Chocolate Mustache

Okay. I have to do a really quick post about these chocolate mustache pops posted on Prudent Baby.
How fun are these?

These caught my attention also. Great for classroom treats!

Woodland Baby Shower

It's always a good thing to re-use stuff, right? Even if you're not saving the planet, but saving time. I was feeling rather proud of myself to recycle and add onto a collection that was used for a Woodland Gnome  Birthday Party {here & here} and I must say it turned out better than I imagined it wood {pun intended}. This Woodland Baby Shower was hosted by my aunt and cousin who are quite the party throwing duo. Check out some of the photos from the party:

It's A Boy Banner.

Candy Bar and Drink Wrappers.

My aunt and cousin made these center pieces and added some of the 2" punches. That mushroom is actually an eraser on top and pencil sharpener on the bottom.

I believe that they made all the treats on this table except for the lemon thingys in the back right corner.

My aunt found this easy owl cupcake recipe at One Charming Party.

The invitation {seems oddly familiar...}. The artwork below was intended to be used as dessert/food labels or place cards.

Doodling...my mid-year's resolution.

One year my new year's resolution was to sketch more. And I did. And it made me happy. This was the kind of sketching I did. Nature mostly.

Recently, I've been sneeking peeks in the sketchbook of a really talented artist here in our very own home. And these are some of the delights I found...

I love the whimsical flowers and trees and the blue-coconut-bikini-topped hula girl. And, these are a couple we have on our fridge...

 Hearts with wings have been a favorite subject lately. They make my heart soar {teehee}.

With all this fabulous inspiration surrounding me I couldn't help but get the creative bug. So, I have made a mid-year's resolution to doodle more.

The inspiration for the *mommy & daddy sitting a tree* doodle came from this little gem combined with the constant singing of a newly learned song ~

Here is a page of flowers ~ which I think really are my favorite thing to doodle.

I really like how the black & white turned out. I used regular tipped and ultra-thin tipped archival scrapbooking pens. I forgot how much I loved to doodle. The great thing about it is anyone can doodle. You can turn any *mistake* into some kind of something...a doodle!

Carnival Party Wrap-Up

Well, it's been a few months since the Carnival Party, but better late than never...right? I had previously posted preparations {here} for the party and talked about the theme being red & white, which I highly recommend for parties hosted close to Valentine's Day. I finally went through most of the photos....

I've got to find a photo of the table with food and cupcakes on it. Much more appealing!

Some of the games...

This was the best of all ~ a lollipop tree {literally}. I asked our good friend Mr. B to make one because he's a miracle worker of all things wood. I had explained to him the kind of tree you usually see at the school carnival that's made out of a 1x2 {??? I don't really know about his kind of stuff.}, about a foot high with holes drilled in it. And this is what I got....

Oh! The other nice thing about it being a red & white theme, and being in February is that the girls were able to wear their Christmas outfits. Double Whammy. {I hated to do it, but we just took the lollipop tree down a few weeks ago}

And here are some other shots from the day that I really like.

Flea Market Finds

I have a fondness for old stuff and when I had my first baby it was the perfect excuse to go antiquing. I started with the blue parasol and birdcage {lower left #4}. Having a second baby allowed for even more searching and purchasing!

It didn't stop there as you can see by the above photos. And, these are only some of my favorites.
1. Laundry Bag found at a little store on Balboa Island. This particular store carries new items, but the owner found this little gem at a flea market and couldn't resist buying it to sell at her store.
2. Snow White wall art made out of really thick chipboard ~ Irvine Valley College Flea Market {first Sunday of the month}.
3. Fisher Price *Bossy Belle* pull toy {I like to call her Bessy Bell}.
4. Birdcage with porcelain food bowls and blue parasol ~ Paris to the Moon, Costa Mesa...which I am so, so sad to say is no longer there.
5. This pritty kitty has a mate with a broken head at the moment ~ random estate sale; porcelain head for storing yarn/string that you pull out through the mouth ~ Long Beach Veterans Stadium Flea Market {third Sunday of the month}.
6. Fisher Price Queen Bee pull toy ~ one of the antique stores at the Orange Circle.

This Mickey Mouse cube puzzle is from my childhood. I loved playing with this toy. It has something like 16 puzzles and my 6 year old loves it as much as I did {My 2 year old isn't allowed anywhere near it yet}. My dad brought it back for me from one of his business trips to Germany. The small print on the box is in German. The blocks I found for 50¢ at ~ you guessed it ~ the Irvine Valley College Flea Market.

Don't you just love Easter?

Easter is my favorite holiday of the year. I just can't resist sweet, little baby bunnies, lambs, ducks, chicks and all the decor/art designed around them. MarthaStewart.com has some beautiful, DIY crafts {of course}.
This Easter Tree is my favorite...

Getting Ready for Easter

We have this fun tradition in my family on Easter after we've eaten brunch and are too stuffed to leave the table. We each pick a colored, hard boiled egg. Two people start by hitting their eggs together. The person whose egg doesn't crack gets to move to the next person and so on. The un-cracked egg left standing is the winner. Every year we think we know the trick to hitting the egg just right, and every year our theories go out the window. When I was little my grandmother (BB) and I made dressed-up egg cups and hats for the eggs. Last year I noticed that there weren't any left and it made me sad.  I decided it was time to make new ones. I started making new *outfits* right away and felt really good because I was a whole year ahead of schedule {although, I only made three and have 8 more to make}.

The original hats that I made with my BB started as little styrofoam cups. We put them in the oven on low heat, just enough to start melting into the cutest little hats perfect for the eggs. Several years ago we discovered that melting styrofoam is toxic...oops. I haven't thought of an alternative yet. But, I have a couple of weeks still.

 Luckily I always have a stash of empty toilet paper rolls for times like this. I got out all my supplies: paper, ribbon, gems, scissors, craft knife, glue dots and M&M's {to eat, not for embellishing the egg cups}. This project is great for enlisting the help of little kiddos {or to take pictures of this craft}.

This really is a fun and easy project and can be used year after year. Now...I just need to figure out those hats...