Notes from A Cottage Industry

What are your thoughts about "Christmas in July?"

....er....October?

(Welp, this post was started in July, worked on in August, (and September!) and now, finally published in...October.)

Ugh.

(What can I say? It's been quite a year.....and a half, give or take.)

...

Where was I?

Oh yes, Christmas in July. You've most likely heard the phrase, and of course the Hallmark Channel commits to the idea in the most major way, with daily Christmas movies all of the month of July long, but I was thinking of the "Christmas in July" concept because I have an Advent Calendar project I created. 

It seems to me it is much easier (and much more affordable) to create and assemble it over a longer time period..(Truth be told, I first thought of this idea last December, and of course, by then I was far too behind the eight ball to get anything made, sent out, or set up, and...well, you get the picture.)

Anyway.

I had so much fun creating my advent calendar, that I ended up creating not one, but two different styles, and I'm going to share them with you over two posts. Hopefully they will inspire you to create an advent calendar of your own for a special person in your life. Both Advent Calendar set ups will be available in my etsy shop for any of you who are not wanting to create one from scratch!

The first Advent Calendar is an assortment of bags and boxes, all numbered 1 through 24, meant to be tucked into a basket, crate, or even a small suitcase to display. I created this basket version with my Ralph in mind. (This is why I got inspired to do one in neutral color tones. I was thinking it would look a bit more masculine, and, the fun thing about it is that it can go with any color and style theme.) While not created in the traditional red and green Christmas colors, little adornments will add the customized pops of any color you choose! I'm going to place this on the bench at the foot of our bed come December first, and I think it's going to be perfect there.

It really was quite a simple project, and I had so much fun gathering the bags and boxes to hold the little gifties.

I designed two pages of number sheets so I could print them in two different colors. (I chose to go with white and kraft brown to keep it neutral, as you can see...)

My Christmas-y feel comes from the little adornments I am adding to the various packages...

As I said, if you love this idea, and do not want to start from scratch yourself, this kit is now available in my etsy shop. I've created it in two versions, a hard copy here, complete with packages and ribbon, and as an instant download, here, which enables you to print your tags on any color cardstock you choose. (All white for a snowy, classic look? Blush pink and grays for that soft romantic feel? Terra cotta and olive for a boho style? Traditional red and green? It's up to you!) You also can get as fancy or plain as you like...matte your numbers to another color, add candy canes, holly, bells...whatever...or not.

The real beauty of starting this project in July August September October is that we all still have from now through the last day of November to fill those little prezzie packages! 

Oh! And if you are thinking that buying twenty four gifts will cost you a bundle, think again. Some of the gift ideas off the top of my head are coffee or fast food gift cards, candy, Christmas ornaments, and pretty much half of the clever products found in the Dollar Store.....

Also, the items in the wrappings need not be purchased gifts. You can fill the with children's packages with riddles, homemade gift certificates for playdates, hot cocoa by the fire, and adventures to the library (or where ever...) or a "skip a chore" card. For your sweetheart, homemade certificates for a foot rub or back massage, a favorite homemade dessert any day they like, or a sofa picnic while watching a movie on demand of their choice. (In my home this would most likely be be a night of binge watching Judge Judy episodes, with the added promise of me not rolling my eyes at the number of "former friend" cases.) Making an advent calendar for a best friend could include motivational thoughts for the day, mints, or even some super soft socks, Hopefully you are getting the idea....The possibilities are endless! (My advent calendar kits also include an idea list of affordable items compiled fr you in two lists; one for kids and one for grownups, to place in the packages.)

What are your thoughts on the idea of a fun, and possibly unexpected advent calendar for someone special in your life? Is this something you would create?

**Next post I will share the second style (a wall hanging version) of the advent calendar I have created for my precious grands. 

A seven and a half pound slice of heaven brightened up 2020 like the fourth of July firework show.

Smack dab in the middle of the darkest, longest, scariest year of our lives, God blessed my family with a precious, sweet, perfect baby boy. I haven't gotten to meet my newest grandson (nor hold, hug, and squeeze the stuffing out of him) just yet, thanks to the pandemic, so for now, we all wait eagerly for photo updates.

His brother and sister are doing a phenomenal job of making sure he has every need met when they are done with schoolwork, so there is no shortage of people in line to rock and hold him.

It makes my heart swell to look at pictures of them all, and I'm so hoping that it won't be too much longer before we can all be together in person!

Birthday wish lists have changed quite a bit since I turned thirty-six.

..'Coz I know I never asked for a magic wand to make my youngest child go to bed without a wild ruckus, but that's what this girl asked for.

(Actually, it never occurred to me that a magic wand could be a birthday gift option. Dang.)

Anyway.

Last Friday was both my daughter, and daughter-in-law's birthday, and I went to my daughter's home to celebrate. (You might remember that my son, daughter-in-law and their kiddos live in the biggest little city.) We went to lunch and shopped, (And shopped, and shopped...) and when we arrived back at her home, we were met with a full on surprise party, (complete with balloons, homemade signs and cards, and a cake!) made up entirely of all of her men; her husband, and her four boys.

The boys had homemade cards, and hand selected her birthday gifts from the dollar store. After she opened the glittered-baton, she unwrapped the present she had hoped for. A magic wand, which, as a side bonus, came with a matching lavender tiara! 

Oh, she was thrilled. She enthusiastically proclaimed just how much she loved it (as she placed the tiara on her head) and said she couldn't wait to use it tonight, as it was a very special sort of wand, with magical powers, specifically designed to get little boys to go to bed without any fuss, whatsoever.

Well.

The youngest of the little men looked wide-eyed at her as she shared this big news.

(Can you even imagine this little imp ever giving anyone an ounce of pushback?)

photo taken by Charlene Vogel Photography http://www.charlenevogel.com/

Later, after we had sung happy birthday, and all ate some cake, and everyone brushed their teeth, and had put on their pajamas, their Daddy said it was bedtime. The birthday girl and I gave them all hugs goodnight, and down the hall to bed they went with Daddy.

A short while later there was a creak of a bedroom door, and the sound of shuffling four year old feet coming down that same hallway, and then, I could feel a presence behind me, as I sat near the end of the sofa.

In a sweet hushed whisper of a voice I heard him say to me, very matter-of-factly, "That wand is fake."

It was impossible to keep a straight face then, and I immediately repeated what he said (once I stopped laughing) to his parents.

Maybe she should have asked for an Insta-Pot. 

A woodland themed baby name banner.

I created a woodland theme banner for a baby shower for a family member, and wanted t share how it came out. I'm loaning out my Camp Cupcake plaid rag banner as well, to use as an additional bit of woodland feel. I hope the Mama likes it!

Camp Cupcake, the winter version. (Part Two.)

As I said in yesterday's post, Camp Cupcake 2017 had to be postponed from summer's end, until mid-December. During the original planning stages, I decided it would be fun to bring on my two oldest grand babes (Carter and Isabelle, both eight at the time) as Junior Camp Counselors. 

They were thrilled, to say the least, and we began planning activities for this year's Camp Cupcake. We even held a three-way-call phone meeting to finalize plans, and divide up who would be in charge of which activities and such...so much fun!

Camp began with everyone checking out their goodie bags, eating lunch, and putting on their camp shirts.

We had fun making bird seed molds to hang in the tree for the birds...

...made beaded necklaces with arrowheads...

...and had fun doing crafts...

...and team competitions, like racing with cotton balls on spoons...

...going on a scavenger hunt,and sitting by the fire with our cocoa...

 We did some fun night time activities as well. The all time favorite by far was night bowling. You take empty two liter bottles, drop neon glow sticks in them (Buy them at the dollar store!) and put the bottle cap back on. Voila'! Instant bowling in the dark!

I bought lightweight sleeping bags last summer for $11 each, and everyone piled into the living room for the night.

I would have to say that a great time was had by all!

Camp Cupcake, the winter version. (Part One)

Twenty Seventeen was a crazy year, and my annual Camp Cupcake ended up getting postponed last-minute due to a terrible cold bug hitting part of the campers the week of camp. Instead of being Labor Day weekend, we opted for a mid-December camp. I'm finally sharing some of the details here today!

Let's start with the set up, shall we?

I used my back patio, and we set up the outdoor heaters, along with the fire pit, and blankets for all of the campers, so we would be warm and dry, regardless of the weather...but we needn't have worried. The weather cooperated! A bit chilly, but no rain, ice, or snow!

I made a plaid flannel and wool tied banner, swagger across the roof area for added fun this year too...

I set up each camper's gear at the table, and made name tags for their chairs, as well as their camp stools by the fire pit. Everyone was given a camp hat this year, instead of the pennants we have used own the past to hold their badges earned. Enamel mugs for cocoa, and chili in the crock pot to go along with the hot dogs we would roast....

 

I use pie pans as plates for that mess-hall style, and added a few more campy touches to the patio...

I did the bulk of my set up the morning of camp. (Camp started around noon, as soon as the out-of-town campers arrived.) The camp patio setting looked great, and I could hardly wait for my campers to arrive! Tomorrow I will be sharing pictures from this year's camp, so stay tuned!

 

#campcupake  #acottageindustry  #lovemesomegrandbabies #babyitscoldoutside

 

Save

Save

Merry Christmas Twenty-Seventeen, my friends.

I hope December has been kind to you, and you are enjoying the holiday season. I was blessed to have six of my Grands gathered at my home for a wintertime version of Camp Cupcake a couple of weekends ago, and we managed to get our annual Santa-Hats-in-the-bed Christmas photo shoot!

I foolishly thought since everyone is getting a bit older, (the oldest two are turning nine!) the photos would be easier to stage, and capture perfectly posed smiles all round.

Ha!

Boys will be boys, as they say, and some of us are still not fans of posing for seemingly endless camera shots by Gramma Cupcake. Also, there may or may not have ben just a smudge too much sugar intake the night before the photo shoot.

(Someone needed a picture with only Isabelle to make him smile...)

No matter. They (The pictures and the Grands) are precious, and perfect, as always, and I will treasure each and every picture, and memory from the day for the rest of my life.

Merry Christmas and happy holidays to you, from me!

A better late than never post from my latest trip to the biggest little city.

A grand time was had by all (especially me!) during my ten day stint with the grands in northern Nevada. Now, mind you, towards the end,ten days was an awfully long time for the kiddos to be without their Mom and Dad, (and vice versa) and so I decided we would make some baked treats and a fabulous banner to welcome them home.

Bronson informed me that he was not "into" baking, so Miss Isabelle and I made the cookies and brownies, and then Bronson helped us taste them.

I created a banner that spelled out, "YAY! YOU'RE HOME!" in my little Print Program. (in my excitement my apostrophe ended up after the "R"...) I designed the letters an outline style, with one letter to a piece of paper. Once printed, the kiddos each took half of the letters and colored them all in. (Bronson added some other adornments, but Isabelle opted to stick with crayons only.)

We then cut them out and strung them together. We then decided to hang them on the fireplace, which ended up being the perfect spot.

It turned out so cute, and it was a lot of fun for all of us. What do you think?

Let the Camp Cupcake 2017 plans commence.

Plans are underway for the next annual Camp Cupcake, coming up this summer. Each year I am adding a new thing or two. Last year, my Rock n' Roll Buddy got me tent, as you may recall (here.) and this year I have added individual enamel mugs for each camper to use for their hot cocoa.

I'll be adding little name tags to each handle, and I'll share that soon. (I ordered my mugs here.)

The other thing I am adding, which is far more exciting than mugs, is that the two eight year old Grands are being promoted from Campers to Jr. Camp Counselors! They will be given some extra duties, and are going to be helping with the planning a bit more.

When I was in the biggest Little City a few weeks ago, I shared this big news with my eight year old grand daughter, and we began to create a list of potential new activities for the Camp this year. (Some things we will do every year, like s'mores, but going on the exact same scavenger hunt in the neighborhood each time can get a little predictable...)

Oh how I love this girl.

After we looked at my Pinterest board (here) so I could share the ideas I had found, she grabbed a pen and paper and decided we should make a list of all the possible games and such. Once that list was complete, she had us go back through it, and put the activities in the order we felt would work best for our day. She then made me a copy, and kept one for herself. (I know! Yes, I may be her Gramma, but I can tell she is going to do big things in life!)

The two Jr. Camp Counselors with have something special added to their Tee shirts, and it’s going to be so much fun!

Save

Save

An anniversary themed travel treat bag.

I'm visiting the biggest little city for the next week, caring for my grands while their parents go on holiday to celebrate their tenth wedding anniversary!

I fixed them up a little goodie bag of sorts for the plane ride, and I wanted to share it with you today.I got them some snacks (Chex party mix and M&Ms) and a deck of playing cards (in case they got bored on the long flight) and a little cash with a cute note explaining that it was for an in-flight celebratory cocktail.

A short while back my son asked me to text him an old photo from his childhood sports days, and I pulled open an old vintage suitcase crammed full of mementos, and began sending some photos. One happened to be way back when he first played Pop Warner football (Third grade I believe...) and low and behold, it turns out that my daughter in law was a little Pop Warner Cheerleader on that very team. There she was, in that photo, from so long ago!

I decided to incorporate that photo onto the goodie bag as well...

(On a side note, with Reno being a place with such a small town feel, many of the other children in that photo are still friends of my son and daughter in law today, and in fact, we discovered that The Other Tracey's daughter is in the photo too!)

Home again home again, jiggety-jig.

I'm heading home today with some treasured memories from four fun filled days with the band of brothers living the small town country life in Oregon. We had our adventure to the land of Chuckie Jesus, as I shared a couple of days ago. We played board games, planted our seeds, held multiple timed races around the huge kitchen island, did a few chores and some homework.

There were quite a few lively discussions, ranging from just how old someone thought a certain substitute teacher was, to identifying the guilty party that "tooted" in the car, as well as a couple of short conversations about what Ralph was doing at any given time of the day after he headed home for his work week to begin.

We celebrated the youngest brother's successes on the potty with skittles numerous times. (He's got this!) I found out that the seven year old thinks both his Mommy and I have gotten a lot older looking since her wedding pictures, nine years ago.(Okay, so his exact words were, "You and Mommy looked a lot younger in this picture!" Tomay-to, toma-to. Old.er.)

I realized the momentous impact the written word mass-printed on a cheap paper Valentine holds to a four year old.

"Cupcake, this one is from Dominic...what does it say?" he asked, as he was showing me his haul of Valentines from his one-morning-a-week-Pre-school-class.

"It says, You're my best friend, Valentine!" I replied.

"Really?! Dominic thinks I'm his best friend?! Wow! I didn't know I was his best friend!"

I wasn't about to tell him the entire class most likely received that same card from Dominic, who only picked out that pack of cards at Target because it was Ninja Turtles.)

The entire crew helped me with a marathon let's-cut-vintage-seam-binding-into-five-yard-strips for Gramma Cupcake's booth, (Free child labor is such an ugly term. I prefer assembly-line-relay-race to help Gramma Cupcake out.) and the oldest brother asked to keep the empty spools for crafting with later. (Aaaah, a boy after my own heart! I'd like to think he gets that crafter-hoarder creative gene from me.) Of course I said yes, yes, oh, most certainly yes, dear boy.

It was all too much fun, and time flew by at warp speed. I'm feeling more than a little melancholy as I think of it ending, and I am reminded of just how blessed I am, to be able to have spent this time, and make these memories with them.

Way back, in my old life, I always took for granted, and foolishly assumed that I would be the Gramma who was always able to just come and go whenever, and be available anytime. When my life suddenly changed, that scenario changed as well. Spontaneous meet-ups are not always possible, and it takes a little more pre-planning on the front end, but it makes our time together that much more precious to me.

Save

Save

Save

Bloom where you're planted.

.....And then plant the entire pot in the ground when your seedlings grow!

I saw this clever idea on Pinterest, and thought it could be fun for the kiddos while I am staying with them. Such an easy project, and it was fun for all of them, even with the various ages between them.

Simply put potting soil in basic ice cream cones, and then plant your seeds in them. Water them as needed, and when the seedlings grow to be big enough to transplant, pop the entire plant, cone and all, into your flowerpot or garden soil. The cone will eventually disintegrate, and there's no stress on your seedlings!

I had an assortment of flower seeds, and two kinds of lettuce for them to choose from, and they each picked their favorites. Toothpicks with names to keep them straight made it easy...**the one challenge we are having is that the cones are biodegradable, and the moisture from the soil...and water...make them start to disintegrate right away. Place your cones where they won't be able to tip over!**

We are all so ready for spring to get here.

#notesfromacottageindustry  #bandofbrothers #bloomwhereyouareplanted

Save

Weekly words to live by.

Hold me closer, tiny donuts.

I tried my hand, for the first time ever, at donut making.

(Teeny-tiny-itsy-bitsy-pink-and-sprinkled donuts, no less.) Teeny-tiny because...they are on top of little Natalie's birthday smash cake. In the end, her Mama decided on the hippo, (I know, I know. I was kind of surprised myself. Some of you are probably disappointed, because you liked the giraffe better, or you thought, like Natalie's Auntie, that the hippo looked too scary to you with it's mouth open and showing her teeth.....)

(The giraffe I created will go to my booth at Camas Antiques...)

I was a little concerned that the hippo was rather large for the six inch cake, but once I added the teeny-tiny donuts (cheerios frosted with melted candy melts and sprinkles) it grew on me and I decided I liked it.

We will see what Natalie rose thinks of it this morning!

A second (potentially less scary) animal cake topper.

First off, thank you so very much for the lovely comments, and for your honest opinions!

As I said in my last post, I am going to be adding a birthday section to one spot in my booth space at Camas Antiques, as well as in my etsy shop, and therefore, I happen to have accumulated several little animals that I plan to foofy up. Last night I took a peek into my collection, and chose this little giraffe.

A tutu didn't seem to hang well on her, and so she ended up with a foofy collar of sorts. Truth be told, I like her just as well, if not a teensy bit better than the little hippo, and she most certainly is not scary by any definition of the term.

I sent my both of my daughters some pictures of the newest party animal. The auntie, who was not so much a fan of Miss Hippo, liked the giraffe, and Natalie's Mommy still like the hippo.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, as they say, and that's what makes the world go round. I'll be showing Natalie's Mommy the animals in person before the party, and she can decide for sure which cake topper is going to grace the top of the cake. The remaining one will arrive in my booth, ready to party somewhere else.

Because a hippo in a tutu seemed like the way to go for a cake-topper.

That's my answer, if you're looking at the picture up there wondering what possessed me to spend part of my weekend hand stitching a bunch of coral colored tulle.

I made her to go on top of sweet little Natalie's birthday cake at her first birthday party this coming Saturday.

I think she's pretty adorable, but the jury's still out, as one of her aunties said she can't quite decide if it's cute or scary because it's mouth is open, and it's teeth are showing.

The big O-N-E party is set for next Saturday morning and it is to be a donuts and pajama party. I'm making little Miss Natalie Rose's smash cake, and the idea I can see in my head is for it to be a white cake with pale pink buttercream frosting. The little hippo will be front and center, with teeny-tiny-itsy-bitsy frosted donuts (with sprinkles!) scattered around her. (Can you see it too?)

What is your take on her? Cute? scary? Ridiculous? Fabulous? I would truly love to know your thoughts, as I am planning to add a small Birthday section to my etsy shop and my booth space at Camas Antiques. It will include cake toppers, banners, and other little details. What do you think? A good idea, or a little too out there?

Thanks in advance if you take the time to share here!

For the birthday girl.

My last little grand is turning O-N-E this month, and I got her some cutie patootie lil' outfits for her birthday. I wanted them to be extra special, so I ordered some handmade felted headbands from a darling etsy shop to coordinate.

Be still my heart.

Could they be any cuter?!

(No.)

I got her one to go with each outfit, and then one more for good measure.

They're too sweet, am I right?

Eeeeeek. I can hardly wait to see them on her!

 

The night before the night before Christmas.

The band of brothers came over for a sleep-over last night, while their Mommy and Daddy went to a grown up holiday event. The evening was spent playing cards (Go Fish, and a new fun game they taught me called Kings in Corners) eating Otter-Pops, and reading Christmas stores at bedtime.

We had quite a discussion surrounding who had the bed and who got the camp cots in the guest room, with the blue sleeping bag's fluffiness being a wildly popular comodity.

This morning we will have breakfast, (cereal, and surprise fruit smoothies!) and then they will help me finish decorating the Christmas tree, which has managed to go all season half decorated with lights, bows and icicles only.

All of these babies are growing too fast!

The annual grand-babes-in-bed-with-Santa-hats photo shoot. (Another one of those shameless Gramma brag posts.)

We took advantage of the cousin time together while we were on my fabulous milestone birthday Disneyland trip, and did the annual Santa-hats-in-bed photo shoot.

As usual, it was like herding kittens, and a lot of laughing going on, and we added a special pink Disney Santa hat for sweet Isabelle in the big group shots. By the way, did you notice all of the kiddos are in Mickey (or Minnie!) themed jammies?

Speaking of Isabelle, she wanted to take a picture with just herself and little Kacher.....

....and that lead to two more cousins wanting a photo, although they seemed to have trouble sitting still...

Oh, such fun!!!! Time flies, and I cannot believe the two oldest grands are turning eight this month (on Christmas eve!) and in January. We will surely be showing these pictures at their weddings some day....

Save

Countdown to Camp Cupcake, Twenty-Sixteen!

I shared a while back that I'm hosting my second annual Camp Cupcake for my Grands at the end of July. I've been working on things for months now, (quite literally) and so I am feeling pretty organized, and prepared. The shirts were the last thing to arrive, and they were just as perfect as I had envisioned them!

What do you think? Hmmmm?

Number nine.

**Disclaimer: Shameless Gramma brag post today.**

(Judi Barbara, you've asked for more pictures of the grands, and so, today, this is for especially for you.)

Number Nine, also known as Miss Natalie Rose, has recently discovered her hands, and more importantly, her fingers and thumbs. I snapped a couple...a ridiculous amount...a few photos when I was visiting the other day, and I am positive that you will agree with me when I say she is one delightfully darling four month old, who is full of personality.

I told ya. She's one little cutie pie for sure.

Gramma Cupcake and the three grand babes.

I was off on a motor home camp out all weekend, and when I returned home to my little cottage last night, something seemed...different.

Do you see anything...ehem...unusual in the photo above? (Click to enlarge it)

I thought, "I think someone's been sitting in my chair."

And, then I thought, "Hmm, I think someone's been playing with my typewriter, and possibly with my favorite star shaped cookie cutter."

I was right.

Two little someone's had been playing with some dinosaurs in my cottage, (While their baby sister took a nap, most likely on my bed.) and they left them right where they were playing with them.

And that made me smile.

(Insert happy sigh here.)

I think I will leave those dinosaurs right where they are for a week or so, so I will get a warm fuzzy feeling each time I look at them.

I love being a Gramma.

Save the dates for Camp Cupcake 2016.

I know.

I'm a little carried away.

Over the top.

But, that's kinda who I am, you know?

I'm already planning and list-making, and merit patch-buying for this summer's Camp Cupcake, and since I've picked the weekend in the summer to hold it, I'm getting ready to send out the save-the-dates.

I found these solar powered fire-fly mason jars that exude "camp-out" to me. (What do you think?)

I added homemade tags, and I think I might add some feather embellishments, and they will be good to go in the mail and in-person delivery next week.

It's going to be so much fun!

Easy peasy gift bag for Number seven's second birthday.

Where does the time go? Honestly, I want it to stop. To keep these little guys...little.

Just a little bit longer.

*sigh*

I whipped up a gift bag to hold his birthday present, and it took me no more than fifteen minutes, start to finish. A simple photo of our little Mister, and a tag proclaiming that he is celebrating his big number two birthday.

They all love looking a photos of themselves, and I know he will like it.

 

 

And then there were nine.

Meet Natalie Rose. She arrived this week, taking her place as number nine on my grand babe roster, and only the second girl to join the bouncing brood of cousins.

With two big brothers, she will most certainly be a force to be reckoned with, and she already has her Daddy wrapped around her pinky.

God is so good.

 

Merriest of Christmases to you!

With six of my eight grand-babes in attendance, we corralled the little ones for my annual babes-in-bed photo shoot before the Christmas Eve festivities got too far along, and, as in the two previous years, it was like herding kittens.

This will be forever remembered as the year that Grand Number Seven had croup. Poor little man didn't feel well at all and was not about to give up his pacifier, nor was he having any part of his Gramma Cupcake's let's-all-wear-Santa-hats-and-sit-in-a-row-in-bed annual event.

 

*sigh*

I wouldn't trade this tradition for anything in the world.

Land of the free, because of the brave.

Feeling extra patriotic (and oh! SO proud!) this Veteran's Day, as my son just completed his IFT (Initial Flight Training) with the Air Force.

Thank you to all who serve, or have served, selflessly, so that we can sleep peacefully each night.

Boy, girl, boy, boy, boy, boy, boy, boy......girl!

I shared a few months back that grand-babe number nine was on the way. We now know that this latest little bundle of love is a girl!

Baby number three for my oldest daughter and her husband, she will arrive in January to meet her two big brothers, and we can hardly wait.

An officer and a gentleman.

I couldn't possibly be prouder of my son today, as he completed office training for the Air Force and is now officially a 2nd Lieutenant in the Air Force.

I have no idea where the time went, as it feels like he was just a little guy riding his bike up and down the street a nano-second ago.

Way to go, Sugar-man. Your Mama is thrilled for you!

Camp Cupcake 2015, Part Three: The fun continues.

Continued from yesterday..........

So, after lunch, it was time to create our peanut butter and birdseed bird feeders.

Some of us were eating more peanut butter than putting it on our pinecones.

Everyone wanted prime placement on the only tree with branches that would work for the bird feeders....

Camping Bingo was another huge hit.

(Goldfish crackers make great Bingo markers)

Suppertime at Camp Cupcake arrived, and we all helped to build the campfire.

Everyone grilled their own wiener to perfection.

We then made s'mores.

...and then we made some more s'mores.

We did some campfire songs...including a very enthusiastic round of Happy Birthday to little number five who just turned three last week.

My Rock n' Roll bUddy did a few Beatles tunes, because it turns out we all like rock n' roll, and some of us love to dance.

Badges were awarded for various challenges, (I found mine on ebay) and everyone went home with a pennant that will continue to be filled with badges year after year.

All the campers were tucked in their sleeping bags (All five of them insisted on sharing the quest room at my cottage.) and were fast asleep before 9:00 and then up with the sun on Sunday morning, ready for pancakes.

Best. Time. Ever.

Another Camp Cupcake update...

I am quite sure I have shared before that nothing catapults me into action like a deadline.

This past weekend was my last chance before my fun get together with the grands at Camp Cupcake, and I wanted to make the most of it.  Friday evening and all day Saturday were already spoken for, so that left Sunday for accomplishing all of the nearly-down-to-the wire details I wanted to create in preparation for the upcoming big event.

(Life is full!)

By day's end, I had added the finishing touches to my once-upon-a-time-carport turned backyard-side-patio now turned Camp Cupcake outdoor-recreation-and dining-hall, (oh, my! Just wait until you see it!) and completed the camper's "essentials" bags.

(I am especially proud of the wooden name tags I cut from a little log with my chop saw.)

I created a camp logo, which I had printed (by Vistaprint) on the shirts for all the campers....

....as well as the the camp counselor and campfire musician. I am carrying out this year's logo on several other items, like the little burlap goodie bags in the first picture up above.

I mirrored the logo and printed it on transfer paper...

 

....then cut them out and ironed them on to fabric and attached it to the bags.

Easy, peasy.

In case you can't tell, I had a wildly productive (and fun!) day prepping for next Saturday's camp with my grands! More details to come tomorrw....