Wednesday, April 27, 2011

{ buckets of blueberries }

We can not seem to get enough blueberries at my house lately.  My busy boys are eating them by the pound, it seems!  We can't wait to go blueberry picking once the season arrives.  For now, we're enjoying our store-bought berries, and this morning we're munching on this delightful bite of heaven....

I hope your day is off to a delicious start too!

Monday, April 25, 2011

{ i spy a diy - the bow & tell tee }

Boy, I'm noticing that I'm getting more and more cheap frugal with age. Especially when it comes to clothing that I covet.  A lot of times I'll come across a cute top, and I often feel like I can whip up a similar version for a fraction of the price. Take Anthropologie's Season's Way tee from last Spring. SO cute....but a gray tee embellished with three bows for $68? Hahahahaha! Sorry, I can't stop laughing about that. Then, this year,  Modcloth had a similar version, the Bada Bloom tee. This one is signicantly cheaper.  Still, a $39.99 price tag seems a bit steep for this tee, if you ask me. I made my replica of this tee for a dollar.  Yep, ONE dollar.  That's because I had everything on hand to make it except for some black cording.  I went to town chopping up a white, woven, button-up shirt.  I attached a widening panel of the striped white cotton fabric to the center of a simple, gray jersey scoop neck tee.  Both of those tops were in a pile, ready to be donated, when it occurred to me that I could put them to good use!  Don't you just love when that happens?  I had a yard of lace and those tiny, white rose buttons in my stash of trimmings.  I made a trip to Joann Fabrics, and bought two yards of 1/8" black cording (.50 cents per yard), making my total cost $1.  Yay!
 I chose to make my trio of bows by combining both scraps of fabric from the white shirt as well as strips of lace.
Did I mention that this only costs $1?!!!
I'm rather excited about that ;)
Do you ever try to replicate clothing, accessories, or home decor in an effort to save a few dollars?  I'd love to hear about your adventures. It's becoming a new hobby of mine!

Saturday, April 23, 2011

{ happy easter! }

Wishing you a joyous Easter weekend filled with family, food, and fun!

Thursday, April 21, 2011

{ geniunely genius - doodle duvet }

How clever is this doodle duvet from Stitch Designworks?
Such a cool choice for a tween or teenager's bedroom.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

{ 3650 days }

To my husband, the kindest, most decent man I've ever known,

3650 days ago today, you and I were married. 3398 days before that, you told me you were going to marry me one day. I didn't believe you. I was only 14 for Pete's sake! Even way back then, I didn't believe in fairy tales or happily-ever-afters. No, I'm far too sarcastic for that. ;) But you believed, and just like most times, you were right, too.
Thank goodness for that.
 I love you, Mr. Polkadotsandpuppies. Happy 10th anniversary!
You know, forever is a really long time. Lucky for us, huh?

*It occurred to me just now that I could write pretty much anything that I want here, because chances are that said wonderful (and very busy!) husband will probably never read these words. In that case, I suppose it wouldn't make sense to say that I would love him even more, if say, for instance, he would just go ahead and get started on our basement playroom project already. ;)

Monday, April 18, 2011

{ grant's 1st birthday party! }

My little guy, Grant, has enjoyed the classic story, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, since he was a few months old.  He always giggles like crazy when I read the, "but he was still hungry!" part.  It seemed like a natural choice for the theme for his first birthday party. 

I went with this colorful invite, and it really got my creative juices flowing.


Calling all caterpillars to crawl inside to play!  It's time to celebrate Grant's 1st birthday!

P A R T Y   T I M E !


I tend to go a bit overboard with the sweets. Oops.
 I was obsessed with these adorable cut-out cookies. Trix cereal turned out to be a pretty dandy platter filler for these little lovelies.
I really liked the idea of a tall, simple white cake. Can you believe this is an $8 grocery store cake?!?   
I added Skittles around the top and bottom, plopped a fondant caterpillar on top, then added a cute little bunting. I love how it turned out.
It was almost too pretty to cut!
 I tried to add a few healthy choices too.  I sure didn't want any caterpillars to have a stomach ache ;)
What's a party without silly hats for friends?! 
A special hat for my tiny birthday boy.  I save all the hats that I make for my little men, and use them as decor in their bedrooms. 
We had a little table for the older kiddos to enjoy some caterpillar crafting.
These guys were really digging the glue.  Whoa, that's a LOT of glue.  Teehee. I'm sure their future preschool teachers are gonna have a lot of fun with this action :P
I asked the partygoers to write a special note to Grant in his birthday edition of the book. 
  Big brother, Jack, and his friends took some time out from playing to pose for a photo under the balloon caterpillar. He's a friendly sort of fellow that we named Curtis. 
 These sweet faces get me every time!
 Grant and his buddies are still getting the hang of this posing for pictures thing.  Dang, they are CUTE! Can you handle all those chubby cheeks?!? My super mommy friends are pretty talented at getting these little cherubs all lined up in a row for pics.
Unfortunately, our precious Georgia doesn't have the best party manners, so this is what she was doing for most of the festivities.  Seems she dumped out all of her food in protest too. You are loved, cute puppy.
Big friends went home with fun treat bags. Tucked inside was a caterpillar or butterfly wind-toy and a snack mix (with a few gummy caterpillars thrown in) for the ride home. 
I struggled with what to give the little munchkins.  It was hard to come up with something that was age appropriate. I came up with these fuzzy guys.  I cut lengths from feather boas and attached a giant red pom pom head.  I figured they'd be great for some sensory, tickle-filled fun.
Yikes, I have a feeling you've developed quite the sweet tooth already, little buddy.
Hmm.  I wonder where he's picked that up? We had such a blast at our party!
I can't believe my pumpkin is already a year old! Happy 1st birthday, sweet Grant!  Mama loves Y O U!
XOXOXO!

Sources for Grant's Very Hungry Caterpillar Party:
cupcake toppers~Two Sugar Babies
cut-out cookies~Sweet Treats by Bonnie
caterpillar applique tee~ Peachy Keen Designs
cake~ Giant Eagle (fancified by me)
treat bags~found at Target (on clearance!)
invites and party graphics~yours truly, with LOTS of help from the wonderful Eric Carle
dotty paper behind party table~Target giftwrap

***UPDATE***
Very Hungry Caterpillar food labels available for free download! 
Enjoy the cuteness and happy partying!
Make sure to click DOWNLOAD ORIGINAL to get the best quality print possible.  You'll need Adobe Reader to open these files.




*I was sad to be without my awesome pro photographer for this party (unlike our last shindig), so I need to apologize for the general grainy, ickiness of most of these pics. I really need to get better at taking photos.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

{ making me smile... }

All of the photos over at Mila's Daydreams are so darling and inventive, but this one is really stealing my heart today.

Monday, April 11, 2011

{ i am loving }

Oh, how these happy, rainbow bright stripes are chasing my Monday blues away!

Alright, I want to live in this photo.
Wow. This cake is a work of art.
I'm digging these irresistably cheerful  earrings.
Aww, my Georgia would look so adorable in this collar.
Ahhh, to relax with a good read on a breezy, warm afternoon right here. Love this modern, playful take on the hammock.

Hope your week is off to a COLORFUL start!

Thursday, April 7, 2011

{ giggly grant is 1! }

Unbelievably, you are one year old today.
Today you:
slept in until 7am (thank you!).
giggled when you played a game of chase with big brother.
brought me the mini Webster's dictionary, and signed "book".
snuggled with me after breakfast.

Happy Birthday, my sweet, little inchworm. I love you.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

{ oh, why knot? }

I've noticed that I've really been drawn to the knot-ty trend lately.
Isn't this hair the epitome of casual chic? Love.
These cuties are begging to be a future DIY project.
Um, hello, cheap, cute bag.
Hmm.  I never would have thought that ho-hum passamenterie cord could look so cool.
Are knots a design element that you like...or not so much?  Once upon a time I worked for a very talented accessory designer who used to say that people either love or hate bows (yes, please!)-just like hearts (no, thank you.) or stars (eh).  Maybe knots fall into that category too?