Happy Birthday Baby!!!

our fiesty, yet sweet, evyn turned ONE on saturday!!!
happy birthday sweet girl, what a blessing you are to each of us!



birthday girl
and
her guests

it was a wonderful day we are so grateful for the friends and family who shared her special day!
thanks for coming!!!

Evyn's Birthday Banner

my talented sister got the lovely task of making evyn's birthday banner
and she did a FABULOUS job!!!
thanks suz!!! love you!

ok. here's the funny part...
i set up the hoosier with picures of evyn and an autograph mat that i did for masyn's first birthday and love it. suz and i had a specific idea about how the banner should "drape" in the entry above the hoosier. kind of in a criss cross, but not to criss crossy way if you know what i mean. i grabbed the chair and the nail gun and we went to work. but as soon as shawn saw the nail gun he had to get involved :) (love you honey!)once i hung it, he didn't like it because "you couldn't see all the pictures". long story short, we had to re-hang it like you see in the above picture to make the man happy. holy moly. we don't like it hung this way. but we conceded and moved on with the rest of the party!

(suz...next time, we can't let him see the nail gun!)

A PINK First Brithday!

our sweet evyn rose turned ONE yesterday...
time flies when your havin' fun!

here's the party details...



i made her a shirt using the applique method
(i just googled applique tshirt tutorial and picked one) the skirt is from target.



i made paper flower toppers for the cupcakes, yummy sugar cookies and i found some really cute strawberry and cupcake marshmellows at walmart (they were a big hit). the flower headbands are at target in the dollar bin.



a pink flower party
simply perfect for a sweet ONE year old!

Decorating tips...

after scanning sheryl's home photos over and over for ideas, it finally hit me...

i'm missing greenery!

but...finding the right greenery was much harder than i expected. i did finally find topiaries at pier one, ikea and walmart (in case your lookin')

i really couldn't believe the difference one simple plant would make.

where have i been?

(before topiary)

(after topiary...again, hello.)

something that i have known for a long time is how a simple quilt can make a huge difference. my friends (who don't quilt) have no idea why i feel the need to make so many quilts, but they are far more useful than simply keeping you warm.

(before quilt and sprig of greenery)

(after quilt and greenery)

SO, lesson learned (thanks sheryl!)

if you are having a decorating dilema, add a bit of green and a quilt and you'll be amazed by the outcome!

Paper Flowers

maryjane over at the beehive cottage posted her beautiful paper flowers
and i just had to give them a try...

i googled "how to make flowers with cupcake liners" and found many different tutorials. in the end i just winged it.

i used:

4 liners per flower

lollipop sticks

hot glue gun

ribbon

pink scalloped punch (probably 1 - 1 1/4")

and i loved that maryjane put buttons as her center but i didn't have any, so i used flower stamens)

maryjane is going ot be selling these in her etsy shop if you don't have time to make your own. LOVE them! oh, and if you get a minute hop on over and check out her vintage trailer! oh.my.gosh!

Baby Kisses...

A W.I.L.I.N.G. project & getting organized

since moving into a much larger house, i've been a bit overwhelmed with the daily tasks.
i was inspired by a blog post to revisit fly lady and try to regain control of my days and the constant struggle to maintain an imperfect home. i'm not striving for perfection, rather...sanity!



so i broke out my notebook, gave it a little face lift
and organized, organized, organized.



in the meantime, i didn't get any of the things done that should have been done.
but that's ok. i've got my routine down, and i feel good.



if your interested in getting your home in order, check out fly lady's website.
i ordered the $12 kit and was happy i did.

i changed my tabs a bit to fit with our family. if you have any other questions, just ask.

Because Kindness Matters...

and when we look back at what will {then} be {a book} of our lives, i'm going to want to you {gavin} to know just how remarkable i know you are...

a dad shared, in church, a couple weeks back a great story of his son. he told us about a moment when he truly proud of his son. it wasn't when he broke records, or scored the winning point. it wasn't about a medal he had earned or some honorable mention. it was of a simple act of kindness that mattered. kindness that was sincere and without expectations. i enjoyed the story. i wish i heard more stories like that one. to be honest, most parents praise their children for the things mentioned above and rarely for the things that matter most. the things that matter to the Lord. the things that make up who we are. who we really are. inside. the part that matters. i wanted to take a moment and share one of those moments so that when my children look back, they'll know what i believe matters most, and that will always be kindness.

to gavin,
the other day you & david were at taco bell and a homeless man asked you for 65 cents. he explained that he had 35 cents but needed more for a taco. you didn't have change but you had a 5 dollar bill. you handed him the $5. he told you he didn't have change and you told him it was ok. keep it. he thanked you and you watched him enter taco bell. about an hour later you went back and the man was still sitting inside eating. you were so happy and the spirit had touched you. kindness matters.

today. my battery died, you fixed it. a man needed help with his trailer, you helped him. your nana needed help moving trees, you helped her. you never complained. when you are in the service of others, you are in the service of the Lord.

gavin. i am proud of who you are, what your heart reflects, and what your actions show. because kindness matters most!

love, mom

2000 Flushes & the Toilet

when masyn was little i bought the 2000 flushes tablets to make the water blue {and help clean the toilee} she LOVED it. it was so "pretty". i thought i would bring a similar excitement to the boy. i was wrong...

{with arms in the air, head bobbing and a sound of urgency in his almost yelling voice, nolan runs into the kitchen}

"MOM! WE HAVE A PROBUM!

me: "what's the problem?"

"ME HAVE TO GO POOP, AND THERE'S SOMETHIN IN THE TOILET!"

me {thinking there's a bug in the there}: "what's in the toilet?"

"IT'S A PROBUM, ME HAVE TO GO POOP!"

me {again}: what's in the toilet?"

"COME, IT'S A PROBUM, IT'S BLUE!"

me {realizing now what the problem is and now laughing}: "it's ok, i made the water blue don't you like it?"

NO!!! AND ME HAVE TO Goooo POOP" {as he runs to the other bathroom}

it took several days to finally convice him that it was ok to use that toilet. we've got about 1,932 flushes to go! crazy boy!!!

Cupcakes...

hi terry! thanks for asking about the cupcakes. hope your not too disappointed with my answer.

i will start by saying that i believe in "kid tested, momma approved" meaning, if the kids {older & younger} like it, it's a go!
with that said, this is my most popular cupcake flavor and it just so happens to be super easy and quick {two of most favorite things, since, well. um. i'm kinda a last minute kinda gal}. betty is my go to gal for a quick, yummy and moist cupcake. the same goes for the buttercream frosting. it's always a hit.



now if you wanna go for the tried and true homemade cupcake, marian from sweetopia would agree {check out her amazing seashell cupcakes!} that martha's vanilla recipe is pretty darn good, as well as, her vanilla buttercream frosting.

happy baking!