Archive for 2013

Cora Jane picked a Rainbow Unicorn themed party.

Because of course she did.

(see last year’s Rainbow Puppy party here)

This theme was a lot of fun, and lo and behold, they actually make rainbow unicorn stuff!

The Birthday Outfit: Cora Jane’s outfit was completely handmade with a lot of love by our good friend Patti. Wow, are we blessed! Floor length rainbow tutu, beaded rainbow heart tee, rainbow headband, rainbow bracelets, AND cloud/rainbow wand.

Décor: Rainbow flowers from Sam’s Club, rainbow lanterns and poofs from Party City to hang in the trees, rainbow chevron fabric with colored glass lanterns for each table. I have no pix of the tables. They were adorable!!! I used a rainbow fabric strip bunting (my friend Kyla and I made together) behind the cake table and other random stuff from Cora Jane’s Rainbow Room too.

Menu: The boyz barbecued chicken and we had loads of fruit, chips, salsa, rainbow gold fish (Eli’s idea) and macaroni salad. Water and pink lemonade in rainbow unicorn cups with rainbow curly straws. (Easy and CHEAP… I used to do pizza or Subway with juice boxes, but doing chicken and having a drink dispenser really really cuts the cost… a lot!)

Cake: I got the cake and cupcakes at Sam’s Club then added the sparkle candles, rainbow unicorn toppers. and put them on the rainbow unicorn cake stand.

She loved them!

Entertainment: Unicorn stickers on a table with paper and crayons, bubbles, chalk, a mini bounce house my in-laws brought, and a piñata!

The piñata was decapitated after the 5ish kid. It looked pretty darn morbid hanging there while children picked up the candy that had poured out of his flying carcass.

Why do I love piñatas so much? I have no idea.

But I do.

The rainbow birthday hat was made by my friend Cheri at Sweet Lily Tutus!. Cora Jane LOVES it and it’s now a decoration in her rainbow room

Favors: The favors were adorable! But would you believe I don’t have any pictures!?!? Otter pops with a unicorn horn lollipop tied with curly ribbon. It was super super super cute (and inexpensive and fun).

Cora’s expression here kills me…

Reason #346 Aunties are better than mommies…

It was a good day.

And a sad day.

The first birthday party without my mom. The first birthday party Cora Jane didn’t get a custom Nannie-made-pillowcase. But we are blessed. We were surrounded by people who love us and who we love. My grandmom made Cora Jane a special rainbow pillowcase. She was overjoyed!

It was a good day.

Having 4 kids means I’m at the doctor’s office 4 times as much as someone with one child.

Having a child like Cyrus, means I’m at the doctor’s office 10 times as often… that kid!!

Anyway, at our last sickie appointment (Cy, two weeks ago) the doctor told me to get the whole family on probiotics. I had two thoughts: 1. Why am I just hearing about this now? 2. When, where and how much?

A couple of days later I was asked to to a little posty-post about Lifeway’s Frozen Kefir Pops. A lil’ ice-creamy-ish product with 12 probiotics (seven to ten billion CFU’s of 10 strains of bacteria plus ProBoost).

Um… OK! Just what the doctor ordered!

The “bug pops,” as my children call them, are tasty and healthy. If you are looking to get some probiotic action in your kids during Summer pool time, then pick some up at Whole Foods Market ($5.99 for a box of 6). They are in the freezer section… I’m telling you because no one knew where they were. I kept getting directed to the regular ProBugs in the yogurt section. (Which also looks tasty and it’s in those squeezy packs that are soooo easy for babies to suck down… you know what I’m talking about, right?)

After you finish your frozen ProBugs use the box (or any lightweight cardboard box… or 2 layers of felt) to make superhero masks with this great Superhero Mask Template I made for ya.

You’ll need:

Frozen ProBugs box

Superhero Mask Template

Dark marker

Glue (I only use hot glue… dangerous, yes. But also strong and fast drying.)

Random kid crafty stuff. I had buttons, pipe cleaners and sparkle tape. Markers, rhinestones and stickers would be great too.

Hole punch

Yarn

I ended up making a template because it’s a lot harder than it looks to eyeball a mask shape.

True story.

I made 3 different mask styles – traditional, cat-eye and crown.

Cut out, then punch a hole on each end of the mask level with the eye holes.

Decorate, then tie the yarn to create the band. (If you are using felt then you can sew on elastic.)

Easy and fun.

Find Lifeway Kefir on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.

All of Lifeway’s products are gluten free and 99% lactose free.

Random side note: The Lifeway brand has a sweet lil’ backstory, a real American Dream!

Disclosure, yo: This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group™ and Lifeway Kefir but all my opinions are my own. And I made up the craft and template myself and used my own supplies. What else can I disclose?… um… I never do posts about something I don’t like… ever. Oh and I cuss at my kids. Hope that covers all my bases. Blarg.

One of my good friends came over with yarn and wreath forms and I supplied the vintage hankies.

Beauty was born.

In my humble opinion.

You’ll need:

Wreath forms

Yarn (one bundle)

About 2 feet of lace (it’s hidden, so you can use leftover yarn or string)

Hankies (or fabric scraps)

Optional – Hot glue (or tape or tacky glue)

1. Wrap the heck out of the wreath with the yarn. But on a good show or have friends over to chat, because this takes forever and is pretty boring.

You can secure the ends with hot glue or just wrap the end in the next layers or tape the end or tacky glue or tie in a knot. Just get that yarn on the wreath. If you have a straw wreath leave the plastic covering on so you don’t have straw sticking out (though that could be cute too).

2. Lay the lace behind the wreath. Layer the hankies and wrap the lace over every 2-ish layers and around the wreath. Hankies should be floppy. Tie off and hide lace ends under hankies. Fluff the hankies as desired.

3. DONE!

I put mine up on St Patty’s Day with white hankies then added some Spring colors for Easter… I may add some brights for Summer.

I just took down our Easter decorations, but I’m keeping up the Spring stuff. It isn’t much different, but for some reason this has me perplexed. First world problem. Do you leave up Easter? Or have totally separate stuff for Spring? Or take it all down and go plain till the next holiday? Inquiring minds want to know.

Me!!

The left picture is Easter the right is Spring. I just took down the Happy Easter sign and Easter eggs, then hung the Hankie Pankie Wreath and switched sides with the burlap wreath.

My favorite is the hankie hoop behind the wreath!

Sigh. Crafts are fun and theraputic.

Don’t forget to enter the big $500 and $250 gift card giveaway!

Spring has sprung and I’m so looking forward to the warm weather (though I am pretty spoiled with endless Spring/Summer in Southern California).

I’ve been purging my closet of my fat preggo clothes… and (unfortunately) my skinny pre-4-kiddos-in-5-years clothes… blarg. (Because if I ever do lose the last 15 lbs, I’ll be so effin’ stoked that I’ll buy all new stuff.)

Spring cleaning has added loads of our old items on Craig’s List and a few dollars in my pocket. And I’m prepping for our neighborhood garage sale in a couple of weeks.

I love simplifying in the Spring. I love our family sunset hikes. I love the Japanese Blooming Peach tree we planted in our front yard. We call it “Nannie’s Tree” and it will bloom bright pink flowers every February. And we will celebrate my mom’s too-short life. I love the 60 feet of soft outdoor lights threaded through the trees in our backyard just waiting to illuminate Spring Barbeques. God, I wish my mom could see the lights. I know we would have picnicked in the yard on a warm evening and she would look around and say everything felt “magical,” because that’s what she would say when I did anything she thought was particularly clever.

Spring means new beginnings. Good beginning, or bad beginnings you have to make livable good.

How about winning something fun this spring? Just to help you fill in all that newfound space in your freshly Spring cleaned home. How about winning something BIG! As in…

(Get it? Click & Carry. As in “click” with your new camera and “carry” your new camera in a cute bag. You have no idea how long it took for that to make sense in my head. Good Lord, sometimes I wonder how I get through the day keeping a biz going and 4 humans alive!)

$500 gift card to B&H Photo, Video & Pro Audio

or

$250 gift card to Kelly Moore Bags

Start Spring with a rad camera or get that lens you’ve had your eye on… then put your camera in a lovely bag!

(Two winners… the first one gets their choice and the second gets the other.)

The only thing I ask is for you to bake me cookies if you win. J/K… unless you want to… then totally not J/K…

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Two winners will be chosen by Rafflecopter (powered by Random.org). The first winner chosen will have the option of choosing between a $500 gift card to B&H Photo, Video & Pro Audio or a $250 gift card to Kelly Moore Bags. The second prize winner will be awarded the item that was not chosen by the first prize winner. Gift cards are not transferable and cannot be exchanged for a cash prize.

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Awesome graphic by the talented Lindsay Goldner at LLYDesigns.

For Boston. Seriously folks, does this make your heart hurt like it does mine? More on that another day.

This Easter was a first for me.

The first Easter without my mom.

My mom always hosted Easter in a big way (see 2012, 2010 & part 2, 2009). She had a way of bringing all sorts of people together. It was pretty amazing actually. (My mom and I below, Easter 2009)

Our Easter day ended up being quite lovely and I think a lot of it had to do with the way my church prepares for Easter – we take a weeklong “journey” together with a corporate fast and daily devotions. Below are the cliff’s notes version of what we gave up for the progressive fast everyday. So each day you are adding to what you have already given up the days before. We started the Sunday before Easter. (click here for the complete details, it’s worth a click)

Sunday: All media… TV, movies, video games, phone apps… (oh how I missed Instagram!!)

Monday: Caffeine. (Don’t you agree that it was pretty cruel to make people cut caffeine so early in the fast!?!?!)

Tuesday: Snacks and desserts.

Wednesday: Remove one meal.

Thursday: Remove two meals.

Friday: Everything but bread.

Saturday: Everything but water.

Sunday: Prayer walk at 6am and breaking fast together with yummy breakfast burritos after the prayer walk.

Although Easter without my mom was tough on my soul, I feel like my heart was prepared.

Prepared to mourn.

Prepared to celebrate the resurrection.

Prepared to bask in the truth that I will be in heaven with my mom someday.

Prepared to offer that opportunity to my children. (Because God doesn’t have grandchildren.)

Because if Christ didn’t rise from the dead what is there?

Really.

What’s the point?

We woke up at 4:30 to be at the prayer walk by 6am. We were in full Easter garb. (Oh you know how I LOVE to match!!) It was hard but we wanted to go big. We wanted our children to understand the gravity of this day. Christ’s resurrection is everything.

Everything.

I had the kids sleep in their clothes. YEP. Whenever we have to go somewhere early, my kiddos have slept in their clothes. And on bath nights I have them put on their shirts for the next day. (Free Big Family tip for ya!)

Here we are walking and praying…

We watched the sunrise and prayed with our friends for every aspect of the day and service.

It was powerful.

Then our pastor shared a few words.

I have no idea what, because I could smell the homemade breakfast burritos and was starving from the fast.

Then we had our service…

Then home for Easter baskets…

Each kiddo got a book, a toy (except Tess got shoes because she LOVES shoes) a chocolate bunny, peeps and a bathing suit (all hand-me-down suits this year. Yay for saving $$$).

My mom’s best friend hosted us for lunch and an Easter Egg hunt and one of my mom’s other friends made the girls’ dresses and the boys’ bow ties (the same one who made their St. Patty’s Day dresses and watched my kiddos while my mom was in the hospital). I can’t even begin to tell you how much it means to me that so many people have stepped into my life. Doing the little things my mom would have done for me. Little things are big, because they matter.

Not one decent pic of the kids together this year. I may stage something this week. For posterity’s sake.

Here is last year’s Easter service (video from the audience) I love this one!!!

Think Dr Seuss meets urban poetry meets interpretive dance meets inspirational preacher.

I’ll be honest though, I’m not usually a fan of modern dance at church, but the words in this piece give me the chills every time.