Happy Easter!!

Happy Easter!

I hope everyone had a blessed day!

This year, we had the opportunity to go to Destin, Florida the week before Easter. It was our spring break, so we took the offer! My family and two other families went together, and it was a blessed time of relaxed fellowship.  

The only drawback was that we weren't at our church to participate in the beautiful Easter Sunday service. However, waking up to a beautiful ocean with dolphins jumping....can really speak to you about the Father we serve!

He has risen!

Much love-

Tracy

Mini Cheesecake Easter Baskets

I actually made these on Palm Sunday. We had dinner at church, and I always like to bring fun desserts.

These mini cheesecakes are yummy, and are WAY easy to make!

What you need:

2

pkg. (8 oz. each) Cream Cheese, softened

1/2

cup sugar

1/2

tsp. vanilla

2

 eggs

12

 NILLA Wafers

1-1/2

cups Coconut, tinted green

36

small jelly beans

What you do:

Heat oven to 350°F.

Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla with mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs;beat just until blended.

Place wafer on bottom of each of 12 paper-lined muffin cups. Spoon cream cheese mixture evenly over wafers.

Bake 20 min. or until centers are almost set. Cool. Refrigerate at least 2 hours. Top evenly with coconut and jelly beans just before serving. Keep refrigerated.

Easter Flashbacks

Easter is only a week away....here are some ideas from previous years.

Tiny Easter Goody Baskets

Easter Pails

Spring Nest Cookies

Easter Crayon Surprise

Hope you and your family are enjoying this Easter season!

Happy Easter!

He has risen, risen indeed!!

I truly hope you and your family had a wonderful day celebrating all that we are in Christ!

Happy Easter!-
The Crosbys

Tiny Easter Goodie Baskets

I almost forgot to post these little cuties! I made these for Cash's teachers at school. She's {kinda} Crafty via I [heart] Naptime gave me the idea and tutorial. Anything but Perfect is where I printed these particular tags for the front. Really easy and really really budget friendly. Peeeeeerrrrrrrrfect!

Easter Pails

Until now, I hadn't actually bought/made any kind of Easter basket for the boys. I just tied some ribbon on some random baskets that were in the attic. I wanted to get them their own, but really wasn't interested in spending a lot. Brown Paper Packages found some little pails at Target, and she, brilliantly, realized that these pails would be easily stored because they could be stacked. The light bulb went off! Yes! Pails! Cute cute without being toooo girlie, and great for storing!
I ran out to Target to search for these pails, but was disappointed when I saw how small they were. With Cash turning 5 this summer, and getting taller and taller EVERYDAY(!) the boys would need something a little larger to keep for years to come. Hobby Lobby, however, had what I needed, and had the price I needed. Hobby Lobby did have pails that were already painted, like the ones at Target, but they were more expensive. I already had everything I needed to paint them myself, so I figured getting pails for me to paint would be more budget friendly.
First, I taped off the pail with painter's tape, and primed the part of the pail I wanted to paint. I then painted the primed area of the pail using multiple coats. After it was completely dry, I hot glued some coordinating ribbon to the top of the painted area, placed stickers around the pail, and added ribbon to the sides.
They aren't perfect(I am not the most awesome at straight lines), but I think they turned out pretty cute. The boys like them, and can't wait to use them tomorrow at the Easter Egg hunt!

Happy Egg Hunting!-
TRACY

A New Easter Countdown

Last year I made Cash an Easter countdown. You can see it here. I decided to do it pretty last minute, so it wasn't super cute...but it worked. This year, I knew I wanted to up the fun/cuteness factor, so I started from scratch.

First I bought these connected planters. Super cheap. I think they were about $2 for a set of 4 trays. Buy a pack and split them with a friend. I wanted to countdown from 12 since there are 12 in a dozen, but my planters were in trays of 10. I decided to cut the trays and hot glue them together so I would have 3 rows of 4.
Ric rac is one of my fav's, so I used it to decorate the top of my "basket." Then I added some flowers for a little extra spring-iness. I knew I wanted my basket to have a handle, but had forgotten to buy some wire. (You will see how I use the wire in another project in a few days.) It was kind of late, and the kids were in bed, so I couldn't go snooping around for supplies. ( A lot of my craft stuff is stored in my youngest's room. Lucky me.) Scanning the kitchen, aka my craft spot, I laid eyes on a girl sized headband. PERFECT! After covering it with some ribbon, I hot glued it to the basket. It turned out really sturdy. Not bad for "on the fly."
This year, instead of writing the numbers myself with a sharpie (NOT A GOOD IDEA) I used left over stickers from another project. Much neater.

Each egg has a little message for the boys in it. The message tells how many days until Easter, and sends them on a treasure hunt to find a treat. I printed off all kinds of fun stuff for them....Easter mazes, Easter storybooks to put together, Easter verses to memorize, Easter puzzles, Easter memory game.... some eggs have a little candy treat, too.
Cash is crazy excited to start! Last year he kept sneaking and opening the eggs early. Little frog! Hopefully, since he is sharing with Luc, he will be patient.... :)

Have a fantastic week everyone!-
Tracy

Spring Nest Cookies

I know. I have been M.I.A. for a couple of...well, probably more than a couple of weeks. I hit a rough spot in the road, and it's taken me a couple of weeks to snap out of it. But ATLAS! Spring is here, and my joy has once again risen above the clouds. (Thanks be to God!)

This week the family has been off for spring break. We didn't go anywhere, but rather enjoyed just being home. There has been wonderful weather, yard projects conquered, and quality time spent with my boys....which is something that has been lacking lately.

My energy has slowly been rejuvenated, and I have finally started working creatively. My mind is blowing up with things I want to do to celebrate spring's arrival, but we'll see how it all plays out. I did get to work on a new spring wreath (that post is coming up tomorrow), and of course, Cash and I worked on these little Spring Nest Cookies. They are delightfully yummy, and make me smile just to look at them. PLUS- So. Stink'n.Easy.


Spring Nest Cookies:

12 oz. chow mein Noodles
12 oz. butterscotch morsels
1 big bag egg-shaped chocolates

Line a baking sheet with wax/parchment paper. Place butterscotch morsels in a microwave-safe bowl and place them in the microwave. Heat for 30 seconds then remove to stir. Return to the microwave and heat again for 30 seconds. Stir until melted. Add in the chow mein noodles and mix till combined. Use a 1/4 measuring cup to portion out the cookies onto the baking sheet. If the mixture starts to solidify in the mixing bowl, you can reheat for 15 to 30 seconds to melt. Place three egg-shaped candies in the center of each cookie. Allow to set for at least 5 minutes before serving or transferring.

That's it. This recipe makes 2 1/2 dozen...A LOT!
So run out, right now, and get your ingredients. Whip up a little spring. It will make you feel better, I promise. :)

3/25/11
My boys love the butterscotch, but Andre and I think we would prefer peanut butter morsels....just a thought.

Happy Easter!

Easter was a great day! Church was awesome, and afterward we had an egg hunt for the little ones. The boys had a fantastic time finding eggs, and yes...they looked super cute in their sweater vests. Lunch afterwards was pretty yummy, too. Here are some highlights...

Easter Countdown!

I made this Easter countdown for Cash, but didn't have time to post it earlier. It's pretty cute, and Cash is really excited about it.

What you need:
egg carton 12 plastic eggs
a little Easter grass number stickers/rub ons
treats for inside.
I also put an Easter Bible verse in each egg to read, and discuss with Cash when he opens each one. Some of the verses have a little note on the back that says, "Cash, look under the kitchen table." or something like that. Then when he looks, he finds another non-edible treat, like a bunny maze.
My eggs aren't as cute as the ones that gave me the idea, but I didn't have any number stickers or rub-ons. I didn't want to wait another day to pick some up, so I just used a purple sharpie...yeah, not super cute. Cash didn't seem to mind, so ok it'll work. :)
PS- I took these pic's late at night in my living room, so it wasn't the best lighting. I messed with the color, just to make them more interesting... my artistic flare coming out. (um...not really.)

PSS- If you want to do this, but haven't started, you could always do a 6 egg countdown.

Enjoy, and HAPPY EASTER!

Spring Has Sprung...at least at our house

A week or two ago, Cash and I had a day of craftiness. A couple of things I already posted, but some I held off on for days like this. The boys and I have been fighting off a nasty stomach virus the last few days. While I can't get up and move about much, I can sit with my laptop comfortably enough for a while before I start to feel sick again. Needless to say, there has not been much going on, so it's good to keep a few things up my sleeve for such an occasion.

We made lovely little Easter crayon surprises for all of Cash and Luc's friends. If you are one of these, please act surprised when you receive yours. :) It was an idea stolen, of course, from erin
who is a crafting genius. :) (Loving that shout out, eh Erin?)
Here's how it works...gather up any broken crayons you may have. This was super easy for me because I teach 5th grade. Once it's broken just a little...it's tainted in their eyes. After you gather them, unwrap them.
Cash liked unwrapping them for about a minute. Then he pronounced, "Mom, why don't you finish this part of the craft by yourself?" He proceeded to leave me in the kitchen alone. Once they are unwrapped, you can break them into smaller pieces and color sort them. I used an ice tray to make it easier for Cash to help, and he was all about this part.
Notice: Chocolate around Cash's mouth. What has he been eating?? hhhmmmm.
Just to be sure the crayons didn't stick to the tray, I sprayed a light coating of PAM.
We then placed the broken pieces in a cookie mold sheet in the shape of flowers. (Erin used ice trays, so that might be a less expensive option.) I mix up correlating colors to make a swirly effect.
Cash has his construction hat on site to make this crayon business seem more "manly." :)
Heat cookie tray in oven at 250 degrees for about 10-13 minutes. Just long enough to melt the wax.













Let the tray cool completely, then pop those beautiful babies out! You now have recycled, reused, and reduced! Good for you!
PRESENTATION: My personal favorite.
I wrapped a couple in cellophane,(there goes my points for reducing) and tied the ends like a piece of candy adding a little note.