Charlie Brown Birthday In A Box

Do you love Charlie Brown? I'm sharing a Charlie Brown inspired Birthday In A Box idea over on Piggy Bank Parties today. I put the whole box together for under $6!  Hope you'll head over and take a peek!

Miles' 1st Birthday Fishing Party

JoAnne from Oh Goodie Design contacted me about making handmade party decorations for a fishing theme 1st birthday celebration. JoAnne coordinated the party with her client long distance (through email correspondence) to help pull together this adorable party.  Here are some party pictures.  Looks like everyone had a great time!

still loving the miniature fishing pole and tackle box I found for the wreath!

Such a beautiful family!

So honored to be a small part of Miles' big day!

photography by Pam Lary Photography

TGIF Toffee Brownie Pops

I just finished making 

toffee brownie pops 

for a very special 

Golden Anniversary Party

this weekend. 

I stole a few crumbs, 

they are pretty yummy.

Happy Weekend Everyone!

Update: Since you've asked for the recipe, here it is. I just made it up as I went.

Bake brownie mix as stated on the box. Let cool. Crumble into large bowl.

Add chocolate frosting, mix with hands.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Roll into 1" balls.

Melt chocolate, dip paper straw end in chocolate and insert into brownie ball.

Stick in freeze for about 15 minutes, or until hard.

Dip brownie pops in melted chocolate, tap to remove excess chocolate.

Top with toffee bits while the chocolate is still wet.
Stick back in the fridge to harden and enjoy!

Schultuete: A German Back To School Tradition

Yesterday, I shared a wonderful back to school tradition over on Bird's Party Blog. I didn't want you to miss it, so I am reposting it here. To celebrate the beginning of the school year, German parents fill Schultute (German for school cones or sugar cones) with little gifts, sweets, and school supplies. The size of the cones increased as the tradition grew in popularity, some reaching over 36" tall! I was lucky enough to connect with Vivian Lie, founder of KinderCone, who is continuing this wonderful tradition.  

KinderCone makes different versions of the cones ranging by interests, size, grade level, even pre-filled and unfilled cone options. I chose the KinderCone minis so I could share this tradition with my son's entire preschool class.  They are smaller than the regular KinderCones and oh so cute! 

I filled the KinderCones with pencils, a magnifying glass, glue sticks, scissors, and a kraft tube filled with colored pencils. 

"School Days" Banner by Stampin' Fanatic set the mood perfectly 

Special thanks to Stampin' Fanatic and KinderCone for making our back-to-school celebration extra special this year!

Cheers to a healthy, happy new school year! 

DIY Halloween Milk Bottles Featured in The Party Dress Magazine

Be prepared to be blown away by the latest issue of The Party Dress Magazine, out today! This issue is full of beautiful Fall foods and wines, party inspiration, and craft tutorials. You can view the magazine online, purchase a print copy, or new this Fall- you can download from the App Store!

I was honored to be included as a contributor for this issue. Check out my Halloween Milk Bottles tutorial featured on pages 54-55.

Huge SHOUT OUTS and THANK YOUS to the following party vendors:

Maria of Love & Sugar Kisses for creating the most unbelievable chocolate covered Oreos topped with Halloween inspired fondant ruffles and 3D fondant spooky spiders. Not only are they adorable, but they are delicious!

Sweet Lulu, for sending the milk glass bottles. So sweet and simple, a great way to dress up any table!

Mosser Glass for sending these GORGEOUS white milk glass cake plates. I have a serious party crush on these cake plates. Ultra classic and beautiful. They even come in multiple colors (ask Courtney of Pizzazzerie which color she just ordered, wink*).

Ninjago Inspired Peg Sets

Only 2 sets left!  

Set of 6 pegs for $36 ($4 shipping)

Send me an email if interested! 

Kindergarten Blues and Peg Doll Friends

Have you seen the Kindergartner crying when it's time to go into school? Yep, that's my little guy. He is having a hard time adjusting to this all day gig. Yesterday he said it was fun, but didn't want to go back today. Sigh.

I painted a special peg for him to take to school. Something that would fit in his pocket that would remind him to be brave, fearless, and confident. Yes, for 6 year old boys Lego Ninjago characters are the way to go. So far it has helped him. Full day Kindergarten is a big change, I feel better knowing he has a little piece of home with him (the Ninja was even tucked in his right hand during pictures). 

How do you help your kids transition back to school?

Do you know someone that might like a peg doll?  I do make and sell custom pegs! Visit my peg page for lots of pictures and more information. 

DIY: Divine Twined Up Bitty Bags

I am sharing this project over on Whisker Graphics today. The bitty bag is personalized with divine twine and filled with back to school goodies for my soon-to-be Kindergartner. It's boyish and simple, yet extra special for his big day.

Materials:

Lemon Divine Twine

Black Diagonal Stripe Bitty Bag

Glue

Scissors

Directions:

Write name on the bag with a pencil. Then trace over the pencil marks with a thin line of glue. 

Add divine twine on top of the glue, adjust string as needed. Let dry. 

Fill bag with goodies. 

Roller Skate Party: Full Party Post

You've seen the magazine feature, behind the scenes, and craft fails... now it's time to share the full party post. Bird's Party sent her brand new Roller Skate printable collection for me to work with. I immediately loved the colors and fun graphics. I wanted to make this party retro and very girly.

Party Colors: Red, Pink, and Turquoise

Party Theme: Roller Skate 7th Birthday Party 

Desserts: 2 Tier Cake, Cupcakes, Cupcake Marshmallow Pops, Balloon Cake Pops

Party Favors: Gumball Necklaces, Tube Socks, Flavored Lip Balms, and Balloons. 

Party Highlights: Handmade Wood Skate Signs and Kusudama Paper Flowers

Cake and Fondant:  Samantha's Sweets created a two tiered cake with red and turquoise fondant ric rac at the bottom of each layer. I called in my "fondant dream team" for this project, Love and Sugar Kisses created the pink fondant ruffle flowers and the number 7 cake topper and Edible Details created the adorable pink roller skates and flower cupcake toppers. 

Decorations: Origami Delights handmade two different sizes of Kusudama Flowers in red, pink, and turquoise for the table. Whimsical Printables created the adorable matching bottle caps that adorn the milk bottles as well as the gumball necklaces, balloons, and glittery spoons. And last but not least Small Town Myrtle Brown handmade the wood skate sign and the "Roller Skate" signs. The signs added a retro vibe and special WOW factor to the table. 

Crafting: My personal craft projects for the party included the backdrop, drink flags (placed on Got Moo strawberry flavored milk straws), tube sock vases, and "dessert" favors. 

And of course more desserts: Samantha's Sweets created the most beautiful and delicious desserts for the table including cake, cupcakes, cupcake marshmallow pops, and balloon cake pops. Everything matched the collection perfectly. Sam totally surprised me with inside of the cake, I die. 

FAVORS: The favor table was designed to look like a second dessert station. The gumball necklace cake, tube sock cupcakes, flavored lip balms, and balloon filled push up pops were all displayed on classic Mosser Glass milk glass cake plates. Pink polka dot and striped favor bags were displayed on a beautiful balloon tassel made by The Flair Exchange. 

A Huge Thank you to my Fabulous Team of Vendors:

Roller Skate Printable Party Collection: Bird's Party

Desserts: Samantha's Sweets

Wood Signs: Small Town Myrtle Brown

Kusudama Flowers: Origami Delights

Fondant Cupcake Toppers and Roller Skates: Edible Details

Fondant Cake Topper and Flowers: Love and Sugar Kisses

Balloons, Spoons, Bottle Caps, Gumball Necklaces: Whimsical Printables
Balloon Tassels: The Flair Exchange

Milk Glass Cake Plates (Favor Table): Mosser Glass 

Lip Balm Party Favors: Zaaina

Styling and Photography: Jenny Dixon

Leap Frog Get Ready for Kindergarten #LeapFrogTag #spon

Thank you to LeapFrog for sponsoring this review.  For more information about LeapFrog Tag Get Ready for Kindergarten, please visit their website #LeapFrogTag #spon

My oldest son starts Kindergarten in a few weeks, and my youngest starts next Fall, so I was particularly interested in trying out the Tag Get Ready for Kindergarten.  The program teaches mathematics, social studies, reading, and science in fun, interactive, age appropriate ways.  My kids were totally engaged from the start. I waited for them to ask for help, but they never did. They listened to the directions carefully and proudly navigated through the book parent-free. 

Learning Highlights

Reading: The ABC Snack Time starts with the basics of letter and sound recognition. My 6 year old went through this section fairly quickly, because he is reading at this point, but it was perfect for my 4 year old. He stayed on this page for awhile until he had found all the letters correctly. He loved the illustrations and thought the animated facial expressions on the foods were especially funny. 

Next came the vowel show, a great reminder for my 6 year old and great introduction to short vowels sounds in words for my 4 year old.  Each page would get a little harder as they moved into The Word Circus and the Consonant Blend Gallery. For now the kids spent most of their time on the beginning pages. I like that the book offers room for them to grow and be challenged as they are ready. 

Mathematics: This section  focused on pattern building, skip counting, and counting sets. The kids both loved counting sets where they were asked to help monsters fill  up their bags with candy. Who doesn't love counting candy with monsters?!

The months and seasons page was a great refresher since we haven't been talking about them enough this Summer.  Other sections included My Community, a feelings fun house, and a dinosaur class photo where children can learn all about characteristics of dinosaurs. 

Overall, I loved the variety that the book offered. The kids stayed engaged for over an hour and then picked up the book again after dinner. I have a feeling this will be a book that will continue to captivate their attention as they delve into the different sections in greater detail. 

For more information about the LeapFrog Tag Get Ready for Kindergarten and behind-the-scenes videos, visit here!

I was selected for this opportunity as a compensated member of Clever Girls Collective and received free product from LeapFrog to review. The content and opinions expressed here are all my own. #LeapFrogTag #spon