This Mommy Loves

Valentine's Day Sibling Love

2013-02-11T12:43:00.000-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day from our little lovers!

Collage made from picasa 3 and edited online using google + creative kit. They have lots of stickers and cute fonts to pic from. :-)

Big Sis had so much fun with this. I gave her some red lipstick and let her go crazy with the kisses. Little Sis had fun too (for the most part) ;-)

Homemade Playdoh Recipe

2013-02-03T21:19:00.001-05:00

Here's my favorite homemade playdoh recipe. Turn this sloppy looking mess into a fun ball of playdoh. My daughter's preschool class has a parent volunteer to bring in a batch at the beginning of each month. It would be nice to get in the habit of making this once a month at home and tossing out all the old dried up crumbly mess that the store bought playdoh always becomes.

Serving Size: A BIG blob (about the size of 2 large grapefruits)

Ingredients:

4 cups flour

4 cups water

1 cup salt

8 tsp cream of tartar (found in baking aisle)

4 tbls vegetable oil

food coloring

Combine all ingredients in large pot and cook over medium hit stirring constantly until dough forms. It starts out really soupy so don't be scared. Keep stirring and in about 10-15 minutes it will be a playdoh consistency. Take it off of the heat and dump it on a silpat or waxed paper. Let it cool and then knead it until it is soft.

Wedding Dress turned Baptism Gown

2013-01-23T13:04:00.003-05:00

This was one of the sweetest cutest ideas I've seen in a long time. My friend Sarah turned her wedding dress into Baptism gowns for her adorable twin girls, Sadie and Abigail. Is that not the best idea ever?!?! And to make it even sweeter, Sarah's mom made the dresses! I just love love love this!!! What a great idea!

Getting kids ready for Santa

2012-12-23T09:24:00.003-05:00

My daughter came home from preschool very excited to sprinkle reindeer food in our lawn.
In case you need some evidence....

Magical Reindeer food made up of rolled oats and glitter :-)

And here's a couple special touches we do for Christmas morning as proof that Santa exists.

It's weird how Santa's snowy footprints smell just like baby powder!

And lastly, my friend Kendall, gave me these cute little Magic Elf Gum Drops which work wonders if you need to get a quiet moment from the kids in a hurry.

Merry Christmas!!!

DIY Christmas Wreaths Using Danimals Smoothies

2012-11-25T20:02:00.001-05:00

Remember how I told you that my daughter's preschool is trying to win a $30,000 playground makeover from Dannon by participating in the Danimals Rally for Recess promotional contest? Well because of that, we drink a lot of danimals smoothies around here so here's my Danimals Christmas Wreath made with foam board, hot glue, and wired ribbon.

Oh and don't forget, if your family drinks these or if you are a fan of the blog and willing to pick some up during your next trip to the grocery store, IF YOU WOULD PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE email me the special RALLY FOR RECESS code printed on the inside of the cardboard sleeve (not the UPC code but the code stamped on the inside of the packaging, I would so appreciate it. You can send those to thismommyloves@gmail.com.

If you liked this, make sure to check out the Halloween lights.

Kid Cooking - Thanksgiving Treat with a Message

2012-11-15T10:27:00.002-05:00

I love my daughter's little preschool so much. They do cooking once a month which she loves and I wanted to share this sweet recipe that she came home with yesterday. This would be a fun teaching tool to do with your little ones while preparing them for Thanksgiving.

2 cups of Bugles corn snacks (Horn of Plenty or an Indian tee-pee)
1 cup of candy corn (Indian corn that pilgrims ate at the first Thanksgiving)
1 cup of dried fruit (a sweet harvest)
2 cups of pretzels (arms folder in prayer)
1 cup of sunflower seeds (a bountiful harvest)
1 cup of peanuts (acorn because God takes care of the animals too!)

Mix together and serve with friendship and love. Recipe makes 8 servings.

Image from The Mommy Files

Practically Free Frosties!

2012-10-29T11:28:00.001-04:00

As you might remember, I am obsessed with stocking up on Wendy's frosty books this time of year.

Stop by participating Wendy's restaurants until October 31 and get Trick or Treat books with 10 FREE Jr. Frosty coupons for only $1. They are good through February.

This is such a great deal. For the last 3 years, I've bought 10 books. That means I get to have 100 frosties for $0.10 each. SCORE! The junior size frosty is the absolute perfect size for a special treat for yourself or your little one.

According to Livestrong there are approximately 170 calories in a Junior Size Frosty (6 ounces). Not too bad.

No joke, I usually go through the drive-thru and order 10 at a time and stick them in my freezer. They last for a month or two. I bring my cooler...I have no shame.

Remember, you only have until Oct 31st to buy them and they are redeemable through Feb 1st! Yumm!!! Go get your frosty on!

DIY Halloween Lights

2012-10-20T21:29:00.000-04:00

My daughter's preschool is banding together to try and win a $30,000 playground makeover from Dannon in their Rally for Recess promotion. We have all been drinking a lot of these Danimals smoothies and another mom at our school made this absolutely adorable Halloween Lights using the empty bottles! I just love this. Check out her blog for more of her adorable DIY creations.

Here's how she did it. She used black vinyl for the eyes and mouth but a sharpie would work too. She even let her kids help by drawing on some of the faces. Just grab yourself a pair of white string lights, and any ribbon you have laying around the house. Punch a hole in the sides and then cut down the side to the hole. The hole allows for a place for the lights to rest.

Kelly said snowmen are in the works for Christmas. I also plan on making a tacky Christmas wreath for my daughter's classroom using some of the empty red and green bottles. Any other ideas for a gazillion empty yogurt bottles?

And speaking of the danimals smoothies, these really are great snacks. My kids and myself love them and at 70 calories, they have less sugar than regular yogurt and no high fructose corn syrup. If your family drinks these or if you are a fan of the blog and willing to pick some up during your next trip to the grocery store, IF YOU WOULD PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE email me the special RALLY FOR RECESS code printed on the inside of the cardboard sleeve (not the UPC code but the code stamped on the inside of the packaging, I would so appreciate it. You can send those to thismommyloves@gmail.com. Here's what you're looking for at the grocery store.

Thanks so much!!!

jenn

Family Halloween Costumes

2012-10-11T11:38:00.000-04:00

I am a ~~HUGE DORK~~, lover of family-themed Halloween Costumes. Thankfully, I have a husband who plays along and even gets into it himself.

In 2009, Brenna was a Ghost and we were Ghostbusters!

The Handy Husband and I made our costumes from a plain white paint suit from Home Depot which cost about $7 each. The backpacks/ghostbuster guns were assembled from spare parts from the garage and a print-out of the Ghostbusters Logo from the computer. The straps on the backpack and the red stripes on the suits are duct tape.

Our little ghost, Brenna Boo's, costume was a Casper-onsie purchased from Walmart for $3, a black and white tutu, and personalized bloomers from Etsy's CustomClothesForKids.

In 2010, we had a princess themed family getup: Brenna, of course is the princess, Daddy will be sporting a Prince ensemble while I will be the EVIL QUEEN...muahahaha!

Last year, I had a 2 week old so I didn't dress up myself (other than being a symbolic cow), but Brenna was another princess and my mother-in-law knitted this precious apple costume for baby so we told everyone she was our poison apple.

Cute Halloween Party Food:

More Fun Family themed Halloween costumes:

My Mommy Squader, Amanda's, family went as the Flintstones last year. Super Cute!

Another Mommy Squader, Jill, did a Mommy-Daughter Cat Combo!

Laurie, the fabulous Tip-Junkie featured a great post about Family-themed Halloween Costumes. Check it out. Some of my favorites were this Incredibles Costume and the Condiments.

Here are a few ideas from Halloween Express:

And a few more from Busy Siblings

Do you like dressing up the whole family? I'd love to hear about some of your favorite themes.

Rustic Bridal Shower

2012-09-17T11:40:00.001-04:00

I had the pleasure of co-hosting a bridal shower this weekend for my bff, Schecky.

I love making these banners. They are completely reusable and are a relatively inexpensive way to really dress up a table or spread. Free printable

We decided on a signature cocktail "The Schecky Sangria" We used 16 oz regular mouthed Mason jars with chalkboard labels (black vinyl) and used white chalk for the labels. I had read online that you could sharpen a piece of chalk with a pencil sharpener but it didn't work very well for me. If someone makes a special chalk sharpener, would have loved that. I think a white crayon would have also worked and smudged less.

Paper Straws on Etsy

Burlap bar covering purchased at Michael's.

For favors, everyone got to take home a mini bottle of Sangria. Custom label read: Love is Sweet, See you in December. Because the caps were orange, we covered them with burlap and a ribbon.

Advice tags: we used these spruced up wish tags from Michaels and just glued some scrapbook paper to the back. Everyone was to write a piece of advice for the couple and drop them in the box. At the end of the night, we put all the tags on a key ring for the bride-to-be.

There are a few similar poems like this floating around online. I took from 2 or 3 and kinda combined them all to get this:

As Michelle and Brian embark on their adventure

As a new mr. and mrs.

They'd love to read your advice

Your blessings and your wishes

Share with them your wisdom

Of marriage, love, and life

How to be a loving husband

Or a kind and caring wife

Please take a tag, sign your name,

And offer a kind thought

These will be their keepsake

Once they tie the knot

We send them off with our love

And hope their days are filled with laughter

They will use your words to guide them

To their happily ever after

Games: Our two games worked well for a bride that was very much opposed to anything cheesy.

Game 1: Caption Contest. We took 4 pictures of the couple in random scenarios and had everyone write a funny caption for each. The bride then selected 1 winner for each and read some of the honorable mentions as well. People were pretty darn funny.

Game 2 was a famous couples worksheet. We put the groom's name as #8 and to make it a little interactive, we called out people's names to read out their answers rather than just reading the answers one-by-one.

Each table had a floral centerpiece made up of 1 bunch of hydrangea and 3 roses. They were in mason jars wrapped in burlap and tied with a ribbon. M&M filled vases. L.O.V.E candles from Michael's. Scrapbook paper and a custom frame. These were plain wooden frames that I painted pink and mod podged with some scrapbook paper strips.

The shower was held at Bizarre Cafe in Lake Worth.

My lovely co-host Allison (Schecky's sister) and me. I loved planning this with Allison. When I would get obsessive over small details, she'd have a no-brainer easy fix for me that saved me time and headaches.

I hope Schecky had the best day. I loved planning it for her cause I love her to pieces!!!! My advice I left for her on the tag which I truly mean was "Be as good of a friend to each other as Schecky has been to me over the years and you will be Golden"

xox
jenn

Farm Themed 2nd Birthday Party

2011-02-14T11:47:00.002-05:00

Our last 2nd birthday party of the "season" was Trey's farm-themed birthday party. This was one of the most fun parties we've been to this year. There was such attention to detail but the party never strayed from being all about the kids. Trey's momma, Antoinette, did a fabulous job!

Welcome to the Farm!

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

Lemonade and Water in Old-Timey Buckets

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

The Birthday boy and his main squeeze.

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

Adorable layout. Seating composed of tables and chairs and bales of hay covered with red and white checkered coverings.

The toddler-sized picnic table that seats 20 kids that my wonderful Handy Husband built. This table was carted around to 5 different houses this year and served as the perfect cake table for all the little ones. Thanks, HH, you're the best!

The Piggy and Cow Pops as favors on all the kids table.

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

My precious piggy!

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

Birthday Boy's Shirt

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

Farm themed party complete with the John Deere powerwheels. I die over this picture!

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

Mr. Donkey, of the petting zoo. Yes there is a petting zoo at this party. Keep scrolling down.

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

Great swing set in the background, cow balloons, and kids on mini tractors. Freaking Adorable!!!

Beverages served out of a wheel barrel.

The Petting Zoo!!!

Marina petting a goat.

A wild turkey that would "google" back at you.

Some sort of birds...

Adorable party hats!

Cake time! Prepare yourself for the cuteness of these cakes that were made by the birthday boy's proud aunt.

Piggy Cake

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

Mr. Bear Cake

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

Cow Cake!

Photo by Brooke Logue Photography

This party was adorable and such such fun for the kids (and the adults!).

2nd Birthday - Sweet Shoppe!

2011-01-20T10:21:00.002-05:00

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My mommy squader, Brooke, created this adorable Sweet Shoppe themed birthday party for her little sweety, Maren's 2nd Birthday. Not only are all the details adorably perfect, but Brooke is a professional photog and she captured the spirit of the party perfectly!

A sweet treat table!

See here for a great tissue paper tutorial

Decorative Clothespins

The adorable table that my handy husband made. It has been passed around and used at 5 different toddler birthday parties this year!

Adorable Candy Lanterns hung from the trees in the backyard.

Brooke's beautful family.

Lollipop Centerpieces

Yum!

Kisses from Maren's boyfriend, Trey.

The favor bags!

Great job as always, Brooke! What a special day you created for Maren and her buds!

Vendor credits coming soon!

Evidence that Santa Exists!

2010-12-24T11:05:00.005-05:00

In case you need some evidence....

It's weird how Santa's snowy footprints smell just like baby powder!

Merry Christmas!!!

Mommy and Me Apron Set Winner

2010-12-23T14:33:00.000-05:00

Thank you to everyone who entered to win these adorable Mommy and Me apron set from the fabulous Corey Lee Creations Etsy Page. My daughter and I will be wearing ours tonight as we make cookies for Santa! And now for the winner......

Congratulations, Denise!!!! Look out for a facebook message from me with instructions on how to claim your apron set.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Thank you for stopping by This Mommy Loves and leaving such nice comments. I hope you'll continue to stop by in the new year and share with me all the stuff that you love! Here's a list of posts that are all coming in January!

How to make a photo collage

A fantastic Sweet Shoppe 2nd Birthday Party

Nursery Tour featuring PoshTots bedding and accessories

An awesome before and after (trash to treasure) dining room set makeover

Cheers!

Jenn

Mommy and Me Matching Aprons Giveaway!

2010-12-17T13:34:00.002-05:00

On my recent, How to Make Playdough post, I featured some adorable Mommy and Me aprons by Corey Lee Creations. My daughter loves these aprons and brings me my apron everytime I start to cook and wants me to wear hers all time.

Lucky for us, Corey is giving away a matching Mommy and Me apron set to one lucky ready! How cute?!?!

MANDATORY ENTRY:

"Like" This Mommy Loves on Facebook (easy click on right sidebar) and leave a comment below telling me you've done so (tell me your name so I can verify).

BONUS ENTRIES (Each additional entry requires a seperate comment):
2) "Like" Corey Lee Creations on Facebook and tell me you've done so.
3) Go to Corey Lee Creations Etsy Page and to your favorites. Tell me you've done.
4) Follow ThisMommyLoves via Google Friend Connect and tell me about it.

5) Follow @ThisMommyLoves on Twitter and comment here with your Twitter screenname.
6) Tweet or RT: (1 entry per day, leave direct link) (sample tweet: @ThisMommyLoves is giving away an adorable Mommy and Me apron set!)

Winners will be chosen via random.org on December 23, 2010. Last valid entry can be entered on December 22, 2010 at midnight EST. Winners will be notified via direct message on facebook and will have 48 hours to respond before another winner is chosen via random.org.

US Residents Only.

Baby's First Birthday Theme: "Time Flies By/Just Plane Fun"

2010-12-13T22:11:00.006-05:00

Check out this ADORABLE "Time Flies/Just Plane Fun" 1st birthday party that my relative, Brittany, did for her son Daxton. I have never seen this theme before and all the special touches she added were so creative and fun, you can tell that Brittany put a lot of work into creating the perfect party.

First, here are the flight ticket invitations and envelopes made out of real city maps.

Boarding Pass Invitations: Ordered from etsy

Map Envelopes

Brittany found the inspirtation online, but made the envelopes herself. She asked all of her friends/family who were AAA members to maps of her city. Then she took a regular envelope and pulled it apart to make a template. Then she folded and glued the maps to form the envelopes. If you prefer to buy, here's an Etsy resource.·

Boarding Pass Holders

She found the idea here, but made her own.

Welcome Sign

Sources: Red Airplane Balloons and Blue Airplane Balloons

Welcome / Exit Signs
She used MS Word to make the big letters, then taped the printed letters on the window and traced it out onto the color printer paper

Baggage Claim sign which hung over the Favor Table (such a cute idea)

The Favors

Candy Airplanes and Pilot Wings

Candy Airplanes: Idea came from here. She made new gum wrappers (see design attached) with the same airplane graphic as the invitations. The plane is pulling a banner that says “Happy 1st Birthday Daxton”

Pilot Wings
She found a wing graphic online and then added each child’s name to the center

· Each wing was printed on card stock and she glued a locking pin on the back. She designed the “DAX Airlines Pilot” table tent using MS Word and used a hole punch to attach the wings.

Party Hats

Party Favor Boxes

Toy Airplanes: Target – pool department

Paratroopers: Target – party department
Signature Biscoff Cookies (purchased at Wal-mart)

She designed the top part of the bag using MS Word, printed on cardstock and stapled it to the top of a ziplock bag of cookies.

Restroom Signs

Main Terminal Sign: Pointing to the party room

Airport Signs printed on cardstock
Signs were as follows:
o   Passenger Check-In
o   Restrooms
o   Baggage Claim
o   Main Terminal

Adorable decoration (UP inspired)

#1 Red Balloons and #1 Blue Balloons

How cute is Baby Daxton? He's one of those babies that I get so excited about whenever there are new pics on facebook. Such a cutie!

Daxton’s Birthday Day Shirt
Daxton's Mom, Brittany, designed his shirt using the same airplane from the invitations and her sister embroidered it on an embroidery machine.

The Birthday Cake

I love a long table where everyone can sit together!

Landing strip tablecloth
She found the idea here, but she made her own using a plastic table cloth white medical tape to make the stripes.

The Exit Sign

Other elements:

Napkins

Airplane spoons

Chocolate Airplane Suckers

Brittany says, "I was going to make an airport security xray machine but ran out of time. It was just going to be a piece of wood painted with a skeleton body hanging (no head) and a whole cut out for the kids to stick their face through for pictures. I bought a flat skeleton during Halloween from the Dollar Store."

Brittany, this is one of the most creative kid's birthday parties I've seen. Way to go and thank you for letting me share this with the This Mommy Loves readers!

Looking for more This Mommy Loves Parties?
Check out my daughter Brenna's Pancakes and Pajamas 2nd Birthday
Audrey's Ice Cream Shoppe 2nd Birthday
Marina's Ladybug 2nd Birthday

And Coming Soon: Maren's Sweet Shoppe Birthday Party!

I like to LINK UP at the following Link Parties!

How to Make Playdough

2010-12-11T23:02:00.006-05:00

Ever wondered how to make playdough? Here's a recipe for playdough that my mom sent me recently. We used to make this when I was a kid and I had a blast making it with my daughter this week.

What you'll need:
2 1/2 cups of Plain Flour
1 1/2 cups of Water
1/2 cup of Salt
2 Tablespoons of Cream of Tarter
2 Tablespoons of Vegetable Oil
1 Teaspoon Food Coloring
1 Teaspoon Vanilla

Put all ingredients (except Vanilla) into a pot on the stove over warm heat. Stir until well mixed and add vanilla. Cook on Warm and keep stirring until it has the Play Dough consistancy (just a couple of minutes).

Check out my cookbook/recipe holder below. One of the best gifts I've ever received. I use it all the time.

Here's my little helper bee. This is the perfect project for those kids who love to help in the kitchen.

Check out the adorable apron by Corey Lee Creations!

Starting to get that playdough consistency...

Let the playdough cool completely on some wax paper on the counter before sealing it in an air-tight container.

Here's a little buddy of mine playing with the finished product.

These Mommy and Me aprons are so so cute!!! Perfect for Christmas time! Check out Corey Lee Creations or visit Corey's Etsy Page to purchase. They are made using a kitchen dish towel which is absolutely perfect because how many times do you find yourself grabbing towel to wipe your hands while in the middle of something? This really made things easier and my little one loved that we had matching aprons.

Great news!!! Corey Lee Creations is generously donating a Mommy and Me apron set to one lucky This Mommy Loves follower. Click Here to Enter!!!!

I like to LINK UP at the following Link Parties!

Friends and Followers Gift Guide

2010-11-26T14:34:00.001-05:00

Happy Black Friday!

1) I think the Cake Bites from Maid of Flours would be the absolute perfect hostess or teacher gift. Cake bites are yummy cake morsels dipped in chocolate. They have more than a half dozen flavors and use milk chocolate, white chocolate and vanilla coating for dipping. Current flavors include red velvet, Italian cream, spiced pumpkin, coconut, confetti cake and lemon. During other seasons they offer key lime and Irish cream. Cake bites are easily shipped and arrive in a gift box with a bow. Cake bites are offered by the dozen for $20 (excluding shipping).

2) Panhandle Girl makes all-natural, vegan-friendly bath & body products with a retro-glam flair. She uses sustainably-sourced, and organic ingredients.

3) Embellishing Life with Handmade Goodness offers the most adorable paper crafts perfect for holiday season. My favorites are the snowflake Christmas Gift Tag and the Green and White Mini Album Ornament.

4) Just Enough Style has a collection of adorable custom and colorful jewelry at very affordable prices. It is a place to find simple and unique accessories for your everyday life.

If you are looking for a unique gift this holiday season, please visit the shops of the This Mommy Loves Friends and Followers and show some bloggy love!

Cheers!
Jenn

How To Organize a Secret Santa Exchange Online

2010-11-23T13:44:00.003-05:00

I always find myself organizing a few different Secret Santa gift exchanges each year and I'm so glad I stumpled upon Elfster.com. This site is super easy to organize one or multiple Secret Santa Gift Exchanges.

Elfster is a free online Secret Santa organizer and social networking platform for gift-giving. Elfster gives time-strapped party planners and gift givers (um, yes that's me) the tools to plan and organize Secret Santa gift exchanges.

There are several options for each gift exchange and it gives the organizer the ability to peak at the draw or get left in the dark. The organizer also has the abillity to rig the draw to make it so that certain pairrings happen or don't happen. Example: Ashley hates Beth so let's avoid that exchange or rather let's rig it so they are forced to do something nice for one another. Muahaha.

Elfster.com really is a great service. Hope it helps you in your holiday planning!

PS. Sorry for the lack of posts this week. Our family was sick half the week and in Disney World for the other half. More on that trip later in the week.

Cheers!
Jenn

DIY Matchbox Car Caddy by Homemade by Jill

2010-11-16T16:56:00.001-05:00

This post from Homemade by Jill makes me wish I could sew because my nephew would LOVE this. But just because the thought of trying to figure out how to thread my sewing machine gives me an eye twitch, doesn't mean you share my hatred, so check out this adorable DIY Matchbox car caddy tutorial for full instructions.

This adorable fold up wallet-looking-thingy...

...opens up to be this awesome car garage racktrack mat thingy.

Go check it out. It's pretty cool. Perfect for travel.

Ladybug 2nd Birthday Party

2010-11-14T20:48:00.003-05:00

It's a ladybug party!!! One of my mommy squaders, Keri, threw her daughter an adorable ladybug party at their home. There were so many unique touches that made the party really special!

For starters, here's Keri sorting through 1,500 REAL LIVE ladybugs to fill little ladybug cups that were put on each of the tables. The kids had so much fun letting them crawl all over their hands. Plus, who knew ladybugs were so good for your yard?

Floral Centerpieces, ladybug cups, and red and black licorice on all the tables.

The most gorgeous playset

The happy birthday girl, Marina!

Super cute Birthday Banner. Printables by Dimpleprints. Same gal that did my Pancakes and Pajamas Invitations!

Goodie Bags including handmade ladybug antenna, Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies, Chocolate-Chocolate Chip cookies from The Capital Baker,

and these adorable chocolate ladybug pops.

Bag Tags. Printables by Dimpleprints

The food! Yum!

Buffet Highlights:

The Spiked "Ladybug Juice" was a concoction of: 1L Bacardi light rum, triple sec, 1 gallon hawaiian punch, 1/2 gallon orange juice, 1/2 gallon pineapple juice and slices of oranges and pineapple. So delish!

Buffalo Chicken Dip:
1 whole cooked chicken
12oz btl of Franks Buffalo Hot Sauce
4oz feta cheese crumbles
4oz blue cheese crumbles
1/4lb Low Fat cream cheese at room temp.
Finely shredded cheddar cheese

1. Cut fully cooked chicken up into bite size pieces, set aside
2. Pour jar of buffalo sauce and cream cheese into microwave safe bowl, warm for about 4 minutes. then mix together with food processor or hand mixer until a smooth, creamy texture.
3. Combine the bite size chicken pieces, sauce mix and feta and blue cheeses into large, oven-safe bowl. mix well.
4. You can either refrigerate for later or next day use or,
5. Sprinkle finely shredded cheddar cheese over top of dip and cook in over for 30minutes at 325 F.
Enjoy with celery, or chips!

Ladybug Pinata

Silly girls!

Great job, Keri! The creativity of my mommy squaders never ceases to amaze me! I'm so glad I have a group of supportive mommas that provide endless ideas for the This Mommy Loves blog.

Etsy Holiday Gift Guide

2010-11-11T20:12:00.002-05:00

It's that time of year to start your Christmas shopping! Every Friday until Christmas, I'm going to be featuring some of the items that are on my shopping list for family and friends. This first gift guide is all about Etsy! Here are some great ideas for her, him, and the kids.

Don't forget, if you are a This Mommy Loves follower and you'd like to have your shop or product featured in our special Friends and Family gift guide for FREE, please email me at thismommyloves@gmail.com.

Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with any of the above mentioned Etsy Shops. I simply like these products and think they would be good gifts. I wish Etsy had an affiliate program for bloggers but as of yet, they do not. Too bad for me.

DIY Racetrack Mat

2010-11-10T08:05:00.001-05:00

We recently held a Megablok themed playdate at our house and my Handy Husband created this awesome Racetrack Mat for under $10 that can be used again and again.

Supplies Needed:

Large White Paint Tarp ($7 at Home Depot)

Spray Paint (Black, Blue, Green, Brown)

Draw your track using black spray paint.

Next: Add a lake and some sand.

Fill in with green grass and add some trees.

The great thing about spray paint is it dries really quickly. The tarp can be folded up easily and stored away out of site.

And special thanks to the Handy Husband who did this at 10pm the night before the playdate! Such a good daddy!

I like to LINK UP at the following Link Parties!

Educational Play with Megabloks

2010-11-09T08:25:00.003-05:00

I recently hosted a Megablok themed playdate. All 9 toddlers and their mommas had a great time playing. The day after our big Megablok playdate, I took a note from my favorite educational mommy blog, Teach Mama, and I spent some quality time playing alone with my 26 month old daughter using the Megablok toys as educational tools.

1) Color Sorting

I started by placing 1 megablok of each color in seperate tile squares on the patio. Then I would pick one out of the bucket of multicolored megabloks and ask my daughter to tell me the color and place the block in the appropriate square. Done!

Then I asked her to pick the color that I called out from the bin of multicolored megabloks and place it with the appropriate square with the matching colored block. Slightly more difficult spin.

2) Shapes: Squares, Circles and Rectangles

We examined the megabloks from different angles and identified squares, circles, and rectangles.

3) Size: Small vs Big

I placed a small and large megablok next to each other. Then I would pull a block out of the bin and ask her to tell me if that was a small block or a big block and place it with the other small or big blocks. Once we mastered 2 sizes (small and big), we moved onto small, medium, and large. By the end, she would tell me "Momma, dis is a mejeeum one"

It's easy to run out of things to do with the little ones throughout the day so trying to take toys that you already have and using them in a new way helps to make the days go by and you can feel good knowing that you're teaching your kids in a fun way!

What are some of your favorite educational toys or activities to do with toddlers?

Shutterfly Holiday Gift Guide with Coupon Code

2010-11-08T12:46:00.002-05:00

In my first in the series of Holiday Gift Guides, let me just tell you that This Mommy Loves Shutterfly. I've been using Shutterfly since 2002! Holy begeezus that's a long time to be web loyal to a company! You're welcome, Shutterfly.

On my 2010 Christmas Shopping List, I include a lot of personalized photo gifts. Here are a few of my favorite items from the past which I've ordered all from Shutterfly.

Holiday Cards. For starters, imagine my excitement last year when I realized that Shutterfly had a holiday card design that EXACTLY MATCHED my daughter's Christmas Dress (que the angels singing). How freakin' adorable right?! The Harmounious Noir Holiday Card

Calendars: I always order 4 calendars, one for each set of Grandparents, the Great Grandmother, and the Great Aunt. This is such a classic go-to gift for family. My favorite design is Flower Market. My favorite thing about ordering calendars is that you can enter all your important dates and quickly insert those into the calendar. All you have to do is enter the dates 1 time, and shutterfly will keep record of all of them. You can choose what dates to insert into what calendar.

Photo Mugs: I think the Handy Husband said this was his all time favorite gift the first year our daughter was born. It was a way to show her off to everyone at work each day.

Desk Calendar: I ordered this last year and didn't realize how big it was, but it is perfect for any family member that might have a glass covered executive style desk. It measures 16" x 20" This is the "Seasons" Design.

Notepads: I personalized a little notepad for my Mom to keep by her desk and personalized it to say "Linda's Love Notes" This design is called "Sassy Girl Stripes"

Photobooks: I created my daughter's Baby Book using Shutterfly. This was at the very top of my own Christmas Wish List in 2008. I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS BOOK. It is beautifully bound and I cry everytime I look through it. Where as all the above listed items are very reasonably priced under $20 each, this book cost a pretty penny but it is my favorite gift in 3 years! This is a great gift idea for moms, grandmas, etc.

Click here to view this photo book larger

Right now, you can get a Shutterfly Free Shipping Coupon Code for orders over $30. Just enter SHIP30 at checkout. No coupon required to get 20% off calendars and 30% off photobooks right now.

Disclosure: Shutterfly has a program for bloggers where you can receive 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly in exchange for a post of this nature http://bit.ly/sfly2010 . No joke though, I had this post already in the works before I even heard about this (Thanks Michelle, at The Real Life Mom for the heads up).