Catch Your World

Really Cool Decorating Website

I love finding neat and easy ways to celebrate special occasions.  So when my mom told me about this really great decorating website I knew it would be good.  Because you see, my mom is a decorating/party guru and if she thinks it is cool YA KNOW IT HAS TO BE! 

She found this artist/decorator named Amy Atlas on-line.  She has been in many magazines and articles for her simple but elegant displays.  There are some really great ideas on there. If you have no clue or even a color scheme for your event just going to this site will give you inspiration.  Funny thing is you may even change your decorating plans  once you see her way of doing things.

Just Google her on-line the next time you have a minute.  Her name is Amy Atlas or go to the website scrapbox.com and check out her work.   It is all gorgeous, simple and much of it is something even the craft impaired individual can replicate.  "That would be me by the way."  Happy looking! 

P.S. Thanks mom for the great site :o)

Snow Days! - by Mistie :)

 When Heather told me her idea for a "cold birthday party"  for her children I did some looking.  I found some fun stuff  to bring a little chill to our hot days.  It is a Make Your Own Snowman World Kit and it is only $10.  All you do is add some H2O to the nontoxic polymer mixes (cubes, balls, powder) - they absorb the liquid and expand. The kids can then make all kinds of things with their faux snow.  The really cool part is the mixture can be used over and over again.  Just let the polymer dry out and it all goes back to it's original size for you to do again.  It is for ages 4+ - pretty sure even I will have fun with it.  If you want more info it is a product made by DuneCraft.  Just go online and check it out.  How cool would it be to have snow in August (at least to us Florida people:)

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Update by Heather:  Ok, Mistie dimed me out - I *love* planning my kids party each year.  We don't go totally overboard in the sense of hiring full petting zoos to come to the house or anything, but we like coming up with themes and being creative with it. 

One rule - no characters.  No Batman, My Little Pony, stuff like that.  We've done an undersea party, pirate party, jungle adventure party, Mexican fiesta, and others.  Also, since I have a boy and a girl with birthdays just a week apart in August, it has to be a theme both agree on!

Given the August heat, we thought a Chill Out party would be a blast.  After more research I've found this stuff for the snow:  InstaSnow .  We're thinking 16 gallons of snow sounds pretty good :).   Apparently you have to be careful when purchasing fake snow - some are the same polymer in disposable diapers....not exactly fluffy and fun!  InstaSnow gets great reviews.  Some pics of this intriguing stuff from Amazon follow. 

And that's all I'm sayin' about the Chill Out party...but I'll share pics of the other fun after the party!

 

 

 

Community Connections: a very special link :)

Everyone probably knows by now how I feel about being in business for myself - while it's one of the hardest things I've ever done, it's also one of the BEST.  I love that I get to make a living being creative, playing with kids, and doing things I love. 

Like most people who run their own small businesses, I'm a big proponent of supporting other small and local businesses. It's what our Community Connections idea is all about.  To find the truly unique, the excellent service, the dedication to quality, and the mom and pop connection with people who care, look to small businesses!

So I'm happy to announce that my mom-in-law has given in to my endless pushing and taken the plunge, opening her own small business.  Her talent: quilting.  Her passion: baby quilts! She's shown me a few things about quilting lately (I am NOT a seamstress!) and I have an understanding now of how the intricacy of the quilting she does leads to a top-quality product.  There's a lot of time and love put into making a quality quilt that your baby will pass down to the next generation!

A website is in the plans for coming months, but for now she is set up with an Etsy shop to begin showing her work.  The link is :   StarryNightQuilts  Please take a moment to check it out, and pass it on! 

Product Plug!

     From Mistie:)

     For my birthday (yeah me!) a very special person gave me a gift in a small container.  The name alone should have indicated I would LOVE this stuff... Need A Margarita? Citrus Body Scrub. It is from the True Blue Spa collection by Bath and Body Works, and is sanity in a bottle.  Not only does it work well the scent is to die for.  When you open the lid you are immediately taken away to a margarita sanctuary.  The lime, tequila and salt seem to all be in there as well as the smell of the sand and sun.  Close your eyes and you feel like you are on the beach in Cancun.  I can almost see Juan (my beach resort waiter) bringing me my margarita now with the extra lime wedge and fancy umbrella :) 

    It isn't your typical body scrub.  It also has these wonderful oils in it that soak in while you use the scrub and exfoliate.  So when you get out of the shower the oils are still there as well as the scent of the margarita.  No need to put lotion on at all.  Your skin feels amazing, looks amazing and smells amazing. 

     So I thank my special person for getting me addicted to this glorious concoction.  It has made my shower time (all 5 mins- you guys know how that is) a whole new experience.  So I encourage you to take the time and get your own container of "Juan - the beach resort waiter with a rita" today.  And start your own mini vacation - even if it is only mentally :)

Family Getaways

Friends of mine just came back from a wonderful vacation someplace I have never heard about.  The pictures they brought back were so cool and interesting I had to go to the website take a look for myself and share it with you. This is some info on this great family location:

Location: Out'n'About Treehouse Treesort, Takilma, Oregon

Info: (541)592-2208

These are friends who have traveled all over the US and stayed and some really awesome hotels and resorts.  Their kids said over and over how much they loved this place and would rather stay there than any Disney resort they had been to (WOW!!!!). 

This incredible place has log cabins that are more than 30 feet off the ground.  They have spiral staircases and even swinging bridges you cross to get to some of the cabins.  The cabins have balconies, bunk beds, lofts, and bathrooms.  The pictures they took looked like something Disney would do for a Swiss Family Robinson experience (except with indoor plumbing and bathrooms).  There are all kinds of activities offered: craft and tree house construction classes, horseback riding, campfire s'mores, tree climbing lessons, giant Tarzan swing, and zip lines a plenty. 

I was so intrigued by their photos that I went to the website to check it out.  Very impressive and great setup.  It looks like something out of a movie.  The cost was not extreme but a cabin for four starts at $160.  Less than some of the hotels around here with a lot more fun involved. The resort suggests that if you would be interested in a summer weekend you should book it a year in advance.

The next time you get a minute just look up their website and see what you think.  Besides, who doesn't want to go to Oregon :)

Mistie :)

Awesome Cake Balls :)

I know it seems like every single time I get on here now it is something that involves food.  But I gotta tell ya these babies are unbelievable.  Simple, simple, simple.  All you need are a few ingredients:

1 Box of German Choc. Cake Mix

1 Can of Coconut Pecan Icing

2 containers of your favorite melting choc. (the kind you heat in microwave and dip strawberries in)

 

You make the cake according to directions on the box.  Let it cool and then break apart/crumble into large mixing bowl.  Add about 3/4 of frosting to crumbled cake and mix with a hand mixer.  Make mixture into balls and freeze over night.  Remove from freezer.  Heat dipping choc according to directions on package. Dip cake balls into choc. using a toothpick.  Place dipped cake balls on wax paper and refrigerate for about 20 mins.  Eat until you get sick :) 

You can use this recipe with many different types of cake mix.  I tried it with carrot cake mix, cream cheese frosting and dipped them into white choc.  Both are extremely good.

Mistie :)

Make sure to check out all the exciting, upcoming events and news from Catch A Star Photography :)

Sugarplum Treats for kids - Pineapple Treats for mom :)

SUGARPLUM TREATS

I know that Easter is fast approaching and that means fun and gatherings galore.  So in my attempt to find an easy treat for my kids to make I came across an extremely cute one - Sugarplum Treats.  Don't worry, not only cute but very easy.  Here are the supplies you will need:

14-oz bag of candy melts (they have soooo many pretty colors-pastels are what I used)

Craft sticks (a.k.a.Popsicle sticks-these come in neat colors too)

10-oz package of marshmallows (the large ones)

Assorted sprinkles, sugars, nuts, flaked coconut and candy decorations

Here is what ya do:

1.  Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and lightly spray it with nonstick cooking spray.

2.  Melt candy coating according to the package directions.

3.  Insert a craft stick into each marshmallow.  Working one at a time, dip them into the melted candy coating and then into one of the decorations/toppings (to make dipping easy place the decorations/toppings in shallow bowls.  I put my shallow bowls in a 9x13 cake pan to help minimize mess)

4.  Once all sugarplums are made, chill them in the freezer for 15 minutes.  They can be stored in an air tight container for up to 5 days.  To make them really cute you can wrap each treat in cellophane candy bags.  We used plain or one color bags-the ones with designs on them took away from the treat and you couldn't see what was in the bag.  We took several wrapped treats and tied them together with ribbon to make a bouquet to give to families.

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MOMMY TREAT :)

PINEAPPLE-RUM COCKTAIL

In lg. pitcher, stir together 1 can (46oz) pineapple juice, 2 cups spiced rum, and 1/2 cup fresh lime juice (about 6 to 8 limes).  Refrigerate until chilled.  Serve over ice, garnish with lime slices and enjoy. Makes about 8 servings. 

Believe me when I tell you these are GOOD-GOOD-GOOD!!!!!!!! 

An Ah-Ha idea for everyone with kids:)

So, I was looking through one of my favorite magazines (Family Fun) and saw this great idea for "Thank You Notes Made Fun" article.  It recommends starting a binder full of thank you note supplies so that your children can go to the binder at anytime and start there very own personal note.  Here are the supplies they suggest you have.

You will need:   

*Envelopes, blank note cards-we added construction paper and regular paper, and craft supplies (see the recommended list below)

*Plastic ziplock bags in sandwich, quart, and gallon size

*Colored duct tape

*Three hole or single hole punch

*Three ring binder

*Free*Printable Thank-You Note Tracker from FamilyFun.com/magazine

Things you may want to stock in your binder:

Address Book                          Eraser

Glitter Glue                            Sharpener

Return address labels              Markers

Postage stamps                      Scissors

Pencils                                   Hole Punch

Stamps and ink pad

Determine which size bags will hold what supplies. Each bag will be made into a supplies pocket.  For each of the pockets, sandwich the bags bottom edge between two lengths of duct tape, making sure to make one inch of overhang.  Using your binders rings mark the holes in the duct tape, then punch the holes but avoid puncturing bag.

You can stick the printable chart inside the front cover with tape or stickers (I didn't do this step-this is just my need to send a thank you -folder not for any specific reason so I didn't use a chart).

This makes it so convenient for me when someone does something nice or we just want to say thank you for any reason.  We grab the folder and everything is in there.  The kids do not have to ask me where everything is and it is easy to put away.

one of those neat stories

One of my awesome clients has two little boys.  These two little boys have an extremely adoring auntie who lives in NY. 

Last year, this adoring auntie was chosen to take part in a book by designer Isaac Mizrahi called How To Have Style which you can see at his website: Isaac Mizrahi .  Just click those pretty blue underlined letters to go to his site and the book info pops up.  In fact, that lady in the pink dress on the front cover of the book is the auntie I'm talking about! - her name is Rebecca :).

If you read through his site, you'll see that he asked the ladies in the book to make an Inspiration Board so he could help them define their style.  On Rebecca's Inspiration Board, she included a picture of one of her nephews that I had taken.  When Isaac saw her Inspiration Board, he commented that it was a 'beautiful picture of a beautiful child' or something to that effect.  Sooo when Rebecca shared that info with me I was so excited - Isaac Mizrahi liked my work!  He has no clue who I am, but he liked one of my images! :D  Hey, it's the little things that really get you excited sometimes :).

I went through some archived images to find The Picture Isaac Liked and share it here - below.  If you have the book, it's on page 172 - check it out! 

I also want to say that, I bought the book because of Rebecca being in it, and my picture! - but as a :ahem: style challenged person who tends to hang out in jeans and tshirts, I really *really* enjoyed this book!  Lots of things to think about for those of us who are maybe a little toooo casual and could stand to mix it up a little :). 

Just Wanted You To Know 01/09 - by Mistie!

     Introducing: a new category just for Mistie to share fun stuff she finds :). Enjoy!

     You know when you find something very exciting and you just have the urge to share it with everyone you know?  Well that happened to me over the holidays and I just HAVE to share. 

     I was taken to the most wonderful, fantastical, magical place I have ever been right in the middle of Orlando, FL.  I know what you are thinking, "This crazy chic is off her rocker if she thinks we are not aware of Disney."  But I am not talking about Disney or any of the theme parks.  This magical place is huge, has toys, food, a snack bar (really cheap snack bar), child care (free for a whole hour) and every possible thing you could need to make your home your favorite place to be.  I am talking about the magical land of IKEA!  This place is amazing.  There is furniture, textiles, tables, chairs, beds, accessories, cutlery, candles...  EVERYTHING!  And the very best part is it is so inexpensive.  YEAH!!!!!!!  You could very easily lose a whole day just walking around looking at everything and still not see it all.  And what is better yet - the people who work there know where everything is and can take you to it in a heartbeat.  If you haven't been I strongly suggest you make the trip.  My wonderful, highly intelligent, beautiful boss (can you tell I know she is gonna read this:) and her family invited me and my family to have the IKEA experience.  Thank goodness she had been before - she was able to keep me focused and the oxygen running (I was sucking a lot of air).

     I know we all have really busy lives and it is hard to even get time to go to the grocery store.  And I know we have Wal-Mart and Target to get supplies from but I am serious as a heart attack when I tell you not to miss out on this place.  Take the time to make a day trip over with the family and get the IKEA experience.  You will not regret it.  Thanks for letting me share:)

     Mistie :)