Merry Christmas, Carrie!

Happy Holidays, friends! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and New Year! It's hard to believe that it is already over. There was so much hype and rushing around that as always I feel like I missed it.

This year I was so much more excited about the gifts I gave that I really didn't even have time to think about the gifts I received. I'm still unpacking some of these that literally got put in the bedroom and not thought of again since we were so busy.

It was also special because it was Carter's first Christmas. Not that he had any idea what was going on but it was still fun to somewhat see it thru his eyes. We are still celebrating of course since Dennis worked. Tomorrow we are taking Carter to see the lights at Phipps.

I have to say that my favorite gift this year or at least the one I've used the most so far, would have to be my heating blanket from Dennis. It could be 60 degrees out and I'll be under the blanket. I've been asking for this for years, so I'm so happy I got it. And don't worry it is up to safety standards for the fireman. I can't wait to start reading some books cuddled up under my new blanket.

What were your favorite gifts?

Happy Holidays! Just a quick post for today! My goal as always is to be on here more in the New Year! We will see what happens!

Christmas DIY: Beer Cap Coasters

Do you ever find that you have multiple bottle caps in your beer area, especially after a picnic or holiday party? I keep them in a bowl in our bar area in the hopes that I will have enough if I every do one of those great Pinterest projects using beer caps or wine corks.

One of the ones I had pinned was beer cap coasters. I made them tonight for my sister's fiance. The coasters are incredibly easy. The only supplies you need are beer caps and a hot glue gun. You might also want to grab some cardboard to glue on.

Arrange the beer caps in an order that you like. Keep in mind that you will need 16. I guess you could do it with nine but I found it looked better with the larger number. With that being said though, I only made a set of two rather than hat I hoped would be four or six. 

Here's a picture of the coasters.

Happy Holidays!

These are a Few of My Favorite Gifts

I got so many wonderful gifts from family and friends - new clothes, books, fun notebooks for work and an awesome Christmas quilt from my mom and so many other fabulous presents. One of my favorite gifts fuels my 2014 TV obsession - Dennis gave me all three seasons of Blue Bloods. I had checked the first two seasons out from the library but had never seen the third season. That was one good reason about being sick during the holidays because I had plenty of time to rest and catch up on the Reagan family.

 

 

What did everyone get for Christmas?



A Birthday Gift I'll Never Forget

Dennis and I got a pet today.  I wanted a cat or dog but the lease won't allow it right now.  Instead, a goldfish will suffice for now.  Setting up a new fish tank always reminds me of my first official fish tank...a birthday gift from my grandparents I'll never forget.

When I turned 14, my grandpa asked me what I wanted for my birthday.  I said a fish tank.  Not really thinking that my wish would be honored I looked forward to other birthday presents.  The week of my birthday, however, my grandpa picked me up and we went to Elmer's (I really miss that pet store!).

First, he told me to pick out a tank - a 10 gallon, which seemed huge to me then!  Then we the accessories, a filter, heater, gravel, REAL plants, decorations, food, nets and water drops.  My uncle had a lid and light waiting for me to use as well.  Then the best part...the FISH!!

I got bright orange sword tails, neon tetras, zebra danios, angel fish and a sucker fish.  I loved every minute of it.  The trip to the pet store with my grandpa, setting up my new tank and then watching my fish and thinking of my grandpa every time.

The fish tank had to be emptied to my dismay when I went to college.  My aunt took the goldfish that were in it at that time.  I took it to Annapolis and filled it with more tropical fish.  It was a great addition to my kitchen.  Now, the fish tank resides at the Library and the kids absolutely LOVE it!

For my grandpa, I think it was a gift also meant to teach me responsibility and when most children and teens fail to uphold the responsibility of taking care of a pet, I think I passed with flying colors.  I cleaned that tank like my life depended on it and I hope it made my grandpa proud that I learned a valuable lesson too.

The fish hotel!  I want this for my next fish tank!

A Year of Dates...Better Late Than Never!!

So, I'm always on the search for creative gift ideas and what better source than Pinterest to find some.  I had seen others posting "A Year of Dates" on Pinterest and was intrigued to learn more about what they were pinning.  It sounded like a great idea for a Valetine's Day gift for Dennis.

 

Basically, what people were doing was planning 12 months of dates.  The gift giver then wrote instructions and purchased items to go with the date (i.e. gift card, etc.) and placed the items in an envelope or bag.

 

There were so many great date ideas on Pinterest.  Not just for "A Year of Dates" but in general, so I basically did a lot of research and found ones that suited what Dennis and I liked.  It was a lot of fun looking at all of the different ideas.  I finally decided on the following:

 

March: Find a new recipe.  Cook dinner.  Make individual bucket lists and then one together.

(I put a $10 GE gift card in for dinner and a notebook and pens from the Dollar Store for the bucket list.)

** Since I suck at posting lately.  We actually did this date last night.  It was a lot of fun!  We made stuffed crust pizza and did our bucket list and watched part of Skyfall. **
 

April: Play a game of funky bowling according to the instructions included.

(I put a bag of M & Ms in a large envelope with an "I Owe You" for a game of bowling.  The instructions for this date are found http://angbrimwil.blogspot.com/2013/01/hubbys-gift-details.html.)

 

May: Eat breakfast at Pamela's and then spend the morning in the Strip District.

(I put a reuable bag in the envelope, along with an "I Owe You" for breakfast.)

 

June: Walk to the tennis courts for a game.  Then enjoy some ice cream on the deck and plan a vacation.
(I put an "I Owe You" for ice cream and a travel magazine in the envelope.)

July: Spend a summer evening at a Pirate game.
(I put an "I Owe You" in the envelope for a Pirate tickets and a Pirate sticker.)

August: Take a hike and then enjoy a sunset picnic in Schenley Park.
(I put two water bottles in the envelope for hiking.)

September: Wine tasting at Narcissi Winery.
(I put a wine thermometer in the envelope with an "I Owe You" note for a bottle of wine.

October: Watch a movie (Dennis' choice) and make cookies.
(I put a cookie mix in the envelope...too bad it won't work tho because the expiration day is prior to October.  Oh well, I only wanted to make a point.)

November: Grab a Starbucks and walk through your favorite neighborhoods looking for houses.
(I put a Starbucks card in the envelope and I wanted to put neighborhood maps if I had more time.)

December: Eat at Noodles.  Walk around to see the lights and go Christmas shopping for friends and family.
(I put an "I Owe You" note in the envelope for dinner at Noodles.

January: Watch a movie (Carrie's choice) and make brownies.
(I put a brownie mix in the envelope...again made a mistake by not checking the expiration dates.)

February: Print pictures from the honeymoon.  Enjoy a bottle of wine and make a scrapbook.
(I put a few scrapbook items in the bag.)

And there my friends, "A Year of Date."  It was a relatively affordable Valentine's Day present, especially since I put "I Owe You" notes in instead of buying lots of gift cards or tickets.

Those are just my thoughts.  Check out Pinterest for more ideas.  It makes a great Christmas, birthday or anniversary gift too.  I also heard someone that gave "A Year of Dates" for a wedding gift.  That's a little out of my price range but it sounds like a cool idea.

60 Years of Memories

Yesterday my mom turned 60!!!

Meg and I found this wonderful idea on Pinterest for a 60th birthday present.  We collected 60 memories from family and friends throughout the last month.  Then we placed them all in envelopes chronologically, decorated the envelopes and tied them up.

She had herself so worked up all week thinking that she was getting a surprise party that she didn't want.  She couldn't understand why she had gotten cards from people that she normally didn't and why the people that normally did hadn't.  She thought that we were all up to something.

Beth loved her gift tho!  She cried and laughed her way through all 60+ envelopes!  She was so happy that it was not a party!  Thank you to everyone that made her special birthday so fabulous!

For the New Mom

A few posts ago I wrote about all of the gifts I have been working on the last few weeks.  I love gift giving but I don't think my bank account loves it very much.  <Sigh.>

My first project was for my best friend, Kay, who is expecting her first baby!  Due date was yesterday but Jovie hasn't arrive yet.  Auntie Carrie here is pretty excited and has already spoiled the little princess.

Well, you may have noticed that when someone has a baby all the gifts are for the little one, not necessarily the mom or dad.  So, I found on Pinterest a hospital survival kit (pictured above).

If I had more money, I would have bought her a pedicure or even a massage but I'm a poor librarian, so I stuck to the hospital gift basket.  There are a number of options on Pinterest for this.  I took a few items from all and then added my own as well.

First, I headed to Target to gather my supplies.  Then I arranged the items in a really cute bucket found in the dollar aisles at Target (which really wasn't a dollar but it was still a good deal).

Here are the pictures and a list of what I included in the basket.

 (Pens and notebook for writing down things to remember at the hospital.  These were so cute and I found them in the bargain aisle too!)

 (Some necessities that may be of use at the hospital...mouthwash, Kleenex, hand sanitizer, hair ties,Tic Tacs, chap stick, relaxing lotion and face wipes.)

 (Some items to beat the boredom and have a little fun while waiting...magazine, fun socks and nail polish.)

 (Some healthy and sweet treats!)

 (The bucket to hold it all.)

Stay tuned for a post about my boyfriend's birthday gift and another friend's wedding present.

Tis A Gift of Pinterest

I love giving presents, especially creative ones.  Thanks to Pinterest, I am not presented with a wealth of affordable and heartfelt gift ideas.  Before Pinterest I wasn't too bad either but now it's like a door has been opened to a whole new world of gifting possibilities.

 

Due to the fact that some of my readers are going to be recipients of these gifts in the coming weeks I can't release all of the details.  However, I will try to give at least a glimpse of my gifting projects.  After the birthdays, weddings and births happen, I hope to make a full post for each gift.

 

I'm pretty excited about each and everyone of these gifts and I think that each one will provide the recipient with something special and memorable, whether to celebrate an upcoming nuptial, new family member or milestone birthday.

 

The best idea I think I've found so far is what Meg and I will be making for my mom.  Hopefully, it will all work out and she will appreciate it, which I think she will.  Like I said, that will be a post in itself after her birthday in October.

 

 

Stay tuned...