Thinking Spring

While the windchill might feel like -4 out right now, I'm doing my best to incorporate spring inside of our home.  Let me tell you though, I'm ready for winter to leave already.  Last year at this time I had been using herbs from my garden for about a month, my tulips were flowering, and the boys had played outside without jackets!  I will not be bitter though.  Or, I'll try my hardest to not be.

Happy Tuesday to you.  I'm sending warm thoughts and sunshine your way! Let's hope the weather cooperates soon, after all, spring does begin tomorrow.

Our Easter Weekend

We had a wonderful Easter weekend!  Here are some pictures to fill you in on what we were up to.

Good Friday was Jason's birthday.  We had a nice, quiet day at home until it was time to go to church.  While we were there, the boys noticed some crosses made from sticks that decorated some pillars inside of the church.  The boys set to work making some as soon as we got home.

On Saturday morning, we headed to my parents' house.  The weather was beautiful, so my Mom, the aunties Liesl and Amelia, the boys, and I played at the park.

While we were playing, my brother-in-law Ryan and Jason helped my Dad install some fencing along the side of my parents' yard.

All of my Mom's flowers and plants are starting to look so pretty!

Unlike last year, the boys liked dyeing eggs. Their strategy this year was to quickly put them in and immediately take them out of the dye.  I think were were done in a record time of five minutes.  We were going for pastels this year, apparently.

I think they're lovely!

On Easter morning, the boys found their baskets from the Easter bunny on the front porch.

Among all of the candy were some extra treats, such as new pajamas, whoopee cushions, plastic animals, Big League Chew, parachute men, and a new Matchbox car.

After a beautiful church service we took pictures in the backyard.

Auntie Liesl always fills eggs and hides them for the boys.  She's the best Easter bunny around!  Oliver took his time finding the eggs and would open each one and dump the contents into his Easter basket.

However, Henry was a man on a mission and sprinted to each and every egg with such a determined look on his face.

It is always wonderful to go home to be with my family, although we miss my sister Gretel and her little family who live in Nebraska.  Family time isn't the same without them.

I hope you had a wonderful Easter weekend with the ones you love!

He is risen!  He is risen indeed!

Chalkboard Easter Egg Place Cards

These chalkboard egg place cards are an easy, inexpensive, and fun way to decorate your Easter table. 

For this project you will need: 

plastic eggs

chalkboard paint

ribbon

Simply paint the eggs with a couple of coats of the chalkboard paint and let dry.  Use the ribbon to cover up the seam where each egg half joins together.

After your Easter table is set, write the names of your guests on each egg and place at each table setting.

This project was free for me because I already had all of the supplies on hand.  However, here is a little cost projection for you in case you do not have any of these items in your home already.

Plastic Easter Eggs from Target, Walmart, or the Dollar Store:  $1.98 or less

Chalkboard Paint from the Home Depot:  $4.98

Ribbon from Michaels:  $3.00 or less

Estimated total cost:  $9.96

(Obviously, the cost amount of this project is subject to what you are willing to spend or what is available to you at each store).

There you have it!  Have you completed any Easter or spring projects lately?  Let me know because I would love to see them!

Have a wonderful Monday!

I'm linking up to:

Home Stories A to Z

Centsational Girl

Tatertots and Jello

Clay Egg Ornaments

I have been in the mood to work with clay ever since I saw my sister Amelia's moon mobile, which you can see here.  (Yes, it is as magical as it sounds).

I thought it should be easy enough to create my own Easter ornaments for our little Easter tree.  Growing up, my mom always had a little Easter tree in our living room.  She (or my dad) would spray paint a big branch white and that big branch would be stuck in a big Terracotta pot filled with dirt.  Pretty pastel lights were strung on those branches, bunny and egg ornaments were hung, and grass seeds were planted in the dirt.  That grass never failed to arrive just before Easter and it was lovely.

I really wanted to recreate that memory for my boys in our home.  So, here is what I did to make my own ornaments.

I shaped that clay into a little flat egg.  Then, I carefully pressed various plants into the clay.  In this picture I used some thyme.  I also used rosemary, boxwood, and fern.  I used a wooden skewer to do the polka dots. That skewer was also used to poke a hole in the top of each egg so that I could hang them onto our tree.

I baked the clay according to the directions on the package.  After they were done, I tied some thread onto each egg and hung them onto our tree.  They are by no means perfect, but I like them nonetheless!

I also decided to experiment with some color on a few of the ornaments.  I called Amelia, who happens to be a pretty amazing little artist (I can say these things because I'm her big sister) and asked her if I could borrow her supplies.  She kindly brought over some wax pastels and some tiny paint brushes.

I simply colored onto the eggs and lightly brushed them with a bit of water to soften the color a bit.

I'm not sure yet if I like the simplicity of the white ornaments or the splashes of spring color that the painted ones have.  I think I'll experiment around a little yet with both options.  I'm sure you know already that I'll keep you posted...  I'll be back soon with another Easter project I'm excited to share with you!

I'm linking to:

Centsational Girl

Serenity Now

Tatertots and Jello

Home Stories A to Z