DIY Boxed Lunch Ideas

 My boys love… I mean… LUUUUV… hanging out with their paw paw. Hanging out with their paw paw means there are TONS of fun things in store.

You see, “Paw Paw,” lives (and operates) a beef farm, and a short trip to see him, usually includes seeing big, four-legged creatures that say “moo,” a tractor ride, and a “wade,” in the spring.

So the other day, we set out on an adventure and headed to Paw-Paw’s with a surprise in store for him. A Coke. It’s his favorite and we knew it would make his day.

In his own words:

I drink a Coke every morning for breakfast. There’s nothin’ better.

When we arrived at his house, as always… he was working outside. (He’s the hardest worker I know.)

Pulling in the drive, my boys shouted with excitement,

There he is! There’s Paw Paw!

Farming + Grandkids + Coke = Paw Paw’s Day is Made

Up on the tractor they went, handed Paw Paw his Coke, and “Mom” was no longer there. Who needs mom when you have your paw paw, and a farm anyway, right?

I sat back quietly as the boys went about their business, and got the “work,” done.

There is something absolutely heart-melting, watching your own kids, “light-up,” when they’re spending time with someone that makes you “light-up,” too.

Let’s go boys, time to feed the bulls…

I forget how little they are until I see ’em like this. Such precious babies they are. 

My dad’s big “pet,” he calls it… this bull did NOT get the memo of the photoshoot. I mean… he could have taken a dip in the creek or something before I came.

Break Time

You know, that farmin’ is hard work. It was time to take a break, and head to the creek and grab a drink…(and skip a rock or two).

No words needed… (insert this momma’s heart-melting).

Sharing a Coke with Grandpa… it just tastes better. Apparently.

Although we’ve made this trip to Paw Paw’s, a thousand and twenty-three times,  (ok not that many surely) I’ve never just grabbed my camera to capture memories of it. I’m so incredibly thankful for these simple moments that we tend to take for granted.

But now… it’s time for Mommy to enjoy hers. 😉

Until next time,

XO!

My sister and her husband are the most creative people that I know. With her creative brain, and his mad handy-man skillzzz… the two of them together, blow my mind.

If you saw the crawfish boil party that I had for my son, you already know how awesome my sister and brother-in-law are. Seriously… go look if you haven’t —-> Crawfish Boil Party

Turning a Crib in to a Dressing Room

I can’t exactly remember how the conversation came up, but when I found out that my sister and her husband took a crib, and transformed it in to a “dress-up,” area for my toddler niece… I told her that I HAD to see a picture of that. {Mainly because I couldn’t picture in my head what in the heck that they were talking about.}

After they sent this first picture… I TOTALLY knew where they were going with it. How cool is this? But just wait…

Second photo that I received…

{Isn’t that adorable? You can tell that my niece couldn’t WAIT to start hanging up her princess dresses.}

So do you see what they did there? They used the “spring,” part of the crib, as a place to hang the dresses and play clothes. BRILLIANT.

But just wait…

Umm…. Yeah. They told me that it’s still not finished {mainly because I think they are just perfectionists}, but I am FLABBERGASTED at how fabulous this turned out.

{Ahem… I bought the pink net for my niece for Christmas. Hey… I had to get a little credit for something in this DIY project, right? Ok ok… my sister even told me to buy that for her.}

So as you can see, by the perfect little model herself… she LOVES how this dressing room turned out.

I SERIOUSLY want one of these in my room. I wonder if my sister and her husband can turn my bed in to a dressing room? Here guys… here’s a tour of my master bedroom

take a look and see what you can come up with —-> Master Bedroom Tour  😉

Now you KNOW this DIY project doesn’t have to be just for girls. My sons would LOVE this, so they could put their superman and batman costumes on… anytime that they want.

 Are you dying to know how they did this transformation?  Let me know in the comments below, and I may be able to sweet talk them in to telling us… 😉

Pin it like a crazy person:

How to Get Beach Waves: A quick 7 easy steps on how I get beach waves with a curling wand, and the hair products that I use!

I couldn’t be more than excited to share with you, How I get beach waves in my hair! I’ve had so many people ask recently if I’d do a tutorial, and since I’m FAR from a hair stylist, I was like, “Whaaaat!? But I don’t know what I’m doing!” But then I realized you may want to see someone do their hair, that’s not a professional, so you can relate! 🙂

How to Get Beach Waves

I’ve provided photos of the step by step instructions of how to do beach waves, but I’ve also included a video tutorial at the bottom of this post, in case you’re a “watch and learn,” kinda person. 🙂

Step 1:

Grab a top layer of hair, and clip it up at the top. You’ll begin curling with the bottom layer.

Step 2:

Spray the entire bottom layer with a heat thermal spray. I use “Chi Iron Guard.” After trying a lot of brands, even being guilty of trying to get by with the generic Sally Beauty brands… Chi Iron Guard is faaar better, in my opinion.

Step 3:

I start by grabbing a one inch section, and brushing through that section, just to remove any tangles or frizz, so I’ll get a “cleaner,” curl.

Grab your pre-heated curling wand. I recommend the Bed Head Curlipops Curling Wand. It’s so easy to use, and even comes with a glove if you want to use it! 🙂

Buy the Curling Wand HERE!

*Note: You will take a different approach when working with the strands that are around the face. So when we move on to the next strand, I’m going to give you a different technique. 

Starting with the first strand that’s by your face:

   About half way up (Not all the way at the top, next to your head) you’ll place your curling wand on top of the hair at an angle, and start wrapping the hair around the wand, in an “outter,” motion. (You will be switching back and forth between each 1-inch section.)
When you’re wrapping the hair, don’t overlap the hair. Each time you wrap the hair, make sure it directly touches the wand…not rest on top of the previous wrapped-around hair.

Step 4:

After about 10 seconds, pull the curling wand straight out of the hair, while cupping your other hand underneath the curled hair, holding it for about 5 seconds, allowing the freshly curled hair to cool while it’s still in the “roll.” Gently remove your hand, and let your hair go.

Yeah! Just like that! See that first curl!?

Step 5:

Ok! Very good! Now let’s move on to the next 1-inch strand of hair, and you’ll do it a bit different this time.

Starting at the TOP of the hair (right by the head), place your curling wand UNDER the strand, and wrap the hair around, in an “over,” motion. Keep your wand “straight” in a horizontal position, and not diagonal this time.

Here’s a side view of the way it looks when you’ve wrapped the entire strand around the wand. (I did overlap a bit in this one, and I’ve slapped my hand for that. Ooops.)

Now you have two curls! Look at you go!

Step 6:

Ok! Now… on the third time, go back to curling it, and place the wand on top of the hair and wrap it around in an “under,” motion. So what you’re doing is changing back and forth after each hair strand, mixing it up, so you’re not doing ever strand in the same motion.

• • Continue on, going about your business, and finish curling out the entire bottom section of hair.

• When the bottom layer is complete, unclip the top layer, spray with your CHI Iron Guard, and begin curling the top layer of hair, remembering to ALTERNATE going over/under with each strand.

Step 7:

All curled? Excellente! Now… grab a “polish,” like the CHI Pliable Polish that I use, and put about a marble size dab of it in the palm of your hand. Rub your hands together, mixing between the fingers, just to evenly coat,

and start running your hands/fingers through your hair, breaking up the “tightness,” of the curl, and to give your hair a more “pieced,” look, rather than a curled mass of hair. 🙂

This is where I also kind of “flip,” my hair around from side to side, and add volume with my fingers by “teasing,” the hair at the crown of my head, etc.
(You may laugh, but each day, my hair decides if it wasn’t to favor the “left,” or “right,” side of my face; no matter how I style it! So, I let it determine which side it prefers that day, and run with it.)  🙂

(Now don’t look closely below, because I’m sure you can see my “grays,” starting to show up in this “30 something,” head.)

There they are! You have successfully created beach waves in your hair!

Now I do use hair spray to lock-in the beach waves on my hair. You obviously don’t HAVE to have hair spray to create beach waves, so I didn’t want to make that a step. But… it does hold the wave longer for me, and I LOVE LOVE LOVE using the Big Sexy Spray and Play, because when I “poof,” up my hair with my fingers, when I’m running the Pliable Polish in, I like to “freeze,” that volume that I’ve created.

You like that “hair spray,” action shot? Yeah, my helper Brandy was good like that. You should have seen the excitement on her face when she realized she caught that “moment,” in her photo taking process.)  😉

Are you more of a “watch and learn,” kinda person?

Well then I’ve created this video tutorial just for you!

How to Get Beach Waves Video Tutorial

I soooo hope that this was helpful for you, and that you are ready to create beach waves in your hair!

TIDBIT: You may have to reference this a couple of times, before you get the “hang,” of it. So “Pin,” this image below, so you can always reference it!

Thank you for coming by!

Take it Easy Relaxation Gift Basket Idea for Men or Women: This simple gift idea is perfect for any man or woman for ANY occasion! Who wouldn’t love a basket with an excuse to relax!

My sister’s birthday was in December, and she’s one of those, “My birthday is around Christmas, so everyone forgets about it,” kinda people. Do you know someone like this too? 😉

This year, I’m pretty excited about her gift. Not only was it so EASY… not only is it a concoction of things for relaxing…not only is it gender neutral and perfect for those men & women that are hard to shop for  in your lives… IT’S something that can be used over and over again!

Relaxation Gift Basket Idea for Men or Women

What’s Included?

I’ve done a little research for you, and found similar items to create this gift basket idea for men OR women, at the bottom of this post! So all you have to do is go snag them, and put them in the canvas basket when it comes in! 

Fur Throw:

Well I found this one at Restoration Hardware the other day, (here’s a similar fur throw) along with “down” slippers (get similar slippers).  I’m telling ya…it’s like slipping your foot in to a little slice-o-Heaven.

Coffee Mug & Tea Towel:

Then I added in the “Good Morning,” coffee mug from World Market. I also added a little tea towel from H&M, just for a little pizzazz, and in case she makes a little spill while sippin’ her coffee. Oh … coffee. That would be a really nice little addition to this gift basket too. 😉

Storage Tote:

Now we can’t forget about the adorable “storage,” tote that I found at H&M Home, to put it all in!

This gift basket idea is spot-on for any other kind of event that you’ll need a gift for.

How about:

• Valentine’s Day Gift Idea (Or you may also love this Gift Idea for a Boyfriend!)
• Mother’s Day Gift Ideas (Or see what mom really wants for Mother’s Day?)
• Father’s Day Gift Ideas
• Best Friend Gift Ideas
• Gender Neutral Secret Pal Gift

Now no worries. You don’t have to have this same tote, blanket, coffee cup, or slippers. Just find any container, and throw any kind of patterns/colors together. But I did find similar items below that would work perfect to create this gift…

We had our sons, “Woodland Friends,” first birthday party, and it was a real “hoot.”

(No pun intended. Ok, maybe a little.)

Considering this was my second kiddo’s first birthday, I wanted to make sure that we did the same type of celebration for him, that we did for our oldest sons, first birthday. {See that party here: Airplane First Birthday Party}

So that meant inviting friends and family, extra sweets, and fun little “extras,” to make it super special. (That you’ll see below.)

Woodland Friends Party

When I decided on the Woodland Friends party theme, I knew that I better start off by contacting someone for my invitations. “Perfect Printables,” came to my rescue!

Not only did Megan run with the theme when I told her my ideas, the customer service, and production turn-around time, was impeccable! She knew I had kinda slacked, and waited until the last minute to order them, but she totally made it happen for me. “Perfect Printables,” will definitely be on my contact list for party invitations in the future!

TIP: If you’d like to design your own birthday invitation, see how you can make your own birthday invitation in Canva!

(I smudged out the address and phone number for photo purposes. I assure you that they were spot on, and “perfect.” No pun intended. Ok.. maybe a little again.)

Aren’t they adorable!?

For my oldest son’s first birthday, we asked the guests to forgo bringing a birthday gift, but if they insisted on bringing something, we would love to donate goodies to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.

This time, we did the same, and donated goodies to “Operation Christmas Child.” What a wonderful organization it is, and what a great feeling imagining boys and girls opening gifts on Christmas that they may not have received otherwise. (I had Perfect Printables create a small card to include with the invites, explaining the details for the guests!)

Keeping with tradition, we like to create a time capsule for our kiddos, so guests can write a little message for the birthday boy, that they can open on their 20th birthday and read what everyone had to say! We lock it away, and he will wipe the dust off in 19 years, and see what’s been said. 🙂

Ok guys… seriously… this was the easiest party I have ever thrown. Adding in “stuffed,” forest animals, created such an easy, adorable touch to the dessert table. So if you’re planning on throwing a woodland theme party, I highly suggest grabbing stuffed animals for décor!

So let me say… I now have a major crush on The Pretty Paper Studio’s Etsy shop, and I can be pretty particular when it comes to printables for one of my parties. When I searched Etsy, and found them, I immediately fell in love. It’s almost as if they are in my brain, and know what my taste is exactly.

The Birthday Party Mega Pack, was ABSOLUTELY perfect for the direction I was going in! Water bottle covers, cupcake toppers, signs, food tents, and so much more! Fantabulous customer service, and precious designs…. make a combination that automatically adds them to my “go-to” list for party printables, and you should too! See why:

The backdrop of any dessert table is always a highlight, and I couldn’t think of a better place for the “Happy Birthday,” banner. Seriously… the colors, and modern look to the printables are just too…stinkin…cute!

Such a sweet little welcome sign, creates a warm welcome to any dessert table… don’t you think?

Let’s get in to the dessert table details, shall we?

I found the wood cake stands at Hobby Lobby, and I’m so glad that I did. I was so already preparing to head to my mom and dads farm, and “sweet talk” my dad in to becoming a lumber jack. 🙂

Ok, woodland friends or not… I still had to throw in a white porcelain cake stand {or two}. I have to squeeze in a little “girly,” in this house full of boys!

Eeeeek! The cupcake toppers were the perfect addition to the cupcakes. {I’m no baker, let alone cupcake decorator… so when I could count on The Pretty Paper Studio’s cupcake toppers, I knew I was saved!}

I can’t throw a party without having Sweet. Sassy’s cake pops. I sent over a picture that I found on Pinterest, asked if they could do it, and they were up for the challenge! So excited with the way they turned out. Delicious… as always… too!

The night before the party, I shared on my Facebook page that I had found a new love, in the sweet-snack world. I seriously cannot keep this in my house, like, EVER. Its amazingly easy to make, and even more delicious. If you’re ever looking for something quick to throw together for a party, look no further than this trail mix. Yumm-O.

S’mores Trail Mix

To make this, I simply combined a box of Golden Graham’s Cereal, a bag of miniature marshmallows, and a bag of milk chocolate or semi-sweet, chocolate chips. Of course you could adjust the quantities of each item to your liking, but I found it super easy to just use the whole box or bag of each! 🙂

I found little “S’mores,” candy, during my search for party treats. When they arrived, I saw they were a “round,” shape, and thought it would be cute to call them “stones,” to carry on the woodland {outdoor} theme.

Yep, I totally can’t take credit for these adorable little hedgehogs. I found the idea on Pinterest, AND my friend Brandy made them for me, on party day. She said they were super easy, and I couldn’t get over how stinkin’ cute they were. Right?

Was this an easy way out for a quick dessert? You bet. Hey… who doesn’t love a Kit-Kat?

I’m such a sucker for color coordinating straws. But how could I resist birch straws, for this party? Add the straw flags from The Pretty Paper Studio, and it just made perfect sense.

If space allows, I always try to incorporate an area for guests, and create a “guest central.” For this party, I had the drop off basket for gifts that were being donated, the time capsule station, and the favors for the guests to grab on their way out. This little set up worked perfect, and took out any confusion, or “missed,” items of the party.

So what were the favors? A Pinterest find of course! Smore’s-To-Go! Wrapped in “treat bag,” plastic, and tied with a party favor label, made the perfect woodland friends party favor!

No matter how good the cake pops are, how cute the decorations, how much fun my son had, or how many friends & family came by…

there is NOTHING better than the feeling of helping other boys and girls out, that may not be able to have blessings in their lives, such as birthday parties, and even a Christmas gift.

Our hearts are full, looking at this photo of all of the goodies from friends and family that will be sent to the “Operation Christmas Child,” organization this year.

It’s never too early to start teaching our children to think of others, right? 🙂

More Birthday Party Ideas for Boys

If you’re throwing a birthday party soon, our boys love fireman theme parties, nautical parties, indoor camping parties, and even a party based on their favorite food… “A nacho bar party!” Or if a slumber party is on the agenda, these boy slumber party ideas are so fun!

Vendor Credits:

Invitations: Perfect Printables

Party Printables {Banner, cupcake toppers, straw flags, sign, etc.}: The Pretty Paper Studio Etsy Shop

Cake Pops: Sweet. Sassy.

Surprise 30th Birthday Ideas for Him: A trip full of little surprises, and secret missions for my husband’s 30th birthday! A celebration we will NEVER forget!

When it comes to gift ideas for your husband’s 30th birthday, this was the ULTIMATE gift for my husband.

After visiting all-inclusive resorts in Mexico, quite a few times, and falling in love with them, I planned a surprise trip along with other fun secret surprises, so you’ll want to keep reading about what I did to surprise the special guy!

You may find it hard to believe that I kept all of this a secret for a year.

Surprise 30th Birthday Trip for Him

We LOVE to travel. Even though we recently visited Avon Colorado, and now live in Montana, we have a major love for warm tropical places. So when my husband’s “dirty 30“, was starting to approach us, swimsuits and flip flops were on the mind.

My husband turned 30 over the weekend, and I’ve had a 30th birthday surprise trip planned for him, for over a year. Yes, I kept a secret from him for over a year, and it was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done.

The trip wasn’t the only surprise. There were little surprises along the way that made this trip extra special!

Planning the Trip

First, I told my husband two months ago that he needed to block off his schedule between certain dates, because I was planning to take him somewhere for his milestone of a birthday. His response?

“Are friends going with us?”

“Nope, just a trip you and I are taking together.“

Well… I know my extrovert of a husband, and his love for being around people, so that was a total lie. (It’s ok to have a white lie if it’s for a birthday surprise, right?) If he only knew I had invited friends a year ago, and he was about to be in for the surprise of his life.

The day came, and my husband knew we were leaving town. “Are we flying? Going by train? Are we going out of the country?” Those were the major questions I kept hearing him repeat to me. However, my answer to all of them were, “Well… we’ll see.”

#1 Surprise: Friends are coming too!!!???

That evening before we had left, I had arranged to have our friends show up at our house, right before we were to head out of the door.

“Surprise!  We’re going with you!”

Our friends totally shocked my husband, as he opened the door thinking the babysitter had a pizza delivered, only to see our friends standing there toting some serious luggage.

Driving or Flying?

We all got in the car, and my husband with a puzzled (yet excited) look on his face said,

“Ok… where we going?“

“Sorry babe, not ready to tell you yet.”

Now… me, the planner and organizer in the family, would probably be freaking about not having control in this moment if the roles were reversed. But my husband’s a trooper and loved the suspense.

About after an hour and a half of driving in the car, we stopped at a hotel that was near the airport, and my husband immediately knew we were flying out somewhere the next morning.

#2: A “Yearbook” T-Shirt Gift

The next morning we all woke up early, and I surprised my husband with a custom shirt that I had made for him, that had

“Warning: Matt’s 30th Birthday in Progress,”

printed on the front; then on the back,

“Matt’s 30 Year Old Yearbook,”

with “one-liners,” 30 friends and family had to say about Matt.

This was absolutely one of the most hilarious, and interesting things I could have done. I learned nick-names that my husband had, and I heard stories about what my husband had done in the past that were hysterical!

Most importantly, my husband felt the love from 30 awesome people. (Totally recommend doing something like this for someone that you love.)

It’s time to fly!!!

We shuttled to the airport, and it was time to check-in for our flight. My husband was so excited to find out where we were going. Ohhhhh… but only if it were that simple. I made him hand over his drivers license (only to throw him off, because I already had, and only needed his passport) and made him stand back, as I whispered to the flight receptionist,

“Ok, it’s my husband’s birthday, and he has no idea where we are going, and I’d love it if you could help me out by not telling him.”

To my surprise the receptionist was totally cool, and played along. (God bless that man for being friendly and fun at 6:00 in the morning.)

Boarding passes in hand (hidden in my purse) we proceeded to our gate. Arriving at the correct gate, my husband sees “Dallas Texas,” on the TV screen at our departure gate.

“Really honey? Dallas?”

I wanna say I had him fooled for about 10 minutes that we were actually taking him to Dallas to celebrate his big 30th. Nothing against Dallas, but the poor guy couldn’t get his mind wrapped around celebrating there.

So then started the “Hmm… where would Dallas be a layover for?” His mind began to wonder.

Then… almost like I had planned it myself, on our flight, the stewardess  announced the connecting cities for our layover.

“San Francisco, Honolulu, Miami, Cancun, Cabo,”

and the list went on. This was absolutely perfect. My husband all of a sudden knew that a layover in Dallas meant NOTHING, as the connecting cities were so scattered around the world. PERFECTION!

MEXICO!!!???

As we departed the plane in Dallas, we neared the connecting gate, and there it was on the big screen, “Departing to Cancun, Mexico.” My husband was ecstatic! Totally caught him off guard, and the wheels were turning.

“How did you arrange this? Do you have my passport? Where in Mexico are we going? Is it an all-inclusive?”

We arrived!

He was excited. I was excited. Our friends were excited. It was one of the most awesome feelings. I then looked at my best friend, and said,

“You know you love someone, when you get complete joy out of his own happiness.”

One More Surprise

When we arrived to the resort in Mexico, we walked in to the lobby and my husband couldn’t BELIEVE it when he saw the backs of what looked like more friends there waiting for us!

Other friends had arrived on a different flight and were ready to party… all with matching shirts!

An Incredible Weekend

We spent my husband’s actual birthday, celebrating with a special dinner on the beach, right next to the water. Sure wish I could have gotten a better photo in the dark, but I wouldn’t have traded seeing the sunset while drinking a pina colada for anything! 😉

The next 5 days were some of the most awesome, crazy, relaxing, days we had-had in a loooongg time.

We couldn’t imagine spending his 30th anywhere different, nor with anyone different. I HIGHLY recommend getting “away,” with the one you love if you can. What an experience, and what an amazing man… father… husband… and person.

If you’re looking for 30th birthday ideas for your husband, fiancé, or boyfriend, but aren’t quite ready for a trip, then you’ll LOVE my post on 30th Birthday Ideas for Him, where I surveyed and polled a ton of men to get REAL ideas and those that they’d absolutely love!

Thinking of planning an all-inclusive vacation for a special day? I’ve compiled all of my favorite tips for staying at an all-inclusive resort, that you DON’T want to miss, along with a Mexico packing list that will help you know what to take with you!