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

Playing in the Yard

I have a lot of things that I am almost ready to post, but not quite....be on the look out...these projects are coming around the bend:
Spring banner
spring mantle decor
family calendar
Sweater refashon
twine decorative balls

For today, here are some pics of my sweet little guys playing in the yard last week....

Aren't they the sweetest little boys ever???
Hope you all are having a fabulous day!

Responsibility

For the longest time, I have wanted to create a "chore" or "task" chart for the boys. I found a couple that I really liked, and realized that we didn't want the boys to consider some of the things on the chart a "chore" (like saying prayers or obeying), so when I saw Erin's "Responsibility Chart" I thought that was a perfect title.
Ok, so I knew what it was going to be called, and what was going to be on the list, but I didn't know how I wanted to make it. There are all kinds of cute ones out there in blog land... My husband made the decision for me. He picked the one that seemed like the easiest to make and take care of. Total guy move. Probably the best move, though. I finished it in record time, and the boys have been over the moon for it so far. :)
I found the idea over at Moss Moments via Brown Paper Packages- Thanks ladies!
What you need:
frame
scrapbook paper (optional)
typed list
embellishments (optional)
dry erase marker
glue

Pretty much...
*pick your frame. I went with a larger frame. I think maybe it's a 12x16. It's one we already had and wasn't using.
* Pick some background paper, and embellishments you might want to use. I used a couple of felt stars.
* Type/print or write out your child's name and his/her list.
* I cut each list out and distressed sides with ink pad.
* I used a piece of card stock to frame lists, and distressed edges.
* My scrapbook paper wasn't long enough, so I had to add a piece of the card stock to the bottom of my frame. I printed the little saying to go on this part, and of course, distressed saying with ink pad.
*Type/Print title.
* Put it all together how ever makes you happy, and.....

OH YEAH, You're done!
Cash and Luc just mark through the things they complete on the list, and at the end of the day we just wipe it clean again.

We don't want to just "give" Cash money, we want him to "earn" it. By using this chart, he can earn money daily for being a responsible part of our household. How much??? Get ready...wait for it...wait...1 penny for each responsibility carried out. Yup, he has the ability to make .10 cents a day. He's four. It's fun for him to put all the pennies in his bank, and it doesn't break my bank. :) Eventually, he will save up some money (he does do other things on different occasions to earn money...like pick up pine cones in the yard for Andre), and we will be able to teach him how to "Save, Give, and Spend" his money.
Anyway, there you have it. What I did on a rainy Saturday morning. If you want to check out some different ways to create your own chart.....look.....

Brown Paper Packages
A Bird and A Bean
Tip Junkie

Beauty 4 Ashes

Of course, all you really have to do is GOOGLE "responsibility chart" or "chore chart" and dozens o f printables will pop up.

Enjoy!

Luc's Party Part 2: friends & the birthday boy!

I really love this picture of Luc. My friend, Sarah, gets the cred for it. (Thanks!) Soooo, it's been a couple of days since I posted Part 1 of Luc's party, but in my defense...I was hit with a stomach bug. Yuck. Yeah, so I didn't really feel human for a few days. Once I recovered, I had to get ready for my mom's arrival. (She flew into town yesterday! WHooHOo!) Needless to say, things have been crazy. Anyway, here are some picsof Luc's buddies and the birthday boy, himself, enjoying the festivities.

Luc at home the morning of his birthday opening one of his presents.

He loves his new rain boots from Granny V!

The infamous "Toss the Candy" game. Big hit with the little folks.


This year, Luc didn't grab the flame. No tears were shed during the birthday song.

Cash and Finn give their "super silly" faces.

Luc welcomes newcomer, Jaxson, to the Crosby party circuit.


Luc and Flori share the same birthday, but Luc is a year older. Aren't they just too cute?

Good times.

Luc's Party Part 1: Decor, Food, and Games

Ok, so there is too much to show in one day. I thought I would spread it out a little... Today I will present you with, as the title states, decor, food, and games. Tomorrow I will post pics of the birthday boy, and guests. (If you are a guest and don't want me to put up your pic...now's the time to say...)

Let's get started. Here is the lollipop invite. I wanted to use mostly blue and red, so my lollis were all one of the two. This is how they looked when I gave them out.
Once you take the ribbon and wrapping off, you can see that there is another part of the invite.
Well, it was a candy theme. I now know that I bought too much candy. I admit it. Don't tell my husband that I admitted it, though..ok? It's sooooo hard to measure....Anyway, I didn't go over budget, and that's what was important. Back to candy. and food....
Candy consisted of Pretzel M&Ms, Twizzlers, Dum Dums, Gummy Bears, Gumballs, and a Kiddimix that had all kinds of stuff. I didn't stray to far from sugar with the rest of the food.... rainbow cupcakes, oreo truffles, chocolate covered marshmallows, and popcorn. yum. I also made a flag banner to hang across the two tables using scrapbook paper and yarn.
I used my own and some borrowed big glass containers, and labeled with ribbon and tags.
A fan of cupcake toppers, I couldn't forget them. I made three different ones and alternated the background circle of scrapbook paper. Ah! They were really cute.
The popcorn cups also had the same labels as the cupcake toppers.
Another banner hanging above the table....
Close up of rainbow cupcakes...yummmmmy
Of course, everyone got to take loads of candy home with them using cute favor bags....

I asked my friend, Kristy, to sew me some rice bags for the "Candy Toss" game. She did such a great job! Soooooseeewww cute! The kids loved playing this game. I forgot to take a pic, but I just used a big galvanized bucket and tied a bunch of blue/red ribbon on the handles. The kids would have done this game ALL DAY!The other game we played was a pin the tale on the donkey game, except it was pin the lollipop on Luc. I drew and colored this big poster of Luc (used the elmo at school), and printed a pic of a lollipop to use. The kids weren't super excited about being blindfolded, but they were all good sports...well, most of them cheated, but they did let me blindfold them. :)

It turned out to be a great party. I wish my pics were a bit better, but of course, I was running late still putting decorations up when guests started arriving. Once I finished, I ran around again trying to take pictures so I could start the games with the kids. Other than that...successful afternoon. Everything looked and TASTED great, and Luc had a fabulous time. You will see tomorrow when I post all the cute little pics of him and his friends. :)