News & Stories

The Woodlands Car Club: Coffee and Cars for a Cause

I've often seen the calendar listing for The Woodlands Car Club's event "Coffee and Cars for a Cause" on Sunday mornings at Market Street, but with church and self-admitted laziness on Sunday mornings, we've never made the effort to check it out.

Recently my boys have been showing an ~~interest~~ obsession with cars, so we made it a priority to take them to Coffee and Cars for a Cause earlier in June. What great fun!

It's a simple enough concept - car owners and enthusiasts park their cars around the streets of Market Street with their doors open and hoods and trunks up while patrons stroll around admiring their prizes. The boys admired new Lamborghinis, Corvettes and new model BMWs (to name a few) while my husband and I leaned towards the older model Mustangs and Camaros. If you're lucky, the owners will let the kids sit in the cars and have a look around and of course, take plenty of photos.

If you're looking for something fun and different to do with the kids this summer, The Woodlands Car Club holds their event the first Sunday of each month from 8-10 a.m. You'll enjoy the quiet stroll, friendly conversation and the fact that you're supporting an organization that has been raising awareness and funds for local non-profit organizations in Montgomery County since 2001. For more information: www.marketstreet-thewoodlands.com/events/5884/cars-coffee-cause-2015-07-05/.

Editor's Review: Mabel's Labels

I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for Mabel’s Labels. I received a voucher to facilitate my review as well as a promotional item to thank me for my participation.

Next month is the month my mom takes off to treat all her grandkids for a week of fun at her house. For my nieces and nephews, it’s been a summer tradition for the past 15 years, and now that I have kids of my own, mine participate too. That’s about 12 little ones in all (and yes, it was Grandma’s idea)! While I look forward to my one-week “vacation from the kids” every summer, I DO NOT look forward to having them return home with less than what they left with. With everyone’s sleeping bags, clothes, pajamas, socks, shoes, stuffed animals, video games, hair stuff, etc. strewn all over the place, it’s easy for things to get lost. That’s why I decided to use Mabel’s Labels to keep track of everything this year. All of my kiddos items will be labeled, so there will be no question about “Whose is this?” when it’s time to pack up. Also, having things labeled will allow my mom to help the younger ones avoid mix-ups and lost items.

Although I’ve used Mabel’s Labels in the past, to facilitate my review of the product this month I was able to customize and receive a Mabel's Labels Limited Edition Camp Label pack – a Mabel’s Labels product designed specifically for campers to keep track of their belongings. The process of ordering online was super easy. It literally took only a couple of minutes and I was done. I knew what the pack was going to include, but I was still surprised when I physically got the items from the mail and saw how many shiny, neat labels it really amounted to.

Out of the Box Summer Fun: Owl Pellet Dissection

I would have never guessed that dissecting owl pellets would be the highlight of our month! For only $4/each, I was able to purchase 2 owl pellets online from Home Science Tools, and they arrived to The Woodlands within a week's time. Even still, they sat in their packets for another 2 weeks because I simply had no interest in doing anything with them.

5 Easy-to-Give Teacher Gifts That Really Show Your Appreciation

If you feel compelled to bestow your favorite teachers with a small token of appreciation during Teacher Appreciation Week or the last week of school, here are some thoughtful gifts that are easy on the pocketbook and don't require too much time and effort:

1. Mini Bundtlet from Nothing Bundt Cakes - These moist little cakes are like little bits of heaven! For the teacher with a sweet tooth, they come in half a dozen flavors and make a great presentation. Nothing Bundt Cakes in The Woodlands is located next to Trader Joe's in the Kuykendahl/Gosling shopping center.

Scented Socks & the Sweetest, Cutest Fashions for your Little Girl!

"Farrah, that doesn't match!" I seem to have to tell my 7-year-old daughter far too often. When we're meandering through The Woodlands Mall, we need to look prim and proper, right?

Well, not anymore. There's a company that actually specializes in mix-matched fashions now, so I suppose I should stop giving my daughter so much grief about being a shade or two off. In fact, I'm really loving the super cute, adorable, colorful, fun girls clothing from LittleMissMatched. For Farrah's recent birthday, we purchased her first bicycle without training wheels from Toys 'R Us, and it was Little MissMatched brand - white, green, blue, orange, pink, and probably a few additional colors.

Do you think your little one would like these styles? There's a "sweetness" and innocence about the products that I can't seem to get enough of. This season, we're buying LittleMissMatched Dresses and rompers, and we really love the scented socks (great for sleepovers). and the ball caps (we can use some of those NOW!). The bags (especially the sneaker backpacks) are super cute too, and make for a fun birthday gift.

Craft Time! Photo Explosion Box

Disclosure: I received a sample product and a promotional item to thank me for my participation in this blog activation campaign with MyPrintly and MomSelect. All opinions are my own.

Have you visited MyPrintly? If not, you totally should! The website is full of inspiration and ideas for fun crafts and DIY projects, plus it showcases easy print solutions that you might not already know about. Check it out at MyPrintly.com.

Now, on to our craft, shall we? These days, you don't have to be "crafty" to turn out a great product. Just a spoonful of inspiration and some simple instructions, and you're cranking out something beautiful in no time. This week I needed to create a "thank you" gift for my mother-in-law, and I decided to put together this hand-assembled photo explosion box that I think she'll really appreciate. It has three layers of snapshots of our family, plus a few special embellishment like the "Thank You" note in the middle (found online and printed on regular cardstock).

This craft was so easy, and I love the way it turned out! I simply used HP photo paper, my printer (to print the pattern pieces and the photos), 4 sheets of cardstock (though you can use a lighter weight decorated paper if you have to), scissors, Elmer's glue, and some small printed photos (my photos were able 1.5 sqin each). I also embellished the box with a heart jewel and a satin flower, just to add a special touch.

Explosion boxes are nothing new. I remember many years ago when my friend, Katie, first showed us these cute little boxes that she'd learn how to make. I've been long familiar with the square boxes, but this time I decided to make a hexagonal box. The actual instructions and free pattern sheets can be found online here.

Have fun making your boxes, and please send us a photo of your projects!

EXTRA EXTRA: Here's an exciting giveaway! Entry is easy - simply follow @MyPrintly on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, or Instagram, and then complete this brief entry form in order to be entered for a chance to win one of three (3) HP Envy Printers: http://bit.ly/MyPrintlyGiveaway. The contest will end on Friday, May 15^thand winners will be randomly selected and notified next week. Please note, only residents of the U.S.A. are eligible to enter. Good luck!