The Dunkin Donuts Incident...

Marley and I had a fantastic morning yesterday.  We both woke up in a great mood, acted silly while getting ready for work and school, and decided to stop at Dunkin Donuts for a quick breakfast.  We were even a little early heading out the door, which made me happy because Marley had CRCT testing so I wanted to make sure she had time to relax before they started testing. 

So, we headed out, and ran in Dunkin Donuts.  Marley picked out a yummy-looking donut with blue icing and sprinkles and some chocolate milk.  I grabbed a bottle of water - you know, to be healthy - and some munchkins (don't judge me!).  As we turned to head out the door back to the car....

MY CAR KEYS ARE IN THE LOCKED CAR!!!!!!!!

Yep, I had put my keys down to grab my wallet, then as I exited the car, I locked the door using the button on the inside of the door rather than the key remote.

Sure enough, when we looked, there were my keys - resting comfortably in the center console of  my car, right below my cell phone.

Seriously?  This is how this day is going to go?

Ok, so I gathered my thoughts, went back inside, and used Dunkin Donuts' phone to first call mom - gotta get Marley to school before testing begins - then AAA - to unlock my damn car.  UGH.

In the end, it wasn't all bad.  A very nice gentleman offered me his Acura loaner car to drive Marley to school, which I politely declined because I just didn't feel comfortable doing that.  However, mom made it and saved the day by getting Marley to school just in time for testing.  And AAA showed up to quickly unlock my car, and I was only an hour late to work. 

In the midst of the chaos, Marley turns to me and says, "Mommy, this is like heaven."  I asked her what she meant by that.  In her 9-year old infinite wisdom, she says, "We are surrounded by donuts, and we can't leave!"

Love her :)

~Kirsten

Spring Ribbon Topiary "How-To"

I loved this little craft!  So fun to make, and super cute for spring decorations.  Super easy, too, which is always a nice bonus!

Supplies to have on hand

• Small clay pot or any cute container
• Floral foam
• Decorative moss
• Paint and paintbrush
• Wooden skewer
• Styrofoam ball
• Several yards of various ribbon
• Straight pins
• Hot glue gun

Gather your supplies, and allow yourself about 1 to 1 1/2 hours to complete.  Ready?  Here we go:

First, I hit up Garden Ridge and got 2 little clay pots, floral foam, decorative moss, and styrofoam balls.  I used my own stash of ribbon and paint.  As for the skewers?  These are just little wooden skewers from the kitchen that you use to make kabobs!

Second, I decided on my paint colors - pink and green.  I alternated the top and bottom sections (see below), then I used a pencil eraser and some white paint to add polka dots to the pink part.

Third, after you paint your pots, set those aside to dry completely, then get to work on your ribbon ball.  Gather your various ribbons, and cut about 30-40 pieces of each about 1 1/2" long to start with.  You might need more for filler later.  Have your straight pins ready to go, too.  Simply roll each piece of ribbon in a loop, then pin inside the loop to attach to the styrofoam ball.  Continue until you can no longer see the styrofoam:

Almost done!  Finally, fire up the hot glue gun and cover the floral foam with decorative moss.  Glue it down so it stays put.  I even threw a little bow on my skewer and stuck it on with hot glue.

Voila!  You're done!  Now you have an original piece of spring artwork to show off anywhere you like!  You did a GREAT job, you crafty little mama, you!  :)

~Kirsten

A Case of the Mondays...

"Stress is nothing more than a socially acceptable form of mental illness."  - Richard Carlson

If that's the case, I'm certifiable.

~Kirsten

Super-Fantastic Easter Saturday!

What am amazing day!!! 

Started off the day with my daughter's lacrosse game - and 2 of her buddies went with us to cheer her on (that's M on the right)

Then we grabbed a quick bite to eat, loaded up the SUV, and headed to the foothills of North Georgia to spend the afternoon in Ellijay.  We walked to little shops on the square and I came across this INCREDIBLE old pie safe.  I was so tempted to buy it for nothing else but the door!  So cool...

After we hit all the cute little shops, we headed up to my mom's cabin that's off the beaten path, and completely out of cell phone range.  The kids loved playing in the creek even though the water was ice cold! 

On the way back into town, we stopped at the farmer's market and got some yummy-liciousness.  I brought home some Vidalia Onion Honey Mustard Dressing and some Peach Syrup with Cinnamon.  YUM!

We wrapped up our day chowing down on some excellent southern food, spending more time with our dear friends, and relaxing after a long but incredible day.  I love making memories!

Bring on Easter!

~Kirsten

(All photographs copyright kthompson studios - DO NOT COPY OR REPRODUCE)

Welcome to One Tough Mother

Hey there!  Welcome to One Tough Mother!  My name is Kirsten, and I'm so pleased to meet you.  Allow me to give you a little bit of background about how One Tough Mother came to be. 

The short version is this --> I dabble in photography, and started a blog that was an extension of my photography website.  I quickly realized that I enjoy dabbling in a lot more creative outlets besides photography, and that was starting to consume my photography blog.  So, I decided to start a new blog exclusively for my other passions...and a little photography thrown in, too! 

One Tough Mother will be more of a lifestyle blog.  Here I will share with you my latest craft projects, scrapbook projects, and share some of my day to day life.  You'll meet my family and friends along the way, too.  So sit back, grab a glass of sweet tea (I am from Georgia, after all), and enjoy yourself.  I hope you'll be back again and again!

By the way, head on over to the "About Me" page to meet the fam!

~Kirsten