The {adult + kid} Easter Table

Remember when I said I was trying not to bring more stuff into my home and use what I had on hand?  Well, I cracked…just a little though.  Still using the wrapping paper placemats, but just at the kids’ table.  Found placemats similar to the ones I originally wanted for a third of the price at Home Goods and I had a gift card to burn, so into the basket they went.

The big kid Adult Table…………………………..

Tulips, gotta have ‘em!  They just make me happy! One of my all time favorites.  (thanks, Kev)

Every year, I have visions of real live Easter grass on my table and it is yet to happen.  Instead, I put my air plants in these little tulip bowls I grabbed at a garage sale this summer.  They sit on top of these fabulous green plates I found in my mom’s basement (aka, the best thrift store in town!).

Along with the word ‘“bloom, these are the words I ended up stamping on the tags.

The Kid Table………..………………..………………

I used white wrapping paper as a runner down the middle and colorful wrapping paper as the placemats.  I like to use white or kraft paper on the kids’ table with cups of crayons handy to doodle.

Two reasons why the kids get paper plates:

1. don’t have enough “real” dishes
2. less dishes to do

I kept it simple by placing a single butterfly smack dab in the middle.  Love how it looks like a framed piece of artwork.  Tried a name card, but it looked too cluttered.  I like its simplicity.

Used buckets from previous Easters to hold polka dot paper straws, eggs and napkins.

And while I was in my springy groove, I gave my Christmas cactus a new spring jacket using newsprint wrapping paper, polka dot washi tape and twine.  If only it was that easy to update my wardrobe.  Isn’t he cute?

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Happy Spring & Happy Easter!!

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- Kim -

Happy 75th!

you are non-judgmental, kind, patient, creative, spunky, generous and sweet

you are so many things to all of us

an artist, a nurse, a counselor, a chef, a teacher

I am grateful for you and all you’ve done and do

I pray this year will bring you joy

I hope you find a moment to pamper yourself amongst the chaos

to look back on fond memories and cherish them…and create new ones

you are appreciated

you are treasured

you are loved

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM!

Love you so, so much.

A Fun Way to Give the Gift of Money

I think it’s safe to say that the gift of money is always appreciated no matter how it’s presented.  Now that the kids in my life are getting older, gift giving is getting harder.  So this year, for my niece and nephew all the way in Texas, money it is!  And for a kid, receiving money is exciting all by itself, but I wanted to add an element of fun.  So I turned to Pinterest for an idea. 

Can you guess what I put the money in…

…to save for a rainy day…

Yep, an umbrella!  I found this idea at The Seasonal Home.  She hung each dollar separately and it looked so cute.  But since I was mailing it, I opted to send a check in case something happened to the package along the way.

To keep the fun feeling of money showering down, I tied blue, curly ribbons to the spokes with one holding a cellophane bag with the check in it.

I really didn’t want to spend much on the umbrellas and luckily found some in Target’s dollar section for $3.  I wrapped them up like a piece of candy. 

On my nephew’s package, I used a patterned tape to liven up the kraft paper.  It’s actually not washi tape.  It’s Scotch brand masking tape. I stumbled across it by the duct tape at Target. Super cute!

And I love that bubble wrap envelopes now have these fun designs to make it feel more festive.

Another option I considered, was to put the money in plastic eggs as their “nest egg”.  There are so many fun options. 

Check out my Gift of Money Pinterest board for more ideas.

Easy Easter Craft

Happy Saturday!

If you’ve got the itch to do some Easter crafting this weekend, here’s a quick and easy idea.  All you need are some plastic eggs, a container, string, washi tape and a butterfly.  And boom, there you have it!

Easy peasy.

Found these cute little, fabric butterflies in Target’s dollar section.

Hoping spring starts showing up outside soon, but until then…

This little basket is sure to spring-ify any room!

H A P P Y   S P R I N G !

A Few Family Room Updates…

I gave you a tour of our family room a while back, with the hopes of waking it up a bit and having it mesh better with the kitchen.  As usual, my indecisive nature kept me at a standstill for a while.  But finally, I’ve committed to a few things to freshen the space.

I decided on these shower curtains as my new window treatments.  Yes, shower curtains!  At $12.99, it’s a low risk investment should I change my mind again.  Shower curtains are a great inexpensive solution, however, you may need to make some adjustments because they will likely be a bit short.  Mine are too short, but hidden behind the couch, so I’m not in any rush to fix them quite yet.  Knowing me, they will remain that way.  But if you can’t see the bottom, does it really matter?

I hung them with the same rope I used on my bamboo blind fix.  I really love the added texture the rope gives.

I also grabbed some new pillows, that fabulous gold branch lamp, (which some people in my family think is weird, but I love) and the coral frame to add another punch of color.

Why yes, that frame has no picture in it.  I’m good like that.  And can you tell by the three different paint colors on my wall, l I haven’t decided on a paint color yet?

Well, that’s it for now.  If anyone has a favorite, light gray paint color to suggest, please send it my way.  And if you want to paint it for me, that’d be cool too!

Have a great weekend!

- Kim

Crate of Crayons

Looking for the right color of crayon was like looking for a needle in a haystack at our house.  The old system was a scattered pile of crayons in a plastic shoebox.  Easy storage, yes.  User friendly, no.

About a year ago, I tucked away an idea I saw on Little Lucy Lu and was reminded of it when I saw a similar post at A Thoughtful Place.  Color coordinated cups of crayons.  Why didn’t I think of that?!  My son’s first grade teacher has a system like this in her classroom too.  So smart.

My quest to reclaim the plastic shoeboxes for my closet, inspired me to finally tackle this little project. That’s how I ended up organizing my washi tape too.  Who knew those shoeboxes would sprout so many other projects?

For my version, I recycled a clementine crate, covered it with contact paper and used 4 oz. mason jars. 

This little clementine crate went from this…

…to this.

One side says, “dream in color” and the other…

…“color your world.”

It was kind of therapeutic to sit there and color coordinate the crayons.  My husband and I were laughing because there we were, sitting in chaos, but I was spending my time on the very important task of color coordinating crayons.  But hey, even the smallest organization projects are a step in the right direction.

Bonus, it was another purging moment.  Sent this gallon-sized bag of crayons to my son’s classroom.  We might have had a bit too many crayons…

Washi Tape Org {if you love it, put a ring on it}

It’s funny how organizing one space, can lead you to another, which leads you to another.  It’s a good/bad thing.  Suddenly you’re organizing three spaces, but haven’t finished one.  Anyhow, unloading craft supplies out of plastic shoeboxes so I could use them as actual shoeboxes, lead me to this light bulb moment.

Washi tape.  So fun, so versatile, so easy to lose.  Just pop them on a book ring.  You can find them at office supply stores or the office section of your favorite store.

The rings also allow you to color coordinate them, which is nice.

I love that I can leave the roll on the ring and still be able to easily grab a piece of tape.  Super user friendly.

Whether your throw them in a bowl or hang them on a hook, the rings keep them together for easy access.  One more mini organizational victory.  Yippee!

Cheerful, Colorful Easter Place Setting

After a long, gray winter, I’m craving some color, aren’t you?  So I pulled out some fun, colorful wrapping paper to wake up my Easter place setting from Monday’s post.  I feel better already.  Just makes me happy inside.

I also decided the egg was looking a bit lonely, so I added a tag stamped with a springy word and trimmed with a bit of washi tape. 

I have 13 tags to fill, so I think I’ll have fun with it and do a different word for each.  Blossom, awaken, shine, grow, soar…adding a hint of inspiration into the mix.  You could also put your guests’ names on the tag instead.

Both looks are pretty.  Just depends what look you’re going for.

This year I’m craving color and cheerfulness, so option two it is.

Linking up at the Hop To It Link Party and here.