{create this} School Daze Mini Book from restaurant coasters

So ... after our whirlwind weekend (read about it here), the poor Saint broke a finger on his right hand at work on Monday and is scheduled for surgery this afternoon.  And that means some of my more time-consuming upcycling projects were put on hold.  BUT, I couldn't disappoint my Fin de Friday readers with nothing to post and therefore no fun project to undertake this weekend.  And how else would you be inspired to eat out stimulate the economy and snag chipboard restaurant coasters ;)

Since our school year is on its way to being wrapped up in early June and inspired by Teacher Appreciation Week (May 2-6), this week I whipped up my School Daze Mini Book!!

And without further ado, the HOW-TO:

This project starts with 5 round chipboard coasters, kraft paper and various school-themed paper...

These aren't "inked" in the picture" but I shabbied up the edges of the kraft circles and the patterned paper as well as most of the embellishments and paper add-ons. 
Sorry - I just can't paper craft without it!

I went "old school" and used my Creative Memories cutting system to cut my circles.  Still works like a charm!

One of the best parts of this project was "interviewing" the Little Bug and recording his best friends, favorite subject, favorite school lunch, etc.  These would make a great thank you gift for a teacher from your student or a new yearly family tradition.  You better believe I'm going to have to make another to memorialize the Bigger Bug's last year of elementary school {gulp!}.

Here are the close ups of each individual page and fun little inserts (and a peek at an antique 'frog' I picked up for a sweet $3!):

First day of second grade!

Teacher & room info with a vintage pencil graphic from The Grapics Fairy :)

His favorite special?  ART!  Must run in the family ;)  And yes, I stamped an A for the V on accident but left it - crafting does NOT have to be perfect!

Best buds!

He gets that from The Saint...I am the wordy one!

Documenting how much a school lunch costs and a few of his favorites - love the mini Scrabble tiles!

The most memorable moment in 2nd grade!  Broken tooth courtesy of a full-speed collision with another student!  I journaled about it on the page that faces it (but it uses the studen'ts name, so I'm not going to post it, k?)

A sample of his handwriting - SO darn cute!

This little mini folder - decked out with another vintage graphic from The Graphics Fairy - holds his student of the week award

And the back cover :)

Now, punch holes - I used my Crop-o-dile - LOVE her!

Add a binder ring through the hole to hold it all together, marvel and enjoy!!

Well, that's all folks!  Stay tuned this week for another Tasty Tuesday (one that you are going to LOVE) and the 4th installment of Upcycling:  Free to Fab! 

This project was shared at all the blogs on my Link page!

{taste this} Chicken Pesto Pasta

Because today is Tuesday and this recipe is seriously easy and tasty, welcome to {taste this}!

I do not claim to make pasta from scratch, whip up a batch of homemade frosting or cook with only organic, all-natural ingredients - but I applaud you if you do! - so if you are a busy mom on-the-go, looking for a quick meal or want to expand your culinary horizons ever so slightly, then Tasty Tuesday is perfect for you!

Today, I'm sharing my Chicken Pesto Pasta - and the best part is it only has 3 ingredients!!  (Can you guess what they are?)  ;)

• Tyson pre-grilled chicken breasts (you can use fresh, just brown them in a pan and cut up into bite sized pieces)
• 2 jars of Classico traditional basil pesto (you can make your own)
• 1 box of farfelle - otherwise known as bow tie pasta (you can use your favorite pasta shape)

And without further ado, the HOW-TO:

Cook chicken and cut up into bite sized pieces

Cook pasta, drain

**Mix chicken, cooked pasta and pesto; stir together and simmer until everything is warmed through.  Add a touch of butter or a drizzle of olive oil if needed**

Add a sprinkle of parmesean cheese (or "shaker cheese" in our house) or mozzerella cheese


Done and delicous!  That's it.  Really!  Serve with bread sticks or garlic bread and a green salad for an easy meal.  It looks impressive and even The Bugs love this easy pasta dish!

This project was shared at all the blogs on my Link page!

I Need a Vacation From This Weekend!

I don't know about you, but we had a pretty jam-packed weekend.  And I thought I would share it in words and pictures today...

Friday, the Bigger Bug turned 11 (eek!) and we had about 25 folks over to celebrate.  Five kids stayed over and stayed up until almost 4am.  Despite my best efforts to hide all Sharpies, we did have one victim kid who woke up with a new, nearly-permanent tattoo on his face and arm.  Luckily, soap, water and a little elbow grease took care of it - PHEW!  

And as promised, here are a few pictures of the finished party product:

The concession stand is officially open for business

Instead of a glove, I ended up filling a bowl with gum and tucked it inside a baseball cap

The cupcake toppers were a hit!



I downloaded this vintage baseball player from The Graphics Fairy and anchored the steamers on our cabinets



A few quick pennants draped in a doorway

And the easy circle punch garland hanging in the "concession stand" aka kitchen :)

The HOW-TO for the above is found in this post!

Saturday, one of my best friends had a BBQ since her hubby's two youngest kids were over from England - I made my famous chili sauce/grape jelly meatballs, Nigel made his famous chicken tikka/curry, we ate, drank and were merry!  The Bugs got to stay over a friends house and what did the romantic couple do on a Saturday night with no kids?!  Sleep, of course!! 

No pictures, but I thought I would share my recipe if you've never heard of these meatballs; it's as easy as 1-2-3:

1 large bag frozen meatballs (forgot to jot down the size but my bag had 120+ meatballs)
2 medium jars of grape jelly
3 jars chili sauce

Put the three above ingredients in your crock pot on low, stir occasionally and let them simmer until the meatballs are tender (5-6 hours).  Sounds bizarre, I know, but you will be the hit of the party!

Sunday = Easter, of course!  After an awesome service and a new Easter dress :), we picked up the Bugs, ran by the grocery store and headed home.  And I headed straight into my PJs.  At 1 in the afternoon, ha ha.  The Bugs loved their Easter baskets (technically not a basket, but a Littles from Thirty One - told you I was hooked!!) and we had a few friends over for a not-so-traditional Easter dinner of ribs, rice, steamed broccoli and homemade garlic/tomato/cheese bread (recipe coming soon!). 

Only one measly picture of the bunny baskets (I blame it on sleep deprivation):

Peeps, Skittles, new goggles for the pool, a kite, pencils, Cookies & Cream chocolate bunnies, sour candy spray, Slim Jims and beef jerky = perfect Bunny Basket for The Bugs

Well, hope your weekend was wonderful, your Easter was blessed and your baskets, full!  Have a great Monday!

Keri

{create this} vintage baseball birthday party

Because today is the Bigger Bug's 11th birthday and we eat, sleep and breathe baseball around here, I am interrupting my Upcycling Free to Fab series (posts #1 and #2 here) to feature his Baseball Birthday Bash - hope you don't mind ;)

And without further ado, the HOW-TO:

First up, the garland to string from here to there.  This is super easy and starts with punched cardstock logos (from the three teams that will have players here tonight!) and red, white and blue, small and large circles:

Sandwich your string (I used crochet yarn!) between two circles, add a little adhesive and DONE!  Loop around lampshades, drape in doorways, weave through your buffett table...you can make this garland for any occasion/theme...I think I've found my new go-do decoration!

I used the same logos (some square, some round) with flat toothpicks sandwiched in between to make cupcake toppers:

Moving on to the "stadium food"... YUM!  I downloaded some vintage-y signage goodness from the internet and framed them in 5x7 frames to label...

Peanuts served in paper bags, just like at the concession stand!

Hot dogs, brats and all the toppings!

Popcorn - our concession stand director let me donate a few bucks to snag some popcorn bags - thank you for saving me a trip!

And of course, Cracker Jacks!  

No self-respecting baseball themed party is complete without a heaping helping of Double Bubble:

served in a glove, of course!

Since the party is tonight and I am posting this in the wee hours of the morning, I'll show off some full-on party pictures once everything is set up and in full swing!  Get it?!  full swing?!

MONDAY UPDATE:  Pictures of the finished party here :)

This project was shared at all the blogs on my Link page!

Dear Bigger Bug,

How does this happen?  One day you are teensy tiny, all 5 lbs, 6 oz of you, loaded up with wires and monitors and feeding tubes in the NICU, with a tenuous but tenacious grip on life ... and the next day you are turning 11!! 

I know I tell you I love you all the time, but I just wonder if you really know?  I thought today, in celebration of your 11th birthday, I would put the story of your birth into words...

You were the most beautiful and unexpected of gifts.  I was 19 and engaged to your daddy when we found out that we were going to be your parents.  It was not the path I always thought I would take in life, but while I thought at the time that God sent us a detour, I know now that although sometimes we miss the road signs, we were right on course.  

I was sick, sick, SICK the whole time I was pregnant but still managed to gain 60 lbs - holy cow is right!!  I am fairly certain the drive through folks at Taco Bell and Dunkin' Donuts knew my car by sight :)  Maybe that is why you love spicy food so much!

When we found out you were a boy, phew! was I nervous!  I was the only child of a single mom and I did not know a thing about boys.  But we couldn't wait to meet you and I was so excited to pick out your name!  When we heard your name (it was the last name of a TV family), I knew right away it was different and cool and perfect for you!  And it is!

So, in the weeeee hours of the morning of April 22, 2000 (literally 12:01am in the dark!), we arrived at the hospital where I was scheduled to be induced.  While I was in the bathroom putting on my (lovely and stylish) gown, my water broke.  You were destined to be my Earth Day baby one way or another and you were on your way!  I had a few hours of contractions but your heart beat plummeted with each contraction and your doctor decided:  emergency C-section.  

I was terrified.

I had never been under anesthesia or had surgery, but if this is what it took to bring you safely into the world, there was no question.  Totally numb from the collar bones down and fifteen minutes later, you arrived.  I only saw you for a minute but I knew I would love you for the rest of my life.

You had tons of dark hair and weighed in at a measly 5 lbs 6 oz even though you were considered full term at 39 weeks.  Turns out, my high blood pressure put so much stress on my body that you didn't get enough of what you needed and your spindly little arms and legs were proof of that.  Your heart was enlarged, too, and it was enough of a concern that you were whisked away to the NICU.  We lived there off and on for the next eight days, getting to see you every 3 hours, even if it was just to rub your back with an index finger, wake up to check in with your nurses at midnight or pray with every ounce of our being to see those 15 ccs of formula disappear into your belly.

But today...

You are the handsome Bigger Bug with my brown eyes.
You are long and lean and have Daddy's dimpled chin.
You asked your first girl out this week...and she said yes.
You share my sense of humor and I can tell when you get that twinkle in your eyes, we are going to laugh until our stomachs hurt.
You struggle with school sometimes, but I know that you just haven't found your stride yet.
You talk back and roll your eyes, but you love us with a fierce intensity.
You are my sports nut and baseball fanatic and I am your biggest fan.
You are stuck in that crazy middle ground between childhood and adolescence but it will get better.
You are cautiously fearless and 100% boy but you still let me tuck you in at night.  For now.
You are the very picture of will, of determination, of struggle and of triumph.

And today you are turning 11.  Enjoy it my Bug, for it only comes once.

Love,
Mom

{create this} easter chicks & bunnies from restaurant coasters

It's Friday, I'm in love...

with this week's Fin de Friday craft that is!  Welcome to the second installment in my new Fin de Friday series, Upcycling:  Free to Fab!  Last week, I used (free!) chipboard coasters to make a (fab!) personalized baby shower gift for my soon-to-arrive niece Jordyn.  You can check it out here. 

This week, we are ringing in Spring with these super cute coaster critters:

And without further ado, the HOW-TO...

Supplies:  5 round chipboard coasters (mine are 4" diameter), acrylic paint (brown, cream and yellow), foam brush, paper, adhesive, Q-tip, 2 brads (I used blue), ink and ink dauber (or use another Q-tip!), ears/wing pattern (scroll all the way down to the bottom of this entry for the pattern!!)

First, paint two coasters cream, one coaster brown and two yellow.  You'll probably need multiple coats depending on the color/pattern on your coasters.

Now, onto the critters...

The Bashful Bunny

He has a punched flower tail and hand cut brown/white gingham ears...couldn't be simpler!

And here he is:

The Chubby Bunnies

These start with your painted cream coasters.  Add cream colored ears - I used a dauber to add a little touch of color on the inside:

Oval, dark brown eyes (use the end of a Q-tip with the cotton removed dipped in paint for the perfect pupil!), a cute little nose, a quick fold to one of the ears and these cutie pies join the party:

Cheeky Chicks

These start with your two yellow coasters.  Some of the finer, feathered details...Add paper wings.  Bonus!  These are the same shape as the ears, just cut apart.  Two blue brads work perfectly for the eyes.  Use a flower punch cut in 1/2 for feet:

Now, the beaks -  make them using a hand cut heart:

And these chicks are ready for their close up!

Now that you've made them...what to do with them?  Glad you asked :)  Here are a few ideas:

Hang them from your door knobs to add a little Spring in every room

To come home to this face every day?  So sweet!



Add them to a ribbon for the cutest banner EVER



just another picture...couldn't stop myself ;)

Bunny pops!  Add your critters to bamboo skewers to add to an Easter basket, flower arrangement or potted plant or even fill a vase

This is where mine ended up - a mirror in our entryway :)

Make, hang and gracefully accept the compliments!!

Don't forget!!  Email me at shakentogetherblog {at} gmail.com if you make something using one of my tutorials - I'd love to share your take on upcycling.  Want to be an upcycling partner in crime as a guest poster in this series?  P.S. You don't have to use coasters :)  Send a description and pictures to the same email address above and let's talk about it! 

This project was shared at all the blogs on my Link page!

And here is your "pattern" for the bunny ears and wing - I apologize that it is a little cheesy, but hopefully helpful nonetheless :)  You should able to right click and save it (and maybe resize depending on the size of your coasters), cut them out and trace onto whatever paper you want to use.