Welcome Home Bunting

Tomorrow is the BIG DAY!  Leigh will be home tomorrow night and since bunting (or banners) have been all over Pinterest and blogland lately, I thought this would be the perfect time to make one.

I used 5 different 12x12 sheets of scrapbook paper, cut each one in half and then cut 3 pennants or triangles out of each.  The letters were cut on the Cricut, of course and I used the glue gun to glue the ribbon to the top of each pennant.  I also inked the edge of each pennant although I am probably to only person that would ever notice it!  I have this hangup about raw paper edges and just think they look so much better with a little ink or paint on them.

I also changed out a few pieces on the mantel and added the Mod Podge clay pot I made over the weekend, along with a picture of the four of us when the kids were back in high school.  The nest seemed appropriate since she is coming back to us and of course, she is my little angel! (Can you tell I'm excited???)

Mod Podge Mania

I've been Mod Podging everything in sight over the past week and thought I would share a few with you. Just so you know, all of these crafts were inspired by Pinterest.

The easiest by far are the clothespin magnets.  Just Mod Podge a strip of scrapbook paper on each side, cover the top of the paper with Mod Podge too, then glue on a flower/button combo and a magnet strip on the back.  You can never have enough magnets on the fridge, plus the filing cabinets in the craft room are metal and I'm constantly hanging stuff on them.

I'm sure you have seen all of the decorated clipboards on Pinterest too.  Here is my version -

My favorite Mod Podge craft this week is the clay pot that I covered with a paper napkin.  I painted the pot first with craft paint, then cut a large towel size decorative paper napkin in two and decoupaged on half on each side.  I also used the straight edge of the napkin around the top to get a clean edge and used smaller pieces to fill in as needed.  I glued a brown ribbon around the top and covered the whole thing with Mod Podge again. 

 I also painted and Mod Podged the inside and think I will probably put a candle in it. 

Do you have a favorite Mod Podge craft?  Let me know what it is.  I'm always on the look out for new ideas.

Thanks for stopping by.

Painting With A Twist

Wow! What a fun night!  My friend Marty invited me to a Painting With a Twist party in Friendswood.  We had a blast and came away with a fully painted canvas that we painted 100% by ourselves.  You can even bring your own snacks and drinks.  The instructor gives you step by step directions and it couldn't be easier. They may not be Masterpieces but I will treasure mine as if it were!

The big 50 is coming up for me in November and I'm having a Girls Night Out there for sure!!

This is the original that we followed.

The canvas came with a penciled grid so you would know where to place the elements.

Sky and Water

Background is done

 Almost done....

I'm so proud of Marty.  She is know as a bit of an obsessive detail kind of gal

 (love ya girl - you know it's true!) but she finished on time and didn't even use a ruler!!! LOL!  

Although she did use a napkin as a straight edge.

The finished Masterpiece

Staff members of Clear Creek High School - with their Masterpieces

Marty and I

Marty, Me and Stevie (Marty's Daughter)

For those of you who love PicMonkey, the new collage option is available!  So easy to use too.  I made this one, saved it to my computer, opened it in PicMonkey and added the text.  I LOVE PicMonkey!

What a Fantastic evening with my BFF!

Adventures in Blogging

Laugh for the day

We started blogging in late February and shortly thereafter I switched from my Blackberry to a new Iphone.  I had recently learned about Linky Parties and had linked up to a blog party.

Filled with excitement I sent Leigh a text about it - keep in mind that the Iphone was new to me -

Kinky Party

KINKY PARTY!!!  This makes me laugh everytime I think about it!!

Hope you have a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend!

Owl Planter

My obsession over the past couple of years
has been all things Owls !

Hey at least I've not reverted back to the 90's
 and my cow obsession!! Really, what was I thinking?

Came home from work tonight and my sweet husband had the cutest owl planter for me.  He bought it at the grocery store, believe it or not and I just love it.

Now I have to find a pot that will fit in the top of  it 
and a cool plant to go in it.

That's my sweet husband!


Not only did he bring me a present he grilled salmon and veggies for me.  I made pico de gallo  with tomatillos  to go along with it.  I love using tomatillos - they give the pico a citrusy flavor and add crunch to it.


YUM! And even healthy too!

Learning How to Blog

We are working on our 3rd full month of blogging and everyday I try to read up on "Blog Tips".  This week I figured out how to add a Blog Button!!! Thanks to some great tips on Blogs that I follow and pins on Pinterest.

Check out our button - tell me what you think - I need all the advice I can get!!! I think I need to work on the borders - they don't seem to be even?  Oh, well, not too bad for my first try.

 I learned how to make the button on PicMonkey thanks to a great tutorial by Something Swanky .

I used a post on eHow to figure out how to add the button with the text box underneath.

Wow!  I actually did it myself and it only took a couple of hours! When you work full time, you have to squeeze in 30 minutes here and 30 minutes there, so I actually completed it over 2 nights.  Slow and Steady wins the race - right?

Here are some other great posts that I have used for blogging tips - 

Blogging Tips from 4 You With Love

Creative Blogs and SEO 3 Simple Tips to Know by Madigan Made

Karen from Sew Many Ways has a Blog Buddy page with lots of great advice

Can't believe how much I have learned in such a short amount of time!  Thanks to everyone for helping an Old Dog learn some new tricks!

Memory Lane

Today I was in Rock Hill, South Carolina to visit my Grandma - Dorothy Huss Rhodes.  Grandma will be 89 on her birthday in June.  We went to Grandma's home town of Gastonia, North Caroline today to see the house that her father built in 1922.  Grandma was born in 1923 and was the first child born in the home.

It is amazing to think that my Great-Grandfather built this house by himself - with only hand tools and that it is still standing today. He was President of the Gastonia Central Labor Union and later became Vice-President of the North Carolina State Federation.

We also stopped by Temple Baptist Church where my Mom and Dad met in 1960 and were married there on November 23, 1961.  Dad was also baptized in this church.

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Cherished Memories.

My Pickle Loving Princess

I have wonderful news to share with everyone.  At the end of this month our Tag Line will change from

"A Crafty Mom and Daughter Collaboration from Crosby, Texas and Marietta, Georgia" to 

"A Crafty Mom and Daughter Collaboration from Crosby, Texas."

My Pickle Loving Princess is moving back to TEXAS!!!

I always try to take her a jar of pickles when we go to visit so I told her I would have one waiting on her when she gets here!  She's going to kill me for posting this, but all of you Mom's know how excited I am.  She stayed in Georgia when we moved back in 2006 to finish college.  So we have lived in different states for 5 1/2 long years!!!!  We will be having a big party in CROSBY at the end of this month!

Love you Leigh and can't wait to have you home!