Popcorn - Brown Bag Style

Hi all.  Been trying to find the time to write my next post...it hasn't been easy so this will just be a quick one.  It has been awhile since I shared a TNT Pin so here is one we've been doing for awhile now.  

TNT Pin (Tried N' True Pin)

Brown Bag Popcorn

This is the only way we make popcorn now.  Check out the original pin here by Thrice The Spice.  1/3 cup popcorn, brown paper bag, microwave 2 minutes or so and voila, a tasty treat.  Just a tip: make sure you fold down the top of the bag securely or sometimes the popcorn will escape, as happened to Dean on more than one occasion. 

Hope everyone is having a fantastic week!

~Elizabeth

Today's Moment - Playing in the Sprinkler

Joining up with SouleMama again to share a moment. 

From SouleMama: A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. 

Note: Of course this wasn't from this week because it was so cold and wet.  But it was a moment from earlier in the month when it was a little more seasonal.  Today some areas in Renfrew County had snow!  Picture taken by Auntie Beckie!

A Little Boy's Nursery

As you saw from my post last week (click here to read in case you missed it), I'm in disbelief that Dustin has turned one.  He's becoming so independent, he doesn't even want to cuddle anymore when he has his bedtime bottle.  Another "milestone" he's consistently achieving is sleeping through the night-finally! He was always a pretty good sleeper but for the longest time he was waking up sometimes three times a night, fussing enough that I had (wanted?) to check on him.  He was never up for long but enough to disrupt your sleep.   So before I went back to work we had a little pep talk and I told him we wouldn't be doing that anymore.  And it was like he actually listened. 

But of course, now I find I'm missing those nights when we would have a little cuddle in the rocking chair in his room.  You see I decorated Dustin's room based on my decorating style-rustic and primitive.  None of that typical boy stuff like trains, planes or automobiles (unless it was rustic).  I chose the decoration purely on what I like and that's why I love my little boy's nursery!

Here are some of my favorite elements. 

The ABC blocks I actually painted myself.  The blocks were cut by a friend from work who does all my wood working projects for me.  These were one of my successes with the room (I'll tell you about a failure later on in the post...)

I had found this idea in a craft magazine and had a local store who sells all things primitive make it for me. 

The shelf was made by my grandfather.  The letters (Dustin's initials) I painted and I also did the footprint craft...another success!  I decorated the shelf with some old teddy bears and bunnies, a baby picture, a cute "Jesus Loves Me" sign from Dustin's godparents and an old mason jar filled with cotton balls. 

Of course everyone loves this saying-I found this at a primitive store in Nova Scotia!

Probably one of my favorite things in his room.  I had this done by a local artist Denise Lenoir Fine Art.  I love her work.  (If the link doesn't work search for her on Facebook).

 

I also installed some wall art with some rustic barn stars. 

And finally the failure.  I bought this lamp at Wal-Mart and wanted to personalize it.  Well the shade is actually balancing on the lightbulb instead of being "screwed" into the base because when I painted the hearts on I painted them upside down!!! So maddening! Oh well-it functions.  

So I don't know what Dustin will be in to when we redecorate his room in a few years.  Probably the character of the day.  Maybe Thomas or Cars.  Whatever it is I hope we can keep a few of my favorite things from when he was a baby. 

Thanks for reading!

~Elizabeth

It's A Party On The Farm!

I cannot believe our baby turned one!  What a year.  It was so fun going back to prepare this collage of pictures and look at all the amazing moments we had.  

As Dustin's actual birthday approached I began planning his first birthday party (yes-OK I did start thinking about it and started pinning ideas on Pinterest months in advance).   Who is the party for a one year old really for, the child or the parent?  It's not like Dustin will remember.  But I will and I love to plan a party.  Once I decided on the farm theme the planning and preparations began!

First the invites (original idea found here):

 And then the decorating:

Oh the cakes....I loved the cakes.  It's so amazing what they can do with fondant!  Not my talent-made by a local lady.  I made the cupcakes.  I scored some adorable cupcake liners at Micheal's and even found some farm themed sprinkles with cows, chicks and pigs.

The rain held off so the kids could get outside and burn off some energy and go on some tractor rides.  

 

And here's the birthday boy (he looks more like 3 than 1!). 

I would say the texture and the stickiness of the icing was really throwing Dustin off.

And then of course the treat bags.  I struggle with treat bags.  I love to give a party favor but they create so much waste-so I try to fill mine with useful things.  They are not perfect or waste free by any means....but they fit the theme which is the most important thing! 

Dustin won't remember the day but hopefully in many years when he looks back at the pictures he'll know he was always surrounded by the love of family and friends.  And that is what's really important, when you look beyond the decorations, cakes and treatbags (although that's really fun too!).

Happy Birthday to my baby boy-who has made us smile since the day we met. 

~Elizabeth

Today's Moment & Dustin Turns One

Once again joining up with SouleMama to share a moment. I know the "rules" are no words-just a picture capturing a moment.  But today I need to say something because my baby turns one!  Dustin is a year old and when I look back at the year there were so many moments.  Like when we dipped his toes in the ocean for the first time.  Birthday party celebrations happening this weekend-posts to follow.  xo

This Moment - Peek-a-Boo

I fell in love with this idea from SouleMama.

From her blog:   A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.  

So here is my moment:

~Elizabeth

Our Love of Books

"Children are made readers on the laps of their parents." — Emilie Buchwald

Dustin and Emma love books which makes me so happy.  I enjoy reading as well and my mom always has a book in her hand so it warms my heart when Dustin and Emma curl up with a book.   Here is a much younger Emma reading with her mittens on and Dustin discovering new books in our "book basket" in the living room.  

Emma's love of books probably started when I was pregnant with her.  My sister gave me the best baby shower gift.  A book every day for the last 30 days of my pregnancy.  Every book was wrapped and included a heartfelt card - sometimes explaining the choice behind the chosen book.  Here I am the morning of my scheduled c-section for Emma opening the last book-Everywhere Babies. 

Here's a list of the 30 books (sorry no author names but most of them are classics you'd know anyway):

1) Very Hungry Caterpillar
2) Brown Bear, Brown Bear
3) The Tushy Book
4) Cat in the Hat
5) Guess How Much I Love You
6) Barenaked Book
7) Richard Scary's Best Word Book Ever
8) Beatrix Potter
9) Where I Live
10) Everywhere Babies
11) In the Garden
12) Growing Green
13) Mother Goose
14) Big Red Barn
15) Green Eggs and Ham
16) Red Fish, Blue Fish, One Fish, Two Fish
17) Goodnight Moon
18) Mortimer
19) Something Good
20) Barnyard Dance
21) The Going To Bed Book
22) Where The Wild Things Grown
23) Someday (I actually cried when I read this to Emma tonight!)
24) The Velveteen Rabbit
25) Big Earth, Little Me
26) You're All My Favorites
27) I Love You Sleepyhead
28) I Love You As Big As The World
29) Hop On Pop
30) Mr. Brown Can Moo Can You?

Many of those books continue to be our favorites.  To encourage Emma's love of reading even more we visited the local library quite frequently when I was on maternity leave.  I always tried to direct Emma to books that we both might enjoy.  But as you can see with the picture below she loved "character" books like Theodore, Barbie, Dora and Caillou.  Not exactly the classics I envisioned us reading together.

Does your toddler have books you just dread reading? I'll be honest.  When we curl up at bedtime there are a few books I think "Oh no...not that book again!!??" especially when Emma picks Dora's Crystal Kingdom or Caillou's First Picture Dictionary (that was the one I dreaded the most).

I guess I'm just happy as long as Emma is reading something.   And I'm sure it won't be long that Emma won't even want to read with me.   So if that means reading "Barbie Princess Beauty School" four times than I will continue to do so - with her curled up on my lap.

~Elizabeth