I was really excited about this little project! Last month at book club someone had the wonderful idea of making handkerchiefs out of old flour sacks as we had just read Same Kind of Different As Me which refers to the flour sacks in one of the chapters. Book club has oddly enough become a very real place where hearts are shared even as we discuss books. Being a real place, often tears are shed (happy and sad) so the need for hankies came to be! Each hankie has decorative embroidery stitches around the edges which I think gives it a little bit more of an older feel. I am excited to share these this week!

I forgot to share sister’s birthday outfit with you! It all came together just minutes before the party (thanks to my hubby and a seam ripper) but it was still worth it! Sister wanted a Jay Jay Birthday party so I felt like something needed to be a little girly hence the pink striped airplane on her shirt which she was pretty excited about!

The days have been beautiful lately! Perfect temperature, blue skies and even a little breeze. I find myself trying to savor these days as I know soon and very soon the heat wave will begin! This morning we headed to a sweet friend’s garden to spend the morning with Sister’s best friend and his Mommy who just so happens to be my best friend. We had a wonderful picnic down by the pond with the frogs and then went exploring. Here are a few pictures that I captured during our time but unfortunately I forgot the real camera and only had the good ole’ trusty cell phone camera.

Okay, Nashvillians Now has tagged me to share five things that constantly bust my budget so here we go…
1.) Is number one really a secret to anyone who reads my blog? Fabric!!! A lot of places you just have to buy it when you see it or next time it will be gone…that is my story and I am sticking with it!
2.) Home parties!!! It doesn’t matter if I am planning on buying five things or nothing at all every time I go to a party (Southern Living, Creative Memories, Taste of Home, Tupperware etc.) I totally blow the budget and buy the things that they highlight during the show even if I totally do not need them!!! I am an ideal person to invite to a home party!!!
3.) Currently I am blowing the budget on flowers! Spring is in the air and all my containers are anxiously awaiting their plantings!!!
4.) Books! I was not a big reader at all until a few years ago when I was invited to join a book club and now I read a lot and really enjoy it (even outside of book club)!
5.) Ordering Digital picture prints always blows my budget as well!!! I just always feel like I need them all even if I do not have a use for them! I guess that comes from growing up without digital pictures and always having all the pictures that were taken. Who knows, I just need them!!!

Okay, I am going to tag my SIL’s Ariana’s Impressions and Refrigerator Art (I know they might have fabric on their list as well but I am excited to see what else bust their budgets) as well as Some of a Kind. I found Some of a Kind through doing the Sophia Bad swap! Check out her bag here as it is really cute!

Yes last week Martha had cupcake week but we are pretty passionate about the Pillsbury Funfetti cupcakes around here! They are tasty and they are fun to bite into as it looks like there is a little party going on inside of every cupcake. I do love making homemade cupcakes for birthdays but anytime there is an excuse to make the Funfetti I go straight towards it, much to my husbands chagrin. Plus when the cupcake is all gone the wrapper still looks festive!

Yesterday was the big day! I voluntarily drug myself out of bed (with the help of my husbands pushing) at 4:10am. Why you might ask…well, the only reason that I can really give for that is solely because I am out of my mind! You see yesterday was preschool sign up day. After months of talks and negotiations in our home we settled on a preschool and decided this was the year to start. The preschool has ages 2-4 and sister will be three when she starts in the fall. Wednesday was actually the first day of registration but it was only for those people who had already been in the program so those with siblings who are already in the program or those returning to the program. Thursday was the day for newbies. Calling the day before we (a friend and I trekked through this craziness together) found out that there were only three spots left for the 3 year old classes which meant we needed a plan! Registration started at 8:30am and we knew that we would have to be some of the first people in line to get a spot at all so thus the early rise. We were headed to the line by 4:30am. It is really really dark and cold at 4:30am and people are still in their cozy beds and nothing in the world is open at this hour (that would have something yummy and warm to drink that is). Upon our arrival we discovered we were the first ones there so after a little celebratory dance we settled in for the wait. People actually started to arrive shortly after we did. We are not alone in being totally out of our minds!!! A little before 6am we were able to get into the building so that was really exciting to be able to warm up a bit. We passed the time by sitting and chatting. My mom generously brought us beverages and my friends husband brought us breakfast bars (the brain was not working at 4am or we could of thought to bring these things for ourselves). We were able to have a bit of uninterrupted conversation which is pretty rare and fun but mainly the conversation was about how totally and completely out of our minds we really are. The funny thing is that neither one of us would of been devastated if we had to go on the waiting list. Maybe it was the thrill of being first or maybe it was just the fun of doing something totally crazy together, I don’t know. 8:30am finally came and not a moment too soon as that early rise was starting to hit me again. With a quick filling in of a form and a handing over of a check it was all over. No balloon no sticker just okay, you are all signed up. We decided that we needed to celebrate so we hit Panera for breakfast and chatted more about how truly crazy we are and the hope that we had that someday our kids would be so excited that we had camped out to get them into preschool. Now that sister is all signed up for preschool I feel a little out of my mind that I on my own free will signed up my child to go off into the big world. Wow! I am glad that it does not start until August.

Stumbled upon these wonderful fabrics during my weekly visit to Joann’s this week. Is it a bad thing that several of the workers at Joann’s know my kids by name? Hmmm! There were a few other prints that went with this little group and it was calling out for a quilt to be made but I just could not justify it with a few other quilts already under construction. It was a struggle and always so hard to break up a family of fabrics but I persevered! Instead of a quilt these shall become little ruffle pants for sister or a ruffle skirt…decisions!

Brad and I have grown addicted to Settlers of Catan over the past few years and this year for Christmas I gave him the new version of the game. Over Christmas we were able to play with Brad’s sister and her husband as well as some close friends. Last night our friends came over and we actually played twice! Brad won the first round a little too quickly so I talked everyone into a second game even though it was pretty late (this is not an uncommon phenomenon…late night Catan playing). By about 1:00am I had won (see all the orange on the board? That is me)!!! Woo Hoo! I also have to share that I won even without a Metropolis! I was so proud of that little accomplishment!

One of our favorite purple socks is missing. I am sure that it just missed its turn in the laundry with its mate or it is hanging out inside of someones shirt or pants or it is possible that it even ran away to join the circus…I am just not sure where it is. When you want your purple socks though you just want your purple socks and you will do what it takes to wear the one purple sock that is not missing thus the combo of the one pink sock and one purple sock is born. It was all my idea as the need for the purple sock fell upon a particularly hard day for my little one (turns out we are allergic to peanut butter). I was prepared to do whatever it took to keep a smile on that little breathing easily (now) body. Charis thinks that it is pretty funny and the best thing in the world that she has her two favorite color socks on. I was able to talk her into white socks while we went out to bible study this morning promising her that when we came back home she could replace the boring white with one pink and one purple sock. I must admit that the little girl in me even giggles as I put the socks on her feet! It is really fun to just wear what you like and really not care what others think…hmmm, I think that there is a lesson in here somewhere for mom. At any rate we will probably be wearing this color combo around the home front for a few days…weeks…even months!

Little hands place things in the oddest of places! Here are a few pictures from this week of where little things have landed from little hands…

Bracelet was found on the knob for the tub (pay no attention to the fact that I need to clean)…

Decorative Pumpkin found on top of the t.v. remote (note the Indians and Pilgrims lined up in the back ground…more handy work)…

Hair bands found on top of Charis’s shampoo, lotion and hair detangler bottles (have also been found on many a closet door)…