~poor girls flower arrangement~

 The flowers on my table last week:

Recognize the tall vase?

Maybe the water marks at the top will give

you a clue.....it was our former

gold fish high rise (click here for a reminder).

As I'm sure you've guessed by now-the goldfish died.

The water marks at the top of my gigantic vase

will always be a reminder of the one and only

pet I ever allowed the kids to have.

 Mint, chives and the white puff ball again.

This will be the last of the puff balls this year.

Which is a shame because I love them.

I used this old bottle and apothecary jar to display

the simple little flowers and greens. 

This has actually been my favorite centerpiece

yet this year. I love the color combo along with 

the glass and visible water. 

 I wish you could smell the mint thru

your computer. It is simply DIVINE.

Not sure yet what I'll do for this week. 

We are in between blooms right now.

Iris are shriveling and the roses aren't ready to be cut.

I'll have to get creative. 

Ooh......I love a challenge. 

~buggin~

I'm bugged.

I was going to post the tutorial for the skirt I 

made into a dress BUT..... 

I just looked at the pics I took as I was making

the dress.....the pics are horrible!

Not surprising since I had an hour to make it

before I had to leave for the place I wanted to wear it!

I'm not going to be able to put the tutorial of

the dress up yet. Sorry...it's gonna take some

picture doctoring and new pics.  I'll get to it

first thing next week. 

So....enjoy the pics of the bugs in my yard.

~skirt into dress~

 Remember this thing I showed you a couple days ago?

Not the most attractive like this but I had a vision for it

the moment I saw it.

 I've been seeing a lot of neon colors

this season and wanted to add some of it into my 

wardrobe without spending a lot of money. 

I feel pretty confident in saying that I think neon

will be a micro-trend; lasting only this summer.

Taking that into account, the asking price of $5

at my local thrift store made it a PERFECT option

for spicing up my wardrobe. 

It's definitely a vintage piece....I'm pretty sure

straight from the 70's. 

Check out the final reformation! 

I LOVE it!

It's one of my favorite summer pieces

at this point. I think it's going to see a lot wear 

this summer. I was hoping to have the tutorial

done by now but it's not. I'm shooting for later today.

It was super easy and I did it in less than an hour!

Seriously......a beginner can do this!

~simple flower arrangement~

 To me, nothing says "life" like flowers do.

I love to have fresh flowers in my house and

am lucky enough to get them for FREE all summer.

My husband is a wonderful gardener and he 

lovingly picks and arranges bouquets for me

all summer long. He may be losing his title this 

summer as "arranger" because I am really starting 

to enjoy it myself. Each week I have been 

picking and arranging flowers to bring into my house. 

Here's what I did last week:

 

A simple three part arrangement for my kitchen table.

Lavender, green and white.

Iris, chives, mint and white puff balls (??? that's what we call it).

Simple beauty.

I smiled each time I looked at it. 

 I challenge you this week to recognize the 

BEAUTY in the simple things....

it doesn't have to be big to be magnificent!

~closet peek-a-boo~

 I haven't done "A peak inside my closet" for a 

couple weeks. The reason being; I haven't really

worn much worth photographing. Since I started

posting about what I wear on a daily basis I've 

learned a couple things about my wardrobe:

1) I wear a lot of black

AND

2) A lot of the stuff I wear isn't that great

Let me tell you....it's been a real kick in the butt 

to step it up with my wardrobe. 

Here's a few outfits I've worn the past couple weeks.

I wore this to a barbecue. This outfit is another one

of those examples of "buy nice stuff and it will last you forever".

I've had the skirt, the boots and the belt for several years.

The belt is AMAZING! I bought it at a vintage store

years and years ago.....long before the cheap imitations

of belts like this were popular. The buckle is sterling silver,

the leather is genuine and is is completely handmade. 

I think I paid $30 for it. The boots get cooler looking the more 

worn they become and the skirt is a staple piece of my

summer wardrobe. I also wear it belted as a dress.

 This outfit I wore to a sushi dinner for a friend's birthday.

I originally got the outfit for my Vegas trip in February.

I love the contrast of the lace with the tailored vest.

BUT....the best thing about this outfit-THE SHOES!

They make me soooo much taller.

I'm only 5'2 so they really give me a boost. 

Believe it or not, they are pretty comfortable.

This outfit I wore to my son's pre-school graduation.

It's basically a $20 outfit. The bracelet was more expensive

than everything else combined. Again....pieces I've 

had for a really long time. This beaded shrug

is an "occasion" piece that I feel so feminine and

pretty in each time I wear. It was only $5!

I've really been trying to bring some color into my

wardrobe since realizing my obsession with black clothes.

Wait and see what I did with this skirt:

 It may very well be my favorite summer 2012 piece!

I'll show you next week. 

To answer your question Jolie about why I don't 

photograph the clothes on me....there's a few

different reasons. 

A) it's quicker and easier for me to lay them out 

than to try and take the time to get a good

shot of me in them. I never remember to do it when I'm 

wearing them. I've tried setting my timer and using my

tri-pod but haven't been able to find a good spot

in my house to do that. I've also tried having my 

little guy take the pics and it didn't go so well :)

B) my point of posting these is to inspire others

and give them ideas for their own wardrobes.

I want them to imagine THEMSELVES in them.

AND LASTLY....

C) it's fun! I love laying them out and making 

the collages. I feel like I'm doing an editorial 

in a fashion magazine or something. 

~teacher appreciation flowers~

 I wanted to do something for my little man's 

pre-school teachers. They have made such a difference

in his life and personality this past school year.

I didn't have much money for gifts but this is 

what I came up with:

 I found these little watering can planters

at the Dollar Store. I filled them with some

petunias and made a circular tag with the message

"Your love has made me BLOSSOM".

(the meaning of petunias: your presence soothes me)

 I printed it up on some card-stock, put his picture

in the center and had him sign the back. 

I attached the tag with white embroidery thread.  

I had never printed text in a shape before now.

If you want to know how I did it, check out this tutorial

at Imperfectly Perfect. (click here)

 It was just the right size for his little hands and

he was so excited to give them to his teachers.

 Thank God for teachers who make a difference. 

As he starts school, I am hoping and praying 

he will be blessed with teachers as loving 

and dedicated as the teachers he had this year. 

And guess what?

The book I made him was a BIG HIT!

~memory book for kids school work~

 Remember the free 8x8 book offer thru

Shutterfly that I told you about a couple weeks ago?

I got mine and let me just tell you,

I am THRILLED with the way it turned out.

I made a book for my little guy's pre-school graduation.

I scanned some of his best school work and momentos

from pre-school and used them to fill the book.

You can customize the cover as well as all the pages.

Have a look......

 The front cover.

 These next pages are some of my favorites.

The book is twenty pages....these are just a few.

 It was my husband's idea to have his teachers 

sign the book....so glad he thought of it.

I think in the years to come it's what will make the

book so special. 

This is the back of the book.

Now do you see why I love it?

I'm telling you, if you haven't already jumped on

the photo book bandwagon, you need to.

It's a great way to record events and memories

that can be easily looked at and stored.

The books are just as neat as scrapbooks but

they don't take up as much space. I make a 

few books for my family every year. 

If you haven't already done so,

go to Shutterfly and make your free book.

(click here to do it!) 
(I think the offer ends May 21, 2012.)

~a bow-tie for pre-school graduation~

 Today's the BIG DAY!

My little man graduates pre-school.

For his program tonight the teacher has

asked the kids to dress in their best clothes.

Alright...for us that translates into a pair of

jeans without holes and a shirt with a collar. 

We aren't church going folk so he doesn't have

dress clothes. I made a trip to the local thrift store

and got a white button up shirt for $3. I brought it

home and bleached the heck out of it and it

looks good as new. I let him pick the material

he wanted for the bow-tie.....he chose the red with

white polka-dots. Thru pinterest (of course) I

found a great tutorial at "A Lemon Squeezy Home"

(click here to be directed to tutorial)

It was SOOO easy.

Finished in a matter of minutes and using

all materials I had on hand.

 

 Fabric, felt or interfacing, thread and velco 

are the only materials you need.  

He looks so handsome and adorable in it.

I'm pretty sure I'll be bawling thru the whole 

ceremony tonight......... 

 

Wait until you see how adorable the book I made

him turned out! Come back tomorrow to see it.

~mother's day gifts~

I know you're hoping to see a wonderful, handmade,

sentimental gift idea and I'm sorry to tell you....

but you won't find it in this post. 

For my Mom; we went in on a nice big gift with my sibs.

For my Mother-in-law; I give her this.....

Race For The Cure-2012.

She died 19 years ago of breast cancer.

I met my husband a month after she died.

It's weird to say but the circumstances seem to be

that if she wouldn't have died, I wouldn't have met him.

In a way, her death brought me life.

So, in her memory I walk this each year to 

celebrate her life, her legacy, her love and her fight.

How appropriate that it falls on Mother's Day weekend.

 

If you've ever had the opportunity to participate in the

Susan G. Komen-Race For The Cure, you know how

inspirational and emotional it can be. This year I walked

it with my good friend, Lynsie, and my little lady :)

It was a good turnout this year.

Emotional. Empowering. Inspirational.

HEARTBREAKING.

As you are looking at my pictures keep in mind,

women in the pink t-shirts are cancer SURVIVORS.

 What other time do you get to walk thru the busiest 

streets of downtown Salt Lake City? It's amazing....

the sea of people. Gets me every time.

 

 There are so many touching posters, t-shirts and messages.

This is personal for so many people that participate.

Including me:

 These are the ones that just kill me.

Kids walking with their mothers...who are 

SURVIVORS!

 This little guy's back bib says 

"I walk in celebration of MY MOM."

I snapped this picture right as him and his Momma

(who is in a pink survivor's t-shirt) let go of hands.

They had been walking hand in hand.

Like this older girl who proudly walked with her Mom,

hand in hand.

Again, her bib says she is walking in honor of her Mom.

 This was another one that got me.....

A survivor, "In memory of MY MOM."

and

"In celebration of MY LIFE."

I raced "In memory of Momma Jeannie."

And we did it hand in hand......

"Your Mother is always with you.

She's the whisper of the leaves as you walk down the street,

she's the smell of bleach in your freshly laundered socks,

and she's the cool hand on your brow when you're not well."

 

"Your Mother lives inside your laughter and she's crystallized 

in every teardrop.  

She's the place you came from, your first home;

and she's the map you follow with every step you take.

She's your first love and your first heartbreak,

and nothing on Earth can separate you.

Not time...

not space....

not even death."

 

~author unknown~

 

Tomorrow my husband will carefully choose the

most beautiful flowers in our garden.

He will arrange them and fill them with greens

from the trees and bushes. 

It will be a beautiful flower arrangement.

We will take it to her grave.

His Mother's Day gift to her. 

Next door, Across town, in a different state or

in your heart.......

may you all have a wonderful time celebrating,

remembering and loving "Mom." 

Wherever she may be.....

Happy Mother's Day.