whatever

Blog

Category Archives: things i love

my summer happy spot

August 23, 2016

we spend most summer & fall evenings outside on the back porch.
and right now all the plants are bursting out of their pots and it’s so colorful!

untitled (27 of 36) untitled (15 of 36)
i loved getting back into gardening again after taking a break for a few years.
i missed it!
i like to plant in all kinds of old containers.

untitled (13 of 36) untitled (10 of 36)
my love for rust and chippy paint goes to extremes when it comes to outdoor spaces.
my friend who lives several hours away found the green cubby and sent me a text saying “i think you need this”
i agreed and sent her money through paypal. 🙂
and a month later her husband dropped it off while he was in town.
it was three times bigger than i thought it would be.
which made me love it three times more!
i think maybe i will figure out how to plant succulents in it???
wouldn’t that be something?!
untitled (22 of 36)
the butterfly sign is from Jaxn Blvd.
the little fan, the egg sign and the black rooster sign are from tjmaxx.

untitled (31 of 36)
untitled (28 of 36)
a view of our fire pit area… which is about to get maxed out!
it’s almost chilly enough now in the evenings for camp fires!
we are all looking forward to that.

untitled (30 of 36) untitled (17 of 36) PenultimateFullSizeRender untitled (32 of 36)
this black & white sign is also from Jaxn Blvd!
it’s the perfect quote for this space… exactly how i feel.
untitled (8 of 36) FullSizeRender 3
Delta Girl Frames sent me this fun rainbow frame!
i can always hang a photo or print in it later but loved it just as a statement on its own.

untitled (33 of 36)
craig hung outdoor speakers this year and his big tv.
i wasn’t thrilled about the tv but apparently every inch of the house doesn’t belong to me?
HA HA HA.
and now that it’s there… i don’t mind it at all.
it’s mostly for sports on mute so he can enjoy the outside too and not be stuck inside when the game is on.
and the speakers are awesome!
we have music on pretty much all the time and they are perfect for outdoor movie nights!

FullSizeRender 8
the outdoor rugs were from world market, along with the orange stripe table cloth and several pillows.

untitled (19 of 36) untitled (9 of 36)
annie and some friends spent their last summer night out in the tent.
they really roughed it by dragging out twin mattresses, extention cords to charge their phones and a dvd player.

this is our resident toad who has shown up every evening for two summers now.
we have named him Beuford.
he clearly has found PLENTY of bugs at our house.
he is quite a big toad.
people on IG mentioned that he may be poisonous…. i am 99.9% sure he is just a regular old kansas country toad.
i like him and i appreciate all the bugs he keeps away.
FullSizeRender 5 untitled (34 of 36)
our kitty Jay Z likes to hide behind the plants to be safe from curious dogs.

the very back of the yard is the chicken coop.
filled with all my favorites clucky ladies.
FullSizeRender 2
it’s going to be really weird when they cut that corn down.

untitled (16 of 36) FullSizeRender
so that is my happy space.
where i have coffee every morning and most dinners and hanging out each night.
happy happy happy!

🙂

show hide 38 comments

add a comment

meg duerksen - The garland is made from gingham fabric napkins I found last year at Target. I chopped them up and made bunting.

Amy - This is amazing! What a blessing for your family. Love the color everywhere! How did you make the checkered garland?

Eight Things | a glass of milk - […] journal; Meg’s porch; tv bullet […]

The Countess of Nassau County - Best. Backyard. Ever. I love this.

Lindsey - Bravo! Every single detail is lovely!

Mickie Lara - That looks like SUCH a happy place to me. I could sit out there for hours. Our plants have just not done well at all this summer so our pots look SO sad and yours look amazing! We are just going to consider it a write off for this summer and concentrate on Fall.

CiCi - Where did you find the rainbow striped pillow? Love it!

Cassandra - Love it!! All that color, all the chippyness, just perfect!

Sharilee Ensz - your yard is soooooo beautiful. we have sandy soil and we cant grow much. our back yard is clumpy grass, sand, and cat poop. you must be the coolest person in the world to have as a mom!! (i love my mom too) 🙂 🙂 i love you!!!:) 🙂 😛

Lisa - Those beautiful pentas and lantana are my favorites! AND the happy doggy faces – so funny!

Kelly Krause - I love this whole space! It must be pretty protected, cuz I thought the winds would howl over your Kansas plains. I know I could never pull that off up here in MN!

Kelly Krause - I love this whole space! It must be pretty protected, cuz I thought the winds would howl over your Kansas planes. I know I could never pull that off up here in MN!

amy - Megan– where’d you find the grey slip-on Chucks? I have them in a lighter grey that were exclusive to Nordstroms–I need a new pair and they’re out in my size. Love yours!

Talia - What a gorgeous spot! You have quite the green thumb. I love flowers and would spend every free moment on your lovely porch!

Michelle from Australia - Annie and I have the same thoughts on camping! Way to go girl.

And I wonder just how much excess luggage I will be bringing back home with me after my visit to Kansas in November? I suspect it might be some…..

Thank you for sharing your beautiful pictures.

Beth - This space is FLIPPIN’ adorable. Well done! I’m inspired now. I dabbled in potted plants and mixing up containers this summer, but I’m committed to amping up my plant game next spring! Love this! Now to find a cat in Alabama named Jay Z…

meg duerksen - Tiffany – yes most guys would. Craig doesn’t seem to care so I’m happy about that. Life’s too short to worry about nail holes in the walls. ☺️

meg duerksen - It’s some kind of wood product siding – not aluminum. I just screw right into it. Most husbands would flip out but Craig’s cool about most things like that. ☺️

meg duerksen - Rhonda – it’s some kind of painted carving. I can’t recall where from. It was at the barn we go to for camp and a camper bought it for me as a gift.

meg duerksen - Dawn – yes! I get a hammer and a big screwdriver and I bang on the screwdriver with the hammer until it goes through. Repeat four times. That’s how I make the holes in my containers. It’s not fancy. And it’s loud. But it works!

meg duerksen - Holly – I water everyday and fertilized three times this summer. 🙂

meg duerksen - Heather – gardening for fall? I don’t do that because everything will freeze soon after. I’m not a planner either. I just go to the nursery in May and buy what looks good. I go to four or five different nurseries though… Not just one. And I get what looks best at each of them. It’s always different.

heather - i would love love love it if you could share your gardening plans for fall ahead of time so my plants could even be 1/10th as fabulous as yours! what a beautiful space you’ve created.

Heidi - I really love this space. I wish it were this awesome at my house too. I guess I have work to do. Maybe when my kids (9, 6, and an 8 month old) get older I will put more time and effort into pretty things! Thanks so much for sharing. 💗

Tammy - Wow, it’s absolutely perfect! Thanks Meg for sharing it with us!

Holly - Love all the color and your plants look phenomenal! Do you water a bunch or use a lot of fertilizer? If so how often? My Texas container garden is getting through by the skin of it nose.

Dawn - One question–do you drill drainage holes in your metal containers? Just curious how they drain. I love the look!

Rhonda Elder - Such a cozy, beautiful space. I’m curious about the colorful painting to the left of the window. What is it?

Kristen - How do you hang things on the house’s siding? Does your husband flip out at you decorating the exterior walls at all? Love the look!

Tracy - Well…simple enough! 🙂 Thanks, Meg!

Marsha Kern - It is beautiful! I love the containers!

Tiffany - Truly, what a H A P P Y porch area!! Love every inch of it! How do you hang the pictures on your house/siding? I think my husband will croak if I hammer nails in our siding… 🙁

meg duerksen - Katie – only the side with the white cabinet gets wet when it rains really hard and it just drys out pretty quickly when it’s over.
and i may take stuff down in the winter but i may not. It depends on how severe our winter gets. 🙂

meg duerksen - tracy we just use bug spray.

Tracy - Meg – I love it!! I love your porch and I love how you do movie nights and ice cream sundae parties out there! But one thing I always wonder when looking at your awesome pictures is how do you deal with mosquitos? I LOVE to be outside in the evenings as well. Summer nights are the BEST! 🙂 But the mosquitos chase us away within minutes! Do you have a secret you could share? 🙂 Thanks!!!

Tiffany Day - love it so much! Thank you for posting more pictures – its inspiration for me – I really want to get my back porch/deck decorated!! and being that is uncovered thrifted chippy stuff is PERFECT!!!! love it all!! thanks again for sharing!

Katie - Loveeeee it! What all do you take down/bring in in the winter? And what about in the rain? Just super curious 🙂

Jennifer Greeley - Your plants look amazing. The Texas heat just about killed everything but the sweet potato vines in my backyard. I hope you get to enjoy your space for many more months!

Share on Facebook•Tweet this Post•Pin Images to Pinterest•Back to Top

ice cream + friends + photos

August 2, 2016

My younger girls had an impromptu party recently.
They texted their friends at noon saying “Ice Cream Sundaes & an outdoor movie at 7:00”
Almost everyone said they could come!
I got every ice cream topping we could think of at the grocery store.
We cleaned up the porch & the yard and it was party time! party1

Ice cream makes the world a better place.
It brings people together.
Ice cream for President!!

party5 party2

A party was the perfect time to use our new Fujifilm Instax Mini 70 camera.
This camera is seriously SO MUCH FUN!

None of these girls had seen how an instant photo worked!
They were amazed!
I wish I had a video because they all squealing with excitement as the photo appeared out of the blue.

Then it was all smiles and silliness – taking loads of pictures of each other.
I think everyone got a turn to try it out and be in the photos as well.

I hung up some yarn on the porch from my green rusty metal cubby box.
We set out a bowl of tiny clothespins to hang all their photos up.
This way everyone got to see the pics and it kept them from blowing away.

They even took pictures of all their pictures!

party8

The camera has a self-timer, macro mode, landscape mode, fill-in flash and a setting called Hi-Key that lightens the whole photo.
It even has a Selfie Setting with a little selfie mirror on the front!

IMG_9855-2

(you can see my hand & phone in the selfie mirror above.)

party7 There were so many smiles in our backyard that night!
The sun went down, the girls got cozy on all our outdoor chairs and we put on the movie.
The movie choice this time was “Alexander & the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.”
It’s a funny (and clean) movie that is good for all ages.

We had a super simple party favor we made for our guests to display their favorite Instax Mini photo at home.
These frame blocks are easy and fun to make.

FullSizeRender 2
I went to my local hardware store and bought an 8 foot long 2″x4″ for about $3.00.

I marked the board every 5.5 inches with a pencil.

Using our compound miter saw I made a cut at each line.
(Yes – I did this! Mr. D showed me how to use this last year and I LOVE it!)

I ended up with 17 blocks.
If you were not lazy (or if you can find your palm sander) you could sand down all the edges and smooth the tops of your blocks.
But I could NOT find my palm sander OR sand paper so I took the lazy route and didn’t do it.
And the world did not end.
Wipe the block down with a damp rag to remove all the dust.

Paint them however you’d like.
We used acrylic craft paint from any craft store.
Obviously I went the rainbow theme for the blocks I decorated. 🙂
My lines aren’t straight… it’s not perfect… and i like it that way!

I found these little clothespins already painted in the dollar spot at Target.
You can find small clothespins at any craft store too.

FullSizeRender 5 FullSizeRender 9
Put a thin line of hot glue on the back of the clothespin. Press the glued side down onto the block.

FullSizeRender 8
Add your picture into the clothespin and you are done!
My girls made other designs too so it was not all rainbow stripes.
This craft would be great for kids to make during a party too!

FullSizeRender 3

And guess what?! The awesome people at Fujifilm want to give one of you readers a $100 Visa gift card!
For a chance to win:
leave a comment on this post telling me your favorite kind of ice cream sundae!
what kind of ice cream? what toppings? what sauce? cherry or no cherry? Let’s hear it!

Entry Instructions:
No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
1. Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
2. Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “#SweepstakesEntry”; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
3. Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
4. For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older (or nineteen (19) years of age or older in Alabama and Nebraska). Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. The notification email will come directly from BlogHer via the sweeps@blogher email address. You will have 2 business days to respond; otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.
This sweepstakes runs from 8/1/2016 – 9/1/2016
Be sure to visit the Fujifilm 2H on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ posts!

show hide 396 comments

add a comment

Tamara - Tweeted! https://twitter.com/calebaw3s0m3/status/781657497774022660

Tamara - I love my ice cream with peanut butter and chocolate drizzled on top!! Thanks for sharing all your awesome party pics.
westiemks5 at yahoo dot com

Shannon - The more the better!! Mint chocolate chip ice cream with a ton of toppings and caramel syrup!! MMMmmmm!

Stefanie G - tweeted https://twitter.com/stephcouponsxx/status/777921311096074240

Stefanie G - my favorite sundae is vanilla ice cream topped with chocolate sauce, chopped peanuts, and strawberries!

Anastasia Falling - Tweeted 🙂 – https://twitter.com/Enter_Now/status/771535710872481794

Anastasia Falling - I love my sundaes with -everything-!!! Peanuts, cherries, chocolate sauce, raspberry sauce, caramel, bananas.. OH and whipped cream!! YEAH!!! 🙂

Kathryn C - #SweepstakesEntry- comment

mint chocolate chip ice cream with some hot fudge and whipped cream! sure, put a cherry on top too!

Kathryn C - my #SweepstakesEntry tweet:

https://twitter.com/thrincor/status/771479049927548928

Jerry Marquardt - I publicly Tweeted this giveaway: https://twitter.com/versatileer/status/771414609009913856

Jerry Marquardt - My favorite kind of ice cream sundae is one made with Neapolitan ice cream with whipped cream, nuts and a cherry on top.

Tabathia B - tweet https://twitter.com/ChelleB36/status/771409458920579073

tbarrettno1 at gmail dot com

Tabathia B - I like vanilla ice cream with caramel and nuts, no cherry on top

tbarrettno1 at gmail dot com

Debbie B - i posted a tweet here:

https://twitter.com/purplepanda1966/status/771207622913515525

Debbie B - i love a hot fudge sundae with whipped cream and nuts

Kim H. - I love hot fudge, peanut butter and whipped cream over chocolate ice cream!

Kerry - tweeted: https://twitter.com/KerryBishop/status/771156384729751553

Kerry - Vanilla ice cream with hot fudge sauce and caramelized pecans!

Thomas Murphy - I like vanilla ice cream with everything on it.

Jen Webster - My daughter wants one of these cameras SO bad!

Betty C - Tweet – https://twitter.com/willitara/status/771003733941420032

Betty C - Great impromptu party idea. My choice would be a banana split with vanilla, chocolate and coffee ice cream, hot fudge topping and definitely whipped cream with a cherry. Maybe even two cherries.

Cynthia C - Tweet
https://twitter.com/clc408/status/770655613638549505

Cynthia C - I don’t think you can make a bad ice cream sundae, but if I had my choice I would use coffee ice cream with hot fudge and salted pecans.

Erica Best - https://twitter.com/purplelover04/status/770638740092030976

Erica Best - i love banana split with no chocolate

Terry Stevens - Tweeted-https://twitter.com/birdiebee52/status/770364521978277888?lang=en

Terry Stevens - I love hot fudge sundaes with whipped cream on top.

Jessica - Classic sundae with vanilla ice cream, lots of hot fudge, a little whipped cream, and strawberries. No cherry – yuck!

Catherine Burnett - Oh my goodness! How true! My 9 & 4 year olds would have no idea that you could have an instant print picture! How fun- they would be blown away. Super cute party!

Denise L - tweeted – https://twitter.com/dmarie824/status/769264850505785345

Denise L - My favorite sundae would involve warm brownies, vanilla ice cream, and hot fudge sauce. Don’t forget the cherry on top!

Stephanie Phelps - I tweeted
https://twitter.com/my4boysand1/status/768864072934842369

Stephanie Phelps - My favorite ice cream sundae would be a caramel with whip cream and a cherry on top!

Susan Smith - https://twitter.com/susan1215/status/768219830709125120

Susan Smith - I love hot fudge and caramel sauce on vanilla ice cream with whipped cream and nuts.

Sarah D - Mint chocolate chip ice cream with hot fudge and chocolate chips!

Barbara Montag - Tweet https://twitter.com/JalapenoMama/status/767613427011366913

Barbara Montag - I love a vanilla ice cream sundae with lots of walnuts and chocolate syrup.
I’ll skip the cherry.
thank you

Margaret Smith - Tweeted: https://twitter.com/peg42/status/767494765382361090
Thanks again.

Margaret Smith - My favorite is vanilla ice cream with hot fudge. Thanks so much.

Kristen - tweeted
https://twitter.com/rubylorikeet/status/767464628221718529

Kristen - I like coffee ice cream (or mint chip) with hot fudge, nuts and whipped cream.

Christmas Countdown - thanks so much for this article it is appreciated.

Madeline - Tweet link: https://twitter.com/shala_darkstone/status/766580740674813952

Madeline - Oh, that’s an easy one. I love a sundae with any kind of chocolate ice cream (maybe moose tracks) and peanut butter topping with whipped cream. Cherries are fine, too!

natasha lamoreux - I like my icecream sundae with chocolate icecream instead of vanilla.

natasha lamoreux - https://twitter.com/Natashalamoreu1/status/766433606168408064

BusyWorkingMama - I’m sucker for vanilla ice cream with caramel or strawberry topping.

Gretchen - This would be SO MUCH fun for all the gatherings we have at our farm!

Tomi C - Vanilla ice cream with tons of hot fudge and salted caramel sauce. Yummy!!!

Cindy - https://twitter.com/benz1171/status/765717825768067072

Cindy - My favorite ice cream is mocha chip.

Katy Brawley - What a fun party!

I love turtle sundaes!!

10 Backyard Escape Ideas | Jenny On the Spot - […] back porch has the lights and the bunting and colorful furniture… plants and outdoor rugs. Read the whole post to see her fun craft idea and how she throws an ice cream […]

Lyndi - https://twitter.com/lyndileigh/status/765307295215472641

Lyndi Schnelle - vanilla ice cream, hot fudge topping – no cherry! I love the board frames you made – they’re so colorful and graphic!

Elma Riedstra - Vanilla with warm chocolate and caramel and whipped cream and cherries!! yum

Sharon B - A good old hot fudge sundae! Vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, whipped cream and a cherry! Yum!

meredith feisel - THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE POSTS! I love everything about it!!!! I wish I was there!

Mindy - My girls and I love hot fudge Sunday’s with a little warm Carmel, whip cream, peanuts and a cherry!! ( well we all put a cherry on top so we can give them to the littlest kiddo!) She loves cherries!!! 😊 I just love all the fudge!!

Karen Thurman - My favorite ice cream sundae is pretty traditional. Vanilla ice cream with hot fudge, whipped cream and nuts (no banana!!).

Elizabeth pergande - https://twitter.com/eliza_elliott/status/764552200362209281

Elizabeth pergande - I would capture all the little moments. truckredford(at)Gmail(dot)com

Fay - My favorite ice cream toppings are hot fudge with a bit of caramel sauce, toffee bits, and walnuts. *heaven*

Rachel - https://twitter.com/RachelGriesmer/status/763906817504280576

Rachel - My favorite sundae flavor is hot fudge with almonds and whipped cream.

Margie - Peanut Toffee….a local favourite!
Vanilla ice cream, peanut toffee sauce, no whip cream,no cherry!

Mita - https://twitter.com/mitadav/status/763828137092407296

Mita - Vanilla, Strawberries and chocolate ice cream.

Lisa Brown - tweet-https://twitter.com/LuLu_Brown24/status/763680732753440768
jslbrown2009 at aol dot com

Lisa Brown - I like chocolate ice cream, chocolate syrup, caramel, and whipped cream, no nuts.
jslbrown2009 at aol dot com

Eleanor - chocolate! all the toppings! and chocolate sauce and whipped cream! YUM. Ice cream is my favorite dessert. Cherries are good, but I saw a video about how they were made and I just can’t eat them anymore! whaaa 🙁

Ann Marie - Rocky road!!

KT - Chocolate peanut butter ice cream, hot fudge and caramel sauce, chopped salted pecans, whipped cream and a cherry on top!!! YUMMY! Love the craft and photo idea! Thank you for offering this giveaway!

Robin - I love a hot fudge sundae with a cherry on top!

Courtney - Strawberries and chocolate are a must – with vanilla ice cream. I guess I’m boring lol.

Jodie - My favorite ice cream is “French silk”. Unfortunately, it isn’t always available in Michigan. Sad indeed…

kari - chocolate ice cream with strawberries and caramel on top. no cherry. delish!

Angie Shepherd - chocolate and vanilla icecream,coconut, almonds, sprinkles,chocolate chips and yes a cherry on top

Amber M. - Hot fudge sundae from Braums (which I miss SO much now that I don’t live in Oklahoma anymore). I give my cherry away!

Deb meyers - Cherry Garcia with a sprinkling of crushed Fritos. 😜

Robyn - Maybe I’m wrong but…is there a BAD flavor of ice cream?? My first choice is always my mom’s homemade vanilla with homemade hot fudge sauce-yumMO

Marla Jensen - What a fun camera!!

Crystal Paine - My favorite is vanilla ice cream with caramel, nuts, whip cream & of course a cherry on top!!!

Elizabeth Cannata - Vanilla ice cream, fresh berries, no whipped cream! Lol

lacey poag - every detail of your party is excellent! my ice cream bowl is vanilla ice cream, fresh berries & peaches, and a dash of fine sea salt if I can feeling wild 🙂

Teri Mather - Fun camera

Tonya - Strawberry ice cream, hot fudge, sliced strawberries and whipped cream!

Whitney - I like mine pretty simple, vanilla ice cream with crushed Oreos & chocolate syrup.

Patty - My favorite is vanilla ice cream with mango slices and raspberries. YUM!

Kim D - Any type of ice cream!!! I love vanilla with fudge and candy bar chunks on top!

Krista W. - Hmm…I love mint chocolate chip ice cream and cookies and cream! I think the perfect topping would be some hot fudge and sprinkles! No cherry. 😉

Michelle - Love cookies & cream ice cream w caramel sauce!

maria cantu - My favorite ice cream is chocolate flavored with lots of cherries on top.

Lisa W - Turtle! Chocolate ice cream, caramel and chocolate sauce, crushed pecans. No cherry needed 🙂

Sharon - Vanilla ice cream with crushed oreos, whipped cream and absolutely a cherry on top.
Thanks for the awesome giveaway!
Sharon

Tracy - My kids love most ice cream but their fav is a traditional twist like their dad – psst..I think he’s brainwashed them!!
My favorite is PB Sundaes!! 🙂

elizabeth v. - i like a warm brownie, vanilla ice cream, chocolate syrup, and whipped cream!

Victoria - Chocolate ice cream, chocolate chunks, walnuts, cool whip and chocolate syrup!

What a fun idea for a party! I have an 11yo and it looks like it is something she and her friends would love.

Jamie - Chocolate ice cream on top of a warm brownie. Hot fudge on top. No cherry 🙂

CharityS - My favorite is caramel with walnuts.

Michelle - Traditional – hot fudge, with nuts and a cherry on top. Yummy!

Nancy F - Coconut ice cream with dark chocolate hot fudge sauce and whipped coconut cream topped with fresh raspberries. This is a great party idea!

Annie - This looks like the best party! My favorite ice cream topping is Oreos and fudge!

Jermaine - Love the ice cream bar and movie night idea, and the favors turned out really cute!

Amber B - I love vanilla ice cream and caramel…YUM!

Holly D - I love rocky road! What a fun party!

Rebecca - Oh, pound cake sundae! Good ol’ Vanilla ice cream on top of a warm piece of pound cake. Topped with hot fudge, whip cream and a cherry! YUM!

Ronda - My favorite sundae is chocolate ice cream with peanut butter topping some chocolate chips, strawberries if in season, chopped up reeses peanut butter cups, and lots of homemade whip cream.

Chris - Vanilla ice cream with chocolate and salted peanuts.

emily newcome - My favorite is strawberry ice cream, with hot fudge sauce, and maraschino cherries! like a chocolate covered strawberry in ice cream form!

Ruth - CARAMEL!

jenn - vanilla bean ice cream, caramel sauce, whipped cream, and a cherry on top!

Heather B - Favorite ice cream: caramel all the way! Favorite toppings:shaved almonds mmmmm!!

Henny P - This looks like a blast! I have an almost 2 year old and it is so much fun to look a t your posts and see “big kids”. You give me a ton of ideas for the future! Thank you for sharing!!

Jeffrey - I posted a tweet: https://twitter.com/FireRunner2379/status/761311746518872068.

Jeffrey - My favorite ice cream sundae starts with a warm chocolate walnut brownie, vanilla ice cream, chocolate chip cookie crumbles, chocolate drizzle, whipped cream and a cherry on top!

Mary Najdzion - My FAVORITE is a Turtle sundae……Pecans, caramel, hot fudge, and whipped cream! <3 YUM!

Michelle S - I love vanilla ice cream with strawberries and cheesecakes pieces.

Kristi Rediske - I love vanilla ice-cream with chocolate fudge and caramel poured all over it, whipped topping and nuts sprinkled on the top-no cherry! I have wanted one of the instant cameras for so long, so this is the giveaway i need to win. My gift card would go to buying one!

Nicole Bourque - My fave sundae is chocolate, vanilla and strawberry ice cream with Reeses candies and strawberries on top! Yummers!

susan - I love ice cream sundaes any way you can think of. I love lots of chocolate in any form on vanilla ice cream with all types of chocolate including salty potato chips. Love fruit and nuts, too! I am sitting at work while writing this and now I am craving ice cream!! Gonna be one of those days!!!

Stacy McNew - We love to make homemade ice cream and toppings for sundaes. One of our favorites right now is brown sugar peach ice cream, salted caramel sauce, toasted pecans and whipped cream. So Good!

Bobbie Hawkes - I like vanilla ice cream topped with caramel and hot fudge, nuts, whip cream and chocolate sprinkles with a cherry.

Jackie - Favorite ice cream sundae is vanilla ice cream with butterscotch topping, whipped cream. Nice and simple but so yummy! What a fun ice cream party you had! Love the photo blocks.

cyndiloohoo - Hot fudge with salty Spanish peanuts.

Trinda Groff - This looks like so much fun! I love any sundae as long as it has Heath on it!

Tiffany - You’re such a cool mom. I’m a pretty fun mom to littles, I just hope I can be as fun as you when they get bigger! Give me anything with chocolate and a crunch in my ice cream. It has to have a crunch!

Sandra K - I like a s’mores ice cream sundae – vanilla ice cream with marshmallows, crushed graham crackers and some chocolate chips or syrup! My daughter has that same camera and just loves it – thanks for the great idea for a party, I know she and her friends would love that. 🙂

Amy Tong - tweeted:

https://twitter.com/uTry_it/status/761097635218403331

amy [at] uTry [dot] it

Amy Tong - what a fun party! I want that camera for my party too! My favorite ice cream sundae would be with chocolate ice cream, whipped cream, cherry, Oreo crumbs, sprinkles and chocolate sauce. 😛 thanks for hosting the giveaway!

amy [at] uTry [dot] it

Christy - Vanilla ice cream, homemade hot fudge, and raspberries!

Becca King - I like almost any ice cream sundae! Vanilla with pineapple sauce and rainbow sprinkles will always make me smile!

Jessie C. - tweet-https://twitter.com/tcarolinep/status/761026843679952896

Jessie C. - I love Caramel Apple Sundae.
tcarolinep at gmail dot com

Sarah - tweeted–https://twitter.com/goldnplum/status/761025392891211780

Sarah - What a great idea for an impromptu party!

jennibell - Vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, and whipped topping. A cherry is o.k. too 🙂

Tippi - I’m boring – but love chocolate ice cream with hot caramel sauce!!! Or even chocolate magic shell!!!

Candice - Brownie sundae with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream will always have my heart 🙂

KATHY T - My favorite sundae is caramel and pecans. Yum!

Thanks for running this giveaway. I love your blog. Your family is adorable!

Robin - Peanut butter ice cream with hot fudge and crushed pb cups. #pbforever

Janna - Chocolate ice cream fo sho! With caramel and hot fudge and brownie chunks!!!! YUM IM HUNGRY NOW! NO cherry for me thx! LOVE your cute craft!!

Sandy McCloud - My favorite…vanilla ice cream with Hershey’s chocolate syrup with bananas! I love your ice cream party! How fun!
And the camera…I love it!

Paula c - Rocky road ice cream with warm hot fudge. No cherry for me.

Lisa - I’m so boring because my favorite sundae is just hot fudge with nuts.

Amanda Z - Mexican Sundae! Vanilla soft service with hot fudge, nuts, whipped cream…YUM!

Candy - Hot fudge!

Ashley - Homemade vanilla ice cream with caramel sauce and Heath bar pieces!

Gwen - Vanilla ice cream with hot fudge sauce and some peanuts!

Suzanne - Oh my mercy….what a great craft. I have 3 boys but I am going to find some girls to do this with! My favorite ice cream sundae is key lime ice cream, graham crackers, white chocolate shavings and real whipped cream! To die for…

Jessica To - I like a caramel sundae with no cherry and no whipped cream!

Christin - brownie fudge Sundae with whipped cream, nuts, and a cherry on top 🙂

Nicole Francis - Butterfinger sundae! 🙂

Natalie - tweet https://twitter.com/yarbr012/status/760932873717317633

Natalie - My ideal ice cream sundae includes vanilla ice cream, cookie dough pieces, fudge, cherries and whipped cream!

heather earl - Blue Bell vanilla bean with a Smuckers berry topping, crushed Pecan Sandie’s on top, and a little dollop of Redding whip. 😉

Tiffany B - How fun is this?? You are so creative Meg, I LOVE the wooden photo frames – thinking I’ll make a few for my daughter who is going to college in the fall – how cute would those be in her dorm room? Getting the camera too!! #hotfudgeismyfavoritesundae

Tiffany B - How fun is this?? You are so creative Meg, I LOVE the wooden photo frames – thinking I’ll make a few for my daughter who is going to college in the fall – how cute would those be in her dorm room. Getting the camera too!! #hotfudgeismyfavoritesundae

Dena - Hot Fudge on vanilla bean w/ cookie dough and brownie pieces… in a waffle bowl. I have to get one of those cameras; looks too fun!

chrissi - coffee ice cream with hotfudge and pretzels…cute party. great ideas♥

Tina - I’d love to win an instapix camera from Fuji! I’d use it a lot for our fun get togethers, and for church events, where I am on the leadership team for our Young Adult group. This is a creative and awesome way to display these fun photos!! Love the creative ideas – thank you!!

Tina

Tiffani Wagner - Vanilla hot fudge and whip cream with a cherry. The BEST!

Lisa L - Real vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, strawberries and a little whipped cream and walnuts on top! Yum!!

Melanie Sidwell - one scoop of cookie dough, one scoop of cookies and cream (my local ice cream shop Sweet Cow in Boulder, Colo., refers to this combo as the Cookie Monster) with hot fudge and whipped cream. I die!

KWolff - My very favorite type of sundae is vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup and hot caramel with a very VERY little pinch of salt and a heap of redi-whip! Add some sprinkles to the top and I am a happy happy girl!

Your blog post made me smile today – thanks for sharing the great ideas and the happy faces!

Andrea Gleich - Weirdly, I just love Vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, and toasted nuts!! Simple, but delish!

colleen from alabama - Vanilla ice cream, bananas, salted caramel and chocolate fudge on top with toasted pecans and coconut… Cause the bananas and coconut make it healthy, right???

Amy Swanson - Vanilla ice-cream, with hot fudge and peanuts!

Diane - My favorite sundae would be vanilla ice cream with caramel and hot fudge sauce, oreo crumbles, cherries and sprinkles for color! Simple but oh so sweet!

Martha - Blue Bell vanilla ice cream, chocolate syrup, reddi whip, nuts and cherry!!

Gevay - I am boring-I like vanilla ice cream with chocolate and caramel sauce, whipped cream and nuts.

Julie Cross - Hmmm….since I’m lactose intolerant, I’ll take a fruity sorbet please 🙂

Kara G. - Turtle sundae, extra caramel!

Dennelle - Super simple – vanilla ice cream with caramel sauce, maybe a cherry on top!

Karyn - Vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup, plain and simple! Love the block idea for photos!

April - Chocolate, marshmallows or marshmallows sauce, Carmel and if course sprinkles. Ummm no cherry, whip cream-absolutely!!!

shar y - Hot Fudge Sundae for the win!! But, I am really picky about my fudge sauce!

Cheryl B - Tweeted
https://mobile.twitter.com/arress83/status/760829177788559360

Cheryl B - My favorite sundae is a hot fudge brownie sundae.

Michelle - I love the wooden photo display blocks.

Amanda Gindlesperger - Vanilla ice cream, warm peanut butter, granola, whipped cream, and a cherry. Yum!

Stephanie - I’m really boring so I usually just get a hot fudge sundae from the Dairy Queen. My mom loves their ice cream so my family goes there quite a bit.

Melanie Eliacin - I love ice cream sundaes with vanilla ice cream, peanut butter, chocolate, and some whipped cream! Yum.

Amy - My favorite sundae is a banana split with chocolate, vanilla and chocolate ice cream. Then I put hot fudge on the first chocolate, strawberries on the vanilla and pb on the other chocolate. I add whip cream and nuts and I give the cherries to my kids or husband. Not a cherry fan 🙂

Julie Wood - tweet-https://twitter.com/JewelWood/status/760809868890509314

Julie Wood - My favorite ice cream sundae is a Hot Fudge Sundae, with whipped cream and nuts on top!

Kyra - hot fudge brownie sundae with whipped cream and a cherry on top-Yum!

Tina Hammond - That looked like a great event and I love that camera!! I could have some fun with that!!

S - Hot fudge, fresh whipped cream, chocolate sprinkles, no cherry with mint chip and chocolate marshmallow ice cream…yum.

Carla Bailey - I’m a plain Jane! Vanilla ice cream with caramel sauce and whipped cream. No cherry please.

Brantlee - Hot Fudge,no cherry 🙂 thanks for the chance to win!

Kristin - Shared on Twitter ~ https://twitter.com/kristinlehmen/status/760779088613212160

Beth B. - My favorite is a Tin Roof sundae….vanilla ice cream, chocolate syrup, and lots of peanuts! Whipped cream and a cherry for special occasions. (Smile)

Kristin - Our summers are super humid, but as soon as we get some cooler evenings we are going to host this party for our teens & their friends! So fun! My favorite sundae will be topped with a ton of strawberries, mini chocolate chips & granola-it’s the best!!

jill - Love the idea…I love creamy vanilla bean ice cream, homemade hot fudge and carmel with a ton of mixed nuts on. Like you can’t even find the ice cream kind of thing! My daughter had one of those cameras on her Christmas list already!

Cheri - My favorite would be peanut.butter ice cream with my mom’s homemade hot fudge sauce, real whipped cream, chopped peanuts, and a cherry on top. I’m making myself hungry!

Heather - Vanilla ice cream with bananas and hot fudge!

Cathy - Hot fudge!

Melissa - Mint chocolate chip ice cream and/or strawberry ice cream with chocolate sauce! No whipped cream and no cherry.

Kirsten J - Chocolate with brownies and marshmallow and hot fudge sauce.

Katy Pflaum - I love a classic vanilla because then I can put on caramel and hot fudge and whipped cream and alll the chocolate toppings!

Valerie - My favorite is a brownie sundae! Warm, chocolaty brownie, regular old vanilla ice cream, and chocolate sauce. That’s it – no whipped cream or cherries! 😊

Elena - https://twitter.com/ElenaIstomina/status/760681341469941760

Elena - I love chocolate sundae with extra chocolate on top 🙂

Liz Runge - https://twitter.com/lizrunge87/status/760678240302215169

Kimberlee Jost - That gingham bunting is perfection. For REAL. LOVE IT. Almost as much as my white one. 😉

Rebecca - chocolate peanut butter cup with hot fudge and whipped cream, no cherry!! Cutest party idea ever!!

Liz Runge - Cookie dough ice cream with hot fudge and caramel. And maybe some oreo pieces sprinkled on top. Now I’m hungry…

Kim Wallace - My favorite is cinnamon ice cream with caramel and Heath bar bits!

Jodie - Chocolate chocolate chocolate!!!

Lee - I actually love pretty basic sundaes – chocolate with whipped cream
and love tons of sprinkles. Oh and chocolate syrup!
Wow I am very impressed with that camera! What a great idea for Christmas for my 11 year old daughter!! Thanks!!

Jane - Vanilla with Heath, chocolate syrup, and mini choc chips

Kelly D - tweet
https://twitter.com/Kellydpa/status/760670498531319809

Kelly D - I like to get vanilla and chocolate swirl ice cream with Reese’s cups, whipped cream and chocolate fudge.

Karol - Love soft serve vanilla, hot fudge, marshmallow creme, and whipped cream. Yum! Such a cute idea for the photos and the display.

Julie - I just got a Fuji instax mini that I’m planning on using for a photo guestbook at our wedding! It’s so fun! I love the idea of the wooden blocks with clothespins. My favorite kind of ice cream Sundae is a classic vanilla brownie sundae with all the toppings-hot fudge, whipped cream, caramel, sprinkles and definitely a cherry! Sometimes I even like to make it a banana split!

Sharron Cox - Dairy Queen’s extra hot fudge, whole peanuts! No cherries! Looks like a great party and a great craft.

Heather Lilyquist - I love ice cream … super hard to pick a favorite … a turtle sundae with salty pecans is always a yummy pick … any kind of s’mores combination is super yum …chocolate, chocolate, chocolate … so many options!!!!

Sarah - Yum! Sea salt caramel ice cream with hot fudge and no cherry!

Lee Ann DeRoos - Vanilla, Hot fudge and lots of nuts 🙂

sheryl - Pistachio walnut with chocolate jimmies and Reeces Pieces!

Lynette - My favorite ice cream sundae is definitely Ozark Turtle (vanilla custard or ice cream, hot fudge, hot caramel, and salted pecans with whipped cream and a cherry to top it off). It is so delicious!

Michelle Whitlow - What fun!!! I think I need to have an ice cream party now 🙂 And I think it’s amazing how far these instant cameras have come!!

Carri Siebenmark - Hot fudge!! Lots of whipped topping.

Lori - Vanilla ice cream w butterscotch or caramel sauce and LOTS OF PECANS!!!!!!
No whipped cream or cherry:)

Kim K. - I love a plain old vanilla sundae with chocolate sauce and bananas with a cherry on top!

Bebe - Caramel sundaes are my fav!

Madison - Brownie on the bottom, coffee ice cream on top, along with whipped cream, homemade chocolate sauce, and maybe a cherry!

Trindin Cavalier - Perfect sundae.. Choc ice cream with peanut butter sauce and a heaping mound of peanut butter cups!

Barb - Vanilla ice cream with ANYTHING chocolate 🙂

Mami2jcn - tweet–https://twitter.com/mami2jcn/status/760642249822707712

Mami2jcn - I love cookie dough ice cream with caramel and whipped cream.

Louisa - Mint chocolate chip ice cream, hot fudge, andes mint candies, whipped cream! Yum yum!

Judith VanAlphen - Tweet https://twitter.com/sodahoney/status/760631143439872001

Judith VanAlphen - Chocolate, hot fudge, whipped cream, nuts and a cherry How soon can you get it here

kris saia - I’m not picky! Any ice cream sundae is a good ice cream sundae… but if I had my druthers: chocolate chip ice cream (sort of soft and mooshy) with fresh and sugary strawberry topping, and a TON of whipped cream. I mean a TOWERING ton, tipping-over-and falling-out-of-the bowl. Plus salted pecans. And a wooden spoon. And maybe a little extra squirt of whipped cream. Just one more. But I’m not picky. Or greedy.

Corny Gatlim - All the red ice cream flavores, strawberry sauce, pickles, nuts, pretzels, wipe cream and a red cherry on top!

Jane - Rocky road ice cream,nuts, cherries, hot fudge & whipped cream

Lacinda K. - Chocolate ice cream, chocolate chips, Hershey’s chocolate syrup and whipped cream!… Now I’m hungry 🙁

Maria - Hot fudge, whipped cream and a cherry or two or three on top please

Kristine - This camera and your craft are awesome! I also just requested that movie from the library! Thanks for the suggestion. I love all the toppings except for cherry and nuts! 😉

Nicole C - Gestational diabetes is ruining ice cram this summer! I’d like a simple hot fudge sundae with no carbs, please!

Shelly - I just love me some Love Potion #31 from Baskin Robbins, probably because it has cute chocolate hearts in it. Whip Cream is a must, but no cherry.

KH - Chocolate ice cream, warm marshmallow sauce, crumbled chocolate Oreos, whipped cream, drizzled with chocolate sauce and a cherry! Mmm, yes please!

Heidi Durant - Tillamook Chocolate Peanut butter with whip cream and almonds. Simple, but oh so delicious.

Jan - What a fun night for your girls! My sundae would be vanilla bean ice cream topped with bananas, walnuts, coconut, hot fudge & whipped cream. No cherry!

Robin C - Vanilla ice cream with wet walnuts, coconut, pecans, plain m&ms and whip cream. oh. so. good. I’ve never seen this camera before but it looks like great fun.

Ruth Umney - Oh I would love to win this for my trip to see my niece and nephew in a few weeks!!!! Oh and I love a banana split!!!!! Nom Nom!!!!

Will G - https://twitter.com/willgriesmer/status/760587828527001601

Will G - I love Turtle sundaes!

heather - My favorite kind of ice cream sundae is vanilla ice cream with hot chocolate syrup and covered in chopped nuts with a cherry on top.

Terri - The party looked so fun!!!! I love Blue Bell Vanilla Ice cream. I’m a simple kind of ice cream girl. I do like it in a regular cone too. Thanks for sharing this great idea.

suzy adams - Hi Meg,
I loved this post! I love ice cream sundaes with all the works! My favorite would be vanilla ice cream with hot fudge and bananas…oh, and yes, always a cherry! Thanks for the opportunity to win this fun camera!

Joanna Peck - I like Breyers natural vanilla with caramel topping and salt. And of course you need cherries!!

Bec - I love the classic hot fudge and caramel and don’t mind throwing in a few oreos as well 🙂

Su - I like moosetracks with some magic shell on top 🙂

Holly - My favorite ice cream sundae would be mint chocolate chip ice cream, hot fudge (real hot fudge, not Hershey syrup!), whipped cream and maybe some crumbled up Ande’s candies on top. Yum!

My girls would love the instant camera. So much fun!

Maegan C - My favorite icecream is raspberry and i LOVE fujifilm! i have an instamatix and use it all of the time!

Lynn Lovins - Coffee ice cream with peanut butter on top sprinkled with mmmmuummm bacon!

Heather S. - My favorite ice cream sundae would be chocolate ice cream, graham cracker crumbs, marshmallows, whipped cream, hot fudge sauce, and a cherry on top! A S’mores Sundae!

Nicole Nunez - Vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, whipped cream, peanuts and a cherry to give to a friend.

Rachel - Love the photo holders, cute and clever idea! I like a good cinnamon ice cream from a local homemade ice cream shop! Just straight up.

Jennifer Carlson - I love a simple sundae: vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, and peanuts. Yummy!

shelly dyer - lately i’ve been kickin’ it with old school hot fudge sundaes…

Kathy - Every time I see anything ‘rainbow’ I think Meg Duerksen would love this! What a great (and simple enough for me) craft idea! Vanilla icecream and lots of hot fudge would be my choice for a sundae! Can’t wait to try out the new instax!

barb c - my sundae choice is choice ice cream, peanut butter cups, bananas, hot fudge, whipped cream. Ugh, now I’m hungry!

This is the most beautiful, magical fun idea. Those girls must have been in heaven! Lucky them!

Emily Landers - I love plain vanilla with strawberries, pecans, and chocolate!

Kathie - Looks like a great time was had by all!
Favorite Sundae…Peanut butter lovers dream (I don’t know what it is called). Vanilla ice cream, melted peanut butter, chocolate sauce, Reese Pieces and crushed Reese peanut butter cups. No whipped cream, I LOVE a cherry, so course!

Rachel Newswanger - Coffee ice cream, cool whip & a generous drizzle of hot fudge sauce! 🙂

Annie - Moosetracks ice cream with Reeces, rainbow jimmies & whipped cream – yum!! Usually no sauce but peanutbutter if it’s an option:)

Julie B - Hot caramel with whipped cream! On vanilla ice cream:)

Cindy - Simple-vanilla ice cream, strawberries and pecans. YUM!

Regina - How utterly adorable! My favorite sundae is pretty simple…vanilla ice cream topped with crushed pineapple and a drizzle of pineapple juice. Add a littl whipped cream and a cherry on the side for visual effect…and devour! Yum!

Wendy C. - It’s all so yummy! My fave is Mint Chocolate Chip with reeses pieces, chocolate syrup and nuts! The camera looks like so much fun!!

KWint - I’m a plain Jane Vanilla lover, but that’s only so the ice cream doesn’t compete with my faves: chocolate sprinkles (or “jimmies” in New England!), whipped cream, M&Ms and chocolate syrup!

Lori Montgomery - https://twitter.com/lorimontgomery0/status/760529765400928256

Hollie Parker - My favorite, since the 1980’s, is oreo ice cream, whip cream and sprinkles! Thanks for sharing this great idea!

Tracy - Vanilla bean, chocolate syrup whipped cream and lots of nots 🙂

Tere - Oh Meg. You had me at ice cream. Love the craft project. The Fuji camera …swoon. Xoxo

Kimberly - Turtle Sundae with extra hot fudge!

Kristin S - That’s the most fun spontaneous party ever!

Favorite sundae? I love it to the max with everything or very very simple with just hot fudge, caramel, and whipped cream.

Random, Meg, but did you see the rainbow striped LS t in the PJ clearance section at Target? It’s so super soft and a bit muted. I keep thinking of you each time I see it. I bought it to be a “Sunday afternoon” shirt in the winter but then came home to remember all the LS t’s I already have. You NEED it.

Lori Montgomery - Ice cream sundaes just scream summer to me. I love chocolate ice cream with hot fudge on top. Yes, chocolate on chocolate. Of course, whipped cream and a cherry are a must. To finish it off, it needs a few nuts for crunchiness and multi colored sprinkles to make it pretty. Perfect sundae for me!

Ashlee Haley - Lots of chocolate syrup, a leslie knoppe amount of whipped cream and rainbow sprinkles, of course. I’m a simple girl 🙂

Heike W. - Chocolate ice cream with peanut butter topping and oreos plus cookie dough! So good!

Gina - How fun!! Vanilla ice cream w/ hot fudge!! 🙂 Whipped cream and of course a cherry. 😉

Kristi King - hot fudge, whipped cream and LOTS of cherries!

Jamie smith - Fresh berries for sure!!! Ice cream is complete with fresh berries

Gabby D. - Marshmallow topping on chocolate or Rocky Road ice cream! your party pics are great!

Theresa - Love your cute take home craft! Also always love your ideas too! 😊

Iris Brown - You get the “super cool” mom award with this cool post!!!!! What a fun idea and the pictures were priceless for such a fun way to spend a summer evening.

Miranda - Coconut ice cream topped with dairy free chocolate chips. Simple but delicious. I’m lactose intolerant, and I’m so happy I found coconut ice cream. No cherry on top, love cherries just not on my sundae. 🍧

Cheryl - I love a sundae with chocolate ice cream, hot fudge, peanut butter, crumbled Reese’s peanut butter big cup, whip cream and of course sprinkles. 😍

Melissa - Oh my gosh this is perfect! We were trying to figure out a fun Back to school Bash and I love the ice cream and movie idea.

Mary Sovinski - My son had a lemon chiffon sundae at an ice cream store that we are trying hard to duplicate. They blended lemon ice w/soft serve vanilla, and added a lemon slice and whipped cream — delicious!

Thinking I can replicate it (maybe?) at home w/lemon sherbet (or ice cream) and vanilla ice cream. I know we’ll have fun experimenting!

RACHEL - I LOVE sprinkles. I’m pretty simple and like chocolate sauce, sprinkles and cherry juice 🙂 yum!

Julie Boyd - My favorite is just good ole’ vanilla icecream with granola, fruit and the Hershey magic shell syrup!!

Deidra - Classic hot fudge with nuts, whip and of course a cherry, in fact, put a few on!

Kristel Armes - Chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate! Salted caramel topping and that’s it!

Jill - Salted caramel ice cream with heath bits..Mmmmmmm! Love the instant photos!

Corrie - My fav ice cream is chocolate almond with whip topping, bananas and hot fudge all the way. What a fun night!

Tobi Layton - vanilla ice cream, caramel topping, cookie dough and mini pb cups for the toppings – Thanks for making me hungry now!

Danielle - My favorite sundae would have to be “The Founder’s Favorite” at Cold Stone. It is sweet cream with brownie chunks, pecans, fudge and caramel. This is my favorite for now anyways:)

Kathi - https://twitter.com/iMorgana2/status/760503955507908608 😃📷

Devyn Rohlk - Hello,
My favorite sundae is cheesecake ice cream, bananas, caramel, Andes mints white chocolate chips and maraschino cherries with whip cream and sprinkles!

Brenna Walters - This is aWesomMe!

Nora C. - I LOVE ice cream sundaes!! It was the most popular night at the summer camp I used to work at. The skits the campers performed in exchange for ice-cream were hilarious! My personal favorite is goat tracks (homemade by a local farm here in CT) with some peanut butter cups, whipped cream, hot fudge, rainbow sprinkles, and of course a cherry to top it all off 🙂

Amanda Soltoff - Oh my gracious, yum! I love a decked out sundae – a few scoops of cookies and cream ice cream, throw on all the toppings, and add lots of whipped cream!

Ali - Vanilla with chocolate and caramel sauce, whipped cream (or marshmallow fluff) and a cherry. A brownie thrown in doesn’t hurt either…. 🙂

Andy Betz - vanilla ice cream, homemade strawberry sauce, chocolate syrup, the end. OR
chocolate ice cream, reese peanut butter cup minis, peanuts…

Shawna - Strawberry

Angela Donohew - Vanilla Ice cream, liquid peanut butter, no cherry! and a brownie on the side!!
Thanks!
Angie

Marnie - I always have chocolate ice cream, vanilla ice cream, strawberries, blueberries, and crushed up almonds. It’s my favorite!

Cara Yeh - mint chip ice cream. hot fudge, whip cream. cherry. 🙂

Holly - Cookie dough ice cream, hot fudge, sprinkles, whipped cream and a cherry on top…. Such a cute little camera!

Kim B - Vanilla Bean with either my MIL’s homemade chocolate sauce and slivered almonds or caramel (when she is not around and I am too lazy to make the sauce).

Julie - I love brownie sundaes with vanilla ice cream, hot fudge sauce, peanuts and whipped cream. Yummy!

Juli Kinrich - Something with a vanilla-based ice cream with chunks of cookies or brownies and a ribbon of caramel sauce, more caramel sauce on top, and chocolate sauce too. Yum!

Jennifer B. - I love this! I’ve been trying to convince my 6-year-old to split a banana split with me, but he keeps wanting plain ice cream. I say the more toppings, the better. (As long as it’s not gummy bears, worms, etc.!)

I loved having a instant camera as a kid and most of my baby pics are Polaroids. This would be a fun way to get a kid interested in photography!

mary - turtle sundae’s are my all time favorite!

Megan - Vanilla with all the candies on top! Basically a good excuse to eat a ton of candies 🙂

Nicole korpela - I would take a vanilla ice cream sundae topped with marshmallow cream and chocolate sauce!! YUM!

Kathi - I love chocolate ice cream with caramel & pecans.

Stephanie - Super fun party!!! My sundae would have vanilla with strawberries on top. (And if I was really lucky, it would have
angel food cake underneath!)

Margaret Hill - chocolate! Anything chocolate!!

Becca Webb - I love all kinds of sundaes! But a really satisfying one is vanilla ice cream with hot fudge and chopped peanuts! Yum!!!

Diane Pierce - What an awesome party!! Thanks for the giveaway opportunity!

Favorite ice cream sundae is vanilla with the mini Reese’s Peanut Butter cups. So good!!!

THANKS!
Diane

Tammy - Any flavor of dairy-free ice cream and then hot fudge, broken up chocolate bar and sprinkles!

Mary - what kind of ice cream? Coffee
what toppings? Brownie chunks
what sauce? hot fudge!
cherry or no cherry? cherry – 1
🙂
*and now I’m hungry for some ice cream.

Kami BK - What a fabulous party idea. I eat ice cream for the nuts, so just vanilla ice cream, caramel sauce, and PECANS!

Tiffany - Ice cream is my favorite dessert, sundaes are a fun treat. I’ll take vanilla, peanuts, caramel, whip cream and a cherry. Yum.

cathie w. - Mexican Vanilla ice cream, with grape-nuts and chopped strawberries.
Hands down the absolute best combo ever!

Susan - vanilla with carmel and nuts….simple!!

Amy Metz - Sounds like a fun party! My favorite ice cream is cookies and cream.

Lori - This is a super fun party! I’ve had my eye on this camera for years. My sundae would have chocolate and cookies and cream ice cream topped with Reeses and sprinkles!

Carrie D - My favorite is mint chip ice cream with chocolate syrup. Yummo!

Dawn Beery - Vanilla ice cream with hot fudge, whip cream & pecans! Yum!! No cherry!

Kimberly - Fun party!
I love coffee ice cream & hot fudge!

Lori - Vanilla ice cream, raspberries, hot fudge, whip cream and no cherry!

Lisa B - Such a bright, happy setting for these sweet girls to party in! No wonder they all look like they are having so much fun! When I read your blog I remember the fun I had with my kids when they were growing up – and I picture my daughter, also a mom of five great kids, providing the tools for artsy, craftsy, memorable fun for my grandchildren. A visit to your blog is always uplifting! My favorite ice cream sundae is Coldstone Cake Batter ice cream, with coconut and whipped cream stirred in. Yum!

Kim Fry - Mine would for sure have a cherry on top, maybe 3!! Vanilla ice cream with caramel, chocolate and strawberries sounds delish!! Oh and lots of whipped cream!! Thanks!

AmandaK - Is it too plain if I like Vanilla ice cream with Chocolate on top? Caramel works great too. Looks like a fun party!

Lindsay F. - This may sound like a crazy combo but I would choose lemon ice cream from a local ice cream shop. Then add hot fudge, sprinkles, and waffle cone crumbles. I’d get a cherry just so I could give it to my 3 year old… He loves them!

Anna Moser - coffee ice cream with chocolate sauce and whipped cream… cherry-free please!

I love your blog!

Susan C. - Chocolate ice cream with chocolate syrup, almonds, graham cracker crumbs, cool whip and of course a cherry!! YUM

Meggan - Homemade mint chocolate chip made with coconut milk! Yummm!!

Sarah Vincent - Rocky road with caramel and hot fudge.

Sarah - Hot fudge with anything!

Looks like a fun party!

michelle - Vanilla bean, or homemade vanilla with cold pineapple ( it freezes on the ice cream when it is cold ) and nuts. Just plain and simple:)

Chris - Vanilla ice cream with strawberries and hot fudge, whipped cream and a cherry for sure!

Vonda - Strawberry!

Mallory O - Mackinaw Island Fudge!!!! Just typing that out made me miss the Mitten State (home) and that summery goodness!

Lisa Foster - Vanilla ice cream, topped with marshmallow fluff. Add reese’s cups and cover it all with my mom’s homemade hot fudge!

Kelley - Smores all the way! Or any version of ice cream that is similar- like Rocky road.

Megan J - Hello!!! We love ice cream over here!! My personal fav is vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce, Oreos and whip cream! Yummy!!

Amy Covey - My favorite is a buckeye sundae (at least it’s called that in OHIO…everywhere else it would be a Reeses sundae)….chocolate ice cream, peanut butter sauce, hot fudge, a mini buckeye candies on top. 🙂

Rachel Schumacher - My favorite is from Cold Stone – Coffee ice cream with chunks of Heath Bars. Yum! And I’ve been wanting one of those cameras since they look like so much fun. And that movie is one of my all-time favorites! 🙂

Molly - chocolate. all the chocolate. and then i also like the chocolate, peanut butter, and banana combination. 🙂

Molly Weesner - chocolate. all the chocolate!! and then i do like to do a chocolate, peanut butter, and banana combination. 🙂

Sarah Pinault - Vanilla Ice Cream with just nuts and a dark chocolate sauce – but not too much. No cream. No cherry. 🙂

Lindsey - Great party!! My favorite sundae is chocolate ice-cream, chocolate fudge, and any kind of chocolate candy I can find!

Emily - Caramel and hot fudge with whipped topping, no cherry!

Brandy - Rocky Road with whipped cream, drizzled fudge sprinkles and a cherry on top!

Janet C - My favorite is a Peanut Buster Parfait from Dairy Queen. My 13 year old daughter would L.O.V.E. this camera, and so would I!

Renee C - Chocolate marshmallow YUM. Such a fun party idea!!!

Cory Beyer - A very simple Vanilla ice cream with caramel syrup. Maybe a cherry on top!

sabrina - Fun party! How can I choose just one flavor? I really like coffee and banana icecream with big peanut butter and chocolate chunks. In the winter I love Pink Peppermint ice cream!

Leslie Allegretto - This is the cutest dang craft. I do a little woodworking and make signs and have about a zillion scraps that would be perfect for this. Thanks for the info and the chance to win the cute little camera. I think I know what to get my niece for her birthday. My favorite sundae topping has to be peanut butter and crushed kit-kats. So yummy! Btw, love your style. I’ve been following you for a while on FB and your pics always make me smile.

Stefanie Turner Shultz - Vanilla ice cream, caramel drizzle, chopped pecans, white chocolate chips, dollop of cool whip

Jenny Hutcheson - my daughter will love to make those cute photo blocks!

Favorite ice cream sundae, vanilla ice cream mixed with a scoop of peanut butter 🙂 no cherry!!!

Cheryl - Homemade vanilla ice cream with fresh peaches, or strawberries, or lots of homemade chocolate & caramel sauce on top! I always have to loose 5 pounds at the end of summer!

nancy cresser - What a cute party! Hot fudge sundae with mint chocolate chip & coffee ice cream, whipped cream & a cherry!

shelley - Ben and Jerry’s Tonight show! YUM!

Donna S - My favorite ice cream is a mint oreo blizzard from Dairy Queen.

Heather B - I love all the ice cream sundaes! Ice cream is my jam. My all time favorite is anything that involves chocolate, peanut butter and oreos!

Vicky B. - My favorite ice cream sundae is birthday cake ice cream with hot fudge, whipped cream, and a cherry on top.

Tiffany - Sea Salt Caramel Truffle ice cream topped with marshmallow crème and caramel. Yummo!

Kelly S. - Favorite ice cream is Rocky Road. I love marshmallow in ice cream- so good.

Cutest idea ever to make blocks out of wood and paint them. You are so creative.

katie p nc - Coffee ice cream with hazelnuts or coconut shavings!

Also, new kitten alert!!!

marjie - Double chocolate peanut butter ice cream with peanut butter sauce, hot fudge sauce, whipped cream, pecans and a cherry on top!

Jennifer - How fun! I especially love the craft! Great idea! I love chocolate ice cream with hot fudge, nuts, whipped cream and I would pass on the cherry. I usually hand it off to someone else that likes them.

beth ann - Ice cream is almost a daily treat at our house in the summer. Each time is a little different concoction. My favorite is chocolate ice cream, with crushed up kit kat and magic shell on top.

Dana Walker - I love an ice cream sundae with caramel nut cluster ice cream from hoffman’s with hot fudge and whipped cream on top- Delish!

Rebekah G. - I’m a hot apple pie filling with a drizzle of peanut butter sundae girl.this party looks so amazing! We are having an outdoor movie night on Sunday for our neighbors & family!

Christi {Jealous Hands} - For summer I like vanilla ice cream with honey, cinnamon, fresh pineapple & strawberries, and coconut flakes. Yummy!

Thanks for the super fun giveaway! xo

Kelli - Hot fudge with wet walnuts over vanilla!!!

Meredith salmon - Banana split with vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, whipped cream and either chocolate Jimmies or wet walneta. Yummmmm!!!

Cindy Mandernach - Triple ginger Coconut. I make it myself…

Chelsea - Hot fudge on blue bell vanilla please!

jamie - i don’t think hot fudge cream puff counts as a sundae so i think my favorite sundae is vanilla ice cream with so much hot fudge and nuts and whipped cream. i also like a good fruit sundae. with so much whipped cream.

Erin Gustafson - caramel with peanuts. yum!

May - One scoop of strawberry, one scoop of vanilla, topped with chocolate sauce, whip cream, & a cherry, please! Yum…

Lisa - Hot fudge on home made vanilla ice cream with peanut butter cups. No cherry. 🙂 Yum!

erica - Hot fudge and peanuts on vanilla ice cream or coconut cream, sweetened condensed milk, and chocolate syrup on Hawaiian shave ice

Kathie M - I love cake flavor ice cream with caramel, Oreos, hot fudge, peanuts and whipped cream!

Share on Facebook•Tweet this Post•Pin Images to Pinterest•Back to Top

busy summer weeks

July 13, 2016

the days of summer are just flying by!
i’m loving the sunshine and that heat… everyone likes to complain about how hot it is but the heat is SO MUCH BETTER than the freezing cold winters! Give me summer heat forever!

First of all… i’m still loving the Paperworks Kit that comes every month!
each month’s design is different and fun!
CLICK HERE to find all the information you will need about THE cutest stationary, calendars & lists.

and then i wanted to share all about the amazing fire pit area that craig made for us!!!

our yard backs up to a field that is used for crops each summer.
this year is corn which i am soooo thrilled about.
i really really REALLY hope that someday it will be sunflowers.
can you imagine that?!
it would truly be a dream come true to me.
like seriously…. that is a bucket list kind of thing!

we already had the railroad ties on the back of our lot and the landscaping stones as well.
alllllllllllllllll the flower beds around our house on all four sides were filled with this rock.
so many rocks!
i get what its purpose is but it’s not what i like in a flower bed for my garden.
first craig mowed and killed the grass/weeds where the rocks would go.
next he laid down landscaping fabric to kill and block new weeds.
then he moved this rock from the flower beds to the fire pit area.
brilliant!

i feel super loved every time i look outside and see it.
now if we could not be so busy that we could sit out there more often…

we ended up getting the chairs and cushions from World Market.

it’s wonderful in the morning and the evening!

we can watch the sunset from here every night!
it is so perfect.
i could not love it more.
.

i got to have some very fun visitors to the Craft House!
my girlfriends, Tara, Kimberlee and Amy and i hung out for a long weekend doing absolutely nothing and loving every minute of it!
we watched movies, ate junk food, painted our nails, went antiquing and even stopped by to see the chickens.

talby made it home safely from her missions trip to honduras.
everyone missed her… even the dogs!
FullSizeRender 4
we have a jungle of wild sunflowers in front of the coop!
since i only have to go in there every few days it isn’t that big of a deal.
unless it’s going to become grasshopper invested… then i will freak.

i encouraged this chicken to practice a little flying after i loved on her a bit.

i gardened like a maniac last week.
i had over 25 plants to get in the ground!
i was the sweatiest i have ever been. Literally!

FullSizeRender 7
and these flowers are on the deck in the backyard.
the bright colors cheer me up every morning!
FullSizeRender 6
scott is a life guard this summer!

our friends got THE CUTEST new puppy!
he is soooo soft and has puppy breath too.
auuuwwwww!
thank goodness we have plenty of cuteness over here so we aren’t too sad about not having an adorable puppy.

show hide 13 comments

add a comment

April R - we haven’t had a traditional or “summery” summer here and it’s been difficult at times not to be really sad about it. We are moving far from our friends and it’s been dragged out by the process of selling our house :p Soooo this post was cheerful and sweet and just a reminder of what we might build and work towards when we finally arrive at the new town/home. Thank you for sharing 🙂

Katie E. - Hey that puppy was at my house today! Super cute picture(s)!

Kate @ Songs Kate Sang - It looks like you are having an awesome summer! Woo hoo! BTW – So happy for your weekend at the craft house! Those people are the bestest people ever.

marcie - Lots of good stuff but Yay!! to Talby for going to Honduras on a mission trip. My daughter and I went to Honduras for the 3rd year in a row in June. I hope it was as amazing for her as it always is for us!!

Chris - I never get tired of your dogs, flowers, chickens or fire pit. Lovely to look at, always!

Kimberly Dial - I loved this post. Looks like you all are having an awesome Summer!

Gabby - Yet another reason to love you and your blog: I, too MUCH prefer the heat to the cold – and I, too want to be outside even with a blanket over my legs in the summer! Thanks for the affirmation!

Jenn N - Love, love, love, the fire pit. What beautiful post; pictures are great. Summer fun!

jennibell - I agree!!! Give me summer heat ANY day over those cold, icy days of winter.
Love your landscaping and your firepit is the BEST. . .lucky you.
Glad you are enjoying your summer. . .your pups are so cute but they are a lot of work — good for you 🙂

Carolyne Hallum - We are in the thick of Winter here so I just love the photo’s you’ve put up today… summery, bright and fun.

Lori - I never get tired of seeing photos of your home. So beautiful!

Sarajane - I will need a copy of the picture of talby and ace. They both are adorable!

Lynne - OH, your yard is amazing. The sky looked a little creepy in one photo dark clouds scary. The chicken good flying. He needs goggles. HaHa. Your beverages look great for morning and night. Do you have a labordoodle? That golden puppy was so so precious The breath I totally know the breath yeah!!!!!
Happy summer!!!!!!! It is passing us by quickly. We are in a drought so our lawn looks like a hay field. SAD You would think on the New Hampshire Seacoast we would have beautiful lawn not so much. Lets hope our garden can make it with tomato, cuke, zuke, summer squash, grape tomato, and spag’s squash. OH all most forgot the butternut squash.

ENJOY THE SUMMER NIGHTS!!!!!!!!!!!

Share on Facebook•Tweet this Post•Pin Images to Pinterest•Back to Top

so much water!

June 1, 2016

first things first – winner of the Amazon gift card!

Christy – According to my dad, the best give ever gave him was tickets for us all to see a St. Louis Cardinals vs. Cincinnati Reds game. We had a great day together and he got to see his favorite team pull off a win!

i will email the address on the comment. If you don’t hear from me – email me ok?! Congrats Christy!

our area of kansas has had tons of rain recently so we took the opportunity of the long weekend to hit one of our favorite spots!

IMG_6673 (1)
normally this isn’t a creek.
it’s usually dry or just a little swampy… but not now!

she always finds a heart rock for me!

and then we went to the waterfall… whoa.

FullSizeRender (5)
some years this is just rocks with a trickle of water going into a stale pond.
some years there is a nice area to wade around in.
but this was SO COOL!
and so loud!

FullSizeRender (7) FullSizeRender (6)
this might appear dangerous looking at the pictures but we felt confident in our parenting decisions and supervising during our time.
🙂
at the bottom of the “falls” was still only knee deep water and no raging rapids that would drag them away forever.

FullSizeRender (3)
i thought i had dog drool on my shirt… HA!
it took me all afternoon to realize it was sunscreen.
oh yeah! #duh

talby
we recreated one of my favorite pictures from the past.
love! love! love!

i always make them take a family photo in this spot.
we were down a few kiddos this time but that is life with a busy family.

we ate lunch in front of the lake and it was pretty much the best spot in the world at that moment.

it is always one of my favorite days of the year.

here are links to other years we’ve gone.
it’s fun to see how much they’ve all grown!
2014 – 2013 – 2012 – 2010 – 2008

show hide 20 comments

add a comment

Kimberly Dial - How awesome is that?! Love it!

Lisa - The first time I ever visited your blog it was about this location years ago. Always love the pictures from this location. So beautiful!

shar - one time we went there and my brother brad was going under that yellow gate thingy and my cousin andrew was jumping over at the same time… and andrew had a fishing pole in his hand!! bradley had a fishhook in his eyebrow for the rest of the eve!!!! we lov that place

shar - love that place. we go there somx

Gevay - Looks like fun! I love how happy everyone is especially Stanley! The fact that you had to put a parenting disclaimer in the post is sad. That means you have gotten emails form someone questioning your choices for your family. Ugh! Thanks for continuing to share your beautiful world with us despite “those” people. Have a great summer, Meg!

Tina - What gorgeous pictures! Looks like y’all had a blast!

Best quote eva “Felt confident in our parenting decisions.” 🙂

Thanks for sharing your family’s excursions.

Natasha - Wow! I am so excited to show is this to my husband and plan a trip soon! Could be a day trip too I guess as we’re in Lenexa. Have you ever camped there?

beth larson - Meg!! I haven’t commented in a while, but I just loved this post. You look like one of the kids~ just adore your long hair in braids. : )

Hey question for you, did you take these photos with your phone or a camera? I have no luck putting cell pics on my blog because they won’t enlarge. It’s so inconvenient to always have to drag my real camera along…

Have a great weekend, Beth xo

Kerrin - Hey Meg,
Just heard your interview on The Happy Hour with Jamie Ivey. It was really really great. Your wisdom about parenting was very encouraging. You also gave me a lot to think about regarding time away with my husband. We have only ever been away once since our daughter was born (10 years ago!). It never occurred to me that it would be worth all the work it would be to make it happen. So many thanks for all that you shared. May God continue to bless you, your family and the amazing work you are doing at the Craft House.

Heather S. - Ah, yes! We went out there once. but it was during one of those sad trickle times. I’d seen photos on the internet and was stoked to see such a great waterfall right here in Kansas. It was not to be, but looks like you got the full deal! Kansas really is a beautiful state. Proud to live here (and happy to drive all around the country to see the rest)!

Lee Ann - Beautiful! And I LOVE your comment about your parenting decision. Made me laugh. I’m sure you get lots of “advice” about your parenting decisions 😉 Kansas is gorgeous!

meg duerksen - CP, Kerri & Christie – this is the Chase Co. Fishing Lake. 🙂

Jennifer Thomas - Aww Megan, this was always a favorite spot to go. The first time Russ and I went with the kids it looked like this. We never again saw this much water….good to see that someone in Kansas is still enjoying this great spot. We have mapped out a loop in Ohio to travel and see different waterfalls.

CP - Where can I find this waterfall? We really have this in Kansas?

Heather - The link to 2014 is the same as 2008! We live about an hour from the beach, and I wish we had somewhere close like this! That looks nice and cool and secluded!

Kerri - Our beautiful state is absolutely gorgeous this spring! (BTW, where is this spot?)

Christie Smith - Can I ask where this is? It is beautiful.

Jennifer Greeley - That looks like so much fun!

Lori - Gorgeous! Looks like an awesome day 🙂

Tiffani - Fave. Blogger. Ever. Thanks for continuing to give us all the goodness.

Share on Facebook•Tweet this Post•Pin Images to Pinterest•Back to Top

scott’s big week

May 18, 2016

we have had a BIG week over here.
all scotty focused.
he had his 18th birthday. 🙂
FullSizeRender (9)
he signed to play basketball next fall at Tabor College.
we are super excited for him!
i think it’s going to be a GREAT fit for him.

AND HE GRADUATED from high school!!!
it was such a fun day!
the ceremony was short and sweet… and then it was time to party.

his grandparents were pretty proud of him.

FullSizeRender (8)
annie made a sign so everyone would know to go to the back yard.
and we hung his banner from the gym on the window.
ha ha ha!
we did lots and LOTS of yard work last week.
and i am so glad because now it’s ALL DONE and we get to enjoy it all summer!

lots of the grad parties had cute photo displays and slide shows playing.
well… i forgot about all that stuff.
but i did put out his two photo albums and took two pictures off the wall.
i guess i will be more prepared for the next kid’s graduation party.

but i DID get all my pots planted! 🙂
planting flowers is one of the best parts of spring.
i did forget to take pictures after we brought out the food.
bummer.
we served pulled pork, baked beans, cheesey potatoes, watermelon, veggies and my mom made a million deviled eggs!
i didn’t get any of it… but i heard it was yummy.
HA.
also… next grad party we now know to make even more food.

(think how amazing annie’s party will be after so much practice?!)

i asked my mom to find me an antique wash basin or some kind of neat cooler to hold the ice cream at the party.
she totally rocked that mission!
and then… i didn’t get a picture of the ice cream in it!
you can kind of see it in this photo.
it was perfect!

craig made three different kinds of homemade ice cream!
he loves his White Mountain Ice Cream Maker.
and so does everyone that gets to eat the ice cream!

FullSizeRender
all the plant containers are vintage.
the polka dot cushions are/were from target.com last year.
the orange rug is from world market.
the yellow D is from Michaels.

scott had lots of family come to celebrate with him.
lots of his friends stopped by and so many special adults in his life.
it was really cool to see so many people that care about Scott or our family all in one place?!
literally – hashtag blessed. FullSizeRender (2)
the weather was a little chilly but no rain and no wind!
woo-hoo!
we were able to leave the door to the house wide open so people could just go in and out… LOVED THAT.

we had the best time!
i love having parties.
i love having a deadline to get a whole bunch of stuff done before the party.
but i really loved watching my son welcome everyone to his party and tell them thank you for coming and talk with each one.
that made my heart so happy!

it’s crazy to think that i have another child that is through with high school.
how does time go so quickly?
HOW!?

show hide 17 comments

add a comment

Brooke Whitis - Literally…hashtag blessed (made me laugh), but this is so fun! And how are all your kids graduating high school… it’s crazy! I feel like I was reading your blog and they were all so small (ish). Geez.

Megan - I just adore your photos of the flowers and containers. I have a few old containers like yours and definitely want more, especially after seeing them together. You have such a great eye for details!

Mindy - Congratulations to you son on his graduation and his college signing! You have many more bleacher sitting ahead of you : ) Your plantings are just the cutest as is that score your Mom found for the ice cream – homemade even – wow!

Kasey - Your patio and plants are lovely!

jennibell - Wow!!! I have 4 kids graduating in the next 5 years and am thinking that it is time to start getting ready! Thanks for the heads’ up on the slideshow. . .I can start that this summer and then just add his senior moments to that. Your yard is beautiful — stunning. Any chance you could walk us through it one day? I’d love to be able to container plant like that — yours always looks so fresh and lush and full. . .mine never do. And how do you take care of them all summer — I’ve seen in the past that they always look great.
Have a relaxing summer — congrats on the basketball. . .know your family will enjoy watching him play next year!

Chris - Your flowers are beautiful!!! Quick question about your pos! Do you plant directly in them or in pots in the bigger pots!!! Congratulations to Scott!!

jamie - i love everything about this post. drenched in beauty and happy. can you share craig’s favorite ice cream recipes soon? maybe we should invest in that ice cream maker. and is that scott’s entire graduating class in the photo? if it is WOW i love how small it is! we have huge graduating classes at our school {400+} so it’s fun to see a small group of kids!

Jessica - Congrats to your son! You must be incredibly proud!!
Totally random question… I see you have outdoor lights hanging and am dying to do the same but WHERE do you have them plugged in? :/

Kathi - Congrats to all of you! The graduating class is SO TINY! That must be wonderful. My youngest has one more year of college, I’m not sure how that happened so fast either! Love your blog, thank you for sharing. Your posts and IG always inspires me.

Jennifer Carlisle - Your planters are absolutely beautiful. The colors and designs made me happy!

barb c - Congrats on your grad! Your patio is MAGICAL!

Kimberlee Jost - Annie’s sign still makes me laugh.
Such a good time and such GREAT ice cream!

Linda - Thank you for being so honest. The party looked amazing and perfect as does everything you do. But it is sometimes nice to hear that there was more you wanted to do, that it didn’t get done and that its ok. I am really struggling with that now. Thanks for the inspiration as always.

Lynn - I always have the opposite problem-WAY too much food and then we eat leftovers for a week!

KWolff - Congratulations to you son! That is exciting about him getting to play post HS basketball. Your party looked great.
My oldest is going to be starting his senior year in the fall and I have already put my hubby on notice that our backyard needs to be ready. 🙂

Amy Woods - Wow! Y’all’s school ends early up in Kansas! My one and only graduates on June 4! EEEEP! I thought I’d be more sad…but I’m too busy being excited for him and his upcoming college career. It helps that he will be going to school only 45 mins away from home. And although he will be living on campus, I work at the same university he will be attending so I might even see him more than I do now! (hehehe…I need a giggling emoji!)
I told him I expect him to bring me lunch and to run and get me sonic drinks during happy hour. He says – you do know I’m going to be taking actual classes, right? Whatever.

Love your yard and flowers and the party looked lovely and fun!!

Tiffany - Congratulations to your family and your son!

Share on Facebook•Tweet this Post•Pin Images to Pinterest•Back to Top

photos of the week

May 10, 2016

FullSizeRender (28)
the peonies have been blooming.
which always means rain is coming.
and it has.
so i made sure to cute what i could before they are mushy.
FullSizeRender (34) FullSizeRender (25) FullSizeRender (10)
checking out the local green house! FullSizeRender (14)
curious chickens.

weekend basketball.
all year round.

donuts!!!
FullSizeRender (11)
she’s a grumpy old bird.
her feathers match her personality.

FullSizeRender (40)
and speaking of eggs….
i bought this little Egg Cooker recently and WE LOVE IT!
we can have hard boiled eggs within minutes!
we have eggs for days with all these happy chickens and my kids love hard boiled eggs.
just fill the bottom of the cooker with a few tablespoons of water and turn it on.
and in a few minutes… hard boiled eggs!
easy, healthy breakfast or snack!
no pot watching. no oven preheating. no thinking. it’s mindless.
and i like things like that!!
and it’s tiny and takes up very little space in your cabinet!

FullSizeRender (16)
multi-tasking.

FullSizeRender (17)
track meets.
talby is a triple jumper, long jumper, high jumper, hurdler and runner.

FullSizeRender (18)
talby worked hard on her hurdles this season and won FIRST PLACE at League!!

FullSizeRender (36)
scott is a high jumper.
sean throws shot put, discus and jav but the one meet i was able to attend of his… got rained out just as he began.

FullSizeRender (20) FullSizeRender (23) FullSizeRender 12
Treat Yo’ Self!

FullSizeRender (29) FullSizeRender (35)
piano practice after school.

FullSizeRender (19) FullSizeRender (21) FullSizeRender (26) FullSizeRender (33)
mornings are hard.
FullSizeRender (37)
lots to plant!
i got all of my pots planted on saturday.
now i have a bunch of perenials to get in the ground!
i love gardening season!
FullSizeRender (32) FullSizeRender (30)
we expanded the chicken coop fenced area.
i’m pretty sure they LOVE it!
FullSizeRender (31) FullSizeRender (27) FullSizeRender (39)
loving this book “Looking for Lovely” by Annie Downs.
it’s really good!
i think we’d be friends. 🙂

these four girls broke the school record in their relay!

all my girls were home for craig’s birthday.
i like that.
FullSizeRender (24) FullSizeRender (38)
all the 8th grade girls after they won the League Track Meet.
and so smiley because track is now over!

FullSizeRender 14
my lady friends!!

FullSizeRender (22)
my favorite chore.

FullSizeRender 13
waffle is a total weirdo.

it’s been a pretty good week.

show hide 19 comments

add a comment

favorites from the internet | - […] Meg posted about this egg cooker. […]

Renee - Can I ask a rude question? How much do you spend on flowers each spring? I would love to recreate the impact you give, but have no idea what to expect financially. Do you shop around? Buy the cheapest? Or just splurge?

Kari - Your peonies are gorgeous! We have some in our yard, but they’re always covered in ants. Despite their beauty, I have to restrain from bringing them in because I’m afraid of bringing in a bunch of ants. How do you keep the ants off of them/get them off of them before you bring them in?

Tobi Layton - What a fun post! And, on a personal note, it brought back memories! I used to triple jump, long jump, and hurdle for the Swathers! It was fun seeing pictures of my alma mater!

Lynne - OMG I can’t believe that you have a pet named Waffles. We have a cat named Waffles because he waffles from good to evil at the drop of a hat. What kind of dog is Waffle? OH by the way your peonies are beautiful.

Rebekah Wales - I’m so glad I’m not the only one whose children like to recline on the kitchen counter. 😀

Andrea - I love it when you post random pictures!

Kimberlee Jost - The peonies with your Grandma’s cow…I have looked at that picture at least 10 times. Something is drawing me in. I want to live in that picture. Shop print?

Mary - Can you please tell me where you got your adorable frayed jeans. Love them!!!

Crystal D - We bought the egg cooker in November and it is amazing!! One of my favorite appliances. We’ve used it over 25 times and only once had an undercooked batch (I don’t think I used enough water). I cannot give it enough “5 stars”

Kathi - I also love your pictures! Could you blog about your chicken coop and how you tend to your chickens? We are considering chickens, neither of us has any chicken experience. Any tips?

Sarah - I love your photos. You inspire me to get behind the camera more often. Also, I’ve had the opportunity to get to know your friend Jana. She’s co-teaching one of my classes and she is so very lovely and insightful. 🙂

jamie - HAHA the waffle photo made me laugh out loud almost snort! can you imagine having that in your shop as a canvas??!? and HELLO with the egg cooker it’s now in my amazon cart where has that little thing been all my life. the COLORS of all your flowers are just so stunningly beautiful and happy. your photos inspire.

meg duerksen - Julie- the alarm is slightly obnoxious but it’s no big deal. We have always had perfectly cooked eggs! It’s totally a great appliance!

Julie Cross - So excited about the egg cooker but when I looked at the reviews on Amazon, people hated it. Do you think the alarm is annoying? Or that they undercook? Just thinking that they might have improved it since those yucky reviews. Thanks!

Lori - Love your photos! They are so bright and happy! Looks like a pretty good week to me 🙂

stephanie - I love all your pictures! The daisies and peonies especially. I just moved to Utah after living in the southern half of the US (desert and Gulf Coast) for my entire adult life. Can I just tell you how thrilled I am that I now get to grow peonies?! They are my favorite and won’t grow in the south. So now I’m in the club! lol

cathie w. - These ‘random’ tidbits of your life are some of my favorite posts!! Love all the color and thoughtful musings. Have a fabulous week!

Chris - I love when I come to your site and there’s a new post full of pictures. They inspire my morning. Love the bright pink peonies. We only have white, which are beautiful, but those pink…

Share on Facebook•Tweet this Post•Pin Images to Pinterest•Back to Top

this week

April 3, 2016

i have been attempting to write this post for over a week but my computer is being dumb.
there seems to be a window right now where it’s working so i write. 🙂

my mind has been consumed with thoughts and planning for Camp CREATE coming up next week.
and shopping for it.
and prepping for it.
all while being a mom and that kind of stuff.
so… here are a bunch of phone pics of things that are going on recently.

best shirt ever (from hello apparel)

i finally put up the cow bust that was my grandma’s.
it hung on the side of her sink and she used it as a towel holder for as long as i can remember.
i always loved it.
and i was so happy to have it for my home.

working from home… a project that will come out in september.

annie’s first spring break.

we went to a Rend Collective concert.
have you heard of them?
we listen to them allllllll the time with our kids and some of the songs are sung at our church too.
my Rend Collective pandora station is one of my most favorites.
in this picture… i was watching the lighted beach balls that were bouncing around the crowd and never even saw that they put panda heads on. HA!
i was looking through the photos and asked “what in the world?” to talby & annie and they said “yeah… they did that for a long time mom”
oh.
i guess i was distracted.
so funny.

still trying to eat healthy.
a battle i feel i may never win because – cookies.

H.O.R.S.E. in the driveway.

spring break dinner out that just happened to be on St. Patricks Day which made for a lively crowd. (aka: drunk)

saturdays with no sports or major events are my faaaaaaavorite.
and the dogs like it too.
ha!
they get so many more opportunities to make me spill my coffee.

my friend Jenny sent me this ADORABLE wood sign for my house!
and i found a spot right away so i could see it everyday!
she has so many cute handmade signs in her shop.
i love every. single. one!

this was Easter morning.
WHAT?
we haven’t had snow in two years in our area of kansas.
and on Easter sunday annie came in our room and shouted “IT SNOWED A TON!???!” and threw open our curtains.
we were shocked!

FullSizeRender 5
FullSizeRender 7 FullSizeRender 8
it was so bizarre to have all that snow!

this was the most i did for Easter for my kids… everyone got a small chocolate bunny.

i have been “collecting” random pretty state or flower plates for a few years for maybe someday doing a big mosaic project.
but recently i was thinking of getting new dishes at home but dreading spending money on dishes that would inevidentally end up broken since the kids do all the dishes at our house… pro/con.
i realized i had tons of these dishes… they are fun to look at….they are unique… they cost .50 – $1.00 at our thrift store… i could just use these as our plates instead of buying a new set of fancy dishes.
It’s more my style anyway… eclectically unique/colorful/vintage/modern twist.
so now they are our everyday plates!
and i love them!

camp prep – making name tags.
making projects.

planning for camp looks a lot like this.
at several different stores.

and at camp since we are together for several days we give everyone their own cup.
it helps keep track of which drink is which, cuts down on dishes and it’s cute!
lots of people asked on Instagram where i got them… you can find them RIGHT HERE.

the same grandma that had the cow in her kitchen also used the phrase “happy plate” when we were good eaters and could have dessert.
and let me tell you… i was a really picky eater and they ate weird stuff.
i challenged the happy plate at every meal.
but i loved her tapioca pudding and usually ate enough to get it.
so i saw this plate in OKC and loved the memories it brought up.
and bought one for me and one my sister too.
FullSizeRender 4
marshalls and tjmaxx are my weakness.
i love finding stuff there!
like this rug… i have even brought it up to the register but haven’t bought it… yet.
it’s just so darn cheery!

my mom found me this awesome tank on Zulily.
could it be any more perfect for me?!

all that snow melted immediately… like by 5:00 it was GONE.
and spring is definitely here in kansas.
my chickens are loving the nice weather.
as much as i can assume a chicken loves anything.

i found some fun stuff while thrifting the other day.
i don’t love green glass but i love when i find something unique and that water jar was just that.
but really i just love thrifting in general.
and the flowers were from Dillons.
because it’s a nice addition to any friday.

scott went on a college visit last week (HOW?!) and these clouds were on my drive home.
deep blue and moving so fast.
i tried not think of them as some kind of metaphor for this new stage of life with my oldest son….

we got our baby fix holding craig’s cousin’s baby on friday night.
he was dreamy… never made a peep.

and my last pic for today… this was the scene i walked into after my house had been cleaned.
it’s all so C L E A N!!!
i smiled for an hour!
i have lots more i want to share but who knows what my computer will do the next week.
and camp starts in three days!
there is laundry to wash, beds to make, art supplies to organize, margaritas to make!
it’s going to be a very good week!

show hide 16 comments

add a comment

Mindy - Love Rend Collective and can only imagine the energy live and in person! I love Marshall’s and TJ Maax as well – you never know what you might find there. And your tulips – lovely.

Candice - Love your photos! Can you share your source for printing on canvas? Thank you!

beth larson - I loved this post Meg…all the great pictures etc… (my your kiddos seem to be growing in leaps in the last few months). I especially love the last pic of the cute pups in your sparkly clean house! Happy Friday,
beth

Lisa - Oh that picture of you and Annie! Be still my heart!

Jenn - so your rend collective picture…….well first love the panda heads. great…..but second the girl in the picture (her profile) looks like drew berrymore

Lindsey - Love everything about this post!

angela F Conklin - Ok, so i can’t stand it when people say *where did you get that?* and *what color is that?* BUT…………..
Lipstick color in 1st pic please!
AND
tell me about your counter tops. Granite? Marble? Quartz? Color? Make?

Angela conoil@yahoo.com

cornelia krahn - I have 20 of those state plates and I’m moving so I can’t keep them. I’d like to give them to you for all the joy you’ve brought to my life. I live in Wisconsin but will be in Newton this Thursday-Sat. Are you interested?

DLG in Mich - I bought two of those rugs at Marshall’s for the same reason – they make me happy. I got orange and teal and while they make me smile, they don’t wash up so well. The colored ‘ribbons’ come un-tucked from the tan body of the rug, if that makes sense.

Melanie Sidwell - Ooooh you know CU-Boulder is a great college town 🙂 just sayin! Also – I have collected about six of those green glass water jars (found one even with the original yellow lid). I love them and haven’t found any for a few years so I’m quite tickled you found one. I found four at a small town Nebraska thrift store, and two in different stores in Colorado. Coveting yours!

Melissa - “because cookies”… story of my life.

Rebekah Wales - That rainbow hello t-shirt is THE BEST!

Jennifer - Great post! Yes, next week is definitely going to great ;)!

Heather - Love that cow, I have the exact same one hanging beside my sink! Found it at an antique shop for $7 and felt like I won the lottery! Your pictures are always so bright and cheery, love checking in on your blog just to see all of the fun pics. 🙂

Debi meyers - Hey meg.
Pretty lipstick in photo #1!

Since I’m older than you but not as old as your grand mom, as a teen in the 70s in the Midwest I bought a similar white ceramic head to hang my bathroom towel. Not a cow, but another barn animal … Pig? Duck? don’t remember. Has same eyes. I guess they were a thing.

I collect vintage souvenir plates too. Many often have a sticker saying “not food-safe” … And often the original stickers are gone. You don’t want to be eating off a lead-based paint.

Carry on ….

Traci - I love that cute cow! Also, I feel that you are my soul sister in a lot of ways. Lover of color, lots of creative endeavors. I enjoy seeing what you write about here. Carry on and here’s to a happy and creative week!

Share on Facebook•Tweet this Post•Pin Images to Pinterest•Back to Top

« Newer Posts
1
2
3
4
5
6
…
22
Older Posts

search

Search for:
Instagram
Categories

Categories
Archives
Archives

Category Archives: things i love

search

Instagram

Categories

Archives