Who doesn't really enjoy buying the pre-made valentines from the store and assembling them? The ones that come with all of the tattoos or stickers to attach and that almost always tear when you try to separate them into individual valentines?  Well I have my hand in the air because after helping 5 kids assemble valentines last year, I knew that this year I would have to do something different. Plus there is always someone on Pinterest reminding you of just how ordinary your valentines are. Don't get me wrong the valentines you purchase at the store are just fine but can be a headache. With not much time at all I was able to whip up these custom Valentines/ treat bags for my children to take to all of their friends at school.
Needed:
Computer
Printer
Paper
Scissors or paper cutter
Stapler
Snack size ziplock bags
Candy
Clipart ( I found most on the internet, but I also had purchased some from Etsy.com for previous projects)


     I created these Valentines using Excel and Microsoft Word. I put most of my clipart into word and created text boxes for the words. In excel, I highlight the area I wanted my color background and then selected my color to shade in that area. Then I would cut my images and text boxes out of word and paste them where I wanted on the shaded area in excel. Once I had the perfect Valentine, I copied and pasted another one below it so that I could print two on each page.

     I cut them all out and folded them in half, then I just stapled them to the top of the snack sized ziplock bags filled with candy.

     We moved in our home late 2010. We had to give it a pretty big makeover just to make it comfortable enough to move in. Paint, flooring, new interior doors, new base boards, etc... We have been saving up to remodel our kitchen for some time now, but for the past year we have started making progress a little at a time. Then in November this year we really got the ball rolling!

Our Kitchen November 2010 ( the wall that the old refrigerator is on divided the living room from the kitchen)

This is our kitchen one Sunday night in January 2013. We decided to pull out the sledge hammer and get rid of this wall. My theory was that if we did this then we would force ourselves to save up the rest of the money to completely remodel the kitchen sooner.

Another view of our kitchen Jan 2013. We lost some cabinet space on this wall which is why there is stuff everywhere!

1. New window covering
2. Pendant lights over the bar
3. Paint ceiling and beam
4. Install wood/laminate flooring into the kitchen (same as living area)
5. Install white plain fan flush to the ceiling ( the fan we have now is too distracting and we have the recessed lights now)
6. Style the kitchen counters

   After making the superhero ornaments my daughter and I played around with the extra glass ornaments we had. When you add two colors you end up with this pretty tie dye effect. It looks more like color blocking when you first start moving the two colors around together, but when you are hanging it upside down as its drying then it starts to look like this. To make these ornaments follow the same directions as the DIY Superhero Ornaments=Perfect for My Little Boy except add two colors instead of one.

Happy Holidays!
xo,
Brittany

   I saw a picture of ornaments on Pinterest that I just had to make for my little boy. He lives in a home with 4 little girls so I like to do something special for him from time to time. The kid sure has to deal with a lot of girl drama! He is definitely all boy though. He loves monster trucks, pirate swords, and of course Superheroes! I always make time to watch a movie with him like Thor, Captain America, etc. I have to say that I have come to enjoy them myself or maybe that's just because I know how much he enjoys them. This project was especially fun for me because my little guy got to help.

Items needed:
Craft paint (in the colors of your choosing)
Clear glass ornaments with removable tops ( I purchase mine from Hobby Lobby)
Glue ( I used Hodge Podge)
Paper ( I printed the logos I found online on plain paper)
Empty toilet paper roll ( I used it to set the ornaments on to dry)

Remove the metal piece from the top of the ornament.

Sucre Shop Blog: Ranch Oyster Crackers - The Best Neighbor Gift:


INGREDIENTS

1/2 tsp. dill
1/4 c oil
16 oz. oyster crackers
1 packet (1 oz.) powdered ranch mix
1/4 tsp. lemon pepper or garlic powder (optional)

Add all ingredients to gallon size zipper bag and toss to coat.
Bake at 250 degrees for 15-20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes

I hope everyone is enjoying their holiday season!
xo,
Brittany

     We bought some second hand furniture for my daughter's room  a little while back. It looked pretty good at first, but after a while we noticed that the previous owner had touched it up. Whatever they used was impossible to clean. Every mess my daughter made just seemed to stay there, I was rarely able to wipe it clean. I was so tired of looking at it in this condition so I started exploring the option of buying new furniture. I quickly decided that I didn't want to spend a lot of money for furniture that will more than likely have a lot of wear over the years (She will be 9 in Jan). I have seen plenty of painted furniture on Pinterest.com which is where I got this idea.

I used a Black and Decker electric hand sander on the top surface of the desk because there were a lot of imperfections and I wanted a smooth surface to paint.