Cheese Ball

This recipe is by far one of my favorites for holiday parties or pot luck parties! I originally received the recipe from a neighbor of my parents who would make this for their neighborhood Christmas gifts every year. I have since tweaked it a bit to add my own spin. 1 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 5 oz. jar Old English cheese (you can find jarred cheeses near the Velveeta...usually)
1 5 oz. jar Roka Blu cheese **This is a seasonal item and can only be found between Thanksgiving and New Year's, so stock up!!! Whenever I see it on the shelves, I purchase every jar. If you can't find it, you may also substitute a jar of another cheese spread, double up on the Old English, or use 5 oz. of sour cream mixed with a little bleu cheese dressing or crumbles.

1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. chives (parsley if you prefer to lessen the onion flavor)

Soften cheeses and mix everything together. Serve with crackers.

I like to leave the cheese ball as a "spread," but you can definitely form it into a ball and roll in nuts if you prefer it.

First Birthday Party

I have exactly one month till my sweet baby girl turns two!!

I have already started birthday party plans and plan to show

you some DIY projects along the way as well as the big reveal.

While visiting my family in Georgia I stopped by Cake Art

to pick up some supplies, which is also where Bakerella does

some of her shopping. Too bad I didn't get to bump into her!

Anyway, before I show you this year's party plans, I thought

I'd show last years First Birthday Bash!

Here's the spread:

DIY flower poms

tutorial found HERE

homemade dipped pretzels

homemade cupcakes

homemade cake balls

inspired by Bakerella herself

DIY drink labels

designed on Adobe Illustrator

kids table complete with butcher paper

coloring surface

and a DIY hat, skirt, and homemade smash cake

this is what pure joy looks like

pure happiness

it was lots of work, but the pictures will last forever,

and she's worth it!

Now let the 2nd brithday party projects begin

Castle Themed Girl's Room For Only $30

When my husband and I found out we were having our little girl (who is now 2), we decided we wanted to do a castle themed bedroom, but we didn't want it to look cheap, and my husband was very clear that he didn't want it to be all pink!

I initially wanted to do a stone wallpaper on the bottom of her walls, but that was going to cost about $200! With a new baby on the way, we didn't have that much to spend on just wallpaper. So I got the idea to paint my own stones on certain parts of her wall.

Here's how it turned out! I absolutely love it! And it's not as hard as it looks!
First, I painted all the cobblestone. I used toll paint. It's super cheap, covers well, and is easy to work with. I sponged the area a neutral grey color. I didn't fully cover.

Then, I drew in the black lines. I should have done them with a pencil first, but I think they turned out great anyway.

Next, I sponged around the outside of each stone with a little darker grey. The effect when you step back is wonderful! The stones were time consuming, but I love it!

I just did around the door and window and other random corners.

We decided to create another window on an empty wall. I just measured the window she had and made it the same size. The picture inside was a little more difficult. I sponged the tree and grassy area by making several different shades of green.

The sky I painted blue and added some clouds. The water was done very similar.

The most difficult part, the castle, my husband actually designed and painted. If you don't have an extremely gifted artist in the house, you could project the image and trace and paint it.

My husband even included several secret pictures for my daughter to find. There is the boat from Princess Bride, The Little Mermaid, chess pieces, a book, and much more. He is so creative!

For her window treatment, I set out to find a branch laying on the ground, and then I nailed it to the wall. This is a super cheap way to get a very unique curtain rod. I draped the purple fabric and hot glued some flowers onto the branches.

I did the same thing with the drape over her bed, but she has since pulled all the flowers off the branch...

She even has an adorable stuffed bear rug she got from Grandma and Grandpa.

I love the way her room turned out, and I love that it can grow with her. The paint and the fabric came to a grand total of less than $30!

What do you think of this castle room?

Some Christmas Gifts I can show ... FINALLY! :)

Did you all have a great Christmas?? I hope so!! I can finally show a few gifts that I made! 

This is a bag for my mom.  Just a simple tote bag.  Red is her favorite color so I thought this fabric would be perfect.  I love the addition of the ribbon and little bow on the front.  Makes it very pretty.

My mom goes to water aerobics so the bag is lined with a thick plastic table cloth.  Which makes it water proof.  So she can toss her swim suit and towel in after she's done and not worry about it getting the whole bag wet.  There is also a pocket for her to store keys and such in. {Wish I had a differnent color besides blue, but I need to go tablecloth shopping! I got this one {It's Better Homes & Garden} at Wal-Mart on clearance for about $4.  I love working with tableclothes lining bags, lunch bags and such.  Just make sure the tablecloth you get says it is safe for food.  I can't remember what it's called right now, but you will see it on the package. Surprisingly not all of them have it.  And the thicker ones are good to work with -- the stuff on the back of them cling to the fabric making it a sinch.

This bag (REALLY needs to be ironed before I package it up!) is for my little sister.  Big enough for books, sleepover clothes, really anything! 

The pink fabric has polka dots on it.  And I free handed the puppy.  The colar is just some ric rac that I need to trim up a little! :)

2 big bags and then this little one.  This is for my grandma.  Somewhere in my pile of gifts I have a set of 3 bingo dabbers that I wrapped in scrapbook paper.  They say "I'm feeling lucky tonight", "Phyllis' lucky dabber", and "Show me the money!" They are going to go in the front pockets.  And I'd like to sew up a quick little change purse to throw in there.  This isn't meant to be carried as a purse (obviously look at those straps!) but rather a little bag to hold bingo supplies.

Joshua's stocking.  Since all of our Christmas decorations got lost when we moved :( But I do like his stocking!  I love the tree fabric!

What gifts did you make this year?

Interchangeable Hair Flowers Tutorial

I can't take credit for this wonderful genius idea. A friend of mine had one of these for her little girl. We were looking at it and decided that we could totally make our own! What's cool about them, is that they are totally versatile. You can make different pieces that match different outfits and totally mix and match them as you like. They are not that hard to make at all!

Here are the supplies you will need to make your own:

faux flowers or material to make your own flowers

felt

hole punch

hot glue or a strong glue of some type

tulle, faux flower leaves, accents to go with your flowers

buttons or something similar to make up the interchangeable flower centers (I made 3 center pieces, so I used 3 buttons)

plain hair clip

a plain stretchy headband (optional)

hardware

Here is some hardware you should get. I've labeled each piece so that you can see how they go together throughout the tutorial. Make sure that your B piece can fit around the C post. My A piece fit around the D screw. You will only need the A piece if you want a bigger center piece (button) for your flowers. 

Here's a closer look at pieces C and D. The D piece screws into the C piece. I found these pieces at a hardware store. They are super cheap. I think it was like $0.40 for the both of them.

Here are some flowers I used and a button I liked.

1. Putting together the hair-clip piece 

Put piece B over piece C and secure with glue, then glue this to the hair-clip like shown below.

2. Making the center pieces

Get your buttons that you will be using for the center pieces. Cut off the back piece that extends out on each button.

You will then glue piece D to the back of the buttons. If you are using a large button, you can glue piece D to piece A before you glue it onto the button. Each of these pieces will screw into the hair-clip piece. I ended up with a gold one, a pearl one, and a black one.

3. Putting together your flowers

Pull apart some faux flowers. I ended up with separate petals with holes in the center. Make sure that you match up the hole in the middle and just hot glue around the hole and stack up and glue the petals back together one-by-one. Choose as many flowers as you want!

Or you can make your own flower, like I did here. I almost felt like I was sinning as I cut apart an old book to get my petals--but it was totally the look that I was going for. I brushed the edges with some gold paint. I also cut up some tulle to go in between the petals.

I glued them all together one by one and punched a hole in the center.

4. Making the flower accents

Grab your piece of felt. I traced around a spool of thread to make my circles. You will need two circles of felt for each accent.

Punch a hole in the center of each piece of felt.

Put your accent piece, in this case--a feather, in between the pieces of felt and glue them together.

Make as many accent pieces as you want!

Here is the assortment of pieces I put together and ended up with.

Now all you have to do is pick out the pieces that you want on the hair-clip, stack them onto the hair-clip post, and screw on the center piece.

Check out all of the different looks that you can get out of this project! You can even clip them onto headbands for something different. The possibilities are endless :)

Linked up with:

Today's Creative Blog 

Getting to Know our Contributors Week-Aliese

Do you have any pets? Yup! I have a very cute Holland Lop bunny named Truffle. She is almost two years old and was the runt of her litter; she is still rather small. It took some time, but we have potty-trained her to use a litter box (like a cat) and she just hops around the house! So cute. Her current obsession is to eat the pine needles off the bottom limbs of our Christmas tree. She also really loves to watch TV.

What was the last book you read? The last book(s) I read were the Pretty Little Liars series. I was intrigued by they TV series and had to read the books. They're kind of raunchy, but definitely gripping.

Do you like to cook? I LOVE to cook! That's probably why I'm the culinary contributor.... :) I do not enjoy cleaning up my cooking messes though...I also wish I were better at making my own recipes. I tend to do more tweaking to recipes I already know and love.

Where and what do you like to eat when you go out? I LOVE to eat out. That being said though, I prefer restaurants that aren't necessarily mainstream/franchised. I love the veggie noodles at Pasta Factory with Alfredo sauce, chicken, and sauted mushrooms. I also like the special burrito at Paula's Cazuela, and the entirety of the menu at Basila's Mediterranean Cafe. I also really love the sushi and mango/sticky rice dessert at Benja's. Oh, and even though it's totally franchised: Texas Roadhouse rolls. YUM.

What are your pet-peeves? I have so many of these (is that healthy?). I guess the ones that come to mind are: flaky people, clocks that flash 12:00 constantly, tardiness, people who blame others for their own poor decisions/actions.

What is something that you regret about your past? I regret not taking the train to Paris the TWO times I've been to Europe. Seriously! You think a girl would learn that if you wanna see the Eiffel Tower, you're gonna have to go to Paris! I planned to take the train to Paris for a day while my husband was working over there in October, but the media blitz advising all Americans to travel with extreme caution discouraged me from going since a) I would be alone, b) I speak no French, and c) our cell phones didn't have service.

What is something that you don't regret about your past? Not that I can think of an EXACT occurrence, but I have never regretted speaking my mind and being honest--even if it hurt someone's feelings. It may sound heartless, but I've had far more heartache over gossip and back-biting than honesty.

Do you have brothers and sisters? What is your relationship like with them? I have one brother (Jacob-19) and two sisters (Jennifer & Natalie-24 & 15)--all younger than myself. I also have a brother-in-law, Adam. We get along famously and it is truly an honor to be able to call them my very best friends. They're completely rad. We're very close! My siblings and I all have the same smile, the same blue eyes, and twisted sense of humor. Our parents figure the eyes and smiles are genetic, but our personalities are definitely OURS. I'm quite certain my parents have been ashamed to claim us on more than one occasion. I can't say I blame them. :) We're a rare breed.I also have four sisters-in-law and four brothers-in-law on my husband's side.

Which sports do you like? My family members are all swimmers. We eat, sleep, and breathe chlorination (that cute brother of mine even holds a few state records; he's freakishly quick). And really, if there are concessions involved, I'll happily watch any sporting event.

Do you live in a house or an apartment? My husband, Darrin, and I bought our house six months after we were married. It's a cute, little 3-bed, 2-bath home. Ironically enough, we're already beginning to grow out of it!

Have you ever lived in another country? I have never lived in another country but I have spent a combined 2-3 months OUT of the country visiting various places.

Have you ever met a famous person? I had the way cool experience of meeting and then singing with Rosemary Clooney when I was in high school. If you're familiar with the old, holiday classic White Christmas, she plays the older sister, Betty. Needless to say, my grandparents were pretty stoked about my opportunity! I also met and sang with Michael McClean on his "gold" Forgotten Carols CD, as well as various Forgotten Carols performances around the state of Utah. Oh, and I used to hang out with Steve Castleberry all the time in college (he played for the 76ers and is now playing in the Czech Republic, I guess). But I guess that was BEFORE he was famous.

How do you spend your free time? I spend my free time doing homework (I'm just finishing up grad school), sewing, cooking, digital scrapbooking, playing games, watching movies, playing the piano, singing, camping, swimming, texting my siblings because they all live far away from me, etc.

What countries have you visited? I have visited Canada, Mexico, the Bahamas, England, Germany, and Belgium.

Do you have a nickname? Quite a few, but "Liesey" is the most common. Girl, Liese, Ace, and Magoo are others.

What do you do on Sundays? I go to church, hang out with family, and relax on Sundays. My husband and I usually make a treat on Sunday nights as well.

What's your job? I am in my 7th year teaching school. I started as a 7th grade English and history teacher, and am now a 6th grade science teacher. I am currently working on my Master's and my administrative endorsement so that maybe one day when I'm MUCH older, I can be a principal.

What is your motto in life? When you go through life-whatever be your goal-keep you eye upon the doughnut and not upon the hole. NRLTD is an acronym my husband lived by and it has also since been added to my personal list of mottoes. It is one, however, I have vowed to keep secret. Feel free to try to figure it out on your own though because it's a good one!

What is/are your favorite movie(s)? While You Were Sleeping is my very favorite with the Anne of Green Gables trilogy and Mary Poppins close behind.

Which languages do you speak? I speak English (obviously) and some German.

What are you best at? I'm a really good listener, and I'm very patient. I tend to be a "jack of all trades" when it comes to crafting, music, cooking, almost anything really. I generally try something once or twice and am pretty decent afterward. What can I say? I lead a fairly charmed life. I'm just not THE BEST at anything.

Any bad habits you need to work on? I definitely need to work on de-junking. I wouldn't call myself a hoarder at all, but I could definitely stand to de-clutter and simplify.

Who has had the most influence in your life? So many people! My parents, siblings, friends, and husband are all wonderful (and easy) answers, but my 9th grade English teacher ( Judy Jackman) and my high school choir teacher (Kelly DeHaan) are two people I can guarantee I will never forget. They both changed my life and I think about them all the time.

Would you like to be famous? Umm...depends on what for! I think I'd prefer to be influential rather than famous though.

What do you think you will be doing five years from now? I can pretty much guarantee I'll still be teaching school with a possible child.

Are you a 'morning' or 'night' person? Both. I prefer nighttime, but I am a hardcore early riser (sometimes as early as 4 AM) which drives my husband crazy (especially Sunday mornings). I have a really difficult time sleeping in. Once I'm awake, I just can't go back to sleep!

What is your favorite season? Winter! With summer as a close second. I love snow and the holidays which come with winter. As a kid, it was always really easy to look forward to winter thanks to my birthday, Christmas, family traditions, etc.

What do you like to do as a family? We really love to play card games, watch movies, go camping, and reminisce. My siblings and I could look at photo albums and home movies for HOURS (and we have).

How many times did you move as a child? We moved seven times, but always moved within a 15-mile radius. We moved into the home my parents live in now when I was in the fifth grade, so most of the moves were when I was VERY young.

If you could live anywhere in the world for a year, where would it be? Europe. I would just backpack around going from town to town!

If you knew you could try anything and not fail, what dream would you attempt? I would become a vocal performance major (again).

What super-power would you most like to have, and why? Hmmm...Torture people with only my thoughts? Sounds creepy, I know, but don't you ever wish you could--just once? You know--that "customer service" rep. who doesn't want to help you, people who don't use their turn signals...I just think it'd be nice every once in awhile.

Would you rather take pictures or be in pictures? I would much rather be in pictures so that posterity knew I was there!

Are you a beach, country, or city person? I'm a beach/city person. Neither of which are where I live...sad...

Where do you spend most of your money? I spend most of my money paying bills-but when I'm shopping, it's spent at Abercrombie & Fitch, H&M, and various craft/fabric stores.

Why did you choose the shirt you're wearing right now? I am currently wearing an Abercrombie & Fitch hoodie...I totally buy Abercrombie brand stuff because my initials are "AF" and I'm obsessed with monograms. Lame reason, but it's the truth.

When did you start feeling old? Umm...Wednesday, since it was my 28th birthday? No, actually the first time I really felt old (even though I don't consider myself to be old and find it UBER-ridiculous when people say they're old and they haven't hit 50 yet) was when a student from my first year of teaching sent me a Facebook message saying she was engaged. I've only taught for seven years and had only been married for a couple of years myself! I also received a bunch of graduation announcements that same Spring and had a hard time believing kids I taught were actually adults since I didn't really consider myself one...yet...

How would you describe your overall style? VERY Casual.

What is the best material gift you ever received? Probably the diamond earrings my daddy bought me for my birthday one year (I think it was my 21st??). They're certainly not the prettiest, largest, or most expensive diamonds, but he picked them out himself and didn't even tell my mom until after he'd already bought them. It really meant a lot to me since my dad had always told us, "If God wanted holes in your ears, he would have put them there to begin with." I didn't get my ears pierced until I was 19 and living on my own. It may seem silly, but it meant a lot for Daddy to buy me earrings--diamond earrings, no less.

If you have a significant other, how did you meet and what attracted you to him/her? My husband (Darrin) and I were first introduced at a mutual friend's home, but didn't really talk until we were both auditioned for Beauty and the Beast with a regional theater company. Turns out, we were both cast in the show! He played LeFou and I was a myriad of characters. We also randomly ended up in the same LDS singles' ward and his best friend was my home teacher. We met in July 2006, were engaged October 2006, and married March 2007. We were almost instantly attracted to one another purely by our interests. We love performing and playing card games. Well...that and "single" people in the cast were few and far between. :) When you have to spend 50+ hours/week with a group of people, they tend to be your only interest by default!

What is your favorite TV show? FRIENDS, Gilmore Girls, and Glee. I'm also a sucker for MTV reality shows.

Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? So many! Abercrombie (obviously), H&M, Pottery Barn...even Target!

What is your favorite recent purchase? Netflix. :)

Getting to know our contributors week-Kristin

My name is Kristin, I live in Las Vegas, and here

is a little bit about me!

Do you have any pets? I have a dog, a beagle

What was the last book you read? Last book was Mockingjay, but I am currently reading The Host

Do you like to cook? I LOVE to cook, and bake too!

Where and what do you like to eat when you go out? MEXICAN!

Do you have brothers and sisters? 2 brothers and 1 sister

Which sport do you like? Soccer! I don't play, but I love to watch!

Do you live in a house or an apartment? House, but we rent

Have you ever lived in another country? I wish!

Have you ever met a famous person? I wish!

How do you spend your free time? Playing with my little girl, crafting, and blogging

What countries have you visited? Mexico

What do you do on Sundays? Go to church, and spend time with my family. I also scrapbook online.

What do you do? What's your job? I am a mom, a part time nanny and a part time substitute teacher

Which languages do you speak? English!

Would you like to be famous? YES!

Are you a 'morning' or 'night' person? Night for sure!

What is your favorite season? Summer! I love to be at the pool and go on vacation!

How many times did you move as a child? Only twice. But since I have been married I we have moved 5 times in 5 years.

If you could live anywhere in the world for a year, where would it be? At the beach, I know that's lame, but I get overwhelmed thinking about living somewhere that speaks a different language

If you knew you could try anything and not fail, what dream would you attempt? Starting my own Interior Design business

Are you a beach, country, or city person? A little of each!

Where do you spend most of your money? JCrew, it's my weakness, I just LOVE their clothes

When did you start feeling old? I don't feel old, I'm only 24!

How would you describe your overall style? simple, classy, and me!

If you were a crayon, what color would you be? gray, it's my favorite color, and it's a color that is supposed to spark creativity!

What is the best material gift you ever received? My computer, it's a Mac, and I'm in love with it. My parents bought it for me when I graduated college.

If you have a significant other, how did you meet and what attracted you to him/her? We met in college through a mutual friend, I thought he was super cute!

What is your favorite TV show? 30 Rock or Modern Family

Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? JCrew!!

If you have children, how many children do you have and what are their names? 1, her name is Addyson and she will be 2 in January!

What is your favorite recent purchase? New sheets from Pottery Barn, they are so comfy and pretty!

Neighbor Gift Poem

Remember this post about making scour pads for dishes?? If you pair it with a dish towel, here's a great little poem you can use as a neighbor/teacher gift:

This Christmas you deserve the very best-

a present unlike all the rest.

I considered a new car or exotic cruise,

but decided on something you could really USE.

Finally I found a gift you would admire:

I hope you enjoy your new washer and dryer!

Getting to Know Your Contributers: Ashley

My husband and me

My adorable 2 year-old Sophie. Yes, she has glue and glitter on her little face, but still manages to be a doll!

Do you like to cook? I love to cook, but I hate to clean up after.

Where and what do you like to eat when you go out? I love to go to Outback Steakhouse because they have a fantastic gluten free menu.

What are your pet-peeves? I hate it when my clothes are hung up out of order or my towels aren't folded correctly. There are many others, but I don't like to reveal how many OCD tendencies I have.

What is something that you regret about your past? My past has brought me where I am today, and today is really wonderful, so I wouldn't change a thing.

Which sport do you like? I love volleyball and running. I hate to watch sports! Luckily, I married someone who feels the same way.

Do you live in a house or an apartment? We bought the cutest little town home a few years back, and I love it! Mostly, I love my large storage room off my kitchen. I'm weird about little things like that.

Have you ever met a famous person? I have met Peter Jackson, but I didn't realize it was him at the time, and I made a complete fool of myself by saying, "Hey you have the same name as that famous director!" When he told me he was the famous director, I laughed out loud and said, "Yeah right!" It was pretty bad, and my husband still makes fun of me for it.
There have been a few others, but that was definitely the most memorable.

How do you spend your free time? My favorite free time activities include ones that are spent with my family. I also love to read, sew, cook, make soap and other home supplies, go to the gym, and I absolutely love kickboxing!


What do you do? What's your job? I have the hardest, most wonderful job in the world! I am a stay-at-home mom.

What is your motto in life? Live with no regrets.

Which languages do you speak? I speak English well (most days), and I can get by with the little bit of Spanish I know.

Are you a 'morning' or 'night' person? I don't like to stay up late, and I don't like to get up super early. What does that make me?

What is your favorite season? My favorite season changes as they come around. I love them all for different reasons. Most of my favorite activities revolve around summer though.

If you could live anywhere in the world for a year, where would it be? My husband and I would like to move to Maine for a year! Maybe one day we just might do that! He may end up with mercury poisoning though for his intense love of crab.

If you knew you could try anything and not fail, what dream would you attempt? I believe the possibility of failure is what makes accomplishments so great. If I couldn't fail, the achievement would be worthless.

What super-power would you most like to have, and why? I wish I could clean my entire house with the snap of my fingers! Does that need an explanation?

What is your favorite TV show? My favorite TV shows are actually from the 1950's; the best being "I Love Lucy."

If you have children, how many children do you have and what are their names? I have an adorable 2 year-old names Sophie, and I am expecting another in a few short months. Her name is yet to be determined.

Getting To Know Our Contributors Week - Amanda

Hey guys!

I'm Amanda.  I am a 20 something year old married to

{bwhahaha Mr. Hubbs is NOT going to be happy.  He does not like pictures of himself up on in blog land.  Esp. not pictures in which I make him put on cowboy hat.  We will see how long this one lasts...}

I am a mommy to

Aren't my boys cute?  I just love them!

We live in Indiana (any other Hoosiers out there!?) I blog (here -obviously - Today's Top 20, Were the Joneses and The Super Mom Club) , Hubbs works (alot...) Josh goes to school (2nd grade - holy cow!).  We're pretty exciting people! :)

SURVEY SAYS...

1.Do you have any pets? No. :( We had to get rid our dog Louie

because we moved to an apartment.  BUT we did have a farm house before moving here and we had chickens (they were cute as chicks...pain in the but as well chickens.  Just not my thing) and kittens (my sister took this little gal home)

and of course.  Louie.

2. What was the last book you read? I Dare You.  By Joyce Meyer.  Well I'm still reading it.  Love it.  HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT!!!

3. Do you like to cook? Yes.  But I hate to clean up.

4. Where and what do you like to eat when you go out? I'm a chicken kind of gal (well...just not owning them).  If I dont' get pasta (oh me and carbs have a love / hate relationship.  I love them.  My butt hates them...) I get either chicken fingers or a chicken Caesar salad.  I love Caesar salad.

5. What are your pet-peeves? I'm weird. Kind of OCD.  I like things in order.  I do things in order (hence...why I can't just skip a question on this list) Mondays I deep clean the living room.  Tuesdays the dining room.  And so on.  If something happens and I forget a day I have to wait til the next week to start.  I'm weird I know.  So my biggest Pet Peeve is when Hubs and I will get a season of something on DVD (well, netflix) and he SKIPS.  We were watching Law and Order.  He went episode 2 to episode 8 and then 3.  Or Josh will ask me to play Mario (old school super mario 3 style) and he warps worlds.  Can't handle it.  YOU HAVE TO GO IN ORDER!!! That's why they're numbered!!!!

6. What is something that you regret about your past? I wish I wasn't so bratty as a teen.  Was anyone else a know it all?

7. What is something that you don't regret about your past? I had Josh when I was really young. But I am so glad I had him -- I believe God def. sent him to me for a reason.  He's helped me in more ways then he will ever know!

8. Do you have brothers and sisters? What is your relationship like with them? Yea, a lot.  Both my mom and dad have been remarried to someone with kids.  So Ben, Carl (Step-dad's from previous marriage), Chris, Drew (mom's from previous marriage) Sydney, Caleb (mom and step dad's together) Max, and Anastasia (dad and step-mom's kids).  LOTS.

9. Which sport do you like? I love me some football!!

10. Do you live in a house or an apartment? An apartment.  As much as I can't wait for us to buy a house I have to say I am so blessed to have a wonderful home. (With GINORMOUS walk in closets.  Hey, thats a huge plus in my book!)

11.Have you ever lived in another country? I was born in England.  Lived there a whole 3 months.  Woot woot for dual citizenship!

12. Have you ever met a famous person? Not really famous to me.  Basketball players when I was 18.  I waited tables at P.F.Changs and they would come in all the time.  I thought most of the ones that came in were pretty full of themselves.  And so, I will not call them famous.  BUT if any of you know John Stamos and want to send him my way.  I have a HUGGE crush one him.  (And have since Full House)

13. How do you spend your free time? I make stuff.  Spend too much time on the computer looking at blogs! :)

14. Tell me about a favorite or funny event from your adulthood. Um well yesterday I told Josh to go get a Q-Tip from my bathroom so I could clean his ears.  I was reading on the couch and he came in with a tampon (he had it unwrapped and all pulled apart) and he goes I couldn't find the kid size.  I was cracking up.  Hubbs was laughing.  I said those aren't QTips.  Joshua: What are they.  Hubbs: NOT something you clean your ears with.

15. Tell me about a favorite or funny event from your childhood. These are kind of hard.  I don't remember.  I got kicked out of home ec. in jr. high because I put an egg in the microwave.  And it exploded.  And smelled for DAYS.  I totally didn't know it would do that.  (I may have had an experience with the sewing machine too....) So they sent me to Ag. Kind of funny I write craft blogs now huh?

16. Have you ever been in an accident? More than I'd like to admit.  Last time I backed hubbs Tahoe into a telephone pole at the bank. 

17. What countries have you visited? Not many.  England & Canada.

18.Do you have a nickname? Nope. And please do not call me Mandy.

19. What do you do on Sundays?  Church.  And I clean the house. 

20. What do you do? What's your job? I stay at home.  I blog.  I clean the house. I make dinner.  I do lots of laundry.  I volunteer. I used to teach preschool.  And then I was a part time manager at Gymboree.

21. What is your motto in life? Can I have a new motto?  I recently came across this : Worship fully, spend less, give more, love all.  It's supposed to be geared towards the Christmas season.  But I love it.

22. What is/are your favorite movie(s)? Breakfast at Tiffany's. I'm not sure if I like the movie for the actual movie or because of her clothes.  The Breakup cracks me up too.  We don't watch a lot of Grown up movies...usually Josh movies.

23. What kind of people do you like? I like funny people....tell me a joke! I like nice people.  I really like people.  I'll talk. You talk back. 

24. Which languages do you speak? I know ASL (American Sign Language) and French.  I know a few bits and pieces of Spanish.

25. What are you best at? Probably making stuff.  I like it.  I'm magical sometimes.  Other times... not so much. :)  

26. Any bad habits you need to work on? Yeah don't you?  I've got a few pounds that need to do a disappearing act.

27.Who has had the most influence in your life? Joshua!  And my hubbs! :)

28.Would you like to be famous? I don't know.  Right now famous to me is Bakerella.  Or Amy from the idea room.  I'd take that famous.  But not make me go crazy Britney Spears famous. 

I'm no Lohan!

29. What do you think you will be doing five years from now? Keeping on keepin on.  Josh will be a teenager - OMG.  Hopefully we will have more babies by then! :)

30. Are you a 'morning' or 'night' person? Is anyone still reading? Depends on the day.  I hate getting up. But I usually get more done in the morning.

31. What is your favorite season? Spring or fall...but spring starts warmer weather so I'll chose that one.  But fall colors are so pretty.  Even if they don't last long!

32. What do you like to do as a family? We play games.  A lot. A lot a lot of games.   Xbox, board games, card games.  If you can play..we do. (I'm the current skip bo champion of our home... Just saying.)

33. How many times did you move as a child? Twice.  Not a mover. 

34. What cartoon or TV show character best describes you? Hmmm... I don't know. But i know what I will end up being like.  Everyone loves Raymond..Raymond's mom.  When Josh grows up and moves away I am totally moving across the street. Fair warning girls.

35.If you could live anywhere in the world for a year, where would it be? Hypothetically I suppose you would also be providing me with an awesome place to live.  Like a posh flat in London?

36. If you knew you could try anything and not fail, what dream would you attempt? I'd have my own boutique.  I suppose with Etsy anyone can huh?

37. What super-power would you most like to have, and why? I do have super powers what are you talking about?

38. Would you rather take pictures or be in pictures? Take pictures.  Unless i had the body I had 6 years ago.  Then in pictures.  We're being honest here right?

39. Are you a beach, country, or city person? Tried the country thing.  I hated it.  True story: I took Josh for his 1st day of kindergarten and one of the high school kids RODE THEIR HORSE TO SCHOOL.  The poor thing was tied up outside.  I wish I still had the picture (that I of course sent to all my girl friends).

40. Where do you spend most of your money? Just one place?  Fabric stores, gymboree, American Eagle, TJ Maxx.  The grocery store.  Hubbs says I have a problem.

41. Why did you choose the shirt you're wearing right now? Um.  It's an old Tshirt from the hubs.  It was there. It was comfy.  It's purple. (it was a softball shirt of his.  I dont think he was fond of the purple).

42.When did you start feeling old? I got an email about our HS reunion coming up.  That kind of made me feel old. Or when Josh started school.  That was hard.

43. How would you describe your overall style?  Laid back.  Classic. 

44.If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Josh would make me be green.  Apparently it's now my favorite color.

45. What is the best material gift you ever received? My wedding ring.

46. If you have a significant other, how did you meet and what attracted you to him/her?  We met through a friend.  Have you seen my hubby.  He's hot! :) (Now, he's really going to be embarrassed!)

47.What is your favorite TV show? I love Criminal Minds.

48. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?  Amazon.  Just because I could buy EVERYTHING. 

49. If you have children, how many children do you have and what are their names? I have Joshua, he's 7.

{at 100 day at school}

50. What is your favorite recent purchase? We I mean SANTA got a red Wii for Josh to put in his room.  And a magic kit.  The kid is going to FLIP. :)