Zebra Sleep Over Party

If you follow my facebook you will know my ADD is getting the best of me and I am all over the place.  Parties, quilts, finishing furniture, and so the list goes on.  And in the midst of the craziness we have a new sponsor who is generously doing a huge giveaway?!  Be sure to enter HERE. 

Parties have gobbled what spare time I have right now and I am loving it.  This party was especially fun to put together and Sandy's home was the perfect location.  Isn't that brick wall just gorgeous!   It's actually wall paper and I want it!

The main focus of the table were the zebra cupcakes.  They were both zebra on the inside and outside. I dyed chocolate cake black [you can find the food coloring here], swirled it with the vanilla and baked.  Piped some regular icing and then did marshmallow fondant zebra stripes.  [Covered crates in fabric to give the cupcake stand some height.]

Kept the decor pretty simple.  Poms of course, a cute banner and do you reconize that table?!  Yup she has the same sewing table as me, the Norden Gateleg.  I told you it was perfect for parties too.  Instead of a table cloth I used ruffled streamers.

It took one full roll of white and black sewn together.  I taped it to the table and also taped it down to the floor to create this fun zebra striped faux table cloth. 

On the table the girls got some yummy treats.  Plastic movie tubs to hold their popcorn and this huge crate of chips and movie candy.  [And to create some depth, the box they are sitting on is just a board game wrapped in polka dot wrapping paper] 

Striped chocolate covered pretzel sticks and eclairs, which were the birthday girls one request.  I also set up a fondue section for the girls.  Marshmallows with red striped straws, strawberries, apples [not pictured].  The plastic bowls that held the toppings were from Ikea.  They held the peanuts, white chocolate chips, and rainbow sprinkles.  Talk about a sugar overload! 

And of course you need milk to wash it all down! My carafe is from Ikea for a buck.  I absolutely love love love glass milk bottles but they are so expensive!  I just bought a six pack of Starbucks Fraps, enjoyed them, washed, and scrubbed the labels off.  To get rid of the printed expiration date, take a little nail polish remover and wipe it off.  Easy peasy. 

The girls favorite table was the one that held all the party favors.   I replicated the balloons and streamers from a pin on pinterest.   You can check out all the goodies the girls got HERE.  

I hung up their boxers on the wall for them to see and they fit all the girls perfectly.  Doesn't the birthday girl just darling?! 

I definitely foresee a sleep over in my little love bugs future. 

Cleaning Tip: How to get gum off fabric

The other weekend a family member sat in the car and mysteriously had gum on his back without him knowing. So to our dismay there was gum on the passenger seat of my newcar. My husband was freaking out a little bit because he was driving my car when it happened. He said he had two choices to make, to tell me or not to tell me. I was glad that he did because I knew he didn't know what to do. In all honesty I didn't for 2 seconds and then a light bulb turned on.... ICE!

What you do is get ice and rub it on the gum. Keep rubbing it until it is cold and hard. Once that is accomplished just scratch away!

 Then.... TADA! All gone!

So next time you get gum on fabric think ICE!

Posh Little Party Shop Giveaway

As you know I la-la-love parties so I can't wait to share my newest sponsor, Marcy from Posh Little Party Shop.  She has the cutest graphics and did I mention she is the one responsible for my blog design?  Just check out some of these fun designs.  She makes baby shower invites, birthdays, housewarmings... if you have a party she can do it. 

Where do I even start?  Marcy is super woman.  No joke!  First and foremost, she is a mom of four gorgeous girls.  Woahhh, I can barely handle one, I don't know how she does it.

And on the side, she crafts, is a photographer, speaks fluent HTML and of course a digital designer.   Just check out her blog HERE and you will see the depth of her talent.  For now her focus is the design shop and she has a lot to offer.  She doesn't just do invitations but also has graphics for cupcake toppers, tags, banners, chore charts, and yup even iron on shirts for the birthday girl or boy!  I say just get a party bundle and get everything at once!

Marcy is kind enough to offer a giveaway to you!  The lucky winner will get a choice between the two:
Party Bundle 
Here is an example of what you get.

Or the Mommy Package
This includes a chore chart and mommy card design.

There are multiple ways to enter. Please leave a separate comment below for each entry.  And if you are commenting anonymously, please please include your email so I know how to contact you.

1. Visit Marcy's shop and tell which is your favorite or an idea of what you would like to see. 

2. Like Posh Little Party Shop and Make it Cozee on Facebook
3.  Share the giveaway on your Facebook page.  Be sure to link back to us on the status. 

3. Become a follower of Posh Little Party Shop on Pinterest
4.  Pin one of Marcy's designs from her Pinterest Board onto yours.
5. Tweet about the giveaway!

That's five different ways to enter so don't waste any time!  A winner will be randomly selected and announced on May 27th.  Good luck! 

My Charm Bracelet

Well, the other day I decided to wear my charm bracelet.  It matched my outfit but as I looked at it, I took a trip down memory lane.  My Aunt gave it to me for my baby shower more than two years ago.  The moment in my life when everything was about to change.  I was going to be a mom.  

Before having Cindy I had these visions of what kind of mom I would be.  You know, the picture perfect one.  Let's just say I didn't live up to those expectations and going through this toddler phase always has me wondering if I am a good mom.  [Having a two year old is not easy folks.] 

There are times when I lose my patience.  Moments I yell.  Actions I regret.  Missed opportunities, wishing I could have a re-do.  Days when I think I'm going to loose my mind from all the whining.  The never ending repetition of mom, mom, mom.  My heart harbors doubts.  I have fears. All these moments that I didn't expect two years ago when I looked down at that same bracelet with my big belly.   

 Being a mom wasn't exactly what I imagined it would be.  There are good times and bad.  It's changed me, made me stronger, a little less selfish, a little more patient and it's given me this love that I never knew before.... the love of a mother.  

 I am not the perfect mom and that's okay.  There is only one thing for sure that I know I am doing right and that's loving her.  With every hug, every kiss, when we smile together and laugh, when we sing and play.  She knows that I love her.  Through all the mistakes I have made at the end of the day she knows, she knows that I love her.  I can't picture my life without her.  Some days I can't even picture what is was like before her.

 She'll always be my little Boo Bear and I will always be her mommy. 

Happy Mother's Day to all you lovely mamas out there.  

Humility

Just as Patty has been doing some reflecting, I have as well. I love her last post and I am definitely guilty as charged. I love her insight on taking a step back and thinking about what truly is a priority.

 

Lately, I have been quite humbled. Some nights I toss and turn and ask the Lord when is it going to be "MY" time. My time to rejoice, my time to get what I think I deserve, my time to experience accomplishments in my life. My my my... How selfish right? Well today I had another one of those prideful moments, and finally the Spirit led me to a state of humility. What I gleamed from it is that the Lord is control whether I like it or not, I can either trust or be anxious. I will trust although my flesh says to be anxious. After all, He knows what is best for me and at the end of the day His will will be done!

 

I would like to share a few books that have recently been helping me through this journey of humility.

“Encourage others each and every day–nothing’s more important than our words.

Did you know that, on average, each of us speaks about twenty-five thousand words daily? My last book didn’t have that many words. A lot of language is flowing out of our mouths every day and having an impact on those around us. But how much of that flow is fulfilling God’s intended purpose for our speech? How much of it reflects pride, rather than a gospel-motivated humility?” 
- C.J. Mahaney

 

 

 We are told to VOLUNTARILY place ourselves lower than others because God has declared humility a virtue.

- Stuart Scott

 

 

“Preaching the gospel to myself each day mounts a powerful assault against my pride and serves to establish humility in its place. Nothing suffocates my pride more than daily reminders regarding the glory of my God, the gravity of my sins, and the crucifixion of God’s own Son in my place. Also, the gracious love of God, lavished on me because of Christ’s death, is always humbling to remember, especially when viewed against the backdrop of the Hell I deserve.” 

- Milton Vincent

Happy Friday everyone! Hope this has served as an encouragement to you! I'd love to hear if you have read any of these books and the insight you have gotten from them! Feel free to email me at quitedainty@gmail.com.

It's Means You're Doing too Much

This is not what I had planned to post but it's the end of the day [literally it's 12:22am] and I just don't have time to edit pictures and do all that jazz so I thought I would quickly share something that's been on my heart.

  For the days I have a chance to do a devotional I usually read a chapter from The Purpose Driven Life. This small piece from Chapter Three penetrated deep in my soul.  When I can't get every check on my list completed I always remember this:

"People who don't know their purpose try to do too much- and that causes stress, fatigue, and conflict.  It is impossible to do everything people want you to do.  Just have enough time to do God's will.  If you can't get it all done, it means you're trying to do more than God intended for you to do.   Purpose -driven living leads to a simpler lifestyle and a saner schedule."

I use to always murmur there aren't enough hours in the day and I wish I just had more time... but that bold sentence always smacks me in the face.  It's not that there are not enough hours it's because I'm trying to do too much.  It's a constant battle for me, wanting to do more than what I actually can or should or need to do.  

When I feel like I don't have enough time I just ask myself if it's really a priority... spoiling the hubby, playing with Cindy, cleaning, cooking, spending lots of quality time together, loving on family and friends, and a pinch of "me time" aka crafts.  The rest, like more crafting time and blogging come when there is extra time.  Don't get me wrong, crafting makes me happy but if I sacrifice my family to craft I still feel empty.  When I live my life fulfilling the purpose that God has set for me [wife, mom, sister, cousin, daughter, friend] I am truly  happy  full of joy.    

Happy Thursday. 

Sleep Over Party Favors

The sleep over has passed and no kidding it was one of the funnest [is that a word?] parties I have planned for.  The birthday girl's mom is amazing.  She is wonderful and also crafty so collaborating with her was a treat for me.  I gave her ideas and she totally helped me customize it for her girls, which to me is very important.  I hope all my future clients are as fun as her.  Because the party was only a few girls the favors were plentiful.   

Here is how the table was set up.  

The girls got mason jars filled with all of these goodies.  Glow bracelets, pop rock, a nail file, a head band, a loofah and an eye mask.  

I took the top lid off of mason jars, put the mask, hair tie and pop rocks in.  Squished the loofa in and slid the tall items in the back.  Added some tags.

And TADA everything fit perfect and looked so cute!

Now the birthday girl of course gets a favor that is a little bigger and much more special.  She got everything the other girls got just more of it.  Plus her bin included note pads, a tube of green clay mask [we use to love this as preteens], a zebra white board, and I made her a zebra tote.

To top it off, I also made the girls matching zebra print boxers.  Birthday girl got a teal bow on hers.  The boxers are super duper easy to make.  Dana from MADE gives the best step by step tutorial.  

Last but not least the girls got to make their own pillowcases.  I pre-washed, cut, and prepped all the fabric for them.   Wrapped it up pretty and they were ready to be sew.  A tutorial for these pillowcases can be found HERE.  It's basically the invitation envelop on a larger scale.  I'll share the finished product on a later post. 

Such fun party favors!  Now wouldn't you want to be a pre-teen at this sleepover?! 

Happy Tuesday everyone.