Gift Ideas for School

Every year after Christmas, I try to find teacher gifts for the next year.  Last year I purchased several of the snowman magnets and a couple of the picture frame ornaments for about 50 cents or less.  My girls want to give gifts to everyone they come into contact with at school.  I thought ornaments on clearance was a good solution along with some homemade treats.

 

Yesterday Alexia and I spent our entire day decorating 27 bags for her basketball team.  We made a template of a paw print out of freezer paper and then spread Mod Podge and glitter over some of the bags.

 

We used fabric for the zebra bags and Mod Podged it on as well.

 

The polka dots are from scrapbook paper.  We filled the bags with fruit, whales, and a water bottle.  We made a label for the water bottles that said ‘Sink the Pirates’.  I found the template online for free here.  I thought bags like these could also be used to decorate and hand out at school.

I also included a candy cane in the bags with the following poem.  Some of the girls may not know the true meaning of Christmas.  What a way to sneak in some Jesus!!

Candy Cane poem

A significant symbol of Christmas
Is the Simple Candy Cane.
It's shape is the crook of the Shepherd
One of the first who came.
The lively peppermint flavor is
The regal gift of spice.
The White is Jesus' purity.
The Red is sacrifice.
The narrow stripes are friendship.
And the nearness of his love.
Eternal, Sweet Compassion
A gift from God above.
The Candy Cane reminds us all
of how much God cared.
And like His Christmas gift to use
It's meant to be broken and shared.

Last year Ariel handed out little baggies filled with marshmallows and hot chocolate mix with the following poem attached.  Everyone loved it.

Magic Powder and Snowman Seeds

Winter is here.  Outside it is cold.  To keep warm inside read below.

Directions: Place magic powder in a mug.  Add hot water and stir. Drop in snowman seeds, Enjoy!

Ingredients: enough powder and seed for one cozy treat.

Love, Ariel

I hope you can use some of these ideas for your kids at school or church.

Christmas Present Idea under $3.00

I purchased these tote bags for less than $2.50 each at Wal-Mart.  I wanted to make totes for my nieces to take to church.

 

I am totally loving all things monogrammed lately.

I printed out a letter /E/ and letter /S/ in font size 600.

 

I used interfacing for the first bag I made.  Lay your letter backwards onto your fabric.  Cut it out and then sew it onto your bag….if you want to do it the hard way like I did.

I got smart on the second bag and pulled out the BIG GUNS!  This isn’t just HeatnBond.  This is UltraHold!

 

Iron onto your letter and then iron onto the bag.  Seriously, took me less than one minute.

 

Now I have one gift bag for Samantha and one for Emmaly.

I bought little magnet dress up dolls to put in the bags so they can play with them during big church.  Coloring books and crayons would work well also.  You can even give them as gifts empty.

You could easily do this project for less than $10.00 for both bags even if you had to purchase the HeatnBond.  They are versatile also.  I really should make one for my son. 

***By the way….I am loving Windows Live Writer.  If you haven’t checked it out you should.  When I inserted my pictures they were turned the wrong direction and in the wrong order.  With Windows Live, I was able to move pictures around, add more, and rotate without deleting the original pictures and starting over.  I am having a hard time figuring out the font thing, but I will get it figured out and let you know what I think.

I think I am done with my shopping.  One trip on a Saturday, with busy crowds, is enough to call it good!!

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas…

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I wanted to put up our Christmas Tree in July the week before Thanksgiving, but the Hubs wasn’t feeling it so we waited until Sunday afternoon.  I still have totes spread throughout the living room trying to find a place for everything.  I didn’t realize I have quite a snowman collection.  I love it!!

I’ve been busy with school, Thanksgiving, Alexia’s 14th birthday, and my growing list of projects around the house, and that thing they call BLACK FRIDAY!!    Since we stayed here for Thanksgiving and my sister and her family came down to celebrate, we decided to be like the other crazy women and leave the house by 4am to snag some deals.  I found some great gifts for the girls and also bought my first pieces of St. Nicholas Village Collection.  I am going back for one more piece to finish off the look.

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.  More Christmas pictures to come!

I am posting this in Windows Live Writer!  I think I like it!!  I need to play with it some more and figure out the picture thing.

No Messes & Uninterrupted Sleep

I am guilty of complaining about all the messes I have to pick up daily. I often whine about not getting a full eight hours of sleep. The Bubs left on Sunday to spend one full week with Grandma. This is the longest we have been separated. I suffered from separation anxiety when he pulled out of the driveway with Daddy.

There is not anything in the world I would trade for this little guy. Not a spotless house. Not eight hours of uninterrupted sleep. Nothing! I love this little guy. Bubba teeth and all!

Can ya' help a girl out?

I have been searching high and low for the perfect khaki/beige/tan color. As you can tell I have not found what I am looking for. I have bought a gallons worth of samples and still have not found the perfect color. I have bought 4 colors to go from Sherwin Williams and samples from Benjamin Moore and Ace Hardware! I obviously need your help. This picture is just one side of the livingroom! I have more samples on the other side too. Yikes!
Our walls are painted an off white and stained. We used a paint brush and painted the stain on and then used rags to wipe it off. We are not happy with the color of the ceiling. We want to find a color to paint the ceiling and maybe the entire living room, master bedroom and bathroom.

Do you have a favorite khaki color?

Halloween Costume

I found this Peter Pan costume idea at Make It and Love It. I made two because the first one was too small. Mine did not turn out nearly as cute as the inspiration costume. I am a lazy sewer. I did not even take time to change out the thread colors.

I bought the leggings at a used children's clothing store for $1.49.

The hat ended up being way too big and he would hardly wear it.

I found a Tinker Bell costume at Target, but my daughter did not want to wear it because it had a picture of Tinker Bell on it. She ended up getting strep throat so we ended up not doing any trick or treating anyway. She went back to school today and is feeling much better.

Happy Halloween

We made some edible eyeballs to get in the mood for Halloween. They are made out of vanilla pudding.
They look like this when done. I had some that were really bulging. I think they suffered from a disease! I found the recipe here. They are really easy.

We also made this huge spider to hang outside by our front door. He keeps falling down, but we love him. You can find the directions here.

Have a safe and Happy Halloween. I'll post my homemade costume tomorrow! Another borrowed idea!!

I made it without my Hubby (almost)

What do you do with all the leftover fence panels when hubby has just finished building a new fence?
Purchase scrap wood at Home Depot. See the green spray paint? That means these 4 feet 2X4's are 51 cents each. Wink at Sexy Hubby and promise him anything in the world if he will recut all the wood because after I ran them through the table saw each leg was a different height. Oops!

I needed a new entry table and wasn't willing to spend big bucks to get one.

I pulled off all the old pickets and used the 2X4's from Home Depot to make this entry table. I am still playing around with the accessories, but I love it!

Ours measures 4 feet long by 30 inches tall. I had the black paint already. I bought the 2X4's for $2.00 and a box of screws for $5.00. Not bad for a huge entry table that I love. The price makes it even better.

I am linking up to DIY day here. Go check out how creative these women are!

Come see my new table!

Picture Frame

I took this frame that I bought about three years to make a gift for a friend that was having a baby.

I used a piece of scrapbook paper from this fall stack...

Used Modge Podge to stick it to the frame.....

Now I have a new fall frame to sit in my entertainment center.

Sewing appliques

My friend Christy had a baby boy in July. They named him Davey. I finally got to meet him last week. I had seen some onesies with appliques sewed on at TreyandLucy.blogspot.com that I was dying to try.

BTW...he fell asleep in less than 30 seconds after his mom put him in his car seat. How sweet is that? I had to take a picture.
I made one applique onesie with a tie and one with a guitar. They didn't turn out as cute as I had visioned. I basically sewed white onto white. Duh! Not the best choice.

Here is big sister Brenna, Christy, and baby Davey.

See how the contrast looks much better. I had the zebra fabric and Ariel had the plain shirt, so I got to work.

I figured out the hard way that it works best if you iron the heat N bond onto the piece of fabric your going to cut, first. You waste a little fabric doing it this way, but it makes it much easier to trace and cut out.

1. Find a pattern you like,

2. trace it onto your heat n bond,

3. cut it out,

4. iron it onto your clothing,

5. sew around the perimeter.

Piece of cake! Enjoy your piece of art!

My 100th post

It only took my a year and a half, but this is my 100th post. I promise to do better!!

Here are 100 things about me:

1. Bellybuttons and armpits totally gross me out.
2. I am afraid of heights. Don’t do well on Ferris wheels.
3. My favorite book is…to many to list.
4. I love the movie Hitch. Have you seen it? Cracks me up every time!
5. Favorite color is purple, but I don’t like to wear it.
6. I love to read.
7. I hate snakes.
8. I don’t read between the lines. If I have hurt your feelings or said something to offend you, you need to tell me straight up, because I won’t get why you’re trying to avoid me!
9. I love it when the seasons change.
10. I always wanted three kids.
11. I don’t like my feet to be dirty.
12. My parents divorced when I was a little girl.
13. I have lived in Texas, Oklahoma, California, Nevada & Washington.
14. I don’t like change.
15. I usually take the same route everywhere I go.
16. I’ve used the same brand of deodorant for the last15 years. Not same roll, same brand. Dry Idea roll-on. Powder Fresh.
17. I love riding motorcycles and four wheelers.
18. I like to create things, but often have to steal others ideas. Wish I were more original!
19. I was raised by my daddy with my little sister.
20. My sister and I each have one boy and two girls. Her boy is the oldest, mine is the youngest.
21. I love seeing the beauty in all the things created by God. Mountains, flowers, beaches…
22. Baby giggles make my heart happy. Actually any little giggles.
23. Favorite outfit is blue jeans, t-shirt, and tennis shoes.
24. Clothes on the floor drives me berserk.
25. I have a hard time sitting still.
26. I really should join a Dr. Pepper’s Anonymous group.
27. I am going to spoil my grandkids and annoy my son-in-laws…unintentionally and with love, of course.
28. I was baptized at age 25 with my then 7 year old daughter.
29. I love the smell of rain.
30. One day I will play the piano and speak Spanish fluently.
31. I really enjoy baking and think it would be fun to own a bakery.
32. I love to snuggle up with my hubby and watch a movie when it’s getting cold.
33. Starting a fire makes me feel mushy, along with watching the movie The Notebook!
34. I have seen God answer prayers.
35. I am a full time college student.
36. I have been married for 12 years, to the same wonderful man!
37. Clutter makes me feel antsy.
38. I love family pictures.
39. HGTV is my channel to watch along with the other fixer upper shows.
40. I am ready for a new house with a huge craft room.
41. There are not too many movies or books that I will read or watch over and over.
42. I want to live some place that stays between 75-80 degrees year round! With little wind.
43. I plan on running a marathon at some point in my life.
44. A triathlon would be cool to participate in.
45. Never thought I would be a coffee drinker, but now I cannot wait to get up and have a cup or two of coffee.
46. I would like to learn yoga, but I think it would be too mellow for me. I’d probably get bored very quickly. I think that is part of myself diagnosed ADD.
47. Beef enchiladas with red sauce, refried beans, and rice is probably my favorite meal.
48. I love being a mommy and all the things that come with parenting. Hardest job, but most rewarding.
49. I’m really not much of a football fan.
50. I liked school mainly for the sports and friendships.
51. I really was a goof off in school. I would bring things like sulfur to school and leave it some one's locker.
52. I was really tomboyish when I was younger.
53. I am goal orientated.
54. I usually plan, down to the bathroom breaks (not really), and make lists.
55. I really need my full 8 hours of sleep…every night.
56. I like to take trips. Small ones and big ones.
57. I DO NOT like pears or cantaloupe.
58. I really miss being close to family. It makes me really sad.
59. I love pumpkin pie with cool whip!!!
60. I love me some George Strait.
61. I learned to drive a standard before an automatic. I thought it was so cool.
62. I have hundreds of things I want to make.
63. I love working hard.
64. I prefer warmer colors over pastels.
65. I have green eyes. If you dare say they are brown, I will gouge your eyes out with a fork! Just kidding.
66. I’m a jello fanatic.
67. I am incredibly blessed.
68. I listen to K-Love in my car and I love it when the kids say turn it up!!
69. I like to save quotes. I have a little journal that I write them in.
70. I like to take old and/or ugly things and fix them up.
71. I’ve been coloring my hair since I was 25.
72. I think it’s against the law to get up before 6am.
73. I have been hot air ballooning. It is gorgeously fun!
74. I was born in the great state of Texas, as were my three children.
75. I enjoy gardening.
76. I have a really weird sense of humor. I blame that on being raised by my dad.
77. I once flushed a little fish down the toilet because he was stinky.
78. I am pretty simple. Don’t wear much jewelry or nail polish.
79. Pretty content with what I have. I don’t have many wants.
80. I am 5’3”.
81. I miss living in Amarillo.
82. I think marriage and raising kids takes a lot of hard work. Sometimes I get lazy.
83. I am saved by the grace of God.
84. I am struggling with school right now, because I just want to do all the mommy stuff instead of homework or studying.
85. I have a rule that bad and scary dreams aren’t allowed to be told.
86. I’m still not convinced that my 13 year old needs a cell phone.
87. We do not have TIVO. If you feel sorry for me and led to give me one, just email me and I will give you my mailing address.
88. I love watching my kids play sports and cheering them on.
89. I listened to Milli Vanili, Michael Jackson, Vanilla Ice, and MC Hammer back in the day.
90. I am forgiven!
91. Mercy Me’s I Can Only Imagine is one of my favorite songs. I want it played at my funeral.
92. I love praising God in worship.
93. I have been to Canada and Mexico.
94. We went to Six Flags for our honeymoon.
95. I don’t ride roller coasters or anything else that looks scary.
96. I am usually an active listener. I like to hear other’s point of view and then sit back and think about it.
97. I take my showers at night because I think it takes too long to get ready in the morning if I don’t.
98. I have already started buying for Christmas. Have you?
99. I have worked as a babysitter, dishwasher, waitress, cashier, secretary, Land Tech, and Landman.
100. I love my husband!!

Flashback

It was homecoming week and the middle schoolers participated in dressing up too. They had eighties day and we didn't have anything. So we took this outfit....

And turned it into this. Lots of makeup, big hair, fishnet stockings...Perfecto!

How many of you used to dress like this?

FREE!!!!!! Will & Trust Kit

Suze Orman is offering her Will & Trust Kit from Hay House for free for one week. Go to suzeorman.com from September 27 to October 3 and click on the Will & Trust link. Then click on the Gift Code Button and enter code 898989.

When you enter your code, you'll receive an activation code that allows you to upgrade to the all new on-line version of her Will & Trust kit for free. I haven't looked at mine yet so I don't know if it is the real thing, but I just get excited when I see the words FREE!!! If you check it out let me know if it is a good deal!

Sewing

Since I pulled out my sewing machine I have made a few things that I have had on my to do list. I saw this Twirly Jean Skirt on Makeitandloveit that I thought was just adorable. Ariel had a pair of jeans that fit in the waist, but were too short. We cut them off....

Ooopps! I cut them off way too short. My antique sewing machine won't sew through the thick pockets. I was tempted to cut off a pair of her new school jeans, but thought I better not. So now we have a pair of cut off jeans that are really short. Anybody have any ideas on what I can do with these before I throw them away?

Remember my no sew pillowcase curtains. I used the left over material to make a sofa pillow.

I painted a Fleur de lis on the opposite side. That little thingy is really growing on me. They will soon be painted all over my house! I found a picture of a Fleur de lis that I liked on the internet, printed it off and then traced it onto freezer paper. I then cut it out and had a perfect stencil.

Did you notice I now have two panels and even a curtain rod? What do you think of the final product?

Now if I can just get a blind like this one below I think it will look tons better. I am just afraid enough light won't shine through. That window is the only one in the living room. I got an estimate a while back for a custom made shutter for that huge window and the estimate was over $1,000.00. No thank you!

Any window ideas for me? Notice the window above where you can see the dark lines. That is a metal separator on the outside for each window pane. I thought maybe we could get 2X4's and make it look like 4 separate windows from the inside and then hang smaller blinds. They would be cheaper than one great big blind. I am just afraid it would make the window look like it was from the 70's.

Halloween Dress

I am such a copy cat. I saw this idea here so I had to make my own. It took ten minutes to sew these dish towels into a cute Halloween dress. I made two for my nieces and one for Ariel.

The purple one is for my niece Emmaly. She can wear it with a turtleneck and tights.

Logan felt left out so he had to do a little modeling as well!

This one is Ariel's. The back is striped like the bottom of the dish towel...I mean dress. It will be super cute with a turtleneck underneath.

I sewed the edges with right sides together. At the top I left 6 inches for the arm holes and then sewed a casing 1.5 inches for the ribbon. Leave a total of 7.5 inches at the end when you begin sewing. I suck at tutorials so read the other posting for better instructions. She also made dresses out of bandannas. They are adorable.

Greyson's Gift

I saw this posted on another blog and thought it was a wonderful idea. I can even get the girls involved in a little sewing lesson. They are in need of 82 more....read below!
Posted by Meryntha
I am looking for your help. Hospitals all across the country are in need of small, very small, baby blankets. In cases of fetal demise, babies are so tiny, even the smallest nursery blanket is much too big to wrap around their tiny bodies. I know how parents feel when they are presented with their tiny baby, for the first and last time. Having to deal with a large blanket that doesn't fit, is a distraction. And, unnecessary. If you can sew or crotchet/knit, would you please help me to supply blankets for these mothers?My doctor informed me that 30% of all pregnancies end in fetal demise!I know we can make a small yet, dramatic difference in the experience these mothers and fathers have in the hospital. It is heartbreaking for the nurses to try and present these tiny babies in the best way possible to grieving parents. They are extremely appreciative of any donations we can give.

For more information, go here http://greysonsgift.blogspot.com/

If you are interested in helping, leave me a comment or email me. Even if you do not sew, there are other ways you can help.

Pillowcase or Curtain?

I had looked and looked all over the big city for material that I liked that was burgundy or green. I was laying (or is it lying) in bed one night thinking about what I can do for curtains in my living room and it was like an epiphany....these $3.99 TJ Maxx pillowcases solved all my problems!
I could hardly sleep. I got up the next morning washed the drool off these things, ripped the seams, heat and bonded the edges (thank you Thrify Decor Chick)and waaaaalaaaaa.....

I finally have ONE curtain panel that I love. I still need to finish the other one and buy a curtain rod or do you think those tacks are working up there?

Now if I can just get rid of that ugly blind I'll be in heaven! Not bad for less than $6 bucks!

Blowout, E.R., Motorcycle Wreck

We experienced all of these things over Labor Day weekend. We took the kids out of school early on Thursday like really bad parents! We headed out of town and had a blowout on our camper! This was the first sign we should have stayed home. Luckily we were still in town and just drove it the tire shop and had it replaced.

Friday Logan's head met a golf club. We had to take him to the E.R. He didn't need stitches. The doctor pinched the skin back together and used superglue like stuff. I pulled myself together long enough to snap you this picture. See how I love you!! This is just to warn you that if you decide to start gushing blood around me, I start acting like a crazy woman and you'll need somebody else around to save you!

Logan was fine by the time we even got to the hospital. The worst part at the hospital was when they took x-rays of his head. Afterward he got gum and a Popsicle, walked out of the E.R. and was running around the hospital playing with his cousins. This picture is on the way back to his grandparents. We got back to the camper, changed our bloody clothes and went to the football game.

Saturday Jose and I got to visit with old classmates and enjoy Rhett Akins at a street dance in our hometown.

On our way home we were exiting off the freeway onto the access road when a motorcyclist got in a hurry and tried to pass us on the curve. He hit gravel, wiped out, and slid across the street. He was darn lucky that we didn't run him over. He apologized to hubby for being stupid. Hubby said he agreed with him and told him if he does something like that again he might get himself killed. This is the second time we have witnessed a motorcycle accident right in front of us. Hubby says we need to post a sign on the truck that says "Motorcyclist are prone to crashing around this truck."

We had a good weekend overall, but a little too much drama for me. I was ready to be at home and try to figure out how to keep Logan in a protective bubble!