Jan. 14, 2015

I Heart Downloads

Today I’m sharing some sweet downloads for Valentine’s Day. I always love coming up with something fun for Dax to take to school for his friends, but also like doing something a bit more special than the store bought cards. So this year I have four fun ideas for your little one, and a few special somethings for home and work as well!

For the office: These two backgrounds have been making me so giddy each morning. The Be Mine floral wreath and February calendar desktop wallpapers are sure to brighten your day too. Bonus! I couldn’t get over the cuteness of that lil heart, so you can download one for your phone too!

Free desktop wallpaper for valentines day. Be mine floral wreath and polka dots.  |  Intentionandgrace.com
Free desktop wallpaper digital download with  February 2015 calendar   |  Intentionandgrace.com Free digital download iphone 5, iphone 6 or iphone 6 plus wallpaper with red, pink and polka dot background  |  Intentionandgrace.com

For the Kids: All these goodies cost around $1 each. Grab a pair of socks from the dollar bin at Target or Michaels, a box of apple sauce or fruit pouches, a small box of crayons, or a cute lil bundle of Cuties for your kids to share with their friends on Valentine’s day.

Free printable kids valentines tags and cards for kids and toddlers.  |  Intentionandgrace.com Free printable kids valentines tags and cards for kids and toddlers.  |  Intentionandgrace.com Free printable kids valentines tags and cards for kids and toddlers.  |  Intentionandgrace.com Free printable kids valentines tags and cards for kids and toddlers.  |  Intentionandgrace.com Free printable kids valentines tags and cards for kids and toddlers.  |  Intentionandgrace.com

For the home: This cute bunting banner is great for your home mantel, above the bed to add some spice in your room, or strung in an office or classroom. Simply print, cut, and string it together for some easy Valentine’s decor. I used these mini clothes pins for mine.

Valentines Day Bunting Banner for the mantel or office  |  Intentionandgrace.com Printable Valentines banner   |  Intentionandgrace.com Valentines Day flag Banner   |  Intentionandgrace.com Valentines-downloads-12

Banner and Gift Tags

Be Mine Desktop  |  Calendar Desktop

iPhone 5  |  iPhone 6  |  iPhone 6 Plus

 

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Jul. 31, 2014

Totally Toddler

New moms ask me all the time what my go-to items are, and what items I would stay from as they plan for the arrival of their new little ones. Although I really think that each mom will realize what works best for them and stick to those, these are some of our favorite toddler items that have made our lives as parents much easier!

Our favorite toddler items. The best sippy  straw cup, some awesome shoes and amber teething necklace plus more!

1. These munchkin cups are the BEST sippy straw cups there are! We encouraged Maddax to use a straw when he was pretty young because we felt like it was more practical when we were out and about at restaurants and just didn’t want him to get attached to a sippy cup if it wasn’t a necessary in between. After trying some of the adorable character options from Target we realized that each time they dropped on the floor the lids would pop off and make a huge mess. From there we tried several other options before finally coming across these Munchkin cups. The best part? That little circle at the bottom of the straw is a weight! It is the perfect way to transition your babe from a bottle or sippy cup to a straw. No matter what angle he is drinking the cups, they don’t spill or leak and he can always get water. We couldn’t be happier!

2. This summer we purchased some of these rubber shoes from Old Navy. They have been AMAZING! I love that they are cute enough he can wear them to school with a nice pair of shorts, or he can thrown them on with his swim suit to head to the pool. We took them with us on our trip to the beach this summer and they were the best. I feel like cloth water shoes get full of sand and dirt and are impossible to fully clean out, but these simply rinsed clean the first time. Some other similar options are these Crocs, or these amazing Native Shoes that I have my eye on when ours wear out.

3. When Maddax outgrew his baby bath we had the hardest time finding a new seat for him to use. It didn’t seem like there were any options for a baby that is a little rocky at holding himself up, but too big for a newborn bath seat. After trying an inflatable version that was hard to clean out, slippery and clumsy and a plastic laundry basket, that he did NOT want to sit in, we received this bath seat off Amazon as a christmas gift.

4. Maddax got these AMAZING Inchbug Orbit Labels from his Aunt Lacy last year for Christmas and we have loved them every day since! Gone are the days where I am peeling masking tape off of bottles and cups before washing them, or making sure all his cups are clearly labeled. Just stretch these bad boys around any bottle or cup and it’s good to go. They are dishwasher safe and never need to be removed for separate cleaning. Plus, they come in lots of different colors so if you have more than one kiddo you can easily distinguish whose is whose!

5. Okay, I know these sound crazy, and I was skeptical at first, but the Amber Teething Necklace has saved us so many tears, tantrums, and drool covered shirts over the last few months. Our lil guy was a water faucet before we purchased one of these necklaces off Etsy, but every time he wears it he rarely drools, doesn’t get a fever and his teeth seem to pop through! Before the necklace it felt like cutting a tooth would drag on for days and weeks, but last month he cut four molars with barely a groan or cry. AMAZING! Everyone should at least give it a try.

6. Of course we love pottery barn, how could you NOT?! But these Monogrammed Hooded Beach Towels are so nice! We use ours everywhere! The bath, the beach, the pool, they are great on every occasion, wash well and come in several cute designs.

 

What are you favorites for your little boy or girl? Share them with me by leaving a comment below!

 

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Apr. 8, 2014

DIY: Decorate it yourself

DIY: Decorate it yourself Smash Cake and cupcakes  |  Intentionandgrace.com  black and white birthday cakes with edible paper cutouts for first birthday decorations

Continuing my post from Friday today I have our cake DIY. This simple Decorate it Yourself can be done on any size or shape cake to take it from plain to fab in just a few minutes.

Our son turned one at the end of March and although I knew I would not have time to bake his first birthday cake, I did find the simplest way to have a custom decorated cake for only $10.

DIY: Decorate it yourself Smash Cake and cupcakes | Intentionandgrace.com black and white birthday cakes with edible paper cutouts for first birthday decorations

This cake was purchased from our favorite local bakery and cost a whopping $5! I told the baker I wanted one layer of white cake and one of chocolate with whip cream frosting and no decoration including border icing. We also got a couple dozen cupcakes in simple white floral frosting for guests to enjoy. I had originally planned on getting a sheet of fondant from our local craft store, but when I saw that one sheet was over $10 I was immediately reluctant. Fortunately, hanging right below the fondant was black sugar paper for only $2.40 with my 40% off Hobby Lobby coupon from the HobLob app. I was a bit concerned this would turn out looking cheap, turn my child’s mouth and teeth purple or be impossible for him to eat, but it turned out to be much nicer than I could have imagined and I loved working with it.

The edible paper came with a plastic backing on it, making it extremely easy to work with. I had originally planned on simply cutting triangle shapes to create a geometric pattern on the cake similar to this beauty. But when I saw how easy the material was to work with I decided to use my Silhouette Cutter to cut custom shapes out instead. If you too have a Silhouette cutter I set mine to the heavy card stock setting and it cut just fine. But for those of you who don’t have a Silhouette, using a simple ruler and pizza cutter could add some adorable stripes or a grab a simple shape die cut to punch out some shapes that fit your theme. Martha Stewart makes several, especially adorable border die cutters for a bit more fancy or girly cake theme.  It’s that simple! You can have a custom cake in minutes for only a few bucks.

DIY: Decorate it yourself Smash Cake and cupcakes | Intentionandgrace.com black and white birthday cakes with edible paper cutouts for first birthday decorations

For the cake topper, I simply tied some twine around two straws that I got in a pack of 12 in the dollar section at Michaels with some die cuts from the scrapbook section.

DIY: Decorate it yourself Smash Cake and cupcakes | Intentionandgrace.com black and white birthday cakes with edible paper cutouts for first birthday decorations

And the cupcake wrappers were simple as could be also! I used this template and some printed card stock to make mine. Or you could pick out your favorite scrapbook card stocks to match your theme and cut or if you simply search “Cupcake Wrapper Printable” on Pinterest, hundreds of designs come up that you could print, cut and use.

I love how everything turned out and it was so special for me that I could have a part in making Maddax his first cake. Even if he won’t remember it. :)

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Apr. 4, 2014

Wild One

Update: To purchase aspects of this theme, please visit my Etsy Shop!

Our son turned one last Saturday and I wanted to share some photos from his Powwow themed first birthday party. I can not believe how fast one year can go! I know it is said all the time, but until you have a child of your own it is impossible to fully understand. I used to think first birthday parties were generally overdone considering the kids won’t remember them. But as the time neared to begin planning, I had so much love for this little guy that my craftiness and party-planning spirit was just bursting at the seams. So did I over do it? Maybe. But for me, it was so worth it.

To start our decor off we flipped our dining table around and pushed it against a wall to display the food in a festive and open way. This gave our guests a bit more room to grab a bite and chit chat when they arrived.

First Powwow Teepee Birthday Party Theme | Intentionandgrace.com

“Sun-rays” (orange juice) and water from the “Watering Hole” were served with some hors d’oeuvres style breakfast items.

First Powwow Teepee Birthday Party Theme | Intentionandgrace.com

First Powwow Teepee Birthday Party Theme | Intentionandgrace.com

Maddax loves breakfast food so I knew I wanted to have a brunch style spread while also keeping it simple and easy, so we themed the spread around that using bite sized minis that the kids could also enjoy nibbling on. There were Mocca-Cinnamon Rolls, Yogurt Straight Shooters, Powwow Pancakes, and Powdered Arrows served along side some yummy cupcakes, juice and water. There was very little prep time for me so I could focus on making the presentation a bit more fun and I love how it all turned out!

First Powwow Teepee Birthday Party Theme | Intentionandgrace.com

First Powwow Teepee Birthday Party Theme | Intentionandgrace.com

We pulled out our beautiful striped teepee from this kiddos bedroom and utilized it as the designated gift area until it was time to open presents. First Powwow Teepee Birthday Party Theme | Intentionandgrace.com First Powwow Teepee Birthday Party Theme | Intentionandgrace.com

I got the most amazing leggings on Etsy and some Moccs on GroopDealz last fall that fit his birthday theme perfectly. For his shirt I used my Silhouette Cameo cutter (love!) to create a custom design and ironed it onto a white pocked t-shirt from Target. His little silhouette just fills me with joy.

We also framed a little infographic full of all things Maddax. His age, height, weight, and number of teeth. Favorite books, TV show, activity, song, food and toy. As well as his current nicknames, first words and some of the things he learned to do this year.

First Powwow Teepee Birthday Party Theme | Intentionandgrace.com

On the way out there were little goodie bags with “Indian Corn” (flavored popcorn) for guests to grab as they left. These were simple white paper lunch bags that I ran through the printer and printed buffalos on and sealed with some cute little stickers I got on sale for $5 online.

First Powwow Teepee Birthday Party Theme | Intentionandgrace.com

Our sweet little family was just overjoyed to celebrate the big O-N-E with so many of our loved ones. Thanks to all our friends and family for their love and support as we took on our first year of parenthood. We couldn’t feel more blessed or loved.

First Powwow Teepee Birthday Party Theme | Intentionandgrace.com   First Powwow Teepee Birthday Party Theme | Intentionandgrace.com

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Nov. 22, 2013

My favorite advent calendar DIYs

AdventCalendarLayout

My little guy is still too young to really know what is going on with an advent calendar, but I am still dying to make one. Still, I have always struggled a little bit with what to put in them… it seems impossible to find 25 cute toys that are tiny enough to include and I’m not a huge fan of the candy idea, but when my friend Denise told me she was including a name of someone to pray for on each day I knew I was hooked. Such a great idea! Which one is your favorite? I’m kinda leaning towards the beautifully filled ornaments, but am also loving the simplicity of those black and white graphic boxes. They are just my style!

 

ONE  /  TWO  /  THREE  /  FOUR  /  FIVE  /  SIX

 

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