Favorite Things Party 2014

This past Friday night I hosted my second annual Favorite Things party. Have you seen these around Pinterest? That's where I found it originally and it sounded so fun! Last year around this time, I hosted the first one and it was a success! I decided it definitely needed to be something to be planned again.

This year I did everything about the same - unfortunately I completely forgot to take any before photos! Ack! So... all my documenting is from after the party. Ah well...

I placed a sign right inside the entry door with two buckets. One bucket for the Favorite Things exchange and one for a door prize. I found this cute chevron paper at Michaels that I just sliced up with the paper cutter for people to write their names on.

I decorated some little kraft paper bags with ribbons and flowers that matched my invitations I sent out.

As our "icebreaker", I had put about 5 M&Ms in little paper cups and we went around the room. Each color stood for its own category. It took a little longer than I expected, but it was fun. Next time I might limit the number of questions/colors to make it a little shorter. 

Its always fun to have an opportunity to break out the pretty stuff that you stash away because you don't want your kids to ruin it. I got out my pretty lace tablecloth and dishes that my grandma gave me out of her stash at her house. 

That big picture up there is an example of what Favorite Things were brought to the party. I got cleansing wipes, peppermint tea, a free drink to a local juice bar and some yummy snacks. Other things brought were: a plant, soaps, kitchen canisters with goodies inside, hair gel, and.... that's all I remember. =)

Lastly, we made a peppermint and lime foot soak that I found on Pinterest. It was a fun way to end the evening and everyone got to take home a little pampering.

It was a fun night and I'm thinking it needs to be an annual event. One guest thanked me for inviting her to a party that didn't require her to be pressured into buying or selling a product. I realized... it's true. Many of our get-togethers are "home parties" where we have to buy something. It IS nice to just get together to visit! Maybe next year I'll remember to take pictures! 

Late Season Jam-Making Session

I have been a terrible blogger of late. To be honest, it's not that I don't want too, but my computer tends to be a little slow - especially if I'm trying to edit and upload pictures - and the thought of it seems like too much time and work sometimes. It's a bummer really... one of these days we'll get a new computer and then it should be easier. Until then, it might be spotty and have lots of book reviews because I have to post those and they require almost no pictures!

Yesterday I met up with the gals from my MOPS table and we made some jam! It was a really fun time. I was a little nervous because I was in charge although it wasn't at my house (my kitchen is NOT big enough for a houseful of people canning) and I think this was my first attempt at jam-making without my mom there.

I think it went well. Everyone brought one or two ingredients and I supplied the canner, jars and canning utensils. I have to admit that I think I ended up doing the majority of the work while everyone else was running after kids and chatting, but it was still fun and we managed two batches. Everyone was sent home with two half-pint jars of Caramel Apple Jam.

I got this recipe from A Latte with Ott,A's blog. It's a favorite in our house!!

Every week I think our lives are going to slow down, but it doesn't ever seem to happen! This week Malachi and I got invited to join some friends at the local Children's Museum. We hadn't been since they moved to their new facility - and it's very nice! Our last visit was before Zach was born and I can't believe how much bigger Malachi looks this time around!

One of the new features of the latest museum is this wall with vacuum tubes attached. The kids can stick soft balls or scarves into the tube and it's sucked up and around through the maze of tubes and then spit back out at them!

They also have some great props to be "builders" as Malachi calls it or vets or even a fireman!

In other news - it's my husband's 35th birthday today and we're going out to dinner! Hooray for date night! We're having a little party with family tomorrow, but it will be nice to get out by ourselves tonight.

Zachary came down with a nasty virus yesterday while I was at work accompanied by a fever. Poor guy... I felt so bad since I wasn't home. But Daddy held down the fort and after I explained where the Tylenol was everything seemed to be okay by the time I got home. Now we're just hoping the rest of us don't catch it!

Today I've been attempting to catch up on some thing around the house. It seems like so much needs to be done that I've decided to set myself 15 minutes on the timer and see how much I can accomplish in that amount of time. Then I reset it and move on to another area... seems to be working pretty good... except my children don't seem to understand that if I'm doing a concentrated 15 minutes.... that I can't stop and help them in the middle... ah well...

And here's a typical picture of my little guys. =)

A Jane Austen Bunco

Once a month I get together with a lovely group of girls and we play bunco together. There are 12 of us and each month we meet at a different person's house. We always have fun theme (well... some of us are more creative than others... but it's always fun).
We've been doing this for about six years now - and I must say it's getting harder and harder to come up with unique themes. Some of my past themes have been - Barnyard Bunco, Pirate Bunco and Mad Hatter Tea Bunco.

This year I finally decided on a Jane Austen themed party. First of all, can I tell you how horrified I am that some people had no idea who Jane Austen IS?? How is that possible? Don't they at least watch movies? Anyway.... it was a little more thrown together than my usual bunco because of my recent move and the fact that I worked the entire weekend before, but I think it still worked out fairly well. 

My mom helped me out and painted Jane Austen book quotes on 12 mugs. We bought a variety of white mugs at the Dollar Tree and she used a Sharpie to write the quote. Then she baked the mugs in 400 degree oven to make the ink permanent. We love how it turned out!

I also made up some cardstock bookmarks with quotes printed on some velum and tied at the top with a pretty ribbon.

Each person got to take a mug and a bookmark home with them. My mom made me up some  fun banners from a thrift store copy of Northanger Abbey.

This one was hanging from my mantle (it got taken down before I got a picture) and has some Austen silhouettes pasted to the pages. Another one was hung in the dining room above the table. I've yet to get any of my artwork unpacked, so it looked good.

And, of course, we had to have tea and I brought out some of my vintage tea cups for the occasion. I also made up some little books from a download I saw at DearLille blog for some little Austen books. I used another thrift store copy of Sense and Sensibility for that project.

I made a couple very yummy quiche for dinner. We had a Spinich Ricotta Quiche and a Ham and Swiss Quiche along with some rolls and corn soup.

Lastly, my amazing mother, made the two of us some Regency era dresses.

All in all, it was a very fun night and I think the theme was a fun one! I gave away some copies of the Keira Knightly version of Pride and Prejudice and some Barnes and Noble gift cards for prizes. 

Now... to start thinking of a theme for next year.... =)

Friends

My Little Guy has become friends with a little girl at our church.

I watch her some Wednesday's when her mom works. She is quite a bit younger than he is, he's almost three and she's not yet two, but that doesn't seem to matter. She's pretty tough and can keep up with him for the most part. 

They are so cute together!

Here are some pictures from when we took them to a local park on a sunny day about a week ago.

These are all taken with my phone, so they probably aren't the best quality.

This last picture is my favorite, although I was completely freaked out that she was going to fall into the lake because she stuck her head through the rails and leaned way over! Glad her mom was there to supervise. haha.

The best part of this picture is their little muddy bottoms! Although the day is sunny, it had been raining and the park was pretty soggy... obviously they had a few falls.

I love that he has some little friends and watching them interact. They are so free with their affections and friendship.

It's December Already!

Can you believe it? It's December already!

Even though I'm almost done with my Christmas shopping, it's hard to believe we're about to close out on another year... time just seems to keep moving faster and faster.

Right now I'm drinking some hot chocolate with some leftover Reddi-Whip from Thankgiving squirted on top while I carve out some time for blogging! Mmmm..!

I feel like I've been behind on posting lately.

My husband is currently laid off at work... they have apparently worked too fast and run out of jobs.... we are unsure of how long this is going to last, but are praying it's not too long.

It seems like I work a lot or I'm recovering from working! haha

I'm enjoying my new position in the ER for the most part, but the hours are definitely getting to me a little more than I expected. I spend the next day or two after a weekend of working basically wanting to sleep!

This morning we met a friend of mine at the local park and took some pictures for our Christmas card! That was fun and I'm looking forward to seeing how the card turns out. =) I'm ordering them from PearTreeGreetings again like I did last year, so I'm sure they'll be great! (Keep an eye out for a great coupon code from them soon!)

Here's one of our "out takes" It'd be great except my son, like normal, didn't want to smile AT the camera, but rather at the ground or something. =)

I felt like it was Saturday all day today... probably my husband being home from work. It makes me feel all off kilter!

One of my good friends came over today and first helped me grocery shop 

(that has to be the mark of a good friend, right?)

and then we watched Water for Elephants. Have you read the book?? I had read it awhile ago, so I enjoyed the movie. Since I couldn't really remember the details, it seemed like it followed the book pretty well... I'm sure that was partly faulty memory though! =)

If you haven't read the book, you should.

Hopefully I'll get a little more regular blogging in soon! It always seems harder to blog when my husband is home, so we'll see.

Comfort Zones

So a couple months ago at church, someone introduced me to a girl

who had, apparently, been attending out church for over a year and still

didn't know anyone. The girl is about my age, I'd guess, and has a 1-year-old daughter.

She drops her daughter off in my Toddler class and ever since that day,

I've tried to make a little bit of a connection with her.

Flash forward to a few weeks ago.

I'd been contemplating joining up with the Women's Bible Study.

They meet on Tuesday mornings and I've always talked myself out

of it because it is during morning nap time.

I've worked in the childcare and I know how hard it is on those little ones.

Well, my son doesn't take a morning nap anymore.

I'm sure I still would have talked myself out of it, but then that girl

I'd been trying to connect with - she asked me if I was going and that she'd signed up.

Uh oh! I think God was sending me a message there!

So, I signed up. I'm not really sure why I've been so averted to it.

Something about it seems too personal, or like everyone is going to be

putting on a show or something - or maybe I thought it was more just like social group time.

Anyway... last week was the first week.

It was good. It wasn't as scary as I thought. The people at my table didn't seem fake-y to me. AND it was kind of fun to get to visit with other ladies who I don't usually see on Sunday mornings. Pushed out of my comfort zone and survived! =)

Another good thing?

It's forcing me to keep up on studying my Bible.

We are doing a pretty involved book this time around.

Covenant: God's Enduring Promises by Kay Arthur

Lots of color-coding passages of Bible, which was freaking some people out

(but I'm secreting enjoying!)

So today, I'm having a somewhat quiet day at work (probably one of my last - so I'm trying to enjoy it!)

I decided to bring along my Bible Study homework since I'm a couple days behind. (see why I need this?)

I was also thinking about how I'm doing this in support of that girl - but in reality - maybe she's the one helping me since she's was brave enough to do it regardless of knowing anyone or not. =)

Completed Projects and Baby Shower

Last night a friend and I threw a baby shower for my good friend, Leah.

It was a busy day, but fun to visit with friends. =)

Here was my gift. 
I've had it all done for awhile and you might remember

this post where I misplaced supplies

Nursing Cover

Knitted Candy Corn hat in Superwash Merino Wool,

3 Knitted Washcloths in Cotton/Model blend,

3 Burp Cloths made with flannel and cloth prefolds

I asked my mom to buy a Baby Shower banner I saw at Michael's.

Well, she bought it, but then she came back to my house and

whipped up this personalized banner from some scrapbooking paper

using the one she bought as a template!

Super cute, right?

Another lady at the shower crocheted this adorable blanket...

I'm jealous!

In addition to these, there were more handmade gifts at this shower!

More burp cloths by a couple friends, receiving blankets, my mom is going to make

her a quilt, a photographer is giving her a photo session...

I know it sounds funny because mine was the only gift I could control,

but for some reason I was kind of proud that we had some many

fun, creative people who made handmade gifts!

They are so much better than the store bought versions and 

are so much more special!

A Week of Busy

Sunday I got back from camping with my family. 

I came home with a little bit of a cold.

Usually I should have been off on Monday and Tuesday, but

I had picked up a couple extra shifts at work.

(bad planning... I know)

So.... Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I worked from 3:00 - 11:30 pm.

(my cold luckily disappeared somewhere in there. Hooray!)

On Friday, I am hosting a baby shower for a good friend of mine

(also not good planning... I know)

So today, I'm cleaning my house, mowing my yard and doing general things that you need to do to get ready for these things before I go back to work tonight at 11:00pm - 7:00 am.

(I told you it was bad planning!)

Luckily, I have her gift all made and I have good friends and my mom who are helping me get ready!

AND we are finally having some beautiful summer weather here!

I'm already looking forward to next week - when there's some quiet days! =)

Mad Hatter's Tea Party - Bunco!

So tonight I hosted our monthly bunco group at my house. We always have a theme - and some are better than others. Some people go all out and some are pretty lame, but we always have a good time.


I organize the group and maybe that's why I feel the need to be an overachiever. Seriously. I think I spend WAY more money than anyone else on my decorations than anyone else. But on the other hand, I think mine are really fun and everyone ends up hanging out for a long time after, SO I judge that as being a success! =)


Anyway... this year, I did a Mad Hatter's Tea Party theme. My original plan was to have it outdoors - but 2 hours before people were supposed to arrive it started raining. Yuck - it hasn't rained in a week. Soooo.... my friend Stephanie helped me move it all inside and we went to Plan B.


Here's a few pictures:

I ordered the clock and the Eat Me/Drink Me tags from a wonderful Etsy Shop, Windrosie. My mom made the arrow signs for me and the table is set with teacups and a teapot full of tea.

My friend, Stephanie, made these awesome molded chocolate mousse teacups!

And here's my mom and I as the Mad Hatter and the Queen of Hearts! You can also see my croquet playing flamingos in my yard!

A Kid-Free Day!

I have an amazing friend. She got her nursing degree and then became a missionary to Africa. She now works at a hospital in Rwanda, Africa, working with the staff there. Amazing.

She has been gone for 4 years and on April 14, she arrived back in Washington for a 1 year furlow. Basically that means, one year in the States to raise additional money for her missionary efforts. (Interested in more info on Julie and her African efforts? Check out her blog here at Julieyrn.org)

I have been good friends with her and her sister since about 3rd grade - we homeschooled together for Art and Science (my mom did art, their mom did science)

Yesterday, I sent the Little Guy off with a babysitter for the day and headed up to Seattle with my friends to do

Bill Speidel's Underground Tour. 

(I would recommend this tour to

anyone living near or visiting Seattle!

It was very fun!)

1. The Underground
2. Me on the right!
3. Old skylight in the current Seattle sidewalk
4. Some old stuff =)

Next we headed to P.F. Chang's for dinner.

This was a treat for me - I'd heard about it, but never been. Yummy!

I've got some crazy eyes going on in this picture! haha

Anyway... lots of fun. Every mommy needs
some fun girl time - kid-free!

When was the last time you went out for some kid-free time?

Where'd you go and what did you do?

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1980s

So, our monthly bunco group is having a 1980s theme for April. I was having a pretty hard time coming up with a costume - although I thought it was going to be so easy!

I have a crimper from when I was a kid, so I'm going to crimp my hair (and I need to find a scrunchie!)

Then, this is my outfit I finally decided on (sorry about the crappy picture - its with my phone!)

I picked up the black leggings at Target which I'm planning on making into stirrup pants - $8.

I got the hot pink shirt out of the girls' section at Target - $5.

I planned on wearing my denim jacket and then I remembered I had that denim skirt too! - Free!

Soo.... its a little more than I normally spend on my costumes, but I figured I can wear the leggins again (without the addition of the stirrups, of course) and probably I can wear the shirt for something if I can still wear it after its washed. haha

It should be fun!

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Bunco Night!

Bunco was at my house this month and I was pretty proud of my theme and decor!


We had a Old MacDonald's Farm theme.


I bought these party hats from OrientalTrading.com

Then I just printed off some animal sounds and stuck them around the room.


I made these letters out of cardboard and a sharpie marker.

I also got some bandanna's for napkins and wrapped mints that looked like they were wrapped in bandanna's from Orientaltrading.com


People got really creative with their costumes this month!

As you can see, we had a horse, Mr. and Mrs. MacDonald, a sheep, a scarecrow, a milkmaid and a herd of cows. =) (oh and you can see my cow print balloons in the background!)


It was a good night - lots of fun!



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Barnyard Bunco

Days go by so fast! I'm hosting our monthly bunco group at my house this month. Every month we have a theme and my theme this year is Old MacDonald's Farm. I'm pretty excited... here are a few of my preparations so far... (I work this weekend and it's on Monday, so I'm starting early)

I made up this fleece no-sew barnyard blanket today for one of the prizes. Most people do gift cards, but I try to come up with some prizes to go with my theme. I'm having a hard time with this one, but I found the kit for this blanket at JoAnn's on sale for $10 last week. Most, but not all, of the girls in our group have kids, so I'm hoping one of them get it. I know we'd love it. Someone made one of these throws for my son when he was born and my husband and I use it all the time! =)

Using the larger canning jars as our drinking glasses for the night and the smaller ones to hold candies. Bought a length of red gingham fabric at JoAnn's and I'm just tearing strips to decorate just about everything. Simple and easy - yet colorful!


I'm really looking forward to the game night and hoping it all comes together.





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