Shutter Love: Hands

I haven't done a Shutter Love in a loooooooooong time.  But this week's theme, Hands, just sort of spoke to me :)

This is the one and only "maternity" picture I have from when I was pregnant with our little man.  Thank goodness for self-timers!  I wanted something simple, so it's just my preggo belly, my hand and my hubby's hand, showing off our wedding rings.  I liked the symbolism of it all.

Hippity-Hoppity, Easter's On It's Way!

Easter is just around the corner and it's got me thinking about this very special holiday.

Growing up, I always loved Easter.  It was a special day that I got to be surrounded by my family.  As little girls, my sister and I got a new dress with a hat and gloves from our Nana every year.  It always made me feel so fancy.  We'd have a special Easter brunch of eggs and sausage and hot cross buns when we'd get home from church where we'd have hard-boiled egg battles (it's called egg tonking and everyone takes a turn "challenging" someone by "tonking their egg on top of the other person's, end to end.  Whoever's egg cracks loses.)  My parents would hide our baskets and leave clues to help us find them.  It got more interesting as there got to be more kids.  I loved watching my little brothers get all excited when they found their baskets.  We didn't have a lot of money growing up, so it was kept simple.  A few Easter candies and a special treat for each of us.  I think that because my parents didn't go overboard with the commercial side of Easter, we were able to also remember what that day is really about.

I think it's easy to get caught up in the egg hunts and Easter baskets and bunnies and pastels and forget why we're celebrating in the first place.  Now, if you aren't religious, then Easter really is just about those things, but for those of us who are, Easter is the day that we set aside to remember the remarkable gift our Savior gave to us through His ultimate sacrifice.  Christ suffered pains we can't even begin to imagine in the Garden of Gethsemane and later, suffered more as He hung in agony upon the cross, where He drew his last breath.  Then, three days later, He triumphed over death and rose again.  When I think of the amazing gift of the Atonement and the power it has in my life, I am overwhelmed with gratitude and love for my Savior.  One of my most favorite hymns, "I Stand All Amazed" talks about that awe and love.  For those of you unfamiliar with the song, here it is (you can also listen to it here):

I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me

Confused at the grace which so fully He profers me

I tremble to know that for me, He was crucified

That for me, a sinner, He suffered, He bled and died

Oh, it is wonderful that He should care for me

Enough to die for me!

Oh, it is wonderful, wonderful to me!

I marvel that He would descend from His throne divine

To rescue a soul so rebellious and proud as mine

That He should extend His great love unto such as I

Sufficient to own, to redeem and to justify.

Oh, it is wonderful that He should care for me

Enough to die for me!

Oh, it is wonderful, wonderful to me!

I think of His hands, pierced and bleeding to pay the debt!

Such mercy, such love and devotion, can I forget?

No, no I will praise and adore at the mercy seat

Until at the glorified throne I kneel at His feet.

Oh, it is wonderful that He should care for me

Enough to die for me!

Oh, it is wonderful, wonderful to me!

Now, I still love the pageantry of Easter.  We hide the little guy's basket Easter morning and help him find it.  I love seeing his little face light up when he finds his goodies.  But, I try not to let all of the candy and the hype over-take the true meaning of the day.  Of all the goodies and gifts we receive on Easter, the gift from our Savior of the Atonement is truly the greatest.

You can learn more about that awesome gift and what I believe about Christ here.

I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Hop blogging program, for a gift card worth $25. For more information on how you can participate, click here.

{Who's That} Tea Rose Home

We're changing things up a bit this week.  Who's That has been moved to Monday this week {that's today!} because I'm blog swapping with the amazing Sachiko from Tea Rose Home.  I lovelovelove her blog and all of her amazing tutorials and I know you will too!  I'm so excited for you all to see what she has to share today!

Hi every one! I am Sachiko from Tea Rose Home. Courtney asked me to do a blog swap a while ago, and I gladly accepted the offer. On my blog I share lots of sewing and craft projects and tutorials (do you like t-shirt makeovers?), also, every week I host link parties. Come see me sometime, I will be thrilled to have you.

Today, I am going to share a quick and easy project with a dollar store find.
I like to wear rubber gloves when I clean my house, or wash the dishes; especially during the winter. Without the gloves my hands get so dry damaged, if I borrow my little girl’s words, "Mommy, your hands looks like old person." Ugh!

Although, the ones I find at the stores are too short for my taste. I like long ones that will cover to my elbows. One day, on my usual dollar store trip, I found these. It said industrial gloves, OK, I will give it a try.


{You will need}
Rubber gloves (make sure to buy thick and strong ones. Otherwise all your effort will be wasted in a couple uses)
Table cloth fabric (vinyl looking one)
Matching thread
If you want to embellish them, ribbons and other items

{How to}
1. Measure the gloves around the opening.


2. Add 1/4" seam allowance to both sides and cut table cloth fabric. Sew both sides.
My cuffs are 5" tall, but you can adjust it for your likings.


3. Use pins to attach the cuff and the glove, right sides together and sew.


4. Turn.

5. Fold the edge twice, zigzag stitch to finish.

6. I added ribbon and gems to finish it up.

Isn't it fun? I hope you enjoyed the tutorial as much as I enjoyed the process of making the gloves. I love how it turned out and with very little cost. Not only is this perfect for me, I know quite a few people that would love these. You know what that means... this will make a great gift too!
Now, I am wearing my "fancy gloves"...I better go scrub my walls. :)
Thank you for having me here Courtney, you are so sweet!

Thanks so much for stopping by today, Sachiko!  You can check out all of her other amazing tutorials over at Tea Rose Home.  And while you're there, you can see what I'm sharing with Sachiko's readers!

{Fashion Friday} Manicure Made Easy

I've got something fun to share with you all today.  If you're a busy mommy like me, you don't have a lot of time to do your nails.  I know I don't have 45 minutes to paint my nails, and wait for them to dry.  And it seems like every time I do my nails, they're all messed up 5 minutes later, so all that effort and time was for nothing.

And forget going to a nail salon.  I just don't have the time or money to be going to get my nails done every two weeks.  I'd need to find a baby-sitter for the little guy ('cause there's no way I could take him with me), make an appointment and sit there for an hour.  While it is nice to have someone else do the work for you, because I am by no means against salon manicures, we all know that it's always doable or practical for our lives.

That's why these new nail polish strips that are popping up everywhere are so awesome.  

They come in solid colors or fun designs, as you can see on my nails, and cost about the same as you would spend at the salon (or less, depending on which brand you buy.)  

The ones I used are Sally Hansen Salon Effects Real Nail Polish Strips in Cut It Out

The kit comes with an assortment of strips in different widths-genius since not everyone's nails are universally the same size-a file/smoother/buffer and a mini orange stick.  I found them to be very easy and quick to use.  After filing, smoothing and buffing your nails, you find the strip that best fits your nail, peel off the backing, smooth it on using the orange stick and pull off the extra, then smooth away the edges and that's it-you're done!  No waiting for your nails to dry, no worrying about smudges.  And since the strips are actually nail polish and not stickers, they don't peel off.  I've had mine on for almost a week and no chips or peeling.  And I've done everything from the laundry to the dishes to dying my hair to bathing my son.  So they really hold up!  When it's time to take them off, you just use regular nail polish remover.

Seriously the best invention.

Here are some more of the colors and effects they come in.

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Real Nail Polish Strips, $8.50 (at Walmart.  $9.99 at drugstores like CVS or Walgreens)  

If you feel like a bit more of a splurge, OPI has a line out for Sephora

Sephora by OPI Chic Prints for Nails, $15

(and for you Glee fans, they even have a Glee-themed line.  How fun!)

So now your hands can be dressed up without fear of chips or smudges!

Happy Friday!

I was not asked to write this post nor was I compensated in any way for this post by either Sally Hansen, Sephora, OPI or anyone else.  All opinions expressed are 100% my own.  I simply found a great product and wanted to share it with you guys!

What I'm Wearing {The Short Version}

I slacked.  Again.  I think the problem is I have spread myself too thin.  I really have a billion things on my plate lately.  That said, I think I'm going to be taking a break from WIW for a while.  It'll be just one less thing I have to remember to keep up with.  And I need to kind of simplify things right now before I seriously have a mental breakdown : )

So, this will be the last WIW for the near future.  I promise it won't be gone forever.

A few weekends' ago, a group of ladies from my ward had a girls' night and I happily went.  It's nice to have some girly time every now and then.

Burgandy tee: Holister (I've had this since HIGH SCHOOL!  How funny!)

White tank: ?

Grey jacket: Aeropostale (hand-me-down from my mom)

Dark skinnies: thrifted American Eagle

Headband: Sally Beauty Supply

Black bead necklace: made by me : )

Black sandals: Charlotte Russe

And these pretty vintage cobalt blue leaf earrings.  They're from my shop and I just love them!

Family pic!  Really, it's just an excuse to show off my handsome husband and cute little guy :)

Purple tee: American Eagle (I fixed it up myself-tutorial coming soon!)

Blue tank: Forever 21

Skinny jeans: Levi's

Sandals: Rainbows

Til next time!

Just a Little Something

So.

Apparently I've changed my name and didn't even know it.

I guess it's just easier to have it all in one name.  Who needs a last name anyways, right?

The best part is, I've gotten this more than once.  It's one of those "You're pre-approved!" credit card offer junk mail.  Really?  I'm pre-approved?  How can that be since there is no Courtneydrive E. Driver?  How can you pre-approve someone that doesn't exist?!

Hilarious.

Anyways, it made me smile when I got it and I hope it made you smile too.

{Fashion Friday} It's Almost That Time!

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Express. All opinions are 100% mine.

{So this was supposed to be up Friday, but I was having some technical difficulties, so here it is, a few days late : ) } 

I'm talking about swimsuit season, people!  Here in Florida, it's just about warm enough to hit the beach and actually get in the water (if you're the play-in-the-sand type, it's already warm enough for that.)  So, it means it's time to pick out a cute suit once again.

I'm loving all the cute looks over at Express.

You can never go wrong with a simple black suit and I love the boyshorts

I just love the patter on this kinda retro suit.  Very cute!

Bold patterns in bright colors are going to be big this summer and this bikini fits the bill perfectly.

Speaking of bold patterns, I love the animal-style print on this monokini

I'm a sucker for stripes-they're simple yet make a statement.  And I'm really liking purple for swim suits right now.  Isn't this one just adorable?

Cute ruffles in a pretty, bright color-how could you go wrong in this binkini?  It comes in other colors, too!

So, head on over to Express to check out all of their  women's swimwear and dive into the season’s sexiest swimwear.

Hey, and while you're there, sign up for Express e-mail-you'll get updates on sales, special offers and be entered to win 1 of 10 $200 Express gift cards!  Who wouldn't want that?!

(Be sure to check out the sweepstakes rules for all of the details.  Contest ends on 4/21.)

It's FRIDAY!

I'm having some problems with my SD card for my camera, in case you were wondering why pics never showed themselves yesterday of my St. Patty's decor or this week's What I'm Wearing.  I'm working on it and should have it resolved by the end of the weekend.

This week has been SO busy!  I've been helping my mother-in-law get things ready for a garage sale.  Today was the first day and we're hoping to get rid of sell everything else tomorrow.  And to top it off, today is my my sweet husband's birthday!  So I'm now off to get his birthday dinner in the oven {recipe possibly to follow : )}

I hope you all are having a fab Friday!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I hope you all are having a fabulous St. Patrick's Day!  I'll be back a little later to show you the pretty green things I whipped up for today.

In the meantime, I'm having a sale over at my shop in honor of St. Patrick's Day.  You can take 15% off your order today only-just enter GREEN15 at checkout!

Happy shopping!

What's New in the Shop!

I've been working hard on some new items for my shop and finally got them all listed this weekend.

Here's some of the pretties you can now find over at D Squared Creations:

And right now, all orders of $25 or more receive free shipping!  Just enter FREESHIP25 at checkout.