On my radar - Valentine's Edition

I've seen so many great Valentine ideas lately. Here are some of my favorites:

1. Check out these cute teacher gifts from Chris at Just a Girl. So cheap. So easy. So awesome! I think I'm going to make some for my bathrooms too.



2. I'm in love with the simplicity of this wreath Our Suburban Cottage. She has instructions over on her site.



3. How awesome are these Valentine's by vol25? I love her prints and stalk her Etsy store. I tried to talk Ella into the Valentine's but she had her heart set on cheapo Disney princess valentines. We picked them up the other day and she is so excited to hand them out.

4. I saw the cutest hair idea for Valentine's day on The Story of a Princess and her hair. Can't wait to try it on Ella.

5. Finally, a couple fun things to do with leftover candy canes from Christmas. This syrup looks so yummy! For the recipe head over to Story Book Woods


Candy Cane words - brilliant!



I just finished a marathon of real estate appraisals this week. I don't think I have ever worked so long or hard. I'm excited to have only a couple this coming week. We have some fun Valentine traditions that we do every year that I hope to have posted in the next few days. Can't go wrong with a holiday all about love!

On my radar

1. Love, love, love this post from Shannon at Rocks in my Dryer.

2. I stumbled upon a new blog this week that I can't stay away from. MeckMom is a site full of "ideas to make life a little easier." I love that her tips are easy and cheap solutions to ordinary problems. You have to check this out - Must Have Tools for Easier Kid Hair Styling. She is absolutely brilliant!

3. Have you seen theStory of Stuff? I meant to just watch a few minutes the other day but then couldn't tear myself away - it's that interesting.

4. Derfwad Manor had me laughing out loud with her post about liberation from Spanx.

5. 13 Fixes for Tired Moms - Some of these tips look interesting. I am always in the market for ways to have more energy.

6. Finally, one more Nie Nie post. I am amazed at her talent of making the simplest moments extraordinary ones. Her post, Attention all Mothers, definitely captures this. She is constantly in my thoughts and prayers.

On my radar

1. Have you seen these Thanks and Giving Trees? Not only is it a fabulous idea from Chocolate on my Cranium, but she also provides the PDF files so you can easily have them too! I printed some up and we are working on filling in our trees. I love how it promotes the service side of gratitude. I think this will be a new tradition in our house every November. She also has a FHE lesson to go along with this and the lessons on her site through the month of November will focus on thanks or giving.

2. Speaking of giving, are you looking for opportunities to help teach your kids about service? I was so excited to find this. This site lists volunteer opportunities by zip code. Couldn't get any easier.

3. I've been eyeing this USA art for Spencer's room from Pottery Barn but don't like the price tag. I then realized how easy it would be to make myself. I have the canvas and supplies and will be working on it this week. I'll post pics when I'm done.

4. BeanPlate is a brand new blog that focuses on "eating well on a tight budget." Sounds like my kind of place. I love the description on the site - "Using accessible whole ingredients and the thrifty tried and true methods our grandmothers, we're cooking through the recession one plate at a time." I'm excited to see more recipes.

5. This article in the Arizona Republic about Stephanie Nielson (Nie Nie Dialogues) and her sisters is beautiful. Read it if you get a chance but be sure to keep kleenex handy.