Cute as a button!

So...my little sister Stacy and her hubby Adam are having their first baby in May! It's a boy, and his name is going to be Max (which I absolutely love :). Ella & Avery are over the moon excited to have a new baby cousin, and I'm a little excited to spoil another little nephew too!!! So, as I was browsing through some of my favorite sites I came across the cutest candy buttons over at bakerella.com!





Aren't they just too cute?! She even provided a link to the Bake It Pretty site for a free download for the button toppers, and where to buy all of the supplies that you will need. Needless to say, I WILL be making these for my sister's baby shower! Bakerella even showed this cute idea for displaying them on a little stand.



What a great idea, huh? I'm planning on making mine out of white chocolate, and I'll probably use the same blue, orange, and yellow colors to go with the baby boy theme. Oh, how I love making favors!! Sorry, Stacy! I know you don't really want a baby shower, but I can't resist!

Love This.....

Sometimes having good taste is just plain too expensive! I love perusing sites like Pottery Barn, Crate and Barrel, and CB2. The only problem with that is that I find AMAZING stuff that is outrageously priced! So one of my goals this year is to try and make my own version of my favorite finds, but on a budget that I can afford. Here are a few projects that I've been wanting to take a swing at. They're all wall art and from one of my favorite sites, Fawn&Forest. And since my hubby is gone until July, I have some extra time in the evenings to work on a few crafty projects once I put the girls to bed!

First, I want to hang one of these gorgeous alphabet wall hangings in our play room. It's from the Fawn&Forest site, which I absolutely adore:) I plan in using PhotoShop and some really beautiful digital elements when I try and re-create this baby. Let's just hope I can find what I'm looking for! Oh, and I can't decide which one I love more...pink&blue or orange&green? Tough one...

Next is this fab family tree, also at Fawn&Forest. Such a simple design. I LOVE how they incorporated all of those cute little pictures of each member of the family. Why didn't I think of doing this? Again, I'll probably give my CS2 a try, or I could even pull out my Cricut Expression. I could cut out a tree, leaves, picture frames, and any other decorative elements I want to add. Lots of ideas rolling around in my brain!

And last but certainly not least, this beauty you can find here. Also from Fawn&Forest. I'd love to see this one hanging right by my front door, or in each of the girls' rooms. Again my trusty CS2, or Cricut Expression will certainly come in handy! LOVE it!

I was so busy looking for other ideas today, that I didn't make it out to the craft store to buy the supplies for my hoop.de.do's that I mentioned in my last post. But that's okay. Things happen and people get distracted! And it's probably good that I didn't make a trip because I have officially become a fabric snob. Now that I've seen all of the beautiful patterns and designs that are available on the Internet, JoAnn's fabric just doesn't cut it anymore! I'll probably buy the fabric online and get the rest of the supplies locally. So, all of these projects are officially to be continued......

P.S. I'll be sure to post my creations once they're finished!!

Hoop.De.Do!

So...I've been eyeing these GORGEOUS fabric hoops that double as bulletin boards for quite some time now. So unique, simple, and beautiful! I found them here when I was browsing Etsy (don't you just LOVE that site?!). The shop isn't currently selling any hoop.de.do's, but I knew I could do it myself and do it on a budget!

I'd like to put 3 or 4 of them in each of the girls' rooms (just like in the picture) and hang their artwork, party invitations, pictures, or anything else they'd like. I've decided that TODAY is the day that I'm going to do it! I'm heading to the craft store to buy the hoops, fabric to match the bedding/colors in the girls' rooms, and all the other supplies that I'll need! I'm super excited, and can't wait to get started! I'll even post a few pictures of my finished hoop.de.do's! Fun, fun, fun!!

This is how you know...

...that your family has been sick. When your 2.5 year old takes a nap all on her own. No forcing. No begging. No drugs.

All 3 of us have had a pretty nasty case of the cold/flu virus going around. It started with Avery and worked its way through Ella, and finally on to me Saturday and Sunday. Luckily my parents came and brought the girls to their house yesterday (Sunday) so that I could have a break and take a much needed nap! More to come soon.....

We've Got Mail!!

Every evening, right before dinner, we go on our nightly adventure to the mail box. We always have a letter or two to send to Daddy, but we cross our fingers and hope that there are a few letters waiting for us!

That's my littlest mail carrier, Avery, with her basket full of letters for Daddy!

Yesterday we hit the JACKPOT! There were 2 postcards, and 4 letters from Daddy (I think that's a record)! The girls each rode home with a big smile on their faces, and carried one postcard and a letter in their bike baskets. It's so nice to hear from Carlos and know that he's doing well! We miss him, but are finding joy in the little moments we share together through the mail!

Ezra's 3rd Birthday

My sweet nephew Ezra turned 3 on Wednesday! He's such a neat little boy, and I am so grateful for the special relationship that he and Avery have! They're not only cousins but best buddies! We celebrated his birthday at Chuck E. Cheese, and everyone had a blast! Poor Ezra was a little under the weather, but he was a trooper anyway! The pictures are a little out of order, but you get the idea!!

This is Ella "helping" him open his presents.

He was completely spoiled...of course!! His favorite things right now are Toy Story (he calls it "BuzzWoody"), Cars, Handy Manny, and Trains. We got him a few quiet books for church, a Cars coloring book, and 2 "Max & Ruby" DVDs (another one of his favorite things).

This was Avery's favorite part of the night! She went on that horse ride at least 20 times! Sorry about the fuzzy picture, but it has to be my favorite of the night!! Can't you see the excitement on her face?!?!

Ezra's Cookie Cake & Candles

Happy Birthday little man! We love you!!

Ella Ballerina

Recently, Ella started a beginning Tap/Ballet class at a local dance studio in town. She goes once a week for one hour, and she LOVES every minute of it! Her favorite parts of the class are doing leaps and dancing with "Magic" wands. Her class just started preparing for their end of the year recital, and they are doing a tap routine to the song "Almost There" from Princess and the Frog. I only wish Avery would take an interest in potty training so that I could put her in a class too! Hopefully soon! She wants to be a ballerina just like her big sister!

My two little ballerinas!

Ella & her friends!

My Ballerina

(And yes, that is a huge hole in her tights. It started out as a little snag when we were driving to Ballet, but once we got out of the car this is how it looked. I promise...we CAN afford a new pair of tights for her!!)

Yee, Haw!

For the last few weeks in Ella's preschool, they have been working on a unit about Cowboys and Farms. Monday was special day because our good friend, Miss Laura, came to preschool and brought a few visitors with her...horses!! Here are a few pictures from our fun morning:

Here's our happy group of Preschoolers with Miss Laura and Jet!

Logan, the cutest little cowboy! All decked out in his western wear!

All the horses wanted to do was nibble on the yummy grass!!

Ella wasn't so sure she wanted to pet him. She kept telling me that it looked like he had

a runny nose!!

My little cowgirl & Miss Laura

After we had a chance to meet the horses and learn some interesting facts about them, Miss Stacey let each of the kids make their very own butter. She had baby food jars filled with cream, and she had the kids shake the jars until they turned into butter (which Ella thought was really fun to do). And last but not least, we pretended to milk a cow using latex gloves filled with water. The kids had lots of fun squirting each other with the "udders"! Thanks Miss Laura & Miss Stacey for such a fun morning!

Happy Birthday, Kailey!

Monday, February 1st, was my little sister Kailey's 19th birthday! She's the baby in the family, and it's hard to believe that she's so grown up!! Ella, Avery, and I went shopping and bought Kailey a SEWING MACHINE (I know...I'm an awesome sister)! I think it was probably the only present that was a complete surprise to her...and I know she was excited to get it! For dinner, she chose to eat at Bob's Big Boy, so we drove (way too far) to Norco to meet my family and celebrate Kailey's big 1-9 . Everyone ordered their usual Big Boy Combination (salad, burger and fries), and we sang "Happy Birthday", ate cake, and watched her open her presents. I am so lucky to have Kailey as my baby sister! She's one of my best friends, and is the best Aunt in the whole world! I love you, Kailey! Happy Birthday!!!