Thanks Pinterest

So about a week ago I was looking at the stats for my blog (how often my blog is visited, where visitors are located, what people Google to get to my site, etc.) and I noticed a huge number (like over 100) of people had been to my blog in one day. I was shocked. This is just a little ol' family blog meant to keep my family and friends updated with our comings and goings. 

As I dug deeper into the blog statistics, I realized that the large numbers of people were visiting from Pinterest. And, specifically they were stopping by to see some of my teacher gifts that I put together for my girls' teachers. 

The teacher in me was thrilled. The crafty part of me was overwhelmed. And, the blogger in me was stunned. 

But what happened next got me even more excited. I checked out my stats once again and on yet, another Friday, my blog had over 100 visitors. I can't get over it. 

So with this new knowledge I am thinking I might need to do a little something more with the teacher gift section of my blog. Not sure how it will manifest itself, but stay tuned as I work on more teacher inspiration. 

And to all of the new followers...welcome and thank you! 

Teacher Gifts & Class Gift

There are so many cute and clever ideas all over the internet/Pinterest for teacher gifts. I found all three of the ideas I put together on Pinterest.

For the three main teachers that Shelly has, I put together a drink dispenser filled with various little extras.

The dispensers came from Target and inside I added the following:

a package of Wet Ones
Strawberry lemonade packets
A Cliff Bar
EOS lip balm
A cute canvas key fob
Polka Dot napkins
Chewing Gum

I also put together a small gift for the assistants, specialist teachers, bus drivers, principal, and office workers at Shelly's school. These were simple little combos of an orange Izzie sparkling clementine drink and orange chewing gum packages. We especially enjoyed the little tags---"Orange you glad it's almost summer?"

Lily is giving her teachers and principals the same gift with the addition of the key fob.

And, finally, we created some small Happy Summer gifts for the children in Shelly's class. We just bought small packets of Kool Aid and crazy straws from Target.

Shelly's gift ready for delivery

Random Monday Musings

A bit of randomness today:


This is the sign I'd like to post in my car window. I've really noticed more people riding my tail and/or passing me on the roads lately. So---










My mom giving tours in NYC in Rockefeller Center in the 50s.


Love this picture of her.




My yearly calendar that I put together in February is working out well. So fun to document our lives in a few sentences. Can't wait to reread it next year while filling in the important stuff for that day in a new year.






Here's my Pinterest button if anyone is interested in following me over there. So many fun ideas---so little time!


  Happy Monday!

A Little "Pinspiration"

I loved the idea of the perpetual calendar that I saw on Pinterest. So, I reinterpreted it with my own ideas. I bought the little pink box for a buck at Target. Then I took 5x8 index cards and cut them in half. I chose to write the dates on the cards by hand. Then I used a card with a repositionable Note Tab from Avery to divide each month. I wrote on the tabs with the name of the month.










Here's a little video to show the contents with a bit more info:

Cute/Cool Things

In my never-ending obsession with Pinterest, I find the coolest items. And, here are just a few of those cool things:





Bracelet
Sunshine Party Decor
Pretzel Pizza
Curtains
Shell Display (Somewhere on her site)




Spider web snacks
Nails
Hair
Photog Info

Braided Bracelet

I've mentioned before that I am addicted to my Pinterest account. Love, love, love the ease of use and the collection of awesome ideas. 


One of the items I pinned was this fun and easy braided bracelet. I decided to create my own using her easy to follow video. I like mine, but think I would definitely go with a solid jersey knit next time. The multi-colored fabric doesn't show off the design, as well as, a solid would.

Pinterest Love

I LOVE surfing the net and acquiring ideas. But, many times I will bookmark them only to completely forget about the ideas for months. Once I remember the cute craft or yummy recipe, its usefulness has many times passed. 


So, in comes Pinterest!!! It is the perfect place to store all of the great photos and ideas you find. My favorite thing about Pinterest is that once you "pin" the idea, it saves the photo along with a link to the idea. So fun and easy.


Here are the easy steps involved with Pinterest---


Create your boards and install the "Pin It" to your toolbar. Begin pinning those ideas.



Check out all of your ideas on one of your boards.


Click on one of your photos and then go right to the link for that idea. So simple and fun!!!


Now, go forth and PIN!!!!