Photo by Nichol Haddock.

Unfortunately my decorating ability is limited. When we have a birthday at my house, I’m lucky to put up streamers and even when I do, I twist them too tightly so the fold together instead of gently spiraling.  However, I might even be able to manage the genius that is The Pleated Poppoy and her art party,

i wanted everything to be really bright and colorful, so we went with all the colors of the rainbow!
i also needed to be very economical since we also hired an art teacher for the party, so the decorations were done on the cheap.

The balloons are amazing! The table is fabulous! Even the colorful paper chain is cute.  Kudos to the art party decorations!

I grew up with four brothers and one sister.  My dad was in the Air Force, so most families were not that big, two maybe three kids. In my Mom’s hometown, though, six kids would have been considered a small family. But Air Force families were just not that big, so our crew really stuck out like a sore thumb.

My Mom constantly had to hear jokes like “Don’t you know where they come from?”  As an adult, I’m guilty of telling the same joke with people – mostly pregnant friends.  However, one Mom of many kids takes the questions head-on on Garden Goat Quote,

Q:           “Do you know what causes it?” This question blows me away. I am in a public place; a stranger thinks that they can ask me this presumably because NO ONE would willingly have this number of kids, therefore ignorance of the basic must be the cause.

Answer:              

1. “Haven’t a clue…maybe you could visit my home later when the kids are in bed and explain it to me.”
2. “Yes, I do…don’t you?”
3. “Well, we THOUGHT we did, but if that were the case, we’d have thousands of them by now.”
4. “Yes, and it is something I am very good at … (!!) proud of it!”

Ha! I love this writer! So to all of you large families – bravo!  I adored having a big family and say more power to you!

Too cute!

I get low blood pressure from my dad and bad teeth from my mom.  Yes genetics are real (too real sometimes!).  But sometimes the weirdest stuff happens through gene-sharing.  Take the blue skinned people of Kentucky,

In an unusual story that involves both genetics and geography, an entire family from isolated Appalachia was tinged blue. Their ancestral line began six generations earlier with a French orphan, Martin Fugate, who settled in Eastern Kentucky.

Martin Fugate came to Troublesome Creek from France in 1820 and family folklore says he was blue. He married Elizabeth Smith, who also carried the recessive gene. Of their seven children, four were reported to be blue.

There were no railroads and few roads outside the region, so the community remained small and isolated. The Fugates married other Fugate cousins and families who lived nearby, with names like Combs, Smith, Ritchie and Stacy.

Such an interesting story!  I think I’d rather have an annual crown put on my teeth than live my whole life with blue skin!

Photo by Eileen Renger Kundin from etsy.

One of my colleagues is a proud Papa today of a new baby boy. His wife gave birth to Mason who weighed in at over seven pounds and 20 inches long.  I hope he thinks to get some of these photos of the baby’s first day of life.

From lil sugar, must-take pictures on baby’s first day,

In a few short years they’ll be fighting like cats and dogs, but that first moment when an older sibling meets the newest family member is precious. Hold on to the photo — you’ll want to look back at it longingly when the bickering seems endless!

My personal favorite was the photo of baby’s feet. So sweet!

In some southern states I’ve traveled to, you can buy a piece of jewelry that deflects the evil eye.  However, this evil eye is just hilarious!

You might find your blood pressure elevated with this homemade edible glitter concoction, but it’s sure to be nontoxic for parents who worry about their children’s safety.  I wonder where you find gold and silver food coloring, though.

From PlanetPals.com,

Tools needed for this project

Baking Pan
Tin Foil
1/4 cup of salt
1/2 teaspoon of food coloring
Preheat an oven to 350 degrees.

Directions:

Mix 1/4 cup of salt with a 1/2 teaspoon of food coloring in a small bowl until the salt is uniformly colored.
Spread the mixture out in an even layer on a foil-lined baking sheet.
Bake in the oven for ten minutes. Allow your homemade glitter to cool before using it.

NOTE:

You may also store it in an air tight container for several months.
This glitter can be used for almost any type of project and may even be mixed with glue for special crafts.

Photo by adore more.

Photo from Too Cute Things.