Twin baby shower invitation: a perfect pair!

Posting pictures of my not-so-baby Griffin yesterday made me all fuzzy and nostalgic for little ones.  I have plenty of friends and family around me who have children under one year or buns in the oven that I can get my "fix" of newborns without any of the actual parental fuss.  Those sleepless nights and cranky days?  Not so fuzzy and nostalgic.

But, it was with great pleasure to recently design a special baby shower invitation for an expectant mother of twins. And the neat part: she's chosen not to find out the gender of the babies! I'm all for surprises, but when it comes two-fold with diapers, I don't know if I could have that information withheld. Kudos to her family for waiting it out.  :)

Personal information has been modified for privacy.

Two years old

This past weekend, we celebrated Griffin's second birthday but it didn't go exactly according to plan because he wasn't feeling well, however we managed to go outside and play for a bit when he perked up.  Too bad it felt more like winter than spring around here, but have-jackets-will-play.

It feels like forever ago that we brought him home, and as the first few months went by, we were falsly lulled into thinking he was destined to be mild-mannered...

...however despite his strong will, endless energy and an opinion all his own, he remains immensely loveable just the same.

Happy two years, Buddy-Boy.

Free printable: DIY seed packet wrap tag

I'm not sure what the allure is around a large display of seed packets, but I'm always drawn to it like a moth to a flame.  Maybe it's because there's a whole lot of promise in each little packet of growth, color, fruition and more, so why not gift a packet or two to friends using Good Gravy's free printable DIY seed packet wrap tags?  It's easy.  Let's go!

I based the wrap tag design using a standard 3.25" x 4.50 seed packet found just about everywhere (even craft stores sell 'em!).  You could use any seed mix that strikes your fancy.  I was especially drawn to the cosmos because how can anyone refuse something dubbed as "dwarf cutesy?"  Not me:

After you print and cut out one of the tags, line up the front portion with the center of the packet:

Score and fold where the two colors meet on each side, flip the packet and fold back the ends:

Apply glue or tape to the right side and pull the left flap over on top, securing tightly:

And you're done!

Because everyone loves mail

I want to share a fun Friday find (say it three times fast!) that I'm completely smitten with:

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The GiversLog has a series called 13 ounces or less where unusual packaging meets quirky, mailable gifts.  The project promotes mailng oddly shaped packages which weigh 13 ounces or less because they qualify for inexpensive USPS first-class postage.  I love it.

There's still a week before Easter...maybe this project would make a good long-distance Easter treat?  Like stuffing a water bottle full of those gross marshmallow Peeps?  I rank Peeps right up there with bland Girl Scouts shortbread cookies, but I'll be darned that those little yellow Peeps are deceivingly cute.


PS: My moment of irony...I hate Peeps but love Circus Peanuts.  Go figure.

Fire engines and doo-dads

A big thanks for all the suggestions for Griffin's birthday present.  We landed on a few things, thanks to your ideas!  First, we're going to give him this fire engine because it's simple.  Then, I'm going to take the suggestion of creating a little box of doo-dads for Griff can sift through and play together with his sister.

Just a few more days of my little guy being just one.  Selfishly, I'm fortunate that he's still quite the peanut in height and weight (the kid can still wear 12 month size pants!), so he stays nice and small for me a little while longer.

Beach-theme wedding invitation

I recently complete a beach-theme wedding invitation project for a couple who will marry in June on the coast of Maine. 

Using a "Bahama breeze" blue with sand inks, this wedding invitation suite included directions and response cards folded neatly into a vertical pocket folder and sealed with the couple's monogram. 

I'll also be designing their wedding favor tags and seating assignments as their big day approaches.  More to come!

Personal information has been modified for privacy.

Paint me mine

We started an addition on our house a while back and slowly but surely, it's coming together. We recently shopped around for paint and are honing in on a deep navy color with white trim.

The exisiting portion of the house is a worn sage green and the addition just has the standard gray-colored siding, so aside from living with a two-tone house for much longer than my sense of annoyance could possibly allow, I'm pretty revved up about the new paint to tie it all together.

Wavey helped put up a sample swatch...

...but then preferred to strike a pose when she saw I had my camera out:

And while discussing the color options, Wav said, "Let's not choose yellow or else people will think we peed on the house." 

Classy.

Bubblegum flavor + toothpaste = ick

I'm nearly halfway into my "40 bags in 40 days" challenge.  I haven't taken many photos, mainly out of sheer embarrassment that my cabinets NOW look as they always should have.   But, I am particularly proud of this cabinet in the guest bathroom/laundry room that sits above the washer and dryer:

Before the big clean-out, I couldn't fit in any of the laundry detergents and had to put them on top of the cabinet, which is about eight feet off the ground and required a step stool to access them.  Talk about ridiculous. 

One big upside to the clean-out was the discovery of multiple tubes of bubblegum toothpaste.  Apparently, we'd buy a tube, toss it in the cabinet, forget we bought it and then buy again.  Multiply these steps by about five and you'll understand the treasure trove of kid toothpaste we now rock in this household.

JULIAN and Co. pairs with Good Gravy!

I'm so excited to announce that select Good Gravy! stationery is now available at JULIAN and Co., a lovely boutique offering jewelry about love for families.

Inspired by her own experiences in motherhood, Tania handcrafts personalized heirloom quality pendants and more that are perfect for parents and children alike. 

And right now, JULIAN and Co. is hosting a giveaway for one of their newest pieces, the Initial Wax Seal Pendant.  To enter, visit JULIAN and Co.'s blog today your chance to win this beautifully monogrammed pendant and a set of note cards.  Good luck!

Name-calling and other great moments in motherhood

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I had both kids in the car with me yesterday when I was cut-off big time by another driver in a very rude way.  Well, not like there's a polite way to be cut-off, but this was an exceptional "I'm going to blatantly swerve in front of you and enjoy watching you panic" kind of way.

I got scared.

I got furious.

Then I started to swear, kind of forgetting the kids were all-ears right behind me.  I used some rather choice phrases and then ended with, "Learn how to drive, [BEEPITY-BEEP-BEEP]!"

Wavey brought me back down to Earth when she innocently asked, "How do you know that guy's name?"

I will accept my Mother of the Year Award now, please.

Love thy undressed colony neighbor

Today feels like a "random fact" kind of day.  I enjoy reading an occassional blog post from others who list random facts about themselves, so I'll share one that I think only a handful of people have the esteemed privilege to say:

My house is up the road from a nudist colony. 

While we are not AT the colony, are unable to SEE the colony (phew!), and have NEVER attended the colony, we're close enough to reference the ginormous sign outside the colony as a landmark to let folks know they're nearing our house.

Share your random fact! 

Get free shipping with any order!

On your mark, get set, shop!  Stating today, order anything out of the shop and automatically get free standard domestic shipping to anywhere in the U.S.!  No minimum order necessary, no coupon code needed.  How easy is that?!

But hurry, offer ends on Friday evening!

"W" is for "Wonky"

At age four, Wavey already has this thing for fashion.  What I've been offering up lately hasn't been "pretty enough" or "twirly enough."  And if the day's attire choices doesn't have the option for tights, then prepare for a meltdown.  The irony is that I would hardly call myself fashion-conscious so where she gets this minor obsession with her outward appearance is a bit of a mystery. 

In any case, I couldn't get her to wear a little white sweater I recently bought.  "It's too plain!" she whined.  So I whipped up a few quick stitches and despite it's wonkiness (hey, not bad for complete free-hand and lack of general embroidery know-how!), she now loves her newly monogrammed sweater.

"Bubble wrap! My favorite!"

Wavey received a very nice package yesterday from my sister and was thrilled that there was a piece of mail exclusively for her. 

When she opened it up, Wavey screamed, "BUBBLE WRAP! MY FAVORITE!"  And then looked further and said quietly, "Oh, and princess lipstick.  That's nice, too."

This experience may seal-the-deal for me about finding a very simple present for Griffin's birthday if my kids get ramped up about something as benign as bubble wrap.

Baby's First Air Horn and other gift ideas

My little buddy-boy Griffin turns two in two weeks.  Two!  I don't have anything big planned.  Scratch that - I don't have anything planned at all (yet). 

Don't get me wrong, among our family we'll still have cake, sing "Happy Birthday" and open presents, but that's where I'm already falling short: presents.  I mean, anyone who has seen my house know that my children do not lack toys.  I still get grief about how before I had kids, I proudly exclaimed, "I'll never be one of THOSE people who have their house overrun with toys!"  Fast forward five years...um, not so much.

In any case, Griffin still deserves a present on his birthday and we will happily find one.  Question is: what to get?!  He's in that strange in-between stage of toys where they're either too over-the-top for his age or so clearly baby toys.  Here's the criteria:

• I'm not a fan of battery-powered anything
• He likes books, but finds tearing them apart much more fun
• We have enough Matchbox cars to replicate a stadium parking lot in our backyard
• Quiet = good.  My friend Beth has a knack of always finding the loudest toys for my kids which is an indirect 'ha-ha' towards me in her futile attempts to shatter my sanity (I'm keeping track, Beth.  Just wait until you have kids and I find "Baby's First Air Horn" to present your future children)

Any toy advice is welcome!