun burns, I opted to sew mine. But these are all super cute-so take a peek at some amazing cute car play mats.

Girl and a Glue Gun
Homemade by Jill
Living the Sweet Life
Just Sew Sassy
Oopsey Daisy

Happy Holidays everyone! I'm spending mine taking car of sick children....but at least they can play with their cars inside while they recover! Thanks for reading.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T21:26:00.000-08:00

Here is a peek at our Christmas Card this year. I love Shutterfly! Thank you Shutterfly- for our lovely cards! Merry Christmas everyone!

With Love Christmas Card

Turn your favorite pictures into personalized Christmas cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

Christmas At My House in Photos

2011-12-21T16:46:00.000-08:00

I am not a very good blogger during Christmas time. I LOVE this season!! And there is only so much time and so many things to do, so blogging and the computer are lower on the priority list. BUT...

I thought it might be fun to show you a few photos of our Christmas this year. And I need to post this, so when I look back and remember that we never got our outside Christmas lights up, I will also remember all the wonderful family fun we had. In our family, Christmas is about Jesus. BUT we do teach our children about the Savior all year, so at Christmas we also like to join the festive fun. Looking through my photos, there were so many fun things we did with our family, and in preschool, I just don't have time to post it all. So here are just a few photos of some fun things we have done. Hope your Holiday is festive and fun at your house! Enjoy!

Sometimes the simplest pleasures are the best...wearing a Santa hat and coloring a Christmas picture is one if those simple pleasures.

Every year we get an ornament. This tree has all those fun ornaments, as well as the ones the kids have made in school or that we may have from our childhood.

I was going to create a new way to hang cards this year, but time ran out. I do love Christmas Cards!!

Of all the cool Advent Countdown Calendars we have, these are their favorite ones. For a dollar each, Trader Joe's has out done me... My kids love these!

After decorating the tree this year, I realized I had forgotten a few important things, that needed to go on first. But I was not going to undo the tree for it. And so... I decided it looked pretty anyway. I love silver and red- even if the latest trends say blue and gold or whatever...I finally bought a tree skirt this year. I know it is just dots. But I love pok-a-dots. love them. And maybe the reds are not exactly matchy. But it works for me.

For the past 7 Christmases- I have been pregnant or nursing so I had to show you why- isn't he cute?

Again, Trader Joe's wins..with their Gigantic Gingerbread Boys, and even their Gingerbread houses...it is always a hit each year.

I can't even begin to list the fun preschool adventures we had this season. Some days, we did paint, and frosting in the same day. It was so much fun and I love finding new things to do. Sigh...that will have to be a future post.

Each year, I try to have a "Kids and Cookie" party. We invite a few friends, and decorate sugar cookies.

Probably the highlight for our family this year so far, was traveling North to play in the snow and ride the Polar Express. The snow was so fun- that I almost missed it. I actually wanted to move back to the snow. (and I kind of still do...)

I hope you are having a joyful holiday season! I have so many gifts to finish so I will probably be a little busy. Thanks for reading! Happy Holidays!

Handmade Star Wars Ornaments {DIY}

2011-12-20T08:57:00.000-08:00

I love Christmas Traditions. We have "the one" where you give your child an ornament, that reminds you of some events of the past year. This is the year my boys really took an interest in Star Wars. We had Star Wars costumes for Halloween this year. We are also having a little bit of a Star Wars Christmas (sshhh don't tell) this year. I looked and looked for some cute ornaments, and could not find any I really liked. SO, after a long late night last night, I made up these. I had to do 4, since I have 4 boys...and these took long enough, so I think I'll stop at 4 for now...although with Star Wars...I'm sure they will want more.

If you are interested in my "sketches" or patterns, please let me know- I'm happy to share....mostly I just looked at pictures on my computer and cut up shapes. ha ha. But I did draw out the basic parts.

Hope you are having fun getting ready for Christmas. I have about 4 or 5 more projects to do!

It's going to be an "EPIC" Christmas...if I get it all done!

Happy Holidays!

Christmas Scented Playdough

2011-12-15T18:30:00.000-08:00

Last night I started out making Peppermint Playdough from the Idea Room for my preschoolers. I originally had the idea to make it 1/2 red and 1/2 plain, and twist it into candy canes and wrap it up in cute bags for 10 little ones. Well, I found an easier idea in the process. I ended up making 3 colors, and formed it into "Christmas ornaments"- as in the above photo. I cut a piece of a sparkly pipecleaner and inserted it into each one to make it look like those pretty ball ornaments.
Here is the what I did:

Christmas Playdough:
For RED:
1 cup flour
1/4 cup salt
2 TBSP. Cream of Tartar
1 1/2 TBSP extract (peppermint for red)
Red food coloring (quite a bit to get a red color)
1 cup water
Combine dry ingredients in a sauce pan. Add liquid ingredients, except for food coloring and stir over medium heat until a soft ball forms. Add the food coloring and knead the dough until the color is distributed evenly.
FOR GREEN: Add MINT EXTRACT instead and green food coloring
FOR WHITE/PLAIN: ADD PEPPERMINT EXTRACT and no food coloring
Extracts can be found in the spices aisle at your grocery store. I found mine at Wal-mart for a good price.

This was my Christmas gift for my preschoolers. Playdough can be a mess, but the thrill for the children is worth it to me. My kids had too much fun making "Christmas pancakes" with it. And yes, there was a big mess to clean up. My sweet husband took care of that part!

Fabulous Find: DownEast Basics

2011-12-12T22:04:00.000-08:00

I recently visited my local DownEast Basics in the Tucson Mall. Last time I was there, I got the most amazing purse. It can hold everything- I love it! I was happy to see they had tons of new purses and bags. These are only available at the stores, and not online. They also had a great new Holiday Collection. I wish I had a dozen Holiday parties to go to- because I could not decide on one outfit.

I loved so many of their Holiday Looks. Here is a peek from their website:

The Dangerous Curves Dress- a gal was trying on this dress and it looked amazing!

It is a perfect black dress- and made from polyester/spandex so it does not wrinkle. Seriously, if I was about 50 lbs. lighter I would be buying this dress. It reminded me of a basic black dress I had years ago-- just brought up-to-date- for today and it was very cute on.

The best thing about having a store in your mall, is that you can try things on! I hate when I order online and it doesn't fit.....

DownEast has instore deals and online deals.

(did I mention that all their skirts and dresses are 40% off right now? ONLINE) use code: DRESSUP40

This top was featured in "O Magazine". That is right. The big Oprah knows about DownEast Basics.
I am loving this shirt- very flattering on anyone, and love the bling!

This skirt is called the "Fairytale Skirt".

It is very pretty and also comes in green. I think it would look great with one with one of their lace camis, and a cardigan on top.....

You really must pop on over to your local DownEast Basics. They have amazing sales going on all week long! I am planning on heading back to mine this week to get some great basics that will be on sale. (hint hint)

And if you don't have one near you, there is always their website.

And gift cards.

Happy Holidays! (above photo is from a few months ago)

DIY LETTERING {without a fancy cutting machine or stencil} NOEL BLOCKS

2011-12-08T16:16:00.000-08:00

I want a Silhouette machine. Or a Circuit would do. But I don't have one and I don't have funds for one right now. So I make do. I recently figured out a new way to do lettering-which I used on my "Save the Date Blocks". No vinyl. No cutting out Freezer Paper stencils. Just printing off letters. This is super easy and anyone can do it.

DIY LETTERING:

1. PRINT OUT YOUR LETTERS ON THE COMPUTER.

I used a very large font size, about 300; and used an outline style letter, so that I did not waste all my computer ink. The blocks I made here, were about 5-6 inches high.

2.TAPE THE LETTER TO YOUR BLOCK. Paint the block and let it dry before putting your letters on the blocks.

3. TRACE YOUR LETTER WITH A BALL POINT PEN- PRESSING HARD.

Now your block should have a light outline of your letter on the wood block.

4. REMOVE THE PAPER.

5. PAINT IN THE LETTER. I used my old tole- painting brushes- some had flat bristles and others were very small and fine. You could probably use your child's watercolor brushes if you did not have anything else.

To paint these blocks, I used acrylic craft paints.

When you are done painting your letters, they will look something like this:

Not perfect, so an easy solution to make them look better, is to distress them a bit with some sandpaper. After that, they look like this:

And that is it. No special letter cutting machine, no stencils, just a font from your computer.

The possibilities are endless- but I'm sure if I did something more complicated, I would prefer a stencil or vinyl. But for now, this works great!

Happy Holidays!

IF YOU CAN'T SAY SOMETHING NICE...

2011-12-07T20:15:00.000-08:00

It seems that every holiday season, people either decide to be nicer, or meaner.
I have recently had several people decide it was their job to "cyber-bully" or be a GRINCH .
Most of the time I ignore this immature behavior. Most bloggers know, that when you put yourself out there, someone is bound to find fault with you or what you have done or written. Some "know-it-all" who you have never met, is going to be rude.

I have had a few rude comments in the past, but for some reason it is always around the holidays.
For example-
I recently had someone quote "Wikipedia" to prove me wrong.
I recently had someone set up a blogger account with an insulting name, just so they could leave a RUDE comment. Seriously?

I don't understand what kind of results these people are trying to achieve. They don't know me. Are they trying to change me? Are they trying to cut me down? Would they say or do those kind of things to my face if they did know me? Are they trying to discourage me from writing anything more of this silly little blog? Are they trying to make themselves feel more important? Are they really so unhappy that it makes them feel good to insult other people online? Are they just desperate to be right? Do they get some kind of a thrill from being mean?
I think these kinds of people need to get a hobby.

I never claimed to know everything or write everything I put on here perfectly. I know it is flawed, as I am. And I am my worst critic. I never claimed to raise my children perfectly, or be some sort of "super mom". I never started this blog as a way to earn money or become "blog famous." I have no desire for that nonsense. Sometimes I even think about deleting this blog and just focusing on family and myself.
So take it as it is. If you read anything I write, know you will find mistakes. I know there are post that have errors or did not explain everything just perfectly. Please know if you read this blog, you will be reading something I probably did at 2 a.m. Please know that anything on here comes from a regular mom, who enjoys creating beautiful things to make her home life lovelier, and her children happier. Please know she is trying to do the best she can with what she has been given. Please know I am just a person, sharing things I love for no reason at all...except that perhaps something I write- as flawed as it may be- may help someone, or encourage someone to try something new. Mostly, I just really enjoy sharing ideas.

So this is just a friendly reminder to those mean people- who I still don't quite understand...

"If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all."

Apple Caramel Pie in the Slow Cooker/Crockpot

2011-12-06T11:50:00.000-08:00

After making my Apple Pie in the Crockpot, I found this recipe on the Fix-It and Forget-about-It site. And it was really really good. And now I know I can make almost any flavor pie in a crock pot. yay.

I t was simple and yummy, but obviously, don't make it if you don't have self control when it comes to dessert. It is too good to resist! And I'm glad my husband ate most of it.

You really only need 3 ingredients:

Pie Crust (2- top and bottom pieces), Apple Pie Filling (about 3 cups- we used some we had made in the Crock Pot) and about 12 Kraft Caramels.

I learned a few things when making this: DON'T spray your crock pot with non-stick spray. It will slide down the sides. Don't overlap your pie crusts too much when placing them in the crock pot.

Cook the crust on HIGH for 1 1/2 hours first.

Then add the apple pie filling, mixed with the caramels-which I cut up, and cook for 1 1/2 hours on LOW. Every crock pot or slow cooker is different, so keep an eye on it.

The entire recipe can be found HERE- and there are lots of good questions that are answered there too!

Thanks for reading!

30 Picture Books for Christmas {my top favorites preschool-2nd grade read alouds}

2011-12-04T21:45:00.000-08:00

I've been doing the "25 Books for Christmas Countdown/Advent" for years now. It is a really fun one, that I'm sure you have seen by now if you are a blog reader. The other night I stayed up and wrapped up my favorite ones for my kids. Well... I have WAY too many Christmas books- like probably over 100....and more than we can possibly read. Since I have small children, I picked the ones that they would enjoy the most for reading aloud. I thought I would share my list with you, even though I really could make it about 5 times this long. {If you have a 2 year old, don't spend a lot of time wrapping these up all fancy- because chances are, if the 2 year old sees them, he will unwrapped them before you want him too....}

A lot of Christmas picture books are wonderful, but too long to read in one sitting to young children. So keep in mind that these are mostly shorter ones- as in ones that you can read in 10-15 minutes or less. I left off my longer picture books- the ones that have really good stories and illustrations, but too long for my preschooler.

So here is my list for this year:

Read-a-Loud Christmas Picture Book List

1. Come and See by Monica Mayper

2. Santa's New Suit by Laura Rader

3. A Piggie Christmas by Howard Fine

4. A New Improved Santa by Patricia Rae Wolff

5. Merry Christmas Mom and Dad by Mercer Mayer

6. A Visit From St. Nicholas & Santa Mouse too! by Clement C. Mouse

7. Mary's Baby by Jane Chapman

8. Crispin-The Pig Who Had it All by Ted Dewan

9. The Amazing Christmas Extravaganza by David Shannon (my favorite!!)

10. Santa's Noisy Night by Julie Sykes &Tim Warnes

11. Christmas Crocodile by Bonny Becker

12. Rudolph by Robert L. May

13. Here Comes Santa Claus by Gene Autry & Oakley Haldeman

14. This is the Star by Joyce DunBar

15. Little Tree by E.E. Cummings

16. The 12 Days of Christmas-illustrated by Jan Brett

17. The Night Before Christmas (any version) illustrations by Mary Englebreit or Jan Brett

18. Bear's Christmas by Brigitte Freymoret

19. The Nativity -illustrated by Julie Vivas

20. On Christmas Eve by Margaret Wise Brown

21. When Santa was a Kid by Janice Leotti-Bachem

22. Mr. Christmas by Roger Hargreaves

23. Little Miss Christmas by Roger Hargreaves

24. How Santa Lost His Job by Stephen Krensky

25. Mooseltoe by Margie Palatini

26.Santa's Hawaiian Vacation by (oops it is wrapped)

27. The Holiday Handwriting School by Robin Pulver

28. If You Take a Mouse to the Movies by Laura Numeroff

29. Room for a Little One by Martin Waddell and Jason Cockcroft

30. On Christmas Eve by Peter Collington

My husband likes to read The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, and we try to read that together. This is my list for easy read-a-louds. There are many others out there- some great ones that are a little longer. I'll have to share that list later.

Happy Reading ! I'd love to hear what some of your favorite Christmas Stories are!

Magnetic Christmas Advent Calendar {using IKEA magnetic spice jars}

2011-11-28T06:00:00.000-08:00

I love Christmas countdown calendars. I have made several different kinds in the past, and would probably sew one, if I had the patience for it. Years ago, that darn Martha Stewart made this one. I finally got around to making my version this year. {Twig and Thistle has a free download for for very cute numbers for this!}

I simply used my magnetic board that is always hanging in my kitchen and some magnetic spice jars from IKEA. These jars are about $4 for 3 of them. They can be used for anything, and I use these for other things throughout the year- such as paper clips, tacs, and small items like that. I could only fit 14 jars on my magnetic board -in the shape of a Christmas Tree, so that is what we are doing. I may change it and add more and not do it in a tree shape, but I really liked the tree shape, so that is what I did. {My kids won't care- we have lots of countdown advent calendars!}

I used scrapbook paper and rubber stamps to make my numbers. You could use anything. Then I filled each one with a few small objects or candy for the kids. Each day- starting on December 10th (since I only had 14 of them) we'll open up one. Some of them may include a fun activity we have planned- such as looking at Christmas lights, visiting Santa, etc.

I think this might be my easiest and favorite countdown calendar yet! Happy Holidays!

thanks for reading oxoxo

Butterscotch Bars

2011-11-27T18:49:00.000-08:00

I made these a few months ago... and I haven't been making many sweet treats lately because I have been trying to lose some weight. And I'm not giving up on the weight loss part, but I might make these again tonight...cause sometimes you need a little sweet treat.

I found this recipe via pinterest.
Butterscotch Bars

8 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 cup unbleached flour

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup butterscotch chips

1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.

Grease and flour a 9x9 baking pan (I use Pam for Baking or Baker's Joy cooking spray).

Cream the sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a medium bowl until smooth.

Add the cooled butter and mix until well blended.

Measure the flour, salt and baking powder and sift directly into the batter.

Gently mix the batter until well combined and no traces of flour remain. Stir in the butterscotch and chocolate chips.

Spread batter into prepared baking pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with crumbs.

Cool for 1 hour. Cut into 12 or 16 squares.

You can get a printable version of the recipe from here.

{plus there is a mouth-watering picture over at that link too.}

thanks for reading! Happy Holidays!

Christmas Tree Healthy Snack or Appetizer

2011-11-26T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Black Friday! If you aren't out shopping, and over did it on Thanksgiving, this is a great healthy snack that the whole family will love- especially the kids! It is also a great idea to bring to those Christmas parties, if you want something more healthy among all those Christmas cookies.

I saw this idea in Family Fun Magazine, but they used parsley. I used green leaf lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and cheese. Cut your cheese into little cubes or squares. Lay out your lettuce to form a tree shape- I used 2 leafs of lettuce. Lay everything out on a tray to form a tree.

I added a star to mine- with a cookie cutter I cut a small star from cheese- of course this was the part all the kids wanted to eat. This was fun, simple, and easy to do, and my kids ate it all up.

Happy Holiday Season!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-23T22:12:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving! Tonight we made our traditional handprint/footprint t-shirts. Here are few of the other crafts that have gone on at our house this month.

I had the preschoolers put on this cute turkey hat, and I sent a copy of the photo to their parents. My child, however, wanted to hold it like he was a "hunter" and be a piligrim guy like he saw in a book. That's my boy!!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! We have so much to be grateful for!!

DIY Christmas Decor & Gift Idea: Save the Date Blocks

2011-11-17T20:45:00.000-08:00

In October, I made up these little blocks for the holidays. (excuse the boring photos...but you get the idea.) There were some 2 by 4's or 2 by 6's sitting in the garage, so I had my husband cut them up for me. I painted them a solid color, and then printed out the dates on my computer. I found a font I liked and played around with it until I got the right size. These are LARGE. I think I used the font at size 300. Here is the fun part. I applied the letters 2 different ways. I did some using freezer paper stencil. BUT an even easier way, was to print the letters, and use a sharp item- such as a ball point pen. Place the paper on top of the painted wood, and trace the letters onto the wood pressing very hard. When you are done, you have the outline of the letters in the wood. Now you just have to fill it in with paint. (I will try to do a tutorial on how I did this is if I just confused you...) This is how I did the OCTOBER one. The other two are freezer paper stencils. Of course you lucky people who own a fancy cutting machine, can just use that to make something like this.

I thought it would be fun to make a few of these, Christmas, Halloween, Valentine's and the 4th of July, and give them as a gift-- to that person who likes holiday decor. The best part of this is that it was FREE (already had the wood and paint) and EASY. After painting the dates on, I sanded the blocks lightly. This helps you to hide any mistakes, and give it that "old shabby look." (don't ask me what it is called...)

Thanks for reading!

Crafting with Kids: Turkey Craft using Textures, & Cardboard Tubes

2011-11-16T21:07:00.000-08:00

Is Thanksgiving really next week? I have almost skipped it this year. Not that I am not THANKFUL...I have skipped it in "blog land" trying to enjoy my children who are growing up so quickly!

This was a little turkey craft we did in preschool and I thought I would share it with you. Whenever I can, I try to combine at least two things in preschool. So we talked about textures and make a little turkey using different textures. The front is sandpaper, with felt pieces and googly eyes. We attached that do a cardboard tube (1/2 of a TP roll). For the feathers, we used coffee filters. Instead of markers, we colored them with crayons, since we had made the turkey with coffee filter craft before. That was it. I attached everything usinga stapler or glue. This was a cute craft because it can stand up all by itself! The kids enjoyed it!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Christmas Eclipse CD WINNER!

2011-11-14T21:10:00.000-08:00

The winner of the Christmas CD by Eclipse is: #12 Aubrey!

Aubrey said...

I LOVE Christmas music...this would be great to have!!

Please contact me within 48 hours (comment -won't be published- or email me your contact information so I can get you your CD. It is a great CD- if you love Acappella music, you just might want to add this one to your Christmas Music Collection!

Happy Holidays!

Shabby Apple Dresses Review -Teacher's Pet Skirt

2011-11-10T20:39:00.000-08:00

***Christmas CD give-a-way ends SUNDAY. Make sure to enter if you like acappella music***

Sometimes I like to share with you some of my favorite things. I always make sure that these things are really my favorites- in that I have tried them myself. This skirt is one of those things! I wore this skirt Sunday, and got a ton of compliments on it. It comes from Shabby Apple, an online boutique specializing in women's dresses and little girl's dresses too. They have very stylish items and you can find anything from a white dress, a black dress, a sophisticated dress for a party, or a flirty vintage dress.

What I really love about Shabby Apple, is their fit guide. It is very accurate, and they have little tips on what size to order, depending on how the item runs. They even have a "generous fit" which is really nice when you are ordering online and can't try the item on. I also really like their designs. They have so many choices, you are not going to find everyone wearing your new dress at church - if you know what I mean. (wink wink)

So check out Shabby Apple. You can find them on Facebook here. And if you order in the next 30 days, and use the code "littlegemscrafts10off" you can save 10 %!

Thanks for reading! Have a great weekend!

Give-a-way: Eclipse CD-It's Christmas Time

2011-11-10T07:15:00.000-08:00

Have you been watching the Sing-Off on NBC? If so, you will love Eclipse.

Shadow Mountain Records, (a.k.a. Deseret Book) would like to give you a copy of this new Christmas CD from Eclipse. Eclipse is a group of 6 guys, singing A cappella. They use no instruments, just their voices. They are so good, I had to check the CD case to make sure they weren't using any instruments. This is their first Christmas CD since 2003. It was released on November 1st.

Their sound is so fresh, upbeat, and fun! This is a perfect CD to lift your spirits and put you in the Christmas mood!

If you want to listen to a sample, click here.

Want to win a copy?

LEAVE A COMMENT!

Give-a-way ends Sunday night, November 13th, at midnight, P.S.T.

Good luck and thanks for reading!

WINNERS of the Shutterfly Christmas Cards!

2011-11-07T12:46:00.000-08:00

I love when there can be multiple winners! And I love when Random.org picks numbers that aren't usually the numbers that get picked. So here are the 3 winners according to random.org. YOU MUST email me to get your code/prize within 48 hours, or I will pick a new winner.

Winner 1:
rebecca said...

Yay! I love Shutterfly! Maybe if I finally did these, they wouldn't looks so last minute:)

Winner 2:

The Clark's said...

I got free Christmas Cards from Shutterfly last year and they turned out amazing! I would love to get my Christmas Cards from them again!

Winner 3:
momto2boys said...

I Love shutterfly and I love your blog! We had some family pics made at the beach this year that would be perfect for Christmas cards...and free would be awesome!!! :) Thanks!

Happy Monday! And Thanks for reading! Another little Christmas give-a-way will be up this week!

Give-a-way: Shutterfly Holiday Cards {for 3 readers}

2011-11-02T22:26:00.000-07:00

I love Shutterfly. They have so many wonderful photo gifts and options to chose from. We just got some family photos done, and I can't wait to see the results so I can start putting together the annual "crazy" family Christmas card for this year. Shutterfly is here to help all of us with our holiday cards this year.

Three readers will get a code good for 25 Holiday Cards from Shutterfly. Yay!

So what is so great about Shutterfly?

One of my favorite products they offer is the photo books. I have made several of these using Shutterfly. I love how easy their website is to use, and how great the books look! They also offer 100% Satisfaction Guarantee on their products. Not only that, but they also have fantastic prices on their photo books. I am hoping to use Shutterfly to make a few little books for my family for Christmas this year.

Last year, I used Shutterfly to make a custom calendar for my grandpa. He absolutely loved it. They actually have a deal going on right now on their calendars.

Shutterfly offers so many personalized photo products.

But since Christmas is around the corner, and we are all thinking about our holiday cards.....let me show you some of the great designs Shutterfly has for this year:

I love that they offer all kinds of designs and colors, as well as folded and flat greeting cards.

They really do have 100's of designs to chose from! There are so many great options, I might have to order a few different ones. (hee hee)

SO would you like free Christmas cards this year from Shutterfly?

Of course you would !

LEAVE A COMMENT.. (please remember that it is your job to contact me if you win. If I have not heard from you within 48 hours, I will pick a new winner.)

THREE- yes THREE READERS will get 25 FREE cards from Shutterfly!

This give-a-way will end on Sunday, November 6th, 2011, at midnight, P.S.T. Winners will be announced Monday. You must contact me within 48 hours or I will pick a new winner.

All opinions are 100% mine. I received no compensation for this post.

Thanks for reading! Good luck!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-30T11:09:00.000-07:00

I am pooped out. I don't know how you all do it. It wears me out just getting these 4 into their costumes.

We have had a busy week full of Halloween activities in preschool, and on the homefront. And Halloween isn't until tomorrow! Hope everyone has a fun and safe time!

I'll be back later this week with 2 give-a-ways to gear us up for Christmas! yay!

Thanks for reading! oxoxo