How is that the cool days of Texas winter pass all too quickly?  I know I was just enjoying the crisp breeze of a mild winter and the setting of spring.  But, in such a short time, the temperature has been creeping up the thermometer.  Long gone are the nice sunshiney, but cool low 80s.  

The dog days of summer are here.

Luckily for the family, they can take it easy as they're all on summer break.  They can retreat in the cool confines of home and only venture out when it's cool enough to so or when the mosquitoes are at bay.  

In an effort to combat the onset of miserable heat, I've been thinking of activities we can do without dripping in sweat or passing out from the heat.  

• Build a fort in the living room and camp there with popcorn and a movie.  
• Swim at the local pool every chance we get.  Pool passes have been purchased [and used already].
• Make fruit juice popscicles.
• Mists ourselves with cooling spray made from essential oils.   
• Have a water bomb [made from sponges] fight in the yard.
• Do more arts and crafts inside.

Making this quick list reminded me that I should get with the kiddos to make a summer manifesto / bucket list.   We must do that pronto, before summertime gets away from us. 

What're you doing to keep cool this summer?

I've been using essential oils for many, many years as I hunted for ways to encourage a healthier environment and use more natural solutions into our homestead.  I usually made my choices based on fragrance.  

But, it has only been recently that I've really discovered the benefits of essential oils. 

And, I fell head over heals in love with essential oils. So much so, that I am now a Wellness Advocate.  Yep, I'm an oil pusher.  Moreso, though, I am a believer --- in empowering everyone about the power of essential oils.  

My family, some skeptically and hesitantly, uses oils for whatever ailment or sickness arises and whenever we need to freshen up things.  

My favorite, and go-to, oil is peppermint.  

BENEFITS

Promotes healthy respiratory function and clear breathing
Alleviates stomach upset
Frequently used in toothpaste and chewing gum for oral health

USES
Use a drop of Peppermint with Lemon in water for a healthy, refreshing mouth rinse.

Rub on the stomach or take internally for occasional digestive discomfort.

Add a drop of Peppermint to your chocolate Trim Shake for a yummy twist.

Rather than grabbing an unhealthy snack mid-afternoon, re-energize by applying Peppermint to the palms of hands and deeply inhaling.

DIRECTIONS FOR USE

Diffusion: Use three to four drops in the diffuser of your choice.

Internal use: Dilute one drop in 4 fl. oz. of liquid.

Topical use: Apply one to two drops to desired area. Dilute with Fractionated Coconut Oil to minimize any skin sensitivity. See additional precautions below.

In my family, we have used peppermint for the following:

• Peppermint oil and some water in a spray bottle makes the perfect pet and pest deterrent. 
• Peppermint oil on the temples and back of neck works wonders for headaches.
• Peppermint oil, mixed with lavender oil, has helped keep my husband's migraines at bay.
• Peppermint oil, lavender oil and lemon oil mixed with fractionated coconut oil in a rollerball is now our form of allergy medication. 
• Peppermint oil and grapefruit oils is routinely diffused in the car to help promote awareness and lessen the stress. This combination has become my daily perfume, too. 
• Peppermint oil and water sprayed helps promote focus during homework time. 
• Peppermint oil on wrists helps with nausea and motion sickness.

It's no gimmick, it's not a racket --- it's the real deal.

If you're interested in essential oils, let's talk!  

beaded keychain

Need a cute craft to keep you busy this weekend.   I've got a guest bloggin' gig over at Commit 2 Wellness and we're making beaded keychains. 

a full heart

I wish I could turn back the hands of time.  

I'd do it.  In a heartbeat.   

I'd rewind to the night before I dropped the kiddos off at day care for the very first time.  October 2006.  I distinctly remember crying as they were snug in bed and I was painting their names on their blankets.  Red for the K-boy.  Green for the K-girl.   I used Memory Makers big foam letters [still love them!] to make their blankets special.  Creative play to soothe my sad momma heart.  I would hug both of them tighter and tighter and remind them not to skip through childhood too quickly. 

I'd listen to my dad as he spoke about auto mechanics and how to fix this or that on a car.  I just had no interest then, but still find myself wanting to ask him what to do about that.  I did learn a few country fixes from him and always knew he'd lovingly repair whatever was broken.

I'd take my time, walking through the lake park with Lonnie, taking in every single moment wrapped up in his heart.  Holding hands.  Sharing dreams.  Step by step, side by side, heart in heart.

I'd sit back on the couch and watch as the kiddos danced to the Wiggles or High Five.  And we'd sing "... driving in the big red car ... wake up, Jeff!" or excitingly say "secret fort club handshake" as we begged to enter the makeshift living room fort of bedsheets. 

I'd hold my mom's hand one more time, looking at the wrinkles and the lines of a life well-loved and well-lived.  The golden wedding band and the green jade rings are remembered most.  She always wore gold.  Or gaudy handmade jewelry we'd made through the years of crafting experiences and fun. And, I'd pick a deep, dark pearly purple iris from her yard. 

I'd look at all the handsful of Power Ranger colored toys the K-boy carried around with him.  Markers, blocks, cars, fish tank pebbles, Little People.  Always --- red, blue, green, yellow and pink.

I'd let K-girl prance around on the dining room table [a makeshift runway stage] in the many silly outfits she'd put together.  Her fashion imagination was, and still is, over the top artsy and cool and frilly and glitzy and colorful. 

I'd lay in the hospital bed, awaiting the birth of the kiddos, remembering how much of a blessing they both have been and still are to this day.   The utter joy and peaceful love overwhelms me as I remember seeing their sweet faces after birth.  Beautiful.

I'd erase the traumatic horror from the K-girl's memory of the night she found me lying on the ground after I had blacked out. Scared.  Both of us.  But I'd still be so very thankful that her shriek woke me up, though I still couldn't see. 

I'd go back to every single moment --- so many moments! --- when I thought about how great life was and how blessed I am.  I'd smile from my heart and know that I truly have been blessed in so many ways. 

Since there is no way to turn back time, I march forward with a vivid memory of such events and stories and more. 

And a full heart. 

happy 2015

Whew, it's been a long, long time since I've come to this space.  Time to dust it off and make it my place again.   It's been way too long since I've written or shared or created or visited.   Time to turn things around in the new year.

It is still very difficult to understand how in goodness gracious it can already be 2015.  Weren't we all just freaking out about Y2K and all that would happen when 19 turned 20? 

There is much to look forward to in the new year.  This year will bring some monumental birthdays [the K-boy will be a teenager!], some healthier lifestyle changes, some heartbreaking firsts without Mom, two kiddos in middle school, a summer road trip [hopefully], some home improvements and ... some laughter, some love and some happiness.  

Of course, I don't know what all will happen this year, but I'm looking forward to it being filled with HAPPY. 

I'm focusing on happy ---- happy heart, happy home, happy health, happy kiddos, happy us, happy mail and happy year.  

I'm looking forward to what the new year has in store.   Bring it on, 2015!

doodlebug design : christmas photos

One of my very favoritest parts of Christmas are the photos --- namely our family photo that makes its debut on the cards we send to family and friends.   I put them all together in this cute little mini album, using a mix of board bases from doodlebug design. 

I used a camera doodad to focus on the photo portion of this mini album.  Then, I used the home for the holidays collection on each page.  I love the patterns of this collection, along with the mix of grey with red and green.   LOVE.

I also layered two board bases together, using foam adhesive tape to separate the layers.  I piled in white sequins behind a plastic sheet.  I just like how it reminded me of a camera and the tone-on-tone textures is awesome.

The opening page is this cute snowman, welcoming you to our book of memories.  I covered a shaped board page with patterned paper, then added stickers, brads and sprinkles. 

One holiday tradition that will never grow old is sending Christmas cards to family and friends.  A few years back, we decided that photo cards were the best suited for us and we've enjoyed them each year --- sending and receiving.   

 This is by far my favorite photo and page --- both came together very easily.  The K-girl was trying to kiss her resistant brother and it looks like she is strangling him.  Not funny, but it captured their personalities so well.   

Velvet letters and banner alphabets are perfect addition to this page.   The present brad was from several years back, but works so well with the touch of pink in the patterned paper. 

The almost-center page is a smaller page  and features two 4x6 photos from a photobooth session with our Cub Scout den.  I cut my hand in the photo to "hold" a pixie and added a pennant.

Our cards are printed 4x6 and are just perfect in this mini album.  I stitched a fancy frill sticker between the patterned paper and the photo.

Up to this point, our photos have already been taken.  This is a blank page for this year's photo.  Sure, I'm not sure what it will look like since we've not taken it yet, but it will work perfectly, I just know.  I cut the top of the tag off to make it a banner.

Super simple page for 2014 --- photo on left with doodletwine and the right page has a circular Santa sticker.   The smaller page in between these two was created by using pattern paper as the background, then layering it with washi tape of snowflakes and Christmas text.   I stitched a square over the tape and added the camera, to once again depict the phototaking of this album. 

I love that the book is already ready created and all I have to do is add this year's photo [and a photo from 2014, 2015 and 2016]. 

Have you created any Christmas albums this year?    I'd love to see them.  

doodlebug design : home for the holidays

 Each year, I organize gifts for the neighbors, my co-workers and the kiddos' teachers.  They usually consist of small things I pick up throughout the year or treats to make the holidays sweeter.  This year, as the cold weather arrives in central Texas, I decided to whip up some hot cocoa gift boxes for those special folks in our lives.  

The gift will consist of a cup with homemade hot cocoa mix, mini chocolate chips, marshmallows, graham crackers and ornaments.

I made homemade hot cocoa mix and placed it in a snack-size plastic bag, then added it to a clear pillow box with some mini chocolate chips.  To finish off the container, I added a cut doily, a strip of green doodlebug design cardstock and a sticker, all tied together with the Christmas doodle twine.

I chose a simple white mug without pattern so that it would fit in the recipient's cupboard of other mugs.  But, I knew I did not want to leave it plain when assembling this gift package.  I added a strip of chevron paper from the home for the holidays collection wrapped around the mug, then held in place with a house sticker and fancy frills border sticker.

 

The cute pixie combinations are perfect for showcasing the marshmallows.  I simply added a round topper to the pixie with Christmas doodle twine and added stickers to the other pixie.  So cute.

 This box --- this box is a fave.   I deconstructed a takeout box from an Indian kitchen.  It was super simple to make using only one sheet of 12x12 cardstock.  I added the mini box die cut and a house doodad as a closure. 

 The side view of the box.

 Inside the box, are the ingredients for a fun mug o' cocoa.  I tied up the graham crackers with the Christmas twine [a must have this holiday season!] and an adhesive tag from the cardstock sticker sheet. 

I also added in a small gift bag, made from a 3"x6" piece of patterned cardstock, filled with mints.

The hot cocoa gift ensemble includes various items for warming your neighbor's heart this holiday season.   Are you sending a small gift of appreciation and joy to your neighbors or co-workers this season? 

Happy holidays!

---------------
Hot cocoa

Place 1/2 cup sugar and 1/4 cup cocoa powder in sauce pan and add 1/2 cup hot water.  Bring to a boil.   Add in milk and heavy whipping cream to taste.  Top with whipped topping and a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar.  

doodlebug design : countdown calendar

Falalalala ... lalala ... laaaaaaaaa!

'Tis the season to be ... hohoho.
Count down the days from now until zero.
Falalalalaaaaaaaaa,
Here comes Santa!  

Yes, here comes Santa ---- or me, Sherry.  I'm here today to help you countdown the days until Christmas with this cute, re-purposed calendar.   I know you'll not find one exactly like mine, but the idea can be carried over to any sort of calendar or item to repurpose.     

Oh yes, Christmas is just around the corner.  

To add more excitement to our home for the holidays, we always have some sort of holiday calendar for the kiddos to look forward to.  We don't always have the traditional advent calendar of chocolate hidden behind the windows of the picture.  Instead, in the past couple years, we've opted for a holiday activity for each day of December leading up to Christmas day. 

One year, the kiddos and I chose to decorate an ornament each day.  

This year, though, as the kiddos are getting a bit older and are involved in more activities, we're opting for a simple countdown calendar.

This simple wooden perpetual calendar was not so cute when I purchased it at the thrift store.  When I purchased it, I had no idea what I would do with it. 

Once I  realized that it could be turned into a countdown calendar, I set out for ideas and the home for the holidays collection from doodlebug design.  It has the perfect mix of traditional and trendy patterns and lovely shades of red and green and glittery goodness.


I covered each block with a square of patterned paper that was inked on the edges.  Then, I added numbers to each square face.  The base of the calendar was an odd shape, so I simple traced it onto the backside of the patterned paper.  

Decorating the block with the tree was a bit more tricky because the is at an angle.  

But, let's talk about the tree first.  

I made the tree with a pixie [loooove them so much!] and patterned paper.  I cut a rectangle of patterned paper  about two inches wide and one inch tall.  On one long side of the patterned paper, snip or fringe the edge of the paper.  Glue one end in place on the pixie, then wrap around to desired look.  Trim off paper and glue end.  Once you've made as many layers as you'd like, use a stylus or paper piercer to curl the strips of paper.  Embellish with brads, pearls, rhinestones and sprinkles.

The present under the tree is a die/dice wrapped in washi and wrapped with doodle twine.

For this particular project, I had to drill a hole into the wooden block to hold the tree.   It had to be done at an angle as the base has a slight decline.

Then, I embellished the stand with glittery adhesive fancy frill border sticker and a die cut bow.  I added a cute doodad in the middle.  Perfect!

For a final countdown, what is three scrappy items on your Christmas wishlist?   What are two activities you're looking forward to this holiday?  And, what is the one ornament you have to put on your tree each year?  

While you're answering these questions, I'll be rockin' around the Christmas tree and dreaming of how I'll be deckin' the halls ... red and green and home for the holidays!

doodlebug design : pixies

Fall weather has finally hit central Texas for a few days and it has me inspired to create with the beautiful hues associated with the season.  doodlebug design has a beautiful palette of brown, orange and gold with a pop of turquoise and lime green.   Beautiful. 

Let's talk pixies first.  Have you seen the new pixies?!   They are food-grade plastic straws similar to coffee stirrers.  But, they are sturdy enough to cut and can even be bent.  They are so very cute, are available in the doodlebug design rainbow of colors and can be used in so many creative ways. 

To create this bracelet for my daughter, I gathered a few supplies:

• safety pins
• pixies
• elastic cord
• button

Wrap elastic cording around your wrist to measure size, then add another two inches for knotting.  

Cut pixies into various lengths to fit your safety pins.   This creates "beads."  Open all safety pins and then add pixie beads.  Close.  Repeat oodles of times until you have enough to fit  to make the bracelet large enough to go around your wrist. 

Once you have enough pixie beads made, string them onto elastic cording --- one strand through the "eye" of the safety pin and once through the "loop."  Fasten off.  

I added a cute tree pin given at CHA, but you could turn a new doodlebug design doodad [think trendy flair or flatback pins] into a pin by adding a pin finding, available at craft stores.  

Other ideas for pixies jewelry projects:

• Cut pixies into beads and string on thin elastic cord to create single strand bracelet.  Make several and layer them up.
• Do the same thing on a smaller scale to make rings.   
• Sew pixies onto a leather cuff.  
• String cut pixie beads with seed beads to make necklace.  

Watch for more creative projects from the doodlebug design team.   Be sure to share your pixie creations with our team.  We love to see your creations!  

montana

 On June 19, my kiddos adopted a sweet little terrier from the local animal shelter.  It took us a few moments to fall in love and a few extra to get used to him.  He's quite the addition to our family.

Of course, I marked the occasion with a mini album.

For this one in particular, I used a tabbed create-a-card base for the small photos.  I used up some of the paper scraps I've been hoarding on my desktop.  

 Did you know that the pattern preview on the bottom strip of each doodlebug paper is the perfect size to make banners or flags?   They are; try it. 

A sweet mini album to showcase our sweet little pup. I am sure there will be many more paper crafts that will have our Montana in the spotlight. 

doodlebug design : campfire party

Life can always be s'more fun with a little creativity!

That is just what I did to create this little campfire/s'mores party.  It is stinkin' hot in Texas right now, and with a ton of mosquitoes, so it takes a lot to coerce us outside.  

The base of this party was the flowerbox collection.  Its palette is full of earthy tones and pops of color. 

There is just something so magical about twinkling lights.  Although we did not build a real campfire in the city, I did have a votive candle in a pretty crafted holder.


First party decor to set the mood of the party is the banner.  In this case, I made four banners to start this party.  The variety made the perfect backdrop for the table setting.   The top banner was made by folding white coffee filters in half, then cutting fringe along the half-circled edge.  I added flowerbox stickers to each of them and strung on doodle twine.  So easy.   The second banner is a string of paper lanterns in a variety of sizes and styles. The third banner was made with a scalloped circle punch and strung on twine.   The last one was using the flowerbox banner and ticket stickers, attached to skewers. 

Each banner was different, but each was super simple to make.

The place setting, too, was simple to piece together. I cut woodgrain patterned paper to 7x12 and cut two slits on the right side.  I added a sticker and brad, then the fork. 

These napkin rings make the table setting complete.   I simply cut a strip of cardstock, adding a small slit at the top.   I cut flames and a little tab for each to fit into the ring.

There you go, the table is set and the party is about to start.   But, don't forger the graham crackers, marshmallows and chocolate bars for making your own s'mores. 

doodlebug design : big daddy & big bend