First Communion

My sweet girl in church

This past weekend we celebrated my sweet little daughter's First Communion!  She was fortunate to be surrounded with family for her special day -- my mother-in-law (Grammy) and her sister (Cici) came up from Long Island, my dad (Grandpa) my step-mother (Gramby) and her mom (Mema) came up from Upstate NY, and my aunts, my cousin, and his girlfriend all came from here in NH - it was a wonderful group that represented all sides of our family!

The back of my girlie's dress AND the new kitchen wall color!  ;)

In preparation for the big day, we did what everyone does when they are getting ready for their child's First Communion -- we painted!!  (Right?  That's what people do, don't they?)  We worked on painting the downstairs bathroom which on a regular day is the girls' bathroom, or when we have guests, it's the guest bathroom -- we are in the process of turning a very dark green bathroom with a truly gross closet into a white and pink haven for girls!  Almost there -- just have to put up the shelves in the closet.  We also painted the kitchen - originally it was a light yellow color, but we painted it a reddish color -- kind of a Sante Fe-looking red. It's a paint from Lowe's, actually Sienna Red, I believe.  Red is my favorite color and I've painted the dining room in my last two houses red -- my dining room is part of my kitchen in this house...  I guess that means 3 red dining rooms now!  :)  Anyway, that's just what people do when they are having company come over, isn't it?  You make some food, clean the bathroom, paint the kitchen?  ;)  That's what we do at our house, anyway!  I love having company -- it always gives us a deadline for getting projects done!!

My eldest daughter with her dress & veil

After moving up to New Hampshire about 6 months ago, I've been finding my way around in our new town and the surrounding area -- learning where things are, finding new places to go to eat, to shop, etc.  I was having a hard time finding a place to go to get my daughter's First Communion dress, so I hit the internet and started searching.  I finally found a dress that my little girlie and I both liked on www.hayneedle.com, a site that had all sorts of things (like patio furniture...).  It looked beautiful online and it was a great price, but I made sure to order it early so that I could return it and keep looking if it was not quite what we expected.  But no worries -- it was a beautiful dress!  My eldest daughter even commented at church on Sunday that she liked her sister's dress better than the dress she had picked for herself when it was her First Communion day!  At the time (5 years ago), we finally found her dress at a store called Burlington -- they had an amazingly large selection of First Communion dresses but not a great selection of veils.  For that, I went to David's Bridal and bought a "blusher" which the bride actually would wear over her face, but it works perfectly for a little girl's communion veil.  I also bought a little ring/wreath type headpiece that had two ribbons trailing down the back -- I spent a small fortune on this at the time, but I have kept both pieces safely tucked away in a hatbox for 5 years so that my little one could wear it too!  My eldest wore both pieces together, and my little one decided she just wanted the wreath (I have no idea what that is really called...).  The nice part about that is they each had their own look and it didn't look like they were wearing the same thing!

After church we invited the family back to our house for a luncheon.  All of the New Yorkers' were over before church and Grammy & Gramby helped me pull together baked pasta with mozzarella, meatballs & sauce in the crockpot, Italian sausage with peppers & onions, and a tossed salad.  Everything was ready by the time we got back to the house - just had to heat up the pasta and the rolls!  While we were waiting, I put out cheese, crackers & grapes for people to munch on.  It was a nice, simple meal that I didn't have to prepare while everyone was there!  For dessert, I ordered a delicious ice cream cake from Ava Marie Handmade Chocolates & Ice Cream.  We found a Party City store nearby and went out the other night to pick up plates & napkins in a pretty pink (our girlie's signature color!) pattern with a cross on them.  Note to self for the future -- I had seen these online prior to driving to the store, and they were on sale on the website -- not so in the actual store!  If I had thought about it sooner, I could have placed an order and had the stuff shipped to me UPS Ground and saved myself some money!  Good to know for next time!

My husband and I went back and forth about finding just the right gift for our little one.  When her sister had her First Communion, I found a beautiful sterling silver beaded bracelet (she's wearing it in the picture above) from Things Remembered and I bought one for her -- I think I had the heart on it engraved with her name and the date of her First Communion.  I also bought the same bracelet for her cousin who is my Goddaughter -- they are 2 months apart in age, best friends, and celebrated their First Communions right around the same time, so it was perfect for both of them!  I would have loved to have gotten the same thing for my little one, but no such luck -- they didn't have that same bracelet.  From there we looked at gold crosses, but my little girlie has been asking for a locket for a couple of years and she absolutely loves the silver heart locket that my husband and girls gave me for Mother's Day (the first Mother's Day after my second daughter was born) and I wear just about every day.  That led my husband and I to the local jewelry store where we were able to order a silver heart locket (she's wearing it in her picture) - very similar to Mommy's! - and they sent it out to have a cross and her name engraved on the front and "Love, Mommy & Daddy" engraved on the back.  She just loved it when we gave it to her to wear on Sunday for her First Communion!

If you've spent any time reading this blog, you know that I LOVE to decorate -- the house in general, for holidays, special events, you name it!  This wasn't the 4th of July, so I kept it toned down a bit...  Aside from the paper goods, the only "decoration" that I bought was a bunch of pink tulips from the grocery store -- pink because it is my girlie's favorite color and tulips because they are such a sign of Spring!  After that, I just used my own favorite decorating tip -- I "shopped my house!"  I am always telling my friends to do this -- go through your house and see what you already own that you can use to decorate in a new way!  

I drew a cross on my little chalkboard, put out a little pink milk glass vase (pink - thinking of whose special day this was!), a white vase that reminded me of a First Communion, and a little angel that used to be my grandmother's.

I love this mirror that I use as a base for centerpieces on my dining room table!  In addition to the pink tulips, I added a picture from my little girl's baptism, as well as her baptismal candle, and a little angel bell that I have of my grandmother's (Gram loves angels!!)

This is actually something I made a couple of years ago, intending it to be an Easter decoration, but I like it so much that now I leave it in my front entry year round!  So easy to make -- 2 twigs tied together with a little bit of twine.

I am a detail person -- I tend to notice the little things and I like to focus on little touches when I am decorating my house whether it's for everyday living or if I am decorating for a special event or party like my daughter's First Communion.  I know not everyone will notice, but it always makes me happy to put a little extra effort in to show my family and friends that they are special to me.  Everyone seemed to have a lovely time (regardless of my decorating, I'm sure!) and I know my sweet girl had a special day that she will hopefully always remember!

A Very "Pinterest" Holiday Season

I know I am late to the party, but I have been on Pinterest for about a month or so -- LOVE IT!!  I have been finding all sorts of wonderful ideas on there, and I have actually used some of them this holiday season (I drive my husband crazy when I buy cookbook after cookbook and never try any recipes...  But Pinterest is free and I've actually been putting it to good use!)  Here's what I've tried:

Waffle Cone Cornucopia

 These were great -- you take a waffle cone, dip the tip in water for 20 seconds, microwave for 20 seconds, and then carefully twist the tip to curl it.  We filled them with candy and nuts and out of foam paper, I cut acorns and leaves and we used them as place cards too!  This will be a new twist on my Nana's traditional candy & nut cups -- we'll definitely do this again!

Hand-print Snowmen Ornaments

 I did this one with my Daisy Girl Scout troop -- we had a production line and it worked out great!  My co-leader painted one of the girls' hands, then placed a blue ornament on the open palm, had the girl close her hand around the ornament for a few seconds, and then she took the ornament and voila -- 5 little finger-shaped snowmen!  We placed them hook-side down into an empty ornament box (could also use an empty egg carton).  We had written the girls' names on the ornament box so that we could keep track of whose hand-print was whose...  When they were dry, we had the girls write their first name and the year on the bottom (palm print) and then with Sharpie markers they decorated their snowmen.  Everyone loved this craft!  The kids had fun making it, the parents who were there loved the idea - a few (including me) and planning to do this for presents - and we sent the girls home with their dried ornaments wrapped in tissue and placed carefully into gift bags -- already to give to Mom and Dad for Christmas!

Toilet Paper Roll Snow People

 While the Daisies were working on the hand-print snowmen ornaments, we kept the other girls busy working on toilet paper snow people.  We collected empty toilet paper rolls and wrapped them with a wide strip of white paper (we used glue sticks to adhere it, you could also use tape).  Then we used other pieces of construction paper to "dress" our snow people -- I used black with the bottom folded over to look like a top hat.  My 6 year old made a little yellow tiara - as all snow princesses wear!  We also used construction paper to make scarves -- one girl in the troop came up with the idea of cutting the edges for fringe.  Another girl came up with the idea of cutting stick arms out of brown construction paper.  Honestly -- give a child an empty toilet paper roll, some glue, paper, scissors & markers and they will take it from there! 

I have to say, doing those two crafts REALLY kept the girls busy and entertained!  That was the quietest I've heard them so far this year!

Holiday Stove Top Potpourri Mix

 I head a committee at work that meets once a month and there are 6 of us, all women, who are in a conference room from 9:00am - 4:00pm meeting with individuals with developmental disabilities who are in need of services.  We have lunch together, we take breaks together, we chat, we bond -- it's a great group!  We had our holiday lunch this past Thursday, in between meetings, and on a whim I thought I'd whip up bags of this Holiday Stove Top Potpourri Mix.  It was so easy, it smelled great, and everyone loved it!  I'm definitely putting some of this on my stove (or in a crock pot on low!) this holiday season, and this is going to be my go-to hostess gift! 

 I may have another Pinterest trick up my sleeve for someone as a holiday gift -- I'll have to keep that under my hat for now!  If you haven't been on Pinterest, check it out!!

Reading Nook

This year for our little one’s 6^th birthday, we decided to create a reading nook for her in her bedroom. Bless her little heart; she fell in love with this “bling-y”, pink beaded lamp at Target (I believe that Mommy’s love of interior decorating is starting to rub off on her girls!). For months, every time we went to Target, she would ask if we could go look at the lamp! 

So, we bought the lamp for her birthday and we also bought a cute, pink flowered beanbag chair to go in her room. Gramby and Grandpa bought her a sweet little table – just the right size for the reading nook! She was very excited to open those three items on her birthday (in addition to presents from her other grandmothers, and her great aunt – Merida’s (from Disney’s movie “Brave”) suction-cup bow and arrow was also a big hit!) and the next day I quickly set up her reading nook. She had some room between the foot of her bed and her bedroom wall, and that was where I arranged the beanbag chair, the little table, the lamp, and a basket of books. 

Now she has a cozy little spot to curl up and read books to herself or to her favorite toys! She started to learn to read last year in kindergarten and we are happy to do anything we can to encourage a love of reading! We’re anxious to see her reading skills blossom this year in first grade!

Chalkboard Reminders

How cute is this??  It's actually a chalkboard cheese tray that my  friend Jeanine thoughtfully brought me when she came to a party at our house.  I absolutely love it, and will use it when I entertain, but we really don't entertain as often as we used to -- so I came up with an alternative every day use for it!  I had an extra plate holder (about $4 from Hobby Lobby) and I have it on the kitchen counter near the sink.  It is GREAT for writing notes on -- like yesterday's, "Last lesson!  Don't forget your clarinet!"  And things like that...  It will also come in handy to leave notes for my dad when he's watching the girls -- I'm always looking for paper and a pen to leave him reminders.  And when I want to use it for a party, I can wash it and it will be all ready!

I LOVE things like this -- multi-purpose, and super stylish!

Painted Flower Craft

This past week was Teacher Appreciation Week, and our girls both came home from school with projects to honor their teachers. Our littlest girlie had a wooden flower that was glued to a wooden stick, and our instructions (from the class coordinator) were to have her decorate the flower in any way she wanted to – stickers, markers, crayons, paint – and put her name on the front of the flower.

They were going to take all of the flowers from the class and put them into a cute vase or planter and present that to the teacher. My girl opted to paint her flower, and then I painted her name onto the flower – one letter on each flower petal, with her last initial in the center. It came out very cute and she had a great time painting her flower. I thought this would be a great idea not only for a teacher’s gift, but also for Mother’s Day, Grandparent’s Day – you name it! Wouldn’t Grandma love a “bouquet” of flowers painted by her grandchildren? We used acrylic paint, which I purchased at Michael’s Crafts this weekend for another project (which I’ll share with you later!) – I found these paints on sale for $.77 - $.88, and I’m sure that you could also find the wooden sticks and wooden flower at Michael’s or Joann’s or any of the other hobby / craft stores.

And while the little one was painting, to keep her sister happy and entertained, I had her paint some rocks that we will use as decorations in the garden!

Quick & Easy Way to Clear a Room

At our family Christmas Eve party at my aunt's house, she came up with a novel way of clearing a house full of relatives out in no time flat! She pulled out her 2-year-old grandson's Christmas present -- a child's drum set!! My father (her older brother) said to my cousin (the child's father), "So, apparently your mother hates you!" (Teasing, of course!) My 3-year-old jumped right into the fun and grabbed one of the drumsticks and she and her little cousin beat away on the drums. My older daughter wanted to play too, and so Gramby, being the helper that she is, went into the kitchen and grabbed a wooden spoon. My littlest one said, "Oh, THANK YOU Gramby, for getting a stick for my sister!" Surprisingly enough, pretty much the whole house was cleared of relatives within 15 minutes! ;)

Flower Pot Pens

I have to tell you about the great Mother’s Day gifts that my daughter and I made this year! I actually got the idea when I was visiting some co-workers who had moved their offices to a new building. Scattered around on desks and tables were cute little pots of silk flowers, and on closer look, I saw that each flower was actually a pen! My co-workers told me that these cute crafts were actually made by the individuals who live at one of the homes that our agency operates (we provide services for individuals with developmental disabilities).

Anyway, I thought this was so adorable, that I decided to make these for Mother’s Day gifts this year. This was a pretty, yet functional gift -- easy to make, inexpensive, and everyone we gave them to seemed to really enjoy them!

All you need to make this craft is:

- Silk flowers (I used 10 per pot)
- Green florist tape
- Glass “stones”
- Small pots or buckets (I used 4” pots which worked well!)
- Ballpoint pens (I used 10 per pot)

I went to the dollar store and purchased the silk flowers ($1 per bunch), green florist tape ($1 per roll -- I bought 3 rolls, but 1 roll was more than I needed for 4 of these pots), and bags of glass stones ($1 per bag). I bought the pots at my local garden store for $ .99 a piece – you may be able to find them cheaper – and I bought a 2 boxes of 20 pens for $1.99 each (again, you may find these cheaper).

Now, my intention was for my daughter and I to do this project together, but I ran out of time, so she helped a little, but I did the majority. My girl took the pots and filled them with half a bag of the glass stones (pebbles, marbles, whatever!). I cut the flowers off of their stems – leaving about 2 inches of stem on each flower “head.” Then I put the flower at the bottom of the pen (end opposite the cap) and I used the florist tape and wrapped it around and around, adhering the flower stem to the pen, and completely covering the pen with the green tape (leaving the tip uncovered and the pen cap off). Then I just put about 10 of these “flower pens” into the pot with the glass pebbles and voila! Very cute gift!

Now, if your child is having a hard time wrapping the tape around the pens and you want another way to get them involved in the project, how about having them decorate the pot itself? If we had had more time, I would have loved to have my girl paint the pots -- I think that would have looked great!

I wasn’t really looking to spend such a small amount on gifts this year – I just thought this was such a cute idea, practical, useful, and it won’t die it a few days (like real flowers -- not that they aren't beautiful!)! But as a bonus, the whole thing probably cost me about $4 for each! And my girls just loved them – my little one watched and kept saying, “Fower, peas!” (She’s working on her words!) And my older daughter wants us to make some to send to both of their Godmothers.

This worked out great for us for Mother’s Day, but I also thought it would make a GREAT teacher’s gift!!

"The Daring Book for Girls"

I have to tell you about this great book that I got for Christmas this year. It's called "The Daring Book for Girls" by Andrea J. Buchanan and Miriam Peskowitz and I just happened to see it on Amazon.com while doing some early Christmas shopping this past year. It was just published in 2007 and it's kind of an "everything a girl could possibly ever need to know" book -- great for a young girl, or like me, the mother of girls!

This book contains all sorts of interesting information from a list of essential gear that no girl should be without (including a Swiss Army knife, hair band, duct tape, and patience to name a few), books that will change your life, how to change a tire, yoga, and campfire songs. It also has craft ideas, games, and information on famous women -- Joan of Arc, modern women leaders, famous women inventors, women spies, and so on.

I can't wait to finish reading this fascinating book and more than that, I cannot wait to start sharing some of these things with my own "Daring Girls"! I'm not sure which my girl will be interested in trying first -- palm reading or making friendship bracelets. It will be a few years before we get into the chapter on boys and the chapter on how to negotiate a salary!

Memory Book Project

As I mentioned earlier, before Christmas I was busy working on a “secret project”, which was really a gift for my grandmother. My grandfather passed away in January last year and this was our first Christmas without him, so I wanted to do something extra special for Gram. I got this idea from my older daughter, who is constantly doing projects – each week she is on a different kick. Currently she is in a writing and illustrating phase – she creates her own books almost daily (I’m trying to recycle paper from work instead of throwing it out, because the child could easily take out a small rainforest with her paper consumption!). But, before Christmas she was doing what she called “Mommy & Me” books and she would make little books from one dolly to their “mommy” dolly, recounting some special memory of time spent with the “mommy” dolly.

My parents, who take turns watching my girls while we are working (God bless them!), are frequently recruited to participate in her projects, and I think it was when she made my father put one of these books together for his mother, that I thought, “What a great idea!” I enlisted help from all of the members of our family – great grandchildren up to Gram’s four children, and I asked spouses and soon-to-be spouses to join in as well. I asked each person to e-mail me a little write-up of a few of his or her favorite memories of time spent with Gram, and to send any pictures they would like to share, as well.

I gathered up all of the stories that the family sent me and then I found pictures that would go with each person – black and white photos of my dad and his siblings growing up, pictures of my cousins and I when we were younger, family wedding photos, etc. I scanned these in and inserted them into the write-ups. I wrote up a cute little story from my toddler about her great grandmother, and my older daughter wrote out her own memories in her handwriting and she also drew some pictures. Once I had the whole book – with memories from everyone in the family – I printed it all out and put it into a binder that would be easy for Gram to flip through. I even added a cover page that had a picture of the whole family that my father took on Mother’s Day this past year. We gave it to Gram on Christmas Eve at our annual family celebration, and a few of us were even brave enough to read our stories out loud to her in front of the family. I could tell that she really loved it and I was happy to have taken the time to make it for her.

It took some time to gather all of the stories, but I think it’s a great idea for a gift for anyone, at any time! Also, you can make it as simple or elaborate as you’d like – if I were into scrap booking, I could have gone crazy with this!

I am thrilled that Gram enjoyed this, but I have to say that it turned out to be just as much of a gift to me as it was to her – I had the opportunity to read some great stories that I had never heard before! The time my grandmother drove my dad and his date to the prom, got pulled over for having a broken taillight and was let off without a ticket, but in her nervousness, she ended up backing into the police car! My father was mortified, needless to say! And the story of my grandfather taking my cousin out “to the bank” but going to Dunkin’ Donuts instead and swearing my cousin to secret about the 2 donuts he (Grandpa) would eat! There were some really funny memories and some really touching memories and sentiments and it was such a special gift not only for Gram, but for all of us. And, of course, it will be a wonderful keepsake to share with my girls. In fact, my sweet girl would get so excited every time another relative sent their story in – she loved reading them just as much as I did!