Check this out!

Eighteen25 is having a Spooktacular September on their blog.  Each day, a different blogger is doing a guest post with a Halloween idea.  It lasts the WHOLE month of September and it's really fun to follow along and see people's creative Halloween ideas...  Here are a few of my favorites so far:



 Also, on Brown Paper Packages, there is a similar daily post for the whole month of September - but it's BACK-TO-SCHOOL ideas.  It's called {Back 2 Basics}.  There are some great ideas like the following on that blog:

Go check out both of these blogs!  Then don't forget to go back each day to see the new guest post.  Fun stuff out there...

Stuffed Penguin

How cute is this stuffed penguin from homemade by jill!  I love it!  I ended up making the little alligator taggie from the same site - and although it didn't turn out perfect, my little guy loves it.  That's all that matters, right?!  It was my first attempt at sewing & stuffing a little animal, so now I might dare attempt something else, like this penguin... 

my attempt at the alligator taggie animal...

Also, I just saw this on Homemade by Jill. 

Isn't it cute??  It's the Five Little Monkey's Swinging in a Tree poem/song (if you click on the Five Little Monkey's, it takes you to the FREE template).  Want to get sewing because I think both the penguin and these little finger puppets would be awesome 1st birthday gifts for my little guy!

Summer Fun!

When I saw this idea on eighteen25, I knew it was PERFECT for my almost 8 year old daughter!  She is super creative and loves to be doing anything crafty.  I could fill an entire filing cabinet with the little notes and pictures she's constantly giving me.  Almost daily I find a little note or picture tucked somewhere.  Writing a PEN PAL would be the perfect summer activity for her!  She has several little friends that I know would love corresponding with her through the mail.  So, we will be creating some of these darling pen pal kits over the next few days...one to for Syd to keep, and a couple for the friends she'd like to correspond with.

2 Things...

1st:  Chore Charts - Here's what I came up with.  Nothing too fabulous, but so far they have been successful.  My kids are excited to see what's in their pockets each morning.  Hopefully their excitement will last through the summer... We'll see!  Also, my cousin sent me a link to an awesome 3-month SUMMER CALENDER.  You can print it on legal size paper & keep it on your fridge with your whole summer planned out.  That way kids can see what's coming up, like a summer trip, etc., or can see what the plan for the day is.  You can find the summer calender here: http://thirtyhandmadedays.com/2011/05/funner-in-the-summer-summer-calendar-from-heather-carson/

2nd: Black Bean Salsa - Yummy!  Every time I make this, I can't get enough of it.  It's really good!  It is perfect to take to a BBQ or to have as an appetizer.  It's served with tortilla chips. 

Black Bean Salsa:

2 cans corn - drained

2 cans black beans - drained & rinsed

diced avocados

diced Roma tomatoes

sliced green onions

chopped fresh cilantro

1 prepared packet of Good Seasons Italian dressing

(I usually make the "less oil" version of the dressing)

lemon pepper - to taste

Mix all ingredients.  Chill before serving.

Perfect For Summer...

Next week at this time, school will be out for the summer.  In fact, there are only 2 full days and 1 half day left.  That's right, by Wednesday at noon - NO MORE SCHOOL.  I always have mixed emotions about the end of the school year.  On one hand it's nice to have a break...nice to not have homework to worry about, nice to be able to just stay home, nice to be able to stay in pj's all day if needed.  But on the other hand, it's hard to keep the kids entertained and happy.  I've been thinking of several projects I'd like to work on during the summer...
First, I saw these EASY and totally PERFECT little pouches for frozen "push-up" type Popsicles.  These will be top on my list since my kids go through boxes of Otter Pops during the summer! 

Frozen Go-gurt/Otter Pop holders from Brown Paper Packages

Second, I am in need of a very large church bag that can fit a very large binder, lesson manual, scriptures & a trunk full of baby stuff!  So, when I saw this bag from Vintage Ric Rac, I decided I needed to make it!  Plus it says it only takes an hour - well, it will probably take me A LOT longer, but still worth a try!

1Hour bag from vintage ric rac

Summer at our house means lots of snacks and meals!  I like to spend a day making BIG batches of baked goods or meal items & then freezing them so we can enjoy them for awhile.  These cookies & cream banana muffins are a perfect snack!  I bake them in mini-muffin tins and then place 3 in snack size Ziploc & freeze them.  YUMMY.  My kids love them...

Cookies and Cream Banana Bread (or muffins) from Picky Palate

My almost 8 year old is always looking for crafts to make - and I'm always looking for the perfect hair accessory for specific outfits.  Well, summer is the perfect time to make a few hair flowers, etc. for next school year.  These require no sewing and can be placed on clips, headbands, pins for clothes, etc.  I think we'll be making some of these soon...

No-Sew Fabric Flowers from Ruffles and Stuff

A BIG project I want to accomplish this summer is to organize my recipes.  I have quite a few recipes that we use over and over but they're in several different cookbooks.  I want to get all my favorite recipes in ONE place.  I love this little ring of recipes from Brown Paper Packages.  It can fit in your purse so it can go to the grocery store with you...  That way you won't be half way home from the store when you remember that you forgot an ingredient you need for dinner that night!  Love it!  

Family Menu Planner/Grocery List from Brown Paper Packages

I am in desperate need of a great CHORE CHART.  I would like to be somewhat organized during the summer.  I want the kids to work hard & play hard!  I am on the look-out for the perfect way to organize our household chores, to keep the kids reading, and to REWARD them for what they accomplish.  I'm thinking of some kind of "pocket" system where the kids can have 1 pocket where I place chore cards each day, and 1 pocket where they can place completed cards.  Kinda like a library card or something...  I'll let you know what I come up with!

Ohhh...and look at this!   A jar of boredom busters!  Perfect, right?  What mom doesn't hear, "Mom, I'm BORED!" all summer??  This jar is full of great little projects or ideas.  You can find it at Skip to My Lou.

HAPPY SUMMER!

Just Breathe...

Wow!  It's crazy how fast time flies!  I can't believe we're already so far into May.  I feel like I've been caught in a whirlwind with no time to relax...  The last couple of weeks have been full of projects and places to be!  Here's what I've been up to:

{1} Celebrating 6 MONTHS with this little guy & celebrating that he put on a little more weight!  Still not where he needs to be, but we're moving in the right direction.  (6 month weight = 12 lbs. 9 oz.)

{2} Turning a couple yards of Amy Butler's newest line into these Mother's Day gifts - with a little help from a tutorial from Delia Creates...

{3} Receiving gifts like this one from my favorite little people to celebrate a FABULOUS Mother's Day!

Apparently closing the blinds at night & reminding kids to brush their teeth makes you the BEST mom ever!

{4} Making all the hair pieces for her ballet company's Spring Performance...

and among many other things... {5} Getting back in the saddle for a very well organized all WOMAN'S ride.  It was a great ride minus the super strong headwinds that started around mile 35!!  It felt good to ride again...





Mother's Day Ideas...

My cousin asked for a couple of mother's day ideas she could do with her YW.  Here are a few:

Single Serving Pie in a Jar {from Our Best Bites}.  Pie is the new "it" thing this year - no more cupcakes!  Or so they say anyways!!  Don't these just look yummy though??  You can freeze them & just pull one out & bake it for a delicious treat!

Or how about these felt flowers {from The Fickle Pickle}.  They can be used as a broach on a sweater or bag or as a hair clip.

Or maybe a simple hook board - love the mason jar too!  This can be found at Shanty2Chic...



Mother's Day is May 8th - which is just around the corner!!  Good time to start thinking about gifts...

Teacher Appreciation Week...

Most schools will be celebrating Teacher Appreciation Week soon.  Here are some fabulous ideas I've come across.  Not sure which ones I'll be using, but they are all really cute...

Teacher Appreciation Subway Art {from eighteen25}

Teacher Treat Box {also from eighteen25}

*top of box

*inside the box

Teacher Treat Jar {again, from eighteen25}

ALL the directions, how-to, and printables for the above, can be found at eighteen25!

Thanks for Helping me GROW flower {from nobiggie}

There are a few ideas to get you started... or to at least get your mind going!  I know there are a ton more cute & clever ideas out there.  I'll try to do another Teacher Appreciation post soon, so stay tuned!

Project Ideas...

Can't wait to use my Silhouette to do these kinds of things:
{1} subway art -

{2} monogrammed Easter pails (from Brown Paper Packages) -



{3} personalized gifts like these (also from Brown Paper Packages) -




{4} and other things like paper crafts, etched glass, temp. tattoos, vinyl, etc. (pictures from eighteen25):



I think I'm going to like this little machine...

Just a Suggetstion...

Here's a fun Family Home Evening idea...  Or as my 3 year old calls it, "Happy Home Evening!"  I used to try to correct her but then I thought - why??  I'm glad she thinks it "happy" to be together as a family.  Hopefully she'll still think it's "Happy Home Evening" when she's a teenager!  Anyways, here's a fun idea if you need IDEAS for Family Night.  It's a SUGGESTION BOX!  You place it somewhere in your home where everyone has access to it and place some blank slips of paper and a pen nearby.  Then when anyone has a FHE suggestion, an idea for a lesson, or something else they'd like to do - they can write it on a paper and slip it in the box.  Whaalaa!!  Instant FHE ideas!  Makes my job super easy, cause all I have to do is look through the SUGGESTIONS Monday morning and then plan our FHE around the idea.  Perfect!  Plus when it's their idea, there are no complaints or whining!  Love it!

My 7 year old suggested a Family Night at the Temple Visitor's Center.  Perfect!

Cute Party Favor Idea!

We are starting to plan for my almost 4 year old's birthday PARTY.  It's her "first" friend birthday party & she is SUPER EXCITED to say the least! She has decided it has to be PRINCESS themed party of course!  BUT, she is inviting more boys than girls...  That proved to create a small dilemma!!  So, after much deliberation, we are going to be having a PIRATE and PRINCESS party!  Anyways, I just found the cutest idea for a party favor {here} at Home Made by Jill.  She has the cutest ideas and is so clever!!  Look under her tutorials for the how-to on these fun crayons...  I'll now be on the lookout for PRINCESS and PIRATE themed candy molds!