unnecessary necessary things

wow. 

it's been eons ago that i posted anything in the "spent?" or "shine" category on this blog.

i was going to do another craft tutorial but decided that i had to share these latest finds with you.

but first understand that i realize i am above and beyond the kiddie age, 

and these picks are certainly not anything sophisticated, 

however i am choosing them anyway and celebrating 

my inner child.

 cuz dang i think we get ripped off only having 17 years of childhood and 

the. rest. of. your. life. being. an. adult.

oh how depressing.

exact opposite of these finds.

first up,

check out these packages.

gift wrap to die for

SQUEEEE is all i could think.

i dunno why it took me so long to discover these.

oh yeah, now i know. 

it's cuz i subscribe to 99,000 blogs and this post from handmade charlotte is one i must've missed.

thank goodness i found 'em this time cuz you could put a dead rat in this and i would still love it foreva.

speaking of love, are you familiar with joy?

she wrote this book:

which has crafts like this:

 and instructions on how to make food look faaab-u-lous 

like this:

(pics from amazon here)

now lemme tell you something.

i have a gigundo amount of art/craft/baking books and 

THIS book rates #1 in my eyes.

i have never been so excited to read a book cover to cover that did not involve a story in my life.

seriously.

every page is different, every layout is different and 

every page i love.

heck i even wrote a review and i NEVER wrote a 

5 star amazon review on anything, 

but this one got me crazy compelled to share.

get the book for pure inspiration.

you won't be sorry.

ok next up.

did you hear target is gonna sell lilly starting the 19th?

#holycrapmywallet'sempty

i can't figure out if i should,

a. do finger exercises to strengthen my fingers when i click click click on everything at midnite on April 19th on the target website when the sale goes live

b. skip grocery shopping for a week to save money so i can afford everything i want.

(i mean, my family had dinner every. night. this week.

isn't that enough?)

c. invest in a very large cane so i can bring it with me when i stand outside the target doors before they open at 8am just in case someone should get too close to me when i charge for the items.

heck i think i'll choose option d. which is all of the above

in the meantime, i'm gonna keep staring at all of eva's creations.

i found her on handmade charlotte again and then clicked over to her misako mimoko site where i proceeded to spend endless hours trying to calm myself from all the giddiness i was feeling. 

then i found this giant thing.

which i plan to skip a month's grocery shopping so i can fill my entire house with it when i shop at the lark store.

cuz who needs furniture anyway?

then once i get all of them stuffed into my house,

all i'll need is this:

what you don't think this is absolutely necessary?

it comes with the candy included.

so that's it for now.

if you need me i'll be eating a sprinkle donut and playing hopscotch.

(dang these stupid hot flashes i keep having...!)

mom lessons

as a mom, 

there was, is, and will be so much to learn.

source

no wonder i was, am, and will be sometimes clueless.

it's a role that is ever growing.

source

and each day brings new challenges.
challenges that i try my best to conquer.

source

as i wish for this in the very beginning:

source

and i say this to my kids over and over.

source

and they look at me with the crappy dinner

 after a hard day's work and say,

source

that's when one of the many moments 

the realization comes in.

source

and confirms that 

source

and 

source

so then i know that 

source

so i constantly try to teach them life lessons. 

but sometimes that backfires.

source

and that worry comes back to haunt me.

source

but i get back on that horse again and know that,

source

and i thank my own mom again and again and again.

source

and again.

source

and all the times she knew just what i needed.

source

or didn't need.

source

so as i remember her knowing this to be true,

source

i only hope and pray i pass this onto my own children:

source

and remind them to be patient, kind, and giving. 

and that when it comes to life, take your time to enjoy the small things since,

source

and with that i close and remember one more thing:

source

happy mom's day.

<3

angels

today is a special day.

it's the day my parents went to heaven together.

i was 21 years old.

source

and when i think about life now, 

as opposed to how life would've been,

source

 my mind tells me, 

life is not ours. 

and that it is waaaaay too short 

for worry and fret.

source

and heck yeah i worry and fret,

but then my angels lift me up again.

source

my mom always said she wanted to be a nurse.

but she already was.

source

and my dad was the best teacher.

source

i have 2 angels that give me life

and help me along the way.

source

every. single. minute.

source

blogging is my way of healthy fun. 

it's also a way to meet 

some of my earth angels.

thank you for being part of my daily smile you give to me.

source

XOXOXO

a moment of silence...

"cuz baby you're a firework"

source

here's to living each day like it's 

"the other"

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!

summer sunshine donuts

i've been meaning to post this but got into cleaning my son's closet and...

dang! the day is already over.

i knew i shouldn't of played with those old robots i found in there!

anywhoo,

hope these brighten(pun intended)your day!

oh and btw,

if you are new to this blog,

WELCOME WELCOME WELCOME!

I hope you stay awhile

or at least come back!

XOXOXO

(you can subscribe too if you want-BIGBIGBIG hint...)

i must tell you though that i am a little tired so in lieu of long ramblings on to make these donuts, i am crossing my fingers that you can follow this tutorial and make your sunshine donuts from the pics below. (i just used a donut mix i got at world market, followed directions on the package, and made the glaze with confectioner's sugar and milk added until smooth).

ok, here we go!