Halloween Décor Project

I love Halloween and for some reason I make more Halloween décor crafts than any other holiday.  Last week my mom and I were in Pier One and saw an adorable witches hat wall decoration and we were inspired to make our own. 

We went to Michael’s where we found paper mache witches hats.  We split it in half with a craft knife so it would hang flat against the wall.  We painted the hat purple and then covered it on Mod Podge before dumping a lot of Martha Stewart glitter all over it.  After the purple glitter had set a bit we tapped off the rest of the loose glitter and used a one inch foam brush dipped in Mod Podge and added a strip of glue around the base.  I had some fabulous green glitter from Stampin’ Up! in my stash and poured it on the glue. We did this carefully and with the hat on its side to keep the green from sticking in the purple. 
After it dried we added some bling swirls rather than try to freehand a web design.  This has been the most difficult part as I have had to add craft Glue Dots to the back to keep it stuck as the adhesive on the swirls didn’t stick once it was covered with the glitter.  I had a DUH moment here and I should have added a finishing spray of some sorts over the glitter but I didn’t have one on hand and decided to skip it.  So, if you are inspired to give this project a try, I would seal the glitter somehow.
We picked up a plain pine board from Michael’s for the signs and painted them black.  The Martha Stewart black paint is pretty nice and covered well with just one coat!  I had the great green, glittery alpha stickers from Doodlebug Designs in my stash and they were a near perfect match in color.  I went over the board with the Sparkle Mod Podge to seal it. 
We used black wire we found in the jewelry section at Michael’s to attach the sign after I drilled small holes in the wood and the hat.  It is hard to see in the photo but I also picked up some pretty purple diamond shaped beads and added them to the bottom corners of the sign. I wrapped the wire around a plastic spider before attaching it to the hat.  Finally, I used some green glitter ribbon I also picked up at Michael’s to make the loop for hanging it.
This was really a quick project and I love the finished product so much.  I cannot wait to hang it on my front door in a few weeks.  If you are interested in checking out some more of my Halloween projects you can look here for a cute upcycled jar, here for a easy, sparkly framed print, and here for a paper wreath.
Do you have a holiday that you love crafting for? 

I’m sharing my idea on The Celebration Shoppe’s What I Made Wednesday link party and Tip Junkie's Tip Me Tuesday!

Finally Home

After feeling unsettled for the past 14 years, I am finally at home.  Being in the military and then a military spouse means you move around a bit more than the average person.  You try your best to get settled and establish routines but eventually you will have to pack it all up and start again. 

James will be retiring from the Air Force next year after 24 years of service and we discussed at length what we would do back last fall.  Retire out of Germany or take one last assignment back in the USA.  A job came up that he was qualified for at Fort Knox, KY so he applied and here we are.

We wanted to get settled in and stick around for awhile so we found a real estate agent (hi, Glen!!!) and looked at many homes.  We researched the local schools and neighborhoods and made an offer on our very first home.  Things worked out, obviously, and we moved in a few weeks ago.  I have been unpacking, painting, organizing, etc. 

I hope to share some more photos soon and even share our last 2 trips in Europe, Brussels and Venice.  I just felt the need to post and get back to blogging today.  I have missed my creative outlet a bit and look forward to establishing new routines and sharing our stories.

I hope everyone has a fantastic Tuesday!

And Then She Soared….

My oldest girl started kindergarten this morning!  I am been a bundle of mixed emotions for days now and this morning I was a tearful mommy as we left her at school.  I seriously bawled all the way back to the hotel (Yes, hotel!  We are still living out of suitcases but that is a story for another day!).  I am sure that my tears were what caused Aubrey to get a little choked up as I gave her one last hug but she but on her bravest face.

I know she will LOVE school!  I cannot wait to pick her up in a few hours and hear all about her first day of kindergarten.  I may just cry a little bit more!

Saying Goodbye

4 years ago we packed up and moved from Washington State to Germany.  It was an adventure we were looking forward to and boarded the plane full of excitement and a little bit of anxiety (traveling with a 15 month old, 3 month old and 2 cats adds a tiny touch of stress!). 

We made it and settled into our home and routines.  We were able to travel to some of Europe’s most beautiful cities and stunning countrysides.  We watched our daughters grow from babies to sweet, beautiful little ladies.  My hair has added a gray strand (or maybe 2), I went from my 20’s into the 30’s.  JG jumped into his 40’s.  We struggled as a couple and as parents.  I like to think we ended this 4 year assignment ahead of the game.  At a better point in our lives.  Maybe we all grew up a bit. 

We moved out of our home yesterday and walking away was a little bittersweet.  My girls grew up here.  All of their earliest memories will have taken place here.  They are excited to move back to the United States even though they have no idea how different life will be there.  I am happy they are embracing this time with joy rather than fear.  I wouldn’t blame if they were scared as this is a huge move for a 4 & 5 year old.  Yet, they act like they have done this a dozen times already. 

I have a huge mix of emotions as I type this.  I have loved this assignment, for the most part, and being able to live in Europe was something JG and I wanted to do.  I will miss many things about Germany but I am ready to get back to the USA!  I have grown to appreciate the slower pace of life here and I will imagine that I will miss this sooner than I expected. 

My 5 year old will start kindergarten in August so this move comes at the most perfect time.  We are ending one chapter in our lives and beginning a new, exciting one for our family.  I am looking forward to the future but will embrace these memories for the rest of my life.

A Photo is Worth a Three Words

 

Not everyone is happy to have the US military taking up residence in their community.  We have been fortunate and our neighbors have been friendly but we live further away from the post.  Signs like these tend to pop up around the small towns located just outside the post.  There have been many “Army Go Home” signs but they are not usually spray painted onto homes.

My dad commented that it was a good thing we are Air Force!  I giggled and agreed.

Just Like Mommy!

I love Starbucks.  This is a well known fact around here.  Unfortunately for me, they are just not found in every town in Europe so my chances to get a coffee from there are few and far between.  So imagine my surprise when we came across one in Aachen, Germany a few weeks ago when we stopped on our way home from Brussels to visit their famous Dom (King Charlemagne's remains are here).

Aubrey is pretty quick to spot them for me and will even tell James that “mommy wants Starbucks”.  While we drink our Frappuccino’s, the girls usually share one of the bottled smoothies you can purchase there.  They love getting these drinks!  This time, however, I told James that we should let them share a Strawberries & Cream Frappuccino*.  Their very first drink with a green straw! 

This was huge for me so I had to snap photos of them enjoying their Starbucks.  At least they humor me.   I guess a photo was a small price to pay for their drink since it was gone in no time.  There was a small demo of some sorts going on that weekend so it made for a cute back drop and I will use these photos for my Project Life album. 

Do your kids share any of your favorites? 

Thanks for stopping by!

*For those who are not aware, there is no caffeine or coffee in this drink so don’t judge.

Just One Venice Photo….

I was just finishing up a lovely post when I lost it…and now I want to cry.  Actually, it wasn’t so lovely but more whiney!  I hate working on my netbook!  It has a mind of its own and gives me so much grief.  You can be typing away (or simply tagging a post) when everything just disappears.  This machine is really just good for reading Facebook updates and checking email.  While the size is ideal for traveling it is not ideal for travel blogging.  The original post wasn’t long but who wants to retype stuff? 

Now that I am done whining about my netbook I thought I would share my most favorite photo taken in Venice.  We were there last week for 3 nights and we had a great time.  The weather was decent and our hotel was in a fabulous location with all of our windows looking over 2 canals.  Being located at a canal intersection was interesting and the girls loved saying hello to all the gondolas as they passed by.

We woke up early and headed out for photos before most of the other tourists started their day.  You cannot see the graffiti on Rialto Bridge, the Grand Canal isn’t crowded with boats (it looks like pure chaos when it is), and there are not any customers at this restaurant where I took the photo.  I am pretty sure I am going to have this enlarged and framed in my home somewhere. 

Thanks for stopping by today and reading all my whining.  I hope you have a great day.