Tiny Polaroid Magnets

My sis's birthday was coming up and she had just put a contract on her first home! I saw these Tiny Polaroid Magnets over at Ambrosiagirl a while back and thought this would be perfect for her.

Here's the ones that I gave to her... Happy Birthday and Congratulations Sis!!!



I used her Polaroid download and some of my favorite pics of my Sis's favorite people and had them printed at Walgreens. I was able to fit 15 on a 4x6.



I found these picture frames for another project while out Junkin' (our fancy word for garage sales, etc)the other day and was about to throw out the pictures.



The tutorial called for chipboard and these pictures were on dense cardboard so it worked out perfect. She used the back page of a sketch book.



I used rubber cement to glue the photos to the chipboard and cut them carefully out.



Once cut out, I enlisted the help of my mother to paint the edges white. This really made them look like Polaroids.



I then attached magnet strips that I bought at Lowe's on 2 yard roll.



I think they turned out super cute and my sister LoVeD them! Score!

I will be linking up to Made By You Monday by Skip To My Lou (#301).

Birdseed Treats

Realizing that summer is half way over, I decided to get started on the Summer To Do list that I made at the beginning of summer. Oh, it is my life!

First thing up were the super cute Birdseed Treats found over at Smilemonsters blog.



Following her recipe, you will need:
4 cups birdseed
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons of corn syrup
and we used a collection of cookie cutters

Mix everything except the birdseed together. Add seeds and stir well to coat all the seeds. As you can see, it is a sticky and gooey mess but the kids had fun. Start by pressing the birdseed mixture into the cookie cutter shapes on a wax paper lined cookie sheet. I helped the kids a bit by pressing and compacting the mixture into the shapes with the back of the spoon.



Now cut out holes with a straw so that you will be able to hang from a tree with string and pull off the cookie cutters carefully. We then put them in the oven for about an hour at 200 degrees or if you are patient (which I am NOT), you could let them air dry.



After cooling, attach string or ribbon and wa-la!...
Super cute homemade kid-made birdseed treats and bird approved!



and don't you know that every boy needs to make a truck birdseed treat!



and one last pic just 'cause it's so darn cute! Look at those dimples. <3 <3 <3



Enjoy!

My Joyful Garden

Today we cleaned up the side porch. Gathering up all my garden tools, I realized that I needed a place for them. Continuing with my new home-life motto of a place for everything and everything in it's place, I decided to keep them in a old planter pot. A little plain and boring you say?...



How about a little apple green spray paint?



A little better but now for the final touch, a label that gives me a visual reminder of what belongs in there.



Yep, that's it! And pretty cute I have to say. I will joyfully put my tools up now.



And I know you are wondering what is up with that old beat up red toolbox. It's my herb garden. My mother had set the old girl out for the scrap metal guy but I snatched it up before he got there. I think the stand it's sitting on came from her too. I love it and it brings me so much joy.



I have a set of hummingbird feeders right outside of my kitchen window. I love to drink my morning cup of coffee while watching them buzz around. This past week, my old-new to me camera came in so I was able to get a few shots of this mornings' visitors.



Here is my black headed with purple band guy...at least I think he's male. They are usually the ones with more vibrant colors.



What joy God's simple things give us when we take time to enjoy them.



"Be joyful always" 1 Thessalonians 5:16

First Veggies from the Garden

After much anticipation, the children were finally allowed to pick a few zucchini.



For the first batch of fresh picked zucchini, I also cut up a variety of other store-bought veggies.



I sautéed with a little olive oil and then added to butter-y noodles. Yum!



And a couple nights later, I sautéed another batch of just zucchini in olive oil and garlic salt. I couldn't keep the kids out of it!



One morning, I looked inside a zucchini bloom and found four bees hard at work. It looks like one is being the look out. Probably having to look out for...



a menacing cat. Nah, look at that sweet face. He is enjoying the veggie garden just as much as we are.



Having your own garden is so worth any effort that you put into it. Not only do we love the freshness of the veggies but also enjoy watching everything grow. What do you have planted in your garden?

Cream of Condensed Soup shortcut

Have you ever started banging pots and pans around for dinner time only to find out that you do not have the required canned Cream of xxxx soup? Well that happens to me sometimes always and I loathe going to the grocery store, especially just one item. Hubby is out of town so I couldn't send him. Hmmm...what to do. Shouldn't there be a substitute out there somewhere? Ta-da, there is! And this recipe that I found on cooks.com is a dry mix. And I had everything in the pantry to make it, score 2!

So here it is:

2 c. dry low-fat powdered milk
3/4 c. cornstarch
1/4 c. chicken bouillon crystals
2 tbsp. dry onion flakes
1 tsp. basil leaves
1 tsp. thyme leaves
1/2 tsp. pepper

Combine all and store in airtight container. To make cream soup, combine 1/4 cup of the dry mix and 1 1/4 cups cold water. Stir until thickened over medium heat. This is the equivalent of 1 can of soup.

I used one of my canning jars to store the dry mix and made a cute simple label. I didn't have time to do anything more to the label since the kids were in and out crying, "We're hungry."

Conclusion: It worked. Perfect, no. It's not as creamy as the canned variety but it worked in a pinch so I will keep it in the panty for next time the kids are crying "We're hungry" and I have everything to make dinner except the cream of chicken soup.

Reduce, Reuse, and RECYCLE

So while I'm supposed to be cleaning today, I start a new project... But really it fits in with cleaning, organizing, etc, right? At least that's what I will keep telling myself...and hubby.

Recently, I've been reading a lot and realizing the importance for me of labeling (I forget things very quickly) and a place for everything, everything in its place. With that, I decided to put labels on our recycling bins. Yes, I could just slap some file folder labels on there but that just wouldn't be fun... and remember, I am avoiding the act of cleaning.

First, I cleaned off the fronts of the bins. No, not the inside, just the outside, what fun would that be?
Then, I find a font I think looks the part. I already had this one downloaded (Rockwell) but I always go to dafont to look for the perfect font. Using my Cricut and the SCaL (Sure Cuts a Lot) software, I cut out my bin labels out of vinyl that I buy at Oh My Crafts.
What a pain it is to pull each letter off and place on the bins, getting the correct letter spacing! Am I right? So I have found using Duck's Peel & Stick Clear Laminate does the trick. I cut out a piece to cover the wording. Peel the laminate backing off and press over the word. Gently rub over the letters for good adhesion.
When pulling the laminate off your cutting mat, the vinyl letter backs will stay. Or they should, if not you can press them down a little.

Place the vinyl sticker you just made onto your bin. I use a tongue depressor to rub over the letters but you can use really anything.

I found that when pulling the laminate off, it worked best when I pulled it straight back on itself. The letters seemed to stay better on the bin.

Ta-Da!



A place for everything and everything in its place!

W I L D Party

Kit's 5th birthday party was a blast! Her friend, Faith, from school was able to come.


All the girls were acting silly and playing dress up while waiting for the guests to arrive.


We ate mini pizzas and made initial glass wafer necklaces (including the mommies and grandmas) that were a total HIT! Then on to cake and presents...


Woo-hoo! She had tons of fun and was pooped when it was all over. Happy Birthday sweet girl!

Happy Birthday Kitty!

Five years old, wow-wee!!! I cannot believe how fast the time has gone. You are a sweet girl and I thank God for all the time he has blessed me with you. I love you Kit!!!

Wow, where did the time go?

Sorry it's been such a long while since my last post. Since then, I have had a knee surgery, Carson has had his first birthday, another surgery, and another knee surgery... And tons of other things to keep this momma busy.
I am posting a few pictures from our little end of school get-a-way trip to Lake Brownwood with a stop on the way home to Abilene Zoo. For now, just pics and I will catch everyone up in following posts. Enjoy!

Kit swimming in Lake Brownwater, I mean, Brownwood.


If Carson ever becomes a famous surfer, we will be able to say he started surfing before he was two. I always wondered about those Tiger Woods out there that started "golfing" or whatever at such a young age, now I know!


Katlynn was so kind to give her brother a large marshmallow while we were loading the boat. And before I could take the picture, I had to get the huge chunk out of his eye before I won another mother of the year award.


Some very cute shots of the kids in Abilene at their park behind the Zoo. I have an old photo of me and my mother standing in a pasture of yellow wild flowers just like this and always wanted to get one of me and my kidos.

P.S. This post is 'specially for Julie! We love you, Yulie!

Happy 50th Birthday!

My sister and I orchestrated a surprise birthday party for my Dad, George and step-mom, Trish. We had tons of help putting it together, especially from our cousin, Jessica. Mwah! Thank you all so much.

We had the lights turned out and when they came in, we all jumped out and yelled "Surprise!". The look on both of their faces was priceless. They both had no clue it was a party for them. We had told them it was a party for Carson, who turned one the day before George's birthday. Can you see the surprise on their faces?

We had so much fun. Many family and friends were able to make it. Audrey was able to fly down and our Uncle Eric and family were able to drive here from Corsicana, TX.

I wish you both all the happiness in the world and are so blessed to have you both in my life.
Thank you and Happy Birthday!

Hope you guys are having fun in VEGAS!