Love Crafty Moms!

I love to find other moms who make really neat stuff!

I was watching the Nate Berkus show in passing today and he was interviewing moms who work out of their homes. One of the moms, Kierstine Hathcock, who makes amazing kid furniture that are great storage, too.

Pricey yes, but totally adorable...a mom can dream, right?

Take a look at her blog and shop site (modmomfurniture.com) to check out her  hand -made products.

What would you pick?

Thank goodness for the internet....for inspirations!

Here's a little taste of where I got my inspiration to celebrate this August! We have many different celebrations in less than two weeks.

I use the internet to get all my ideas and I want to share some of my favs...I will be posting more specifics as soon as our August celebrations are over. 8 parties in 8 days! I am going to be tired, but I will have tons to share soon!


hiddencupcakes.com
Not only is Tracey a great friend of mine, but she is an awesome party plannner. Martha has nothing on her!



thelongthread.com
I found a very easy sewing tutorial for super hero capes to give away! But she has many other diy ideas that are so cute and I can't wait to try!


Photo booth idea didn't really work out for our party but check out Hip Hip Hoorey for much more!


Birthdays aren't the only things I have going on...baby shower!
So I went to Martha for a little inspiration.


Love inspirations!
Stay tuned for all of these ideas put into action. Three parties down...five to go!

It's a blog summer!

So the summer has brought many fun experiences but has taken me away from the blog...and much needed organizing!!! But as I get back in the saddle I thought I would put together a little pictural of what we have been up to this summer!                                            

 Sprinkler fun!

 She didn't stop for a second!

 Not one second!

 And, he just wanted to play in the mud...such a typical boy!

 Water for the mud!

 Finally warm enough for the pool.

 Even the big brother loves the little kid pool.

 We saw an end to preschool for our little guy..which means kindergarten in the Fall!

That's him on the right with the coonskin hat...he was William Clark for the end of the year concert.

 We have also gotten some time to spend with family....cousin Carter James

My little God son swinging! 

Jake was excited to see a real plane up close...this is the plane that miraculously landed on the Hudson River in New York City. It was passing through our town on its way to North Carolina. Very impressive site to see and I got to share it with my four year old! 

 A day at Dutch Wonderland with the Holland clan...these two are twin cousins...born on the same day only hours apart. Can't believe they will be five soon. Time really flies!

 We had to spend some time at the water park.

 Ah, and the trip I had been looking forward to  for months has come and gone, but not without some amazing images to look back on!

"Oh Nantucket, if I were to get on thy soil again, I do think I'ld stay."

 Brant Point Lighthouse

 And it was everywhere! For someone who is deathly afraid of getting it again I was very careful everywhere we went. Still didn't take away from any of the absolute beauty of the island.

 Our mode of transportation.

 The sites on the streets have really inspired me. Loved the bold colors.

 Blue doors...need I say more? Coming soon to the Holland household. I just need to figure out how to paint a metal door.

 An amazing surprise to me was just how much I loved my Christmas present from my parents. As many who have known me since I was 10 know...I was obsessed with New Kids on the Block. Finally after twenty, yes I said twenty, years I got to see them in concert...with Back Street Boys. We had great seats with amazing views of the guys. I felt like that 10 year old who so wanted to see her favorite band just once...thanks Mom!

So most of my summer so far has been working in the yard with the kids. We have planted many gardens and had so many fun times together. But that is all for another post!

MUDRUN!!!! Take two

Okay so I have one more to add before I say goodnight!!! Last summer a friend possed a challenge to me. A 10k MudRun...hadn't ever heard of one and wasn't a runner to begin with. Never really had been...even though I have been an athlete my entire life running never was something that I was good at. But a challenge is a challenge and I hardly ever shake off a challenge....so I took it. Much  to the shugrin of my team mates, all runners. I may have held them back with my lack of running prowis but I so loved the obsticales and of course the MUD...once Messy-Jessi always Messy-Jessi.

So now not even a year later I am doing it again...with a number of my good friends we will all wake early tomorrow morning and get ready to head to Washington's Crossing, NJ for a 5k MUDRUN (runamuck) . I am beyond excited that this time we have all coupled off and my partner is my best friend. My husband, Jeff, will be running with me. He can so out run me, which of course isn't saying much, but whenever we have been able to get out and exercise together he is the most encouraging partner. I am can't wait to complete the course tomorrow. Click here for more info on what the Runamuck is all about.

Here are a few pics from my first mudrun appropriately named The Beast of the East!

 The Mudi Chic girls

 Notice the water level mark on my shirt!

 The Muddy Shot!

 The last leg of our race...I have to say I was hurting by now with an annoying strain in my calf but I wasn't going to stop now!

The after shot...we are all still standing!

Spring Cleaning and then some!!!

So the Spring has brought it's challenges in getting organized and spending time with the family and our many outside excursions. My blogging time has been the major area that has suffered. Honestly, after hanging with the kids all day and trying to stay on top of cleaning and organizing I just haven't had time at the end of  my nights to sit on the computer or post pictures.
Our spring has consisted of lots and lots of gardening!!!! We have gotten rid of 6 large hedges from the front our porch, replanted the beds where the hedges had been, began construction on a vegetable garden with some sprouts we started in plastic baseball card holders, moved plants in our backyard garden to make room for the veggie garden, and took a wonderful day trip to Longwood Gardens (highly recommended).
I have spent some time inside...with all this rain I have really had no choice! I have had the chance to really work on keeping my kitchen decluttered so that I can have some clear counters!!! I have also been working on the room that looked like it exploded....I will be posting more pictures soon but honestly it has been a long day of cleaning and keeping the munchkins entertained (more like they were entertaining me!!!) to keep going right now!

challenge...what challenge???

Okay so little over a week ago I challenged myself to organize two rooms in my house, which is basically my whole second floor. As I am making small amounts of progress, I have been distracted by the beautiful weather we have had and because of the beautiful weather I have been doing yard work and taking day trips to Longwood Gardens!

Now looking forward to an Easter celebration with my family I am afraid to say that I might miss my mark. I am not saying that I am going to stop trying though. I will be spending my week cleaning, folding, dyeing Easter eggs, making large piles of trash, filling plastic Easter eggs and baskets, and decorating.

I will post pictures of my progress soon.

Organizer??? Not quit yet!

So I was featured on my friend's blog. Jill has a blog that gives advice on everyday organizing and cleaning. I love using her tid-bits. One of her great points was to use five minutes here and there to get some small messes dealt with.


I tend to have problem areas in my house that drive me crazy! But no matter how much I try to keep them clear it just doesn't happen. So taking her advice I started with a few minutes I had while I was making dinner and my husband was entertaining the kids outside. I cleared off a few areas  and let me tell you I felt so much better about the rest of the evening. I also had a lot more space to get dinner set out and cleaned up afterwards.


Usually, I don't have more then five or ten minutes to get much done. This has always kept me from really dealing with the small areas that get cluttered with extra junk, piled on papers, and kid stuff! Now I really try to utilize that few minutes when my kids are happy playing and go for it!


So when my tiny kitchen counter looks like this...

I take a few minutes and sort it out...

Get rid of the trash or old or expired and wipe the counter clean...

I even set out a plant to spruce it up a bit!

Now I know there are still things there and I haven't completely cleared the counter. First I have very little drawer space and secondly there are lots of things that need to stay out of little hands. But it is much more organized and clean!


I am really trying to continue to take Jill's advice and clean as I can...even if it is just a small 2ft by 2ft area. If you want to benefit from her help click here.