Lots O' Layouts!

I've been to two weekend-long scrapbooking retreats in the past several months and I actually almost completed the Noise Maker's baby scrapbook during those two weekends (only two pages away!). 

Here are the one-page layouts I've done:

"Laugh...It's Contagious"

"Bumbo Buddies"

"Splish Splash"

"Learning To Walk"

"1st Hair Cut"

"So Happy"

"My Little Monkey"

"All Boy"

"8 Months"

"Gone Bananas"

"Siesta Key Beach"

"Happy New Year"

"Dino Baby"

"First Trip"

"Summertime"

"The Poop Face"

"Happy Father's Day...NOT!"

"Daddy...You Hung The Stars"

"Great Expectations"

"Baby Cakes"

"Sweet Dreams"

" I (heart) You"

A few of these have been inspired by some I've seen in magazines and online ("Happy New Year", "8 Months", "So Happy"), but most are my own!  :)

Here are my 2-page layouts:

"Who Loves You...Sissy Does"

"Happy Birthday Monkey"

"Grandparents"

"Family"

And here is my "Flip Flap" layout:

"Baptism"

The bottom photo is actually the front "page" of a series of photos, attached to page with CTMH's Flip Flaps...

Journaling is hidden behind!  All I have to do is cut a slit in my page protector, and you can flip through the photos while it's in the album...cool, huh?

Thanks for looking!  :)

Toy Story On Ice!

I took the Mess Maker to see Toy Story On Ice this weekend...she loved it!  Snapped a few photos during the show...okay, a TON of photos!  But I got some good ones that I'm going to put in a mini album for her:

Slinky Dog:

Buzz Lightyear:

Rex & Zurg:

Bullseye:

Woody:

Woody & Jessie:

Lotso:

Ken & Barbie:

Aliens:

Octopus (can't remember his name!):

It was fun...and we're currently watching Toy Story 2 due to our renewed interest after the show!

"Thanks A Latte!" Coffee Cup Slider Card / Gift Card Holder

I wanted to give some giftcards to Starbucks to the volunteers that helped with the Book Theater play I coordinated at the Mess Maker's school...and I wanted cute packaging!  So I searched the web and found this coffee cup slider card idea HERE.

I changed up the sentiment to read "Thanks a latte!" instead of Happy Birthday, and changed up the color scheme a bit, but the base of the card is the same.  And it has a Starbucks card inside!

I won't repeat the instructions here, because I think "Creative Cucina" did a great job with her photos and instructions.  But I will show a few photos of the part where you add the sticky strip or Terrically Tacky Tape, because I had to play around with it before I could figure it out!  :)

Here is how you apply the TTT:

Then fold in the right side:

And the fold in the left:

And this is how you trim the "cup"/sleeve to the correct size:

The rest of the information and instructions are at Creative Cucina. 

Here is a photo of all of the cards I made:

Thanks for looking!  :)

Book Theater Presentation of "Sheep In A Shop"

This year, I decided to volunteer for a position on the PEO board at the Mess Maker's preschool.  They had the "book theater" position open, so I said I'd volunteer...  MISTAKE!!!  Not because it wasn't fun, or it was hard or anything...just because I had no clue what I was doing!  I have absolutely NO drama/stage experience so I was pretty much flying by the seat of my pants the whole time!

I chose the book Sheep In A Shop by Nancy Shaw...such an adorable story!  The Mess Maker's school is turning 30 this year, so I needed a birthday-themed book and this one fit the bill perfectly.

I struggled trying to find volunteers for the the roles, even with no speaking parts!  But I finally wrangled in some friends to complete the lineup (above).  It went off without a hitch and I think everyone liked it...I haven't heard otherwise anyway!

Here are some photos of the show:

THANK YOU

to everyone who helped and volunteered, both as actors and behind the scenes...I appreciate you!  :)

The Noisemaker's MICKEY PARTY!

My "baby" boy turned two and because of his intense LOVE of anything Mickey Mouse, we went with it for his party theme.  We have an AMAZING park close to the home we'll be closing on in just one short month...and we invited all of the Noise Maker's and Mess Maker's friends to help up celebrate!

In true Household CEO fashion, I did make a lot of the things we had at the party, most with a little inspiration from the web...

Invitations:

The details are on a piece of carstock stuck into the back pocket (on the other side).  I got this idea from Lisa at Lisa's Handmade Cards (truly talented lady!).  With the help of my Cricut and Mickey Font catridge, these were a breeze!  The buttons were cut from the Just Beacause cartridge.

Cupcake Toppers:

The inspiration from these also came from Lisa's Handmade Cards.  I used the Mickey Font cartridge on this one too, and attached the pieces to lollipop sticks.

Mickey Shirt:

I wanted a special birthday shirt for The Noisemaker so I whipped up this one with the help of (once again) my Mickey Font cartridge and some freezer paper...I cut the image from freezer paper, ironed it on, painted, and ta-dah!

Treat Bags:

I cut some black cardstock to fit the tops of the bags and added a strip of red polkadot paper.  I printed the journaling on my printer and attached it on top.  Then I cut some "gears" from my Accent Essentials cartridge to mat the Mickey Mouse heads on (printed from the web) and attached them with a foam dot.  Fun Mickey toys and treats for the party guests!

We also had a book exchange in lieu of gifts...what fun!  He definitely had a good time...even if he won't remember it!

Texas Bluebonnets...Y'all!

We've lived in the great state of Texas for over three years and this is the first year we've experienced the amazing Springtime masses of our beautiful state flower, the Bluebonnet!
A few of my friends and I buckled up the kids and went on a mini-road-trip in search of these beauties.  I will admit I started wondering if our leader had gotten lost after about 30 minutes of driving in the middle of nowhere, but once we arrived I realized it was well-worth the drive!

Minus the part where we had to climb over a barb-wire fence (onto private property...shhhhh!), it was just Heaven!  Here are some shots from this morning...the Mess Maker and the Noise Maker (and their friends) had a ball, after a brief, but scene-causing, bout of crying by the Noisemaker, which seems to come with the territory now that he's two...

Have a BEAUTIFUL day!