A Savvy Snow Day

December 19, 2010

Pack your skis and Snowboards and get ready to play,
Come and enjoy our Savvy "Snow Day".

Be sure you dress warm in all your snow gear.

As we celebrate the ending of another year.

In Southern Ca it does not snow.

We wish it did (but just for a day or two).

So for our Annual Christmas Party we decided to throw a CA Snow Day.

In Savvy Style we used things we had around the house.

TomKat's Tweet Holiday Collection was the perfect Printable Collection for the Snow Day. Kim is so Fabulous she even customized the labels for us.

Our buddy Jason recently started a Photography business and captured the Savvy Snow Stylings for us. Thanks J~

The treats were all Snow themed. Kolby Kakes baked a ridiculously delicious and ADORABLE Snow Man cake. Scrapbook paper cones filled with popcorn served as Snow Cones, and Chocolate Mini donuts as tubes.

Pretzels Dipped in White Chocolate with snowflake Sprinkles were our Ski Poles, and Nutter Butters with chocolate tips were our Snow Shoes. No Snow Day is complete without snowflakes, our were individually designed cookies by Kolby Kakes.

Do you know how much Snow Costs?

In CA a lot.......

So we created our own Savvy Style Snow.

50+ balloons and Some Shredded Paper made for a fun time.

All of the kiddos had a blast playing in our Savvy Snow (and they were toastie warm). All you could hear was laughter as they would throw the balloons in air pretending it was snowing. Who knew $4 worth of Balloons could be so much fun.

They were all so cute in their Snow Wear.
What a Memory!

Savvy Snow Smiles......

From the Savvy Moms!!!!

Smiles~
Amy & Bri

Merry and Bright Play Party

December 16, 2010

We often get asked "How Savvy are your Play Dates Really".
To which we reply, Very Savvy. You just have to be creative.

Our Merry and Bright Play Date is a perfect example of a fun and frugal Party.

We knew as soon as we saw the Cheerful and Bright Christmas Light Party Printable Collection from InkSpot Workshop that we had found our theme.

We wanted to create a Bright and Cheery feel for the day.
To keep the styling simple since the colors were so Bright and Vibrant on the Printables.

We were thrilled when we found a Christmas Light Collection in the Dollar Bins at Target. From the collection of ribbon, wrapping supplies and paper goods we decided we only needed to purchase 2 Large gift Bags.

From the gift bags we created 4 Place mats, 3 tray inserts and 2 ribbon trim accent pieces for the wrapped boxes we used as risers.

The details of the table came together quickly and with minimal cost. We purchased 2 Rosemary trees from which we strung the printables and our Dough-a-Deer Doughnuts. This was a perfect focal point for the table and a fun and festive way to spread some cheer.

Our Craft this month was Candy Christmas Light Necklaces from Amazon.

An easy, fun and edible project for the kiddos.

The Printable Collection really was the Inspiration for the entire day. We took our Chair Ribbons from our Gingerbread Play Party and re-purposed them for this Merry and Bright Event. In keeping with the idea of stringing joy we wrapped 4 C7 Bulbs with twine and dressed up the Chalkboard (super cute right!).

For the Food we treated our guests to YUMMY Dough-a-Deer doughnuts. They were so pretty. The perfect touch to our Merry Day. As always we provided a healthy snack of Jello Christmas Trees and Pineapple Stars. In Savvy Spirit we whipped up some Light Bulb Cookies by dipping Nutter Butters in colored Wilton Candy Melts (we definitely are not Kolby Kakes ).

The total cost of the day was $27....Super Savvy for this Seasonal Shindig!!!

Sorry E...those are not lollies they are Printable Toppers.

The day was so Merry and Bight even our Littlest Guests wanted to take part in the fun.

So glad Ella B was there to capture all of the HoHoHo's and Jolly happenings.

We hope you have a Merry Little Christmas filled with Bright Savvy Stylings.

Smiles~

Amy & Bri

Gingerbread Playdate

December 1, 2010

Run, Run as fast as you can.....You can't catch me I am the Gingerbread Man. That was the theme of our December Play date. We decided that the perfect play date would be one that incorporated the traditional Gingerbread Man and House. As always we needed and wanted to add our Savvyness. Christine of Racz Photography generously offered her studio and talents to us for the day and let us literally run wild creating our holiday Play Date! Thank you Christine for your patience with us and helping us capture the day perfectly.

With our theme in mind Frog Prince Paperie helped design a Printable collection that was PERFECT! From there we were able to find all we needed, of course, in the Dollar Bins at Michaels, Joanne's and Target and from things we had around the house.

The Jars were a purchase we made at Ikea long before this Blog came to be (you can always use a good jar or two...or 10). Any jar can be dressed up with festive ribbon and a printable or embellishment and voila you have one Savvy addition to your styling and decor. The candy trees were a find at our local Big Lots.

We love to use Chalkboards as an addition to any play date, party or daily decor. In this case we used the one that hangs in Bri's kitchen as our recipe card to the traditional gingerbread man.

To complete our wall collage we had a custom designed Candy Cane canvas from Canvas by Kerry made and found a gingerbread cake pan at Joanne's. This look can be duplicated in your home by covering any framed art with wrapping paper and embellished with vinyl, scrapbook paper, or any other fun finds.

Each kiddo received a Custom Chef hat (found in the target dollar bin) that we added ribbon and a sweet gingerbread boy or girl. Their place setting included a Michaels $1 birdhouse, our Savvy "gingerbread house", an Icing bag with their initial and a place mat created from the Frog Prince Paperie Printable Collection placed on a 12x12 sheet of Wrapping Paper and then laminated. Each had a Frog Prince Paperie box filled with all the trimmings for their Gingerbread house.

We styled the table with Pom Poms strung on fishing line, and fancied the chairs with ribbon, a printable and pom poms.

Instead of creating our own Gingerbread house, cuz lets face it when it comes to Savvy baking we leave that to Kolby Kakes, we found this Adorable countdown one. We thought it would be perfect for our teachable moment of filling the empty gingerbread house with coordinating treats and or lessons of giving and gifts.

As always we like to provide a healthy snack. This month we kept it simple because we knew just how much candy was going to be involved in this Play Date, so peanut butter and jelly sandwiches it was wrapped of course with festive Frog Prince Paperie wrappers.

The kiddos enjoyed trimming their Gingerbread bird house. And looked adorable decked out in their Chef hats and Sweet Things Aprons that Nicole whipped right up for us!

And the finished products were Deliciously Cute!!!

Next we moved onto our recipe....This time we did things a little different. Our recipe was done with the help of Kolby Kakes. She made these adorable ginger boys and girls that the kids then dressed with their favorite candy accessories.

Yummy......is all we have to say!!!!

Every play date needs a Sweets Station....

And Bri's $3 garage sale cart is the perfect accessory to this play date.

Kolby Kakes created scrumptious Gingerbread Pops, cake balls and delicious gingham sugar cookies to add to the day.

We ended the play party with the story that whole day was based off of, The Gingerbread Man by Jim Aylesworth.

And those poor gingerbread boys and girls could not run away from our 5 curious and hungry kiddos! Don't you just want to eat them up in those adorable Sweet Things Aprons, tutu's and Hats. Pure JOY!!!!


We hope you enjoyed our Sweet Day.


Smiles~
Amy & Bri

The Cupcake Camp IE

November 18, 2010

Last week we had the great privilege of being involved in the 1st annual Cupcake Camp IE. This event was one that brought hundreds of people together to fight against breast cancer while enjoying some yummy cupcakes .

What a fun day it was!

Jamie of Kolby Kakes and Nicole of Sweet Things Kids shared in the day too. Christine Racz of Racz Phototgraphy captured the details through her lens.

It was a great way for us to support a wonderful cause, spend some girl time together and share in an event that brought awareness and passion to our community.

We did all of the styling and tablescape for the fabulous day. Since it was an event to support Susan G Koman we had to think Pink. Right away we knew we needed to turn to Kim of the TomKat studios to create the perfect printables for the event. And she did. Believe, Courage, Love and Thank You were more than fitting words and feelings for the day. For the fight that those diagnosed with Breast Cancer endure.

Kolby Kakes debuted her delicious Sweet Geraldine cupcake. It was delicious. And enjoyed by several hundred guests.

Nicole of Sweet Things Kids made adorable cupcake Aprons for us. And added the final touch to our table....an adorable Pink tutu and cupcake pillowcase dress.

We wanted you to enjoy the apron too so Nicole is hosting a GIVEAWAY for an adult Apron and a yummy cupcake mix. Enter to win.

We look forward to next year's event and hope that you will all come out to support The Cupcake Camp IE.

Smiles~
Amy & Bri

{Guest Blog & Spotlight} Kolby Kakes Edible Creations

November 4, 2010

Hello Savvy followers! I am honored and excited to be a guest blogger this week!

The Savvy Mom’s Guide has provided us all with amazing tips, ideas and deals for over two months now, and I am ecstatic to be affiliated with them as their ‘resident baker’ and an appreciative follower.

Having recently started up Kolby Kakes, my passion for baking is ever growing. As a young girl, my mom allowed me to help her whenever she was baking or cooking. As an adolescent, she gave me the freedom to experiment (and make messes) in the kitchen. Now as an adult, with a full time job and family of my own, baking remains my passion.

After receiving flattering amounts of requests from friends, family and strangers for my baked goods (particularly cake balls!), I started Kolby Kakes. I enjoy creating treats that will coordinate with the color scheme or theme of any event, much like those designed for The Savvy Mom’s Guide play dates. My signature items, cake balls which have rightfully been named Kolby Kakes, are enjoyed at any type of function thinkable.

I love being able to create unique yet edible touches that make a function a little more personal and special. Kolby Kakes also supports charities and non-profit organizations within the community. In recent months, we have supported The Girls Scouts of America, Women’s Fellowship Neighborhood Church, and are happy to support additional local causes.

In partnership with The Savvy Mom’s Guide and Sweet Things, Kolby Kakes is a proud sponsor of 1st Annual Cupcake Camp IE. A fundraiser supporting breast cancer which will be taking place this Sunday November 7th at The Mission Inn in Riverside, Ca. At this event, Kolby Kakes will introduce a new feature item, The Sweet Geraldine cupcake. This special creation is dedicated to my dear Aunt ‘Gerry’ who lost her battle with breast cancer over 8 years ago. To learn more about this event, check out the following link: www.cupcakecampie.wordpress.com
We are so excited to be apart of such a great cause and would love to see you there!

With the holidays right around the corner, here is a recipe and a tip for holiday baking: Easy

Sugar Cookie Recipe:
2/3 C butter, softened
¾ C Sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
1 TBSP milk
1 egg
2 C flour

With an electric mixer, beat butter on medium speed for 1 minute. Add sugar, salt and baking powder. Beat in vanilla, milk and egg scraping sides of bowl. Carefully add flour. If desired, chill dough for 20 minutes. Cut dough with cookie cutters and bake at 375o for 8 minutes or until edges are slightly golden.

Baking Tip:
When rolling sugar cookies, I don’t like to use flour because it makes a mess and also takes away from the flavor of the cookie. Instead, I place the dough on a piece of parchment paper. Cover the dough with a second piece of parchment paper and roll flat with a rolling pin. Place on a cookie sheet or other flat surface, and chill for 10-15 minutes before making desired shapes with cookie cutters.

Smiles~

Jamie

A Whoot of Thanks

November 1, 2010

November is a time of Giving Thanks. We have so much to be thankful for this year and wanted this Play Date to be nothing more than a "Whoot of Thanks". We try and instill in our kids that each day is a day to give thanks. And "Welcome" hearts that are Thankful!

For the "Whoot of Thanks" Play Date theme, our inspirations came from a collaboration of fall, Thanksgiving, and Owls. We wanted to feature natural elements such as woods, moss and leaves to compliment this inspiration. In planning we knew we needed to create a unique outdoor play date that was whimsical yet natural. We started by contacting Anders Ruff Custom Designs to create the printable collection around our “Whoot of Thanks” theme. We then provided them our patterns and colors which included oranges, browns, reds, and greens.

All design elements for each play date are usually purchased or created in a “Savvy” way. When it comes to the dollar bins at Target or our local Dollar Store we try and see more than just the value of an item.The tree stumps that were made into toad stools were covered in plastic tablecloths which came from the Target dollar bins along with scrapbook paper that was laminated with a leaf for the kids to use as placemats.The table the kids sat at was also made with 3 hay barrels and a piece of plywood covered with a piece of burlap. With the left over burlap we made pennants to hang our “Whoot of Thanks” banner from.

We wanted to keep with the natural feeling and create owls made from pine cones that also served as décor for the table. This idea came to life with the help of a tutorial from Bristol Moms. We then added our own Savvy touches.

For each play date we like to incorporate a snack that is kid created with easy to make steps. In this case we turned to Amy Locurto of Living Locurto who came up with an “Owl Smore” recipe that made this possible.

The moss boxes were created from left over scrap 2X4’s and pieces of sheet moss purchased from the Dollar Tree. These were perfect for showcasing our “Whoot Corn” popcorn cones made from scrapbook paper, and as a platform for the “Cheese Pies” to be displayed on. Our centerpiece, our version of a "thankful tree", was also created with the natural elements of our own backyard. We simply placed a tree branch into a tree stump and dressed it with our Anders Ruff printables and colorful leaves.

We alway include a healthy snack that compliments the theme or season. For this play date we selected a full meal for the kids to enjoy. First, an adorable turkey made from fruit, cheese and vegetables. And second “Cheese Pies” made from biscuits and cheese baked on a stick. These choices made the meal kid friendly, nutritious and delicious.

We encourage and support reading. So every Play Date has a story that pertains to the Holiday or Theme. For our "Whoot of Thanks" we chose Twas the Night before Thanksgiving by Dav Pilkey. A fun read that made the kiddos laugh... A Lot!

We usually end the play date with something sweet for the kids to remember the day. Kolby Kakes edible creations baked the yummiest cupcakes, cake balls and owl cookie pops that coordinated with the colors and theme perfectly. She is a Baking genius.

The day was captured by the one and only Christine Racz of Racz Photography. She did an amazing job capturing all elements of the day. Including the Priceless faces of the kids.

We hope you enjoyed our Play Party......We give a "Whoot of Thanks" for YOU!!!

Smiles~

Amy & Bri

Cookies and Milk Baby Shower

When my family and friends approached me about having a baby shower, I have to admit I was hesitant at first. I thought I had everything I needed as far as the essentials, but because this time around I am having a boy, I went ahead and agreed to it. OH how the party planning wheels began to turn!!!! I am known to have a sweet tooth and this pregnancy definitely supported that habit!! So, I remember seeing an adorable "Cookies and Milk" themed Birthday party on the Internet and thought why not have a shower around this adorable theme AND support my love of my nightly cookies and milk before bed?

With the help of family and friends I was truly blessed and was given one of the most adorable baby showers ever! Most of the details you see were hand made. The "A" on the front door was made by my talented sister, her amazing Cricuit, poster board and some Cookie Crisp cereal! My wonderful sister also made cookies on a stick that were made from Styrofoam, paint, wooden dowels, and some more Cookie Crisp cereal.

I wanted the colors of the shower to compliment my son's room (Pics to come). So we of course went with brown, whites and accented with orange. I love how the pop of orange made the whole table stand out. I asked my talented friend Donella of Ella B Photography to create a banner for me and she did not disappoint! "Got Cravings" was strung over the table with the complimenting colors of the shower and she even added little chocolate chip cookies on each letter.

I had also seen these blue and white paper straws on Bake It Pretty and knew they needed to be included in this shower. They were just too cute to pass up!

Not only did my amazing friends and family make a variety of dozen upon dozen of delicious cookies for the table, Jamie of Kolby Kakes also made her famous cake balls in the coordinating colors of the shower. She is so creative! I also asked her if she could create a milk bottle and chocolate chip cookie sugar cookie for the day and she perfected my vision! The only bummer was that I did not get to sample one, they were gone instantly!

I wanted to limit the usual baby shower games, so my sister came up with "Guess How Many Cookies are in the Cookie Jar?" She simply filled a jar with (again) Cookie Crisp cereal and had each of the guests put their guess on a slip of paper with their name.

I knew I wanted each guest to leave with some sort of cookie to remind them of the day, but was not sure what I wanted to put them in other than a bag? I was so excited when I found these ADORABLE milk cartons from Polka Dot Prints! I contacted Jordan, the owner and she was able to compliment the colors and the theme perfectly onto these mini milk cartons that were then filled with mini chocolate chip cookies from Trader Joe's. Aren't they SO unique? Stay tuned and we may just have a lil' Giveaway in the future (tomorrow....wink, wink!!)????

Thank you everyone who had a hand in throwing me not just a shower but a day full of memories that will last forever! I am beyond thrilled and excited to Welcome Baby Ayden into this world in just a few more days.

Stay tuned for our Giveaway from Polka Dot Prints......

Smiles~
Amy