Laundry Magnets & Baskets

Laundry is a challenge for me especially when I have to do about 10 loads every week(and that is just our 4 kids). So I decided to make it a little easier for myself. I made 2 magnets for each of our kids to put on the dryer and washer to label who's clothes are in it. Now I don't have to guess
Here are the instructions for the magnets:


For the magnets I cut an image to fit the magnet (I found at the dollar store for 11 cents) and tape that image to the chipboard(same size)

Cut a piece of contact paper 1/4 inch bigger around the edge of the chipboard.

Use a pick to separate contact paper.

Lay the image side down on the chipboard of sticky side of the contact paper.

Cut a triangle out of each corner.

Fold over the edge of the contact paper onto the chipboard.

Glue chipboard to the magnet face.

Turn it over so it can dry.

You are Done! I just wrote the names of the kids on the front of the image with a sharpie pen.

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Easy Clean-up Shelves

I love anything that will make cleaning up easier. And since I'm trying to get organized this month its perfect!

I went to my sisters house and she had taken sticky floor tiles and placed them on top of each shelf in her pantry. So I came home and I've done it in the pantry and under all the bathroom sinks and kitchen sink. I put in all the full sheets first then I cut the tiles to fit the leftover space. An exacto knife works awesome to get 3/4 way thru and then it snaps after that.

Good luck in your organizing adventures!

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Being Better in 2010

I always look forward to the new year. Its like a fresh start (as is everyday) where there is room to improve ourselves. I know there are many jokes about how we break our New Years Resolutions within the first week but I really believe if we want to change and better ourselves we can do it!
I have a Franklin Covey Day Planner and I love it. He has some effective tools to help us think and ways to plan to be a better person. One of his habits has 4 areas to do that .
I have a ruler/page marker that I use everyday to mark what day it is and it has a paper insert. I decided to replace the insert with my goals for 2010. I focused putting down some goals from each "area" that I can work on. I'm so excited. I have a kindly reminder at the bottom that says "take one day at a time". I think its too overwhelming if you think in terms of monthly and yearly.

Remember only 21 days to form a habit. Good luck with the goals you have set for yourself! Pin It

DQ Appreciation Day

On January 1st from 12-5pm our local Dairy Queen has 1/2 off everything on their menu. Its their Appreciation Day. Yepee!

I usually get the blizzards because they are so tasty but since everything is at a deal why not get the rest of the yummy stuff.

I am so thankful they do this year after year. It has become tradition our family looks forward to.

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"After" Season Deals

I love great bargains!!! After the Holidays are my favorite but the school ones are just as good.

I was at our local OfficeMax tonight {looking for 2010 planner refills} and came across the "end caps" and saw 1 inch ring binders for $0.20 {they're slick but vinyl will work great for the subject name} and cute 2 pocket folders for $0.50 {which would be $1.97 and up at Walmart}. I stocked up for next years school supplies. What a DEAL!

I know all the stores put the marked down stuff at the back but I don't mind looking. I have bought after season stuff now for a couple of years and then use it the following year. Its a great system. Why pay full price if you don't need to. Although if I really "need" it then I will but buying after the holiday sure does cut down on the decision making.

Have fun bargain hunting!

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Embracing the Moment

I love how pictures capture moments in time. Whether you take them yourself or with a professional they are still priceless!

My sister is a professional photographer and takes breath taking pictures.

One day she set up her studio stuff in my living room and the kids had a blast and felt like they were movie stars.
She took this picture of my kids' feet and she mentioned I should put the scripture found in 3John 1:4 {I have no greater joy than to hear my children walk in truth}. It turned out amazing.

Embrace the Moment! Pin It

Linked up to TipJunkie.com

Laurie over at TipJunkie has been one of my fave bloggers for the last few years. I've been featured on her blog/site a few times. Since I got so busy and inconsistent with my posts for a while I haven't been on the computer much, therefore no blogging OR "blog-jogging" for me for the past few months. Since I'm "back" I noticed that Laurie is hosting a Christmas Show & Tell. So I linked up some of my Christmas posts from this year and last. It looks like she's gotten a great response. I'm going to bookmark her post for next year's holiday inspiration! Head on over if you would like to share your link too!
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Christmas Comics

I always love a good laugh!

This year one of our friends sent our family some Christmas cartoon comics. They were so funny and our tummy's got a workout. It was great to bring in the cheer of the Holiday in a different way. I wanted to remember these great takes on Christmas so I decided to make a "Christmas Comics" book. I found a bunch for this year and hope to add to it year to year. I just put it in a picture book(measures 7 1/2x 4 1/2) and covered the front with fabric. I'll add the title with some vinyl.

You can google "funny Christmas cartoons or comics" and you'll find a bunch. (just as an FYI: you might have to skip over the inappropriate ones)

I know this is something our family can do together! LAUGH!

Merry Christmas, Friends!

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Santa Bags

I love how Santa leaves gifts by the stockings but over the years it has become more of a struggle to find "Santa only paper" to wrap the Santa gifts. So to ease Santa's frustrations this year I have made "Santa Bags" for him. I am so excited to use them. And if for whatever reason the gift is to big Santa will place a picture of the item and make them go on a scavenger hunt.

I used some red fabric (20x20) with a 1/2 inch seam. Sew a band around towards the top. My band is layered so the bottom strip is a 3 1/2 inch wide and the top strip is 2 1/2 inch wide. Just leave an opening on the band where the seams meet and you can thread the ribbon thru with a safety pin. {Before I threaded the ribbon I washed the bags so they would have that "worn" look.} I just used a scrapbooking letter so I could tell who it belongs to; but you could put a picture of your child which would be fun to change every year.

Draw string it up and its ready for Santa!

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Show and Tell

Okay, I just had to show off the cute Christmas aprons that I made for my little girls a few weeks ago. I bought some super-cute Christmas gingerbread cookie material about 10+ years ago and made myself an apron with it. I recently tore that one apart and made a new one for myself (with the same fabric), and I found that I still had some more of that fabric that I hadn't used! I didn't have a pattern in the littler size, so I created my own. I will share that with you eventually! Merry Christmas! Pin It

Easy & Inexpensive Last-Minute Neighbor Gifts

Are you still in need of a last minute neighbor gift? The clock is ticking, so hurry over to Sam's club (I'm guessing Costco too) and pick up a case of hot chocolate! Slap a sticky bow on top and a "to/from" sticker and you are good to go, easy-peasy... and inexpensive as well! (This is a package of 7 boxes, assorted flavors.)

Another great idea (something a friend brought over last night, as well as one of my kids' teachers gave me as a "thank you for helping in the classroom" gift)... Sparkling Cider!

Or if you've already done all your shopping and the store is the last place you want to be, look in your pantry. Do you have a brownie mix or two in there? Make a little tag that says "Roses are Red, Chocolate is Sweet, We're too stressed out to make your treat!"

Here is what I made for my kids' teacher gifts this year...

These are rice sacks, but you can use dried corn as well. I used some fleece fabric scraps that I already had on hand (which can be fleece, flannel or another strong fabric) and regular white rice from my pantry (which you can buy at Walmart for way cheap). Just fold the material in half and cut a rectangle, any size (mine are all different). Sew a tight zig-zag stitch (I did 6/8") all the way around it, leaving the top open to fill. Don't forget to back-stitch!

Then fill with rice or dried corn, leaving a little room at the top.

Stitch across the top to close, again make sure you back-stitch on both ends!
Now just snip around the sides, being careful not to cut too close to the stitching.

Done! Throw into a gift sack with a handful of chocolates and some tissue and off you go!

Some variations for the sacks: You can throw in pieces of cinnamon stick OR dried lavender for aroma.

Oh, and don't forget to type up a little instruction tag with the rice sack. Here's what mine says...

Warm Sack: Place sack in microwave and nuke on high for 2-3 min (rice) OR 4-5 min (corn). *Sack may be hot to the touch when taking out of micro. Will also feel a little moist. Do not overnuke.

Cold Sack: Place sack in freezer until cold.

Good luck with your last-minute holiday preps, and have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS!! Pin It

Another Great Christmas Clip!

Each year at Christmas time I put great effort into keeping the true spirit of Christmas alive in our home and in the hearts of my children. It's far too easy to get caught up in material things and shopping and "to-do" lists and "busyness", that we can sometimes find ourselves frazzled and frustrated this time of year. (I'm speaking for myself at least. Christmas can be hard on us moms!)

Don't get me wrong... there is nothing wrong with the material side of Christmas, and we can have such fun with it! But in a world that threatens to take "Christ" out of Christmas... I just won't have it!

My 4 yr/old likes to pretend/role-play as a typical young child does. Some days she's a princess, sometimes a kitty or a dog, and other times even a super hero. The other day she told us to call her "Little Santa".
Yesterday she came out with a large dish towel/cloth over her head and announced that she was "Mary". I had some errands to run, but she insisted on wearing the Mary cloth the whole time. A few people in the stores actually asked about it, and she told them "who" she was. Often our children can be our best examples!


So with all that said, take a 4-minute breather to watch this clip and give yourself a little gift of the Christmas spirit! XO

*Update: Here's another video that is just precious!!
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Christmas {2009} Gifts for Teachers

I'm so excited but very nervous. This is my first time blogging! I'm learning more and more how to put stuff on the computer so be patient with me for the "tutes". I hope to share many things that will either help you create or inspire you(we all need that!)

Since I truely value the many hours of work that goes into teaching I like to show that appreication to our kids' teacher by giving them something throughout the year. So for Christmas I knew they could get some use out of these (since we do at our home). Bean bags with some clearance fabric at the local fabric store and a spinner for games. I like putting the numbers on it because you can assign the numbers to be for anything(example: get to know you game: favorites).

I hope you are able to let your kids' teachers know how special they are!

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A New Author on The Creative Homemaker!

Okay ladies... Are you ready for some serious "Eye Candy"?
(image taken from www.buttermilkpress.com)

I am SO excited to announce that I have a NEW (additional) author on my blog! Tomorrow we will meet HEATHER. She is THE Creative Homemaker of ALL creative homemakers, and I am extremely honored to be associated with her!! You are NOT going to want to miss out on what she has to share! In the near future we will even take you on a virtual tour through her home, and you will get to see what I mean. The girl's got some serious talent, and ideas that will inspire you like no other!

I am honored to get to introduce Heather to you all. (I hope she doesn't mind.) hehe.

Heather is a busy SAHM of 4 children and wife of an awesome guy named Will. She lives about a mile from me, and I've known her for a while now. I've always been amazed with the ideas that come out of that head of hers! She takes creativity to a whole new level in my opinion, and I am more than thrilled to share this blog with her.

Heather was the primary president in our ward before me, and is now in the stake primary presidency (go figure). She is a kindred spirit of mine, a true friend, and just a neat, neat person. I just love her and know you will love her too!

Something I've always admired about Heather is that she is always serving others. I cannot count the many times I've seen her in action, whether it be bringing a meal to a neighbor in need, or stopping by someone's house to help them clean when they've been sick.

Heather is a great mom, and a very creative one at that! She has 3 beautiful girls and 1 darling little boy, and thinks of the most creative things to do with them and for them. They are so lucky to have her as their mommy!

So that's a little bit about Heather. Tomorrow she will be showing us what she is doing for her teacher Christmas gifts, so stay tuned! We will both be doing our very best to post once/week each. So come visit us often and see what's new!! Pin It

Great Christmas Video

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My Town FREE Christmas Events this Weekend

Live Nativity Walk this Friday and Saturday, Dec 11 & 12 from 6-10 pm at the corner of Cherry Ln and McDermont in Meridian.

Other Mothers Falala Bazaar & Fashion Show this Saturday, Dec 12 from 1-5 pm on Fairview/FiveMile in west Boise.

Update: I forgot to mention that both of these events are FREE!! Thanks Lisa! ;o) If anyone knows of any other free/inexpensive Christmas events, please share. I'd love to take my family!! Pin It

Thanksgiving Recipes!

Can you believe it? I'm posting! I know... It's been FOREVER. But my life is SO nuts these days, and this blog is not nearly as important as my 4 adorable children (who have all been on a three-week "track break" from school the past 2 1/2 weeks). So adorable? Yes! Always? NO! Though I love them dearly, they are starting to drive me (and each other) BONKERS, and I will be very ready for school to start back up on Monday. :o) (I'm not a huge fan of year-round school... can you tell?)

The Creative Homemaker can't not give out a yummy recipe (or two) for our upcoming Turkey Day, so here is a WONDERFUL SOUR-CREAM LEMON PIE RECIPE and my MOST FAVORITE ROLL RECIPE EVER. This is one is a family recipe that I grew up with. And the holidays are just not the same to me without them.

Potato Rusk Rolls

1 c. mashed potatoes
1 c. sugar
1 c. milk (scalded)
1 c. shortening
3 eggs
1 ½ tsp. salt
2 T. yeast
½ c. warm water
6 ½ to 7 ½ c. Flour

Dissolve yeast in ½ c. warm water. Scald milk and cool to room temp. Combine shortening and mashed potatoes. Add milk and 3 beaten eggs and mix. Add yeast and mix. Add flour 1 cup at a time while mixing until dough pulls away from the sides. Let rise until double in size (about 40 minutes in warm place). Punch down and form into rolls. Let rise and bake at 350 degrees until golden brown on top.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, ladies!! XOXO Pin It

What Are YOU Going to Be for Halloween?

Hello ladies! I know... It's been FOREVER since I've posted. But like I've said before, my family comes first. And I've been so busy with them that there has been no time for blogging, unless I just don't sleep.

So are you thinking HALLOWEEN yet? I thought about it today when I stopped into Walmart and noticed the shelves being filled with costumes, big bags of candy, and spooky things. It's that time of year again- one of my favorite seasons! Cooler air, football games, Halloween decor, zuchini squash coming out our ears... I LOVE FALL!!

Halloween is still 6 1/2 weeks away, but will be here before we know it! Do your kids know what they want to be yet? Do you have special Halloween traditions that you like to do with your family each year? Do you and/or your husband dress up for Halloween? Do you do a grown-up costume party with friends? Do you make your own costumes or buy them? Where do you find the best deals on costumes?

I am looking forward to this FRIDAY, Sept. 18. Other Mothers, my fave store for kids, teens and prego moms (in Boise, Idaho) will be having an after hours preview sale of their Halloween costumes from 5-9 pm, open to the public! It will continue through Saturday (in the empty space 2 doors down). I've heard the costumes are quite plentiful this year! But you have to hurry, because they go fast!!

Savers is another place I find good deals on costumes and/or parts and accessories to costumes. There is always Walmart and Target too (along with others), and the costume rental shops if you are really serious about a certain costume. But those places can get pretty pricey!

If you want to make your own costumes, I highly recommend YouCanMakeThis.com for their downloadable patterns and eBooks! (They have tons of princessy and tutu patterns!)

I haven't been on blogs for a long time so I'm a little out of the loop. If you have a great fall or Halloween idea, tradition, or deal-find please tell me about it and/or send me a link! I'd love that!! Pin It

We Reap What We Sow

Where we plant seeds of kindness, we can expect love to grow.

(My son pulled these cute love carrots out of our garden today, so I just had to share.) Pin It

Winna-Winna-Winna! We Have a Winna!!

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:

11
Timestamp: 2009-07-15 07:31:04 UTC

Forgive me as I don't know how to post this proof of results with the cute little box that I got it in. (Or is this right? Just copy/pasted the results right from the generator.)

Anyway... JT42 is my Birthday Surprise Winner!!! Congrats!!! Her birthday is on July 25th. Email me your info and I will send you a birthday gift!!! (Email link on right sidebar.) Pin It

My Birthday Cakes

First of all... Have you posted a comment on my Birthday Giveaway post? If not, you have until midnight tonight! I will use the random number generator to choose a winner, and that person will be getting a surprise from me in their mailbox before the end of the month!! Go here for the details. One of my other fave bloggers is also doing a giveaway with the same deadline, so while you're at it you might as well try for hers too!

The following are all the birthday cakes I've made for my kids over the last 7 years or so. I'm just missing my Elmo cake, which was my first creative cake.
I will look for the pic of my Elmo cake (not a digital photo- you know.)

I love making the balls. They're creative and quite easy to make!



How do I get my frosting on so shiny and smooth? I dip my frosting tool into a cup of water and I work it around until nice and smooth! (That takes a little time, especially if you are a perfectionist like me.)

All these (above) have been my own creation. I forgot what I did for the ladybug's head. I think it was my smallest stainless steal bowl. I used black jellybeans for the eyes and legs. I thought I was so clever coming up with the ladybug cake idea, but then I saw it on FamilyFun (I think). I'm sure all of these were thought of before me too. Goes to show that great minds think alike!

How to get that perfect, round ball shape you might wonder? If you have a Kitchen Aid mixer, it's a "piece of cake" (no pun intended)! Just be sure to grease and flour your bowl really well!! Use a whole cake mix. (It will need to bake a bit longer than normal because of how thick it is.)

The Pampered Chef Batter Bowl works too! I used that one for the football cake (below). I cut it down the middle after cooled and matched up the centers for the football shape.

I've seen people do princess doll cakes with these too. In fact I found the princess doll cake-topper (doll) at Michael's craft store for like $5. They come with blond or brunette hair. I haven't attempted one of those yet, but have seen many great ones!

Wondering how my frosting can be a nice deep color? It's all about the Wilton food dye, found at Walmart and/or craft stores in the cake decor isle. They are about $1.50 each at Walmart.

These next 3 cakes were inspired by the FamilyFun website (my fave for party ideas)...
I loved this princess crown cake. It was SO easy! I just used 2 normal-sized (medium) round cake pans, and 1 small one (the one I always used for my kids' 1st Bday cakes). I used 2 cake mixes and just made cupcakes with the extra batter. I used a $5 princess crown from Walmart for the top (which came with some matching clip-on earrings that my daughter won't wear) so I used the earrings on the sides of the cake for extra bling. I also used big round sprinkles that I found at Walmart in the cake decor section.

Last fall we had a "pretend sleepover" party for my daughter so I found this tutorial at FamilyFun.

Here is the skateboard cake I did that was so clever from FamilyFun.

These are my Great to be Eight Cookies that I posted about in January, which includes a "tute" on how to make them!

I didn't make this one. But did you know that Sam's Club will put "edible decor" (meaning photos) on your cake for no extra charge? You just hand them the photo either at drop off OR pick up! This 1/2 sheet cake from Sam's was only $16 and some change! I got to customize everything. This cake was for my son's baptism on the 4th of July (a week ago).

The rest of these are my own creations again. I couldn't think of what to do for my son's bicycle birthday party, so I tried to make a bike tire (below).

I made the Spiderman eyes out of grey card stock and laminated them with contact paper- so easy! I still have the eyes somewhere.

These other spider things were from the same party, and since my son's birthday is near Halloween they just worked out perfect! (I used plastic spider rings as decor.)


These I made for my other son's school Bday treat, which was shortly after Spiderman III came out so we did some "Venom" ones as well. To make these oval (like a face) I think I just used an empty round container and squeezed it a bit to form an oval. These were a big hit in the class!!

(Only problem was all the black tongues and lips. Oh well. The kids loved 'em!)

Whew... a lot of info for one post! FamilyFun is my fave place to go for birthday cake inspiration. I also frequent this site for ideas and have liked what I've found there too. Enjoy!

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You Can Make This Birthday Giveaway!

One of my fave websites called YouCanMakeThis.com just turned THREE, and they are hosting a birthday giveaway on their blog! {giddy} All you have to do is leave a comment on the birthday post and post about it on your blog, and you'll be eligible to win some great things!! I can't wait! We have until July 20th to enter.

Come see what I recently made with the YCMT patterns!
Also, don't forget to sign up for my giveaway (below) as well! Pin It

Birthday Month and a Giveaway!

For me, JuLy is BiRtHdAy month!! Why? Because...
July 2- my SON, bro-in-law
July 3- niece
July 4- AMERICA, cousin
July 6- sister, niece
July 8- niece
July 14- ME!!
July 18- niece
July 22- bro-in-law
July 23- sis-in-law

So in lue of so many birthdays in my world, including my own, I am proclaiming JULY as my Birthday Blogging Month!! (All posts related to birthdays.)

So spread the word... If you read my blog and your birthday is in JULY, leave me a comment on this post with your name and birthday. (Do not have to say the year.) On July 14 (my birthday) I will randomly choose one of YOU (using the random generator) and send a surprise birthday gift to you from me by the end of the month! (Don't worry... it will be something good!) If you were not born in July, you may nominate a girlfriend with a July birthday. You may comment as many times as you'd like to heighten your chance of winning! Please also post this giveaway on your blog to be eligible! Pin It