An Awesome No Cost gift

I love birthdays and love to give presents to my friends and family...but with the budget being tight, I have had to be creative.

I have seen a lot of subway signs in different stores and on different blogs, so I decided that I would try and make one for Amy's birthday.

I found a scrap piece of wood in the garage and spray painted it black.



Then it was time to use my scrapbooking stickers to put the saying down. When Ella and I were in Texas this summer, I found a subway sign down in Glenrose that I knew was my sister. Only problem was that they wanted $40 dollars for a distressed piece of painted wood. So I snapped a picture of it with my phone and forgot about it. The original saying said marshmallows, but Ella decided it NEEDED to be guacamole. I agree guac was a better choice!



After I got the saying where I wanted it on the board, I found some paint in Ella's arts and crafts drawers. Time to roll on the paint.


It took about 3 layers of paint...I did not try to make it perfect (this is suppose to be distressed).



Once the last layer of paint was dry it was time to start peeling off the letters. Each time I pulled off a letter I got more and more excited. I was SOOOO happy it was turning out how I imagined it to turn it!!! After I pulled off the letters I decided it needed just a little embellishment for the corners...so back to my scrapbooking stickers I went!

I loved the final product and so did my sister. In fact I loved it so much I made a different one with a slightly different saying for a girlfriend for her birthday that same week. I already have plans for no cost or little cost Christmas gifts for the family!!! I love gifts.

Happy Halloween!

The last couple of years, Halloween has become my favorite holiday. We have bought lots of decorations and have had Ella's birthday party as a Halloween party too. This year, I was not sure if I was going to be able to pull it off...with Kevin being in Texas, I was going to have to do all the decorating and preparing on my own. A few weeks ago, I go up really early and started decorating right away...of course decorating also meant I needed to trim some trees and do some yard work...but I got it all done, and have to say i did a GOSH DARN GOOD JOB! Then it was time to start thinking about a party. No haunted house this year, but it did not matter. I let everyone I knew know I was planning a good ol' traditional Halloween with trick or treating and bobbing for apples. NO MAIN STREET CHAOS for Ella or me. Lots of our friends were excited about the party and a traditional Halloween. Everyone had a TON of fun and are already excited about next years party!!!

Koala and Gypsy...Oma made Ella's Koala costume, just like she use to make Amy and mine. And just like we use to...she fell asleep in her new pajama outfit! Me...well I literally started searching my costumes 20 minutes before the party. Since I was not feeling any love for any of the costumes I had, I threw on a bunch of stuff from my closet. YES...all of this was from my own closet..just refashioned into a gypsy costume!




A week ago Ella and I went around and put little letters in ALL of our neighbors that we would be having a party and would have 15 to 20 kids who would be trick or treating. We let them know if they left their lights on we would stop and if they turned off their lights we would just pass right on by their house. We ended up with 10-12 neighbors who helped us with our trick or treating. The kids loved running up to the houses and yelling trick or treat. I think the neighbors were just as excited as the kids. It was super fun to watch all the kids. They were so excited. Of course all of the moms and dads walked along with us...instead of bags we had solo cups!


After trick or treating we headed back to the house for the pinata and bobbing for apples. The kids love this as much as the trick or treating. It is always funny when the girls are bobbing for apples, because of their make-up and hair. This year, Zoey was the first one to ask Rylinn to hold her hair back. A few of us moms were laughing because we are already imagining them asking each other this after a night out (of course that will be when they turn 21!!!)

Halloween is done and now it is time to start thinking about the Christmas Cookie Decorating Party! Another fun and traditional time for the kids and the parents!!