Tangled Party

So I am very excited about this post. I am very fortunate to have amazingly creative sisters and my sister Alisa just threw her daughter Cora a fantastic Tangled Birthday party. Here at the Homestead our parties are usually ones on a budget and I loved all her creative ideas on a REAL WORLD budget.
She found these flowers and butterfly's at the Dollar Store. Some where from last year.

She made these darling hanging lanterns from scrapbook paper. She found the idea on the Disney Family Fun website. She doubled a length of thread to a glue dot on the inside and then just used some little bejeweled flowers on the outside.

The Birthday sign with Butterflies from the Dollar Store.

Wall Stickies were also from the Dollar Tree.

This banner was from Hobby Lobby on clearance for $2.50 it was so darling.

The favor bags had a Pascal party blower that she made with foam from Disney Website, mini Slinky's, little tube of bubbles, a couple bendy bands, a tangled notebook from Dollar Tree, a mini paint set (she got on Clearance at Walmart after Valentines day 4 for 50 cents.) and some watercolor paper sheets, little recorder (Valentines section at Target), and a little candy bar. They were so darling and so much fun for the kids.

The Pascal Party blower was darling.

My other sister Amelia decorated these adorable pascal cupcakes....idea also off Disney Website.

These were my favorite item...they are mini frying pan necklaces. She used baby food jar lids with modge podged tissue paper, then hot glued a pipe cleaner onto the back. She used ribbon and/or yarn to make them into necklaces. Idea also off the Disney Family Fun website. Such a cute idea.

The party table....

The lantern's up close.

She printed off this Wanted Poster and the kids had to draw on a nose for Flynn Rider. So fun.

For the boys she made Flynn Rider satchels. They were made out of felt and hung over their shoulders.

It was a great party full of fun and laughter. Just what a party should be.

For a link to the Disney Family Fun Website go here. Thanks Alisa for letting me post your darling party.

Emily

The Invisible Mom

(Picture downloaded from Flicker-taken by Teresa Flanagan

it is of the Holy Name Cathedral - Chicago)

This is a very touching and sweet story I have heard several times. I don't know the source but a dear friend gave it to me last year and then another dear friend sent it to me today and I thought it would be a great thing to post. This is to ALL those who sometimes feel invisible as they go about doing Good Works.

The Invisible Mother
It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, "Can't you see I'm on the phone?"

Obviously not, no one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I"m invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more! Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, "What time is it?" I'm a satellite guide to answer, "What number is the Disney Channel?" I'm a car to order, "Right around 5:30, please."

Some days I'm a crystal ball: "Where's my other sock?, Where's my phone?. What's for dinner?"

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history, music and literature -but now, they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going, she's going, she's gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England. She had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when she turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package and said, "I brought you this." It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: "With admiration for the greatness of what you are building when now one sees."

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour- the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work:

1) No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names.
2)These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished.
3)The made great sacrifices and expected no credit.
4)The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A story of legend in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, "Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof, No one will ever see it." And the workman replied, "Because God sees."

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. I twas almost as if I heard God whispering to me, "I see you. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does."

No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, no Cub Scout meeting, no last minute errand is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.

I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, "My Mom gets up at four int he morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the lines for the table." That would mean I'd built a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, he'd say, "You're going to live it there!"


As mother's, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be see if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible mothers.

May you all have a wonderful day!!

Emily

Cherry Blossom Party

I did a dinner party with a Cherry Blossom Theme. The invite was paper fortune cookies...with the invite information inside as the fortune. So many great tutorials online. Then the paper cookies were served to my guests in takeout boxes with their names written on front in Japanese....I googled a website that converts English Letters to Japanese.

I am not a huge sushi fan...okay I've never dare try it. But I thought these candy Sushi were fun and easy. Just Google Candy Sushi for ideas and recipes. They are just Rice Crispy Treats and various candy. SOooooo Easy.

Chocolate Dipped Fortune cookies. I bought the fortune cookies and just dipped in melted chocolate and sprinkles.

This was our place setting. The cup was made by my fellow party planner and is a Japanese number. The take out boxes had Japanese Cherry Blossom lotion from Bath and Body Works. The place mat is from the dollar store. And we found the chopsticks and fans online.

I had very little money for decorations and so decided to make my own cherry blossom stems. I hot glued flowers on sticks. I picked up the sticks at Michael's 50 for 5.99 with my 40% off coupon. The flowers I had and just pulled off and glued on. The vase I found for $1.50 at DI

The decorations were simple...two Chinese lanterns and I cut out birds and flowers on my Silhouette and hung them on twine. They looked cute and simple.

You could easily do takeout for this meal, but I made Orange Chicken, Rice and bought frozen Vegetable Spring Rolls that I baked in the oven and put in Takeout boxes.

It was a fun and easy dinner party, with everything being pre-made or assembled and it was affordable too. I did the fortune cookies the night before and kept in fridge and the candy sushi the day of.

Enjoy!!

Emily

Book Nook: Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

This book was recommended to me by a dear friend. I finished last night and found this a beautiful read. It was truly bitter and sweet. The book flips back and forth between the years of 1986 and 1942-1945. It is full of interesting facts and heartfelt moments. The main characters Henry and Keiko will capture your heart and spin a tale of the conflicts inside America during WWII. It highlights the cultural differences between various groups and injustice between cultures, while painting a beautiful picture of loyalty, honor, service and love. I completely enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.

Hope you are having a joy filled week.

Emily

Pirates Arrrrgh Aboard

The Homestead is a great house, with just under 1500 square feet. We have to maximize every use of our space but I we also have fun creating fun things for our space. I love letting my kids get involved in the planning especially when it comes to their bedrooms. When we started having Thing 1 and Thing 2 share a room I let them pick a theme. Pirates was their choice. So the following are some of the fun things we did to make their space full of all things Pirates.
We also are on a tight budget. Like maybe $40 with bedding. Below we used this picture frame from IKEA. I had the anchor and the netting that I had found on a Clearance Wreath a few years ago. I pulled them off to use in other decorating. I used burlap that I had copied this quote and used my light board to write it on with a sharpie. The background is Pirate wrapping paper I found at Seagull Book for $1 a roll. The quote is actually two quotes I combined from Harry Potter it says:

Dark times lie ahead of us and there will be a time when we must choose between what is easy and what is right....

For it is our choices that show what we truly are more than our abilities. Prof. Dumbledore.

I put the compass in the middle to remind them to make good choices. Total: $1





This map/wall hanging I picked up for free. A friend of mine was moving and gave it to me. I knew I could use it for something. It is made of felt and is lightweight and perfect for this space. Total: $0

I wanted a banner of some kind and was planing on making one but found this part banner at Hobby Lobby for $4. It was just what I wanted for this room.

Total: $4

These pirate hats were 3 for $1 at JoAnn's fabric. I used the same wrapping paper and then just made signs the top says Captain....Boys Name and then underneath A Pirate's Life for Me. The frames we had they are from IKEA and they hang on either side of the window. The Boys love them. I love their magnet board from IKEA we have had this for awhile. They can put things they draw up in their room.

Total: $1


We love this book and have had it for awhile. I read it in my best Pirate and say things like skalleywag and arghh a lot. Thing 1 put it up on his shelf.

Total: $0



This summer we went to Cherry Hills Water Park and picked up this little sign that says "No Trespassing Pirates Only." I already had the life ring from a previous decorating.

Total: $5

I would have loved to get the boys the Potter Barn Kids Pirate bedding, but it wasn't in my budget. I kept Thing 1's bedspread but found this PB Kids pillow at Down East for $4. It has another name embroidered on it which I just carefully unpicked. I found this Jolly Roger inspired fleece at JoAnn's on clearance and the last part of the bolt. He loves this blanket.

For Thing 2 I dug around at Down East to find another one like above but none were to be had. So I picked up this pillow sham also a PB kids unpicked the name and embroidered this pirate ship. I just found a pirate coloring page online and then used my light board to transfer the lines unto my fabric. I actually love how it turned out.

Total: $8 - pillow shams

$2 - fabric for embroidery.

I had to include this picture. Thing 1 loves to draw. Several years ago he drew this picture of Jesus for his room. I love it and he loves having it up in his room.

So I already had these chairs. They are from IKEA and I found them in the as is section on clearance and just cleaned them up. I added the vinyl lettering that I did up on my Silhouette. The table is actually the top section of shelf we weren't using. Thing 1 instantly saw it as a Lego building table. The Ship Wheel in the corner I picked up from DI for $3. It is fun for the kids to play with.
Total: $3 Pirate Wheel

Grand Total: $24

The best part of this room is that my boys love it and they helped me in creating items in it.

Hope you are having a wonderful Week.

Emily

A Good Quote....Praiseworthy Inspiration

A friend of mine sent me this email today with this quote in it. I was supposed to forward it on to eight people. I figured I would post it on my blog instead. It has some good words to practice.

"May today there be peace within. May you trust that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith in yourself and others. May you use the gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you. May you be content with yourself just the way you are. Let this knowledge settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us." - author not known


May this be a mantra today.


Emily

Finding My Creative Voice

I have a personal blog that started out as my own and has evolved into my family blog and so became private by invitation only. This blog began because I felt a need to have a place where I could just focus on the things I love, the things I enjoy, and the things that spark my creativity. Over the past year I have found so many blogs that are full of brilliant creativity, and in the process of perusing others ideas I found I started to doubt my own. So many of the blogs I see have thousands of followers, they post daily with new creative ideas. I find sometimes I barely can get a shower in during the day, plus trying to stay on top of homework, laundry, bathrooms, serving others, and although I love to create things sometimes it is only once a month and even then it seems to be simple in comparison. I don't have the budget to craft everyday, and quite honestly I don't have the desire. I don't really know how to use power tools and find it a challenge to learn with a curious 2 1/2 year old trying to help in all I do. My husband is wonderful, but he doesn't jump right on board with my projects and doesn't really have time to help me either. I don't really sew although I love fabric. I don't scrapbook, but love paper. At every turn I have felt lacking and so have remained silent.

I realized the other day that this has nothing to do with anyone else. This is about me having a place to go, a haven where I can voice my thoughts and ideas. One of my favorite blogs is Joys of Home, mostly because she is very real. A few months ago she posted this quote, "Comparison is the thief of joy" I have found this to be true.

One of my goals this year was to find my voice. As a mother of three, a daughter, a wife, a sister and a friend I have many titles with many voices, but the voice I feel like I haven't heard in a awhile is that of Emily. So this next year is going to be a bit of an exploration for me to find my voice. This blog is a tool for me to do that, so if you are reading this I hope you will come with me on my journey and see where it leads.

Emily