Weekends Go Too Fast!



Weekends always seem to go by so fast!! This was a busy one and I had so much fun - and isn't that how weekends are supposed to be?!?

Friday night me and two of my friends headed to Verizon Amphitheater see the Chicago and REO Speedwagon concert.  FUN. TIMES.  I love going to concerts where you know the words to almost every single song they play.  And OMG! the people-watching was out of this world great.  Thanks Debbie and Jane for a fun Friday night.

Yes-those are jackets we have on in the middle of August in St. Louis.  Go figure.

Saturday brought the day we were going to a surprise 85th birthday celebration for my dear friend from church.  Look at her -- she's a beautiful lady inside and out.  At age 85, she has more energy and enthusiasm for life than most people I know.  She truly is an inspiration.  Her daughter, Robin, did a fantastic job putting the party for 125 people together from thousands of miles away.  Happy birthday, Bobbi!  Hope you have many more birthdays to come.

 

Bobbie is wonderful at sending cards and notes for many occasions.  Getting one of her touching hand written notes always makes me feel special -- most of them are so touching they bring a tear to my eye.  Even though the invitation to her party requested no gifts, I knew I wanted to make her a few handmade cards.  Below is a sampling of the cards I made for her.  For an added touch, I love to stamp a little something on the envelope.

Sunday Eric and I took advantage of him being off work to take in a movie -- we choose The Hundred-Foot Journey.  We both thoroughly enjoyed it!  The audience laughed out loud at several of the scenes.  Helen Mirren was fabulous and I would be surprised if she doesn't get an Oscar nod this year.  Have you seen this movie yet?  What are your thoughts?

It was a great weekend.  Next weekend Eric has to work both Saturday and Sunday so I'm glad we took full advantage of him being off this weekend.  Have a great week everyone!  I'll be posting more details on how to make the note cards shown above so check back this week for the full set of instructions.

Linking up to Leann, Biana and Meghan to share more weekending fun.

Five on Friday - August 8, 2014

Happy Friday everyone!  The first week of August is gone and summer continues to speed by.  Here's some of my favorites from this week.

1.  Salt and Smoke

Tuesday night I met my friend Sherri and had dinner at Salt and Smoke.  This Texas-style BBQ place is located in the hip Delmar Loop area of St.Louis and hosts a nice, relaxed vibe.  They offer over 100 different bourbons, craft and barrel aged cocktails and craft beer.  I had the brisket -- DELICIOUS!!  For a side I choose the white cheddar cracker mac and, needless to say, I did not have any leftovers.

2.  Eye Liner
I received a sample of Sumita Color Contrast Eyeliner in my July Birchbox.  From the moment I used it, I FELL. IN. LOVE!  This pencil has a deep, rich color and slides on without tugging your eye.  The soft wax formula goes on smooth to create clean lines or can be smudged to smoky perfection.  It also has staying power -- it definitely holds up all day and night.   Quite the bargain for $11.      

                                       

3.  National Fresh Breath Day (August 6)
In celebration of National Fresh Breath Day this past Wednesday, I'd like to share the mints I keep on my desk.  As quoted from the side of the container, "Nice! Cinnamon Puffs are delightful treats with a cinnamon-fresh taste that will leave you wanting more.  With a cinnamon blast in each and every puff, the sky's the limit.  Enjoy these puffs before they go up, up and away!"  And I can attest to the fact they are pretty delightful.

4.  S'mores Dip
This recipe has been all over my Pinterest page lately so I decided to make it for a recent gathering at my house.  WINNER!!  It is truly so fast and so easy to make.  Here's the directions I used:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Pour a bag of chocolate chips in an oven-proof dish.  Put dish in oven for 3-5 minutes (chips should be soft).  Pull your dish out of the oven and top with mini-marshmallows. Put it back in the oven on broil until the marshmallows reach a golden brown (about 5 minutes).  Serve with graham crackers for dipping.

5.  Some days....

                               

Have a great weekend everyone!  I'm off to a concert tonight with two friends and looking forward to spending some time with my husband on Saturday and Sunday.

Linking up with Jennie, Lauren, Amanda, and Amy for some more Friday fun.

Harry Potter Birthday Girl

Monday was my wonderful daughter-in-law's birthday.  Kayla turned 23 and her celebration included having a Harry Potter movie marathon over the weekend.  I wanted to uphold the Harry Potter theme on her cupcakes, so I purchased a downloadable file from Bonnie Le Page's Etsy shop.  In a matter of mere minutes, we had this creation.

Cupcakes toppers add so much charm to the otherwise plain cupcake.  This particular downloadable file includes 3 designs to use as cupcake toppers or as party tags and costs $4.50.  Each design measures 2.25 inches by 2.25 inches and is perfect to cut with a 2 inch paper punch.  There are literally a bazillion downloadable options on Etsy. You can search for downloadable cupcake toppers and find exactly what you need to make your celebration cupcakes wonderful.

Here's the step by step:
Print on card stock and cut the design with a 2 inch paper punch.

I use spray glue to spray the backs of the cut design.  To stop the over-spray, put your design in a cardboard box.  One thing to keep in mind if you are using the spray glue -- you need to wait 1 minute (a whole 60 seconds) before you attached the glue sprayed object to anything.  While you're waiting, this is the perfect time to cut your black circles for the back of the topper.

After your 60 second wait, attach the sprayed design to a bamboo fork.  Place the black circle on the other side.  Press together so the two pieces of paper stick together with your bamboo fork in the middle.

There you have it -- everything you need to know about making quick and easy cupcake toppers.

Oh, and by the way, I heard a great quote from one of the Harry Potter movies by Dumbledore:

"Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, when one only remembers to turn on the light." 

Happy birthday, Kayla!!  Hope you have a fantastic year and I'm excited to see what comes your way.

Linking up with Emily, Mandy, and Leslie for more crafting fun.  Also linking to Amanda at Serenity Now.

What A Weekend!

Is it Monday already!?!  I had an amazing weekend celebrating my friend Sharyn's 50th birthday.  Our friend Linda drove to St. Louis Saturday morning, picked Sharyn up and came to my house.   We immediately left to start our Fabulous 50 Day by heading to La Patisserie Chouquette for high tea. 

Yes, this place is as amazing as it looks.  I will forever be grateful to my friend Carol for introducing me to Chouquette.  Since the introduction, I try to go there whenever there's something fun to celebrate and have recommended it to several of my friends.  High tea is served at 11 am, 1 pm or 3 pm and reservations are required.  This was a great start to our day!

After leaving Chouquette, we made a couple stops for drinks.  The weather in St. Louis was exceptional so we were able to enjoy people watching outside while sipping some moonshine margaritas at the Moonshine Grill in the Central West End.

No - we weren't hungry, but the chips are SOOOO good!

We also made a stop at Hemingway's Zen Garden in O'fallon, Illinois to transition into drinking wine.

Then it was back to the house to get ready for the evening.  We headed to Modesto Tapas Bar and Restaurant for dinner.  Located on The Hill in St. Louis, you can order and share small plates.  It's a fun place to take friends, sit back and enjoy a pitcher (or two) of sangria while tasting their delicious samplings.  A special thanks to my husband, Eric, for being our designated driver.  He happily played chauffeur for us and we were extremely grateful.



Happy Birthday Sharyn!  Can't wait to celebrate your next big birthday.

Linking up with Biana and Meg to share some weekending fun.

Five on Friday - August 1, 2014

August is here already -- are you kidding me?!?!?  This week caught me doing some cleaning and preparing for visitors this weekend which you'll see below.  Hope you enjoy my Five on Friday!

1.  Fitted Sheet Folding
I saw this video posted on one of my friend's Facebook page and have been practicing ever since.  The technique is great and after a few tries I can say I've actually mastered this task.  After folding the fitted sheet, I like to tuck the fitted and flat sheets, along with the extra pillowcase, into the second pillowcase. When company is coming and you need to change the sheets, you can just grab the whole neat little packet and get to work.

2.  Company's Coming

Speaking of company coming, my good friends Sharyn and Linda are visiting and we're going to have a sleep over Saturday night in celebration of Sharyn's 50th birthday.  I love slumber parties with my friends and have been looking forward to this one for a while.  The three of us have been friends since grade school -- yes, I'm aware that's a VERY long time.  I'm making this cute little note to put in their guest rooms to help them connect to our wireless.   FYI - The card pictured is fake data so please don't try to sit in my driveway and use our internet with this username and password :).

 

3.  Lavender Spray

One blog I love, Carolina Charm, blogged about this lavender spray so, of course, I had to make some.  It's super simple to make and will be adorable in the guest bags I'm putting together for my two friends visiting this weekend.  (Please act surprised Sharyn and Linda.)

Lavender Spray

2 cups distilled water

1 oz. (2 tablespoons) vodka or rubbing alcohol

1/2 - 3/4 teaspoon lavender oil (depending on how strong you like your spray)

 

4.  Katie Daisy

I have completely fallen in love with The Wheatfield by Katie Daisy etsy shop.  I've been thinking about redoing one of our guest rooms around some of the prints, but haven't quite figured it all out yet.  As soon as I do, you'll see it here.  Her whimsical designs just put a smile on my face.

5.  Quote
Sometimes you just need a little reminder.

Have a fabulous weekend!  I'm so excited about spending time with my friends I'm giddy.  Check back next week to see all the fun we had.

Linking up with Jennie,  Amanda, Lauren, and Rebecca for some Friday fun. 

Five on Friday - July 25, 2014

I've been out of town since Monday and I was beginning to think Friday was never going to get here.  Long week of work, but enjoyable.  So let's get to my Five on Friday for this week.

1.  Kernel Cutter
Ever since I had braces as a teenager (and probably even before that), I have enjoyed my corn on the cob by cutting the corn off the cob.  Well, a few years ago I bought this bad boy to cut the kernels off.  I love it!  Mine is a Pampered Chef and right now it's on special for $9.  If you're a corn cutter, I highly recommend this little gadget.

2.  The Husband's Secret
This book by Liane Moriarty is a great book club read.  I have to agree with Emily Giffin, New York Times bestselling author's comment - “Shocking, complex and thought-provoking, this is a story reading groups will devour. A knockout!"  Anyone else read it?

3.  Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce

Our very small garden is kicking out the tomatoes right now, so last Saturday I thought I'd whip up something that required a lot of them.  I found a recipe on the Cooking Light website that did just that.  As an added bonus, the recipe also calls for fresh basil -- which is something I also have an abundance of right now.  Eric and I both thought this recipe turned out great.  We'll be having this again before tomato season is over! 

4.  Face Off

My cousin's son (so my second cousin), Drew Talbot, is a contestant on Syfy's show Face Off!  Season 7 premiered this week and he was voted the fan favorite.  How exciting is that?!?!  Tune in on Tuesdays at 8:00 pm central time to watch this talented guy work his magic with makeup.

5.  New Look

Did you notice my new blog design?!?!  I'm very excited to have this new, sharper looking blog.  Big shout out to Ali from Ali in Bloom for her great design work.  Thanks, Ali!

Linking up with Amanda, Lauren, Rebecca, and Jennie for some other weekend fun.

Welcome Sign

As promised in my Five on Friday, I wanted to do an installment of things we did for my daughter-in-law Kayla's shower.  First, I want to say that I have the best daughter-in-law in the world!  We are very grateful to have her as part of our family. 

When we started planning Kayla's shower, we knew we wanted to coordinate the items we needed to purchase so we could use them at the shower and wedding.  We started with the welcome sign.  Kayla found a gorgeous frame at a yard sale (!) and we knew it would be perfect for both events.



Shower Welcome Sign

Sign at Wedding

The shower welcome design was purchased on Etsy and we had it enlarged.  The wedding sign we designed ourselves.  Kinko's will enlarge and print a color image for $7.25 per square foot -- so you can get a 24" x 36" print for about $40.  If you are printing in black and white, the cost goes down to $4.50 per square foot.

 

We placed the shower welcome sign on the porch so guests felt comfortable walking in and joining the party. 

 

 

It also made a great backdrop for pictures!  :)

 

 

 

It's hard to believe it's been a year since we had Kayla's shower.  Stay tuned for more shower and wedding blogs. 

 

Linking up with Katie for some other Tuesday crafts fun.  Also linking up to Amanda at Serenity Now for some weekend blogs.