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Coffee Party Ideas #coffee #party
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White Chocolate Cupcake Recipe

Coffee Party With Coffee Filter Flowers

June 14, 2013 11 Comments
Coffee Party Ideas #coffee #party

As a busy mom of three our schedules can be a little hectic and sometimes make it hard to see friends regularly. I’m the only one of my friends who is a stay at home mom and their busy work schedules further complicates our gatherings. This Summer my friends and I have arranged to meet together every couple of weeks for a play date and some much needed girl talk. Our kids are very close in age and it’s so much fun to see them play together.

Coffee Party Ideas #coffee #party

Last weekend I had the opportunity to try  Gevalia coffee from Safeway and thought it was the perfect chance to invite friends over. I arranged a mini display of flavored creamer and raw sugar to compliment our traditional roast coffee We laughed the entire 3 hours reminiscing about the crazy day trips we used to take before having kids. Coffee + friends + fun memories = good for the soul!

Coffee Party Ideas

My friends know to expect a mini tablescape on occasions like this so of course I took this opportunity to create a little coffee party decor! I used unfinished wood crates left over from the Safari Birthday Party to display the food and coffee cups. I also pulled out my burlap table runner that I use in my Fall decor. I think it helped pull the tablescape together and not make it look so bare.

White Coffee Mugs with Chalkboard Labels

The coffee mugs had a punched chalkboard label added to the front.

Mini Flag Pennant Food Picks

I wanted to keep things simple by picking up a few treats from the Safeway bakery. Just for fun I added mini pendant flags to the donuts using a toothpick and a Lifestyle Crafts die.

Coffee Party Tablescape
I also made brown coffee filter flowers with white fabric rosettes to glue onto the crates. They are SO easy to make and I plan to use them later this Fall. I’ll share a tutorial soon!

Coffee Party Decor

 We had a great time chatting over coffee, definitely much needed for this busy mom.

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I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Filed Under: Crafts, Parties Tagged With: , ,

Graduation Party Ideas

April 17, 2013 4 Comments
Chalkboard Placemat Tutorial

Graduation season is quickly approaching and its time to start thinking about graduation parties! Whether you know someone graduating from preschool or high school, this Chalkboard Place Setting is the perfect addition to any graduation party. Today I’m sharing an easy chalkboard placemat tutorial that can also be used as a chalkboard photo prop.

Chalkboard Placemat Tutorial

Creating a chalkboard placemat was easy to do with the We R Memory Keepers Classic Wreath Lucky 8 punch.The Lucky 8 punches come in 10 different styles, each one creating a decorative design along the border of your paper. They work great with any size paper and can be used for scrapbook layouts, mini albums, in frames, or to create a chalkboard place setting.

Lucky 8 punch review

The lucky 8 punch allows you to create 3 designs by controlling the tabs on the top of the punch. You can choose to punch only the border, only the decorative design, or the border and design together.

Chalkboard Placemat Tutorial

To make a chalkboard placemat and place setting I used:

-chalkboard paper

-graduation hat favor box

-Classic Wreath Lucky 8 punch

I created two chalkboard placemats, one with only the border and one with the border and design. I used chalkboard to outline the border one of the placemats. To use the Lucky 8 punch you align each side the with edge and punch all four sides. Then you flip the paper over and punch the remaining four sections. The best part about the placemats is that they double as chalkboard photo props! That is of course if they stay clean, no messy eaters allowed here! ;)

Chalkboard Placemat

Chalkboard Placemat Tutorial

 

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We R Memory Keepers provided me with the Lucky 8 punch to review. As always, all opinions are my own. Giveaway ends 4/25 and winner will be notified by 4/27. Winner will have 48hrs to claim prize before a new winner is selected. This giveaway is not affiliated or endorsed by facebook.

Filed Under: Crafts, DIY, Paper Crafts, Parties Tagged With: , ,

Reese’s Ice Cream Cupcakes

March 19, 2013 65 Comments
Ice Cream Cupcake Recipes

Reese’s Ice Cream Cupcakes – Is there anything better than peanut butter and chocolate mixed together into a delicious ice cream cupcake? The chocolate and peanut butter combo make this ice cream cupcake recipe a keeper! If you love Reese’s peanut butter cups you’ll love this recipe.

Ice Cream Cupcake Recipes

Since announcing my 12 months of ice cream cupcakes series I’ve been thinking of recipes to make for the entire series. The mint chocolate chip ice cream cupcakes were a big hit in our family and in that post I mentioned trying a peanut butter and chocolate ice cream cupcake, so I knew I had to start the series with these Reese’s Ice Cream Cupcakes.

The cake layer is filled with Reese’s peanut butter chips, giving you a sweet peanut buttery flavor in every bite. The ice cream layer is Dreyer’s Peanut Butter Cup ice cream. Here’s the twist on the topping..its the new Cool Whip Frosting topped with a mini Reese’s cup. The Cool Whip frosting is a smooth frosting that compliments the ice cream nicely.

Ice Cream Cupcakes

If you haven’t tried ice cream cupcakes, run to the store and makes these bad boys. They’re perfect for a special events, birthday parties, or a fun dessert to make with the kids. My kiddos loved filling the ice cream layer and of course topping them with the mini peanut butter cup. It was a messy process since I like to let the ice cream melt a little but it was worth the messy fun!

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Cupcakes

Ice Cream Cupcakes

Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes

Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes

Print
Reese’s Ice Cream Cupcakes

Ingredients

  1. Dreyer's Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
  2. Favorite chocolate cake mix (I used Betty Crocker Triple Chocolate)
  3. 1/2 cup Reese's peanut butter chips
  4. Cool Whip chocolate frosting
  5. Mini Reese's peanut butter cups

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin pan with cupcake liners.
  2. Prepare cake mix and stir in Reese's peanut butter chips.
  3. Pour 1 tablespoon of cake mix batter into each muffin cup.
  4. Bake for 10-12 minutes; allow cupcakes to cool.
  5. Top cupcakes with slightly melted ice cream.
  6. Freeze for at least 2-3 hours, preferably overnight.
  7. Top with Cool Whip frosting and mini Reese's peanut butter cup.
http://apumpkinandaprincess.com/2013/03/reeses-ice-cream-cupcakes-recipe.html

Next week I have another ice cream dessert recipe to share with you. They’re not ice cream cupcakes but its one of my favorite desserts to make!

Enjoy!

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Filed Under: Desserts, Featured, Parties, Recipes Tagged With: , , ,

Mini Spa Party

March 18, 2013 5 Comments
Spa Party

Hey friends, how was your weekend? We had a fun filled weekend with end of the season basketball games and pizza party, as well as a mini spa party for the little miss and I. The girls are outnumbered in our home which means we try to have “girl time” as much as possible. This weekend we invited my best friend and her daughter over for a mini spa party.

Spa Party

Last week we had the opportunity to head to Walgreens and pick out our favorite Sally Hansen nail polishes. We are such girly girls, so picking out new colors is always fun! Using my Walgreens Balance Rewards card I was able to get the Insta-Dri polishes for buy one get one half off (the discount is good through 3/30). There’s also a coupon for the Salon Effects products on the Walgreens app!

For the water bottles I cut 1 x 8 inch strips of scrapbook paper and taped them around the bottle. It was such a simple way to dress up a plain bottle.

Spa Party

The cupcakes were store bought shhh…I ran out of time. I made the cupcake toppers utilizing the print and cut feature on my Silhouette Cameo. I simply downloaded the shape, reduced the size, printed on my home printer, then placed on my cutting mat to cut the nail polish design out. A little glue and toothpicks made these super easy diy cupcake toppers. Oh and how cute are the little nail polishes? So fun for the girls!

Spa Party

Since this was a small gathering we kept is simple with a couple of plates of fresh fruit, strawberries and bananas are the girls’ favorites!

Spa Party Ideas

For the centerpiece I stacked two cake stands on top of each other and moved the the top one slightly back. This allowed me to decorate the bottom layer with nail polishes for everyone to pick their color choice. So what color did I go with? Well, the mint of course! I have a big crush on all things mint colored so I’m lovin’ my nails right now!

nail party

I also set up honey brown sugar scrub and lavender bath salts for our foot baths. This was the girls favorite part of the party!

Spa Party

Stay up to date with the latest Sally Hansen products on twitter.

 

 

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Filed Under: Parties Tagged With: ,

Easter Carrot Treat Boxes

March 11, 2013 14 Comments
Easter Crafts

Its no secret that I’m slightly obsessed with the Target dollar spot. I have to say, they have really improved their selection over the last year. You can now find popular crafting supplies like bakers twine and treat boxes in the bins. I’ve shared several projects using items I have found for $1-3 in those Target bins. I had to share with you the latest craft project to add to the list..Easter Carrot treat boxes! Easter Crafts

This Easter craft is one of the easiest you’re going to find here because the box comes pre-cut for you, all you need to do is fold and peel off the tape covering. Its that simple!

Easter Crafts

Of course I had to put my own little embellishments on it. The packs actually come with green curling ribbon but I wasn’t a fan so I used ribbon from Hobby Lobby and a little Happy Easter tag to fancy them up a bit. For the tag I used a dollar stamp from Michaels and my favorite EK Success flourish punch. I made three loops out of ribbon and hot glued them onto the box. If you’re making these treat boxes with kids I recommend stapling the ribbon on or using tacky glue. Fill the boxes with jelly beans or whatever your favorite Easter candy is and hand them out at your next Easter gathering.

Easter Crafts

 

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Filed Under: Crafts, Crafts For Kids, Easter, Paper Crafts, Parties, Spring Tagged With: ,

Slumber Party Ideas

February 27, 2013 2 Comments
Slumber Party Ideas

Do you remember attending slumber parties as a child? My little girl has been asking to have a slumber party for over a year now and we’re finally going to host one! Its going to be a small sleepover for her and my niece, but I know the girls will have a blast! Since this is her first sleepover party I’ve been looking for ideas to make this a fun party for everyone. I began by making the girls a slumber party nail polish gift box…

Slumber party favor boxes

Check out the cute the adorable slumber party items I found on Totsy last week. Have you heard of Totsy? Its a deal site that hosts “events” with items on sale for a few days at a time. You have to be quick because I find items sell out fast, especially clothes for little girls.

I’m a big fan of Melissa & Doug toys so I was excited to see that they had a sale on toys for a sleepover party. My daughter squealed when she saw the butterfly hopscotch puzzle while browsing the site. My favorite was the turtle bean bag toss game, but she insisted on the butterfly hopscotch. I’ll admit I’m actually looking forward to playing the hopscotch game with her on cold, rainy days.The bug flashlight was another must, its SO cute! We didn’t get the matching sleeping bag but now I wish we did. Crossing my fingers they have another sleepover event soon!

 

Totsy had a variety of  slumber party items for kids of all ages. They had pajama sets and games for toddlers as well as items for older girls. Here are a few more slumber party essentials that caught my eye. These would be great for older girls who are staying at a friends’ house. The chevron duffle bag could work for slumber parties, sports, and even traveling. Oh and how about those matching makeup bags? I could use a set myself! I also like the idea of giving manicure sets as party favors like the one above, you could pair it with the gift box of nail polish and put it a clear bag tied with ribbon…cute and easy!
If you’re hosting a sleepover party check out this  Paper Treat Cone tutorial from Uncommon Designs. Its perfect for holding snacks during a sleepover!

Slumber Party Ideas

Slumber Party Favor Boxes

I’m so excited for the slumber party, I know the little miss is going to have fun. We’re picking up Wreck-It Ralph next week for the girls to watch before bed. It’s going to be a fun night filled with hopscotch playing, movie watching, and getting pedicures!

Butterfly party favors

Do you have any slumber party ideas for little girls? I’d love to hear them!

 

 

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Filed Under: Family Activities, Kids, Parties Tagged With: ,

Spring Tablescape for Two

February 17, 2013 31 Comments
Pink flowers in blue mason jar

A Spring Tablescape for Two is the perfect way to enjoy a date at home with your loved one. This Spring inspired tablescape with a moss table runner, pink flowers, and blue accents was created to surprise my husband with a date in the comfort of our own home.

pink and blue tablescape

To spend time alone, away from the busy lives we lead as parents to three wonderful children, my husband and I try to have monthly date nights. These nights are always special to us and we’re lucky to have my in-laws down the street to watch the kids. We usually head to our favorite Italian restaurant then out for a little shopping. I look forward to our dates because it gives us a chance to connect and focus on our relationship. We love those kiddos but boy are our date nights great for our marriage! Sometimes though its nice to spend time together at home. Its not often that the little ones will nap at the same time but when they do we enjoy the peace & quiet to ourselves. I recently surprised him with a tablescape  just for the two of us.

Romantic Tablescape Ideas

My romantic tablescape was inspired by Moll Anderson’s new book, Seductive Tables For Two: Tablescapes, Picnics, and Recipes That Inspire Romance. Moll Anderson’s book is filled with beautiful ideas and tips to help you create your own special tablescape at home. As soon as I opened the book I was drawn to the lavender tablescape above, its absolutely stunning!

Pink flowers in blue mason jar

I wanted to create a Spring tablescape that was easy to put together by utilizing items I already had on hand. The pink daisies and pink flowers were my inspiration for this Spring tablescape. The flower bouquet came from my local grocery store and then I added pink votives to compliment the colors.

Spring Tablescape Ideas

The moss table runner was my favorite! I love how the moss table runner looked with the white tablecloth. Moll Anderson suggests using small tables when creating a tablescape for two, therefore I used a bench for ours and we sat on the floor with pillows from the sofa.

Romantic tablescape ideas

Since this was a small date we snacked one some finger foods and chocolate covered strawberries. I used a slate cheese board to display our food on. Again, I like how to slate board contrasted against the moss table runner and white tablecloth.

Spring tablescape

I couldn’t leave my love for teal out of the picture, so I was happy to find these taper candles at Walmart.  Pink and teal is my favorite color combo which was perfect for our Spring inspired tablescape. Spring tablescape for two

My husband was very surprised to see the table in the middle of our living room. It was such a great way to spend the kids nap time together. If you’re looking for creative tablescape ideas check out Moll Anderson’s book and she also has a radio show on XM Talk 168 every Saturday at 5:00 pm EST.

I think having date nights at home are going to be a regular occasion for us form now on. We had such a great time connecting and it was a fun way to change things up with the tablescape. They may not always be this planned out but it might be fun to make it a monthly occurrence and take turns surprising each other with a tablescape or new dinner recipe.

Spring Tablescape Ideas

 

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Filed Under: Decor, DIY, Parties, Spring Tagged With: ,

Valentine’s Day Party With Martha Stewart Crafts

February 12, 2013 1 Comment
Mini Marshmallow Pops

Valentine’s Day is two days away! Can you believe that? I’m pretty sure we were just talking about Christmas and New Year’s. However I am looking forward to Valentine’s Day! Every year we do something special for the kids. Last year we had a party a few days before and celebrated with friends. This year we’re keeping it simple, but that hasn’t stopped me from putting together a few Valentine’s Day crafts. Here’s a peek at our Valentine’s Day Party with Martha Stewart Crafts supplies.

Mini Marshmallow Pops

It doesn’t get much easier than mini marshmallow pops! To make them I used:

mini strawberry marshmallows

CandiQuick

sprinkles

heart paper straws cut in half

I carefully inserted the straw into the mini marshmallows and dipped them into melted CandiQuick then top with sprinkles. These are about 1/3 of the size of a regular marshmallow which are the perfect size if I do say so myself. Just for fun I added tags that I stamped with the Martha Stewart mini wood stamp and heart stickers. I love that the stamps come in a wood crate to hold them all in one place.

Martha Stewart Crafts Valentines Day Party

I also made tags for their valentine paper straws using a flourish punch and cupcake dimensional stickers.

Paper Straws with Tags

These stickers are too cute to throw out after our party so I made sure to make them removable from the straw.

Paper Straws with tags

I used a permanent foam adhesive dot and slightly wrapped it around the straw. Its strong enough to hold the tag in place but still removable after use. I think I’m going to save it for our Project Life album after we’re done with them. Valentine's Day straws

Last but not least we’re in the process of making a few last minute Valentine cards for grandma and grandpa using the mini Valentine card & sticker set. Valentine's Day cards You can save 20% at MarthaStewartCrafts.com now through Valentine’s Day! Just enter the coupon code BLOG20 at checkout.

Martha Stewart Crafts

Also be sure to enter the Martha Stewart Crafts “Craft Your Heart Out” Sweepstakes for your chance to WIN a DIAMOND HEART NECKLACE! Go HERE for more details and to enter.

 

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Disclosure: I received Martha Stewart Crafts products to review, all opinions are my own.

Filed Under: Crafts, Kids, Parties, Valentine's Day Tagged With: , , ,

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