homemade biscotti

Had some fun trying something new today...homemade biscotti. I have about four other recipes that I hope to try through out the week. Next up, white chocolate and cranberry biscotti.

recipe

glitter houses

My favorite Christmas crafts are the ones that I get to do with my cute girls. This year we decided to make a little village of glitter houses. After gathering houses from Hobby Lobby and DI and even making one of our own with leftover cardboard we painted them up in a fun color scheme of red, pink, turquoise, and white. Once the paint was dry we painted over each house with mod podge and sprinkled with white glitter. Then embellished the houses with little wreaths that were also purchased at Hobby Lobby. They look so sweet and the girls love having them displayed in their playroom. You can also add battery operated tea lights in each house to give life to your houses even at night.

Hard at work!

I created the white wreaths using the same bleaching affect from the Christmas trees on the previous post.

Hope this adds a little sparkle to your day!

christmas jars

My first little project I wanted to share was my pretty Christmas jars. I have sort of had an obsession this Christmas with anything bottlebrush - trees, wreaths, etc. It all started with a bottlebrush wreath that I bought at my favorite store in Utah, The Busy Biddy. I began looking at tons of pictures from different blogs and then became offically crazy.

With this project, I really just wanted to do something super simple (obviously these little jars and trees could be totally bedazzled) that just showed off mini bottlebrush trees covered in snow.

I found all of my trees at Hobby Lobby for super cheap. When I bought them they were green. I came home and gave each of them a nice soak in some hot water and bleach. I let them soak for about 30 mins. Then I rinsed each one throughly to get off any additional bleach. I let them dry overnight. Once dried, I sprayed each tree with a little snow spray that I also got at Hobby Lobby, called "Snow" and sprinkled with a touch of glitter. I gathered all the glass jars around the house that I could, poured in a little sugar for snow, placed in the tree and ta da...pretty little Christmas jars. Super simple, but very soft and pretty.

sweet

I am so excited about sharing with all of you the many Christmas projects I have been up to. I love Christmas, especially Christmas decorating. Today we took a break from painting, glueing, and glittering to fill our bellies with some yummy treats. My daughter took her time to make each cookie special. I love her attention to detail even at age 6. I also love that my three old thought that the jar of sprinkles was available to be dumped freely into her mouth. And I know her secret motto is "you can never put too much frosting on one cookie".

Be back soon.

fall lunch

Yesterday I had a fun fall party with a few of my friends and their kids. The kids munched on some grilled cheese sandwiches while the mom's enjoyed some of my favorite butternut squash soup and sun-dried tomato, fresh mozzarella and pesto panini's (inspired by Pizzeria 712).

Our little center pieces where made from some wax paper crayon leaves , a DI vase, and some sticks from the backyard. My girls helped me with this little project and loved seeing them displayed.

Hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving...full of thanks and giving!

just add water

I loved the "just add water" paint books when I was little. I saw this idea and it brought me back. Can't wait to put some of these together for my girls. Check it out at Giver's Log.

supergirl party

This weekend my sweet girl celebrated her 6th bday with a supergirl party. I love that she is "super" creative and comes up with fun themes for her birthdays that help me become very inspired. Here are a few fun pictures of the eye candy from the party along with pics from the supergirl themed photo shoot I did with my daughter a few days before the party. Hope you enjoy!

credits to the cutest superhero cape ever go to my wonderful sister...the hare!!

printable banner from ruffled

superhero jars...just a twist on these halloween jars from Not So Idle Hands

My supergirl looking over the city she protects.

oh, the places you'll go

Today as I dropped off my little baby (well, only a baby to me her mommy) for her first day of preschool. I drove away thinking about this Dr. Suess book and beaming with pride over my sweet little girl. The universe must be calling me, because when I got home I came across this free printable from one of my favorite blogs 74 Lime Lane. Oh, how I love free printables.

paper crane

Today the girls and I had some fun folding paper and making cranes. We have high hopes of making a chandelier to hang in the soon to be playroom. Lots of fun!

secret storage books

I think next I get a box like this in the mail I won't be so quick to toss it. Now I just have to track one down. Check out this project at Design Sponge.

pretty dishes and pretty florals

I found these dishes today at the thrift store and loved the soft florals.

I love this simple collage of plates.

Not too much but not too little.

I think I will make my own.

image found via 6th street design school

i've flipped...

...for FLIPPED.

I have never done a book review on this blog but I had to share this book with everyone. It was so heartwarming, fun and wholesome. I absolutely loved it!! If you are looking for an easy read that is sure to lift your spirits...try FLIPPED!

lunch bag pattern

so cute. I want to go back to school just so I can carry this cute little bag around. Check it out at The Long Thread.

cupcake wrappers

One of my try loves in life...cupcakes. I found a template for these cute cupcake wrappers and had to try them immediately. Thankfully I had all the activity girls coming over so I had an excuse to make a batch of cupcakes. Check it out at Snow and Graham.

couture candy

Pretty much fell in love with these instantly. And the rock candy tied on top basically makes this the best favor. Check it out at Paper and Cake.

back to school...

My brain is in full back to school mode. My oldest is starting kindergarten and my little baby (not really a baby anymore) is starting preschool. I am going to try really hard not to cry...I can tell you already that I will 100% not succeed in this.
Check out this cute flower arrangement for back to school. One Charming Party (love them) has the instructions.

to be with...

I know that this blog has been lacking in the posts department, but it is for good reason. FAMILY. I have been on vacation for almost the last month and lucky for me the fun continues the next few weeks. I decided to focus my attentions totally on those around me and pick up on the blog in a few weeks. I promise I will be back to my posting everyday self real soon.

DIY chandelier

After a two week vacation we are back and ready to start posting.

I came across this chandelier yesterday and fell in love. Check out the tutorial at My House of Giggles.

mustache mug tutorial

A fun, easy and silly gift to give the cute men in our lives this Father's Day.

First, draw a mustache on the top of your mug with a sharpie marker. As you can see mine took a couple times to get right.

Second, trace around the edges of the drawn mustache with your Pebeo pen.

Next, fill in the mustache with your Pebeo gel stain.

This is a picture of one coat.

Be patient because it will take a couple of coats to get the look you are going for.

Lastly, follow the directions of the stain. Mine said to bake at 300 for 30 minutes.

Ta Da...the cutest little mug I have ever seen.

Fill with a favorite drink or candy and pass it on to the men in your life.

Happy Father's Day!

As you can tell, I might have a hard time giving mine up. They are just too cute!

aqua mason jars

I am obsessed with the color aqua and anything cool like an old mason jar is my best friend. When I found this tutorial on how to make your own aqua mason jars I was very excited. Check it out at iDIY.

fabric button necklace

So cute and really vintage looking...I love that! Check them out at Very Purple Person.

paper dolls

We can't get enough of these free printable vintage paper dolls. My daughter and I have been printing, cutting and playing all afternoon. Check them out at here.

paint effects

Cool paint effects from Studio Calico. I love the technique with the credit card.

mod podge books

I have been wanting to make some of these mod podge books for awhile now, but you know how that goes. Yesterday a few of my friends came over and we each left with our own cute set of mod podged books. Mine are sitting nicely in my bedroom on my thrifted vintage suitcase.
Check out a tutorial on Drab to Fab.

Hanging Mason Jars

I found this project on Thrifty and Chic and fell in love with it! It would look amazing on my entry table! One more project to add to the list of projects for when my sister comes to town! =) Check out the awesome tutorial here.

great wall art

Not sure what to hang on that wall? Under the Table and Dreaming has it all figured out for you here.

mail organizer

I would love this to help organize my mail. Check it out at Noodlehead.

no sew flowers

This Saturday we are doing a special Mother/Daughter activity for the Activity Days girls. I have been looking for some fun easy table settings and decorations. These little flowers will definitely be put to good use. Check them out at MADE.

vintage book planner

I absolutely love this and think it would be such a fun Mother's Day gift. Check it out at Just Something I Made.