Mummy Lantern

Thanks to Pinterest, I am invigorated with creativity. I found this idea on Pinterest, but it didn't come with good directions. So I headed to Walgreens and used some craft products I already had on hand. I think they turned out really well. Although the three year olds I intended to occupy these with were not as interested as the two of us Moms were, it was still fun for them to watch us. It was super easy and not at all messy, which is a BONUS for Preschool craft time.

First, I rounded up a few Mason jelly jars we had lying around in the garage. Any glass jar or small drinking glass will do. I am sure you could score a few from a trip to the Dollar Store. After my trip to Walgreens I had the mummy roll of gauze. This particular roll was 4" wide x 2.5 yards long. It was too wide for our small jars, so I cut it down the center to make (2) 2 inch wide strips from the 4 inch roll. For the small jar, I cut out (2) lengths of 24" pieces. It was plenty for three jars. I am usually very particular about keeping my cuts straight and clean, but for a mummy, I thought they would look better if cut a bit rough.
I found some dimensional adhesive dots in my craft box from a scrapbooking project. These are super sticky so I think they will do a good job of keeping the gauze in place. I have also seen craft glue and double sided tape used for the gauze in this project.

Starting at the bottom of the jar, I added the adhesive dot to the glass and tightly wrapped the gauze in an overlalpping pattern. The gauze did a good job of sticking to itself. I used two different pieces to make sure the entire glass jar was covered. Secure end of gauze at each end with adhesive dot or glue to be sure it stays in place.
Next, add googly eyes. I also had some self-adhesive sparkly foam circles from another project that I used as a background for the googly eyes. I used pieces of the adhesive dots to apply the eyes, but you could just use glue.

I also chose to use the battery operated tea lights inside the jars instead of real candles. My daughter tends to knock things over and I also didn't want to worry about blowing them out at night.

Ta-da! They are done! My daughter also added a nose to her Mummy, just cause she is silly.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

The weather is getting more Fall-like and it always makes me want to get the crock pot going. Here is one of our family's favorites. I got this recipe from a friend's blog, but have made a few tweaks. It is also great to start in the morning then eat during half-time of the football game. Enjoy!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

(1) Roasted Chicken from your local grocery store

(2) pkgs. taco seasoning –low sodium

(1) pkg. ranch dressing mix

(2) cans black beans - rinsed

(1) can Great White Northern beans

(1) large jar salsa

(2) cans chicken broth

(1) bag frozen corn

(1) can diced tomatoes with juice

(1) Tbsp pepper

Combine all ingredients in large crock pot, then shred the chicken and add to rest of ingredients. I usually cook for 1 – 1 1/2 hrs on high in crock pot.

Serve with sour cream, tortilla chips and shredded cheese! It freezes great too! My husband likes to add hot sauce to his.

Hello Kitty Birthday Party

I always enjoy planning and designing my children's birthday parties. It gives me a chance to use my design and creativity. I chose Hello Kitty as the theme for my daughter Avery's third birthday because I know my days are numbered where I can choose the theme. I think Hello Kitty is just so cute and had a lot of possibilities. I searched the web for ideas and found a ton of options--can't take credit for those cute bags. I chose a few simple options and kept it easy this year. I have included some photos below of the gift bags and cake.

The cake pan and paper goods were purchased at Party City. But the cake pan is available online as well. We had our local bakery make it as a double layer since the pan was so shallow and small. It fed about 25 people. My Aunt used her Cricut machine to make the number sign for me. I used a bamboo kabob skewer taped to the number sign as the stick. I am partial to using these flag style decorations on cakes. I think it adds dimension and you can really personalize your cake.

The plain white gift bags were purchased at Hobby Lobby (in packages of 12) and I used an oval template and colored construction paper for the Hello Kitty face. You could probably use an oval die cut and make it even easier on yourself. I used a circle die cut for the center of the bow and a dimensional adhesive dot to secure it to the bag. I added, "Thank you for Coming, Love Avery" to personalize them.

Ordinary Family, Extraordinary Moments

I have been thinking about starting a blog to share our family's projects and adventures with others. But I realize also that this will really be a place for me, to be a place that I make time for, just like our site says. I used to write and journal all the time (before kids of course) and it was very therapeutic for me. I look forward to getting back to expressing myself in that way, and I hope you will enjoy reading my posts.

I will also share photographs, Birthday parties, crafts that I find and do, quotes that I love, recipes and whatever else strikes my fancy.

I have said that I take so many photos of my kids because I don't want to forget a single moment. I want to freeze this moment in time. Squeeze and hold them forever, while they still want me to hold them. Maybe this will be that place, where I can hold on just a little longer, but still watch them grow and blossom.

We are just a regular family, just like everyone else, trying with all our might to keep our head above water most days. But this ordinary family has extraordinary moments - and with those moments a lot of love. We welcome you to follow our adventure. We hope you enjoy the ride.