2.28.2011

Menu Plan Monday









Tuesday ~ hamburgers/hot dogs, broccoli & cheese rice, salad

Wednesday ~ egg & cheese burritos, hash browns, fruit

Thursday ~ almond coconut tilapia, green beans, baked sweet potatoes

Friday ~ pizza, salad, fruit

Linking up with Org Junkie...check them out for more recipes!

2.25.2011

quilt cards...

At stamp club last month my friend Jamie demonstrated this quilt card. It went together so quickly and turned out super cute!!! Since we all loved it so much and were talking about making them ourselves, she issued a quilt card challenge. Any stamp club member wanting to participate just made their own version of the card and emailed pics to her. Then she had a quilt parade on her blog.

Here are 2 of the ones I created...
This is the same pattern that she used. I just used up some scraps of designer paper that I had in my stash. I added some buttons to tie in the sewing theme of the quilt card.

For this card I searched quilt patterns and found this one to try. I really like how it turned out. I used more scraps of designer paper, grosgrain ribbon, round tag and a vintage brad. The sentiment is from the set Sweet Little Sentiments.

2.24.2011

knocking jokes...

Little Bit has been loving jokes lately. Knock, knock jokes in particular....or knocking jokes as she calls them! Of course she doesn't really know how to make up a joke yet so everything is just random stuff, mostly things she sees around the room or whatever. The last few days almost every joke has had pizza mentioned in it somewhere! So she will tell a "joke" and then wants the hubby or I to tell one. We were struggling to come up with some easy ones that she would get so I googled preschool knock knock jokes and found some good ones on this site.

This one is my favorite...
Knock Knock
Who's there?
Who.
Who who?
Are you an owl?

2.23.2011

button ring...

I was in Archivers a few weeks ago and saw these Tim Holtz buttons and thought they were super cute! I instantly had the idea of making button rings with several of them. Here are the supplies I used...
ring bases {Michaels}, buttons {Archivers but have seen them at Hobby Lobby & Michaels}, E-6000 adhesive, button shank remover, file

First select the button you want to use, if there is a shank on the back of the button, use the button shank remover tool to clip it off.

Next, you might need to file the back if the shank did not come off smoothly. I just used a file I got in a box of chipboard letters.

Then apply adhesive to the ring base and secure the button on top. I let mine dry overnight to make sure it was good and set.

Enjoy your beautiful creation!

2.22.2011

pepper jelly cheese ball....

I keep forgetting to take a pic of this when I make it...but since I have had requests for the recipe I thought I would go ahead and post it...

Ingredients:
3 - 8oz cream cheese
1 cup shredded cheese
1/2 cup black olives, chopped
1/2 cup pepper jelly
1 tsp garlic salt

Directions:
Mix ingredients together and form into a ball. Garnish with nuts or dry parsley if desired.

Enjoy with your favorite crackers!

2.17.2011

Letter Qq

"Q" topics...quilt, queen, quarter

{Circle Time}
Calendar...Talk about the month and days of the week and put sticker on the day we are discussing.

Reading...days of the week book...Pigs to the Rescue by John Himmelman
...theme books...My "q" Book by Jane Belk Moncure
Giggle Giggle Quack by Doreen Cronin
Quick as a Cricket by Audrey Wood
Quack by Phyllis Root
Quilt Counting by Lesa Cline-Ransome
The Quiet Book by Deborah Underwood

Songs/Rhymes...The Q says...

{Letter Craft}
Q is for Quail...{this one is my design}

{Activities}
Coloring...Letter Qq,
quilt

Letter Identification...
find the letter worksheet,
...do a dot letter printables
...letter tracing q

Queen...dot to dot queen. This is a great exercise for getting letters in the correct order and drawing lines!
...dress up like a queen, wearing crowns and using a wand!

Quilts...looked at quilts we have and talked about my grandmother who makes them.
...made a quilt card! I drew outlines of shapes and Little Bit had to match up the foam stickers.

Activity shelf...we have had some Valentine related stuff out of the shelves the last few weeks
...punching hearts from construction paper; beading an owl/heart necklace
...pom pom transfer to flower suction mat; counting erasers; build the shapes {I drew outlines of shapes and Little Bit had to use the red blocks to make the shape}; heart stringing; pom pom transfer w/tweezers; "love" sensory box {filled with all things red....silk rose petals, heart buttons, jewels, heart erasers, pom poms, red bowl, heart containers}

Computer time...Starfall {we worked in the ABC section with the letter Q}
...Little Bit also loves to get in some computer time when we go the library. They have computers set up in the children's area with games, stories, etc. She loves working on Jump Start PreK!

2.16.2011

recipe shelves...

We have these 3 open shelves in the corner of our kitchen. They are used to house our cookbooks, recipe cards, phone books and a few small appliances.
After I read a cooking magazine I would either throw the whole magazine on the bottom shelf or rip out a recipe and place it on the pile. Also the basket was overflowing with recipes. The mess was getting to me, so I finally sorted and tossed and got this space organized!

There were several small manuals and recipe booklets that I didn't want to get lost mixed in with the larger cookbooks, so I made them a little home all their own. I took a cracker box, made a few cuts and added some cute paper to turn it into a small magazine type box.

Here is the after....less crowded and way more organized. The top shelf is pretty much the same, just moved the coffee maker and added the file box. On the second shelf, I eliminated a duplicate phone book and added a few decor items. {The 2 owls are from Target's dollar spot and the red jar is from Michaels.} Now my red plate stand has a home on the bottom shelf next to the recipe box and coffee maker. All the recipes I kept from the huge pile and basket were either filed in my recipe binder or written on a card and placed in my fairly new recipe box!

2.14.2011

cupcake shirt...

I made this {sweet} cupcake shirt and hair clip for Little Bit to wear for Valentines Day....but she was sickly today so we will have to wear it later this week.
Here is a close up of the hair clip....
I just made a rolled flower with tulle and stitched it on the sewing machine to hold it together. Then I sewed a button in the center and hot glued it to an alligator clip.

For the shirt, I cut a cupcake base out of fabric and attached that to the shirt. Then I made 2 more rolled flowers with the tulle and sewed those on as the cupcake top. I sewed a button at the top of the cupcake for a sweet little topping! Then I added a few felt hearts to finish off the shirt.

Menu Plan Monday








Monday ~ roasted chicken, green beans, mashed potatoes, bread

Tuesday ~ apricot pork chops, sweet potato fries, corn, grapes

Wednesday ~ mini cheese ravioli, salad, bread

Thursday ~ tilapia sticks, green beans, mac & cheese

Friday ~ chicken tacos, chips & salsa

Linking up with Org Junkie and Fit Meals Monday...check them out for more recipes!

2.13.2011

{spin} faster mommy!

This was the first layout I created after returning from our trip to Disney...

The teacup ride was one of Little Bit's and my favorites! I knew exactly what paper I had to use on this layout...Early Bird Collection from Cosmo Cricket! I just love those little colorful cups!

Love that face Little Bit is making! She was always asking to {spin faster}!

2.11.2011

{heart} day reads...

We LOVE this book! Have you checked this one out yet? If not run to the library or your local bookstore and read it. It is just too cute and I love how all the animals are made out of hearts!
My Heart is Like a Zoo by Michael Hall

We do have a love for owls....so we made this one, modeled after the one in the book!
Here are a few other Valentine's books we {checked out}...
The Day it Rained Hearts by Felicia Bond

If You'll Be My Valentine by Cynthia Rylant

Max's Valentine by Rosemary Wells

My Valentine for Jesus by Laurie Lazzaro Knowlton

2.09.2011

enter with {love}...

After Christmas I got this grapevine/red berry wreath at Target for $5. I added the 4 glitter hearts and the Home Sweet Home sign to Valentines it up!

Here is a look inside the front door...

I found these cute heart clothes pins at Michaels for .99 cents for 6. I thought they were super cute and decided to use them to display some pics of Little Bit. So I tied some twine across the mirror and added the pics. I {love} the look!

I also added a scrabble word. Since we have our wedding picture displayed here I chose the word {adore}. I added a little heart that I removed from a stick. I got these in an 8 pack from the Dollar Store. For a final touch I displayed some rose petals in a frosted glass jar.

2.07.2011

Menu Plan Monday








Monday ~ sausage cups, eggs, fruit

Tuesday ~ pasta, salad, bread

Wednesday ~ bbq chicken, green beans, tater tots

Thursday ~ veggie noodle soup, toasted cheese

Friday ~ salmon, green beans, sweet potato fries

Linking up with Org Junkie and Fit Meals Monday...check them out for more recipes!

2.04.2011

Creative Corner...Scrap Club

For December Scrap Club we used the title BELIEVE. I turned my scalloped circles into ornaments by drawing a string with a white gel pen. I also popped 2 of the 3 of them up with dimensional adhesive.

For the Bonus layout we used the title MERRY. I decided to add a second page and use this as my Christmas card photo spread. I used to try and incorporate the whole photo cards on my pages but this took up way too much space. So the last few years I have been cropping the photo cards! I love how this layout came together!

If you are interested in getting in on the scrapbook kit action, check out Jamie's blog for more information.

2.03.2011

Letter Pp

"P" topics...pig, princess, pizza

{Circle Time}
Calendar...Talk about the month and days of the week and put sticker on the day we are discussing.

Reading...days of the week book...Pigs to the Rescue by John Himmelman
...theme books...My "p" Book by Jane Belk Moncure
Princess Pigtoria and the Pea by Pamela Duncan Edwards
If You Give a Pig a Party by Laura Numeroff
Shiver Me Letters A Pirate ABC by June Sobel
Pete's a Pizza by William Steig

Songs/Rhymes...The P says...

{Letter Craft}
P is for Pig...{this one is my design}
{Activities}
Coloring...Letter Pp,
pigs on a farm

Letter Identification...
find the letter worksheet,
...do a dot letter printables
...letter tracing p

Spelling...We worked on spelling PIG this week. I wrote the word and drew a picture on our dry erase board. Each day I had Little Bit spell and sound out the word.
...tray with magnetic letters and cards with words {PIG, PAT, PEN}. Little Bit placed the corresponding letters over the letters on the cards...while sounding out each letter.

Pigs...dot to dot pig. This is a great exercise for getting letters in the correct order and drawing lines!
...button pig. We used pink buttons and glued them on a card to look like a pig. Then I drew in ears and a curly tail.
Activity shelf...felt pizza; hidden picture page {finding o & p objects}; nuts & bolts match up; pizza lacing card; pom pom transfer w/tweezers; marble transfer to star suction mat; "snow" sensory box {filled with all things white....pom poms, cotton balls, candle, pipe cleaners, beads, bowl, scoop}

Computer time...Starfall {we worked in the ABC section with the letter P}
...Little Bit also loves to get in some computer time when we go the library. They have computers set up in the children's area with games, stories, etc. She loves working on Jump Start PreK!

Snacks....popcorn, pickles, pizza

2.02.2011

{sweet} shelf!

I think this is my favorite area of Valentine's decor in the house. I love this little mirrored shelf but it is a little tricky to decorate. The ledge is not very deep, so I am limited as to what will fit. So I am always on the lookout for cute narrow items to display here....


The little pink "love" vase came from Michaels dollar bins. I stuck 2 heart picks inside that I found at the Dollar Store. For the faux cupcake I made a yarn ball, stuck a red brad in the top to represent a cherry, and stuck it in a mini foil cupcake wrapper! I also filled a glass jar with some conversation hearts....love how this looks! And you know I can't let a holiday pass without breaking out the scrabble letters! I went with the word "sweet" since there is candy and a cupcake on the shelf!
I had seen this tutorial for a felt heart a while back and bookmarked it cause I thought it was super cute. Well, I found a styrofoam heart at Michael's for like $1.49 and was excited to make my own. I kept putting it off because I really didn't want to cut out a ton of felt circles by hand. Then I thought to myself, I have a bag of rose petals that I got at the Dollar Store...why not use those?! So I did and I think it turned out fabulous!

Just lovin' my {SWEET} shelf!

2.01.2011

{hanging} schoolwork...

When we started doing projects and worksheets we needed a place to display them. For a while I was just using Fun-tak to hang them on the wall but that was getting old fast. So I came up with this idea.....
I hammered 2 nails in this short wall as far apart as I could get them. Then I used some twine and tied it to each nail. Small clothes pins are hanging on the twine and hold the worksheets. I change out the die cuts on the end based on the holiday or season. We started with leaves for fall, then snowflakes and now have hearts up!

Here you can see most of our N worksheets being displayed!