Heart-shaped-strawberry-pink-ice cubes.

This is a sort of tutorial. I mean really you probably don't need a tutorial to make ice cubes with fruit, but humor me if you will, I felt like a genius for doing this!

Last weekend was my stepson and daughter-in-law's baby shower for Carlee Claire who will be here soon! I helped with said shower and was in charge of punch, decor, and tableclothes. Well, not only did I get a little crafty with the decor (enter tissue paper pom-poms) but I decided to jazz up the sherbet punch.  I chose raspberry by the way so the punch would be girlie and pink!

I had some strawberries on hand and thought I could make some ice cubes for the punch for a little added fun.

Wasn't wanting to use ice cube trays as that would be boring (plus I didn't have any) so I opted for a muffin tin.

Told you I was genius!

I then decided the ice cubes needed a little color so I went digging for some food coloring to mix with water...then it hit me....pink lemonade!   Which I didn't have on hand, but I did have these Crystal Light pink lemonade packs that you mix with a bottle of water.

Shazam! pink ice cubes!

Thought if I cut the strawberries just right they would resemble hearts. 

(these would be cute for a Valentine dinner or banquet too, don't you think?)

So I added a heart-shape slice and added a little lemonade - 

I probably filled up my tins one-third or so. 

I put my tin in the freezer and waited till they were frozen. 

Then voila....I had my sweet little pink strawberry ice cubes! 

They popped out of the muffin tin super easy and I just stored them in a plastic dish in the freezer. 

Little strawberry hearts frozen in pink! Can you get any more girlie and sweet? 

And here is the final product...pink sherbet punch for a pink girlie baby shower! 

The ice cubes ended up in the cups and were a nice surprise for guests

Oh, I didn't mention this is served in my Grandmother's antique milk glass punch bowl.

Thanks Mom!

How awesome did this shower look with all the delicious food, decor, friends, and family!?! 

Since a baby girl is coming into my life real soon, 

I welcome any links to other projects and baby-girlie DIY's.  

I have started a new board in my Pinterest called Baby Delights 

so I can keep all my found baby inspiration in one spot. 

Have I mentioned how much I love Pinterest? 

I do, it is the most visually inspiring thing ever!

I hope to have another cute tutorial posted soon for a simple and fun idea 

for a baby shower gift that was inspired by something I found on none other than Pinterest!

It has a cupcake theme. 

wheeeee!

5211-16

Week 16 is a tribute to my family that I married into...the Whitten's
That lady there in the middle probably shouldn't even be alive right now, but her strength and faith has given her more life to live.  The other reason she is her is that baby bump you see over on the right...that would be Ms. Carlee Claire Whitten, aka "peanuts" and she is coming very soon and making me into a grandmother! {it's really weird to type that!}

This was taken at Amy's shower last Sunday and represents the majority of the women tied to the Whitten family.

And since we are talking about this baby shower event, I thought I'd share some more photos from the day:

 

 

 

 

We cannot wait for your arrival Carlee Claire!!! 

5211-15

So I am a week behind...oh well. 

This is one of my favorite so far this year. 

I took this one out by my Mom's toward the farm.
There is nothing more peaceful than my grandparents' farm. When I am there I feel a sense of peace and love like none other. I truly feel God's presence and people there really is nothing better than that.

The sky was a little overcast and it was pretty windy, but it felt amazing!

something dandy

If you have read my blog in the past you know home much I adore sunsets.  Well, I looked out a couple of evenings ago and the sky had this beautiful pinkish hue so I grabbed the camera to capture some images.  Those types of lighting situations always make everything look amazing.

Here are a few of the shots.  

I call this one "naked dandelions"! ;)  

The wind has robbed them from their pretty cotton tops. 

(I did do some post editing on this one)

 

The rest of these are just bumped a little bit. 

The color was so pretty there was no need for much!

This time of year is truly DANDY! 

It has felt so good to hold my camera again and see the world through my viewfinder. 

5211-13 & 14

Well, I suppose it's time to dust this thing off and post something!

I have been so absent from anything creative, reading my favorite blogs, posting here and  barely doing my 52 week picture! About all I've done online is Facebook and Twitter...mostly because they are on my phone.

However, I am hoping things are turning around!  Memaw is finally home after 3 months and 2 weeks.  Praise the Lord for his Mercy on her and Bless her for her Faith in God and strong will to live! It has been a roller coaster and one that we are hoping will just stay on a straight line for awhile. 

I decided I would start by going ahead and posting the last two weeks of my 52 week project.

This first one is a little triptych of my groovy dance moves! ;) I love to dance and decided I should try to capture that somehow. I was in front of a window so there was a bright light behind me - thus the washed out look around my silhouette. 

 

After a long weekend of one thing after another, my energy was on empty so I decided since I spend at least 40 hours a week at work, mostly at my desk, I should capture that somehow.  Thus Week 14:

Definitely not my favorite, but I love how it also captured part of my little camera collection, my letterpress print and all the little things I surround myself with each day.  I look pretty rough, but mind you this was at the end of the day right before going home and it had been a crazy Monday. I had jury duty, got stuck in pouring down rain, and faced a huge to-do list when I finally got to the office, so I was pooped!

Hopefully it won't be another 2 weeks before I post again.