Category: I love presents

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New Trend: Forever bracelets at Elaine B Jewelry

Friendship bracelets have come a long way since childhood. Instead of the summer camp classics, the newest trend of the last few years is the forever bracelet, a delicate and glam version that shares the same sentiment of connection.

Forever bracelet bars are popping up across the country, with jewelers offering customers the opportunity to choose from a variety of chain styles and add-on charms to create their own special statement. Instead of using a clasp, the chain is welded onto the wearer. Hence the “forever” part, although of course they’re not exactly permanent.

For a couple of months, my friends Linda and Ellen talked about getting the bracelets together. Ellen learned about forever bracelets from posts on Instagram, where popular shops like Catbird in NYC have been on top of the trend for the last few years. Still, a quick trip to New York isn’t very feasible, even in non-COVID times.

Some weeks later, Ellen found Elaine B Jewelry in Ferndale, which appears to be the only jeweler in the state so far that is offering the forever bracelet experience. They also offer anklets! We made plans for a Saturday afternoon to get bracelets, lunch, and of course a stop by Detroit Cookie Co. for treats.

Continue reading “New Trend: Forever bracelets at Elaine B Jewelry”
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Lift up local: Lansing’s Stellableu Designs makes whimsical creations

I first learned about Stellableu Designs from their posts in a local Lansing Facebook group, Not Your Mother’s Networking Group. The name caught my attention because of my daughter’s name, but also their photos of bright and happy balloon arrangements.

  • Photo by Stellableu Designs
  • Photo by Stellableu Designs
  • Photo by Stellableu Designs
  • Photo by Stellableu Designs

Stella was feeling a little sad about her birthday this month, particularly because her birthday party last year was one of the first big things we had to cancel due to COVID. I knew that I wanted to do something to surprise her, so I reached out to Stellableu on Facebook about their prices and design options.

I received a quick reply, and within minutes I was able to place my balloon “BOUQ” order, which included a table arrangement for $35 and their taller single digit BOUQ for $55. The balloons could be picked up the day before from my choice of two Lansing-area locations, and would last for two-three weeks. Considering the cost and longevity of flowers, this seemed like a great alternative.

Stella’s balloon BOUQs were exactly what I asked for and such a great way to surprise her. They made for really fun photos to commemorate her eighth birthday.

This week, I reached out to Stellableu Designs‘ owners, Jenna and Domonique, to learn more about their business. I was amazed to find out they began their balloon, floral, and event rental business during the pandemic! Learn more about these fun women and how their creative vision came to life.

Continue reading “Lift up local: Lansing’s Stellableu Designs makes whimsical creations”
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Crafty in quarantine: Learning how to cross stitch

In the late fall, we had a parent-teacher conference with our daughter’s wonderful art teacher. Stella loves everything about art, and we wanted to get ideas for crafts that could be done safely in person or right here at home. Because we already have just about every Crayola product under the sun and an arsenal of paper, her teacher recommended trying crafts that were more tactile, such as weaving, knitting, or cross stitch.

We decided to give cross stitch a try.

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Every Christmas ornament has a story

One of my favorite things about the holiday season each year is decorating our family Christmas tree. While our two girls and even Zuzu have their own small trees with themed ornaments (stars for Stella, pearls for Margot, and foxes for Zuzu), the family tree is a hodgepodge of ornaments from our childhood, vacations, and special moments over the years.

Every year, the act of taking ornaments out of their storage boxes feels like unwrapping years of memories. They’re such personal objects, reflecting inside jokes and milestones. Here are some of my favorite ornaments on our family tree, and the little stories behind them.

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DIY: Dave Matthews Band lyric onesies

This past Saturday, we celebrated my cousin Erin’s baby shower. She and her husband will be welcoming their sweet baby daughter later this summer. They live in California, so it was such a treat to spend time together as a family and celebrate her over the weekend.

Erin is one of the biggest Dave Matthews Band fans I know. She was an early member of the Warehouse, has seen him dozens upon dozens of times live, and can even be seen in a photo with Boyd on the back cover of a DMB book (I’m pretty sure it’s Fan.Fare).

I had already ordered the diaper pail from her registry (girls are sugar and spice and everything nice but they also poop all of the time) and had it sent directly to her, but I wanted to have a little gift for her to open at the shower too. On Memorial Day, the lightbulb in my head went off and I thought, “hey, I bet there are DMB onesies out in the world.” I went on Etsy, and sure enough found an array of choices.

In addition to onesies with the fire dancer logo, there were such adorable ones with DMB lyrics, from songs like “So Much to Say” and “Everyday.”

Because I was working with a short timeframe, I purposely picked one that the seller said would be available to ship in time for the shower. When I didn’t receive any shipment updates, I contacted the seller on Thursday and found out there would be a delay. The seller was nice enough to offer to send the gift directly to my cousin or refund it all together.

I was disappointed that I wouldn’t get to see her open this gift in person at the party. That’s when I decided that I could probably make a DMB onesie on my own. In fact, why not try to make a few?

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A sentimental gift for a dad who has everything

What do you get for the guy who has everything? The truth is, my dad doesn’t necessarily have a bunch of gadgets or golf clubs. In fact, he is truly a man of simple pleasures: Dunkin Donuts coffee and donuts, the Tigers, reruns of “The Honeymooners,” apple pie, you get the picture.

It’s something that can make it difficult to figure out what to buy him for birthdays and days like Father’s Day. Recently, we’ve started trying to do more experience-based gifts; for example, this year my younger brother took our dad to a Frank Sinatra impersonator show in Detroit over the weekend. It was the perfect kind of gift for our dad!

When it came to figuring out a present for my dad this year, I decided to do something simple and sentimental.  Continue reading “A sentimental gift for a dad who has everything”

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Etsy spotlight: Green Thirteen Co.

One of the things that impresses me most about so many of my friends, family, and former colleagues is how darn creative they are. It inspires me to think of ways that I can help support and bring attention to their art.

The blog seems like a great place to do just that, and hopefully this is the start of many Etsy shop celebrations to come.

I will start with Green Thirteen Co., a shop that specializes in custom invitations, logos, prints, wood signs, and even tattoo designs! The art of hand lettering is becoming a popular medium and for good reason; as someone with not-so-great handwriting, I admire what can be done with a skilled hand.

I first met shop owner Rachelle Welling (then Rachelle Boudry) when I was working at FOX 47. Rachelle was the producer for the radio program Michigan’s Big Show, which was filmed and aired on our station in the mornings. Rachelle and I have kept in touch via social media, and it has been such fun to watch her on Instagram as her business grows.  Continue reading “Etsy spotlight: Green Thirteen Co.”

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Yep, I asked for a shower cap for Christmas

When I was a kid, coming up with a Christmas list was the easiest and most fun thing to do in the world. This doll, that art set, the leather hat that Alisa Reyes wore in the original “All That” intro:

The fact that my mom found me a hat like this made it one of the best Christmases ever!

As an adult, a homeowner, and a mama, that has changed dramatically. Sometimes, stuff can become overwhelming.

A couple of years ago, Zack became big a fan of the KonMari Method and, just as Marie says, I was inspired to get organized without Zack even mentioning it to me. Even just yesterday I donated a huge bag of clothes and shoes and it felt incredible.

So when it came to giving my family Christmas gift ideas, I tried to err on the side of practicality. Things like new black TOMS to replace the ones I’ve worn into the ground, literally.

And, quite possibly one of the most random and practical gifts I’ve ever asked for, a shower cap. But not just any shower cap.

The SHHHOWERCAP.

Continue reading “Yep, I asked for a shower cap for Christmas”

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Santa: To wrap or not to wrap, that is the question

One of the magical things about Christmas is that while much of the holiday is steeped in traditions, there are so many different kinds of traditions. As annoying as most found that “Frozen’s Olaf Adventure” special before seeing “Coco,” I did appreciate how it showed that each family has their own special ways of celebrating Christmastime.

When my husband and I were dating, we did our best to celebrate Christmas together while also holding on to the ways that we celebrated Christmas with our own families. But when we got married, a lot of traditions had to combine or evolve. That changed even more after having kids.

Which brings me to the big guy. Kris Kringle. St. Nick. Santa Claus. The man.

When Stella was old enough to understand Santa Claus, Zack and I realized that Santa did things very differently in Farmington Hills and Holt. When Santa visited my house, his presents were left on the coffee table by the fireplace, our stockings filled with goodies sitting next to an empty plate of cookies. Santa didn’t wrap our presents. It made the moment we came downstairs so fun and surprising. Look! He brought me the doll I wanted from the Franklin Mint! (How sweet was that store??)

But when Santa visited Zack in Holt, the presents were wrapped — in a different paper, of course. They sell different kinds of paper in the North Pole. Santa also hid Zack’s stocking for him to find.

So what would he do for Stella? What would our family tradition be?

Ultimately, we agreed to tell Santa that he didn’t have to wrap the presents he brought to Okemos. Save Mrs. Claus and the elves the time. But Santa could absolutely hide Stella’s Christmas stocking somewhere in the house after eating some cookies.

I’ve seen so many posts in mommy Facebook groups asking this very question though: does Santa wrap his gifts or not?

And while I have my own sentimental and practical feelings on the matter for our family, the beautiful thing is that there isn’t one correct answer. Like most things, all that matters is what works for each family to make it the most magical time possible.

Merry Christmas Eve, all!

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If you need me, I’ll be busy making Paper Source’s mermaid crafts

It’s safe to say that one of my favorite things to do with Stella is arts and crafts. As a person who went to summer arts camp through the Farmington Public Schools for six years and asked for crazy-big art sets for Christmas, I love seeing Stella hunker down with stacks of construction paper and washi tape to “make projects,” as she says.

So when my mom came up to visit us and brought some fun holiday crafts to work on with Stella, my eyes lit up at the sight of this fantastic Paper Source kit:

I mean come on, CHRISTMAS MERMAIDS. Together, my mom and Stella made some adorable creations that we put on our tree:

I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the Elmer’s glue this week and make more mermaids. The kit comes with various mermaid tails, hairstyles, and accessories that are a lot of fun to mix and match. The card stock is nice and thick, so with a bit of care, I think these sweet mermaids will last over the years. It was also fun to create some mermaid “ornaments” for friends this Christmas.

Upon writing this post, I discovered that Paper Source has all sorts of adorable DIY kits, from a succulent wreath kit to a pizza garland kit that I think my friend Ellen needs to have.

And while the Holiday Mermaids Kit is sold out online, there’s a non-seasonal Mermaid Craft Kit to fill your DIY mermaid-loving heart with glee.

Thank you to my mom and to Paper Source for the gift I didn’t know I wanted or needed: the gift of a Santa merman in a striped tank top.

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