Made a great Mother's Day card for my mom. Had over to Shutterfly and make yours today. Use code CARD4U and get one for just a little over a dollar

5x7 Folded Card

View the entire collection of cards.

The true meaning of Easter

The Easter Story

Well Jacob  has been getting very excited about "the Easter Bunny day" as he calls it.  I wanted to find a way to show and tell him the true meaning of Easter, so he could really understand it! I found this idea on Pintetest. The total cost was about $15.

What you will need:

 large terra cotta saucer, a small terra cotta pot, soil, small stones, a large stone about the size of the flowerpot rim, grass seed, and twigs for the crosses as well as a glu gun to glue the crosses.

We started by filling the terra cotta saucer about halfway with soil. Add the flowerpot to make the tomb, and add more soil, mounding the soil over the top of the flowerpot and spreading it to make the hillside shape. Spread the small stones around the entrance to the tomb. Mist the soil with water. Apply grass seed liberally over all the soil, and press it down so that it contacts the soil well. We then  sprinkled a little extra soil over the top of the seeds and misted the soil again.. Position the large rock in front of the flowerpot. Make each cross by breaking the twigs to appropriate lengths and attach them together with a small dot of hotglue. (Don’t forget to make the tall piece longer to allow extra for putting in the soil.) Position the crosses on top of the hill.  Place in a warm, sunny area. Keep misting about twice a day and your sprouts should start to appear soon. Remember grass seeds take 6 - 10 days (check on the seed bag to see how long it will take to start sprouting).

 

Our finished project. We can't wait for the grass to start growing. We will keep this out as a nice Spring decoration even after Easter :)

I got this amazing Easter craft idea from A Homestead Heart

Some cute Valentine printables to jazz up your special treats!

Some super cute printables to make your treats extra special!

You can download these free printables at mommybydaycrafterbynight.com

Printable Valentine Coupon Book

To get these adorable coupons head over to mommybydaycrafterbynight.com

Our Special Valentine's Day Envelopes!!!

I had been admiring those adorable PotteryBarn envelopes... so with lots of web-surfing I found a DIY version.

Starting a week before V-day, every night after the kids go to bed I place a special love note and a small treat in both of their envelopes. (treats like a sucker, candy, a dollar for their piggy banks, a crazy straw, paddle ball, crayons, color book. Each one will also get a Valentine book). I love the thought of the handwritten notes. I know how much I treasure the cards I find written in my Dad's handwriting.

I know Michaela would like it, and thought Jacob wouldn't really even notice them...LOL! I was wrong! They both are excited each morning.  Every morning as soon as Jake opens his eyes, he run straight  to the kitchen to check his "velop" for his "special I Love You"! I plan on doing this every year! Hoping next year to start Feb. 1.

Below are my versions.

For Jakey and Michaela

with a "love note"

Some other ones that I made:

I think this one is my favorite :) For sweet baby Lily.

For Mikey :)



I made one for siblings to share... not sure how that will work out,

 may have to make each their own for next year :)

For directions on how I made these head over to The crafting chicks

You will also find a download for the "love notes".

I am very excited about this new tradition we are starting and hope you enjoyed it too!

Wendy xoxo

Fun Valentine Printables

With Valentine's Day less than a week away,

I wanted to share these great Valentine's Day Printables I have come across:

Valentine Mad Libs:
The kids and I had a blast doing these last night. Michaela(11) had fun, really giving each one lots of thought. Jacob (3) loved it. His answers were completely honest but soooo funny! Can't wait for our family to get these next week. It is something that will be priceless to look back on in years to come :)

Since Jacob can not write I wrote his quotes for him :)

Michaela's mad lib for her Nana :)

I had the kids skip each sentence so that they created the letter together. I wrote what Jake said in black and Michaela wrote her answers in pink. On the first blank, I said how much do you love Grandma, he said alot! I said you love her more than..... what? He was a little confused, so I said think of something you love a whole lot. He said OK! Do you love her more than that? I love how he said he loves his Grandma more than his sissy. When he said that, his sister cracked up!!!

You can head over to over the big moon to print out this cute mad lib.

Fun Handprint Valentine:

Jacob is so proud of his adorable valentine!

To make handprints not so messy, this is a great tip, especially for little ones! Put a small amount of the paint on a paper towel and smear it around so it has a thin coat of paint on the paper towel.

Blot the paint on the palm of the child's hand. Make sure to get a thin layer of paint an the entire hand. This helps not to have big glops of paint between the fingers. :)

Place the handprints slightly tinted, the fingers will form the tip of the heart.

His hands look so much bigger than I thought :( they sure do grow up fast!

For the footprint, I did the same blotting technique as the hands. This will help when he applies pressure with his foot so it will not slide aound on the paper.



To complete this sweet keepsake, Jacob signed his name!

To print your own special Valentine go to over the big moon to print out your own!

 I hope you enjoyed my first real post :)

I have a few more Valentine's printables that I will post shortly.

Wendy xoxo

My first blog....

  I have decided to start a blog.
 
I realize now, almost all of my most treasured memories are the sweet little moments you wish you could capture again. Making crafts with my mom, writing silly poems with my dad, and cooking in the kitchen as a family. Growing up my Mom and Dad gave my sisters and I memories we will always cherish. My mom made holidays and birthdays extra special for each one of us. She could also magically turn an ordinary day at home into an exciting day of fun! My Dad was not as "crafty" as my Mom but he could always make you smile. I treasure the memories of going on family drives and Dad letting us drive on the back country roads, cooking and baking in the kitchen for hours, telling jokes and leaving funny little rhymes around the house for each other. I would now give anything to share those little moments with him again!
 
Now that I am a Mommy, I want my two kiddos to cherish the little things in life too! I want them to remember the tooth fairy dust left on their cheek and pillow from a tiny fairy kiss. I want them to remember cooking as a family and making crafts. I want them to cherish our family traditions and one day pass them along to their kids.
 
I want this blog to help others turn the little moments in our lives to memories we will treasure forever!