Happy New Year!

In honor of 2011, use coupon code HNY2011 during check-out for 11% off of your entire order.

This New Year discount is good on both Etsy and our website!

some more s'mores

I sent my sister outside to ask my husband where the propane torch was.

I had asked Santa for a kitchen butane torch after making these cupcakes for the first time last week, but Santa forgot. He did remember to bring me good cocoa powder though (brownie points for Santa).

My husband didn't like the idea of me and my sister in the kitchen with a torch, so he toasted the marshmallow topping again (he didn't trust me last time either). Can't say I really blame him.

These are really good though. Still not extremely s'morey but sorta s'morey. Last time I followed the recipe exactly, this time we used 2x the graham cracker, added more mini chocolate chips and added in a tub of marshmallow creme to the meringue.

funny papers

WiggysStuff added our Little Drama Queen bib to their See You in the Funny Papers treasury. :)

for the sweets

threesistersharvest added our Heart to Heart bib to their newest treasury!

back from "break"

a "break" that flew by way too fast!

We had our newest addition a few days after my last post, and have been happily adjusting to life as a family of 6 since then. My website and Etsy shop are now both back open as of a couple days ago.

Here's the first treasury we've been featured in since reopening:



It's been so nice to not have to do anything but cuddle babies over the past two months. And eat holiday goodies. I promise to get back to blogging regularly. I just have to ease back into it. Kind of like my pre-baby jeans. :)

a Lalaloopsy wardrobe

Your Spot Splatter Splash will need a change of outfit, of course...wait, I meant your kiddo's Spot Splatter Splash will need a change of outfit. There are 3 fashion packs available for the dolls - a yellow robe, a party dress, and a raincoat, normally retailing for around $8 each.



But good luck finding one. All the big box stores seem to be sold out. Toys R Us was offering a free fashion pack with each doll purchase, but then I blinked and they were sold out. You can find them on Amazon for about double the suggested retail price...and you can always try eBay.

Luckily for your (kiddo's) Lalaloopsy's wardrobe, there is a seller on Etsy by the name of Peppermint Piglet.

Her shop features handmade Lalaloopsy clothing creations.

Which we have been completely obsessing over.

Non-stop. {sigh}

Good luck choosing a favorite! {bigger sigh}

p.s. she does custom orders too!

the thrill of the chase...

...is already over. Very relieved but a little sad too.


There's nothing quite like searching for that hard-to-find Christmas gift that your little one is coveting for Christmas. Lalaloopsy Jewel Sparkles is now safely tucked away.

I had been searching/stalking Amazon, Target, Wal-mart, TRU...wherever Lalaloopsy dolls are sold. Even eBay but the prices are outrageous. Of course, the name of the game is to find them for the cheapest price, preferably with free shipping.

Last year the toy was the Disney Princess Sparkle Baby Ariel doll.

Whatever you do - do not trust a certain Big Box store that begins with a "K" and ends with a "mart.com" for Christmas presents. I was so excited to finally find Ariels in-stock somewhere so I had ordered 3 of these (for my 2 oldest and my niece). Not only did they hold the money for the dolls hostage/pre-auth in my checking account, but the customer service reps couldn't give me status updates. All they could tell me was that it looked like they would be shipping from a store "somewhere." Needless to say, the dolls never came. Didn't they know I had already sewn up sparkly green mermaid fins for the dolls so they could actually be little mermaids? Didn't their famous Martha know the hubby had built pink cradles for the dolls and I made little dolly blankets and pillows? ;)

There were baby Cinderellas and Snow Whites everywhere, but the girls wanted Ariel, just like every other little girl that Christmas. Just when I thought all hope was lost, we had a streak of mermaid luck and between myself, hubby, my sister and my sister's sister-in-law (love ya Rose!) we were able to find them at Target and Wal-mart in the week leading up to Christmas.

Back to Lalaloopsy. Last month I had already ordered Mittens Fluff-n-Stuff:

and Crumbs Sugar Cookie:

for the girls, thinking I was set (each for $25 on Amazon with free shipping, now the prices on Amazon have gone up for a few). Some of the other Lalaloopsies were sold out, and the girls had mentioned a couple of times they wanted a Lalaloopsy but were never specific. Somewhere between then and now they became obsessed with them. Caty now wanted a Jewel Sparkles (the one with the CROWN, like a princess, very important) and Colby thankfully wanted Mittens, who I already ordered.

So after trying to find a Jewel Sparkles online - I realized she must be the IT Lalaloopsy for the season. Sold out everywhere! Unless I wanted to pay over $40 on Amazon for her. But I called our local Target and the poor Lalaloopsy-clueless but helpful employee checked the shelves and told me he had "one Mittens, one Sugar Cookie, and one Sparkles Something." For $19.99!

I drove my very pregnant, very contracting self (if I can walk/talk/shop through them it's not the real thing right?) and the 2 youngests to Target to pick up the "Sparkles Something." Somehow I managed to distract Caty while placing the doll in the cart, covered it up with my coat and picked up the few last things we needed to prepare for new baby. Unfortunately they don't have the non-see-through red bags at Target yet, so my very pregnant, very contracting self became very coatless and freezing on the way to the car so that the coveted doll could remain a surprise from Santa at Christmas.

And my hubby (being the fantastic uncle that he is) is picking up a Mittens for our niece on his lunch break today because I totally got my sister on the Lalaloopsy bandwagon. :)

And I'm still pregnant. I think I'll go reorganize my tupperware cupboard so my mom doesn't freak when she gets here.