Woo Hoo - A craft project that worked!

I've been pinning a lot lately on Pinterest (oh my goodness it is addictive) and saw a super cute idea where you print a photo on to tissue paper and then mod podge it on to a canvas. Here is a link to the steps.  EPIC FAILURE!  It did print on to the tissue paper which was cool - but the mod podging sucked big time. I instantly tore the tissue paper while trying to smooth it out and then it went down hill from there. It was so bad I couldn't even stop to take a photo because I was busy peeling the tissue off so at least the canvas could be saved. I tried it again with just printing the photo on to regular paper and then mod podging it. That actually did work. My one mistake was that with the mod podge top coat I started on the green side (left) and worked to the white side (right) and the glue got a little discolored so I felt like the photo did too. Next time I will start light and work my way dark. Here is the result.

I used the gloss mod podge - perhaps matte would have been better?

I also did a letter for my niece. Talk about simple! The letter was pre-shaped (clearance for 50 cents - woo hoo). I bought a sheet of scrapbook paper (25 cents) and painted it with paint that was 1/2 off. (I love bargains!!)  I painted the back and sides of the letter first and let that dry. I figured it would be easiest to paint and then podge.  I traced the letter on to the scrapbook paper and cut it out with an exacto knife (more precise than scissors) and mod podged it on. (I actually used the back of the letter - not the front with the bevelled edges because it would be easy to put the paper on.) One layer down first and then one layer on top. I am super excited by how it turned out and hope she likes it!!  I actually have a little bit of guilt at how easy it was!  That will quickly go away though because the next letter to try is a M - which will require more than 1 sheet of paper. Yikes!

The other project I did successfully was re-purposing a book by turning it in to a pumpkin for my fall decorations. I got the idea from here. I lucked out and got the old book for free, found a twig, and so the only expense to this project was the $5 exacto knife and some ribbon.  I was thrilled to find my glue gun from when I was a child - and it still works!!! Talk about a happy dance!!!

I only did a few things differently - I didn't do the tea stain (to lazy) and I left the cover on the book - it was a paperback and I figured it would help it stand up better. I think I made a good choice!

Here it is:

I just asked my kids what it was and they said pumpkin - YES - it even passes the kid test!!

The rest of my weekend consisted of seeing the movie The Help (a MUST SEE - I highly recommend the book too!!!) and stopping by Real Deals so I share the experience of shopping there with a friend who has never been. She liked it a lot - but I was the only one who couldn't resist buying more treasures for my house.

I already had the bowl/tray/thingiemcbobber that I have never used so at least now it has a purpose. The idea all started with the globe - so I could use it as an educational tool for my kids - and progressed from there. I like the final result - although my son things the red ball is an onion. Hubby isn't too excited about it - and I know once I dust it I'll be annoyed - but for now - in the honeymoon stage - I can't take my eyes off of it and keep trying new placements for everything.

I had also picked up this little box for our remotes. The hubby actually likes this idea (bonus).  Hopefully now we can spend less time searching for lost remotes. I also bought the box in black and hope to find a purpose for it too.

Another marathon memento to put around my neck

The other day I saw a website that made necklaces for athletes.

I decided I HAD to HAVE a necklace in honor of the marathon I ran...2 years ago.

Isn't it spiffy?  You get to customize the charm piece with a map of the town you ran the race in.

My only question is.... Do I need 13 of them for each half marathon I've run?????

Check out thesilvermaple.com for more ideas.

Don't judge a book by its cover

A few weeks ago I went for a run in the morning before work (which I hadn't done for a while - even to say it hasn't been a while would be an exaggeration).  I noticed an older boat of a car parked in an odd spot (kind of the middle of nowhere). A man was standing outside of it with the trunk open and passenger door open. He was Windexing the passenger window - it was 5:45 in the morning.

The scene was definitely weird to me and my mind started to come up with random scenarios.

The one it settled on was that he was a kidnapper. I don't know why - the man was not threatening in any way - but it was the combo of the car (with the trunk open) and him windexing the freaking window at 5:45 AM.

I noticed there was a lady behind me walking her dogs. I kept running and let my mind wonder at the possibilities. "Does he use the people he kidnaps skin to make a skin outfit for himself - no wait - that's silence of the lambs".   "Does he like tall women, chubby women, redheads, etc."

{Side note - for those of you who think I am a freak - tell me what else my mind should be thinking about when I run. It has to drift off somewhere, doesn't it?}

I decided to change my route home - I was just too freaked out to go by the car again.  In my heart of hearts I new there was no harm or immediate threat to myself, but I secretly decided to watch the news that night to see if he made the crime report. 

I then wondered about the lady I saw behind me walking the dogs and wondered if he kidnapped her. (Can we say wild imagination?)

Luckily, I saw her down the road so I ran past her, and against all my better judgement - I decided to ask her if she was as creeped out by the guy windexing his windows with the trunk open.  She said no -he is there all the time. He's a runner and usually is stretching or something.

Boy did I feel like a ding bat (or rather I decided my imagination was a ding bat - I was just looking out for it - ha ha).

Fast forward to this week. I went running in the morning again (woo hoo - twice in one summer - wow).  On the return loop I ran past the street I had seen the man before and low and behold he was there running in my direction.  He make the corner before I got there. I figured, in my young age, I would eventually pass him (I estimate his age at 65+).  He was slightly ahead of me and I COULD NOT FOR THE LIFE OF ME CATCH UP WITH HIM. He is freaking fast!   I was shocked and appalled. I know I'm no speed demon - but come on - there's gotta be a 30 year age gap!  Nope - not a chance - the dude was gone!

So - the moral of the story is to never judge a book by its cover...

(or if you Windex your car windows in the wee early hours of the morning... with the trunk open... you'll run faster).

Loving my Lisa Leonard necklace

I finally ordered the pinwheel necklace from Lisa Leonard Design that I've had my eye on for a while and I love it. I'm pumped that I got to customize the saying. Instead of "play every day" I had it say "play laugh love". 

The photo doesn't do it justice.

(Sweet bonus I can even reuse the cute box and tissue paper.)

She also has a molded heart bracelet that I have my eye on, but I don't wear bracelets much so I'm thinking about it in necklace format.

Anyway - if you are ever interested check out her website: lisaleonardonline.com.

All you need is LOVE

In life...all you need is

Here is a short list about what I loved about this weekend:

A great camping trip filled with amazing weather, plentiful friends, a long float on the river, and kids exploring the great outdoors.

I love (although might regret) that now when my son sees my friends he claps and shouts "Yea! The margarita moms".

Getting immersed in a good book.

S'mores made with Andes mints - very refreshing.

Kids catching crawdads.

Bacon & beer pancakes for breakfast.

Dogs having a fun play date.

Seeing my son doing an amazing job riding his bike without training wheels.

Thinking about friends and family all across the world.

Kids faces with ice cream mustaches, sticky marshmallow lips, and/or streaks of dirt.

How a shower feels after a long weekend away.

Getting to hold a newborn baby for the first time and remembering when my kids were that little. 

Sharing a fun moment with two great friends and their baby.  Getting to see how their hearts swell with the love of their newest addition.

What did you love about your weekend????

Traditions

I started a tradition of taking the kids out for ice cream after their first & last day of school. This year I started another great tradition that I will look forward to for many years to come - Margaritas for Mommies after the first day of school. Five of us gathered to celebrate - and gave the kids an opportunity to play and talk about how fun school is. After all - it's all about the kids, right? It was great fun for everyone!!!  I contemplated Mimosas for Mommies after we drop them off, but then I figured that would just lead to a very unproductive day.

They say every day isn't great....

Every day isn't great - but there is something great in every day.  This weekend was living proof of that.  To me, weekends start on Friday afternoon, and this week my Friday afternoon was ROUGH.  Despite it being the birthday of 2 wonderful people {Michael and Eleanor} it was also the day of the memorial service for my children's principal {Mr. C} and the day I found out about some complications that happened to my friend and her child during the babies delivery.  To say the least, that part of the weekend was not great. I sobbed the entire memorial service. I honestly couldn't control myself and walked away with a wal-mart bag full of used kleenex (I'm a smart thinker and brought in my own box of tissues). My mind was then busy praying for my friend and her baby. 

To help me snap out of my funk I decided to share the great things that did happen this weekend. Things I am very grateful for:

* My youngest decided that once the baby (mentioned above) was born - he would no longer use training wheels while bike riding.  By golly he stayed true to his word and on Friday he was riding without training wheels. The most amazing part is that I didn't have to help him AT ALL ~ he just took off riding and did it! (I did find out later that he had been practicing at day care.)

* I got to go shopping while camping. A girl's dream come true!  The hubby and kids when on a scheduled hike with a group of other people and I wanted to dash up to the hospital to check on friend/baby.  After finding out that they were improving wonderfully I had time to run to a few stores and stop at a few garage sales (that just happened to be en route to the stores). I got some screaming deals at the Real Deals store (that is only open two days a week), picked up some great sale items at JoAnn Fabric, and found some stuff for camping at the garage sales.  The hike was a success for the rest of my family and my outing was a success for me!

* During the camping trip I got to spend some quality times with the kids in the great outdoors. No bill paying, tv watching, house cleaning, or laundry washing to distract us.  (We also enjoyed more reeses peanut butter cup smores - YUM.)

* One day/night I got to read the first numbered book in the Janet Evanovich series about Stephanie Plum. I'd been wanting to find a good book that was an easy entertaining read and I got that with this book. I was actually bummed that I didn't have #2 with me so I could start reading it too.

* I got to enjoy a fun four wheeler ride with Jennifer (a different one) and our kids.  We first went on a nice mommies only ride and then picked up the youngsters. With them we stopped to take pictures by a waterfall and even let the kids pick out a rock to keep as a souvenir (because you know a kid can never have to many rocks).  I haven't been on a four wheeler for probably 7 years so it was nice to go on a relaxing ride with a friend and share it with a child too.

* After coming back home (and taking necessary showers) we headed back to town and enjoyed a dinner out at our favorite burrito restaurant and then peeked in on friend/baby to discover they were both doing AWESOME!!! Baby was making huge improvements and Mommy was recovering really well.  Talk about putting a smile on my face and warmth in my heart!

Here are a few other photos from the weekend.

All the kids and teachers were invited up on stage during the memorial service to sing the school motto in memory of their principal. Then everybody got together (arms linked) and sang 'take me out to the ball game' in his memory because he loved baseball. It was a really special moment where we were all able to come together in Mr C's honor.

The ONLY way to eat a smore from here on out!! How did I not think of this sooner?

I love how I'm not the only one who can just stare at a campfire. I'm not sure why it is so mesmerizing and requires people to stare at it for hours.

Sample of above mentioned fire.

There were a few minor injuries while camping.  Two bike wrecks and a woman (me) who thought she could chop wood - while wood decided it should fly off at warp speed and hit me in my shin.