Getting Back In The Groove

Life has been pretty busy since my last post. I excepted a new job and had to put my daughter in daycare for the first time. After being home with her for three years and working the night shift it has been very challenging for all of us for adjust to the change of me working days and her being in daycare. She seems to enjoy her days there and has made a few friends,  but morning drop offs are still a nightmare six months later! I thought by now she would have adjusted to the change but she is still having a hard time.

My goal is to post at least once a week to my blog. Trying to set a reasonable goal for myself. I am starting to plan my daughter's 4th birthday party and thought it would be a good time to start blogging again. I can not believe that she is almost 4!! My how time flies! This year she wants a Princess birthday party. My worst nightmare comes true. She is such a little girly girl and I am so far from that that planning this party will be a challenge for me.  When she told me she wanted a Princess party this year I had no idea were to start. I knew I wanted something different than the typical princess party. I didn't want princess plastered all over the place and those bright princess colors are a little over the top for me. So I started researching and thinking of ideas that were outside of the box. Then it came to me! The ideas started flowing and I created an Inspiration Board to keep me on track! I can't wait to start sharing all my ideas with you.

Mother's Day Printables

I know! I know! It has been forever since I have posted anything. But what better time to start back up, just in time for Mother's Day!  Now that I am a Mom myself I realize all that my mother has given up for me over the years. The sacrifices that she made just to provide for me and give me a better life and for that I am truly grateful! Thank you Mom! I do not know where I would be today if it was not for you!

So in honor of my mom I found these awesome printables by Amy Mattes Design over at Catch My Party . My mom and her friend enjoy going to tea together and when I saw these printables I thought how perfect for a little tea party.

Invite

Party Circles

Cupcake Toppers

Straw Flags

Happy Mother's Day Banner

Click HERE for the Printables

ENJOY!

Spring Banner Free Printable

I think we all are ready for the Spring! I am really loving the Pink and Green Combo for Spring this year, so when I came across this banner by At Second Street I just new I had to use it for free printable day. I know, I know it was yesterday but whose keeping track! 

Image by At Second Street

This banner is simple and elegant!

Image by At Second Street

Click HERE for your free Download

ENJOY!

Catching Up!

 This has been a busy week and I have not had much time to do any posting so tonight I am catching up!


My favorite Printable this week was from The Girls at Eighteen25! I love all of their Subway Art. I printed out the one that they designed for Christmas and put it in a nice white frame and it looked awesome! I will so be printing out this one for Easter too! I love the bright vibrant colors. So simple but yet makes a big statement when you frame it! 

Image by The Girls at Eighteen25

Click HERE to get your free printable

My Tip for the week :

I find that when planning a party it is best to keep it on the small side. I like the fact that it is more intimate and you are not running around like a chicken with your head cut off. They say that for a kids birthday party  you should invite the number of children of your child's age. I find that a little hard to do but I still keep it small. My daughter just turned three and I needed to invite more than three children to the party. We have two really close family friends that between them have four kids and then my daughter has made a couple of friends and knew that I had to invite them because she would be so excited to have them at her party. So including my daughter we had six kids at the party. Which was a perfect amount of kids. I was able to do a craft, read stories, and play a game with them without feeling overwhelmed.

DYI Project: 

 OK now this is just too cute and super easy and best of all super budget friendly! Paint sample egg garland by Maddyson's Lane!  Just head on over to your local Home Depot or Lowe's and pick up some paint samples. What is better than a free project?

Image by Maddyson's Lane

Click HERE for the instructions!

Enjoy!

Marshmallow Peeps and Bunnies:

I have a soft spot for those marshmallow peeps and bunnies that come out this time of year! If a package appears in my house (I will not buy them) the first thing I have to do is cut a few holes in the package and then put them in the cabinet for a week or so until they are hard and crunchy on the outside and nice and chewy! So good!!  I have been wanting to make my own marshmallows for some time now but have not had the time to do so.  I just may have to make time after seeing these homemade cuties by The Idea Room!

Image by The Idea Room

Click HERE to get the recipe!

Enjoy!

Party On A Budget:

Looking for a cute idea for a table setting for Easter? Take a peek at this adorable table setting by The Hostess {with the mostess}.  The table setting is done with scrap book paper. I may have to take a little trip to Micheals or better yet plan a me day and take off to my favorite scrapbook store A Time for Memories in Grafton MA they have the BEST paper selection that I have ever seen.

Image by HWTM

I really like that the table setting is not overly Eastery but more along the lines of spring time colors. I am very much digging the owl paper too.

Image by HWTM

PHEW!! All caught up! I hope you enjoy all my selections for the week.  Have a great weekend!



DYI Wednsday - Wall Art

I love wall art! Decals. Vinyl Letters. Anything that I can put on the walls without damaging them is a plus since we live in an apartment.  It is also a very easy way to make a statement on your wall.  I wanted to do something similar for Ella's birthday party but was not about to use vinyl. I didn't quite know what I wanted to do and then it came to me while I was reading her The Cat in the Hat. I thought why not take a paragraph out of the book and make a boarder around the living room with it.  The best part is I did it for $2.00.  

I used my cricut and cut out 5 inch letters out of black paper (on sale at Micheals for $1.99). I wanted to be sure that they were large enough for people to be able to read. I then took some craft tack by Aleenes that I had in the house and put a little bit on the back of each letter. My husband then helped me put them on the wall because my 5ft self could not reach where I wanted them to go. 

So far I love how the boarder is coming out!

Will be finishing it tonight when I get home

from work.

Tip Tuesday - Paper Goods

Paper Goods

I find that when planning a party things can add up quickly.  I have found a way to save money on paper goods.  We usually do not have a lot of people at our parties and so I avoid the party store where I will end up with more than I need at a higher price and head on over to Walmart. They always have a nice selection of colors and in the amount that I need.  You can always check out your local dollar store too.

I picked up these paper plates and napkins.

Perfect for a Cat in the Hat party.

18 Count Paper Plates

30 Count napkins

Total Cost for both $3.00

While I was there I checked out the tissue paper. I knew that I wanted to make tissue paper pom poms at the request of my daughter who wants them at her party. I have ordered them in the past and knew it would be expensive to order them again. I did not want to spend a lot of money on tissue paper in case I failed at making them. Again I found the perfect colors and at $1.00 a piece I bought four packages.

Total cost for 4 packages of tissue paper

$4.00

The good news is I figured out how to make the tissue paper pom poms and saved myself a lot of money!

When I ordered  them in the past it cost me $30.00 plus shipping for seven pom poms. I will be able to make at least seven if not more for $4.00.

My trip to Walmart $7.00. Not bad!!



Ella's Birthday Week - Cat in the Hat

This week is birthday week in honor of Ella turning three on Thursday.  Each day this week I will share a little detail of her birthday with you. 

Last week on Tip Tuesday I said that I made one Big Mistake this year while planning her party. Today I am going to share that with you.


If you have been following me you know that I am a huge fan of printables! Since my daughter wanted a Cat in the Hat birthday this year I figured that that was the best route to go. I thought I hit gold when I found a Cat in the Hat party package at Dimple Prints on Etsy. The whole birthday package cost me $10.00 and I thought that was a great deal considering all it came with. 

 But I learned a valuable lesson when it comes to printables. I have never printed out a whole party before and I was so excited to start printing off what I needed to decorate her party with.   I started printing and not even half way through what I wanted to print my ink ran out - off to Staples I go to buy another ink cartridge. Thinking OK I can print the rest off and I should have enough ink - NOPE I was wrong. I was still not done printing off what I needed and now needed to buy a third ink cartridge. So needless to say something that I thought I was being smart buying has now cost me $60.00, which is a huge chunk out of my budget! I am using my In Laws printer since ours died and we are in need of a new computer so have not replaced ours yet. They have a small printer so the ink cartridges do not hold a lot of ink, so someone using an ink friendly printer may not run into this same problem. Don't get me wrong I still LOVE printables and will continue to use them just not print out a whole party with them!!

Here is a little sneak peak of her Invites!

At the end of the week we will see if I managed to stay on budget. Keeping my fingers crossed!

Shortbread Shamrock Cookies by Delightful Dishes

I just love my friend Kristen's blog Delightful Dishes. I am always looking to see what delightful dishes she has come up with. For St. Patrick's Day she did not disappoint! Look at these awesome shortbread shamrock cookies she made!

Image by Delightful Dishes

Image by Delightful Dishes

Click HERE for the recipe

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

In honor of St. Patrick's Day my daughter and I made my husband Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Irish Cream frosting. I have a love affair with cupcakes so any excuse I get to make them is a good one. 

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes

with Baileys Irish Cream Frosting

Click HERE for the recipe

Cake Bites

I made cake bites for the first time with some extra cake and frosting. Not bad for my first try.  I must say that these were the 8 good ones that I was proud of.  The rest, although tasted yummy were nothing much to look at. I did these on the fly and next time will give myself more time to do them properly - It was a last minute idea when I realized that I had way too many cupcakes.

                       

While the cupcakes were baking we got to work decorating for the little party that Ella was to have with Daddy when he got home from work. (shhhhh it is a surprise) Ella made shamrock place mats and I made a Lucky Banner and the Luck of the Irish Canvas by Lulu's Tiles except mine was made with paper and put in a frame that I had in the house. The best part is since I am a crafter I had all the supplies in the house for this Daddy / Daughter  party.

We even got to go to the park and enjoyed some

of this nice weather we are having !

Hope your St. Patrick's day was as nice as ours was!

DYI St Patty's Day Canvas

Welcome to DIY Wednesday's!

Here is a little last minute St. Patty's Day craft.
Luck of the Irish Canvas by Lulu's Tiles .

Image by Lulu's Tiles

This DIY project it so easy that anyone can do it. Crafter's and non crafter's alike will be able to make this cute St. Patty's Day canvas.

All you need is a canvas, alphabet stamps and green and black stamp pads. Can't get much easier than that!

Image by Lulu's Tiles

Click HERE to get the full tutorial

Guess I know what I will be doing tomorrow since we have no St. Patrick's Day decorations and this will take no time at all to do!

Tip Tuesday

Throwing a party on a budget is not always an easy thing to do. Believe me I know!

 One thing that I find extremely helpful is planning ahead of time.  I usually give myself three months. I do this for a couple of reasons. One I am a planner and I hate doing things last minute it stresses me out. The other reason is so I can get organized. I first decide on the on the theme of the party since that is what everything stems from.  I set my budget and then get to work on making a list for all my party needs. I start with the guest list - that way I know how many people I am planning for.  After my list is made I know what I need from food to party decor. I usually make most of my party decorations so this time frame also allows me the time to make everything.

I then keep my eyes open for sales. I try to make the most out of what my budget allows and giving yourself time allows you to be a little more picky when it comes to buying items for your party. If it is not on sale I usually will pass on it unless it is an item that I can buy at Joanns or Micheals and can use my 40% off coupon.

Here is a great example of why giving yourself ample time can save you money.  I was at the party store just poking around. For the most part I avoid party stores at all costs. While I was there I saw a 5 foot Cat in the Hat that would be perfect for my daughter's 3rd birthday party, plus I knew that she would flip when she saw him.  I looked at the price and then thought I think I saw that at Micheals the last time I was there and I would be able to use my 40% off coupon for it. I ended up saving myself $4.00 and when I was there I also noticed that there Wilton's chocolate melts were on sale for $1.99 I picked up two different colors for her party!  At the party store the Cat alone would have cost me $10.00 but since I waited and used my 40% off coupon I was able to get the Cat plus the two bags of chocolate melts for $10.00.  Had I waited till the last minute I would have bought both at full price making it harder for me to stretch my budget.

So remember these things to keep yourself on budget for your next party.

1. Plan plenty of time ahead
2. Make a list of your party needs and keep a budget notebook to keep yourself on track.
3. Look for sales!

I look foward to sharing all the details of my daughter's 3rd birthday with you. I can not wait to share all the ways that I was able to save money and the one BIG mistake that I made this year!

Photo Booth Prop Printables

 I love these photo booth prop printables designed by the Paper Doll Shoppe for Catch my Party for her daughter's 4th Birthday! I think that they are a fun way to get great candid photos of your guests being silly. If you do not have a party coming up any time soon - print them out anyway for a fun rainy day activity! I have already printed these out for Ella's birthday party!

Image by Catch my Party

Image by Catch my Party.

Printed mustaches too cute!

Click HERE for your free printables.

Enjoy!





Carnival Party on a Budget

So as promised here is my first entry for Budget Friendly Friday!

I came across this super cute idea for a Carnival Party at the Budget Diet. I was impressed with how easy throwing a Carnival party on a budget was.

All below wording belongs to the Budget Diet!

A Carnival Birthday Party is another budget birthday party idea from The Budget Diet girl!

A carnival birthday party works for most any age and can be done both indoors & out!

Here are the ingredients for success:

Carnival Ideas – Homemade Carnival Games:

The key to keeping this a budget birthday party is to use things you have. Take a walk around your house, and I’m sure you’ll come up with all sorts of carnival ideas!

Basketball Throw – if you have a basketball goal, use it!

Pie in the Face – pie tins, whipped cream & willing volunteer!

Wet Sponge Toss – just like pie in the face, but it’s a wet sponge!

Golf – if you have a putter & a golf ball…let the children try to putt into a plastic cup! This works best indoors on carpet.

Guess Your Weight – pull out your bathroom scale, the children guess their own weight & then stand on the scale.

Fortune Teller – have a friend or family member dress up like a fortune teller (scarves, lots of jewelry) & tell fortunes.

Fish Pond – keep it simple, use a toy fishing pole & attach the prize with a clothes pin!

Penny Drop – put a shot glass inside of a big glass bowl, fill it with water & the children try to drop a penny into the shot glass!

Hula Hoop

Face Painting

Concession Stand – popcorn & sodas

Carnival Prizes:

http://www.orientaltrading.com/ is a great place to pick up inexpensive prizes! If your child is old enough…set a budget & let them choose the prizes!
Everybody’s a winner! If they don’t win the game…give them a piece of candy.

Carnival Tickets & Goody Bags:

Each child gets a bag with their name on it when they arrive. The dollar store & Hobby Lobby both have lots of inexpensive, colorful bags.

Each child will get enough tickets to play each game 1 time.
The bags will be used to collect their prizes, and it becomes their “instant” goody bag!

Carnival Cake:

A cupcake walk is great fun…think mini-cake walk!
Use sidewalk chalk to number the spaces in your driveway or if you’re indoors…set-up chairs.
Start the music, stop the music, choose a number & that person chooses their cupcake! Continue until everyone has a cupcake!
I made all white cupcakes, & I just changed the frosting & decorations!

Carnival Helpers:

This is a great opportunity for family & friends to get involved in the birthday celebration!

Carnival Invitations:

Just a simple piece of clip art mounted on pink & green paper!"

Image for the Budget Diet

I love all of these ideas from the Budget Diet .  If you are looking to add food to your party keep it simple. Think carnival - Hot Dogs, Pizza, some chips, etc. You can find Cotton Candy for a $1.00 in most CVS, Rite Aids and Walmarts.

I find that Walmart is a great place for paper good and utencils. In their party section they have a great selection of colors for $1.50.

Party on People!!

Shamrock Pretzels & Rainbow Cookies

I have been looking into making homemade pretzels but the thought of waiting for the dough to rise is just out of the question with my busy schedule. So I dug a little deeper and found this super easy recipe for pretzels at Munchkin Munchies.  Perfect for people with not a lot of time on their hands and budget friendly, which of course is a plus!

Image by Munchkin Munchies

Ingredients:

Canned refrigerated bread stick dough (Pillsbury Original Breadsticks)
Colored sugar
Cinnamon

Instructions:
1. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and lightly coat it with cooking spray.

2. To create the clover shape, mold 3 sections of breadsticks into hearts and press them together (refer to photo). Attach a small stem, decorate, and bake according to the directions on the package.

Now this I can do!

While I was visting Munchkin Munchies I also found these Rainbow Cookies and I just could not pass up sharing them with you.

Image by Munchkin Munchies

Image by Munchin Munchies

 Play Dough Cookies (allrecipes.com)
* 3/4 cup butter, softened
* 3 ounces cream cheese
* 1 cup white sugar
* 1 egg
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* assorted colors of paste food coloring
* 24 lollipop sticks (optional)

1. In the electric mixer, cream butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla; beat until smooth.
2. In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Stir till soft dough forms. Divide dough into fourths. Tint each with a different food color. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Working with half of each color, shape dough into 3/4 inch balls and for each cookie place 1 pink, 1 green, 1 blue and 1 orange (I used red, yellow, blue and green) ball together to make 1 large ball. Shape into a 12 inch long roll (like a snake), starting at one end, coil roll to make a 2 3/4 inch round cookie. Place cookies 3 inches apart on lightly greased baking sheet. Carefully insert lollipop sticks into bottoms of cookies.
4. Bake cookies for 8 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool and store in an airtight container.


These are almost too cute not to try to make - although it will have to be a weekend project!



Getting Myself Organized

I feel like I have been neglecting my little blog lately.  A friend of mine came up with a "game plan" for her blog and thought I would take a que from her and get myself organized.  I will be posting Monday - Friday and taking the weekends off  for family time. 

Monday - Free Printable Day - I will share cute, fun printables that I find with you. I love (free) printables. They are such an easy way to add a little flare to your party.

Tuesday - Party Tip Day - Some may be mine other are good ones that I come across but either way the tip will be ways that you can save money while till throwing a great party!

Wednesday - DIY Day -  Fun Fun Fun I love DIY projects!  I am always looking for way to save money and it helps that I am crafty! But don't worry I have DIY projects up my sleeve that even the least craftiest person will be able to do.

Thursday -  Party Food Day  - Oh how I love party food! OK lets get real I just love the sweet stuff. I love looking at all the wonderful goodies and treats that people come up with! My favorate by far are dessert tables. Yum Yum Yum! I think you get the hint.

Friday - Friendly Budget Party or Idea

Ok lets get started!

St Patrick's Day (free) Printables

My favorate - Free Printables! What better way to spice up your St Patty's Day Party!
These Printables by anna and blue paperie are super cute and the possiblities are endless!

Gift Tag

Box Tag

Cupcake Topper

Click HERE for the printables!

Rainbow Cupcakes

These would be so cute at any St. Patrick's Day party.

Get the full deatils here at tablespoon.com

Pot o' Gold

Check out this super cute idea for St. Patty's Day by It is what it is .

Image by It is what it is

Click here for the free printable tags.

Enjoy!

Our Valentine Party

My daughters Best Friend Casey came over for a play date today and I wanted to surprise them with a little Valentine Party. My budget was $25.00.  I did most of my shopping at Target and had picked up Heart straws at Walmart a couple weeks ago. I was only having two little guests but you could still acheive the same party with a few more kids and skip the favor boxes for the same price.

This was a simple, easy party to do.  I kept it low key since I was planning it the day before the party.

 I LOVE the color scheme. Perfect for a 2.5 yr old party!

I hung tissue paper Pom poms for the light fixture in the kitchen that I had saved from my Best Friends Bridal Shower.  But they are really easy to make.  You can check out Martha Stewarts blog for them instructions on how to make them. Click here.

The banner came all in one piece but I found it too long to hang so I took it apart in three pieces which made it easier.

For the favor boxes I cut out the work Love and glued it to white card stock - I made it look like an oversized tag and used tulle that I had in the house to make and wrapped it around the boxes.

The girls enjoying their party!

Target
Cookies - $3.00
M&M's - $2.50
Plates  - $1.50
Stickers - $2.00
Dinosaurs - $2.00
Hippo Bowl - $3.00
Banner - $3.00
Placemats - $1.79 each
Favor Boxes - $1.00 each

Walmart
Heart Straws - $2.00

Grand Total
$24.58 Not bad!

Valentine Cupid Poop

This is such a cute and inexpensive idea by Mine for the Making for valentines day. Cupid valentine poop! So Cute!

Image by Mine for the Making

Image by Mine for the Making