Hello, Good Gravy!

Hiiii-YAHH!

2012-02-01T06:00:00.000-05:00

This is what happens when you buy an assemble-yourself-bookshelf that comes with styrofoam packaging, and your children have watched way too much Kung Fu Panda:

The best part? You're only seeing about a quarter of the absolute mess.

Get your craft on: DIY birdseed ornament tutorial

2012-01-31T06:00:00.004-05:00

For Valentine's Day teacher gifts, we're doing heart-shaped birdseed ornaments. Popular for bird-themed wedding favors, too, this was an easy DIY project that the Gravy Kids enjoyed.

For the heart shapes, I used a donut baking tin I found at Target. You can use cookie cutters, too, but shelling out the $9.99 was worth it over digging through my basement looking for the box of cookie cutters. The payment of convenience.

Here's the recipe:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons corn syrup or honey
1 packet unflavored gelatin
4 cups birdseed
Cooking spray

In a large bowl, combine flour, water, corn syrup (or honey), and gelatin. Mix well. Add birdseed and mix well. Scoop into greased molds and let dry overnight before removing from mold.

Alternatively, you could use cookie cutters by putting wax paper on top of a cookie sheet and filling the greased cookie cutters with seeds. Just be sure to insert pieces of straw to leave a hole to tie the string through after the ornament dries. A mini-bundt pan would probably work well, too.

We wrapped the heart birdseed ornaments into a plastic bag, topped it off with a "love is for the birds" gift tag and voila! Instant gift.

Free DIY printable: Valentine's Day gift tags

2012-01-30T06:00:00.003-05:00

Can you believe it's going to be February this week? I've already started in on my Valentine's Day teacher gifts which I'll share very shortly.

Until then, enjoy these FREE Good Gravy! printable Valentine's Day gift tags. Click here to download.

Of course, I couldn't resist throwing in a lovey, but somewhat non-in-your-face Valentine's Day tag with "Your Are My Sunshine." I love that phrase.

An obvious headline (in this house, at least)

2012-01-23T06:00:00.001-05:00

If you're lucky, this news clipping may not apply to you. However, it greatly applies in the Good Gravy household.

The naughty list: dog christmas card

2012-01-20T11:19:00.001-05:00

My friend Elise's dog, Myko, is quite the character. So much so that he deserved his own dog Christmas card last month which I designed.

All items represented in Myko's "file" are hilariously true (okay, well maybe one is a stretch, but we wouldn't put it past him).

Break-in or renovation? You decide.

2011-12-09T09:12:00.001-05:00

I may or may not have been been responsible for this:

I admit to nothing. Ignore the crumbs on my face.

Excuse me while I clog my arteries

2011-12-01T06:00:00.002-05:00

It's no secret I love bacon and these online finds have me drooling:

{via SkilletStreetFood}

{via Fred Flare}

{via Torani}

{via ThinkGeek}

And, beer + bacon + maple donut = hello, my darlings:

{via Rouge}

Get your craft on: DIY crayons

2011-11-29T06:00:00.001-05:00

I've read many articles about making your own crayons from broken ones using cookie molds, so I thought Wavey would find it a fun holiday project for kid-gifts.

So here's the rub: We didn't have enough organically-derived broken crayons, so we broke a apart a box of new ones...and what an UNHOLY MESS it was to peel the wrappers off of them.

Did you know generic crayons affix their wrappers with the same glue probably used to hold rocket ships together in space? Yep, now you know, and I have the wax under my nails to prove it.

We melted the crayons in the oven at 275-degrees for about 15 minutes and let them cool completely before popping them out of the mold. Success!

Gingerbread house FAIL

2011-11-28T06:00:00.003-05:00

My sister is in town and we thought, "Let's buy one of those pre-fabbed gingerbread houses to decorate. How difficult can that be?"

I think you can guess where this is going...

It didn't help that Emily and I carry the gene of impatience as we didn't bother reading any instructions.

Between the two of us, Emily and I carry college and post-graduate degrees...clearly none of which were in engineering. Or good judgement.

The walls wouldn't stick, the roof collapsed, and icing was EVERYWHERE. The kids basically gave up on us, threw a few candy pieces our way and took off.

Even the gingerbread men look zombie-ish and disgusted by our work.

Hello, holidays!

The over/under of Thanksgiving Day

2011-11-25T14:40:00.000-05:00

Wavey threw me for a loop this year by actually eating Thanksgiving dinner. Griffin, however? Status quo.

World's greatest understatement

2011-11-22T11:15:00.000-05:00

I'm rapidly realizing that I'm trending toward an obsession with cured meats these days, but when I ran across this in my local paper, I couldn't agree more with its sentiments:

Delicious bum

2011-11-17T06:00:00.005-05:00

I am a child because I found this sign at a restaurant funny:

And yes, I ordered it, too.

Holiday cocktail party invitation

2011-11-16T06:00:00.000-05:00

Can you believe we're pretty close to Christmas already? I cannot. But, my clients certainly are on the ball with plans for holiday cheer:

I designed this holiday cocktail party invitation using icicle blue, silver bell and cranberry inks on textured cardstock and matted it to a shimmering silver cardstock. Very holiday glam.

(Personal information has been modified to protect privacy)

Christmas "cheese"

2011-11-15T06:00:00.002-05:00

I've had some decent luck with several props I've been tyring out this year for kids' holiday photos, but I can't quite win with the frame...espec in the "ages 3 and under" group. The evidence:

Popcorn cupcake wrappers

2011-11-14T06:00:00.002-05:00

I love popcorn and I love cupcakes. So this popcorn cupcake wrapper project I designed for a local bakery was a delicious fit.

The bakery is going to fuse marshmallows and airbrush yellow frosting for the buttered popcorn effect for an upcoming movie-themed birthday party and will use the wrappers I designed above to tuck the "popcorn" cupcakes inside. Clever!

While the party for this bakery hasn't yet occurred, here's a photo I found via Project Nursery to show you the full effect:

Got an idea for a custom cupcake wrapper you'd be interested in having for an upcoming event? Email me! :)

Hello, cute microwave.

2011-11-10T06:00:00.002-05:00

It is with great regret that I just recently purchased a regular, plain and functional microwave before coming across this Hello Kitty branded one:

It definitely wouldn't match my desire to make my home look more like grown-ups live here. But then again, all hopes for that flew out of the window once the giant styrofoam doughboy joined the decor.

Family photo: FAIL

2011-11-08T06:00:00.002-05:00

Taking photos of other people's children for holiday photo cards is easy for me. Photos of my own kids? Not so much:

Though, this sadly is quite the realistic snapshot of our day-to-day.

It's spooky how late this update is

2011-11-07T08:02:00.000-05:00

Yeah, I'm a little late on the Halloween update train, but for posterity's sake, here's our annual Halloween photo op with our favorite friends from Into Ablivia:

And now, Halloween with the same group of goofy kids through the years:

Propped up

2011-11-06T13:53:00.000-05:00

{Its been a while, hasn't it? You know when life gets ahead of you a bit? That was me. But I'm back, and I've got lots of stuff to share! So, enough about why I haven't blogged since forever ago. Let's get back to the present...}

Meet my little friend, Bridget, whose parents graciously asked me to snap a little photo session to use for a custom Christmas card design. So, I brought over a few props, like my red chair and a open white-washed frame.

And Bridget was having none of it.

So keep this in mind when doing your own photo shoots for the holidays: Kids, especially little ones, will not hold still for anyone. Or, get creative and crop out dad's arm:

Free DIY printable: You make me happy

2011-08-22T06:00:00.004-04:00

Wouldn't it be sweet to give this free Good Gravy! DIY printable to someone today who makes you happy when skies are gray?

{Click here to download a 4.75" x 6.75 size card}

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine...

The doughboy has landed

2011-08-18T06:00:00.003-04:00

Don't adjust your screen. What you're seeing is indeed my new best friend: A 54-inch styrofoam Pillsbury Doughboy. And he's mine, all mine.

The grocery store down the street wouldn't sell me theirs, so I found this limited-edition guy online. Yeah, quite a bit of dough was shelled out (pun totally intended) but it's such a cool item that I'm thrilled to now own it.

Don't we make a beautiful couple?

Didn't taste like candy

2011-08-17T06:00:00.002-04:00

While on vacation, I went to a candy shop and couldn't believe to find candy cigarettes still in production. Of course, if you look carefully, there's no mention of "cigarettes." Riiight.

Which brings me to this confession: I smoked my very first cigarette last month. First [and last] in my 34 years, and soley because I just wanted to see what it was like.

The curiousity (along with my lung from hacking to death) is certifiably out of my system.

Squashed!

2011-08-16T06:00:00.002-04:00

I'm what you'd call an "accidental gardener."

As in, I-threw-a-sorry-little-zucchini-plant-into-my-yard,-walked-away-for-a-while,-and-came-home-to-these-beasts:

Toy cow delicately positioned for comical scale.

Cape adventure

2011-08-15T19:24:00.000-04:00

Back from a beach vacation on Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

Regular programming, along with about 15 loads of laundry, now resuming. :)

Pottymouth convict

2011-08-04T06:00:00.002-04:00

I'm pretty determined to retain my Mother of the Year title.

Wavey drops a shoe and says quietly under her breath, "Oh s---, I dropped that."

I whip around and ask, "What did you just say?" which is followed by 10 minutes of me gently pleading her to verify the word I was pretty sure I heard.

Finally, she admits the word and I ask her which friend from school taught it to her. She gives me a smirk and says, "No one from school. YOU say it all the time."

&%$#@, she's right.

At least she used it in correct context.

The August Grinch

2011-08-03T07:31:00.000-04:00

I have some choice words for my discovery of Christmas items in the craft store yesterday...

...none of which are very nice because it's only August for crying outloud, and especially for this DIY doll, "Jingles the Sock Monkey."

Button eyes = not right, folks. Just not right.

Pop quiz

2011-08-01T06:00:00.000-04:00

Wavey decided to meticulously dress herself this weekend. So, here's my question: Who should be more embarrassed by the other person?

(A) Me, because Waverly's outfit is delightfully wacky,

(B) Waverly, because I'm an adult wearing a child-sized t-shirt that reads "Member Doughboy Fan Club" paired with running shorts,

-or-

(C) None of the above because we were going to Walmart where we'd most likely blend right in.

Pencils down, please.

Your monthly gift?

2011-07-20T06:00:00.000-04:00

I'm all for practical gift-giving, but I draw the line at this:

{thanks to kim for making me laugh out loud with this find}

Hello, new chair

2011-07-19T06:00:00.001-04:00

Call me crazy, but this well-worn chair I came across at a local antique store was begging for me to buy it for photography use. And use it, I shall:

These are just test shots, but I'm very excited to see how it'll work out when my kids are actually dressed appropriately and somewhat cooperative.

So, when pigs fly, right?

Marshmallows, check. Gin, checkcheckcheck.

2011-07-18T06:00:00.004-04:00

We had a small s'mores get-together at my friend Holly's house.

And aside from plain, strawberry and chocolate marshmallows to choose from, Holly made sure the true essentials of a s'mores party were included...

..lime, gin, tonic and ice. Party on, moms. Party on.

So wrong, yet so right

2011-07-15T06:00:00.002-04:00

It's no secret I get the heebie-jeebies from dolls, but I always get a good laugh when friends send me hilarious doll-related finds and say, "I saw this and thought of you!"

Like the following from EarthSeaWarrior:

Or this from ReshapeStudio:

Creepy, hilarious and if it wasn't for my fear that these objects would come to life and stab me in my sleep, I'd totally own them.

Poppin' fresh

2011-07-13T06:00:00.001-04:00

During the holidays, I usually say, "I have everything I want and need, so please no gifts."

I will not be saying that again until this arrives on my doorstep:

This foam Doughboy:

A) Stands about four feet tall

B) Is a display and not for general sale

C) Must be mine

In grad school, I practically ate triple my weight in Pillsbury products just to mail in enough points toward a free Doughboy mug, while inadvertently turning myself into a Doughboy at the same time.

I still say: Well worth the mug.

But God loves frosting

2011-07-12T06:00:00.003-04:00

We were at a child's birthday party the other day and this kid below (who we don't know) doesn't say a peep throughout the entire bowling party...until Waverly innocently sat down next to her for cake and the little girl says in a completely low, creepy voice:

"God hates birthdays. It's true."

Sensing that this girl was dead-serious and kinda scary, Wavey gave her the "what the flip?" face and then slowly said, "Oookkkaaaaayyy."

I nearly died laughing. It's true.

The opposite of "gruntled"

2011-07-05T06:00:00.003-04:00

Seven more long, loooooong days until my stinkin' cast comes off. I've decided to share my feelings about it in line chart form:

But it's so shiny

2011-06-30T06:00:00.002-04:00

We were all - especially Wavey - appreciative for the generous birthday gifts received from friends and family. I especially thought this looked like fun...

...until someone quipped, "those will look great inside your vacuum canister."

Find the miserable kid

2011-06-28T06:00:00.002-04:00

We celebrated Wavey's birthday over the weekend with friends, a bounce house and a slip n' slide. Three things of note in the photo below:

(1) Wav had the time of her life, but rounding up children ages six and under for one photo was worse than herding cats. There are about five kids missing from the photo.

2. Griffin was about three hours past his usual naptime and it shows big time with his miserable pout. And can we talk about his bird-chest? I swear that we feed him even though he retains zero body fat.

3. I absolutely love the company we rented the bounce house from even though Romeo and Juliets' faces has seen better days. Ha!

NKOTBeebs

2011-06-21T06:00:00.003-04:00

I was on the fence with the appropriatness of Waverly sporting a shirt of her "crush," Justin Bieber.

But then got called out for my own "crush" with friends at a recent New Kids on the Block concert.

PS: I still love Joey Mac.

But not after Labor Day

2011-06-20T08:16:00.000-04:00

What is more unbeliveable than how many pieces and hours it took to assemble Wavey's birthday present?

...That I'm to believe any normal parent would purchase white pants for their kid in hopes they'll stay clean:

Six years old

2011-06-17T06:00:00.001-04:00

Happy birthday, Waverly, aka "Wav," "Wavey," and my favorite: "Bun-bun."

We love you!

Oh, that's where the magenta went

2011-06-16T06:00:00.000-04:00

Because it's impossible to find every renegade crayon left on the floor, my dog picks up where I leave off.

It usually results in a startling but colorful, "what goes in the front comes out the back" moment several hours later.

"Your personal opinion is not helpful" award

2011-06-15T06:02:00.004-04:00

Dear medical records receptionist,

My insurer and I have been trying to obtain my surgery report from your office for weeks without response or resolution. So, when I had no choice but to come in and ask for the records in person, your snippy personal opinion of "the insurance company's job is to deny your claim anyway" is:

A) unsolicited,

B) unsubstantiated,

and

C) still does not explain why you've been sitting on the records request for weeks.

It must be nice to be you, having the super power of knowing my injury and the lone decision authority whether or not you feel like releasing authorized medical records. You're pure genius and darn lucky my fingers can't be flexed in obscene gesture because they're casted.

Here's my personal opinion, miserable lady: Less talky, more printy.

xoxo,

Choke-hold grad

2011-06-14T06:00:00.003-04:00

We're very proud of Waverly, our little kindergarten grad.

After cruising through the photos we took of the day, I noticed a recurring theme going on between her and Griffin:

No lack of sibling love, that's for sure.

Pinky

2011-06-13T06:00:00.007-04:00

I have good reason for slacking on the blog these days:

While I'm still able to do lots things with the cast until my wrist recovers from ligament surgery, typing on a keyboard is not really one of them and one- handed typing stiiiinks. But I have so much to share that I don't care if it takes me all day to pull together one post, so I'm back on the daily train.

Do you like the choice for hot pink? There's little hiding an up-to-your-elbow cast, so I went out big. But we won't talk about how I've already managed to drop foreign objects into it or crack the cast on one end. Patient of the year.

Cheap = typos

2011-06-02T08:47:00.000-04:00

Last year, I said to my husband, " I don't think you should buy a no-name laptop," but he contended it was purely for internet use so it didn't matter.

This is the message on its screen when the battery was low yesterday:

Waming!

Bridge out ahead

2011-06-01T06:00:00.002-04:00

Poor Griffin has been cursed with the Asian trait of having little bridge to his nose. Though, he's come up with a good solution to keeping sunglasses on his face:

One-armed bandit

2011-05-31T08:52:00.001-04:00

This is where I've been the past few days...exactly here in this chair and 95% of the time in those same yoga pants:

The ligaments in my wrist were surgically repaired, hopefully closing the long chapter of last year's car accident. In the meantime, my husband has a lot of opportunities to perfect the perfect pony-tail.

Mischief: That's my policy

2011-05-24T06:00:00.001-04:00

It seems as though my insurance agent will never learn that sending me paperwork that requires returning always comes at a price:

He's a nice guy, really, with a great sense of humor. But I'm sure he's regretting it BIG TIME for selling me coverage (and/or that his photo is readily accesible on his agent web page).

I'm a wiener, you're a wiener

2011-05-23T06:00:00.001-04:00

I've always wanted to see the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile in person. And there it was, just hanging out in a Portsmouth, N.H., hotel parking lot with no one around but us!

Making my kids dance in front of the Wienermobile: Just further solidification of my love for hotdogs.

Tearing wallpaper wasn't cutting it

2011-05-20T06:00:00.000-04:00

Considering we're at the conclusion of Griffin's first diaper-free week, you'd think the greatest tragedies would be numerous loads of laundry or spot-cleaning the couch. But he's actually done quite well, so to make up for the surprise successes he's resorted to just wrecking the bathroom, bit by tiny bit:

Further proof that households with small children never have anything nice.

Free DIY Printable: "Don't do that thing"

2011-05-19T06:01:00.000-04:00

Inspired by a line I heard in a hilarious TV commercial, sometimes it's just better to just tell it like it is:

I'm all for *real* inspirational quotes, but this line was just too good to let pass by. Click here to download yours!

Stall tactics

2011-05-17T06:00:00.002-04:00

It truly is coincidence that I have back-to-back potty-related posts, but we're in the midst of "cold turkey week" of Griffin abandoning diapers and going straight to big boy underwear.

It hasn't been as bad as one would think...until boredom set in during one potty visit and Griffin decided he didn't care for bathroom wallpaper:

Poo stories are always funny

2011-05-16T06:00:00.003-04:00

A pregnant friend who works in a corporate office setting gave me permission to share this email she sent me under the strict condition of anonimity. We've had a long-running joke about the weirdness of an office ladies' room and she had me in tears sharing her recent experience:

"So, it's the rule that when doing something of a number two nature, you’d rather wait until no one is in the restroom. I’m usually pretty lucky here because it’s mostly men in my office, so the women’s room is usually always empty. But I went in today and there was a woman already in one of the stalls. And I had to go. So I went in, sat down to wait... and it became clear we were in a stand-off. She wasn’t going to go until I left, and I wasn’t going to go until she left. It was deadly quiet and awkward, with neither of us doing anything except sitting and trying not to breathe.

"Who won, you ask? Sadly, she did. Pregnancy lowers my stamina. But I was out of there without seeing her face, so it was almost like I won, too."

Bravo, my friend. Bravo on your stealth victory.

Scalloped, personalized birthday banner

2011-05-09T06:00:00.002-04:00

I was asked by a birthday client if I would create a banner for her one-year-old son, and here it is!

It's my first strung banner and I'm pleased with how it turned out using a shimmering silver scallop design and black/white images of her little one.

It was a little time-intensive handcrafting every scallop and circle, but the end design was worth it.

Thank goodness her son has a short name, though. If it was something alpha-hefty like "CHRISTOPHER," I would have thrown in the towel. Ha ha, kidding! Email me if you're interested in having a custom banner of your very own.

Free DIY printable: Mother's Day gift tags

2011-05-05T06:00:00.002-04:00

You know those cute little plants found in the floral aisle of grocery stores? I think they make great little gifts.

Click here to download free, DIY printable circle gift tags from Good Gravy! The design is double-sided so you can affix each side to a popsicle stick (or use a clothespin like I did because for the life of me I can't find that stinkin' bag of popsicle sticks I bought last week).

Best of all? The gift tags aren't necessarily just for moms...you can use them for other women in your life who you recognize on Mother's Day, like aunts, teachers, grandmothers and more. Enjoy!

No tough guy is safe

2011-05-04T07:14:00.001-04:00

Innocently placed magazine on coffee table + errant purple marker + sneaky five year old = moths to a flame.

It's so fluffy!

2011-05-02T06:00:00.003-04:00

If you've ever wondered to yourself, "Who are the the target market nutballs buying cotton candy out of a plastic container?"...

...Hello, it's nice to meet you.

You like me. You really like me.

2011-04-27T06:00:00.002-04:00

I am just so humbled by the number of followers I'm fortunate to have and provide mild entertainment for since starting Good Gravy! just three years ago.

I'm not known for my mushiness so I'll just say this: Thanks for being the outlet I've always wanted to have to share in the wackiness of my day-to-day, photos and doings of my family, my endless practical jokes, and my unhealthy fear of dolls.

I {heart} you all.

PS: And to my in-real-life friends, thanks for not blowing my cover when running into me at the store wearing dirty clothes and no make-up, or hearing me swear up a storm, and turning a blind eye to my poor choices in footwear. I have an image to maintain, people.

DIY free printable: "It takes courage"

2011-04-26T06:00:00.000-04:00

I like this quote from e.e. cummings:

I found an inexpensive 5x7" frame, threw the quote into a quick design layout and printed it.

Like this quote, too? Click here to download your very own free DIY print.

Brunch, bubbles and buckets

2011-04-25T06:00:00.003-04:00

We had Easter brunch with our friends from Into Ablivia on Sunday.

In her kids' Easter baskets, Holly included washable colored bubbles despite a store employee's warning "it's messy."

Um, messy hardly described it, and we were unprepared for the color-carnage that was about to unleash despite this note on the package:

The coloring from the bubbles got on everything: clothing, hair, faces, appendages. It was a huge {albeit fun} mess.

Since the ink was e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e, it was just easier to let the kids play with soap and warm water buckets before running back indoors. Which unexpectedly brought us to this:

"Brunch, bubbles and buckets." Our new Easter tradition.

Stirring the text pot

2011-04-22T06:00:00.005-04:00

My husband, Eli, recently got a new cell phone number and whoever had it before him apparently didn't tell anyone of the change, so Eli gets pinged with random, misdirected text messages quite often, like this one:

These messages - to who we've determined is named "Mike" - have been going on for a while and at all hours, so instead of ignoring, Eli now engages and responds on behalf of Mike (shown in green):

There have been other exchanges including "Dude, you were such a jerk last night," and Eli responded, "I have tickets to the circus. Want them?"

Nothing like stirring the pot with random strangers.

Yuck E. Sneezes + Hip Hop

2011-04-19T06:00:00.001-04:00

I thought it would be neat idea to let the Gravy Kids have a say in where they took me for my birthday this past weekend. This was the first and last time I will let them decide.

They enthusiastically announced that that establishment which rhymes with "Yuck E. Sneezes" was the numero-uno place to be. Not one to burst their bubbles, I reluctantly conceded and we went. For my 34th birthday. And for proof, here is the certification of "Hip Hop Dancer" I received:

Represent.

Thirty-something

2011-04-18T06:00:00.002-04:00

It was my birthday over the weekend and at 34, I am officially in my mid-thirties. Wowser.

Let's celebrate how, based on today's infant-raising standards, I managed to survive the late 70's with a fluffy pillow in my bassinette, a my-first-string-around-my-neck-bonnet, and what appears to be socks on my hands:

Thanks, Mom and Dad.

Me + Stationery = Potty Mouth

2011-04-13T06:00:00.001-04:00

Caution: This post is unintentionally inappropriate for work/children. But it's darn funny if you care to continue reading.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Every so often, I get a request to imprint the back flap of invitation envelopes. And sometimes, the layout falls short of what was actually intended:

Good thing I realized what this was saying before sending the project to the client...but not before producing an entire batch of envelopes. My bad.

I love you, coffee

2011-04-12T06:00:00.002-04:00

It took years to convince my husband to buy a Keurig coffee machine, and he recently caved. What he is unaware of is that while our kindergarten tuition bill will soon disappear, I'll most likely be trading the expense into bins full of delicious little k-cups...

...and teeth whitening strips.

Save, Give and Spend Jars

2011-04-11T06:00:00.003-04:00

At nearly six years old, we decided it's time for Waverly to understand earning and spending money.

Each week, if she completes her "chores" (i.e., bringing her dish from the table to the sink), she'll earn a small allowance delivered in coins. With that allowance, she can choose to divide it into SAVE, GIVE and SPEND jars.

We explained the concept of GIVE to her and she decided that when the jar was full, she'd use the money to buy groceries for our local food pantry. I found it important at her age to offer tangible giving options to so she can see immediate results of her charity. Buying a book and donating it to the library was another tangible option.

Let's face it: we could all use SAVE, GIVE and SPEND jars no matter what our age. Get started and click here to download a FREE printable sharing these jar tags. Happy coin collecting!

The captain has turned on the fake reasoning sign

2011-04-08T06:00:00.002-04:00

Earlier this week, I flew out for a one-day workshop to NYC and my flight back home was mysteriously cancelled by the airline for reasons of "too much air traffic," leaving me stuck for an extra day. Hey, U.S. Airways: I'm calling you out for fibbing. And just because I live in New England does not mean I'd be okay with a diversion to Massachusetts or Maine instead. Because guess what? If I preferred to fly into a neighboring state, I wouldn't have flown out of and parked my car in, oh, call me crazy: the New Hampshire airport in which you choose to operate from.

But, Good Gravy! readers, you know me to find the funny in anything. Including the airplane guide: I get the whole "no radio signals" rule, but the thought of a little race buggy hauling up and down an aisle was funny.

With such a nice drawing of the race buggy, did the artist simply give up when it came to drawing this guy a clean, pressed shirt? I'm just saying.

PS: The winner of Monday's five 18 designs giveaway is Tara Follett! Thanks to everyone who entered and provided me some great laughs with your random comments. Super great, all of you!

DIY seed packet wrap

2011-04-05T06:00:00.002-04:00

Now that my stinkin' hard cast is off my arm, it's time to get back to crafting, and let's kick off spring with DIY Free Printable Seed Packet Wraps!

You'll need:

Free printable printed on heavy paper{click here to download}
Scissors
Glue or tape (I used double-sided tape)
Seed packets

Once you print and cut your wraps, fold along the white dotted lines:

Turn to back and glue or tape on small tab. Don't forget to write in your "To/From."

It'll probably take you more time perusing the seed aisle and dreaming of spring gardens than it will be to complete this craft.

This packet idea would be great for school teacher appreciation gifts, wouldn't it?!

A goodness giveaway!

2011-04-04T06:00:00.000-04:00

Let's start the week off with a fantastic giveaway!

Tracey from five 18 designs has graciously offered Hello, Good Gravy! readers the chance for one lucky winner to receive two original handstamped goodnesses which include:

One personalized name shirt
One personalized birthday shirt

Oh, and did you know? Tracey from five 18 designs is also the creative genius behind Tiny Sprouts! Seriously, her talent is amazing. Says Tracey:

"I use only the thickest & most durable fabrics. All of the garments I sell are made with super thick interlock cotton. The inks used are non-toxic, ecofriendly, water based inks that are safe for baby & child! I take great pride in only selling items I'm proud of. Each garment is made to order & is one-of-a-kind, just like your little one!"

To enter, all you have to do is leave one comment to this post about anything: How your day is going, your favorite donut, a funny joke, just to say hi, really... whatever.

Winner will be selected at random on Thursday, April 7 and announced the following day, so tell your friends. :)

NO. NO. And NO.

2011-03-30T06:00:00.000-04:00

I would step in front of a moving freight train for my children, but I draw the line at this:

Cue the Meatloaf song "I would do anything for love, but I won't do that..."

Three years

2011-03-28T06:00:00.002-04:00

My little buddy boy turned three yesterday. He kicked off the festivities by biting his sister first thing in the morning, ensuring that the day could only go up from there.

We had a very small family gathering and he was perplexed when he ripped open a gift and saw a label maker box. I mean, what kid doesn't want to look professional?

Lucky for Griffin, his grandparents stuffed a bunch of cool dino toys inside the box. Merely for transport, they assured him.

This is the dino cake his grandmother made for him.

And here he is acting shy while we sung "Happy Birthday."

His "big gift" from us was a little scooter which he took to like a fish to water. Wavey got a little jealous of all the wheel-around fun, so we dusted off her bike from last summer to play with...

...and realized that we need to go bike shopping again soon.

Reminds me of a circus bear on a little bike.

The open letters

2011-03-24T06:00:00.006-04:00

I've fallen in love with the wit and stationery letterpress of Sapling Press. This...by far...is my favorite piece:

The cards are inspired by DearBlankPleaseBlank.com. An example of their awesome posts:

Dear Crust,

Don't worry, they don't like me either.

Sincerely,
First couple pieces of bread

Baby Stinky

2011-03-23T06:00:00.000-04:00

To my friend who finds fun ways to taunt me:

If you ever again give my kid a doll who, um, "uses the diaper" in every real sense of the way, please know that I will drive the 1.5 hours to your house on a hot summer day to drop off said toy and "extra fun" accessories/fermentation into your luxury car's glove box as payback.

The California "O" Diet

2011-03-21T06:00:00.002-04:00

We just returned from a vacation in California, my native home state. With its beaches, ferris wheels and corndog stores, it's a wonder I ever left.

Want to know my secret to good small-child behavior on cross-country trips? THE "O's" DIET. As in, forget nutrition: beg and plead for good behavior using the very special snacks of Cheetos, Doritos, Fritos and the occassional Cheerios.

Cereal aside, the Gravy Kids very rarely get to eat foods of substantial saturated fat and fakey-fake cheese, so busting out those treats was an instant behavior modifier. Mother of the Year, I know.

We now return to your regularly scheduled food groups.

Doll head soap, take 2

2011-03-17T06:00:00.002-04:00

I visited my sister recently and got to see first-hand the creepy baby doll head soap I sent her for a laugh.

Well worth the plane ticket to see that she proudly displays it right on the sink in her guest bathroom.

Test your skills, amaze your friends

2011-03-15T06:00:00.000-04:00

Take a guess at which of the following two cousins are in the three-year-old age range:

If you guess right, you win both kids. No questions asked.

Enough is enough

2011-03-14T06:00:00.002-04:00

Dear husband,

Knock it off.

xoxox,

Chug, chug, chug!

2011-03-11T07:36:00.000-05:00

I'm pretty lenient when it comes to parenting, but had I been home I would have drawn the line at this situation which was texted to me by my husband last night:

Apparently, the kids are being raised in a barn.

Sugary sentiments

2011-03-09T06:00:00.002-05:00

My sister-in-law gave me this cool cookie kit for Christimas:

The messaging possibilities (both appropriate and inappropriate) swirled through my head, but I landed on these for my inaugural batch:

Snow suit

2011-03-08T06:00:00.002-05:00

There is still about 10 million feet of snow outside and apparently "dress yourself" mornings missed that memo:

And why last season's swimsuit was still kicking around is beyond me.

I usually love processed food

2011-03-07T06:00:00.000-05:00

I had no idea you could purchase pre-chewed chicken.

Casting call

2011-03-04T06:00:00.006-05:00

My arm wasn't healing with use of a soft cast, so I'm now the proud owner of this bad-boy for the next several weeks:

The story of a injured ligament isn't as fun as coming up with some clever line to strangers who ask about the cast. I've considered changing the story to that one time I was in a super ninja fight, or how I busted it falling off a bar stool.

Anything is better than "I got rear-ended big time by an elderly driver. In November. And yes, it still hurts." Feel free to share an outlandish story idea I can use while out and about this weekend.

My dark roast secret

2011-03-03T06:00:00.001-05:00

I'd like to shake the hand of the marketing geniuses who said to themselves one day, "I bet there are nutballs out there who would love the taste of burnt pretzels..."

...because I am that nutball.

I {heart} burnt toast, too. And I know that's not normal.

Is "poo" with two O's?

2011-03-02T06:00:00.001-05:00

Wavey has been practicing her writing skills. And these are the gems she's turning in:

For the birds

2011-03-01T06:00:00.002-05:00

A great client of mine asked me to design a sign for a baby boy shower she was hosting and offering birdseed favors to guests.

I'm all for functional favors, and her idea to hang them from a potted tree branch was so clever. Love this idea!

Smells like kibble

2011-02-28T06:00:00.007-05:00

We've been tossing around the idea of getting Griffin a race car bed for his 3rd birthday next month. But why shell out that kind of dough when the kid insists on bunking in the dog's bed?

{please excuse the bad cell phone pics}

Brownies + Pound Cake = FAIL

2011-02-24T06:00:00.003-05:00

I love brownies. I love pound cake. And this is about how I got super ahead of myself thinking that the two could ever be friends. Because they are not.

Trust me and don't waste your time.

Since my super-popular post about the very delicious Brownie-Covered Oreos, I thought that the marriage of my two favorite cake-like items would be a hit.

Unfortunately, they turned on me as a monstrosity of a weirdly textured fake dessert.

Look away. They're hideous.

Free DIY Printable: St. Patrick's Day gift tags

2011-02-23T06:00:00.005-05:00

Oh, come on now. Just because you may or may not be Irish doesn't mean you can't spread the luck around a little.

Personally, I'm half-Irish but will celebrate the holiday in whole. And you should, too, with my latest Good Gravy! free DIY printable St. Patrick's Day gift tags in the polka dotted motif that's popular these days.

Click here to download, and go forth to find yourself some [Yucky] Charms cereal and green food dye.

Want more St. Patrick's day printable goodies? Check out the Good Gravy! pillow box designed last year.

I'm pumped

2011-02-22T06:00:00.001-05:00

I've apparently been so wrapped up in custom orders lately that I hadn't updated the blog (shame on me!) or notice that my kids abandoned all toys and resorted to playing with junky air pumps.

Not-so-easy unicorn

2011-02-15T06:00:00.001-05:00

You may remember the gifted tiger "painting" I received over the holidays. The joke has carried on that only a paint-by-numbers unicorn could possibly surpass the awesomeness of El Tigre.

So I bought one with great enthusiasm...

...and then cursed the blatant mislabeling of "quick and easy" when the directions looked like this:

And this:

I have a better chance of finding an actual unicorn and riding it into the sunset than finding time to paint this so-called "easy" project.

Will this cancel my policy?

2011-02-14T06:01:00.002-05:00

Which of the following do you think my local insurance agent dislikes the most?

A) That his photo is part of every mailed marketing piece to his customers?

B) That our children go to the same school and this is the Valentine's Day card his daughter will receive?

or

C) That he ever met me?

Thanks for Nothing Thursday

2011-02-10T06:00:00.005-05:00

While I don't usually do a "Wordless Wednesday" that a lot of folks do (hence, today being Thursday...), I decided that today - and today only - I will enact my own "Thanks for Nothing Thursday."

As in, "My big sister got to see the "Disney's Princesses on Ice" show without me and all I got was this stupid, lopsided (yet so incredibly expensive that my mother wondered if it's dipped in real gold) crown. Thanks for nothing."

Smells like BPA and dirty socks

2011-02-09T06:00:00.001-05:00

Last year, I posted a picture of my brother and I playing in and around a yellow laundry basket that I still own today.

Some families pass down fine China dish settings to their children. Mine likes to pass down laundry baskets:

Thank goodness that rickety/rusty baby walker contraption my brother sat in is long gone. Along with his ill-fitting hat.

Brownies + Oreos = Heaven

2011-02-08T08:02:00.001-05:00

I love brownies. I love Oreos. And this is about how my friend Karen introduced me to the most amazing marriage of chocolately desserts.

Get yourself these two ingredients (plus whatever the box of brownies needs, such as oil, eggs, water):

Okay, this next photo is less-than-appealing, but all you do is make the brownie batter per the box's directions and then coat the cookies:

Grease a muffin tin VERY WELL and then put your coated cookies into the pan:

Bake about 12-16 minutes at 350 and let cool in the tin before jimmying out with a small spoon.

I've eaten about 13,000 of these. Since Sunday. Heaven help me.

Want more brownie goodness? Check out the Bonjour Family's Valentine's Day gift idea!

Moment of obvious

2011-02-07T07:12:00.000-05:00

A note from school regarding the deadline for Valentine's Day cards:

Tiny bites!

2011-02-04T06:00:00.000-05:00

Can we talk about how adorable these little bite-sized treats are?!

I ran across the Skipping Skones bake shop via Etsy this week and cannot get enough of how phenomenal their craftsmanship of these little goodies are. Along with the "Hello cupcakes" shown above, here are a few other favs...

Turn your frown around pinapple upside-down cake:

Teeny tiny pie bites:

{photos source}

Home sweet home

2011-02-03T06:00:00.000-05:00

Starting in 2004 (and continuing endless finish work through present day), we've poured blood, sweat and tears into constructing an addition on our home.

Now that the house at least looks decent from the outside, I sent Lindsay from Paint Me a Picture some exterior shots and she created this adorable custom painting of our home:

I am in love with the painting. Lindsay's work is amazing! Check out her affordable shop today!

Curse of the errant marker

2011-02-01T06:00:00.001-05:00

When Griffin called me from the other room asking where I kept the baby wipes, I should have known better than to think it was because he was interested in changing his own diaper.

At least green jives with orange.

Horse-drawn buggies and marshmallows

2011-01-31T06:00:00.004-05:00

Surprisingly, I have not consumed all four bags of cereal marshmallows single-handedly...yet.

To share the love (and not gross out my family by eating dehydrated marshmallows by the handful), I made this s'mores-ish type graham cracker/marshmallow/milk chocolate chip cookie using an oatmeal cookie recipe as the base.

A big thanks to my super blog friend Kim at Party Frosting for surprising me with two additional bags of cereal marshmallows she scoped out at an Amish store.

Horses and buggies and cereal marshmallows. My way of life.

Where I've been this week

2011-01-28T08:40:00.000-05:00

The blue screen o'death.

Luckily, now repaired, but funny that it read, "the volume is dirty." Like my basement.

Conveniently unappealing

2011-01-25T06:00:00.002-05:00

I'm a purchaser of convenience. Grated cheese? Check. Pre-diced potatoes? Check, check.

But sometimes, the line of convenience MUST be drawn, epecially after I saw these questionably funny items at the store:

A big "thanks" to my local Wal-Mart for the laughs.