Happy Valentine's Day! 2017

In the past, I was never one to really get excited over Valentine's Day.  Mainly because the entire time that Joe and I were dating, I worked at a flower shop. Years of helping others celebrate the holiday was enough for me.

Besides, one year, Joe and I did attempt to celebrate Valentine's Day.  February 14 fell on a weekend (a Friday, I think) and as usual, I worked long shifts leading up to the day.  I also worked the day after, but a shorter day than the rest of the week, so we decided to celebrate a day late.  Joe picked me up from work and we went out for an early dinner.  I'm not sure if the restaurant was short-staffed or not, but it took a really long time for our food to come to the table.  After chatting about our week for a bit, I started to get really tired and by the time our food came out, I was having a tough time staying awake!

We realized then, that celebrating Valentine's Day with a date wasn't really an option for us!  So, in the years to follow, we just had a low-key dinner at home.  Sometimes we ordered take-out, sometimes Joe cooked, sometimes we just had leftovers.  Even after I stopped working at the flower shop, we really didn't make a big deal over the holiday.  Joe shows me every day how much he loves us and is committed to our family, I don't need one specific day to know how he loves us.

When Grace was about a year old, I think is when we started celebrating Valentine's day with her. She doesn't eat chocolate, so Valentine's Day for her meant pink and red cupcakes and a cute stuffed animal, a few decorations around the house and all of her shows having a Valentine theme for the day.

Then school started and we were celebrating Valentine's Day in a bigger way!  Special Valentine t-shirts, dresses with hearts, parties at school and Valentine cards with candy for the class!  How exciting!

For the past couple of years, I wanted to do personalized photo Valentines but never got around to taking a picture in order to create the cards.  So, when I saw that my friend Kristen (who also happens to be a photographer) was offering an amazing deal on a quick Valentine photo session, I knew I wanted to book a session!

Here's the card I designed for Grace's classmates:

Since our family is obsessed with all things Boston Terrier, we were super excited to find this awesome Valentine t-shirt at Walmart!  It was the last one and a size too big, but that's okay!  She'll be able to wear it again next year!


Speaking of being Boston Terrier obsessed, Grace wanted to include our Boston Terrier in the photo session!  Kristen is a great friend.  She adores Grace and also knows how much we love our dog, Remmy!  So she included Remmy in the next shot!

Look at that face!  Isn't it the cutest?!  Oh, yeah!  The kid is cute, too!



Local readers, if you are looking for a professional photographer at an affordable price, check out KDW Photography & Designs.  Here's another photo session of Grace taken by KDW Photography & Designs.



Disclaimer:  I was not compensated in any way for sharing the link above.

Dollar Store DIY ~ Boston Terrier Valentine Mail Box

Ever since Gracie started school, I was excited to help her make a Valentine Box for her classmates to drop in their cute little Valentine cards.  I didn't realize that her classes didn't make Valentine boxes for Kindergarten or First Grade.  I was bummed.

I cannot even begin to describe how happy I was that Grace and I could work on designing a Valentine Box for her to take in to her 2nd grade classroom.

One afternoon, last week, Grace and I sat down and browsed Pinterest for some cute Valentine Box ideas.  We saw lots of creative boxes and Grace decided she wanted us to create a Boston Terrier Valentine Box.  Since, you know, we're obsessed with Boston Terriers.

I'll admit, I was really proud that Gracie chose our favorite breed as the theme, but I was a bit nervous about designing a Boston Terrier Valentine box.  I really didn't have any idea on how I was going to go about putting that together.

We started by choosing a box that fit into the size specifications given by her teacher.  After that, the only idea I had was to cover the box with wrapping paper.  I figured either black or white paper would work.

I stopped at Dollar Tree to see if they had plain white or black paper and I was thrilled when I saw a super-glittery Boston Terrier gift bag!  I suspected it might be the perfect size to cover her box, so I grabbed three!  Just in case we messed up and needed a spare!

So after gathering our supplies, Grace and I got to work on assembling her box.

• empty box
• wrapping paper
• card stock
• Boston Terrier gift bag
• marker
• glue stick
• clear tape
• glitter tape
• paper doilies 
• stickers
• scissors

We were both very pleased with how it turned out.  The only thing we didn't do, was make a trap door for removing her Valentines either at her social at school or after she comes home.  We did make the slot a bit on the big side, so Grace should be able to slip her hand inside and get her cards out.  I'll have to remind her to reach in carefully so not to ruin the box, since I have a feeling she will want to add this to our Valentine decor for years to come! 

I'm participating in these link parties:

• Creatively Crafty Link Party #53
• Think Tank Thursday #222
• Valentine's Day Kid Crafts & Activities
• Funtastic Friday Link Party

Dollar Store DIY ~ Kid's Valentine Door

I'm sure you've all seen this idea done before.  It's been all over Facebook and Pinterest for a while now.  I came across the idea several weeks ago and completely forgot about it, so I was glad when Grace's aunt sent me this link:  Valentine Heart Attack by Skip to My Lou.

Right away, I loved the idea of posting little love notes on Grace's door telling her all the reasons that we love her.   Just like Cindy at Skip to My Lou, suggests, I planned on taping a new heart to Grace's door each day from February 1st until Valentine's Day.

So, when I spotted these great, heart-shaped doilies at Dollar Tree I knew they would be perfect for the little, positive, love notes for Grace to wake up to every day!  What's even better is that they are only a dollar for a pack of 30.  One package would have been plenty, but I knew that Gracie would like the combination of pink and red.  Plus, for the price, the leftovers will be a great addition to the craft supplies stash!

I grabbed a piece of pink card stock from my craft supplies, attached a doily to it with some tape and wrote "We love you because..." with a black marker.  Then I taped it to her door.  The best placement ended up being over a Princess decal that was already stuck to her door.

After that was done, it was time to start adding a new heart each night after bedtime.

(don't mind the stickers that Grace has started adding to her door as well)

Since we still have some time until Valentine's Day, this is still a work in progress.  I'll come back and add another photo or two as we add more hearts to her door!

  

Grace loves waking up to see her new love note attached to her door each morning.  I love that this is such an inexpensive and easy way to make her feel special and surprised.

What better way is there to start the day than to be reminded that you are loved?


You can find this post linked at these linky parties:

• Teaching What is Good
• Tutorials & Tips Link Party
• Making a Home
• Think Tank Thursday #222
• Creatively Crafty Link Party #53
• Valentine's Day Kid Craft & Activities
• Funtastic Friday Link Party

Tips for Keeping your Dog Safe during the Holidays

You might know that our dog, Remmy, is not just a pet.  She is a member of the family.  We're always sure to give her a pat on her side or a kiss on her head before we leave the house for the day.  Just like Remmy is sure to greet us with a wiggle and a kiss when we return home.

Just like any family member, we want to keep Remmy safe. Since the holidays can bring out curiosity in even the most well-behaved pup, PuppySpot has provided a Holiday Dog Safety Checklist to help keep our furry family member safe during the holiday season!

If you are looking for a pup, or just like looking at pups (like I do), you can check out these links: 

Puppies for sale 

No Puppy Mill Promise

Disclosure:  

I was not compensated in any way for sharing this info-graphic.  As a dog-lover, I felt that this helpful information was a good fit for my readers.  Thank you PuppySpot.com for providing this great reminder of the dangers the holidays can bring for our furry friends.  

Frugal Kids: Handmade Greeting Cards

Whether it's birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas, or whatever special occasions you may celebrate, gift-giving can get really expensive.  Not only do we have the actual gift to worry about, we still have the added expense of gift wrap, tissue paper if needed, and the greeting card.  It all adds up and can really hurt the wallet!

Today, I share a crafty idea from my super-frugal cousin Wednesday.  Knowing her kids wanted to give out Christmas cards to their friends at school, she gathered up some craft supplies and allowed her kiddos to create handcrafted cards.  Perfectly customized to match the personalities of both the creator and the recipients!  All while repurposing those old Christmas cards you received in the mail last year and packed away with your Christmas decorations!

In addition to the saved cards, you'll also need scissors, school glue, glitter and whatever other embellishments your kiddo wants to add to their cards.  You'll also want to gather some card stock or construction paper.

Let your child start by choosing the greeting card he/she would like to repurpose and have them cut out the design from the front of the card.  Depending on the age of your child, you may need to help them with this step.

Once they have their design, they can choose coordinating card stock and fold in half to create the card form.  With some school glue (or glue dots), they can attach their greeting card design to the front of the card stock.

Then they can embellish however they wish!  As you can see, M chose to use purple glitter to customize her greeting card!  She traced the outline of the recycled card with some glue, then sprinkled with glitter.  She then shook off any excess glitter and allowed to dry.

Having fifteen or more cards to give out in class, this project can keep your kiddos happily occupied for quite a while.  And you get to save a trip to the store to pick up those expensive store-bought cards with whatever character brand is popular at the moment!  Not to mention those card packs never have enough to cover the whole class, so you end up having to buy multiple packs.  And if you have more than one kiddo giving cards to their classmates...look out!  It gets way to costly!

Oh, if you're not the type to hold onto cards from Christmas Past, you can still do this project with your kids on the cheap.  Just pick up a box of assorted Christmas Cards from the dollar store!  The kids can still cut them up to create their custom cards and you won't have to search your home office for envelopes!

This is not just limited to Christmas.  Once your kiddos reach school age, the invitations to birthday parties start rolling in!  Some friends have multiple parties on the same weekend!  Sometimes even the same day!  Adding up to several in the same month!  Again, the cost of birthday cards alone can really break the bank!  Start saving old greeting cards and let your kids create homemade cards to attach to their gift to the birthday kid!

I want to thank my cousin Wednesday for allowing me to share her idea and photos with y'all today!  xoxo

Guest Post ~ Groundhog Day Pudding Cups

January has passed by so quickly that the entire month is truly a blur!  Because of this, I didn't get around to doing anything special for Groundhog Day.  In fact, I completely forgot about it until I saw the adorable treat my friend Merry made for her kiddos to celebrate the day that we find out if we'll have an early spring or if we'll be stuck with 6 more weeks of winter!

Since I've been wanting to ask Merry to do a guest post ever since I shared photos of her daughter's Princess and the Pea birthday party, I saw this as the perfect opportunity!  

Hi, my name is Merry and I am mom to James, 11, and Lily, 5. I am a big holiday celebrator. No matter how small the holiday I can find a way to celebrate it. Especially these winter holidays when Christmas is over and spring seems so far away. It's another 2 weeks to Valentines Day? Have no fear - Groundhog Day is here! Lily has come home from school asking to watch Punxsutawney Phil on tv live and this year I have made a cute dessert, Groundhog pudding cups for the kids to enjoy. So we are in full Groundhog mode here.

I got the idea from FamilyFun magazine (you can see my inspiration here) and if you don't already get it look into it because they have many great and easy things to do for and with your kids. The only changes I made to the directions in the magazine is I substituted butterscotch chips for the suggested peanut butter ones and used a tube of black cake decorator icing that I already had. It was hard but I managed to not eat the whole bag of Milanos before I could make these.

So, have a Happy Groundhog Day and in this house we are hoping for an early spring!
(and don't drive angry!)

Note from Alison:  In case you're like me and you've lived under a rock since the release of the movie Groundhog Day in 1993, the last line in Merry's post is a reference to the movie.  I've never seen the movie so I had to ask her!  I guess it's about time I watch it...I wonder if it will be on cable at all today?

Happy Halloween ~ 2012

While most people on the East Coast were preparing for Hurricane Sandy, we took a little break to allow Grace (whom I affectionately call a hurricane at times) to burn some energy!  We also wanted to make sure to fit in one more day of Halloween fun in case trick or treating was cancelled due to the storm.

After running a couple quick errands in the morning, we took a ride over to a local farm and pumpkin patch.

Since we already took a trip to another pumpkin patch with family earlier in the month, we didn't plan on taking a hay ride out to the patch.

Our plan was to simply walk through the corn maze and let Grace ride the pony before grabbing a snack and coming home to get ready for the storm ahead.

But as soon as we got there, Grace recognized the tractors pulling the hay wagons and very excitedly pulled us both in that direction.

Once we were dropped at the patch, Grace just ran and ran from one pumpkin to the next, burning off lots and lots of energy!  We weren't able to get too many photos while we were there, since she was WAY ahead of us most of the time we were there!

Hey, everyone!  In case you haven't heard, come back this Sunday when I host my very first linky party!

Bring your favorite soup recipe and link it up to my Soup's On! Sunday linky party!  (Soup, stew and chili recipes are welcome!)






I've linked this post to the following blog carnivals and linky parties:

• Outdoor Wednesday #199 hosted by A Southern Daydreamer
• Wordful Wednesday  hosted by Parenting By Dummies

Wordless Wednesday ~ Getting ready for Halloween

Grace is really getting into the whole Halloween thing this year.  I'm not so sure she understands that it's an actual day for dressing up and trick or treating, but she's really enjoying the pumpkins and decorations.  She was so excited when I brought down the decorations from the attic!

We decorated the front of the house first, then added a few decorations around the house.  Joe picked up some orange and purple Halloween lights on clearance last year, so we draped them across the shelf in the kitchen and some across the tops of the windows in the living room.  Grace loves them so much, she makes us sit in the dark so she can enjoy the lights at night!

I set the DVR to record a couple of the Halloween episodes of her favorite shows and while we were sick over the weekend, we watched them over and over (and over) again.  All while she was wearing a very large witch's hat while we snuggled on the couch!

After watching her Elmo Says Boo! DVD for the past couple of weeks, Grace told her first joke!  One she heard Elmo tell Count von Count several times!

What did the ghost feed the monkey? 

Boo-nanas!   

She cracks me up!

We ran a quick errand to Walmart on Sunday.  While we were there, I wanted to check out the Halloween aisle to try to get an idea of what she wants to be for Halloween.  She just kept saying "I don't know".  So, like I said, I'm not sure if she understands the concept or if she is just feeling overwhelmed.

While I was checking out the clearance shelves next to the Halloween section, Grace was giggling.  When I turned to see what she was laughing at, she pointed to the creepiest clown mask telling me it was a joke!  Maybe she saw it's menacing grin as a fun, happy smile?  All I saw was creepy!

I have a feeling she's going to be one of those kids that likes horror movies and haunted houses!  If so, she'll be spending a lot of time hanging out with her daddy, since I don't do scary!  At all!

Even though I'm horrified at the idea of Christmas decorations being on display at stores already and the fact that I saw a Christmas commercial on TV the other night, I'm really looking forward to decorating for Christmas this year!  If Grace is enjoying the three strands of lights we put up for Halloween, she is going to LOVE the Christmas lights this year!


 

Our Thanksgiving Menu

I've never cooked a turkey.  Never.  In all of my adult years, I never had to.  Mom always cooked the turkey.  A side dish or dessert was always my contribution to dinner. 

Last year, we started a new tradition of staying home for Thanksgiving.  Just the three of us.  That may sound ordinary to many of you, but with Joe's crazy work schedule, we don't get many family meals together. 

Even on our first Thanksgiving at home, I didn't cook the turkey...Joe did.  That'll be the plan for this year, too!  I'll take care of the rest, as long as Joe cooks the turkey! 

I'm sitting here, trying to plan our Thanksgiving dinner and make a shopping list.  I thought it would be fun to share my menu with you.  I'd love for you to share your Thanksgiving menu and/or traditions with us in the comments! 

~ Our Thanksgiving Menu ~

~Turkey~

Depending on the weather, Joe will either deep fry the turkey outside

or cook it in the portable roaster in the garage. 

That will free up my small oven for anything else that needs to bake.
Last year, Joe used the roaster, since we woke up to snow on Thanksgiving. 

~ Mashed Potatoes and Cauliflower ~

This is our new favorite recipe for mashed potatoes! 

I plan on making a big batch of these so we'll have plenty of leftovers so I can make

Loaded Mashed Potato Pie and Mashed Potato and Cauliflower Soup. 

Mmmmmmm! 

~ Green Bean Casserole ~

I've made this for Thanksgiving as long as I can remember.  

I was still living at home when I started making this dish. 

Joe picked up a can of those crunchy onions that go into this, 

so I'm guessing the tradition will continue! 

(Note:  we don't only make it for Thanksgiving)

~ Sweet Potatoes with Apples & Raisins ~

We made this for Thanksgiving last year and we really enjoyed it. 

It tasted like dessert!  So yummy! 

I forgot to write down the few changes we made to the recipe,

so we'll just wing it this year. 

~ Coleslaw ~

My parents make THE BEST coleslaw!

My Mom always made coleslaw to go along with our turkey dinner. 

Over the years, the task of making the it was passed on to my Dad. 

Since I've never managed to get their recipe to turn out the same in my kitchen,

I'll be following this recipe instead.

~ Cornbread Casserole ~

I make this dish throughout the year.

Joe requested we add it to last year's Thanksgiving Menu. 

This replaced the corn I planned to serve as a side dish. 

I also skipped the canned biscuits. 

~ Stuffing ~

We keep this simple and just use boxed stuffing.
Like my Mom, I prepare the stuffing according to the box,
then pour into a greased casserole dish or pie plate
and bake in the oven until crisp.


~ Vegetables ~

Grace likes her peas and corn. 
As much as I try to get her to try new foods,
we haven't had much luck. 
I'll prepare a small bowl of each of her favorites
for her to enjoy with her turkey! 


~ Gravy ~

Last year, we attempted homemade gravy.
I'm not sure where we went wrong,
but we didn't care for it. 
We'll stick to the jarred stuff this year! 


~ Cranberry Sauce ~

Years ago, Joe and I made homemade cranberry sauce,
for a big family dinner. 
With all the other food we're preparing,
we'll just use canned cranberry sauce this year. 

~ Dessert ~

Since I have a lot of over-ripe bananas in the freezer,
I'll make a Chocolate Covered Banana Cake.
For the pies, (I'm thinking pumpkin and apple),
I'll rely on the great bakery department at our local market.

It probably sounds crazy to make so much food for just the three of us.  But remember, I LOVE leftovers!  We'll eat the leftovers from this meal throughout the weekend and what we don't finish will be frozen or re-created into something new!   

I'm linking this post to the following blog carnivals and linky parties: 

• What's On Your Plate?  (Thanksgiving Menu Ideas)
• Thanksgiving Recipes 2011 @ It's a Blog Party
• Menu Plan Monday
• Homemaker Monday
• Your Recipe, My Kitchen

Sending Christmas Cards

I tend to be a procrastinator.  In a big way.  So, while many of you are almost done your Christmas shopping well before Black Friday, I'm usually just getting around to thinking and planning stage.  This year, I'm slightly ahead of schedule but not by much. 

Traditionally, the day after Thanksgiving kicks off the Christmas season in our house.  I know that's how it is for a lot of people, but I just can't help but envy those super-organized (and frugal) shoppers that have already completed most of their to-do lists! 

Every year, I tell myself that I'm going to be fully prepared for Christmas by the time Thanksgiving arrives, but I never seem to get my butt in gear and every year, I'm scrambling to get the rest of my holiday shopping done.  Like I said, this year I'm slightly ahead of schedule but I still have lots to do! 

Christmas cards have always been high on my holiday to-do list!  Finding the perfect card year after year and sitting down to listen to holiday music while writing out my huge stack of cards, still that's usually at the last minute. Since I am a semi-new momma, I love to show-off include a  photo of my beautiful daughter with each Christmas card. 

Here's the photo I shared with family and friends last year: 

At 18 months old, Grace is a handful!  She's a very active and curious toddler and always wants to be right there in the middle of whatever mommy is doing!  Since I have so much trouble finding time to get things done with her following me around all day, writing out Christmas cards will feel more like a chore than a festive holiday tradition. 

To make things easier on myself this year, I've decided to send out holiday photo cards.  I'll still search for the perfect design to match the photo I want to share with my family and friends, I just won't have to sit down to fill them out.  The image on our Christmas Photo Cards will be a photo of Grace (as soon as I choose my favorite!) and our greeting and signature will be printed right there on the card making it super-easy and keeping it frugal at the same time!  

With all of the extra money being spent this time of year, I like to keep my eye out for a good deal.  And what a great deal I found!  Right now, Shutterfly is offering a few Cyber Week Deals (until December 1st). You can save up to 30% on Holiday Photo Cards, Free Shipping on orders over $25, plus a bunch of other great ways to save! 

If you are still trying to decide what to do for your holiday correspondence this year, you really should check out the many attractive designs and products that Shutterfly offers. 

• Christmas Photo Cards 
• Holiday Cards
• Calendars
• Christmas cards
• Birthday Invitations
• Holiday Photo Cards

And don't forget about Thank You cards.  Shutterfly also has a wonderful selection of holiday thank you cards that you can even coordinate with your Christmas cards!