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Last year, I joined the ranks of Instagram lovers all over the world. We had just moved to a new city and I wanted to share our adventures with our family 3 states away.
I spent the summer snapping quick photos of our daily activities like sharing chocolate chip pancakes and swimming in the pool to lemonade stands and the birth of my nephew.
When the warm days turned to cold, I wanted to capture this new chapter in our lives permanently. I created ‘Our InstaSummer 2012′ photo book, filled with photos from the mundane to the truly memorable moments we shared over the summer.
It lives in a basket on the coffee table and is flipped through often. It’s become such a fun piece of our family’s history that I’m putting together another one for this summer’s memories. Starting with the slurpees we shared to celebrate the last day of school.
Note: I created my book using Blurb because they have a great integration with Instagram. Super easy to do – highly recommended!
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In childhood, and typically all the way through college, friendships tend to form naturally. We’re in close proximity with peers on a regular basis and have practically limitless time to socialize. Throughout all of my school years, I took this effortless formation of friendship for granted.
Then I graduated from college, got married, and started having children, and the landscape of my social life changed completely. It was hard to stay in close to old friends who lived in other cities or even other states, and building real friendships in the midst of kids and careers and all of life proved to be more complicated than I’d ever thought. I am so lucky to have a wonderful husband who is also my best friend, but we women need other women in our lives, too. Here are a few things I’ve learned about forming and cultivating friendships in the grown-up world…
1. You must intentionally carve out time for them.
Calendars tend to fill up quickly, and if we don’t make time in the schedule for the relationships in our lives, they can easily be pushed to the back burner. When I became more purposeful in planning coffee dates and get-togethers in advance, the friendships in my life deepened significantly. I aim to go out on a coffee date at least every other week- sometimes with a close friend, and sometimes with someone new who I want to get to know better. This ends up serving to build these relationships as well as giving me some time to just be “me”, away from home and work life. It is always a refreshing treat.
2. Sometimes you have to make the first move.
This is probably a complete no-brainer for many of you, but since I tend to be a bit of an introvert, it often feels counterintuitive for me to ask someone I barely know out for coffee. At one point it dawned on me that friendships were not going to simply fall into my lap, and when I meet someone awesome I can’t just passively hope that maybe we’ll bump into one another again in the future. You never know- that person could be just dying to get to know you better, too. The worst that can happen is that they decline, but chances are that pushing yourself that little bit will lead to an afternoon of great conversation, a new connection, and possibly even a great and lasting friendship.
3. Want to go deeper? Do life together.
Communal dinners have been one of the key elements of growing closer to my friends who also have their own families. Cooking and eating together regularly, with little ones and their joyful chaos surrounding us, has deepened our friendships so much more that if we only met up once in a while for a playdate or coffee chat. Sharing meals, and the work that goes into them, makes us feel like family. At this point in our lives we have to keep it very low-key and comfortable, with the mutual understanding of life with youngsters. These dinners have enriched our lives so much, and have taught me a lot about the important role of friendships in life as an adult. Sharing pieces of everyday life- whether in the form of a shared meal or a listening ear- is what gives the relationships in our lives a soul.
What are some ways you build and strengthen the friendships in your life? Please share in the comments!
Hooray for summer! Now that school is out (or almost, depending on where you might live), we’ve got our Summer Bucket List made and have started checking things off. First up, was to hold a neighborhood ice cream party. A couple of years ago we held one, and my boys have been asking to do it again, ever since.
There are a few things I’ve learned along the way, that make holding these neighborhood gatherings a little easier. It by no means needs to be a big production, keeping it simple makes it more fun for everyone.
1. Find a Buddy
-Ask a friend to share the party duties. Half the work and twice the fun!
2. Invitations
-I use Evite for invitations. Paper free and easily sent. They have a lot of cute choices for invites, and you can even add your own photo.
3. Keep it Simple
Kids don’t care if your ice cream stand is magazine worthy. Keeping it simple makes the set up, party and clean up all easier.
-Scoop the ice cream (we did 2 scoops/cup) ahead of time and place on a baking sheet in the freezer.
-Keep the toppings to a minimum. We had the basic chocolate, carmel and strawberry sauces. Along with lots of sprinkles, crushed graham crackers and cookies, maraschino cherries and banana slices. We skipped the nuts all together due to several friends with nut allergies.
-Line your serving table with paper (ours was from a large roll). It catches the mess from all the toppings and at the end you pull it off and throw it away!
4. Get the kids involved.
-Have your kids help with decorating the ice cream table. In our case we had them color the letters, make a play list to have on during the party and help with the guest list.
5. Keep it Short
-From start to finish the party lasted only about an hour and a half. Guests arrived at 2:30 and were gone by 4:00. Going through the ice cream line and eating it takes kids very little time. While they were waiting their turn we had sidewalk chalk, frisbees and backyard games they could play both before and after enjoying their treats.
6. Enjoy Yourself!
-The whole point of summer fun is for everyone to have a good time when hosting these events. If you find yourself getting stressed about the party, pull back and simplify. Again, kids don’t care how fancy or flashy things are…they just want to have fun with you, their friends and enjoy a scoop of ice cream.
Temperatures are rising, and while I’m in the mood for a frozen drink any ol’ time, I’m especially grateful for one in the summer. Today, I’m sharing an extremely simple frozen refresher that you can mix in mere seconds.
Frozen Strawberry Limeade
2 cups milk (I use 1%)
2 cups whole strawberries, frozen and unsweetened
6 oz limeade concentrate, frozen (1/2 of a typical sized can)
Blend away!
I’m not exact about this. It’s an art, not a science. So add ice and/ or more milk and strawberries as needed to fill up the blender. You could substitute lemonade for the limeade if you wish. Ahhhh!
One of my favorite glasses to serve this limeade in is a recycled parmesan cheese jar. After chiding my husband for using the “wrong” kitchen utensil for a particular culinary job, he commented that it was “no different than drinking from a jar.” It was clear that my hubby had not yet been introduced to the concept of “shabby chic,” so I fixed that. No matter what you are drinking from, I do hope you cool down this summer with a Frozen Strawberry Limeade.
In the comments, please share a link to one of your favorite summer drinks. I would love to add it to my “Bottoms Up” Pinterest board.
It took me a long time to fully embrace the camera on my iPhone. I felt like I should be only taking “real” pictures with my DSLR. I would lug it on field trips, soccer games, and ultimately it would spend more time in the bag than getting used. I think that I felt that the resulting pictures from my big camera had to be perfect. Perfect lighting, thoughtful composition, and perfectly dressed and groomed little subjects. The thing is – there will always be a place in my heart and my life for my “big camera”, but the reality is that my life is captured using my iPhone. I have been able to capture so many little moments, sweet memories, and our everyday life because my phone is always on me.
Technology has made it so that the camera in my phone has more metapixels than my first DSLR, and shooting and sharing photos is instant. It has changed the way that I see the world. The ease of my camera phone has translated into so many more images and brings me so much joy. I love being able to snap a picture at preschool graduation and text it out to our family all over the country in a matter of seconds. I love what iPhoneography has brought to my life.
I am not the only one. Our founder, Angie Warren, has written a truly wonderful e-book called Snap Filter Share. In it, she shares tips and tricks for getting the most out of mobile photography. This 50 page e-book shares insights on how to get the most out of your camera phone, the best apps to use, sharing and printing, and so much more. Whether you are just starting to embrace your camera phone or a seasoned IGer, there is something for everyone.
Click here to purchase Snap Filter Share.
My youngest little guy does not like to finger paint. He does not like to have his hands messy. I totally get it, I really do, I don’t love gooey or goopy hands either. The thing is, he needs to strengthen the muscles in his little hands for writing, and finger painting is a great and fun way to do that. We have been working really hard all year on getting him to do it. We have made great strides at home, school, and with his OT. And I am happy to report that most days, finger painting is a go.
This recipe from the Dixie Crystals is really easy to make for a craft afternoon or a rainy day. You can easily buy finger paint, but you can make it for pennies. Not only that, you know what is in it. When they are little, everything goes in their mouths, including finger paint. When you make your own, you can guarantee that they are not eating something full of chemicals.
While he was at school, I made the base, and let it cool completely. I divided it into three bowls, and let him swirl in the food coloring. When all of the kids got home from school, I set out some paper and they were happy to create some sugar art. Their favorite part, mixing the primary colors to make new and interesting colors. But like most kids, they ended up with brown. It is still beautiful to me.
***I used gel food coloring because that is what I had. It is very strong in color and strength. We all have color stained hands today. It doesn’t bother me at all, but just want to warn you. You can use use the grocery store liquid food coloring and use about 4 to 5 drops, it should not stain as much.***
4 Tablespoons Dixie Crystals sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
2 cups water
Red, yellow, and blue food coloring
Whisk sugar and cornstarch in a saucepan.
Pour in water and whisk to combine.
Heat mixture over medium heat, whisking, until mixture begins to thicken. *When the mixture begins to bubble, you are there.*
Divide the mixture into 3 bowls.
Add food coloring to each and stir until the color is evenly distributed.
Edible Finger Paint 2013-06-05 08:38:13 Edible finger paint that you can make any color you like! 4 Tablespoons Dixie Crystals sugar 1/3 cup cornstarch 2 cups water Red, yellow, and blue food coloring
Whisk sugar and cornstarch in a saucepan. Pour in water and whisk to combine. Heat mixture over medium heat, whisking, until mixture begins to thicken. *When the mixture begins to bubble, you are there.* Divide the mixture into 3 bowls. Add food coloring to each and stir until the color is evenly distributed.
Fingerpaint keeps in the fridge for one week in an airtight container.
Adapted from Dixie Crystals Kids Kitchen
the creative mama http://thecreativemama.com/
**This post is sponsored by Dixie Crystals, doing sponsored posts with companies let us keep the lights on and do our best work here at The Creative Mama. All opinions are 100% our own.**
Smore’s are one of my favorite things on Earth. I love everything about them. I love how gooey they are and how much fun they are to make over the campfire. When I am pining for a smore’s and there is not a camp site in sight, I make these easy Smore’s Bars. They take no time to throw together and are just as gooey and delicious as what you remember. I do not like a lot of chocolate in my smore’s, I know that some people might find that weird, but I like a heavy marshmallow to chocolate ratio. I like to use chocolate chips or wafers instead of Hershey bars, but you could use them instead.
These are heaven straight out of the oven, but you can microwave them for a few seconds and they will be gooey and warm.
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/3 cups flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk chocolate chips or 2 chocolate bars
1 (7-ounce) jar marshmallow creme
Cream butter and sugars in a large bowl, until light and fluffy.
Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
Add flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt.
Press half of the dough into a greased 8×8 pan.
Add chocolate chips and marshmallow creme.
Top with remaining dough.
Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30 to 35 minutes.
Smore's Bars 2013-06-03 08:56:28 1/2 cup butter, room temperature 1/4 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup white sugar 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 1/3 cups flour 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup milk chocolate chips or 2 chocolate bars 1 (7-ounce) jar marshmallow creme
Cream butter and sugars in a large bowl, until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Add flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt. Press half of the dough into a greased 8x8 pan. Add chocolate chips and marshmallow creme. Top with remaining dough. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30 to 35 minutes.
These are amazing straight out of the oven, but you can make them gooey again bu microwaving them for about 10 seconds.
the creative mama http://thecreativemama.com/
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