A "Super" Birthday

      My daughter will be 5 years old in an hour and five minutes.  The school-age years are upon me, and I don't know what I'm going to do.  My little girl is getting so big, and there's nothing I can do about it but enjoy it.  To celebrate, Monkey requested a superhero party.  Okay, that's not entirely true.  She wanted a Captain America party.  Then she wanted a Hulk party.  Next it was a Spiderman party.  Finally I said that we were having a superhero party, and that was that.  I'm not going to lie, I phoned it in a bit this year.  I had someone else made the cake.  *gasp*  I know!  What can I say?  Nursing school is time-consuming, but I did manage to make a few odds and ends to fit the theme.

     First and foremost were the invitations.  I took a few shots of Monkey in her Spider-Man top (from Gap) and her homemade tutu (for a tutorial, click here) perched in the tree in our back yard.  Then I headed over to Shutterfly to do the rest, and this is what I came up with:

     Next I started off the decorations by keeping it simple.  I found out (through Pinterest, of course) that fake tattoos can be used on plastic or glass.  So I decided to use that idea to decorate the cups for the party.  All you have to do is follow the instructions like you would for skin, and the tattoos will stick to the plastic the same way.

     I'm a fan of simple these days, and what could be simpler than phoning a friend?  I called upon my wonderful big sister to make this awesome banner for Monkey, and she did a fantastic job!

     The most awesome thing I made were these adorable felt masks for the kids (and the adults) at the party.

     I even decided to go with the theme and don one that went with my dress.

Spider-Girl and Batmom

     If you'd like to make some for your own little one, click here.  They were super fun.  I was glad to have them on hand in case one of the guests missed the memo about the costumes.  My in-laws certainly got the message, though:

     I saw an awesome idea on Pinterest about turning regular bubbles into themed bubbles for a party by simply wrapping designer Duct tape over the regular label.  And they make Avengers Duct tape :-)

     We also played this awesome Hawkeye version of "Pin the Tail on the Donkey". (I don't know what the deal is, but when you view the link the title is at the bottom of the page, but if you download it, it looks right.)  Of course, this was supposed to be a kids game...

     I was so excited to find Silly String at Walmart, and I had intended to have the kids shoot their "Spidey Webs" at various villains around the back yard (I was drawing on my games from Monkey's Toy Story party), but the adults at the party had other plans.  It was pretty much a free-for-all after that.  Even I got roped into it somehow, and Monkey had Silly String in her hair for the rest of the party because she refused to let me get it out.

   And to top it all off, I found a Spider-Man piñata at Walmart and filled him with goodies before letting all the little ones take their aggression out on him.  I must say, Spidey's never been my favorite super hero, but he sure can take a beating!  Those kids were relentless.

  And now on to the fun part: the food!  My favorite appetizer was this awesome food-edition of Captain America's shield, which was made up of blueberries, two layers of sliced strawberries (you could do raspberries and strawberries, but raspberries are a tad more costly), and one layer of white cheddar cheese, and a prettily cut out white cheddar star.

Ta-Da!

     Next I enlisted my sister's (and her Cricut's) help in making these cute food labels:

   Meanwhile, in a crockpot I had Teriyaki Wings cooking under the label "Bat Wings", but I don't have a picture of that particular genius.  We also had Pizza Bites shaped into a giant 5 for the birthday girl, and if you'd like to see the tutorial for that, go here.  They were super easy to make, and the guests loved them.  Plus you can shape them to fit any theme, and I made them the night before and simply stuck them in the freezer until the next afternoon.  We also made "Hulk Cookies" which were simply Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies dyed green. Then, using this awesome sugar cookie recipe that I found for last year's party, I cut out and baked gingerbread men, and then (with the help of an awesome friend) we decorated them to look like a few of Monkey's favorite superheroes.  

Our poor superheroes need to put in some quality time at the gym.

      I had planned to let the kids decorate their own superhero cookie, so I left about a dozen cookies blank and had icing ready, but then the party got under way and I completely forgot, but I think that would have been fun to see what sort of super hero they would have made for themselves.  Oh well, we were too busy having fun to be creative ;-)

   Finally I sent the kids home with some Hulk-style goodie bags filled with Avengers-themed Play Paks, a Spider-Man glow stick, a pack of stickers, and one of the felt masks I had made.  

     I made the bag by buying green paper bags from the party section at Walmart, and then I came home and glued the purple "shorts" to the bottom of the bag, making sure the waistline was nice and jagged first, and then I used a Sharpie to freehand the rest.  

     I had a lot of fun this year planning, and putting all this together, and I think I like this minimalist attitude.  It's rather relaxing.  And Monkey didn't seem to think anything was missing.

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!

Spring Break

     I'm currently mourning the loss of my Spring Break.  I go back to school on Monday, and I'll be taking my first test in Fundamentals.  I'm not thinking about that right now, though.  Instead I want to focus on all the fun crafts I've been catching up with over this break.  As most of you know through Facebook, I had a lot of fun putting together my front flowerbed.  It's very whimsy, and I feel like it's very me :-)

Of course, I included my flag I made from an old wood pallet a few years ago.  

     The "books" were probably my favorite part.  I bought a cheap wood border from Lowe's, and I painted it to represent a few of my favorite novels.  I was originally planning on using it to cover up that black water gauge thing in the bed, but I didn't like the way it looked there, so I put it in the background, like a shelf of books waiting to be dusted off and read. 

     The tipsy flowerpot is one that I've seen time and again on Pinterest, but I had to make it my own by using my favorite color: purple!  The sign is also a Pinterest find, but there were no instructions.  Basically I had my husband break up an old wood pallet with a sledge hammer, and I painted 6 of the broken pieces as you see above.  The I purchased a 6' post from Lowe's and cut is down to about 5' before painting it red.  Then I simply screwed all the pieces onto the post, and there you have it.  I thought it tied in nicely with the books in the background.

     Not all my planting were whimsical, however.  I also managed to build myself a couple of 4x4 raised garden beds for my vegetables.  Here's one of them:

   I think I may have finally found that green thumb that most of the women in my family have always had.  That's an exciting thought to me, although my husband doesn't think I should be allowed to go to Lowe's alone anymore after I came home with two trees in my little Saturn Ion.  Good thing for me that he's in Africa ;-)

    Playing in the dirt hasn't been my only pastime since I've been on break.  I've also been studying (blah!), working on Monkey's birthday crafts (She's going to be 5, y'all!), and catching up on reading!  I haven't read a really good series since Harry Potter, but for Christmas my Moma Deana gave me the Song of Fire and Ice series, and I loved it!  They have cause quite the internal struggle, though, what with my responsible side scolding me for not studying, and my impulsive side telling me to forget school for a while and immerse myself in the Seven Kingdoms.  I finally finished the fifth one, and now I feel like an addict who can't get her fix.  I can't wait until the next book comes out!

     Tonight Monkey handed me yet another fun project.  Her daycare is doing a St. Patty's Day party on Monday, and I signed her up to bring the drinks, so after picking her up from school today, we went by the commissary and bought a few of those Juicy Juice juice boxes.  We got the apple juice, since they were in a green container, but I wanted them to fit the theme a bit better.  As Monkey was working on a few crafts of her own design I started playing with her construction paper.  Next thing I knew I was transforming 24 juice boxes into 24 leprechauns.

Ta-Da!

     Aren't they cute?  I found a free leprechaun clipart here.  I downloaded it, printed it, and cut it out. Using a hot glue gun, I glued a bit of green construction paper onto the front of each juice box, and then I add the leprechaun's face.  Using permanent marker I added the collar, the buttons, the belt, and the legs.  I had a lot of fun with this, and Monkey is excited to bring these little guys to class on Monday. 

     

     Well I suppose I ought to get some sleep.  I have to tackle the commissary on a Saturday payday tomorrow.  I'll need all my strength for that!  Goodnight all :-)

Happy Mardi Gras, Y'all!

     I have a few minutes to spare before I rush back to studying, so in honor of Mardi Gras I want to share the awesome care package I just sent my husband:

     I had a lot of fun coming up with Louisiana/Mardi Gras items to put in this box. It made me a little homesick, to be honest.  We weren't able to go to any parades this year, but this made up for it a bit.

     First I lined the inside of the box with yellow, green, and purple construction paper like so:

I then decorated each flap with one word of the phrase, "Laissez les Bon Temps Rouler" like so:

     Next I filled the box with some Louisiana signatures, like these Zapp's potato chips, Tabasco sauce,  and Moon Pies like they throw at the parades.

     I also threw in some Clif bars, and some homemade Banana Bread in a jar.  Monkey contributed her own letters and drawings before we threw some Mardi Gras beads on top and shipped it off.  I'm sure J will enjoy his little bit of Mardi Gras in a box.

I'm a Nurse (What's Your Superpower?)

     I know many people who like to collect things.  I myself have gone through many phases of collecting things.  When Beanie Babies were the thing, my sister and I had our fair share of those cuddly little toys.  For a while I collected miniatures.  After that I started collecting spoons from all the different places I'd been.  Now that I'm an adult the Beanie Babies have been passed along; the miniatures have been stored away, and the collectible spoons have gone to the Goodwill.  There's still one thing I collect, however, and that is mugs.  I love collecting mugs because every morning when I sip my coffee or every evening as I revel in the warmth of my hot tea, I am reminded of something tied to the particular mug I'm holding.  I have a rather simple mug that's red on the outside and black on the inside.  It's a reminder of the first Valentine's Day J and I celebrated as a couple.  I bought him the mug with some of his favorite flavored teas and a copy of Marcus Aurelius' Meditations.  We drank all the tea, and the book was lost on J's first deployment, but that mug still remains.  There's another mug J bought when we went to the Renassaince Festival in Louisiana when I was pregnant with Monkey.  It's too big for me, but it's the perfect size for J and the amount of coffee he consumes in a day.  Another mug in my collection has a little cow who seems to be bathing in my tea.  The handle has broken off, but still I hang onto it because J brought it back to me from Spain.  Lately the one I've been reaching for more often than not is this one:

     This mug was a $0.25 find at a rummage sale a friend and I were perusing.  I saw this one and seized it.  I had a moment of guilt where I turned to my friend and said, "But I'm not a nurse, yet."  She urged me to get it anyway to use "as motivation".  I don't think either of us realized how much motivation this one little mug could lend.

     Before completing my prereqs, the words on this mug seemed proud, shouting, "I'm a NURSE!  What's your superpower?"  I would feel so smug as I sipped from it, thinking of how awesome I would be in my new scrubs, and how smart I would sound conversing with doctors in their own dialect, but then something happened.  Every morning...okay, every other morning.  I do wash the thing occasionally ;-)  Anyway, every other morning I would reach for the mug, read the words, "I'm a Nurse, What's your Superpower?" and I noticed that the words began to change.  These days the words seem more cautious, yet more comforting as well, "I'm a nurse." it says, and then it asks me, "What's your superpower?"  It's no longer a competition, no longer smug, no longer overly proud.  It's a challenge to find my "superpower", to find my compassion.  It's a reminder of the kind of person I truly want to be, not just the career I want to have.

     I may not be an RN now, but I can be a "nurse".  I can care and be compassionate.  I can put others first.  I can serve.  So, in a way I can be a "nurse", even now.  The Bible says, "As a man thinketh in his heart, so shall he be..." (Proverbs 23:7).  Others refer the the psychology behind the rewards of positive thinking.  Even more people simply say that optimism, or the right attitude, will get you where you need to go.  I guess I'm calling on all of these principles to make it through the next 18 months, starting with this $0.25 mug.


Now I'm going to study so I can become an RN, and turn that rummage sale find into a prophetic mug :-)

P.S.---If you want one of these mugs for your own, I found them on Amazon.  They even have different colors.

Valentine in a Box

    I know it's a little early, but since J already got his package, I thought I'd share our Valentine's Day goodies we sent off.  I had a lot of fun putting this one together, and J seemed to enjoy digging into all the fun stuff inside.  First I got one of the large flat-rate boxes from the Post office, and then I decorated the inside by lining the box with some pretty scrapbook paper I found on sale at Walmart, like so:

  Next, along the flaps I wrote, "I have loved you 2,529 days".  I found a cool website that tells you the exact amount of days between one event and the next.  You can check that out here.  All I did was type in the day we started dating and the date I planned for him to see the box (Valentine's Day) and voila!

  Next I cut out little hearts and big hearts from construction paper, and I had Monkey decorate them with glitter glue.  On each one I wrote, "I love you like..." on the front and something super cheesy on the back.  Here's all the cheesiness laid out before I glued them front to back:

    Monkey and I had fun coming up with the different ways we love J.  Some examples were things like, "I love you like Sheldon Cooper loves his spot" or "I love you like Flash loves running", etc.  J's favorite was, "I love you like Gollum loves his precioussss", which reminds me of this awesomeness:

   Next, I began to add different treats with equally corny messages attached:

     Of course, I added the little message hearts that are a Valentine's Day staple.  And finally, what would a care package be without some homemade goodies?  I did a few pink cakes in jars, and I added some icing to the package.  I also found a recipe for plain biscotti, because they ship well, being a hard cookie, and J isn't one for super fancy, complicated recipes.  So I thought these biscotti would be the perfect fit.  Here's the recipe from Allrecipes.com:

Biscotti
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup white sugar
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 eggs
1 TBS baking powder
1 TBS anise extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, beat together oil, eggs, sugar, and anise extract until well blended.  Combine flour and baking powder.  Add to egg mixture, stirring to form a dough.  Divide dough in half.  Shape each piece into a roll until it's as long as your baking sheet (or close enough).  Place each onto a cookie sheet.  Press down to 1/2 inch thickness.

Bake 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.  Remove from baking sheet to cool on a wire rack.  Once cooled, slice each into 1/2 inch slices.  Place slices, cut side up back onto baking sheet.  Bake 6-10 minutes more on each side.  They should be slightly toasted.

Enjoy!

     I forgot to get a picture of the entire box once everything was in there all nice a cute, but J sent me one after he dug into it a little.

     I asked J to send a picture of himself with the box, so that Monkey could see he had gotten it.  He obliged with this:

 Monkey said he's guarding his box from anyone else who might want to eat his goodies.  I guess...

Mama Said Be a Nurse

     It's February now!  That means one month closer to homecoming, and I can't wait to have my J back home.  I need someone to keep Monkey entertained ;-)  February means this semester is almost over, and if I survive it, by the end of this month I will be entering the Nursing program (like, for real, y'all)!  I just have to pass Dosage Calculations first.  When I say that people are all, "Oh, you've got that," but I don't think they quite get it unless they're in the class.  "Passing" Dosage Calculations does not mean I have to simply not make an F.  In order to pass we have to have a 90 average.  Even when I tell people that, they're still insistent, "Oh, you'll be fine, you make A's all the time."  Then I have to dig a little deeper and explain we only have 4 tests, and each test has had either 10 or 20 questions on it.  This means each question is worth 5 or ten points, so if you miss only one or two questions there's your 90.  If you miss more....well...

     It's no wonder I ate half a pan of homemade brownies by myself over the past week.  I'm stressing out, but I'm determined to make it.  To fail this would mean waiting until the Fall to start the Nursing Program, and I'm so tired of waiting!  I just want to get started so I can finish.  I know there's more stress ahead, but I'm ready for it.  If I can just pass Dosage Cal...

    At any rate I found a rather funny Nursing video the other day, and I shared it with my mom because I blame her for telling me to go into this field.  Don't get me wrong, I want to be a nurse, but my mom has always pushed it too, so this goes out to my loving Mom.  It's all your fault, woman!





      I hope you got a laugh out of that video like I did.  Now let me share a recipe and send you on your way.  Here's another recipe Monkey and I made from her new Paula Deen's Kid's Cookbook Monkey received for Christmas:

Monkey Bread
1 cup white sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
3 cans refrigerator biscuits (10 biscuits each)
1 stick butter
1 cup brown sugar
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  In a shallow dish mix together white sugar and cinnamon.  Remove biscuits from the tubes, and cut into quarters.  Place each piece of biscuit into the cinnamon sugar and shake it around until it's coated.
At this point I had to help: Place butter and brown sugar into a small pot over low heat, and let butter melt, stirring to mix.  Once completely mixed, turn off the stove and remove from heat.
Spray a Bundt pan with cooking spray; place the biscuit pieces into the bundt pan evenly.  Pour the brown sugar mixture over biscuits.  Bake for 35 minutes.  Remove from oven, and let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
To serve, turn Bundt pan upside-down on a large plate or a serving platter.  The Monkey bread should fall right out.  Let cool for a few more minutes before eating.

Enjoy!

Sneaux Day

     It's Tuesday afternoon, so by all rights I should be on my way to drop Monkey off before heading out to school, and I would be doing just that if it weren't for the fact that I live in the south and if it even looks like it might possibly freeze, sleet, or snow everything gets shut down.  Not that I'm complaining.  The drivers in south Mississippi are bad enough on a normal day, so I shudder to think how they'd handle driving around on something as foreign and as hazardous as an iced road.
   
     A day of no school also means extra time with Monkey.  Yesterday while everyone was at Wal-Mart stocking up on bottled water and canned food, Monkey and I were there gathering supplies for a few crafts to keep us busy.  Last night while she was sleeping I made Monkey a reversible superhero cape, using this tutorial I found on Pinterest.  It was super simple, and it only took me a couple of hours from start to finish.

Finally seeing her surprise.

She loved the personalized side!

"I'm Batman!"

You'll need:
Two types of fabric of your choosing, each measuring about 1 1/4 yards (I just got plain black cotton since I knew I wanted Batman, but I wasn't sure about the reversible side going into the project.)
Thread to match
Felt for your superhero symbol in appropriate colors (For free templets, click here)
Chalk

Fold one of your pieces of fabric in half, and draw a rough cape-shape.  It should look like this:

You can use a small plate or a bowl to make the neck nice and circular, and I cut mine all the way to the end of the fabric.  If your child is shorter, you can always hem it later.  Cut it out.  Fold your next piece of fabric in half, and use the one you just cut out as a template to make sure they are the same size.  Make your superhero emblems.  You can either free hand them like I did or you can go here for a tutorial and printables.  Sew one symbol on each half of the cape, making sure to line each up in the middle of the fabric.  Once the symbols are sewn in place, lay out one of the capes with the symbol facing up.  Lay the other one on top with the symbol facing down.  Pin them together, leaving the bottom unpinned, and then sew all along the edges, except for the bottom edge.  Turn the cape right side out, and hem along the bottom once you've tried it on your child to get the length right.  You can either tie the cape, or you can add velcro or buttons to it to fasten.  Because mine was a little big on Monkey, I left it to be tied.

   She was so excited when she came downstairs to find it waiting for her.  She promptly put it on and dubbed herself "Super Bat Girl".  After that we made Green Eggs and Ham from her Paula Deen Cookbook she got for Christmas.  She loves that cookbook, and it has really simple and fun recipes for kids.

Even superheroes get hungry!

Paula Deen's Green Eggs and Ham
from Paula's My First Cookbook

3 eggs
1/4 cup minced ham
1 drop blue food coloring
Salt and Pepper to taste

   Have your little one crack the eggs into a medium sized bowl, and then let them whisk the eggs until well blended.  Add one drop of food coloring.  Add the salt and pepper as desired.  Have your little one stir the eggs again.  (Depending on their age you may have to take over here.)  Cook the minced ham over medium heat in a medium skillet for about 3 minutes.  Pour eggs mixture on top.  Scramble until cooked through.  This makes just enough for two people.

   After breakfast, Monkey planted Pink Cosmos and Forget-Me-Nots in her little greenhouse containers I found at Walmart for $1.00 a piece.  Freezing or not, I have a feeling the little seeds will be just fine in my warm house, sitting up my window that provides sunlight for more than 8 hours a day.  That's one good thing about the south, you can count on it getting warm again rather quickly no matter how cold it gets.

   Next we made bird feeders to put outside tomorrow after all the rain/sleet/snow has passed.  I remember making these as a kid myself.  You simply cover a pinecone in peanut butter and then roll it in bird seeds.  Add a string, and you can hang it from a tree near a window where you can watch for birds.  Monkey thought it was so cool that we were going to feed the birds.

I love the look on her face in this one, because she hates peanut butter.  She couldn't understand why the birds would eat the seeds if they had peanut butter on them.

Ta-Da!

    Now I better get off of here to make sure Monkey's really cleaning her room like she's supposed to.  I'm not holding my breath.  Before I go, let me share something I saw on Facebook that's rather fitting:

Winter in the South