Colin’s preschool class has a little party for just about every holiday…and usually I’m the crazy Mom who on the day of the party, rushes to the store to buy <insert juice box / snack / candy / cupcake / etc > on the day it is due. Today is no exception, however I was able to whip these up using two bags of the Starburst jelly beans, some little baggies and ribbon I had in my stash. I found this cute free printable on Pinterest, punched the tags out, and in 30 minutes, I was done!

Two gold stars for me today, thankyouverymuch.

It’s hard to believe my little dude is THREE now. In February, I set about to craft up his 3rd birthday invitations. He has a big love for all your typical “boy” things lately…trucks, cars, tractors, airplanes, and of course, DINOSAURS!

Here is a glance back at when I did his first birthday invitations with the Dr. Suess theme. I’m back again with the fun Paper Source invitation boxes! This time, I used the larger A7 size in the color “Lake,” which is a nice blue color. These mailing boxes are so fun and unexpected than your traditional mailing envelope. They really stand out in your guest’s mailboxes!

Each year I like to to incorporate a photo of him with the invitation. The shirt I picked out for him to wear by chance had a number 19 on it – the same day as his birthday! I incorporated colors of blue, orange and green and fun, worn-looking fonts to play up the pre-historic theme. 

Kraft krinkle paper shred stuffing helped fill the box. Then, using a box of Melissa & Doug wooden dinosaur magnets (Colin enjoyed playing with the ‘leftovers’), I tied a tag around each one that read “Dig for all the Dino-mite Birthday Details!” This was because guests literally had to “dig” for the invitation.

Completing the design was a label address wrap that carried the dinosaur artwork and fonts to the outer box.

Believe it or not, our birthday parties are pretty low-key at home. Since we don’t go all-out for the party, I like to do something a little extra-special for the invitations. Stay tuned next week for a few little details from the birthday party!

Speacial Note: this blog post is tagged under the “AH Inspired” category because this will be an on-going feature highlighting some of my close friends and their creative businesses. I look forward to sharing more creative entrepreneurs in coming posts with you all!

Meet my good friend Ashlee Proffitt, a stationery and graphic designer in Tampa, Florida. I first met Ashlee when she was one of my roomies at Stationery Academy last July. She is such an incredible woman with a beautiful soul, huge heart, and an amazing mama with unshakeable faith. We all need a friend like Ashlee in our lives!

Ashlee has been a very busy bee not only with relaunching Ashlee Proffitt with lovely new products – like these art prints below – but also she’s been busy growing a sweet baby girl! Ashlee would be front and center at AH Inspired Tampa in May when we visit her hometown… if she wasn’t due to give birth that very same week! I will forgive her this time… ;)

Here is a preview of Ashlee’s new kids art print collection. They are a meaningful and sweet way to decorate your little one’s room. Each print is marked with a sweet reminder from the Bible about how they are loved, pursued, and valued.

Ashlee’s cars print on the far right we have hanging in Colin’s new big boy room that features lots of cars and trucks.
I love displaying it in a worn blue wood frame I picked up from Hobby Lobby.

You can visit Ashlee’s shop at ashleeproffitt.etsy.com to see the dozens of different art print styles. Even better, all of my Amber Housley blog readers can enjoy a 15% discount. Here is the coupon code:

Additional Details about the collection:
• size: 8×10 fine art print
• paper: Highest Quality Paper (Luxe White Paper (300gsm))
• printing: Printed With Archival Inks
• packaging: Packaged in Clear Envelope with Chipboard (for protection against bending)
• shipping: Shipped in Protective Stiff Envelope (for protection against bending)

And….I’m hosting a giveaway! One winner will receive a print of their choice from the collection.

ENTRY DETAILS
1. Share the link to this blog post on Facebook or Twitter
2. Visit Ashlee’s shop: ashleeproffitt.etsy.com
3. Leave a comment on this blog post with your favorite piece from the Inspired Kids Collection and how you shared.

CONTEST DETAILS
1. Contest ends on Tuesday, April 3 at midnight.
2. Winner will be announced on Friday, April 6.

I can’t wait to see what your favorite prints are!

**contest is closed, thank you! however, coupon code is still active!** :)

Just this time last year I was putting the finishing touches on Colin’s Go Diego Go 2nd Birthday Party! Colin has been a HUGE fan of that show since he even first found interest in the television. I actually like that it teaches Spanish skills and a love for animals. Even before he was two, Colin could identify what a pygmee marmoset was. When I was meowing like a kitty, he was telling me I was not a kitty, but a jaguar. SERIOUSLY, this kid knows his animals because of this show…

So naturally, Diego was the theme of his second party. We kept it low key – or low key for me anyway. A small loot of favors and playthings from Oriental Trading Company: animal pattern sunglasses, a tiger pinata (later we realized this was kind of morbid given Diego’s love for animals, but the kids didn’t seem to mind), and some blow up jungle beach balls that the kids loved kicking around and doubled as another favor. Given I have not so great baking talents, the  cake was from Publix, and included some keepsake Dora and Diego jeeps that he plays with still to this day. I also put out a bunch of stuffed jungle animals from Colin’s bedroom for extra decor (ones that our yellow lab Rocco hadn’t yet destroyed) and supplemented Diego logo plates, napkins, etc from Party City. Snacks were of a Mexican nature and also suited for kiddos: chips, salsa, lots of veggies and dips. I crafted together some bunting for the windows and fireplace using some scrapbook paper and ribbon from my stash, as well as put out a few plants to play up the “jungle” theme.

For the invitation, I also was more low key (compared to last year’s box with paper shred), but I was at a loss of how to get my hands on some Diego artwork. I finally found a book cover online for teacher’s that I was able to Photoshop the banner of and replace it with our own messaging. Please note that I am unable to recreate this invitation due to licensing, so please don’t ask. :) I think I had 50+ requests for the Dr. Suess invitation last year that I’m also unable to recreate due to the same restrictions.

For Colin’s outfit, I purchase a khaki vest off of ebay and ironed on a Diego Animal Rescue patch from etsy. Like the year before, I included a little collage of photos with the invitation of him dressed up in his Animal Rescue outfit and with some animals.

I can’t believe it’s already time for his big THREE birthday in just a few weeks! A hint: it’s going to by DINO-mite!

And yes, the invitation box and shred is making a come back…(squeel!)