Organizational Craft For On The Go!

I really love crafts...but the best thing is when you can mix crafts with organization! I also love these little snap totes! I have been using one for awhile for my sewing items, and I thought it would be cool to make one for the boys for when we travel! So that the boys can tell which tote is theirs, I personalized them! I put inside those odds and ends type of toys that they love, but don't see very often! These toys are usually at the bottom of their toy boxes! The best way to find fun and unusual little toys is at yard sales! You can find little trinkets for around a quarter a piece!On the first layer I have their little toys like matchbox cars, little people, animals, and trains. On the bottom layer is an "on the go art kit" with stickers, scrap paper, and crayons. Ben loves flashcards, so I put a set inside his box! They are super cheap to make and super easy! I rarely have enough time to craft when the boys are around and I made these little babies in no time at all!

Top Layer (toys):

Bottom layer (art supplies):

They were very simple to make. I bought the snap totes for $4.97 each at Walmart. For the tags I bought these clear i.d. holders (package 12) for $1.64 also from Walmart. I used up some of the scrapbooking supplies and papers that I have, and used my new Cricut machine to make the die cut initials. I cut their photo down to size, and I then put it in the i.d. holder. I attached the i.d. photo holder to the handle with some leftover ribbon that I had and there you go and easy peasy way to keep your kids occupied on the road! And at just alittle over $5.00 for each one! You can get much more creative with your contents...but I threw some stuff together for a quick post! Enjoy and happy creating!

My puppy and an Award!

Hi everyone! Just wanted to give you an update on my puppy Dixie. Yesterday she went to the vet and she still has a Urinary Tract Infection...poor thing! It's making her housetraining very difficult! She was put on another round of stronger antibiotics, so hopefully it will now clear up!

Since her last appointment (ten days ago) she gained 4 pounds! She now weighs a whopping 16 pounds! She's such a little cuddly moose!

Last week I made her official "birth announcement!" I know, she's not a baby, but I wanted to make something to celebrate her birth! Here it is:

I got the baby scale at an antique store in Ohio and I was just dying to photograph something on it! Since I won't be having anymore babies, I thought it would be perfect for the dog! And no I don't have pink walls (eventhough I would love that)...I just used the magic of Photoshop! The bow in her hair is just a digital scrapbooking element too! She can't wear bows yet, her hair isn't long enough! Hopefully by this summer her hair will be longer and she'll be sporting all kinds of cute pink bows! And that is her "official name"....Duchess Dixie Valentine!

Now on to my award! Yesterday I was so excited to find out that Kelli from "Outside My Kitchen Window" gave me an award! My first ever award....I was jumping up and down! Kelli has such a wonderful blog about her precious family...you have to check it out! Thank you soo much Kelli! This means alot!

The rules of this award are:
Put the logo on your blog or post. Nominate at least 10 blogs which show great Attitude and/or Gratitude! Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.Share the love and link to this post and to the person from whom you received your award.
I'd like to give this award to some of my new blog friends:
Kristin: The Goat

Beth: Rambling Gal

Lori: Morning Glories and Moonflowers

Betsy: Snips, Snails, and Mommy tales.

Darlene: Darlene's Days.

Carrie: Carrie's Little World.

Amber: The McIllece Spot.

Echo: Echo Kirkland.

Bag Tag

My awesome blogger friend Kelli tagged me for this fun little game! I met Kelli through blogging and we are so much alike! I love reading her blog daily! She has the two cutest kids ever!


Here are the rules for the tag:


1. Post a picture of whatever bag you have today - not last weekend when you and your hubby went out to that fabulous restaurant. No cheating!!!

2. Tell us how much it cost. This is a no-judgment zone -- there will be no ridiculing or eye rolling here. And, if there is a story to go along with how you obtained it, I'd love to hear it.


3. Now tag some fellow bloggers and link back to this post so people know why you are posting pictures of your bag.

Here's the Bag:

This is probably my favorite purse! I purchased it about a year and a half ago when I got my first job after college! It's a Kathy Van Zeeland. It cost around $85. I normally wouldn't pay this much for a purse, but I fell in love with it, and it was my treat to myself for my first after college job. Had I known that I was going to quit to be a stay at home mom, I never would have purchased it! Here are the goods:

• My "Hope" infallible lipstick by L'Oreal.
• 2 shades of pink lipgloss by NYX...I just love their products!
• Chapstick in peppermint flavor!
• A Mary Kay black little holder thingy that holds my lipgloss and credit cards.
• My hot pink camera case for my new camera!
• A zebra printed cosmetic bag.
• Pink Sugar perfume! I just love it! It smells like a mix of cotton candy, sugar, vanilla...it's soo yummy!
• Ice Cubes raspberry chewing gum. Bought it cause it's PINK!
• Motrin (with two kids, I get lots of headaches!) lol
• Hand sanitizer.
• A Sutter Home wine cork from our Valentine's dinner. When we have a special occassion and we drink wine or champagne I save the cork. On the cork I write the date and special occassion. I keep the corks in a glass jar as memories!
• Pink Sugar hand lotion. I buy lotion off of Etsy. "Moon Struck Magic" lotion is the best! She's from NYC and her lotions are soo reasonably priced and sooo wonderful! It's like totally pampering yourself! And the scents last forever! I also LOVE her coconut lotion, it smells like Hawaiin Tropic and I get compliments everytime I wear it!
• Bandaids.
• A gift card for Petsmart.
  

So, there you have it...a peek into my world. Now, there are a few I'd like to peek into. Let me know if you play along:
I tag:

Kristin: "the goat". Her blog is one of my favorites! I laugh almost everytime that I read it! She is soo funny and is one of the most caring people out there in blogland!

Rambling Girl: She also has an amazing blog and she is just soo nice! She has the cutest little daughter too! It makes me wish that I had a girl!

Mystery History Girl at "Morning Glories and Moonflowers." She has a wonderful blog and is a very talented jewelry maker! I am lucky enough to own one of her beautiful bracelets! She's such a sweetie!

Hugs, Ruth Ann

Valentine Dinner Cruise

Last night my husband and I went on a dinner cruise in Pittsburgh! If you haven't been to Pittsburgh, it's a lovely place to visit! It's easy to get lost in Pittsburgh with bridges everywhere! Pittsburgh comes in second to Venice Italy for the most bridges in the world! Pittsburgh has approximately 500! There are three rivers that meet at a point in Pittsburgh, so it's very easy to take a wrong exit and go over bridge after bridge until you find your destination! lol

Even with GPS we still make wrong turns, like we did last night!

Anyway they have a couple of riverboats called "The Gateway Clipper." Originally for Christmas we bought my parents these dinner tickets as a gift. They help us out alot with the kids, and we wanted to do something special for them. My mom felt that they were "too old" to go, and offered to watch the kids while my husband and I went! That was very generous of her! So last night my husband and I went on a 3 hour dinner cruise! It's meant to be a sightseeing tour, but it was way too cold to venture out on the deck for very long.

Here is a photo of the boat:

Here we are out on the deck at night! We had great wine, appetizers, and a delicious dinner! The stuffed chicken breast was soo yummy! And they had the best pina coladas! I don't normally drink, but last night was a special occassion!

Here is my gorgeous husband at dinner: Here's me:We had a romantic table for two and everything was just amazing! We definitely would like to go back this summer when the weather is warm! The views of Pittsburgh are unbelievable, especially at night! I can't wait until we can do this again!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day!

Hugs,

Ruth Ann

Birthday Fun!

Today was my birthday! I had a great time with my family! I was up with the dog at 7 am...which was around the time my husband got home from work. I wanted to go back to sleep really badly, figuring I would sleep in until Ben got up. Well I woke up and looked at the clock and it was 11:30! We slept all morning! By the way it was soo beautiful here today in Western Pa...67 degrees! I actually had my air on in the car! The weather added to my fantastic day!

Today in the mail I received my birthday present from my husband...it's a cute little PINK digital camera! I have a huge digital SLR camera with the big lenses..and it's just too big to carry around! It involves a separate camera bag and that's too much to handle with two toddlers. I wanted something that I could carry with me everyday in my purse! Isn't it the cutest?
I wanted to scan in the birthday card that my husband got me, but I'm having scanning issues so I'll just fill you in with what it said.

Usually my husband buys me the sweetest cards, and as I was reading it...it seemed beautiful! It nearly brought me to tears! This is what is on the card: "From the moment I first saw you, I said to myself, There's the woman I'm going to marry, raise a family with and share the dreams of a thousand tomrrows."
The inside says: "Well, actually it was "nice buns," but you hadn't turned around yet!"

That was so not typical of something my husband would buy me, but oh well it made me laugh! Later in the evening I went to Best Buy and bought a memory card for my new camera, a Richard Gere movie as well (big surprise), and I bought the kids a Vtech V-Motion that I plan to give them for Valentine's Day.

When I got home my husband took me and the boys out to dinner! We had a really great evening! So after the kids go to sleep we'll stay up and watch my new movie! I can't wait! It's called "The Hunting Party." It's an action film which is not my kind of film, but if Richard Gere's in it, I'll watch it anyhow!

Hugs, Ruth Ann

Giveaway Winner!

Hi everyone! Nights in Rodanthe was finally released on dvd today! I know, that's not exciting for most of you- but I am soo thrilled!

I spent over an hour trying to upload the digital version of the movie onto my Ipod so I can watch it whenever I wanted without the kids whining to watch cartoons...unfortunately I had no such luck and watched it on the tv instead!

I realized later that I need to convert the movie file to a file that will be compatible with my Ipod...I guess I'll figure that out another time. Why does everything have to be soo complicated? Lol

As I was watching the movie, Ben kept asking me why I was crying...I said the movie was sad and he kept saying "But it's not sad now!"

Anyway on to the drawing....

This morning Ben picked the lucky winner!

He had so much fun shaking up the jar and choosing one slip of paper! The winner is:

M.L @ House of Whimsy! Please make sure to e-mail me your address so I can send off your dvd you lucky girl!

I do wish I was able to send you all a copy...it's an awesome movie and I hope that you get to watch it and enjoy it as much as I do! Have a great day everyone!

Hugs,
Ruth Ann

More Awesome Mail & Giveaway Reminder!

Lookie what I received in the mail today! My "Pay It Forward" gift from fellow blogger: Lori at Morning Glories and Moonflowers! She sent me the most beautiful pink button bracelet that she made! It's absolutely girly, beautiful, and PINK! She sent it just in time for my birthday, and I couldn't wait...I had to open it a few days early! Look how beautiful it is!

And the packaging was just as yummy too! Look how cute it was packaged!She is soo talented, and has the most charming Etsy shop called: "Too Silly Sisters!"

Be sure to visit her shop and look at her wonderful bracelets!

Thank you soo much Lori! This bracelet is sooo "me!"

Tomorrow is the release of the Nights in Rodanthe Movie! I cannot wait! I'm literally counting the minutes! I want soo badly to go to Walmart at 12 am, but I don't want to drag the kids out of bed! lol My husband is working midnight shift tonight, and has specific instructions to go to Walmart on his way home and pick up the movies!

Don't forget to enter my giveaway, if you haven't already! It'll close tonight at midnight! I'll post the lucky winner tomorrow afternoon! I'm excited...are you? Have a wonderful night!

Hugs,
Ruth Ann

Valentine Swap Goodies!!!!

I was recently in a Valentine Swap and was paired up with Kristin! We got to know each other over the past couple weeks, and she is just the sweetest thing EVER! You have to check out her fabulous blog: The Goat! She always has the most interesting things to talk about, and I enjoy visiting it and reading it daily!

Back to my Valentine Goodies....much to my surprise I received this on Saturday! She sent me a Martha Stewart Living Magazine, cute scrapbooking supplies, a cupcake paper punch (which I cannot wait to play around with), Silicon Heart Baking Cups, Bean Soup Mix, a flower, and these cute little makeup brushes in a cute black case with pink stitching! She just knows me tooo well! It's funny cause I feel like we have a connection, because we have soo much in common!

She also made me these cute little pebble stone magnets, which I forgot to include in the photo...sorry. I put them on my fridge when I opened the package and forgot to display them in the picture. You'll have to keep checking her blog, because she is going to post a tutorial on how to make them! I can't wait!

I cannot wait to scrapbook and make something with all these great goodies! Thank you so much Kristin! It was awesome getting to know you and I hope we stay in touch!

Hugs,
Ruth Ann

Poor Little Dixie

My poor little puppy Dixie isn't feeling well. She has a Urinary Tract Infection! A couple days ago I noticed that she was squatting in the house several times. And this was unusual for her, because ever since we got her she would go to the door and go to the bathroom outside. When I took her outside I realized that she was squatting every couple of feet. I figured the following morning I would call the vet because this seemed like a health issue. So the next morning we woke up and she had blood in her urine!

The vet asked us to bring in a urine specimen. What???? "Ok Dixie go into the bathroom and take this little cup and give us a sample!" lol How on earth is that possible?
With a little creativity, we managed to get a sample and sure enough she has a UTI!

It was a rough night for me last night. She was up every hour to two hours wanting to go outside. And she'll spend several minutes squatting and squatting and squatting! Poor little thing! I feel so bad for her because I know what it's like to have a UTI. She's on medication now for the next 10 days, so hopefully she'll get better soon!

And she is such a sweet little thing. As sick as she is she still is extremely patient with the boys, and still runs and chases after Allie in the yard! We are soo lucky to have her! It's like a new little adventure and is like having a newborn all over again! My first son was up every two hours for feeding so Dixie reminds me of that! Otherwise, she is doing great!

If you haven't already, sign up for my GIVEAWAY....there's only 3 days left!

Have a great weekend everybody!

-Ruth Ann

My boys!

I just wanted to share a photo that I came across today while I was taking the photos off of my digital camera. Here's a photo of my boys before going to a big Steeler Superbowl party! Don't you just love my husband's poncho? Yes, I'm being sarcastic! This great little poncho was a gift from our friends in Arizona...which is ironic, since the Steelers beat the Cardinals at the Superbowl! And Ben's little turtleneck Steeler shirt was a $1.99 thrift store find! Don't you just love a thrift store bargain!

Be sure to enter my giveaway if you haven't already! Have a great day!
Hugs,
Ruth Ann

Giveaway Time!

Hi everyone!

Nights in Rodanthe happens to be my all time favorite Richard Gere movie! I have never cried like that before! Who can resist Richard Gere? I know I can't! A loud weeping cry wanted to escape from me in the movie theatre, but I held it in and cried silently instead! This resulted in sore throat from all the sobbing! It was the first time that I could really relate to a character in a movie so perfectly!

My husband and I had a long-very deep conversation after the movie because we related to the love that the two characters shared in the movie! I don't want to mention to much...because I don't want to spoil the movie for those of you that hasn't seen it yet!

I've been super excited about the release of the dvd.....not only can I now cry as loud as I want in the privacy of my own home, but it's released the day before my birthday! Yeah...Happy Birthday to me right?! I already told my husband that I want an early birthday present. I would prefer Richard Gere, but I think the movie will do! Besides he's busier with other things right now like freeing Tibet!

So...in honor of Valentine's Day and a truly incredible movie I want to giveaway "The Nights in Rodanthe" dvd! I will pick the lucky winner on the morning that the movie's released:
February 10th!

All you have to do is leave me a comment on this post, and tell me what movie really makes you cry!

Have a great night and GOOD LUCK!

Hugs,
Ruth Ann

Darn Groundhog!

Darn groundhog.....SIX more weeks of winter! I don't know about you, but I can't handle that! Yesterday on the way to pick up our new puppy we passed through Puxsutawney! Back before we had kids we were able to do fun things like that, but now they're too small. I can't wait until a few more years when they can enjoy seeing Punxsutawney Phil live and in person!

Those were the times...."before we had kids" is what I call that time way back when...when you could just go anywhere spur of the moment without worrying about packing diapers, extra clothes, snacks, pacifiers, and sippy cups!

I thought I would share a photo of my husband and I up at Punxsutawney celebrating Groundhog's Day on 2-2-02.

It was 17 degrees that day and we stood outside and waited for that groundhog for several hours starting at about 4:30 am. Call us crazy...but it was FUN! Then we walked a couple of miles into town for a festival! It was awesome! Every year I keep praying for super warm weather so I can take the boys!

That's one lucky thing about living in the Pittsburgh area...even though at times I wish I lived elsewhere, there are so many great places that aren't very far. Philadelphia is about 4 hours away, New York City about 6 hours, Chicago about 7 hours, Washington D.C. about 2 1/2 hours, and Punxsutawney 2 hours. That's really cool!

Sometimes we reminisce about what it was like "Before Kids".....But I wouldn't change it for anything...we're just creating new memories with our family!

Here are two other photos that I wanted to share with you. Yesterday while driving through Punxsutawney we saw these awesome snow sculptures that were in someones yard.

Here is the dolphins: And here is the dinosaur, which was about 8 feet tall!
I had to stop and talk to the guy of course! He was outside and spraying down his sculptures with food coloring! He said that they're made out of snow,and he used a machete to carve them.

They were really spectacular! I can't even build a snowman! lol
He said that he built them for all the people who travel to Punxsutawney for Groundhog's Day! He said next year he's hoping to set up a coffee stand to make a little extra cash! What a cool idea! I think he should make a groundhog, what do you think!?

Be sure to visit my blog tomorrow....I'm going to post about a super cool giveaway!
Hugs,
Ruth Ann

Our New Arrival!

Today we finally got to pick up the new addition to our home!You'll have to be patient with me...I have a ton of photos to share with you from our day today!

Isn't she the sweetest thing? She absolutely LOVES playing outside in her big backyard! Look at her run!The boys just love her...and she absolutely LOVES the boys! As soon as she got to meet them she jumped all over them and gave them tons of kisses! They sure like giving her kisses too!

Here's Ben giving her a kiss!Alex just had to kiss her too! She's just soo lovable, you can't help it!

And I just love this photo!She is such a good little eater! Man she can really eat, and she drinks a lot of water too! Right now she is the size of my little dog Allie...but not for long! Here's Allie is getting acquainted with her... Doesn't she look sad in this photo? I know she misses her wonderful family! Hopefully in the next few days she begin to love us too!Right now we're undecided about a name. We like either Dixie or Daisy? We were planning on naming her Dixie...but the name just doesn't seem to fit? My husband likes Daisy...and my oldest son wants to call her either "Butterball" or "Rose Bud" (from the Air Buddies movie)! I like Grace or Gracie. Choosing a name seems to be harder than picking out a name for a baby! Does anyone have any suggestions? I'm going to "girl her up" tomorrow and put a pretty bow in her hair...I'll make sure to share a photo.

In the meantime...The Steelers WON! Wooohooo! It was a great game! And tomorrow is Groundhog's Day! I wish I was up there to celebrate! Tomorrow I'm going to share Groundhog Day memories! lol

Hugs,
Ruth Ann