to inspire and be inspired

I'm super excited to share that I was featured on two different sites lately. There's just something about someone wanting to share your creations with others. That's why I love this blogging thing so much because I get so inspired by others that I am thrilled that every now and then I get to be the one to inspire someone else!
How cool is that!?

I love ABC and 123 because they have such great resources, especially preschool-aged activities which is right where I'm at with my kids, especially Mikayla. Plus, the two "powerhouses" behind this site...Katie 1 & Katie 2 are such creative and fun ladies! They both have personal blogs that are also super inspiring. You really should check out all three of these sites!

Last Friday, I was featured there with this Easter Bunny Snack.
{more details here}

****************************************************

I was also just featured yesterday on Tip Junkie!!



Tip Junkie has been sharing a lot lately about showers (which you MUST go and check out if you are planning a shower anytime soon!). The baby shower I co-hosted for a friend was featured...again! First on Creative Parties & Showers and now Tip Junkie! I want to make sure my friend Andrea is getting most of the credit for this one since she is the one who actually created the goodies that everyone is oohing and aahing over!

I'm so doing this for Mikayla's birthday party, by the way!

Some of my other ideas featured in the past on Tip Junkie include:

Picture Baby Shower Favor
Simple & Personalized Birthday Gift Tags

I've been featured over at Creative Parties & Showers!
I was contacted by Shannon asking to feature my PINK AND GREEN BABY SHOWER that I co-hosted a month ago. This is a fairly new blog dedicated to sharing all about parties! Head on over when you get the chance to see what has been featured so far. You can also submit your parties to be featured on her blog.

**************************************

Speaking of parties, I'm super excited to be planning my daughter's 3rd birthday party coming up in less than 3 weeks! We'll be having a family party and then a week later, I have invited over three of her little girlfriends to come and have some "tea" and do a little dress up! I am in the process of putting together some ideas and making this a fun time for her and her little friends.

*****************************************

And, don't forget there's still time to join in this month's craft challenge. You have until next Thursday to link up your button projects...in a new or old post! Take a peek HERE to see what has already been shared and to link up a little something of your own!

talk about a baby shower

Updated to add on 4/3/09: This party was featured on Creative Parties & Showers.
Updated to add on 4/20/09: This party was featured on Tip Junkie.

************************************************

On Sunday, I had the pleasure of co-hosting a baby shower for my dear friend, Ambria, who is expecting her 2nd baby girl at the end of March.

We decided for the theme colors to be pink and green (pickles & ice cream if you will). Instead of the typical cake for dessert, we opted for a sundae bar for the sweetness factor.


Here's just a little something to welcome the guests. (Can you say $.98 on clearance at Target? I'm not cheap, I'm thrifty.) I was a little hesitant with the purple bows (remember the colors? pink and green), but figured no one else but me would notice!


I had to come up with fun little (themed) prizes to give away throughout the shower: whoever had a sticker underneath their plate, whoever's present was the 7th one to be opened, and whoever had the most toppings on their ice cream. I snapped this picture after two of the prizes had already been given away. There was also a prize for one of the games which included a notepad that said Sweet!, a scoop, and some Ghiradelli chocolates.


Unfortunately, I can't take credit for these little favors. I hosted this shower with another friend of the mommy-to-be who whipped out these cute little things. However, I did buy the little tins (on 75% off clearance), so does that count? These are the most adorable little things and I was so thankful to be hosting with someone who is just like me. (Thanks, Andrea!)


One of the games we played was Baby Pictionary. The team who won got to take home a set of 4 little note cards. Notice the pink and green polka-dotted ribbon. My mom was helping me put some of these together and she casually mentioned, "Wouldn't that be cute if you had pink and green ribbon"...and guess what, friends? I had pink and green polka-dotted ribbon. Genius, mom!


Yummy sundae toppings included: Oreo cookies, gummy bears, Heath bits, peanuts, mini M & M's, chocolate sauce, strawberry sauce, butterscotch sauce, and pickles if you dare!


We went with pink and green right down to the candies (don't you love it?), plates, and napkins! I can't help myself. It's a sickness.


No punch at this shower mostly because we were already having ice cream. So, we opted for raspberry lemonade with frozen raspberries to keep it cool and extra sweet!


Here is some more crafty awesomeness (is that a word?) from my co-host (who sells Stampin'Up!). She whipped these babies up in a matter of minutes...or so she says. How cute are these?? Wouldn't this be a great idea to use with your SCALLOPED CRAFT PUNCH?? (Just thought I'd throw that in there to get you motivated for the craft challenge this Thursday!)


You gotta have some confetti to add a little extra to the table. Homemade confetti if you didn't notice. So easy! Just take a cute punch and go to town.


The completed table of goodies: fruit salad, veggie tray, snack mix, and of course pickles...just in case the guests had a little craving for "pickles and ice cream".


I think it turned out to be a fun time and I know my friend felt honored and blessed. And, that's exactly what I was going for. She deserves it!

If you want to see more of my themed baby shower madness, check it out here.

Sooooo...it's time to start talking and head on over to The Lazy Organizer for more! This week is technically "The Home Tour Edition", so I guess you could say I am stretching it a bit with sharing something that I love to do IN MY HOME. Does that work? Go check it out here.

works for me wednesday - themed baby shower gifts

Recently I was invited to a baby shower for a friend of mine who was having her first baby. I was so excited to do some shopping for her little guy and since this was her first I didn't have to be on the hunt for just "practical" things like diapers and wipes. I could do a little splurging because she and her husband were starting from scratch. Many of my friends are on their second or third child, so lately the theme has been "get them what they need". Which, let's be honest, isn't as fun as getting them something a little less practical. I try to get a few things off their registry and then add some other goodies that I think they might like. Since I'm a sucker for themes and I really enjoying giving gifts in a basket or container, I usually go the themed route. Works for me!

I wish I had taken more pictures throughout the years for samples of things I could recreate, but here are a couple I have to share. The first gift is the one I recently gave. The second gift is one I gave over 2 years ago to a friend who was having her second. (I kind of feel like my gift wrapping abilities has gotten much cuter over the years.)

Bath Tub Basket
2 bath tub toys (off the registry), set of washcloths, lotion,
baby bath wash, 2 Baby Einstein washcloth puppets

Changing Table Necessities Basket
wipes, lotion, change of outfit, diaper rash cream, baby powder,
toy for distraction, changing table pad (off the registry)

I thought I would share some other themed baby shower gift ideas...

First Aid Basket
thermometer
first aid kit
electrical outlet covers
finger nail clippers
door locks
infant Tylenol
gas drops

Bath Tub Basket (more ideas that can be added to the gift basket pictured above)
hair comb and brush
hooded towel
rubber duck (with or without thermometer)

Clothing Accessories Basket
booties
hand mittens
onesies
socks
bibs
sleepwear

Feeding Time Basket
formula
bottles
bottle nipples
bottle cleaner
bottle warmer
bibs

Nursery Theme Basket (you can even find out the theme or colors of the baby's room)
baby lamp
outlet covers
blankets
baskets
decorations
crib bedding

Books in Basket
Check out this cute "basket of books" idea over at Buzzings of a Queen Bee that works as a themed baby shower gift, too.

Giving a themed baby shower gift basket always shows that your gift was chosen with extra care and attention. Remember you can be as elaborate as you want or as simple as you want. You don't have to spend a lot of money to make a good impression!

If you have any other themed baby shower gift ideas, I'd love for you to share!

For more of Works for Me Wednesday, head on over to Rocks in My Dryer.

i've been featured

Hey everyone!! I've been featured at Tip Junkie for one of my baby shower favor ideas that I made for my friend's baby shower a couple weeks ago. Tip Junkie is a great place to find all sorts of craftiness, random tips, and other fun stuff! Go check it out!

baby shower favor idea

A couple of days ago, I helped host a baby shower for a very good friend of mine who was celebrating the birth of her third child. My other friend whose house we were having the shower at had printed some wallet size photos of the sweet baby with the intentions of using them for the shower invite. When that didn't work out, I decided to try and do something with them as shower favors for the attending guests.

I backed the wallet size photo with white paper and then onto a colored cardstock. I then took some coordinating ribbon and thread it through two punched holes.

On the back, I attached a poem that I adapted to fit the baby's name, including his birthdate at the bottom.
Each guest took home this special little favor to hang on their refrigerator.