She is Amazing.

She never ceases to amaze me. Her strength and beauty is something I can only hope to achieve in this life.

not all rice krispy treats are created equal..

*picture credit: acreativemoment.com

and the secret to really good ones is letting the marshmallows and butter melt really slow.

It doesn't hurt to add in some extra butter and marshmallows either.

You'll end up with ooey, gooey, deliciousness.

You should try it.

Your kids will thank you

and if you can keep yourself from eating more than one

I want to know!

bed time bus roll poster.

I love this. Now to find a place to put it.

lily: paper doll party!

Today's party is my own daughters.. I didn't want to wait any longer to post pictures.

I have to say, I love the way Lily's party turned out. It was everything I hoped it would be, and every guest showed up! I couldn't have been happier. I have received more thank you notes (from Lily) in the last 4 days than I have in my entire life. She was SO happy. It made the whole thing worth it. Here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. I'm happy to give all my sources.

The invite. The back had pink dresses with all the info.

Some of the details and the cute birthday girl. (click to view larger)

The table setting (pre-food)

This banner was a last minute decision. I was going to make a big fancy one and ran out of time. I flattened the cupcake papers, printed the letters for happy birthday on my computer and sized them to fit the center circle. It turned out perfect!

The cupcake tower. I hand-cut paper doll dresses and attached them to toothpicks.

My mom found this paper doll fabric and made an apron for each girl. After their lunch, each girl was outfitted with an apron, glue stick, scissors and all the paper/embellishments they could ever want. We had pre-cut large paper dolls and we put them to work designing their own outfit. The girls LOVED it and spent a good 30-40 minutes cutting and gluing.

Some of the paper doll designs.

Finally the take home (in addition to the apron, scissors and glue). I found these gift card boxes at Michaels. I hand cut paper dolls and their outfits and stuck them to an adhesive magnet sheet. Each girl went home with their own magnetic paper doll and outfits. (tutorial here).

*Next up: Stella's Fairy Extravaganza!

this week for dinner..

*photo credit: Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Kalua Pork with Rice and Fresh Fruit

Homemade Pizza and Green Salad

Taco Salad

Szechuan Noodles

Black Beans and Spinach Enchiladas with Mexican Rice

What's on your menu this week?

patch tutorial.

Never before have my girls had holes in their jeans, until now. In the last couple months they have worn holes in nearly every pair of jeans they have. It is hard to want to go out and buy them brand new jeans when the summer is upon us, and by fall they will probably be too short.

My amazing friend (and puj owner/designer) Katie, recently started her own puj blog. There you will find this easy and stylish tutorial to patch jeans. I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of my sewing machine (still in storage in WA) so the girls jeans can last a little longer.

They pretty much look like they were meant to have that patch. No?

downeast swim.

Every year I anxiously await the launch of Downeast swim. This year doesn't disappoint, and if you order any 3 mix-and-match swim pieces by May 2 using code SWIM3 you'll get $15 off your order. Now that's a deal worth shopping for!