Tuesday, December 31, 2013

A Look Back {2013}

This year has gone by incredibly fast.  
I started out 2013 with the honor of being my Best Friend's MOH at her New Year's Eve Wedding, which was so much fun!!
Starting off 2013 celebrating LOVE had to be a sign that I was going to have a good  an AWESOME year. 
I finally finished SCHOOL this year!
Finishing-up my degree gave me more time to blog :)
I blogged on and off, but this May I was in full blog form.
This was the year I became a 
BLOGGER.

Yes, I blogged for Tots To Teens, but this was my year to blog for me :)



I fell in love.
I've made so many encouraging and loving new friends.

New friendships grew and bloggy parties began ;)
Shameless plug the Mommy Monday Blog Hop is live
This year was a year of honesty and sharing me.




I vlogged some more..


I did some things for me...
I chopped my locks... for love.

I shared to hopefully help and encourage others...

This was the HARDEST post of the year.

#RAoK

However the biggest part of me that I shared this year…

My Loves
Sharing my babies this year on my blog was big…. but I did it for me.. for them..
I have a record of our lives here on this blog.










Oh and there was the move…


Which is where I'm at today.

We're miles away from home.  Nonetheless, we're making South Carolina our home.
My family and I will start the New Year off in our new home.
I don't know what 2014 has in-store for us, besides new beginnings. 
I know I want to make the most of 2014 and share it with you!
Thank you, for sharing 2013 with me, and following my journey.
Life's a work in progress, and I'm enjoying sharing it with you!






Sunday, December 29, 2013

Mommy Monday Blog Hop #MondayForMoms

   
Mommy Monday Blog Hop
  Happy 2014!! We hope you all had a relaxing and enjoyable holiday.  
The Mommy Monday Posse
 
Follow Mrs. AOK
 
Follow Lisa
 
Follow Tiffany
   
A Giveaway
 
Saving my holiday sanity with pamper
 
We have a very practical giveaway for those of you with little ones in diapers.  During the holidays I picked up a pack of disposable diapers and wipes - so I could just have a break during the holidays.  It's really nice, so I wanted to share a pack of Pampers Diapers and Wipes with one of you.   I also know that diapers are obscenely expensive.  If you have a CVS close by and you are an US Resident, enter below for your chance to win - and give yourself a break from the laundry and the financial worry.
Here are the guidelines of the hop:
 
1) Follow all your co-hosts. Leave a comment for us on the post and we will know you are a new follower and we will follow back.
 
2) If you want our button, feel free to grab it from up top! Just remember, more buttons going up means more exposure for all of us!
 
3) Have you heard how dynamic Pinterest is for blog traffic? Try to pin posts you like! You can even start by pinning the link up before and after yours! THE CO-HOSTS PIN OUR FAVORITES HERE.
  4) TWEET about the Blog Hop:  
   
The hosts select bloggers to be featured in the Mommy Monday Blog Hop each week. Next week it could be you!
 
Drum roll please!
 
The Christmas that almot wasn't by Vashti Quiroz-Vega
 
todo
 
Blog-Button
  Definitely very well deserved. If you have been featured on the Mommy Monday Blog Hop, please grab a button and display it proudly!
   
I Was Featured on Mommy Monday
   
Are you interested in hosting the growing Mommy Monday Blog Hop in 2014? If so, please email Mrs. Tiffany here: Mrstee {at} mrsteelovelifelaughter {dot} com
   
We want to wish you a very safe, healthy and happy New Year!
Without further ado...
   




Tuesday, December 24, 2013

This One Goes Out to All My Bloggy Friends... #TunesdayTuesday


                       Click to play this Smilebox slideshow


                     
                   Have a lovely Holiday!!!

                               

I'm linked up to Tunesday Tuesday with these lovely ladies







Monday, December 23, 2013

Super Duper Easy Last Minute #DIY Gifts


Did you find out a few other family members are showing up for the holidays?
Don't have a gift for them?
I think I have you covered.
My kiddos had such a fun time making ornaments for their grandparents.  So, what I'm trying to tell you is… get the kiddos in on the DIY!
For the ornaments you will need:
The unwrapping of the crayons is a wonderful task for little hands ;)
Break the crayons in little pieces.  My bulbs were 40mm therefore my pieces had to be quite small.  If you're using regular sized bulbs I'd suggest bigger pieces perhaps 1/4 of a crayon.
 Put your gloves on and heat the crayons with your blow dryer swirling the bulb on its side.
Let the ornament dry.. add a ribbon for a more fancy look :)
How often do the white crayons get used? We had quite a few white crayons, so we melted the white crayons down (the same way as we did above) and made snowmen ornaments. The kiddos used Sharpies and Painters markers to decorate.

Since we were sending some of these ornaments to family, we filled the ornaments with sea shells from the beach… now they have a little bit of our new home :)
Personalized Coffee Mug
I was part of a handmade gift exchange last month… because of my move it was terrible timing.  I literally made my the semi-handmade gift the day I left IL.

I needed to make something fast and easy because everything was being boxed up.
I bought a pretty aqua mug from World Market, a cloth napkin to match and some goodies to fill the mug up with.

I had seen so many Sharpie mugs on Pinterest and thought that looked perfect… 
There were mixed reviews on the Sharpie mug, some people said it wiped right off.
I read that Painters Markers worked better 
I hope they were right…
I used the Painters paint markers and got designing.
*First clean your mug off with rubbing alcohol.
I let the mug air dry for about an hour but I think a day would be best… again I left that day.
Once I let the mug settle long enough I heated the mug up in the oven 
DO NOT PREHEAT
The mug most heat up with the oven.
375* for 30 minutes
DO NOT TAKE THE MUG OUT RIGHT AWAY!
Let the mug cool down with the oven.

Happy Handmade Holidays!