Nature Center Outing~

I just love to discover fun, new places to go with my family.  And if they're educational, that's even better (especially when the educational part is slyly disguised as good old fashioned fun.)

A couple of weeks ago, a group of bloggers in my area was invited to discover the Ogden Nature Center,  152 acres of preserved  land just 25 minutes from our house.  There was so much to see and do, and my kiddos had such a good time that they've been asking to go back ever since.

The Nature Center had a trail filled with birdhouses made from recycled and found objects.  The kids just loved seeing all the creative ideas!

 They had a chance to make some fun paper snakes...

And even got to pet a real one...

My little boys discovered this "cave" and they didn't want to come out.

Mr. Three (my 4-year-old) thought this mask was pretty funny.

There were a few turkeys wandering around the grounds.

My kids loved seeing these big old birds up close. 

 These were some happy kiddos! 

Here's a little photo of me (just to prove I was actually there - ha ha!) with Meg from Brassy Apple.

Photo Credits:  1st photo from Ogden Nature Center,  All Other Photos are mine.

Thanks to the Ogden Nature Center for inviting us up for the day.  It was such fun! 

From their website:

Visitors enjoy 1.5 miles of walking trails, picnic areas, tree houses, bird blinds and an exhibit of live birds of prey.  Two of Utah's greenest buildings are on site to teach about sustainable structures. A unique gift shop is located in the Visitor Center. The Ogden Nature Center offers a wide variety of classes & workshops for all ages including art, photography, birding, wildlife in Utah, outdoor recreation, conservation, sustainability, summer camps and more.

 I'm always grateful to find a hidden treasure. Do you have one in your area? 

Cupcake in a Jar~

Today I thought I'd share with you all how to make cupcakes in a jar. This clever little creation is a perfect gift. I made the ones I am going to share with you today as hostess gifts a couple of months back, but I think they'd make perfect Valentine's gifts as well.




Here's what you do...

• First up, make some red velvet cupcakes - do not use cupcake papers, just bake them directly in a greased and floured muffin pan. (Because I am not much of baker, I used a boxed red velvet mix, but you can make them whichever way is best suited to your baking style.)
  
  

• After the cupcakes have cooled, remove them from the pan and cut each one in half crosswise.

Now comes the fun part!

• Find some small mason jars (I found mine at Michael's craft). Then layer the bottom half of one cupcake,
  
  

with a mound of piped cream cheese frosting,

the second half of one cupcake and another large mound of piped frosting. And there you have it. No seriously, that's all.

• Decorate each jar to make it look festive. Since I made mine as hostess gifts for a holiday party, I wanted them to look wintry. I covered the lid of the mason jar with black damask scrapbook paper and tied a thank you card and a snowflake ornament to the lid with matching ribbon.

• For Valentine's gifts, they'd look equally as cute, with pink and red paper and ribbons and a pretty heart dangling on the side. The possibilities are endless.

EDITED TO ADD: I've had a couple of people ask...the best way to eat these is with a parfait spoon...perhaps you could tie one to the jar. ;-)

Have a great day~

The Pull-Up Ninja~

I know, I know not much in the way of decorating posts this week. My apologies. But you know, mamahood comes first. And this is what I have been dealing with.




I think perhaps I understand the reason we're having difficulty potty training. Mr. Three seems to think pull-ups make great super-ninja headwear. Ha! Don't worry. It's clean.



Frugal Friday goes live tonight at 10:00 pm EST.



Have a great day~

My Life in Numbers~

For your Wednesday reading enjoyment.

My life in numbers...

6 - the number of people watching a movie on our king size bed last night.
4 - the number of those people that should have been in bed instead of watching said movie.




5 - the number of projects waiting for me to finish them, so I can blog about them.
3 - the number of people in this house who have conflicting activities coming up on Saturday.
1 - the number of cars we have available (since John's accident totalled our other one) to get said people to their activities. Saturday is going to be interesting.
28 - the number of times I've stayed up past midnight in the past month.
28 - the number of times I've had a hard time prying my eyes open the next morning.
0 - the number of times I've been to Target this week. This may be a first in the history of mankind. (Ah, but never fear, the week is still young.)
5 - the number of months ago that the Hubby took family portraits for his sister's Christmas cards in (not near) the Olympic fountain at the Gateway in Salt Lake. (This photo is my favorite - my nephews and brother-in-law at the fountain's highest point!)



1 - the number of books I've managed to start reading this month.
1 - the number of books I'm still trying to finish this month.
1 - the number of toddlers giving this mom a run for her money in the potty training department.
0 - the number of pull-ups this mom plans to buy next week. (Here's hoping anyway.)
3 - the number of times I've lost and then gained back the same 10 pounds since August. It's back to Weight Watchers for me this week!
20 - the number of pounds I have to lose before Summer.
20 - the number of pounds I've been trying to lose since last Summer.
239482380 - the approximate number of photos I need to print out for scrapbooks.
4 - the number of years it's been since I've put a single photo in a scrapbook.
3824 - as of right now, the number of fabulous followers of this blog on my Google Friend box on my sidebar. I JUST LOVE YOU GUYS! Thanks for reading!
1 - the girl who loves to write this blog for you.

Have a great day~

Of Princesses and Daydreams~

Just had to escape the reality of reality. Know what I mean?

So today I'm daydreaming about being a princess. Yeah, the kind of daydreaming little girls do. Dreaming of pretty dresses, castles, and being waited on hand and foot (ESPECIALLY being waited on hand and foot.) Just not kissing any frogs...nope....no frogs. ;-)

Here are a few princess-y images so you can daydream with me.



Love this "Princess and the Pea" photo.

Lots of lovely vintage gowns...

So lovely.




I was completely smitten with this Alice in Wonderland party.

And especially with this cardboard rocking chair and castle. I really think I need a cardboard rocking chair throne. No seriously, I do.

And of course, my own castle. (even if it is imaginary.) Rocker and castle found here.

So what do you say? Will you all join me in a little daydreaming today?

Have a great day~

Ahhhh summer~

I'm feeling much better now.


Our AC is working, and it's down right pleasant in our house today. Lovin' the fact that I can sit upstairs and not sweat.

via blog.tinyprints

And I did go spend the afternoon at the pool yesterday with one of my favorite people, her little people, and my little people. Nothing like a lazy day at the pool to change your perspective on life.








So I had a couple of readers ask me questions on yesterday's post, and I want to take a minute and answer them...

First up, Amy asked how I get the colors in my photos to look "that way".... My answer? Picnik.com. Picnik is a fabulous online photo editing website, and many of their actions are free. In fact, all of the editing I did to the photos in yesterday's post was done for free. The website is a lot of fun, and very user friendly! You can thank me later. ;-)



Next, Joyce asked about my toenail polish. It's Pure Ice from Bari Cosmetics. I purchased mine at Wally World. I wanted something a little sassy, but still summery! Nothing like a cheery blue on your toes to make you smile!!

I know my blog has been a little light on the decor posts lately....but I've been busy with all kinds of Decorating Consultations, so I'll have some fun posts coming up for you soon!!

Have a great day~

let the sun shine in

This was the view from our back deck yesterday in the early afternoon. Yes, that is snow. And yes, the last time I checked, the calendar said that it is the end of May. When I woke up yesterday morning to heavy, wet snow falling outside, I must admit, it weighed me down a little. Where is spring in these parts?




But then I looked at my kitchen table, and my mood lightened considerably.

Why?

One word...

Flowers.



Every couple of weeks, I grab myself a bunch of the $5 flowers at my local Wally world. Since their selection varies from week to week, I just grab whatever catches my eye.

This week it is this pretty bunch of yellow sunshine...indoor sunshine. They remind me of a Van Gogh painting.

Studies have proven that fresh flowers in the home can actually alleviate depression. And I figure $5 every couple of weeks is a worthy investment in my mental health.

and so is a little Ghirardelli chocolate. ;-)

Have a fabulous day (go buy yourself some flowers)~

This I Love: Bookworm Edition~

I have a little bit of an obsession with home decor books.

I know. Shocking, isn't it?

I just can't seem to help myself.

So forgive me for the brief post today. But I have my nose buried in my two latest must-reads...



Where Women Create: Book of Inspiration (every bit as amazing as the first book!)


and

The Well Dressed Home (I know, I'm probably the last decor blogger on the planet to read this.)



I'll be back tomorrow with this week's Linky Love post.



Have a great day~

Fab Furniture Finds~

Happy November everyone!! Hope you all had a lovely Halloween weekend! Thanks to the time change, my kiddos were all tuckered out and in bed earlier than usual leaving me with a little time to browse the web...

After seeing this fabulous chair, I just had to visit the Haute House website. What a fun way to spend a little time... browsing through their unique collection of furniture, fabrics and home decor.

I must admit, I am most taken with their graphic "Histography" collection, but they had some other great pieces as well. If you're a furniture and home decor junkie like I am, you'll enjoy spending a little time over there as well.

Did you notice every piece I have pictured here uses upholstery tacks? They must love upholstery tacks almost as much as I do.

I love all the tufting as well.

All photos from Haute House

Hope you enjoyed these fab finds as much as I did...

And don't worry, I haven't forgotten about showing you what I did with my repurposed dresser drawer... it's coming up later in the week...promise!!

Have a great Monday!

This I Love: Window Shopping Edition~

Last week I stopped in at one of my favorite stores. Can you say Tar-jay? (Everything sounds better with a French accent, don't you think?) I had my two littlest kiddos with me, but they were surprisingly subdued, so I was actually able to look around for a minute. Usually, if I have those two with me, we dash in, go right to what we need, throw it in the cart, and sprint through the checkout before the screaming starts or Mr. Three tries to launch himself out of the cart. But for some reason, they were content to let me look around. I found a few things for my wish list that I thought I'd share with you all today...

First up, this elegant Aluminum Beaded Cakestand. It was nice and heavy, and so pretty! Perfect for holiday entertaining.
This is the "Elegant Neutral" bedding in the Simply Shabby Chic line by Rachel Ashwell. This picture really doesn't do the bedding justice. It's a soft beige damask with hints of blue. Very understated, very pretty and a little less girly than many of the Shabby Chic options.

Some of you may recall that Mr. Two is a dinosaur fan. Well, I found this adorable dinosaur muffin plaque (that's what they called it) reminiscent of the great baking pans at Willi*m's Sanoma. Wish I'd found this BEFORE his dinosaur birthday party. They also had butterflies and cars. So. much. fun.

Again, from the Simply Shabby Chic line, this Ruffled Swiss Dot curtain panel. Can you say love?

And then this Ruffled Shower Curtain...again by Simply Shabby Chic. Reminds me of something from Anthro. This would be perfect in my bathroom. mmmmmmmm.

And finally, I have to admit that my T*rget didn't have this chair. But as I was rounding up photos on-line I remembered it from seeing it before (I think it is sold exclusively on-line, but I could be wrong.) Isn't it pretty? Loving the blue toile-ish bird print. sigh.

Hope you all had fun window shopping with me today! Let's hope I'm able to get my dresser drawer repurposing project ready in time for tomorrow's Frugal Friday post...the weather has not been cooperating with me.

And finally, you still have time to enter the drawing for one of my ticking rosette pillows over at Heather Bullard's blog. Hurry over and enter!

Have a great Thursday~

Saturday~

Photo from Country Living

After playing chauffer to ballet rehearsal this morning, this house of mine is going to get a thorough cleaning! My kitchen might end up looking as spic and span as the one in this photo! Lovin' those galvanized bins...I have one....wish I had lots of them.

Here's wishing you all a productive (or lazy depending on your mood) Saturday!

Melts my heart~

I was having one of those days...and then as I was pulling the papers out of the Princess' backpack, I came across this sweet page. (I especially love the spelling...they encourage phonetic spelling at her school.)

Aside from the fact that the paper is titled "Growing OLD" (ahem), everything about it made me smile. And the likeness is uncanny, don't you think?

Don't forget the Frugal Friday Linky Party here on Friday!! Can't wait to see all the Frugal OCD (Obsessively Consumed with Decorating) goodness!

Have a great day~

Excellence~

Image from Country Home

Don't remember where I found this quote, but I loved it so much, I wanted to share it with you all...

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.

Have a lovely weekend~