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We got home late last night from a wonderful trip to Disneyland.  It know it’s a cliche… but it truly was a magical trip.  The crowds were relatively light, the weather was unseasonably cool (perfect in our book) and the kids were so much fun to be with.  Both my husband and I felt like kids again.

It was hard to see it come to an end.

A picture’s worth a thousand words.

Is Lily crying on the second row?  Actually, Space Mountain was her favorite ride, that and the Tiki Room (which really isn’t a ride)… and just for your listening pleasure, click here if you want to hear the song I’ve been hearing Lily sing all week.

Mickey hasn’t changed one little bit since I was a girl.  Isn’t he endearing?

A few of the highlights of our trip were:

1.  Walking right onto Thunder Mountain Railroad (no wait) on our first ride in the Park.

2. Riding the Matterhorn three times in row with Emma, because it was her favorite ride.  “Probably the best ride in the world, Mom.”

3.  Seeing my husband laughing and getting soaked on Splash Mountain.  He loves Brer Rabbit and the gang and loved Splash Mountain.

4.  Watching Ben’s curiosity and delight at everything in the Park.  From the sword in the stone, or watching for the evil step mother from Snow White in the window in Fantasyland, to hearing his debate over which was his favorite ride… Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Indiana Jones or maybe even the Tower of Terror- Ben was so fun to be with.

5.  Having a ghost sit next to Ben and me in the Haunted Mansion and seeing him look between us to see if it was really there.

6.  Watching Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln with my mom.

7.  Seeing Lily so scared in the Space Mountain line that she was almost in tears, then watching her decide to be brave and ride, and then having her come to the end of the ride smiling and saying “Can we go again?  That was my favorite ride!”

8.  Relaxing in the Tiki Room when we were tired and enjoying the wonderful music.

9.  Watching the fireworks show by It’s a Small World… simply wonderful.

10.  Eating ice cream cones on our last evening in the park, just after the rides closed, on a park bench at the end of Main Street, and watching the twinkling lights, the people and the castle all lit up at the end.

Since my dad was on business in Anaheim, my mom came with him and went to the park for one of the days.  It made a great trip even more special.  The last time I was at Disneyland with her, I was just a girl.

We were even able to spend one day at the beach for the kids first ever look at the ocean.  They took to it like fish to water.

Someone else was sunbathing on the beach too.  We all worried that this little seal was a bit under the weather, so we kept a bit of a distance.  But he was amazing to see none the less.

Our other wildlife spotting at the beach was a rattlesnake, sunning himself by the boardwalk.  I didn’t get a picture… but it was amazing and just a little frightening to see.

What a wonderful trip.  It was worth waiting for… and never to be forgotten.

I’d like to welcome Vanessa from V and Co. She is incredibly talented… and I never fail to find inspiration when I drop by her blog.  You are going to love her tutorial… she takes what is little more than a scrap of fabric and turns it into a lovely piece of fashion.  Thank you Vanessa for sharing your talents with us.

Hi there every one I’m excited to share with you this little flower ring tutorial while Calli is away having fun at Disneyland!!! Please come by and check out my other tutorials and I hope you enjoy this one!
Thanks Calli and hope you have fun!!!

here’s a perfect ring to give to a friend, mother, daughter, wife, or yourself.
with a few and easy steps you can make this lovely little (okay kinda big) fabric flower ring for whoever you chose!

supplies:
*one strip of fabric measuring at 1 inch by 10 inches.
*one adjustable ring blank
*hot glue

i have kits for this ring in my shop yes that’s right i’m making the move to big cartel.
paypal friendly, codes allowed for discounts, not nickle and diming me to death all made it easier for me to make the move. yes you will see my newer designs in my bc shop. i’ll keep my etsy open…but assuming all goes well sooner than later all will be moved and only operating through V and Co. the shop .
the kits come in three colors for now but if you are interested in another color just contact me either through email or through my “contact” in my shop and we’ll see what i can do for you!
each kit comes with enough fabric and a ring blank. okay i digress.

ready to get started? here we go:

first you will need to get your fabric cut to 1 inch by 10 inches. (it doesn’t have to be perfect we’re going for wonky)
dab a little bit of hot glue at the end of your strip and fold in half. secure.
dab another bit of hot glue and fold in half

dab a little bit of hot glue to the end again…

this time you are going to fold over like the picture above. (fold down instead of in half again)
now you are going to twist your fabric a little
and dab a little bit of hot glue to the “base”
i like to make sure my fabric is twirled a little on the tighter side(but not too tight!). this will make your flower smaller and tighter.
continue to twist and twirl your fabric all the while adding a dab of hot glue to secure your new twist to the last twist.

when you get your flower as big as you want it (making sure you leave a little bit of a tail)
add some hot glue to the bottom of your flower and fold and secure your tail at the bottom of your flower flat.
next cut off the extra tail that shows.
next you will get your adjustable ring blank
place a dab of hot glue on to it and
secure your ring. let cool.
what i love about these rings is that they are adjustable and comfortable so no matter how big or small your fingers are the ring base will work for you!
now get ready to wear your new ring!

buy your kit here.