Engagement secret photographer

Going backwards just a bit from my last post about the wedding plans:
This is such a fun idea!   Meckennas sweet guy, Zach, arranged for a secret photographer to capture the proposal. (Que butterflies in the tummy and a few "ohhh"s.)  Check out these cute shots, Meckenna didn't know they were being followed....

Zach pointed out the photographer here

Check out the leg pop

Aren't these two cute?  Secret Photographer!  So sweet and romantic and fun!

New lists to write! (the wedding planning kind: )

My gorgeous little sister got engaged about a month ago!  I'm so excited for all that this entails; a fabulous new addition to our family, life-long love and happiness for my sister....and lots of fun planning for the wedding and reception festivities!  Being the list-maker that I am, I have created a 3 ring binder filled with lists.  "To do" lists, timeline lists, idea lists, candy lists, stuff we have lists, stuff we want lists, budget lists.....oh the lists!  Rather than taking pictures of the list (heartbreaking right?)  I put together this little teaser board with some basics we've got going.

 Color scheme:  Gray, yellow, and teal; best colors ever probably : )  She wants vintage, shabby chic all around (so up my alley-we're totally sisters!)  We're doing old crates, old windows, pearls, lace, burlap, barn, awesome old trucks, all things vintage and shabby.  We have access to the truck you see just the tail end of- and it's the most awesome old truck in the world!  Color, shape, amount of oldness, seriously best truck ever!  I've got dibs to buy it if my neighbors son ever goes to sell.  I could probably become the most demanded photographer in the whole state just because of my prop truck......
Basically, I probably have an unhealthy obsession with it; but fortunately so does my sister; and so it's going to have a place at the reception!  Needless to say, this is pretty fun stuff for me, playing wedding planner and designer and all  : )
I'll keep you posted as we move things along!

Easy Easter centerpiece

Do you ever collect stuff from outside just because it's fun?  Remember as a kid we would pick dandelions or the newly bloomed tulips and give them to our mom?  Now my girls do that for me : )  I have managed to pass along my insatiable desire to take rocks and pine cones even though we have enough!  In this case, I used fun sticks!

I used plastic Easter eggs that have 2 holes in the top to tie some string through the egg.

Then I put those floral skills to use and arranged the sticks to my liking!  Simply hang the eggs on the branches.  This would be fun on a smaller scale too.  Easy, cheap Easter centerpiece!

Easter bucket makeover!

Rather than collecting a new basket every year on Easter, our girls put out the same basket the night before for the Easter bunny to fill and hide.  We have just been using those $.97 buckets from Walmart, and we thought it would be fun to customize them.  I rummaged up felt in Springy colors, fabric and ribbons, some puff paint, and of course the trusted glue gun.  I also found these fun dragonfly/butterfly felt stickers.

 Each girl picked their colors and I hot glued the felt right to the plastic bucket.  I cut out some eggs in white felt and the girls decorated them with the paint.  We wrapped the handles in fabric or ribbon too.  Now they are personalized and textured and colorful! 

 Happy Easter!

Easter egg topiary

This a fun Easter decoration I made a couple years ago.  (Okay, it's like my only Easter decoration that makes it out each year.)  Because it's a couple years old, I don't have step by step pictures; but I thought it might be share-worthy anyway.  It was cheap and simple to make.  I got the eggs and the pot from the Dollar store!  I think any eggs and any pot would work!  All you need is a foam topiary form from the craft store, a pot, some eggs, moss or Spanish moss (which is what I used) and of course, a glue gun!

Place and glue the eggs and then fill in with the moss until you've burnt your fingers enough it looks just right!  How do you decorate for Easter?

Bathtub paint-let's make it!

This is such a fun, easy, and inexpensive way to add something new to bath time!  WARNING:  once you do this, the kids will be asking for it all the time-I kid you not.  My 4 year old loves when we do this!                     

All you need:

                

 Inexpensive mens shaving cream

food coloring

silicone cupcake pan (or any plastic container)

Squirt the shaving cream, add a couple drops of food coloring, and stir.  This is also fun to teach what colors mix to make new colors.  Here we did blue and red to make purple and yellow and red to make..........orange.  (I'm sure you were on the edge of your seat just now.)

My Lila (she's 4)  prefers to smear it all together and just squish it in her hands.  Despite my coaxing to actually draw something, she just smears.  The older kids really love this too, they do actually draw.  And, good news!  It cleans up with just water!  Good, clean fun!

St. Patrick's Day treasure hunt

Our treasure box.  You can see we kept it very simple and easy.

This year I decided to do something fun for the kids on St. Patrick's Day.  I must admit I have no idea why we have this holiday, but let it be fun I say!  Here's the supplies needed:  

Treasure box (or shoe box, or anything)

Treats, little treasures

Leprechaun footprints (free printable below!)

 "Legend of the   Leprechauns"

   Green food coloring

The night before Saint Patrick's Day, the kids  decorated our Treasure box with stickers, and paper, whatever we had around.  Then I read the "Legend of the Leprechauns"  to them.  Here's the Legend:  (The original is from Family fun, I made a few changes....http://familyfun.go.com/st-patricks-day/st-patricks-day-crafts/magic-treasure-box-710371/)

 

LEGEND OF THE LEPRECHAUNS

Full of magic and trickery,  Leprechauns remain in their hidden world until the night before St. Patrick's Day. On that one night of the year they appear throughout the world to dance and sing and frolic; and get into mischief!

Disguising themselves as leaves and grass, and sounding like the wind and the crickets, they come and go unnoticed.   They love to be sneaky.

However, it is said that if a decorated treasure box is left empty under the moon, the leprechauns must fill the box with gold or jewels or gifts. But then they will hide the filled box in the most unlikely of places.

If the box is found on St. Patrick's Day, the treasure remains in our world. If not, the leprechauns may retrieve what is rightfully theirs. And though the leprechauns are very clever, it is not impossible to find the treasure because, unknowingly, leprechauns often leave some kind of trail  behind them. 

In the morning, the girls woke up to Leprechaun footprints all over the house.  They had come in and flipped over some couch cushions, jumped up on the kitchen chandelier, hijacked the kids little chalkboard and drew a rainbow and pot o' gold, they even used the bathroom.  There were two little footprints on the toilet and the water was green.  The footprints led to the fridge where they had turned our milk green.  And of course some of the footprints led to the hidden treasure box which had some candy necklaces and gold wrapped candy (Rolo's are perfect!)  The girls thought this was so fun!  So did I :)

For the footprints, I just traced a little doll shoe and cut out about 75 of them. (Yay for the good scissors I got as a neighbor gift for Christmas!  I could cut about 5 sheets at a time:)  In the case that you do not have little doll shoes for tracing, or you'd just rather not trace a doll shoe 15 times, I put together this little printable of the Leprechaun footprints!

http://www.scribd.com/doc/86805678/Leprechaun-Footprints 

  

 Happy St. Patrick's Day!