Tuesday, June 12, 2018

"Fresh Starts Are A Gift!"

School is out for the Summer.  Here's what we gave out to the teachers and bus driver at the end of the year?  I am beyond proud of it.  Let me explain my little creation.  

Here are the items you will need: 1. A mini shopping cart.  2. Miniature erasers.  3. Little brown envelopes.  4. A printer.  5. Tape. 6. 8" lollipop sticks or skewers.
This adorable shopping cart was found at Hobby Lobby.  It grabbed my attention immediately.  I love everything miniature.  It came in multiple colors.  I thought about the grocery stores I would be shopping at, in hopes that I could color coordinate my gift to the shopping cart.  The price... $3.99.
As soon as I saw it, I knew instantl what I would do with it.  
Next up, I needed miniature food.  I found these adorable mini eraser sets in the dollar bin at Target.  
And these... for $1.00. Not photographed was another pack of ice cream cones.
Here is another shopping cart in green.  
These mini craft sacks came from Hobby Lobby too!  These were $2.99.  I wanted them to resemble a brown paper bag from a grocery store.
I printed some small Fresh Market logos and adhered them to the "bags".  
Wala! Mini carts.  Mini food.  And now, mini grocery bags. 
I chose to insert a Fresh Market gift certificate into the brown craft sack.  This store is a little more unique and special to shop at, so I thought it would be more impressive than a gift card to Wal-mart or Food Lion.
Put it all together and look at HOW adorable this gift is. The twins' main teacher received a $50.00 gift card and the other two teachers/bus driver received a $25.00 gift certificate.
I used an 8" inch lollipop stick to adhere a printable that I created.  
The printable reads, "Fresh" Starts are a gift! Enjoy your Summer!"
To top off that cuteness, I wrapped the bus driver's gift in this darling bus driver's gift bag.  I mean, it doesn't get any more detailed and perfect that THAT!!!
Erasers, gift certificates, creativity, and a mini shopping cart.... throw it all together and all that mini stuff sure does make a BIG SMILE!

Tuesday, June 5, 2018

Orange You Glad It's Summer?!

The principal and school secretary MUST be ready for a break and must are bound to be SICK OF APPLES.  So, we are saying thank you with this BRIGHT, cheery, gift basket of ORANGE goodies!!!! I spotted the most delicious DRIED oranges from the FRESH MARKET last week and AS SOON AS I SAW THEM, I knew exactly WHAT I would do with them!!! I KNEW I would design the principal and school secretary's gift SOLEY off of those oranges and THIS is what I came up with?!
"Orange you glad it's SUMMER!"
I absolutely LOVE everything about this basket.  AND... I am so glad that tomorrow is the last day of school because I am tired of obsessing over the color/fruit orange.   Everywhere I went, I scoped the stores for ORANGE THINGS or ORANGEY gifts.  

I created a "sweet" printable for all to use.  If you would like to make a basket of your own, to gift to teachers, bus drivers, janitors, or school staff, click here, for the printable.  Please send me a photo of your creations. I love seeing them!!! And don't forget to tell others about our family blog if you do use the printable that I am generously sharing with you.

What was inside?  All kinds of goodies.  See below.
Boom Chicka Cheddar Popcorn
Peach Hand Sanitizer
Reese's Stuffed With Pieces

Trident Tropical Gum

An Orange Candle

Dried Orange Slices

Fanta

Campfire Crunch

A Bath Fizzer

An Actual Orange

Orange Life Savers
I am so pleased with the finished product.  I printed the label, cut it out, and adhered it to a bendy straw, via scotch tape, so that I could manipulate the printable to be seen by the recipient, from any angle I desired.  

Monday, June 4, 2018

Dance Recital Gifts - 2018

When you do NOT LOVE the idea of giving flowers to anyone, much less a 9 year old who could careless about flowers (in the long run) you feel like you are WINNING when... you are walking into the Jefferson Center, on Recital Day, and your daughter exclaims, "Mommy, why do people give out flowers at recitals and opening nights!?" SCORE!  That just means that she doesn't necessarily associate FLOWERS with her special events.  I have driven the message home that I don't really do flowers.  I was able to tell her that flowers are a beautiful gift that are typically used for celebrations such as Mother's Day, the Birth of a Baby, or a Wedding Day, BUT... they are also used to cheer up people during an illness or death in the family.  For me personally, I always consider the person I am giving a gift to with much detail.  If someone is in the hospital even for a good reason, more than likely, they do NOT have time for extra responsibility. YES! It certainly is a special way to tell someone you are thinking of them, but I have also felt like it's the ordinary way of saying, "Here! I didn't have time to think of something else that you would rather have and everyone else is giving flowers!" Ahem... Valentine's Day is a PRIME example.  Seriously?  EVERY LADY gets flowers EVEN IF her significant other didn't want to buy them... he buys them anyway because IT'S. WHAT. EVERYONE. DOES!
Not me.  Haha.  And my daughter knows it.  

During her Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs play, I made her this Candy Bouquet.  She was OVER THE MOON ecstatic.  A few dance rehearsals back, Lilah was obsessed with EOS chapstick, so I made her this Bouquet of EOS.  I keep fearing that I am going to run out of ideas because of the countless recitals she's in, but the coolest thing is... I don't.  This time, I just considered the recipient in full detail. I considered what Lilah's currently interested in and what she loves.  The answer was simple... ELMER'S GLUE SLIME.  

I ran around town collecting ROY. G. BIV bottles of glue and created a floral bouquet of Elmer's Glue instead. Let's just say... this idea trumped flowers x 1,000,000,000.  

I absolutely love the way it turned out. Here's what you need to create your own Elmer's Glue bouquet:

Supplies List:
1.  GLUE
2.  Lollipop Sticks or Skewers
3.  Tape
4.  A Hot Glue Gun
5.  Greenery (Preferably FAKE)
6.  Floral Cellophane
7.  Ribbon
8.  A Willingness To Go The Extra Mile
9. Foresight Into The Recipients RESPONSE.

Watch my hyperlapse video for a quick and easy VISUAL on HOW TO ASSEMBLE.  I promise you, this recital gift will make your little girl or boy super duper pleased.  
In addition to this bouquet of glue, I did purchase her a sweet bracelet that reminder he that with Jesus, all things are possible.  This scripture is totally taken out of context far too often, but I do believe that Jesus is always with you, even at a Dance Recital. You can NEVER go wrong to lean on him during a time when you are filled with so much nervous excitement.
 And then of course a little chocolate never hurts!!! Toblerone... it's one of Lilah's favs.
There you have it!!! Simple, creative, personal, and NOT ORDINARY!!!! 

"Expressions In Dance" ~ DDC Recital 2018

Recital time finally arrived.  Lilah has been working since September to learn both of her routines for Hip Hop and Jazz Dance.  I am not sure if you recall, but we decided to switch dance studios in the Fall of 2017.  Divine Dance Center is Lilah's current dance home. 

The theme of the dance recital was called "Expressions In Dance".  There were so many dances that the recital was broken up into two performances, in the same day!  Both of Lilah's dances were in the 6:00 pm show and was located in the Shaftman Hall, at the Jefferson Center.  

I am so proud of Lilah.  She seems very confident and natural on the stage, in addition to being able to perform with joy.  Her facial expressions and body language scream happiness.  

The first dance that Lilah performed in was a very well known song by Madonna called "Get Into The Grove".  It was a jazz performance.  I loved the adorable, polka dotted costumes.  Her little shoulders peaking through created that little bit of sass and pizazz, but I do appreciate the modesty STILL behind the costume.  
The second dance that Lilah performed in was a song called "This Instant", by Sophia Fresh. This was a Hip Hop styled dance.  The costumes were so adorable.  I loved the black sequined, high top sneakers, the teal sequined "gloves", and the leggings.  I wasn't as much a fan of the hat, because it hid the girls' cuteness, but it did totally fit the dance style.
The rules at the Jefferson Center are really strict.  I was only allowed to take NON FLASH photography.  I did the best I could to capture this special memory, but between MOVEMENT, POOR LIGHTING, and my husband's seat selection, I had my work cut out of me.  LOL!

Enjoy the photos I am posting in the body of this post, but then be sure to also check out the online photo album. This photo album includes ALL OF THE PHOTOS that I took on both rehearsal day and recital night. I always try to capture photos of other dancers that Lilah and I know/love or dances that I felt were extra amazing.  

Here are a few videos I was able to capture!  
The video below is a cute dance Liley made up BEFORE heading to rehearsal practice. She was getting out some jitters by dancing them away. I LOVE her ability to think for herself as she choreographs dances on her own time. Hehe.