Jamberry Challenge cont'd and Redecorating

Day 2 

Both the polished nails and the Jamberry nail are looking good. 

Day 3 

Still looking good. Typically my nail polish would start chipping by Day 3 but the Sinful Colors is holding out pretty well. 

Day 4 

Still looking pretty good. The Jamberry looks like new. The nail polish looks good too although one nail on my right hand has a tiny chip on the tip. I think I need to pick up some other colors of the Sinful Colors.  It certainly wears better than my other polish. 

I really have not pampered them but you have to remember I don't do dishes - or at least not daily. 

I did spend some time wiping down anew piece of furniture for the living room. 

Bought this through an online yard sale on Facebook. I wiped it down with chlorox wipes and then some soap and water. Adelyn already likes playing with it and we don't have any dishes. We have a little basket of fruits and vegetables and  she would take the ear of corn and try to put it in the microwave. Just not quote talk enough to get it in there far enough to shut the door. 

It reminds me of two other little girls and their play kitchen. 

I wish I would have kept some of their toys. They had a birthday cake that you could put plastic decorations on and 'cut' into the wedges and also a canister of scoops of ice cream with rubbery toppings to put on them. And a little red basket with dishes and utensils. I'm sure we will collect some for Addie's kitchen too 

Jamberry Challenge

A few of my friends have taken the Jamberry Challenge.  This is where you painted 10 of your nails with polish like you regularly would and on the other 2 nails you place Jamberry nail strips. Then compare how they wear over days/weeks.

I received a sample of the Jamberry strips in May but have never found the time to try them. The sample is one strip and it will cover 2 nails. I chose the most subtle design in the choices for the strips - aqua with yellow polka dots- but had no coordinating colors of polish that I could use so I picked up a bottle of aqua at Walmart.  I got the cheapest I could find $1.98 I believe - and put done on 2 days ago just to see how I liked it. It is the most durable polish I have ever had. No top coat or clear enamel - and basically no chips in 2 days. Unusual for me. And tonight when I took it off do I could start the challenge , it took lots of polish remover and tissues to get the nails completely clean. 

This is the stuff. I may be buying more of it. 

I put the Jamberry strips on my index (pointer) fingers. It was pretty simple. You cut the strip in half and find which nail it fits the best. Clean the nail with alcohol

and push back the cuticle. Peel off the strip, heat with a blow dryer and place on your nail. Make sure to press firmly around the edges. Trim the tip to match the nail and file the tip with downward strokes. 

I was not sure where the blow dryer was - haven't used one in decades - so thought I would use my heat fun. Probably not the best idea. I almost burnt my fingertips. Next time - I'll dig out the blue dryer. 

I also had some trouble trimming the tip on the one on my right hand. I don't use scissors with my left hand very well. I was able to trim close to the tip and used a nail clipper to get it closer.  

So here is the Day 1 photo 

They are all looking pretty good. The one different nail on each hand is kind of fun!  We'll see how they look tomorrow evening. I plan to wash the kitchen play set so I can get it moved into the living room for this little princess to play with. 

The sunglasses are ones I picked up in San Diego with an elastic strap to keep them on her head.  Her mom and dad had trouble getting a clear photo because as soon as they put the glasses on her she starts dancing. 

I worked from her house today because her mommy is sick. When I went to get her out of her bed this morning she had red splotches all over her arms, legs and face. 

Doesn't she look pitiful.  They did not seem to bother her. Mommy called the dr and they suggested a small dose of Benadryl. If no improvement after 30 minutes they wanted to see her.  Well, grandma got to take her to the doctor. 

Nothing to be concerned with. Either viral or allergic reaction. Give some Benadryl or Zyrtec if she seemed uncomfortable. They already look like they are fading. 

You just never know what your day is going to bring around here :-) 

Grandma's House

Now that our house is a Grandma's House, we needed some additions to make it fun.    I found this on one of the Facebook area yard sale groups.    It was a great deal!

This will fit nicely in the corner of the living room where we currently have  a cardboard box full of Addie's books and toys.  This will hold quite a few toys  - and of course, I am now looking for play dishes, pots and pans, and kitchen utensils.

I also purchased this umbrella stroller.  Katie warned me to keep it out of sight unless we want to go for a walk :-)  It will be good exercise pushing it up and down the hilly subdivision.

Last week we had a girls' night out at the Muny and Papa Tom babysat.  When we got home, this is how we found them.  Too cute!  I moved her to the port-a-crib and she slept through until about 6 am, then Papa put her between us in bed and she slept until 830.  Of course, I had to stay in bed with her to make sure she did not roll off :-)

Weekend Wrap-Up

It was a busy weekend.  My sister, Carol, was visiting from New Jersey all week.  Carol, Katie, Bekah and I had a girls' night at the Muny and saw Grease.  It was good and a beautiful evening.  Who would have thought that Aug 1 would find us in sweaters.  The people sitting in the two rows in front of us left during the intermission so we have a completely unobstructed view for the second half. 

On Saturday it was the Phamily Phish Phry on the Pharm - hosted by my brother Phred and his wife, Jill.  We only had a small portion of the family there but we still had plenty of food and fun.  

 My niece Kelly had some crafts for the kids.  Here her nephews, Aidan and Landon decorated some fish.  Aidan made quite a few and was generously giving them away.

 Carol brought an album of photos from a trip she took in June with our sister, Jane.  They explored the 'hidden treasures of the alps' with a group from Carol's church.  Jane made her a lovely album with all the photos.  We all enjoyed looking through it and hearing about the trip.

Adelyn got a belated birthday gift from great-uncle Phred and great-aunt Jill.  She enjoyed playing with the snap apart bath toys on the rug they placed on the concrete.  It was great!  They plan to use the rug when they go camping.

The little kids got into the hot tub - not hot, just warm.   It was a great place for them to play.  Addie enjoyed splashing and kicking.

And of course, after swimming, you need a snack.  Landon is finishing off some watermelon.   His brother, Aidan must have eaten 3 or 4 plates full.

This was one of the uninvited guests, a skink.  He sat there and look over all the people watching him, then went running off.

Today we went to church and this afternoon Tom and I helped set up for the food pantry's school supply project.  There are over 200 children that will be given the necessary school supplies through this program.

  My DH Tom and Ron Prather help sort back packs.  The children are pre-registered so for the most part we know what each child will need based on the supply lists for the area schools.   The supplies have all been bagged and sorted by the parent's name.   Once the child has picked up their supplies, they can pick out a bookbag and will receive a pair of shoes.   There are over 200 children registered and we expect a few that will just show up so we have a supply room to make up more bags.   We are happy to be a part of this service project.

Happy Birthday Mom

Today is my mom's birthday. She would be 97 but died in 1995 at the age of 76. She was not only my mother but my mentor and friend. I am so thankful I fog to know her as an adult. I'm also grateful that she got to meet my daughters - the last of her grandchildren.  My girls were 5 and 4 when she died so they have limited memories of her ( the younger one doesn't really remember her but has seem videos and photos of them together). 

My mom always considered this tier wedding picture. They did not have pictures of their wedding but this was taken a couple months later. 

Here they are many years later. This was probably 1990.  I see more and more of my mom in the mirror every year. Others often tell me I look like her and those who knew her sometimes tell me I remind them of her.  What a great compliment! She was a wonderful woman - loving and giving. Often sacrificing for her family and not minding at all. 

More cards and another recipe

I played with some more balloon shapes and arrangements this evening.  This time I used some retired card stock - Concord Crush, Peach Parfait, Lucky Limeade, Not Quite Navy and Poppy Parade.

I found the easiest way to tie the strings and anchor them was to take another piece of twine and lay it under the balloon strings. Using a small piece of tape, anchor the ends below where you want to tie them.  Tie the loose piece of twine around the balloon strings and make a bow.  Remove the tape and use a mini glue dot to anchor the bow on the card front.

I added heart balloons to some for anniversary cards.  Something different.

Another anniversary card.  I used the Decorative Label punch for the tab with the sentiment.

On a couple of the cards I used a white gel pen to draw the strings for the balloons rather than using the twine. 

Made these yummy veggies for supper tonight.   Roasted Squash - zucchini, yellow squash, sweet red pepper and green onions.  Topped with basil and mozzarella cheese.

Everyone else had spaghetti with the meatballs but I put some of the sauce on the roasted squash and had my meatballs on the side.   Very good!  Didn't miss the spaghetti or the carbs :-)   The only bad thing was everyone liked the squash and there were not many leftovers.   We will definitely have this again.

Happy Balloons

I made some birthday cards today and loved making the balloons using the small oval punch and a foot from the owl punch.

Aren't they cute?  I made 65 balloons (for 13 cards) using scraps of Wild Wasabi, So Saffron, Calypso Coral, Marina Mist and Wisteria Wonder. 

I had fun trying different arrangements for the balloons. 

The backgroind is embossed with the Cloudy Day folder.   

Some had Baja Breeze as the background color. 

I used some retired DSP for the bottom of the card. 

Some had Bashful Blue as the background. I have used up most of that retired paper. 

I used the candy dots to add an accent to the sentiment. 

Just can't get enough of the balloons. 

I have a couple more ideas for balloons. Can't wait to try them this week :-)