Live for today, plant for tomorrow.

There's still a foot of snow on the ground, but spring is just around the corner. And so is the Wichita Outdoor Living and Landscape Show!

If you find yourself wandering around Century II this weekend, breathing in the daffodils and dogwoods, be sure to stop at the Tree Top Nursery booth and pick up your 2013 gardening t-shirt. (Good for 10% off all your purchases when you wear it to the store.)

They liked the slogan so much last year, they decided to keep it. I just created a new design to freshen it up a bit.

Snow Daze

Winter finally decided to make an appearance in Kansas. Not only that, but it unpacked it's bags and decided to stay for a while. We've gotten 14 inches of fluffy white snow, and there's another 10 inches knocking at the door today. 

So when they call off school, what do you do? Go sledding, of course. And make snow angels, and build a fort.

Fort-building skills at work with our neighbor buddy, Jay.

The outdoor chalkboard still looks great... almost 2 years later!

Frozen chalk. Still works.

Or, you can just draw with snow.

Our backyard rocketship will need to thaw out.

Oughta be an Otter

Our cat likes to lay flat on her back, just like an otter. Cracks me up. 

We got lucky with this friendly feline. She's so tolerant of the kids when they want to play. Just goes with the flow.... 

Oh, you want to carry me around like a baby? OK. 

Want to put me out in the snow? OK. (I don't like it, but I'll tolerate it.)

You'd like me to wear a crown? Sure.

Gonna trap me inside these blankets? Well, if I must.....

My Silly Valentine Photo Booth

Gus' 5th grade class had their last Valentine's Day party before they head off to middle school next year. < sigh > 

I wanted to do something special to remember these happy, young, smiling faces. So, I set up a photo booth to take pictures (in between the cupcake-eating and Valentine card-sharing.) The kids picked out funny wigs, hats, mustaches, and glasses to wear, and gave me their best silly grins.

Love these little goofballs.

Owl Bookcase

Sometimes, I can hardly stand the cuteness that comes out of Eric's workshop. Like this adorable owl bookcase he recently made.

The only thing cuter, is the little baby he built it for - Archer. We got to meet our new great-nephew on Sunday as we delivered our present. It fit perfectly in his colorful, owl-themed room. 

Just for fun, Archer's mom put him on the shelf so I could take a picture. Only two months old and he's almost too big for it! Let's hope his book collection grows as big as he does.

Welcome to the world, Archer. WHOOO knew you'd be such sweetie!

Looking back, you might think we're  a little owl-crazy at Project Denneler - owl baby shower invites, Bea's owl costume and these holiday party owl postcards. 

Feelin' the Love

I got a special Valentine's Day surprise this year. 

Beth from Hungry Happenings (one of my favorite food bloggers), named me one of her "Five Edible Craft Bloggers that I Love."

I'm still blushing. What a lovely, lovely surprise. Especially coming from Beth, a phenomenal sugar sister herself. 

Hugs and Hersey's Kisses to all the great kitchen creators she named. Be sure to check them all out. I ain't gonna lie... we're a crazy (but fun) bunch.

Bubblegum Valentines

Both my kiddos are crazy for bubblegum. So I thought their Valentine's Day cards this year should be bubblicious too. (I always try to do something special that includes their photo. Here's what I did last year.)

I found these fun little test tubes of colorful bubblegum balls at Sam's Club. As usual, the hardest part of this project was getting Bea to stand still for a photo. I printed out the images on cardstock and then trimmed them out with an exacto-knife, making sure her little arms could hold the test tubes in place.

For Gus' Valentine, I took a photo of him pretending to blow a bubble. I printed the images on cardstock, trimmed them out and made cut lines on his mouth to hold a slightly-inflated pink balloon. Then I taped little baggies of Double Bubble Bubblegum to the backs of the cards. 

Sweet little Valentines for my little sweeties. Happy Valentine's Day, all!

Cotton Candy Valentine

Cotton candy is my most favorite sugary snack in the world. I just love that fluffy, sweet stuff.

Last week, when I was trying to decide which treats to include on my Valentine's Day dessert table, I came up with a fun way to serve and display cotton candy - Love Ewe cups. They're clear plastic dishes, with white cotton candy inside. I printed out little sheep illustrations on cardstock and cut out the wooly bodies so the cotton candy could peek through the holes. Then I just placed the paper circles on top, and used a fork to fluff and fill the wooly areas with cotton candy.

Really simple. Really cute.

They'd be fun at a school party. I used little plastic dishes I found at Hobby Lobby, but you could also use clear plastic cups. I think those Solo drinking cups are about the same width, plus they might hold more cotton candy. 

Here's a couple of Love Ewe sheep circles in blue, pink and red if you'd like to try making some. Just print them out on 8.5"x11" cardstock and cut them out. I used an exacto knife, but you don't have to be very precise. A rough circle will do too.

Memorable & MAILABLE Fortune Cookie

If you know me at all, you know I like to mail weird stuff. Just ask my family. (Or check out this. Or this. Or this. Or these. Or this. And these too. Oh, and I forgot about these little guys.)

Half the fun, is just seeing what will (or won't) make it through the mail. My most recent postal adventure, is a foam paper fortune cookie. It's really easy to make, and only takes a couple of $1.00 stamps to send. 

A simple, step-by-step photo tutorial is available at SheKnows.com. 

Send someone an extra-special Valentine this year! They'll be so surprised when they open their mailbox to find one of these inside.

Love Bites Dessert Table

Nine lovely ladies joined me at Adriene Rathbun's Social class this morning to watch and learn as I assembled a Valentine's Day dessert table.

I tried to share some of my favorite tricks, and impart some wisdom on many of my past mistakes. 

Everyone was so complimentary and had lots of great questions. I enjoyed making some new friends, and I always get a thrill when familiar faces come back for more.

As with every class, we took lots of pictures. Lots. And lots. Of pictures.

Thanks again, ladies, for making me feel like a sugar princess.

Molasses sugar cookie dogs

Cotton candy sheep bowls

Peppermint Patty bumblebees

Apothecary jar filled with white cheddar cheese balls

Delicious coconut cream cheese cupcakes made by Adriene

Macarons

Brownie heart boxes filled with M&Ms

Heart-shaped suckers in sugar

Coconut cupcakes displayed on upside-down wine glasses

Kansas Sugar Cookies with blue icing and candy hearts