A Glorious Baby Shower Brunch for Sweet Jill

Last Saturday I hosted, with a lot of help from my sisters and mother and, of course marvelous hubby Bob, a baby shower brunch for my niece Jill.  She and Jamie are expecting their first – a little boy due May 19th.  We are so happy for them.  They will be wonderful, loving parents to this precious child.

So, I wanted her day to be special and one to remember and how do you make a celebration special?  With Stampin’ Up! products and projects!!!  So, without further adieu, here’s a snapshot (or rather several snapshots) or our glorious day.

 

Jill and Jamie Arrive VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

I really liked how the invitations turned out. They were made with all Stampin’ Up! product.  Jill’s nursery has a bird theme so I tried to incorporate that in all the decorations. I also was pleased with the photo banner. It was on two sides of the foyer and a big hit with the guests.

Delightful Decorations VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

I had a ball making the decorations.  Banners, birds, diaper cakes – even little mini diaper cakes for the table decorations.  The banner on the mirror reads “Baby Parchman” and the spring colored M and M’s are in a baby food jar.  I loved making the tissue paper pom poms.  I remember making these when I was a young girl.  What sweet memories.

		Yummy Food VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

The food was delish! My sister Charlotte and mother brought lots of goodies. Mother made a marvelous sausage and egg breakfast casserole. I tried a Cinnamon Roll casserole that turned out yummy. The flavored water was a hit! I used lemons, limes, cucumbers and strawberries. I discovered the secret is to wait until about 30 minutes before you serve to put it together. Use cold water, add ice and do not squeeze the fruits. A nice fresh taste. This will be a staple at my events from now on.  I made a little banner with the baby’s name on it for the diaper cake.  What a cute way to welcome the little one.  The diaper cakes are now in their new home in Drake’s nursery.  The birds flying above the table were made with Stampin’ Up!’s brand new Elegant Bird Die.  Leaving those up all summer!

		Gifts! VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

And, of course, opening the gifts was so much fun. I think Jamie was a little overwhelmed among all the gals, but he was a good sport and enjoyed all the hoop-la. This was their first shower and was a great success.

We are all looking forward to the arrival of Drake Christian in May.  Jill is a sweetheart and it is hard to believe she will be a mom soon.  She was a precious little girl, a cracker-jack softball player and now a Registered Nurse.  I am so proud of her and can’t wait to be Aunt Di to another precious little boy.  I hope I will earn the honor of being a “great” aunt.

Blessings,

Diane

Beautiful Banner

I am sure you have noticed that banners, in all shapes and forms, are uber-trendy in papercrafting right now and I am in LOVE with them.  I made banners for Isabella’s first birthday, Christmas, Valentine’s Day…and many for absolutely no occasion.  Shelli Gardner, co-founder of Stampin’ Up! loves them too and so much so that banners are her Creative Challenge for this month.  So….I really wanted to join in.  An excuse to make one more.  Don’t need excuse really, but did enjoy making something for me after all the decorations I just finished for my niece Jill’s baby shower.  Check out the next post for lots of pictures of our fun time.
Until then, enjoy my heart banner.  All supplies by Stampin’ Up! and you can purchase them in my store 24/7…

I {Heart} Banners VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

I have this on the big mirror over the fireplace in the den so I had to take it down and put it on a contrasting color for the photo.  And, I still haven’t finished my new picture-taking place, so the photos are not the best.  But, I am sure you get the drift.
I can’t sign off without sharing a memory from yesterday of sweet Bella and her Poppy checking out the Camellia she plucked from the bush in our backyard.  My loves. 
And, I wouldn’t be offended if you left a comment on her cuteness!

So sad to see Scripture Stampers end, but look at Isabella at 8 months!

July was our last club meeting of the Scripture Stampers.  I loved every minute with these wonderful gals.  We laughed, created and ate marvelous food.  But, we will start back in October and I can’t wait.  Here are the Scripture cards we made in our 6 months together.  They are all A2 and fit into the little box and all use Springtime Vintage Designer Series Paper and colors. 

Scripture Stampers VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

A couple of weeks ago our sweet Princess turned 8 months old.  What a precious gift from God…grandchildren are just the best.  Here are a few photos at 8 months- she still likes her Poppy best.  Oh, well…I really like him too!!!

		Isabella at 8 months - August 2011 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Hello Doilies Sneak Peak

I am still here waiting, waiting and waiting for Mr. Brown (UPS) to arrive with my demonstrator copy of the new Stampin’ Up! Idea Book and Catalog that goes live to customers on July 1.  In addition to the catalog, I will be getting the new In Colors and a couple of new stamp sets with this ship, so I decided to bide my time by getting a card ready to go with items from the new catalog.

So, in just a little while, I will be posting my first card using brand new items- it is an absolute case of a card on the cover of our demonstrator monthly magazine.

And, here it is!!!  Thank you Mr. Brown ….

I used the current Curly Cute set and the new Delicate Doilies Set, along with brand new In Color Wisteria Wonder Textured Card Stock which looks great with the Pumpkin Pie, Pretty In Pink and Whisper White papers.  Then, as the terrific focal point, a Melon Mambo doily die cut from the to die for Flirtatious Specialty Designer Series Paper.  Add a couple of rhinestones (oops! forgot those before I photographed)  and a little white Baker’s Twine and you have a gorgeous card- suitable for most any occasion.

 

‘Til next time….

Bella Bunny and Uncle Scott

I am so behind in my posting. I used to think I have to write something profound, but have decided that something often is much better than waiting for the perfect words and perfect picture. This one was too cute to pass up. I will have more Easter stuff later this week, but here is the cutest picture of Bella Bunny and Uncle Scott taken Easter weekend. It is not the best quality...but still precious.  We had a marvelous Easter weekend and sweet Bella spent a few days with us the following week.  It was a wild week with the tornadoes and all- but that is stuff for another post...and exciting entries in her baby book!

More later, take care and have a great week!

Snowed in with a Princess

So, we were planning to go to Franklin to see sweet Isabella on Monday.  But, with snow in the forecast for both here and there, we decided to get ahead of the weather and headed out Sunday after church.  We figured that if we were going to be snowed in, why not be snowed in with a Princess.    It didn’t start snowing in Franklin until after midnight and when we woke up on Monday morning there was 4-5 inches on the ground and it was so beautiful- just like our sweet little Isabella.  I couldn’t wait to show her the snow through the sunroom windows.  I think she was impressed, but you just can’t be sure what they think at 7 weeks!

We gave her a bath one night- all five of us were assigned a task.  One to get the water just right, one to disrobe the baby and then keep her warm, one to hold the towel ready for the hand-off and two to wash all those cute baby parts.  Bo said it reminded him of an oil change.  One baby and five people running around doing their respective jobs.  She was a little peeved at first, then relaxed and seemed to really enjoy it.  By the time we finished and the water started cooling you would think she was at the spa…totally relaxed and very interested at the baby in the mirror.

Here are a few pictures – I think you might enjoy them.

Blessings,

Diane

Happy Birthday Scott!!!

What a great day we had on January 2nd as we celebrated the birthday of our youngest son, Scott.  God blessed us with this wonderful child 39 years ago and he has been a joy to us each day.  This birthday was special because we were together to celebrate.  Scott lives in Marietta, GA but has been with us for several weeks during the holidays.  He requested his favorite dessert – Hello Dollies – which we call Birthday Dollies just for him.  So, here are some photos and my recipe for this delicious and easy peasy dessert.

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Birthday Dollies
Prep time: 10 minutes
325 degrees for 30 minutes (preheat)
Serves: 2-3 dozen bars

Ingredients

1-1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 stick butter
1 package 12 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
1-1/2 cup flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans
1 14 oz can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk

Directions

In a small bowl, add the graham cracker crumbs to melted butter and mix.  Press mixture firmly on the bottom of a 9” X  13” glass baking dish. Layer the next three ingredients, then pour the sweetened condensed milk evenly over the ingredients. Bake 25-30 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool (may be chilled). Cut into bars.  Store covered at room temperature.

Until next time…..

Blessings,

Diane

Terrific Weekend! New Baby and the Name Game….

Oh, what a terrific weekend!

All my children were here visiting and we were also blessed with a new addition to our family.  Sons Scott and Bo and sweet DIL Jennifer arrived at various times during the week and we had such fun.  We celebrated (a little late) Jennifer’s birthday- she turned 29 on July 4th, and niece Marcie and hubby Michael’s first child, Easton James Williams, arrived at 5:12 a.m. on July 10.   I cannot believe I was holding this sweet angel just 30 minutes later.  Things have really changed since my fellas were born.  All went well- God is good.  I’ve added a few photos – isn’t he adorable?

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It was so nice having my boys and Jennifer around for a few days.  We ate great and large and visited family and laughed and just had a great time.  It was totally a baby weekend because Bo and Jennifer are having our first grandchild in early December!  And it’s a girl!!! Jennifer is doing great and we are all so excited about this miracle baby.   At Jenn’s birthday get together we all got to “vote” on the name.  Bo posted the “top ten” on a chalkboard and everyone voted for their top three.  Scott assigned a value to each place and tallied the official results.  And the winner?  ISABELLA….with AnnaKate and AnnaBelle coming in 2nd and 3rd.  I guess we all knew that Bo and Jenn’s top name has been Isabella from the get-go and they hadn’t even heard of Twilight when they picked it!   So, as of today and, maybe subject to change, we will be welcoming Isabella Song Stader later this year.  Sweet!!!

Sure hope your weekend was wonderful too.

 

 

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