First Day of School...Kindergarten Edition

Kindergarten.

Do I seriously have a Kindergartener on my hands?  

I still can't get over that fact.  But I really do have a full-fledged elementary school-aged little boy...sigh.

To start our school year off right, we had ourselves our traditional Back-to-School breakfast...pancakes!  And mini ones this go round.

The big school boy received a special plate full, 3 stacks high, just for him.  

The flags also worked doubly great as stoplights for his superheroes and police cars before school started.  

We tick marked and measured.  Accurate height readings are a must on the first day of school...and on the last as well!

 Then we headed outside to take pictures...

 And more pictures...

Until that big, yellow bus made its way down our street stopping right in front of our house, such service I tell you.

This momma held back tears.  While Daddy was awesome and came home from work to video record the adventure.  And the girls were jumping for joy, they wanted on that bus so badly.  Don't you love how Eloise put on her dress backwards, lol...my fierce little independent!

At school (yes, we drove to school--even though he took the bus--just to get a few more pictures!), backpacks were left on their class line and those new little Kindergarteners got a chance to take the playground for a spin before their day got started.

Little sisters were sad and mad that they couldn't play.

Soon enough it was time, we waved our goodbyes and he was off to learn.

 A few hours later the bus pulled up and this whirlwind of energy bounced off...

Success!  He had a great day. 

Homemade brownies with chocolate frosting were waiting at home.  The chosen after school snack of this big man on campus.

 A smile of approval says it all.  A very good day indeed.

And next week we are doing it all again Pre-K style for Little Miss P.  

My how time flies when you're a momma.

Thanks for stopping by today!

XOXO,

How to Bake: Cupcakes-in-a-Jar

I've been getting lots of emails ever since I posted a picture of our take home gifts, Cupcakes-In-A-Jar, for the Girls' Vintage Birthday Party (seen here) so I  thought instead of writing my answers over and over in emails I would just do a post about it.  Saves me a bit of time since answering emails with one hand while I nurse Oliver is a task I still have not perfected, even after 3 kids!

Many of you wanted to know if I baked the cupcakes separately or baked them in the jar and if I could share a recipe for the cupcakes and the icing.  Lots of you wanted to know what kind of jars these were, what size they are, and where I bought them.  Along with where I bought the wooden spoons and how I made the decorative tops.  Phew!  I think that was most of the questions anyways :-)

Well, first off I used the tiny 4 oz mason jelly jars to make my Cupcakes-In-A-Jar.  You can buy them at many places from Walmart, Target, Hobby Lobby, and even online.  They tend to be lower on the shelves than the more popular sizes but I have seen (and bought) them in all those places one time or another.

I baked my cupcakes directly in the jars.  I saw in some places where people would bake the cake (or bought the cake) and then used some type of biscuit or cookie cutter to cut out a circular piece of cake to fill the jar.  Nope, that was just too much work for me.  Did you know you could bake with mason jars?  You totally can...and I did.  It was so much easier and took out the middleman.

To answer the recipe question...I used a store bought mix!  I love making cake from scratch but to be honest 'cake in box' was just easier this time.  My time isn't really my time these days since I'm nursing on demand as the little man sees fit so I never know if any given day is going to be one long nursing session where getting other things done around the house, mind you party prep, is going to happen.

I used a simple yellow cake mix, followed the directions on the box and filled each mason jar only 1/3 of the way full with batter.  This way there would be room for lots of frosting and sprinkles after the cake baked up.  I baked the cupcakes according to the 'cupcake baking time' but checked them early in case they baked faster in glass, and they did.  So watch out for that!

My frosting...store bought as well!  I decided to buy these aerosol spray cans of frosting and let me just tell you they were soooo good!  Who knew?  I used both cans to complete emptiness to decorate 24 cupcakes.

Half vanilla frosted and half chocolate frosted...Yum!  And some were half black and half white...I love me some frosting choices!

The girls picked out the sprinkles and we went to town prettying the cupcakes up.  I highly recommend decorating with sprinkles...so happy looking!

See how nice using 1/3 full batter bakes up!  There's plenty of room for lots of swirly frosting that won't get ruined when you put the lid on!

To make the decorative tops I just bought some cute scrapbook paper and used a paper punch, super easy and quick.  Aaand a 2.5" paper punch fits perfectly onto mason jar lids, sweet!

I bought the cute little wooden spoons at Hobby Lobby.  I thought they were the perfect size for the jelly jars...so cute!

So that's it.  Let me know if I missed any other questions you might have had...I think I got them all!

Thanks for stopping by today!!

XOXO,

Tape Dispenser Makeover-TUTORIAL

For lack of a better title, that is what this project really is...a Tape Dispenser Makeover.  Yup, true story.  I bought a few ugly black tape dispensers at the Dollar Store awhile back to help out my washi tape obsession and just couldn't handle the plain-ness and the boring-ness of them.  Blech, no good.  They just weren't pretty.  You know me, I like pretty.  Even if an object has a run-of-the-mill job like cutting tape it still needs to look pretty in my book.  Plus, prettifying them makes these little guys fit in my sewing studio a whole lot better :-)

A bit of a before and after picture for you.  

See, so much better!
Can you believe the Dollar Store sells these babies for a buck?  Such a steal!  And perfect for washi tape :-)

This project seriously only takes a couple of hours and that is just because of the drying time of the primer and the paint.  Yes, you probably could do without the priming but why take a chance?  For minimal time investment you will have these pretties on your desk looking all gorgeous and personalized with your choice of fun colors.  Can't beat that!

They look like they cost so much more than a dollar, don't they?

I'm in love.  And now my washi tape decorating experience is brought to a whole new level :-)
I think I need to make more...pretty tape dispensers for everyone!

Here's a peek at my washi tape station in my new studio.  A little bit of heaven on earth for this huge organization junkie!  I love everything to have it's place.

I found this vintage soda crate at a flea market a couple of months ago for only $5, such a bargain.  I just love the look of it, the paint is worn juuuuust right.  For a small while I had my kids art supplies in it but it was just getting too messy and disorganized for my liking so I found a new life for it in my studio soon after...lucky me!

The tape dispensers tuck in nice and snug and pull out with ease when I need them.  They fit perfectly, like it was meant to be ;-)

And yes, I'm just realizing that I haven't shared any pictures of my new studio with you.  I will soon, promise.  We put it together right before Oliver was born and it just completely slipped my mind until now.  Mommy brain...anyone else have that right about now?  I'm not sure how I've been getting along this far with my amazing lack of memory these days.  Kids, I tell you!  Maybe it's better that I don't remember some things, like Eloise drawing on our carpet the other day, ha!

Thanks for stopping by today!

 XOXO,

Spinach and Cheese Quiche-RECIPE

I love quiche.  It's one of those meals that sounds all fancy and gourmet but is actually really easy to put together.  Making a quiche is also a great way to use up random ingredients in your fridge.  The basic egg/cheese part of the recipe stays more or less the same but you can add or remove ingredients (think different cheese varieties, bacon, onions, spinach, mushrooms, artichokes, etc) to suit your tastes or your refrigerator :-)  

With this particular recipe you can make a traditional quiche in a pie plate or change it up by making mini quiche (aww cute!) in mini muffin tins to entice your little ones to give it a try or maybe you need a delicious appetizer for you next big soiree.  I made this exact recipe for the girls' Vintage Birthday party seen here!

Spinach and Cheese Quiche (makes 2 regular size quiche or 48 mini quiche)

1 pie crust (pre-made refrigerator pie crust works great in a pinch!)

1 10 oz package frozen chopped spinach, thawed

1 16 oz container of cottage cheese

2 cups shredded cheese 

4 eggs

1 bunch of green onions, chopped (whites only)

Place the pie crust in an ungreased pie plate or divided into the tins of a mini muffin tin and set aside.  Press and drain the spinach well.  In a large bowl, mix together the cottage cheese, shredded cheese, eggs and green onions and spinach and mix thoroughly.  Place into pie crust and bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes for mini quiche or 40 minutes for larger quiche.

I love to use shredded swiss cheese with this quiche recipe, mmm...swiss cheese is so good.  But you could really use any combination of shredded cheese out there.  If I don't use swiss, I'm also partial to buying that container of parmesan reggiano/asiago shreds in the refrigerated section too...one container is about 2 cups!

You can make your own pie crust or just use one pie crust from a refrigerated package, the outcome is just as tasty.  If you are using spinach in your quiche, make sure you drain your spinach well before adding it in with the rest of your ingredients, otherwise your quiche might be runny!  Instead of spinach you could also add chopped mushrooms, artichokes, bacon, ham, etc. the options are endless.

When I make mini quiche I cut circles out of the pie crust with a small biscuit cutter, then press them into each mini muffin tin.  One pie crust will make 24 mini quiche.

You will have enough of the mixture leftover to make a regular sized quiche with the other pie crust...bonus!

Delish!

The perfect light lunch, dinner...or hey, appetizer for a crowd!

Enjoy and thanks for stopping by!

XOXO,

VTech Switch & Go Dinos-Review and Video Contest!

Have you guys seen the new Switch & Go Dinos from VTech? We received a few of them to review, and they are a boy's dream toy, literally they have been hours of entertainment for Noah :-)

They remind me a lot of Transformers but instead go they from a car to a dinosaur, and they are much easier to switch back and forth in only a few simple steps. I remember my brother had a few Transformers as a kid, and when he went to school my sisters and I would go in his room and play with them. We couldn't get them "transformed" back to the original car or robot he had them at so we were always busted when he came home...wah, wah, wah!

Each dino has an LCD screen for customizable animations...eyes blink and can change shape, etc...pretty cool! In the dinosaur mode, action buttons play interesting facts about each dinosaur, so the kids can actually learn something as they play.

There are seven durable and unique Switch & Go Dinos available to collect, and they start at $15.99. Not too bad, especially since they are a 2 -in-1 type of toy...so you can get more bang for your buck :-)

VTech is also hosting a Show & Tell with Switch & Go contest right now. Contestants are asked to upload a 15-30 second video of their child's homemade Dino creation to the VTech Facebook page. In the video, your child can show us their new Dino by drawing, building or customizing their existing Switch & Go Dino. And make sure you tell VTech about all the cool things your Dino does in your video!

If you would like to enter the contest just make sure you show: "What does your child's Switch & Go Dino look like?"

Let your child choose 1 of 3 ways to show-off their home-made Dino creation and record it on video:

1. Draw: They can use markers, crayons paint or pen to sketch your creation on paper.

2. Build: They can use foil, paper, cardboard, or any non-branded household items to build your Dino

3. Customize: They update their own VTech Switch & Go Dino with accessories and fun props to give them a new image!

And then tell VTech, "What makes your child's Dino large and in charge?" Encourage your child to name it and share its roaring sound effects.

Here is Noah's video we made for the Dino he created:

From October 8-19 you can cast your vote for the coolest, most creative and fiercest video.

One grand-prize winner will get a kids lifetime supply of educational toys from VTech. And your video will air on a VTech commercial on Nickelodeon, which you can watch at your very own viewing party with your friends and family. And VTech will also transform your living room into the ultimate Dino den!

Sounds fun right? Make sure to enter your child's creative video for a chance to win by clicking here!

To see other videos and read other bloggers' reviews, go to the VTech brand page on BlogHer!

Remember: It's EASY to enter! Simply DRAW or BUILD your own Dino for a chance to win! Purchase of a VTech Switch & Go Dino is NOT necessary to enter.
Let their creativity come through by having them tell the world what their dino looks like, what it eats, what it sounds like, and more - it's THEIR VERY OWN DINO!

XOXO,

Vintage Girls' Birthday Party

So last week my little Penelope turned 4...and last month my little Eloise turned 2...and if you can believe it last week Oliver turned 2 months too!  Everybody is getting bigger and older, sigh.  

Well, to celebrate my two little girlies we decided to throw a joint party for the both of them since 1) their birthdays are exactly one month apart 2) they are 23 months apart in age which makes them hang in the same circle of friends which is so fun and 3) their love of dresses, jewelry and nail polish pretty much makes them BFFs and they want to do everything 'like twins'.  

Penelope was so excited about the party decor, she brought it up every day, well that and what kind of dress I was going to make her...she is just too cute for words, that girl.  She couldn't wait for me to make decorations and help me pick out fabric for her dress.  She just loves my fabric stash and is always begging for scraps to use on her dolls, lol.  She browsed fabric online with me to find the perfect fabric for her dress and then we used those colors as our jumping off point for our party decor.

We decided on Riley Blake's Seaside, it is just so sweet and has such a great vintage feel to it.  The line is so whimsical with it's reds and blues and the florals, small polka dots, and plaids worked perfectly into our girly vintage theme.

We had the party during the week in the late morning as a play date-type party so the foods we offered our guests were more brunch-based.  You know, a little breakfast-y and a little lunch-y...and perfect for small hands to snack on while playing.


We made a mountain our of mini donuts.  Chocolate frosted and powdered to win everyone over!


We had pretty glass containers full of goldfish and cheerios, every kid's favorite snack for anytime of day :-)

For the mommas, I offered mini spinach quiches all pretty and dainty.  As well as an herb dip with veggies and a nice, big fruit salad.  Hey we gotta keep it a little healthy for the wee ones!


Since it was a morning party, I didn't want to go too wild on the sweets which was so hard for me since I LOVE sweets.  So I compromised with myself and made these bite-sized peanut butter thumbprints.  I figured since they were itty bitty it was ok to have a big platter of them, hahaha.


And then as a party favor we gave all of our guests these cute little cupcakes-in-a-jar that I made and frosted and then added some fun sprinkles chosen by the birthday girls.  Ok, yeah it's sugar to the max but at least it was to eat at home later in the day and not at 10 in the morning.  We are still friends, friends?  right? :-)

 I made both girls dresses from Seaside, which I talked more about here.  They were both in heaven and ask to wear them every day since.  I just love that they enjoy wearing clothing I make for them :-)


Being the ultimate party decor nerd, I made a whole bunch of cloth napkins from Seaside as well.  How fun will these be to take on a picnic later?


I made a few fabric pennants to give that sweet vintage feel.

And used some pretty ruffly lace trim to hang them with.  This was probably one of my favorite ways to add a little vintage fun to the decor.


Of course, every party needs drinks.  We served up lemonade with fun red and blue stripey straws to all our little guests.


And if you know me, you know I don't think a kid's party is complete without some kid-friendly fun.  So thanks to my friend Denise's brilliant idea, I made a few potato sacks and decorated them with some ruffle-y fun in different fabrics from the Seaside line for the kids to run races in the back yard.  It was the perfect day to sit outside and watch a few potato sack races :-)

I also set up at table with plain paper and a whole bunch of markers and crayons for the kids to decorate.  It seems that anytime we have kids over this is what they want to do.  I love to see all the creativity in their artwork at this age. 

Now being a momma to 3 little ones of the pen-wielding age, it was a must to make sure they were all of the washable type!  Whether you have school-aged children or younger, now is the time to stock up on crayons, markers, paints, and glue at great prices with all the back-to-school sales going on.  You will for sure use them eventually so buy a bunch now and save them for later, you will be so happy you did.

We honestly couldn't have asked for a better day to have this party.

The weather was absolutely perfect and we were able to enjoy blue skies and sunshine along with all our wonderful friends.

Three cheers for growing another year older and doing so in the company of some good friends!

Thanks for stopping by today!  I'll be back later this week with a few recipes :-)

XOXO,