We had our daughters 1st birthday party and it was sooo much fun! She loves the show In The Night Garden (ITNG) and the character "Upsy Daisy" from the show, so we had a Upsy Daisy themed party for her. However, the party decorations were very limited! So I went on a mission to create my own and what a great way to let my imagination go crazy! Bunting/Preyer Flags I couldn't find any ITNG or Upsy Daisy material anywhere, so I bought some Size 5 PJ's of EBay for $1.50 and cut them up! Hubby thought I was crazy..... I used some scrap bright fushia pink cotton for the backing and ended up with over 30 flags! Rolled hemmed the edges and done! They looked great and I can't wait to decorate her room with them! Milestone Daisy's I bought a few sheets of orange and pink cardboard and cut out some large daisy's. On one side I had pictures of the ITNG characters and the other side I put photo's of my daughters milestones throughout her first year. I also used my scrapbooking scraps for some different paper and to write a brief description of her milestone. I'm going to put the daisy's in a scrapbook and with a few more photo's and she has her first year photobook done! Name Banner While I was cutting out a heap of Daisy's I kept some to make a Name Banner "1 TALIA 1". I glittered some letters for her name with pink glitter and used orange Rafia to tie them together. I have hung them in her room and she loves waking up looking at them. Daisy Tags I printed a heap of pictures of each of the characters and used them for various decorations. I glued the small round pictures (the size of Cupcake toppers) to the left over orange and pink card and made heaps of circle tags. I glued these to the end of Kebab sticks and we had ITNG Salad & Fruit kebabs, there were a hit with the kidlets. I also did some kebab sticks with daisys on and put them around the garden and the entry way. You can glue the little round cardboard pictures to anything, for example, straws, plastic cups, game prizes, name tags, champagne & wine labels, wine glasses tags, kebab sticks, cake decorations, lolly-pop sticks, party hats, party blowers,favour and lolly bags, blue tack some on the floor to create a path out to the garden (the kids loved looking at these on the floor)... Even make some Daisy toothpicks with a flower hole punch using the scrap cardboard......see pictures below for some idea's. Ninky Nonk Juice Every ITNG party needs some Ninky Nonk Juice! Download a picture from the internet and write "Ninky Nonk Juice" and stick this to some fruit punch and eski's! Welcome Sign Print out a picture of your childs favourite ITNG characher and write "Welcome to Talia's 1st Birthday party!" ITNG Games Here are a few game idea's. You can "Pin the blanket to Iggle Piggle" (we ran out of time to play this one). I cut a heap of red material into squares and photocopied a picture of Iggle Piggle onto A3. I printed out some colouring in "Upsy Daisy & Iggle Piggle Door Hangers" and left them for the kids to colour in, they loved it! You can get this from the BBC website. I gave the kids their own tag each with a different character and their name on the other side, they then had to find their present with their ITNG character on it, it kept them busy for a while. Here are a few idea's for a kids party and most of them don't need any sewing! You can also apply these to any party theme, as you can get so many pictures from the internet now! I hope I continue to do this for all my kids future birthdays party's! It was so much fun and they create the perfect party atmosphere. My husband thought I went a bit crazy, but they only have birthday party's once a year, so why not! Enjoy! Lee-Anne

Welcome to a Sweet place to see my cupcakes!!

Congratulations! You've completed your cosmetology exam! But now you have to plan the perfect cosmetology graduation party. Here's how.

Explore jowong19's 14583 photos on Flickr!

Easter Sunday I had the privilege to journey all the way to Waxahachie to attend their annual spring Scarborough Renaissance Festival. The weather was perfect (sunny by with a good breeze). It is located in a giant field (165 total acres) so keep in mind the possibility of mud if you plan to go after or during rain. As you approach the fair from the road, you will pass the castle-style signs as you wind your way into the grassy parking lot. Pay attention to the numbered signs so you can find your way back. Strollers and wagons are difficult to steer through the dirt/gravel so keep that in mind if you have smaller wheels or heavy loads. Outside food and drinks (except baby food) are not allowed. The gist of the fair is to become immersed in the 16th century. People come dressed in costume or you can rent some costumes at the front. The more serious adventurers talk and act like they lived back then. Food, activities, shows are geared toward the medieval way of life. They do have modern restrooms and lots of water fountains (well-decorated) throughout. The fair is open weekends (rain or shine) beginning the first week of April through the end of May. Each weekend has a different theme - such as Legends of the Sea (Pirates/Mermaids), Fantasy, Scottish/Celtic, etc. Throughout the day are different performances including 2 knightly jousts (the one at the end of the day tends to be more bloody). You can purchase a guide which lists the times and locations for the different talents/performances. Children can be knighted by royalty. There are a lot of activities including archery, a maze, camel and elephant rides, a few carnival-style games and rides (one of which is a spinning barrel), a petting zoo, face painting, hair braiding, a masseuse, etc. Almost all of the food that is sold at Scarborough can be eaten with the hands (as they would have done in the 16th century). Some of my favorite items include the Steak-on-a-Stick, Sausage-on-a-Stick, Fried Mac n Cheese, and Turkey Legs (not pictured). Some vendors do offer gluten-free options. There's also a few places that sell fresh fruit (fruit kabobs and packaged fruits). Another favorite are the wandering vendors - like this pretzel man. The only full-service restaurant/bar is the Rose & Crown Restaurant which gets pretty crowded. Tip - Bring lots of cash (almost all the food/drink vendors are cash-based) and dollar bills to tip the performers; there is an ATM available. Overall, this a great family-oriented festival and it's fun to dress in costume for the day. It is A LOT of walking so wear appropriate shoes! The official website: www.srfestival.com Physical Address: 2511 Fm 66, Waxahachie, TX 75167

%

Here is a fun Dora Birthday party game that you can adapt and change up however you like! To Make Stars: You need:Craft Foam in various colors, Self-Adhesive Googly Eyes, Sharpies or other permanent markers We traced and cut out a template for stars with rounded points online (you can more than likely find these in any Dora coloring book as well). After tracing and cutting out the stars in 6 different colors we applied the eyes and drew on the faces. It all sounds pretty simple but these took a LONG time because we made so many :) nevertheless, they were really cute and fun! The Game: Option 1 (small children): Hide stars around yard. Tell kids Swiper has swiped all the explorer stars and you need their help to find them all. Have the kids find 1 star of each color (we had 6) and bring them to you for their prize (in our case, these favor backpacks filled with goodies). Option 2 (varied ages): For this option you need 1 color per child or 1 color per 2 children depending on how many kids and colors you have. Hide stars varied by difficulty level and then assign each child a color. Tell kids Swiper has swiped all the explorer stars and you need their help to find them all. Child 1 needs to find all (or 10 or whatever half is if you have 2 kids per color) the blue stars, etc. Once they find all of their stars they can bring them back to you for a prize.

Our future is up to us... get a clue with these Enola Holmes cookies.

Prizes, competition, candy, kids--they make a great combination! Use this Saran Wrap ball game for Cub Scout pack or den meetings.

Any plans for New Year Eve celebration? If you are unsure what to do, here are 10 fun ways to celebrate New Year Eve at home for everyone.

This citrus grazing board is packed with delicious flavors like Cara Cara oranges, blood oranges, dark chocolate and feta cheese.