Cake Decorating for Beginners
I present to you this cake decorating how to for beginners. Think of it as an amateur’s guide to Birthday Cake Decorating.
…DIY: Flower Seed Pockets
Flower pockets are a fun spring project and provide plenty of blooms all summer long. The pockets look sweet, and get buried directly in the soil! Better yet, even the littlest of hands can help make them. You’ll also love giving them to teachers, grandparents, neighbors and friends. They make a great little gift-for-no-reason.
Keep reading for the easy instructions.
…Dyed Easter Eggs With Decoupaged Cutouts
For really eye-catching Easter Eggs, try dyeing, then découpaging.
Find full instructions below.
…How to Grow Wheatgrass
A perfect Spring-time project. Let’s make a wheatgrass centerpiece using some basic things from around the house. This is super easy, even if you’ve never grown wheatgrass before.
Let’s get started!
…Living With Kids: Carla Macklin
Carla sent me the most stunning photos of her home, and I loved every single one. But then she wrote back right away and asked “Did I erase too much of my kids in those photos?” That was something she didn’t want to do, no matter how gorgeous the pictures. I assured her we would understand, especially since there are a lot of good ideas to take from this tour.
Like the large table just behind the couch, perfect for projects and so much more useful with kids than a simple sofa table, right? Or the floor-length tablecloth on the dining table; how many instant forts do you think Evelyn and Wren enjoy on a daily basis? Oh, and the master tub. Yes, I believe living with kids would be so much fun — especially at bath time — in a home like the Macklin’s. You’ll see, I hope! Friends, please enjoy the tour!
…Shamrock Pinwheel Sandwiches & Irish Green Salad for St. Patrick’s Day
What fun to create this kid-friendly St. Patrick’s day meal — perfect for kids.
Feeling lucky? Let’s get to eating.
…Shamrock Pinwheel Sandwiches & Irish Green Salad for St. Patrick’s DayRead More »
DIY: Nail Polish Marbling
I did a bunch of experimenting and found that nail polish and water offer up an extremely easy way to marble just about anything you desire — from glass to wood to metal to cardboard. The options are endless! I used this nail polish marbling technique on glass jars, metal bowls, wooden gift tags, and papier-maché boxes.
It would be a fun technique for bridal shower favors, or making simple jewelry boxes at a birthday party for your kid. Or you could marble a carafe and two glasses as a drinking water set for the guest room. (I could go on and on…)
And with the seemingly limitless color selection in polish now a days, there is sure to be a color scheme to your liking.
Come learn this technique!
…Thai Sweet Potato and Chicken Curry Soup
I thought it would be fun to share a stick-to-your-ribs recipe. Something that is warm and hearty and delicious, but doesn’t feel like the same old, same old. A soup that spoons up like a thick casserole! And it’s packed with tons of interesting flavors.
This soup has all the flavor of a mild Thai curry. It has just the tiniest kick of heat that is perfectly tempered with the sweetness from the sweet potatoes and coconut milk. With the chicken and the additional veggies — broccoli, peas, and bell peppers — this soup has tons of flavor and texture. The rice is conveniently cooked in the soup, making this a fairly low-maintenance meal that yields a large batch of soup that can be enjoyed by many…or hoarded by you to enjoy for days afterwards because it is still that cold outside.
Alrighty. Let’s make this warm and cozy feast!
…Raspberry Milk on Valentine’s Day
Happy Valentine’s Day! Are you doing anything fun to celebrate?
St. Valentine’s Day isn’t a big thing here in France. I mean, you can see it on the calendar. And there are a few stores with hearts in the windows. But there are no Valentine exchanges at school, and I haven’t seen any restaurants offering a sweetheart’s menu. Though I did see quite a few Valentine-themed flower bouquets in the shops today.
Our family tradition is a Valentine Breakfast with pancakes or waffles, our traditional raspberry milk (notes and recipe below), and a little gift on each child’s plate. Something small — a token really.
Wherever you are, I hope you’re offering an extra dose of love to the people in your life. Happy Valentine’s Day!
…The Perfect Gift: Dip-Dyed Treat Bags
Today’s Valentine DIY is a simple and easy project that your kids will love to help you with. These little bags would make a sweet little gift for your teenagers, your children’s classmates, and neighborhood friends. The ‘Love One Another’ flavor is unusual for Valentine’s Day, but I think it’s so fitting. I hope you like it!
Once you have all your supplies together, it really is quite simple.
…Make a LOVE Valentine Gift Bag—Free Printable!
Let’s welcome February with a sweet little project — complete with free download!
Handmade Valentines are the best. Handmade Valentines that include a bag of sweets, the best ever. This little treat bag is simple to put together and perfect for all your Valentines.
With the free printable, scissors and double-sided tape (and a few sweets), your Valentines will feel the love for sure.
…Six Books for Valentine’s Day
One of my favorite things to give on Valentine’s Day is books. You can find dozens of sweet and beautiful choices under $15 (often under $10!). A book is a treasure, but doesn’t feel extravagant, which I think is perfect — I don’t like to go over-the-top on Valentine’s Day.
These picks would be especially sweet for February 14th. Order one today and it will arrive in time — or stop by your nearest local shop.
…Recipe: Rainbow Smoothies with Oats
We love smoothies for after school snacks, and we love them for a quick morning breakfast. I would say especially in the mornings. When we’re feeling rushed, or have a morning time crunch, smoothies are our fastest breakfast. Partly because in general, I’m not big on measuring smoothie ingredients. I tend to throw in whatever’s in the freezer or fridge and adjust proportions as I go.
When I’m deciding what should go in the smoothie, the rainbow is my general guideline. If I can fit in red, orange, yellow, green and blue/purple ingredients, that’s terrific. And when I can, I call it a Rainbow Smoothie.
Today I’ve got two Rainbow Smoothie variations for you. I asked my kids to describe the difference, and they said one is creamy, and one is refreshing — and that they loved them both! Each includes wholegrain oats. They make the smoothies more filling, so that it really feels like breakfast in a cup. And though I mentioned I don’t typically measure my ingredients, I did measure these so that I could give you a good starting point, and then you can add more or less amounts of ingredients as you see fit.
…Living With Kids: Julie Blackmon
Julie Blackmon is a photographer. Correction: Julie Blackmon is an amazing photographer. And that’s one skill that contributes to a beautiful home, don’t you think? Having a refined eye that can edit mercilessly, arrange a room so that the sunlight dances through it, and ultimately create a space where both kids and adults feel comfortable. I’ve known so many friends who routinely take photos of their home to “check” how it’s living. Is it balanced? Are the colors and textures and patterns in harmony? Julie does it all perfectly. Just take a look. Friends, welcome to the Blackmon’s picture perfect home.
…Galette Des Roi—King Cake
In France throughout the month of January (and into February too), pretty much every bakery carries Galettes des Roi, which translates to King Cake. I’m told January 6th is the official King Cake day, but it was also made clear to me that you can enjoy a King Cake celebration any day, all month long.
Though the tradition stems from the Catholic Day of Epiphany and is tied to the Nativity Story and the Three Kings, we’ve attended several King Cake gatherings over the years and we’ve never heard anyone mention Epiphany or the Three Kings, so it seems like one of those traditions that has become pretty secular.
…A Simple Way to Help Kids Make New Year’s Resolutions
When the kids were young, approximately once a month, Ben Blair and I hold interviews with each of the kids. We try to get a sense of how they’re feeling about life in 4 areas: physically, mentally, socially and spiritually. We have a journal set aside where we keep notes from the interviews. As the year changes, we use the same notebook to record our kids resolutions.
To help my kids get started thinking about the coming year, they get a short reminder (read: lecture) about what resolutions are for — to become better people. Then, I offer them prompter questions to get them started:
…A Simple Way to Help Kids Make New Year’s ResolutionsRead More »
DIY: Easy Boxwood Garland
I adore fresh greenery during the holidays, but wiring garland sometimes feels like a giant task. Then, a light bulb went off on how to make a super simple garland. It has lots of festive punch but requires very little work.
Here’s how to make it:
…How to Tie a Bow—3 Techniques
I have a big basket chock full of all kinds of pretty ribbon I’ve been collecting over the years. To me, a pretty bow on the top of a gift is almost as important as what’s inside! But a bow is a bow is a bow, right? And it’s no different than tying a shoe, yes? Well. Yes and no.
I’m going to show you three bow-tying techniques — each one achieving a slightly different look for different purposes. I’m also going to show you the trick to getting your ribbon to lay flat on the bottom of your gift box. Professional gift wrappers use this very same method. (Fancy!)
…How to Wrap a Present—Photo Tutorial
Let’s talk about wrapping presents. I get a little giddy thinking about all of the combinations of paper and ribbon bows. So much prettiness!
It’s an assumption that every person in the world knows how to wrap and present and crease the wrapping paper just so, but I’ve been surprised on several occasions to hear friends confess they never actually learned, and that they buy gifts based on shop gift wrapping services or accessibility to gift bags.
In case you are in the same boat, or in need of a little refresher, I’m here to help. And I have a few secrets to make wrapping more enjoyable.
…How to Make Shrink Film Jewelry
Looking for budget-friendly gift ideas? Here is a great one! Five-year-old Betty made this shrink plastic jewelry for her siblings and they turned out wonderfully. Plus, we had the best time making them, hanging out in the kitchen one-on-one. Betty kept saying, “I LOVE doing projects with you, Mom.” Made me so happy!
This was the first time I’ve ever tried shrink plastic and it is awesome. Seriously. So fun, and such a satisfying project for kids. It really feels magical. It’s basically a sheet of thin, flexible plastic, and when you bake it, it transforms. Bonus: making all of these cost about $1. Bargain!
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