the magic of disney

Sorry for the absence.... We surprised our kids with a trip to Disney!  On Thursday evening we told the children that we were going to take them on an adventure the next day and that we would have to wake them up early in the morning.  I secretly packed our bags and the car and put breakfast in Disney bags for the car ride to the airport.  On Friday morning we woke them up early and stuck them in the car with their breakfast to go.  After driving for a little while we stopped and told them where we were going.  I had my daughter read cards, one for each word, that read "we are going to Disney World!"  They were VERY excited.  Then when they got to the airport they found out that we were going with their cousins.  They were thrilled.  We had a fantastic time.  Getting to witness the magic of Disney through my children's eyes was something that I will never forget.  My sister in law planned the entire trip and was the best tour guide a family could ever ask for.  We are overflowing with gratitude for the whole experience.  Have you ever surprised someone with a special trip?  I highly recommend it!

that's a wrap

This was the gift we gave to our friends for their wedding this past weekend.  We got them some Kate Spade glasses that had "his" and "hers" on them and a carafe that had "ours" etched  on it.  I carefully opened the box that held the glasses and tucked in the bride and grooms favorite libations.  Since the boxes were beautiful as is, I just wrapped them in cellophane and added a ribbon.  It would also be fun to give the glasses as a wedding shower gift and the carafe as the wedding present.

the lorax

We went to a wedding in New Jersey this weekend!  Some friends (with two girls of their own) offered to watch our older two so that we could attend.  I wanted to give them a little thank you combined with an activity for the kids.  My inspiration was the Lorax movie.  I tucked the movie and some snack cups into a white popcorn bucket and made some lorax straws with bright yellow mustaches on them.  I included some Lorax themed snacks too:  humming fish (goldfish crackers) bar ba loots (teddy grahams) and white truffula seeds (mini marshmallows).  For the grown ups I dressed up a bottle of wine for them to enjoy after the kids were all in bed and I attached a gift certificate to the local movie theatre so that their whole family could enjoy a movie on us.  I also packed a small jar of Hershey kisses with a label that said "Magic mommy kisses.  Take two and I'll see you in the morning."  I left them with our friends but didn't tell the children about them.  They were just there just in case and luckily they weren't needed.
I can probably count on one hand the number of times that we have spent a night away from our children.  As always I was a little apprehensive, but it was funny because the kids were so excited about watching the movie and eating the snacks that they couldn't wait for us to leave!  Here is another idea that I used when we were gone for a whole weekend. 

an apple for the teacher

Today was my son's first day of pre-school!  We gave each teacher an apple with a tiny individual jar of caramel dip!  I first saw this idea on Pinterest and immediately pinned it to my fall board.  I put each jar onto a cellophane bag and tied some red and white polka dot ribbon and an apple clip to the top.   I also found an adorable apple basket to put them for easier transport to school.  My son loved putting this together for his teachers and was so excited to hand them out on the first day.   He had a wonderful day and I was thrilled to see a huge smile on his face when I picked him up this afternoon.  What more could a mom want?!?  This would also be adorable for any fall party or for a gift for teacher appreciation.

that's a wrap

 

 

 

This time the gift is for me!  I have been eyeing this pumpkin wreath from Williams Sonoma since last year.  But, at $99.95 I just couldn't justify it. 

 

 

(via)

So imagine my delight when I saw this wreath at the Christmas Tree shop for $16.99!  I added some brown satin ribbon (that I picked up at Micheal's craft store) and hung it on our back door.  Not exactly the same, but close enough for me.

 

 

 

We had a wonderful prelude to the end of summer with a long weekend at the Cape.  Now I am ready for fall.  I have been drinking pumpkin coffees, listening to James Taylor's
"October Road" album and cooking and baking a lot!