Hand Print Santa Ornaments

It's been a while since the girls and I have made a hand print craft, so we decided we'd get out all of our craft supplies and make something that would add a little extra craftiness to our Christmas tree. Ava made one using her hand print (the larger one on the left), and Audrey also made one with her little hand print (on the right)... all with mommy's help, of course!

Here's what we needed:
* Card board
* Scissors
* Paint
* Cotton Balls
* Googly eyes
* Puff balls
* Ribbon
* Pencil
* Glue

Here's how we made our very special creations:
(F.Y.I. - The girls did a lot of "helping", especially with the painting, hence the reason mommy didn't get the camera to take corresponding images for the directions below).
1.) Trace one hand on card board using a pencil.
2.) Using scissors, cut out the hand print.
3.) Paint a beard, hat, and face on the hand print. Let dry.
4.) Glue cotton balls (cut into smaller sizes, if needed) onto Santa's hat (the thumb of the hand print will become the end of Santa's hat).
5.) Glue googly eyes and a puff ball nose onto his face. Also glue a portion of a cotton ball onto his face for his mustache.
6.) Glue ribbon to the back to use for hanging on your tree. (I also wrote my girl's names and year on the back of each ornament, so I'll always know who made it and when!).

Our tree looks beautiful with these new additions! Have fun making a few of your own!

Life is About... {Blog Hop} Month Eleven

Due to Hurricane Sandy and the power outages (including my house!), this blog hop will continue through the month of November!

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If this is your first time linking up, click here for details about the hop.
************************************************************************************************************* My favorite entry from last month's "Life is About..." blog hop was -

"A Sunshine Play Date"

 provided by Kelly-Marie {from Our Footprints on the World}

Thank you, Kelly-Marie, for your precious submission and for participating.

Congrats on being this month's feature! You deserve to grab the button below :) 
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Time to start this month's hop!
MONTH ELEVEN
For me: Life is About... family travels
We have been traveling a lot lately as a family, so what better memory to share than that of one of the journeys we've experienced together! This image is of my two girls playing in a courtyard near the Smithsonian in D.C. My original purpose for this trip was to photograph a lovely couple for their e-session, but because my little family had decided to tag along, we had soon made the weekend out to be a family fun adventure of explorations and learning.  (Click here to read more about these fun family travels!)

What is life about for you?!! Please link up and share below. We'd love to hear about what's important in your life! (And Please remember to steal my button for your link-up showing others you've joined the hop!)

Ava's 3rd Birthday "Dress-Up" Party!

Our little Miss Ava turned THREE back at beginning of July, and yes her birthday party was then as well... so I am just a tad behind posting about all the fun we had. But, boy did we have fun! This year's birthday party was inspired from the wonderful, imaginative mind of a child's creativeness and joy that is experienced while pretending and just simply "dressing-up". Not like Halloween dress-up where everything matches and makes sense. But more like the idea of dress-up in the mind of a three year old... wearing what she likes, wearing what's fun and interesting, and not caring if one thing matches the other! So, yeah, throw on a tutu and a clown wig, sit back, and enjoy the images from our dress-up fun below!!

Ava's cupcakes even decided to "dress-up" a little bit to feel like they were part of the fun!

And those goodies in the basket - they're baby food containers (cleaned after use, of course) filled with homemade play dough for all the children, who came to the party, to take home with them!

I made Ava's b-day invite this year a little bit girlier than usual. But she sure is a cutie in it, wouldn't you agree?!!

Our Visit to the Smithsonian

At the beginning of this month I was scheduled to photograph a very lovely couple for their e-session at the University of Maryland. (Click here to see photos from this gorgeous shoot!). Because I was to make the four+ hour trip for the session, we decided we'd make a weekend family trip out it and make the most of DC while we were there. What a fun time we were able to cram into two days! We stayed at the J.W. Marriott on Penn Ave, just a few blocks from the White House. Walking was our main method of travel, and despite the immense humidity, we had a very enjoyable time. One of the main attractions of our journey was the Smithsonian, The American History Museum and The Natural History Museum to be exact. Most of our footage below, in fact, comes from our adventures at the Museums. I think one day when the girls are older, we are definitely going to plan an extended trip to come back and do more exploring!

Visit to the ZOO!

A few weeks ago, on a beautiful summer morning, we had the great idea to take our girls to the zoo. They had never been, and because of their fondness for animals, we knew this would be a fun trip. We went to the Hovatters Zoo near Kingwood, WV. Despite the size of the zoo and limited amount of animals on "display", the girls still enjoyed watching and somewhat interacting with the animals. Our favorite character by far was the newest member of the zoo, the tall and friendly giraffe. According to his bibliography, he starred in the movie "Evan All Mighty". That's definitely pretty neat! Audrey even enjoyed giving him a small snack, as did many other children visiting the zoo that day. At least we know he's well fed. Having had a small taste of the wildlife zoo of Hovatters, we look forward to where our next zoological adventures take us!

Family Visit to NC!

A few weeks ago our little family decided to head down to North Carolina to visit family (my husband's sister's family to be specific) over Memorial Day weekend. And let me tell you, we had a BLAST!!!

During our short few day stay we were able to take in so many fun times together, and of course as the photographer you know me to be, I think I took well over 400 photos of our precious memorable adventures!

I will share with you a "few" of the photos from the amazing time we had while we were there.

During our stay we were able to hop over to Raleigh for a visit to the amazing Marbles Museum! Talk about one adventure after another at this incredible place!! I think the children were in pure heaven here, my friends. If you haven't taken your children to one of these museums, folks, I HIGHLY recommend you do. Room after awesome room is a new amazing journey to be had, starting in the "dress-up room" where you can pretend to be just about whatever your heart delights from a vet to an ambulance driver to anything you can think of. After that there were room's that were made to look like the inside of an aquarium or the interiors of a boat. There was even a life size pirate ship where the children could walk aboard and climb through. Beyond that were other rooms full of more amazing things, inspired by a child's very own imagination where play could not only be fun but could also be an adventure in learning. Even as an adult, I was pretty awe-struck. It was totally awesome, and I hope one day we will be able to go back again!

Another incredible adventure we had while visiting the fam was a fun trip to Atlantic beach where we stopped in at the aquarium to see loads of exotic fish from sharks to jelly-fish to turtles and so much more. The children loved being able to put their little noses right up against the fish's face. Being face to face with a shark was a bit of a scare for the wee ones, but they were soon very thankful to realize the thick glass standing between them and the large beast would keep them at a safe distance. I'd say our trip to the aquarium deserved a five star rating! Just after looking at all the fish, we drove a few miles to the beach, took a little walk on the boardwalk, and road a few rides at a nearby carnival. A sure fire fun stop indeed!

I've got to admit though, even though the aquarium, the carnival, the beach, the museum, and all the delicious restaurants were super fun and full of good times, I think our most favorite part of the trip was just being together at our relative's home, sharing in good conversations, enjoying one another's fellowship, breaking bread together, and just simply spending time with each other. Water balloon fights, four-wheeler rides, and playing together was certainly a joyful times for the children and will be a cherished memory for them to always remember! We are so thankful and blessed to have such a wonderful, loving family and are very much looking forward to seeing them very soon for more fun, exciting times together!

Look Whooooo's Snapping {20}

This linky party is for sharing your favorite photo(s). Just make sure to grab the button below to share on your blog post, showing others that you are linking-up!
(If this is your first time linking up, be sure to click here for rules and details).

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**********************************************************************************Thanks again to all who continually participate in my "Look Whooooo's Snapping" photo linky party!And welcome to all you new comers!

The most popular photo from our last "Look Whooooo's Snapping" photo linky party based on YOUR popular vote and this Month's Featured Photo (see right side-bar) goes to......("Winners" are chosen by your popular vote). 

This adorable image comes to us from Kelly-Marie {from Our Footprints on the World}. 

What an angel! So cute!!
Congratulations, Kelly-Marie, for winning most popular and thanks so much for sharing!

You are welcome to grab the button below :)

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A couple of my favorites from last month's party were....

How cute is this bubble photo by Mixed Molly {from Mixed Molly Designs}?!

I just adore the detail and texture in this image. 

Jennifer {from Foloplicity} shared this lovely photo with us!

Thank you both for sharing your wonderful images with us and congrats on winning the favorite "awards"!You are both welcome to grab the button below :)
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**********************************************************************************It's Party Time!
Here is my favorite photo....

We've been very busy this month with traveling and photo sessions and well, just life! So my favorite image comes from one of our trips to visit family (in North Carolina). While we were there we visited the aquarium, went to the beach, rode on rides at the carnival, and lots more! (More on our travels in future posts to come!) While the children were playing with their cousins one afternoon, I snapped this adorable shot of my littlest munchkin. She wasn't posing or smiling or even prepared for the shot (then again, what 15 month old is, right?!), but I simply love the image nonetheless because of how her beauty is gorgeously and innocently captured. Wouldn't you agree that she is just stunning?!

Now it's your turn to share your favorite photo(s)! 

And THANK YOU in advance for participating :)

Don't forget to "like" at least one other photo besides your own!
YOUR image just may very well be next month's featured photo!!! 

Egg Carton Redesign

I don't know how many times I went looking for one of the girls hair clips or bows and just could not find what I was looking for or even one at all. They were scattered throughout the house and completely disorganized, which lead me to the idea I plan to share with you below: an egg carton redesign. I really can't take credit for the entire design... I actually stumbled onto this idea when I noticed my older daughter, Ava, using the egg carton to organize her blocks. She's such a clever girl! But, between the two of us, it's solely our creation!! Very crafty, indeed. And the entire project came from left over scraps of card stock and few little crafting flowers and of course an unused egg carton that was just about to make its way to the trash. A very inexpensive creation, in deed! Check out below how the whole design came together.

Here are the steps we came up with to complete the craft: 
1. Paint the entire egg carton the color of your choice and allow to dry
2. Trace the top of the carton onto card stock and cut out
3. Apply Mod Podge to the back of the paper, place the paper on the carton top, and apply Mod Podge over the entire surface of the freshly placed paper; allow to dry
4. In the meantime, create accessories (i.e. flowers, bows, etc).
5. Glue accessories onto the top of the carton
6. Place contents inside the carton, and Viola! Your super cute organized redesigned egg carton is complete!

While some of the projects I do may be too advanced for my girls to participate, I still love to include them in the crafting fun! They have a blast using their imaginations too, yeah know! ;)

Keep in mind this redesign can be functional for other little items that you may need organized, like beads, buttons, or even small tools (i.e. nuts, bolts, nails). {Note: If you're planning to put heavier objects than hair clips and bows in your newly redesigned egg carton, a way to keep the lid from popping open is to apply velcro to the opening.}

I hope you've enjoyed this redesign! Happy Crafting!

Linked: One Crafty Contest, Sharing Saturday, Ta-Da Tuesday, Tuesday To Do Party, Take A Look Tuesday, Naptime Creations

April Showers bring... May {Hand Print} Flowers

This morning the girls and I decided to get a little bit artsy in celebration of Spring! We gathered up our crafting tools (i.e. scissors, card stock, crayons, glue, and popsicle sticks) and came up with an idea to make Hand Print springtime flowers. Yep, we can take credit for this entire design!

What we did to make an oh so crafty bouquet:
1. Trace your hand print several times (at least 8)
2. Color and cut out
3. Cut out a circle for the center of the flower
4. Glue everything together (as shown above) onto the popsicle stick (note: the petals were created using my handy dandy personal Cricut cutter, but you can also make them free hand)

And that's it! Simple and so very cute!! Happy Spring to you all!

{Check out my girls during the process. So much focus!!}

Linked: Shine On Fridays, Happily Mother After, Sharing Saturday, Tip Toe Thru Tuesday