FRIDAY FEELING - KIDS EDITION

TGIF!  Do you remember that line up in 90s with Full House, Step by Step, and Boy Meets World - so, so good.  Everytime I see or here TGIF, my mind is drawn back to that magical time of Friday nights, watching my favorite shows in my pre-teens after finishing dance class and enjoying pizza.  I think I'm getting nolstagic because my little girl just turned 4, my son is now 16 months old, and in less than two weeks I'm turning 35!  35!  I can't believe it.  #FridayFeeling

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1.  FAITH IS 4

Faith turned 4 this past Tuesday.  When she came downstairs, I said "Happy Birthday" and she replied, "Does this mean I'm finally 4".  I said "Yes" and she shouted "YAAAY" and jumped up and down.  That kid cracks me up with her enthusiasm for everything.  This year we're doing gymnastics, dance, and giving sports a try with soccer (so far, I'd say that's 50/50 - a bit of a love hate).  I'm excited to see what this year brings and what Faith learns at her new school.  

2.  DEAN IS 16 MO

Dean definitely keeps me on my toes (as discussed in this post) and I'm grateful we invested in our safety measures (my picks here).  The climbing has extended to his high chair, the trash insert, and the dining room chairs.  He has also taken a shine to Faith's Micro Mini Kick Scooter and started to figure out how to ride around on it.  Recently, I found some great deals on shoes at our local Marshalls.  I found a pair of gray velcro Converse seankers and velcro strap Timberland boots for $45 for Dean and while I was there I grabbed a pair of Nike sneakers for Faith at $25.

Below is a round up of some great shoe options that you could buy for your littles.  I can't begin to tell you how great it is to have velcro strap shoes.

3. RAINBOW THEME FOR THE PARTY

Here are some purchases we made to round out decorations for the party room at Faith's birthday celebration tomorrow.

I bought 36 unfrosted cucpakes from Stop n Shop for under $20 - what a deal!  I'm going to buy white frosting, mix it with food coloring, and create something similar to below.

Image via Yum Food and Fun For Kids

We bought the birthday banner and napkins from Target for handing out the cupcakes.  We didn't need to buy any of the other party supplies since they're provided by the venue.

Some Dollar Tree purchases - red, yellow, and blue pom-pom garlands to represent Rainbow Dash's cutey mark and Skittles fun size packs.

4.  RAINBOW DRESS FOR BIRTHDAY GIRL

I'm thinking for Faith's birthday celebration, she could wear something fun and fitting with the theme.  If you've thought about putting together a rainbow themed party or have a nut for rainbows like my daughter, below are some really cute options.  I need to stop by Target today and I'm hoping I can that cute striped number.  If I were closer to a Nordstrom, I wold totally go for Boden dress.

5. ANTI-AGING CREAM

Due to my impending milestone bday, I've been really thinking about trying out an anti-aging cream and see if it helps with my crows feet and forehead lines. Here are a few that are affordable and on the top ten best drugstore retinol creams.

I hope all of you are having a great Friday and an even better weekend!

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DIY Rainbow Wands

As you recall from my guest post over at Crunchy Crafty and Highly Caffeinated, I am throwing Faith a My Little Pony themed birthday party, which mostly centers around her favorite pony, Rainbow Dash.  In that vein, I saw a few cute ideas on Pinterest, including a rainbow wand.  Based on this tutorial, I headed off to my local craft store to gather supplies.

THINGS NEEDED 

These materials are enough to make 20 wands; to make the full set of 24 wands, you would need to buy longer ribbon spools.

1.  Wood dowels, 5/16" 6 pk 

I initially bought 1/4" 10 pk of wood dowels, but the dowels needed to be thicker for larger screw eye hooks.  I couldn't find large enough dowels at Joann Fabrics so purchsed 4 packs of wood dowels by Creatology at Michaels.

2.  Screw eye hooks, 8mm 12 pk

Need 2 packs

3.  Satin Ribbon, 3/8" x 21' 

I purchased ribbon in colors red, orange, yellow gold, emerald, royal, and purple.  At the time I bought the ribbon online, they were out of red satin ribbon so I got it in grosgrain.

4.  Stick It felt, white

This pack includes a set of 6 sheets 9" x 12".  I was initially cutting out 6 per sheet, but fit my cloud on each sheet for a total of 8.  I needed enough to fit two halves together.  

DIY STEPS

1.  Screw hooks into wood dowel

Center the hook over one end of the dowel, apply pressure and screw the hook into the wood.  It takes a minute and a bit of pressure, but it will penetrate and go into the dowel.  You don't need the hook to go all the way in for it to be secure.  If you try screwing it in too far, you could split the wood at the top (this happened a few times).

2.  Cut ribbon lengths and tie onto screw eye hook

I cut the ribbon lengths at 12" and tied to the eye of the hook.  I followed the method found in this video by beadaholique.

3.  Create cloud pattern

I drew a 4.5" wide by 3" long rectangle to serve as the constraints of my cloud design.  Then I drew a design that filled up most of the box.

4.  Trace and cut out of felt

So, you'll need 20 pieces cut of the pattern shown above.  When you cut out the second set of 20 pieces to form your back half, you need to flip your design horizontally, trace the mirror image and cut those out.  This will give you 40 pieces of felt whose two felt sides will line up together to give you a cloud sandwich.

5.  Put two cloud halves together to complete wand

I put the first cloud piece over the screw eye hook; adjusted the ribbons and then lined up the second cloud piece and pressed the two together.  The biggest benefit of stick it felt - no glue guns and no sewing.

FINAL RESULT

So what do you think?  I think this will be a good party favor for Saturday's venue (post on picking party venue here).  My plan is to combine these with Skittles to fully round out my rainbow theme.

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