My first Christmas post of 2010! Tips and links for a great holiday.

The holidays are here!!!! The holidays are here!!! Pardon me, but since I have had children, the holidays take on a whole new meaning. The magic from my own childhood has returned... times three.

So, consider this my first holiday post of the season... a random blend of Christmas links: preparing, organizing, cooking,

• If you have not started preparing yet, I absolutely love Organized Home for their printables of everything from gift lists to party planning lists. I created this perfect little binder that has helped me stay right on track this year in hopes of avoiding that week-before-Christmas drive to complete 8000 tasks in 7 days.

• In the vein of preparing early... start printing your gifts tags now to avoid the Christmas Eve "Oh shit I am out of printer ink" headache.

• Also, print out some thank you notes now because you will inevitable receive an early gift and, with notes on hand, you can send the thank you right away to save the stress off dozens of thank you's after the holidays.

•These Mad Lib thank you notes are super fun and great for any occasion.
•A Very Chocolate Wedding has some simple thank you notes in a wide variety of color choices.
•Blue Finch Studios has an adorable owl thank you note.

• Start shopping now for unique gifts so that you are not stuck giving a Chia Pet from your corner Rite Aid.

• Remember to stick with the experience gifts, they are the BEST!
• ...especially New England experiences.
• I offer 6 unique and fun gift ideas here.
• I made some fantastic hand made gifts last year.

• It is never too late the get in the spirit with some great Christmas movies.

• 2 more days until you start your advent calendar... how about one without candy this year?

• You might as well start baking now and get a jump start on your holiday weight gain.

Hope some of these links gave you a bit of inspiration for the holidays... keep an eye out this week for my very own holiday gift guide.

and then I snapped: lines.

Taking my 2 littlest girls into the city is pretty much my most unfavorite thing to do with them by myself. There are many distinct reasons we moved out of Manchester as soon as we became parents... and every time I step back into the city, I remember every single one of them.

The least of which is trying to keep 2 little girls wrangled as they run down the sidewalk (which, I might add, runs along the water where they might jump over the fence at any moment and into the river!) as we have to park 5 blocks away from any destination.

It struck me as they took a moment to throw some pebbles into the river... all of the lines everywhere... the trees are all in a perfect line, the lamp posts, the fence, the bricks, the cars... so dull. I just don't like it. It makes for a cool picture, but it is just not for me.

I certainly breathed a long sign of relief when we finally pulled into my beautifully curved driveway.

Here's my list:
Follow
Covet
Hands
Fancy
10 minutes away
11pm

Today

Everyday

Resemble

Childhood memory

Clock

Closed

Smile

Back

natural
saturday
multi-coloured
home
shadow
foot
round
path
full
the end
lines
Stretch
Through
Bottom
Different
Far Away
Green
Mug
At Night
Liquid
Out of Reach
Sometimes
Going places
Button
Delicious
Looking back at me
soft
three
numbers
small

Kids Say the Darndest Things: A whole new thought on Spam

Last week we were inundated with news stories on that stranded Carnival cruise ship. News sources found it increasingly important to repeatedly tell us about their Spam consumption and, as Ariana and I listened in the car one evening, she said, "Ewww, they ate Spam??? Like the stuff inside boys?

"Huh?"

"You know, the stuff boys have... their tadpoles inside them"

I was clueless until I got home later and blurted out at Colby, "Ohhhh, tadpoles. Spam!"

Ewww is right. That whole conversation was just wrong on so many levels.

Tutorial: Photo Block Photo and Memo Holders

My most popular post (by FAR) is my photo block tutorial... so, as a special thank you in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I am giving you an add-on tutorial for those blocks. I will help you create a memo/photo/recipe holder like this:


This is very simple. All you need to do is create the photo blocks like I did in the previous tutorial. I think you will want to create 2 inch blocks to make them substantial enough to hold up a photo or recipe. For this tutorial, I actually did not use any photos, but letters so that I could spell out 'Thankful' with a set of blocks.

You then will need clothespins, mod podge and a paper that coordinates with your blocks. You will be gluing the clothespin to the block and I like the look of covering the exposed part of the clothespin with a coordinating paper like so:

I measured the width of the clothespin and cut that out of my paper (at about a one inch length): You can be approximate here, since you will sand off the overhang.

I then added a light coat of mod podge to the top of the clothes pin:


Attach the paper to the clothes pin:

Let it dry for a few minutes and then gently sand off your excess paper. I used a nail file, since the area I was sanding was so small.


And I forgot to take a photo of the last part, but I simply superglued the clothes pin to the back of the existing photo block. I think you may be able to use hot glue, but I have never used the stuff, so I can not say for sure.

*I did not put a piece of photo paper on the back of the block where I was going to adhere the clothes pin to (nor did I put paper on the clothes pin where it was going to adhere to the block) because I was leery of the paper pulling away from the block and/or clothespin. I thought anchoring the clothespin straight to the block was the best bet.

And voila:

You can put photos in the clip, or use it in the kitchen to hold recipes, or as a memo holder... I will actually being selling single ones in my Etsy shop very soon.

Anyhow, I like the 'Thankful' set because you can add photos of what you are thankful for, have Turkey Day dinner guest each write something they are thankful for and display them at the buffet, make it a tradition to have your children write something they are thankful for to display around the holidays... the possibilities are endless.

And what am I thankful for? Well, many, MANY things! But one of them is the success of my Etsy shop that I just started last January. And since it was you all that helped that along, I thought I would show my gratitude by giving you these 'Thankful' blocks.

I will ship these to one lucky winner in time for Thanksgiving! How do you enter? All you need to do is suggest my Facebook fanpage to a couple friends, or simply pass my Etsy site on to someone who might be interested... just tell someone, anyone how much you love me by November 16!

And then leave a comment here telling me how you passed the love. How will I know if you are telling the truth? It's the honor system, baby. And karma... which I believe in!


*DISCLAIMER- This is my maiden set, so there a couple of small imperfections, which you may never notice, but, hey, they're free... so don't complain!

...and then I snapped: foot.

My baby girl (and all of my girls) love to be barefoot. I dutifully put shoes on them before they head out the door... and then every couple of days, I need to go scavenge my yard for all of the discarded footwear that lays exactly where it was thrown the second they were out of my sight.

As the autumn air is taking over New England, I think she may be up for a rude awakening. She is still taking her boots off and setting them next to her as she plays in the dirt. I am thinking at some point she might notice the frigid temperature or snow flakes on her toes... and put her shoes back on... but not today.


Here's my list:
Follow
Covet
Hands
Fancy
10 minutes away
11pm

Today

Everyday

Resemble

Childhood memory

Clock

Closed

Smile

Back

natural
saturday
multi-coloured
home
shadow
foot
round
path
full
the end
Lines
Stretch
Through
Bottom
Different
Far Away
Green
Mug
At Night
Liquid
Out of Reach
Sometimes
Going places
Button
Delicious
Looking back at me
soft
three
numbers
small

Salt and Light Studio: A photographer extraordinaire.

Ever since I made my new header with my family photos, I have gotten many compliments and questions about the photographer. I really need to figure out how to credit her somewhere on the blog... but until then, I thought I would tell you about her.

Her name is Lisa and she is the heart and soul behind Salt and Light Studio in Ottawa, Canada. "You had your family photos done in Canada?" everyone inevitably asks. Well, no. But we did travel to Rhode Island to catch her doing some photo shoots there. Why did we go all the way down there? Have you seen our photos???? Simply put... AMAZING.
In our conversations before hand, I recognized that she was not your stereotypical, cheesy portrait photographer. She has the gift to capture the personality in my family. One of my favorite photos is this one: See that little girl in the middle? Yeah, well, that is Annika's true self through and through. I love it.

She also has some fantastic post processing skills that allows her to create art like this:
She even caught a couple of Colby and myself that I didn't mind... which is saying a lot... because who in their right mind likes pictures of themselves?

Oh, AND BONUS... see the hair accessories that the girls are wearing and the necklace I am wearing:
Lisa makes those too! Talk about creativity on steroids! She is amazing. Her Etsy shop, Bubbalou Bands has some adorable stuff (*hint* just in time for Christmas) and if you fan her Salt and Light Studio Facebook fanpage, you could win $75 in Bubbalou Bands!

Anyhow, thanks so much for the many compliments on our photographs, they are pretty damn awesome. I am hearing rumors of a New England reunion in the summer of 2011, so there will surely be more to come...

Just to be clear, Salt and Light Studio and Bubbalou Bands did not sponsor this post (I wish!) Also, I did crop Lisas photos in this post to make them fit better to my blog... I know she hates that but hopefully she forgives me in this instance.

Sunday Citar: Everyone cuddles, and everyone wins.

“I will not play tug o' war. I'd rather play hug o' war. Where everyone hugs instead of tugs, Where everyone giggles and rolls on the rug, Where everyone kisses, and everyone grins, and everyone cuddles, and everyone wins.”
-Shel Silverstein

I decided to clear my Droid of all my photos the other day. I had 1000 pictures! And, as I was uploading them to my computer... I noticed a sweet trend: every few days since Acadia was born, there is a photo of her in my arms. There was her nursing, her in the ER after her seizure, her sucking on her sippy on days of not feeling well, her laughing with me as I tried to get her to smile for the camera... and some... simply... cuddling.

It is my most favorite thing to do with my girls. I adore cuddling with Ariana as she reads me a book and I scratch her back. I love cuddling with Annika as I run my fingers through her hair and she watches tv. I can't get enough of cuddling Acadia while she is still small enough to fit in the crook of my arm and look up at me and say, "Mumma, I love you."

Cabot Creamery of Vermont Serious Snacking Review and Giveaway

I do not like reviews and giveaways. They are so boring. And, yes, I say this repeatedly. Which is what lead a local company to contact me. A lady from Cabot Creamery Cooperative (cooperative means they are actually owned by many farms throughout New England and NY, which I love!) in Vermont sent me a couple of emails and she was so stinking cute and sweet in her challenge for me to review their new products, that I could not resist. I do love to support local companies that work for their community. Remember my love of Stonyfield Farm???) And since our family already truly loves their butter, cheese and sour cream, I felt like I could review the new product in good conscience.

The new product is a line of reduced-fat cheese snack packs for grown-ups called Serious Snacking.

They are separate pieces of reduced fat cheese prepackaged into low calorie servings. We tried the 50% Reduced Fat White Cheddar Bar and 50% Reduced Fat Garlic & Herb Bar. They were actually a hit for myself, my husband and the kids. (The 2 bags we got did not last very long here with the grazers in the house!)

They both tasted great. The texture was slightly different from full fat cheese. You know when you typically eat a piece of cheddar, you get that grease on your fingers? This cheese does not have that, which I liked. I do not think anybody but me noticed that though.

The only drawback for me is the individual packaging (which is really the purpose behind the product!) In trying to live more sustainably and reduce waste, I can not justify the extra plastic. I do, however, recognize that many people still use these kind of quick and easy lunch snacks, so these will work great for them. I will absolutely stick with the reduced fat full sized cheeses that they offer... the Garlic and Herb was really delicious.

If you are planning a wine tasting party this holiday season, check out their nifty wine/cheese pairing guide. Or, more importantly (for me), the beer/cheese pairing guide. Seriously, a good beer AND a yummy cheese? Does it get any better? And the low fat cheese will totally make up for all that fattening beer... right???

Also, they have some fantastic recipes on their site (Horseradish Cheddar Mashed Potatoes!!!)

Oh yeah, they did want me to give something away... so you are going to get a gift box of the regular cheeses and a cutting board (a $35 value, perfect for the upcoming holiday entertaining, I might add).

To enter? Leave a comment here telling me your favorite way you use cheese by November 12. (If you include a link to a recipe, I would love you, since we all know I love to try new foods.)

GIVEAWAY CLOSED!


* I received 2 bags of Seriously Snacking cheese and $9 in coupons for this post. So, if you think I was not honest in this review just to get $15 in cheese products... one of us is pretty lame.

A hair disaster.

My hair disaster is new and the wound is still raw. I try not to whine too much on my blog because, really, who the hell wants to hear me whine? But when I was browsing through my Google Reader and saw that Mama Kat had a writing prompt this week titled, "Hair disaster" I couldn't resist. (I typically do not follow any writing prompts because I feel like it is homework... an assignment, and then I get all anxious and feel like I have to turn it in on time!)

A few weeks back, I was asked if I wanted to model in a hair show. When I quit working full time, one of the luxuries I gave up was going to the salon. Now, I can only go if I get a gift certificate on my birthday or Mother's Day. Well, it has been a long time since March and May, so I could certainly use the $100 gift certificate I would be compensated with for modeling. A couple of hours of my time? Get away from 3 kids? Interact with other adults? Sounds fine to me. I'll do it.

I have never been one to tie my identity to my hair. I have never cried over a hair cut because I am very pragmatic in the thought that hair will always grow back. So, I told the salon, "Do with it what you want."

(Insert long rant here similar to my issue with tattoo artist and their inability to plan, schedule, adhere to any sort of previously discussed agenda...)

The stylist decided to cut very blunt bangs on me (which was completely different from any previous discussions.) I agreed, although I do not do well with bangs. I am like 90% of moms and I pull my hair back 90% of the time. Piggy tails are my 'style' of choice on most days.

But, like I said, I knew they'd grow out and I was fine with that. She then started to curl it... a lot... with a flat iron. (I am so hair tool ignorant, I though a flat iron flattened your hair... who knew?) And she curled... and curled...

I looked at it for one split second before I vowed to not look in the mirror again before I got home? Why? Well, I was scared sh!tless already to be walking down a catwalk... in high heels... in front off 200+ people... can you imagine if I hated my hair while I was trying to do that? No way. I was just going to imagine it was some sort of avant garde, gorgeous hair and not this:


And thank God I did not look in the mirror... because the cut was not me!



I like my hair soft, natural. Simple. Easy.




And if you are curious? Stepping on that catwalk with 220 people watching and clapping and squealing was possibly the most terrifying thing I have EVER done! But, I vowed that if I did not fall or pee myself, it would be a success... and, thankfully, it was.

And now? I will take my gift certificate and go and get myself a cute bob to try to offset the bangs a little while they grow. Until then, thank God for bobby pins... which held the bangs back before I even left the salon that night!

(Professional photos courtesy of Test of Time Photography.)




Check out other hair disasters at Mama Kat's.

She's Crafty... restyling a stained shirt.

I bought this cute polka dot tee from Goodwill for 1 maybe 2 dollars. It is a size 4/5, so theoretically Annika should wear it, but in a confusion of the laundry Everest one day, I threw it on Cady with some pants, and it was an adorable tunic on her.

Cut to a few weeks later, when I discovered this stain:

I was slightly heartbroken and I try all of my laundering arsenal of tricks to no avail... it was ruined. And I couldn't very well give it back to Goodwill in that condition, so I went to plan B... cover it up. I had the other shirt, in a similar color scheme, that I love. But, sadly, after 10 years and 3 girls wearing it, it was time to get rid of it.

So, my light bulb went on and I though maybe I could extend the life of both shirts a bit longer... I dismantled the smaller shirt:

Cut it neatly into a trapezoidal shape.

(Folding it in half to make sure it was symmetrical, as I was going all free hand here.)

Folded the 2 side edges of the trapezoid under, ironed and sewed to create a nice, finished edge.


Pinned along the bottom of the shirt... then sewed it on...

Sewed the top of the new pocket on...

And voila!!!!

It came out cute and we have extended the life a bit longer...

...and then I snapped: Natural

This is Annika in her most natural setting. She loves being outdoors, barefoot, sitting on the lawn... soaking up the sun. Nothing brings a bigger smile to my face than to watch her sitting quietly... just being. Running her fingers through the grass and letting her mind wander wherever a 5 year-old little girls mind wanders.



Here's my list:
Follow
Covet
Hands
Fancy
10 minutes away
11pm

Today

Everyday

Resemble

Childhood memory

Clock

Closed

Smile

Back

natural
saturday
multi-coloured
home
shadow
foot
round
path
full
the end
Lines
Stretch
Through
Bottom
Different
Far Away
Green
Mug
At Night
Liquid
Out of Reach
Sometimes
Going places
Button
Delicious
Looking back at me
soft
three
numbers
small

She's Crafty: Cake Pops... FAIL!

It unfolded over the past few weeks via social media. First, my friend, Tina, posted publicly, "I bet Michele tries this and posts something in her blog about it. It's definitely easy" with a link to Halloween cake balls from The Pioneer Woman. And then Isolde sent me another recipe from Epicurious for Monster Pops.

Now, I have seen many people blog about their cake balls or pops... but, unfortunately, the majority of us are not nearly as talented with a double boiler as the Pioneer Woman! I know that my friend, Kam, made cake balls for her sons birthday and was none too pleased with the required efforts.

But, not one to let a challenge pass by, I decided to try my hand at some pops with Ariana. Baking is one of the fun times we enjoy together (sometimes!) I simply used a boxed cake mix and a can of frosting as I did not want to put forth too much effort lest they turn out horribly (now that was a brilliant idea.) I decided on the skull pops and since I only had pink candy melts, we were going with the girly skull complete with bow...
And?... I will never make cake pops (or balls) again. Way too much effort and mess for the outcome. The were overly sweet. I mean you are taking a perfectly good cake, adding an abundance of frosting and THEN covering that in candy melts! Too, too sweet for our taste. I would much rather have a nice pan of brownies or pumpkin whoopie pies with cream cheese filling.

She's Crafty... FAIL!