Fairy Cake Complete!

My daughter's birthday is tomorrow and we are having a fairy party.  I baked the cakes yesterday and decorated them today.  Decorating a birthday cake is usually an all day affair, and today was no exception.  I started around 8:30 this morning and finished just around 4:00 this afternoon.

For this cake I used a 9 x 13 rectangle pan for the base and the Wilton 3D cupcake pan for the fairy house.  The cake base and house roof is frosted in cream cheese frosting and covered in fondant.  I used the basketweave tip to decorate the sides of the house.  All the details are made from fondant.

I found a set of tiny Tinkerbell fairies at Target and they were the perfect size for the cake.  Here are a few pics of my creation...

Button Headband

I've been really busy prepping for my daughter's birthday, but in between making decorations and creating a fairy cake, I wanted to share this quick and easy tutorial for making a button headband.  I've seen this done in different ways on a couple of blogs, but liked this one the best, using the stretchy headband.

My daughter has a ton of headbands, including some of these stretchy ones.  I thought these would be the perfect candidates to pretty up.  All you need is a stretchy headband, buttons and a needle & thread.

First, line up your buttons in the order you like (I just alternated light and dark colors).  Next, start at the top middle of the headband and begin stitching the buttons on, working your way out on each side.  Continue stitching the remaining buttons on, leaving a small space at the bottom without buttons so your hair doesn't get stuck.

This is a really easy way to pretty up a simple headband, and only takes a small amount of time.  I think I was able to complete this headband in less than 20 minutes.  I will definitely be making a few more for my daughter and maybe some for myself as well.

Birthday Sneak Peek - Part 2

I've been doing nothing but birthday prep, so thought I'd share another sneak peek with you all.  I'm getting really excited seeing it all come together.  I think my little fairy is going to have so much fun!  And I can't wait for the party, to be able to share all the details with you!

Birthday Sneak Peek - Part 1

Keira's birthday is in four days, and I've been busy, busy, busy getting things ready.  This year, she is having a Garden Fairy theme.  It started out as Tinkerbell, but slowly evolved.  I thought I would take a minute to give you all a quick sneak peek at some of the things I'm working on.  Be sure to check back next week for all the details on our garden fairy party!

Metal Stamping

I bought a metal stamping tool set from Harbor Freight Tools today.  For only $9.99 I got 38 metal stamps, (including the alphabet, numerals 0-9 and a few symbols) a punch and a case to keep everything in. 

Folks are using these to create personalized jewelry using metal washers.  They look really neat and I'm hoping they are easy to make as well.  I'm hoping to give this a try soon to work on some Christmas gifts. 

Since it's party central at my house this week with my daughter's birthday coming up, I'll need to report back to you about the stamping, but just wanted to share.

Scrapbooking ABC Tiles

Yesterday, I had the chance to actually work on some scrapbooking and I am very happy to say that I completed the layouts I had been working on.  Yay!

With my living room floor covered in supplies, I came across a set of alphabet letter die cuts.  As I was punching them out, my daughter came over and started moving them around, putting them in ABC order and spelling her name.  Then I thought I could use these to make some new alphabet magnets, that both of my kids could use.

So, I finished punching out all the letters.  There is one of each uppercase letter and one of each lowercase letter with a few extra vowels and common consonants.  They are on the small side, but that can be helpful for strengthening fine motor skills.

Next, I laminated them for durability.  I was raiding DH's home office space one day looking for something and came across these self adhesive laminating sheets he had.  They are awesome!  I think contact paper would work just as well.

After cutting out all the letters, I cut small pieces of adhesive magnetic strip to put on the back of each letter.  And they were ready to go on the refrigerator!

Both kids love these and were fighting over them already this morning.  I feel they will be great for Keira who is learning her alphabet, letter sounds and building words.  She practiced this morning matching upper and lower case letters and spelling her name.

For Kaden, they will be helpful in practicing spelling new words and continuing to work on more advance letter sounds like blends and vowel combinations.  He used the letters to spell a few words for me.

I also utilized some paper scraps I had.  This paper was like a grid with these one inch squares all over it.  I thought these would be handy if I created strips of different lengths.  We could use them to practice spelling short 2, 3 and 4 letter words.  These also come in handy when creating word families too.

Scrapbooking Sunday

I love scrapbooking and have a slight addiction to collecting paper and embellishments.  But, I also have a real problem with actually utilizing my collection.  I just can't seem to find the time to work on my projects.  If you are a scrapbooker like me, you are probably so far behind you have no idea how you'll ever catch up!

But, today is just one of those days and I hope to hang around at home and actually work on some scrapbooking.  My project for today is to work on Kaden and Keira's school scrapbooks.  I have to create pages for Keira's first year of preschool and Kaden's two years of preschool and kindergarten - see, I told you I was behind!

I absolutely fell in love with these school scrapbooks!  The bold red cover with a simple embroidered design was just perfect.  I found them in the Oriental Trading Company's scrapbooking catalog for a great price.  Unfortunately, it looks like they don't carry them anymore.

Two hours later (the kids and husband were especially needy today) I have one layout complete, and only three more to go!

Maybe I'll be lucky enough to get caught up on these today.  I'm keeping the pages pretty simple, since we keep school art projects and work in another place.  Are there any scrapbooking projects you've been itching to finish?

Monkey Munch - Yummy!

One of my favorite sweet treats to make is Monkey Munch!  It is really easy to make and only takes a few ingredients to whip together.  I first saw this yummy treat on Jon and Kate Plus 8, and after snagging the recipe from the show's website, make it more often than I probably should.

Here's the recipe:

9 cups Corn Chex (I just use the whole box)
1 cup chocolate chips (I use milk chocolate chips)
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter
1/4 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar (sometimes I use 2 cups)

1.  Put cereal in a large bowl.
2.  Melt chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter.  (I use the microwave.)
3.  Stir in vanilla.
4.  Pour over cereal and stir to coat.

This looks good enough to eat as it is...

5.  Put mixture into large plastic ziptop baggie with powdered sugar.
6.  Shake well to coat.

I can't believe it took me over 30 years to find this recipe!  It's been around forever and is also known as Puppy Chow or Muddy Buddies.  Call it what you like, but be sure to keep this recipe handy and indulge often!

Crafty Inspiration

There are so many crafty blogs out there, and so many of them are such an inspiration to me.  One of my favorites is The Trendy Treehouse.  So, I'm participating in their New Friend Fridays, loving the opportunity to share The Muddy Princess with others and hoping to make some new craft blogging friends.  :)

Millions and Jillions of Bubbles!

We did this awesome bubble blower a little while ago, but it continues to be a huge hit!  I saw it in a past issue of Family Fun Magazine and just had to give it a try. 

To make this bubble blower you need an empty water or soda bottle, a rubber band, a thin wash cloth or piece of fabric, a shallow bowl and dish soap.

First, you cut the bottom of the bottle off and attach the washcloth to the bottom with a rubber band.  Second, you fill your bowl with a good squirt of dish soap and some water.

Dip the bottom of the bottle into the soapy water and then blow into the top of the bottle (be sure not to suck air in while your mouth is on the bottle or you might just inhale some bubbles).  The result is like a huge bubble snake - very cool!

Give it a try this weekend and tell me how it goes.  I promise you and your kids will LOVE this one!