Fun Stuff to Do

paula_painting By Desiree Miller, Bottles to Britches Premier Baby Planners
I have to say it's nice to get out some nights, away from the kids and the husband to escape with the gals.  I'm not talking about a crazy night on the town or anything extreme.  Sometimes, I like to get back in touch with my artsy side.  I recently discovered a place that lets me do just that in Altanta (Roswell technically).  It's Cork & Canvas and it's part of the Farmhouse in the City business that my daughter fell in love with at the recent Candyland Party.  The owner, Robin, is incredibly kind and talented.  She took the time to explain more about Farmhouse in the City during the Candy Land party (see the video below for more on that, along with pictures).  My daughter loved the animals that call the business home, begging to take one particular cat home with us.  And she also enjoyed the dress up outfits and the crafts that she got to create.

When I was invited by some neighbors to return to Farmhouse in the City for the older person's fun side of the business--Cork & Canvas-- I was excited to be able to bring my mom with me.  She was in town visiting for the first time since my father's death.  The night of this event was what would have been their 49th wedding anniversary and I was worried about how she'd handle the day.  The idea of being able to have some fun with wine and painting sounded ideal.  And it turns out it was.  Robin took the time to explain different painting techniques, showing us how to make the background and let it dry before adding other parts of our masterpieces.  Most people were following a template for a painting of ornaments, something that would make a nice piece of art during the holidays.  Meantime, my ambitious mother decided she wanted to paint an orchid.  My father grew orchids and loved them, much like he loved my mother, and she wanted to spend this special night creating a new orchid for him. We discovered she has more artistic ability than she ever knew.  And we discovered painting is incredible therapy.  And so is hanging out with the girls at Cork & Canvas, no matter how old you are. (note--the photos below are of my mom and her work of art and my daughter and her masterpiece)
moms_painting   dalypainting
candylandBy Desiree and Daly Miller, Bottles to Britches Premier Baby Planners

When I was recently invited to a party hosted by Alicia with Atlanta Moms to help celebrate the newly redesigned board for Candy Land, I was incredibly excited to be able to share the fun with my five year old daughter.  She loves playing Candy Land and the invitation to celebrate this game was simply too sweet to pass up! 
ts3
By Desiree Miller, Bottles to Britches Baby Planners
Moms in Atlanta who enjoy the movies have a fun option for the family--Cinemoms!  It's a cool club that holds events for movie launches, gives out great movie freebies, and now has launched a membership club.  And they have a great freebie running through today if you decide to join.  You can get a free Toy Story 3 DVD movie!  Click this link to join.  But to get the free DVD you must join by 11:59pm tonight (Saturday, 11/6), so hurry!
By Desiree Miller, Bottles to Britches Premier Baby Planners
As an adult, I love homemade Halloween costumes.  When I was a kid, not so much.  I was horrified that we couldn't go buy a costume like my friends did, but my mom was pretty emphatic that we were going the homemade route every year, and looking back, I'm so glad we did.  Now, I do the same with my children.  Sure, I'll buy a mask or a sword as an accessory, but the costume itself is so much cooler when it's made by hand.  And apparently I'm not the only one who thinks so.  Statistics show 50% of parents make costumes for their children.  Maybe that's because money is tight or maybe they are just last minute and need to throw together a ghost costume hours before trick-or-treating.  Or maybe they are like me and believe that it means more when it's made by hand.  I still remember my father making "Three Little Pig" costumes for me and my two sisters, complete with huge, round pig heads made weeks in advance, custom-fit for our heads.  And I remember the next year when I was Sylvester the cat, my older sister was Granny and my younger sister was Tweety Bird.  We even pushed her around in a cage made from my brother's skate boards.  My dad went all out and we won costume awards because of it (do they still have costume contests?).  My youngest was a life size football for her first Halloween and has since been a mermaid, a cowgirl and this year will be a cat.  I talked recently with some celebrities about their favorite costumes of the past and they had fond memories of costumes ranging from Santa to a Ladybug (see video below).  The best response I heard was from Lonni Paul (design star and partners with Tiffani Amber Thiessen on nursery furniture line PetitNest).  Lonnie tells me she remembers being Wonder Woman and instantly feeling all-powerful as a little girl.  Now that's a costume I'm all for every day of the year!
sunriseresizedA rare sunrise photo taken on my camera phone--the picture wasn't touched up in any way, promise!  Just a reminder to stop and enjoy the little things like a sunrise or sunset.

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