Caramel Apple Cider

I am a fan of apple cider, but my friend Tia introduced me to caramel apple cider. (In fact, she came over this morning & made me one before we took an impromptu visit to a new thrift store in town.) Oh my. Yummo! Starbucks makes 'em & other coffee shops do too, but they're easy to make & you HAVE to try one. Perfect treat for Fall!

All you do is pour a packet of powdered spiced cider mix into your mug of boiling hot water & dump a heaping spoonful of caramel topping (used for ice cream) into it. Stir-- & add more caramel to taste if you'd like. Top with a dollop of whipped cream & enjoy.....It tastes JUST like a caramel apple.

And here's what I picked up on our thrifty trip....A really cool vintage lamp. It is totally missing the base & a lampshade, but I love her. And she works!!

I also found these itty-bitty things & thought they'd be perfect for my girls' Christmas stockings. I don't know if they're vintage or not. The box says "Made in Hong Kong" & they were 75cents each! You can't tell the scale of them by the picture, but all these sets would sit next to each other on a dollar bill. They're tiny & adorable & my 4 year old especially loves miniature things.

Well, I'm off to help out at the kid's "Fruit Harvest Party" at church. Each class is setting up games & prizes & candy in their rooms. I help teach the Kindergarten age girls & our room is doing tattoos & an apple bobbing game. My girls want to get all fairy-like & princess-y before we go. Should be fun! I'll have pics tomorrow!

Bowling, Sweet Stuff & Texas!

I haven't been bowling in FOREVERS! A couple nights ago my family went. And I sucked. I used to be pretty good. It was fun anyway! We all came up with nicknames...mine was "Cupcake"! The bowling pics were taken by my friend Tia.

Yesterday the Caramel Apple Fairy knocked on my door & brought me this sweet treat. Five minutes after this picture was taken, the girls & I devoured our goodie to bits. Caramel & white chocolate. Who could resist?

I guess I'm really writing to say 'goodbye'! Tomorrow my blog will be co-hosting Kara's Virtual Baby Shower & the next day I'll be on my way to Texas. Early in the morning my best friend Tia(a.k.a. Caramel Apple Fairy) is picking me up. Four of us will be traveling all day long to Dallas & we don't get in until 6pm. Ugh. But I've already got my carry-on bag packed with lots of fun stuff to do!

Hey, why are things 'bigger in Texas' anyways? I think I'm going to make it my mission to find out. I'll let you know what I discover.

It seems when kids & hubbies are not present that massive giggling & silliness ensue. And I'll have 4 days of it! Bring it on.

I'm looking forward to the MOPS convention (Mothers Of PreSchoolers). I really have no idea what to expect. I'm just going by what I've heard & read. I'll be hangin' out with thousands of other moms from all over the US, listening to great speakers, awesome worship, & going to workshops & sessions about parenting, being a mom, etc & I'm even signed up for a session (which I'm most excited about!) for the Creative Activity leaders. I'll get to meet with other crafty MOPS peeps!

There's also an opportunity for me to display some samples of my handmade items--along with hundreds of others-- to help other MOPS groups get ideas. I've gathered together some small things that will fit in my suitcase. AND, I'm planning on taking LOTSA photos of other crafty ideas I see too! Hopefully I'll have some cool project ideas to bring back to my group-- & share with you too!

Here's some dorky fun little biz-type cards I made up to place next to my samples in case anyone has questions about them, etc.

Oh! And I hope to meet up with some other MOPS chiks/bloggers who frequent my blog & will be there too! Won't that be neato?! How will we see each other amidst the large crowd? I was thinking of giving a signal. Or wearing something random. But we never worked out the kinks, so hopefully we'll bump into each other somehow...

Anyway, I'll leave all my little WhiMSy lovers with a treat while I'm gone, so you don't miss me too much: I've got a tutorial scheduled to post while I'm gone. Wheeeeee!

Please come for a visit to Kara's Baby Shower tomorrow. There will be prizes, & links to other blogs with giveaways as well!

Have a super duper day!

Peace & Cupcakes,

Nikki