MAKE A RAINBOW PARTY - FUN & COLORFUL!

Somewhere over the rainbow a little girl turned 3!  

The party was simply beautiful! This is a gender neutral theme you can use for any age. All the food served was colorful and I had a table of treats (above) to die for! Since the party was outdoors, I placed rainbow colored pinwheels around the yard, planted colorful flowers on a large pot a month in advance so the pot looked more mature for the party (bellow) and even decorated with wind chimes and outdoor decor following the theme.

Here is what was served: veggie platters (broccoli, red and yellow cherry tomatoes, carrots, yellow squash and petit cucumber), fruit trays (black grapes, strawberry, papaya, mango, green grapes, blueberry, oranges, grapefruit and  kiwi), avocado, blue corn and yellow corn tortilla chips, butter popcorn, rainbow goldfish and fruit loops. Unfortunately there are no pictures of them. ;(

We decided to buy an inflatable bouncer instead of renting one and it was great! We paid almost the same and the kids have been using it a LOT! But since it was a little smaller then the ones we use to rent I bought a "paint your own" pin wheel (it is VERY windy in Texas in April) at Oriental Trading Co. So I set a few cans with markers for the kids to draw, but I wasn't sure kids would be interested. It turns out it was a huge success! Kids really enjoyed!

I paid attention to every detail... To sing happy birthday, instead of the traditional hat, I opted to each guest a rainbow lei, displayed in  a glass canister before given out (bellow). Bows of a rainbow ribbon (found at Hobby Lobby) added a little charm here and there.

But the table of sweets was the hit! I am not sure if it was because of the decoration or the delicious treats! That is why I will be posting recipes  and detailed pictures of all the sweets this coming week! So you will need to check for: the butterfly goody bags, Brazilian Chocolate Balls (Brigadeiro), Brazilian Coconut Kisses (Beijinho de Coco), Soft Mary (Maria Mole), Rainbow Jumbo Cupcake, Confetti Cupcakes with Rainbow Frosting! Yumm! We we still had Rainbow Layered M&Ms, Jelly Beans Jar and Lollipops!

I could not have done it without the help of my family who was visiting from Brazil and the wonderful work of my friends from idea studio, who made the personalized invitation, labels and thank you notes! Thanks for coming! 

Besides the butterfly bag each guest received a bag with a tag saying "thanks for coming!" (above) with little toys all with the rainbow colors, but I found the rainbow crayon at OTC.

This article was originally posted on http://arttipsandthoughts.blogspot.com

Any reproduction on any other site is prohibited and a violation of copyright laws.

Butterfly Goddy Bag - Simple, Affordable & Cute!

Besides this is a very affordable idea! Simply fill a snack size ziplock bag with goodies. Paint wood clothespins in any color you desire and make a little face on the top. If you want you can use pipe cleaners for antennas.  Clip bag in the middle of bag and voilà! You can arrange the butterflies on a tray or platter, or place them directly on the table. For my daughter's rainbow themed party I painted the  wood pins in rainbow colors and arranged them all around the table of treats. It was adorable!

This article was originally posted on http://arttipsandthoughts.blogspot.com

Any reproduction on any other site is prohibited and a violation of copyright laws.

LITTLE PIECES OF EARTH - MY EYES' WINDOW

Planting trees is a nice way of celebrating Earth Day. Today I planted four.  But taking pictures of the delicate and grand beauties Mother Nature has given us is also  a pleasant way of showing Love to our Planet. Here are a few of the ones I took when I found a beautiful piece of Earth along my way.

ALL PICTURES TAKEN BY DANIELA COHEN.

ALL PHOTOGRAPHS ARE PROPERTY OF THE ARTIST AND ARE PROTECTED BY THE UNITED STATES AND INTERNATIONAL LAW.

YOU MAY NOT COPY, PUBLISH, OR OTHERWISE USE ANY PHOTO WITHOUT THE SPECIFIC WRITTEN PERMISSION OF DANIELA COHEN.

Copyright© 2010. All rights reserved.

This article was originally posted on http://arttipsandthoughts.blogspot.com

Any reproduction on any other site is prohibited and a violation of copyright laws.

Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch, near San Antonio, TX

Living in the ever growing Houston area? If your kids love animals and a trip to the zoo, you must take them to this safari in the Texas Hill Country. It is located between San Antonio and New Braunfels, two nice cities to visit as well. Natural Bridge and Wildlife Ranch is open 362 days a year and has the safari, a petting zoo, a learning center and some other animals, but the highlight is the safari per say. You drive your car among the animals on a 4 mile loop and then you park to see the rest. We spent over one hour on the safari only. There are about 500 animals representing 40 different species. At the gate you will be offered a CD which will "guide" you. We didn't like it much, as our pace was different from that of the CD, besides we were so excited by all these beautiful different faces coming to eat out of our hands that we didn't want to pay attention to the CD (they recommend throwing the food on the ground, but yes we broke the rule and we loved it!). I do recommend the book though because it explains all the animals they have. You get some food to feed the animals included with your admission, but you have the option to buy more if you want. There is a "grill restaurant" but it actually has snacks and a lot of unhealthy choices (everything is fried!). I recommend you bring your lunch if you prefer to eat healthy. They do have a coupon for the restaurant on their website. If you are staying at a hotel in the area, you can find coupons on area maps or brochures.

I had never seen so many different types of deer and antelope (like the one above), cattle, bison, ostriches, zebras and many others! The animals look really healthy and are quite friendly. They will come to your windows to eat because they know you have food! We were crazy enough to feed even the bison from our hands (I had never seen one up close, they are HUGE!), but again this is not the recommendation... we are just a weird family that would go to any zoo before going to an amusement park! So ... we , had to know who had a soft or rough thong, who had  a pale pink or black mouth... 
Get the camera ready before you start and if you have a sunroof you will be able to get awesome shots from the top! If you can make a video you may get lucky and get the nosy zebra below! Have fun!

This article was originally posted on http://arttipsandthoughts.blogspot.com

Any reproduction on any other site is prohibited and a violation of copyright laws.

The Art of Botanical Arranging - FREE class at Pottery Barn

Don't know what to do after church next Sunday? Need an excuse to have a nice brunch and spend time with a girlfriend? Need to brighten up your room to welcome the warm season? My favorite spring change in the house is bringing new flowers and botanicals indoors, with real and "I can't believe is not real" plants,  and gardening outdoors!

Pottery Barn has free decorating classes every month! The next theme is flower and botanical arrangement. Classes will be held the next two Sundays, April 25th and May 2nd. You can bring a vase and flowers and they will show you how to arrange them. Click here to  RSVP to your local store.

This article was originally posted on http://arttipsandthoughts.blogspot.com

Any reproduction on any other site is prohibited and a violation of copyright laws.

LATEST BABY & CHILD RECALLS - APRIL 2010

It is hard to keep up with all recalls, isn't it? Latest there have been literally milloins of them! Did you know more than 2 million cribs have been recalled recently? How about 1 million baby slings recalled after infant deaths? Strollers recalled for finger or fingertip amputation include well known brands like Graco and Britax! In fact the most recent recalls include from toys, furniture, pacifier clips and clothing to Children's Tylenol and Motrin!

The good news is you can find the list of recalls with all information you want to know here.

Please, send a link of this article to your friends. It is better to be safe than sorry! 

This article was originally posted on http://arttipsandthoughts.blogspot.com
Any reproduction on any other site is prohibited and a violation of copyright laws.

I AM HAPPY TO BE BACK & GLAD YOU MISSED ME!

While I am very committed to this blog, sometimes life gets on the way. Being a working mom has brought me to a new perspective of urgency. Sadly the day has only 24 hours!

Between work and kids, the only time I find to write here is the after hours...

But between my girl's birthday (with the grandparents and uncle flying in from Brazil and getting here at 5am that day) , the second celebration with daddy who was away, the crazy preparation for her party 8 days later, the celebration at school, parent/teacher conferences, child observations, guests who need attention, and of course, a tummy bug AND a viral infection... well, the after hours were already taken by something else. Be it rolling Brazilian Candy at midnight, making butterfly goody bags at 1am or rainbow cakes at 2!

Now, I am back, healthy and happy again!

Thanks for all of you who have written to me asking for my blog posts!

I really appreciate you who took the time to become a follower!

Please, enjoy this blog again!

This article was originally posted on http://arttipsandthoughts.blogspot.com

Any reproduction on any other site is prohibited and a violation of copyright laws.

DON'T YOUR KIDS JUST LOVE CATERPILLARS?

I am pretty sure almost everyone recognizes the picture above! Yeah! "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" by author and terrific illustrator Eric Carle. But does your child really knows what a caterpillar is? Caterpillars are the larval state of butterflies and moths. Show your kids these amazing pictures from Wikipedia! Wow! Aren't they beautiful?  Don't your kids love them? Well, they will if you grow some at home! Simply buy the Butterfly Garden (bellow) by Insect Lore and you too will love them! It is fascinating to see how fast they grow!

Think outside the cocoon! How about having a caterpillar party for your child? You can make caterpillar cupcakes, rent an inflatable crawl toy and buy stickers like these! (or go to ideastudiodesign.com, they can personalize everything paper, from your party to your life!)

Other foods you can arrange and serve as the cute creatures include cookies, crackers and mini pancakes. Basically, anything round! 

Looking for caterpillar wall decoration or paintings? Try the triple canvas one bellow! Or the button caterpillar art!

 

When looking for toys, the choices are almost limitless, but my favorite still is Gund's "Tinkle, Crinkle, Rattle & Squeak Caterpillar" available from tiny to giant!

For girl's clothes you can't beat this shirt and hair clip bellow!

 And of course you can try crafting some caterpillar with your kids by painting some foam balls, gluing pom-poms together (pipe cleaners make antennas and feet) or recycling egg cartoons like this one:

And if you are lucky to found one around, let your little scientist touch it or hold it!

This article was originally posted on http://arttipsandthoughts.blogspot.com

Any reproduction on any other site is prohibited and a violation of copyright laws.

CAN SPRINGTIME GET ANY CUTER THAN THIS?

 A simple change of lamp shade can add charm to a little girl's room!

potterybarnkids.com

MY FAVORITE DISHES WITH LEFTOVER ROTISSERIE CHICKEN? #2

BRAZILIAN CHICKEN SOUP (Canja de Galinha)

This traditional Brazilian soup is used as a remedy for cold or as a comfort dinner in a cold night.

INGREDIENTS: (amounts will vary depending on how much chicken you have)

Leftover Chicken shredded or cut into small pieces

4 cups Chicken Broth (homemade or organic store bought)

1 lg or 2 sm carrots cut into 1/2''cubes

1/2 cup of white or sweet potato cut into 1/2''cubes

2 chopped roma tomatoes

Some Rice - brown or white(cooked, leftover is great too!)

Chopped italian persley or scallion

In a large saucepan bring chicken broth to a boil over medium flame. Add the carrot and sweet potato and cook for 5 minutes. Then add tomatoes, rice and chicken and cook for 5  more minutes. Turn off heat and sprinkle with herb of choice and a little parmesan cheese! Bom apetite!

This article was originally posted on http://arttipsandthoughts.blogspot.com

Any reproduction on any other site is prohibited and a violation of copyright laws.