Fun Finds On A Whim

I have a serious question for you guys! Um, would I be the odd parent out if I bought a SNUGGIE and wore it to my child's pee wee soccer games??? I have been toying with the idea but I am afraid out being ousted for using one. I am just so cold natured and this will be outdoor soccer. I guess a fleece blanket will do! Guess I answered my own question.

What have you been up to? We just finished up with our son's very first sport ever - basketball and now we're onto soccer, and it's going to be kinda weird going from an indoor sport to an outdoor one. It's so much fun though watching pee wees play!

Anyway, last night after work, I drove all over creation to buy soccer gear for the little guy and we got him all set up. On our outing we went to ROSS Dress For Less looking for cleats and I found these babies. Oh my gosh! I just love the patterns and color combinations of these planters and have been wanting to get some live plants to keep indoors.  

 

Dontcha just love em? I thought they'd go great in our house and they were very inexpensive compared to what I think they would cost at other stores. Check out ROSS if you have one near you. They had some really cool planters and things for Spring. Maybe I should have gotten plants first but as soon as I find some good indoor plants that don't require a lot of light I will post pictures. Can't wait! Do you have a lot of indoor plants in your house? What kinds of plants do you prefer?

Slack and Indecisive About New Chair

I don't know about you but I am pooped! Do you ever have those days where you just can't seem to move forward and you keep spinning your wheels? Today was one of those days. There are so many things I want to do but I seem to get sidetracked a lot and struggle to keep up! 

Here is one example of my slackness at HOME. I got this awesome chair as a Christmas gift and it STILL sits in a corner, in its hiding place (so I wouldn't see the box or guess what it was) from Christmas Eve. Pathetic is me that it has not moved! You see, it was purchased to go in the room with my desk because my current desk chair has rollers and is etching deep grooves in our two year old hard wood floors. The longer the new chair sits in the corner of my son's room, the more likely I am to leave it there though. It's one of those pieces of furniture that would look good in any room of the house because it's multicolored and has all the colors of the rooms in our house. Oh decisions!

My son has already claimed it as his own but I may have to fight him for it and win it back. Here it is. It's a Tarjay purchase and I love it. I am just super slack lately!

What do you think? Any suggestions? Do you think it would look good at my desk BELOW? 

I'm just not sure if it would look good with the multicolored rug that is on the floor. I would LOVE to hear what YOU think and get some feedback! So do you think there would be enough contrast against the walls at the desk? I will eventually get off my rump and try to make a decision! Maybe you can be that little nudge! Hope all is well! TGIalmostF!

Keychain Review and Giveaway!

I am very excited to have my first Review and Giveaway!

What fun! If you are looking for good quality key chains I would suggest Wholesale Keychain! They have a huge variety of key chains to choose from. You'll find them in many different styles including automotive, Disney characters, gadgets, toys, games, sports teams, etc. 

They offer free shipping on orders of $50.00 or more and they also offer engraving for personalization. 

I chose two key chains to review for the company so I picked out a simple, metal tear drop key chain and a fun, Volkswagen seat belt one. I really liked the simplicity of the teardrop metal key chain. It's simple, lightweight and classy. I had three words engraved on the back of it and I just love the scripted font. It's very sophisticated looking.

I give the Volkswagen seat belt key chain a big thumbs up. It's quite versatile. It's cool that it resembles a seat belt, but for a busy mom it also comes in very handy! I can attach it to my purse so that I am able to have my hands free for any mommy business that may arise. : ) I can also leave the seat belt key chain attached to my purse and unlatch the seat belt part of it to use the keys. How's that for handy?!?!? Oh yeah, it also had an engraving on the back side of the metal part and I was impressed. I would definitely buy a key chain from Wholesale Keychain if I was looking for one!

Disclaimer: I received my choice of two key chains for the purpose of this review and giveaway from www.wholesalekeychain.com. I wasn't compensated in any other manner. All opinions are my own.

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Wax Seals On Candles

How are you? Are YOU ready for Valentine's Day? Um what day is it again? I'm terrible this year. I guess I'm not exactly what you call ready. I know when it is, just haven't done too much as of yet. ;)

I did take my son shopping today for Valentines for his class and he asked so innocently, "Mom, why do I have to do this?" He'll have fun on Valentine's Day when they have their class party but it kind of made me chuckle.

 

You may find this silly but here's an easy way to dress up a candle. All you need is ribbon and a wax seal. I like to recycle things so I found an old metal stamp I used on our wedding invitations, some ribbon and leftover wax. The opaque, glittery wax is the kind you use in a glue gun. The red is the kind you heat and drip. I tried to capture the stamp so you could see but it just didn't come out well in photos. I REALLY tried. 

Wrap the ribbon and place it in position. 

The wax works as a glue and keeps the ribbon on.

Leave the stamp on long enough to let the wax cool. Pull it off gently.

I played around with several different sized candles and this one above didn't turn out so great so I moved to a larger one. :)

It's just a little addition to a plain candle. 

Happy Valentine's Day if I don't talk to you!

BOGO FREE WINTER SALE

Have you heard of Vintage Couture??? Well if you haven't you should really check out their site and browse their catalog! Vintage Couture sells children's designer clothing with an edgy style that every child will love! Vintage Couture has clothing, accessories and gifts for infants, toddlers, boys and girls, and Moms too. In 2010 they moved their business from retail stores to direct orders. They use custom fabrics and Independent Fashion Stylists sell the products online and at in-home Trunk Shows. Check them out!


I am so excited because I got the awesome opportunity to try out some products from the Winter Catalog and I must say I am thoroughly impressed! The amount of detail put into every part of the shipment was beyond my expectations! The packaging, the quality, and the look and feel of the products is outstanding. I ordered one outfit for each of our boys and was thrilled when they came in the mail. I can attest that my children LOVE their new outfits. They were both strutting themselves around in their new Rock 'n' Roll jeans and shirts! We all love the clothing line. 


Take advantage of the WINTER CLEARANCE SALE Buy One Get One Free which ends this month!! You will fall in love with their products and service!


I ordered a pair of jeans and a long sleeve shirt for each. 


To the LEFT below is: 

BOYF1109: Hooded Extreme Music Shirt
BOYF1112: Blue Jean with Black Stitch 

To the RIGHT below is:
BOYF1121: Black Fleur-de-lis Jean
BOYF1115: Rock & Roll T-shirt

There is so much detail in each piece, yet the clothing is simply stylish and super cool.
The shirts are a good weight and will keep your children warm!

Check out the awesome detail to the back pockets and the stitching on the sides of the legs.

Adorable bead work on the back pockets! 

Even the company label is custom made. Be sure to lift the label for a cute message.

The tags are super soft for comfort and each pair of jeans came with an extra button.

Both pairs of jeans have buttons for better fit!

See my little poser! He loves his new rock n' roll attire. It goes great with the guitar he got for Christmas and his love of music! 

FRONT

BACK

We definitely found a new brand of clothes we love!

Hope all is well! Come sign up for my friend's giveaway!

Snowball Bath Salts Gift Idea

How are you??? What have you been up to? This is pretty pathetic but I just FINALLY exchanged Christmas presents with one of my very best friends and it is February. Geesh! I have been meaning to post this gift idea but wanted to wait until I gave it to her so I didn't spoil the small surprise!

I found this in a Martha Stewart magazine and thought it was just adorable. Of course Martha's pictures were way better than mine. I gave this one a try for Christmas gifts and this is a keeper and worth sharing in my book!

All you need is:

• a jar of some sort to contain the snow balls, preferably clear.
• I used one from Ikea.
• Epsom salts - 2 cups
• 2 tablespoons of water
• blue food coloring
• peppermint essential oil to your liking
• plastic ball mold - I picked up clear plastic ornaments from Hobby Lobby that come apart

Mix up ingredients in a bowl. Use your judgement!

Use as much as you like.

Clear, plastic ball ornaments I got at Hobby Lobby.

I purchased the Epsom Salts at Wal-Mart.

Pack the balls tight with the mix!

You may be tempted to open them before 24 hours. Fight the power and WAIT! haha! Be patient and wait as long as you can before opening them. Simply unscrew the balls with a gentle twist to retrieve your Epsom salt snow balls. Let them dry on a paper towel for a couple of days so they become completely solid.

Snowball bath salts are a great gift for the cold weather!

Here's a Great Blog To Check Out!

I hope everyone is doing well. I am so excited! TGIF but to top it all off, please go check out my guest post on a friend's site.


Go give my friend some love and check her out!


Life Happens with Kids is an awesome site to read up on for all kinds of reviews and giveaways! 

Chalk Board Picture Frame

What a day! My child is playing pee wee basketball, the FIRST team sport ever for him, and he scored 4 baskets in his game today! WAY TO GO! The most important thing is that the kids have fun but it's icing on the cake for the big boy to actually score. Boy was he excited! I was excited for him.

On that note I did a small craft a few weeks ago that I used for fun after the game! It's a chalkboard picture frame, plain and simple.

What I used

-5X7 IKEA picture frame in white

-chalkboard paint in black

-sponge stick for paint application

All I did was pull the picture frame apart and paint the glass with chalkboard paint using a sponge stick. I made simple strokes vertically and horizontally to cover the glass. I applied two coats and let it dry overnight. When I put the frame back together I put the mat on top! Easy as that and you can use it for all kinds of things. I like it for encouraging words. Have fun and have a great Sunday. Next time I chat I'll tell you about the rest of what happened today. We're making some small changes around here that I'm excited about! I'm not usually very good with change but this one I am. Yes it has to do with "room" (the word space gets overused in my opinion and drives me bonkers therefore ROOM) in our room! : )

Peppermint Soaps

Hey you crafties! I'm sorry I've been a MIA on the crafting and decorating lately. With Christmas behind us, just been trying to get some rest and relaxation when I'm not at work or running kiddos somewhere. Here is one little gift idea. I'm also working on updating my blog. I've been researching and think it's time to move to Word press and get my own domain. I'm excited but nervous a a little hesitant to jump in feet first. I'm enjoying this hobby of blogging but there is so much to learn about it. 

On to a simple gift idea. I found this in a Martha Stewart Christmas magazine. I enjoy making gifts for people and here was my first attempt at making soaps. It was fun idea but I think it was a FAIL job so I'll be adding it to Craft Fail too. :) I had really good intentions is all I'll say. 

What you'll need:

1 bag of white glycerin

1 bag of clear glycerin

red food coloring

peppermint essential oils

cellophane

Don't forget to add Peppermint. I don't think I used enough for the soaps but it sure did make the kitchen smell GOOD!

I used two bags of glycerin soap, one clear that I dyed with red food coloring and one white. I followed the directions in the magazine instructions. I used a glass Pyrex meatloaf pan and carefully heated the glycerin using glass bowls in the microwave and layered it. It took a long time to make the candy cane soaps. You can only nukiwave the glycerin for 30 seconds at a time to avoid ruining your microwave. You have to let it cool for 20 mins after pouring it in the pan so you have to reheat the glycerin again b/c it hardens.  I scored each layer with a fork like the directions said but the layers didn't quite stick together so the gift was botched. I had a little left over glycerin and so I mixed both colors of glycerin and it turned pink. I used a small muffin pan to make small soaps. I stacked them and used cellophane and ribbon to wrap them. They would make a nice Valentine gift for anyone if you can get the layers to stay together! Next time I will make a solid bar in a mold or something. Layering wasn't exactly easy. It took a really loooooong time! Let me know how it goes if you ever attempt this one.