how sweet it is to be loved

send it soaring.

an awesome day! some seriously beautiful weather. perfect winds for flying a kite, running, jumping, rolling down hills, and laughing 'til the cows came home. followed by some storms and a very quick ride home in a downpour on a rhino. whew!!!

blue skies all around.

even daddy was home to enjoy the day with us!! yea! hurray!

spring has sprung! there is mud to be found here and there and everywhere.

i am pretty sure that all of this white stuff is gone...cruel but wonderful april fool's trick. the snowman we rolled together was the only remaining snow the next day.

and, by the way. i celebrated my 30th!

10 things i ((love)) sunday

gimme some sugar, baby!

it is soon to be easter!! gotta love reese's peanut butter eggs and rainbow jelly beans and the little gum that comes in a tiny egg carton.....do you remember those? here are some of my favorite easter basket finds mostly of the noncandy type because, well, that would be too easy to pick favorites or too hard to narrow down the choices.

1. things in stuff catapult how much fun would you have in your yard with this?
2. imagination kids bunny family
3. ahmelie vintage sweetness handbag clutch
4. bit of whimsy prims doll dress pattern clothes for the kids?? not so cool to the littles always but for baby. cool.
5. mahalo wolf mask we are all about pretend play here
6. while searching for a picture of reese's, i came accross this recipe...reese's peanut butter bars. yum! go check out designs by gollum's blog.
7. stay awake princess and her knight finger puppets
8. lilian eve designs sweet nella hair bow
9. those great house women i spy stegosaurus bag quiet way to keep busy
10. dreamspun kids extra large playsilks

books also top my list of things to add to the basket and silly putty or playdough. what kind of ideas do you have?

and, don't forget to add a few of these!!! i am bound to find a few hidden by the rabbit.

happy st. patty's day.

those sneaky little leprechauns were all over the place today. they left quite a mess in ava's room looking for gold and they left a note on her pillow.

 we followed the treasure clues down the stairs where we found a trail of marshmallows. what a mouth full.

they sent us on quite a journey. here, there and everywhere. until.....ta da! gold! ava really enjoyed this. i am thinking we should do a few more treasure hunts. my two have really gotten into the whole pretend stage and love to act out any and every scene or what if.
to get the printable for the treasure hunt go to momtastic. i added a few clues just to make it a little more challenging because our shoes and mittens are stashed in the same place.

enjoy.

3.14 day

a little late on this post and a little out of season but, well there was some pie baking and eating to be done. no math in this house. and no worries. pie fixes everything. so have yourself a slice.

this is a favorite recipe and healthy:)....it contains pumpkins and nuts!! and sugar and goodness!

Mommy's Pumpkin Cheesecake Praline Pie

this recipe comes from Linda Hundt, owner of Sweetie-licious Bakery Cafe in DeWitt, Michigan. I clipped it from a newspaper article.

1 9-inch deep-dish pie crust, frozen

Praline Pecans
3/4 cup chopped pecans
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 tablespoon brown sugar


Filling
1 (8-ounce) package cream chheese, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 1/4 cups canned pure pumpkin
1 cup half-and-half
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 eggs, slightly beaten
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange rind
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Grated nutmeg

To prepare pecans: place pecans, butter and brown sugar in a nonstick skillet. Cook over medium heat until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and scrape onto aluminum foil to cool.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To prepare filling: combine cream cheese, 1/3 cup sugar and vanilla, mixing until well blended. Blend in 1 egg. Pour into pastry crust. Combine pumpkin, half-and-half, all-purpose flour, remaining sugar, 2 slightly beaten eggs, pumpkin pie spice, cloves, orange rind, salt and cinnamon. Carefully pour pumpkin mixture into a spiral pattern over cream cheese mixture. (Pumpkin mixture will sink to the bottom.)

Bake 1 hour or until almost set in middle. Let cool. Sprinkle Praline Pecans over top of pie. Dust with grated nutmeg.
Serves 8.

happy pie day. what is your favorite pie to bake and eat?

craftastic weekend!

i am a crafter. i like crafts. i like sewing and gluing and finding ways to use bits and pieces of leftover project materials. i also like organization but, creating masterpieces does not lend itself to organization in my household and let's face it, being a mom of two does not lend itself to organization. i'm cool with it. i can handle it....most days!

this is the time of year that flies from one holiday to the next. some are already counting down the days to christmas. i must admit that i have even pulled out the "you know, santa's elves are watching you."

this year i wanted to focus a little more on thanksgiving. we have so much to be thankful for and it is so easy to take those precious things for granted. we started off by creating our own fall color-changing leaves. a used her new clementine paints and about 20 paintbrushes!!!

 we left those to dry and came back to them the next day.  we read the book p is for pumpkin. God's harvest alphabet by kathy-jo wargin and we brainstormed all the things that we love. family, friends, the dog, spiders (a contribution because they eat bugs). glad she can find the good in almost anything except turning off scooby-doo!

then we took a few blank maple leaves and drew and scribbled the most important things we are thankful for on them. cut them all out and a little tape and a {give thanks} garland and viola!!! instant decorations for thanksgiving. guests can talk about it and add their own and i have a daily reminder to pause. life is short and good.

what do you want your kids to remember most this holiday season. any great family traditions you like to do?

Spring Spring!

I am doing my little happy dance. My kids may think I am nuts but, they do join in. I am so excited that it is spring. The bikes and balls, chalk and stroller that have crowded my garage all winter can finally come out and my kids and I can enjoy some fresh air and sunshine without loads of layers to hinder our every move. Here are some things that I am hearting this month.

How adorable is this whale chalkbord. There are busy busy days ahead between the beach, the picnics, parks, and everything else use this hand-cut, hand-painted whale chalkboard to write reminders, notes, or quotes.

I am so in love with all the fun fabrics and prints available for spring and summer. I will be filling my etsy shop with many soon. I am also slowly gaining the courage needed to sew an actual dress for my daughter. This sweet little top from sweet tea clothier gives me great inspiration.










Check out this piece of jewelry. Instead of a corsage what mom or prom goer wouldn't love to wear this. It is from SecondSister Jewelry.





Last but not least......A great book for your little citizen of the world and hopes that their confidence will bloom and shine!

PreSchool-Grade 2—Peep is a baby chick who follows his mother and sisters along the sidewalk, but when his sisters jump confidently off the edge, Peep hesitates. His reactions run the gamut from nervous to angry to terrified, and when he finally gulps and takes that leap, he's overjoyed at his own prowess. But new challenges always await; for Peep, it's the curb that he must climb next. Every child, or adult for that matter, has trouble overcoming fears of one sort of another and needs encouragement from someone who will uplift their spirit so they can go on. This book has a very heavy message to impart to all its readers, young or old.


As if you needed a reason to shop....here are some days you just may want to celebrate!

April Calendar
Keep America Beautiful Month
Celebrate Diversity Month
National Humor Month
4/1 April Fool's Day
4/2 World Autism Day
4/4 Easter
4/7 No Housework Day
4/10 Baby Massage Day
4/16 National Wear Your Pajamas to Work Day
4/19 TV Turnoff Week
4/22 Earth Day
4/23 William Shakespeare's Birthday
4/24 Eeyore's Birthday