Have A Red Hot Friday

I made "chili pepper cookies" for Goosie Girl's school.

They are having a "Family Fiesta Fun Night."

These are for the cake walk...

I hope everyone has a "red - hot" Friday!

Ice Cream Baby Shower

How sweet is this little Baby shower ice cream party that I saw at The TomKat Studio

by Polka Dot Prints...

I'm loving these big letters!

Pop over to Polka Dot Prints see more eye candy...

Tablescape With A French Twist

Oh my! I am completely smitten with this tablescape that I came across at Head of the Table.

The girls at Stylish Soiree really tickled my fancy when they put together this table...

The color palette is spectacular, oui?



The tweed table runner is just fabulous!!

It's all in the details...



I feel pure bliss looking at this table!

SImple elegance,

Lots of detail,

If I knew how to say magnificent in french, I would!

Thank you Head of the Table for featuring this & Stylish Soiree for creating this!

Cupcakes In Egg Cups?

Cupcakes in egg cups?

Yes, please!

Look at this precious way to display cupcakes from Save the date for cupcakes...

With Easter right around the corner, you can find a great assortment of these sweet little cups to suit your fancy (and your cupcakes)!

Midnight Snack Favors

How wonderful would this be waiting for you as your favor to take home after a late night party, a wedding reception, a dance or even for teenagers?

Milk & cookies packaged adorably in to go boxes...

Love the little cow peeking out!

A nice, big juicy hamburger with fries? Can you say yum?!

Simple ideas that would be wonderfully received!

top image via Bridal Party Tees & Hostess with the Mostess

bottom image via P is for Party & Keely Thorne Events

Tutus For You

I wish I had known this when Goosie Girl had a fairy party...

I bought tutus and wings for all the girls that year...

A Little Lovliness just shared how simple it is to make your own tutus...

Take a peek...

1. Supplies include tulle, scissors and an elastic headband. I used 6-inch wide spools of pink, lavender and white tulle from Wal-Mart. Each 65-yard roll yielded two to three 10-inch long tutus. I used pastel, child-size elastic headbands from Wal-Mart that come with eight headbands per package. Although I wasn't crazy about the plastic flower beads on some of the headbands, I did not remove them because I knew the little girls would like the extra "bling." You can use scissors for this project, but I preferred using a rotary cutter and cutting mat to achieve a smooth edge.

2. Determine the finished length of your tutu, and cut strips of tulle twice that length -- lots and lots of strips! Our tutus required 20-inch long strips.

3. Fold a strip of tulle in half, pinching the middle with your dominant hand.

4. With your less dominant hand, wrap the tulle around the headband, looping the ends through the fold in the middle of the tulle.

5. Pull the tulle taut to create a little knot around the headband.

6. Repeat the process with a second strip of tulle.

7. Continue around the headband using the same process. The more strips of tulle you use on the headband, the more full the tutu will be. For our party tutus, I used more strips of tulle on the plain headbands, resulting in full tutus that were a little larger. I used less strips on the headbands embellished with plastic jewels. For these, I filled in the open space in the headband with as many strips as needed, then alternated one and two strips of tulle between the jewels. Filling in the tutu can be a time-consuming process, but the process does get quicker as you go along.

8. When you have worked all the way around the headband and achieved the desired fullness, adjust the knots as needed to make an even waistband and fluff the tutu.

9. Take a bow! Your tutu is ready for a pirouette!

Can you believe these are that easy? Thanks A Little Loveliness for those wonderful instructions!!

Game Night Inspiration Board

Since Inspiration boards are the latest rage, I didn't want to be left out, so I created one for my sister's (adults only) Game Night Party. Yours truly is doing the dessert table. I'm so excited! Here are my inspirations...

images: Amy Atlas dessert table, Tiffany playing cards, Bake at 350 Tic Tac Toe Cookie Board

Typical Cakes? I Think Not!

I was reading an article from One Charming Party that was talking about how many times people go into a store and buy everything matching according to their theme. Example: An Elmo party so you go buy Elmo plates, Elmo cups, Elmo napkins, Elmo goody bags, plastic Elmo tablecloth and then you go to your local grocery and buy the Elmo sheet cake.

No! No! No!

You can have an Elmo party but no matching everythings! Instead incorporate the reds, yellows and blacks with a few hints of Elmos.

One big point to mention was that she encouraged NOT to buy that grocery store themed sheet cake but to get one that is unique, different, one that will have people talking...

Like these...

This one is my fave...

check out that Chanel bag!

Have you ever seen anything so adorable in all your life?

Now these are NOT your typical cakes!

Pink Cake Box is very, very talented, no?

Don't you just love???

Visit her site for more eye candy...you will be impressed!

Happy Birthday Mix, Mingle, Glow

Mix, Mingle, Glow is one of my favorite daily reads...

I had to share how she spent her 38th birthday...

If this doesn't inspire you, I don't know what will...

Happy 38th birthday Mix, Mingle, Glow!

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago my birthday wish was to complete one

Random Act of Kindness for every year of my life thus far,

as well as asking friends, readers,

Facebook fans and fellow Twitter-ers to each perform one

Random Act of Kindness and to let me know about it throughout the day.

I planned out 38 things ahead of time just in case,

but really was praying for opportunities to present themselves throughout the day.

It was absolutely freezing and windy but we were not to be deterred!

My husband, three daughters and my husband’s parents

joined me in the most favorite birthday of my life!

OUR 38 ACTS:

1. Returned grocery carts back inside the store from the parking lot for shoppers.

2. Loaded bags of groceries into cars for shoppers (received a hug from one adorable elderly man).

3. Handed bottled waters out the car window to

joggers/walkers/bicyclists we passed by

(felt like we were support for the Iron Man triathalon or something…

lots of laughs from people on this one).

4. Inconspicuously dropped coins on the playground

for children to find while they played

(my girls are really good at this apparently.

No, no one choked on a random found penny.

Yes, LOTS of squeals of delight floated through the air as we walked away!)

5. Fed parking meters.

6. Paid for the next two cars behind us on the toll bridge.

(Toll operator said, “You gotta be kidding me”).

7. Handed out Tootsie Pops to children

(asked parents permission first of course!).

8. Bought a gift card for groceries and turned around

and handed it to woman in line behind me.

I wasn’t prepared for the look on her face.

I immediately left before I started to cry.

9. Walked up to a family eating lunch at a local restaurant,

placed a gift card on their table and walked out.

10. Dropped off several hand written

thank you notes and doughnuts at the police station.

11. Gave a dozen hot doughnuts

to a very cold crew working on the power lines.

12. Took a large bag of clothes

to the local homeless shelter.

13. Left 3 gift cards with notes

hidden amongst books at Barnes & Noble.

14. Paid for the woman’s coffee behind us

in line at Starbucks.

15. Chased down and caught runaway Happy Birthday balloon

and returned it to the owner’s unlocked car

(then secretly watched as he returned and was completely baffled

at the balloon sitting in his front seat!)

16. Tucked happy notes in car doors in parking lot

wishing people a good day full of God’s blessings.

17. Handed out mylar balloons

to children shopping with their parents.

18. Took art supplies to the Family Waiting Room

of labor & delivery floor of the hospital

for new big brothers and sisters to be.

19. Dropped off stuffed animals

on the children’s floor of the hospital.

20. Delivered balloons to hospital patients.

21. Handed out water bottles

to very appreciative nurses (who knew they were so thirsty?).

22. Taped change to vending machines

(I actually saw passersby stop and take pictures

of the machines without taking the money).

23. Pumped woman’s gasoline

so she didn’t have to get out of her car in the cold.

(We also added a bottle of some sort of additive since she asked.

I should find out what that stuff was. I never add stuff to my gas tank.)

24. Left quarters at a laundromat.

25. Delivered handwritten Valentine cards

to the local assisted living facility.

26. Phone card to young woman in need.

(I asked the owner of a store I frequent if he knew of any customers

who might need it and he got a big smile on his face.

He looked at the girl working there and told me

she had just confided in him yesterday that she couldn’t afford

her minutes on her cell phone to call her family back home.

It was a suuuper cool moment.)

27. Handed out hot chocolate at ice skating rink.

28. Left free Krispy Kreme doughnut coupons

on coffee table at church.

29. Gave coffee to a toll booth worker on our way home.

(He seemed the least affected or appreciative of the day.

I feel like he might have needed it the most of everyone.)

30. Walked into McDonald’s and asked the cashier

to use my free coupon on next person in drive through line.

31. Wrote a letter to old friend and mailed it

(yeah, the total old fashioned way).

32. Took plates of cookies to 2 neighbors I don’t really know

and spent some time talking with them

(no, I did not bake them myself but no one seemed to care).

33. Read a story to children in Barnes & Noble

(I think people thought I worked there!

The kids liked it and the parents loved it!).

BONUS: My 8 year old daughter found a little guy

and read him a book too.

34. Took pictures of two tourists

in front of Hard Rock Cafe and a family in the park.

35. Brought in the neighbor’s garbage can for them.

36. Gathered a newspaper that a woman

who’s hands were full dropped at the grocery store.

37. Left a small treat with a note of thanks for the mailman.

38. Read an entire Junie B. Jones book

(all 9 chapters) to my children before bed,

instead of the usual two chapters. (Happy girls indeed!)

WOW! Doesn't that want to make you go out and do the same thing?

That was so awesome!

Valentine Wishes

Here are some conversation heart cookies that I made for both Goosie Girl's class party & a client...

They are sassy & fun, no?

The front of Goosie Girl's valentines...

We decided on tags to tie on goody bags in lieu of traditional cards.

She opted for a blue owl with sparkle...

The back of the tag with the sentiment...

The coordinating owl cookie for the goody bag...

She is a sweet little thing isn't she?

Yummy, too!

Packaged & ready for hand out...

Goosie Girl wishes you a Happy Valentine's Day!

Not Your Ordinary Goody Bags

I find goody bags a bit of a dilemma at times. Do you?

Well here is a goody bag inspiration that I stumbled across from Sarah Nielsen.

She even gives us directions on how to create it...

How wonderful is that?

Take a peek...

Here’s how you do it:

1. Get some delicious, inexpensive candy and loot at the grocery store. I opted for M&M’s, Jr. Mints, an assortment of sour candies, and some glow-in-the-dark fangs (appropriate for a monster movie, right?)

2. Find an image that you want to print on your brown bags.

Bring it up in a program that will allow you to edit and print projects.

Type whatever you’d like to on the bag, then just send it through the printer.

The brown bags are generally 5″ wide so set your printer accordingly.

3. Fill the bag with your loot.

4. Fold the top of the bag down just a small amount, maybe 1/2 of an inch.

4. Get a piece of string or ribbon, about 2.5 feet, and place it under the fold.

5. Fold the bag over the string a few times…

6. Then tie it into a cute bow, and you’ve got yourself a handle!

Thank you Sarah for finding this for us and instructing us on how to do it!

All the images used in this post are courtesy of Heather and The Coterie Blog