Earlier in the week my mom, my sister and I invited some lovely women over for a baby shower.  My sister-in-law, Kristin’s baby shower!

I made a simple banner for Kristin’s shower using the Making Memories Just Chillin‘ Line. The banner came together really quickly:

My mom and I also put together  a little diaper cake for Kristin:

It was our first time making one, and I can say that it seem as though it would’ve been a lot harder making one alone.  It was nice to have four hands instead of two, especially when were were putting rubber bands around rolled up diapers and tying ribbon.

We made little roses out of wash cloths:

I loved the monkey on the top…Kristin is decorating the baby’s room in a Jungle Theme.

Here’s some of the goodies we made:

Cherry Chip Cupcakes…

White Chocolate Peanut butter Krispie Cookies (yum):

Sweet and Salty Popcorn (made with sugar, butter & vanilla…ooo la la):

We had tons of fun!  I think Kristin liked it to…

You can barely see her baby bump in this photo (it’s hiding behind her knees).  That’s my nephew in there!

From our family to yours,

May your new year be filled with love, joy and blessings.

I’ve been busy crafting, shopping, wrapping, working, stitching, reading, loving, singing and tonight…a family tradition: Baking!

I wish I could share my holiday projects but I have family members who read my blog…so, I’ll only be sharing little “sneak peeks” here and there.

I hope you’re enjoying this wonderful time of year!

xoxo, Christie

Can you believe that I did not bring my own camera to my sisters wedding? Not that I didn’t want to. Yep, my camera is still with Nikon hopefully being repaired as I type. But enough about that…on to the good stuff:

I woke up at 5am December 5th so that I could be at Emilee’s house by 6am.  It was my duty, as the Matron of Honor to be at her side all day long.

Every second that I was with her was a special second. I feel very honored and blessed to have such a beautiful, sweet, sister.  To be present during her sealing ceremony was something that has touched my heart in a way I had never imagined it would. Witnessing her marry her sweet husband, Jordan for Time and All Eternity was so special and tender.

Tears of joy filled my eyes more than a few times throughout the day.

Fun, family, love, and laughter filled the entire day…and into the next day…around 2 am.

The decorations were amazing, the food was fantastic…all of it perfect.

But pictures you ask?

Jaclyn took this photo:

I did grab a friends camera a few times (still waiting for the photos) and Emilee’s photographer, Jaclyn was amazing, she was constantly shooting photos.  Jaclyn has promised to email me some photos for my blog (can’t wait, can’t wait)!  So, in turn, I promise to share the photographic memories of Emilee’s wedding as soon as I can get them (I know some of you are anxious).

Ah, my baby sister is married. I still see her as a little 8 year old.

Just to put things into perspective for you…the following photo was taken in 1996, at my wedding. Emilee was 8 years old:

I love that girl.

September 23rd is my Grandmother’s birthday.

This beautiful woman is so very special to me.  There are so many wonderful things to love about my amazing grandmother…I could go on and on.  My Grandma Crabtree is fabulous!

I made this little wall hanging for her and shipped it off in the mail.  I thought she might get a kick out of her new wings.

And let’s not forget her crown…for she is the queen of so many glorious things!

I thought this quote said it all:

“It is not in the face. It is a light in the heart.  I will let my light shine.”

My Grandma Crabtree’s light shines so bright, I feel the warmth of her sweet spirit whenever we’re together.

Happy Birthday Grandma!

Happy 9th Birthday Belle!

You deserve a crown of flowers and wings to fly!  Today you start a new adventure, it’s called: Nine Years Old.

Being nine years old is lots of fun.  Nine years old means: Fourth grade, horseback riding, story writing, dog loving, picture drawing, running outside, riding bikes, playing with friends, baking cookies, reading books and so much more.

You are the sweetest, most special little girl in the world.  I absolutely love every.single.thing about you.

Happy Birthday!

Love, Mom

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Want to see more Fancy Pants?  I made THIS with the same paper last year.

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Love, Christie

I’m a little behind in posting.  I have a lot to share.

First of all, over the holiday weekend we stayed at the Crabtree Family Cabin (my Mom’s side of the family) in Island Park, Idaho.  We had a blast with the Wolfe Lighting crew (work).  Dan and I enjoyed some time outdoors with Parker and Izabelle.

We had a blast hanging out, riding the four wheeler, fishing in the pond, exploring, hiking around, playing cards, golfing, and spending time with friends and family.

Did I mention that EVERYONE brought their dogs?  The final count was TEN DOGS!  Craziness! They almost outnumbered the humans.  It was amazing that they (the dogs) all got along.  No dog fights.

Alright, back to posting pretty paper projects!

On Saturday my family and I were invited to come along with some friends from work to pick Huckleberries. This is considered a great honor, especially since we’ve only lived in Idaho for a little over two weeks.  Usually it takes years before locals will show you where to find Huckleberries.

It’s a known fact ’round these parts that huckleberries are like gold.

Seriously.  They fetch a pretty penny!

Huckleberries aren’t exactly easy to find either.  We followed my friend, Robert (from work) and his wife, Katrina about 35 miles out of town…another 5 or 6 miles twisting a turning through gravel roads, then another 2 mile hike up the side of a mountain.  After that we weaved our way through bushes and picked huckleberries until our fingers turned purple.  Our fingers literally turned purple (from the huckleberry juice).

The photo above was the last photo I took before I slipped, fell and broke my fancy camera. Don’t go worrying about me…I’m fine (besides a big bruise on my knee and shin) but my camera…Oh, that sweet photo taking machine, has perished.  I almost cried. Not because the fall hurt (which it did) but because my camera bit the dust.  And I was a little embarrassed.

For now, I’m using my trusty old point and shoot (should have brought it on the hike instead…coulda, woulda, shoulda).

We did have a terrific time on our huckleberry hike!  We ended up with purple fingers and loads of huckleberries.

I washed the huckleberries, let them dry and then froze about fifteen zip lock bags full of them.

Yum!

We’ve already made huckleberry pancakes and huckleberry muffins.  I’m thinking about making some jam too.

We’ll see.  It is only Tuesday.

Happy Tuesday!

Miss Kayla is 3!

I said I’d share some photos from Kayla’s Birthday.  The problem is…I took about 250 photos!

250 photos…more than an albums worth, right?  There will be lots of layouts in Kayla’s future.

Kayla loved Lollipop, a pretty clown who knew how to do face paint and tie balloon animals!  She also loved the homemade cake that Grandma Sterling made and the homemade ice cream that Grandpa Wolfe made.  Kayla especially loved the rainbow sprinkles on top of the ice cream.

Happy Birthday sweet niece of mine!

My brother, Adam and his wife, Vanessa make the cutest little girls…

Today is the kids’ first day of school!

A new state,

a new city,

a new school,

new classrooms and teachers.

I think I’m more nervous than they are.