Meet The New Pup.

Well, if you follow me on Instagram, you already e-met our new dog. 

That ball of naps and fat rolls photographed above chose his own name and, while I would normally share the video of his name choice, I'm going to direct you to my Instagram story for behind the scenes footage of our island happenings.  You won't catch this update but there's always something to see; I try to post on the IG stories everyday.

Look at that face.  Seriously?!  Islanders, I would like to formally introduce my new furbaby, Diesel.

He is everything puppy dreams of this breed are made of - fat rolls, five-minute play sessions, lots of naps and a sweet little face.

We stopped at Petsmart and purchased everything from the Ellen Degeneres lifestyle brand collection, ED. 

His toys, his collar, his leash, his bed-- we got everything.  I love the chic colors, preppy prints and timeless design.

More importantly, I'm really growing to love our new furbaby, Diesel.

I'm sure I'll have lots of updates because this fella is just as full of personality as he is cute.  

Until next time, 

The Pup.

After my experience with the puppies at the dog show, we started to discuss the possibility to, and my willingness to, purchase a new furbaby.  When Nuke died, I felt no dog would ever fill the void; I told myself there would be no point trying with another dog.  I decided a dog wasn't in my future.

Yet, here I was... considering another dog.  To think, it all started with a snuggle.  A former co-worker contacted me to say his dog was expecting puppies.  Get this. They were the same breed and would most likely be the same color/look as Nuke.

Be still my heart!  What are the frikkin' odds?

Randomly on Thanksgiving, Hubbs received a phone call from a friend... the same friend who got us access to the dog show.  He had a litter weeks prior, scheduled a delivery of a puppy to its new home in the same city where we live.  He offered to bring a puppy to us and sent us a pic of one that was still available.  The pup was beautiful.

While everyone else was Black Friday shopping, we were shopping for our furbaby on the way.  Later that night, we drove to the airport and we picked up our new family member.  We hurried home and started to settle into a new groove.  We had several name options but, until we chose, he was Puppy NoName.  The list of names included:

Toogie (pronounced 2G)
Diesel
Pumbaa
Otto
Nas

It took a few days.  It took a few rounds of voting.  It took eye rolls.  It took a lot.  We voted and narrowed the names down to two:

Diesel and Nas

We balled the small pieces of paper up and placed them on the floor with a treat by each one.  We let Puppy NoName choose.  If you follow me on Instagram, you already saw the process, saw his face and you already know his name...  Stay tuned for his formal Island introduction tomorrow!

OTW: Holidays, Decor, DIY

Hi, Islanders!

It's been far too long.  I have so much to share!  

Thanksgiving was awesome.  I'll share pics tomorrow.  

Christmas is upon us.  The decor is coming together.  I've got tips and plans... new trees to share and more.  I found some awesome and affordable gift ideas.  Christmas dinner is at our house and I'm getting super excited.  Oh, and Pinky, our elf on the shelf, has returned.

Home projects are looking amazing.  I've been updating the new place and I've found some amazing deals and new products.  I can't wait to share the progress and introduce our home; I'm quite pleased with the spaces.

Stay tuned.  I've got good stuff on the way (OTW)!

Turkey Bow Tutorial

Howdy, Islandes!  I'm sharing this post again for the turkey bow.  It's easy and fab and such a great accent to any outfit.  ENJOY!

**Originally published November 26, 2013**

Good morning, Islanders!

It's finally time to share the infamous Turkey Bow tutorial.  I've received requests for this tutorial since 2010 when I made Munch's first bow (see the post with its debut here) so I know you're excited!!

Supplies

- Brown Ribbon (20 inches)

- Pink Ribbon (less than 1 inch)

- Ribbon for Feathers (your choice)

- String

- Hot Glue Gun

- Lighter

- Clippie or Headband

Step-by-Steps

Note: thinner ribbon works better for this design.

1. Cut the brown ribbon into the following pieces - 3 in., 2 in., 1.5 in., and two (2) 1 in. pieces

2.  Glue the ends of the 3 in., 2 in., 1.5 in. pieces together to create a loops like this:

3.  For the 1 in. pieces, create a flat loop (pictured below to the far right):

4.  Stack the loops according to size (dabbing glue at each layer's meeting point):

Back view

Front view

5. Repeat with the two remaining loops to create the turkey head.  Glue the head on top of the body:

6.  Cut 5 pieces of the feather ribbon(s) to be 2 in. long.  Create the open loops:

7.  Glue the loops to the back of the turkey:

8.  Cut a small triangle for the beak and a squiggly strip for the "turkey jiggle" (as Munch calls it):

9.  Glue to clippie (after covering with brown ribbon OR to piece of felt for headband.

10.  Enjoy your festive and fabulous turkey bow!!!

Once I made one, I stopped measuring and whipped up bows for all of our friends.  They make great gifts for little girls:

PLUS, a few spools of ribbon really go a LONG way!

Enjoy!

TBT: Thanksgiving Decor For Less!

This post was originally published on Your Finances Simplified in 2011!  I was reminded of it today and wanted to share this gem.  I guess it is Throwback Thursday!

Am I the only person who woke up to the reality that Thanksgiving is upon us? By wake-up, I mean my “Countdown to Christmas Decor” announcement was interrupted by my 5 year old asking, “how you gon’ decorate for Christmas when we haven’t done anything for Thanksgiving and I don’t have to go to school for that either?!”

UGHFine. I’ll give the holiday its due. I’ll decorate and bake and do the whole turkey thing… I apologize, Thanksgiving, for treating you like the Wednesday of holidays and joining the rush to the holly and the jolly that is Christmas. There. Happy now?

I was faced with the dilemma to decorate on just a few days’ notice.  Of course, this wasn’t going to be a major investment – $15 is all I was willing to give.  After all, this ain’t Christmas! 

When I’m short on cash but big on ideas, I head to my local dollar store, park in the spot with my name (in my head) and walk the aisles until I’m inspired… Here’s how I thriftily (it’s a word, don’t worry) created our last minute Thanksgiving decor: