Down the Rabbit Hole

I'm working on a project. It's requiring all natural products like real genuine carded wool... There is a little farm near my house with baby goats and big goats to see... And freshly shorn wool. Oh lord. My wallet. My sanity. I won't divulge what I'm up to until I achieve some small shred of success. Ha. It may be awhile. But gah. The world of natural fibers and felting is like entering another dimension. 

Thursday. It's drippy and rainy and a bit chilly. In other words a perfect Pacific Northwest afternoon. I love the way the pavement smells when it's damp from the morning drizzle. Ahhhhhh. Breathe in the freshness. I missed the smell of home the most when we were in Las Vegas. Although it was fun to be able to wear shorts and not freeze. 
Cozy days like today give me the bug. The craft bug. My little Cadence has recently become enamored with her dolls. Which has mommy (that's me) dreaming up all sorts of dolly crafts. Which led me down a rabbit hole of Waldorf style dolls. Oh I die a little as I search the web and find the most adorable hand crafted dolls. Thinking to myself "golly gee. I could make one of those". They have sweet rounded faces, tiny sculpted chins, the most exquisite little clothes. I may have found yet another obsession. 

I'm Cheap

There I said it! I am C H E A P. I have expensive taste but I'm on a Top Ramen budget. Being a mom of 4 and the only source of income right now is of course part of the budget part.  We live comfortably and I'm proud of that. However, there are certain things I want.  I could sit around and wait for Santa to deliver the things I want. Believe me... I've waited. I'm still waiting...  Hello? Santa? Anyone??? **tap tap tap** Is this thing on? 
So while I wait for Santa, I've learned to be resourceful and clever. I've stalked Craigslist. However, lately with the  invasion  popularity of the almighty Facebook, a new phenomenon has cropped up. The virtual local community buy, sell, trade sites. Oh my. Be still my heart! So many things. I want to buy ALL THE THINGS!!! It's a 24/7 yard sale directly on my computer or smart phone. It is HIGHLY addicting and sooooo tempting. Who wants brand new stuff when you can buy awesome used stuff for less than half the price! My kids are so well dressed thanks to our local rich neighbors hand me downs. Thankyouverymuch! hehe! 
So this brings me to my steal of the day. YES. Steal. I have been DYING to have a Phil and Teds stroller since the day I saw one at the zoo. I think it was about 4 years ago. My jaw dropped open and I'm pretty sure I had to pick it up off the ground. It's so smooth, so sleek, so amazingly light and agile with the footprint of a single stroller. It makes my Sit and Stand stroller look... so unsexy. Now don't get me wrong. The Sit and Stand is great. It's fine. Really. It's so heavy though and I have always felt like I'm driving a bus when I push it around (Of course being a large and in charge stroller comes in handy when fighting through a crowd of people at the fair). 
Last night I was laying in bed scrolling my favorite local yard sale site on Facebook. Like a beacon in the darkness (yes that's dramatic) I scrolled through the strollers and there she was! 
I think I heard angels singing.

I felt sad at first because I noticed it had been posted for sale a whole day ago. SURELY it's already been taken. :( However when I scrolled down I realized this was meant to be! No comments yet. My fingers scrambled to type "Interested" as fast as I could lest someone jump ahead of me in line. I quickly hit enter and refreshed to make sure. MINE! YES! 

When I picked it up today I was expecting it to have some sort of fault for the price, surely this must be a mistake. Nope. It's perfect and she even took off $25, threw in a rain cover and threw in an extended sun shade.  Have you ever had that kind of service at Babies R Us? I haven't! Then she showed me all the little tricks and helped me fold it down. I nearly skipped with glee to my van  mommy-mobile. Huzzah! 

The Hubster, of course, freaked when he saw my gold mine. Men. They don't get it. How could they? Rarely are they the ones toting 2 screaming babies through a crowded mall and trying to navigate the teeny tiny spaces between clothing racks in Ann Taylor. Honestly. SMH. This is why I purchase first and explain later. 

"But you already have 3 strollers?!" He exclaimed in a confused voice. 

"Yes but this is different", I calmly explained. "This is a Phil and Teds. You can't just miss an opportunity like this. It's epic. I NEED THIS STROLLER." 

Long pause.... "Let me see it" he says as he heads out to the car saying to my 5 year old "your mom won't stop buying junk". Ha! Junk! Ha. Hahahahahahaha!!! Oh no. 

Don't you worry. He is impressed. The Sit and Stand stroller is now for sale on the local yard sale site. Hopefully someone will find it as sexy and enticing as I found the P&T stroller. 

Obsession: Blog Designs

I'm a very intense person. Most people may not guess because I'm an introvert and quiet. But the intensity... Once I latch on to something I enjoy this wild monster takes over. I get obsessive. Crafts in particular have this effect on me.  Also digital design. I have a love for everything related to digital design. It consumes my thoughts. I'm always drawing inspiration from my surroundings and imagining new creations. 
So lately I've become a bit obsessed with blog design. I've been working for days on some new designs in my shop. It's been sort of all consuming. I'm here to share this with you all. 
Also, If you haven't already please sign up for my NEW quarterly newsletters ----> 

See what I mean? I've been toying with the best way to display these in my shop. I am thinking I like the plain image vs. the backgrounds. 
Click here to see the blog designs in my shop

New! Adorable baby announcements in shop today!

Look at this adorable baby girl! This is my niece. My sister in law has the most adorable twin girls. I'm inspired by the pictures I took of them and have created a new baby announcement - new in the shop today. Can be customized for either a boy or a girl. 

4th of July Freebie

4th of July is quickly approaching and in the spirit of summer I am offering up this free 8x10 inch printable. Enjoy! 

Click here to download

As always please re-share on pinterest or facebook if you use my free printables! Share the love! 

Best. Dad. Ever. Free printable Father's Day Card

Happy Father's Day! (Well almost!) Have you waited until the last minute? If so you are in luck! Here is a free printable you may use to make your own cards at home. Enjoy!!

Click here to download

Princess Party Printables

Princesses have entered the Dazzling Darling Shop. Head on over to check out the oh so cute Cinderella inspired printables. More to come!
Birthday Invitations

Princess Welcome Sign

To Do List - Freebie Printable

This is a very busy week for us. Father's Day, the hubster's birthday and our wedding anniversary. And now we've thrown a trip to Vegas in the mix. Chaos I tell ya! I recently ran out of my Dollar Store cheapie pad that I keep on the fridge to jot down things that we need and chores on my long never ending list of things to do. I'm lost without it. So why not make my own! Here is a "To Do" list freebie that I'd like to share with all you busy moms (or dads) out there. Enjoy! As always if you use this please share the love and re-pin on pinterest. Karma is a good thing. 

Download this to do list here

So close I can TASTE it

VEGAS. Yes. In exactly 2 days [48 hrs, 2880 minutes, or 172,800 seconds] I will be getting on an airplane. Alone. With NO kids. Well not totally alone. My husband is coming too. My 2 best friends also. Yuuuuuuup. Yup yup yup. We are leaving the 4 heathens  kids home with grandma. I might actually giggle out loud. My excitement for 5 solid days of not being responsible for 4 tiny humans and 2 needy baby kittens is overshadowing my complete guilt for taking a vacation somewhere other than Disney.  Mackenzy shed some tears last night and pulled on my mommy heart strings. Sigh. But you know what? Mommy. Needs. A. Break. 
And she will be fine. Grandma will be doing all kinds of fun things with them.  There will be cookies and treats. I know this. They will be great.
VEGAS!!!!

Father's Day Brunch

Father's Day Printables are now in the shop. Make a special father's day by downloading and printing these items for a brunch for dad.  Menu: 

Banner: 

Cupcake or Muffin Toppers and Wrappers

Door Sign and Tent Card

Smart Cookie Labels for teachers

I've been a busy bee today. This morning I went to a friend's baby shower and took along the little man and the diva. We had a great time and some delicious peanut butter pie. YUM. There goes my Atkins diet today. Oh well. I haven't slipped up in 3 weeks. So today was my first cheat day. To be honest, I actually feel kind of icky and tired - which makes me wonder about my tolerance to sugar now that I've grown accustomed to not needing it. Interesting how my tastes have changed so quickly! 
This afternoon included some playing around with Minnie Mouse Birthday invitations per a custom request from a friend. I never waste an opportunity to do a custom order so I also made versions to sell in my shop. They are SOOOO cute.

Matching Thank You Notes as well of course: 

And then because I was on a roll..... TENT CARDS 

Now on to my favorite design of today. 

Tomorrow is Ethan's preschool graduation. I really can't believe its the absolute LAST day of preschool ever for him. SIGH. His preschool teachers were so amazing this year. Every day they had fun crafts and art projects. I have his artwork hanging all over the house. I really admire how upbeat and patient they are. Best preschool teachers EVER. So they deserve a little token of appreciation for all that hard work. 

How fun is that? I filled 16 oz plastic freezer canning jars with chocolate chip cookies. YUM. Printed these tags, cut out the circles and taped to the lid. Then I added a bow with a dab of hot glue. 

Ethan will need to sign these in the morning. If you are interested in this printable the pictures will link directly to my shop listing. Enjoy! 

Father's Day Plans and Kittens

Father's Day is creeping up quickly. I actually thought it was next week and then *gasp* I just realized that it is THIS SUNDAY!! Eeeeeep. I need to get rolling on our plans. My husband is the best father. He really does so much for the kids. I am so lucky to have him. Also he always gives me exactly what I want for Mother's Day. Usually my Mother's Day consists of a clean house while I sleep in, a latte and waffles in bed (yum) and cute handmade cards and crafts from the kids. We decided we really like the idea of doing journals instead of cards so that we can keep the little things the kids give us.  I am of course going to take this project and run with it. I might get a little carried away sometimes. Maybe.  So tonight when I was making a midnight run for formula to feed our kittens (what? That's normal right?) I found a great journal. First how about a glimpse of the kittens that warrant a midnight run to the local Walmart to brave whatever lurks in order to feed their tiny little tummies. 
This is Oreo. Look at that wittle face! 

This is Riley. A little love. 

Anyhow... The journal. Yes.  I bought the one on the far right. 

How cute is that! I'm in love with this theme AND I am planning some Printables for our Father's Day breakfast this weekend to match. Stay tuned! 

Preschool and Kindergarten Graduation Printable

New in the shop! Hot off the presses! I've designed the most adorable (yes I'm biased) preschool and kindergarten printable diplomas for your little graduate moving up to the next grade. Check it out in my shop! 
Kindergarten Diploma

Preschool Diploma

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Graduation Freebie Printable and a Tutorial

My little man is growing up. I really can't believe it. I remember when he was this small: 

Look how cute he was! My little alien :) I love how he's just chillaxin' in this ultrasound picture. 

Anyhow, this Wednesday he is graduating from Pre-K. WHAT? So that means Kindy in the fall. Bittersweet I tell ya! He is so ready. He bounces off the walls and drives me bonkers. He needs kindergarten. I need Kindergarten. 

So here is a free printable in celebration: 

It's actually a PSD file that you download so you can add your own picture and text. I'm including a tutorial on how to do this in Photoshop if you aren't familiar with making a clipping mask. That sounds complicated. It's really easy. I promise. 

Step 1: Download the file by clicking above

Step 2. Open the file up in Photoshop

Step 3: Open up a photo of your graduate in Photoshop

Step 4: Drag and drop it onto the psd file you downloaded. It should be on top. If it's not on top press Ctrl and ] at the same time to bring it to the top. 

Step 4: Now the layer with the picture is on top of the layer of the frame. Hover between the two layers and press the alt button - then click. See the red X? Hover over that. 

Step 5: Your picture is now clipped to the layer below. With your picture layer selected use the arrow tool to position and re-size it however you need.  (See the little arrow pointing down to the layer below? That's a clipping mask!)

Step 6:  Now all you need to do is change the text on the name and the "pre-K" portion. You may need to choose a different font. I used KG Second Chances Solid if you are interested in downloading that. 

Step 7: Save and print. DONE! Enjoy. Please share on Pinterest, Facebook and/or Twitter if you use my card. This card is for personal use only. Thank you!