Pretend City: Advanced {Screening} of Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood

This Saturday Pretend City has the opportunity to offer

an advanced screening of PBS's new series

Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood!

This highly anticipated show is not airing to the

general public until Monday, September 3rd on PBS,

but Pretend City patrons have the opportunity to view

an advanced screening of Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood

at either 10:30 or 1:30 on Saturday, September 1st.

About Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood - from PBS:

"A new generation of preschool “neighbors” will get to experience the Neighborhood of Make-Believe when DANIEL TIGER'S NEIGHBORHOOD premieres Monday, September 3, 2012, on PBS KIDS.  The first TV series inspired by the iconic, award-winning MISTER ROGERS' NEIGHBORHOOD, DANIEL TIGER'S NEIGHBORHOOD from The Fred Rogers Company stars 4-year-old Daniel Tiger, son of the original program’s Daniel Striped Tiger, who invites young viewers into his world, giving them a kid’s-eye view of his life. As they closely follow and share Daniel’s everyday adventures, preschoolers ages 2-4 and their families learn fun and practical strategies and skills necessary for growing and learning."

We are huge PBS SoCal fans at our house.

The Cat in the Hat Knows A Lot About That!, Curious George,

and Wild Kratts are already TV viewing staples, 

so I'm excited for my kids to have learning experiences with Daniel

like I did growing up with Mr. Rogers.

As a mom and an educator I really appreciate quality programming

for preschoolers that addresses their unique developmental

situations like expressing feelings, exploring routines, 

and modeling positive relationships.

It means a lot that PBS values preschoolers as special

little people that deserve quality programming

that allows them to be little and not grow up too fast.

So, if you're able,

head on down to Pretend City on Saturday

and catch a preview of Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood!

 You can read more about Daniel HERE!

Kyla's Favorite Free Fonts: {Part One}

I've wanted to write this post for FOREVER!

But I knew the work that would be involved in writing

and researching such a post, so I kept putting it off.

But there have been so many questions about the fonts

that I use on my printables that I decided to share

my favorite FREE fonts in a series of posts.

There are so many fonts I love, 

and as a digital design/scrapbook lover, 

I've collected quite a few over the years.

It was hard to narrow it down,

but I'm starting with fifteen free fonts that I love using.

1. Appleberry 2. Broadcast 3.Corki 4. Hoedown 5. Indy Pimp
6. Jailbird Jenna 7. Lavanderia 8. mtf Skinny Jeans 9. My Own Topher 10. Prissy Frat Boy
11. Queen Rosie 12. Riddle 13. Smiley Monster 14. Teletype 15. The Doorman

What are your favorite free fonts?
I'm always looking to add to my collection.
Let's see if you can suggest one I don't already have :)

Back To School: Are You Ready?

I can't believe that next week we're back to school!

Where did the time go?

Our Summer Bucket List is almost complete,

and new school shoes have been purchased. 

However, I'm not sure I'm ready to be back

on someone else's sche

I figured instead of waiting until last minute,

I'd start shopping for the contents of my 

Back to School Survival Kit this week.

It's not too late!

You can make your teacher one too!

My 2nd grade teaching buddy and I made

our classes First Day of School Survival Kits

when I was teaching, so it's fun to be on the other

side and make something for JT's teacher.

You can find the instructions and printables for the Survival Kit

over in THIS POST from last year!

TOO Cute Tuesday: Linky Par-tay #108

Tried my hand at crocheting this week after

a long hiatus.

It turned out a little big,

but not bad for a my first project.

Now onto TOO Cute Tuesday!

What did you make this week that is TOO Cute??

Come link up!

Rules:

• Must be made by you.
• Link up to the specific post - not your main blog.
• No Etsy shops or giveaways please :)
• Please post the button or link back here so more people can join in the fun.
• Visit some of the other participants and leave them some LOVE!

TOO Cute Tuesday will be open Tuesday-Saturday.
On Saturday or Monday I'll highlight some of my favorites
and then we'll start over on Tuesday!


<a border="0" href="http://funkypolkadotgiraffe.blogspot.com/search/label/Too%20Cute%20Tuesday" target="_blank"><img src="http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p12/mormishgirl/Blog/TooCuteTuesdayNEW.jpg" /></a>


This post brought to you by:

I changed the linky party so that the most recently uploaded project will show up as number one. This way everyone gets a chance on top. So, look in the first spot for your project, not at the end. Thanks!!!

Shout Outs: The {Color Block} Edition

Here are some great ideas from last week's linky party!

{Lengthen with Color Blocking @ Kristina J}

{Black & White Cake @ Lemon Sugar}

{Lunch Box Cookies @ Lizzy B}

{Pineapple Cake Pops Tutorial @ Pint Sized Baker}

{Maxi Dress Refashion @ Ma Nouvelle Mode}

{Mini Felt Fabric Frames @ My Life in Namibia}

 

If you want to Pin any of these fabulous ideas,

please go to the creator's blog/site and Pin from there.

Thank you!

If you were featured,
please feel free to grab a button if you'd like!

<a border="0" href="http://funkypolkadotgiraffe.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p12/mormishgirl/Blog/HeartsMeButton.jpg" /></a> <br>

 

 This week I had a mani party with the 12-13 year old girls at church.

It was so much fun and I changed up my polish

while I helped them paint their nails :)

Pinterest Party: {Extreme} Awesomeness Edition

If you want to know how to host a
Pinterest Party: {Extreme} Awesomeness Edition,
then you need to consult this lady right here.

(It was Kara Noel's birthday that week. So we had to celebrate her!)

No joke.
She is LEGIT.
I have this super awesome group of crafty friends:

Aimee
Andrea
Bev
Jaime
Kara Noel

and we had a grand idea after the Mindy Gledhill concert
at the Queen Bee Market back in November,
while chatting well into the chilly night out in the parking lot,
where all great ideas occur,
to start having a Pinterest Party each month.

Wow, that was a run on sentence if I ever did see one!

If you're not familiar with what a Pinterest Party is . . .
The host picks 2-3 crafts that can be completed in a few
hours that she has theoretically "pinned" on Pinterest.
The guests each bring $20 to cover the cost of the crafts
and a yummy dish to share that they have pinned from Pinterest.
And Pins become reality.

Due to bad luck, vacations, and my terrible bout with diverticulitis,
Kara Noel's party in July was the first party I've actually been able to attend.

It was so much fun!

Kara Noel is a fantastic hostess
and she had different stations where we could
do lots of different crafts and projects.

My favorite was this "You Are My Sunshine" canvas.


And I {ADORE} my little succulent garden complete with a Hot Pink frog :)


There was also a chevron cork board project going on
that I didn't get to finish, but you should check out what
Julie accomplished with it.
Think rainbow awesomeness.
I wish.

It was so fun to meet some other bloggers in real life,
make new friends, and chat about random topics
with friends.


And the swag!
Oh the swag!!
Kara Noel totally outdid herself.
The kids were chomping at the bit
to get their hands on the basket when I got home.


It was filled to the brim with RoseArt goodness.
Things I would never buy, not because they aren't awesome,
but because I fear the mess and the chaos.
Think paint, glitter, glue . . . all the good stuff.

What? - you say.
A crafter that doesn't like a mess? - you say.
That's crazy talk. - you say
Oh, there's more out there than you think.

But you know who adores messes?
This girl.
And I'm super grateful to RoseArt for making her messy dreams come true.


I can't wait to make use of this other rad swag from
Burke Williams, Juice It Up, Farfaria, Pretend City,
the Discovery Science Center, and the OC Zoo.

It was a fabulous day full of lots of delicious food -

seriously all of the guests made AMAZING dishes -

fun crafts and fabulous conversations with friends.

I highly recommend hosting a Pinterest Party of your own.

In fact, next month it's my turn!

Eeek!

You can read more about the party on Kara Noel's blog

and Julie's blog.
And check out Bev & Aimee's party from February HERE and HERE!

Ninja Surfer Poncho

JT was invited to a Ninjago Spinjitsu party this past weekend.

Except for one brief encounter at a Cub Scout Pack Meeting,

I was relatively clueless about this Lego phenomenon.

So I did some research, as I love to do,

and now I know all about Cole, Zane, Kai, Jay and Sensei Wu.

Well, enough to know that Cole - the Earth Ninja - is the team leader

and therefore the most awesome of the group.

So, keeping with my theme of giving surfer ponchos as

birthday gifts this summer, I came up with with this 

rad ninja surfer poncho.

JT was wholly convinced that a towel was a terrible gift.

When we went shopping for black towels he just kept saying,

"Mom! I just want to give him a toy, okay?"

It's already started.

But I assured him this would be so cool.

Needless to say,

he is no longer a doubting JT and he thought it was

super awesome once I added the ninja face.

I asked him what his friend thought of it and he said,

"He really liked it! And another boy said lots

of nice things about how cool it was."

You better believe it!

You can find the tutorial for the surfer poncho HERE

and I've listed a Ninja towel in THE SHOP if 

you don't want to make one yourself.

TOO Cute Tuesday: Linky Par-Tay #107

Have you heard about the Etsy Craft Party at CRAFTED?

I'm so excited to attend this Friday at the Port of LA.

If you're a SoCal local, you should check it out.

I'd love to meet you and get crafty!

Now onto TOO Cute Tuesday!

What did you make this week that is TOO Cute??

Come link up!

Rules:

• Must be made by you.
• Link up to the specific post - not your main blog.
• No Etsy shops or giveaways please :)
• Please post the button or link back here so more people can join in the fun.
• Visit some of the other participants and leave them some LOVE!

TOO Cute Tuesday will be open Tuesday-Saturday.
On Saturday or Monday I'll highlight some of my favorites
and then we'll start over on Tuesday!


<a border="0" href="http://funkypolkadotgiraffe.blogspot.com/search/label/Too%20Cute%20Tuesday" target="_blank"><img src="http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p12/mormishgirl/Blog/TooCuteTuesdayNEW.jpg" /></a>


This post brought to you by:

I changed the linky party so that the most recently uploaded project will show up as number one. This way everyone gets a chance on top. So, look in the first spot for your project, not at the end. Thanks!!!

Summer Recipe: Zucchini Casserole

When I went to visit my parents last summer they had quite the garden going.

One of the things that grows in abundance is zucchini.

I always wondered what one did with a plethora of  zucchini,

besides leave it in unlocked cars during church.

Then one night my mom whipped up this delicious casserole

and I was fully impressed with the power of the zucchini.

I left last summer with full intentions of making this yummy meal

for my family, but I got home and with no zucchinireadily available
- and I am definitely not paying for something that neighbor tries to pawn off on neighbor in Utah -

I forgot about it.

Until -

We were visiting this summer and the garden was in full bloom

and my mom whipped another fabulous zucchini casserole.

So, I got the recipe and I made it when I got home.

Holla!

And, you'll be happy to know that I did not pay for my zucchini.
I sent out a plea to the ladies at church via our Yahoo Group
and my request was answered by my sweet friend Allison.

The one thing I did differently than my mom's recipe is to use
Chobani Greek Yogurt instead of sour cream.
I'm not a sour cream fan anyway, so figured this was the perfect opportunity
to try out this tip I'd seen on the Chobani website.

I've had this Pampered Chef mixing bowl for going on 12 years

and I totally adore it.

Here's my diced zucchini. Skin and all.

If you're wondering what size zucchini you'll need to get 6 cups,

here's what was leftover from the beast of a zucchini up above after I chopped it up.

Bake it til it's brown and the zucchini is tender.

Yum!

Now, if you abhor all things "cream of", I'm sorry.

Most of my favorite family recipes contain something from the "cream of" family,

so I can't help you there.

But I'm sure you have a replacement trick up your sleeve that you could try.

So, now maybe you can leave a nice hot meal on your

neighbor's porch instead of a bag of zucchini . . . you know who you are . . .

Saturday was my 11th anniversary,

so in honor of my wedding colors, 

I did a little purple and white this week.