catching leprechauns ...

                             ... is NOT easy, according to Autumn. Last week (of course after the recycling was already picked up) she decided to find some materials to create a leprechaun trap. All we had left to use was a little pasta box. She decided this would have to do, otherwise she'd risk missing a chance to capture one of these little guys!

She took the box and taped it to the kitchen floor. On the front flap she wrote "enter here" and the word "gold". Then she went on to explain that if a leprechaun visits a home where a child lives, it will leave a gift of chocolate coins. If it visits a home where only adults live, it will leave money.

For a few days she checked this trap every morning, and was pretty disappointed that the box was empty. But surprise! Last night we must have had a little visitor dressed in green, because in the box were chocolate coins.

It's just so adorable how exciting something like this is to a child.  This definately made her day. She was super happy, and was looking around for other clues the leprechaun may have left behind. Unfortunately she didn't find anything else, but this will be a "sweet" memory I'm sure she won't soon forget.

Have a great weekend!

xo,

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Fabulous Friday Finds ...

          ... For The Birds.

This is the time of year when I start to receive more custom orders for my Little Birdie items. Most of them are for my Little Birdie Cupcake Toppers which have become a popular spring-time baby shower or birthday party item. I have also made coordinating thank you notes, party hats, hanging birdies and banners.

Since I have birds on my mind pretty much continuously these days, I decided why not make the theme of my "Fabulous Friday Finds" all about birds!  It's interesting to see how many products are out there that include birds.  Whether subtle or bold, birds are all the rage!

As usual all of my "Fabulous Friday Finds" are from Etsy, so they are either handmade, repurposed, or vintage.  If you love a particular item and would like to see more from the seller, all the links are listed below the collage.

Enjoy! 

1}  Screen Printed Organic Cotton Cloth Napkins by ohlittlerabbit on Etsy
2}  Floral Chintz Silk Dress Ready-to-wear by makemeadress on Etsy
3}  Metal Tier Cake Stand Vintage Style by maamoon on Etsy
4}  Birdcage Burlap Framed Wall Art by fiberandwater on Etsy
5}  Bird In The Garden Small Hand Embroidered Clasp Purse by EmenGeeDesigns on Etsy
6}  Original Bird Painting Brooch by cynthiacallan on Etsy
7}  Yarn Wreath Bird on a Branch by AnnaHailey on Etsy
8}  Birds on a Wire Recipe Box in Blue by HomeMadePerfect on Etsy
9}  Vintage-Style Bird Table Runner by catarinaloveshomes

Have a fabulous Friday :)

xo,

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tweet, tweet!

Another flock of my Little Birdie Cupcake Toppers have fled the coop, and are on their way to Manja in MI! These were customized for Manja's baby boy's first birthday party. 

Thank you so much Manja, and Happy Birthday to your little boy! 

What's my next project?  A custom Etsy order for my Little Birdie Notecard Set which comes in an adorable origami box. 

For this order I will be handcrafting matching envelopes using my new Martha Stewart Scoreboard.  If it truly is possible to create what I've seen for project samples, I will soon be completely addicted to this product!  And if there's anyone whose used this product, I'd love to hear what you think!

 

Well that's what I have planned for today!  Now I just need to turn off the computer and make my way over to my craft corner :)

xo, 

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Wordless Wednesday ...

... Lucky four-leaf clover paper garland :) Bring on the luck, I'm ready!

Linked to...


Have a great day!!
xo,

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friendship knows no bounds

We've all heard the term "opposites attract". When you hear this term you probably think of human relationships ~ members of the opposite sex, or best friends. But this post is about two animals who became the most unlikely pair of friends.

I know your wondering why I'm writing about animals for my crafty, creative blog. I am filing this under the category I describe as "random fun". Just a little story I heard this morning which made me smile, and I thought it would be fun to share.

So who is this unlikely pairing? A 47 year old gorilla named Samantha, and a cute little bunny named Panda. They live together at a PA zoo where they share food, and the gorilla shows affection for the bunny.

The zoo states that Samantha's companion, a gorilla named Rudy, passed away in 2005. They believe that Samantha was too old to be introduced to another gorilla, which is when the bunny came into the picture.

After watching this sweet little story on the news my day already felt a little bit brighter. With all the other tragedies going on in the world, this was a perfect story to make others smile :)

Information Source: KABC-TV/DT

Photo source: texarkanagazette.com

I hope I have made your day a little bit brighter too :)

xo,

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Monday Munchies!

Happy Monday All!

I have coined today as "Munchy Monday" as I am ready to share my attempt at making homemade Oreo Cookies.

I was very skeptical when I started out, but once the dough was mixed it looked just as you'd expect it to ~ very dark, chocolately and slightly coarse. The dough was a bit sticky to work with, but all in all they turned out great!

The only thing that I would change would be the filling. This recipe calls for a buttercream filling, whereas I would have preferred something more similar to the actual Oreo filling. I'm not saying the filling wasn't delicious, just not very Oreo-like. The actual cookie portion was very similar to the real Oreo, and I wouldn't change this part at all.

This is the recipe I followed, but I am now on a quest to find a different filling recipe. Once I do, I believe that I may have a close-to-perfect recipe :)

If anyone else has a great recipe for homemade Oreo's, I would love to hear your version!

Homemade Oreo Cookies

For the chocolate cookies:

1-1/4 cup flour                                       1/4 tsp salt                                  

1/2 cup dark cocoa powder                    1 cup sugar

1 tsp baking soda                                    6 oz butter, melted

1/4 tsp baking powder                            1 large egg

Directions:

1} Preheat oven to 375 deg.

2} Prepare cookie sheets by lining with parchment paper or silicone baking mat

3} Combine flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar in a large bowl

4} Add melted butter and egg and beat with mixer til ingedients are combined

5} Roll dough into one-inch balls and place on prepared baking sheets

6} Flatten dough gently using a measuring cup or bottom of a glass

7} Bake 7-9 mins

8} Cool on wire racks

For the filling:

6 oz butter, softened

2 cups confectionary sugar

2 tsp vanilla

food coloring if preferred

Directions:

1} In a medium bowl cream butter with mixer at low speed

2} On medium gradually add the confectionary sugar. 

3} When combined add vanilla and food coloring if desired

Assembly of cookies:

Place a small scoop of filling on the center of the flat side of one cookie.  Put another cookie on top with the flat side down, gently press down in a clockwise motion. 

* Recipe provided by Plain Gourmet, adapted by myself.

Next I'm heading on over to Create With Joy.com to participate in their "Inspire Me Monday"  where you can share your creative talents, and take a look at what others have created :)

Have a great day :)

xo,

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