A little R & R.....for a few days at least

 Last week I got to take a few days away from "life" and run away to Dayna and Jack's for a little fun and relaxation! It was something I had wanted to do for quite some time, knew I needed to do...but just didn't have the time....BUT finally, I just decided that sometimes I  have to let the chips fall where they may, and leave...so thats what I did.  I got to sleep in (I guess 6:30 am is sleeping in?!) and get a little "retail therepy", took a Zumba class...which if you haven't tried, you should...if for nothing else other than to get an extremely good look at yourself LOOKING absolutely ridiculous (didn't help that I am one of the most UN-coordinated people in the world!). I drove around looking at all the beautiful blossoms and flowers that aren't quite as lustrous in my part of the state...it was a few days of peace, quiet and CALM...and its just what I needed.

Dayna and I had hoped that Kim could come up for a little "night out on the town", but school takes priority as finals are creeping up and we completely understood...but we went out on the town anyway. We went to the movie (The Vow), had a little Cafe Rio picnic and just had a GREAT night!

I am so glad that someone "invented" Cafe Rio...it is truly a little HEAVEN ON EARTH! 

I have to say that the few days I was at Dayna's was wonderful, 

although its never enough time no matter how long I stay. 

I miss seeing my kids that live far away, so its good that we can spend time together 

whenever the opportunity arises. 

NOW its BACK to the REAL world 

(with a few new things to make the REAL world a BETTER place for the time being)!

Rosettes's, rosette's and MORE rosettes............

I thought I would try my hand at some rosette topiary's for the big wedding coming up...

I started with cutting out ONE BAZZILION circles of different sizes, then

I melted the edges by placing the circles over an open flame....

Then I layered three circles of different sizes (to make it look like a flower) and pin,ed them in various places on the topiary (that way if I end up hating where I put them, I'm not committed to leaving them there just yet).
After deciding I had all the rosettes where I wanted them, I glued them down with a dab of hot glue. I then had the issue of what do do the the bottom of the topiary.....it was ugly and Spanish moss just made it look worse. I ended up cutting small squares out of lace and folding them into smaller triangles then I pinned them into the foam.

I finished everything by adding a small bead or button to the center of each flower, tying a large silk bow to the stem of the topiary and WAA-LAA....I got this!

I loved how they turned out!

Mother Nature's Mood Swings~

Living in Utah, Mother Nature always seems to have a bit of PMS....you never know when she is going to blow up. The other day as I watched the sun come and go, rain storms come in and out and the hail begin to fall....I decided that despite all the weird weather we have here in Utah, I wouldn't want to live anywhere else, even when we get hail storms during the month of April (even snow in July)...there is no place like home.


At least it melted fast...the sun came out and Mother Nature calmed back down....crazy lady that Mother Nature is!

Here come's Peter Cottontail...hopping down the bunny trail~

Since small "ecstatic children" no longer roam the halls of our "abode" and sleepy somber teens/adults have taken their place, we no longer have the "traditional" Easter Egg hunts at our house. We said "good-bye" to the sweet little candy filled colored plastic eggs being hidden in plain sight, carefully set on each one of the stairs, hiding on the bookshelves amongst the volumes of Charles Dickens and the Easter baskets hidden in the bedroom closets. That sneaky little Easter Bunny NOW hides clues outside around the yard, YES, in those "ever so famous plastic eggs". These fabulous little treasure hunt clues eventually lead these crazy kids to find their Easter Baskets full of treats (seriously, I don't think you should ever out grow an Easter Basket full of fun spring surprises and holiday candy).

At our house, the Easter Bunny comes Saturday morning...(Sunday is meant for a

celebration of the REAL meaning of Easter)...so there is really no reason to get dressed

and ready for the day BEFORE the hunt begins.

So.....come rain, snow or sun...the hunt is ON when the majority of the people are awake.

Mike made sure that everyone was up and ready to go...

HE WAS EXCITED...AND SO WAS I!!!!

IF you happen to be tardy or miss the hunt completely, you won't know where to find

your basket and someone else may end up stealing your goods!

Its best to stay with the group so that you can hear what the next clue happens to be....

It's usually only repeated once before the group is off hunting the next egg!

Some clues are very vague and leave you wondering "Where in the world would I find THAT?"

and NOPE...you won't find it in there....

...and so it goes until someone finds the last clue which leads

to where the Easter Bunny hid his load of

treasure this year~

"SCORE!!!!"

Leaving my pack of hula-guns happy and feeling as though it was worth their

efforts on a COLD April morn!

I have to say, I think I have SO much more fun watching them chase the clues than they could ever have with the treasure hunt itself...so maybe the treasure hunt is more for ME than my goofy crew...oh well, either way, its something we all look forward to (at least I do)....I don't know what I will do when they ALL leave home...maybe the Easter Bunny will have to hide SOMETHING BIGGER AND BETTER in the eggs and BRIBE them to come home...hmmmmm, its a thought!

Ta-Duhhhhhh~

I found myself getting in the mood to sew up a little something for myself a couple of weeks ago...I don't get those crazy urges as much as I would like to (actually I WANT to sew a lot more than I GET to sew...time isn't on my side these days) so I went with my random "mood swing" and pulled out the sewing machine. I found a killer deal on some fabric at Walmart and decided I would make myself a skirt. I have a hard time finding anything long enough for my ever so lanky legs, so making my own skirts sometimes become a "MUST" instead of a luxury.

(This is the back...the top 2 pics)

AND.....

...these are some fabulous little rosettes I made to sport the FRONG of my skirt~

I have to say, I am thrilled with the way it turned out...and I just might find myself making another one,

just because I can!

A Shower of LOVE~

This pretty lady is down to LESS than a month before she becomes "Mrs. Coats"! I have to say, she is just a "LITTLE" excited about moving on with the next phase of her life with her sweetheart (I think she is probably down to counting the hours that are left)...the day just isn't coming fast enough for her!

Dayna and I threw a bridal shower for her a few weeks ago...so many sweet people came to "shower her with love and gifts"! We are so thankful for such special people in her life!! We had fun planning it...making lots of yummy food and preparing for her big day...

ALTHOUGH, this poor "bride-to-be" was convinced, bribed and begged...to help decorate for her own shower (hey, families stick together, right?!). It was a LONG night of moving tables, shifting decorations and laughing, but so much fun!

We even made up a few fun door prizes...as a little way to spoil all the great people that came from near and far

to wish Kim their best~

(Mike's sweet family traveled 3 hours just to be here...such wonderful, wonderful people!)

(some of Kim's wonderful family and friends that came from near and far...)

Kim has many younger cousin's who love and adore her and would do just about anything for her! They

can't ever seem to get enough of her when she's around....and Kim LOVES it!!

We played some great party games and even had to embarrass her....BUT just a little bit~

It's a good thing that she's is such a great sport... and that she knows that we love and adore her!

Spring Break~

Spring Break was quiet and calm for our little family...no airplane rides, no Disneyland characters, no road trips...just a peaceful week off from school! Cameron was actually on a school trip during Spring Break so we didn't see much of him. Halle and I took an afternoon and did a little shopping and had a picnic lunch with my sweet mom. We don't get to see her as often as we would like...so we took in a LONG visit under the sun at the park....with a bit of Cafe Rio of course!

It was great to spend the afternoon talking, laughing and EATING!

Although I would have liked to have been sitting on a beach in a lounge chair, catching some rays and watching the sunset for the week of Spring Break, a picnic and a much needed visit with my mom was

just what I needed that day!

Now....BRING on SUMMER!