Allred Design Blog

Did the tradition of Memorial Day skip a generation?

When I was growing up my mother use to send us off with my grandma and grandpa to visit and decorate the graves of family members that have past on. We traveled from what seemed like one end of the state to the other.

Why my mom wasn't with us, I have no idea.
And why in the world we thought it would be fun to go with my grandparents.
Or maybe I really didn't have a choice. I don't think it would be fun.

But my kids have never experienced the Memorial days of my childhood. The view it as just another great reason why they do not have to go to school and sit around driving me a little crazy.

In fact my that same mother who has decided not to pass on this grandparent-grandchild tradition has been cool enough to invite me to spend my Memorial Day going to see the yummy Jake Gyllenhaal in the Prince of Persia and go to lunch. Beats decorating graves I suppose.

Plus my cute Gram (still a very young 88 year old) once told me,
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I'm trying to embrace the fact that I "am" a Mommy Blogger! I've avoided admitting it for some time because I never felt I was truly part of that community. I work outside the home full-time, I have two teenage children and don't write about stinky butts and breast feeding. In fact, I very seldom write about anything personal...which I am hoping to change. However, I'm still first, and foremost a MOM and I BLOG, so I must be a Mommy Blogger! Please bare with me as I try to "find my voice" here on my blog. I've avoided getting personal for so long, focusing on crafty things I do and like around the web. But I quickly learned that wasn't fulfilling and certainly not fun to do. I actually started thinking this was something I had to do to maintain my job...it went from something person to a "job" of sorts. So I'm ready to GET REAL and put myself, my thoughts, my heart out there for my friends around the world to see. So watch out …

This is going to be short...I'm headed off to a Bloggers Conference and very excited to learn how I can be a better blogger ;)
Cupcake "cupcake" Toppers
I actually thought that these were plastic cupcake toppers until I went to Confessions of a Cookbook Queen blog and saw that she made them from mini reese's peanut butter cups. She shows you how on her blog, so go check it out. This is one I'll be recreating for sure...love it!



Faux Jewelry T-Shirt TutorialHow fun are these cute shirts...actually the center two are ONSIES...cute huh?? These look complicated thanks to Get Your Craft On blog. She shows you how simple it is to create this same look on any t-shirt (any size). Be sure to read the post before this one too, she explains the product she used to make the faux necklace.

Colorful InspirationThis darling gift set created by Debbie over at Thinking Inking is amazing! The darling ribbon flower are what made me contact her and ask her if I could share this idea wit…

Mini Rootbeer Float Cupcakes I loved this idea from Gourmet Mom on the Go's website...and she used shot glasses for them, but also suggested votive holders too. Wouldn't this be a darling idea for a party?? Check out her step-by-step directions and photos.
Teacher Appreciation Gifts Luckily I have jr. high kids and we don't have to worry too much about this anymore. But I do have some friends that have been asking me for ideas. Here's a couple super easy gift ideas that you can even include you kids in making them!

Wooden Ball Picture Holder
Printable Plant Picks Build a Custom FrameI'm a huge fan of Saw Dust and Paper Scraps blog since she's a woman after my own hear...one who owns more power equipment then her husband and doesn't wait around for her man to build her something. These cute frame she created look simple enough and I've seen them in high end home decor stores for a lot more money then she spent!
Felt Dahlia CorsageYou have to take a moment and g…

The other day I was doing a little blog hopping and came across a darling website called Squigglefly.com. Here's what he looked like (if you want the

It's a great site that offers digital stamps for cards....so I started looking around and came across a darling digi owl stamp. I knew from that moment that I needed to own it and play with it and this is what I created. I'm working up to making a card...but so far I've only piece him together. My favorite part are the black rhinestone gems that I put on using my new i-rock tool.

I have found some really great things to share this week, I hope you enjoy reading them. I'm hoping to post some projects I've been working on over the weekend...but no promises.

My Dream Craft Room
I had to share one of my newest friend Jana Eubank's craft space with everyone...you see if I were to die this would be my heaven!! Jana is an amazing designer and I have been stalking her ever since I happened upon some darling layouts she created. Thankful she doesn't think I'm completely crazy and we've had the opportunity to work on some projects together. Seriously you should follow her blog...she rocks. Now if you want to see more pictures of this beautiful space, click through to her blog!! Maybe one day Jana will let me visit heaven for a bit (wink)!

Baked Chicken Egg Roll Recipe
My husband loves egg rolls but I don't like making them...that is until I found this recipe. I loved that they're baked and only 2 pts for those of you counting points. Since I …

First, Happy Mothers Day to all the amazing women in my life that are such great examples of the mother I would hope to be. I know it's a struggle, but we are all very blessed to enjoy this adventure in one way or another.
Second, today on the Imaginisce blog I had the opportunity to write about a wonderful group in St. George, Utah that finds love and support through scrapbooking. Please take a moment to learn about this amazing group of ladies, including my dear friend Marcie. And yes, it will bring tears to your eyes...but we all need a good cry today (don't we)? If you are interested in donating your unwanted/unused scrapbook supplies to Mothers of Angels, please feel free to drop them by my house and I will see that they get to the MOA group. Thank you!
And by the way...."My MOM is cooler, more amazing and more beautiful then YOUR MOM!" Sorry couldn't resist, LOL!

I had so much fun at my scrapbook retreat last night and was so excited to get as much done as I did...but most of all I liked some of the cards I created. I've been feeling like I was in a slump a bit, so these made me super happy and I wanted to share. Forgive me a bit...I got to play around with the new i-rock gem setting tool and gems from Imaginisce (a lot of my projects ended up with more bling then probably needed...but they ROCK!).
Birdie Card I finished creating a couple of layouts with this collection and couldn't resist making a quick card with my scraps.
Birdie Card Supplies: Papers and Die Cut Sticker - My Mind's Eye Quite Contrary Collection; Buttons - unknown
Sabrina Chic Card
After an unplanned trip to the Making Memories warehouse sale I came home with the entire "Sabrina Collection." I'd never seen it before in a store and couldn't resist. But even better then that I knew it would end up being the perfect collection to try out the new i-rock …

I found some great things to share with you this week and I'm even thrilled that the post will hit before the weekend!! I had to get my butt in gear so I could run away from home to a 24 hour scrapbook retreat...very excited about that. And just a quick warning, I was in a bit of a chatty mood with this post. Enjoy!
Playroom Storage on SteroidsThis chick is my IDOL. I have always felt quite capable of mastering the art of carpentry. I've dabbled a little in it with the help of my best friend and we're proud to say that we own more power tools then our husbands...but when I saw this storage room wall I flipped!! How amazing is this?? Sandra has this fun blog called Sawdust and Paper Scraps (love the name). She actually shows us how she created this amazing storage wall (ignore the part about it taking 5 weeks) and I think she ROCKS! I of course plan on putting these new found directions to the test in my craft room...no toy storage needed for me (well scrapbook toys are okay…

Tonight I can't sleep and I feel this need to share, vent or reflect. I use to turn to my journal when I was feeling this way, but I can't seem to figure out where I last left it...so my blog will have to do. There are times in my life when I wish I could replay a specific reaction or thing I said to one of my children. I'm so fearful that with that one event I may have impacted my child in such a negative way that it will form the adult they will become. Sometimes those "errors in judgement" are small and other times are big. Sometimes I'm pretty sure my kids would have labeled my error in judgement as one of those times, but I think often times I'm probably much harder on myself then I probably should be.
Case in point....tonight my daughter was invited to attend the Jr. High Awards Night. Only those kids that were going to be awarded for good grades, citizenship or teacher nominations for department awards. Emma figured her award would be for her grades…

i-rock Gem Setter Tool NSD GiveawayThis great tools is going to be hitting stores the end of May. I've had the opportunity to play with it and once you start blinging out projects, you can't stop!! If you'd like to win one, Imaginisce is giving away 5 of these tools before stores get them. All you have to do is sign-up for the newsletter emails, just click her to register! They'll pick winners on Wed, May 5th.
Cards with "Purse"nality!! Years ago I made the cutest purse card, but the embellishment that represented the purse is no longer available. I've wanted to remake that card, but wasn't sure how to come up with the perfect purse...until I found this on Little Birdie Secrets blog...and she shows you how to make them too!

Lovely Charm BraceletsI came across this darling Zuleykha's Shop on Etsy and was so amazed by her beautiful work. She makes these beautiful charm bracelets with polymer clay. If she wasn't in the UK I would have ordered one fo…