Saint Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day in Fruitland looked like this.  Claire's hair turned into a green shamrock.

I made three of the hearts that I had done in her hair for Valentines Day and joined them in the center to make a Shamrock.  I imagined it in my head the night before!  You begin with 3 tucks in the front three sections of the head.  Tucking from the bottom going up.  Tie a green ribbon around the hair band.  Divide the hair at the hair band into two and twist each side including the ribbon and then join the two sides in a hair band.  Repeat 3 times and join all 3 ends together, tie loose ribbons together.  Join rest of hair with a hair band into a pony tail

View from back.

View from side.  Along with green earing and green necklaces.

This little guy was a leprechaun.  We must dress in school uniforms and green is not one of the colors.  So he accented his "white collared shirt" with a sparkle green bow tie.

Goofy face...He said the day before "St. Patrick's Day is my favorite holiday"  Really?  I mean Christmas?  Halloween?  He seemed to be excited about the "pinching"...he is ALL boy.

The morning began with a green table with green and gold little candies and green gum.

This cute tag came from this cute site http://stpatricksday.tipjunkie.com.   The bag has a foiled shamrock in it also.

Placed at the bottom of the cup is a tiny drop of green food coloring.

Down the center of the table are gold covered chocolate coins and shiny shamrocks.

For breakfast the pancake batter was green.  I usually use green m&m's  in the pancakes, but I forgot this year.

The cool whip mysteriously turned green.

The pancakes looked yummy with green sugar on top.

It is magic, the milk turned from white to green.

Got green milk?

Front view of Claire.  Black uniform shirt, green neclaces and green shamrock stickers with sparkly gems in the center placed on her.

 I left out of town before dinner, but left dinner for when the masses were ready to eat.  For dinner the pasta was dyed green.

Green pasta and green salad?

In the center of the table was a wrapped treat with a little note on it.

There was cool-whip or icecream to place on top, both had mysteriously been dyed green.

Brownies were the treat.  Baked in the brownies were coins wrapped in foil.

See the coin off to the right?  Brownie with green cool-whip...

Brownie with green ice-cream...

Valentines Day - Valentine Ideas and a Hairstyle

This was last years hairstyle on Valentine's Day.  Creating a heart with a red ribbon and joining it all into one ponytail with a hot pink ribbon bow.  To do this hairstyle, I made a part from the top of one ear across, to the top of the other ear.  I gathered the top section into a pony tail and did a tuck, forcing all the hair in the ponytail, back up behind the hair band (parting the hair above the hair band) and pulling the ponytail through the parted hair.  I tied the red ribbon around the hair band.  Dividing that pony tail in half I did a twist, including the ribbon in each twist and formed a heart.  I then joined the bottom of the heart with the remaining hair and formed a pony tail.  I added a great big bow on this ponytail with the red ribbons hanging down with the hair.  

We apply heart stickers to the face, she didn't choose to have very many this year, we usually do more!  Then when people question why she has hearts on her face, she says "I have "Love Pox", watch out it is contagious".  

I made felt hearts with little slits in the center of them.  Slip the hearts over any and all buttons on the shirt.  Uniforms are worn at our school which limits the colors to a grey, black, white or orange collared shirt.  Adding any bit of color is always fun!

This is our table last year.  After the kids are in bed the table is decorated.  Foiled hearts on the window, heart tablecloth and anything else on top.  Silk flowers, heart glitter, heart serving platters and valentine table settings. 

Valentine M&M's, valentine candy in little heart containers are placed by each child's spot, along with a little gift.

A drop of food coloring is placed in the glass so that when the milk is added the milk magically turns pink!

Fun things I did in years past to make Valentine's fun for my family....

~ Decorate the kitchen table in a valentines tablecloth, pink and red silk flowers in the center, heart confetti, hearts on the window behind the table, valentine plates, napkins and cups.

~ Cook heart shaped, pink pancakes with valentine m & m's cooked in them.  A glass bowl full of powder strawberry milk mix to add flavor to the milk and another glass bowl of Valentine goodies in the center of the table.

~Place a little drop of red dye in the bottom of each cup so the milk magically turns pink.  

~ Send children to school with little heart stickers on their faces and a sign that reads "I have Love Pox's, watch out it is contagious."

~ Put pink and red ribbons in the hair and little felt hearts with a slit in them to slide over all buttons, so there are red hearts all over the sweater.

~ And of course red fingernail polish with hearts and glitter over that.

~ For dinner I spaghetti, red, heart cookies that were already formed and ready, just had to cook them.... 

~ I have met with two other friends and we would each bring a couple of ideas and supplies and all to make enough items for our children for the 14 days until Valentines day (beginning the gift giving on Feb. 1).  Then we would do "something" each day.  One idea was, we drew our silhouette on butcher paper with our arms straight out perpendicular from our body.  We blew up a picture of our face in black and white on a copier and glued it on the silhouette.  In the middle (stomach area) we wrote..."a hug from mom be my valentine" and then folded it all up real small.  We then put it in their lunch for the child to unfold at school in front of everyone.  I have a bunch of funny ones...one is a giant nose with 2 nostrils, drawn on card-stock and it says I "Pick" you to be my valentine, and then that rubber cement type glue in a glob in the nostril with a little slit and a sign that says pull here and as they pull it is connected to a folded dollar...very funny....

~ Play "HEART" (Bingo) using valentine m&m's as markers.

~ For dinner you can make a heart shaped pizza (go to Papa Murphy's and buy one....they sell heart shaped pizza's on Valentine's Day)...or, use a heart shaped cake pan to make a meatloaf.  Add a special drink "Cupids Delight" Cherry Float, cherry 7-up, vanilla ice cream, whipped cream and a maraschino with a cherry on top.  Heart decorated cupcakes...and dinner is served :)...

~ Write all of the following on red heart cut outs:

(in his sock drawer)...You charm the "socks" off me
(undies)...I've got you "UNDER" my skin
(by the light switch)...You "light" up my life.
(Boat floating in sink)...You are my dream "BOAT"

Or consider the following treat/gift ideas:

(gum) I "chews" you to be my valentine
(chocolate kisses)...you've been kissed
(Hugs)...you've been hugged....
(kisses and hugs) from me (mixed hugs and kisses)
(Heart shaped glasses): I can "see" clearly now you are my valentine.  It's going to be a nice sun shiny day.  "Love" glasses
(toilet)...Hey poopsie, won't you be my valentine....with whoppers...
(safety pins)....I'm stuck on you
(rootbeer) "soda ya think you'll be my Valentine?  I'm "rooting" for you to say yes...
(life savers)...you are a life saver, be my valentine