21

My firstborn daughter, Jade, is turning 21 in less than 1 week.

It's weird.

It's sad.

It's happy.

It's a roller coaster of emotion!

I'm preparing myself.

How is it that I can have a daughter that's 21.

More to come next week (Feb 3rd specifically.)

Handmade (sorta) Valentines

 Last Friday I visited a wonderful blog called The Shabby Nest . She had a post that day called Frugal Friday. I'm not sure if she does this every Friday or not but it's so great! There were so many wonderful ideas! It was also my very first time linking to another blog :)

Anyway, one of the links I clicked on was a blog called "Take the Side Street." Anna had posted a blog with a free printable design for Valentines Day. 

Since my girls were little I have always done baskets for them for Valentines and Easter. But now that they are in college I have had to get a little more creative 

Chocolate bunnies and sidewalk chalk have been replaced with bikinis, jewelry and packs of gum.

Last year I hand made their Valentines day cards for the first time. It was SOOOO fun for me (and I think they liked them too!)

So when I saw this cute little idea I got going!

First I printed out the adorable e.e. cummings quote. I did just as Anna had suggested and sprinkled a little glitter on the heart.

never mind the messy desk!

I also tore the edges of this card and the pink scrapbook paper I used as a matte.

I used rubber cement to glue the cute little card onto the matte and then onto the black card I had left over from when I made their graduation announcements (oh the time is whizzing by!) But you could use spray adhesive also.

Soooo cute! Thanks so much Anna :)

And then . . . . I thought, what about the envelope! 

Soooo,

Not sure what I'll write on the inside yet :) 

Something to let them know how much I love them, 

how I've given my whole life to them, 

how extremely heartbroken 

and depressed, 

despondent 

and alone I'll be when they leave me. 

Well maybe I'll leave that part out, save the guilt for another holiday. 

Most of all I will let them know that they are one of the greatest gifts God has ever blessed me with!

Pretty is . . . a handmade Valentine.

Two things I LOVE right now

 Let me just begin by saying that I am a copycat.

Aren't we all?

It's the greatest form of flattery right?

I see something adorable in a movie or on a co-worker and I WANT it (or I wanna try to make it, like my cross bottles! 

Here are two things I've received as gifts lately that I LOVE. 

The first is an adorable pair of sandals

from the Walking Company (mine are brown.) 

My sweet girls got them for me for Christmas. I first saw them on our 1st grade teacher and fell in love. I thought about them for over a year! :)

Then there are these adorable initial charms 

I saw first in the movie "The Proposal" worn by Mary Steenburgen. Since then I have seen them in other movies like, "Little Fockers" and "How Do You Know." 

So this year for Christmas I got each of my girls one by an artist named Charlene K.

I got them one and not myself, because that's what mom's do, right?

The ones by Charlene K are just a little bit different and are carried right here in Palm Springs at a little boutique at the Riviera Hotel. 

Then for my anniversary in January my husband got me one! I love, love, love it.

Pretty is . . . a copycat :)