Countdown to Summer

Do you remember the tutorial on how to make your own little magnetic countdown here?

A quick change out of paper, (I adore this paper from Dear Lizzie) fill your tins with some goodies, and add a little sign.

We now have our countdown until Summer begins!
Do you celebrate the end of school and kicking off with your kids?

30th Mustache Birthday Bash!

In the end of April my cute Husband turned the big 30! He did not want a party, big surprise. So of course I threw a party anyway! I thought the mustache theme was a funny idea and I kept my color scheme to Brown, Orange and Light Blue. I always get out my big chalkboard for a party. I made this from a thrift store frame and some Chalkboard paint.
 
The kids all loved the photo booth props as well.
I also made a little banner of childhood photos . I had some packing tags that I stamped with a “30” and a mustache. Then attached a photo on with some Washi tape.

This fabric bunting was bought on clearance at Michaels and I added adhesive mustache’s from Zurchers
I also strung some party balloons with a needle and thread it was really easy and adds a great cheap pop of color!

For favors I made “Milk Mustache” suckers out of molds and white Chocolate.
I got the molds from Bake It Pretty

Strawberry Lemonade

When I’m in party mode I keep my eyes open for anything that fits into the “color scheme”.

For the Food I picked all of his favorite things:
We had a big fruit plate
Costco Hot Dots
J-Dawgs Sauce
Maverick Hot Dog Buns
Red Butte Pasta Salad
Cowboy Caviar & Chips

And nothing says Happy Birthday like an embarrassing lawn sign!

Women of Inspiration: Ashley from Lil Blue Boo

I'm still recovering from my amazing weekend at SNAP! A full recap is in the works. I've had so many friends wanting the full review and details of the fantastic conference. Once I survive this very busy week of  mine I'll get it posted! During SNAP one of the main thoughts that kept popping into my head was all the amazing women that were there in attendance and the amount of strength, creativity, and influence they posess. We are all women with the innate desire to create!

One such beautiful woman of inspiration that I met there is Ashley of Lil Blue Boo. Ashley loves to create beauty in her whole life. She is truly and artist and sells her childrens clothing, and paterns. Last Fall Ashley was diagnosed with Cancer. Throughout her treatment and trials Ashley's motto has been "Choose Joy"

One of my favorite most moving posts of hers is her video when she cut off all her beautiful blonde hair. You must click on over to watch it. It will make your heart swell.
I love how she lives creatively everyday and shares her passions through her blog! So as we are faced with trials, and obstacles that overcome us I hope we all can be a little more like Ashley and Choose Joy!

Jane and Me

      Spring is in the air and we are all looking for great ways to spruce up our wardrobes. Jewelry is the perfect element for color to add something new! So It's time for a giveaway from an amazing company Jane and Me. I'm so excited to share an amazing product with you!  Jane and Me is a complete customizing jewelry and accesory line. You can pick your amazing necklace, pendant and bauble to customize for a completely unique and personal piece that will reflect you and your style!

       You have many opportunities to enter. Winner will get the necklace, pendant and bauble of your choice.  Comment by telling me what you are loving about their new spring line! Giveaway closes April 28!

DIY Colored Denim

 

I have been wanting to buy some fun colored denim for summer, but have been hesitant because I’m cheap and I don’t want to spend too much on trendy items.Will we all be wearing these next summer? So I decided to make my own. I wanted to try orange first one of my favorite colors!

I grabbed two pairs of pants 1st pair was from Old Navy an old pair of white cargo capris, and a Thrifted pair of White denim carpis from the DI.

I grabbed my RIT Dye from Smith’s this can be found at almost any grocery store and Craft, and Fabric stores usually have a great selection of colors. The box of Dye was $2.

Now for the Directions:

1- Wash your fabric- start with clean clothing.

2-Prepare the Dye, I dissolved the dye powder into 2 c. hot water (carefully this is super concentrated)

3-Soak your pants in hot clean water

4-Start your washing machine for the longest hot cycle, & for the largest capacity load.

5-Add the Diluted Dye mixture to the hot water in the washing machine

6- Add 1 C. Salt

7- Then drop in your clothing for the Dye Bath! I just let it run through a full cycle

(I was so nervous at this point I’d only used dye previously in Tie-dyed Camp Shirts! As I watched my washing machine fill with bright orange Dye I thought Let’s hope this works out and doesn't ruin everything)

 

8-Once the cycle stopped I  washed them again with my home made laundry detergent in a cycle.

9-Then I tossed them in the dryer as normal.

10- I also washed my washing machine by soaking a rag in bleach and rubbing the drum out, then ran an empty cycle on the washing machine of Laundry detergent and 2 cups of bleach. It’s now cleaner than before!

(I’ve been doing laundry all day and my washing machine is clean and didn’t get anything else orange phew!)

Now how did they turn out?

Photo credits from the iphone by my 4 year old photographer!

 

These thrifted pair are my favorite, they are capris from White House Black Market

The 2nd Pair I threw in were already in my donate pile that I never wore but might be more inclined to wear them more with a T shirt and Sandals for Summer!

So for a grand total of $7! I have two new pair of Colored Capris for Summer!

Watch out local friends I will be buying up any cute pair of white denim at the DI!

Linking up to:

Show and Tell Blue Cricket Designs

Tatertots and Jello

Growing Easter Grass

Can you believe Easter is only 2 weeks away? Have you ever grown your own Easter Grass? I remember doing this as a little girl with my mom and it’s such a fun activity to do with your kids and super inexpensive!

To grow your own Easter Grass you will need:
2 Cups wheat
Potting Soil
Container, or plastic liner
saran wrap

Instructions:
Step 1:  Soak your wheat a good 12-24 hours to help give the wheat a jumpstart to SPROUT!


Step 2: Scoop a level amount of potting soil into your container, I put a couple inches in mine. Then get the soil very wet.

Step 3: Then liberally spread the sprouted wheat all over the moist soil. Once this step is complete wrap well in Cling Wrap and put in a warm sunny spot.


After about 2 days watching your grass sprout remove the plastic wrap and watch it grow. Keep the grass moist daily with a good misting of water. This picture is my grass after about 9 days after planting.


This will be darling on any Easter Table or in a little galvanized bucket for Spring!
So this is your week to plant Easter is 2 weeks away!
linking up at:
Tatertots and Jello

Spring Cleaning, it’s really time to get your clean on!

This post is sponsored by Pine-Sol® Clean & Disinfect with Pine-Sol®: The Powerful Scent of Clean."
I was compensated for this post as a member of Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all my own.


Spring is knocking on the door can you feel it? Sometimes in Utah it takes a while to break through. Saturday we were in flip flops, and Sunday we got snow! Even though the weather seems a little confused I have got serious spring fever. A trip to sunny California two weeks ago seemed to get me in the mood even sooner.  Along with the changing seasons, Spring Cleaning seems to top my priority list lately.

My home is my favorite place to be, but it’s not always sparkly clean and company ready. I like to think of myself as pretty domestic but a Deep Clean Diva I am certainly not!  Ironically the older I get, & the more kids I have had, along the way new tips and tricks have been implemented. With a busy family of 5, 3 kids 6 and under my time is more valuable than ever. Here is my top 5 tips for Spring Cleaning our homes!

1- Start with a list! Go through your home room by room evaluating what needs to be done. By giving each room it’s own checklist you can customize and help delegate to your family what needs to be done. This may take some time before the cleaning even begins but by creating a 1 time Master Spring Cleaning list it will save you time in the future.

2-Get Supplies Ready-Take a quick evaluation of what supplies you will need for spring cleaning, what you have in your home, and if there is any product, or items you need to pick up at the store so when you start your clean you are ready to go.

3- Schedule the Cleaning- a deep spring cleaning is a big undertaking and something that needs to be scheduled in my life, or it will never get done. Take a good guess on how long it will take you and plan accordingly. I like to give myself about 2-3 weeks to complete my whole list. Inside and out, and top to bottom.

4-Get Cleaning- Start from the ceilings and move down all the way to the floors, wipe all solid surfaces, and wash all linens, move any piece of furniture you can you’ll be amazed at what hides under beds and dressers!

5-Celebrate and Evaluate- Phew that was a lot of work but it’s so worth it, I love a clean home. It’s now time to evaluate on what worked what didn’t and record it. Or what needed extra cleaning, or took longer than expected and you can adjust your master list accordingly. Year after year it will get easier and won’t seem so daunting. Slowly we we become more effective about our cleaning to enjoy a good deep Clean!


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