Its grad season yet again. Didn't school just start ?? Here's a simple an easy idea from
Plaid Online to spice up a gift card for your favorite grad.
To make a graduation gift card holder, you will need
My fav- Mod Podge
Altoid tin
4 pieces (or scraps) of scrapbook paper (one yellow with stars; one black and white stripes; one black; and one red)
Black ribbon with gold edges (14 inches)
Small star punch out or 4 red star stickers
4 red rhinestones
1 gold eyelet
Thin gold cording to attach tag
Distress ink
Hot glue
Sandpaper
1. Wash and dry tin.
2. Use the top of the tin as a template to cut out 4 pieces of yellow paper (Cut two slightly smaller to fit the insides of the tin. Distress edges and apply to the top, bottom and the insides of the tin with Mod Podge; allow to dry.
3. Cut a 1/4” strip of yellow paper, distress and apply around the edge of the lid with Mod Podge; allow to dry.
4. Cut a 1/2” strip of black and white striped paper and apply around the edge of the bottom of tin with Mod Podge; allow to dry.
5. Use sandpaper to sand away any paper that may be extending the edges of the tin.
6. Punch out stars or use star stickers and place three stars across top right of tin lid as shown.
7. Coat the entire outside of tin with Mod Podge; allow to dry.
8. Make a tag using the black paper and star paper as shown and add eyelet. Place stickers and star on tag then add a red rhinestone.
9. Add red rhinestones to each star on tin and use hot glue to secure ribbon around tin so that, while ribbon is in place, the tin will open; attach gold cord to tag and slip through ribbon, tie and rim ribbon as shown.
You could clearly change this project up and use it for any season/purpose.
My husband love, love, loves bread pudding. I am always in search of a new recipe for it. I came across this one in the father's day recipe section @ Kaboose. Yumo, it sounds delich. Can't wait to make it for him. By the way, they had many more yummy looking recipes, check em out.
Ingredients for Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding
Nonstick cooking spray
8 slices thick-cut cinnamon raisin bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 (21 ounce) can apple pie filling
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 eggs, beaten
Cooking Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Generously coat a loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside. In a large bowl, combine bread, carrots, raisins, apple pie filling, cinnamon and salt.
Add sweetened condensed milk and beaten eggs to dry mixture and blend well to coat thoroughly. Pour mixture into loaf pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until well-browned on top.
Remove from oven and serve. Serve with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream if desired.
Substitution(s)
If your child is sensitive to milk, you can substitute the condensed milk with coconut or almond milk instead.
If you prefer fresh apples to canned, opt for a variety with plenty of juicy goodness like Granny Smith or Jonagold.
One of my latest favorite crafts is anything with Mod Podge. 
I love the idea of taking any old or new thing and making it into something spectacular. This ribbon frame I found @ Plaid Online is no exception. What a great idea. I have old frames, tons of ribbon, craft paint & of course Mod Podge.
Funky Ribbon Frame
What you need & probably already have:
FolkArt ® Acrylic Colors - Soft Apple, 2 oz.
Mod Podge ® Matte, 16 oz.
Small Wood Frame
Variety of ribbons
Foam brushes
Scissors
Ruler
Base coat entire frame Soft Apple; let dry.
Measure height of frame; cut multiple lengths of assorted ribbon to height size (we used a monochromatic selection of ribbons in a variety of patterns and textures).
Apply Mod Podge to back of one ribbon strip; position on front of frame then smooth; repeat with additional strips of ribbon placing them side by side until front of frame is covered; let dry.
Apply two topcoats of Mod Podge to finish and seal; let dry completely between coats.
4. To prevent the twigs from splitting, create pilot holes with the drill and a small bit (a parent's job). Nail the twigs in place. If desired, a parent can instead drill holes in the plaque and insert the twigs, as we did with the owl design.
I'm not sure how it got it's name, oh, I remember, I didn't know what else to call it, but I always ate it with Frito's so decided Frito dip was the best fit.
Mix dip mix with sour cream until well blended
Chill in fridge at least 6 hours or overnight. Serve with Frito's, other chips or veggies.
Kaboose is one of my favorite sites for crafty ideas. Whenever I have a need to make something, I hop on over there and always find a simple you-can-do project.
This fingerprint poem for mom is one example. Such a sweet and heartfelt mom's day idea. I guess it would work for dad's day to ??
This sweet poem combined with a child’s fingerprint art makes for a fabulous gift and keepsake. Simple enough for even young children to make, Mom will love the gesture and save it forever.
What you'll need:
2 sheets of card stock, purple and light blue
White printer paper
Acrylic paint: purple, light blue, pink, red, white
Scissors
Glue stick
Printer
Pencil
Damp face cloth
How to make it:
Print poem (below) onto white paper. We used the Comic Sans font.
Cut poem out, curving edges around the poem making it look like a cloud.
On a separate blank sheet of white paper, use pencil to lightly draw a heart and the word “MOM” above it.
Cut the heart and MOM out, leaving about an inch border.
Glue the heart drawing and the poem onto the purple card stock.
Cut around the poem and the heart drawing, leaving a small purple card stock border on each.
Glue both onto light blue card stock, poem at the bottom. Have child write their name and the year on the back of the blue card stock. Put small puddles of paint onto a paper plate, one puddle of each color except white. Make a second puddle of pink and add some white to it to make an even lighter pink. You should have 5 puddles of paint (purple, light blue, red, pink, light pink) Have child dip fingertips into puddles to decorate the heart and write MOM. Do the Ms in purple and the O in light blue. Use red, pink and light pink to decorate the heart. Use damp face cloth to clean off fingertips in between each paint color.
Let the paint dry completely.
Fingerprint Poem
My dirty little fingerprints I’ve left on every wall
And on the drawers and tabletops, I’ve really marked them all
But here are some that won’t rub off, I’m giving them to you
Because I’m thankful to have a mom that’s just like you!
Tips:
Construction paper can be used instead of card stock but will not be as sturdy. To add more strength, cover with clear Con-tact paper.
Use the print preview option on your printer before actually printing. This will allow you to see what the printout will look like without wasting countless sheets of paper.
Change the purple and light blue colors we chose to your mom’s favorite colors. Simply match up two colors and use them for the card stock and the two paint colors for the word “MOM”.
This is a combo of both of my g-ma's tetrazzini recipe. It does take just a little bit of time, but its well worth the trouble. I always double or triple this recipe. FYI it freezes very well and is great left over.
Chicken or Turkey Tetrazzini
4 oz jar pimentos (chopped)
½ stick butter
2 rounded tbs flour
2 cup milk
3/8 tsp garlic salt or powder
1 green pepper chopped
4 oz jar mushrooms (chopped)
1 can mushroom or celery soup
½ lb Velveeta cheese or what I prefer is a jar of Old English cheese, found in dairy case with other cheeses. I really makes it taste extra yummy !!
1 cut up / 2 cups cooked chicken or turkey
4 oz spaghetti
Black pepper to taste
Make cream sauce out of butter, flour, & milk. When it begins to thicken add cheese, green pepper, pimentos, mushroom, soup & black pepper to taste. Have spaghetti ready (better if cooked in chicken broth).Mix all together & pour into buttered Pyrex & bake 45 min-1 hour or until bubbly @350.
Another tip: I like to make mine the day before I want to serve it and let it sit in fridge overnight before cooking and serving, I just taste better that way.
One of my new favorite blogs is NannyGoat. She has/had this great idea to do recipe swap today. Check it out, quite a few people have added there favs to her list. Ummm, its making me hungry. Here's a little peak of some of them.
Chicken Parmesan from momma Staker click here for more
Ingredients
4 Chicken Breasts
2 Egg Whites (or whole eggs if you prefer)
1 Garlic Clove
1 Cup Seasoned Bread Crumbs
1/4 Cup Grated Fresh Parmesan Cheese
1 Teaspoon Italian Seasoning
1/8 Teaspoon Black Pepper
2 Tablespoons Flour4 oz.
Angel Hair Pasta
1 Jar of your Favorite Spaghetti Sauce
1/4 Cup Mozzarella Cheese (shredded)
Preheat oven to 425. Trim Chicken. Beat egg whites until frothy, press in garlic. Mix together bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, and seasonings. Coat breasts with flour, dip in egg mixture, and then in crumbs. Place Chicken on baking sheet and bake 20-25 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear. Cook pasta and heat up sauce. To serve, place pasta on plate, top with baked chicken top with sauce and cheese and enjoy!
Thanks for sharing, 30days.
To start, wipe suitcase/box clean. Cut scrap paper into various shapes and sizes. I cut mine into different sized squares and rectangles. You can do any shape or just tare your paper. Apply thin, even layer of Mod Podge to back of a piece of paper. Starting on one of the outside edges apply the paper to the box. 
Continue all over. Its ok if your squares overlap, I prefer this look. 
Some areas may start to bubble a little, do your best to smooth out with your fingers, but don't worry, after it dries 90% usually go away. Once entire box is covered allow to dry for about 30 minutes or so. Go over entire box with another layer of Mod Podge (this is where I use Glitter Mod Podge) Allow to dry again (30 minutes) I like to repeat this step twice to insure everything is well coated.
Next I work on the handles and covering the rubber edge's of the box. I use my paintbrush to apply a thick coat of Tacky Glue to rubber edge. Start at one end and apply your chenille yarn to the edge. When you get to the end of a row, no need to cut just back track and continue until covered. Do this to all rubber edging.
Once that's complete, use your yarn again to cover the handle. Cut a long strip of your yarn. There is no way to know how much you need, just cut a pretty good piece, you can always tie another piece to it if need be. Start at one end and tie the yarn around the handle. Continue to tightly wrap yarn around handle until entire handle is covered. Tie off the end. 
To apply the flower you can use you Tacky Glue or I like to use the wired stem of the flower to wrap around the handle. Then I use more yarn to cover the stem.
Now the glam part. Lay box on its back so fasteners are facing up. Paint a not to thin, but not to thick layer of Tacky Glue to the metal suitcase/box fasteners. Use needle nose pliers or tweezers to carefully apply the rhinestones. If you glue is too thick, be careful because the rhinestones may want to shift a little.
Once completely dry, Wholla, you have a beautiful glamed up Make box or suitcase. Now, what the heck am I gonna do with it ??
As you know Mother's day (5-9-9) is going to be here very soon. I have to do my gift planning early because my mom lives in Iowa so I have to ship her gift. My Aunt is into making scrapbook canvases as gifts. Matter of fact, she made one for Kellan for his birthday. I am always a fan of personalized gifts, I think they come from a different place in the heart. So I decided to try and make one for my mom for Mothers day.
What you need:
blank canvas, any size
Acrylic paint & brush
Scrapbook paper, lace, colored paper, anything really
Picture(s)
Do-Dads/embellishments; I used letter stickers, card stock embellishments & flowers
Heavy glue, I like Tacky Glue
Ribbon
Picture hanger to attach to back for hanging
As with any craft of this sort, its best to collect lots of different coordinating items and play around with them till you find what looks best for your master piece. Always start with an idea of inspiration. For me, I choose a blue theme. My mom collects blue and white Willow Ware type stuff and uses them to decorate all over her house, so I wanted to make something that would match her decor.
Start by covering your work surface with newspaper. Paint 1-2 coats of paint on canvas, don't forget sides !! Once its good and dry, start to place things on canvas with glue
It took me about 3 coats of paint since I was using such a dark color.
This is a super simple project. My son and I went to Hobby Lobby this morning to get all the goodies I didn't already have. I put paint coats on while he played, and while he napped, I finished. Max 2 hours, but don't tell mom!!
One last note, when making a gift like this, I think is super important to write and date the back so its always noted with love where its from.
If only I had found this when mine was a baby, life would have been a lot easier !! Thank goodness Create Studio figured it out for the next time.
Supplies:
grosgrain ribbon (preferably double-sided and sturdy)
1 1/2 snap sets (you can get these at Walmart)
1 name tag clip (you can find these on the back of those plastic name badges from any office supply store)
matches
scissors
First, cut the ribbon 9 1/4 inches long and burn the ends slightly to prevent fraying. Put one end through the name tag clip. Pull 1 inch of ribbon through and secure with 1/2 of a snap set (this end does not need to actually snap.) 
Next, fold the other end of the ribbon over 1 1/4 inch and attach a full snap set on this side. Be sure to leave a little extra ribbon to hold on to while you're unsnapping the paci since this is the side that will unsnap to hold that beautiful thing!
Check out Suzanne's Crazy & brilliant idea and she'll walk you thru it, step by step.
FYI, I just went on to the Munchkin web site and they do advertise both and say Wal-Mart carries them ?? I guess some stores just don't carry both?? 
