I ♥ crocheted doilies... and a source!

I am loving crocheted doilies and have found some beautiful ones on etsy.com lately. One of my "favorites" has started a new blog and she has other lovely vintage supplies and handmade embellishments available as well. Check it out:

Fresh Vintage Crafts (Blog)

Fresh Vintage Crafts Etsy store

She has a contest running through April 28 where you can become a follower and blog about it, or make a purchase in her shop and be entered to win a fun prize!

Now I'm off to think about projects using lovely crocheted doilies...

Spring Layout Tag

I did this layout a few weeks ago but couldn't share it yet... had to wait until everyone finished their layouts. It was fun playing "layout tag" with the designers and scrappers from Noel Mignon. If you'd like to see the whole slide show in the order we created our layouts, go here:

http://www.slide.com/r/oJ25Ndl3qz8CdwteXYj61SFJRUSduVW1

Baby Shower Decorations

Tessa's teacher is having a baby girl in May! All the kids (and parents) are so excited for her and couldn't wait to have her "classroom baby shower." I was in charge of decorations and thought I'd show you a few (most ideas came from other blogs).

In the top photo you can see the decorations in progress. I made paper pinwheels by accordion folding 12x12 sheets (3 for each one), folding them in half like a fan and adhering them together. The tissue paper blooms were from a Martha Stewart kit but you can easily make them with about 12 sheets of tissue paper, again accordion folded, tied in the middle with some tulle or ribbon, then pull apart all the layers to make the bloom. The baby shoes are sewn on a felt scallop circle with a pin back for a corsage (socks are just stuck in the shoes and there is a ribbon sewn on as well). And the banner was made with stamps and crepe paper (it says Welcome Baby in spanish).


The most fun items were the "faux cupcakes" where I rolled up baby washcloths and burp cloths, put them inside a nice stack of coffee filters and tied a ribbon. One of them is a baby outfit rolled up so the ruffles looked like fluffy icing. The other booboo bunny is a washcloth with a little freezable packet inside. We also asked the kids what they would name the baby and for any advice they had about being a mommy (these tidbits were shared on the poster you can barely see in the banner photo... they each wrote their name, their suggested name and I typed up their advice). They all painted thumbprints on a onsie and we tie-dyed some cloth diapers to be used as burp cloths.

Now I'm moving on to Teacher Appreciation Week, so there will be a few more crafty ideas coming in another week or two!

Because He lives...

we celebrate Easter! Thank you, Lord Jesus, for loving us. Thank you, Father God, for sending your son to earth. Really, this holiday is too big for words. I am so thankful and amazed at the depth of God's love for us.

We celebrated with a visit from the Easter Bunny (much to Tessa's delight... she also had a nice surprise from her special next-door neighbor friends), a wonderful morning of celebration and worship at church, an egg hunt with eggs from Grandma (Papa helped hide the eggs and contributed a few of his own), and dinner on the grill with Papa. What a gorgeous day to celebrate our Savior's resurrection!

I've been scrapping!

I have not scrapped a layout all year... maybe one... maybe. But this week I've done several and I thought I'd share them. Noel Mignon had a Spring Crop with some fun challenges. I also have a nice list of March challenges from The Scrapping Spot, so between the two kit sites, I found some inspiration!

Blue skies and blue shirts - a great day!

What a gorgeous Carolina day! 70 degrees (or more), sunshine and blue skies! A great day for a walk, specifically The Human Race where our family walked to support Caroline's Promise (an organization that supports orphans through adoptive family assistance, orphan care, and education.) We weren't sure Tessa was going to make it (5K) but she did it!

We hurried home to catch the Mississippi State vs. UNC game and guess what? Believe it or not, Carolina won! Kent's not happy at all about the outcome of this game... and I am sorry the Bulldogs lost in this round, but I'm thrilled to see the Tarheels win! They are looking more like the Tarheel teams we know and ♥!

March Madness, on a smaller scale

Well, the '09-10 basketball season is one that most UNC fans (those Tarheels of which I am proud to be one... most of the time) would love to forget. The team just didn't gel, but I have high hopes for next year. They did make the NIT and played the first game in Carmichael Auditorium, where I used to attend basketball games when I was in college. Where I saw Michael Jordan and Sam Perkins play. Brought back good memories. And they managed to win (even though William & Mary made 14 3-pointers). So now Carolina plays Mississippi State on Saturday. Kent's alma mater... cowbells and all. I'm going to be out-numbered... I do believe the kids will be pulling for MSU with their dad.

To get into the spirit, I decorated for the "big game." I expect Mississippi State to win, but you can be sure I'll be pulling hard for my Tarheels!

So, if you don't have anything to do on Saturday at noon eastern, watch ESPN (or ESPNU) and pull for the Tarheels (okay, you can pull for the Bulldogs if you really want to... I'm just hoping for a good game!) Oh, and I believe the winner of this game will play the winner of the NC State/UAB game - it could be another interesting match-up!