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This weekend I went to the Maker Faire in San Mateo, California and it was awesome!  As a maker myself, I was totally inspired. It's a combination of DIY, technology, and crafting.

There are Maker Faires all over the US and all over the world. Since many of you are makers yourselves, I recommend one.

My highlights...

Here's an Ultimaker 3D printer printing a plastic bowl. When the prices drop, I am definitely getting one.

Instead of origami, this display was made of tape, hence the name "tapigami."

A car with animatronic fish and lobsters that dance when the car stereo blasts.

An aircraft carrier built completely out of Legos.

An entire floor full of Legos for kids to build.

A Kickstarter funded company called Roominate, started by two women engineers at Stanford, to inspire girls to build their own dollhouses. My daughter has one and loves it!

Another Kickstarter funded company called Goldie Blox, also started by a female Stanford engineer, to teach girls about engineering. We bought the game at Maker Faire for my daughter, but they will be in Toys R Us soon.

Foam interlocking shapes to build stuff with from a company called Itsphun. We bought the starter pack and now they are all over our living room in lots of crazy shapes and combinations.

I heard Brit Morin from Brit+Co speak about what inspired her to start her company. An artist was right by the stage, drawing an image of her speech.

And here she is... I wish I had a photo of her shoes because they were fantastic.

And here's my little maker (who believes she can make anything) building a structure with wood.

I love the variety of favorites this week... from a Frida Kahlo inspired art party, to a Disney Cars 2 party with amazing desserts, to a "Wheels on the Bus" birthday for a boy in love with buses, to a Nerf Wars party this knock your socks off!

Clockwise from top left:

• Monique T's Cinco De Sophia!
• Lynlee B's World Grand Prix
• Angie K's Wheels on the Bus Birthday Party
• Leanne H's Nate's Nerf Party

Here are some fun posts I did for Spoonful this week...

Graduation cap pops are simple to make and very fun to eat, too!

Get some great ideas on how to throw a golf themed party for Father's Day!

This sparkling strawberry ginger lemonade recipe is so refreshing and delicious!

 For more party planning inspiration, check out all my posts on Spoonful!

Last week I went to a conference called MamaBear, which was a family tech conference. I saw so many great family-oriented companies, I had to share my favorites...

Toca Boca makes digital games for kids and my daughter can't get enough! We have every single one of their games. They are interactive, fun, and very open-ended, which I think leads to more creative play. Her favorite game is definitely Hair Salon 2 (see above). You can see the crazy hairstyles she comes up with. Possible career choice?

I just started using UrbanSitter about a month ago to find babysitters, and what I love about the site is it enables me to find babysitters recommended by my friends and people in my community. It makes me feel much more comfortable leaving my daughter with some one new. With UrbanSitter, there's no more freaking out on a Saturday night with no one to watch my kid!

I was so inspired listening to the CEO of Citrus Lane, Mauria Finley. She is a woman who loves what she does and loves providing value to moms. If you have a baby or young child, you should check them out. They will provide you with the latest and greatest in baby and kid products, and the best part... it's like getting a present in the mail each month.

I had never heard of Life360, but once I did, I downloaded their app immediately. It's a simple way to keep track of your family, see where they all are, and stay in touch quickly and easily. Brilliant, right? This is the perfect site for today's mobile family.

ArtKive is an app I also downloaded right away. It's a way to store all your kids' artwork without having to buy a new filing cabinet. I just take a picture of my daughter's latest creation, tag it, and it gets stored by ArtKive. I can then share it with friends and family or even create beautiful books of her art.  I know what the grandparents will be getting for Christmas this year...

Kiwi Crate delivers a box filled with fun projects to your kids (ages 3-7) each month. Each box has a theme, so your kids get to create, explore, and discover all on their own (or with a little help from you). Perfect for a rainy day activity when you kids tell you they're bored!

I'm always on the hunt for sites that make our families' lives better. If you have any recommendations, please add them in a comment or on Facebook. I'd love to discover them.

 

Here's a new trend we're seeing on our site... Minecraft parties! For those of you who don't know, Minecraft is a video game that allow players to build worlds using textured cubes. These parties are so good at representing the game!

To see each party, click on the link or the photo...

B Moore Celebrations' Minecraft Party

Sugar Bites' Aiden's Minecraft Birthday!

Feather S's Minecraft Vintage

Gemma T's Minecraft Birthday Party

Carol C's Minecraft Birthday

Sunny D's Minecraft Inspired Birthday Party

For further inspiration, check out all the Minecraft parties and video game parties on our site!

With Memorial Day and July 4th on the horizon, I wanted to give away some printables to help you celebrate this year. Michelle at Printabelle designed this fireworks set that will look fantastic at your parties and BBQs!

The collection includes: invitations, party circles, banner, mini candy bar wrappers, welcome sign, thank you and menu/place cards, treat toppers and water bottle labels.

DOWNLOAD THE HIGH RESOLUTION FILES FOR PRINTING HERE:

• Patriotic party printables
• Patriotic banner

Here are the individual files...

Thank you Michelle, for such a explosive collection! Sorry, I had to. :)

If you’d like any of these printables personalized, Michelle will do it for $3 per file! To learn more about Michelle and see all the printable collections, head to Printabelle and the Printabelle Facebook page.

This might be my favorite recipe Molly from CakeFYI has shared so far. They look so delicious, I might even eat the photos. :)

As a baker and a blogger, I have definitely been known to have a cupcake for breakfast now and then. I love using breakfast foods as inspiration!

Today, I’m sharing a recipe for Cinnamon Roll Cupcakes. These simple, flavorful cupcakes are made with a cinnamon and brown sugar cupcake topped with thick cream cheese icing. They’re the perfect treat for a brunch, a party, or anything else in between. I won’t tell you that you should eat one every day for breakfast, but hey, if they’re there, why not give it a try!

Cinnamon Roll Cupcakes

Makes 12 cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 1/2 Cup Butter, softened
• 3/4 Cup Sugar
• 1/2 C Brown Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 2 Teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1 1/4 Cups Flour
• 1 3/4 Teaspoons Baking Powder
• 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
• 2 Tablespoons Cinnamon
• 3/4 Cup Milk

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugars until fluffy.

Beat in the eggs one at a time, and then add the vanilla extract and mix well.

Add a third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat until incorporated.

Add half of the milk and mix well.

Add another third of the flour, mix, and then add the remaining milk.

Add the remaining flour and continue beating until well mixed.

Using a ¼ measuring cup, divide the batter equally among 12 cupcake wells. You will have extra batter. I used the extra batter to make an additional mini cake to use as a cake crumble topping.

Bake for 16-18 minutes until golden. Set aside to cool before icing.

Cream Cheese Icing

Ingredients:

• 5 Tablespoons Butter, softened
• 8 Ounces Cream Cheese
• 5 Cups Powdered Sugar
• 2 Teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract

Directions:

Cream butter and cream cheese until fluffy.

Add powdered sugar ½ cup at a time, beating well between each addition. Beat in vanilla extract once you’ve reach your desired consistency.

Cinnamon Drizzle

Ingredients:

• 1 Tablespoon Butter, melted
• 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
• 4 Tablespoons Powdered Sugar
• 1 Teaspoon Milk

Directions:

Whisk together butter and cinnamon. Add in the powdered sugar and milk, and continue whisking until smooth.

Once cooled, top cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing. Sprinkled cake crumbs over icing, and drizzle with Cinnamon Drizzle.

Thank you, Molly, for such a great cupcake take on a personal favorite of mine! To learn more about Molly check her out at CakeFYI.

Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers!! Here's a little eye candy for today... my favorite parties of the week!

Check out this fantastic staff appreciation party, a very clever Mr. Potato Head Pirate party, a Ninjago party with real ninjas, and a Mother's Day photo shoot that will make you say "wow"!

Clockwise from top left:

• Tammy M's Oh! The Places You'll Go
• Dreamin N Details' Mr Potato the Pirate
• Sweet Memories Party Design's Mama Owl!
• Amy W's Jude's Ninjago Birthday!

Have a great day! Thanks for adding all your great parties to our site so I can show them off!!

 

 

 

My friend, Ana, from Love Pretty Garlands is giving away a handmade fabric lettered garland worth $75. And you get to pick the letters and colors you want! You can either choose a 10cm high letter garland with a maximum of 13 letters, or a 15cm high lettered garland with a maximum of 7 letters. Both choices will have two stars or hearts at the ends.

How beautiful would this look in a baby's nursery or a child's bedroom. Plus, it's the perfect gift for a baby shower!

To enter the giveaway, just "like" Love Pretty Garlands below, then leave a comment at the end of this post saying you did it.

Love Pretty Garlands makes the most adorable handmade garlands for various occasions. Please visit Love Pretty Garlands to view more of Ana's garlands.

We’ll pick the winner at random on May 16th at 10:00PM EDT . Any entries after that won’t be considered, sorry. We will use random.org to generate our winner and will notify the winner by email. Good luck! This is a sponsored post.

Here are some fun posts I did for Spoonful this week...

These bright party ideas will help you and your guests have a Sunshiney day!

A colorful drink umbrella wreath is easier to make than you think!

Many boys love motorcycles, so why not throw a motorcycle party?

For more party planning inspiration, check out all my posts on Spoonful!