Enjoying Summer, Family, and Friends

I get a little nervous around this time of year. It seems Independence Day marks the summer check point for me. There's only half of summer vacation left and I begin to reevaluate my days. I don't want summer to melt away like a popsicle in the sticky hands of a 2-year old.

There's also only so many hours in a day. I've never been good at having each foot in 2 different canoes, so, I have to cut some time-consuming activities out of my schedule, just for a bit. One of those time stealing activities is blogging so I'm taking a short term break to be TOTALLY present for my family and my friends. I will soak up the sun, read a few books sitting on the bedside, and prepare exciting meals for Super Hubby and Kiddo. I may even get used to taking some afternoon naps.

Whoever said we could have it all lied. Having it all doesn't come all at once, all at the same time. Not if you want to keep your sanity and happiness. Life is about making choices. I love blogging and I'll be back soon but, right now, I choose to balance my life with other elements. I hope you stick around and visit often. If you don't want to miss any future posts, please consider signing up via e-mail Subscription, delivering you every new post in your e-mail Inbox.

To tie you over, re-visit my blog Series on Elements of Happiness. It's a goodie.
Elements of Happiness Part 1
Elements of Happiness Part 2
Elements of Happiness Part 3
Elements of Happiness Part 4
Elements of Happiness Part 5
Elements of Happiness Part 6

Be back soonish and enjoy your summer days! I know I will.

 

   

Gratitude Journal Monday

When words of gratitude don't seem like enough...

Remember the reason for today.

Happy Memorial Day, America!

What I Made Wednesday {Heart-Shaped Shamrocks}

If you're looking for the Lucky Me banner project, click here.

Everyone's Irish when March 17th rolls around! To decorate, you might as well get the luck-o-the-Irish on your side. And, when I get to use my $20 heart-shaped paper punch for the job, all the better! Making such an investment forces you to be creative on the "bang-for-your-buck" front. How many projects can I come up with using a heart-shaped paper punch, anyways?

What You'll Need
Heart-shaped paper punch
Scrapbook paper in festive green styles
Mini-brads
Scissors (not pictured)
Mini round hole punch (not pictured)

What You'll Do
This is much easier than finding a 4-leaf clover in a field! Punch out 3 hearts using your paper punch.

Once punched, BE SURE to fold the heart in half, then open it back up, again. This crease down the center will add some dimension to your clover and not make it look so flat.

Cut a stem for your clover. It doesn't have to be perfect, just long enough to look right. Hole punch a tiny hole at the bottom of the hearts and the top of the stem.

What You'll Need to Know to Finish

Align the tiny holes atop one another and place the stem on the bottom or all the way in the back so it won't show in the front. Taking a tiny brad, put the tip through all 4 pieces and secure the brad in place by bending the tabs opposite ways.

No malarkey about it: have a lucky and safe St. Patrick's Day this weekend! Any plans? 

Gratitude Journal Monday

Winter is back.

Happy Presidents' Day, America! Before you head out to indulge in those store sales, have you ever thought about being grateful to be living in the land of the free, home of the brave? I've given it a lot of thought this morning. I've never been a heavily political person. I don't take sides, really, and politics really does rub me the wrong way. But, as grateful as I am to be living here in the good ol' United States, my heart is heavy with sadness because the shine of this great Republic is beginning to tarnish. Yet, I know politics is not to blame, it is, I think, the changed character of the American soul.

It is the character of a great nation that makes it great. This character comes from its people. And as character changes, so does a country. As we grow older, we grow into our character. It's difficult to change an imprint in cement when it has hardened. To do so, it must be broken and started anew. But who wants all that mess and fuss? So, you live with the imprint because it's easier to live with it than to change it.  Change is hard when it's for good. It's a slippery slope when it's for bad. If virtuous ideas and ways are not instilled in our children, our way is already lost.

The mother who commits her life to Welfare because she earns more money in poverty than if she were to work a full-time job is a survivalist who plays the system well in a system that allows her this action. But she would not have made this particular decision if it were not for her character. Alternatively, the small business owner who dedicates 90-plus hours per week to make something of a business, working tirelessly but never quitting, knowing that for every dollar made, half is shared with the U.S. government, that is that owner's character. These two very different people could no sooner switch places as they could their own bodies. It's an individual's character that determines the actions to given situations.

I'm proud of the character these particular Presidents have shown during their time in office and am grateful for their service to the American people.

406. I am grateful for George Washington for accepting the uncertain role of the first President of the United States of America - what guts!
407. I am grateful for the character and conviction of President Abraham Lincoln whose beliefs in God-given rights brought forth a stronger nation.
408. I am grateful for the guts it took from Gerald Ford to give this State of the Union speech to the American people in 1975 - we needed some of this forthright honesty last Tuesday.
409. I am grateful for Theodore Roosevelt's passion for honest capitalism and conservation (I love my parks).
410. I give thanks to all the Presidents, past and present, because it's certainly a job I wouldn't want to take on - thank you.

Let's keep the list going...which President are you grateful for and why?

Happy Presidents' Day! 

Sending LOVE to You

A day of love starts with a lovely breakfast.

Happy Valentine's Day! Love is simple. You're either in it or out of it. You're either looking for it or tending it. In case you missed it, love IS the answer, click here. And, whether it's a spouse, a child, a pet, a friend, a parent, a neighbor, or even the person staring back at you in the mirror, say Happy Valentine's Day with a hug and a kiss because "...Love is all you need" (The Beatles).

And, to Super Hubby, my most favorite Valentine of all. You are the love affair of a lifetime. No one understands us like us, and that's just fine with me. After 21 years I'm still thrilled to know...

I belong with you,

You belong with me,

You're my sweetheart.

- The Lumineers (Ho Hey)

 And, to my Super Kiddo, the only one that can melt my heart simply with his sparkling eyes, killer smile, and funny ways. You remind me Valentine's Day is everyday.

And Happy LOVD Day to you, dear readers, for without you, there really wouldn't be a point to this little spot I take up in Blogland. Thank you for sharing a little bit of your time here each day and encouraging me to keep sharing my thoughts with the world. Now, go, and hug someone!

Source

Wishing you a most lovely Valentine's Day!

xxoo,

Lilly  

 

What I Made Wednesday {Bursting Heart: Love You More}

Does it get any sweeter than when you have the following conversation?

Me: "Love you, Kiddo."

Kiddo: "Love you more, mom."

Me: "Love you most."

Kiddo: "Love you mostest."

It's those times I want to remember forever and celebrate today. For all the smoochiness in the world, this project is dedicated to loving mostest!

What You'll Need

 

Heart-Shaped Punch
Panoramic Photo Frame
3 contrasting cardstock papers
Letter stickers
Glue stick (not shown)
Scissors (in case you need to cut the paper)








What You'll Do

Take the frame apart and save the glass for another project (a 2 for 1).

Trace your cardstock to the right shape to fit the frame and cut.

Go ahead and place it back into the frame, without the glass, remember?

Get cozy with your puncher and start punching away. I actually only ended up needing about 4 in each color.

 
 
Fold each and every heart perfectly in half. You're working with cardstock so it may be difficult to get a tight crease. If you find this to be the case, take a pencil you have laying around and use it to help make the fold tighter by running the edge of the pencil over the fold.

Glue each heart, alternating colors, half back, to half back, so you end up with a stack of folded in-half hearts. When opened you should have a fan of hearts.

Lay the fan out and apply glue to the end hearts on each side of the fan. Stick it right smack dab in the middle of your cardstock that's already in the frame.


 
What You'll Need to Know to Finish
Now the easy part, take your letter stickers and start spelling out "Love You" to the left of the fanned heart and "Love You More" on the right side of the heart. I ran out of "O"s so I had to use zeros. I don't think anyone will notice.

It's always a good idea to work backwards when getting letters placed where you want them.

Now, how cute and easy was that?

 


 

What I Made Wednesday {Bubble Valentines}

My most favorite class party is just weeks away! I have such sweet memories of elementary school homemade valentine's, candy hearts, and pink icing - sweet, sweet, sweet! This year, we're doing an entire 5th Grade Valentine's Day party so I got to work on these nifty Bubble Valentine's for the whole class, about 50! It had to be quick and easy and it was.

What You'll Need

Run, don't walk to pick-up these Bubbles in a Bottle from Target. For $3 you get 24 bottles and at this price, they won't be on the shelves for long!

Bubbles
Cardstock
Scissors
Mini-heart hole punch
Large Heart Punch
String
Computer and Printer

What You'll Do

First things, first: open a word processing program on your computer and select a label template that fits the large heart punch properly. If you have the large heart punch like mine, I set the label template for Avery 5264 (shipping label size). The fonts used include Coriander for "Don't Burst My Bubble!" and Zebrawood Regular for "Be Mine". Here's the document:

Print the document on the colored cardstock. Use scissors to cut down the size so the large heart punch can fit correctly and punch away!

When that's done, take your mini-heart hole puncher and punch the upper left corner, making a hole for the string to hold to the bubble bottle.

Take your string through the top heart of the bottle and through the heart in your cardstock. Tie a bow and you're done!

What You Need to Know to Finish
Obviously you're done but I wanted to share some additional tips.

1. Wipe down each bottle with a paper towel as each bag I bought seemed to have at least one bottle leaking.

2. To make tying easier, use your knees to help hold the bubble bottle in-between while you thread and tie the string.

3. When transporting these babies into school be sure to keep them upright so they, too, don't find a way to leak.

4. If you would like a PDF to make your own valentine's, just drop me an e-mail and I'll gladly send you it for FREE!

Hope this gives you another idea for those classroom valentine's cards! xxoo  

What I Made Wednesday {Valentine's Rag Heart Wreath}

Pondering on the month of hugs and smooches that lay ahead and I thought I'd share some inspiration with this eco-friendly wreath. I guest-posted it last year at the Fine Craft Guild but I never shared it on my own site! What was I thinking? So, for those of you who missed this super-easy, too-cute wreath, here it is. I hope it inspires you to start speaking the language of love as February begins next week! xxoo

What You'll Need
Dry Cleaner's wire hanger
Old T-shirt - color of choice
Scissors (not shown)
Wire Cutters
Starch (optional)

What You'll Do

The hardest part of this project is bending of the wire hanger. Carefully unwind the wire hanger at the hook area and shape the hanger into a heart. You’ll have the hook portion at the heart’s center. Wrap the two wires into one. Take wire cutters and cut off the excess wire. You may need stronger wire cutters than those pictured. Be sure not to cut too closely to where the wires come together as you don’t want to break the connection. I actually cut the excess wire off after I tied each rag strip.

Next, take the old t-shirt and cut the bottom right above the sew line. This strip will act as your hanging strip. The sewed seam will help this strip’s role from unraveling while it hangs your Rag Heart Wreath. 

 

Begin cutting strips starting at the bottom of the t-shirt. I made my strips between a half an inch to an inch in width and between four to five inches in length. It’s not an exact science and the variation adds character to the final result. This width and length worked so well when I tied the knot that I did not need to use the starch to force the rags to lay outwardly.

Begin knotting each strip to the wire and follow along until the entire wire is covered. It is not a double knot, just a simple basic tie. When you get to the center of the heart where there are two wires coming together, take a rag strip and knot both wires together. Continue along until the entire wire is covered. Push each knotted strip together tightly.

 

These photos show the heart’s center and knotting both wires together.

What You'll Need to Know to Finish

Remember that rag strip you cut from the bottom of the t-shirt? Go ahead and figure out what length you need based on where you’re going to hang your Rag Heart Wreath. Tie each end to the Rag Heart Wreath around the area where the heart begins to curve upwards. Try to make that knot blend in with the rest of the knots already tied on to the wire by positioning it between the knotted rag strips already there. All done!

Go hang your swoonie Rag Heart Wreath and be proud; a Valentine’s Day craft that cost nothing, nada, zilch! Good for you and Happy Valentine’s Day, you savvy crafter, you!

 LOVD tidings, Lilly