Nail Care 101- Feature of the Day

Unless you live under a rock, and I am pretty sure that most people do not,  then you have seen the current  fad of nail art.  You don't have to go far to find hundreds of pictures of fun designs and colors.  Enter nail art on Pinterest, and thousands of boards will appear.   I recently read that there were  2.5 million google searches on the subject in the last month.   What I really love about this post on nail care from Ange of Hair Spray and High Heels is she shows how to take care of your nails with an extensive list of great products and tips. You nails need to be in good shape to look good in all that polish.  I have two girls who love to paint theirs, so I am going to share Ange's list with them so they know there is more to nail care than just polish.  You can check out Hair Spray and High Heels and see her full list of great tips and products HERE.  Thanks so much for linking up to Dare to Share Ange! 

Cheesy Bacon Au Gratin Potatoes- Feature of the Day

I love cheese. I also love potatoes.  Put the two together, and you got my interest.  Terri from Easy Life Meals and Party Planning share this delicious looking cheesy bacon au gratin recipe on this weeks party.  She shares this great way to make regular potatoes into some special on her blog here.  Thanks so much for linking up to Dare to Share Terri! 

Guest Post on Tutus and Tea Parties Today

I was asked by my friend Lauren of Tutus and Tea Parties if I would like to do a guest post for her while she was on vacation.  I said yes of course, and then for several days was not sure what I was going to post about. Then during the time my mom was visiting, we went to go see the movie Despicable Me 2.  We all really enjoyed the movie, especially the minions.  Then it hit me, why not make minion puppets from the movie. Once I knew what I wanted to make, everything quickly came together.  Be sure to stop over at Tutus and Tea Parties today to see how I made my minion friends. 

Dare To Share #69

It is Friday night which means...

It's Dare to Share Time!

Mason Jar Tote - Feature of the Day

Today's Dare to Share Feature of the Day is a Mason Jar Tote by Connie of  Family Home and Life.  What I love about this piece is she re-purposed items she bought at a garage sale for very little money.  With just a little bit of paint and a lettering decal, she turned this cast off into a beautiful  tote  that can be used in  many different ways.  You can see her before pics and how she transformed her tote on her blog Family Home and Life here. Thank you so much for linking up to Dare to Share Connie! 

How to Make Rainbow Rock Candy

One of the fun things we made for our party was Rainbow Rock Candy.  It is not that difficult,  but it does take a lot of time.  You will need to start making it about a week before you want to eat it. 

Summertime Bingo Printable - Feature of the Day

Can you believe that we are halfway through the summer?!  I am not ready to move on to the next season just  yet. I would seriously love it if it could be summer all the time.  Kim from Kims Kandy Kreations has a fun summertime printable that kids can play at summer  parties, bbqs or even just because.  If you would like to print her summer bingo game, you can find it at her site Kims Kandy Kreations here.  Thanks so much for linking up to Dare to Share Kim! 

Rainbow Party Ideas

One thing that I really liked about having an Art Themed Party, it was very easy to come up with the color scheme. We knew right away we wanted to use all the colors of the rainbow.  Here are some of the bright and colorful things that we made for our party. 

 At first I thought I would get 6 or 7 glass jars, and fill them with each individual color of the rainbow. I only had three jars though, so we chose three types of colorful candy.  We filled the jars with gumballs, gummy bears and skittles.

Flip Flop Earrings - Feature of the Day

How cute are these flip flop earrings from Crystal of Make It Easy Crafts.  My girls and I live in flip flops pretty much all summer. They are literally one of my favorite pairs of shoes.  Kara is currently wearing a pair of blue ones   that look almost exactly like these earrings.  To see how to make you can make these  fun summer earrings for yourself,  be sure to check out the full tutorial on Make it Easy crafts here.  Thank you so much for linking up to this week's Dare to Share Crystal! 

Our "Wild" Weekend

Funny how a night with very little sleep can throw you off for a couple of days.  It happened when we picked up mom at the train station, and her 11 p.m. pick up time ended up being an all night ordeal.  It also happened when we dropped her off to get back on the train, but at least the hour of the day was a bit better. 

After what happened last week,  Kyle and Kara decided that they would not ride along for the return trip.  My mom totally understood.  Since the train had a 6:15 a.m. departure time (we do not have any other time choices) mom, my oldest daughter and I made the hour drive the night before.  On the way we were stuck in the middle of a torrential storm. It was raining so hard that I could not see the road at all, so I pulled to the side of road under a underpass with another car.   It amazes me with how many people think they can still drive regular speed without being able to see the road.  

When mom was getting us a room at a hotel not too far from the train station, a small group of bikers pulled into the parking lot. Their bikes were extremely loud, they were blasting music, and they were shouting as loud as they could.  (possibly because they could no longer hear with all  the noise that their bikes made) While they were checking in, we decided to go to dinner.  We saw a Boston Market nearby.  I had never eaten at one, because we do not have one near where I live.  It was good, and portions were HUGE.   With our bellies full, we went back to the hotel.   

I logged on and tried to do some blog work online.  I had not had a chance to schedule Dare to Share, and I had to check my messages and Facebook account.  It took me quite awhile because I would lose the free hotel Wi-Fi every few minutes. I was finally finished and able to lay down at about 12:30 a.m.  With a 5 a.m. wake up time, I knew I was not going to get much sleep. Little did I know how little.   At 1 a.m. the entire hotel heard the loud roar of motorcycles, and booming music that was blasting in the parking lot.  Luckily their rooms were on another side of the hotel, so it was quiet again after a few minutes.  I was just about asleep again, when my two roommates (who will remain nameless :)) both started snoring. Being in such close proximity it  was loud enough that I was unable to fall asleep.  At one point I grabbed an extra pillow and covered up my head.  

Since I was still awake at 1:30 a.m. I very happily watched the Jesse and the Rippers reunion on the Jimmy Fallon show.  Man, does Uncle Jesse still look fine!!  (Even in a fake mullet) Hard to believe that he is 50!  I started to drift off to sleep, but not for long. Around 3:00 a.m. the thunderstorms started. The area where we were staying was hit with a series of severe thunderstorms that lasted for a few hours. I started to drift off to sleep for a few minutes.  Mom was worried that we were not going to receive our 5:00 a.m. time wake up call. (we didn't) She was up and starting to get ready by 4:45 a.m.  We needed to leave by around 5:30 a.m. to check in for her 6:15 train. I stayed in bed as long as possible, but it didn't help.  I finally got up at 5:20 a.m.  As soon as I was dressed, she told me that I could go back to bed.  She just got a text alert, telling her that they train was delayed until 7:39 a.m..  I laid back down and got maybe 20 more minutes of sleep.  We were now planning on leaving the hotel around 6:45. Mom did not get a second text, but something told her to call the hotline to check if there were more delays. There were! The hotline was now saying around 9 a.m. I tried to lay down again, but couldn't sleep. I started watching the Today Show.  On the next call,  the time had been pushed back to 9:39 a.m.  Since that time was only a few minutes later, we decided to go grab some breakfast, and head to the station.  We got to the station around 8:30.  At that time they still had the 9:39 time.  We met a woman who had been waiting for a couple of hours. She was not happy that they only sent out one text. Since she did not get a second text, she thought that it was only delayed a little bit, and came to the station.  We were waiting for about 30 minutes when there was an announcement.  The train that my mom was waiting for was now going to be delayed another hour, BUT their was good news!  Another train that was going to be there momentarily, and scheduled to leave at 9:15 for the same destination, had room for everyone. The conductor knew that many of the passengers would miss their connections if they were made to wait. We said our goodbyes and mom  boarded the train.  I decided to wait for the train to leave just in case there were anymore problems. They are usually only in the station about 20 minutes or so. This time is sat for over 45 minutes.   Right before it left, there was another announcement on the loud speaker. The train that my mom was originally going to take was now delayed until 11:30 a.m. Over 5 hours later than it's departure time. The delay was because there was flash flooding in some areas of the route, and it could not cross those areas until it got clearance.  The train she had been waiting on,  finally pulled out of the station at 10 a.m. 

Since we have a zoo membership, and the zoo was only a couple of minutes away from the train station, we decided to go for a few hours even though we were tired.  It was a good day for the zoo, because the animals put on quite a show for us.   The polar bear cubs were doing somersaults in the water in front of us. We were able to  see the  wallabies up close and running free in a new exhibit. The tiger who had been relaxing in the pool, decided to get out and play while we were watching him. The sloth bear spent hours in front of the window eating bugs and looking right back at the humans. 

The baby elephant was so adorable. After a cuddle with mom, he started rubbing it's face on the ground like he was really tired. Then he started rolling all over covering himself in dirt. After a few minutes he ran outside to start happily playing in a mud hole. I wish I could have taken a picture of  him doing that, because he looked like he was having so much fun, but it a weird angle and too far away.

After a much needed nap, and some made up hours of sleep, things are finally getting back to normal.  Well at least for a few days. 

Dare to Share #68

It's Friday night, which means it is Dare to Share Time!

. 

Crepe Paper Chandelier

Today I am going to share some more details from our Art Themed Slumber Party. Many of the decorations and treats were in the color of the rainbow.  What you are looking at in the title photo is actually just a fun pic that I took.  I wondered what the inside of our crepe paper chandelier looked like, so I placed the camera underneath it and snapped away. 

This is the crepe paper chandelier.  It was easy to make, and made quite an impact. The girls at the party loved it.   

I found these hanging baskets at the dollar store a few months ago.  When I saw them I knew that would be perfect to make crepe paper chandeliers.

Even though she is goofing off spinning the chandelier in this picture, you can see how we added the crepe paper strips. I wrapped the end of a crepe paper roll around the top of the hanging basket.  Once the top was in place, I then cut at our desired length. It was that simple!

It was also easy to hang the chandelier without making a hole in the ceiling. I just attached a small 3M hook in the spot where I wanted to hang the chandelier.  We still have it hanging in the family room since the kids are enjoying it, but when it is time all I have to do is remove the sticky tape on the back of the hook.

Sleigh Bells Ring Christmas Sign - Feature of the Day.

I don't know about where you live, but where we live the temps have been HOT! We have had excessive heat warnings for the last couple of days, and even at night the temps have had  a hard time dropping below 80 degrees.  In a few months, temps will be cooler, and it will be time to think of the holidays once again. Alecia from Chicken Scratch NY shared a great way to make your own holiday signs for very little money.  Now might be a great time to get started making homemade gifts before the hustle an bustle of the holiday season.  To see how Alecia made this beautiful sign, check out Chicken Scratch NY here.  Thanks so much for linking up to Dare to Share Alecia! 

Our Party Food Recipes and More

Disclosure: I was give free samples and other goodies by Kleenex Hand Towels to do this review. All opinions are 100% mine.  

Pizza Pasta Salad

Since we had a slumber party, the girls were over at our house for dinner.  Instead of just going for something like pizza, we thought it would be nice to go outside and grill hamburgers and hot dogs on a beautiful summer day.  Unfortunately the grilling plan did not work out.  Our grill would not start when Kara's dad tried to light it.  (it's an older gas grill, that might have seen its last days)  The girls did not really seem to notice that we had to make the food inside instead of on the grill. In addition to the meat, we also had a few other picnic type of dishes on the menu.

Triple Berry Pies - Feature of the Day

One thing that I love about summer is many of my favorite fruits are berries.  We live in a prime location for strawberries, raspberries and blueberries.  

When I saw Melissa from Williamette Valley Wonder Woman posted a recipe for Mini Triple Berry Pies, I had to check it out.  Her recipe does not disappoint!  She shows step by step how to make hand held mini pies that look so delicious.  They are a perfect summer treat.  To see how to make she made them, check out Williamette Valley Wonder Woman here.  Thanks so much for linking up to Dare to Share Melissa! 

Our Art Themed Slumber Party

This past weekend we threw Kara an Art themed slumber party. Three of her closest friends were able to come.  There would have been a couple more girls, but unfortunately they were out of town and were unable to attend. Sometimes it is hard to have your birthday near a holiday when everyone goes on vacation. 

I had placed most of the art supplies for the party on the special party station table that I made from our old changing table. (You can see how I made it here.) 

On the top shelf I placed some of the rainbow color treats we had made.  There was rainbow rock candy, and fruity pebble paintbrushes. I also had jars of rainbow colored candy. (there will be another post later this week about our rainbow treats and decor) 

On the lower shelves I had stored all of the art supplies and crafts that we were going to need during the party. There were markers, colored pencils, paintbrushes and paints.   I also bought a canvas multipack, and a friendship bracelet kit for the girls to use if they wished.   

We had planned on cooking out on the grill, but when we tried to start it up it would not light. (it's a gas grill)   We had to go with plan B, which was to cook the hotdogs and hamburgers on the stove.  We also snacked on pizza pasta salad, a special fruit salsa with lime chips, and rainbow fruit with orange cream dip. (pictured)  I will be sharing a couple of those recipes soon. 

After eating we had some fun using the photo frames I found on clearance at Michaels.  In the picture above, the girls posed as if they were portraits on the wall. 

In this picture they were trapped inside the frames. They had so much fun coming up with all the creative pictures.

You might have seen this picture of the frames hanging in the tree on my Dare to Share Link Up post. It was their idea, and I just love how it turned out.

I love this photo that the girls came up with too!  

After we were done taking pictures, it was time for the graffiti cake that Kara designed. I frosted the cake with  all white frosting, and then she sprayed it with Wilton Color Mist.  She had wanted to make it tie dye, but I did not have all of the supplies. When she saw the spray, she liked that idea better. 

One of the items we sent home in their goody bags were flip flops that the girls  embellished with fabric scraps 

They did spend some time during the party  painting. 

We also took a lot  more photos inside in front of the rainbow backdrop. It ended up being a late night for everyone.  I know it was a least 2 a.m. when I went to bed, and the girls were still wide awake. It is kind of funny to call an overnight party a slumber party, because it is rare to get much sleep.   

 I will be linking up our Art Themed Party on these wonderful linky parties HERE.

Our Summer Fun Challenge Trip to Cabelas

Last week we decided to make a stop at a Cabelas store on the way to the train station to pick up grandma.  We had passed this store many times, but had never stopped and gone in.  We decided to make our visit part of our Summer Fun Challenge.  Right away you can tell this store is going to be BIG.  In front of the store they have this massive sculpture of two bears fighting over food.  I am not sure if they are in front of all of their stores (there are many around the country) or if it is just at this one. 

We do not come from a family of hunters.  In fact, we are not really fans of hunting at all, but the animals displayed around the store were quite beautiful to look at.   When you first walk in, one of the very first things you see is the mountain in the middle of the store.  

The size of this display is also amazing.  On one side of the mountain there is an actual waterfall and pond filled with live fish.  Kara loves raccoon, so she really enjoyed seeing this one up close. 

In the middle of the pond stands a massive moose.  Even though he is quite big, he is not the biggest animal in the store.  

That honor would go to this elephant from Africa.  It is so crazy to  be standing next to an elephant in the middle of a store. 

At one point the kids wanted to sit down for a minute, and did so on a camo color couch and sofa with hunting scenes all over it.  It was quite an interesting look.  

Kyle's favorite display with the giant standing brown bear.  You might have see this picture on Instagram a few days ago.  I shared that I hope this is the closest he ever comes to a bear. 

We considered eating in the cafeteria.  Kyle really wanted to try the buffalo burger.  The girls would have no part of it.  I can't say that I blame them, there wasn't too many things that I was willing to try other than the fries or salad.  Instead of trying the game, we settled on a stick of beef jerky, and dinner at Arby's down the street. 

We also walked through the store Aquarium that is going to be remodeled soon.   This is where we were when we got the call that mom's train had left the station on time.  We stopped in the kids section, and Kara found a stuffed fox that she wanted bad enough to use her own birthday money to buy it.  We spent over an hour exploring the store, and will probably even go back again. This week we will be going on another Summer Fun Challenge day trip, this time with grandma.  Stay tuned to see where we went!