Teacher Gifts

As the end of the school year is fast approaching (the end of this week) I went on the hunt today for a end of the year gift for the kids teachers. We are in a unique situation with the need to buy 5 gifts for teachers, oh and don't forget the bus driver (who will probably only get a box of chocolates). So I wanted to find a gift that was nice for all tstaff and had a little more of a personal touch than just the regular box of chocolates (sorry bus driver) or Tim Horton's gift card (plus I did coffee gift cards a Christmas). So I went searching at my new favorite idea spot Pinterest.com  and found several great ideas. I decided to go with a beach towel, magazine, travel size Suntan lotion, travel glass and chocolate bar. I will attach a card stating have a relaxing summer. Here is a picture of my finished gifts. I got everything at my local Walmart. Towel were 2 for 10, cups were $5each, chocolate were $1.28 each and the Travel Lotion was $4.97 each and the magazines range from $3.00-$9.00 (I was not thinking about the price when I picked them opps) This make the total gift about $20-$25 each. Hope the teachers enjoy them and their summer.

Mario Layout

I began scrap booking 7 years ago after my daughter was born. My mother-in-law gave me an album with 3 completed pages in it after she was born and I continued to make more pages throughout the year. I have completed one book a year since then plus some extras for holidays and such. I am always about 1 year behind in the book I am working on. I never seem to get caught up, probably because I am always taking pictures. Here is a pic of the latest page I completed. 

 This Mario themed page was to document a fun play date the kids had with our close friends. I downloaded and sized with photo shop all the Mario images. The paper is a plain green card-stock and the cloud paper is by Recollections. I used a Flip-Flap from close to my heart for the page opening. I had fun with this one and I am pleased how it came out.
Thanks for looking.

50 Shades...OMG

Okay so I read the 50 Shades of Grey that was the chosen book club book for this month and I have to say I could not put it down. Not only did I finish that book but the two others in the series as well, and all in about 5 days. 

I found the book written in the first person to be captivating and not just because of the oh so steamy sex that the main characters enjoy throughout the books. E.L.James created to complex characters that I needed to read about to find out more about their lives and their relationship. The authour incorporated just enough mystery and thrill to keep the story alive, outside of the bedroom so to speak. I could not put these books down.  

I am glad that they were chosen for our book club because I would have otherwise not read them. I am a huge fan of romance novels and have no problem reading a few steamy chapters. However I am  not usually a fan of books that contain such a huge amount of sex that it dominates the whole book. And had been warned that the sex in these books was intense and contained some pretty hardcore S&M. However the way the author wrote the book allowed me to have some better perspective about why the characters were participating in there choice of sexual endeavors and at times made me rethink my subconscious bias towards some of the experiments the characters tried in their bedroom. I really enjoyed reading and think that book club will be a really interesting conversation. 

A New Beginning

One year ago May I discovered a small lump in my right breast. After a whirlwind summer of tests and surgeries I was diagnosed with Stage 2, Grade 3 Breast Cancer. I underwent 4 months of Chemotherapy and 37 radiation treatments. I was terribly sick, I lost my hair, I climbed a mountain of emotions and slid back down. I fought hard to stay positive and to look toward the future.
My friends and family supported me through each and every day. I will forever be gratful for their love.
On July 2nd I will return to work. Return to "normal", or whatever that is for me now. If you saw me today you would never know what last year was like. My hair has returned, my colour looks normal, my energy levels have come back. I am ready to go back, yet I am respectful of this terrible disease and I am cautious. I will forever worry about it's return yet I will always cherish each day without it. I look at it as a new beginning to my life (as cheesy as that sounds.) I am excited to see what the future can now bring.
I hope that anyone out there just starting their journey through the treatment of Breast Cancer reads this and takes away hope that you can do it. There is hope for the future. BE BRAVE!

Baby Shower Diaper Cake

One of my close friends (sudo cousin) is having a baby this summer. The baby shower is this weekend so my mother, sister and I decided to pool our funds and create a diaper cake for her. It seems baby merchandise is super expensive. It is hard to make your money go a long way. I like the idea of creating a cake with the stuff I buy as it just looks more appealing than a bunch of random stuff in a basket or box and it makes me feel like i get more bang for a my buck.
Since my friends husband is into motorcycles and she is having a boy I decided to try my hand at a motorcycle diaper cake instead of the traditional tiered one. This is not the first diaper cake I have made but the first time I have attempted a motorcycle. It was really quite simple to create so I will tell you how it is done.

First like I said you need the supplies and you can purchase as much or as little as you like depending on how much you want to spend. This particular cake cost about $150 by the time it was complete however that is split between 3 people. A lot of what went into my cake would be optional if you wanted to spend less money. I also purchased my bibs, socks and stuffed animal at the Harley Davidson store which cost me $50 just for those brand name items. I am sure that you could buy a lot  of these items at a dollar store if needed. It may be nice to go cheaper on the cake and then add a gift certificate as the licence plate. Here on some instructions on how I made my diaper cake.

INSTRUCTIONS

The cake includes: 1 package of diapers (84pack), 4 receiving blankets, 1 package of baby wipes*, a sippy cup or bottle, 2 pacifiers*, 2 bibs, 1 crib sheet (or another blanket), 5 washcloths*, three pack of teething rings*, 1 pair of baby socks,  baby rattles*, 2 bottle brushes*, and a stuffed animal.
You will need a couple big rubber-bands, some smaller rubber bands (kids clear hair elastics work well) safety pins, tape, an 8 inch cake pan and some ribbon.
ALL ITEMS WITH A * ARE OPTIONAL

Start by arranging the diapers in the 8 inch pan to form a round wheel. I have seen this done 2 ways one by keeping the diapers flat which I did and one by rolling each one. I prefer to keep them flat for future use reasons.  Secure the diapers with a rubber band and remove from pan. I then weaved a long piece of yarn to make spokes on the wheel, this is optional. Wrap the wheel in a receiving blanket and pin. I then wrapped a ribbon around my wheel and taped it on the bottom. Repeat for second wheel.

Once your wheels are done lay a bib over wheel 1, the front ( to make a fender) and then roll or fold a receiving blanket length wise and insert through the center hole of wheel bring ends together around the sippy cup or bib (which becomes the headlight) and secure with a rubber band. I then put the teething rings around the blanket for looks a cheaper option would be to use ribbon instead. Put the baby socks on the ends of the blanket to make the handle bars. I inserted the 2 pacifiers at the sides of the sippy cup to look like blinker lights also optional).

Insert a second blanket into the front wheel and  use it to attach the two wheels together. I fed this blanket through a few rattles to help keep the blankets rolled and for looks. You could tie bows or ribbon instead. Secure with a safety pin. Lay a second bib over the back wheel. I inserted 2 baby bottle brushes through the receiving blanket securing the two wheels together for a exhaust pipe look (again optional).

I then inserted a package of baby wipes between the two wheel which I hand covered in wash clothes and ribbon. This is also optional you can just pull the two wheels tighter together and skip this step.
fold the last blanket or crib sheet to form a seat area and lay on top of the bike. Put stuffed animal on your completed motorcycle.

There are several online video tutorials on you tube if you need the visual. Thanks for looking.

June Book Club

Ju

Here is the pic for our June book club which will meet at the end of the month. I am once again not looking forward to reading this months selection even though I have heard great reviews from friends who have read it. I first have to acquire a copy and then we will see. I will let you know what I thought.

3D Dog Cake

A few years back I created a tree stump cake for a wedding shower the  bride and Groom were arbourists. The same family has asked me to once again create a wedding shower cake for the brother of the previous groom.  This time they have asked for a Golden Retriever cake. Apparently their dog will be the ring bearer in the wedding. This is a big challenge for me as I have never created a 3D dog before. There are lots of instructions online and a few video tutorials on You Tube which probably give me false confidence that I can in fact make this cake.
Here is a few pics of 3D dogs I liked from my initial search. I think the head lying down will be easiest but I love the mouth on the Berner, and the textured fondant on the last one. I know for sure rice krispie treats ill be in order for the head. I wish I had a airbrush to play with. We will see what I come up with. They need the cake for July 8. Wish me luck.

Mommy Break Needed

Are they not adorable? Here they are on Easter weekend posing for a picture before they ran off in search of Easter Eggs. I love each of them to death. My two on the right and my sisters two on the left. However after this weekend I am defiantly paying respects to all the mothers out there with more than 2. My husband, brother-in-law and father headed out for their annual spring fishing trip. My mother who has a brother in Northbay decided to hitch a ride up to visit while they were at the cottage, thus leaving my sister who works afternoons with no babysitter for the weekend. Now, I think it is great that my mother got to go visit with her brother she does not get the opportunity very often and should not feel obligated to stay just to babysit. My sister had tons of time to prepare for the weekend and she had it all arranged that I would babysit her children Friday night and her father-in-law would babysit on Saturday overnight until Sunday when the men would be returning. It was not he first time my niece has had a sleep over. In fact, I love it when she comes as she entertains my children and I love to spend time with her. I was also looking forward to having my nephew who is 19 months old for the first time. We had a great night, we made homemade pizza's, watched a movie with popcorn, and all 4 kids went to bed like dreams. When my nephew woke at 1am I was not surprised as he was in a strange place. He ended up curled up in my bed for the rest of the night. I love my niece and nephew and I truly did enjoy their company, but it was exhausting. By 10am Saturday when my sister came I was ready for a nap before I would tackle the clean-up.  It was a good plan until my sisters father-in-law cancelled leaving me to babysit again on Saturday. My sister agreed to pick up her children after her shift at 11pm. Not exactly fair to the kids but so much easier for me. She would return them to me Sunday afternoon before her shift.  I spent most of the weekend following around my nephew to keep him out of trouble. In between that I picked up endless toys, prepared meals and refereed small spats. I suppose I do this all the time it was just ten times more work with 4 children and no husband to help. I can honestly say that for as much as I love all these children Mommy needs a much needed Mommy Break!