Strange Invitations...

So I thought today this would be a great facebook status for me:
(Name Here)...thinks it's weird to have a party for your birthday and have someone selling stuff at the party where your guest feel like they have to buy something in order to attend your birthday party...strange...either it's a birthday party (where you already get gifts) or your trying to make money which is it????

Why would this be my status you ask?
Well because in the last month I've been invited to an acquaintances birthday party (where she was using someones home business to make money during her party) then not more than a month later she invited me to her husbands party that was the same theme (another person would be there selling stuff)!
Why am I so put off by this?

#1 - Don't invite everyone on your facebook to your birthday party (that is strange to begin with)

Isn't your birthday party just for close friends and family? I wouldn't want all my acquaintances to feel pressured into coming to my birthday party especially if I met them under business pretenses (which was me in this case)

#2 - Having more than one of the same type of home party to make money for yourself it tacky! I've heard of people having like 5-10 different parties a month and paying their mortgage by just selling so much product to their friends and family members who just wanted to support them or felt pressured to buy.

#3 - If your having a birthday party graciously except gifts your friends and family give you and let that be enough, I mean really do you need to hit their wallet for even more than they already paid for your gift you know they will be bringing since it's a "Birthday Party".

Okay, so normally my blog is about crafting/homemaking and not my opinion like this blog but I needed a place to vent and I wanted to see if anyone else felt this way about this? Isn't this what a blogs for anyways?

New Crafty Projects for MacKenzie II -first project

Felt Food First Attempts:

Overall, I think these pieces of felt food were pretty easy and a great way to start this craft. I just need to make the bread and I'll have a whole felt sandwich for my daughter to play with!

Childrens Museums

We've always loved going to museums and now that we have our daughter we love to go even more! Not only do we go to our regular places like science museums but now we go to children's museums too! I can't wait to go to some in North Carolina, they have a ton of them! When I was a child I went to some of them too!
 
Hawaii:
 Hawaii Children's Discovery Center (Honolulu)
Teddy Bear World

North Carolina:

Children @ Play (Kitty Hawk)

The Children's Museum of Wilmington

Children's Museum of Winston-Salem
Children's Museum of Winston-Salem will not grant Reciprocal benefits to greater Triad residents with Reciprocal memberships to museums outside greater Triad area.

The Children's Playhouse (Boone)

Discovery Place KIDS! (Huntersville)

Exploration Station, Hands-On Learning Center (Lumberton)

Fascinate-U Children's Museum (Fayetteville)

Greensboro Children's Museum

Hands On! A Child's Gallery (Hendersonville)

ImaginOn: The Joe and Joan Martin Center (Charlotte)

Iredell Museums - Children's Museum (Statesville)

Kidzu Children's Museum (Chapel Hill)

Marbles Kids Museum (Raleigh)

Museum of Life and Science (Durham)

Rocky Mount Children's Museum & Science Center

Where to find the information for your state: click here

New Crafty Projects for MacKenzie II

See Felt Food Pattern,Tea Time and 1000's of others - or share your own on Cut Out + Keep


Here's a link for how to make a felt sandwich!

Hawaii Five-O

I've started watching Hawaii Five-O (the new one) I was never into the old one, I think it was before my time. It is really neat to watch it and scenes are from places where I live and places we've been to on a regular basis. It's also just a really good show. The last episode I watched Larisa Oleynik guest starred as Jenna Kaye. Does Larisa Oleynik not sound familier? What about Alex Mack? as in Secret World of Alex Mack? Well if it's still not ringing any bells...Alex Mack was a character from Secret World of Alex Mack. My husband and I watched this tv show when we were children and really enjoyed it. It was really weird to see her all grown up in this show!

This is her as Alex Mack back then...

This is her now...

She has also played in many other tv shows like Without a Trace, Psych, Mad Men, Boy Meets World, and 3rd Rock from the Sun.

Project Get Organized, Project #2

Project Get Organized

Problem: Chaos in Craft Area (this happens very easily when you have many different types of crafts you are interested in and you have multiple ongoing projects.

The peg board before I re-organized it...

I am obsessed with scrabble can you tell?

Great way to store all of my craft paints...I can see each color with ease...

Ribbon, Craft Punches & Buttons...

I somehow lost my cutting board so got this board at a thrift shop for $1 with of course scrabble games pieces that I love...and I use it for a cutting mat and it has lines on it which are great!

My favorite item on my desk, my daily planner with my daughters photo in it...love this daily planner it keeps me so organized!

Paper, stamps, ink pads, finished scrapbook pages before they go in albums etc...

Interesting Organization Tips

As I've been doing Project Get Organized I've been reading some articles on the matter and I found this one to be a great help for me to know what is OK to get rid of: Click Here for Article or look below for some tips I found helpful from the article.

Here is a list of seven things that generally cost more to keep then the value they give you in return.

1. Things that you have printed off the internet that you've been meaning to read. They take up physical space and often weigh heavily on your mind because you haven't read them. The really good news is that should you need any of this information in the future you can reprint it.

2. Old, travel size, half used bottles of shampoos, lotions, soaps, cosmetics, etc., that you simply don't use. These items take up valuable cabinet and counter space. It is true that some of the products may still be good and someone else could use them but unless you are using the products you are not getting any value from them and neither is anyone else. Give them away or throw them away and benefit from all of the found space.

3. Clothing that you will wear again when you lose 10 pounds or are stained, don't like or don't wear. These clothes are preventing you from finding the things that fit you and look good on you. Another benefit of getting rid of these clothes is that when you lose 10 pounds you'll get to buy something that you will really enjoy.

4. A gift you received that you don't like or will never use. Even if the person who gave it to you is special or the gift was expensive. What value is that gift giving you? Do you think that the person who gave it to you would want you to feel burdened by it?

5. Something that you bought for yourself, even if it was expensive, that you simply no longer like, never use or won't use again. What benefit are you getting from keeping it? How much space does it take up? How do you feel when you look at it?

6. Tools or gadgets that work great for someone else but don't work for you even if others swear by it. Just because it works for someone else does not mean it's right for you.

7. Knick knacks, souvenirs and other little things that you've collected over the years that remind you of a trip or experience. Do you smile when you look at it or does it get lost in a collection of stuff? Just because you don't have the souvenir doesn't mean you don't have the memory.

As you go through your things use these questions as a guide: • What value or benefit does this give me?

• Is it costing me more then I am getting from it?
• Does someone else what me to have or use it?
• Is it something I keep meaning to use but never seem to? 
• Is it costing me more then it is worth to me? 

Far as Number 1 goes, I have something to add to that: Any old magazines you've been meaning to read (THROW THEM OUT AND KEEP THAT 1 ARTICLE YOU WANT TO READ) I have a box I keep that is small but large enough for magazine pages to fit and I rip out interesting articles, recipes, tips etc. and keep them for a rainy day!