Neon Back-to-School Teacher Gift Tags

Truth: About this time every summer, I dig my heels in deep.

I'm not ready to acknowledge that my beloved summertime is coming to an end. I love school shopping with the boys and stocking up on perfect boxes of crayons. But I love hitting the lake and sitting beside our little blow-up pool while the boys play far more. That feel of the sun soaking into my skin and just the general, more laid-back goodness of summer... it never lasts long enough.

Still... my resistant heels and heart can't stop it. It's Back to School time, I know it is. So, I've agreed to participate in my sweet friend Emily from The Benson Street's Back to School Series this month. I picked a day at the end of July, of course... so I could hold out that little bit longer ;) 

Fast and Easy Mother's Day Gift >>> "Less Dishes" Printable Update

My original tag for this "Less Dishes" Mother's Day gift was made in a huge hurry! Every time I see it in my sidebar or on Pinterest, I have the thought that I'd love to do an update and offer a more versatile version. So, this year, I did! (Yet again, only just barely in time for Mother's Day!)

This gift is great for putting together inexpensively and quickly, perhaps for the "other" Mothers in your life, like neighbors, sister-in-laws, etc.

This year I used a quatrefoil stencil background and some fun arrows, along with more color options- these five above :) Print a document with all five colors included HERE. Enjoy!

Adorable Little Nail Polish Gift Favor

This craft honestly feels a good ways out of my normal. Nail polish and boys... makes sense I'd say so, eh?! I'm actually not even particularly big on painting my own nails, or maybe at being able to keep them looking pretty at least...

But, I recently needed a small gift that I could hand out easily and without too much detail. I had found a box of these adorable, tiny little nail polish bottles and paper crafted these simple favors. Thought I'd share a short tutorial in case they might be of use to anyone hosting a party or needing a small, basic gift as well :)

Wood Creations of Idaho Falls Mothers Day "Family' Blocks and Giveaway

I honestly love going in to the Wood Creations of Idaho Falls store each month to pick what to create and share. It's really just a fun, bright place that leaves me feeling happy :) The ladies that work there are fun and comfortable- they make customers feel like friends :)

Today my fellow Idaho blogger friends over at Fearlessly Creative Mamas and I are both sharing Wood Creations projects the would make great Mother's Day gifts. Then, we get to give away one of each of these very kits! (That's the best part, I know) :) Fearlessly Creative Mama's has a bunch of one year anniversary giveaways going on- you'll have lots of chances to enter over there for a variety of great prizes! 

Anyhow, I created the 'Family' blocks above and Kathleen made these below...

These two kits are up for grabs in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post! First, though, I wanna walk you through how seriously easy it easy to make this particular kit as a gift. This is the most simple Wood Creations project I've ever put together and I really love how it turned out....

Colorful, Random Gifts of Kindness with Starburst and Skittles

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#VIPFruitFlavors #CollectiveBias

I love secret, random gift giving.

(I love gift giving in general!)

I know... you already knew it ;)

I had the chance to use colorful Skittles and Starburst to create a gift for some very important people and my creative process went straight to random acts of kindness. So, today I'm sharing a free printable that can turn the Skittles & Starburst 30 Pack from Sam's Club into an actual memorable, heart warming activity for your family too.

This package is perfect for creating with because there are so many candies and a nice variety. I found it in a candy area of Sam's Club, bordering the bakery.

I gotta interject- oh my goodness, I love this picture of my little Ryder! Both of the boys were SO excited about this box of candy, and wanted me to open and dip into it well before I was ready. I really loved the actual gift delivering part of this project, but putting it together with my little guy is a very close second. Candy and color put together- perfect combo for happy kiddos :)

Fast and Easy Gifts with Paper Pumpkin {and a giveaway!}

Are there certain things that you just pretty much always seem to be inspired by? Maybe those are kinda what we call our "style," I guess :) Like I always seem to draw towards things that are rustic, bohemian, bright or bold colors. Or stamp projects! I'm taken with the look of paper crafts that have been created with stamps involved. I haven't spent much time at all stamping myself over the years for some strange reason, though. Bummer- I wish I was a much better stamper!

I recently got connected with Paper Pumpkin, a division of Stampin' Up, and felt like they really spoke to my "style." Paper Pumpkin is a monthly subscription service- they send a fun box full of everything you need to sit and create a great paper craft project or homemade card set, really just to have an easy dose of creativity. For the next couple of months, I'll be sharing how you can take your Paper Pumpkin box and quickly create a small gift! Plus, today I get to giveaway a box to one of you! 

Helping Kids to Think of Others First with Disney FROZEN

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It feels like this week has been revolving around Disney FROZEN the movie coming out! Our little band of men loves this flick too- certainly not just a girl show :) We've had the chance to comb both our local stores for fun Walmart toys and the FROZEN DVD... all with the intent of giving them away...

This quote above is my favorite from the movie. I believe this, I know it to be true. That I'm happier when I'm not so self-absorbed and narrow minded. That I love, even crave, the deep-down good feeling of giving, of selflessness.

The kind of selflessness, or love, that made Kristoff turn around from having left Anna behind to (he thought) be saved. The kind of selflessness that governs Anna throughout this whole movie; that puts her on a horse to go after her sister when she could be scared or angry instead. The kind of selflessness that makes Olaf refuse to leave Anna when she needs to find a solution, even if it does mean melting. Maybe even the kind of selflessness that keeps Elsa locked in her room, alone, not wanting to ever hurt her little sister again.

Wow, FROZEN can sure get a person thinking and feeling and learning, huh?! I want my boys to learn from it, to learn in general how to think of others before themselves. Not the simplest concept when you're four or six, right? We do a lot of gift giving, card making, knock-and-running to that end. Hopefully they don't realize it's all a big life lesson... otherwise, the gigs up ;)

Thanks to #collectivebias, we got to visit both of our Walmart stores here in town looking for toys and other FROZEN goodies. 

We knew that we wanted to send a #FROZENfun package to Coop and Ry's cousins, my nieces that are fairly close to their same ages. For real, my sister had two girls and I had two boys- it's cut and dried in this family ;)... They live just far enough away that we don't see them as often as we'd like. Unfortunately, the boys seem to like to tackle them without their consent when they are together, but it's really just because they are bursting with excitement for getting to see them at all. (I know, it's true, boys can be pretty weird. :P)

Really, the two little girls whom this package was for are incredibly special in my boys' minds. They love their cousins and this was a great opportunity for us to put that love into action, sending them FROZEN items that we all knew they would enjoy. Little did I know how unique the result would be...

I just grabbed what we found- some books and the Anna and Elsa Sparkle Dolls- and didn't think anything of it. We also chose some candies in FROZEN colors and some sparkly tulle to complete the package. The boys announced that girls love glitter... see, they get a small glimmer of feminine influence around here ;) 

Adorable, Simple Drawstring Backpacks

Recently I shared this tutorial over at The Ribbon Retreat and thought I'd share it with you here today! These cute, simple drawstring backpacks for kids have really been a go-to for gifts for me.

I once sewed one literally right before we walked out of the door for our niece's birthday party. Also whipped them up by the midnight oil one night when my friend had a baby and I was watching her boy's while they were at the hospital. I LOVE this awesome fabric and ribbon I got to make these ones with too! :)

For the ones I made for this tutorial, I chose:

Hot Pink and White small chevron by Riley Blake

Rainbow Hexi Print by Riley Blake (I LOVED this fabric when I first saw it- cutest thing ever!)

Lime and Pink polka dot ribbon, 7/8"

Blue Cars and Blue Dots from Scenic Route by Riley Blake

Orange and white striped ribbon, 7/8"

Simple Valentines Gum and Washi Tape Arrows

I might have all boys around here, but lucky for me, they dig Pinterest. :) Oftentimes they look over my shoulder for ideas for boredom busters, or costumes... or Valentines. Cooper happened to see these Valentines arrows...

 and got super excited! He immediately decided he wanted to give arrows to his classmates instead of Nerds :) I actually lit up over them too- super cute. I wanted to be able to make them our own! (We actually tried using the tinsel at the base and it got really frustrating.) 

And so, this cute cute washi tape version was born! Cooper can actually help put these together, beyond just signing his name, and he loves that part. They are pretty self explanatory, but I'll share some more details just in case. :)

Birthday Card Gift Box with Hallmark Value Cards

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I wish I could give a gift everyday.

I love that good feeling inside from creating something for someone else

and especially from actually giving it to them.

Maybe what I really wish is that I had the energy and free time to create something to give everyday- ha! 

When I had the chance to go to Walmart and look for the new Hallmark Value Cards to stock up for birthdays and share with you, I was in! I had the thought that the cards themselves could even be their own gift. This whole post has been right up my alley- these cards are only 47 or 97 cents each and there are a lot of really attractive choices! I got sucked in in a hurry...

Super Quick and Easy Gifts... Popcorn and More with Printable Tags

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Today is Cooper's last day of school before the Holiday Break! I'm so excited to have all the boys together for a long while- kinda feels like Christmas season can actually begin now! With today being the last day, I sent him out the door with his teacher gifts in tow (Ryder also took his to preschool yesterday). I'm so glad that they both enjoy gifting too- they were thrilled with the cute, easy gift "baskets" we put together. To create them, I got to shop at Target for hot chocolate, gourmet popcorn and beef jerky (hard life, I know) ;) 

Mason Jar Wine Glasses: Christmas Style

Earlier this year, I took a page from the Robertson family themselves and made my own mason jar wine glasses. I think they might just be one of my favorite things I've ever made! We've loved them, from using just because to adding a bit of flair to a meal or get together with friends. I wish I had about three times as many of them! What's stopping me... who knows! Just stuff, like always! :) 

Anyhow, I saw them awhile back sitting on my counter together and had the thought that they could make a neat Christmas gift. So, I tried adding a little bit of holiday cheer to them and thought I'd share!

You can first find the full tutorial for how to make them HERE. A case of jars is about $8 and the candlesticks used for the base you can find at the dollar store. It takes 24 hours for the silicone that holds the two together to really set good, but surely within 8 or 12 you'd be able to work on getting your gift together is you were super low on time. These could make a really easy, inexpensive last minute DIY gift...

Simple Christmas Kindness with Extra Gum

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I'm so excited about this post! I know, I know, I say that a lot, but this one just got me a bit nostalgic, which I love. Fun crafty things with mint gum are something I remember being a part of Christmas time in my childhood and I really wanted to incorporate it into something I could pass on to the boys too...

Do you remember the candy trains you made during Christmas time as a kid? I can't quite remember which part was which candy- lifesavers for the wheels I think. And a pack of gum for the body. Glued together just right to make a train ornament that I remember was just too heavy for the branches! Something about those kinds of little things just brings on the nostalgia... memories of Christmas' past :) Those kinds of little things are the reason that Christmas is so beloved to us now, that we are trying to pass on the spirit we feel to our own kids.

Affordable Neighbor Gift: Dinner in a Mug

Today I'm back with my friend Emily from The Benson Street to share some inexpensive, quick neighbor gift ideas for Christmas! This month we went to Dollar Tree... and tried to get some creative juice flowing in the busy aisle, all while Cooper and Ryder buzzed back and forth needing feedback- ha! Emily is so cool to deal with my lack of organization when we get together! :) 

Simple Fleece Face Guards: Gifts Under $20

Today I'm happily in the company of #myfavoritebloggers again! This time we've set out to each share a gift under $20. The one I chose had been on my list for a long time.... and is WELL under that $20 price point. Maybe more like under $5 even...

 

SAVE on stocking stuffers with MONEY!

I really love being cozy at home during the holidays. But, truth: I also love holiday shopping. Totally enjoy the hustle and bustle, so long as it's not too much hustle and bustle, ya know? Which is why I'm sharing this stocking stuffer idea now- because, I'm surely not the only one who's already Christmas shopping so I can be done well before the day of December 24th!

Some of my very favorite things to buy for Christmas are stocking stuffers! But, confession: for me, it's way too easy to get carried away without even thinking twice!

Any Day is Good for a Gift: Printable Tags

It's really not so easy to move, ya know? Packing and hauling boxes and furniture is really no big deal compared to the work of getting comfortable with your neighbors and making acquaintances around you. In the two years we've lived in our current home, we've done okay at that I guess. We were just starting to feel like we knew people when we went places and such.

And then recently, our Stake was re-aligned. In other words, the people we went to Church with changed almost entirely. Our neighborhood was taken out of the Ward we went to. Our lives revolve around Church in a lot of ways, so it was kind of a big bite to digest. Suddenly that level of comfort was back to square one in a way. The more I thought about the change, the more I thought of specific people that I knew I would really miss interacting with each week.

The Perfect Road Trip Gift and Printable Tag

This last week some great people from our ward moved their family to another state. These were people we admired and that had been so friendly to us! We really wanted to be able to go visit them before they left and let them know they were valued in our lives :)

Of course, I love any chance to give a gift and wanted to be able to give them a token to say goodbye :) I knew their move would involve a long road trip to get to their new home state and thought a "Road Ready Kit" would be perfect! What do you give to someone that's moving?!? I didn't want to just be adding to another box to pack, ya know :)