Gifts

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“Daddy’s Candy ‘stache” . . . . A Sweet Father’s Day Gift

Mommas might love receiving vases filled with flower bouquets for Mother’s Day but when Father’s Day rolls around the best vase filled bouquet for Daddy is a stash (or ‘stache) of his favorite candy.

This is one of my husband’s very favorite gifts to receive. At his office he is known for his “candy stash” which takes up an entire desk drawer therefore this sweet gift fits him perfectly.

What you’ll need:
– A Vase
– Dad’s Favorite Candy
(Skittles, Reece’s, Blow Pops & Twix for my husband)
– Craft/Popsicle Sticks or Wooden Skewers
– Ribbons for the Vase & for bows on the sticks
– Foam Paper or Card Stock
– A Little Hand
(or a few little hands; to trace & cut an “I Love You”)
– Letter Stickers
– Hot Glue Gun

This fun bouquet makes a thoughtful and personal gift. It is one that any age child can help in creating; even if it is just to use their hand for the “I Love You” sign cut-out or selecting Daddy’s favorite candy. This candy ‘stache is sure to please.

Wishing you a Sweet Week!
– T

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Bedtime Prayer Book

The nighttime routine at our house begins with bath time & brushing teeth, then we exchange hugs and kisses, followed by reading books & saying prayers, and finally we sing some of our favorite songs including “I See The Moon”, “Jesus Loves Me”, “Twinkle Star”, and “You Are My Sunshine” before our little guy drifts off to dreamland.

Listening to our tot say his prayers is one of the sweetest moments of the day. He often repeats an aunt, uncle, or cousin several times which is our indication that he is really missing that particular person. Some nights prayers last a long time including blessing as many friends and animals that come to mind, other nights prayers end after “Daddy, Momma & Bubba” have been named and the infamous “and everybody we love, Amen” line has been shared aloud.

To combine my tot’s love of his family and books along with his list of prayers I created a bedtime prayer book for him. I used the program MyPublisher to create a prayer photo book in which pictures of loved ones are displayed from times those he prays for shared a fun moment with our little guy.

In the past I have created photo books on four different online photo company websites. There is only one that I truly didn’t care for the print quality and they have since been bought out by a different company. Overall, I prefer MyPublisher as the adding and editing of photos, pages, backgrounds, and accents happen right on my computer rather than over the internet. MyPublisher offers a free downloadable program to create books. The program includes many background, font & accent options and is very user friendly. After the book is created on the PC it just takes one click to upload it to the MyPublisher website for print.

The Bedtime Prayer Book I made for my tot is a perfect keepsake and it is already a favorite in our home. My sweet bookworm loves having a photo book of prayers which holds his memories and loved ones that he is so fond of including his aunts, uncles, and cousins.

The Bedtime Prayer Book, of course, ends with “God Bless all God’s children and everybody we love. Amen”.

– T

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A Purple Flower; Making My Mother’s Day

Recently a blog post by Lisa-Jo Baker, author of Surprised By Motherhood, caught my eye. The title of this particular post – How Not To Be Disappointed This Mother’s Day. In this article Lisa-Jo discusses what we as mothers EXPECT; her point on Motherhood being more than a 24 hour period once a year is made clear. She offers eleven ideas to celebrate and honor Mother’s Day by giving to others without the expectation of receiving. Lisa-Jo ends with “Because the thing is, we mother because we’re called to it. We mother because it’s a gift. We mother because God trusted us with these kids. We mother because we can’t not.”

This article really had me thinking. Thinking of the moments I had been disappointed without realizing that what I was really doing was putting an expectation on someone, some thing, or some day. Years ago I read The Five Love Languages and discovered my first love language is quality time and my secondary language is acts of service. So therefore I naturally want to give others those things that I like to receive sometimes forgetting to consider their love language and how they might like to receive a gift. Without fail my little guy and I make a homemade creation for my husband each holiday. In my love language time equates to love therefore it is important to me to teach my little guy this type of giving.

While my husband is a perfect match for me and pretty amazing at a lot of things he’s not so much the “sit down and create something crafty with a three year old type”. He’s more of a “little blue boxes create smiles so I’m on my way to Tiffany’s after bath time the night before the gift is needed type”. Thanks to Lisa-Jo Baker’s blog I decided to take matters into my own hands this Mother’s Day. One day this past week when the time of the day arrived in which I teach my sweet boy a little something & we create with our hands I announced to him that on this day we were going to make his Momma something. We discussed Mother’s Day and Father’s Day and how we give love, hugs, kisses and hand made creations. And to my delight he was all-in! He immediately responded “My make you a ‘fow-yer’! A purple ‘fow-yer’ and ‘well-wo’ sun!! Pwease momma.” (He sometimes refers to himself as “my”.)

We started with a white sheet of card stock that my tot painted blue with a paintbrush. After his nap when the blue paint had dried he used his knuckles and fingertips to create a yellow sun, his finger tips to splotch a stem, “weaves”, & grass, and his hand to create my purple flower. It’s beautiful. My first “homemade for me (by my youngest son) creation.” I framed it! I love how enthusiastically my little guy agreed to give to his momma. I love the act of love & time we shared creating it, and I love the smile on my tot’s face and the sincerity in his voice when he announced “All done! Momma woves purple fow-yers.” He’s right. I love my Mother’s Day gift. Though the real gift in all of this is that I was chosen to be his & his “Bubby’s” momma and that is the greatest gift I will ever receive.

Happy Mother’s Day to you, and to all Mommas and Step Moms, Adopted Moms, Grandmas, Deployed Mommys & Mr Moms, Mothers-in-Law, Aunties and Surrogate Moms, and to all Women who Nurture. I hope that you know and feel love on Mother’s Day and everyday.
– T

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Crayola Mess Free Color Wonder

Crayola defines Color Wonder markers as “inks that color only on special paper and won’t color on skin, furniture or fabric”; it is “mess free”; for “ages 3+”; and is “the magic of color without the mess!”

tagipedia defines a 3 year old as an active, smiley, cuddly being who loves the outdoors; trusts there is “good” everywhere; asks why, then asks why again, and again; thinks Daddy can fix anything that is broke; believes a hug from momma can cure the worst moments & pains; lives for adventure and trying new things; finds happiness in minor and major accomplishments; is great with paint, play dough, and imagination; and can create a mess in record time.

As I’ve mentioned before I have a three year old. A three year old who is defined above. When I came across Crayola Color Wonder a year or so ago I thought, “Mess free? What a concept! What an unbelievable concept.” However, doubting the idea like waterproof mascara and superglue, I bought into the advertisement. Crayola’s colorful packaging and big bold “mess free” logo spoke to me. I bought it. And I quickly found out with my then two year old that Color Wonder is mess free and magical.

Color Wonder markers ONLY work on Crayola paper. The variety of colors mark in the specified cap color when coloring on the special paper and they do not mark on anything else. The tips are white in color yet the actual marking appears clear when placed on skin, walls, furniture, or anywhere else a two or three year old might find themselves being creative. Color Wonder is a perfect car ride and airplane activity, doctors office visit and restaurant activity, or even a busy time activity on Momma’s bed while she gets ready for the day (as pictured). There is no concern for distracted fingers moving markers across clothing, bedding, or furniture. They are magic.

I highly recommend Crayola Color Wonder for those needed busy activity times that less supervision is available. My personal opinion is that Color Wonder is ideal for ages 2-4. Note: the packaging states “3+”. The markers are “fat” and easy for tiny hands to maneuver. They make a great gift for those creative little ones in your life who might have plenty of crayons, paints, stamps, and stickers. And this gift doubles as a break for their parents who you adore; might they take a moment for themselves, sit down with a cup of tea and breathe while their tot puts marker to paper and makes magic. Color Wonder is available in many designs, activity packs, and characters. And they work for my little guy and me this Wednesday.

Wishing you a colorful and magical day!
– T

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