Thank you so much for taking the time to visit my blog! Please look around and see what my blog has to offer, from party inspiration, DIY craft tutorials, yummy treat ideas, and so much more! And make sure to pin on Pinterest! If you click on the Free Printables tab on the top of this page, you will find all of my posts with free printables. Also, if you would like to stay up-to-date with all of my new posts, subscribe by email (enter it on the right margin of this page) or like my Facebook page HERE. Have a blessed day!

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Pinky Pendants by Ana Giveaway Winner

And the winner of the $25 e-certificate to Pinky Pendants by Ana is...
Comment #24: Susanmeep

She said, "I love the heart pendant suelee1998 @ gmail.com"

Congratulations!  I will contact you with the email address you provided so you can claim your prize.  Thank you to everyone who entered, and a BIG thank you to Ana for providing such a wonderful prize!!

Monday, November 22, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving

Don't forget, we have our current Pinky Pendants by Ana giveaway going on HERE.  I will be using www.random.org to randomly draw a number on Friday, November 26th, and the comment associated with that number wins!  Make sure to enter for your chance to win!

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There are only a few days left until Thanksgiving, one of my favorite days of the year!  Then immediately after Thanksgiving, we start putting up our Christmas decorations.  Before we forget the beautiful colors of fall and cute pumpkin and acorn decor, I wanted to post some pictures of the kids at a local pumpkin patch and one more great craft idea for Fall.

Brody got the cutest favor bag from his preschool class Fall party.  All of the bags were made by Jenni, one of the mommies of Brody's classmates in the class.  I had to find out how she made these precious bags.  The pumpkin on the bag is made of glitter and really looked beautiful.  I asked Jenni how she made them look so perfect and her trick is to use a paint brush when putting glue onto the bag before the glitter was added.  Check out the full tutorial HERE.  Thank you Jenni for sharing this wonderful craft!

Photo Courtesy of Jenni

Have a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving holiday!  I know I have so much to be thankful for!  Praise God!




Friday, November 19, 2010

Giveaway - Pinky Pendants by Ana

UPDATE!!  

We already picked our winner.  Thanks for all who entered!  Click HERE to see who won!



I am so excited to introduce to you my friend Ana, owner and creator of Pinky Pendants by Ana.  She makes handcrafted glass pendants and other unique jewelry that you will want to wear everyday or give as a gift to make someone smile!  I am even more excited to announce that she is sponsoring our first giveaway here at Sweet Metel Moments!  Winner will receive a $25 E-Certificate to her shop.  Here is a message from Ana:

Hi, my name is Ana and I am a stay-at-home mom of a very sweet and energetic 4-year-old boy.  I started making pendants as a hobby and when I started wearing them, my friends liked them so much I started selling to them, and it all just grew from there!  I am so grateful to my friends and family for their encouragement and support.  Without them, I don't think I would be sharing my pendants with you all!  Thank you and I hope you enjoy wearing and sharing my pendants as much as I enjoy making them.

One of my Pinky Pendants by Ana necklaces

So here is how to enter for your chance to win:

Enter up to 4 times by doing each of the following.
Make sure to leave a separate comment for each action that you complete.

Required Entry:
1. Visit Pinky Pendants by Ana, come back here, and leave a comment with your favorite item.

Optional Extra Entries:
2.  Become a fan of Pinky Pendants by Ana on Facebook and leave a comment here that you did! 

3.
Post about this giveaway on your own Blog and/or Facebook Page and comment here with the link(s).

4. Subscribe to Sweet Metel Moments HERE and leave a comment that you are a subscriber (or already were!)

Winner will be chosen on Friday, November 26, 2010 at 8:00 pm (EST).
Any entries received after this time, will not be considered. 
Open to US residents.
Winner will be chosen using random.org.

Good luck!

Monday, November 15, 2010

Enjoying Nature


Last weekend was cold for us Floridians, and Chris and I chose that weekend to curl up next to a campfire with some friends.  We had a blast!!  It was really nice for the kids to play in the wilderness, get dirt on their hands and faces, and to be able to look up at the night sky and see stars shining brightly.  Of course we didn't completely "rough it".  Thankfully Chris decided to bring a space heater to warm up our tent and it made the tent nice and cozy as we slept in 40 degree weather.
 


In keeping with the nature theme, I want to show you this cute craft idea from my friend Candice of Simple Mommy.  It involves going on a nature walk with your little ones and helping them pick out a special rock to bring back home.  With a few art supplies and some creativity, you and your kids can make unique and fun place cards just in time for your Thanksgiving table.  Depending on how you decorate your rock, this is a project that can be used throughout the whole year and it would even make a fun craft to do during a birthday party.  Check out her full blog post HERE.  Thanks Candice for sharing a great idea!

Simple Mommy Craft Idea

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Candy, Candy, Candy

It is no secret that my family loves sweets.  Take a look at these faces!



But Halloween came and went, and I am still getting caught with my hand in the candy jar.  I don't know how many times Brody has caught me eating his candy.  He is very clever though and would quickly say, "That's alright Mom, I like to share...  Can I have one?"  And I would respond with, "Of course!"

If you are like me, not only are you stuck with a ton of leftover candy from trick or treating, but I actually buy more candy when they go on sale after the holiday.  I also love to bake, and there are a ton of fun recipes for the upcoming holidays where you can use your Halloween candy to make more sweet treats.  At least when I bake, I make sure to get the treats out of my house immediately!  Take a look at these recipes that all use candy as an ingredient.

Turkey Cookies from Pillsbury

These turkey cookies make a fun dessert after a big Thanksgiving Feast!  Get the recipe HERE.


Jolly Snowman Faces from Betty Crocker


These adorable little snowmen can make anyone smile!  You can be creative and use whatever candy you have to make your own special jolly face!  Get the recipe HERE.


Chocolate Teddy Bear Pops from Betty Crocker

These Teddy Bear Pops are great for a playdate or even as a party favor!  Get the recipe HERE.

Hershey's Hugs & Kisses Crescents from Hershey's Kitchen

These yummy crescents are easy to make but are sure to make a lasting impression!  Get the recipe HERE.


Double Kisses Truffles from Hershey's Kitchen

Put these babies in a cute tin and give as a gift and you are sure to make someone's day!  Get the recipe HERE.


Reese's Peanut Butter Temptation from Hershey's Kitchen

Peanut butter and chocolate, need I say more?!??  Get the recipe HERE.

Hopefully you won't get caught with your hand in the candy jar like me!  Have fun baking!

Friday, November 5, 2010

Halloween Fun

Here's my Halloween banner in black light.
 Halloween was so much fun!  I was busy baking treats all day for my dessert table, and in the evening, the kids had a great time trick or treating.  Skylar was a little shy at first, but once she realized that she got a treat by simply saying, "Trick or Treat" (more like "Chick or Tree") to strangers, then she quickly got the hang of it!  Brody's costume was a big hit, everybody loved our handsome little UPS man!  Here are some pictures from our festivities.  

Brody with a delivery!
Our ladybug grabbing a treat from the dessert table.




Trick or Treat!


Treats:
Caramel Apples I followed the directions on the caramel bag, but then drizzled with melted semi-sweet chocolate chips and topped with mini-chocolate chips and nonpareils (you can try Giada's recipe HERE on Food Network)

 Bugle Witch Hats - I dipped Chocolate Peanut Butter Bugles into melted chocolate chips, rolled them in nonpareils, and stuck them onto fudge stripe cookies.

 Chocolate Monster Balls - I used the Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Haystack recipe HERE and just added white chocolate chips for eyes.

Ghost Nutter Butter Pops and Oreo Pops - I used the tutorial from HowDoesShe shown HERE and HERE.

All of the paper crafts like the "Trick or Treat" banner, "BOO" sign on Nutter Butter Pop display, cupcake toppers, and labels came from the Sweet Metel Moments Halloween collection.  Stay tuned for an upcoming post on what to do with leftover Halloween candy!